http://www.mydays.de/aussergewoehnliche-geschenke/weltraumflug.html

The Republicans have made a last-minute attempt to prevent Barack Obama’s ascent to the White House by trying to recruit an Oxford academic to “prove” that his autobiography was ghostwritten by a former terrorist.

With two days before the election, Obama is poised to become America’s first black president, according to polls showing he has an average six-point lead over John McCain, his Republican opponent.

Dr Peter Millican, a philosophy don at Hertford College, Oxford, has devised a computer software program that can detect when works are by the same author by comparing favourite words and phrases.

Interestingly though, it’s a method that is clearly not entirely compatible with a probably rather common requirement of 21^st century mating: Women using the pill apparently won’t be able to use the method due to the medicament’s hormonal effects that allegedly causes these women to choose mates with a genetically similar rather than genetically different immune system.

Moreover, as ScientificMatch explains on their website, people not raised by their biological parents in the first months of their lives probably won’t be able to use the method either, as they seem to base their mating decisions not on the genetic structure of their own immune system but on that of their parents. That is, of course, if humans behaved like mice, the specied with which the studies cited were conducted.

Well, humans (and not just men) and mice have clearly a lot in common… genetically speaking. And this line of research is certainly rather interesting, opening up a perspective on human behaviour and mating that was too easily overlooked in the sociologically biased 20^th century.

But for all that it’s worth, I think we all know that there is a bit more to love than two genetically different immune systems…

Following the Script – Obama, McCain and ‘The West Wing’

Without words. Via Stefan Niggemeier, who got it from Andrew Sullivan, who apparently got it from Aidan Nak.

Here’s Sarah Palin making that point to CBS news anchor Katie Couric. It would funny, if weren’t so sad and scary.

And apparently, demography also matters in Mount Isa, Queensland, Australia.

Mount Isa, Queensland

The town’s mayor, John Molony, was apparently so troubled by the excess testosterone in the city that he did not want to wait for a natural equilibrium to develop. In what may be considered a miner-cover of Emma Lazarus – Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free – according to this BBC article and this one from Reuters oddly enough, he has come under fire after saying that female “ugly ducklings” might benefit from the town’s shortage of women.

“with five blokes to every girl, may I suggest that beauty-disadvantaged women should proceed to Mount Isa”.

With a gentlemanly mayor like that, I wonder what kept any woman from moving there in the first place…

Update: The Sydney Morning Herald has a follow-up with some more interesting information – “Beauty-Disadvantaged Singles Outcry“. There’s a good chance Mr Molony will be the first mayor worldwide to have caused his constituents to rally for telling them they’re not sufficiently sexually attractive -

“It paints the women here as second rate and suggests that the men will settle for anything. He has put everyone down,” she said. “We’re going to get together to put forward our opinion.” Up to 100 women, carrying banners and placards, were expected to take part in the protest.

The best thing is, though, that he apparently got his numbers wong – the Sydney Morning Herald cites the 2006 census, according to which males apparently made up 52.6 per cent of the town’s population of nearly 20,000.

NEW YORK Reuters – A Nevada brothel is trying to stimulate business by offering free gasoline.

Clients of the Shady Lady Ranch will get a $50 gas voucher if they fork out $300 — worth about one hour’s worth of services — at the brothel in Beatty, Nevada, 130 miles northwest of Las Vegas.

Owner James Davis said he already has had to order another $1,000 set of gas vouchers because the first $1,000 were spent in one week.

Arizona Weighs Bill to Allow Guns on Campuses – Horrified by recent campus shootings, a state lawmaker proposes that allowing adults to carry concealed weapons might deter future incidents.

“more sex-change surgeries are performed … than in any other country except Thailand.”

Sounds crazy? But it gets even better -

“Ayatollah Khomeini approved them for “diagnosed transsexuals” 25 years ago, and today the Iranian government will pay up to half the cost for those in financial need.”

