Some Links

[andrewducker]

Mixed Feelings, in which Science! does things to your Brain! A man gives himself a magnetic sense, people learn to see through their tongues, and learn to fly. Fact, not fiction. It's the future! (courtesy of jwz)

It's Raining 300 Men. Possibly the gayest thing in the history of gayness. (courtesy of surliminal and 0olong)

How We Learned to Stop Having Fun. Which I don't necessarily believe, but makes some interesting points about culture and depression. If only we had data about suicide levels in ancient Rome.

A new story that should probably be entitled people = shit. Because a study has found that most people are now convinced that global warming is down to human causes - but are unwilling to actually do anything about it on a personal level. A better argument for government action I have yet to see.

Comments

unfeasibly lazy people

[heyokish.livejournal.com]

that climate change article had me frothing and ranting for a good chunk of this morning. 73 per cent of people prepared toturn offrunning water while brushing teeth. so that means over a quarter of the population thinks turnin a tap is too mucheffort? we@re deeply fucking doomed. grr.

pee ess sorryabout ty[pos. most stoopid keyboard interface sincezx80

[heron61.livejournal.com]

Excellent links. The first is fascinating and whenever we manage effective means of direct neural input, things will get really interesting. The 2nd is absolutely hilarious and wonderful. The 3rd (on depression) is highly dubious, in the absence of actual evidence (and this article provides absolutely none) I tend to seriously doubt any article that suggests significant transformations in human nature in the relatively recent past. It's far too easy to simply declare that people before the beginnings of the capitalist industrial era were in some way different. I'm highly doubtful. The last link is far too obvious, and I completely agree with you conclusion.

[andrewducker]

The article indicated (to me) that the change was a cultural one. The move to city living and a more fluid culture was the cause, not a change in the nature of people.

[heron61.livejournal.com]

I've read enough translations of various works by Classical Greek authors to not be remotely impressed by this thesis. While you can argue that the cities of Rome and Hellenistic Greece would have suffered from these same problems, 4th & 5th Century Athens was very different indeed. What the piece says to me is that despite Ehrenreich's excellent books on modern work, she both has only a fairly limited understanding of pre-modern history and (more importantly) is yet another person trapped in one of the various versions of the pervasive delusion that back before the massive urbanization and industrialization of the past three or four centuries, the world was a paradise of happy pastoralists living in harmony with their environment - as you can expect, I'm vastly less than impressed with this thesis. In addition, a study of medical anthropology reveals that depression was not uncommon in isolated rural farming villages 40 years ago, in regions little touched (at least back then) by urbanization or industrialization - sadly, I have no links to offer here, since I read the relevant books and articles slightly more than 20 years ago.

[avatar.livejournal.com]

If only we had what?

[andrewducker]

Fixed!