Living in Western Siberia is just as complex as anywhere else. Less low level crime, because everyone knows who did it, more high-level corruption, because everyone knows who needs it. And don't think 'tribal' societies are easier either - you'd better know whatever holy book they use pretty well, if you'd like to live.

On this chilly Spring morning in England it is 234.9V. That's either a British compromise, or yet more evidence that we never did really want to join 'Europe'.

We still have ours, but use it only for the Christmas tree lights. It will switch 13A at 240V, but that doesn't seem very safe.

People who are stupidly credulous respond better to authoritative counselling.

I tested my rods on a road with trenches either side, looking for 'pipes', with a friend who could see down the trenches. Nothing, but at one spot they always crossed even with no pipes evident - eventually we noticed there was a wire running overhead at that point. Not saying it 'works', only - and most likely - that it sensitively discloses the operator's own subliminal suspicions/intuitions. Plus, confirmation bias - how many other trials have I not reported? But in the bomb case, provided the bad guy thinks your fake detector works, you're half way there with all these credulous locals. Dice would be just as good, if he believed you were a wizard. All busted now, of course!

A pair of L-shaped brass rods, one in each hand, seems to work for 'dowsing'. They swing across each other over a target. But if you clamp the handles in a swivelling frame, they (unsurprisingly) swing only parallel. Hypothesis, the kit indicates only what the operator is subliminally suspecting (just like the traditional stressed hazel twig, or magic pendulum). So you can do a bit of theatre with such things (especially if the credulous believe they work), but it's fake, but/and it's fake for a reason.

It's arguable that the rise of 'Party' is a direct cause of the decline of true 'democracy'. We used to vote for individuals we trusted, either as 'representatives' (US) or 'members' -whose outlook we largely shared (UK). Now the effective choice is too often binary between Parties, and the individuals concerned stand no chance of election unless they jump through whichever hoops the party machine requires for selection. How might a simulation look if candidates were forbidden from joining a Party until after an election?

I really would tell all my country-cousins to update their Java, but I couldn't rely on them to untick the 'Make Ask my default homepage, and add the toolbar' box. That sort of inertia-sell to the ignorant inspires no confidence at all.

Usual reason for doing this with official data is to avoid sensation-seekers 'hotlinking' to specific data without noting the disclaimers, statistical cautions, changes of basis etc. which moderate any interpretation.

AF447, they probably never knew (mostly 1g, apart from the bumpy bits and the swaying they'd been warned about). But takeoff and landing? You really might need your wits about you, if only to help others. Flying is still not magic.

Takeoff and landing, you're supposed to concentrate on safety instructions which (very rarely) you might need to think about right soon and seriously. Just... put down the gadget for a moment, and join the real and dangerous world of the paid staff.

Interesting to specify a system which relied on multiple targetted questionnaires, textual analysis of e-mail, docfiles etc for style and keywords, tagged pictures, family tree, DNA results even. Usecase being for posterity to interrogate the deceased 'as if' they were still there. Analysis fundamental enough to be extensible as technology evolves. But hear this - it must be open source, because it can only be microseconds before some megacorp or startupgeek patents every obvious feature and makes all posterity proprietary. Could still be a profit-zone, if ingenious questionnaires inputting to the Standard (please) parameters could be placed on sale, and of course the software for Gedcom and DNA export can be as commercial as you like.

Classification error to identify lefties as 'liberals'. My hypothesis has always been that lefties are 'anti-authority', probably because they resented their father. In Russia, lefties hated the Tsar, now the same kind hate the Communists, or whoever else is in power. Similar everywhere.

Agree with anything the self-important 'ECHR' says, and it's like agreeing to burn witches. Well, in ECHR terms, soaking their feet gently in nice warm water and giving them a pension-for-life as an 'excluded community'. Don't join the nonsense train, use the Comfy Cushions.

"...we would can..." - seems to be a bug right there.