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I’m going to a homeopath
No, I haven’t lost my mind – rather that I’ve become convinced that while millions of people can be wrong, that simple dismissal isn’t enough to explain the attraction of homeopathy. We know it works for certain values of ‘works’, because of the placebo effect, which isn’t particularly well understood yet but understood enough to acknowledge it exists. The jury…
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AI: Modern Morality
There’s a BBC series called World’s Strictest Parents in which “delinquent” British kids are sent to live with super-strict families in various countries for two weeks to see if they can become model teenagers. I believe the show was exported to the USA, so know doubt you know the one I mean. The kids are usually 16 or 17 years…
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Coma Man Says “Stop Misrepresentin’!”
The news world is agog at the horror of the Belgian man who was thought to be in a coma for 23 years but turns out to have had ‘locked in syndrome’ – in other words, he was conscious the whole time. Â This is creepy and sad and tragic, and one of those scenarios we all have on our Never…
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AI: Maternity Leave
In the UK, maternity leave is 52 weeks. A year off after having a baby, the first 39 weeks of which are paid for by your employer. In addition, the mother is entitled to 13 weeks unpaid leave until the child is five. That is of course incredibly fantastic for the mother and child, and a very good incentive for…
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AI: Piracy! Not the boat and eyepatch sort, arrr.
Come to me my fellow geeks, gather round the warmth of the internet and let us discuss a topic so hot it’ll burn your eyes if you read for too long. A couple of news stories to get the debate ball hurtling down the hill into an open can of worms: Microsoft disconnect around 1million X-box owners who have modified…
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AI: It’s MY wall now
Here in England we have a folk hero, the stuff of legend. A man of mystery, whose true identity is known only to some. A maverick, inspiration for many, loved by millions, hated by other millions. Someone who transcended his (alleged) working class roots to achieve fame, fortune and the accolades of both the professional world and the public. He’s…
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AI: One Man’s Meat
Last week the food critic AA Gill became a trending topic on Twitter because he shot a baboon for pleasure and wrote about it in a restaurant review. The internet went into ‘moral indignation’ mode, and the guy was burned at the steak, [sic, sick, and excuse the puns], for his honesty and blood lust. I was curious about the…
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The Worst Sales Email Ever
I’m on the mailing list for a day spa which I used once. Their emails, which I’ve noted here before, are almost always full of bull which annoys me, but today’s, whilst low on the quackery, made me laugh very hard indeed. It was headed “Unbeatable Value”, and if they’re talking about giggles then they certainly provided that, given the…
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