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The Evolution Truth

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by Member 25348569

Closed to new repliesThis discussion is closed. It stays readable, but it takes no new replies.

This is page 3 of the discussion. Read the opening post

427 replies

by Member 25348569

I'm on holiday for a week. Got my old Mum down for a break so very little computer time (she nags). I'll check it out next week. I don't suppose that the EL thread is going to go away! LOL

I reserve the right to disagree, though! :)

Neil :D

by jellimonsta

Enjoy the time with your Mum, Neil.

I will be seeing my Mum in 8 days for the first time since Christmas 03. Not that I am looking forward to being back in Wolves, but it is good to see friends and family.

Taking my 2 1/2 yr old daughter on the 'Thomas the tank engine' train ride... she is excited about that! :)

We will be in London the weekend of the 21st too. Have to go throw rotten apples at Buckingham palace! :)

by deepsand

I've always been an intellectual dilettante.

When I was much younger, I believed that I could become an expert in every area that interested me; now I know that an expert is someone who knows almost everything about almost nothing.

And, while I am well aware of the perjorative views held by many, as evidenced in thier use of the phrase "jack of all trades, master of none," I proudly claim to be a JOAT.

With regards to IT, at the present I am engaged in helping a ticket broker of over 25 years, who specializes in Penn State football, and quite literally has the largest privately controlled inventory of tickets for such in the world, move from being a broker's broker, or wholesaler, to becoming a retail broker with a presence on the web to be reckoned with.

In my scant free time, I read both science fact & fiction, as well as serious non-fiction. I relax with an acoustic guitar, arranging folk music & occassionally composing a new instrumental; about the only time I get to perform anymore is at the annual Philadelphia Folk Festival, jamming for the weekend in the camp grounds. Have'nt touched the piano or my alto sax in decades.

by deepsand

Why is it that so many insist on brewing an inferior concoction of words when a fine batch is already at hand, ready for the using?

by Member 25348569

I quote from the BBC: Overall, the two weeks of May 16th to 29th are set to bring average rainfall to much of the UK, but north Wales and northwest England look set for a downpour of rain.

Temperatures are likely to be above average for all of us, but well above average in Northern Ireland.

Looks like you'll need brollies AND sunblock!

Have a good time and throw some fruit for me! (I'm so NOT a monarchist).

Neil

by Member 25348569

Area in the West Midlands particularly to the North West of Birmingham - so called because it was literally black from soot during the 19th century. Was where the industrial revolution really took hold. Now no longer black but the name is still used.

Jellimonsta comes from Wolverhampton which is a city of about 250,000 slap in the middle of the Black country.

Has what is probably the most individual dialect and accent in the whole of England. Can be incomprehensible to the outsider and even to people who live there. I was born about 45 miles away and I can't understand a damn thing!

http://www.sedgleymanor.com/dictionaries/dialect.html
http://www.virtualbrum.co.uk/slang.htm

Neil :)

I'm going to start charging for my English Culture lessons!

by hal 9000

42 New Postings to the EL today. :)

Time I started to send my White Mice to you to teach you a lesson. :D

Col ]:)

by Member 25348569

I posted a couple 'cos MrMiami came back and I just like insulting him. The problem is that Deepsand and Dawg like kicking him too. Absolutely is trying to get him to debate. Hah!

What we had is a feeding frenzy.

It's over 2K posts and has reached critical mass so I'm expecting it to start to divide. When that happens...

Get the Mice in quick!

by hal 9000

You could always stop feeding it! ;)

Did you ever think on that one? I've finally escaped the entire thing and I'm not even going to open up one listing it's just that I noticed the new message listing on another page against the EL and figured that you had to be involved. :D

Now my White Mice are not only ready and willing to get going but they are all hungry as Hell as well so they not only want a question to the Ultimate Answer which is 42 but they wouldn't mind nibbling on your toes a bit {or anything else that can reach} to get the question! :D

Col ]:)

by hal 9000

What is it anyway with you two both you and Neil seem to want me involved in that BLOODY AWFUL Thread again why? ;)

What have I done to upset you? :)

I've been good and I haven't even complained when Neil spoofed my TR account and posted to that silly thread under my account and then blamed me for doing it. Not bad for someone who claims that they are only playing with computers while waiting to get back to their "Real Work" I thought. :D

No I'm not going there ever again and there is absolutely nothing that anyone can do about it. :p

But since you claim to have the answer I'll send my White Mice over to pay you a visit they are getting really desperate as they know that the Vogons are coming and are not sure if the answer will be found before their super organic computer gets destroyed for the Intergalactic Bypass but they know that the answer is very close and are hoping that they will get it before the Vogons arrive. Since you already claim to have it there on their way all 1.5 Million of them and they will not take NO for an answer they are so desperate that they will hold you down and chew of parts of your anonymity till they get their answer and because they designed you they know just how to extract the DATA. :D

Col ]:)

by deepsand

to the Court of the Queen of the White Mice.

