MedWorm: Immunologists

I exist and new website!

Immunoblogging — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 02:19:00 +0100

It's been an extremely long time now, but here it is my new website:Animacules.I decided to make a shift to new software and a new way of doing things, because I found the interface here (requiring two seperate sites for full management) was becoming far too clunky. Wordpress offers a few more options and such as well, but ultimately I enjoyed my time on this site and it was good times had by all. But now it is time to move on and such forth.Anyway, update links as you will good ladies and gents and head on over to Animacules. (Source: Immunoblogging)

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Insert ominous music here

Immunoblogging — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 19:37:00 +0100

(Source: Immunoblogging)

Oh Verizon

Immunoblogging — Sat, 09 Dec 2006 10:24:00 +0100

Since when did .002 cents become the same as .002 dollars? I wish I could multiply cents and get the same figure in dollars (somehow).I'd be a lot richer :/ (Source: Immunoblogging)

Oh Hwang

Immunoblogging — Wed, 01 Nov 2006 01:31:00 +0100

First he gets done for fraud, then we find out he tried to get eggs from his research assistants and now it turns out he was even going to associate himself with the Russian Mafia:The defense also said the embezzlement charges, involving funds provided by corporate sponsors, should be dropped, as most of the funds in question are accounted for or still in the bank. Hwang stood by his previous claims that suspicious personal items--such as a car for himself and his wife--were bought with money earned from lectures and publications. Hwang said that some of the allegedly misappropriated money was used for expenses in pursuing unsuccessful projects, which included an effort to clone a mammoth that involved the Russian mafia, and another project to clone a Siberian tiger native to North Korea. ...

What a mouthful!

Immunoblogging — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 05:58:00 +0100

There is something almost disturbing about watching this video of a pelican eating a pidgeon (I kid you not). I didn't know that pelicans were even prone to attacking pidgeons, but I tell you what, that pidgeon seems to have put up one hell of a fight before going down (literally). The amazing things that animals do. (Source: Immunoblogging)

Treadmills and Shrimps!

Immunoblogging — Thu, 12 Oct 2006 11:14:00 +0100

For some reason, this really amuses me.I have no idea why. (Source: Immunoblogging)

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Nutrigenetics sting

Immunoblogging — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 02:20:00 +0100

While perusing the American Journal of Bioethics, I noticed this really quite amusing piece by Ricky Lewis on nutrigenetics. Some companies are apparently taking samples of peoples DNA and then using the resulting data to try to customise diets to them based on their genes. Sounds like a fairly neat idea in theory, but the Government Accountability Office (GAO) decided to put one such company to the test:Here’s how the GAO targeted four nutrigenetics company websites. They took DNA from a 9-month-old girl and from a 48-year-old man. Then they concocted diet/lifestyle profiles for 14 “fictitious consumers,” 12 from the baby’s DNA, and 2 from the man’s. For example, the baby girl was transmogrified into a 6-foot-tall, 210-pound 45-year-old man who smokes and doesn’t exercise, dri...

Tired of the same ole whack a mole game

Immunoblogging — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 05:16:00 +0100

In a post entitled "I grow weary of ID", Jason Rosenhouse points out some more hillarious ID contradictions. The stupidity of Bruce Chapmans comments where Bruce claims that there is ID research, but nobody will tell you who is doing it and where it is being done because of some darwinist 'conspiracy', is not really being sold very easily. Quite frankly, to rip off a common New Zealand advertising meme:ID has a prosperous and highly successful research program. Yeah right.As it still appears that the ID movement doesn't even have a theory to begin with you can imagine my skepticism at anyone claiming there is ID 'research' being done using a DOA "theory". This really isn't the point I want to talk about though from Jasons post, but rather this from a little later in:Which brings me to the ...

Diet Coke + Mentos = Awesome

Immunoblogging — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 17:51:00 +0100

HA! (Source: Immunoblogging)

What is going on?

Immunoblogging — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 07:05:00 +0100

Well, it's probably as good a time as any to explain what on earth has been happening with this blog and such forth over the numerous dark months of inactivity. As always with many things in life, things that occur in the "real world" often interfere with other plans that one has for things online. Unfortunately for me, I was intending to have a new website up and running with many of my previous posts updated and revised. This very obviously never happened, primarily due to a wide array of things getting in the way of my plans. The main reason that nothing has happened just yet is that I've been running around sorting out my PhD for the past couple of months (an unbelievable amount of paperwork is involved!).Now that everything appears to be in order and that I'm starting to get re-intere...

