Boiler_Bro_Joe's Xanga

Thursday, September 21, 2006

Thu, 21 Sep 2006 16:29:27 GMT

(From Wikipedia)

"At the beginning of the 20th century, anthropologists questioned, and subsequently abandoned, the claim that biologically distinct races are (related to) distinct linguistic, cultural, and social groups. Then, the rise of population genetics led some mainstream evolutionary scientists in anthropology and biology to question the very validity of race as scientific concept describing an objectively real phenomenon.

One of the crucial innovations in reconceptualizing genotypic and phenotypic variation was anthropologist C. Loring Brace's observation that such variations, insofar as they are affected by natural selection, migration, or genetic drift, are distributed along geographic gradations called "clines" (Brace 1964). This point called attention to a problem common to phenotypic-based descriptions of races (for example, those based on hair texture and skin color): they ignore a host of other similarities and difference (for example, blood type) that do not correlate highly with the markers for race.

Finally, geneticist Richard Lewontin, observing that 85 percent of human variation occurs within populations, and not between populations, argued that neither "race" nor "subspecies" was an appropriate or useful way to describe populations (Lewontin 1973). This view is described by its opponents as Lewontin's Fallacy. Some researchers report the variation between racial groups (measured by Sewall Wright's population structure statistic Fst) accounts for as little as 5% of human genetic variation. However, because of technical limitations of Fst, many geneticists now believe that low Fst values do not invalidate the suggestion that there might be different human races (Edwards, 2003).

Meanwhile, neo-Marxists such as David Harvey (1982, 1984, 1992) believe that race is a social construct that in reality does not exist, used instead to extenuate class differences. (Hells yeah!)

These empirical challenges to the concept of race forced evolutionary sciences to reconsider their definition of race. Mid-century, anthropologist William Boyd defined race as:

A population which differs significantly from other populations in regard to the frequency of one or more of the genes it possesses. It is an arbitrary matter which, and how many, gene loci we choose to consider as a significant "constellation" (Boyd 1950).

Lieberman and Jackson (1994) have pointed out that "the weakness of this statement is that if one gene can distinguish races then the number of races is as numerous as the number of human couples reproducing."

Alongside empirical and conceptual problems with "race" following the Second World War, evolutionary and social scientists were acutely aware of how beliefs about race had been used to justify discrimination, apartheid, slavery, and genocide. This questioning gained momentum in the 1960s during the American Civil Rights Movement and the emergence of numerous anti-colonial movements worldwide."

Is it really worth it?

Monday, December 19, 2005

Mon, 19 Dec 2005 21:26:58 GMT

So I finished my screenplay "The Modern Prometheus". It's an epic tale of love, longing, class conflict and robots. Set in the year 2414 when every nation has collapsed and companies carry out interplanetary imperialism.

I also quickly wrote my short screenplay which hopefully I'll make next year, called "Ninja Apocalypse!" (exclamation point included). It's a satire that comments on race and class in America, as well as our war on terror. Oh yeah, and it has hordes of ninjas in it. That said, if you want to play a ninja, contact me. Because I need lots of ninjas. LOTS.

Friday, February 04, 2005

Fri, 04 Feb 2005 03:18:03 GMT

Alright, it's been a semester since I've updated this thing. I'm not really a blog person, except responding to other people's blogs, but I think I'll post the occassional thought provoking article on here. Who knows, maybe it will become an information resource for my epic sci-fi series "Eternal War", or my web comic "Swordman", neither of which have I started because I'm so damn lazy. But I assure you, the ideas are there!

Anyway, I found this link very moving, despite the fact that no one else seems to. Take a look at what years these photographs were taken. They look could have been taken yesterday. Being able to see these old cultures and places in such beautiful detail is like the closest thing we have to time travel. (And luckily for me this photographer happened to take pictures of exactly the stuff I would if I were able to go back in time) I found it fascinating, and almost choked up when I saw some of the people pictured. Ah yes, the link:

http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/empire/

Mmm, Library of Congress. See this is what our taxes should go to.

P.S. Apparently I now have two Xangas. Not exactly sure what to do about that...

