Links for June 11th

Lynchburg Police: A Look at Citizen’s Arrest in VirginiaLike most states, Virginia has a concept of "citizen's arrest." But you'd best know what you're doing if you're going to try it. The crime has to be a felony and you have to have actually observed the criminal commit the crime. Otherwise, you're setting yourself up …

Links for June 7th

Chris Frashure: Virgil Goode Running for President?Remember when Goode was a Democrat? Remember when he was an independent? Remember when he was a Republican? Well, now he's a member of the Constitution Party, and he wants to run for president. This should be hilarious. ThinkProgress: Herman Cain Pledges Not To Sign Any Bill Longer Than …

Links for May 30th

New York: How Not to Talk to Your KidsPo Bronson summarizes research on self-esteem, praise, and children. Kids who are praised for their intelligence freeze when faced with tasks beyond their intelligence. But kids who are praised for their effort quickly learn to relish challenges, and their learning improves accordingly. I was definitely in the …

Links for May 11th

Slate: More than half of Republican voters still doubt President Obama was born in the U.S.34% of Republicans are convinced that the president was not born in the United States. I think this gives us a good baseline of the percentage of the Republican Party that is racist and/or mentally ill. Another 18% just aren't …

Links for May 5th

Wikipedia: Timeline of Web BrowsersA family tree for web browsers. There are a lot of browsers here I hadn't thought of for years. HotJava, ViolaWWW, and Cello, in particular. Voice of America: Historian Recounts Role of Chinese Americans Who Fought in US Civil WarIn 1861, there were only 200 Asians living in the Eastern U.S. …

Links for April 27th

Virginian Pilot: Large alligator spotted near NC-VA state lineGlobal climate change means alligators are marching northward, clear to Virginia. Ken Cuccinelli should go for a swim in the Pasquotank River with seven feet of global warming hoax. The Washington Post: The shocking truth about the birthplace of Obama’s policiesEzra Klein's sensationalist headline aside, it's a …

Links for April 22nd

Public Policy Polling: A deeper look at the birthersA 2009 "birther" poll of North Carolina residents found that 6% believe that Hawaii is not part of the United States, while 4% just aren't sure. That's one in ten North Carolinians who are not aware of one of the most fundmental facts of our nation. St. …

Links for March 19th

Wolfram MathWorld: Pi DigitsThe first thirty million digits of pi are almost uniformly distributed. That is, 1 occurs with the same frequency as 2, 3, 4, etc. That's consistent with randomness, but hardly evidence of it. Ludolph Van Ceulen’s HeadstoneThis Dutch mathematician devoted his life to calculating pi. By the time of his death, in …

Links for March 1st

Krulwich Wonders…: Cactus Walking On 20 Legs Found In ChinaHalf a billion years ago, lifeforms suddenly took on crazy, elaborate new shapes. It's really not clear why it happened, but they sure were impressive. Washington Post: GOP spending plan would cost 700,000 jobs, new report saysMoody's has released an analysis of the Republican spending plan, …

Links for February 28th

The New Yorker: Worrying About ReaganJane Meyer chronicles concerns about President Reagan's mental health that began in in his second term. Incoming chief of staff Howard Baker started a quiet internal investigation, talking to top White House aides. Quoting the head of that investigation: "They told stories about how inattentive and inept the president was. …