Comment: the future of journal publishing

Peter Coles has just written a post on what he terms the ‘academic journal racket’, and rather than add a lengthy comment, I’ll write something here.
The rational argument for electronic editing and publishing is certainly made very strongly in his post. I would like to hear a scientist at a later stage of their career [...]

Read Full Post »

Against impact

Because I spend insufficiently little time feeling as though I’m still an undergraduate, may I politely agitate for others to follow the advice of Chris Bertram:

Those of you working in higher education in the UK already know about the barbarous proposal to make future support for research depend on a government assessment of its “impact” [...]

Read Full Post »

ID Cards: Ignorance is not Strength

Well, I did promise to stop yammering on about aliens…

Read Full Post »

So this is why we shouldn’t trust Wikipedia

So, being the politophile that I am, today I had cause to check an obscure rule regarding the rules governing the Australian Parliament Question Time. As is now my habit, I went straight to Wikipedia to have a look at the [...]

Read Full Post »

Two Messiaen Trivia

First, via The Beat, it transpires that Matt Groening drew wryly from the title of the Turangalîla-Symphonie when naming Futurama’s (Turanga) Leela. Minus one point from Berian for having been insufficiently attentive to spot that himself.
Perhaps more seriously, the Fredösphere recently excerpted transcripts from the Nixon administration:
– On May 18, 1972, Nixon talks to Henry [...]

Read Full Post »

Boyer Lectures

From an email I just sent to S. O. Killmier:
Was just listening to the first of this year’s Boyer Lectures. They have Rupert Murdoch doing them this year, so he brings his own peculiar brand of Australian nationalism to the table. Mostly this first lecture was just an overview, so there wasn’t much detail, and [...]

Read Full Post »

Things learned during an economic crisis

Ah, McSweeney’s:
This brings us to the housing crisis, for which you and you alone, Pamela, are responsible. When you choose a Chance card and Rich Uncle Pennybags orders you to pay taxes on your houses, then, damn it, Pamela, you pay taxes. Instead, you decide you’re not going to pay, because you only have $7 [...]

Read Full Post »

Go back where you came from!

Politicians, particularly those who have worked their way to senior positions in government, are necessarily cunning, intelligent people. Many may not seem to be at first glance but the nature of the game ensures that only the cleverest, and importantly, the most ruthless, survive or get very far. Why is it then, that they say [...]

Read Full Post »