The Null Device
2000/10/9
SissyFight in real life: There are few things as calculatingly yet blindly vicious as cliques of high-school girls.
Tarnished celebrities: Happy Days actress turned ALP frontbencher Roz Kelly is facing jail for assaulting an ex-boyfriend. Kelly was on probation over some nasty business involving a shotgun.
*sigh* Scientists in Australia recently transferred the nucleus of a human cell into a pig's ovum, an experiment which may someday lead to regrowing organs for patients in need of transplants. The Sunday Times beat the story up, turning it into a "pig-human hybrid", and rousing knee-jerk international condemnation. It seems that a lot of people have superstitions about the sacred inviolability of human DNA, and are all too ready to exclaim their outrage like Frankenstein's torch-wielding peasants at the very hint of this taboo being violated, without ever looking at the facts.
If more people realised that biologically, humans are just animals like any other (albeit with more elaborate cognitive faculties) and stopped taking ancient creation myths literally, then we'd have more of a chance of actually understanding how nature really works, and be closer to solving more of our problems. But then again, this is the world in which the theory of evolution is still controversial, not because the facts don't agree with it but because popular prejudices don't. Sometimes I wonder whether there is hope for humanity.
Surprise, surprise: If you use web-based email or ICQ from work, your employer can read your mail, regardless of what the banner ads say. (via Slashdot)
Recently deceased celebrity gangster turned songwriter Reggie Kray has recorded a CD, with the help of pop producer Greg Bone. The disc, titled Freedom of Thought, on which Kray condemns racism and talks about the Jack the Hat murder, will be available through Kray's website.
The latest craze amongst the ultra-rich is custom-designed luxury submarines, often outperforming the best military craft. Now every billionnaire can be Hagbard Celine.
Shortly after the UK Conservative party's shadow home secretary outlined its new, draconian zero-tolerance drug policy, seven senior party members have admitted to smoking marijuana in their youth. Not surprisingly, there have been calls for their summary dismissal.
The Empire strikes back: Hollywood have discovered a way to manufacture DVDs which don't work on multi-region players, and are starting releasing Region 1 titles in this "enhanced" format. Though apparently this only stops the cheap and nasty region modifications. Caveat emptor.