lol @ Gravity video

[dpastern]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BtJ6v9SIww

Some people shouldn't be allowed to breed...sorry, not sorry.

[el_draco]

Shoot me... shoot me now... :shrug:

... on second thoughts... shoot them...:lol:

[Paul Haese]

Flaming idiots, who did not study any maths or science coming up with idiot ideas. Irritating at best, infuriating at worst. These are the same dim witted fools who believe that vaccinations cause autism, that the moon missions were staged, that Donald Trump is their saviour. Education not working. And; it is not confined to the US. We have plenty of these idiots here in Australia. When the educational standard is lifted the occurrence of these idiots spouting nonsense will be reduced. :mad2::mad2:

[Bart]

Why do we keep giving these people air time and bumping up their viewing numbers? Stop posting their links would be a good start.

[speach]

S**t and they breath our air. Seriously why are americans so f***ing thick

[el_draco]

... or comment, face them down and name them up as ignorant morons!

[LewisM]

Sadly, it is not just Yanks (though we are on a role of anti-American lately here :lol:). Millennial Australians and current primary and secondary schoolers probably can't. We have had to EXTENSIVELY home-teach (supplemental to regular schooling) our 9 y.o - she was not able to tell me a single Australian capitol until I taught her, let alone name any planets, understand what a year is, or even do division.

What appals me is they get homework once a fortnight, and ONLY if we ask for it!!! WTF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Soros education for you! So, we take matters in our own hands - a responsibility that every parent should take since the education system is failing to deliver - our 9y.o went from all C's to now nearly all B's in a matter or a couple months of work. Plus she also attends non-English after-school schooling for 3 hours 5 days a week.

Her younger sister, thankfully, we "rescued" in time after recognising the failings of the sordidly pathetic education system.

[dpastern]

Exactly Paul! Interest in maths and sciences is at an all time low as far as I understand, and each future generation is showing less interest in these subjects. The problem is that these sorts of people are involved with younger generations, and influencing them in a bad way. That must be stopped at all costs imho.



Because, sadly, their numbers are growing in every Western country. We need to be proactive and stop the rot wherever possible, especially with the younger generations.



It's just not Americans though. Whilst I'm not fond of many things American, not all Americans think like this, and it's a unfair to tar them all with the same brush. The video features Americans simply because it has American sources for the media input. We could go around the general populace of Australia and get similar comments I fear.



Wholly agreed Lewis. Our education system is being pushed to a US style metrics system, and imho, it does *not* work. By the age of 9, kids should know the Australian capital cities, as well as basics like the names of the planets, etc. I plan to do the same as you, and add to my 4 year old niece's education.

I also firmly believe that there is an over-reliance on computers and technology in schools. IMHO, children @ primary school should not be using any computer based devices, with them ONLY becoming available in secondary school and onwards. Children need to be encouraged to think for themselves, and not rely on tools that do nothing to enrich their thought processes.

[el_draco]

You are naming up some very common misconceptions here and I'll explain it to you, being a teacher.

- If everything goes well, a teacher gets an average of 6 minutes per student 1:1 time per week. (The math is simple) :eyepop:

- Suffice to say, that wonderful state does not exist in our current reality... :(

- I'll leave the next line blank, just think "discipline, or lack there of..." and fill it in for yourself...

:mad2:
:mad2:

- Most "parent associations and others" oppose "homework" on principle. Most of those bodies are composed of people who did not study academic subjects or understand the first thing about the knowledge acquisition process. :screwy: (I actually have a an open email policy with my students... 24/7; got a problem, talk to me about it... Need help, come see me before/after school or during lunch break and I'll help. Number of takers? 1%)

- If governments don't fund education, students don't get resources and though they bleat mightily about how much they "spend", the reality is teachers are often buying resources for their classrooms out of their own wages... I do several grand per year myself. Some teachers are providing breakfast as well... :rolleyes:

- Guess how many times the curriculum has been reworked by pollies in the last 20 years?

