The Pasty Quail in Chicago: Cityscape

Though we couldn't spend a terribly long time downtown (my parents live about 40 miles, or an hour drive, from the city), here are a few pictures of the cityscape.

First are a few shots from Millennium Park taken on that rainy Wednesday after we visited The Art Institute. Situated about two blocks north of museum, the park was about the only place we could walk without submitting to a drenched chill. Luckily, the wind I mentioned in the museum post had subsided, but it was still sleeting. Thus, we did our best to capture the surroundings in the short time we had.

- Looking Southwest:


- Then Northwest, at the Frank Gehry sculpture:


- Then due North up Michigan Avenue:



And then, here are a couple of the park itself.

The Monument:


Ice Skating:




On Friday, we headed back to The Windy City for a play at Water Tower Place, which is located on the stretch of Michigan Avenue known as The Magnificent Mile, Chicago's worthy adversary to Fifth Avenue in New York.

First a shot from the doors of Water Tower Place looking down the Avenue:


Next, here are two shots of the Old Water Tower, a tremendously famous landmark along the Mile.





Though, quite unfortunately, the weather was not nice enough to allow a picture of the Sears Tower when we were in that part of town, here's a good picture of the second tallest building in Chicago (for the time being), the John Hancock Building:


Finally, on our way back to the car, we passed Da famous Coach's restaurant, complete with a caricature of the man himself:

The Pasty Quail in Chicago: The Museum Tour

On Tuesday and Wednesday of last week, we went to Chicago and enjoyed some of its cultural offerings, i.e. world-class museums as well as some its finest cuisine (mmmm. . . hot dogs and pizza).



On Tuesday afternoon, we went to The Museum of Science and Industry, which is located on the city's South Side just off the campus of The University of Chicago.

Though the museum has a number of intriguing displays, we went to see the "Christmas Around the World" exhibit, which consisted of approximately 50 Christmas trees depicting foreign cultures with a brief explanation of that country's holiday tradition.

First, here's the Centerpiece of the exhibit, followed by a shot from the second floor:





This next picture, our only other shot from the rest of the museum, is a complete non sequitur. There is a massive display depicting the railroad industry on its journey from Chicago to Seattle. The exhibit spans an entire room in the museum, and Lindsey and I found ourselves focusing on the little people situated on the landscape along the railroad trail. Though it's difficult to describe why this is relevant, here's a bear attacking small children:


I have no idea why this is there, but it's pretty fantastic.

On Tuesday night, Lindsey and I split off from my family and met up with an old friend of mine from back in elementary school. I grew up in Chicago and lived there until I was 12, and my buddy Cailean still lives in the city. We ate dinner in Lincoln Park, a famous neighborhood just north of downtown.

While Chicago is world-famous for its pizza, we had it served in a unique form at Chicago Pizza and Oven Grinder, where the pizza-like toppings come in a pot pie. That's right, everything you want in a pizza served just like you'd eat a pot pie. As the link shows, the place has some interesting history as well.

The next morning, Lindsey and I made our way back downtown to a tasty breakfast joint about 6 blocks south of our eventual destination, The Art Institute of Chicago (pictured below). After eating, though the temperature stood at just above freezing and there was a steady rain, we figured six blocks would be no problem.


They don't call Chicago "The Windy City" for nothing. The rain was not heavy, but the wind was blowing due south at approximately (just a roundabout guess) 30 miles an hour, which positioned the rain to pelt us directly. We arrived at the museum soaked, and luckily, it was nice and warm inside, so we spent a solid 4 hours seeing some of the fantastic art on display. Below are some of the major highlights:

The Art Institute has an array of famous paintings, two of which are reproduced here.

First, Georges-Pierre Seurat's "La Grande Jatte":


And then, one we all surely recognize, "American Gothic":


Further, here is a collection of random works by famous artists; unfortunately, I cannot name these paintings/sculptures. If anyone knows off the top of their heads, let me know so I can update them.

- Van Gogh:


- Picasso:


- Matisse sculpture overlooking a room:



Fernand Léger:



And Georgia O'Keeffe:



There is also an extensive Monet collection as well as many other incredible Impressionist paintings, of which we surprisingly don't have any pictures. I don't know why that is, but I think we saw them when we were still soaking wet and not considering photography.

Anyhow, hope you enjoyed the show!

The Pasty Quail Takes a Holiday

We're off to eat turkey. We suggest you do the same. If you don't know what Thanksgiving is, here's a quick primer.

We'll be back on Monday.

In the meantime, here's a recap of everything that has happened so far:

Is China's Economy Really Approaching Super Power Status?

