Politics, Science & Philosophy

Time for another round-up of one of, if not my, favorite shows on NPR; The Diane Rehm Show.

In descending chronological order. These are shows I've listened to. There is much more available at the shows' site.

April 15, 2009: State of The US Economy. Listen here.

April 14, 2009: U.S. Policy Toward Cuba. Listen here.

April 13, 2009: Unemployment and Job Insecurity. Listen here.

April 8, 2009: Gay Marriage. Listen here.

April 7, 2009: Defense Budget. Listen here.

April 6, 2009: North Korea Missile Launch. Listen here.

March 30, 2009: Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano/Senator Jim Webb. Listen here.

March 24, 2009: The Politics of Healthcare Reform. Listen here.

March 19, 2009: The State of the US Military. Listen here.

This Week in Space

2009-04-11T12:02:00.007-04:00

What has Hubble taught us about the planets?

Celebrating 400 Years of the Telescope

Beautifully photographed in 4K digital cinematography, the film is a visually stunning chronicle of the history of the telescope from the time of Galileo, its profound impact upon the science of astronomy, and how both shape the way we view ourselves in the midst of an infinite universe.

Ding Dong

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

M - Th 11p / 10c

Bad Korea Move

thedailyshow.com

Daily Show
Full Episodes

Economic Crisis

Political Humor

The Reverend Tyson took some time to talk to Google about his new book, The Pluto Files, which is all wood pulp.

Hope, In Silence

2009-04-09T13:16:00.007-04:00

Under what I assume to be Robert Krulwich's influence, Radio Lab's most recent post and podcast is about the "most profound story in the Bible," and no, they do not try to deconstruct it, justify it, or tear it apart. They simply present it - beautifully and eloquently. In honor of the current Passover and Easter season, Radio Lab presents: In Silence. A contemplation on the significance of when Abraham responded in silence when he was told to take Isaac to the mountain top.

Leonard Cohen has written a song, one of my favorites by him, about this story:

Jellyfish Galaxy

2009-04-05T17:23:00.003-04:00

A spectacular new image of an unusual spiral galaxy in the Coma Galaxy Cluster has been created from data taken by the Advanced Camera for Surveys on the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. It reveals lots of new details of the galaxy, NGC 4921, as well as an extraordinary rich background of more remote galaxies stretching back to the early Universe.

Wired For War

2009-04-03T12:44:00.010-04:00

The Unmanned Slaughter.

In his recent book and TED Talk, P.W.Singer describes the future of our military, mainly robotic weapons and the use of unmanned drones. Certainly less American casualties are expected, however, where is line we are to draw so that these missions don't get carried away? I'd prefer if there weren't people whose day-job was to blast "bad-guys" from a remote computer screen as if some new high-tech video game. The detachment from the action is highly alarming, but then-again, I don't want to fight in the field. Here's some info on the Unmanned Air Vehicles and the possible consequences.

"Is it our machines, or is it us, that is wired for war?"

He was on The Daily Show shortly after this book was released. Singer was also interviewed on Fresh Air with Terry Gross. His site, his articles and a list of his books. A review of 'Wired For War'.

Bush-like Orwellian Obama-speak?

2009-04-01T23:12:00.007-04:00

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

M - Th 11p / 10c

Redefinition Accomplished

comedycentral.com

Daily Show Full Episodes

Economic Crisis

Political Humor

I thought we'd see Obama Brand consumer goods before any rebranding.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart

M - Th 11p / 10c

Obama Rebranding

comedycentral.com

Daily Show Full Episodes

Economic Crisis

Political Humor

Used to calm us down, instead of shake us up? Some people desperately need to calm down.

Turtle Eats Pigeon!

2009-03-31T23:37:00.003-04:00

Craziest thing I've seen in a long time...

I have a feeling this one's going viral.

Here's a video of a frog eating a bird...

Visualizing HIV Transmission

2009-03-31T12:53:00.007-04:00

A paper published this past week in Science, titled "Quantitative 3D Video Microscopy of HIV Transfer Across T Cell Virological Synapses."

Abstract:

The spread of HIV between immune cells is greatly enhanced bycell-cell adhesions called virological synapses, although theunderlying mechanisms have been unclear. With use of an infectious,fluorescent clone of HIV, we tracked the movement of Gag inlive CD4 T cells and captured the direct translocation of HIVacross the virological synapse. Quantitative, high-speed three-dimensional(3D) video microscopy revealed the rapid formation of micrometer-sized"buttons" containing oligomerized viral Gag protein. Electronmicroscopy showed that these buttons were packed with buddingviral crescents. Viral transfer events were observed to formvirus-laden internal compartments within target cells. Continuoustime-lapse monitoring showed preferential infection throughsynapses. Thus, HIV dissemination may be enhanced by virologicalsynapse-mediated cell adhesion coupled to viral endocytosis.

Acquired from a blog titled Observations of a Nerd.

The Ascention of Humanity

2009-03-25T09:38:00.005-04:00

The following two TED talks get at something I mentioned in the previous post. Below, "Steven Pinker charts the decline of violence from Biblical times to the present, and argues that, though it may seem illogical and even obscene, given Iraq and Darfur, we are living in the most peaceful time in our species' existence."

More from TED and Pinker has been interviewed a couple times on Point of Inquiry. Additionally, he recently wrote an article in The New York Times titled, "My Genome, My Self" about the future of personalized medicine/genomics and Healthcare.

Secondly, and perhaps more applicable when considering "globalization" and the future of global development, Hans Rosling as he "debunks third-world myths with the best stats you've ever seen":

But couldn't we do more to help out, bringing those data points farther and faster to the top right?

President Obama on Leno

2009-03-23T12:29:00.010-04:00

President Obama appeared on Jay Leno’s Show last week, a first for a sitting president, and spoke about some of his policies and provided the viewers with some insight into this AIG fiasco as well as his general approach to changing America. He spoke candidly about a different sense of entitlement, one that doesn’t get nearly as much air-time as, oh say, the other entitlement issues.

Regardless of your opinions of him, isn’t it nice to see our President illustrating a deep understanding of the issues?

Doesn’t “too big to fail” sound a little monopolistic to you? Or, Oligopoligistic if we’re talking about a few companies/banks that can bring the whole system down if they make a few fatal "flaws"? I thought that capitalism, or at least a nice by-product of it, was that competition would prevent these sort of events – that, or these companies should fail (in principal) and let the little fish in the pond eat up all the scraps and grow larger and prosper? Perhaps the Federal Government needs to be the facilitator of such power re-alignment – taking temporary control of these entities in order to get their books cleaned up in order to set them straight.

