A Dutch Life

Very cool.

Italian wall lizards introduced to a tiny island off the coast of Croatia are evolving in ways that would normally take millions of years to play out, new research shows.

Those skeptical about evolution often struggle with how random mutation could possibly lead to adaptation in a species at a rate that could have delivered us the incredible diversity we enjoy on this planet.

In the past I have always reflected on the wonderful Peppered Moths or those little bacteria that evolved a capacity for eating Nylon. These offered good examples of evolution happening before our very eyes, but it’s nice to have another study.

Along with the ability to digest plants came the ability to bite harder, powered by a head that had grown longer and wider.

The rapid physical evolution also sparked changes in the lizard’s social and behavioral structure, he said. For one, the plentiful food sources allowed for easier reproduction and a denser population.

The lizard also dropped some of its territorial defenses, the authors concluded.

Such physical transformation in just 30 lizard generations takes evolution to a whole new level, Irschick said.

I initially struggled a little about the place of interrogation techniques like waterboarding. While I was reflexively against any form of torture, I was seduced by the powerful argument of greater good when faced with the ticking time-bomb example.

That was a long time ago. Now I just see base inhumanity and worthless “intelligence”. Our struggle against “terrorists” (for want of a better word), those people who oppose the freedoms we enjoy in place like Australia and Holland, is one of ideas.

In many ways it resembles the struggle we faced during the cold war. I have spent some time lately listening to some of the great speeches of the last century, and I have to say, I have heard some truly inspiring things. The one sticking in my mind is that of Eleanor Roosevelt in her address to the United Nations General Assembly on the Adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Its beautiful in its idealism and defiance.

Where are our great orators now? Where are the leaders who can “mobilize the English language and send it into battle”? For this is the stage where our ideas are best demonstrated.

Like the cold war, this “War”, cannot just be won or lost. What we face is a generation long shift in the global environment in which we live. Courage does not come from confronting it head on, but from standing firm in what we believe. By strengthening our systems of government, and then using them to secure our individual freedoms.

This battle of ideas should be easier. Our “enemy” today cares little for life, believes positive propaganda includes decapitation, and has a world view that is more than 1000 years out of date. Sadly, each time we drop to their level, by waterboarding, by Guantanamo Bay, by Abu Ghraib and even by laws which restrict our freedoms, we make the distance between us and them smaller, and undercut what are our powerful ideas.

If you are still not sure about torture, take another look at waterboarding:

Amnesty ad condemns waterboarding

Italy’s Padre Pio goes on display

His body was exhumed in March on the 40th anniversary of his death. He was canonised by Pope John Paul II in 2002.

More than a million people are expected this year to see his body, which is said to be well-preserved. But there is reportedly no sign of the stigmata.

…..

The monks who exhumed his body in March said it was in “surprisingly good condition”, despite no special measures having been taken to preserve it when he was buried in 1968.

“We could clearly make out the beard. The top part of the skull is partly skeletal but the chin is perfect and the rest of the body is well preserved. The knees, hands and nails all clearly visible,” said Archbishop Domenico D’Ambrosio, who led the service to exhume the body.

I remember when first getting to Europe and visiting many of the big Cathedrals, in places like Cologne, and being shocked by the many “Relics” in their treasuries. These contained within them everything from Saint Such-and-such’s index finger nail, splinters from Christ’s cross, to whole skulls safely stored inside ornate precious mental boxes.

Ignorant as I am, I simply have to wonder just how these poor souls could possibly rest in peace with body parts spread to the four corners.

Thanks for the tip Mike!

These “modern shaped trousers which is often worn by youngsters..” are the perfect solution for Googling quick exits while running from the fashion police. Ah, but look closely! Now as you jump over fences and dodge barking dogs, you can take your chase music with you. Built into the knees are a pair of crotch rocking speakers that really add that extra level of excitement while sticking it to the man. Around back you have the added convenience of a back pocket for your “mouse”(which will be your only friend at this point). And for you gamers, there is even a joystick controller located just behind the front zipper.