She asked that I convey to you that She still holds you in High Esteem, despite your stubborn streak.

by hal 9000

She did complain to me in one of her recent e-mails that she had a lot on and then asked could I resend some JPEG's that she couldn't open. I asked her how she would like them "in what format as she said that she was having some troubles with only JPEG's and I haven't got an answer yet that was on the 2nd and it is now the 8 th with no response.

You know what teachers have to deal with lots of work after hours almost as bad as working IT. :(

I'm sure she'll be back when she can see the light at the end of the tunnel but before she realizes that it really isn't the light at the end of the tunnel but an oncoming train. :D

Col ]:)

by deepsand

In one of her replies to me in EL, she mentioned that she writes science fiction; and, in a manner which suggests that she has been published.

I have a niggling thought that I may have read her writing(s) in [i]Analog[/v], but have'nt had the time to dig through years of back issue to confirm or deny such.

Can you shed any light on this?

by levannah44

I'm here, I'm here! Sorry, everyone, I've had a very sick computer, requiring not only a lengthy hospitalisation but a resuscitation as well. Only came home last night (May 15th).

Just got to get through the backlog of emails I had waiting, plus a couple of deadlines end of this week and I'll be back, annoying the lot of you again!!

But with the weather getting the way it is over here, I wouldn't mind holing up for the winter! I'll have a think about that one!

by deepsand

I just finished replying to Col's e-mail, in which he tells me that you've been forced to "upgrade" to XP; I was not expecting to see you back here so soon.

He also mentioned that, in addition to having to cope with a new OS, you've been experiencing some connectivity problems.

If you need our help, just start a new discussion, entitled something similar to "Gret need help," and we'll do our best to be of aid.

Welcome back, and good luck with XP.

May the future be kind.

by absolutely

I WAS "trying" to get him to debate, but you and the rest of the gang didn't let him walk in the circles of his recursive reasoning long enough to get dizzy.

I think it's only defending his faith with irrational outbursts that keeps him believing. Keeps his higher reasoning from discovering the actual cognitive errors, you know?

Let's really experiment on the dufus: see what happens if afforded the respect he claims to demand or expect. I bet it's a lot harder for him to write you all off as soulless pagans/infidels if you show him the manners he expects only from people who share his beliefs. Worth a try?

I hate his type as much as anybody else, but I don't respect them enough to say it so clearly.

by absolutely

Thanks. To answer your question, I propose as an hypothesis: religious conditioning! They've gotten used to inferior concotions of words...

btw, thanks 1,000,000 for winding MrMiami up like that. Really spoiled my fun. I had a whole nefarious plot for getting him to divulge his basic premise for life, then squashing that just like you're squashing his minor supporting premises. No matter. I can see that he lives in constant terror of fact and its logical consequences, and that is pretty satisfying.

Cheers.

by deepsand

I've twice addressed this issue, once as a stand-alone discussion, and later as a sub-thread in EL.

To date, the only serious input I've received was from Gret.

If you have the time, I'd be interested in getting your observations on the matter.

The initial post in EL is at
[v]https://www.techrepublic.com.com/5208-6230-0.html?forumID=8&threadID=165453&messageID=1752484[/v]

My observations of my own family are posted immediately below it.

I look forward to some thoughtful input.

by absolutely

I did not consult my environment or my genes when I decided as a child not to accept the religious part of my Catholic education. Nothing wore off when I left the nest, I just obtained the right to stop attending Mass, which is what I immediately did.

by deepsand

MrMiami will not provide a substantive respond to rebuttal, no matter the manner of approach.

I've tried politely to get him to address 2 fundamental points that are fatal to his proposition.

1) He labels ID as being "scientific." This, despite the fact that he a) publicly accepted the standard definition of science that I provided him; and, b) claimed that his Creator exists in a realm outside of our physically observable universe, i.e. in a meta-physical realm. Thus, he clearly contradicted his claim re. the nature of ID.