For those of, my gentle readers, who are now slowly shaking their head in disbelief, here’s why -

“Former FP researcher David Francis wrote, “In a country that shuns homosexuality, this makes perverse sense, as
after a sex-change operation, one technically isn’t attracted to one’s own sex and therefore isn’t gay.”

I don’t want to quote all of their post, so head over to foreign policy to read more (and see some clips) about a recently released documentary about the lives of young Iranian men who undergo sex-change surgery. And yes, before you ask, they will have to wear a tchador afterwards…

In the internet age, there is at least one source of immediate gratification that will never disappoint: It’s Reuters “oddly enough” news section. This is where we learn about everything we always wanted to know about human life in the 21st century but never dared to ask. Thus, it’s the perfect source for a couple of easy reading Friday afternoon links.
Accordingly, let me regale you today with a link to a Reuters’ video about a Hungarian national contest to identify the best public toilet east and west, north and south of Budapest…

“half of UK men would swap sex for 50 inch TV.”

According to a survey of 2000 Britons, conducted by the British Electrical retailer Comet, asking what they would give up for a large television, it was allegedly found that 47 percent of men, yet only about a third of women would give up sex for half a year.

Questions of scientific and statistical validity notwithstanding, published just before Valentine’s day, even as a joke, that’s not exactly a compliment for British women…

“a workout worthy of an athlete.”

At least when it’s done with

“a little energy and imagination,”

apparently, a formulation which, alas, leaves one age-old question unanswered – is bad sex better than no sex at all?

On the other hand, if the BBC is quoting the document correctly, maybe the concept of “bad sex” is a little off.

“Forget about jogging round the block or struggling with sit-ups. Sex uses every muscle group, gets the heart and lungs working hard, and burns about 300 calories an hour.” The advice suggests “regular romps this winter” could lead to a better body and a younger look.” [And adds that i]ncreased production of endorphins “will make your hair shine and your skin smooth.” “If you’re worried about wrinkles – orgasms even help prevent frown lines from deepening.”

I suppose at least for one half of humanity, this part of the story may be the best news- headaches and sex actually seem to go together rather well…

“The article goes on to say that orgasms release “painkillers” into the bloodstream, which helping keep mild illnesses like colds and aches and pains at bay.

It’s too bad that the NHS direct apparently had to take the document off their website following the BBC report. Given all those benefits and the NHS’ continuous problems to ration health services justly, the agency should not worry too much about publishing advice contra Victorian mores, but rather start investing in explicit online dating sites or offer discounts for courses on tantric exploration. But for all its benefits, I still somehow doubt they will take this advice…

SPIEGEL ONLINE – Toilettenaffäre: Sex-Skandal zermürbt Republikaner

Und ausgerechnet in dieser Woche machen sowohl Jon Stewart als auch Steven Colbert Urlaub…

Auf der Internetseite moanmyip.com kann der Besucher sich seine IP-Adresse vorstöhnen lassen. Wird die Nummer in den vorgegebenen Textkasten eingegeben, liest eine scheinbar in Ekstase verfallende Frau die Adresse laut vor.

Zum Ausprobieren: http://www.heise.de/netze/tools/ip/

In 1963, Renate received the last letter from her husband. She pleaded her case at the North-Korean embassy in East-Berlin, but diplomats told her that

“North Korea, desperate to rebuild its economy after the Korean War, could not “give up even a single citizen” and asked for her “understanding.”

20 years after the fall of the Berlin wall, the 36th parallel is still keeping lovers, friends, and families apart. But last year, Renate began to organize support for her truly modest wish -

“I know that I don’t have a future with him, since he has another family in the North,” she said of her husband. “I want to at least meet him to talk about our lives of all these years. I want our sons to meet their father, of whom they have no memory, and hear what a great time their parents had once had together.”

If she’s lucky, truly lucky, the North Korean leadership may see something in exploiting her case for PR in the West.