Very cool. SpaceX has been making a lot of news recently, announcing one breakthrough after another. Their current unmanned Dragon capsule has made multiple successful supply runs to the ISS. Now they've revealed a version that can transport humans. The most eye popping aspect of it is the SuperDraco rocket engines on the capsule itself that … Continue reading SpaceX reveals the new crewed Dragon V2
On the biology of race
On theories of why civilizations collapse and our own times
After my post on the Bronze Age collapse and resulting discussion, I looked at other material about the collapse of civilizations, but after doing that, realized that I have some thoughts about what might be necessary for developing a theory about why collapses happen, what areas of expertise you need to have a chance at formulating … Continue reading On theories of why civilizations collapse and our own times
Interstellar travel: Raising children in space
BBC Future has an article looking at how living in space might effect humans and society, and asking, among other things, should we have babies in space? “Mars,” sang Sir Elton John in Rocket Man, “ain't the kind of place to raise your kids.” Sir Elton might be lacking in Nasa-related experience, but he had a … Continue reading Interstellar travel: Raising children in space
We might find extraterrestrial life soon, but intelligent life?
Forbes has an article up noting that many scientists, including Seth Shostak, are now saying that we could find intelligent extraterrestrial life in the next twenty years. I definitely think we might find extraterrestrial life in that time frame, but I'm pretty skeptical that it will be intelligent. I've written about this before, but the … Continue reading We might find extraterrestrial life soon, but intelligent life?
Americans may be more scientifically literate than evolution questions show
Dan Kahan has an interesting post showing that when Americans are asked the, "Did humans develop from earlier species?" question, it matters how it is asked. As it's usually asked, when people answer, they are often asserting a religious cultural identity. But if it is asked with the qualifying "according to the theory of evolution", … Continue reading Americans may be more scientifically literate than evolution questions show
The dualism of mind uploading
A few days ago, when I told him I thought his skepticism of mind uploading was a bit overly pessimistic, Massimo Pigliucci pointed out that mind uploading implies dualism and seemed to see this as a strike against it. (The relevant comments are scattered on this thread at his blog. Search for "selfaware" to find … Continue reading The dualism of mind uploading
The divided brain | RSA Animate
An interesting video on the real divisions between the left and right brain. It's not what you've historically heard. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFs9WO2B8uI h/t Terra Icognita
Self Deception | Conscious Entities
Peter Hankins at Conscious Entities does a book review of 'Kidding Ourselves' by Joseph T Hallinan. Joseph T Hallinan’s new book Kidding Ourselves says that not only is self deception more common and more powerful than we suppose, it’s actually helpful: deluded egoists beat realists every time. Philosophically, of course, self-deception is impossible. To deceive … Continue reading Self Deception | Conscious Entities
Ants, the brain, cancer, and the internet
Deborah Gordon gave an interesting TED talk on ants. Regular readers have seen posts from me before on ants. An ant colony seems to operate as a type of superorganism. I used to wonder if colonies were conscious. (Although I now doubt it since I see consciousness requiring a model of an system's attention, and that … Continue reading Ants, the brain, cancer, and the internet
SelfAwarePatterns 