2) I demonstrated to him that ID was logically flawed by virtue of being infinitely recursive, i.e. by its own premise an infinite number of ever greater complex creators were required.

He simply chose to ignore these points, and resorted to the tactic of distraction through obfuscation.

Prior to his proposing ID, he took a traditional Creationist's literal reading of the Bible approach. When he revealed himself to be wholly ignorant on Scriptural matters, he resorted to the same tactic, but much more emotionally so than at present.

He practices naught but intellectual dishonesty, being by nature incapable of doing otherwise.

In short, his is a forever lost mind.

by Member 25348569

I don't think he'll actually go away even if flamed to death. I did post a reasonably insult-free (pointy-head is a term of endearment in the UK) reply to him on the nature of atheism and didn't get a response to that. That IS par for the course, unfortunately. Ippirate was a much nicer and more honest opponent - as was Protiusx - but MrMiami is a bit weird and I think it's that, after some of his earlier misogynist posts, none of us LIKE him very much.

He's all yours from me. I won't post to him again.

Neil :)

btw. We ARE talking about someone who has TWICE posted about nanobots! check your sanity at the door.

by absolutely

Actually, we have voting machines that save us the trouble of deciding to vote against Bush. They correct our mistakes if we do so by accident.

by hal 9000

When I was down her way and meet her she didn't say anything at all about that but she did mention just how much work she has to get through with her teaching and then she also gives Seniors Basic Computer Classes. Talk about being a glutton for punishment. :D

I bet you thought "End Users" where bad well these are a different kettle of fish who need to be taught how to turn it on first and the best one of all is why do you click on the "Start" button to shut it down? ;)

I've had this with my Mother when I gave her a computer to stop me constantly going over there with a LT to do work for her well it sought of worked now I don't need the LT when I go over there :( and now it has got worse as she has just got a new photocopier one of the Digital Canon's which doubles as a computer printer/Scanner so she doesn't want to touch the new photocopier either. But that could just be because it broke the very first time she tried to use it and was not working for weeks. Like all of 2,900 copies had been run through it and the Tech had to replace a lot of things and eventually when it started attempting to work he decided that it required a new drum which naturally was not available so she had to wait for that to arrive and because she had a rush job with over 40K of stuff to run through she pushed the old one back into service. She was so flustered by this time that she couldn't even use that anymore and I ended up running everything through it. Yesterday when I went over there the old unit was plugged in and had been used so I'm guessing that she isn't brave enough to even attempt to use the new one particularly as the tech wants to keep an eye on it as it gets a few copies under its belt as if what happened previously happens again he wants to change it with a new one. :)

Col ]:)

by deepsand

The one's labeled "I/O", meaning "On/Off" had to have been designed by someone with a warped mind.

by jellimonsta

I used to volunteer in a nursing home teaching basic computer usage and web browsing to elderly residents. My favorite was a 90 yr old blind woman who had never touched a computer or typewriter (Mary). This was way back int 97 though but I still had a 'speaking text' program that would relay her typing.
The look of glee on her face was priceless when she first heard her writings spouted back at her in that 'computer voice'. :)

by erich1010

First, if Creationism isn't even a scientific theory, then it is not worth debating whether it is true or not. There's just nothing to it.

Second, EVERYTHING is a theory. Science just explicitly says so.

And lastly..

The only purpose to life is that which we make of it ourselves. If this whole world were to blow up tomorrow, it wouldn't have much affect on the universe. Our lives are only important to us.

by deepsand

That one's opponent's position may lack merit does not preemptively render debate on such without value.

In the case at hand, it serves to elicit information re. the opponent's motivation, and possible future course of action.

We here have access to members of the cabal that would seek to impose a theocracy of their making on our country.

[i]"Keep your friends close; but, keep your enemies even closer."[/i]

by hal 9000

It would be 23 or are you not that far along yet for your belly button to pop out? :D

Anyway where the HELL have you been Jessie? With both OZ and you missing from the Friday Yuk I was beginning to think that OZ had come down and kidnapped you or at the very least performed an ARM on you. ;)

Col ]:)

by jdclyde

First, who got to be poster 2000?

Second, has there ever been a tread bigger and if so what was it?

by Member 25348569

'Though I've heard rumours of another biggie. Oz thinks that he saw it lurking somewhere before GWB's election. I think it's ProtiusX's other thread "Why I voted for GWB" which didn't clear 2,000.

