10 stories and links I think are educative, informative, entertaining, or weird

The face of the masses, the gaze of the masses via Eurozine articles by Stefan Jonsson
The objectively perceived mass with its collective “face”, formless and thus formable? Or the mass as a subjective entity, endowed with a perceptual apparatus of its own? The drama of the Weimar Republic unfolded between these two poles, writes Stefan Jonsson.
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Arts & Letters Daily – ideas, criticism, debate
What did queer theory stand for? Bad prose, for starters. But sometimes we have to overthink before we can think. That’s one of the field’s unintended lessons... more

“My Favorite Museum Exhibit”: is a series of posts aimed at giving BoingBoing readers a chance to show off their favourite exhibits and specimens, preferably from museums that might go overlooked in the tourism pantheon.
Check out the archive post. (Need to scroll down for the full list.)
My personal favourite? John Lennon’s Rolls Royce

This car sits in the lobby of the Royal BC Museum in Victoria, British Columbia. It once belonged to John Lennon, hence the paint job. But that’s not the only customization. Inside, apparently, there is a fold-out bed, a portable refrigerator, and a record player. There also used to be a TV. Bear in mind, all these changes were made in the mid-to-late 1960s, when the whole refrigerator-and-TV-in-a-car thing were much more impressive feats of technology.
Sean Rodman works at the Royal BC Museum and sent in this photo, along with a request for assistance. On the roof of the car is a symbol that is, ostensibly, the sign for Libra. Except that it doesn&rsquo really resemble the sign for Libra. The Royal BC Museum is confused. Maybe you guys know what this is:


Thanks to Science, a Better Definition of Consciousness via Big Think by Orion Jones
New research out of the UK suggests that a new classification system for consciousness will help doctors and families better understand the condition of individuals with brain injuries. By measuring the brain activity of patients in a vegetative state while they …
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Arts & Letters Daily – ideas, criticism, debate
Noontime demon. Call it what you want - ADHD, laziness, information overload, acedia - we've never been good at resisting temptation and distraction... more

Optical illusions via Boing Boing by Rob Beschizza

The Optillusions blog appears to be a collection of optical illusions, but there’s something not quite right about it.

Teenagers and social network sites: Do off-line inequalities predict their online social networks?
an article by June Ahn published in First Monday Volume 17 Number 1 (January 2012)
Abstract
This study analyses a data set of 701 U.S. teenagers (ages 12-18) that merges an online survey of social network site (SNS) preferences with administrative records from their public school districts. Using a multinomial logistic model, I examine whether offline divides across gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, self-esteem, and social capital predict teenagers' membership into the popular SNSs, Facebook and Myspace. The results show that the characteristics of teens that use Facebook, Myspace, or both SNSs show distinct differences, which illuminate questions of digital divide and complex adolescent social practices as they relate to online participation. The study offers two main contributions by providing an analysis of: (a) teenage SNS users, a population that is less examined in the research literature of online communities; and, (b) the relationship between their off-line characteristics and online social networks.
Full text (HTML)

Arts & Letters Daily – ideas, criticism, debate
The Future of History. Liberal democracy is the world's default ideology, says Francis Fukuyama. There is no rival, at least not yet. "The alternative is out there, waiting to be born"...more

A Short History of the Modern Calendar [Video] via How-To Geek by Asian Angel
How well do you know calendar history and the changes that led to the modern version that we use? Put your knowledge to the test with this awesome video put together by YouTube user jeremiahjw.
Note: The video does contain a small discrepancy/mix-up on the 0.25 versus 1/25 reference.
A Short History of the Modern Calendar [via Geeks are Sexy]

The Rule of Thumb: Vagina Types and Variability of Female Orgasm via 3quarksdaily by Robin Varghese
MelodiousMsM over at Mosex blog:

In 1924 a revolutionary research paper on the female orgasm was published in Europe under the pen name A. E. Narjani. But as it turns out, the real author was actually Princess Marie Bonapart, great-grandniece of Emperor Napoleon I of France and daughter of Prince Roland Bonaparte. After she married Prince George of Greece and Denmark in 1907, her official title became Her Royal Highness, Princess George of Greece and Denmark.

Sadly, the Princess suffered from what many women today still do – the inability to reach orgasm solely through vaginal intercourse. Defying the social mores of her era, she discovered she could reach orgasm through masturbation. While this led her to blame physiology and not psyche, it still left her deeply frustrated with her husband and eventual four other lovers. But the Princess refused to accept such fate as a permanent condition! Instead, she began some of the most revolutionary work of her time on female sexuality and anatomy while also embarking on her quest for orgasm by penetrative sex. 

She first examined and interviewed 243 women. One by one she measured the distance between their clitorises and the vaginas, then compared the distance to their frequency and ease of orgasm. What she discovered was a direct correlation between the ability to orgasm through vaginal sex and the measurement of space between the vagina and the clitoris. She categorized the findings from her subjects in three ways: paraclitoridiennes (para meaning "alongside"), mesoclitoriennes (meso meaning "in the middle"), and téléclitoridiennes (télé meaning "far"). 

Paraclitoridiennes were the fortunate ones. The space between their vaginas and clitorises measured less than one inch. For the 69% of her test subjects that fell into this category, vaginal orgasm was easier than ever to reach. However, similar studies conducted in modern times prove this statistic extremely high.

