Quickies
Skepchick Quickies 4.8
- New species of giant lizard in Phillipines – Not as big as Komodo dragons but, “it’s only the third fruit-eating lizard in the world.” From Elianara.
- Atomic cookies! – From Alicia who says, “The folks over at Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories created spritz cookies with custom cut plates based on hydrogen wave function!”
- Ovulating women give off a bad vibe – “A study finds that a women’s gait changes during the course of her menstrual cycle.” From Leah.
- The Hoba meteorite – Awesome story and photos about the 60 ton Hoba meteorite in Namibia.
- Evolutionary psychology bingo – This made me laugh and laugh.
“Fruit-eating lizard” sounds like something dubbed over a swear in the TV version of a movie…
“Get the ::fudge:: away from me you ::fruit eating lizard!::”
Perhaps that’s what happens when you find a stranger in the Alps?
@Expatria: You’re so right. I’m definitely going to have to incorporate “fruit eating lizard” into my insult vocabulary. COTW
@Expatria: Almost certainly.
Oh, and dude, I can get you a toe by 3 o’clock this afternoon… with nail polish.
RE : Ev psych
too many people in the comments thread arguing about the conclusions of ev psych. The problem isn’t that EP comes to sexist conclusions, the problem is that most evolutionary psychologists have only a surface knowledge of the basics of evolution and the factors affecting selection. They are much more enamored with the soft sciences (which allow them to speculate more) than the hard ones. If the science was good, the conclusions would have to be accepted, no matter how distastful to our sensibilities. Luckily, the science is crap.
@mikerattlesnake: Yes, that and the free space is so painfully true.
That was hilarious, because I’ve run into all of them.
Funny how you link that counter-intuitive ovulation article on the same day as evo-psych bingo. Or was that intentional?
Craig Ferguson waxed poetic over the new lizard last night, pointing out that it had a double penis. Repeatedly. This is why he won the Peabody award; he brings scientific knowledge to his viewers. And moral philosophers and robot skeletons. [I suffer from insomnia. Were it not for Craig Ferguson, I’d have to go out, prowl the streets and mug some Republican headed for the local bondage-theme nightclub.]
“Point-light methodology”? Huh? How about a little body language, facial expression, etc. before making a blanket conclusion of whether an ovulating woman casts a come hither or not? Scent cues? Gait ain’t all.
@mikerattlesnake:
I agree that a lot of the problem lies in people’s misunderstanding of evolutionary theory. Psychologists should be made to take bio as part of their undergrad degree. And also statistics. Actually, everyone should have to take statistics. That’ll save a lot of trouble.
I do think that Evolutionary Psychology is a valid and useful approach to understanding human behaviour if done scientifically. I realise that it is often very difficult or impossible to test a hypothesis in social sciences, but that doesn’t mean we should stop trying. It just means we need to work on improving our methods.
what?! this makes no sense at all. for me, and, i assume, most women, ovulation happens a full week before pms.
as someone somewhat educated in anthropology, i think there is a place for ep, but this is a glaring example of a really stupid attempt at it.
i am interested to look at the study itself, however, because i do think a lot of the problem with ep is how it gets interpreted in the media. come up with a study showing that blondes make more money, for example, and the news outlets jump to “blondes are warrior princesses! zombg!” or the like.
@DominEditrix: i, too, love craig. he’s funny as fuck, always interesting, and quite sexy. win, win, and win.
i’ll have to dig up the video of the robot, as i’ve missed all of this week’s shows due to not having a tv in my out of town apartment (i’m working away from home).
@carr2d2: Geoff Peterson has had a somewhat bizarre first week. I did not expect him to be wearing a suit.
Yes, indeed, Craig is sexy. I do wish they’d let him wear jeans on the show, as jeans show him off much better than a suit. [What is it with late night TV and suits?] And smart, very smart. I like that in a man (grin).
@Expatria: COTW! I love how your twisted mind works.
The cookies were awesome. I love geeky baked goods.
I made a Periodic Table of Cookies at Christmas last year: http://kimberlychapman.com/crafts/cakes/2009-dec-periodictableofcookies.html
@carr2d2: Well, it seems that a fair share of the commenters on the ovulation/gait article didn’t know the difference between ovulation and menstruation. Don’t know if that speaks for anything..