Today I Learned

Artificial Intelligence Icon, via Wikimedia Commons Everyone is so out-of-touch. Are they? Really? And, if so, why might that be? Many people think it’s an age thing, but I don’t. I remember several variations on the idea that someone who is not a ‘socialist’ (or ‘liberal’, or ‘républicain’) at twenty has no heart, and one who is still such at forty has no brain – I didn’t think much about it when I was young, but now believe that it’s utter bullshit. I have come to realize t

Football, via Wikimedia Commons I wanted to talk about the political football that is Bill C-22 in Canada, so I found a picture of a football, and - What? Wrong type of football? Oh. Right. Sorry. So much soccer lately, and my main interest in the other type of football is the halftime show, particularly when it causes fascist heads to explode, like the 2026 show where Bad Bunny ended up collecting nine Emmy nominations for a performance that was really a full-on attack again

Louis Armstrong, via Wikimedia Commons Louis Armstrong was one of the truly great musicians, and What a Wonderful World is one of the truly great songs. To get just a hint of his influence, have a look at his discography. Section 1 consists of releases on 78 and 45 rpm, released between 1923 (before either of my parents were born) and 1970 (when I was a toddler), while section 2 consists of LPs and EPs, released between 1944 and 1971. Absolutely unbelievable, and if you think

Artificial Intelligence, via Wikimedia Commons NOTE: An edited version of this article appeared on The Skeptic (UK). We live in a sea of cognitive biases. Everyone is affected. All of us. All the time. Psychologists study them, as do economists, cognitive scientists, and philosophers, but no one is immune to them. Skeptics need to understand them, and I suspect that most are able to rattle off a list as easily as they can a list of logical fallacies. It is essential, however,

til-technology.com When we hear music, there’s usually a go-to association, which can say a lot about the listener. Take, for example, Wagner’s famous Ride of the Valkyries, from Der Ring des Nibelungen (The Ring of the Nibelung). While I have heard it many times (in isolation, as I have never actually listened to a Wagner opera in its entirety), the version that my mind always goes to is the one in What’s Opera, Doc?, with the famous lines: “Kill da wabbit! Kill da wabbit! K

Star Trek Title Sequence – Original Pilot – via YouTube Probably everyone has heard the iconic line: “Space: The Final Frontier.” I hear...

Stg Schultz, Hogan’s Heroes, via YouTube For those who don’t immediately hear the words “I know nothing. NOTHING!”, this is Sgt Schultz ,...

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr, via Wikimedia Commons Am I being too harsh in what I say about Robert F Kennedy Jr ? I’ve mentioned him several...

Artificial Intelligence, via Wikimedia Commons “People grow through experiences, if they meet life honestly and courageously. That is how...

Cover of Billy Joel’s single "The Downeaster ‘Alexa’", via Wikipedia The Downeaster ‘Alexa’ was a song on Billy Joel’s album Storm...

MAMMÚT Everyone has heard the stereotype of the older person complaining about the “new music” younger people listen to, and we can all...

Mr. Peabody ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mister_Peabody ) is a figure whose influence is truly incalculable. For any not familiar...

The phrase “full of sound sound and fury, signifying nothing” is part of one of the most famous soliloquies in the English language. It...

Well, the illustration above IS normal, but that’s actually a bit unusual. It’s “normal” to assume that everyone has the same...

When one thinks about blood, one of the most obvious connections will probably be to vampires, especially if you are a fan of horror...

More, actually, but not with Sgt. Pepper... When I got my first coding job, in the 1990’s, I was working through a certificate in...

#TIL that the falling green code seen in the Matrix ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Matrix_(franchise )) movies is sometimes referred...

Data is, like, literally radioactive. I was going to comment on the distortion and misuse of the word “literally” and comment that its...