Oleg Zabluda's blog
Wednesday, May 09, 2012
 
Notice anything strange about the chimpanzee below?
Notice anything strange about the chimpanzee below? Looks too human? Maybe like half of your friends? It's all in the eyes. He has white sclerae.

The mutation causing white sclerae is universal in humans, but it turns up occasionally in apes, too, but doesn't take hold. White sclerae became universal among humans because it enabled them to communicate better with each other, and their babies (since one can tell better where others are looking), and with dogs, but not with wolves (who don't care where you are looking) and not with cats (who judge by the head position, not eyes). No genetic study has yet confirmed the prevalence or absence of white sclerae in Paleolithic modern humans or in Neandertals.

http://www.americanscientist.org/issues/id.15294,y.0,no.,content.true,page.1,css.print/issue.aspx

This brings an interesting hypothesis. Maybe women with large eyes are considered more attractive because they can communicate (including with offspring) and flirt better, especially at a distance, and pass it to the daughters. This could explain the eyes sexual dimorphism, and could be verified by cheching if it exists in chimps and if they share our sense of beauty.

http://www.americanscientist.org/Libraries/images/201244125249002-2012-05MargShipmanFD.jpg
http://www.americanscientist.org/Libraries/images/201244125249002-2012-05MargShipmanFD.jpg

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- posted by Oleg Zabluda @ 3:02 PM | permalink | | | technorati | bloglines | feedster
 
It's actually quite easy to tell if Schrodinger's cat is dead or alive, even without knowing who is right, Einstein,...
It's actually quite easy to tell if Schrodinger's cat is dead or alive, even without knowing who is right, Einstein, who said "God does not throw dice", or Bohr, who responded "Einstein, don't tell God what to do".

Simply ask St. Peter at the Pearly gates if he saw the cat.

To elaborate - God must know if the cat is dead or alive, because its soul must go to heaven or hell. If you don't think cats have souls, replace cat with Bohr. Bohr can't be both dead and alive, no more then he can be in heaven and hell, a Hebrew and Christian, etc... Since God knows whether He throws dice or not, he must know the outcome irrespective of who is right Einstein or Bohr.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrodinger_cat
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schrodinger_cat

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- posted by Oleg Zabluda @ 12:23 PM | permalink | | | technorati | bloglines | feedster
 
Child Immigration to US Is Rising. More Unaccompanied Minors Cross Border Illegally.
Child Immigration to US Is Rising. More Unaccompanied Minors Cross Border Illegally.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303630404577390461260565008.html
This calls for the song
http://rutube.ru/tracks/1796614.html

History, authorship, variants:
http://a-pesni.org/dvor/cycvychkety.php
http://rutube.ru/tracks/1796614.html

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- posted by Oleg Zabluda @ 10:48 AM | permalink | | | technorati | bloglines | feedster
 
The Germans launched one Otto Fischer into space in 1933?
The Germans launched one Otto Fischer into space in 1933? If you define "space" as 32,000 feet, which would make me an cosmonaut? "Первые на Луне" отдыхают [1]?
http://io9.com/5908728/did-the-germans-launch-a-crewed-rocket-into-space-in-1933

Not so fast:

"Scientists and Scoundrels: A Book of Hoaxes" by Robert Silverberghttp://books.google.com/books?id=WVB0vBYD2KMC&pg=PA209

[1] http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/Первые_на_Луне_(фильм)
http://io9.com/5908728/did-the-germans-launch-a-crewed-rocket-into-space-in-1933

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- posted by Oleg Zabluda @ 9:55 AM | permalink | | | technorati | bloglines | feedster

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