December 2005 Archives
« November 2005 | Main | January 2006 »
December 31, 2005
Happy New Year
I've been looking for something appropriate to ring out 2005 and ring in 2006. Being unable to find anything that I really liked, I decided to quote this passage from the Ugaritic Ba'al cycle. What foes have risen up against...
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:01 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 30, 2005
Secular Numerology
This morning I wrote a little ditty about the numerology of 666. Well there is another type of numerology: the study of numbers only because they are there. Jeffrey Shallitat at Recursivity tells us of the largest, so far, confirmed...Read all of "Secular Numerology"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:26 PM
| Read more on Science - General |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
WWW - the Number of the Beast!
Numerology has always found a place in popular religion. Even organized religion has not been immune to it. But hardly any number has generated so much misguided enthusiasm as 666. One Daryl Breese has noticed that WWW (as in http://www...Read all of "WWW - the Number of the Beast!"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:31 AM
| Read more on Religion |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 29, 2005
We May be Slow Learners But We Are Learning
PR Newswire offers the results of three Harris Poll polls taken in October of 2004, February of 2005 and this month respectively. The polls covered, among other things, what Americans believed about the Iraqi war. Here are the tabulated results...Read all of "We May be Slow Learners But We Are Learning"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:00 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 28, 2005
I'm a Crow!
What Is Your Animal Personality? brought to you by Quizilla Via Questionable Authority...
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:05 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Edward Farley on Fundamentalism
I've wondered from time to time about the origins of worldwide fundamentalist movements. Edward Farley has an explanation of their origin on Cross Currents. His paper is called "Fundamentalism: A Theory." I wish that Farley had outlined the history and...Read all of "Edward Farley on Fundamentalism"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:24 PM
| Read more on Religion |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
The Meme of Sevens
Since afarensis chose not to give a specific tag, I will assume he tagged me. As I have before, I used his post as a template and in a few places I didn't even need to change what he said....Read all of "The Meme of Sevens"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:14 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 27, 2005
What?
"Let the student decide." With those well-chosen words John McCain summed up his view on the teaching of "intelligent design" along with evolution in public schools. [Arizona Daily Star] What a relief to know that scientists, educators and even judges...
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:23 PM
| Read more on Evolution |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (1)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Juan Cole on the "Top Ten Myths about Iraq in 2005"
Juan Cole has posted the "Top Ten Myths about Iraq in 2005." Aside from debunking these myths his post also provides an excellent short summary of the current state of affairs in Iraq and of the current debate on the...Read all of "Juan Cole on the "Top Ten Myths about Iraq in 2005""
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:21 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 26, 2005
Weighing the Evidence
I've begun work on my next post on the texts in the short cuneiform alphabet. I'm working on an inscription on a knife from Mount Tabor (KTU 6.1). There is a fair amount of secondary literature on this, some of...Read all of "Weighing the Evidence"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:42 PM
| Read more on Ugarit |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 24, 2005
And to All a Good Night
To my Christian friends and readers - MERRY CHRISTMAS To my Jewish friends and readers - HAPPY HANUKKAH To my Pagan friends and readers - JOYOUS SOLSTICE To those secularist who would prefer it - HAPPY HOLIDAYS To everyone else...Read all of "And to All a Good Night"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:39 AM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 23, 2005
I Sure Hope This is Wrong
Spiegel (in German) is reporting that CIA chief Goss told Turkish authorities to be prepared for a US rocket attack on Iran. The report indicates that Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Oman and Pakistan have also been alerted. As the article says,...Read all of "I Sure Hope This is Wrong"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:40 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 22, 2005
Tom Daschle on the "Power We Didn't Grant"
Tom Daschle has an opinion piece that will appear in tomorrow's Washington Post (online now) in which he claims that immediately after the 9/11 attack the President asked for power to wage war inside the United States. On the evening...Read all of "Tom Daschle on the "Power We Didn't Grant""
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:31 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 21, 2005
Rereading Before Rethinking
I'm beginning to work my way through Anthony Campbell and Mark O'Brien's Rethinking the Pentateuch: Prolegomena to the Theology of Ancient Israel. It's been a while since I thought much about the Pentateuch qua Pentateuch. Of course, I've thought about...Read all of "Rereading Before Rethinking"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:30 PM
| Read more on Religion |
| Abnormal Comments (2)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Dover as a Beginning Rather than an End
Not surprisingly, Alun has an extremely interesting post on the Dover decision. Also not surprisingly, his view has a European, even English, perspective. But, because the issues he highlights transcend the European/American divide (if there is one) it translates easily...Read all of "Dover as a Beginning Rather than an End"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:30 AM
| Read more on Evolution |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (1)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 20, 2005
Dover Case Decided - The Good Guys Won
The court ruled that Intelligent Design Creationism is, well, Creationism masquerading as something else. If you want more details than I have given in my headline the current best place to get the full story is from several posts on...Read all of "Dover Case Decided - The Good Guys Won"
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:42 AM
| Read more on Evolution |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
He Knows He Is Breaking the Law
During yesterday's press conference, a reporter asked the President, "Why did you skip the basic safeguards of asking courts for permission for the intercepts?" Here is part of his answer (you can read the whole thing at the White House...Read all of "He Knows He Is Breaking the Law"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:47 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (6)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 19, 2005
From Visual Aid to Literary Genre to Vacuous Slides
Neddie Jingo on American Street and PZ Myers at Pharyngula are discussing PowerPoint, the bad, the good and the misleading. Both posts are worth reading and digesting. But I want to jump off on something PZ said, I remember when...Read all of "From Visual Aid to Literary Genre to Vacuous Slides"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:10 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 18, 2005
The Cuneiform Short Alphabet: Part 6
An Inscribed Jar Handle from Sarepta in Lebanon: KTU 6.70 (Sar 3102, Pritchard [1975], 97-104) This is the sixth in my series of studies of the texts in the short cuneiform alphabet. You can find the first study, "Amurriyu's Sacrifice...Read all of "The Cuneiform Short Alphabet: Part 6"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:08 PM
| Read more on Ugarit |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Our Abnormal Home Prepares for Christmas
Please checkout my post on A Few of My Favorite Things to learn more about this beloved member of our household....Read all of "Our Abnormal Home Prepares for Christmas"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:53 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (2)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 17, 2005
Homo erectus in Britain?
