HA! I was so surprised that there was a JZ Meyers and thought this JZ should be introduced to PZ Myers and then it was the same person.

I spoke with an evo psychologist about just-so stories and he said all scientists do the same thing to narrate their theories...no, not really.

PZ's head once exploded when he posted about a paper by Jesse Bering (who is probably the most clownish of the current evo psych assholes) about the head of the penis having evolved its shape to "scoop out competitor's sperm."

His experiment? Squirt some viscous goo into a fleshlight, and use a dildo to scoop it out.

SERIOUSLY? When PZ called him on it by inquiring whether the dildo had a foreskin (among other obvious problems), Bering posted a whiny retort about how ethics prevented him from using human models and boo hoo.

SO WHY ARE YOU PUBLISHING RESULTS AS IF YOU HAVE LEARNED ANYTHING ABOUT HUMAN BIOLOGY, THEN?????

Seriously. Fleshlight.

Man, it is cold, wet and windy here today. I'm on campus waiting for Check-in for NIUCares Day to start. (I'm working check in.) Students are starting to get here. I wondered - given the weather what the turn-out would be. (This is the second shift - shift 1 had an 8 am check-in but staff had to be here at 6... I'm glad I got the choice.)

Also - somebody has made Batman and Joker amigurumi.

I spoke with an evo psychologist about just-so stories and he said all scientists do the same thing to narrate their theories...no, not really.

Oh yeah, chemists do this all the time. Physicists too.

You think he's actually a prick or you're just upgrading him because he's a murderer and killing people is prickish in your book?

Killing people isn't in yours?

Killing people isn't in yours?

You can kill people in a polite manner.

Where? I thought just-so was specific to squishy sciences like biology/anthropology.

Just-so is culture specific, isn't it?

Oh I remember the other thing I was going to say - TAM is quite possibly the worst place in the world to do that Million Dollar Challenge thing because the ratio of male:female guests is so ridiculously skewed. (At NECSS the line for the women's bathroom was about four people. The line for the men's room went all the way down the hall. It made me sad.)

Where? I thought just-so was specific to squishy sciences like biology/anthropology.

I was aiming for sarcasm there.

You can kill people in a polite manner.

Which... makes it no less a prickish thing to do.

What is a "just-so story" in this context?