The Financial Times doesn't think so; new research by the Asian Development Bank shows that China's economy is both smaller and poorer than previously reported. From the article:

"The results tell us that when the World Bank announces its expected [Purchasing Power Parity] data revisions later this year, China’s economy will turn out to be 40 per cent smaller than previously stated."

Read the whole article for an explanation on what Purchasing Power Parity is, why it is a good gauge of an economy's size, and why it shows that China's economy is smaller than expected.

Along with their growing ecological nightmare, news that China's economy is nearly half the size that was being reported is further evidence that the Chinese are no closer to eclipsing the American market than the Japanese were in the 1980's. Phew.

Breaking Out of the World's Largest Prison

As the North Korean economy continues to disintegrate, it is becoming increasingly easy for defectors to escape from the horrible living conditions found there. The Washington Post has an interesting article discussing the conditions in the North that are leading to more defections and the risks associated with escape. Read it here.

Sex Scandal At Evangelical Church

Here's a change of pace from the usual evasion/embezzling story we hear from so many of these evangelical mega-churches:

D.E. Paulk has been living his entire life believing (or at least claiming to believe) that he is the nephew of Archbishop Earl Paulk. As it turns out, Earl actually lay with his sister-in-law, Clariece, and that union led to the birth of D.E. (and those awesome sideburns).

D.E. ascended to the position of Head Pastor of Chapel Hill Harvester Church just a year and a half ago, but the decline of this particular church has been taking place since the early 90's, when they reached their peak of membership at about 10,000 members, and supported a Bible college, a TV ministry and two schools. The repeated allegations of sexual harassment and abuse on the part of Earl and his brother Don Paulk (Clariece's husband and the man until recently thought to be D.E.'s father) are often attributed as the reason for the decline of the church since then; they are reduced to a "fortress-like" cathedral on a 100-acre campus, and the college and schools are closed.

The UN Asks NATO to Tackle the Opium Trade in Afghanistan

CNN has an article discussing the current international discussion on the Opium trade in Afghanistan. From the article:

"'Since drugs are funding the insurgency, NATO has a self-interest in supporting Afghan forces in destroying drug labs, markets and convoys,' Costa said in a written statement to coincide with the release of the survey. 'Destroy the drug trade and you cut off the Taliban's main funding source.'"

I have an idea. Instead of vilifying people and burning their fields, how about we take the opium production out of the black market? Legalize the poppy farms and then the international community can buy the product at fair market value. The poppies can be used to produce morphine, which has a legitimate medical use.

New Pasty Quail Features!

In our continuing effort to foster dialog on the issues raised here at The Pasty Quail, we've added a Meebo chat box over in the sidebar. Drop us a message, and have a chat with us if we're around; we're always happy to hear what you have to say. You can see if we're online, and you can click on your name at the bottom of the box and change it to say whatever you want. It's a neat little piece of internet technology; give it a spin and see how it works.

We've also added our del.icio.us headlines from each day to our RSS Feed. This is a great way to get a look at the articles we look at that don't make it into full articles, so if you're craving more content, look no further. It also usually contains most of the links for the day that do make it on the website, so it's an easy way to get the news in a short format.

As always, let us know how these new features work out for you, and don't hesitate to suggest something new if you find something you'd like to see here.

What Happens When You Have An Awards Show With No Joke-Writers?

The TvDecoder at the New York Times has your answer. The American Music Awards, which was supposed to feature Jimmy Kimmel as host, had only a few unfunny appearances from the late night star. From TvDecoder:

"In the first national telecast of a live awards show since the beginning of the Hollywood writers’ strike, Mr. Kimmel was notable mainly by his absence: after his opening remarks and a brief funny-dancing bit, he did not reappear until 49 minutes into the show."

Of Montreal Appear in New TV Advertisement

Of Montreal are participating in a new tv advertising campaign; this time shilling for T-Mobile:



The spot seems pretty harmless, although I'm not sure that anybody will know who the band is or why they are trying to sell them mobile devices. At least its not as annoying as those Outback commercials.

Also, Barnes is taking this opportunity to strike out against those that might call his advertising work "selling out". From his rant on Stereogum:

"The pseudo-nihilistic punk rockers of the 70's created an impossible code in which no one can actually live by. It's such garbage. The idea that anyone who attempts to do anything commercial is a sell out is completely out of touch with reality. The punk rock manifesto is one of anarchy and intolerance. The punk rockers polluted our minds. They offered a solution that had no future."

Actually, I think he might have a point. Leave your thoughts in the comments section.

The Economics of Sexuality

Dubner and Levitt, whom you may remember from Freakonomics, have written an article about how the "price" of choosing a particular sexual partner relates to sexuality. Not at all surprisingly, it's pretty darn good.