You may recall the discovery of evidence for 680,000 year old stone tools in Britain. Jørgen Holm at Zinken has an interesting piece on the issue. He is supportive of the dating. He refers to these tool makers as Homo...Read all of "Homo erectus in Britain?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:16 AM
| Read more on Paleoanthropology |
| Abnormal Comments (2)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
The Smoking Gun
Yesterday, I wrote about Scott McClellan's remark that the number one priority of the President was "to save lives." In my mind that is not and should never be the President's number one priority. Well, this morning, in his weekly...
Posted by Duane Smith at 10:08 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 16, 2005
The Candidate Couldn't Find Eleven Supporters for a Picture
So he stole them from Bush! How else do you explain this? Oh yeah, his campaign motto is "Central Minnesota's Voice of Integrity." Via Political Wire...Read all of "The Candidate Couldn't Find Eleven Supporters for a Picture"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:46 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
The President's Number One Priority
In answer to a question about reports that the President authorized the National Security Administration to eavesdrop without a warrant on people in the United States, Scott McClellan, the White House Press Secretary, said in part, We are continuing to...Read all of "The President's Number One Priority"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:39 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Shock and Awe
Excavations led by Clemens Reichel of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago and Salam al-Quntar of the Syrian Department of Antiquities have uncovered evidence of a major battle at Tell Hamoukar around 3500 BCE. And with it evidence...
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:42 AM
| Read more on Archaeology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
"Paint the Controversy"
Barry Garron writes to the editor of the Los Angeles Times, Even more remarkable than the discovery of an ancient Mayan mural depicting the creation myth was the text beneath it, which required Mayan teachers to give it equal weight...Read all of ""Paint the Controversy""
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:32 AM
| Read more on Archaeology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 15, 2005
How We Learn
I'm working on the short cuneiform alphabetic text from Sarepta in Lebanon and I just finished reading "A Phoenicaina Inscription in Ugaritic Script" by Edward L. Greenstein. It is published in the Journal of the Ancient Near Eastern Society of...
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:49 PM
| Read more on Ugarit |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 14, 2005
Britain Occupied by 680,000 BP
Wow, no wonder they have such long lasting traditions in Britain. If you're interested in the real "earliest occupation" of Britain check out the subject at Alun. Did Homo antecessor really make the collection of tools found at Pakefield, Suffolk?...Read all of "Britain Occupied by 680,000 BP"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:55 PM
| Read more on Paleoanthropology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Bush Would Have Gone To War Anyway
Here is what the President said today, When we made the decision to go into Iraq, many intelligence agencies around the world judged that Saddam possessed weapons of mass destruction. This judgment was shared by the intelligence agencies of governments...Read all of "Bush Would Have Gone To War Anyway"
Posted by Duane Smith at 11:02 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Torture: Army Tries to End Run McCain Legislation
The Army has sent up for final approval a new classified amendment on torture to its field manual. Here's the problem, "Mr. McCain's measure, which the Senate has overwhelmingly approved, would require that only interrogation techniques authorized by the new...Read all of "Torture: Army Tries to End Run McCain Legislation"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:03 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 13, 2005
The Best Way to Board a Plane
News@Nature.com has an article that I found abnormally interesting. Eitan Bachmat a mathematician at Ben-Gurion University in Israel has been working on the problem of how to reduce the time required to get passengers on a plane. The airlines are...Read all of "The Best Way to Board a Plane"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:23 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 12, 2005
The Cuneiform Short Alphabet: Part 5
A School Text: KTU 5.22 (RS 26.135; UF 7 (1975), 166f; UF 11 (1979), 121f) This is the fifth in my series of studies of the texts in the short cuneiform alphabet. You can find the first study, "Amurriyu's Sacrifice...Read all of "The Cuneiform Short Alphabet: Part 5"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:39 PM
| Read more on Ugarit |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
New Book on the Pentateuch
I see that my old graduate school buddy, Antony (Tony) F. Campbell, has a new book, Rethinking The Pentateuch: Prolegomena To The Theology Of Ancient Israel co-written with Mark A. O'Brien. I just ordered it, so I don't know how...Read all of "New Book on the Pentateuch"
Posted by Duane Smith at 1:09 PM
| Read more on Religion |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 10, 2005
"Facts Plus Context Equal Truth"
