Overheard conversation

"I'm trying to get a bit fitter," said the overweight man. "I got one of those rowing machines for Christmas. I've set it up in front of the telly. I'm taking it fairly easy at first: only a mile a day."

"That's a good start, though!" said his friend encouragingly.

"The little computer thing says it's enough to burn up eight calories," said the man, taking another swig from his can of 7 Up.

Hammer and tongs

"There was a couple going at it hammer and tongs on top of my shed on Saturday night," announced a colleague this morning.

I stared at him open-mouthed. I should probably have been paying closer attention to what he was saying.

It turned out he was talking about cats.

Correlation v Causation

BBC: 'No proof' organic food is better

There is no evidence organic food is better for you than conventional food, minister David Miliband has said.

Mr Miliband is probably right. But while there may be no causational link between organic food and nutritious, tasty food, there definitely appears to be a correlation between the two.

It's like vegetarianism. Vegetarians often claim that they are, on average, healthier than us omnivores. That may well be true—they're also a lot more miserable and pasty-faced on average, if you ask me—but that doesn't necessarily mean that vegetarianism is the cause of their better health. People who are keen to have healthy lifestyles are more likely than those who aren't to exercise more, drink less, smoke less, eat more sensibly and, in extreme cases, go veggie "because it's good for you". So people who are more likely to be healthy anyway are more likely to turn vegetarian. It becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. It's also a nice example of sampling bias.

It's the same, I suspect, with organic food. Organic food is not necessarily better for you, but producers of organic food tend to treat their products (and customers) with respect, so they end up with a better, tastier product. Take bacon, for example. Organic, dry-cured, free range bacon knocks the water-filled, globby, mass-produced shite they sell on the cheap shelves into a cocked hat. Next time you're in a butcher's, ask them for proper bacon—they'll know what you mean.

The reason, I suspect, that Mr Miliband made his comment is that he is the food minister—the man responsible for feeding the country. Intensive farming might yield less tasty food, but it's certainly a more efficient and economical way of feeding the masses.

Other correlation v causation pieces:

Those pesky Iranians!

BBC: Iranians 'up to no good' in Iraq

Five Iranians arrested by US troops in Baghdad last month were … "up to no good", an unnamed official told the Newsnight programme…

The White House has suggested the arrests validated US claims of Iranian "meddling" in Iraq.

Minority Report

National Geographic: Europe's Largest Minority Gaining Recognition, Expert Says

Awareness of the centuries of discrimination against the Roma—the ethnic group often mistakenly called Gypsies—is on the rise in Eastern Europe, according to a leading scholar.

Not much of a scholar, if (s)he believes Gypsies are Europe's largest minority. At 49.5% of the adult population, Europe's largest minority is, in fact, men.

When will we gain recognition, do you reckon, chaps?

BullshID

Times: Creationism gains foothold in schools

The government has cleared the way for a form of creationism to be taught in Britain's schools as part of the religious syllabus.

Lord Adonis, an education minister, is to issue guidelines within two months for the teaching of "intelligent design" (ID), a theory being promoted by the religious right in America.

Until now the government has not approved the teaching of the controversial theory, which contradicts Darwinian evolutionary theory, the basis of modern biology.

Intelligent Design should not be dignified with the name theory; it is at best a hypothesis. A hypothesis that happens to be total bullshit. And it's not even good bullshit at that.

In an interview with New Scientist not two months ago, our god-bothering prime minister was asked about creationism in schools:

One subject that is of great concern to scientists is creationism. There has been a suggestion that creationism is being taught in some British schools. What are your views on this?
This can be hugely exaggerated. I've visited one of the schools in question and as far as I'm aware they are teaching the curriculum in a normal way. If I notice creationism becoming the mainstream of the education system in this country then that's the time to start worrying.

Sounds as if it's becoming mainstream to me, Tony. Time to get off your fat arse and do something.