Here’s Cate in her new walker. (It’s probably best called a “stander” until Cate’s tall enough for her feet to reach the floor.)
![[Cate in walker]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/cate_hemi.jpg)
It’s got rotating toys, electric lights and sounds, tray-forward design …
…and it’s got a hemi!
Friday Cate: Grab life by the horns
February 16th, 2007The more things change …
February 15th, 2007Here’s one writer’s take on the state of biology education in schools.
[N]ot one in a hundred graduates of our public schools could state any evidence showing whether vaccination is beneficial or harmful, or describe how malaria, diphtheria, or yellow fever are acquired, and how they may be prevented.
The pupils have spent much time in learning meaningless words, but when information is sought concerning the evidence that typhoid fever is caused by drinking polluted water they remain silent. A pupil is rarely found who can state clearly how the fact has been established that bacteria produce disease. In consequence very many do not yet believe that disease is preventable, and so pay little heed to the laws made by the state for the welfare of its people.
Y’all could probably guess the time frame by the style of writing and the particular diseases named. The quote above was from Alvin Davison’s The Human Body and Health, written in 1908.
These days, I’d wager that closer to 99 in a hundred public school graduates do know that bacteria (and viruses) cause disease – and know that much disease is preventable.
The moral of the story? Whatever the state of our educational system, it’s never good enough for us. That’s no bad thing; we should strive to improve education. But – we need to keep things in perspective. Things are a lot better now than they were in the “good old days”!
They’re ba-ack! Vouchers in South Carolina
February 12th, 2007Well, it looks like
[Tracy] Edge has reintroduced his failed proposal from last year, which would offer:
* A $1,000 tax credit per child to all families who pay private school tuition, regardless of family income
* A $500 tax credit for home-schoolers
* A $4,500 tuition reimbursement for poor students who leave low-rated public schools
(I’ve highlighted the only part of this proposal that Edge probably even cares about – a $1000 tax credit for rich families who put their kids in exclusive private schools.)
Last time I saw this proposal, I thought it was breathtakingly dumb. I still feel the same way. How is this not simply a free cash handout – with no strings or accountability attached – for private schools?
Poor kids still won’t be able to afford the good private schools, which run as much as $13,000 per year – even with the tuition reimbursement. That assumes that such schools would accept kids from poor families in the first place. If the bill passes this time around, I’d expect to see private school tuition adjusted accordingly – so that exclusive schools stay exclusive.
There’s also the issue of accountability. With a measure like this, we subsidize private schools with our tax dollars. For public schools, we have accountability – even if we’re not always thrilled with the way the state measures school quality. When we give tax money away to private schools, how do we know what we’re getting in return?
In short, how is this proposal a good idea?
Having said all that, South Carolina is behind the curve when it comes to giving tax money away to private schools.
Utah is “allotting up to $3,000 for any public school student to put toward private school tuition”. We’ll see how well that turns out.
Parody or not? You make the call
February 12th, 2007It really is extremely hard to tell parody from serious “efforts” to find scientific evidence for the biblical literalists. So, you make the call. Parody, or not?
From WorldNetDaily, here’s a Kentucky “science student” who claims to have scientific evidence for creation.
“If God spoke everything into existence as the Genesis record proposes, then we should be able to scientifically prove that the construction of everything in the universe begins with a) the Holy Spirit (magnetic field); b) Light (an electric field); and c) that Light can be created by a sonic influence or sound,” Samuel J. Hunt writes
(emphasis mine)
Behold your all-powerful and mighty god!
God
Watch where you’re pointing that thing!
February 9th, 2007A post over at Pooflingers Anonymous reminded me of a little rant I’ve been meaning to post for a while.
Consider this lovely Pasteur pipet.
![[Pasteur pipet]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/pipet_tip_down.jpg)
The Pasteur pipet is truly a small wonder. It’s cheap, disposable, and can be used to transfer small amounts of liquid from one place to another with almost no mess. The suction from the bulb keeps the liquid inside from dripping. There’s also very little risk of contamination of sample, since the glass part is disposable – and is only used to transfer one solution.
What irritates me to no end in introductory labs, though, is one simple error that students will just keep on making over and over again – no matter how many times I point out the error and correct it. That error is …
![[Pasteur pipet tip up]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/pipet_tip_up.jpg)
… holding the pipet with the tip up.
Holding the pipet this way causes the liquid inside the pipet to run down into the rubber bulb. While the glass body of the pipet is essentially chemically inert, the rubber bulb is not. Strong acids attack the bulb, as do many solvents – and the products of these reactions get into the dispensed liquid. Any contaminant that’s present in the rubber bulb – usually caused by some other student holding the pipet with the tip up – will also get washed into the dispensed liquid.
All of these contaminants will screw up results. For students, that translates into bad grades. That, at least, is something that students should understand!
Friday cat: The high score
February 9th, 2007Patty caught Tom beating my high score in Time Pilot ’84 this week.
![[Tom]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/tom_highscore.jpg)
I’ve just beaten your high score! Now it’s time for a nap
Who knew Tom was into video games?
Friday Cate: It’s cold outside!
February 9th, 2007![[It's cold outside!]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/cate_coldoutside.jpg)
You can’t take me out there! It’s cold!
Friday cat: I’m the baby! (Ash Edition)
February 2nd, 2007Here’s Ash, letting us know that all of the brightly-colored new toys around the house can’t possibly be for mere humans.
![[Ash: I'M the baby]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/ash_imthebaby_1024.jpg)
Ash: I’m the baby!
Friday Cate: You like-a the chair?
February 2nd, 2007![[Cate in chair]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/cate_chair.jpg)
Cate like-a the chair!
A request for Boston
February 1st, 2007Bostonians! All y’all owe me a new laptop keyboard and another glass of sweet tea. In lieu of that, simply repeat after me:
![[I am]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/athf_i_am.jpg)
![[Sofa King]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/athf_sofa_king.jpg)
![[We Todd Ed]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/athf_we_todd_ed.jpg)
In case you haven’t heard, the city of Boston went certifiably insane yesterday over some light-up signs advertising the cartoon Aqua Teen Hunger Force. Someone thought the signs were bombs.
Here’s one of the signs:
![[Inignot]](http://whenchemistsattack.com/blogfiles/athf_inignot_cnn.jpg)
Inignot, from Aqua Teen Hunger Force: “I hope he can see this, because I’m doing it as hard as I can.”
The Massachusetts attorney general said
“It had a very sinister appearance,” Coakley told reporters. “It had a battery behind it, and wires.”
Rumors that the attorney general also added “Oh he did not do that! That dude back there just flipped me off!” turned out to be false.
Update:
When you find yourself in a hole, it is generally advisable to stop digging.
It’s clear the intent was to get attention by causing fear and unrest that there was a bomb in that location,†Assistant Attorney General John Grossman said at their arraignment.
Yes, it was designed to get attention. it’s a circuit board with batteries that lights up to draw attention to itself. No, it was not designed to “cause fear and unrest” by making people think it was a bomb. It looks like a sign, not a bomb. STOP DIGGING!
Oh wait … this is Boston. Never mind. Carry on, then.