This weeks Wednesday movie is about ants - apparently there is more biomass of ants on the Earth than humans, which if you have ever been to Houston you might find difficult to believe...
Anyway here is the movie - enjoy
(Apparently the nest was deserted BEFORE they conducted this experiment)
11 November 2009
09 November 2009
In the Smog with the Mathers Clan
Spent the weekend in London with the Mathers Clan, well at least the part of it that aren't reproducing at the moment. Congratulations to Rick and Kath on the birth of Lizzy!
Flew in to the smog on Friday evening and headed to Ronnie Scotts were they were all entrenched listening to jazz - nice! I had missed the first half of the show which was apparently very much like this, so I am not complaining. Second half was actually very good. After that ended up in a random club trying to fend off a very scary woman in a suit by telling her I was gay, whilst Katharine was swing dancing with a random Norwegian.
Next day, in an attempt to avoid shopping, we headed to Highgate Cemetery which was awesome. History meets hammer house of horror with a bit of Karl Marx thrown in. Well worth a visit. Saturday evening we went to see “Priscilla Queen of the Desert” which was extremely entertaining - the bus was fantastic!
Sunday we did the London Eye, also worth a punt, then headed for home. I was flying out of Gatwick with SAS whilst Katharine was going from Heathrow with KLM (we always use different airlines, its a safety thing).
So I was sat in Gatwick doing some work and drinking a cup of coffee when I looked up and noticed a 17 year kid, in a uniform with a large machine gun stood about 20 m away just staring at me. So I posted on my facebook about how young the police look these days when I looked up and there were 5 of them all standing around me looking menacing. Then one of the says "sit still and don't move!" which, mindful of John Charles Mendes and the potential teenage hormonal problems of my aggressors I opted to cooperate with.
Another one then appeared with an over excited beagle who jumped all over me and then my bag and not smelling drugs or explosives, then wagged its tail and wandered off. Then without a single word, the plod with the weapons wandered off after the beagle. Not to check out any other costumers, they just disappeared, it was obviously me that was "of interest".
Note to self - try and look less like a terrorist next time!
Got home at midnight which was better than Katharine who KLM marooned in Amsterdam for the night,
Flew in to the smog on Friday evening and headed to Ronnie Scotts were they were all entrenched listening to jazz - nice! I had missed the first half of the show which was apparently very much like this, so I am not complaining. Second half was actually very good. After that ended up in a random club trying to fend off a very scary woman in a suit by telling her I was gay, whilst Katharine was swing dancing with a random Norwegian.
Next day, in an attempt to avoid shopping, we headed to Highgate Cemetery which was awesome. History meets hammer house of horror with a bit of Karl Marx thrown in. Well worth a visit. Saturday evening we went to see “Priscilla Queen of the Desert” which was extremely entertaining - the bus was fantastic!
Sunday we did the London Eye, also worth a punt, then headed for home. I was flying out of Gatwick with SAS whilst Katharine was going from Heathrow with KLM (we always use different airlines, its a safety thing).
So I was sat in Gatwick doing some work and drinking a cup of coffee when I looked up and noticed a 17 year kid, in a uniform with a large machine gun stood about 20 m away just staring at me. So I posted on my facebook about how young the police look these days when I looked up and there were 5 of them all standing around me looking menacing. Then one of the says "sit still and don't move!" which, mindful of John Charles Mendes and the potential teenage hormonal problems of my aggressors I opted to cooperate with.
Another one then appeared with an over excited beagle who jumped all over me and then my bag and not smelling drugs or explosives, then wagged its tail and wandered off. Then without a single word, the plod with the weapons wandered off after the beagle. Not to check out any other costumers, they just disappeared, it was obviously me that was "of interest".
Note to self - try and look less like a terrorist next time!
Got home at midnight which was better than Katharine who KLM marooned in Amsterdam for the night,
06 November 2009
Friday Joke - a load of cocks in London
Weather has got nice in Bergen, cold and clear. First ice on the fjord in front of the lair this week.
Spent a very pleasant Guy Fawkes night up on Fløyen with some friends and a bonfire. Was planning to write more about this strange tradition, the history, the culture, the modern aspects and ultimatley why the english we train their children to burn catholics and set off rockets in the street - maybe another time
Off to London for a weekend with the Mathers Clan, in the meantime here is the friday joke, courtesy of Aris....
Not sure what Dan Brown would have made of this, some sort of medival pornographic conspiracy?
03 November 2009
Wednesday Movie
A rather interesting view on the demise of the Death Star
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV7Ha3VDbzE
Perhaps all the followers of Emperor Bush and his evil side kick Darth Blair should take heed...
On a happier note it's nice to see Americans making significant social comment such as this
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xV7Ha3VDbzE
Perhaps all the followers of Emperor Bush and his evil side kick Darth Blair should take heed...
On a happier note it's nice to see Americans making significant social comment such as this
30 October 2009
Natural Selection and Beer
There is a great theory about beer and natural selection which goes something like this...
"A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members.
In much the same way, the human brain is limited by the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, as we know, kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine!
That's why you always feel smarter after a few beers...."
It's a good theory, but the tragedy of science is the slaying of a beautiful theory by an ugly fact.
The point being that while natural selection definitely does work, beer doesn't make you smarter...
"A herd of buffalo can only move as fast as the slowest buffalo. And when the herd is hunted, it is the slowest and weakest ones at the back that are killed first. This natural selection is good for the herd as a whole, because the general speed and health of the whole group keeps improving by the regular killing of the weakest members.
