I've always liked this joke:
I used to hate going to weddings where family was present.
Each time uncles and aunts came to me and slapped me on the shoulder and asked: "When's it your turn?"
They stopped doing that when I started doing the same with them at funerals.
L'origine de Bert
Monday, October 03, 2005
Confucius on women and oppressive governments
"Women and people of low birth are very hard to deal with. If you are friendly with them, they get out of hand, and if you keep your distance, they resent it." - Confucius
Addendum: 子曰：唯女人与小人难养也，近者则不逊远者则怨
(via The Analects of Confucius - Lun Yu XVII. 25. (472))
***
In passing by the side of mount Thâi, Confucius came on a woman who was wailing bitterly by a grave. The Master bowed forward to the cross-bar, and hastened to her; and then sent Dze-lû to question her. 'Your wailing,' said he, 'is altogether like that of one who has suffered sorrow upon sorrow.' She replied, ' It is so. Formerly, my husband's father was killed here by a tiger. My husband was also killed (by another), and now my son has died in the same way.' The Master said, 'Why do you not leave the place?' The answer was, 'There is no oppressive government here.' The Master then said (to the disciples), 'Remember this, my little children. Oppressive government is more terrible than tigers.'
- The Book of Rites: Book II - THE THAN KUNG, Section II, PART III, Passage 10
(An extended retelling of the story above may be found here)
Addendum: 子曰：唯女人与小人难养也，近者则不逊远者则怨
(via The Analects of Confucius - Lun Yu XVII. 25. (472))
***
In passing by the side of mount Thâi, Confucius came on a woman who was wailing bitterly by a grave. The Master bowed forward to the cross-bar, and hastened to her; and then sent Dze-lû to question her. 'Your wailing,' said he, 'is altogether like that of one who has suffered sorrow upon sorrow.' She replied, ' It is so. Formerly, my husband's father was killed here by a tiger. My husband was also killed (by another), and now my son has died in the same way.' The Master said, 'Why do you not leave the place?' The answer was, 'There is no oppressive government here.' The Master then said (to the disciples), 'Remember this, my little children. Oppressive government is more terrible than tigers.'
- The Book of Rites: Book II - THE THAN KUNG, Section II, PART III, Passage 10
(An extended retelling of the story above may be found here)
Post ID: 112832841836272375
Amazon.com: Books: The Trouble with Confucianism (The Tanner Lectures on Human Values)
"Amazon.com
As Confucian thinking makes a comeback in contemporary China, people are wondering if it will merely serve as a conservative tool for a despotic government as in imperial times, or if it could act instead as a liberalizing force. Wm. Theodore de Bary, depicting Confucius and certain later Confucians as Old Testament prophetlike figures, suggests that the true Confucian spirit is one of protesting and rectifying governmental injustices. This model of Confucianism, de Bary illustrates, is not a backward dogmatist intent on maintaining the status quo at all costs, but a whistle-blower, a moralizing evangelist responsible to the people and to heaven for speaking out against existing evils and abuses. Throughout, de Bary sympathizes with the scholar-official who feels trapped between the needs of the people and the will of an autocratic government, which reflects a parallel dilemma in today's China.
Book Description
In Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and other parts of East and Southeast Asia, as well as China, people are asking, "What does Confucianism have to offer today?" For some, Confucius is still the symbol of a reactionary and repressive past; for others, he is the humanist admired by generations of scholars and thinkers, East and West, for his ethical system and discipline. In the face of such complications, only a scholar of Theodore de Bary's stature could venture broad answers to the question of the significance of Confucianism in today's world."
"Amazon.com
As Confucian thinking makes a comeback in contemporary China, people are wondering if it will merely serve as a conservative tool for a despotic government as in imperial times, or if it could act instead as a liberalizing force. Wm. Theodore de Bary, depicting Confucius and certain later Confucians as Old Testament prophetlike figures, suggests that the true Confucian spirit is one of protesting and rectifying governmental injustices. This model of Confucianism, de Bary illustrates, is not a backward dogmatist intent on maintaining the status quo at all costs, but a whistle-blower, a moralizing evangelist responsible to the people and to heaven for speaking out against existing evils and abuses. Throughout, de Bary sympathizes with the scholar-official who feels trapped between the needs of the people and the will of an autocratic government, which reflects a parallel dilemma in today's China.
Book Description
In Singapore, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, and other parts of East and Southeast Asia, as well as China, people are asking, "What does Confucianism have to offer today?" For some, Confucius is still the symbol of a reactionary and repressive past; for others, he is the humanist admired by generations of scholars and thinkers, East and West, for his ethical system and discipline. In the face of such complications, only a scholar of Theodore de Bary's stature could venture broad answers to the question of the significance of Confucianism in today's world."
Post ID: 112831695181788080
"I hate the outdoors. To me the outdoors is where the car is." - Will Durst
Random Playlist Song: Elgar - Chanson de Matin
***
I feel like getting yellow paint and drawing yellow boxes outside LT 11, as well as other places where smokers like to puff. Unfortunately NUS is boring and strait-laced. Though I hear some people improvised fireworks on the roof of one of the Engineering building some years back, and when they ran out of control, they fled in all directions before the police came.
NIE should hold a crash course for our lecturers and teaching assistants. Some of them would benefit greatly.
Quotes:
The most creative example would be: you think about you have a baby boy, ok, you measure its height everyday. And suppose you plant a tree in your backyar, with the baby boy. And every year you measure the height of the tree at the height of the baby, and then you can regress your baby's height over the height of the tree. And you'll definitely see R square [to be] very high... You cannot say that the growth of [the] tree caused the growth of [the] baby, okay. Of course, unless, in some magic world that's true. So based on... you live in some magic world that's true, then the regression really tell you causal relationship (imagine, backyard, and, on, measure)
[During the makeup lecture] Now I have to move on, otherwise I'll have to give another makeup lecture.
[After a plug for the Economist] Honestly, browsing old issues... will not help you perform better in your midterm or final exam.
Cash-in-advance - CIA. A very bad acronym again, but it's okay.
[On the government and the central bank] Most countries - central banks are independent. Of course, if you go to Africa, they're the same thing.
[On imprecise use of the term 'white horse'] forgot i was talking to an arts student. i've gone back to using terms loosely. How liberating! (sms)
[Lecturer on an economic model: For convenience, Williamson sets it to 0.] For convenience, let's do away with the maths.
The truth of the matter is your tutor is sick, so he has to be gone... Sorry, not 'he's going to be gone'.
[Female lecturer:] He graded the midterm... If you have a problem with the grading, you look for him, because I don't have what he has. (???)
[On a digital handout] You'll get a typewritten sheet of paper. Whatever, you print it out, it's typewritten.
It's very interesting to see this equation, because George W. Bush doesn't seem to think the lifetime budget constraint holds. So he keeps spending and spending. We'll see what happens soon.
[On her definition of the classical dichotomy] Trust me. This is the correct definition. Or the less misleading definition.
You can do an experiment and go around asking people, or economists, or people who think they are economists, whether they think money is neutral... This we will do in future lectures. It's the exciting part.
2 by 2 mare'trix (matrix)
from this gair'm (game)
the pee off (payoff)
[On a zero-sum game] Fortunately, in my class, I don't play such a game.
This is my bestest strategy (best)
Player 1 is the woes player (rows)
ah 1 s (o)
[On the different pronunciation of lecturers] You know what this is called? The flavours of asia.
