Apparently, scientists have found the gene that controls fear, and in mice have managed to reduce innate and learned fear. The story is here. The article tells of how this “could be used to study human phobias and anxiety-related disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder”.
Am I cynical to think that actually, the first use of this will be to make soliders more effective killing machines?
I have an exam on Tuesday. A Microsoft software architecture exam. I took the previous version of this in 2001, and didn’t have any problems, I have to take the updated one now to maintain a certification.
I booked it about 4 weeks ago, and have been putting off studying since then, thinking I’d do it closer to the exam. Now it’s a few days away, and I woke up this morning with a stinking head cold. Uh oh. There goes the study this weekend as planned.
Procrastination is a killer, folks.
The secret to improving focus, reducing stress and bending spoons with your mind is Dahn Yoga, also known as Brain Respiration. After only 2 1/2 classes, I can bend a spoon with my own hands. I also can count to 10 in Korean. Soon, I will be Yogi Bear.
I’m going roller skating tonight for Chelsey’s birthday. Will I fall? Will I get in a fight? What about those tough dudes that hang out at roller rinks? Will they “hassle” me? It’s adult skate, so at least I don’t have to deal with 13 year olds who smoke. I have not skated since I was in high school, and I was never any good. Chelsey can skate backwards. Good for her.
Everybody’s all over the Colts this season. In the preseason, I even picked them as the SuperBowl winners (against the Falcons).
But I’m tired of hearing about how great they are. I read today that the teams that they have beaten have a combined winning percentage of .321. Wow. That’s real impressive. They’ve beat 9 teams that lose two-thirds of the time. Here’s the NFL’s conference standings: http://www.nfl.com/standings/conference. Notice how the #2 team in the AFC, the Broncos, have a .524 strength of victory.
To Dave (our resident Jacksonville fanboy)’s credit, Jacksonville’s strength of victory is .481.
Of course, all these stats are total crap, because the Saints’ strength of victory is the highest in the league at .611.
10. Holidays
9. Showering or bathing together
8. The Little Things
7. Grinding at Rock Concerts on New Year’s Eve
6. Effort
5. All Black
4. Cuddling
3. Massages with potential
2. Watching someone dress
1. Missing someone
I forgot to pubically announce the addtion of Greg to the list of El Buzzard Enterprises’ authors. Greg brings us that international joie de vivre and je ne sais quoi that…. Wait. He’s English. He brings the bangers and mash.
Brent, aka Mr. Unstoppable, has also just been added as an author today, but he hasn’t posted an article yet. He has proved with his witty comments that he has more to say and better ways to say it than me, Dave, and Leslie combined. He probably doesn’t even know yet, though.
I discovered a very cool little webtool the other day: Backpack.
It’s a neat little website that lets you organize to-do lists, notes, and reminders online, and then (the really cool part) lets you share them with other people. Leslie and I use it to keep a to-do list of what needs to get done around the house. We both can edit the list, check things off as done, and leave notes. I use it at work with other people who are working on the same projects as me. It’s also got an RSS feed option.
It’s like having a dry-erase board that you can access anywhere. I don’t know how many of you are surrounded by computers all day, every day, but for those of us that are, Backpack is incredibly useful.
Jack White or Three Quid?
Throughout his trip through London, [Jack White]‘s calling himself Three Quid. It doesn’t carry quite the same resonance as a Sting or The Edge would. He won’t explain the change, only to say that it will be for the tour of the UK.
When Bono changed to MacPhisto, he was adapting a character that was the devil. Jack White is merely saying “I’m Three Quid, but I’ll act and play exactly how I always have. Strange.
Read more at Indieblogheaven (with a link to an mp3 of “My Doorbell,” live at KCRW.)
So far, I am 8-4 for picks.
Chiefs at Bills (-2.5) – Kansas City is over-rated.
Redskins at Bucs (-1) – Tampa Bay is even more over-rated than Kansas City.
Patriots (-3) at Dolphins – The Pats don’t lose two weeks in a row. Especially not to a team that embarrassed them last year.
49ers at Bears (-13) – Oh boy what a game. The Bears are the best team in the NFC North, but that’s not really saying much. It’s enough to beat the 49ers, though.
Vikings at Giants (-9.5) – Eli at home.
Cardinals at Lions (-3.5) – I still believe in Detroit. Joey Harrington is #1!
Ravens at Jaguars (-6.5) – Boller’s back! Baltimore rejoices. Losers.
Texans at Colts (-18) – Holy crap, look at the line.
Jets at Panthers (-9) – Are the Panthers the best team in the NFC? We’ll see when they go up against the Falcons.
Broncos (-3) at Raiders – Tough one to call. I’ll take the home team.
Rams at Seahawks (-6.5) – Bulger and Holt are back. This is about the time the Seahawks start showing that they can’t win consistently, too.
Packers at Falcons (-9) – Dave likes the Packers. He “just has a feeling” about this game. So do I.
Browns at Steelers (-7.5) – Please.
Cowboys at Eagles (-3) – Another week of TO at home gloating.
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