New Look
Well, I’ve hacked the blogger template to try to make this blend in a bit better with the rest of my site. Let me know what you think!
419 Nigerian Email Scam
Salon.com People | I crave your distinguished indulgence (and all your cash)
Here is a lovely article on the "419" fraud scheme emails that usually reference Nigeria. They target your greed and suggest plans money laundering, inheritance, fake lottery, and the like. The people who follow up on these propositions are easy marks for these con games.
What I like about the Salon article is that the focus is on the language. Douglas Cruickshank writes that he has fallen for these emails, "not for the scam part, but for the writing, the plots (fragmented as they are), the characters, the earnest, alluring evocations of dark deeds and urgent needs, Lebanese mistresses, governments spun out of control, people abruptly ‘sacked’ for ‘official misdemeanors’ and all manner of other imaginative details all delivered in a prose style that is as awkward and archaic as it is enchanting."
My favorite: "An Iron in his own stead! The reins of government grabbed by illation!"
The 419 Coalition Website has more details and suggestions on what you can do besides just delete the message.
Contact Congress
Found some handy web stickers today from congress.org. You can add different styles to your site to encourage action on issues you care about.
Blogger doesn’t allow javascript, but check out the link.
Users simply enter their zip code, and get a contact form that can be addressed to any or all of your reps.
It also lists recent votes by your representatives.
You can even select an option to have your message delivered by Western Union.
Virions and memes
Here are some of the fun virus bits I found online and, you know, in case my computer crashes and I lose these things.
On Nov 13, USA Today (anyone have a better reference on this?) reported that "geonomics pioneer" Craig Venter’s research group created a synthetic bacteriophage (a virus that infects bacteria) – an artifical virus – in two weeks.
"When researchers created a synthetic genome (genetic map) of the virus and implanted it into a cell, the virus became ‘biologically active,’ meaning it went to work reproducing itself."
The project was funded in part by the Department of Energy, which says that it "hopes to create microbes that would capture carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, produce hydrogen or clean the environment." Hmmm. The Department of Energy has been so concerned about these issues…
Not to be alarmist or anything, but the article just happens to note that the human genome project was completed in April." Venter notes the synthetic bacteriophage has 5,000 base pairs in its genome. The human genome has 3 billion, so similar work in human form probably won’t happen in this decade, he says." In this…decade they are planning to move from a bacteriophage to "work in human form"???
You may have heard of the "Aoccdrnig to rsereach…" meme – I got a few copies of it myself from friends.
David Harris did a little experiment to see how the example paragraph propagated in blogspace in different versions.
Here is a test to determine which memes (contagious ideas) have "infected" you. Each page of the scanner contains a grid of simple gray images, and you simply highlight the images you recognise by clicking on them. Your exposure to "known memetic viruses" will be assessed, and remedial actions suggested.
Here’s my diagnosis:
Viruses you suffer from:
Junkfood
Eat some real food. Something which you can identify the source of every ingredient, not the point of manufacture.
Religion
Read "God’s Debris" by Scott Adams (yes, the Dilbert guy)
Politics
Stop caring!
Brand Names
Having a well-known name doesn’t make it good.
Hippyism
Free love is passe and potentially dangerous, and patchouli smells like cat piss.
Conspiracy Theory
Face it, the elected government is in control. Actually that’s quite scary.
Environmentalism
Consume more stuff! It’s easier to buy new stuff than to recycle.
Viruses you might suffer from:
Discordia (90%)
Buy a suit. Invest your money. Eat hotdog buns on a friday.
Free BSD (90%)
The GPL isn’t that bad really. Adopt a penguin at the zoo.
Prog Rock (80%)
Long hair looks dumb with a bald spot. Listen to CD’s they don’t crackle.
What virus are you? One of those little quiz things.
What computer virus would you be?
Polymorphous Virus
Your destructive powers vary widely as you constantly change trying to hide from everything.
Evil Quiz
I am 27% evil.
I try to stay away from evil deeds but succumb to temptation every once in a while. I’m not quite on my way to hell but I certainly have some explaining to do.
Are you evil? find out at Hilowitz.com
Magical Personality Quiz
I can’t resist these quiz things…
The Magical Personality Quiz
Q Score Ranges:
0 – Reflects no difference between the elements
12 – Reflects mild differences
18 – Reflects moderate differences
24 – Reflects strong differences
48 – Reflects maximum differences
Ideally, of course, all four elements would be well-developed, but this is relatively unusual. If you should find that three or even four elements score high (or low), you can still identify a primary type (the highest-scoring elemental pair) and shadow type (the lowest-scoring elemental pair).
Your Q Score is: 13
The Q score ideally should be as small as possible, indicating maximum agreement among elements. However, even a tiny Q score may not mean optimal functioning, since all four elements may in fact be relatively undeveloped.
Your Primary Mythical Creature
Air Types
The main strength of the Air types is intellect. The second element indicates the most probable focus for this intellectual activity.
Unicorn
Air with Water
Astrologically associated with Gemini and the Third House
Unicorn types are very concerned with the communication of ideas. They are witty and likeable but can also be quite shy. They are easily bored and easily distracted, and may seem unpredictable and superficial for this reason. Actually they are very deep and are usually trying to find the connections between the people and things around them. They are highly imaginative but not very practical. They love knowledge for its own sake and are not concerned about putting it to use. They are socially astute and sensitive to others’ feelings, but may still appear somewhat aloof. They are drawn to grand schemes for unifying people but these often don’t extend beyond the initial idea. Very logical and rational, Unicorn types are also unconventional and even bizarre. Other people may regard them as fey or just strange.
Your Shadow Creature
Earth Types
All the Earth types have problems relating to productivity and stability. The weakest element indicates the main focus of these problems.
Wodwose
Earth and Fire
This shadow is beset by inertia and a feeling of hopelessness and stagnation. They are prone to depression linked to apparently insuperable odds. They exhibit an attitude of defeat that is betrayed by their fatalism and pessimism. They often find themselves trapped in a rut of grinding routine. They have no energy or sense of direction. They often alienate others because of their negativity and narrow outlook and because they feel anger and resentment toward them. Passive aggression is used to good effect. They are self-neglectful of their physical needs although they may binge on unhealthy foods and substances. The biggest obstacle of weak Fire is to overcome anger and aggression; the biggest obstacle of weak Earth is to overcome self-centeredness and greed.