I rather do maths than do essays. [Me: Then do 'mathematical economics'.] That one is too much maths. (has)
[On Freud] His theories were very circular... If you were very violently opposed to homosexuals, maybe it was because you were a latent homosexual. If you were sympathetic to homosexuals, maybe it was because you were a latent homosexual... Anything could support the theory.
[On vicarious discharge of deprivation - eg TV violence as a safety valve] I think it only applies to hunger and thirst. It doesn't apply to sex - I'm not the best judge of that. You may [be].
Men express aggression more physically... Women derogate their rivals. They say nasty things about competing women. That certainly counts as aggression.
Random Playlist Song: Elgar - Chanson de Matin
***
I feel like getting yellow paint and drawing yellow boxes outside LT 11, as well as other places where smokers like to puff. Unfortunately NUS is boring and strait-laced. Though I hear some people improvised fireworks on the roof of one of the Engineering building some years back, and when they ran out of control, they fled in all directions before the police came.
NIE should hold a crash course for our lecturers and teaching assistants. Some of them would benefit greatly.
Quotes:
The most creative example would be: you think about you have a baby boy, ok, you measure its height everyday. And suppose you plant a tree in your backyar, with the baby boy. And every year you measure the height of the tree at the height of the baby, and then you can regress your baby's height over the height of the tree. And you'll definitely see R square [to be] very high... You cannot say that the growth of [the] tree caused the growth of [the] baby, okay. Of course, unless, in some magic world that's true. So based on... you live in some magic world that's true, then the regression really tell you causal relationship (imagine, backyard, and, on, measure)
[During the makeup lecture] Now I have to move on, otherwise I'll have to give another makeup lecture.
[After a plug for the Economist] Honestly, browsing old issues... will not help you perform better in your midterm or final exam.
Cash-in-advance - CIA. A very bad acronym again, but it's okay.
[On the government and the central bank] Most countries - central banks are independent. Of course, if you go to Africa, they're the same thing.
[On imprecise use of the term 'white horse'] forgot i was talking to an arts student. i've gone back to using terms loosely. How liberating! (sms)
[Lecturer on an economic model: For convenience, Williamson sets it to 0.] For convenience, let's do away with the maths.
The truth of the matter is your tutor is sick, so he has to be gone... Sorry, not 'he's going to be gone'.
[Female lecturer:] He graded the midterm... If you have a problem with the grading, you look for him, because I don't have what he has. (???)
[On a digital handout] You'll get a typewritten sheet of paper. Whatever, you print it out, it's typewritten.
It's very interesting to see this equation, because George W. Bush doesn't seem to think the lifetime budget constraint holds. So he keeps spending and spending. We'll see what happens soon.
[On her definition of the classical dichotomy] Trust me. This is the correct definition. Or the less misleading definition.
You can do an experiment and go around asking people, or economists, or people who think they are economists, whether they think money is neutral... This we will do in future lectures. It's the exciting part.
2 by 2 mare'trix (matrix)
from this gair'm (game)
the pee off (payoff)
[On a zero-sum game] Fortunately, in my class, I don't play such a game.
This is my bestest strategy (best)
Player 1 is the woes player (rows)
ah 1 s (o)
[On the different pronunciation of lecturers] You know what this is called? The flavours of asia.
I rather do maths than do essays. [Me: Then do 'mathematical economics'.] That one is too much maths. (has)
[On Freud] His theories were very circular... If you were very violently opposed to homosexuals, maybe it was because you were a latent homosexual. If you were sympathetic to homosexuals, maybe it was because you were a latent homosexual... Anything could support the theory.
[On vicarious discharge of deprivation - eg TV violence as a safety valve] I think it only applies to hunger and thirst. It doesn't apply to sex - I'm not the best judge of that. You may [be].
Men express aggression more physically... Women derogate their rivals. They say nasty things about competing women. That certainly counts as aggression.
Post ID: 112827369645443889
Sunday, October 02, 2005
A source informs me that you can't get a Ben and Jerry's fix in Sydney. However, you can get Krispy Kreme.
It's a tough choice as to which of the two life is worse without, but it takes $5 million to set up a Krispy Kreme franchise in a new country. I'd imagine that importing ice cream pints is much cheaper.
***
Strip:
Lucas: Emma, this is Lilah, my new housemate. Lilah, this is Emma.
Emma: Oh hi.
Lilah: Nice to meet you.
*Lilah and Emma freeze in a handshake for a panel*
Emma: Hun, I need to use your bathroom real quick. This way?
Lucas: Yeah, just past the kitchen.
Lilah: She's cheating on you.
Lucas: What? No wait... WHAT?!
Lilah: Trust me. I'm a girl, we can sense it on eachother. (sic)
Lilah: She's hiding something else too... I'm not sure what.
***
Muslims win toy pigs ban - "Novelty pig calendars and toys have been banned from a council office — in case they offend Muslim staff. Workers in the benefits department at Dudley Council, West Midlands, were told to remove or cover up all pig-related items, including toys, porcelain figures, calendars and even a tissue box featuring Winnie the Pooh and Piglet."
Ah well. The Muslim exception.
Godsend Screams - Comment in StumbleUpon: "Hooooly shit. I'd like to somehow convince this guy to play at our local 'Black Metal' venue just to watch the crowd reaction. I think Zack Parsons said it best: "If you tell me you've heard something more ridiculous than Christian death metal performed Acapella then you are a liar.""
Recovering Christians: Pascal's Wager revisited - "Many objections to this simplistic argument can be found, but more novel and interesting is an alternative wager postulated by a Darwin Bedford, the "Atheist Messiah and Spiritual Reality Therapist"
Stormfury attempted to weaken hurricanes - "Watching monster hurricanes bear down on populated areas raises a question: Can't we stop these things? Preposterous as the idea might sound, scientists have tried to do just that — and failed. But does that mean it's an idea that can't work?... A mature hurricane of moderate strength and size releases as much condensation heat energy in a day as the fusion energy of about 400 hydrogen super bombs," Robert and Joanne Simpson wrote in a report to the Project Stormfury Advisory Panel, a scientific body formed in 1964 to try to find hurricanes' "Achilles' heel... In the face of this gargantuan machine," the Simpsons said in 1964, "man's puny resources do not allow the brute force, head-on, or trial-and-error approaches."
It's a tough choice as to which of the two life is worse without, but it takes $5 million to set up a Krispy Kreme franchise in a new country. I'd imagine that importing ice cream pints is much cheaper.
***
Strip:Lucas: Emma, this is Lilah, my new housemate. Lilah, this is Emma.
Emma: Oh hi.
Lilah: Nice to meet you.
*Lilah and Emma freeze in a handshake for a panel*
Emma: Hun, I need to use your bathroom real quick. This way?
Lucas: Yeah, just past the kitchen.
Lilah: She's cheating on you.
Lucas: What? No wait... WHAT?!
Lilah: Trust me. I'm a girl, we can sense it on eachother. (sic)
Lilah: She's hiding something else too... I'm not sure what.
***
Muslims win toy pigs ban - "Novelty pig calendars and toys have been banned from a council office — in case they offend Muslim staff. Workers in the benefits department at Dudley Council, West Midlands, were told to remove or cover up all pig-related items, including toys, porcelain figures, calendars and even a tissue box featuring Winnie the Pooh and Piglet."
Ah well. The Muslim exception.
Godsend Screams - Comment in StumbleUpon: "Hooooly shit. I'd like to somehow convince this guy to play at our local 'Black Metal' venue just to watch the crowd reaction. I think Zack Parsons said it best: "If you tell me you've heard something more ridiculous than Christian death metal performed Acapella then you are a liar.""
