My Links 1

So there are going to be two new categories of posts: Links and Quotes. The former will be an annotated bibliography of interesting links I've found while procrastinating on the Internet that I think people will enjoy; the latter will just be funny quotes I've accumulated. I'm going to try to keep them ordered, so the posts all have unique titles, but if I fail or get too lazy to figure it out I'll just replace the number with an "X" and let you guys use the chronological post-lister on the right sidebar to figure it out. Anyway, without further adieu...

Breast Enlargement - Breast implants are now the top graduation gift in Italy. Statisticians are still trying to figure out what the girls are getting for their achievements.

For Hockey Fans - A list of Wayne Gretzky's 61 scoring records (with VERY few ties). I especially like the single reasons records where he's second to himself...or where you have to go down to sixth place to find a record holder for that category who isn't The Great One. Speaking of The Great One (which is the most impressive nickname I've ever heard), you know how sometimes reading about the accomplishments of a successful person can make you feel bad, like you haven't done enough? Reading about Wayne has the opposite effect, at least for me, because I know I didn't stand a chance. It makes me feel better, knowing the kind of guy I was up against, and I feel just fine with my simple life.

Pearls of Wisdom - By Dave Barry. I like the 14 Points format. It's reminiscent of Woodrow Wilson's 14 points, or the 14 features of fascism. 14's a great number for a list. I may have to make some 14 point lists for this blog.

Totally Unsurprising Obscure Futurama Reference - From "Mars University"
Professor: What device invented in the Twentieth Century allowed people to view broadcast programs in their own homes?
Fry: Oh, I know this…what do you call it…Lite Brite!

Why Terrorism Fails, Psychologically Speaking - This last one is by far the most interesting, though decidedly unfunny. The premise is very interesting: people tend to assume that the reason people do things is to create the immediate effects those things have. Terrorism doesn't work that way. Most terrorists have a political agenda, but civilian populations grow more and more resistant to their ideas as it becomes "clearer" that the terrorists hate everything they are and want to kill their children. Most terrorists would prefer NOT to kill children, but feel they have no choice in order to get fair treatment for their people. But since the effects of their actions are so horrifying, they get both the attention they weren't getting with words AND hostile judgments that render such endeavors effective only 7% of the time, according to this study. One thing the article leads out, however, is something I'd like to add here:

People are more likely to assume that the immediate consequence of an action was the motivation behind the action if the effects are very predictable. (Also, the fewer immediate effects there are, the surer someone will be. For example, if you close the door to a noisy hallway, people assume you closed it for quiet. But if you close the window to a noisy outdoor playground, you might have done it to keep the room at your preferred temperature.) Since terrorist acts have few immediate consequences that are very predictable, I feel this hypothesis is even stronger than the article's author gives it credit for. And since terrorists almost invariably have long-term goals not directly linked to causing terror in civilian populations, it means our judgments about them are often wrong (and that a smart terrorist-slash-freedom-fighter should alter his tactics).