- There are many who say teachers get great holidays.... I pull 60 hour weeks on a regular basis and work straight through my "holidays" most years... You wanna know stress? Become a teacher who cares about children... most of us do! :sadeyes:

Finally....., who said education was a school based activity? It is supposed to be a partnership between families, schools and society in general.
- If parents do not value education and,
- If parents do not insist children study and learn a bit of discipline and,
- If we live in a society where parents dump their kids in front of trash like the Simpsons and
- The role models we "idolise" can do nothing but kick a bloody ball and,
- Those who lead us are complete pin-heads.... then

WTF do you expect? :shrug:

I've got a family of my own, all but one are adults and they are in full time employment, strong minded, strong willed, decent men and women... I gave a **** about their futures and put in the hard work... :thumbsup:

Glad you caught up! :)

[LewisM]

Rom, we have a large white board at home - I fill it every day prior to the 9y.o coming home, and she has to complete that before bed. Subjects are Maths, English, Geography, Science and Russian.

Her 4y.o sister has to do writing, numbers, Russian and simple geography (she has an incredible memory - thankfully still in the plastic range).

What our 9y.o is learning in Gd 4, I distinctly remember doing in Gd.2. The maths being taught is...simply...simple. We taught her at home up to the 12X table, and as such, plus the other Maths (simple algebra, fractions etc), she is an A student in Maths NOW.

I fully understand the plight of the teaching fraternity, given their requirement to fulfil the rather lacking syllabus (you probably disagree) and still be expected to deliver results based on Naplan etc.

[dpastern]

Rom, I don't think all teachers are as impassioned as yourself. I also find that many people under the age of 30 have sub standard maths and english skills, including teachers in that age group. This effect seems to worsen the younger the person. Again, I base this on personal observations in the "field".

I understand that many teachers put in a LOT of UNPAID extra hours, outside of the usual school times, to create lesson plans etc. I have a friend in the UK who's just finished her degree in molecular biology and is branching out into teaching at primary school level. Teachers do not get sufficient time to develop lesson plans, or invest in 1:1 time with students. As a society, we need to devote more $$$ to our education system, much more $$$ imho. I'd personally like to compare data for funding to public schools from say, 1975, to say, 2017 (adjusted for inflation of course). I'm pretty damn confident that our schools are receiving far less money from the government than they did 30 or 40 years ago, when adjusted for inflation. I'm not sure if the ABS collates such data or not.

Teacher wages aren't great either imho. Teaching is a critical employment role imho, and competent teachers should be rewarded accordingly. I mean, getting rid of the F35 II fighters could pay a LOT more $$$ to competent teachers...just saying. It's a matter of our government getting its priorities right, and that #1 priority should be the education of our children. It is that, that will allow us to compete on a global market, not some trumped up unrequired military gear...

[dpastern]

A follow up video from the same YouTube channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6c6qEmIX-8s

the sad thing is that no amount of logical debunking can prove to these flat earthers that they are wrong. :(

edit: check around 5:35 for a young female teen, sounds like she's from New Zealand...this is exactly why this sort of BS needs to be stamped out. That, and the anti-darwinism crap that's springing up.

[LewisM]

Australia had ZERO need for the F35 - as does every other nation who has been forced into this POS Yank war machine - why we all couldn't have invested KILLING money into going to Mars instead...no, we need to kill each other. Why did we need it..oh yeah, because the Turnbullsh!t government are the biggest sellout vassals in Australian history.

Rant over...temporarily. :)

[dpastern]

preaching to the choir Lewis. I do think a permanent lunar base prior to a martian base is the way to go though!

[kinetic]

Brawndo's got what plants crave. It's got electrolytes.

[dpastern]

Even more sad :(

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qn3VJ-VJhOw

Simple questions like does the earth revolve around the sun, or vice versa, or is the moon or sun larger...of what galaxy is our stellar system a part of...these are basic science questions that any student who has left high school should know. That some students are leaving high school (irrespective of their country of residence) without knowing these answers is rather disturbing imho.

note: I am aware that the numbers quoted in this YouTube channel's videos is probably skewered to make society look dumber than it is, cos hey, it means more viewers and more $.

[el_draco]

That's called teaching and your kids with thank you for it, one way or another... The syllabus is a starting point for education. I just live for the days when I find a kid who is mentally turned on... Sigh... rare, but its better than divi 1!:D

[el_draco]

Dumbed down curriculum produces dumbed down teachers... simple.



