I win. How do you like that, eh?*
Mar. 31st, 2008 11:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
bending_sickleToday's news:
1) Impressive 45-minute presentation is impresive.
2) As-yet-unread chapter is huuuuge.
3) Hogfather movie is totally all that.
4) Mr Teatime, of Hogfather is one freaky bastard.
5) Teatime laughs like a very reserved Mozart. Yes, that laugh.
6) Can I please recognize actors whilst I'm watching and not, say, facepalm because Marc Warren (Mr Teatime) was both on a Life on Mars episode and Doctor Who's "Love and Monsters" and I never realized?
7) I didn't care much for Teatime as eye-candy until I saw the coat of sex. The coat of sex in action. The coat of sex is too sexy to have a good screencap but damn if it don't slay. (That's Medium Dave on the left, played by Mr Guiness, who looks too familiar for my own good.)
And finally:
I got the room, baby! Oh yeah, oh yeah, shake it! I got the room!
Meaning, I got a text message saying I got it. So tomorrow's dinner party will truly be a dinner party! I still don't know the cost of said room, but squee! Room! With people I like! In a house and not a dorm! With furniture! Smack in the middle of Leiden! Two steps and a skip from Elisa and Laura's!
Ahem. We are pleased.
ETA: We are also very, very pleased at a certain little post over on![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
metaquotes. *high-pitched squee* *glomps ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
lienne*
Discussion of the Day: Why can't I turn off the Science Viewpoint?!?
lienne posts about an elephant painting. It's not Ruby, but rather a group of six or so elephants in Chaing Mai. The drawing wasn't at all what I was expecting from previous elephant and chimp drawings. In fact, the more I watched the video, the more suspicious I because. Because, well, it's easy to train the elephant to draw, especially when that something is so, well, humanesque. Oh, look, it's an elephant with a flower. I mean, I'm not discounting that elephants can draw and be expressive in that - because they're totally unbelievably smart, yo - but that particular drawing, the style, the control of it (that first line is very, very fluid and "Yep, I know exactly what I'm doing," with so much forethought - that trunk was just waiting for the flower!) and the degree to which the Chaing Mai elephant was doing it seemed too much.
The situation itself was also just too iffy for my delicate scientific sensibilities (damn them). Just listening to the oohs and aahs of the people watching and the clapping invariably brought to mind Clever Hans, the counting horse. (It also brought to mind the fact that people hypnotysed to regress to itty-bitty ages draw as they think a child would draw and not the way a child does, in that the drawing looks like what someone thinks an elephant drawing would look like). People's reactions are often key reinforcement.
Again, I'm not saying the elephant can draw, or likes to draw, or would do it unprompted. We've got loads of examples, like Ruby, or the chimps. What I'm hesitant about is the particular drawing and the situation. Not just that the elephant was handed the paint-covered brushes all a-ready, but also in the broader context of this being a haven for mistreated elephants where their painting elicits oohs, aahs and quite probably a substantial auction.
For comparison, here's ape artists like Congo and Michael.
And just for kicks, here's Oliver, the so-called chimpanzee or missing-link for his humanoid features and promensity to walk upright. Lookit.
(And while we're on the elephant thing: OMGWTFBBQ elephant hanging! I mean, I know courts have condemned dogs and swarms of bees, but to hang an elephant? Eesh.)
Drama of the Day: Wank onchasingtides's metaquotes
It got me quite riled up because I don't think the wanker - and yes, I mean that in all senses - is knowledgable about either religion or science. I mean, broad much? Not every religion is about not-going-to-hell. Althoughshaysdays is awesome as ever. Also, there is a huge fucking flaw in this allocation of fault. If you don't know enough about it, don't mock it! Case in point. Oh, and we have burnt scientists at the stake for not being hip to our jive - only nowadays we don't because such behavour is frowned upon, now we just shun them academically. And oh my gods, scientists are not so "Ooooh, logic, it must be so", "Oh, well, since you put it that way, you're quite right". They can hang on to theorems like pitbulls. Oh sweet merciless pits, guess who I'm shaking my pompoms for?
16
Links of the Day:
likestarlight made Friday Night Project icons, including one to conmemorate when David Tennant was introduced to Doctor Who porn.
versaphile's Praxis, New Chapter, Doctor Who
merrie987's 48 Sam Tyler Icons
The Skeptic's Annotated Bible
doctorwho discusses favorite quotes
drho discusses the five people David Tennant would invite to dinner, and who they would invite - I'd definately have David over, and as someone mentions, Eddie Izzard. I'm leaning towards John Barrowman as well.
angeliksmall on john_simm posts scans of SFX February 2007's Philip Glenister and John Simm Life on Mars interview
nobleplatypus on metaquotes: Kittens! For hands!
chasingtides on metaquotes proposes the weasel as deity and lo, there is much wank. Also, a fictional band is born.
marcwarren
Teatime Screencaps
*versaphile, Praxis Chapter 6
1) Impressive 45-minute presentation is impresive.
