Linketies the second

[moominmuppet]

Doctor Who Christmas special: Bill Bailey interview

Helen Mirren Would Like to Play the Doctor, and We Would Be Extremely Okay With That
Helen Mirren Wants To Be The First Female Doctor in 'Doctor Who' -- Oh, good Maude, yes! Yes, yes, yes, PLEASE! (I know it's just pipedreams at this point, but leave me to them, ok?)

Apparently the CIA has taken the rare step of acknowledging the sovereign rights of another country, as well as the existence of public opinion and blowback, by suspending drone attacks in Pakistan, according to the LA Times. They claim that the hiatus is in its sixth week.

Neil Gaiman’s morbid 1989 Christmas card gets transformed into a pop-up book

Terry Gilliam's "The Christmas Card"

The 6 Most Secretly Racist Classic Children's Books -- This brings up an interesting and frustrating element of my current book list project; trying to decide "how egregious is too egregious" for racism/sexism/heterosexism/etc in classic children's books. In some cases, I think the story can still be shared with kids pretty easily with a bit of "we don't believe these things/use these words anymore" discussion, but in others I really have to say "I just can't", and leave them for later in life, when hopefully the kid in question will be better prepared to handle the imagery and issues. If you've struggled with this, how have you navigated it? What's left you really stumped, or struggling between personal nostalgic affection and modern social justice perspectives? I've noticed that it makes some difference to me if the material was originally progressive "for its time", and it makes a big difference whether it's a passing and coded reference or a major character. When the bias is in regards to a major enough character that kids may want to role-play them, it starts making me really uncomfortable -- Tiger Lily from Disney's Peter Pan is a good example of this.
Also, to clarify, I'm not talking about banning anything, I'm just talking about what I'm personally comfortable reinforcing via recommendation. Any kid will encounter a ton of crap in various forms of media. The best they can hope for is to have access to adults who are interested in what they're encountering, and can help contextualize it.

The Closing Argument Delivered by the Government at the Manning Hearing

News: FDA Won’t Act Against Ag Antibiotic Use -- Argh.

Which Two States Don't Have Any Out Elected Officials? (AK and SD)

Video | Bisexual Resource Center responds to bi teen who's been bullied and beaten up at school

Human Flamingo

Pet dog from 30,000 years ago

Archaeology: Top 10 Discoveries of 2011

Did you know the International Encyclopedia of Sexuality is online? FOR FREE! Thanks @kinseyinstitute!

Abstinence-Only: It’s Baaack

What’s Inside Spray-On Snow? Fat, Fat and More Fat

Why do scorpions glow in the dark (and could their whole bodies be one big eye)?

Best Discredited Substances

GLAAD and HRC take out full page ad condemning new ABC “comedy” Work It
More: ABC’s “Work It” Only Works at Hurting Trans People
More: It's Like They Took My Life and Put It On Television (extreme snark)

"Red alert!" "Eat any good books lately?" "The boy who cried Worf." "Seems pretty human to me." "What a dreadful color." "You've certainly been a pain in our backside." "I'm in a really bad mood." "It was a wonderful -- feeling." "Die." "Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee's back!"
The TNG Rewatch experiences some "Déjà Q." Feel the awesomeness.

The temp from Chiswick: why I love Donna Noble -- Donna Noble is absolutely my favorite companion, for many of the reasons listed here.

‘He was one of them’

What is snot? And why do some people eat it?

Verity Platt is uncovering lives of ancient artists

‘Tis the Season for Reinforcing Gender Differences

Mom & Pop Culture: An Interview With Ani DiFranco

BBC: Tell loved ones they are overweight this Christmas.
LOL FOREVER! Yes, please do that. Please everyone tell me that I am fat this Christmas, because I DON'T KNOW. There is no gift like the gift of treating me like I am totally fucking stupid.

You're Doing It Wrong. On The Reverse Gender Gap.

MLK Day Bomber Gets 32 Years for Not-Terrorism

The oldest known "animal" fossils may have been living in the wrong kingdom. New images suggest that 570-million-year-old, many-celled blobs from China are not animal embryos as once thought, but rather some kind of spore-releasing cyst.

Leaping Cockroach Gets Around on Spring-Loaded Knees

Teaching about air pollution through dance

BRCA genes and cancer outcomes

Gov. John Kasich signs 13 bills into law, including another anti-abortion measure

Lesbian couple share Navy's 'first kiss' homecoming honors

Occupy the River, in Yup'ik

MPAA says SOPA-style censorship works in Yemen and Syria *headdesk*
Related: Anti-SOPA plugins render censorship law pointless AND stupid

Just How Good Are the TSA’s Body Scanners?
More: Sweating Bullets: Body Scanners Can See Perspiration as a Potential Weapon

Silk microneedles deliver controlled-release drugs painlessly

In Time for the Holidays, One Toy Store Nixes Pink and Blue

Black Cat of Riga

To turn up the heat in chilies, just add water

Study of fish fossil shows that 'head-first' diversity drives vertebrate evolution

Adopt a HeroRat via Apopo: We Train Rats To Save Lives

Op-Ed: The Most Iconic Photos From OWS So Far

Cache Cab: Taxi Drivers' Brains Grow to Navigate London's Streets
Memorizing 25,000 city streets balloons the hippocampus, but cabbies may pay a hidden fare in cognitive skills

National pride brings happiness -- but what you're proud of matters

Science Getaways -- If I were ever going to buy a vacation package, this is the kind of thing I'd want.