Recovering Christians: Pascal's Wager revisited - "Many objections to this simplistic argument can be found, but more novel and interesting is an alternative wager postulated by a Darwin Bedford, the "Atheist Messiah and Spiritual Reality Therapist"
Stormfury attempted to weaken hurricanes - "Watching monster hurricanes bear down on populated areas raises a question: Can't we stop these things? Preposterous as the idea might sound, scientists have tried to do just that — and failed. But does that mean it's an idea that can't work?... A mature hurricane of moderate strength and size releases as much condensation heat energy in a day as the fusion energy of about 400 hydrogen super bombs," Robert and Joanne Simpson wrote in a report to the Project Stormfury Advisory Panel, a scientific body formed in 1964 to try to find hurricanes' "Achilles' heel... In the face of this gargantuan machine," the Simpsons said in 1964, "man's puny resources do not allow the brute force, head-on, or trial-and-error approaches."
Post ID: 112825843628871676
Someone: scream in horror
http://www.flickr.com/photos/youthsg/sets/842311/
Me: not that bad lah
not that SACSAL-y
Someone: dont u think the contestents all look a bit animalistic
they are so not beauty contestant looking.
die lah. not even top 100 this year maybe HAHAHAHAHA
ok some look good but so typical
i bet that one will be the winner lah
let's expect same results as past 2 years
goodness another animal
Me: "If you have it, flaunt it. if you don't, bitch about those who do" :P
Someone: is that such a thing as sacsal-y look
i thought that was more a behaviour
Me: there's a look also
Someone: AHHHHH TRANNIES HAVE INFILTRATED MISS SINGAPORE PAGEANT
tian ah. aunties also. they raised the age limit by 10 years is it hahahaha
freaking hell i am having so much fun mocking the girls
oh god. we have maids as participants also
u know i have an evil idea of flagging photos as 'may offend' for all the girls which i dont like :x
long live flickr
http://www.miw.com.sg/publish/MIWPORTAL/public/take_part/camp_babe_2005/introduction.html
way better
time to switch the girls man
Me: the sacsal quotient is higher leh
Someone: hahahah
ok so ur guage of how good or bad the contestants are depends on whether they look like sacsal or not
Me: why they join this sort of shit
then NS guys will wank over them
Someone: maybe that's their lifelong ambition
to have a whole fanclub of wankers
Me: ........
I like F*
the rest are icky
Someone: ah i see u like kawaii type
i bet u download tons of japanese porn secretly. or just watch them. u probably have like male fans supplying u with porn
Me: wth
you ah. freudian projection!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/youthsg/sets/842311/
Me: not that bad lah
not that SACSAL-y
Someone: dont u think the contestents all look a bit animalistic
they are so not beauty contestant looking.
die lah. not even top 100 this year maybe HAHAHAHAHA
ok some look good but so typical
i bet that one will be the winner lah
let's expect same results as past 2 years
goodness another animal
Me: "If you have it, flaunt it. if you don't, bitch about those who do" :P
Someone: is that such a thing as sacsal-y look
i thought that was more a behaviour
Me: there's a look also
Someone: AHHHHH TRANNIES HAVE INFILTRATED MISS SINGAPORE PAGEANT
tian ah. aunties also. they raised the age limit by 10 years is it hahahaha
freaking hell i am having so much fun mocking the girls
oh god. we have maids as participants also
u know i have an evil idea of flagging photos as 'may offend' for all the girls which i dont like :x
long live flickr
http://www.miw.com.sg/publish/MIWPORTAL/public/take_part/camp_babe_2005/introduction.html
way better
time to switch the girls man
Me: the sacsal quotient is higher leh
Someone: hahahah
ok so ur guage of how good or bad the contestants are depends on whether they look like sacsal or not
Me: why they join this sort of shit
then NS guys will wank over them
Someone: maybe that's their lifelong ambition
to have a whole fanclub of wankers
Me: ........
I like F*
the rest are icky
Someone: ah i see u like kawaii type
i bet u download tons of japanese porn secretly. or just watch them. u probably have like male fans supplying u with porn
Me: wth
you ah. freudian projection!
Post ID: 112824703333534723
Having been kidnapped to Tampines last night, I ate at Marrybrown just now, on my sister's recommendation that it was "not worse than KFC", and somewhat cheaper besides, and am now regretting it immensely.
The chicken itself was passable, being crispy and neither too oily nor too dry, albeit rather tasteless. The other items were horrible, though.
The mashed potato was awful, having, in the words of my brother in law, the consistency of coagulated phlegm. To top it off, a crust seemed to have formed around the coagulated phlegm in the short time since the mashed potato had been scooped into our container, and the gravy was tasteless.
It was a tossup as to whether the coleslaw was even worse. Any 5 year old could have made better coleslaw - this one had a dressing that remarkably managed to both lack any taste and yet seem fat-laden at the same time. Meanwhile, the vegetables in the coleslaw looked like they came from a 5 year old's fruit salad (ie in irregularly sized chinks) instead of being properly shredded, with a generous sprinkling of Frozen Mixed Vegetables (Corn, Carrot and Peas) thrown in.
The fries, though as crispy as those in most places, were somewhat limp and lacking in flavour, being the second worst fast food fries I've ever had, with the sole exception of KFC's before they launched their current "Crispy Fries" (they have since dropped the "Crispy" part).
To top it off, they got my order wrong - I'd ordered the Chicken Sandwich, but they gave me the Chicken Fillet Sandwich (which was hot). From the bite I took it seemed passable, though, just being a hotter version of their original recipe chicken.
I'm never going back there again.
Doing research on this wretched company, I came across their equally wretched website which had their poorly-sung and poorly-conceptualised jingle played on loop on all the site's pages, with no option to mute it.
Since they were so eager to drum it into everyone's heads, I have transcribed it - make of it what you will:
Annoying Marrybrown Jingle
Relax your very heart (weary)
Fast'ten just slows down (???)
Follow us to Marrybrown
Delicious food that's flowering (???)
Writer you all the way (Right with)
Crispy chicken, tasty burger (burgers)
Licious Nasi Marrybrown (Delicious)
Something were'chwa every penny (worth your)
Good choice good taste all well and ray hey dee (ready)
Just don't think twice,
Let's all come and join in to Marrybrown
We can always right! (get it?)
On their website, you can also see theircute squirrel waving to you and shouting: Marrybrown BOLEH!
***
I saw a "69" bus service in Tampines. I wonder if some idiot will write in to the Straits Times forum protesting at the existence of this subtle avenue for corrupting our young.
The chicken itself was passable, being crispy and neither too oily nor too dry, albeit rather tasteless. The other items were horrible, though.
The mashed potato was awful, having, in the words of my brother in law, the consistency of coagulated phlegm. To top it off, a crust seemed to have formed around the coagulated phlegm in the short time since the mashed potato had been scooped into our container, and the gravy was tasteless.
It was a tossup as to whether the coleslaw was even worse. Any 5 year old could have made better coleslaw - this one had a dressing that remarkably managed to both lack any taste and yet seem fat-laden at the same time. Meanwhile, the vegetables in the coleslaw looked like they came from a 5 year old's fruit salad (ie in irregularly sized chinks) instead of being properly shredded, with a generous sprinkling of Frozen Mixed Vegetables (Corn, Carrot and Peas) thrown in.
