Graham Glass, etc.

Stem Cell Veto

George Bush vetoed a bill today that would have allowed federal funding for embryonic cell research. The bill was supported by 68% of the US population. It's clearly a case of George Bush pandering to his religious power base, since there's no scientific reason to oppose the research.

Comparing an embryo to a human being is like comparing an acorn to an oak tree.

Star (Robot Chicken) Wars

Check out this hilarious stop-motion tribute to Star Wars: Star Robot Chicken Wars. Warning: it's addictive, and you won't be able to stop after the first few scenes.

Bloomberg/Schwarzenegger: Rise of the Independents

Now that Bloomberg has officially become an Independent, it increases the chance that he might run for President in 2008.

One potential vice president would be Arnold Schwarzenegger, since they are both independent-minded people with an emphasis on ideas and problem solving instead of the typical whatever-it-costs-to-get-the-votes politicians.

I think this particular combination could be very successful, leveraging their popularity in two of the most powerful states in the US.

Another tantalizing ticket: Bloomberg/Gore....

Update: As one of my readers pointed out, it's doubtful whether Schwarzenegger could qualify for VP because the constitution requires the president (and presumably those who are in line for the presidency) to have been born in the US. In my opinion, this is an antiquated law that makes no sense these days and should be repealed.

Awesome Pre-Wimbledon Tennis Clip

Wimbledon is fast approaching, at which point I'll be glued to the TV for most of the day. In celebration of the rich history of tennis, check out this awesome clip from a Federer-Hewitt game; it was voted the "best point of the year". Fans of Roger Federer will also appreciate this top-10 shots compilation.

CatCam

This site shows some funny pictures from the life of Mr. Lee, a cat equipped with a strap-on camera. My favorite picture is Trip 1: "Look, is there a cat meeting under a car?"

The "CatCam" takes pictures every few minutes so you can track what your cat does during the day. It would be even better if the camera had WiFi so you could track kitty in realtime on the web.

I bet it wouldn't cost much to prototype such a thing, and interestingly enough, I couldn't find anything like it on the web.

Burning Man 2007

I saw a virtual tour of Burning Man at a NASA event a few months ago, and it left me with a good impression. The event has a primitive kind of feel that Woodstock might have evoked back in the 60's. So after hearing a few people mention Burning Man at a party this weekend, I decided to take the plunge and buy a ticket, even though I didn't know anyone who was going.

Imagine my delight when the very next evening I found out that several of my friends have already planned to go! Apparently you have to take all the water, food and shelter you'll need for the duration of the event, so a trip to the local camping store is in order. I'm looking forward to a fun, trippy kind of experience in Nevada at the end of August. If any readers of this blog are going, please let me know!

Charity is Selfish

In my ideal country, there would be no mandatory welfare programs where money is forcefully taken from some people and given to others who need it. Instead, people would voluntarily donate money to causes they believed in, with sites like Kiva acting as the clearinghouse.

When people hear this, most instinctively remark that such a system would never work because people are too selfish to help others without being forced to by the government. However, this study shows that a voluntary act of charity in fact activates the same pleasure centers that are associated with food and sex. So we are actually depriving ourselves of pleasure by allowing the government to take over the responsibility of helping people in need!

I think a charity-based system for helping the needy is in fact the most selfish, in the sense that it creates the most pleasure for those providing the help. The study ends with the following thought provoking question:

"What [this study] shows is that, in principle, we are capable of feeling good about doing our share. The question is, Why is it that so often we feel bad about filling out our taxes? Our study shows it is worth looking for an answer."

The Tragedy of Iraq

Many thanks to Robert Scoble for pointing out this YouTube video which shows some of the tragic everyday consequences of the US war with Iraq.

EDU 2.0 Introductory Video

Here's the first prototype of a video tour for the edu 2.0 web site. Any feedback is most welcome!

Barack at Ruby Skye

I attended a Democratic fundraiser at Ruby Skye this evening and enjoyed watching Barack Obama give a rousing speech to the packed audience. He did a very good job, speaking from the heart with touching stories from his past and a strong message of peace and hope. Although I prefer Ron Paul's principles, I would be proud to have Barack as my President - far more so than most other candidates I've investigated.