2) As-yet-unread chapter is huuuuge.
3) Hogfather movie is totally all that.
4) Mr Teatime, of Hogfather is one freaky bastard.
5) Teatime laughs like a very reserved Mozart. Yes, that laugh.
6) Can I please recognize actors whilst I'm watching and not, say, facepalm because Marc Warren (Mr Teatime) was both on a Life on Mars episode and Doctor Who's "Love and Monsters" and I never realized?
7) I didn't care much for Teatime as eye-candy until I saw the coat of sex. The coat of sex in action. The coat of sex is too sexy to have a good screencap but damn if it don't slay. (That's Medium Dave on the left, played by Mr Guiness, who looks too familiar for my own good.)
And finally:
Meaning, I got a text message saying I got it. So tomorrow's dinner party will truly be a dinner party! I still don't know the cost of said room, but squee! Room! With people I like! In a house and not a dorm! With furniture! Smack in the middle of Leiden! Two steps and a skip from Elisa and Laura's!
Ahem. We are pleased.
ETA: We are also very, very pleased at a certain little post over on
metaquotes. *high-pitched squee* *glomps lienne*Discussion of the Day: Why can't I turn off the Science Viewpoint?!?
lienne posts about an elephant painting. It's not Ruby, but rather a group of six or so elephants in Chaing Mai. The drawing wasn't at all what I was expecting from previous elephant and chimp drawings. In fact, the more I watched the video, the more suspicious I because. Because, well, it's easy to train the elephant to draw, especially when that something is so, well, humanesque. Oh, look, it's an elephant with a flower. I mean, I'm not discounting that elephants can draw and be expressive in that - because they're totally unbelievably smart, yo - but that particular drawing, the style, the control of it (that first line is very, very fluid and "Yep, I know exactly what I'm doing," with so much forethought - that trunk was just waiting for the flower!) and the degree to which the Chaing Mai elephant was doing it seemed too much. The situation itself was also just too iffy for my delicate scientific sensibilities (damn them). Just listening to the oohs and aahs of the people watching and the clapping invariably brought to mind Clever Hans, the counting horse. (It also brought to mind the fact that people hypnotysed to regress to itty-bitty ages draw as they think a child would draw and not the way a child does, in that the drawing looks like what someone thinks an elephant drawing would look like). People's reactions are often key reinforcement.
Again, I'm not saying the elephant can draw, or likes to draw, or would do it unprompted. We've got loads of examples, like Ruby, or the chimps. What I'm hesitant about is the particular drawing and the situation. Not just that the elephant was handed the paint-covered brushes all a-ready, but also in the broader context of this being a haven for mistreated elephants where their painting elicits oohs, aahs and quite probably a substantial auction.
For comparison, here's ape artists like Congo and Michael.
And just for kicks, here's Oliver, the so-called chimpanzee or missing-link for his humanoid features and promensity to walk upright. Lookit.
(And while we're on the elephant thing: OMGWTFBBQ elephant hanging! I mean, I know courts have condemned dogs and swarms of bees, but to hang an elephant? Eesh.)
Drama of the Day: Wank on
chasingtides's metaquotes It got me quite riled up because I don't think the wanker - and yes, I mean that in all senses - is knowledgable about either religion or science. I mean, broad much? Not every religion is about not-going-to-hell. Although
shaysdays is awesome as ever. Also, there is a huge fucking flaw in this allocation of fault. If you don't know enough about it, don't mock it! Case in point. Oh, and we have burnt scientists at the stake for not being hip to our jive - only nowadays we don't because such behavour is frowned upon, now we just shun them academically. And oh my gods, scientists are not so "Ooooh, logic, it must be so", "Oh, well, since you put it that way, you're quite right". They can hang on to theorems like pitbulls. Oh sweet merciless pits, guess who I'm shaking my pompoms for?16
Links of the Day:
likestarlight made Friday Night Project icons, including one to conmemorate when David Tennant was introduced to Doctor Who porn.versaphile's Praxis, New Chapter, Doctor Whomerrie987's 48 Sam Tyler IconsThe Skeptic's Annotated Bible
doctorwho discusses favorite quotesdrho discusses the five people David Tennant would invite to dinner, and who they would invite - I'd definately have David over, and as someone mentions, Eddie Izzard. I'm leaning towards John Barrowman as well.angeliksmall on john_simm posts scans of SFX February 2007's Philip Glenister and John Simm Life on Mars interviewnobleplatypus on metaquotes: Kittens! For hands!chasingtides on metaquotes proposes the weasel as deity and lo, there is much wank. Also, a fictional band is born.marcwarrenTeatime Screencaps
*
versaphile, Praxis Chapter 6