We need Scientists in schools teaching, far more than we need them in the field. Off my own bat, I have generated more Scientists who will do more than I could have ever done by myself. That's called long term investment.
In terms of getting time to plan, you have no idea. I got 24 hours to accept a year 11 Science class this year and 5 months later I am building lessons ONE day in advance, doing 4 hours research per class before I start writing ... Faaaarrrrk!



Nope, need to devote more parenting time, and make teaching a desirable profession that attracts our best and brightest.



I dropped 50% in income to do it, walked out on an I.T. career. Why? because I get to build lives... sometimes

[dpastern]

Sadly, such kids are generally badly bullied (and the teaching system does nothing to address said bullying). Speaking from personal experience here. Hell, I even had teachers bullying me...

[dpastern]

Has the curriculum changed that much though over the years? I don't have children, but I await with interest my 4 year old niece entering school. I'm more interested in her education than her parents I suspect lol. At least, the quality of her education.

I don't necessarily think we need scientists in schools teaching students, but we do need to improve the quality of our teachers I suspect. $$$ investment is to both improve school facilities, and to also increase the number of teachers so that the teacher/student ratio is more conducive to effective education. I understand many teachers invest a serious amount of their personal, unpaid, time to lesson planning, and to be brutally honest, that's unacceptable.

I do agree that parents need to be more involved in their child's education, but sadly, many parents don't have the mental or physical energy to do so after a long hard day @ work...that's the sad, long, harsh truth of it imho.

I agree on promoting more parenting time, and making teaching worthwhile (for great teachers). Again, I strongly suspect that many parents lack the proper education to engage with their children in a meaningful way, even if they had sufficient time or motivation to do so.

[xelasnave]

It is my opinion you can blame fundamentalist religion.

The Earth is flat because the good book says so ... the good book trumps science.

I saw a lecture and the point was made the US Army has a minimum IQ ( 83) below which they won't go... and these folk below are not suitable for any form of work.

They are so stupid in effect that they are dangerous.

And there is 10% of the population below 83... they are not even useful for canon fodder apparently.

Unfortunately this major problem is not addressed probably because culling would be the only sensible solution ☺

I think 20% in US believe the good book is literally true and regard it as unquestionable authority so it would seem 20% of the population will go for a flat Earth and a rejection of gravity if surveyed.☺.

It is funny...humans breed animals to improve the strain and yet any suggestion of "breeding" better humans is not on...but as terrible as this will sound it probably makes sence not to let folk with an IQ below 83 have children.

Alex

[dpastern]

I am highly doubtful that 10% of the population is below the IQ limit of 83 though. 100 yes, 83 I highly doubt it. Source(s)? AFAIK, the average IQ is between 100 and 110 (edit: should have technically said median, not average I guess). i also don't think that there's any correlation between IQ and fundamental religious beliefs, but I could be wrong. I doubt that sort of statistical data is harvested by the powers that be (would be interesting to see that data compiled though!).

Yes, fundamental religion is a growing issue imho. I strongly suspect that the belief in fundamental religion and its doctrines is due to the lack of base intelligence (IQ is a bad way to measure intelligence imho) and poor education. Most educated, sane people, see past the base facts in say, the bible (Earth created in 7 days etc) as being educational doctrine, and not to be taken as gospel (no pun intended). But hey, I could be wrong.

I would agree that the bible, and belief in creationism, is on the rise, especially in the bible belt regions of the US. And, I suspect that many of those will reject darwinism and globe Earth too (again, based on the words in the good book).

Whilst I agree somewhat to your sentiments on the allowance of breeding of those with low IQs, is it scientifically proven that 2 people who have low IQs (say, below 83) who have children, will automatically result in the offspring having low IQs? Society is seeing a strong push away from IQs anyway, with more emphasis being placed on EQs today. The herd mentality - fit in and be one of the crowd! IQ doesn't mean too much anyway, imho, it shows how logical you are, which is not always the same as intelligence imho.

[FlashDrive]

I agree .... when I was at the RAAF School of Technical Training in the 70's ... the class was not allowed 'Calculators ' to work out ' values ' in an electronic circuit......we all had to ' work it out in our heads ' using ' formulas ' relating to Ohms Law / Voltage Drops ' / Amps / on Series and Parallel Circuits.....in other words ... get your brain into gear and learn to do it yourself....I received a ' Credit ' for that subject.

