What’s wrong with this sentence: “This is how evolution stops bad mutations building up to dangerously high levels in a species”? I count at least four things wrong… This musing was prompted by the following snippet: When we reproduce, our children inherit a shuffled bag of mutations, and those with a collection of particularly bad ones are […]
Senator Sinodinos – the Minister for Industry, Innovation, and … whatsitsname? Oh yes, Science – said in a recent speech to the Press Club: [I]ncreasingly, there has emerged a lack of respect for the scientific method in some quarters. We see the conclusions of experts being cast aside, in favour of ideological positions and selective use of […]
Can a florist refuse to sell flowers for a couple’s wedding because the wedding is against the florist’s religious beliefs? The answer to that question took me on an interesting journey through the Australian Constitution, the High Court, Australian Standard 1266.0 (2011), the language of flowers, the Australian Human Rights Commission Act and the Sex Discrimination […]
Suddenly all of the jokes about economists aren’t funny. Here is an economist, Tim Harford, writing about applied psychology, AI, and control systems in the article https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/oct/11/crash-how-computers-are-setting-us-up-disaster Being likewise an expert in none of these disciplines, but with that little knowledge that makes me dangerous I am disturbed by what seems to be the basic […]
I have read quite a few opinion and analysis pieces about the presidential race in the U.S.A, which chronologically could be grouped into three phases: Phase 1 “Why Trump can’t win”; Phase 2 “Why Trump is winning”; and Phase 3 “Why Trump won’t win”. I find these pieces fascinating. Not because of their patent inaccuracy, […]
How appropriate. I doubt anything else will change – the destruction of R&D, the tearing down of renewable energy, the attempted removal of the CCA, the homeopath’s NBN – half the network for twice the price,the attempt to create a two-tier education system, a two-tier health system, the wholesale defunding of women’s shelters, aboriginal support […]
Originally posted on Castan Centre for Human Rights Law:
The following open letter was sent to editors of a number of Australian media publications regarding recent political attacks on the President of the Australian Human Rights Commission, Professor Gillian Triggs. Its signatories included a number of Castan Centre academics. If you would like to add…
First Movement Second Movement Continuo
This is the internal shell of spirula spirula, a cephalopod mollusc, or the ram’s horn squid. The live squid is rarely seen as it lives in the deep ocean; we only see its internal buoyancy organ. Today was green, grey and foamy.
Today was a celebration of clouds
Marine pelagic gastropod, creates a buoyant raft and floats in the blue layer. The most beautiful purple-blue. (No relation to Molina Molina by Creedence Clearwater Revival)
We were walking the dog a few weeks ago when we chanced on a strange sight. A eucalypt had been damaged in several places, and as these trees often do there was now a thick, sticky sap running down its trunk. Nothing very unusual there. In this species, the sap was a bright, transparent red: […]
I usually post these under the infinite8horizons menu, but today had sky, sea, waves, rain, colour, and detail, so I thought I’d post it here for a change. This is the skeleton of porpita porpita or the blue button, not a true jellyfish but a colony animal like the bluebottle. Thanks to the Queensland Museum […]
Strepera Graculina Are you looking at me? I’m just here for a drink… …and a bath… …Seriously! Can I have some privacy!? No? Alright, I’m off… …and here’s what I think of you!
