dimland radio 2-13-16 show notes

The Big Game

I talked quite a bit about my impressions of Superbowl 50. Mainly, I was happy that Payton Manning won his second ring and can now retire with as many Superbowl wins as his brother Eli. Eli's reaction during the game was excellent! Payton had fun with Eli's lack of enthusiasm on the Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. Pretty funny. Check it out.

 

There were a couple things that annoyed me. (Of course.) One was Phil Simms' constantly calling Carolina quarterback Cam Newton by his full name. Never just Cam or Newton. Every time, "Cam Newton. Cam Newton. Cam Newton."

 

To be fair, Simms called every player, every time, by their first and last names. It's just that Cam Newton stood out.

 

Then there was that one fan. The one who had to "Woooooo" over and over whenever Denver had the ball. It was so annoying to us at home, I can only imagine how awful it was for people sitting near him at the game.

 

Oh, and Lady Gaga sang the National Anthem awesomely... in the recording studio. She was lip-syncing. I don't think anyone sings live at any of these events anymore.

Gov. Sam Brownback Wants To Cut Kansas State Spending On Education

I saw a few concerned reactions to the cuts in education spending by Kansas Governor Sam Brownback. Brownback is a Republican, so not surprisingly my mostly liberal Facebook friends had near fainting spells over those Draconian cuts.

The article that was being shared stated that Brownback wanted to cut $28 million from elementary and secondary education. Sure that's a lot of money, but it only amounts to 1.5% of that budget. $28 million is 1.5% of $1,866,666,666.67. And I believe that's the annual budget.

 

If that is $1.86 (yes, I know, I should have rounded up to 1.87) billion a year and the number of persons under 18 in Kansas is approximately 200,100, that comes to $9345 per student, per year. Yes, I understand not every one of those 200K plus is going to public school, so the number of actual students is likely less and the per student spending is likely more, but that's the number I'm working with.

 

So, what is 1.5% of $9345? It's $140. That means instead of spending $9345 per student, per year; Gov. Brownback is proposing spending $9205.

 

What a monster!

 

Live Devo During Dark Times

There's an excellent YouTube video of Devo in concert from 1980. The video quality isn't great, but it's good enough to see that Devo would have been a good show to see. I regret never having seen them live.

 

The beginning of the video has a Star Wars-like crawl explaining how when the concert was performed in was a "dark time" in America. It states that the presiding President on August 17, 1980 was Ronald Reagan. The crawl goes on to stay how Devo was right that humans are de-evolving, because as evil, bad, awful, and mean Reagan was George W Bush was worse. Obviously, the crawl was written during W's administration.

 

But hang on! August 17, 1980?

 

The presiding President of the United States of America wasn't Ronald Reagan. It was Jimmy Carter. I guess Reagan's evilness was so evil it went back in time to create the "dark times" during the Carter years.

 

The comments for the video were disabled. The YouTuber was probably tired of people pointing out the error.

34 Year Old Former Playboy Model Dies From Stroke

Dr. Harriet Hall, the SkepDoc, noted that stroke victims under 45 years of age are five times as likely as controls to have been adjusted by a chiropractor days before their stroke. This is a bit of the correlation/causation thing, but it is serious stuff. So, when the world learned that Katie May, self-proclaimed Snapchat Queen age 34, died from stroke, many of us wondered if it was chiropractic stroke.

 

She was doing a photoshoot when she took a hard fall and injured her neck. She had been tweeting about seeing a chiropractor and the day she had her stroke she tweeted her neck still hurt, but she was going to the chiropractor.

 

Her tweets fell silent later that day. She'd had a stroke and later died.

 

We don't know whether it was the fall or the chiropractic care that lead to the stroke. Science-blogger Orac is cautious as to making that call. He has written a lengthy blog on the subject.

 

Dimland Radio's position is to discourage people from seeking chiropractic care. Go to an actual doctor. But, if you go to a chiropractor, don't let them manipulate your neck.

 

Torture Porn Comics Crossed Are NOT For Me

I blogged about this at Warehouse Find, the official blog of Nostalgia Zone, last week. I hadn't heard of the multiple series under the title Crossed published by Avatar Press. I kinda wish I still hadn't heard of it. It's the comic book version of "torture porn".

 

Check that blog here to find out why.

 

Movie Recommendation: History Of The Eagles (2013)

 

 

 

This two part documentary film about one of America's most successful bands runs just over three hours. The length isn't a problem. It's fascinating watching the formation, success, break-up, and reformation of this iconic alt country/rock band.

 

It's streaming on Netflix. Not for free.