Meebo Adds Games

Picked this up on Crave, via Daddy Land:

Meebo, a multi-client, browser-based instant messaging program has added games to instant messaging. Although I had some problems loading the games this morning, the concept is excellent. Once they get the load issues ironed out, this could be a new favorite website of mine. Not only does Meebo allow you to access all of your IM accounts without downlaoding or installing anything, all in your browser. Along with that, now you can play games in the same window. Cubicle dwellers and college students everywhere are rejoicing in the streets.

2,381 Juveniles Serving Life without Possibility of Parole

The University of San Francisco School of Law Center for Law and Global Justice has published a report [PDF] on the incarceration of juvenile defendants for life, with no possibility of parole (from The Age).

According to the study, there are 2,388 juvenile offenders on parole worldwide, and 2,381 of them are in the United States. The report highlights the hopelessness facing these young people. They are at increased risk for physical and sexual abuse, and with no hope of release, they have no incentive to develop towards maturity or learn life skills. The report also mentions that non-white juvenile defendants are more likely to be sentenced to life without parole, especially in California.

I don't know what to say about this. Anybody have any thoughts?

Hours of Horribly Offensive Entertainment

There's a new time waster in town: men who look like old lesbians.

Haven for Hashists?

Time has an article on the relaxation of marijuana laws in Colorado, Idaho, and California, making marijuana-related offenses of the lowest proirity for law enforcement. Time ties it to "slowly evolving populist rehabilitation of the drug." Does this mean that Denver is the new Amsterdam? Doubtful. But what does it mean when states are passing legislation essentially circumventing federal law?

First Do No Harm...

Apparently, doctors don't dig it when you know what's going on. The NYT's "Health and Wellness" blog has a post today based on this Time article by Dr. Scott Haig of Columbia-Presbyterian called "When the Patient is a Googler.". Dr. Haig's point was that it's irritating as all hell for doctors to have to deal with patients who have done tons of background information on their condition and their physicians, often going so far as to read their physicians' CVs and published papers. The "Googler" is that skeptical, over-informed patient, often shopping for specialists the way most people shop for cars: checking out the competition, comparing ratings, and asking highly technical questions.

I'm a bit back and forth on the issue. On one hand, it's incredibly patronizing to hear a doctor bitch and moan about how a patient actually has an acute understanding of her own condition and has informed questions about what's going on. Not being armed with information means that you can't participate in your care, even though you are an adult wholly capable of understanding the Reader's Digest version of what's going on. On the other hand, your physician is an expert on what's going and has probably filtered through much of the information that you can find on the internet. Additionally, if you have false information, you waste time with your physician discussion options that s/he knows aren't real. Any thoughts?

Alzheimer's Patients Forget Spouses, Forge New Relationships

Alzheimer's Disease has been destroying lives all over America; even former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor is not exempt.

Apparently, it is not uncommon for Alzheimer's sufferers living in nursing homes to completely forget that they are married, and begin new relationships with other nursing home dwellers. Add that to the list of weird sexual behaviors found in these institutions across America.

$38 Billion in Bonuses as Shareholders Suffer

After all the bad finance news in the last few months, how is this justifiable?

Thanks to Daddy Land for the tip.

The Flying Spaghetti Monster Goes Mainstream

In 2005, during the debate in Kansas over the teaching of intelligent design in public school science classes, Bobby Henderson weighed in with an interesting perspective. Claiming to represent 10 million followers of the Flying Spaghetti Monster, he demanded that the school board recognize their unique brand of creation theory as well; basically that everything that is known to man was created by a monster made out of spaghetti.

Of course, Henderson's demands were made with tongue placed firmly in cheek; however, he hoped to raise important questions through his ridiculous claims. Mainly, he hoped to show that if proponents of intelligent design could demand equal time in science classes, then anyone else could, too.

His solution to the problem? Teach only the best science available and leave the rest to more suitable forums. What an excellent idea!

Since that dramatic inception, Flying Spaghetti Monsterism has grown into an internet phenomenon and is now moving into the academic mainstream. The AP reports that the psuedo-religion was presented in a panel discussion at the American Academy of Religion's annual meeting this past weekend. From the article:

"'For a lot of people they're just sort of fun responses to religion, or fun responses to organized religion. But I think it raises real questions about how people approach religion in their lives,' said Samuel Snyder, one of the three Florida graduate students who will give talks at the meeting next Monday along with Alyssa Beall of Syracuse University.