To speak to a bigger point, we (by that I mean people in society/America) place many regulations after the fact, once we see the necessity. And sure with tremendous growth and a burgeoning of prosperity for a lot of the world, there is bound to be a point when it goes over-board. What I’m getting at is – what is to prevent something like this from happening in another 5, 10, 30 or 70 years? Some new bubble or type of explosive growth will arise and we will have long since shed the feeling of need for regulation and caution and then we will, once again, succumb to the wrath of contraction. I am all for what Obama mentioned about building stable economies that provide for the "everyone" at all times. But would it be better for the human species? In considering only the long-term trajectory of the development of human civilization, is the short-term pain and suffering necessary to herald in the advancement of our species? Is capitalism as we have it - a managed economy - the best system for the long run? How about a new hybrid economy, one with the principles of both human advancement and responsibility combined with that of societal empathy for those we, as a species, deem deserving of help? Socialized Capitalism, whereby people are helped when completely down on their luck and the system overall focuses more on prevention of catastrophe by implementing Healthcare and educational guarantees so that individuals may prosper – thereby uplifting society in its entirety. We pretty much have this system, although many are unwilling to admit it. We have Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, the Veterans Administration, unemployment benefits, emergency rooms, and if you want to get into other services the government provides and runs sufficiently well, we can do so in the comments. Nonetheless, the government, at all levels, has the power and responsibilities we bestow upon them. If you want the system to work for you, make sure the people who represent you work for you.

Also, if you’d like to discuss the “Special Olympics” gaffe, we can, and he should be a little more careful when speaking unscripted but I’d prefer to discuss the comments of substance previously mentioned in the interview.

Diane Rehm Round-Up

2009-03-20T15:38:00.010-04:00

Just a few this time. Rather informative and interesting discussions:

February 18, 2009, Reducing Home Foreclosures:
Listen here.

President Obama announces administration plans to stem the nation's rising tide of foreclosures. Differing views on what may or may not work, and what's in the taxpayers' interest.
Guests:

Dean Baker, co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research and co-author of "Social Security: The Phony Crisis" (Portfolio).

Steve O'Connor, senior vice president of government affairs, Mortgage Bankers Association.

Julia Gordon, senior policy counsel, Center for Responsible Lending.

Cena Valladolid, CEO of Consumer Credit Counseling Service, based in Las Vegas.

March 5, 2009, Leadership and Future of the GOP:

Listen here.

Republican National Committee Chair Michael Steele traded barbs with talk show host Rush Limbaugh. The latest on who is leading the GOP and internal strife within the party.

Guests:

David Keene, chairman of the American Conservative Union and managing associate with Carmen Group, a D.C.-based governmental-affairs firm

Byron York, chief political correspondent, "Washington Examiner" and author of "The Vast Left Wing Conspiracy"

David Frum, is a resident fellow, American Enterprise Institute; author of "Comeback: Conservatism That Can Win Again", and co-author of "An End to Evil: What's Next in the War on Terror;" former speechwriter and special assistant to President George W. Bush (2001-02).

Richard Viguerie, author of "Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause."

Saul Anuzis, is former chairman of the Michigan Republican Party. He was a recent candidate for the National Republican National Committee chair and serves as co-anchor of the RNC transition team. He regularly contributes to conservative blogs.

March 10, 2009, Federal Funding for Stem Cell Research:

Listen here.

President Obama has overturned Bush administration restrictions on federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research. A look at the new policy and its implications.

Guests:

Dr. Harold Varmus, co-chairman of the White House Council on Science and Technology, president, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, former director of the National Institutes of Health, and the author of "The Art and Politics of Science".

Dr. John Gearhart, Director, Institute for Regenerative Medicine, at the University of Pennsylvania.

Sheryl Gay Stolberg, White House correspondent, "The New York Times".

Richard Doerflinger, associate director, secretariat for pro-life activities for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

March 11, 2009, Education Reform:

Listen here.

The U.S. has one of the worst high school drop-out rates in the industrialized world and many fear current education standards hurt the country's competitiveness. What the Obama administration, educators, and reform advocates think are the best ways to improve education in America.

Guests:

Melody Barnes, director of the White House Domestic Policy Council, and special assistant to President Obama.

Lily Eskelsen, vice president, National Education Association.

Frederick Hess, resident scholar and director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute.

Dianne Piche, executive director, Citizen's Commission for Civil Rights.

The Life You Can Save

2009-03-19T13:38:00.007-04:00

Princeton Bioethicist and controversial contemporary philosopher Peter Singer has a new book and statement on society's priorities. In The Life You Can Save, Singer argues for people to spend higher percentages of their income on properly vetted agencies that are truly oriented in helping the third world. Granted, Americans tend to provide more aid than most other industrialized countries, but much of those donations go to religious organizations and higher education alumni contributions.

He was on The Diane Rehm Show last week and I'd like to share it with you. Listen here. From Rehm's site:

Author, co-author, and editor of forty books on topics ranging from Marx and Hegel to stem cell research to the way we eat, believes ending world poverty is within reach. However, it will require a new perspective on what it means to live an ethical life. He offers a plan for giving, and explains why it is ethically indefensible not to help those in need.

He has been interviewed by DJ Grothe at the Center for Inquiry a couple times to discuss his other books: The Way We Eat, listen here, and Ethics In An Age of Darwin, listen here.

Update: 03/23/09:

Dr. Singer was on 'The Colbert Report' on March 12, 2009, as he has been previously. Here are a bunch of essays he's authored, although I haven't read them.

Derren Brown Controls Minds

2009-03-17T12:55:00.012-04:00

Derren Brown is featured in a SciFi Channel show called Mind Control. I'm not a follower, but a few youtube clips were brought to my attention and, true to the blogging form, I'd like to share them with you. The following segment attempts to illustrate the lack of attention people pay to others when they're distracted. Watch until the end, it gets ridiculous.

And this one, called Subliminal Advertising, shows the impact of advertising in manipulating thought subconsciously but the tables are turned onto advertisers.

There are a bunch more at the youtubes and at his blog.

Slug Sex, It's a Beautiful Thing

2009-03-17T11:00:00.006-04:00

Aerial acrobatic acts of arousal. Betcha never seen this before:

Now those are some swinging slugs.

The Cramer Drama

2009-03-16T12:11:00.013-04:00

No, not that Kramer, Jim Cramer from CNBC's Mad Money. If you haven't heard of this drama, then crawl out from under the rock you currently reside and take place in the debate over the role of cable financial news in our financial market. How much do they affect the market? According to Cramer (from his 2006 explanation of market manipulation), they can significantly affect the outcome of stock prices. I am under the impression that rumor creation and subsequent short-selling is illegal, but they get away with it because "the SEC doesn't understand it." Cramer's predictions are more entertainment than real financial advice (seen here, but not sure of the methods) as he himself alluded to in the Stewart interview.