In much the same way, the human brain is limited by the slowest brain cells. Excessive intake of alcohol, as we know, kills brain cells. But naturally, it attacks the weakest brain cells first. In this way, regular consumption of beer eliminates the weaker brain cells, making the brain a faster and more efficient machine!
That's why you always feel smarter after a few beers...."
It's a good theory, but the tragedy of science is the slaying of a beautiful theory by an ugly fact.
The point being that while natural selection definitely does work, beer doesn't make you smarter...
Poor old Tony Blair...
Gutted to hear that the ego that is Tony Blair might not get to be European President - shame.
When labour came to power in 1997 we thought it was a new beginning and to a certain extent it was. After years of Thatchers poisonous legacy anything must be better, surely?
But then along came the spin and the sleaze, the pandering to the neo-con nightmare that was running the US, the illegal wars which were clearly against the will of the people and all the associated lies and deceit. All this was coupled with the continued destruction of Britains manufacturing base, started by Thatcher and finalised by new labour.
And to cap it all off, just to prove he really is just another dumb religious zealot, like his mates George B and Ian Paisley, the smarmy master of spin made a huge song and dance about converting to Catholicism as soon as he left office. Yes Tony you really are a cretin.
The great irony about his failed bid to be the first boss of Europe is that he has been betrayed on both sides. The centre right of Merkel and Sarkozy have dropped him because he is supposed to be a socialist and the centre left of Spain etc have hung him out to dry because he pandered to Bush and led Europe into a futile and pointless war.
When you dance with the devil you wait for the song to stop...
When labour came to power in 1997 we thought it was a new beginning and to a certain extent it was. After years of Thatchers poisonous legacy anything must be better, surely?
But then along came the spin and the sleaze, the pandering to the neo-con nightmare that was running the US, the illegal wars which were clearly against the will of the people and all the associated lies and deceit. All this was coupled with the continued destruction of Britains manufacturing base, started by Thatcher and finalised by new labour.
And to cap it all off, just to prove he really is just another dumb religious zealot, like his mates George B and Ian Paisley, the smarmy master of spin made a huge song and dance about converting to Catholicism as soon as he left office. Yes Tony you really are a cretin.
The great irony about his failed bid to be the first boss of Europe is that he has been betrayed on both sides. The centre right of Merkel and Sarkozy have dropped him because he is supposed to be a socialist and the centre left of Spain etc have hung him out to dry because he pandered to Bush and led Europe into a futile and pointless war.
When you dance with the devil you wait for the song to stop...
Vikings in the Congo
Interesting case that has been big news in Norway but hardly made the news elsewhere in the World is the curious case of Joshua French and Tjostolv Moland, two Norwegian adventurers who have ended up facing the death penalty in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The facts of the case are rather muddled both because this is Africa and nothing is ever clear cut and secondly because I am trying to follow the case in the Norwegian press.
3. Somewhere in the jungle, their Congolese driver was shot and killed. They claim by bandits, the court claims by them. There is no obvious reason why they would shoot and kill their driver.
The facts as I can determine them
1. The two guys are ex military, some reports say they were in the Telemark Battalion which is sort of special forces, but not quite the SAS!
2. They were wandering around Africa, although it is less clear why. They claim they were trying to start an adventure tourism business - unlikely! They also claim to have been trying to set up a security company, which is more probable but less well advised.
3. Somewhere in the jungle, their Congolese driver was shot and killed. They claim by bandits, the court claims by them. There is no obvious reason why they would shoot and kill their driver.
4. There is a rather incriminating mobile phone pic of one of them cleaning up the blood in the car - rather like the Pulp Fiction scene (see below). There is no real explanation for why he is on brain detail or why he is smiling.
5. After the shooting they did a runner, they claim to escape the bandits, the government claim they were running away.
6. They gave themselves up a few days later and were arrested and put on trial.
And then things got really weird...
They were put on trial for murder but the prosecutor upped the stakes and claimed they were spies working for the Norwegian government. The DCR government then issued a bill to the Norwegian government for 500 billion USD. The Norwegian Government predictably denied any involvement and refused to pay. The DRC prosecutor then issued a photo of their "controller" who turned out to be a reporter from some small local newspaper in the Oslo region. He was rather surprised to see himself on TV since he didn't even know where the Congo was. Other sources have suggested that they were adventurers, kids who were trying to set up a private security firm and got in way out of their depth. One thing in their favour is that the area in which the incident happened is notorious for armed robberies by gangs and there is no logical reason why they would kill the driver there or then. The case from the prosecution does not address this, focusing on the spy story, presumably for financial gain.
After a fairly shambolic trail held in french, which neither understood, they were found guilty of murder, espionage, attempted murder etc and each given five death sentences. Interestingly, they both seem pretty calm, despite the fact they are obviously in some African hell hole and on death row. They are currently appealing the conviction.
Reaction in Norway is very mixed and provides an interesting insight into the national psyche. Many think that it is disgraceful and that they are arrogant white neo-colonialists who killed a poor black person and they deserve what ever they get. Another group simply can't understand why anyone would leave Norway, let alone go to darkest Africa. The final group is outraged that a Norwegian could possibly face the death penalty, given that no Norwegian has been executed since WW2.
The truth may never come out, the fact that a man died is inescapable, but how is a mystery. The behaviour of the DRC government, trying to generate an international incident to extract vast sums of money simply muddies the waters and paints them in the same league as the Nigerian 419 scammers who offer you the chance to have your share of a dead bank managers 20 million. The behaviour of the guys, their calm demeanour, the photo, what they were doing, why they ran all just add to a rather intriguing story which is significantly more interesting than the usual "Moose breaks flower pot" .
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