Missing Shades of Grue

• How We Evolve

  A growing number of scientists argue that human culture itself has become the foremost agent of biological change. (Seed)

  tags: evolution, human-evolution, culture, AZB, grue

From Maureen Dowd's column this morning:

Some of John McCain's friends, from the good old days when he talked straight, feared that his Greek tragedy would be that he would be defeated by George Bush twice: once in 2000, because of W.'s no-conscience campaigning, and again in 2008, because of W.%u2019s no-brains governing.

But if McCain loses, he will have contributed to his own downfall by failing to live up to his personal standard of honor.

From Tom Friedman's column this morning:

Palin defended the government?s $700 billion rescue plan. She defended the surge in Iraq, where her own son is now serving. She defended sending more troops to Afghanistan. And yet, at the same time, she declared that Americans who pay their fair share of taxes to support all those government-led endeavors should not be considered patriotic.

I only wish she had been asked: ?Governor Palin, if paying taxes is not considered patriotic in your neighborhood, who is going to pay for the body armor that will protect your son in Iraq? Who is going to pay for the bailout you endorsed? If it isn?t from tax revenues, there are only two ways to pay for those big projects ? printing more money or borrowing more money. Do you think borrowing money from China is more patriotic than raising it in taxes from Americans?? That is not putting America first. That is selling America first.

Like what seems to be the case for most Obama supporters--or maybe just everyone following the election--I find myself reading, writing and thinkng mostly about McCain and Palin. I'm following those negative stories much more closely than any positive Obama messages. Perhaps it is because they are such cartoonish characters that is just more enjoyable to follow. Perhaps it is like watching a train wreck--I can't take my eyes off the thing. Perhaps I'm instinctively driven to respond to fear-invoking stimuli with more intensity. In any case, I'll be happy to start thinking positively about the new Obama administration soon.

Mud Pies for 'That One' - NYTimes.com

Palin's Kind of Patriotism - NYTimes.com

• 'Intelligent' computers put to the test

  "Can machines think? That was the question posed by the great mathematician Alan Turing. Half a century later six computers are about to converse with human interrogators in an experiment that will attempt to prove that the answer is yes."

  tags: AI, intelligence, computer, grue

• Metaphors of the Mind: Why Loneliness Feels Cold and Sins Feel Dirty: Scientific American

  A social psychologist explains how abstract concepts can create physical feelings

  tags: metaphors, emotions, psychology, grue