Jon Stewart of 'The Daily Show' has formally challenged CNBC and Rick Santelli in a scathing assessment of their activities. Jim Cramer took offense and went on MSNBC's Morning Joe and participated in a 12 minute segment in which Scarborough went off on a "Stewart is a partisan hack" rant about his influence. Tucker Carlson did the same in a later interview. Sorry Tucker, but you remember what happened last time someone crossed Stewart in this fashion. Please tell me, who's the partisan hack? Leave ad hominem attacks at the door and discuss the issues.

CNBC is latent in responding to Stewart and Mr. Santelli hasn't appeared on The Daily Show. For that matter, neither has Joe Scarborough or Rush Limbaugh. Stewart wasn’t “turning his back on one of his own,” this is not a partisan attack on the Republicans, or an attack on Cramer, a democrat, because he "can't find fault in Obama;" these "attacks" are simply Jon Stewart calling a spade a spade and demanding an explanation. The following videos are worth the time.

- First, the original segment.
- "In Cramer We Trust" and "Buy Bear Sterns."
- Some anticipation (some more) and Colbert's bet on Cramer.
- The Daily Show segments: opening and Bernie "Made-off" guilty plea.
- The unedited interview: Part One, Part Two, Part Three.
- Here it is, your "Moment of Zen."
- And after, a little on short-selling.
- At least one member of the Republican Party is willing to admit these guys are entertainers.

Cramer was on The Colbert Report the previous week where Stephen Colbert shenannagins were rampid.

Finally Tonight, Pareidolia

2009-03-11T16:58:00.008-04:00

Pareidolia:

A psychological phenomenon involving a vague and random stimulus (often an image or sound) being perceived as significant. Common examples include seeing images of animals or faces in clouds, the man in the moon, and hearing hidden messages on records played in reverse.

Might I add, the Face on Mars and all the Virgin Mary/Jesus you could imagine literally.

There is an pool of photos on pareidolia at Flickr. Check out this one in toast. Do you see it? The Big Bang. Or this one?

Psychologists utilize this predisposition when performing the Rorschach Inkblot Test to determine whether your thoughts will be projected upon the visual ques.

Can't See The Forrest From The Trees

2009-03-09T14:32:00.015-04:00

Even though 9,000 earmarks sounds like a lot, and combined with over 2,000 from the stimulus bill, it totals over 11,000 costing about 29 billion dollars. 29 billion out of about 1.4 trillion dollars (stimulus and omnibus bills combined), represents about 0.5% of the spending in the bill. Not to sound pro-earmark or pro-pork, but I commend that outcome, especially if it reduces the burden on police and school systems, reduces tax burden for ER visits, and creates jobs through sustainable infrastructure and revenue-generating projects.

So, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), how can you, in the same breath, condemn earmarks from other members of the Senate while applauding your own? One states "pork" is another states stimulus. Is this more hypocrisy?

Granted, when the "pork" is tied to campaign contributions from companies desiring the project, which it may very well be, I take issue with that aspect. However, that seems to be a contract bidding and competition issue between the senators/state legislature and the companies; now, that needs review and full disclosure, but the issue may not necessarily be the earmarks.

Update: 03/12/09:

The Daily Show weighed-in in a similar fashion.

Update: 03/19/09:

The Diane Rehm Show had a rather informative episode entitled Earmark Reform. Listen here.

Candidate Barack Obama promised to change how Washington works but the omnibus spending bill he just signed contained more than eight thousand earmarks. A look at how members of congress set aside money for projects in their districts and how the new administration hopes to reform the process.

Norman Ornstein, is resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute; coauthor with Thomas Mann of "The Broken Branch: How Congress Is Failing America and How to Get It Back on Track."

Thomas Mann, senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and co-author of "The Broken Branch: How Congress Is Failing America and How To Get It Back On Track."

Melanie Sloan, executive director, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW).

Cathy McMorris Rogers, Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers is serving her 3rd term in the U.S. House of Representatives representing Washington's 5th Congressional District. She serves as Vice Chair in the House Republican Conference. She is also on the House Armed Services Committee, the Education and Labor Committee and the Natural Resources Committee, where she serves as ranking member on the Water and Power Subcommittee.

Rep. James P. Moran, Congressman Jim Moran was elected to his 10th term in the U.S. House of Representatives in November 2008. He is a member of the Appropriations Committee, where he serves on the Defense, Interior and Labor Health and Human Services Subcommittees. He also serves on the House Democratic Steering and Policy Committee.

Steele Better Recognize

2009-03-08T13:20:00.005-04:00

Who the leader of the Republican Party is. A pretty funny SNL skit about the Steele/Limbaugh squabble and grovel. You'll be shocked, better yet, Steele will be.

The Doom Bunker

2009-03-07T09:34:00.004-05:00

Stephen Colbert had Stephen Moore and Jack Jacobs on his show to parody the perpetual fear-monger Glenn Beck in a segment about "worst case scenarios" for the United States. Worth the watch, wait until you see the worst scenarios imaginable at the end of the second clip. (Hint: worse than zombies, even zombie banks).

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Glenn Beck's War Room

Colbert Report Full Episodes
Political Humor

Rap Battle
Joke of the Day

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Doom Bunker - Jack Jacobs and Stephen Moore

Colbert Report Full Episodes
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Rap Battle
Joke of the Day

Quirkology

2009-03-05T09:59:00.008-05:00

The title of a book and website by professor, psychologist, and magician Richard Weisman. I heard an interview with him on Point of Inquiry (listen here) and subsequently sought out his videos on the internets. Take some time to check them out (they're each pretty short, 1-3 mins), here are the few more impressive ones. He has a youtube channel as well.

The Color Changing Card Trick:

The Prediction:

I was amazed at the first one and frustrated by the second.

The Mirror and Corkology were pretty cool too. There are also a bunch of "experiments" on his site, but I have yet to read through them.

Stewart Knocks The Block Off Wall Street

2009-03-05T09:36:00.004-05:00

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

CNBC Gives Financial Advice

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

And on the Dow as an Obama Indicator.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

The Dow Knows All

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Political Humor
Joke of the Day

Although I see the obvious trend Truman and Reagan, the Titanic example looks like a down-turn as well. Here is some more on the DJIA and a list of the largest daily losses and gains, in case anyone wants to correlate them to other important dates. At first glance, the most recent and largest one-day drops are in the Bush Administrations, plural, and one during the Clinton Administration.

Update 3/09/2009: Stewart added the following on the Dave Letterman Show:

The Culture Warriors

2009-03-04T18:04:00.005-05:00

Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly and more of their hypocrisy.

A Party in Limbaugh

The clip Stewart referred to about CPAC:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

CPAC After Party

Don't you just love ideology with a sprinkle of irrationality and an underlying aversion to self-reflection and evaluation?

Thomas Ricks on Morning Edition

2009-03-04T14:03:00.011-05:00

Thomas Ricks, military correspondent for The Washington Post, Pulitzer Prize winner, and former Pentagon correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, is the recent author of The Gamble.