It seems it is organised, my very humble post somehow appeared on a MAc fanboy site “Macsurfer”:

There it is, third from the bottom. Someone has a lot of time on their hands, or some seriously broad Google search alerts set up. Although, given my blog post title (linkbait), I guess I really nailed a nerve.

The interesting bit is I had 58 visit from this site, I suspect every commenter (except one) came from this direction, and I had 9 individual commenter’s, only one of which actually left a Blog URL. That is an awesome visitor to comment ratio and shows incredibly high levels of devotion!

I think I will do another post critical of Apple in a few months and begin tracking Macboy stats. <grin>

I have had a pretty funny weekend. I wrote a very quick and dirty post about the changes Apple recently made to its update tool so that it it was just slightly less aggressive about installing their software on your computer. I woke up Sunday to find 8, all negative, comments!

I used a pretty crazy blog title (should have ended it with a ‘?’ in retrospect, just I didn’t predict any reaction), just because I had been on the receiving end of too many Mac Fanboys at dinner parties ruining my meal because I worked for an “Evil Monopolist”. I guess I hit a nerve!

I finished it pretty tongue in cheek, saying “Anyway, seems I still have the chip.”, which of course relates to my probable bias!   

For the record, I still don’t believe Microsoft should have been convicted as a “monopolist” (you would be laughed at if you suggested an OS should ship without a browser today) though I do agree they had a number of overly aggressive business practices that did need to be curtailed, and have been. To this day they are held to a different standard than their competitors. They would certainly never get away with the behavior Apple has demonstrated here.

In fact I think the whole concept of a monopoly in IT is tricky. A great example of this is the Windows “N” product, the special edition of Windows, designed by the Europeans, which does not include Media Player and has sold as many copies as Microsoft Bob. I think it has had zero impact on the success of iTunes, with or without Media Player installed in the OS, it has become the most successful Media Player on consumer desktops today. Things just move too fast, and any Monopoly is transient, and becoming ever more transient.

Anyway, my point in the previous post was that the people defending Apple in this case are probably the first to criticize Microsoft and fail to see the tactic Apples employing as Monopolistic in nature. In this way they are holding their holier than thou company to different standards. This is dangerous.

Apple owns the iTunes/iPod franchise which dominates the music player and digital music markets with percentages Microsoft in its “Monopoly” days would have been proud of. In this case they are using the iTunes install base to increase their Safari install base. Its as simple as that.

For the record, they do have a monopoly class market share, from Wikipedia:

On September 12, 2006 Steve Jobs announced in his “It’s Showtime” keynote that Apple had 88% of the legal U.S. music download market

I’m sure it has gone backwards since then, but don’t take my word for it, search around yourself (or just look around at the colour of the headphone leads). But good on them, I bought a iPod Touch, I love it, but I hate iTunes and I will never shop at their store. That doesn’t mean I dont have to install it though, because they have chosen to make updates available only via that mechanism.

Anyway, only one of the commenter’s produced anything other than what I would expect from the Cult of Apple Think Samers. Just makes me laugh that the only other group that jumped on my comments after a post was the Scientologists. <grin>

Oh man, Leon just sent me this:

Some on the internet think that Apple have done enough in the change to the automatic update software I complained about here and here. I don’t. The New software should NOT be checked by default, this is an UPDATE tool, not a NEW INSTALL tool.

Offer new software, fine, but don’t make it install by default.

Funny how the same people who still complain about Microsoft being a monopoly completely fail to see tactics like this as monopolistic (tying anyone?), let alone wonder about the closed system that is the iPod and iTunes.

Anyway, seems I still have the chip.

My poor little beloved Karmann Ghia has been a bit of a hot potato since I moved to Amsterdam. With no where to park it, I have had to first leave it to overstay its welcome in the Microsoft car park, and then resting with the mechanic for the last 6 months. You see I can’t drive it here because it is not registered, anywhere, and before that I couldn’t insure it in Holland because it wasn’t registered in Holland, nor in the UK because I was living in Holland. ARGH!

Anyway, on Monday I’m taking it in to get registered here in Holland, with summer coming up I hope I can take it on at least one decent road trip…

…wasting GUID’s, just in case we run out.