The fries, though as crispy as those in most places, were somewhat limp and lacking in flavour, being the second worst fast food fries I've ever had, with the sole exception of KFC's before they launched their current "Crispy Fries" (they have since dropped the "Crispy" part).
To top it off, they got my order wrong - I'd ordered the Chicken Sandwich, but they gave me the Chicken Fillet Sandwich (which was hot). From the bite I took it seemed passable, though, just being a hotter version of their original recipe chicken.
I'm never going back there again.
Doing research on this wretched company, I came across their equally wretched website which had their poorly-sung and poorly-conceptualised jingle played on loop on all the site's pages, with no option to mute it.
Since they were so eager to drum it into everyone's heads, I have transcribed it - make of it what you will:
Annoying Marrybrown Jingle
Relax your very heart (weary)
Fast'ten just slows down (???)
Follow us to Marrybrown
Delicious food that's flowering (???)
Writer you all the way (Right with)
Crispy chicken, tasty burger (burgers)
Licious Nasi Marrybrown (Delicious)
Something were'chwa every penny (worth your)
Good choice good taste all well and ray hey dee (ready)
Just don't think twice,
Let's all come and join in to Marrybrown
We can always right! (get it?)
On their website, you can also see their
***
I saw a "69" bus service in Tampines. I wonder if some idiot will write in to the Straits Times forum protesting at the existence of this subtle avenue for corrupting our young.
Post ID: 112823573552159790
Saturday, October 01, 2005
Seguing into a momentary interlude:
- Evolutionary psychology quiz - done
- Killer macroeconomics midterm - done (for - but hopefully the curve will pull me up)
- Microeconomics assignment - done
On the horizon:
- 7th October: one more midterm (though "there's nothing new" there, we only have a 2-sided cheat sheet to rely on since it's not an open book exam. Time to buy a magnifying glass.)
- 10th October: Evolutionary Psychology Term Paper
1. How might knowledge of natural selection change how we think about society? Outline an imaginary discussion of this question, between an evolutionary psychologist and any one of
a. An economist
b. A religious leader (faith of your choice)
c. A historian
d. A sociologist
e. A philosopher
f. A novelist
2. To what extent and in what direction might we still be evolving?
3. Write a critical review of any one of the following books:
Richard Dawkins – The Selfish Gene (2nd Ed)
Steven Pinker – The Blank Slate
Robert Wright – The Moral Animal
- 18th October: Religion Term Paper
1. Discuss the main principles of one of the theories of religion discussed in the
module. How relevant or applicable is this theory in understanding the major religions in the world? Discuss your answer in relation to one of the major faiths (e.g. Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, and Hinduism).
2. Reflect upon the distinction between “being religious” and “studying religion” as
discussed in class. Does one’s own faith (or lack thereof) affect one’s scholarly
understanding of religion? How so? Discuss this issue by making specific reference to
one of the theorists in the module, making sure to outline the main principles of this theory.
Hypothetical chronology of a term paper (not necessarily one I follow, of course):
2 weeks from deadline - You start thinking about what question to do. They all look horribly unappealing (especially when you think of writing them).
1 week from deadline - You start thinking about what to write and doing research and reading
5 days from deadline - You ask for an extension (Personally I don't: it just prolongs the suffering and eats into the time available for the next term paper)
3 days from deadline - You've finished the outline; you start panicking because you haven't fleshed it out yet
On D-day itself - You finish the thing a few minutes from the deadline
Your mileage may vary:
Someone: 2 weeks meh
too early lah
at 2 weeks you'll be thinking that you still have a lot of time
Argh.
- Evolutionary psychology quiz - done
- Killer macroeconomics midterm - done (for - but hopefully the curve will pull me up)
- Microeconomics assignment - done
On the horizon:
- 7th October: one more midterm (though "there's nothing new" there, we only have a 2-sided cheat sheet to rely on since it's not an open book exam. Time to buy a magnifying glass.)
- 10th October: Evolutionary Psychology Term Paper
1. How might knowledge of natural selection change how we think about society? Outline an imaginary discussion of this question, between an evolutionary psychologist and any one of
a. An economist
b. A religious leader (faith of your choice)
c. A historian
d. A sociologist
e. A philosopher
f. A novelist
2. To what extent and in what direction might we still be evolving?
3. Write a critical review of any one of the following books:
Richard Dawkins – The Selfish Gene (2nd Ed)
Steven Pinker – The Blank Slate
Robert Wright – The Moral Animal
- 18th October: Religion Term Paper
1. Discuss the main principles of one of the theories of religion discussed in the
module. How relevant or applicable is this theory in understanding the major religions in the world? Discuss your answer in relation to one of the major faiths (e.g. Islam, Christianity, Buddhism, Taoism, and Hinduism).
2. Reflect upon the distinction between “being religious” and “studying religion” as
discussed in class. Does one’s own faith (or lack thereof) affect one’s scholarly
understanding of religion? How so? Discuss this issue by making specific reference to
one of the theorists in the module, making sure to outline the main principles of this theory.
Hypothetical chronology of a term paper (not necessarily one I follow, of course):
2 weeks from deadline - You start thinking about what question to do. They all look horribly unappealing (especially when you think of writing them).
1 week from deadline - You start thinking about what to write and doing research and reading
5 days from deadline - You ask for an extension (Personally I don't: it just prolongs the suffering and eats into the time available for the next term paper)
3 days from deadline - You've finished the outline; you start panicking because you haven't fleshed it out yet
On D-day itself - You finish the thing a few minutes from the deadline
Your mileage may vary:
Someone: 2 weeks meh
too early lah
at 2 weeks you'll be thinking that you still have a lot of time
Argh.
Post ID: 112815550962776139
Thursday, September 29, 2005
"I detest life-insurance agents; they always argue that I shall some day die, which is not so." - Stephen Leacock
Random Playlist Song: 遠藤正明 - Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger Opening
***
Rumors of deaths greatly exaggerated: Widely reported attacks false or unsubstantiated. 6 bodies found at Dome; 4 at Convention Center
"After five days managing near-riots, medical horrors and unspeakable living conditions inside the Superdome, Louisiana National Guard Col. Thomas Beron prepared to hand over the dead to representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Following days of internationally reported killings, rapes and gang violence inside the Dome, the doctor from FEMA - Beron doesn't remember his name - came prepared for a grisly scene: He brought a refrigerated 18-wheeler and three doctors to process bodies.
"I've got a report of 200 bodies in the Dome," Beron recalls the doctor saying.
The real total was six, Beron said.
Of those, four died of natural causes, one overdosed and another jumped to his death in an apparent suicide"
And some wonder why most people pay little heed to first-hand accounts used to feed conspiracy theories. I'm sure the mass media, which is controlled by the Illuminati, is all too willing to feed the unsuspecting masses information such as this, which (oops!) shows them the extent of the conspiracy.
Oh, but I forgot: the black helicopters probably spirited away the hundreds of dead bodies, and all the thousands of eyewitnesses were intimidated (or better yet, brainwashed) into changing their stories later on.
***
Rocketboom: daily vlog with amanda congdon, tuesday, september 27, 2005
The only thing I can say about this is that it's damn screwed up.
Someone (male): is she going to strip?
Someone else (female): the girl has very nice boobs
Me: hahahahahaha
someone: is she going to strip?
Someone else: yar
i was wondering the same thing too
***
The following 3 links were sent to me by other people. So no, I haven't been searching for sex-related news while studying for my midterm - it's been sent to me.
Bull semen improved China ties - "Singapore said Tuesday that relations with the Chinese province of Shandong grew after it presented officials there with a "unique" gift: quality bull semen."
