Brain Chew

On Gestation and Evolution
A recent survey shows that that average gestation for a human has, in the last 10 years, gone from 40 weeks to 39 weeks. My first thought was that we might be witnessing evolution in progress, since previous anthropoligical research has shown an inverse correlation between the gestation period of humans and their brain size (as our hominid predecessors developed bigger brains, the gestation period shortened).

But then I realized it's just that more and more women are "scheduling" their births based on what fits best into their PDA. No kidding.

Everywhere Signs
Yesterday I saw a neon sign that read "Customer Free Parking"

Wish I'd had my camera.

Ever Eat at Your Desk?
According to an article by Richard Hollingham in the December issue of New Scientist Magazine, our work desks are more filthy than a public toilet (containing more than 400 times the amount of bacteria, in fact). I was also delighted to learn that 41% of all communal kitchen coffee mugs showed evidence of fecal contamination.

Yum!

Robot Existentialism
I was attempting to access The Smoking Gun website when I inadvertantly stumbled upon the following text on a ghost site:

"The robot is not the problem. It is the connection to the biology which is broken. It is craving something sweeter. The lesson is to have the robot speak to the ear and sweeten the tongue."

I'm not sure I understand, but I get a real kick out of trying.

(I'd caution against visiting the ghost site — I have no idea who manages it, or why — but in the spirit of giving credit where it is due, you can find the full text here.)