Tim Rutten writing in the Los Angeles Times tells us 'facts plus context equal truth." Now I'm not sure that is a good enough definition of truth for philosophers but it sure is for the news media. Rutten's piece is...Read all of ""Facts Plus Context Equal Truth""
Posted by Duane Smith at 9:13 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (1)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 9, 2005
Abnormal Interests Abnormally Down
Starting at about 7:10 this evening and for reasons yet to be determined, the Abnormal server acted very abnormally. It looks like all is well now....Read all of "Abnormal Interests Abnormally Down"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:50 PM
| Read more on About Me |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 8, 2005
California Gets an A
The Thomas B. Fordham Foundation has published its report on The State of State Science Standards 2005 and California jointed Virginia, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Indiana, New York, and New Mexico in getting an A grade. Nearly half of the states...Read all of "California Gets an A"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:31 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 7, 2005
Help- Does Anyone See Patterns in This List of Words and Phrases?
I'm a day or two away from posting my next study of texts related to the short cuneiform alphabet. And while this next text is not really in that alphabet (its not in the full longer alphabet either) it is...Read all of "Help- Does Anyone See Patterns in This List of Words and Phrases?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:18 PM
| Read more on Ugarit |
| Abnormal Comments (3)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 6, 2005
Violence and Intelligent Design
Several people have written on this. You can find the news account at The Lawrence Journal-World. Since, I copped the heart of my headline from Alun, I might as well use most of his opening paragraph also. . . ....Read all of "Violence and Intelligent Design"
Posted by Duane Smith at 8:24 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (4)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 5, 2005
What Happens if You Get Less Than a C Average in Your Major?
The Final Report on 9/11 Commission Recommendations is out. Thomas H. Kean and Lee H. Hamilton and their by bipartisan commission graded various governmental bodies (plus the private sector) on the progress toward meeting 40 recommendations they had made to...Read all of "What Happens if You Get Less Than a C Average in Your Major?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:42 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
Torture and Good Faith
"We are working hard in good faith on both sides to come up with an approach that can be supported by the president and the Congress, to both find a way to be aggressive in the war on terror and...Read all of "Torture and Good Faith"
Posted by Duane Smith at 7:47 AM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 4, 2005
Intelligent Design Creationists in Academia
The New York Times has an abnormally interesting (and funny) article on intelligent design creationism in academia, in this case, conservative religions academia. Here are a few selected quotations (I have added emphasis here and there): "It [intelligent design creationism]...Read all of "Intelligent Design Creationists in Academia"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:58 PM
| Read more on Evolution |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (1)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
How to Stop Rape
In the light of the story that a likely rape victim was prosecuted and convicted for filing a false police report, I thought I would post something I saw the other day on Feministing.com but has been circulating for a...Read all of "How to Stop Rape"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:49 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
A Very Little Math
There's been some follow-up on a few blogs about my attempt to apply Bayes' method to a thorny historical subject: the history of Israel. Jim West claimed ignorance and/or incompetence in math and, after directing the math minded to my...Read all of "A Very Little Math"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:39 PM
| Read more on Archaeology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 2, 2005
Cheney Out of the Loop?
Mike the Mad Biologist has posted significant portions (all?) of an article in today's Insight Magazine. A subscription is required to read the full article on Insight's website. The article is called, "Bush takes Cheney out of the loop on...Read all of "Cheney Out of the Loop?"
Posted by Duane Smith at 4:23 PM
| Read more on Current Events |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
A Little Hebrew Bible, a Little Archaeology, and a Little Math
One of the most interesting and dynamic discussions in ancient Near Eastern studies involves the short cuneiform alphabet how best to evaluate various discoveries that some say support the historicity of the Hebrew Bible. You can read about this discussion...Read all of "A Little Hebrew Bible, a Little Archaeology, and a Little Math"
Posted by Duane Smith at 2:50 PM
| Read more on Archaeology |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |
December 1, 2005
Kanzi Has a New Blog - Amazing
A certain Kanzi left a long and interesting comment on yesterday's post "The Minimum God and Religion that They Can Get Away With." Kanzi has a new blog called La vie au XXIe siècle that discusses, among other things, human...Read all of "Kanzi Has a New Blog - Amazing"
Posted by Duane Smith at 3:48 PM
| Read more on Odds and Ends |
| Abnormal Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0)
| Abnormal Archive Link |