Reflecting upon his time in Iraq, Afghanistan, with Ambassador Ryan Crocker and with Gen. David Petraeus, Ricks spoke to Steve Inskeep and had some frank opinions about the foreign policy debacles inherited by the Obama Administration. A little too much drama and pessimism to hear on my way to work in the morning. Listen here. I've mentioned Ricks and his book before.

Will the focus on Afghanistan leave Iraq in shambles? Will Iraq deteriorate into a "rogue state" after a civil war and ethnic cleansing does away with the Sunni's? These two wars are enough for Obama to handle, but Iran and North Korea are making headlines and let's not forget about all the domestic issues to deal with.

Harold Varmus on The Daily Show

2009-03-03T23:47:00.003-05:00

Kinda like this blog: The Art of Politics and Science by Harold Varmus.

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Harold Varmus

Daily Show Full Episodes
Important Things With Demetri Martin

Political Humor
Joke of the Day

President Obama's First Address To Congress and Gov. Jindal's Response

2009-02-27T23:37:00.008-05:00

The Diane Rehm Show had an in-depth discussion on these two speeches.

Before a joint session of Congress, President Obama lays out his vision for reversing the economic tide and how the effort should be tied to changes in health care, education, and energy policy. Analysis of the speech and the political battles ahead.

Guests: E.J. Dionne, Senior Fellow at The Brookings Institution, Washington Post columnist, and author of Souled Out: Reclaiming Faith and Politics After the Religious Right and of Stand Up Fight Back. Also, Ramesh Ponnuru, senior editor for the "National Review."

Listen here.

Here's some fact-checking on Obama's Speech.

Not so fast Bobby, where is the "moral" center of the Republican party? How can you lie about the very thing you hold up as the main reason we should trust you to run the country? And I know sound-bytes are catchy and do a lot for polarization, but the Republican arguments are vapid and harmful to the discord we desire. More, about "volcano-monitoring" and Gregg and Cantor's earmarks. See, while we're suffering from a chronic lack of prevention and oversight, what we want is to begin looking to build our economy's short- and long-term growth, not bicker over unsubstantiated ideology.

A Few More Interesting Sea Creatures

2009-02-27T18:47:00.003-05:00

Oceanographer David Gallo has given a couple TED talks about life in the deep ocean. First, Underwater Astonishments:

And from back in 1998, The Deep Oceans: A Ribbon of Life:

Also, a new species of fish has been characterized. Histiophryne psychedelica, named for "its crazy tan and peach stripes and lackadaisical style of getting around the sea floor, which resembles hopping more than swimming... No other fish is known to 'hop,' study co-author Ted Pietsch, a curator of fish at the University of Washington's Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture, said in a statement. Divers first spotted the fish in January 2008 in the harbor of Ambon Island, Indonesia." [from SciAm]

Just for kicks, a walking fish:

Macropinna microstoma

2009-02-27T17:04:00.012-05:00

How's this for transparency?

Researchers at the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute recently solved the half-century-old mystery of a fish with tubular eyes and a transparent head. Ever since the "barreleye" fish Macropinna microstoma was first described in 1939, marine biologists have known that its tubular eyes are very good at collecting light. However, the eyes were believed to be fixed in place and seemed to provide only a "tunnel-vision" view of whatever was directly above the fish's head. A new paper by Bruce Robison and Kim Reisenbichler shows that these unusual eyes can rotate within a transparent shield that covers the fish's head. This allows the barreleye to peer up at potential prey or focus forward to see what it is eating.

Deep-sea fish have adapted to their pitch-black environment in a variety of amazing ways. Several species of deep-water fishes in the family Opisthoproctidae are called "barreleyes" because their eyes are tubular in shape. Barreleyes typically live near the depth where sunlight from the surface fades to complete blackness. They use their ultra-sensitive tubular eyes to search for the faint silhouettes of prey overhead...

In addition to their amazing "headgear," barreleyes have a variety of other interesting adaptations to deep-sea life. Their large, flat fins allow them to remain nearly motionless in the water, and to maneuver very precisely (much like MBARI's ROVs). Their small mouths suggest that they can be very precise and selective in capturing small prey. On the other hand, their digestive systems are very large, which suggests that they can eat a variety of small drifting animals as well as jellies. In fact, the stomachs of the two net-caught fish contained fragments of jellies.

After documenting and studying the barreleye's unique adaptations, Robison and Reisenbichler developed a working hypothesis about how this animal makes a living. Most of the time, the fish hangs motionless in the water, with its body in a horizontal position and its eyes looking upward. The green pigments in its eyes may filter out sunlight coming directly from the sea surface, helping the barreleye spot the bioluminescent glow of jellies or other animals directly overhead. When it spots prey (such as a drifting jelly), the fish rotates its eyes forward and swims upward, in feeding mode.

Barreleyes share their deep-sea environment with many different types of jellies. Some of the most common are siphonophores (colonial jellies) in the genus Apolemia. These siphonophores grow to over 10 meters (33 feet) long. Like living drift nets, they trail thousands of stinging tentacles, which capture copepods and other small animals. The researchers speculate that barreleyes may maneuver carefully among the siphonophore's tentacles, picking off the captured organisms. The fish's eyes would rotate to help the fish keep its "eyes on the prize," while its transparent shield would protect the fish's eyes from the siphonophore's stinging cells...

Pharyngula has a bit more on it.

Update 03/16/09: Stephen Colbert featured the barrel-eyed fish in a segment called, The Craziest F#?king Thing I've Ever Heard:

The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c

Craziest F#?king Thing I've Ever Heard - Barreleye Fish

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NASA Name Contest

We Stopped Being Wise

2009-02-22T21:50:00.005-05:00

Arguing for reasonable regulation, not too much regulation. In Barry Schwartz's TED talk, in what begins as, what appears to be, a proclamation of a libertarian worldview becomes a comprehensive and well-reasoned argument for mutual respect and hope - akin to statements from then candidate and President-Elect Barak Obama.

The Ethical and Moral Integration: Morality's proper place in society. It can't be taught in one, or a few, isolated courses, monetarily incentivized, or persuaded, the idea of self-regulation through understanding, thereby creating a culture developed from the ground up with the incentive being a desire to behave in a proper way as a means of long-term advancement of our society. Discouraging mistrust and deception.

"They need to learn to respect learning..."

Ants: The Superorgansim

2009-02-21T14:39:00.014-05:00

A remarkable example of evolutionary societal hierarchy and emergence: Ants. Behold, some of their brilliance:

On BBC's Youtube Channel, an amazing video of Ants making a lifeboat.

And here is EO Wilson, author of The Superorganism, "talking with the ants" by using their signaling chemicals:

Much more at NOVA's Lord of the Ants special. EO Wison.org and the Encyclopedia of Life.

