About a year ago, I introduced the blogosphere to a term that had become common on certain Usenet newsgroups. I can’t take credit for coining the term, but I think I can take some degree of credit for disseminating it to a wider audience. That term is “altie,” and has a meaning similar to the […]
Author: Orac
Orac is the nom de blog of a humble surgeon/scientist who has an ego just big enough to delude himself that someone, somewhere might actually give a rodent's posterior about his copious verbal meanderings, but just barely small enough to admit to himself that few probably will. That surgeon is otherwise known as David Gorski.
That this particular surgeon has chosen his nom de blog based on a rather cranky and arrogant computer shaped like a clear box of blinking lights that he originally encountered when he became a fan of a 35 year old British SF television show whose special effects were renowned for their BBC/Doctor Who-style low budget look, but whose stories nonetheless resulted in some of the best, most innovative science fiction ever televised, should tell you nearly all that you need to know about Orac. (That, and the length of the preceding sentence.)
DISCLAIMER:: The various written meanderings here are the opinions of Orac and Orac alone, written on his own time. They should never be construed as representing the opinions of any other person or entity, especially Orac's cancer center, department of surgery, medical school, or university. Also note that Orac is nonpartisan; he is more than willing to criticize the statements of anyone, regardless of of political leanings, if that anyone advocates pseudoscience or quackery. Finally, medical commentary is not to be construed in any way as medical advice.
To contact Orac: [email protected]
Since the death of Andreas Katsulas, I’ve been thinking just how many great lines he had as G’Kar in the series and how well he delivered them. Here, culled from the web, is but a sampling of some of them. Some are very serious; some are humorous, but all are quintessential G’Kar. I can’t think […]
In a continuing series of posts, for the benefit of new readers (and a trip down memory lane for old readers), I now present: Orac knows World War II and Holocaust history: 60 years ago today: The evacuation of Auschwitz and start of the death march The 60th Anniversary of the Liberation of Auschwitz: How […]
The Twenty-eight Meeting of the Skeptics’ Circle has come to order at Unused and Probably Unusable, and Eh Nonymous has done a great job at gathering the best examples of skeptical blogging from the last two weeks into, of all things, a courtroom scene: WHEREFORE the 28th Meeting of the Skeptics’ Circle was convened on […]
Teenage graffiti as cave art
I’ve always had an interest in archaeology. Indeed, one of the elective courses that I most enjoyed in college was a prehistoric archaeology course. All of this shows why the following interests me. Through a scientific analysis of ancient cave art, it’s been found that human nature hasn’t changed much in 35,000 years: Many art […]