November 28, 2016

The Faked Paper that started autism vaccination fears in 1988

This is the faked paper published in the journal Lancet in 1988 that started the irrational fear of autism and vaccination that persists today. It was retracted from the journal because investigation found the authors had made unsubstantiated claims not supported by any scientific investigation.

Ohio state shooting alert.

At Least 9 Injured Amid Reports Of Active Shooter At Ohio State University

http://n.pr/2gzGuqU

November 26, 2016

Internet Wizard's Chess: weapons, economics, now Russia scores with Google/Facebook

Are we living now in the world of  "Internet Wizard's Chess"?

Ah. The game of the cold war, east versus west. CIA, James Bond movies and the KGB.
Nuclear arsenals, and submarines, fighter jets and moon landings and aircraft carriers. That was the fighting competition from the 50's into the 80's.

Then, economics caught up to a false Russian economy, and corruption, when Afghanistan and trying to keep up with NATO technology required money that Russia did not have.
The CCCP (USSR) lost out in an economic fashion, not from any traditional combat. Competition, was no longer  just about who has the biggest bombs. Turmoil, and still quite a bit of corruption in the modern Russian economy, lingers from the new ruling class that got hold of Russia's resources, in particular oil and gas.

But President Putin, a former KGB man, already knew a lot about the power of mis-information. The game of internet wizard's chess? Patience. Russians have been very good at this for decades. The art of planting tempting seeds and letting the West water them into real growing plants.
Very clever. Why build expensive weapons of the past, or worry about actually being behind the US on some technical front?

Sputnik floated around in orbit, a simple radio signal. The West imagined and feared space weapons. The first man in space, Yuri, was quite brave. He did not have a real fully functional pressure suit and his capsule had a single layer hull. Skip the technology, take a gamble, and first human in space was from Russia.

The Russian incursion into the Ukraine was full of denial and information manipulation, and now President Putin has had the last laugh and used social media, the Internet, the most modern part of the new American economy to sow fake news and to mess with American's trust in their own democratic institutions. No weapons required, just feed a Western audience social media and conspiracy theory news, add some embarrassing computer hacks (on one side of the political fence). Suddenly, down home, main street, Americans start to fight each other in an almost civil internet-war. Each side representing the extremes of liberals and conservatives and they start to fear each other. Everyone forgets about any problem from outside the USA.

Mr. Putin and Russia's version of 60 Minutes, are giggling now about how two-million more Americans can cast a vote for Clinton but Mr Trump becomes president.

Check out a very thoughtful article on this Russian influence from the Washington Post. Maybe, just maybe, liberals and conservatives share one thing in common. They just lost the latest game of internet Wizard's chess with Russia, and it happened right through their own iPhones and Android devices. Harry Potter or Harry Putin? :)

Planet Earth Planet Home...new playlist

Listen to Planet Earth Planet Home by kpmitton #np on #SoundCloud

https://soundcloud.com/kpmitton/sets/planet-earth-planet-home

November 20, 2016

Hour 1 Science Friday 11.11.2016: Volcanoes, Werner Herzog

Hour 1: News Roundup, Political Hangovers, Werner Herzog Science Friday 11.11.16

http://www.sciencefriday.com/podcast-download/35917/hr1-news-roundup-political-hangovers-werner-herzog.mp3

Filmmaker Werner Herzog talks about his new documentary “Into the Inferno,” about the devastating power of volcanoes. Plus, fighting your stress with ....stress...but the right kind of stress.

Subscribe the podcast
http://www.npr.org/rss/podcast.php?id=510221

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November 13, 2016

Ebola Virus Changes Fast, Trump Presidency & Science, and More.

Listen to Quirks and Clarks, from CBC Radio.....

What Will A Trump Presidency Mean For Science?

Plus,
Talking To Aliens,
A Blood Test For Concussions,
and more - 2016/11/12.

http://podcast.cbc.ca/mp3/podcasts/quirksaio_20161112_28166.mp3.

A Trump Presidency And Science, How Ebola Became More Contagious, Talking To Aliens, Chicken Bones R.... Sent from Public Radio & Podcast.

November 10, 2016

Cohen has died at 82

Leonard Cohen dies at 82

Say no more......

What science is this that attracts so many minds?

Ponder and listen to the man from Montreal.

Suzanne

https://youtu.be/tIssqxixYp0