Interesting that the UK elections made it to 12 posts - before, during and after. :)

I've left MrMiami and ippirate cuddling up over in EL so five figures here we come!

Neil :D

by deepsand

However, if you now view that post, it very well may show a different post number, as posts are renumbered as new ones are inserted in the chain.

EL is now the largest, as measured by the number of posts, discussion on the TR site.

The former no. 1 is one also started by ProtiusX, entitled "Why I am Voting for George Bush."

by hal 9000

I thought that ProtusX started one on terrorism a couple of years back which got very big very quickly. :p

EL however has to be the longest running one that I've ever seen here he started it in December last year although if now feels as if it was December last decade. :)

Col ]:)

by hal 9000

EL isn't allowed here at all not even a reference to it as it is likely to cross over and take control of this thread and then eventually take over TR entirely. ;)

I wouldn't have a clue about who was to 2,000 th poster because I escaped long before that number was reached as the thing was just going round in circles and nothing new was being posted. We couldn't even take it off an an tangent as some idiot kept bringing it back to the original posting.

A couple of years ago I think that there was a larger posting thread on terrorism again started by ProtusX but EL has to be the longest running thread since I've been at TR that I have seen.

Now wash your mouth out with soapy water and never mention the EL thread again. :D

Col ]:)

by absolutely

Apologies. And that will be my last mention of The Discussion We Do Not Speak Of.

I feel I have already paid dearly with the hours of my life I will never have back, however if you wish me to do penance I will watch 2001: A Space Oddity again. Or would you prefer I read hgttg?

by jdclyde

mbbloop eezz mhrd doo maulk wid n ma mmouf.

(spit and rinse)

no more soap, I will be a good little boy from now on.

by jessie

My bellybutton never pokes out. I'm 7 months pregnant, but my belly still doesn't poke out as far as my "endowment" ;) so it's still only 22.

And I've been working on tedium for the last week. The company I work for is rolling out a new loan application software package, and it's getting close to "rollout date" and they're nowhere near done so they need bodies that can do grunt work. Blech!

by hal 9000

You where not one of those that I had in mind when I wrote the above as you hit the scene long after I escaped that dreaded thread. :p

But if you Absolutely Have to Punish your self and really want to inflict yourself with a desired punishment for helping to keep that GREEN FESTERING MONSTER ALIVE & GROWING I would recommend that you turn off your computer and read HHGTTG. Not just the original book but the whole series.

Pay particular attention to what happened to the person who inventing the "Infinite Improbability Drive" and of course "Marvin." :)

Just avoid an Vogan Poetry for your own sake. :p

But most importantly of all remember that the answer to the Ultimate Question is 42! :D

Col ]:)

by hal 9000

HHGTTG is actually a series of 6 books as they where printed in paperback. :)

But they are all small so they shouldn't take overly long to read. ;)

I can not remember them all but they started with "The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy" then there was "Restraint at the End of the Universe" "Good bye and Thanks for the Fish." :D

BLOODY HELL I can not remember the rest of them and I'm such a lazy BASTARD that I can not be bothered getting up and looking for the books so you'll just have to get them all and read them in the proper order. ]:)

And remember no cheating and just reading the cheats copy or the last page as you'll miss all the humor. :)

Also if you are responsible for any of those 34 new postings on the EL monster I'll have a worse punishment lined up for you. :D

Col ]:)

by absolutely

I've quit cold turkey. Obliged jdclyde's very sensible request to summarize my views, and stfu.

by hal 9000

But I'll give you the benefit of the doubt for the time being. ;)

Was it industrial strength soap or just the weal domestic stuff? :D

Col ]:)

by jdclyde

Soft Soap Would you believe?

And yes, I promise to not get [i]caught[/i] again....

by jamesrl

"Life, the Universe and Everything", "So long and thanks for all the fish", and "Mostly Harmless".

Five books in the trilogy.....

Col, what were you drinking..???

James

by deepsand

there is none larger than EL.

I searched the entire list of TR discussions, and found nothing larger.

I did run across several page links that came up empty, but they were, chronologically speaking, fairly recent. Still, I'll allow that it is possible that there were discussions which are no longer accessible.

by hal 9000

Was going along quite nicely until someone complained about the content and it was purged.