43rd Skeptics Circle

Immunoblogging — Sat, 16 Sep 2006 07:03:00 +0100

The 43rd Skeptics Circle has been posted over at Adventures in Ethics and Science. I hear there are puppies involved. (Source: Immunoblogging)

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42nd Skeptics Circle

Immunoblogging — Thu, 31 Aug 2006 09:16:00 +0100

Welcome to the 42nd meeting of the skeptics circle. Many of you have wondered where I have been over the past months and what has exactly been going on down in the lowest part of the world. Well my excuse is that, uhhhh, hmmmm...Ah yes, we've been invaded by the undead [of course, why didn't I think of this before]. Oh yes, they are everywhere down here I assure you and we're knee deep in them. Billions of them. Here is an example picture:See what I mean? Absolutely crawling with the undead [they are there I assure you, they are just camera shy]. Can't cross the street without having to dodge numerous zombies all after your brains. What's worse is they are all into various forms of pseudoscience, woo and quackery. Perhaps it might all be the result of dumping too much nuclear waste into th...

A very confused skeptics circle

Immunoblogging — Thu, 25 May 2006 20:23:00 +0100

Oh Skeptico, how much fun it must be to have someone first smurf you and then make a blog with a similar name as well! Confused? Well so was I, but all the answers are in this weeks skeptics circle hosted by our good pal Skeptico and his...uhhh pet smurf.As for me, things will be starting to change shortly although it will be after the weekend or so. I'm going away for a weekend to help move stuff around in a relatives house so I probably won't be available. After that, it's about time to move things along with my new blog I think :D (Source: Immunoblogging)

Carnival of the wee animacules

Immunoblogging — Thu, 18 May 2006 17:09:00 +0100

The latest edition of all things small and microbial has been posted at Aetiology. The carnival seems to be going into a monthly format now from it's previous bi-weekly one, which indicates that we need a few more regular hosts and those willing to submit entries. Make sure you let Tara (from Aetiology of course ;)) know if you want to submit something to the carnival or host a future edition. (Source: Immunoblogging)

Where am I?

Immunoblogging — Thu, 18 May 2006 05:37:00 +0100

As a couple of commenters have wondered where I've gone I'll give everyone a quick update as to what has happened. Basically, I'm making a new site and I've basically busy doing that at the moment. Stimulated by Ocellated who suggested going to a .com and going to word-press (which I've concluded I rather like), I've started to design and move most of the stuff on this blog to a new one. It's not done yet, partly because I suck at web-design and am more of less doing things by a random 'trial and error' process and I've had a bit of drama. For example having one of my teeth removed recently (long story) and been busy organising various other real life dramas (real life drama is the best kind I've found). So that's been a bit of distraction from my goal of making a much improved site that i...

Still alive

Immunoblogging — Wed, 03 May 2006 08:07:00 +0100

Just a post to let you guys know that I'm still alive and trying to figure out what I'm wanting to do with the site. Unfortunately, with my graduation ceremony coming up in only a couple of days I've been a little busy handling that at the moment. I should probably have decided to attend the graduation ceremony back in december last year, but that would require the prompt return of the various paperwork involved. Unfortunately, while relocating to another part of the country it turns out that's not something that was particularly possible to do.Normal blogging will resume eventually, but I've given up trying to make predictions on when exactly that is going to happen. :) (Source: Immunoblogging)

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Oh blog memes

Immunoblogging — Sun, 30 Apr 2006 10:27:00 +0100

This one I noticed from Orac, PZ Myers and Grrlscientist was fairly amusing:Your Theme Song is Born to Be Wild by Steppenwolf"I like smoke and lightningHeavy metal thunderRacin' with the windAnd the feelin' that I'm under"A total independent spirit, you can't be held down or fenced in.You crave the feeling of wind on your face... and totally freedom.What's Your Theme Song?At least it isn't Hit Me Baby One More time or something. That would be just sneaky. (Source: Immunoblogging)

iNoodle

Immunoblogging — Sat, 29 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

May our music be touched and protected by his Noodly Appendage. (Source: Immunoblogging)

