The history of Santa Claus

By akie

Christmas today is a combination of Yule (or Winter Solstice) and Sinterklaas, with a hint of Christianity.

This web site explains how the American revolution contributed to the adoption of the Dutch Sinterklaas holidays to the all-American Santa Claus. The image depicts Santa Claus, circa 1862. Hasn’t aged a day

The Internet is for…

By akie

. Of course, this is completely untrue

Robert Green Ingersoll #2

By akie

Ok, I couldn’t resist - another quote by the great Robert G. Ingersoll. Why doesn’t anyone know this guy?

“The notion that faith in Christ is to be rewarded by an eternity of bliss, while a dependence upon reason, observation and experience merits everlasting pain, is too absurd for refutation, and can be relieved only by that unhappy mixture of insanity and ignorance, called “faith.”"

Robert Green Ingersoll, The Gods (1872)

Robert Green Ingersoll

By akie

The Cynical-C blog introduced me to Robert G. Ingersoll by means of this rather provoking quote. From this day on, this (dead) guy is my hero.

“According to the theologians, God, the Father of us all, wrote a letter to his children. The children have always differed somewhat as to the meaning of this letter. In consequence of these honest differences, these brothers began to cut out each other’s hearts. In every land, where this letter from God has been read, the children to whom and for whom it was written have been filled with hatred and malice. They have imprisoned and murdered each other, and the wives and children of each other. In the name of God every possible crime has been committed, every conceivable outrage has been perpetrated. Brave men, tender and loving women, beautiful girls, and prattling babes have been exterminated in the name of Jesus Christ. For more than fifty generations the church has carried the black flag. Her vengeance has been measured only by her power. During all these years of infamy no heretic has ever been forgiven. With the heart of a fiend she has hated; with the clutch of avarice she has grasped; with the jaws of a dragon she has devoured; pitiless as famine, merciless as fire, with the conscience of a serpent: such is the history of the Church of God.”

Robert Green Ingersoll - “Heretics and Hericies” (1874)

Some googling turned up this nice page of quotes, and it seems most of his work is online too.

Formal apology

By akie

I kind of like this form I found. Nice indeed

Bill Gates’ open letter to computer hobbyists (February 1976)

By akie

An apparently famous letter from Bill Gates to computer hobbyists, dated February 1976. Interesting, especially in hind-sight.

Leary personality test

By akie

I did a test (in Dutch) to determine my position on the Leary Circumplex (also in Dutch). This is what my results looks like.

A Rembrandt for €50

By akie

I like this picture of a mass production facility of fake artwork.

2007, the year the music industry broke

By akie

“the music industry in 2007 — a bleak, burned-out world where the sky fell on a daily basis and the rivers ran red with the blood of record execs. (That the album didn’t sell well only furthers the analogy …)“
- according to MTV

How many five year olds could you take in a fight?

By akie

21

Quote

By akie

“Politics is the art of looking for trouble, finding it whether it exists or not, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedy.”

- Ernest Benn, publicist (1875 - 1954)from Neatorama

Ruby on Rails alternatives

By akie

If you, like me, have never programmed in Ruby - but are fluent in PHP, then take a look at this comparison of Rails inspired frameworks.

Maps of Europe

By akie

I found this interesting map of blondes in Europe on Strange Maps.

56 geeks

By akie

I like this poster of 56 geeks by Flickr user ExtraLife. Click to enlarge.

Creativity test

By akie

This test measures your creativity. My test result (above) shows I’m bold and curious, but surprisingly I’m not very good in abstraction.

I respectfully disagree. Nice test though.

Link

T-shirt for music snobs

By akie

This one made me laugh. I guess I’m kind of a snob myself Buy it at Diesel Sweeties.

Scientists model the brain

By akie

A team of Swiss scientists have created a working software model of one of the brain’s most complex parts, the neocortical column.

In theory this opens the door to a complete software model of the human brain.

MIT’s Technology Review has the complete story.

Is Europe a country?

By akie

Press play or go to YouTube

Cats

By akie

Cats are great fun. Press play or go to YouTube.