Month: June 2020

Universities and Brains

(28 June 2020) I have been too busy to update recently so apologies to my Chinese readers.

It was interesting this week to see that the government are consulting on a plan for school leavers and other applicants to only proceed with final university applications after their exam results, meaning they would have a clear understanding of the courses for which they qualify.

This is actually a good thing; the news this week has shown the issues with predicted grades ( not always accurate and often biased against the disadvantaged). Further, private schools appear to have been gaming the system (which I would expect if I was paying £38,000 a year to educate a child).

However, if we want to reduce the bias in the admission systems of universities (particularly the so called “top ones”) I propose the following (I will write and tell the government once the consultation is live). It would work like this:

  1. Applicants, knowing their results, would apply for courses, perhaps having a first choice, second choice and so on- maybe no more than ten in total.
  2. If a course is oversubscribed then 90% of the places are allocated entirely at random. This process, being class, race, gender and everything else blind would, at a stroke, ensure a diversity of intake.
  3. “Why?” you cry “90%?”.  We do live in an unequal society. I pass no judgement on this. Nonetheless we pretend to be a pure meritocracy and the wealthy game the system through private education and networks. I simply propose making this explicit.
  4. So, 10% of places on any course, at any university, would be for sale on an auction basis, open to all qualified applicants. They do not even need to set up a system- they could simply do a deal with E-Bay.
  5. The rich would still buy their way in but it would be clear and explicit.
  6. And there is more. Money used to buy a course (after admin fee) would be shared amongst the applicants who got in to the course through the ballot-thus giving them a small slice of privilege.

This scheme, which I am sure would be welcomed, would have an interesting effect on private schools who, while, I am sure, still providing a decent education, would lose the hidden advantages for entering higher education; we might see a decline in the sector.

On a different issue – constant despair at the government’s apparent incompetence, which I explained has at its heart the elite’s false perception of “reality”. I was heartened to watch a small talk greatly underpinning this view. It is called “Your brain hallucinates your conscious reality”.  Essentially it states that the brain predicts reality (thus optical illusions for example). To me this reinforces my view that governmental incompetence derives from their view of the world being different from us average folk.

So, no kitten this week- watch the clip – 17 minutes of fascination.

Cheers and Ham

(13 June 2020) Busy week for me as it was my mother’s funeral. It was a shame that the crematorium was bisected by massive power lines.

I am the executor so have to handle all the admin. I went to four banks to do the necessary paperwork and all the staff I dealt with were helpful, professional and kind. So, praise for Co-operative, Nationwide, Santander and Nat West banks. (If bank bots are crawling through this; all based in W5).

While in praising mood I do not normally endorse products. There is a firm who keep emailing me to get various cleaning products to blog about. I fill in the form, give the website details and they never choose me. I am not sure why.

However, I will praise the Mint Magnum which is by far the best of them all. (If Magnum HQ want to send me a crate it will be well received).

Our dog has to take tablets but her paws can not pop them out of the blister pack so I do it and conceal it within the cheapest, most obviously plastic, “ham”. The supermarket had run out and substituted what appeared to be posh air dried etc ham. But the small print said it was made of “Formed Ham”. I wondered what this was.

The internet tells me

First of all the individual meat cuts must stick together and when cooked, retain the shape of the mold without having any holes inside. This is accomplished by producing sticky exudate on the surface of meat pieces. Think of it as glue that binds the individual meat cuts together upon heating. The exudate is formed when the muscle’s cell structure is disrupted which releases protein called myosin. The disrupting of the muscle structure is accomplished by a physical action such as cutting or mechanically working meat pieces inside of the tumbler. For making formed meat products fine cutting or grinding is out of the question and massaging or tumbling is the preferred method. Using mechanical action by itself will tenderize meat but will not produce enough exudate. To release more proteins salt and phosphates are injected to meat prior to tumbling.

In other words, rather than cutting off a pig’s back legs, cooking them and slicing them, (you see these hanging up in delicatessens), they take all sorts of pork flesh lumps, smash them around in a machine (a tumbler) and chemicals so it all sticks together.

Full details available below.

https://www.meatsandsausages.com/hams-other-meats/formed

I am sure that consuming such products is ok (if pork is included in your diet) however, once again, it is the Chicken Theory in action. The rich will always continue to eat proper slices of pig leg, we delude ourselves by eating the mechanically produced stuff (did you ever wonder what they do with the eyelids?).

Delving into this a little further I discovered that Gammon, also pig’s leg, is sold uncooked. I assumed that this would be ok. Sadly not. The expensive gammon is a whole lump, the cheaper lumps are formed. Thus, even though you cook it yourself it is still mechanically produced.

I will cheer myself up with a glass of kitten.

Kitten in a glass

Clarity, Despair and BBQs

(5 June 2020) Finally got my new glasses today. I have been without a lens for three months and had a couple of years of imperfect vision. Seeing the world with crystal clarity is a grim experience.

The global epidemic gives an interesting contrast in the way governments operate. Ours, who have been in control for the last ten years and twenty-seven of the last forty, do not seem to be very good.

All governments have to make decisions on structures, systems, taxation and regulation, amongst other things. Ours barely appear competent in doing these even adequately. At the heart of it is the way the elite live in their own bubble and see the world differently to us- leading to the wrong solutions. If this is the Anglo-Saxon model then I despair.

This week’s cause is to join the Ban Disposable Barbecues Campaign.

People rightly complain that fools take them into the countryside and set the area ablaze by accident. I question why people need to cook something if having a nice day out- they can just make their own sandwiches or prepare delicious tasty salads. Even with kwin-oh-hah if desired.

I even see people using them in the local park- where they are specifically proscribed

However, the EVEN MORE shocking thing is that they do not work well at cooking food- not enough heat is generated for long enough. So, you set fire to the wild and give yourself food poisoning.

Is that a good day out? Chicken Theory in action- people pretending to be cavewomen- “being in touch with nature etc”.

Finally, it is disposed of – more litter. Waste and resources thrown away.

This has to go onto my list of Things to Ban.

The nice people at change.org have a petition on this- do sign it.

http://chng.it/bQYCjjz4T6

Finally, a picture of the new tracing system overlooking us, taken recently while walking the dog.

Early prototype of Track ‘n Trace