So, What IS Big Government?

2009-02-21T14:39:00.013-05:00

I hear/read quite a bit from libertarians and conservatives arguing against the "FDR-like new-New Deal" that Obama may promote. A tremendous expansion of "Big Government" achieved by, basically, increasing taxes and "spreading the wealth around" to provide "entitlements" for "poor people," amounting to a United Social States of America (back in the USSA!).

So, I really want to know: what is considered "Big Gov't"? Is it increasing taxes on the wealthy, albeit a relatively small percentage of people, to pay for long-sighted economic stability for the working class, the poor, the elderly, the disabled and the sick - not to mention lowering crime rates and maintaining stability?

Or, is it the Orwellian-like intrusive propaganda-laden government that desires more to watch over the citizenry by phone-tapping, reading emails, tracking internet usage, and removing constitutional rights, thereby intruding on privacy at all levels, and by not doing their elected job to protect us from environmental toxins, climate change and economic ruin, by relaxing regulations designed to prevent such disasters?

I'm not totally sure what others think, and perhaps this is a false dichotomy, but I prefer the former.

The Diane Rehm Show Round-Up

2009-02-19T12:44:00.010-05:00

I mentioned before that I've been catching up on some Diane Rehm Show lately (I've been going podcast crazy and I'll have some additional round-ups for Fresh Air and Point of Inquiry.) Here are some I've enjoyed learning from (in descending chronological order):

February 5, 2009. Liaquat Ahamed, a professional investment manager and a former economist at The World Bank, is the author of Lords of Finance. How four bankers, titans of their time, sought to rebuild the shattered international financial system after World War One. A look at their initial success, the fateful decisions that put the world on the path of the Great Depression, and parallels to the financial crisis of today. Listen here.

February 2, 2009. Joan Claybrook, President of Public Citizen and former head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration during the Carter Administration, has been called the dean of consumer activism. She offers a look back on her twenty-seven years as president of Public Citizen and what she sees as the most important health, safety, and environmental challenges to be addressed by the Obama administration. Listen here.

January 29, 2009. Global Economic Crisis. Political and business leaders are gathering at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland and debating how best to contain the deepening global recession.

The Guests are: Lionel Barber, editor, Financial Times, John Cavanagh, director of the Institute for Policy Studies; coauthor, with Robin Broad, of the new book: Development Redefined: How the Market Met its Match; Zanny Minton Beddoes, editor at The Economist and formerly an economist at the International Monetary Fund; and Edith Lederer, United Nations correspondent for the The Associated Press. Listen here.

December 30, 2008. Clean Coal Technology (rebroadcast from before the Presidential Election, but still applicable). A look at what carbon output restrictions could mean for the nation's coal fired power plants which currently supply half of this country's electricity. Costs, benefits, and technical feasibility of clean coal technology.

The Guests are: Ed Rubin, Professor, Engineering and Public Policy (EPP) and Mechanical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon; Jeff Goodell, a contributing editor at "Rolling Stone" and a frequent contributor to the "New York Times Magazine" as well as author of Big Coal, Sunnyvale, and The Cyberthief and the Samurai; James Slutz, Acting Assistant Secretary, Office of Fossil Energy U.S. Department of Energy; and Joe Lucas, VP Communications, American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity. Listen here.

December 23, 2008. Middle Class Anxiety. President-elect Obama's transition team worked on stimulus plans aimed specifically at middle-income workers. A look at economic projections for 2009 and the prospects for averting a sharp rise in unemployment.

The Guests are: Mark Zandi, chief economist and co-founder of Moodys Economy.com author of Financial Shock: A 360 degree Look at the Subprime Mortgage Implosion and How to Avoid the Next Financial Crisis; Lawrence Mishel, president of the Economic Policy Institute; and Naftali Bendavid, deputy Washington bureau chief of the Chicago Tribune; author of The Thumpin': How Rahm Emanuel and the Democrats Learned to be Ruthless and Ended the Republican Revolution. Listen here.

December 22, 2008. FDA. Food scares and drug scandals have raised serious concerns over the F.D.A.’s ability to regulate effectively. A look at the resources and direction at the Food and Drug Administration, and why some are hoping for significant changes under the next administration.

The Guests are: Gardiner Harris, a science reporter for The New York Times; Alan Goldhammer, PhD, associate vice president for regulatory affairs at the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA); Dr. Sidney Wolfe, director of the Health Research Group at Public Citizen; editor of WorstPills.org; Rep. Rosa de Lauro, U.S. Congresswoman, representing Connecticut's 3rd district; chairwoman of the Agriculture-FDA Appropriations Subcommittee; and William Hubbard, former associate commissioner for the Food and Drug Administration and spokesperson for the Alliance for a Stronger FDA. Listen here.

November 26, 2008. Closing Guantanamo. Then President-elect Obama has said he'll close the prison camp at Guantanamo Bay (and since has signed that he will). The panel discusses the series of tough choices awaiting him on how to prosecute suspected terrorists and how to handle those who won't face trial.

The Guests are: Charles Stimson, senior legal fellow at the Heritage Foundation's Center for Legal and Judicial Studies and former deputy assistant defense secretary for detainee affairs; Ken Gude, associate director, Center for American Progress; authored the report "How to Close Guantanamo"; Vincent Warren, executive director of the Center for Constitutional Rights. Listen here.

November 24, 2008. The Economy and Pensions. Diane and her guests discuss what the financial crisis means for retirement accounts, including pressures on employers, workers, and retirees.

The Guests are: David Wessel, economics editor, The Wall Street Journal; Mark Iwry, a nonresident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Principal of the Retirement Security Project, Research Professor at Georgetown University, and former Benefits Tax Counsel at the U.S. Treasury Dept. from 1995-2001; Karen Friedman, policy director, Pension Rights Center; and James Klein, president, American Benefits Council. Listen here.

November 13, 2008. China's Economic Stimulus Package and The World Economy. Diane and her guests discuss China's economic stimulus plan, whether it can stave off a recession at home, and how it might affect the global economy.

The Guests are: Fred Bergsten, director of the Peter G. Peterson Institute for International Economics and author of China's Rise; Eswar Prasad, Professor of Economics at Cornell University, Senior Fellow at Brookings, and former head of the China Division at the IMF; Yasheng Huang, Professor of Management at the Sloan School of Management at MIT and author of Capitalism with Chinese Characteristics. Listen here.

August 17, 2008. The National Debt. The official national debt of the United States is close to $9.6 trillion, but when the cost of unfunded entitlement programs like Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid are included, the total is a staggering $53 trillion: what our government owes to whom and why we should care.

The Guests are: David Walker, CEO, Peter G Peterson Foundation and former U.S. Comptroller General; Roberton Williams, principal research associate at the Tax Policy Center, a joint venture of the Urban Institute and the Brookings Institution; and Stephen Moore, member of the Wall Street Journal's editorial board and former President of the Club for Growth. Listen here.