It was even a technical one so I can not see why it was removed. Sure a few did get a bit carried away with the topic but it was something that we all face on a daily basis. Today I'm getting spam from a bogus person wanting my on-line ANZ Bank details so they can access my bank account and it is actually one of ANZ Banks outgoing e-mails that has been altered as it still has the hyper links in place to tell you how to safely use on-line banking but at the same time tells you to give them your details or access to your account will be blocked.

I actually rang the ANZ bank and offered to forward them a copy along with the headers but of course they where not interested, just goes to show that they are only concerned about their systems and not the security of their customers computers after all it isn't their money being placed at risk so why should they bother? :(

I can see that they are failing in their "Duty Of Care" here and I only hope that a group of affected people get together and sue the socks off them. :D

Col ]:)

by deepsand

The "Compliance Risk" Dept. of my bank of 33 years recently advised me, via a very brief letter, with no reason(s) stated, that my account would be terminated in 30 days.

The Mgr. of my local branch attempted to intercede on my behalf, and was swiftly and firmly rebuffed. He was unable to elicit more than that said department was "uncomfortable with the nature and/or timing of certain transactions", and, that as they were under no legal obligation to show cause for their action, and were therefore not ogliged to provide me with an opportunity to rebut their decision, my only recourse would be to write to thier Legal Dept. & request that the matter be internally reviewed.

Of course, by the time such review might have been completed, the account would have been long dead, leaving me with the task of re-constituting an elaborate network of over 20 accounts linked to the soon to be defunct one.

I suspect that it was the case that the new parent bank holding company simply decided that my account was insufficiently profitable for their tastes (it was a checking account through which virtually all my transactions passed, such that the total $ value of the transactions was quite high while the average $ balance remained quite low, leaving them with precious little float), and that the "Compliance Risk" issue was merely an easy way out for them.

by hal 9000

I've just clicked on edit instead of post a reply and it is still not 10.30 AM yet. :(

But James when I posted this it was well after 2.30 AM and I'd been up for a long time as well so besides working from memory and admitting to being a lazy SOB what else do I need to say? :p

Have you noticed that Absolutely hasn't stayed away from the monster EL and is feeding it again? He must have a death wish or be positively into pain and suffering. God help us all I can see Skynet coming sooner rather than latter and it all started with ProtusX posting the EL thread. :D

Col ]:)

by hal 9000

All you have to do is open up the Discussion page and there in the middle of the page you see what "Your Contacts" Have been posting and there where at least two postings to that monster by you listed there I don't even have to go anywhere near it TR TELLS ME. :D

Col ]:)

by absolutely

What you cannot tell without reading my posts is that I've gotten bored with trying to explain science and instruct in proper logic. I'm just hurling gratuitious insults now, based on the psychology of taking for granted--on faith--whatever one emotionally prefers to believe.

I really am impressed with the stamina and consistency of deepsand & sleepin' dawg. I just don't have the patience.

btw, do you know of a thread about a rude cubicle neighbor? I know I read it a few weeks ago, thought it was trite, and didn't pay much more attention. Since then, I've gotten tired of the guy next to me who uses his speakerphone incessantly, one of the main complaints of this thread, and for a change I'd like to vent a bit about something that actually affects me!

by sleepin'dawg

Warning! Bill Gates may be the next antichrist:Revelation 13:18 says:

"Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666."

The real name of the Bill Gates is William Henry Gates III. Nowadays he is known as Bill Gates (III), where "III" means the order of third (3rd). By converting the letters of his name to the ASCII-values (which are used in computers) you will get the following:

B I L L G A T E S 3

66 + 73 + 76 + 76 + 71 + 65 + 84 + 69 + 83 + 3 = 666

Adolf Hitler
Joseph Stalin
The Pope
(You can count number 666 from each of the names above.)

Is the fourth beast Microsoft corporation which represents the power of money? Revelation 13:16 and 13:18 says:

"He causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads," "and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name".

"Windows compatible?"

It looks like well-known OS's fall into the same category:

M S - D O S 6 . 2 1
77+83+45+68+79+83+32+54+46+50+49 = 666

W I N D O W S 9 5
87+73+78+68+79+87+83+57+53+1 = 666

Coincidence? We think not.

Dawg ]:)

by absolutely

I just finished a book called "Sync" by an author whose last name is Strogatz. Lent it out already and not sure of his first name, but I thought of it because it presents a lot of contrary evidence to the argument that order requires a source of order, which must be beyond our understanding.