Germans open World Cup überbrothel - "Ever the pragmatic nation, Germany has decided to boost replica kit, souvenir programme and meat pie revenues at next year's World Cup by opening an enormous brothel to cater for those fans who want to score but don't have David Beckham's golden balls or shooting skills."
Sperm-free sex keeps hens happily faithful - "Possessive cockerels use fake sex to keep their hens faithful. By merely mounting females - without bothering to waste precious sperm - cocks ensure their partners will not go looking for male competitors to fertilise them, a new study suggests. The finding may explain why males of many species - from insects to mammals - engage in seemingly meaningless sperm-free sex."
Random Playlist Song: 遠藤正明 - Bakuryu Sentai Abaranger Opening
***
Rumors of deaths greatly exaggerated: Widely reported attacks false or unsubstantiated. 6 bodies found at Dome; 4 at Convention Center
"After five days managing near-riots, medical horrors and unspeakable living conditions inside the Superdome, Louisiana National Guard Col. Thomas Beron prepared to hand over the dead to representatives of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Following days of internationally reported killings, rapes and gang violence inside the Dome, the doctor from FEMA - Beron doesn't remember his name - came prepared for a grisly scene: He brought a refrigerated 18-wheeler and three doctors to process bodies.
"I've got a report of 200 bodies in the Dome," Beron recalls the doctor saying.
The real total was six, Beron said.
Of those, four died of natural causes, one overdosed and another jumped to his death in an apparent suicide"
And some wonder why most people pay little heed to first-hand accounts used to feed conspiracy theories. I'm sure the mass media, which is controlled by the Illuminati, is all too willing to feed the unsuspecting masses information such as this, which (oops!) shows them the extent of the conspiracy.
Oh, but I forgot: the black helicopters probably spirited away the hundreds of dead bodies, and all the thousands of eyewitnesses were intimidated (or better yet, brainwashed) into changing their stories later on.
***
Rocketboom: daily vlog with amanda congdon, tuesday, september 27, 2005
The only thing I can say about this is that it's damn screwed up.
Someone (male): is she going to strip?
Someone else (female): the girl has very nice boobs
Me: hahahahahaha
someone: is she going to strip?
Someone else: yar
i was wondering the same thing too
***
The following 3 links were sent to me by other people. So no, I haven't been searching for sex-related news while studying for my midterm - it's been sent to me.
Bull semen improved China ties - "Singapore said Tuesday that relations with the Chinese province of Shandong grew after it presented officials there with a "unique" gift: quality bull semen."
Germans open World Cup überbrothel - "Ever the pragmatic nation, Germany has decided to boost replica kit, souvenir programme and meat pie revenues at next year's World Cup by opening an enormous brothel to cater for those fans who want to score but don't have David Beckham's golden balls or shooting skills."
Sperm-free sex keeps hens happily faithful - "Possessive cockerels use fake sex to keep their hens faithful. By merely mounting females - without bothering to waste precious sperm - cocks ensure their partners will not go looking for male competitors to fertilise them, a new study suggests. The finding may explain why males of many species - from insects to mammals - engage in seemingly meaningless sperm-free sex."
Post ID: 112783939217372907
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
Societies worse off 'when they have God on their side'
"Religious belief can cause damage to a society, contributing towards high murder rates, abortion, sexual promiscuity and suicide, according to research published today.
According to the study, belief in and worship of God are not only unnecessary for a healthy society but may actually contribute to social problems.
The study counters the view of believers that religion is necessary to provide the moral and ethical foundations of a healthy society.
It compares the social peformance of relatively secular countries, such as Britain, with the US, where the majority believes in a creator rather than the theory of evolution. Many conservative evangelicals in the US consider Darwinism to be a social evil, believing that it inspires atheism and amorality.
Many liberal Christians and believers of other faiths hold that religious belief is socially beneficial, believing that it helps to lower rates of violent crime, murder, suicide, sexual promiscuity and abortion. The benefits of religious belief to a society have been described as its “spiritual capital”. But the study claims that the devotion of many in the US may actually contribute to its ills.
... Gregory Paul, the author of the study and a social scientist, used data from the International Social Survey Programme, Gallup and other research bodies to reach his conclusions.
He compared social indicators such as murder rates, abortion, suicide and teenage pregnancy.
The study concluded that the US was the world’s only prosperous democracy where murder rates were still high, and that the least devout nations were the least dysfunctional. Mr Paul said that rates of gonorrhoea in adolescents in the US were up to 300 times higher than in less devout democratic countries. The US also suffered from “uniquely high” adolescent and adult syphilis infection rates, and adolescent abortion rates, the study suggested."
I looked at the paper itself, and although regression analyses weren't carried out (which happily meant that rigorous statistical analysis was absent), a clear trend can be discerned which cannot be easily or immediately dismissed because there is some variance in the religiosity of the countries studied here, and a wide variety of metrics are looked at (interestingly, the youth suicide rate is the only metric which doesn't increase with religiosity).
Perhaps spurious correlation is at work for some of the results, though, since IIRC previous data has shown that religiosity declines with an increase in development/GDP, which will naturally impact the metrics this study looks at. Then again, the USA has the highest GDP among all the nations studied, so maybe distribution of income there is more unequal than in the other democracies studied, and the dysfunction comes from the poorer portion of US society (I don't have the time to verify this). Nonetheless, even excluding the US a positive correlation between religion and social dysfunction can be determined.
A most interesting and thought-provoking paper, this is.
Journal of Religion and Society: Cross-National Correlations of Quantifiable Societal Health with Popular Religiosity and Secularism in the Prosperous Democracies - A First Look
"The absence of exceptions to the negative correlation between absolute belief in a creator and acceptance of evolution, plus the lack of a significant religious revival in any developing democracy where evolution is popular, cast doubt on the thesis that societies can combine high rates of both religiosity and agreement with evolutionary science. Such an amalgamation may not be practical. By removing the need for a creator evolutionary science made belief optional. When deciding between supernatural and natural causes is a matter of opinion large numbers are likely to opt for the latter. Western nations are likely to return to the levels of popular religiosity common prior to the 1900s only in the improbable event that naturalistic evolution is scientifically overturned in favor of some form of creationist natural theology that scientifically verifies the existence of a creator. Conversely, evolution will probably not enjoy strong majority support in the U.S. until religiosity declines markedly.
In general, higher rates of belief in and worship of a creator correlate with higher rates of homicide, juvenile and early adult mortality, STD infection rates, teen pregnancy, and abortion in the prosperous democracies (Figures 1-9)...
If the data showed that the U.S. enjoyed higher rates of societal health than the more secular, pro-evolution democracies, then the opinion that popular belief in a creator is strongly beneficial to national cultures would be supported. Although they are by no means utopias, the populations of secular democracies are clearly able to govern themselves and maintain societal cohesion. Indeed, the data examined in this study demonstrates that only the more secular, pro-evolution democracies have, for the first time in history, come closest to achieving practical “cultures of life” that feature low rates of lethal crime, juvenile-adult mortality, sex related dysfunction, and even abortion. The least theistic secular developing democracies such as Japan, France, and Scandinavia have been most successful in these regards. The non-religious, pro-evolution democracies contradict the dictum that a society cannot enjoy good conditions unless most citizens ardently believe in a moral creator. The widely held fear that a Godless citizenry must experience societal disaster is therefore refuted. Contradicting these conclusions requires demonstrating a positive link between theism and societal conditions in the first world with a similarly large body of data - a doubtful possibility in view of the observable trends."