The presenters' titles seem almost a parody themselves of academic jargon. Snyder will speak about "Holy Pasta and Authentic Sauce: The Flying Spaghetti Monster's Messy Implications for Theorizing Religion," while Gavin Van Horn's presentation is titled 'Noodling around with Religion: Carnival Play, Monstrous Humor, and the Noodly Master.'"

Also from the article:

"the tale of the Flying Spaghetti Monster and its followers cuts to the heart of the one of the thorniest questions in religious studies: What defines a religion? Does it require a genuine theological belief? Or simply a set of rituals and a community joining together as a way of signaling their cultural alliances to others?"

These are certainly interesting questions to consider as the world continues to become more globalized and people have ever-increasing access to new sources of information, cultures, and ideology.

The Potential Republican Nominees for President

NPR's Ken Rudin has an interesting rundown on the Republican field as it stands now. Some interesting notes from the column:

- Guiliani appears to be gaining endorsements from unlikely places (ie., Pat Robertson) because many have calculated that he is the only candidate that has a shot at Hillary in the general election.

- Romney is polling strong in the key primary states, Iowa and New Hampshire, but still lags significantly behind the other candidates in national polls.

- McCain is still old and hurting for money, but has somehow performed well at the debates.

- Thompson picked up a key endorsement from the National Right to Life Committee, but is still way behind in Iowa and New Hampshire. His refusal to actually campaign is almost certainly taking its toll.

- On Paul - "many of his supporters, who have little faith in the two major parties, see him less as an ideological soul mate and more as someone who hears their frustration. Paul is not challenging the leaders in any state polls, but his backers suggest that he could surprise in New Hampshire."

Robo-Roaches

The New York Times is reporting that tiny robots-masquerading-as-cockroaches (achieved by covering the robots with roach sex hormones) were able to lead real cockroaches to act against their instincts. From the article:

"They set up a cockroach arena one yard in diameter. Two six-inch-wide plastic discs were suspended over it, providing the dark shelters that cockroaches prefer to congregate in. But one disc was darker and a more likely cockroach hangout.

When 16 cockroaches were placed in the arena, they naturally gravitated toward the darker disc, following what the researchers believe is an internal calculation of the amount of light and the number of other roaches, finding comfort in company."

When the researchers placed the robo-roaches into the arena, they were able to lead the real roaches to congregate under the lighter shelter a majority of the time. The researchers hope to apply their findings to higher order animals, and also learn how swarms of robots might be able to be more efficient decision-makers.

The Office: Top 10 Pranks on Dwight

Since we will be without new episodes of the Office for the foreseeable future (I have read it might be 9 months before the conflict is resolved), I figured that now is as good a time as any to post this video. Enjoy.

I Think Amy Winehouse Might Have A Problem

In this video we have Ms. Winehouse searching through her hair for something, finding that something, and then snorting it. All while on stage! She's very talented, huh?

More on the Economics of Dating

The guys who founded Hot or Not have worked up a study showing that ugly people know they are dating other ugly people [PDF]. Portfolio has a good summation.

Whenever I see something like this, I wonder whether the conclusions from studies using data from online dating and looks-rating sites can be accurately applied to the population at large?

An Exceptionally Simple Theory of Everything - UPDATE

Following up on this story from last week, Chris Lee at Ars Technica has read A. Garrett Lisi's paper, and he's not buying.

According to Lee, Lisi has a problem with units at the very beginning of the paper; it seems possible that this unit problem may prevent the proper prediction of Lisi's expected particles. Even if the unit problem is solvable, the calculations required to determine the characteristics of the expected particles will be "extraordinarily difficult."

And Lee's not the only one. A post on AT's forum cites the virtues of the Standard Model, and explains the dangers of attempting to go beyond it.

These commenters also mention a few other things, including their displeasure with the way this paper was released to the general public rather than kept within the scientific community, and discomfort with the language chosen by Lisi in describing his conclusions. Further peer review is certainly coming, but at the moment, the outlook is not bright.

When Life Imitates an Early Kevin Bacon Film

Public schools in Argyle, Texas, a suburb of Dallas, recently banned "freak-dancing" and instituted a strict dress code at the behest of 35 year-old Superintendent Jason Ceyanes. What would otherwise be a non-news story has grown into a clusterf**k after Mr. Ceyanes's decision has prompted furious debate among parents in the town. Some parents find freak-dancing "dadgum nasty," easily the best quote I have ever seen in the WSJ. On the other side are parents who claim that they have "good kids" and have opted to protest Ceyanes' decision by going online and posting all kinds of crazy, personal info on Ceyanes, including talking smack about his divorce, teenage fatherhood, and claiming that he spends way too much time thinking about the sanctity of teenage girls.

Is suggestive dancing dangerous? And don't these parents have lives and jobs?