The sharp eyes of Anomalocaris, a top predator that lived half a billion years ago

The Difference between Spider-Man and Santa Claus Is Very Small (venn diagram)

House Considers “Prenatal Nondiscrimination Act,” I.e. the We-Don’t-Trust-Women-Of-Color Act

Cultural Patterns and Geographic Terms

Secret Society of Abortioneers

Scott Fujita Plays in Americans for Marriage Equality Campaign

Want a Private Margaret Cho Skype Show? Help Ian Harvie Out

Knowledge About The Clitoris And Orgasm For Women

Lightweight GPS tags help research track animals of all sizes

Occupy Cleveland helps neighbors, makes friends (older, but local, news)
Related: Occupy Movement Targets Foreclosed Properties -- I feel really strongly about the Occupy Foreclosures/Occupy Our Homes direction for OWS, so I'm linking these even though they're a few weeks old.
More: Occupy Our Homes: Today the Foreclosure Crisis Moves to the Top of the Agenda

Swapping Germs: Should Fecal Transplants Become Routine for Debilitating Diarrhea?
A potentially beneficial but unusual treatment for serious intestinal ailments may fall victim to regulatory difficulties

Researchers from North Carolina State University have determined that skinned versions of Android may expose private data to any app that makes a request — and all without asking for user permission.

Mysterious Sphere Falls from Space

Hollywood producer Jerry Weintraub’s non-traditional relationships

Democrats Are Still Compromising Away Women's Rights -- What's Wrong with the Pro-Choice Movement's Strategy?

Under The Hood is a place for soldiers to socialize, organize and get information on GI rights.

Christmas Songnerd: Fairytale of New York

Barney Frank's Awesome Marijuana Legalization Rant

Are We Moving Towards Reform? For the First Time in 40 Years, U.S. Prison Population Declines -- Good Maude, I hope so. It's pretty damned hard to sing the "Land of the Free" line in our anthem without feeling like part of one giant national hypocrisy.

Comprehensive Timeline/Infographic To Doctor Who

Rebuttal: Male, Female Aggression Don't Equate

STOKING FIRE: Anti-Choicers Bring Harassment to Wyoming and Get Frosty Reception

In honor of the quickly-approaching 40th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade, check out this awesome performance. Oscar-nominated actors Felicity Huffman and William H. Macy wrote a song that they performed in Washington, D.C. at NARAL Pro-Choice America's Luncheon commemorating the 38th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Everyone should see this.

Comments

[xhollydayx.livejournal.com]

The article on knowledge of clitoris, vulva, and orgasm for women depresses me for several reasons. Orgasms are fun and I think women's bodies are (almost) all beautiful. Maybe this makes me pervy or weird, but I love seeing pictures of vulvas - not always in a sexual way, more b/c I just find them so beautiful. My mom is a bit of a hippy and I have always owned Our Bodies Our Selves. As a kid, I also had a book called What's Happening To My Body? (same authors as Where Did I Come From? and Why Was I Adopted? - highly recommend any of them). I was never allowed to use slang names for body parts. So, women (or rather, people in general) not knowing where a body part is just makes me sad. I just remember at one point my mom telling me whre some hand mirrors were and encouraging me to explore my body and see it from different angles. This is also the same woman who told me if I didn't know how to get myself off, I shouldn't expect someone else to. (and the number of students who try to find the clitoris on a male anatomy drawing? or try to find the clitoris and place it in the bladder or anus.

Next, the number of women who believe orgasm comes from PIV annoys me. So, we have this idea in society that PIV is sex. So, what is oral sex then? Further, this idea that PIV is superior to any other type of sex and that's how you get off. I know so many women who experience minimal foreplay and are angry (Typically with themselves) for not having an orgasm. When I tell students that roughly 1/3 of women orgasm from PIV, I have a ton of male and female students tell me that made a lightbulb go off. We talk about other ways that people can have an orgasm, and if someone is fond of PIV and there is a person with a clit involved, how to up the chances that they'll orgasm. Also, that orgasm is not the be all, end all (although I'm fond of it!)

[moominmuppet.livejournal.com]

*nod* I feel so incredibly lucky for the sex ed I received (you've seen the books!)

[xhollydayx.livejournal.com]

Sorry for a second comment. The article on fecal transplants was fascinating and incredibly timely for me! I just emailed it to my GI dr. I had C Diff this fall, and oh gods, it sucks. I don't wish that on anyone (they're not sure if I starting flaring before the C Diff or after). First antibiotic sort of worked, and then OMG not at all. Worse than before. Cue tears. Then Dificid around Thanksgiving - very new drug, just approved this year. If I didn't have insurance, it'd be $3,000. The co-pay was less painful but still ouchy. It did mostly work though. I'm still taking Zofran several times a day, but haven't had to get IV fluids at home in a couple of weeks, which is nice.

All that said, I'd sign up for fecal transplants in a heart beat now! I am not sure if it would have been my first choice, but knowing what I know now, i'd do it first. My GI dr has mentioned it, but fears insurance wouldn't cover.

[moominmuppet.livejournal.com]

*nod* I think it's definitely got huge potential, and makes so much more sense than most of our current sledgehammer approaches.

If it'd help with medical problems in my life, I'd absolutely be signing up. We're mostly bacteria anyway, paying more attention to how to rebalance flora and fauna is hugely sensible.