"Religious belief can cause damage to a society, contributing towards high murder rates, abortion, sexual promiscuity and suicide, according to research published today.
According to the study, belief in and worship of God are not only unnecessary for a healthy society but may actually contribute to social problems.
The study counters the view of believers that religion is necessary to provide the moral and ethical foundations of a healthy society.
It compares the social peformance of relatively secular countries, such as Britain, with the US, where the majority believes in a creator rather than the theory of evolution. Many conservative evangelicals in the US consider Darwinism to be a social evil, believing that it inspires atheism and amorality.
Many liberal Christians and believers of other faiths hold that religious belief is socially beneficial, believing that it helps to lower rates of violent crime, murder, suicide, sexual promiscuity and abortion. The benefits of religious belief to a society have been described as its “spiritual capital”. But the study claims that the devotion of many in the US may actually contribute to its ills.
... Gregory Paul, the author of the study and a social scientist, used data from the International Social Survey Programme, Gallup and other research bodies to reach his conclusions.
He compared social indicators such as murder rates, abortion, suicide and teenage pregnancy.
The study concluded that the US was the world’s only prosperous democracy where murder rates were still high, and that the least devout nations were the least dysfunctional. Mr Paul said that rates of gonorrhoea in adolescents in the US were up to 300 times higher than in less devout democratic countries. The US also suffered from “uniquely high” adolescent and adult syphilis infection rates, and adolescent abortion rates, the study suggested."
I looked at the paper itself, and although regression analyses weren't carried out (which happily meant that rigorous statistical analysis was absent), a clear trend can be discerned which cannot be easily or immediately dismissed because there is some variance in the religiosity of the countries studied here, and a wide variety of metrics are looked at (interestingly, the youth suicide rate is the only metric which doesn't increase with religiosity).
Perhaps spurious correlation is at work for some of the results, though, since IIRC previous data has shown that religiosity declines with an increase in development/GDP, which will naturally impact the metrics this study looks at. Then again, the USA has the highest GDP among all the nations studied, so maybe distribution of income there is more unequal than in the other democracies studied, and the dysfunction comes from the poorer portion of US society (I don't have the time to verify this). Nonetheless, even excluding the US a positive correlation between religion and social dysfunction can be determined.
A most interesting and thought-provoking paper, this is.
Journal of Religion and Society: Cross-National Correlations of Quantifiable Societal Health with Popular Religiosity and Secularism in the Prosperous Democracies - A First Look
"The absence of exceptions to the negative correlation between absolute belief in a creator and acceptance of evolution, plus the lack of a significant religious revival in any developing democracy where evolution is popular, cast doubt on the thesis that societies can combine high rates of both religiosity and agreement with evolutionary science. Such an amalgamation may not be practical. By removing the need for a creator evolutionary science made belief optional. When deciding between supernatural and natural causes is a matter of opinion large numbers are likely to opt for the latter. Western nations are likely to return to the levels of popular religiosity common prior to the 1900s only in the improbable event that naturalistic evolution is scientifically overturned in favor of some form of creationist natural theology that scientifically verifies the existence of a creator. Conversely, evolution will probably not enjoy strong majority support in the U.S. until religiosity declines markedly.
In general, higher rates of belief in and worship of a creator correlate with higher rates of homicide, juvenile and early adult mortality, STD infection rates, teen pregnancy, and abortion in the prosperous democracies (Figures 1-9)...
If the data showed that the U.S. enjoyed higher rates of societal health than the more secular, pro-evolution democracies, then the opinion that popular belief in a creator is strongly beneficial to national cultures would be supported. Although they are by no means utopias, the populations of secular democracies are clearly able to govern themselves and maintain societal cohesion. Indeed, the data examined in this study demonstrates that only the more secular, pro-evolution democracies have, for the first time in history, come closest to achieving practical “cultures of life” that feature low rates of lethal crime, juvenile-adult mortality, sex related dysfunction, and even abortion. The least theistic secular developing democracies such as Japan, France, and Scandinavia have been most successful in these regards. The non-religious, pro-evolution democracies contradict the dictum that a society cannot enjoy good conditions unless most citizens ardently believe in a moral creator. The widely held fear that a Godless citizenry must experience societal disaster is therefore refuted. Contradicting these conclusions requires demonstrating a positive link between theism and societal conditions in the first world with a similarly large body of data - a doubtful possibility in view of the observable trends."
Post ID: 112790974169211714
Tuesday, September 27, 2005
One of the Chinese radio stations was blaring during my driving lesson today, and this woman called in warning that if students got away with criticising their teachers now, they would think it was okay to start criticising the government in the future.
From her breathlessness as she uttered the last bit, and her disapproving tone, she obviously thought that that was a Bad Thing (TM).
On the other hand, one man who called up said that they were just kids venting their frustrations, and that they didn't have any malicious intent, so they shouldn't be hit with a big stick.
There's hope for the Chinese-speaking community yet.
"If a ruler's words be good, is it not also good that no one oppose them? But if they are not good, and no one opposes them, may there not be expected from this one sentence the ruin of his country?" - Confucius, the Analects, Part 13
"Tsze-kung asked about government. The Master said, "The requisites of government are that there be sufficiency of food, sufficiency of military equipment, and the confidence of the people in their ruler."
Tsze-kung said, "If it cannot be helped, and one of these must be dispensed with, which of the three should be foregone first?" "The military equipment," said the Master.
Tsze-kung again asked, "If it cannot be helped, and one of the remaining two must be dispensed with, which of them should be foregone?" The Master answered, "Part with the food. From of old, death has been the lot of all men; but if the people have no faith in their rulers, there is no standing for the state."
... The Duke Ai inquired of Yu Zo, saying, "The year is one of scarcity, and the returns for expenditure are not sufficient;-what is to be done?"
Yu Zo replied to him, "Why not simply tithe the people?"
"With two tenths, said the duke, "I find it not enough;-how could I do with that system of one tenth?"
Yu Zo answered, "If the people have plenty, their prince will not be left to want alone. If the people are in want, their prince cannot enjoy plenty alone."
... Chi K'ang asked Confucius about government, saying, "What do you say to killing the unprincipled for the good of the principled?" Confucius replied, "Sir, in carrying on your government, why should you use killing at all? Let your evinced desires be for what is good, and the people will be good. The relation between superiors and inferiors is like that between the wind and the grass. The grass must bend, when the wind blows across it."" - Confucius, the Analects, Part 12
(All emphases mine)
From her breathlessness as she uttered the last bit, and her disapproving tone, she obviously thought that that was a Bad Thing (TM).
On the other hand, one man who called up said that they were just kids venting their frustrations, and that they didn't have any malicious intent, so they shouldn't be hit with a big stick.
There's hope for the Chinese-speaking community yet.
"If a ruler's words be good, is it not also good that no one oppose them? But if they are not good, and no one opposes them, may there not be expected from this one sentence the ruin of his country?" - Confucius, the Analects, Part 13
"Tsze-kung asked about government. The Master said, "The requisites of government are that there be sufficiency of food, sufficiency of military equipment, and the confidence of the people in their ruler."
Tsze-kung said, "If it cannot be helped, and one of these must be dispensed with, which of the three should be foregone first?" "The military equipment," said the Master.
Tsze-kung again asked, "If it cannot be helped, and one of the remaining two must be dispensed with, which of them should be foregone?" The Master answered, "Part with the food. From of old, death has been the lot of all men; but if the people have no faith in their rulers, there is no standing for the state."