Today, you can ' punch ' the numbers into a Scientific Calculator and it gives ' you ' the answer.... where's the learning in that ...??

Col...

[xelasnave]

The US Army use IQ and you will get a surprise if you look into the numbers.

I have not got a link but if you are interested the facts I talk of will be out there.

As to the religion...again look into what goes on and tell me most people are not literalists.

Religion and low inteligence related?
Try a google on talking in tounges..saints..JC images in whatever...or donations by followers for million dollar jets for televangalists...sowing cash seeds ..maybe the creationist museum and check out the dinasour saddles...I think 10% stupid is probably conservative.
Alex


Alex

[FlashDrive]

:rofl: ... giddy up ...!!

[xelasnave]

Hi Flash
You probably think that I am joking such that you think I was making up the dinasour saddles but unfortunaty although I do think the concept is a joke the saddles are real...they are in the Creationist Museum and young kids are exposed to such nonsence ... is it any wonder that we have flat Earthers?

And although I once thought that religious folk treated their good book as instructive and had the sence to realise that it was written in the bronze age and that the stories can not be taken literally it is now very clear that there is an alarming number who take the stories as true for example the flood story...so science has to give.

Science is presented as evil to a large degree.

By the way the museum is built to replicate the arc so how that must convince children that the good book is the truth.

Most religious folk can adjust their faith to more or less fit a reasonable reality but clearly there is a huge number who can not...20% and I bet your stupid 10% are within the group.
Alex

[xelasnave]

It is the literal take on the good book that has religious folk rejecting evolution.
They would rather take the good book account of Adam and Eve to an enormous body of science.
And from this we nearly saw in the US the concept of inteligent design (a "sciency" approach to how life was created) taught as science in schools.
You can bet although not taught in schools such nonsence is taught in many homes in the US and probably in this country as well.

And I bet the percentage of people of folk who take the good book as literal is indeed much higher on the basis that many if questioned would say they believed it was not but secretly would hold that belief.
These folk would happily lead us back to the dark ages and are a real danger to the human race.

Alex

[FlashDrive]

Alex ....I'd never heard of ' Dinosaur Saddles ' ...I though you were being humorous :shrug:

Col...

[xelasnave]

Well you would...it is beyond belief.
Check out the Creationist Museum...I am pretty sure thats what its called.
Built like the arc and really until you see it and listen to one of the guides or advocates you wont believe such nonsence exists.
It is a big worry.
Goggle it and add utube so you get a guided tour.
That will spoil your day.
Alex

[xelasnave]

Here is the wiki link but have a look on utube.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Creation_Museum
Alex

[xelasnave]

Here is a utube link.
https://youtu.be/TME30pPBw58

I am not sure it has the saddles but you will get the idea.

Alex

[dpastern]

Yup, I agree Col. Back in my high school days, our maths teach made us occasionally use sin/cos/tan tables instead of our calculators. His reasoning was to use our brains. Do kids even still learn long division today? Geometry? Algebra?



I just can't see 10% of our population being this gullible or stupid. I did a quick google on "average global IQ" and the first hit was this page:

https://www.fourmilab.ch/documents/IQ/1950-2050/

not sure how accurate it is, but one of the tables shows a downward trend in average IQ, which started at the middle of the 20th century (select the trend chart for an easy visual exercise lol). If this is scientifically accurate, then I am very much worried. It explains a lot about our society and I fear a 2nd dark ages will be soon upon us.

I would like to see all governments introduce mandatory IQ testing at age 16. Why? If IQs are indeed dropping, then this has major repercussions for society as a whole. An increase in the inability to follow simple instructions will cause problems with many people being able to perform their jobs correctly. With that said, I suspect robotics will evolve over the next 36 years to the point where humans employed in jobs will be very low numbers.

[LewisM]

I did a second degree (B.Sc, majoring in Microbiology and Medical Microbiology) a little while ago. First year Chemistry and Organic Chemistry was interesting - they were being taught what I did 30 years ago in High School, and yet they mostly all just looked blankly at the lecturer. When it came time to use log...well, the faces went completely blank.