Engineering Cells, Growing Tissues, and Robots

2009-02-19T09:22:00.001-05:00

The current crisis and the technologies that can get us out of it. How Homo sapien can become "Homo evolutis." From TED:

Even as mega-banks topple, Juan Enriquez says the big reboot is yet to come. But don't look for it on your ballot -- or in the stock exchange. It'll come from science labs, and it promises keener bodies and minds. Our kids are going to be ... different.

Courage the Cure

2009-02-18T17:57:00.000-05:00

See also the courage of Intelligent Design

[You'll cry peeling away the funny]

A Different Approach to War

2009-02-16T20:32:00.000-05:00

I just finished listening to an engaging series of stories. Dave Davies interviewed Thomas E. Ricks on Fresh Air about his new book entitled The Gamble. Ricks explains how General David Petreaus turned the tables on the US Army strategy in Iraq by embracing dialogue and compromise while the US "surged" military action and troop levels. According to Ricks, the war in Iraq was terribly off course and Petreaus took "a gamble". The War was being run with an arrogant, top-down, approach - one hated by the Iraqi people and thus fueling the insurgency. Rick argues that "the surge" did work, not by the plans in Washington, but by the ideas from General Petreaus. An academic from Princeton, with a different outlook and vision, understood the nuances of basic human interaction. Petreaus sought to help solve Iraqi civilian problems by offering money, stability and diplomacy. He did this without President Bush's knowledge, but within "the boundaries of his authority".

Ricks illustrates the humanity behind the fighting. The teaching of American democratic values - not by the force of a gun, but over drinks. It appears America has adopted a strategy exemplified by Theodore Roosevelt's famous "speck softly, but carry a heavy stick" philosophy. This courage and confidence changed the course for Iraq and possibly (and hopefully) the Middle East. This is how you plan for democracy in the region. This is how you teach by showing, not by telling with force.

It is entirely possible that the sectarian conflict is just brewing under the surface of fake Iraqi smiles with their fingers crossed behind their backs - waiting for us to leave. This can be prevented with the use of stern diplomatic conversations to set stringent terms. The Iraqi people know what the US is capable of when using force (we have a very heavy stick). However, the said current approach, one of embracing different culture, talking out those differences, understanding opposing viewpoints and working out compromise, can yield greater long-term success. Get the Iraqi's to fight off their own insurgency, get them to value their country as one they worked for with the United States. This seems worth considering for Afghanistan against the Taliban. Putting Patreaus, and these ideals, in charge of Central Command may be a very good move.

One very important point mentioned was the commonality in philosophy and approach between President Obama and General Petreaus (community organizers?), even though they don't quite get along as of now. Ricks says that Petraeus, at first, was skeptical of Obama because, then candidate, Obama had opposed the surge and gained a lot of political points by criticizing the war. Nonetheless, I'm confident they'll be able to work together - neither really have a choice and they know better. Perhaps this is a new leaf with regard to foreign policy. That diplomacy can work for the future, only next time without ethnic cleansing.

There's an excerpt from the book at NPR. And here's an interview with Jon Stewart.

Update: This review gets at what I'm talking about.

The Origin of Darwin

2009-02-12T12:49:00.000-05:00

Charles Robert Darwin was born February 12, 1809 - two hundred years ago today. He died April 19, 1882, but his legacy remains strong as a highly controversial figure who represents a painful reality. Most famous for On The Origin of Species, Darwin describes a world-view consisting of speciation by adaptation via natural selection - the basis for the Theory of Evolution.

Michael Shermer, creator of Skeptic Magazine and author of Why Darwin Matters, spoke on Point of Inquiry about Darwin's significance as both a scientist and an icon (listen here). A conversation about Darwin rapidly becomes one about confronting beliefs and ideology (that, or agreement; depending on your circle of friends).

For an explanation of How Evolution Works:

I like his style but I have some tiny criticisms. He speaks of "randomness" a little too often and he's a little too contentious with creationists - but I give him props for putting together these presentations. There are seven parts to his "primer" on Evolution and basic genetics. The subsequent ones about DNA, RNA, protein synthesis, and mutations may be a little boring if you already know it. On the other hand, it may be too full of jargon, and a high school biology course may not be enough to help, if you don't know it. After all, only about 4 in 10 Americans think evolution is true. Really a shame. The videos get more informative and interesting after you form a foundation from the first few videos.

"It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change."

Another on Abiogenesis:

Additional Reading:

Darwin at SEED.

Blogging the Origin.

Darwin at SciAm.

Talk Origins.

(I just like this pic)

Remind Me Again...

2009-02-10T23:13:00.000-05:00

...the definition of irony.

Sorry for all the Comedy Central lately, I'm pretty busy and I only have time to distribute the articulation of others. Here's some more of that irony, or is it hypocrisy?

Darker than Darth

2009-02-09T23:26:00.000-05:00

Cheney emerges in a recent interview with Politico with an attempt to pass the blame of any terrorist attack on to Obama.

So, if Clinton is to blame for 9/11, then who is to blame if a new attack occurs within the next year or so? Certainly not the Bush II Administration, after all, they made the world a safer, happier place...

The Audacity of Nope

2009-02-04T16:57:00.000-05:00

Stimulating Discussions

2009-02-04T14:56:00.000-05:00

Let's take an hour to cut through much of the partisan bickering and try to understand the reasons for the Stimulus package and its possible outcomes.

Yesterday on The Diane Rehm Show there was a discussion on the Senate Stimulus Bill (listen here). Diane had James K. Galbraith, an economist; Lloyd M. Bentsen Jr. professor of government at the University of Texas at Austin's Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs and author of The Predator State: How Conservatives Abandoned the Free Market and Why Liberals Should Too (Interesting title, I may have to look into reading it); William Beach, director of The Heritage Foundation's Center for Data Analysis; and Eamon Javers, correspondent for Politico on the discuss the stimulus package.

Many on the Right are worried about the sustainability of the jobs created by this bill and the Left have the weight of possible failure upon them - and Conservatives are taking advantage of that vulnerability. I see much of the bickering as obstructionist. We need a compromise and I, with my finite knowledge on this subject, think that a decent pay-roll cut (as suggested below) combined with major infrastructure spending and mortgage refinancing are a start. Estimates place the infrastructure figure at 2.2 trillion dollars, which is way too much for the US Gov't to undertake, but certainly a massive investment in our future is priority. We don't need a World War to invest heavily in our country. I'm talking broadband internet for all, single-payer healthcare (taking it out of current the employee-based system), alternative energy investments (solar and wind in particular) and mass-transit initiatives, such as bullet trains to lighten the airline industry burden. These projects extend well beyond one year, creating jobs for a long time and providing workers with skills specialized for these projects.

