After almost a year working in a lab someone finally sent me the meaning of Science and Research

“Now what is the message there?

The message is that there are known “knowns.” There are things we know that we know.

There are known unknowns. That is to say there are things that we now know we don’t know.

But there are also unknown unknowns. There are things we don’t know we don’t know. So when we do the best we can and we pull all this information together, and we then say well that’s basically what we see as the situation, that is really only the known knowns and the known unknowns. And each year, we discover a few more of those unknown unknowns.’”

 Completly clear now is it not. I feel like my eyes have been opened…

Don’t you?

On the way to work I listen to the news, and today there was a piece on the RAF and how soldiers are being advised to wear civilian attire when in public places. Due to the fact they are being abused by the public. Not long ago I heard the same thing said to Army soldiers about traveling on public services.

How do those of you who do this justify yourselves.

For a start these soldiers have no say in where they are sent, just like you in your job, when told to do something by your boss/supervisor you do it.  So why are you blaming service men and women for choices they do not make? If you don’t agree with where these soldiers are sent then take it up with those who can change it. Not create further misery in soldiers’ lives.

They have joined up to protect and serve you and your country. Putting their lives in danger so you can be safe. And be under no illusions, they are underpaid and under supported just like many others. Is this fair, service men and women have enough stresses as it is. Many comeback with physical and mental injuries because their job. When they return they are under supported and then you abuse them.  Put yourself in their shoes, could you do the same job, full knowing the dangers and then knowing when you come back you will be abused for what you endured.

We cannot change that the UK went to war with Iraq and Afghanistan all we can do is hope for a quick end. So is abusing our armed forces helping this end. If you want to change policies and make your view on the wars known by all means do. But do it to the people who can make a difference, to people whose job it is to make the public’s voice heard such as your MP or even the PM.  

But do not unburden on our soldiers because your harsh words have more impact on other people’s lives than you think.

There must be something interesting here.

Well, the New Year has come and gone, January’s finished and so is Feb, so we are firmly in the New Year but I’m really looking forward to October. Because that’s when I start Uni.

Well on a totally different note some of my family and me when to a local Forrest at the weekend and had a great time. We walked relatively far into the woods, but not as far as I would have liked. It’s an amazing feeling in those woods, not sure how to describe it, like endless possibilities. I’ve set myself a task to try and identify at least some of the plants and trees so I’ve got a book and will read up on it for my return visit. I even managed to get some birch bark which is meant to be great for fire lighting but haven’t managed to try it yet.

Last Christmas I received my first pair of binoculars so I took them along. They were great, I never imaged they would be so clear. Didn’t manage to see many animals with them, but a few birds.

There were quite a few dog walkers and I think my mum has a fear of them, the dogs rather than the owners, as soon as she sees or hears them she gets all jumpy. Extremely funny. But on the animal front in the car on the way there and back we I Deer, actual Deer. I had no idea they were there, and that is the first time I’ve seen them in real life. Made my day. But it got even better as on the way home as we were passing between two parallel hedgerows a Fox slunk out and crossed the road to the opposite hedge row right in front of us.

So all in all a great day.

And i’m sure 2008 will only get better.

Happy New Year and good luck.

Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, our best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral, celebration of the winter solstice holiday, practised within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all . . . and a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2008, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make the EU great (not to imply that the EU is necessarily greater than any other region), and without regard to the race, creed, color, age, physical ability, religious faith, or choice of computer platform.

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 To the rest Merry Christmas!

Enjoy: 

I’ve been teaching now for about fifteen years. I have two kids myself, but the best birth story I know is the one I saw in my own second
grade classroom a few years back. When I was a kid, I loved show-and-tell. So I always have a few sessions
with my students. It helps them get over shyness and usually,
show-and-tell is pretty tame. Kids bring in pet turtles, model airplanes,
pictures of fish they catch, stuff like that. And I never, ever place any
boundaries or limitations on them. If they want to lug it in to school
and talk about it, they’re welcome. Well, one day this little girl, Erica, a very bright, very outgoing kid,
takes her turn and waddles up to the front of the class with a pillow
stuffed under her sweater. She holds up a snapshot of an infant. ‘This is Luke, my baby
brother, and I’m going to tell you about his birthday.’ ‘First, Mom and Dad made him as a symbol of their love, and then Dad
put a seed in my Mom’s stomach, and Luke grew in there. He ate for nine
months through an umbrella cord.’She’s standing there with her hands on the pillow, and I’m trying not to
laugh and wishing I had my camcorder with me. The kids are watching her in amazement.

Check it out: http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,22492511-5005375,00.html

Some people see her spinning clockwise, others see her spinning anti-clockwise. If you stare long enough you should see her change direction. Some people can make her change at will. Though no-one can make her move both ways at once.
Apparently its achieved by an unchanging animation of only 34 frames on a constant loop.

It is believed that the two-dimensional image does not contain enough three-dimensional information to tell the brain which way she is spinning. Therefore your brain fills the rest in, as is often seen in many optical illusions. Hovever in this case the brain can do it in two ways depending on which side of your brain you favor.

Now I’m not one of the people who is greatly disconcerted by this but im intrigued that rather than see her spin occasionally I see her go back and forth or side to side.

So what do you make of it?

He was giving a lecture and by virtue of my mother I managed to get a ticket. After the lecture he was signing his books and I was able to talk to him. He is a very dedicated person and I admire the work he does trying to preserve a dying skill.

Bushcraft is something that has really interested me. Just the thought of going in the ‘wilderness’ and managing to survive is inspiring to me. But then our ancestors did it and that way of life lasted longer then ours has and was not so detrimental to the environment.

By the way did I mention I met Ray Mears.

Hello again, sorry its been such a long time since my last post. It’s just been a cumulative effect of preparing for exams, sitting them, being lazy and recovering from exams and being more lazy. Oh yeah and the small thing of applying for uni.

Anyway the other day a couple of friends and me went paintballing, we’d been planning this for months as a stress reliever after the exams. So eventually we all arrived by various means of transport including scrounging lifts from parents, friends and friends parents bearing in mind few of us can drive and fewer have access to a car. Anyway all 15 of us eventually made it and were all in good spirits, being all experienced from the one time we’d been before.  Though two or three hadn’t been before and we all reassured them saying, “Its doesn’t hurt, you’ll be fine”. We finally get kitted out after more than a long wait and collect our guns and go for the safety briefing. The first thing the marshal says, “If anybodies told you it doesn’t hurt they’re lying!” we grin behind our masked as there are a few audible intakes of breath from the newbees.

After all that we get down to the whole shooting each other thing and find out the other team mainly consists of squadies and this one cocky guy in just a tee-shirt. So we taught him a lesson (he he). Which consisted of paintballs on skin. However that didn’t last too long as we were promptly decimated by the squadies who had much better aim, vastly superior tactics and more money to buy ammunition with as the MoD was paying their wages and we were all students. We did come back at the end though by defending the barracks effectively. So the score was only 1000 – 300 which wasn’t a total loss.

I think the main problem with our team was the lack of communication, and these two girls who didn’t seem to get that your meant to shoot the other team not your own. But please note I’m not saying girls are stupid or unable to grasp the complexities that is tactics in paintballing, seeing as last time there were three girls who were well impressive.

At paintballing i mean…