Although we've heard an argument to that effect that is obviously recursive, rebuttal on the basis that the argument is recursive also requires understanding and acknowledgement of the meaning of the word recursive. Knowing how things synchronize in nature without any intervention--which they do--punches holes in MrMiami's construct wide enough that even he can see them. It might bring his humiliation from the public realm into his own limited perception. As you have most consistently pointed him to that particular error, I thought this book would interest you. Also, it is very enjoyable on its own merits!

"Sync" touches on a wide vatiety of topics, beginning with some Thai fireflies that flicker in unison, and climaxing with the suggestion that a model is under development that could predict heart arrhythmia and prevent it. It is mainly a biographical account of a mathematically oriented biologist's studies of surprising instances of synchronization and attempts to model the phenomena using computer programs, where lack of knowledge of the mechanism of coupling made the mathematical representation of coupling an extremely challenging problem. A great leisure activity!

by absolutely

I'm going to get my ASCII code reference to prove it, this is outrageous! The omission of Windows 98 (prior to the Second Edition and all the patches released during that time) would suggest that it was less evil than The Pope, and to paraphrase my favorite device for reminding myself of my intellectual prowess (MrMiami), I find that difficult!

PS I am annoyed by your portrayal of money. It is more convenient than wampum, more easily saved until needed than rice, and a strong case can be made that it is a strong motivating factor in most scientific and technological progress, to say nothing of helping to keep order in society even when society does not seem to be making any progress.

Windows, on the other hand, is popular as a result of the masses' present state of intellectual malleability, preference for short-term convenience over fundamental quality, obsession with newness, and other fatuous traits that are common among people these days. All of which illustrates the principle that money is only as good as the person using it, but does not suggest that money does not serve a useful purpose to those who do know how to use it.

Odd, I seem to have lost my sense of humor. Since a convenient explanation does not spontaneously present itself, I shall attribute this to an unknown entity which is unobservable and unknowable, but whose attributes I shall nevertheless describe over time, as such attributes become necessary to save me the trouble of contemplating other issues that likewise do not have obvious causes!

by sleepin'dawg

i.e. banks, have got to be the second oldest. (need a few bucks to get screwed?) Of course you will notice the similarities. Both sit on their assets and neither will kiss you while screwing you.

Dawg ]:)

by hal 9000

But seriously I'm now getting the same junk through the Debian Site and I can not add it to my Spam Filter as it would cut out all the other stuff from the Debian site which I do need. :(

It's not fair I want my mommy to stop it! :D

Col ]:)

by deepsand

[v]https://www.techrepublic.com.com/5208-6230-0.html?forumID=6&threadID=172811&messageID=1758651[/v]

by levannah44

Can't remember them all, either, Col, because I keep getting them mixed up with the Dirk Gently books ("Dark Teatime of the Soul", etc.) which are on a par with HHGG (naturally!)

Anyway, I have now had the (dubious?) pleasure of seeing the new film (no computer to sit in front of that night!), and I can honestly say I was mildly surprised.

The English humour hasn't been tampered with, since the screen play was written by DA before his death. Having a black American playing Ford didn't really put me off as much as I expected, since, coming from a planet somewhere near Betelgeuse, he could really look like anything!

The film opened with the disappearance of the dolphins and a reference to "Goodbye and thanks for all the fish". I didn't particularly like the new Marvin, but was pacified with the cameo appearance of the TV series original Marvin in a later scene from the new film. I wonder how many others spotted him?

The film is definitely only HHGG, and, unlike the TV series, does not include RATEU, although again, reference is made to this with the promise(?) of a film of same to follow.

Slartybartfast, Trillian (Trisha McMillan) and our two-headed Presidential friend, Zaphod Beebelbrox, are all quite okay. And yes, ZB really does have two heads, unlike the trailer shown on telly, and during the course of the film, interchanges between one and two heads all the time!

On a scale of ten, it's thumbs up and a six to seven mark. I'll feel better when they make the natural sequel (as per the telly series) of RATEU and bring everything to a far more conclusive finish.

Films of the other books wouldn't go astray either. And the Dirk Gently books as well. And to top it all off, the "new" Dr Who starts here next Saturday night as well! Ah, bliss!

