A Thinking Man

A Degree of Care

Posted in Education, Health on Nov 12th, 2009

Would you rather have your leg ulcer dressed by a non-graduate, skilled, caring practitioner who knew what she or he was doing, or by a graduate who didn’t? I have mixed feelings about recent proposals to make nursing an all graduate profession.
I can find three arguments in favour or introducing compulsory graduate status. First, as [...]

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Lost in the Myth

Posted in Faith, Religion on Oct 20th, 2009

I thought I knew the answers. Well, perhaps I knew that I didn’t really know, because I had never really thought about it (and certainly hadn’t read about it). But when I was a believer, aiming to base my life and theology on what I believed to be the holy book that had somehow (don’t [...]

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Breasts

Posted in Faith, Human Rights, Humanity, Religion, Society on Oct 17th, 2009

If it is not women’s legs and bottoms (see Appropriateness), it is their breasts. Apparently some men, especially some religious men, just can’t leave them alone. It is bad enough that some women in the Sudan are being whipped for wearing trousers, now some in Somalia are being whipped for wearing bras.
According to press reports:

A HARDLINE Islamist [...]

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Chunking Up

Posted in Existential, Health, Humanity, Therapy on Oct 13th, 2009

I recently attended a two-day gathering of several hundred people. This large group could be divided into several sub-groups, with each sub-group thinking that they were the ones who were right, they had the real truth, they were the ‘pure and faithful ones’, they were the ones who could ‘really help’. You would think [...]

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iPhone Phlogging

Posted in Creativity, Technology, iPhone, iPhone 3G on Sep 28th, 2009

Phlogs are nice (and sometimes useful) things that ipadio lets you create. And now, thanks to a really powerful, free app, you can phlog from your iPhone with ease.
Phlogs are recordings that you can easily make from any phone and instantly broadcast on the Internet. You just sign up for a free account, get your unique [...]

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More Than Specimens

Posted in Censorship, Education, Existential, Science on Sep 27th, 2009

The feathers of the Malaysian peacock pheasant were stunning. The display had lit them in the centre of the room so that they looked like a metallic sculpture. I wanted to take the work of art home.
The Darwin Exhibition is running at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge for few more days. My visit yesterday, on [...]

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