74% failed that course - the turnout for the make up exam was apparently in excess of 200 students!!! (I managed personally to get the Dean's Commendation for the course lol).

Organic Chemistry was even more laughable. He had had so high a failure rate that he was forced to drop the pass mark of the final exam to 30% and only asked 10 questions.... incredible. He made up for it by doing random verbal assessment - I got asked in the middle of a prac to describe step by step the Grignard Reaction.

Kids these days are not inherently stupid - they are LAZY and expect everything handed to them on a platter.

[FlashDrive]

I had a look ...I really don't care about what other people think .... it won't make my day any better or worse.

Why ' follow ' the crowd ' ...I just sit back and watch.

Col....

[dpastern]

There may be some evidence that some of the stories in the good book have some basis in truth as well Alex.

For example, Immanuel Velikovsky's Worlds in Collision, in which he theorises that Venus is not native to our system and was in fact, captured by Sol, and deflected to its current inner solar system position by Jupiter, and in that process, interfered with the Earth's magnetic field etc, causing Earthquakes, floods etc. Whilst I am dubious, there are some interesting questions:

a) Venus is the only planet to orbit the sun in a retrograde manner

b) it is one of only 2 to have a retrograde axial spin (Uranus being the other)

c) an unusually odd axial tilt (177 degrees)

d) very slow rotation period (243 days from memory)

these are all very odd features, and at arms with the rest of our planets. It would at least suggest that Venus did not originate in its current location in our solar system.

we know that rogue planets exist, we know from simulations that planets can get thrown out of a solar system, so it's not a totally impossible theory. Yet Velikovsky is rubbished by many in the science community. He offers no valid proof, but his theory is interesting and merits further investigation imho.

For example, the Sumerians referenced Inanna (their vision of Venus) as:

"You make the heavens tremble and the earth quake. Great Priestess, who can soothe your troubled heart? You flash like lightning over the highlands; you throw your firebrands across the earth. Your deafening command ... splits apart great mountains"

which is rather odd.

We know of martian meteorites that have impacted on the Earth, but Venusian? Nope. Rather odd. Of course, that could be for a variety of logical reasons as detailed in this CN thread:

https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/451139-venusian-meteorites/

Whilst our earliest ancestors were given to non scientific explanations of planetary issues, perhaps not everything that they mention is rubbish, or should be ridiculed.

note: I am NOT saying Velikovsky was correct in his assertions, but that his ideas merit further scientific investigation, rather than the outright hatred that he received from the scientific community at the time of the release of his infamous book.

[LewisM]

Going back to the F-35 for a moment, some latest news:

"The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has recommended that Congress withhold funding for the F-35 program, saying the jet fighter is plagued with almost 1,000 deficiencies that must be resolved before production can begin.

The shortcomings include an ejector seat that can cause neck injuries, an unusable helmet-mounted display system, failing oxygen-supply systems and a mid-air refuelling probe that can break off during use. In total, the F-35 had 996 unresolved deficiencies as of January. Of these, 111 were considered ‘Category 1’ deficiencies - faults and flaws that could seriously jeopardize user safety or security."

And:

"The F-35 has been in development at Lockheed Martin since 2001, and it has been dogged by delays and surging costs ever since then. At an estimated lifetime cost of $1.4 trillion, it is the most expensive weapons development program in history."

And we just HAD to get involved in this junk. With more and more countries pulling out of the F-35 (Germany is touted to pull out next), it's going to be a BIG WHITE ELEPHANT.

[dpastern]

One has to logically question why our government is so insistent on wasting money on this junk...

[LewisM]

Why? Because we are TOLD to by the US.

Australia lost it's spine with the sacking of Gough Whiltlam (you really need to read all about it to understand how deep it REALLY goes!). Whilst I personally was not a fan of Mr. Whitlam, he knew the truth, what needed to be done and was elected on this premise. He soon learned NOT to defy the will and plans of the CIA and MI6...

[xelasnave]

I dont know why its surprising.
Folk wonder why we seem to suck up when its just the way things go...its no big deal.

Its like Rome. .culture money control can be traced back...no worries.

You cant change it.