Now I have a death wish, so I'll go off to EL and see what I can do to muck that up even more than it already is. God, 2300+ posts! What is everyone saying? Going round and round in ever decreasing circles, no doubt, until they all disappear up their own fundamental orefices!!?? Well, Protius, Maxwell, and those of their ilk, I mean, not you, Col, and the rest of the sensible lot!!

Okay, off to fulfil the death wish! Ah, 'tis good to be back!!

Gret

by deepsand

I've read several articles & exerpts of longer works by both Brody & Strogatz, but was unaware that Strogatz had published the book you mentioned. Thanks for the heads up.

That order spontaneously appears out of chaos has long been recognized; and, in some fields, such as electronics, exploited.

I'll be looking for Strogatz's book.

Enjoy.

by absolutely

Your opening sentence was not a double negative, but two distinct negative statements, which you used properly (grammatically properly, anyway) to negate different words.

You've passed third grade, now PLEASE LET ME OUT OF HERE!

by deepsand

F***ds is most likely Fiords, as in Norway, as designed by Slartybartfast, also of H2G2.

by absolutely

EXPLETIVE

Would you say that this book is intended as a satire of myth creation? What I've heard of it seems farcical, and as though it's outrageous for no other reason than to show how far-fetched a book can be. Just like the Bible. If its intention is to be farcical, I might be interested in reading it.

by levannah44

Huh, my teacher's a very high-up White Mouse, so you just be careful what you say there now, Col!

Anyway, I know the answer's 42 -- everyone knows that! -- but I know something you don't know, so there!

I know what the question is too, and I'm not going to tell you, Now I'm the king (queen??) of the castle and you're the dirty rascal!!!!

So I don't need to go back to work straight away, because I don't have to!!

G

by levannah44

Thanks, deepsand. Actually, Col has already said much the same thing to me privately, and I have every intention of doing just as you/he have said.

At the moment, I'm accessing both the net and my emails via my son's log-on code, but that I can fix up in the weekend, given some time!

Right now, I'm more concerned in getting on top of the 800+ emails that were waiting when my computer came back the other day! I've now got 'em down to a fairly manageable 250+, but I want to get rid of the lot eventually, of course.

I've also got a couple of big dates to get past this week, one of which is a deadline (on Friday), so once all that's out of the way, things will be a little easier and I'll really get stuck into my computer then.

Ah, these things are sent to try us! Thanks for your kind thoughts, deepsand. I'll be back and fighting again before you know it!

Gret

by deepsand

Well, perhaps not here precisely, but we'll not have gone very far.

I'm certain that we'll be quite easy to find; just look for the smoke, along with the sounds of wailing & knashing of teeth.

Enjoy.

by levannah44

Er, I thought the Intelligence was the White Mice, deepsand. Or were they only the constructors for Earth and not the rest of the universe after all? (And to think I only saw the film the other day!)

by Member 25348569

are pan-dimensional super-intelligent beings who paid for the Earth to be built according to parameters supplied by Deep Thought. The Magratheans build the Earth and Slartibartfast does the fjords.

They (the Mice) didn't create the universe else why are they trying to find the question to which the answer is 42?

Neil :)

p.s. we'll just have to disagree about the film. I watched it in the cinema and hated it - I thought that both the film-makers and everybody in the audience got it wrong in so many places. I've got a hookey DVD copy and I'm going to watch it by myself and see if I change my mind without the audience laughing in the wrong place for the wrong reason!

Ford Prefect said he was from Guildford! The book describes his appearance and his habits - and black and from the Bronx, he ain't.

"I have a picture of the Disney Studio being consumed with fire and the Director running screaming from the blazing ruin with at least three hefty spears protruding from his back."

by jellimonsta

I caught my brother watching it yesterday, but I have not seen the whole thing yet (will try to this week). I have yet to read the books though, but I think I may read them after watching the movie (as I have not read the LOTR trilogy yet either).

I do not think it is the kind of movie I would want to watch with the general public either though. They would be far too likely to laugh at some obscure name calling gesture or physical slapstick type humor (or humour).

I myself am a fan of The Marx Bros, so I am indeed a fan of slapstick too. I have never really seen the original TV adaptation of HHGG either though. Let us know if you got more out of watching the movie in isolation.

by levannah44

That's okay by me, Neil. Everyone's entitled to his/her opinion. So we shall agree to disagree.

I read the book many years ago now, about the time of the original telly series, and enjoyed it so much that I went out and bought all the other Douglas Adams books I could find.

