If no-one is there to hear a sound, is there still a sound?

I’ve decided to do something a little different today – a debate that isn’t Doctor Who related (though the new series starts today!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). And here it is:

“If a tree falls over in a forest, and no-one is there to hear it, does it still make a sound?”

This is one of those statements that is meant to clear your mind, and I must say it does work. But what is your opinion on this?

I think that it still does make a sound. I mean, there will still be vibrations in the air waves, won’t there? It’s just no-one’s ear drum vibrates, and gets a message sent to their brain (if you don’t really know how exactly we hear things, see this Wikipedia article).

But it really depends on what you classify “sound” as. Is sound only when someone hears something? Is it just air particle vibrations when no-one does hear it?

What are your thoughts on this kind of mind-bending subject? Do you have any other questions like this that you’d to share? Tell me in the comments below. Have a great day, and enjoy Doctor Who if you watch it.

The No Pets in Bed Study: Letting the Dogs In (via Snoring Dog Studio)

Who here falls asleep with their dog (or even cat) in their bed? Not that I can see you, but I’m sure some of you have. Well, some researcher now claims that it is very bad for you to have them in your bed.

They claim sleeping with your dog can get you worms or even plagues. What do you think about this? I, personally, think some of it may be true, but I don’t think it is a big problem. You?

 And the award for delivering the Most Heartless Conclusion from a Research Study goes to: Dr. Bruno Chomel and Ben Sun, of the California Department of Public Health, who, in a just published report, claim that pet owners shouldn’t be sleeping with Fido or Fluffy. The study doesn’t have anything to do with a human’s loss of sleep attributed to bed hogging pets. Rather, it’s about GERMS. The panoply of diseases that pet owners can get from sleepin … Read More

via Snoring Dog Studio

30 writing quotes

Today I bring you 30 great writing quotes to motivate/inspire you. You may have seen them before – especially if you have subscribed to the Daily Post. But here are them again. For those of you who haven’t seen them before…well, here they are:

On Writing Well

1. “Don’t tell me the moon is shining; show me the glint of light on broken glass.” ~Anton Chekhov
2. “As a writer, words are your paint. Use all the colors.” ~Rhys Alexander
3. “Whether or not you write well, write bravely.” ~Bill Stout (ed. note: I don’t think these are mutually exclusive but I appreciate the sentiment)
4. “Writing well means never having to say, ‘I guess you had to be there.’” ~Jef Mallett
5. “The role of a writer is not to say what we all can say, but what we are unable to say.” ~Anaïs Nin
6. “Sometimes a flat-footed sentence is what serves, so you don’t get all writerly: ‘He opened the door.’ There, it’s open.” ~Amy Hempel
7. “Don’t get it right, just get it written.” ~James Thurber
8. “Write about what you know and care deeply about. When one puts one’s self on paper — that is what is called good writing.” ~Joel Chandler Harris
9. “Good writers are those who keep the language efficient. That is to say, keep it accurate, keep it clear.” ~Ezra Pound
10. “Start early and work hard. A writer’s apprenticeship usually involves writing a million words (which are then discarded) before he’s almost ready to begin. That takes a while.” ~David Eddings

On the Agony and Ecstasy of Writing

1. “Revision is one of the true pleasures of writing. I love the flowers of afterthought.” ~Bernard Malamud
2. “Writing is the only thing that, when I do it, I don’t feel I should be doing something else.” ~Gloria Steinem
3. “Writing is the best way to talk without being interrupted.” ~Jules Renard
4. “The wastebasket is a writer’s best friend.” ~Isaac Bashevis Singer
5. “True ease in writing comes from art, not chance, as those who move easiest have learned to dance.” ~Alexander Pope
6. “Writing is easy: All you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until drops of blood form on your forehead.” ~Gene Fowler
7. “We write to taste life twice, in the moment and in retrospection.” ~Anaïs Nin
8. “The profession of book-writing makes horse racing seem like a solid, stable business.” ~John Steinbeck
9. “I have been correcting the proofs of my poems. In the morning, after hard work, I took a comma out of one sentence…. In the afternoon I put it back again.” ~Oscar Wilde
10. “I just sit at a typewriter and curse a bit.” ~P.G. Wodehouse

