Life is an adventure...

Music: predilection for a genre

Renaud — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 05:08:31 +0000

It's strange how some things tend to confirm themselves. It seems I have this predilection for some Nordic music groups and strange, emotional, experimental music.

Everyone should be required to watch TED

Renaud — Sun, 08 Jun 2008 15:07:57 +0000

Stop watching mindless soaps and stupid sitcoms and head over TED.com or the TED channel on youtube. TED organises regular conferences with speakers from all walks of life, from musicians to scientists, politicians to philosophers. They each have 20 minutes to express their ideas on the topics they hold dear and man! do they deliver!

Curing gays… I’m all for it! :-P

Renaud — Sat, 30 Jun 2007 10:50:07 +0000

Homosexuality may have a strong biological component. The small amount of research done in the past 15 years suggests that there is a possibility that our genes be somewhat responsible for our sexual orientation. That's of course both a good and a bad thing.

Poll: What kind of atheist are-you?

Renaud — Wed, 06 Jun 2007 03:00:12 +0000

Fun and short poll that can be found here. Here is the result for me.

The dangers of the debate culture

Renaud — Mon, 04 Jun 2007 23:00:06 +0000

Debating is a very Anglo-Saxon thing: everything seems subject to debating, schools and universities even have debate clubs. Being able to present your argument and win your case over your opponent is certainly an admirable skill that anyone should be encouraged to hone. It's the foundation of persuasion, of being able to rally people to your cause. Debating is also at the very core of the justice system, with each side arguing passionately -and equally- about its case.

Killing pedophiles…

Renaud — Sat, 02 Jun 2007 22:00:37 +0000

A few days ago I read an article on the increasing support for the death penalty in cases dealing with child rape. No-one is going to feel sorry for the people who commit these atrocious crimes, but something makes me feel really uncomfortable about calling for the death penalty: I think it's wrong to seek it in these cases.

Crystal Myth

Renaud — Thu, 31 May 2007 23:00:46 +0000

I was listening to the conversation between two people at the office a while back: the lady was explaining how good she felt after a session at a crystal healer she goes to while the other was politely listening to her. She went on explaining that she bought a few crystals that she displayed, and how powerful some can be, for instance how putting one in a bottle will really purify the water in it, blah blah blah...

What does it mean?

Renaud — Tue, 29 May 2007 23:00:47 +0000

If there is something that we should remember to always ask when faced with far fetched theories it that's simple "what does it mean?".

There is a funny thing about martial arts.

Renaud — Sun, 27 May 2007 23:00:35 +0000

You would think that people who train in them would have a particular appreciation for the hard, brutal, facts of reality but it's not always the case. Lots of made-up beliefs permeate martial arts and try to emphasise the "drawing of energy" from places where it can't exist.You would think that people who train in them would have a particular appreciation for the hard, brutal, facts of reality but it's not always the case. Lots of made-up beliefs permeate martial arts and try to emphasise the "drawing of energy" from places where it can't exist.

Meaning of life stuff… sorta.

Renaud — Sat, 26 May 2007 09:04:37 +0000

I tend to over-think things. Not always to try to be clever, mind you, it's just something I can't help doing. Some part of me needs reassurance in knowing the reasons behind anything that happens. It seems that I can't really understand or make sense of anything if I don't have a context for it, a sense of where it's coming from.

Science: Anecdotes are no evidence

Renaud — Tue, 26 Dec 2006 11:00:46 +0000

This was something that troubled me for a while: why people's first-hand experiences are so often put aside, especially in science, as not sufficient to prove something? In other words, why shouldn't anecdotes be taken as evidence?

Being a bright

Renaud — Sun, 08 Oct 2006 15:21:47 +0000

I am a bright. Yes, I wrote that right. Bright is normally used as an adjective, and if I was saying I'm bright that would seem very immodest. Being a bright is different though. It simply means that I recognize myself as being free of belief in the upernatural, that I'm a free thinker and I don't need any form of supernaturalism (read gods, spirits, afterlife) to give meaning to my life.

Science: Podcasts of interest

Renaud — Fri, 06 Oct 2006 07:27:37 +0000

The Internet is a wonderful thing. In the past few years audio broadcasting -of podcasting, even though Apple is trying to control use of the word- has taken off and offers everyone the means to make their own radio programme.

Getting Science

Renaud — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 08:00:54 +0000

Even though I've always been interested in Science and Technology, had fairly good grades at school and took an engineering degree, I only finally understood what science was really about about five years ago.

Respecting beliefs

Renaud — Sun, 27 Aug 2006 08:58:54 +0000

I've heard the argument many times that people's beliefs are all valid and should be respected. That seriously annoys me now. I find that righteous goody two-shoes belief to be nauseating in its lack of criticality and blanket acceptance of "everything is the same" as a fair position to hold, making you think that you're a bigger person for being so tolerant.

Radiohead & UNKLE: Rabbit in your Headlight

Renaud — Thu, 15 Jun 2006 01:00:19 +0000

Radiohead songs are like clouds: they can drastically change your mood depending on what kind they are and everybody can see in them what they want. Like clouds, there are forces within that we don't suspect but sometimes can see a glimpse of: the formidable energy contained within can be an awe inspiring experience when we get confronted to it.

Radiohead: Thom Yorke solo album

Renaud — Thu, 08 Jun 2006 06:05:13 +0000

So the much anticipated (at least for the Radiohead fandom) solo album of Tom Yorke has been leaked recently and is available all over the torrent sites. It was due to be out on 10and 11 July instead and in a way it's a shame that it got leaked, but I couldn't pass the opportunity to try it and I broke my personal rule of never downloading music...

Religion has no monopoly on Morality

Renaud — Tue, 30 May 2006 16:31:28 +0000

I'm a bit annoyed whenever I hear someone declaring that you can't be moral without religion. The mere fact that everyone on the globe as some basic sense of morality, regardless of her religious background should be proof to the contrary. So, no particular religion can pretend to be the sole guide to morality.

My current stance on religion

Renaud — Wed, 16 Nov 2005 02:00:45 +0000

Religion may offer individuals some measure of consolation and comfort when confronted to events that are beyond our control or sense of fairness, but in no way does it contributes to explaning or understanding the world we are confronted to, nor does it teaches us how to act and behave responsibly.

It is a desilusion to believe that religion has any real answer whatsoever to our misfortunes and that it can bring us any real solace.

Cat Herding

Renaud — Tue, 15 Nov 2005 06:48:32 +0000

I am the happy master (I don't know if that is the right word though) of 2 males cats of mixed breeds.
I'm quite fortunate in a sense: I got them already potty trained, well behaved and nutered, so I did not have a choice as to their education and, worse to me, to decide whether or not I should have them sterilized.
Of course, I miss not having had them younger, but you can't always choose.