That said, Jon Stewart had Lawrence Lindsey on to discuss his new book, What A President Should Know ...but most learn too late: An Insiders View On How To Succeed In The Oval Office, and the Stimulus Package (what else is anyone talking about? oh yeah).

"Consider it Revolution Insurance"

The End of an Error

2009-02-04T08:48:00.000-05:00

Chris Mooney appeared on The Colbert Report to advertise his book, The Republican War on Science, and although I haven't read it, I have listened to an interview with DJ Grothie on Point of Inquiry recently. Mooney blogs over at The Intersection on Science Blogs.

Most of the scientific community would agree with Mooney that there is a tremendous lack of funding and many go as far to say there has been a subversion of many studies for political gain and private company profit, particularly pertaining to global warming. A lot of that is about to Change:

"Especially when it's inconvenient." More here.

The deficiency in funding has been stifling the growth of basic research in the US, not just with embryonic stem cells, but when the vast majority of University funding comes through the National Institutes of Health and that amount has plateaued for the last few years, resulting in less than ten percent of grants are funded, it's difficult to evaluate any creative hypothesis and scientists tow the status quo with safe project guaranteed to publish papers. It's very unfortunate. Let's hope the Obama Administration can at least turn this trend around. From AAAS, the proposed House and Senate versions of the Science Stimulus section of the Recovery Plan:

National Institutes of Health

House: $3.5 billion (includes $1.5 billion for extramural research, over 2 years, $1.5 billion for extramural facilities, and $500 million for on-campus buildings.)

Senate: $3.5 billion ($2.7 billion split between director's office and the institutes, $500 million for on-campus buildings, and $300 million for extramural instrumentation.)

Department of Defense (Biodefense)

House: $900 million (including $430 million for BARDA and $420 million for pandemic flu vaccine development)

Senate: $870 million (entirely for flu vaccine development) NOAA House: $1 billion (including $600 million for climate sensors and modeling, $400 million for habitat restoration) Senate: $1.2 billion (including $795 million for facilities and equipment, $427 million for restoration and maintenance)

Department of Energy

House: $41 billion (including $2 billion for the Office of Science, which supports U.S. physics, and $400 million for ARPA-E)

Senate: $40 billion (including $430 million for Office of Science, $2.6 billion for energy efficiency and renewable-energy research)

National Institute of Standards and Technology

House: $520 million (including $300 million for extramural buildings, $100 million for intramural research, and $70 million for Technology Innovation Program)

Senate: $575 million (including $357 million for intramural facilities, $218 million for competitive grants)

U.S. Geological Survey

House: $200 million (to upgrade labs, enhance National Map project and various monitoring networks)

Senate: $135 million

National Science Foundation

House: $3 billion (including $2 billion for research, $100 million for education, $400 million for major new facilities, $300 million for instrumentation, and $200 million for academic renovation)

Senate: $1.4 billion (including $1 billion for research, $50 million for education, $150 million for new facilities, and $200 million for instrumentation)

NASA

House: $600 million (including $400 million for science, $150 million for aeronautics, and $50 million for repairs to NASA facilities damaged by hurricanes)

Senate: $1.5 billion ($500 million for science, $250 million for aeronautics, $500 milllion for human exploration, and $250 million for hurricane repairs)

Obama has recently said that "the days of Washington dragging its heels are over... [that his] administration will not deny facts, [they] will be guided by them," mainly in respect to Climate Change policy initiatives.

Well, that's change I can believe in. Investment in our basic science today will yield the technologies of tomorrow - a convenient bonus is tremendous economic growth.

The Universe Is In Us

2009-02-01T10:16:00.000-05:00

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Neil deGrasse Tyson

Daily Show Full Episodes
Funny Political Videos

Important Things With Demetri Martin
More Funny Videos

Update: When he's left with a Rubik's Cube:

The Daily Show With Jon StewartM - Th 11p / 10c

Intro - Neil deGrasse Tyson's Rubik's Cube

Daily Show Full Episodes
Funny Political Videos

Important Things With Demetri Martin
More Funny Videos

[Reverend Tyson]

Skewed Views of Science

2009-01-30T17:26:00.000-05:00

Overcoming bias and the "potential for learning." This video aids in explaining a bit about the scientific process. It certainly elaborates the subject of a recent post and the comments that followed.

Check out this list of the types of biases. Which ones do you subscribe? Confirmation bias is a popular one. Everyone falls into any number of these at times, but knowledge of their existence will certainly help avoid them or recognize them in retrospect.

From Both Sides: Thoughts on Foreign Policy

2009-01-29T10:52:00.000-05:00

I've been catching up on some Diane Rehm Show podcasts and the following two discuss the foreign policy issues facing America in the coming months and years.

First, all the way back to August 26, 2008, Foreign Policy Issues Ahead with Peter Brookes, senior fellow for national security affairs at the Heritage Foundation (right-leaning think tank) - former deputy assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific affairs in the Bush administration - author of A Devil's Triangle: Terrorism, WMD and Rogue States. David Sanger, chief Washington correspondent for The New York Times and Lawrence Korb, senior fellow at the Center for American Progress (left-leaning think tank), and former Assistant Secretary of Defense in the Reagan administration

Listen here.

Second, on September 9, 2008, Diane interviewed Zbigniew Brzezinski and Brent Scowcroft about their book, America and the World, in which Brezezinski and Scowcroft offer their insight as a conversation, moderated by David Iglesisa, between two opposing political ideologies with the intention to engage differing view points to facilitate productive solutions.

Zbigniew Brzezinski is a counselor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, professor of foreign policy at The Johns Hopkins University. His many books include, The Choice, The Grand Failure and The Grand Chessboard, and Second Chance. He served as national security adviser to former President Jimmy Carter.

Brent Scowcroft is President of The Scowcroft Group. He served as National Security Advisor to two presidents and as Military Assistant to President Nixon. He is coauthor with former President George H. W. Bush of A World Transformed.

Listen here.

Both of these episodes were recorded well before the 2008 election, so there is some mention of each of the campaigns positions on these issues, which is still informative in itself, but mainly it reminds us of the issues ahead and how convoluted the solutions and approaches are.

Massive Windfalls

2009-01-27T13:35:00.001-05:00

Kucinich ties the billion dollar bank bailout to the recent mega-$68 billion pharmaceutical deal between Pfizer and Wyeth.

The Real Difference Between Liberals and Conservatives

2009-01-27T08:39:00.000-05:00

Let's begin overcoming bias by beginning with a discussion on the major differences and similarities between Liberals and Conservatives. From TED:

Psychologist Jonathan Haidt studies morality and emotion in the context of culture. He asks: Why did humans evolve to have morals - and why did we all evolve to have such different morals, to the point that our moral differences may make us deadly enemies? It's a question with deep repercussions in war and peace - and in modern politics, where reasoned discourse has been replaced by partisan anger and cries of "You just don't get it!"