 

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Highwayman' by The Highwaymen & 'Generals And Majors' by XTC

Second ad break bumpers: 'King Volcano' by Bauhaus &  'The Boy With The Thorn In His Side' by The Smiths

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com
 
You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.

dimland radio 2-6-16 show notes

A Tale Of Snow

I began the show with a lengthy (and maybe boring) recap of all the shoveling I did in the aftermath of Minnesota's latest snowstorm. We didn't get dumped on by the amounts that the East Coast suffered a couple weeks ago, so it was an admittedly easier task. Still, it was a fair bit of snow clearing that needed to be done.

B.o.B. Thinks The Earth Is Flat. NdGT To The Rescue...

I hadn't heard of rapper B.o.B. before I spotted he had outed himself as a Flat Earther. Which is something he has in common with internet personality Tila Tequila. So, B.o.B. took to Twitter to show his ignorance and Neil deGrasse Tyson took to Twitter to attempt to help the rapper come into the light.

 

It became kind of a deal on the internet and wound up as an amusing segment on Comedy Central's The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore.

I took the opportunity to mention that our ancient ancestors figured out that our planet is a sphere. They didn't need to go into space to figure it out, they just made simple observations. Aristotle could see that some stars were not visible in the night sky as observers went farther to the North. He surmised that the Earth must be round. Eratosthenes made measurements of shadows cast by the sun at high noon on the Summer Solstice and discovered the farther North one went the longer the shadows grew. He, too, surmised the Earth must be round and he even did some math to figure out its circumference. He was pretty damn close. And he did it all without the help of Google.

 

HIV Positive Charlie Sheen Consults A Quack, Dimland Radio Science Zero Bill Maher Promotes That Quack

By now, most everyone who knows who Charlie Sheen is knows that he went public with being HIV positive. It wasn't the most shocking of news given what we've heard about Sheen's lifestyle. He went on the standard science-based medications and his viral load dropped to undetectable levels. Undetectable, but not gone.

Enter the quack. Samir Chachoua has some pretty quacky ideas about how to treat HIV/AIDS. Don't use what science has given us, use milk from arthritic goats. Yeah, that's the ticket. So, Sheen eschews actual medicine for this unproven snake oil and surprise! his viral load goes back up.

 

Enter Dr. Oz. Of all people, Dr. Oz comes on the scene to get Charlie back on the rails. Sheen was a guest on Oz's show on which he admitted being a "human guinea pig" for Chachoua's treatment. To Dr. Oz's credit, he along with Sheen's actual doctor had a kind of intervention to convince the Hollywood bad boy to get back on his meds. Sheen agreed and later began tweeting negatively about Chachoua.

 

Enter Dimland Radio Science Zero Bill Maher. Maher had Chachoua as a guest on his HBO show Real Time. Maher has a problem accepting science when it comes to medicine and pharmaceuticals. He believes "Western medicine" hasn't done shit in 50 years about cancer, for instance. Which just isn't true. Detection methods have improved. Treatments have gotten more effective. Survival rates have increased.

 

What great advancements have there been in homeopathy, naturopathy, iridology, reflexology, chiropractic, magnet therapy, acupuncture, aromatherapy in the last 50 years, eh, Bill?

 

Science blogger Orac wrote a lengthy, comprehensive piece on this whole affair. You came read it here.

 

Movie Recommendation: None

 

I ran out of time. You are on your own this week.

 

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'Pride' by Echo & The Bunnymen & 'Spinning Round' by Red Lorry Yellow Lorry

Second ad break bumpers: 'YYZ' by Rush &  'The Wait' by Killing Joke

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com
 
You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.

dimland radio 1-30-16 show notes

Work On Spec Sucks

I briefly touched on a video on the internets giving examples of how other businesses and professionals scoff at being asked to do work on spec. Working on spec is mainly something asked of creative people working in the graphic arts. They'll be asked to do a design or illustration and, if it is liked, they might get paid. Or they get another project from the client asking for work on spec and that will pay. Maybe.

 

I can't think of any other fields in which working for free to see if you're any good is so prevalent as in graphic arts. Internships not withstanding.

 

Check out this video and you'll get the idea.

The New X-Files And My Complaint About Men's Suits

I also gave a brief mention to my excitement for and enjoyment of Season 10 of The X-Files. It's great to see Scully and Mulder back and going after the truth. But, as a skeptic, the shows can be hard to watch. I keep rolling my eyes and saying, "Come on, Mulder. Really?"

 

Seriously, I am enjoying the show so far.

 

I made this to demonstrate that the suits are too small!

What I'm not enjoying is seeing how uncomfortable Duchovny (Mulder) looks in his suits. I've gone on about this before, but today's "fashion forward" men's suits are TOO SMALL! The jacket strains at the buttons even when the man is just standing. In the series so far, Duchovny has taken to not even buttoning the suit jacket. And his tie looks ridiculous.

