Charlie's Diary So: the referendum is over and the count is underway. I'm about to go to bed; when I wake up there should be a result. The final YouGov opinion poll today (not an exit poll) gave No a 54/46 lead, but earlier polls suggest the outcome is within the margin of error; I'd be very surprised if that final poll reflects the final count. In Edinburgh, the turnout was around 89.7% of the electorate, with voter registration running at 97% overall and more than 95% of postal ballots returned. One thing is sure: even a "no" victory won't kill the core issue of the delegitimization of the political elite. (It has become not simply a referendum on independence, but a vote of confidence on the way the UK is governed; anything short of a huge "no" victory amounts to a stinging rebuke to the ruling parties of the beige dictatorship.) Anyway: I'm not staying up for the count. What comes next? UPDATE 2: First Minister Alex Salmond has resigned.
HUH. 18 Maps That Will Change How You See The World The 100 Best Tracks of 2014 There are qualities about Mike Hadreas that make him seem heroic: His songbook takes on themes of trauma and addiction, the body and identity, all in a way that seems designed to protect us—a reminder that we're not alone in our otherness. This year, Hadreas has been selling T-shirts depicting an emasculated Eminem, a proper jab at one of popular music's most problematic living artists. On the shirt, Slim is clad in coral lipstick, just a few shades lighter than the tint Hadreas wore on his watershed "Letterman" performance in October, contorting a slow, sultry sway through "Queen". Indeed, Hadreas' work as Perfume Genius has opened a crucial dialogue over the past half decade. And so, should you need convincing, the quaking "Queen" is empirically necessary. His words alone have such inspired power—imagine them publicly broadcast on a marquee in LED lighting, like a Jenny Holzer installation—but "Queen" does not just illuminate the potential of explicit language.
In Focus: Performing Street Monkeys | recorder.sayforward.com Ucil, a trained monkey, takes part in a street performance in Jakarta, Indonesia. Macaque monkeys who are trained for street performances, known as “topeng monyet”, are chained to a cage in “monkey village”, where the animals are trained to take part in street performances. The street performances usually involve the monkeys wearing masks, such as dolls’ heads or attire to mimic humans, with the monkeys trained to act out human activities such as shopping, riding bicycles or other simulations of human behavior. Poverty drives the handlers to exploit the monkeys in the hope of earning small change, but the effect and cruelty to the monkeys is a cause that charities such as the Jakarta Animal Aid Network are increasingly taking up. Ucil, a trained monkey, takes part in a street performance in Jakarta, Indonesia. A macaque monkey who is trained for street performances is chained to a wall to be trained to stand on two feet. Atun takes part in a street performance in Jakarta, Indonesia.
Is there a gene for race? | TestTube Plus by Jack J. Shamama According to science, race is just an adaptation of humans living in different parts of the world, but ethnicity is very real Related on TestTubeCould You Hack Your Brain to Have Unlimited Senses?What Did Early Humans Really Look Like? This week on TestTube Plus, Trace explores human evolution. The concept of "race" as we understand it (and often discuss it) is a product of social context. TestTube Plus is built for enthusiastic science fans seeking out comprehensive conversations on the geeky topics they love. Learn More:What We Mean When We Say "Race Is a Social Construct" (The Atlantic)"In a world where Kevin Garnett, Harold Ford, and Halle Berry all check "black" on the census, even the argument that racial labels refer to natural differences in physical traits doesn't hold up." Cromwell: The Irish Question (History Today)"Cromwell's military campaign in Ireland is one event that the British can never remember and the Irish can never forget.
Ashton - Winding Road - Tobacco Reviews This Aston Blend does not get a lot of respect nor high ratings but for the life of me i don't know why, other than the fact that most likely previous reviewers smoked it right out of the tin and not drying it out some. It does come too moist in the tin, but with a little dry time, it becomes a very tasty smoke, mostly a citrusy VA flavor with the caramel just making an appearance andthe apricots just adding to a very nice room aroma. I find it to be quite enjoyable to smoke, it burns very well and dry, and smokes down to a fine grey ash with no gunk or moisute at the bottom of my pipe. 4 people found this review helpful. I hadn't tried an Ashton blend before but liked the description of this one, being somewhere between an English and an Aromatic. Upon opening the tin i was met with a very distinct scent of apricot, much like the description on the tin says. Edit: I'm now well into my second tin and I've decided to upgrade to 4 stars. 2 people found this review helpful. Original review:
Pope: 'Revolution' needed to fight climate change While slamming a slew of modern trends -- the heedless worship of technology, the addiction to fossil fuels, our compulsive consumerism -- the Pope said humanity's "reckless" behavior has pushed the planet to a perilous "breaking point." "Doomsday predictions," the Pope warned, "can no longer be met with irony or disdain." Citing the scientific consensus that global warming is disturbingly real, Francis left little doubt about who to blame. Big businesses, energy companies, short-sighted politicians, scurrilous scientists, laissez faire economists, indifferent individuals, callous Christians and myopic media professionals. "The Earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth," Francis said. Francis' bracing manifesto came Thursday in the form of an encyclical, a letter traditionally addressed from St. Special coverage: How 2 degrees are key to climate change But Francis has set his sights far beyond the circle of his church. Critique of modern life