The 33rd skeptics circle

Immunoblogging — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

The next edition of the skeptics circle has been posted at Science and Politics and contains the usual skeptical goodness for digestion. I recall that Orac is still looking for future hosts and so it might be worth paying him a visit if you'd be interested in doing that. (Source: Immunoblogging)

One judge with a sense of humour

Immunoblogging — Thu, 27 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

The British Judge that threw out the plagiarism case against Dan Brown and the Da Vinci Code has had a bit of fun with his decision. As it turns out, he's inserted various italicised letters into the overall text and codebreakers are trying to figure out what message he left. Which it seems some clever chap managed to do (see the linked article). I was hoping for something on how silly the whole case was to begin with, but the judge was just having a bit of fun it would appear.At least he has a sense of humour. (Source: Immunoblogging)

Site redesign

Immunoblogging — Wed, 26 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

I finished Dragon Quest VIII and so that means things will be getting back to normal around here pretty shortly. First up I'm hoping to get some ideas for redesigning the site. As you can see, this blog isn't overly different in look to pretty much every other blog on blogger. It looks a little bland as a result to me and it always somewhat miffs me that it looks like every other blog. I've done a bit of 'personalisation' on the site every so often, like adding the little antibody under the title (that's what the Y shaped globular thing is if you've ever wondered). Overall however, it's still pretty much the same as it was when I first started it.Now I'm not saying there is anything wrong with the good old blogger.com template. It's perfectly functional and my numerous experiments with it ...

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Oh dear

Immunoblogging — Sat, 22 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

I had absolutely no idea that Dragon Quest VIII would be able to capture my attention so thoroughly since I bought it a week ago. I'm nearly finished with the game now, it's probably one of the longest games of its type I've ever played and so things will hopefully return to normal by monday. Well hopefully anyway, depends on how quickly I get through the last couple of dungeons :DIn future I think I shall remind myself to never buy a new RPG when I intend to do a large amount of blogging. It's usually not a very good idea for my overall productivity :p In any event, while I was effectively taken out by the charming nature of Dragon Quest VIII, I did get time to read an excellent paper in Nature Immunology by several Pandas Thumb posters. Essentially Andrea Bottaro, Matt Inlay and Nicholas...

Dragon Quest: Journey of the Cursed King

Immunoblogging — Fri, 14 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

I've been playing this game for much of today and am absolutely loving it. It simply opitimizes exactly what I like about the Japanese role-playing games and feels very much like old Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) games I used to play. It's a lot harder than most other JapRPGs I've played though, especially as the monsters in regular encounters are much more of a challenge. The art style of the game is also pretty good as well, probably as it was done by the same artist who did Dragonball Z and some of the animations are quite amusing. Overall it's a fun game experience and I think there will be many hours wiled away levelling up my little computerised avatars and smacking around monsters.Hopefully it won't affect blogging too much ;) (Source: Immunoblogging)

Sobering up Intelligent Design

Immunoblogging — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

I'll put a link into this great Pandas Thumb post analysing an essay written by Elliott Sober*, Intelligent Design theory and the supernatural - the "God or Extra-Terrestrials" reply, which takes on the ID argument and establishes how ID inherently can't escape from a supernatural designer. Abstract: When proponents of Intelligent Design (ID) theory deny that their theory is religious, the minimalistic theory they have in mind (the mini-ID theory) is the claim that the irreducibly complex adaptations found in nature were made by one or more intelligent designers. The denial that this theory is religious rests on the fact that it does not specify the identity of the designer — a supernatural God or a team of extra-terrestrials could have done the work. The present paper attempts to show t...

Blog direction

Immunoblogging — Thu, 13 Apr 2006 23:00:00 +0100

When I first started this blog last year the intent was to argue against certain claims made against the MeNZB vaccination scheme in New Zealand (hence the title and the little quip under it). As it turns out, that particular thing has become rather moot these days and the media, public and everyone else has pretty much moved along. This is probably the result of the fact the vaccination regime has actually worked, which always does a lot to end all various people fussing around.So the result really is now to establish a more solid direction to what I want to do with the blog. I've become less and less interested in nuts as time has gone on. For example, there are many blogs that are dedicated to the debunking of claims from creationists like the Discovery Institute, general nutters and al...