Why do most reasonable scientists "believe in" evolution?

Because of molecular phylogenetics, explained in lay terms here.

Posted by: JohnL at 10:39 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Thanks to a pointer from Transterrestrial Musings, I discovered a new (to me) blog.

Gene Expression is a group blog with a very clean layout and presents a smorgasbord of topics and sharp commentary.

Highly recommended.

Posted by: JohnL at 11:40 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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But you have to wonder, didn't they have some kind of clue about their street name when they moved in?

Posted by: JohnL at 11:53 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Yahoo keeps a list of odd news bits.

Speaking of odd bits, read this one.

Posted by: JohnL at 11:34 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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"Keitai" is Japanese for "mobile" or "portable" and is slang for mobile electronic devices such as phones, PDAs, walkmans, etc.

If you want a hint of what our keitai will look like in 18-24 months, check out this collection of galleries. I work for a Japanese company and thus have a chance to see the current (Japanese not-for-export) versions of phones, laptops, and PDAs on a pretty regular basis. The state-of-the-art in their screen technology is breathtaking; pictures displayed on the latest Japanese laptops look like barely-dry photos printed on high-gloss paper, while on my laptop screen they look like 25-year-old prints on matte paper.

Posted by: JohnL at 10:06 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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I would have bet against these [formerly] conjoined twins making it this far. But they appear do be doing well. Of course it is too early to predict the final outcome. What brave parents for trying to find a way to give their children a chance at a normal life.

Update: More here.

Posted by: JohnL at 09:22 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Lions and Tigers and Bears. Oh my.

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Thanks to Prof. Hall at Spacecraft for the plug! (And yes, this blog is brand new).

He has some kind words for NasaWatch today. I hope he found that site through my blog, as NasaWatch was one of the first sites I began to visit regularly when I initially ventured onto the Internet in 1996.

Like Jerry Pournelle's Chaos Manor and the now-defunct Suck.com, Keith Cowing was blogging up a storm before the term "blog" had even been invented. And he shows how it's done.

Thanks again for the linkage.

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MIT's Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies. As I click through the site, I have to remind myself that this is not a science fiction movie. Check out the team descriptions on the Research page.

I'm particularly interested in the results of Team 4's research into biomaterials and nanodevices for soldier medical technology.

Update: I find the medical applications of nanotechnology particularly amazing whenever I stop to consider that it was only at the time of my parents' birth that penicillin first became widely available.

Posted by: JohnL at 08:26 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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You might wonder about the name of this blog. Who does this guy think he is claiming to be the "best" in anything?

As should be clear from my first few posts here, music will be a recurrent theme on this blog. Born in 1968, I was blessed to come of age musically during the golden age of 80s rock. One of my favorite hard rock stations during these formative years was Q102, "Texas' Best Rock."

At about the same time, I was acquiring a taste for "hard" science fiction, and I began to work my way through Robert Heinlein's juvenile fiction. I soon graduated to Heinlein's master works such as The Moon is a Harsh Mistress and Stranger in a Strange Land.

As most net-geeks probably know, the word "grok" is a Martian word from Stranger in a Strange Land and means literally "to drink" and more loosely "to be at one with." Its many senses include understanding, fully comprehending, intuiting, empathizing, and so on. Following in the time-honored SF tradition of merciless punning, I put the two together.

Like Reese's Peanut Butter Cups.

Posted by: JohnL at 10:18 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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Who am I and why am I here?

I'm a Texan, a husband, a father, a lawyer, a musician, an SF fan, a soccer coach, a cyclist, and an amateur theologian. This is my first try at blogging, and I hope to weave the many interests I have into a cohesive narrative on life, the universe, and everything.

Posted by: JohnL at 09:50 PM | No Comments | Add Comment
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This site is a personal weblog and represents my opinions on whatever comes to mind. It does not represent in any way the opinions of my employer or any other of my clients.

I retain copyright in all original materials published on this blog. I love the public domain and would be happy for you to exercise your fair use rights to any of my original materials here. Copy, spread, quote, criticize. But if you do use any of my original works in any way, please do me the courtesy of giving me attribution and a link.

I am an attorney, but I am not your attorney, absent a physically (not electronically) signed engagement agreement. Nothing on this site is intended to constitute legal analysis. Don't rely on anything here; I'm writing for fun and for free, and you get what you pay for.

This means you should not send me confidential information or ask me for advice, either through comments on the blog or via email. I reserve the right to delete any comments posted here for any reason. I can't imagine that I would ever edit someone else's comments here, but if I do, then I will indicate the editorial changes. If you send me an email, please note that I reserve the right to publish portions of it on this blog or elsewhere.

Thanks,
John Lanius

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