Ticking ALL the minority checkboxes

"Dina Brawer, UK Ambassador of the Jewish Orthodox Feminist Alliance..."
I'll bet they hold some amazing office parties.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-32935767

Critical thinking is an essential component of the humanities

I didn't learn critical thinking in university physics courses, I learned it in high school English.

On the importance of humanities classes in developing a healthy level of skepticism :

"English education covered something that science did not : understanding what articles really mean, and what their intended effect is. When hearing someone expound the latest scientific theory, understanding if and how you're being manipulated is every bit as critical as understanding what the evidence itself suggests. That's something science classes never cover.Being able to analyse a poem isn't the point - the point is you're taught to analyse meaning and assess implication. Or, in its simplest form, not to take things at face value."

As for the cat, you'll have to read the article to understand that one.

Bertrand Russel explains why we should study philosophy

A great quote on why we should study philosophy

"Philosophy is to be studied, not for the sake of any definite answers to its questions, since no definite answers can, as a rule, be known to be true, but rather for the sake of the questions themselves; because these questions enlarge our conception of what is possible, enrich our intellectual imagination and diminish the dogmatic assurance which closes the mind against speculation; but above all because, through the greatness of the universe which philosophy contemplates, the mind is also rendered great, and becomes capable of that union with the universe which constitutes its highest good."

- Bertrand Russell

Frogs versus stars

In a public lecture in Prague today, Martin Rees made the oft-repeated statement that biology is far more complicated than astronomy. A frog is much more complex than a star or a galaxy.

If that's so, I'd like to hire a biologist and see how they get on. :D

Migrants and refugees are not the same thing

Look, can we please stop calling these people migrants. They aren't choosing to emigrate because they want to seek adventure and opportunity and better dental plans. They are fleeing persecution. They are refugees.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-32766748

Wealth is hard to measure

"Or here's a more political example: this measure would have counted Bill and Hillary Clinton, right after they left the White House, as among the poorest people in the world. They were, after all, millions of dollars in debt. But as Matt Yglesias wrote, you have to be pretty damn rich to get that poor."

Originally shared by Benjamin Ljung

You must read this!
http://www.vox.com/2015/1/22/7871947/oxfam-wealth-statistic

My take on the outcome of the 2015 UK election.

My take on the outcome of the 2015 UK election.

Substance isn't everything
The idea that you can fight a campaign solely on substance and not style is fundamentally flawed. Being able to persuade people to see your point of view isn't a nice bonus for a leader, it's a necessary quality of leadership. Humans aren't Vulcans, you can't expect people to respond only to what you're saying and not how you're saying it.

The voting system isn't broken
Smaller parties can make major breakthroughs, as the SNP have shown. Parties who fail to achieve similar results, though they may have a large share of the vote, probably need to re-assess how they're fighting the campaign. You need more than a single charismatic leader to win seats.

The voting system is broken
... but at the same time, about 16% of the electorate (Greens + UKIP) are now represented by just 2 MPs. The system is democratic but not representative - if you want a more representative system there's a danger that will make the system less democratic. Sure, you'll still be voting for politicians, but since the result will be more coalitions (which have to compromise on policies) you'll have less influence on government policy.

The left isn't doomed
It's taken the Tories 19 years to claw their way back and they're only just able to form a majority government. While Labour did badly in England, in Scotland they were replaced by a more left wing party. There is as yet no reason to suppose it will be a generational struggle to return the left to power.

TV debates aren't all that important
They did pretty much nothing for the image of any of the parties. UKIP, the Greens, and Plaid Cymru have had basically no benefit from them whatosever. The Lib Dems got no benefit from them last time and none this time. They're interesting to watch, but their influence appears to be very limited.

You can't abandon your principles and get away with it
The Lib Dems were hammered, and rightly so. Whether voters really attach all the blame to Clegg or the party as a whole remains to be seen. But it was crazy for the party to hang on to him until the bitter end - after the tuition fee scandal, it was abundantly clear to absolutely everyone that no-one believed a word he said.

Is right-wing politics really about fear ?

Is right-wing politics really about fear ?

"Next the volunteers were subjected to a series of threatening images, such as a frightened man with a spider on his face, and were startled with loud noises while they were assessed for physiological responses to fear, such as how conductive their skin was. The researchers found that the more easily startled people in the group tended to have more right-wing views, a result which fits with an emerging pattern of conservatives as more sensitive to negative aspects of the environment."

With the important caveat :

"If voting patterns can come from unconscious biases, does that decrease their validity? “It’s an interesting question”, says Inbar. “[If] I can explain why you like ice cream, are you then wrong to like ice cream? On an individual basis, I don’t think so.”"
http://www.bbc.com/future/story/20150506-the-dark-psychology-of-voting

Definitely a real quote

I found it on the internet so it must be true.

On the Powerwall

"The price quoted by Tesla does not include installation of the unit. To this needs to be added the cost of installing solar panels to gather energy."

Next challenge, Elon Musk : cheaper solar panels.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-32549118