Before I went to see the film, I do admit to having reservations about it, very large ones if it comes to that.

However, I decided to put these aside and go with an open mind. Yes, I know what DA said and described in the book, but he also wrote the screenplay for this film, and I would have assumed he agreed to the actors playing the various parts before he died or he wouldn't have allowed the project to proceed? Am I wrong, or am I wrong?

I won't say it was exactly up to the standards of the original telly series, because it wasn't, and I'm jolly glad I still have my old video of it. (Must get it on DVD; the video's a bit worn from overuse!).

Apart from all the obvious British humour, etc. that one expected from such a film, what did disappoint me was that, unlike the telly series, it didn't include RATEU. One wonders if it'll ever be made now DA is gone.

But I wasn't as totally disappointed as I thought I'd be. It was tolerable, shall we say. And I did love that little cameo appearance of the original Marvin! I wonder how many others picked that up?

Not quite thumbs down, just mildly surprised. Now I'm waiting for the new Dr Who series to start on Saturday next, and Star Wars Episode 3, which my son has gone off to see tonight as it's the opening night here.

It's either a feast or a famine!

by hal 9000

Is short term memory loss. ;)

You are now officially a "Lost Cause" as even the most intense Adversion Therapy will fail to cure you of this nasty on fairly unknown addiction. :p

Col ]:)

by deepsand

It's all a TR conspiracy, of that I'm sure.

At some point, when they've secured a large enough base of addicts, they are going to threaten to deny us access, unless we allow our machines to become zombies in their 'bot network.

This, of course, will result in the Ultimate Computer, which will then undertake the search for the Ultimate Question.

All of Earths history to date has been mere prelude to such moment.

by levannah44

Oh help! And here was me thinking it was just ordinary, straight-forward garden variety old-timer's disease!!

Is there no hope, Col? Are you telling me that eventually, I too will slowly dissolve into ever decreasing little circles until I disappear up my own fundamental orefice? That all is truly lost?

Alack! Alas! And woe is me! I'd better read HHGG just one more time, then, before my short-term memory realises it lost my long-term memory ages ago!

by sleepin'dawg

Seems I misplaced it last night after the second bottle of champagne which I sort of remember sipping from my companions navel last night. Hey, for what its worth, she still looks good in daylight but boy does she snore, sort of like a buck saw going through a cord of wood. Now lets see. Where did I put my intelligence last night??? Oh, maybe I left it in bed. Have to go check. If you don't hear from me soon; send help. Maybe I'm getting too old for this sort of thing??? Nah!!! Who am I kidding??? I'll never be too old for this. LOL Later. Ciao!!!

Dawg ]:) ;)

by hal 9000

Just like the Rocky Horror Picture Show by with an answer to the Ultimate question of 42 who knows for certain? :D

I just love the laughs so I don't really care. :p

Col ]:)

by absolutely

he's worried BECAUSE people ask him why he looks worried. I might have to buy a copy. poverty...

by hal 9000

I have some good and bad news for you which would you like first? The patient replies I'll take the bad news as things can only get better from that point on.

The Dr then tells him that he has an Advanced case of AIDS.

They patient goes to pieces and demands to know just how he contracted this virus and just how could there be any good news as you have just given me a death sentence and now I know I've only a few weeks to live.

The Dr replies well you got it from that blood transfusion when you fell off your daughters horse 15 years ago but the good news is the results of the rest of the tests have come back and I can tell you that you have Advanced Dementure so you can now go home and forget about it all.

No 12 step program no known cure just a need to continue posting to TR and in ever increasing amounts just so that warm fuzzy feeling you first got when you first came here stays the same.

Very soon you'll be just like The Chas and winding down at the end of the day by posting in the T Q & A section for at least 4 hours a day after work and then you'll need time in the discussion area as well.

Col ]:)

by sleepin'dawg

How did you manage to get through school without exposure to the Hobbit or LOTR??? In a lot of places it was mandatory reading, which is why a lot of us didn't appreciate it at first. See the HHGG movie first then you'll be better placed to tear it apart after you've read the books.

Mike if you like the Marx Bros you'll remember this: Groucho:
I shot an elephant in my pyjamas last night. (pause to flick ashes off cigar and for a leer) How he got them on, I'll never know!!!

Cheers!!!

Dawg ]:)

by absolutely

but eventually I have to wonder, with such acute insight and broad knowledge, why are the Pythons so SILLY?