The Internet’s largest site devoted to the study of flags. It may sound like trainspotting, but I’ve been sucked in a bit by the precision of the facts. For example, the US flag isn’t just Red, White, and Blue. It’s: Cable No. 70180 Old Glory Red Cable No. 70001 White Cable No. 70075 Old Glory […]
Author Archive | weeklyrob
Circumcision and Bad Logic
A recent Johns Hopkins study showed that Ugandan men who are circumcised are significantly less likely to contract herpes and human papillomavirus (HPV) (which can cause warts in men and cancer in women). Circumcision also lowers the risk of getting HIV. So the scientists who did the study are recommending that doctors everywhere inform mothers-to-be […]
A Happy Couple
weeklyrob: Could I have a couple of those widgets, please? Undefined Other: Sure! How many do you want? weeklyrob (internally): A COUPLE. weeklyrob: Two, please.
The Art of Rhetoric
I recently read a book that said that when you argue with your children, you should argue generously. (“Argue generously” is my rephrasing of what the author said.) That is, you shouldn’t win the argument only because you’re more articulate, or louder, or know how to spin words around better than they do. You should […]
Spring is Here
Today, a being standing at either the north or south pole will see the sun creep across the horizon. At the north pole, it’s all daytime for a while. The sun won’t set for six months. At the south pole, that’s it. No more sun till September. Those emperor penguins have a long night ahead […]
The Flu, 1918-style
Sort of recently, I’ve read two accounts of the 1918 flu. The first was a short story that had the flu as a sort of backdrop to the real story. (That was the excellent and sad “L. DeBard and Aliette” by Lauren Groff.) And the second is “Flu : The Story Of The Great Influenza […]
Backlash!
Within the last couple of days, I’ve read (some of) an article hating Facebook, and I’ve chatted with several people hating eBooks (like Kindle or Sony’s Reader). I don’t really get it. Facebook is fun, if you like that kind of thing, and eReaders are great for certain purposes. It’s that simple. Young people don’t […]
On Being Naked
Do you remember that scene in Blue Velvet, where Isabella Rossellini appears on a front lawn completely naked? Her arms are outstretched like that girl in Vietnam whose village had been bombed by the Vietnamese Air Force? I’m reading The Kindly Ones, by Anthony Powell. It has nothing like the emotional intensity of Blue Velvet […]
Old and Tired
Well, I don’t actually feel old (unlike a certain spring chicken I happen to know). But I did turn 40 last week, and my wife turned 36 yesterday. We still feel young. Gray hair is irrelevant. But I am tired. So instead of a real post, even though it’s been a week, I’ll pass on […]
This is Not Nice
Cop beats the crap out of a 15 year old girl. She did sort of seem to kick her shoe at him a little bit. So obviously she’s dangerous and needs to be beaten. However, after being thrown to the ground (by her hair), she didn’t seem to struggle at all, so the two punches […]