Maybe not the best example, but you can see it's unbuttoned.

More Problems With Skepticism/Atheism/Humanism/Feminism

I know I'm not going to have the answer to this schism that exists within skepticism, atheism, humanism, and feminism. It's been rather frustrating watching all the sniping back and forth since "elevatorgate". I find reasoned thoughts on both sides and unreasoned thoughts on both sides.

 

The latest outrage has centered around Richard Dawkins and his dis-invitation as a speaker at NECSS. NECSS is one of the bigger science and skepticism conferences taking place these days and it is in close association with the Skeptic's Guide to the Universe (SGU). One the January 23rd episode the speaker line-up for NECSS was announced on the SGU.

 

First name mentioned was Richard Dawkins (biologist, science popularizer, atheist, and one of the central figures of "elevatorgate"). The members of the podcast all "ooooo'd" with excitement as host Dr. Steven Novella announced Dawkins' name. My reaction was, "Uh, oh."

 

I knew of the rift between Dawkins and Rebecca Watson (former SGU co-host and originator of the story that sparked "elevatorgate") and the subsequent side-taking of those in the skeptical movement, so I was doubtful Dawkins' inclusion would go over well with Watson and her camp.

 

Days after the announcement, Dawkins retweeted an offensive (to many) video of a cartoon featuring a stereotypical Islamic terrorist and a specific feminist (Chanty Binx) singing a song about how similar Islamists and feminists are. The video goes so far as to suggest rape is OK when done by a Muslim. Huh?!

 

The video is supposed to be satire, but it is so very poorly done. It really doesn't make sense, but Dawkins thought it was worthy of sharing. His retweet set off a torrent of internet complaints and counter-complaints and quickly led to Dawkins' dis-invitation to NECSS.

 

What a mess. I've often stated that any group, movement, club, or society that consists of more than one person is going to have internal strife. Skeptics are not immune.

 

I found this examination of Dr. Dawkins and the incident to be the most reasoned. 

Common Core Math

 

I then discussed something a little less complicated and controversial: Common Core Math.

 

I'm not mathematician. I'm a cartoonist, so what do I know?

 

That didn't stop me from discussing this image:

 

 

This image has a lot of people confused. By not doing math the way they were taught, many people are thinking Common Core math doesn't make sense and is ruining our children. Not only did the kid not understand the task being asked of him or her, but most people looking at this didn't get it either. It's not saying the sum should be 13. It's asking the student to demonstrate how to make a 10 as part of the process of getting to 13.

 

My friend Chris Brown brilliantly explained it this way

 

"QUICK! What's 23 + 42?

 

 "You can do this the old paper and pencil way, adding the right side first, then the left OR you can take 2 away from the 42, add 23 + 40 to get a pretty easy 63, the add 2 to it to get 65.

"These CC Math problems that are so often derided as 'ridiculous' are NOT teaching the kids a 'new' way to do math problems. They are teaching the kids a whole bunch of different ways to do them, many of which are sill at this stage, but will be critical later. This is just one of many approaches.

"How about 4276 + 5964?

"You can do this fairly easily in your head if you try. Add 4276 + 5000 to get 9276. Now add 900 to get 10,176. Now add 60 to get 10,236, now add 4 to get 10,240. With a little bit of quick practice, you can add these numbers mentally far quicker than you can do it on paper.

"THAT'S what this lesson is trying to teach. It's impractical for 8 + 5, but it's extremely practical as the numbers get bigger. Teaching concepts at earlier stages sets the kids up for success in more advanced math.

"The U. S. is the wealthiest nation in the world, but has ranked around 30th in math scores for decades now. The math WE were taught as kids doesn't work well, plain and simple. New teaching methods are going to seem strange to us. Instead of deriding it and lamenting the fact that our kids aren't being taught the same way we were, why not make a bit of an effort to understand what's going on?"

I then took this image:

 

And used it to verbally demonstrate how the Box method is quicker and easier explain.

 

Movie Recommendation: None

 

I ran out of time. You are on your own this week.

 

Music heard on the show...

Dimland Radio opening theme song: 'Ram' by The Yoleus 
First ad break bumpers: 'How Soon Is Now?' by The Smiths & 'Do You Remember Rock 'n' Roll Radio?' by The Ramones

Second ad break bumpers: 'Did You Steal My Money?' by The Who &  'Who Dunnit?' by Genesis

Closing song: 'Angler's Treble Hook' by $5 Fiddle

That's it! See you next Saturday night for Dimland Radio 11 Central, midnight Eastern on www.ztalkradio.com you can also download my show from the z talk show archives page. You can email your questions and comments to drdim@dimland.com
 
You can also go to my CafePress store and buy stuff with my artwork on it and have me do a portrait for you if you like. Find out more here and here.