... The Duke Ai inquired of Yu Zo, saying, "The year is one of scarcity, and the returns for expenditure are not sufficient;-what is to be done?"
Yu Zo replied to him, "Why not simply tithe the people?"
"With two tenths, said the duke, "I find it not enough;-how could I do with that system of one tenth?"
Yu Zo answered, "If the people have plenty, their prince will not be left to want alone. If the people are in want, their prince cannot enjoy plenty alone."
... Chi K'ang asked Confucius about government, saying, "What do you say to killing the unprincipled for the good of the principled?" Confucius replied, "Sir, in carrying on your government, why should you use killing at all? Let your evinced desires be for what is good, and the people will be good. The relation between superiors and inferiors is like that between the wind and the grass. The grass must bend, when the wind blows across it."" - Confucius, the Analects, Part 12
(All emphases mine)
Post ID: 112780614798499887
"A poet more than thirty years old is simply an overgrown child." - H. L. Mencken
Random Playlist Song: Various PR sound effects/ADR lines I found on a Direct Connect hub. I wonder where the guy got them - they haven't been mixed with music or other sound effects yet
***
There's a Wikipedia article on Singapore sexual slang, with phrase lists in Cantonese, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi. Uhh.
iPod Nano: impossibly small, with implausibly delicate surfaces; Black Nanos scratch when you breathe on them - "Whoops. The hottest item on the technology shelves, Apple's new "impossibly small" iPod Nano is also cursed with an implausibly delicate surfacing in its screen and case, users are claiming on message boards."
Of course, they must have been mistreating their iPods. Apple can do no wrong.
***
PhotogenicMask
"PhotogenicMasks are created in Japan by Natori Satio, a doll creator and sculptor.
PhotogenicMasks have been created for anyone who desires to become a girl quickly and easily.
Our goal is:
* To create a "photogenic," attractive look as far as is possible
* A mask that is quick/easy/safe to put on/take off
* Anytime
* Anywhere
* For anybody who wants to be a girl
These masks are just the beginning for us. Please try our masks and give us your comments/suggestions on how we can make them better.
Yes, you can go back to being yourself quickly, and at anytime or place."
Naturally enough, this comes from the japs - only they could have thought of this kind of shit.
***
Time Commanders: Guagemela
Historian: Right. You are being given that battle of Guagemela. Now Gaugemela is in modern day Iraq, by the Iranian border. You are Alexander the Great and his army - one of the greatest armies in all of military history. Your opponents are the Persians. You've already beaten them twice: their empire is hanging there like a ripe peach. The name of the game is regime change.
Gah.
Later...
Narrator: Over on the left flank, the eye surgeon needs to put on his glasses. A unit of Nigel's cavalry, unable to move without orders, is being picked off by Persian archers.
Random Playlist Song: Various PR sound effects/ADR lines I found on a Direct Connect hub. I wonder where the guy got them - they haven't been mixed with music or other sound effects yet
***
There's a Wikipedia article on Singapore sexual slang, with phrase lists in Cantonese, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi. Uhh.
iPod Nano: impossibly small, with implausibly delicate surfaces; Black Nanos scratch when you breathe on them - "Whoops. The hottest item on the technology shelves, Apple's new "impossibly small" iPod Nano is also cursed with an implausibly delicate surfacing in its screen and case, users are claiming on message boards."
Of course, they must have been mistreating their iPods. Apple can do no wrong.
***
PhotogenicMask
"PhotogenicMasks are created in Japan by Natori Satio, a doll creator and sculptor.
PhotogenicMasks have been created for anyone who desires to become a girl quickly and easily.
Our goal is:
* To create a "photogenic," attractive look as far as is possible
* A mask that is quick/easy/safe to put on/take off
* Anytime
* Anywhere
* For anybody who wants to be a girl
These masks are just the beginning for us. Please try our masks and give us your comments/suggestions on how we can make them better.
Yes, you can go back to being yourself quickly, and at anytime or place."
Naturally enough, this comes from the japs - only they could have thought of this kind of shit.
***
Time Commanders: Guagemela
Historian: Right. You are being given that battle of Guagemela. Now Gaugemela is in modern day Iraq, by the Iranian border. You are Alexander the Great and his army - one of the greatest armies in all of military history. Your opponents are the Persians. You've already beaten them twice: their empire is hanging there like a ripe peach. The name of the game is regime change.
Gah.
Later...
Narrator: Over on the left flank, the eye surgeon needs to put on his glasses. A unit of Nigel's cavalry, unable to move without orders, is being picked off by Persian archers.
Post ID: 112772869091712697
Monday, September 26, 2005
Interesting comments on the practicality of an economics (and other) degree:
"There are a lot of degrees you can get without being smart or a quick learner, but Econ is not one of them. So this makes an Econ graduate desirable in a number of fields, including those that aren't remotely related to Economics."
"I remember my first job out of college. I was supposed to make a financial model. I asked someone what the Demand Function was for our product, and he just looked at me funny."
A: "The value of a higher education is that the student learns to think, write and speak clearly. They learn to identify the internal contradictions in an argument. I've certainly met lots of economists, undergrads and grads, who couldn't think or write beyond the narrow assumptions of neoclassical economics.
The benefits of history and english are the students often learn to write clearly, and think beyond just one conceptual framework. In my experience, undergrads in Economics are quite poor at writing. This largely reflects the nature of their training - they are not frequently asked to put together a coherent sentence."
B: "In my experience, the exact opposite is often the case. Those who study English and History frequently learn to obfuscate their meaning, as quite a few professors value essays that are complicated, convoluted, and above a minimum length, over those that are clear and to the point. Moreover, English and History are subjects that are treated (rightly or wrongly) as if they have no correct or incorrect answers. Students can get away with saying whatever they want as long as they use enough big words to say it.
By contrast, Economists won't use flowery language, but they'll generally say exactly what they mean, and it will usually be right.
The stereotypical Economist will never have read George Orwell's essay Politics and the English Language, but if he did read it, his response would be somewhere along the lines of "Well, duh." The stereotypical English major would criticize Orwell's lack of visual symbolism, try to intuit the hidden satirical meaning, or otherwise miss the point.
As for studying business, that is definitely inferior to Economics. College business courses have just as little application to the real world as Economics classes, but are much easier. So the potential employer has no reason to think a business major is smart or hard working."
A: "I'd certainly like to teach your economists instead of the ones that have ended up in my courses. They tend to unimaginative and small-minded and assume that the world is very rigid.
So you don't think economics has its own obfuscatory language? To the initiated, don't you think terms like scale economies, marginal cost, deadweight loss, Edgeworth boxes and so on are big, flowery words? What really is utility? A backward bending supply curve? Can you touch it? What is an externality? It takes a few years to grasp what all these concepts mean, and be able to operationalize them, and measure (at least the ones that are measureable). Economics operates with as many high-level abstractions as most other humanities.
And how does economics define what is "right"? Are you arguing that the version of the discipline that you've learned make normative claims about what people should do? Or do you mean right in the sense that you can calculate an imaginary value that suggests that markets clear at such a price and such a quantity?
I guess the employers I know would be shocked to find out they should be hiring economists instead of business majors."
[On being corrected] "I guess I really have picked up the snobbish tendedcy of economistst to look down their noses at other social sciences."
"it is fairly common for social science majors to move on to law school." [Ed: This is in a US context]
"There are a lot of degrees you can get without being smart or a quick learner, but Econ is not one of them. So this makes an Econ graduate desirable in a number of fields, including those that aren't remotely related to Economics."
