perhapsadingo8yrbaby's New Writeups

mirror test (idea)

2008-12-09T20:32:20Z

Monkeys are superior to men in this:
when a monkey looks into a mirror,
he sees a monkey.

The mirror test is a procedure to determine whether an animal is capable of self-recognition. In theory, self-recognition is predicated on self-awareness; in order to recognize myself in a mirror, I must first be able to grasp the concept of "myself." For centuries, humans believed they were alone in experiencing this aspect of consciousness. In 1970, psychologist Gordon G. Gallup devised the mirror test to prove that chimpanzees are also capable of self-recognition and thus, presumably, are self-aware. Since then, the mirror test has been performed on various species (including Homo sapiens), although many experts criticize the test's value.

The Test

Mirror self-recognition is at least partially a learned behavior. When first exposed to a mirror, most animals,…

January 19, 2008 (person)

2008-01-19T16:26:48Z

After harvesting organs from a deceased donor, the tissue bank sends a form letter to the next of kin expressing gratitude for your loved one's "recent anatomical gift."

Pat's letter arrived today.

marionberry (thing)

2008-01-05T23:55:38Z

During my first visit to Portland (long before I actually moved here), my significant other and I ate dinner one night at a restaurant that proudly claimed to showcase the cuisine of the Northwest. After a meal of salmon accompanied by more varieties of mushrooms than I had ever seen on one plate before, the waiter approached us to reel off the list of dessert specials. He was rather taken aback when we responded to his recommendation of the marionberry pie by loudly snickering.

Having lived in the suburbs of Washington, DC for the past 25 years, I erroneously assumed that this was a wry political statement in pastry form. We had to order it. What could possibly be in a Marion Barry pie? Was it dusted with powdered sugar? Studded with rock candy? Perhaps it was laced with syrup of ipecac (ain't nobody gonna keep this pie down). Is this dessert tax-free? Our amusement dried up quickly when…

Sweet Potato Pecan Pie (recipe)

2007-11-17T22:56:02Z

As a child, my favorite Thanksgiving desserts included pumpkin pie and pecan pie, which were always featured at the conclusion of our extended family meal. That is, these dishes used to be my favorites, until one holiday when my grandmother was responsible for supplying the pies. A product of the Great Depression, Nana decided to substitute leftover bacon grease (free) for the butter (an outrageous dollar-fifty per pound at the time). After all, fat is fat, or so she reasoned. Specifically, she used bacon grease that she had painstakingly accumulated for more than a decade, storing it in her freezer in old ice milk tubs. All two dozen attendees politely consumed the disconcertingly meaty desserts, and suffered the inevitable gastrointestinal consequences afterwards.

This unfortunate experience led me to become acquainted with sweet potato pecan pie, which combines many of the characteristics of my formerly favorite pies, without any of the…

thisisby.us (place)

2007-11-03T02:15:23Z

UPDATE: thisisby.us has announced that the site will permanently cease operation on February 1, 2009, due to a severe shortage of cash. So much for that business model.

Thisisby.us (known to its users as TIBU) is a website for amateur writers, with a concise though far-reaching tagline: "Write for the world. Get paid." The concept is simple: write anything you want, on any topic you desire, and receive feedback from your peers. If your writing drives enough traffic to TIBU, you earn a portion of the site's daily advertising revenue. In addition to the user-created content, the site also incorporates a hefty dose of social networking concepts.

Background information on TIBU is notably lacking (there is no "About Us" section on the website). Digging through past posts on the site reveals that TIBU went live on May 7, 2006. The site was co-founded by users "Elle Dee" and "Bill."…

October 8, 2007 (person)

2007-10-08T18:38:23Z

Horace Phair VI

My First Nodermeet

A Tragedy in 90 Minutes

Although I've been a user here for more than half a decade now, which is just about forever on the internet time scale (but not E2's), I have assiduously avoided the sort of social interactions that have inextricably bound so many people to this community. I think I've only spoken in the catbox once or twice. In more than 6 years, I had never attended a gathering. I never met another noder, except for the friend who first introduced me to this place. There are several reasons for my generally anti-social online behavior, which are ultimately not interesting enough to be worth sharing.

I have, however, engaged in many conversations via /msg, some of which were spirited, all of which were rewarding in some fashion. That is why, when a noder invited me to the Columbus Day weekend gathering, I actually considered attending. Part…