Sunday, August 22, 2004

Sun, 22 Aug 2004 03:53:14 GMT

Well, I just got back to New York last night and slept half of today. The last day of class was fun - the skits that the kids made were really funny. We all had dinner together at a buffet and they gave me and Jay gifts (a Chinese Chess set for me), which caught me completely off guard. It looked really expensive - although alot of them chipped in so hopefully it wasn't that bad. I certainly didn't approach any level of quality in my teaching to merit an ornate board game, but at least they seemed to have fun in class.

Now it's packing time. Ouch!

Tuesday, August 17, 2004

Tue, 17 Aug 2004 04:11:45 GMT

I'm going to try to make a CD of all the music I've heard during my trip here, so I'll make copies if anyone's interested. Music where the lyrics are in another language always sounds better to me. Maybe because I don't understand how cheesey they are.

Class resumed yesterday, and now there's only two days left. We're going to have the students perform skits on Thursday (like in Japanese class), then a dinner with the kids since I'm leaving before the classes officially end. I hope I can keep in touch with some of them - it would be awesome if one of them ended up coming to America for college. But at the same time I'm looking forward to going back to Cornell.

Monday, August 16, 2004

Mon, 16 Aug 2004 10:20:05 GMT

Oh man, I'm putting my shoes on and off so often the skin on my thumbs is starting to peel. Damn clean floors.

Sunday, August 15, 2004

Sun, 15 Aug 2004 09:39:14 GMT

We left the city again today to visit Jays 99 year old great grandmother. She said that the first time she saw Americans was during World War II. After that we scaled a nearby mountain to get a view of the whole city, then went back to have lunch.

The constant procession of food has been an interesting part of this trip. t's hard enough to eat foods that I'm unfamiliar with, but in combinaton with my inability to politely refuse, and the fact that they continue to offer me more long after I'm full borders on a kind of torture. I didn't even need to spread imperialist propaganda!

On the way back we took a tricycle taxi (basically a bicycle powered cart) down the side of the highway. I turned on my camera to see a crazy guy try to cross the busy highway on his bike, but soon realized that our little cart was attempting the same thing. Not the first time I've feared for my life.

Saturday, August 14, 2004

Sat, 14 Aug 2004 10:27:27 GMT

Well, it turns out that a lack of traffic laws doesn't always work out so well. I saw my first car accident today - from inside the taxi involved. Our cab broadsided some woman as she was crossing the street with a tray of food. She rolled onto the hood and then fell on to the street. I feel guilty for not shouting something to the driver soon enough but when I realized he wasn't slowing down, it was too late. Fortunately she was fine, she wasn't even scratched. The driver threw thirty yuan at her and drove away. That would be like saying in the U.S. "I've got four Washingtons here that don't think the police need to get involved. Eh?"

Anyway, the whole taxi ride was to get out into the countryside where Jay's grandmother lives. It was pretty cool to see a more rural town. We also stopped unexpectedly at a Buddhist temple which was probably one of the more amazing five minutes I've spent in some time.

Okay, I'm sweating pretty profusely in this room, so I think I'll go now.

EDIT: Well Jay's aunt came in and turned to AC on. (Did I mention that these ACs kick the crap out of our ACs?) But now it's dark and Jay went back to our apartment so I'll have to make my way back alone. Hopefully I won't get sucked into some urban deviance.

Friday, August 13, 2004

Fri, 13 Aug 2004 05:23:41 GMT

Xanga

Is this the same thing as a blog or what? Oh well.

So I'm starting this for my trip to China. I don't know what I'll put here afterwards. I'd like to make some kind of website at some point, but that will probably never happen.

I've been here with Jay for one week now for an informal English class in Wenzhou. Shanghai was really cool - the subway systems are definitely superior to NYC. The heat is pretty bad, but apparently China knows how to make good air conditioners.

We got to Wenzhou on Friday. There"s no traffic laws here - which means it's awesome to just watch people dodging cars and bicycles. Monday was the first day of class, which was really fun. I thought it would be awkward but it turned out well. The kids are great and I'm going to miss them even after just two weeks

Yesterday there was a typhoon which I got some footage of on my camera. We had to stay inside and I had to watch Jay play ping pong with an old shirtless man - which I filmed. Yes, these will be some interesting videos indeed.