"I remember my first job out of college. I was supposed to make a financial model. I asked someone what the Demand Function was for our product, and he just looked at me funny."
A: "The value of a higher education is that the student learns to think, write and speak clearly. They learn to identify the internal contradictions in an argument. I've certainly met lots of economists, undergrads and grads, who couldn't think or write beyond the narrow assumptions of neoclassical economics.
The benefits of history and english are the students often learn to write clearly, and think beyond just one conceptual framework. In my experience, undergrads in Economics are quite poor at writing. This largely reflects the nature of their training - they are not frequently asked to put together a coherent sentence."
B: "In my experience, the exact opposite is often the case. Those who study English and History frequently learn to obfuscate their meaning, as quite a few professors value essays that are complicated, convoluted, and above a minimum length, over those that are clear and to the point. Moreover, English and History are subjects that are treated (rightly or wrongly) as if they have no correct or incorrect answers. Students can get away with saying whatever they want as long as they use enough big words to say it.
By contrast, Economists won't use flowery language, but they'll generally say exactly what they mean, and it will usually be right.
The stereotypical Economist will never have read George Orwell's essay Politics and the English Language, but if he did read it, his response would be somewhere along the lines of "Well, duh." The stereotypical English major would criticize Orwell's lack of visual symbolism, try to intuit the hidden satirical meaning, or otherwise miss the point.
As for studying business, that is definitely inferior to Economics. College business courses have just as little application to the real world as Economics classes, but are much easier. So the potential employer has no reason to think a business major is smart or hard working."
A: "I'd certainly like to teach your economists instead of the ones that have ended up in my courses. They tend to unimaginative and small-minded and assume that the world is very rigid.
So you don't think economics has its own obfuscatory language? To the initiated, don't you think terms like scale economies, marginal cost, deadweight loss, Edgeworth boxes and so on are big, flowery words? What really is utility? A backward bending supply curve? Can you touch it? What is an externality? It takes a few years to grasp what all these concepts mean, and be able to operationalize them, and measure (at least the ones that are measureable). Economics operates with as many high-level abstractions as most other humanities.
And how does economics define what is "right"? Are you arguing that the version of the discipline that you've learned make normative claims about what people should do? Or do you mean right in the sense that you can calculate an imaginary value that suggests that markets clear at such a price and such a quantity?
I guess the employers I know would be shocked to find out they should be hiring economists instead of business majors."
[On being corrected] "I guess I really have picked up the snobbish tendedcy of economistst to look down their noses at other social sciences."
"it is fairly common for social science majors to move on to law school." [Ed: This is in a US context]
Post ID: 112773178447914855
"It is difficult to out-do the Indian traditions in arguing endlessly and elaborately." - Amartya Sen
***
Today's Life:
"ICE CREAM GIANT'S IN TOWN
You don't have to resort to foraging petrol kiosks for your Ben & Jerry's fix. The American premium ice cream brand has planted a franchise outlet in United Square. The Happy People Co has just bought the franchise rights to Singapore (an outlet in the Singapore zoo is operated by the zoo) and will open a second branch in Suntec City next month, and a third in Great World City in November. Eighteen flavours are available at any one time, at #02-K1 United Square, Tel: 6732-6198"
w00t!
***
Addendum:
The best excuse to pass on the veggies:
"Humans have evolved mechanisms to combat natural toxins... The fact that many children dislike vegetables such as broccoli and brussels sprouts is not by chance. These vegetables contain the chemical allylisothiocynate, which can be toxic, especially to children (Nesse & Williams, 1994)."
***
Today's Life:
"ICE CREAM GIANT'S IN TOWN
You don't have to resort to foraging petrol kiosks for your Ben & Jerry's fix. The American premium ice cream brand has planted a franchise outlet in United Square. The Happy People Co has just bought the franchise rights to Singapore (an outlet in the Singapore zoo is operated by the zoo) and will open a second branch in Suntec City next month, and a third in Great World City in November. Eighteen flavours are available at any one time, at #02-K1 United Square, Tel: 6732-6198"
w00t!
***
Addendum:
The best excuse to pass on the veggies:
"Humans have evolved mechanisms to combat natural toxins... The fact that many children dislike vegetables such as broccoli and brussels sprouts is not by chance. These vegetables contain the chemical allylisothiocynate, which can be toxic, especially to children (Nesse & Williams, 1994)."
Post ID: 112762607324919989
Sunday, September 25, 2005
Someone: "Guys' memory with respect to previous sexual liason brings the following benefits:
1) Knowledge of the partners' sexual preferences, so one may employ this knowledge to procure future advantages.
2) To differentiate between one's many sexual partners, so as to prevent embarassing, and potentially reputation damaging, moments.
3) So as to know who one may look for in case one needs help (reciprocal altruism).
Me: 1) I suppose this will only apply to medium/long-term mating? STM is indeed just a one shot thing, so there'll be no point I think. But then in M/LTM women go for factors other than sexual skill, so...
3) "Hi. I had sex with you last week. Can I have a favor now?". Erm.
Someone: Gabriel, may I say that you have no experience of any night life?
1) Men and women who look for casual sex in contemporary societies usually hang out in the same few areas. Even for those who do not frequent the usual pickup areas, they get their booty calls from a relatively small group of friends.Memory would definitely help.
Furthermore, as I mentioned, ancestral men lived in small communities. Memory would help them, and since we are the products of our ancestors, we would have such memory too.
Plus, if you do a little thought experiment and try to conceive yourself picking up a girl for casual sex, ask yourself if you would remember her name, or at least her face. Probably yes. Unless you have casual sex every night. Which I doubt so, for most swingers have, on average, about three sex partners per week, and these are extreme cases (most swing once per week/fortnight).
3) Why not? Most swingers have their community. Swingers introduce their friends to each other, and hence establish "sexual networks". Sounds like reciprocal altruism to me. Furthermore, it can be observed that females usually go up to guys they had sex before to solicit drinks.
Me: You learn something new everday.
1) Knowledge of the partners' sexual preferences, so one may employ this knowledge to procure future advantages.
2) To differentiate between one's many sexual partners, so as to prevent embarassing, and potentially reputation damaging, moments.
3) So as to know who one may look for in case one needs help (reciprocal altruism).
Me: 1) I suppose this will only apply to medium/long-term mating? STM is indeed just a one shot thing, so there'll be no point I think. But then in M/LTM women go for factors other than sexual skill, so...
3) "Hi. I had sex with you last week. Can I have a favor now?". Erm.
Someone: Gabriel, may I say that you have no experience of any night life?
1) Men and women who look for casual sex in contemporary societies usually hang out in the same few areas. Even for those who do not frequent the usual pickup areas, they get their booty calls from a relatively small group of friends.Memory would definitely help.
Furthermore, as I mentioned, ancestral men lived in small communities. Memory would help them, and since we are the products of our ancestors, we would have such memory too.
Plus, if you do a little thought experiment and try to conceive yourself picking up a girl for casual sex, ask yourself if you would remember her name, or at least her face. Probably yes. Unless you have casual sex every night. Which I doubt so, for most swingers have, on average, about three sex partners per week, and these are extreme cases (most swing once per week/fortnight).
3) Why not? Most swingers have their community. Swingers introduce their friends to each other, and hence establish "sexual networks". Sounds like reciprocal altruism to me. Furthermore, it can be observed that females usually go up to guys they had sex before to solicit drinks.
Me: You learn something new everday.
Post ID: 112759090842422689
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