Now in full* swing:
The Wright Center for Pseudoscience
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This page will eventually comprehensively detail aspects of the WCP interests and research efforts in probabilistic risk assessment for biological control agents (called pseudoscience by reviewers, so this must be the correct place for this), chaos theory and applications in entomology, egg-burst dynamics, and other interesting, lunatic fringe pursuits.
New material!!!! From Jo Diez, Video of a fruit fly juggling a pupa!! The fly evidently became bored, and decided that instead of just hanging out on the bench, it would grab a convenient pupa, and engage in a spot of "foot-juggling". It is just a little fuzzy (the video that is), but quite a chuckle.
Soon to be expanded upon here:
Probabilistic risk assessment for biological control studies, and it's place in the realm of Pseudoscience. Hurry back soon.
Here's a teaser - this work was published in Biological Control.
Here's an example of our commitment to pursuing excellence in this regard, an excerpt from a recent letter of support for a colleague's grant application:
"Dear Professor XXXXXX, (name withheld for reasons of privacy, and to avoid ridicule. We know how that feels.....)
I was excited to speak with you earlier about the possibility of collaborating on a project in risk assessment for the biocontrol of xxxx xxxx species. This is exactly the kind of pseudoscientific activity we like to support here at the Institute, and we are enthusiastic to bring our full credentials to bear on this problem. Good luck in getting support for this research which is clearly outside of the realm of traditional rigorous science."
Chaos theory and entomology - The WCP Project Director gave a talk on this topic on April 1, 2005! Lots of people thought it was an AFD joke at first (no surprise there of course). But no! It was another Fine Product of the WCP. Maybe I'll put the presentation up here one day. Don't hurry back too soon for this, I still don't know how to do anything quite that sophisticated. You surely have better things to do, anyway. Yeah, get out in the sun a bit instead of staring at your computer screen all day!
Egg-burst dynamics - still wondering what this is all about. Something one of the students brought up one day. Hmmmm.
*A relative term really.
Do visit the Church of the Flying Spagetti Monster http://www.venganza.org/ for information on a fine assessment of an area close to those pursuing pseudoscience.
Appendix: These are comments the director of the WCP has overheard in passing, while eavesdropping etc, and thought interesting enough to list here.....
1. Why is it that while the faculty at a university do all the teaching AND bring in all the grant fundiing, adminsitrative personnel are allowed to treat said faculty like trash??
2. Eisenhower's ability to deal with different kinds of people may have been his greatest asset as a leader. After the war, he made the somewhat unlikely switch from leading
a huge army to being the president of Columbia University. The transition wasn't without a few bumps in the road. At that time there was a Professor at Columbia named Isidore
Rabi, who had worked on the development of the atomic bomb, and who subsequently won the Nobel Prize. At a faculty ceremony in honor of the professor's achievement,
Eisenhower made a brief speech. It included a remark about how it was always good to see an employee of the university get recognized. At that point, Professor
Rabi interrupted him and said, "Excuse me, sir, but the faculty are not employees of the university. The faculty are the university!" This was a witty somewhat confrontational
remark -- and Eisenhower might have taken offense. But he loved it! Rabi became his closest friend on the faculty -- and when he became President of a somewhat larger organization than Columbia, he appointed Rabi to a number of influential positions. (From Tony Alessandra, APPLYING Leadership Genius)