Stop worrying.

Alex

[dpastern]

Yes, I have read about that and it does make sense. I didn't think about that when I made my last post lol! duh!

[LewisM]

I think it is an ENORMOUS problem Alex.

The more people sweep it under the carpet, the larger the problem becomes. We have all been silent and apathetic for WAY too long.

[FlashDrive]

I was never in favor of ' single engine ' fighters ( F35 )....although I do like the ' proven ' F16.

Sorry ... a bit of topic here ...

Col...

[xelasnave]

I did not mean to indicate it was not a problem as it certainly is a problem.
But we have to live with it.
How can you resist?
We buy stuff almost as if paying a tax but what are you going to do.
Oh $50 million for vacations for the poor kids in Africa..what a nice thing for the Australian Government to do..well yes if that was the game but the game is getting cash to the US drug company.

Military gear. ..its not about our defence its about getting money back to Rome.

Sure the world should be a better place but its not and never will be.
Alex

[el_draco]

The curriculum is a mess, has been since the late 70's when the powers that be decided to adopt "whole language" approach to reading. Better call it, "direct path to illiteracy". Then followed the "You can't fail a kid because its bad for their self esteem" waffle... No one fails, no one tries.... :screwy:

As a teacher, the things that stands out for success are:
- Teach language phonetically, no short cuts and start young, before they go to "kinder". I read fluently at 5...
- Teach mental arithmetic and drill teach Times tables until they are faster than an calculator ( Real easy: Use black mail, bribery, threats... whatever it takes!).
- Read to them, for them and with them.
- Instil a love of learning.
- Teach them high personal standards, If they believe in themselves, they wont accept anything less..
- Feed curiosity.
- Teach them to dream without limits.
- Invest your own time, you get ONE shot at being a good parent.

Do these things, and the school they attend is largely irrelevant. ;)

(Oh, for gawds sake, don't pay private school fees, waste of money. These places claim to have a higher success rate; they don't. They just concentrate kids from families who are more affluent and therefore more interested in their kids education. Spend the money on your children, not private school building funds :shrug:)

[dpastern]

I was slow to read, but there were reasons for that (Aspergers, and bullying from both other students and teachers). By the time I got to year 2 though, I'd caught up. i was lucky, that my year 2 teacher (different school to what I attended for year 1) was brilliant.

I didn't need my parents or teachers to encourage me to read, or have an inquisitive mind. I was top of my class for maths timetables up to and including year 5. I had a dip in year 6, but was still ahead of the rest of the class because I had a crap teacher who disliked me. 2 dud teachers in 6 years isn't a good record imho. And, teachers were a lot better in those days than they are now imho. I've just turned 49 btw, so I'm not a spring chicken.

Sadly, as you get older, bullying gets worse, and being bright is like wearing a bit bullseye target on your chest for the bullies. Schools refused to deal with bullies back then, and are even worse now.

[brian nordstrom]

re . 1957 , Chicken Little ,. ;) The SKY is falling !

Brian.

[dpastern]

I don't get the reference, but I can see the humour ;-)

[Tropo-Bob]

I thought the video clip was encouraging people to have a humorous look at the random, self-imagined, thought constructs of some people who then insist that they know the answers.They are silly, but funny.

These people can become dangerous though if they can gain followers and promote themselves into being seen as an enlightened demigod. And if they do, the rewards are great for they may obtain almost unlimited power in their own tiny group. (For example, Charles Manson).

Most of us older fellows rage at what is becoming of young people. Tut, tut. There was a time that I recall where I was on the receiving end of that. My grade 9 form teacher told us that we were the worst bunch of grade 9's that she ever had. Funny enough, I thought she was the worst teacher we ever had. :D

But seriously, as we age, us blokes admire intelligence more. This is not new. In the old play/movie, "Fiddler on the Roof", do U remember what kind of man the girl ask the matchmaker for? Well, handsome for her, rich for mum, and for father, make him a scholar.

The best idea that has come through in recent times is that of lifetime learning. Ah, there's hope yet.

[h0ughy]

Listen guys while you post and link all the interesting things in the world have you guys actually read the TOS of IIS?

take a minute to read http://www.iceinspace.com.au/tos.html