Bad Math

at http://www.livescience.com/othernews/061025_vampire_debunk.html we find...

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A researcher has come up with some simple math that sucks the life out of the vampire myth, proving that these highly popular creatures can't exist.

University of Central Florida physics professor Costas Efthimiou's work debunks pseudoscientific ideas, such as vampires and zombies, in an attempt to enhance public literacy. Not only does the public believe in such topics, but the percentages are at dangerously high level, Efthimiou told LiveScience.

Legend has it that vampires feed on human blood and once bitten a person turns into a vampire and starts feasting on the blood of others.

Efthimiou's debunking logic: On Jan 1, 1600, the human population was 536,870,911. If the first vampire came into existence that day and bit one person a month, there would have been two vampires by Feb. 1, 1600. A month later there would have been four, and so on. In just two-and-a-half years the original human population would all have become vampires with nobody left to feed on.

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but this is bad math. Suppose every time the Vampire population reaches 20 or so, all but one of them are killed by angry villagers? Then vampires can exist.

Of course, this doesn't tell us where that first one came from on Jan 1, 1600....

Funny!

Did anyone ever go and watch the Ultimate Showdown of Ultimate Destiny?

Anyway, I found a new video I thought was pretty funny:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OFB8izX2Uks

A proposal

I've been looking at Google Groups Beta (cause it wouldn't be google if there wasn't a "beta" in the title.) I think it would be a better platform for us than Blogger. Here's why:

• it's built from the ground up for collaboration
• it runs more like a mailing list, you will get emails of the posts
• it allows for the creation of pages, things like the Diary could have their own page for us to edit and comment on together
• it has space for files to be uploaded also
• i think it's easier to navigate the comments from posts

Now there are reasons not to do this also of course:

• signing up for a new service might be a pain for some
• of course we have all our content here, although we could keep this page up as an archive
• it's a Beta so it might be a little wonky at first

I put a page up for an example to play in:

Iowa City Gaming

Visit this group

Let me know your thoughts or questions. If you want an invite to play with the group page a little more, let me know.

Mystery Chart

I think - let me stress "think" - that I solved the thing.

Pardon the messy appearance.

Anyone else come up with anything yet?

Sunday - Mike - Aftermath - Community theme
Monday - Elmer - Twilight 2000 - Adventure theme
Tuesday - George - Chivalry & Sorcery - Justice theme
Wednesday - Bart - AD&D - Character Stories theme
Thursday - Kate - Boot Hill - Thinking Things Through theme

There's 2 hours of work that my employer will never have back...:)