Tush, shucks and other polite words of disgust

have just been uttered at a publication.

It, of course, was totally unmoved by my frustration that the article I wanted to tell you about a) has no abstract and b) is not available online.

Where is our humanity? is a short piece by Dr Sebastian Kraemer, consultant child and adolescent psychiatrist, who challenges some common assumptions and prejudices about benefit claimants. This is published in Poverty Number 141 (Autumn 2011) from CPAG (Child Poverty Action Group).

The part which really struck home with me talks about the human brain at birth not being fully grown. The first few months and years of life mould the way we think about the world, especially about being loved. If you have not experienced love as a youngster then it is possible that your search takes you in appropriate directions. You will try to find love in the bottom of a bottle, or (not mentioned by Dr Kraemer but equally relevant in many poverty situations) in promiscuous behaviour.

Many vulnerable individuals had their willpower knocked out of them before they could make use of it, which is worse than bad luck, and – through fear or ignorance – they missed opportunities to make things better for themselves, which is tragic. When we can collectively accept that there are people among us who have both and been failed, then we can contemplate a better society in which the strong support the weak rather than despise them. Which kind of society would you prefer to live in?

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The spatial implications of homeworking: a Lefebvrian approach to the rewards and challenges of home-based work

an article by Robert Wapshott (Bradford University School of Management) and Oliver Mallett (Durham University) published in Organization Volume 19 Number 1 (January 2012)

Abstract

In this theoretical article we propose an approach to the spatial implications of homeworking derived from the work of social theorist Henri Lefebvre.

By highlighting the processes involved in the inherently contested and (re)constructed nature of space in the demarcated home/work environment we draw on Lefebvre to suggest a collapse of this demarcation.

We consider the impact of such a collapse on questions relating to the rewards and challenges of home-based work for both workers and their co-residents. In contrast to our approach to the spatial implications of home-based work derived from Lefebvre, we argue that a traditional, Euclidean conception of space risks ignoring the important, symbolic nature of social space to the detriment of both the effective research and practice of homeworking.

Hazel’s comment:
I’ve marked this one up to read the whole thing as it seems to accord far better with my method of working at home than the traditional “you should have a separate space, you should keep work and home separate, etc”.

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Articulated antipathies: Political influence on anti-immigrant attitudes

an article by Andrea Bohman (Umeå University, Sweden) published in International Journal of Comparative Sociology Volume 52 Number 6 (December 2011)

Abstract

This article examines how political factors influence anti-immigrant attitudes by focusing on political articulation performed by political parties active at the national level in 26 European countries.

Multi-level analysis reveals a significant positive association between general party articulation and anti-immigrant attitudes. In particular, it seems to be when traditional right- or left-wing parties articulate that attitudes towards immigrants turn increasingly negative. Left-leaning individuals are particularly influenced when parties belonging to the political left raise these issues, which indicates that the ideological position of the individual functions as a mediating factor in this regard.

The results contribute to a broader understanding of the role of political factors and underscore the importance of their inclusion in cross-national studies of anti-immigrant attitudes.

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National Careers Show

An interesting if somewhat exhausting day – and I’m going back to Wembley again tomorrow to listen to a couple of seminars and visit some exhibitors that I didn’t manage to get to today.
Apparently all the presentations will be available online although whether we’re allowed to share them with non-attenders is something I need to check out. No wi-fi available and even BT OpenZone had no signal inside the stadium. Ah well. It meant that I listened more, perhaps, than I would have done if I’d been live Tweeting.

Please don’t tell me to use my smartphone. I don't have one and given that I’ve now misplaced (i.e. lost) my “makes phone calls, sends texts and takes lousy photos” phone for the second time in a month it’s probably just as well.

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Positive for Youth – Executive Summary

a guidance paper (Reference: DFE-00198-2011) Published: February 2012

Positive for Youth is a new approach to cross-government policy for young people aged 13-19 in England. It brings together all of the government’s policies for this age group, presenting a single vision across the interests of at least nine departments.

It has been produced with young people and youth professionals through extensive collaboration and consultation.

This document summarises the government’s policy and sets out a shared vision for how all parts of society – including councils, schools, charities, businesses – can work together in partnership to support families and improve outcomes for young people, particularly those who are most disadvantaged or vulnerable.

Includes:

• Introduction
• Context
• We all have a role to play
• Helping young people succeed
• Promoting youth voice
• Putting families first
• Strengthening communities and the voluntary sector
• The valuable role of services for young people
• The importance of early help
• Stronger local partnership
• Monitoring progress
• Summary of commitments

Full text (PDF 11pp)

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Math skills and labor-market outcomes: Evidence from a resume-based field experiment

an article by Cory Koedel and Eric Tyhurst (University of Missouri) published in Economics of Education Review Volume 31 Issue 1 (February 2012)

Abstract
We examine the link between math skills and labor-market outcomes using a resume-based field experiment. Specifically, we send fictitious resumes in response to online job postings, randomly assigning some resumes to indicate stronger math skills, and measure employer responses.

The resumes that are randomly assigned to indicate stronger math skills receive more interest from employers than the comparison resumes. Our findings add to the body of evidence showing that stronger math skills positively affect labor-market outcomes.

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