Haidt asks, "Can't we all disagree more constructively?" He suggests we might build a more civil and productive discourse by understanding the moral psychology of those we disagree with, and committing to a more civil political process. He's also active in the study of positive psychology and human flourishing.

Learn more about his drive for a more productive and civil politics - and sign a pledge to engage in civil politics - on his website CivilPolitics.org.

He has a site and book called The Happiness Hypothesis.

Bias in "The Mind of The Market"

2009-01-25T13:40:00.001-05:00

The following is an excerpt from Michael Shermer's The Mind of The Market, pages 90-92

As a fiscal conservative and social liberal, I have never met a Republican or Democrat in whom I could not find something to like. I have close friends in both camps, in which I have observed the following: no matter the issue under discussion, both sides are equally convinced that the evidence overwhelmingly supports their positions.

This surety is called the confirmation bias, where we seek and find confirmatory evidence in support of already existing beliefs and ignore or reinterpret disconfirmatory evidence. According to Tufts University psychologist Raymond Nickerson, the confirmation bias "appears to be sufficiently strong and pervasive that one is led to wonder whether the bias, by itself, might account for a significant fraction of the disputes, altercations, and misunderstandings that occur among individuals, groups, and nations." [Raymond Nickerson, "Confirmation Bias: A Ubiquitous Phenomenon in Many Guises," Review of General Psychology 2(2) (1998): 175-220.] Experimental examples abound. In a 1981 study by psychologist Mark Snyder, subjects were asked to assess the personality of someone they were about to meet. One group of subjects was given a profile of an introvert (shy, timid, quiet), while another group of subjects was given a profile of an extrovert (sociable, talkative, outgoing). When asked to make a personality assessment, those subjects who were told that the person would be an extrovert tended to ask questions that would lead to that conclusion; the introvert group did the same in the opposite direction. [Mark Snyder, "Seek and Ye Shall Find: Testing Hypotheses About Other People," in E.T. Higgins, C.P. Heiman, and M.P. Zanna, eds., Social Cognition: The Ontario Symposium on Personality and Social Psychology (Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, 1981), 277-303.] In a 1983 study, psychologists John Darley and Paul Gross showed subjects a videotape of a child taking a test. One group was told that the child was from a high socioeconomic class; the other group was told that the child was from a low socioeconomic class. The subjects were then asked to evaluate the academic abilities of the child based on the results of the test. The subjects who were told that the child they were evaluating was from a high socioeconomic class rated the child's abilities as above grade level; the subjects who thought they were evaluating low socioeconomic kids rated them below grade level in ability. What is remarkable about this study is that the subjects were looking at the same set of test results! [John M. Darley and Paul H. Gross, "A Hypothesis-Confirming Bias in Labelling Effects," Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 44 (1983): 20-33.]

The power of expectation cannot be overstated. In 1989, psychologists Bonnie Sherman and Ziva Kunda conducted an experiment in which they presented subjects with evidence that contradicted a belief they held deeply, and with evidence that supported the same belief. The results showed that the subjects acknowledged the validity of the confirming evidence but were skeptical of the value of the disconfirming evidence. [Bonnie Sherman and Ziva Kunda, "Motivated Evaluation of Scientific Evidence," paper presented at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Society, Arlington, VA, 1989.] In another 1989 study, by the psychologist Deanna Kuhn, when children and young adults were exposed to evidence inconsistent with a theory they preferred, they failed to notice the contradictory evidence, or if they did recognize its existence, they tended to reinterpret it to favor their preconceived beliefs. [Deanna Kuhn, "Children and Adults as Intuitive Scientists," Psychological Review 96 (1989): 674-89.] In a related study, Kuhn exposed subjects to an audio recording of an actual murder trial and discovered that instead of evaluating the evidence first and then coming to a conclusion, most subjects concocted a narrative in their mind about what happened, made a decision of guilt or innocence, then riffled through the evidence and picked out what most closely fit the story. [Deanna Kuhn, M. Weinstock, and R. Flaton, "How Well Do Jurors Reason? Competence Dimensions of Individual Variation in a Juror Reasoning Task," Psychological Science 5 (1994): 289-96.]

A functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study conducted at Emory University under the direction of psychologist Drew Westen shows where in the brain the confirmation bias occurs, and how it is unconscious and driven by emotions. [D. Westen, C. Kilts, P. Blagov, K. Harenski, and S. Hamann, "The Neural Basis of Motivated Reasoning: An fMRI Study of Emotional Constraints on Political Judgment During the U.S. Presidential Election of 2004," Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 18 (2006): 1947-58.] During the run-up to the 2004 presidential election, while undergoing a brain scan, thirty men - half self-described as "strong" Republicans and half as "strong" Democrats - were tasked with assessing statements by both George W. Bush and John Kerry in which the candidates clearly contradicted themselves. Not surprisingly, in their assessments, Republican subjects were as critical of Kerry as Democratic subjects were of Bush, yet both let their own preferred candidate off the evaluative hook.

The neuroimaging results, however, revealed that the part of the brain most associated with reasoning - the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex - was quiescent. Most active were the orbital frontal cortex, which is involved in the processing of emotions, the anterior cingulate, which is associated with conflict resolution, the posterior cingulate, which is concerned with making judgments about moral accountability, and - once subjects had arrived at a conclusion that made them emotionally comfortable - the ventral striatum, which is related to reward. "We did not see any increased activation of the parts of the brain normally engaged during reasoning," Westen explained. "What we saw instead was a network of emotion circuits lighting up, including circuits hypothesized to be involved in regulating emotion, and circuits known to be involved in resolving conflicts." Interestingly, neural circuits engaged in rewarding selective behaviors were activated. "Essentially, it appears as if partisans twirl the cognitive kaleidoscope until they get the conclusions they want, and then they get massively reinforced for it, with the elimination of negative emotional states and activation of positive ones."

These neural correlates of the confirmation bias have implications that reach deeply into politics and economics. A judge or jury assessing evidence against a defendant and a CEO evaluating information about a company undergo this same cognitive process. And this brings us back to where we began: pattern-seeking, connect-the-dots thinking, fueled by the confirmation bias, that builds up incorrect folk intuitions. What can we do about that?

What can we do about that?

Understanding

2009-01-22T23:18:00.000-05:00

A Journey Toward Understanding?

Understanding what?

I can't stand a cliffhanger.

Without posts this blog is nothing but an unexplored idea.

A blank page.

It contributes nothing.

Where's the journey?

It stops with total understanding of absolutely nothing new.

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Anyways, obtaining access upon invitation is easy. Google adds posting features for this site to my dashboard. I can make posts through email or the dashboard, but I do not have authorization to make blog template or preference changes.

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Oh yeah, FIRST!