On The Lighter Side

1. “Anybody can make history. Only a great man can write it.” ~Oscar Wilde
2. “Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very;’ your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be.” ~ Mark Twain
3. “If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead, either write things worth reading or do things worth writing.” ~Benjamin Franklin
4. “We writers dream of a future where actors are mostly computer generated and their performances can be adjusted, by us, on a laptop, alone.” ~Tina Fey
5. “Anyone can become a writer. The trick is staying a writer.” ~Harlan Ellison
6. “A synonym is a word you use when you can’t spell the other one.” ~Baltasar Gracián
7. “Writing is a socially acceptable form of schizophrenia.” ~E. L. Doctorow
8. “If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn’t brood. I’d type a little faster.” ~Isaac Asimov
9. “I write when I’m inspired, and I see to it that I’m inspired to write at 9 o’clock every morning.” ~Peter De Vries
10. “Wanting to meet an author because you like his work is like wanting to meet a duck because you like paté.” ~Margaret Atwood

So there they are. Do you like them, or hate them? Got any more writing quotes you would put up? Let me know!

banana pancakes (via Janae Monir) – plus a discussion

Today you are in for a treat – banana pancakes. The bad news – you have to make them yourself – this blog won’t make them for you. Good news – below this blog post there is a link to a post which has the recipe on. For those of you who are still reading and haven’t yet scrolled to the bottom of the page in desperation to eat pancakes, I am now doing a debate-type thing on pancakes and sweet food.

Why exactly do people generally prefer food that is bad for you than food that is good for you? It just doesn’t make sense, really. I mean, why weren’t we made to like Brussel sprout soup (that sounds quite nice actually) as much as banana pancakes? Is the answer to the question “we like them because they are bad for us”. Is the reason we like them the simple fact that they are bad for us? I don’t think so. It just happens to be that sweet food isn’t as healthy as the not-quite-as-sweet food.

What do you think on this topic?

If there’s one good thing about having this blog, it’s the ability to realize the addictions I apparently have that have gone unnoticed for years.  Case in point: pancakes.  I had no idea I love pancakes so much, or that I make them as often as I do.  That being said, I’d now like to apologize because I know that basic, buttermilk, and cinnamon-oat variations can already be found in the index (not to mention all the pancakes I’ve made and didn’t … Read More

via Janae Monir

What search engine do you use?

Bing

There are quite a few search engines out there. Google, Bing, Yahoo! and more. But which do you use?

Each website offers its own features. With Bing, there is a new image every day (with info hotspots) and great web and image search. It also has unique features such as Visual Search, and the ability to connect with Facebook. 

Google is perhaps the most well-known of all the search engines. Although it does have cool features like instant search, it can be pretty basic. The background image is plain white (but the logo does change on special days) unless you log into a free Google account, for instance.

Out of all the search websites, I like Bing best. Which do you like? You can write in the comments or do the poll below:

What do you do when you are bored?

We, as humans, get bored a lot. And this may seem like a silly topic. If you’re bored, it means you have nothing to do. Or does it? There must be something to do. Is there?

Often, when we feel bored we do actually have things to do. Maybe a book to read, some work to do. Something that can take away out boredom. If you are on a walk and you are bored, look at the scenery or play with the dog. Bored because you are at home all day, maybe because you are waiting for a parcel. If possible, go out. Even for just five minutes. Or maybe blog for a while.

So it turns out that when we are bored there is often something to do to take away our boredom.

What do you do when you are bored?

Beautiful scenery

Westminster Bridge

I’m in a bit of a musical mood today, so how about some music? It was a hard choice, choosing one piece of music to put on this blog. Very hard. But I’ve decided.

What exactly is your favourite piece of music? Not one that you would have to listen to forever, but one you really like.

It can be a strange thing, music. For instance, Brass music is just air going through metal to create a sound. With woodwind, the sound is the reed vibrating. Singing is a form of speaking. Strings are something scraping across some strings. And percussion is just the sound of something being hit. What exactly is music? It can be anything, really. Even the sound of someone typing with a keyboard could be classed as music (but I don’t think it’s likely the next number 1 hit will be the sound of someone typing ). Humans can be really weird.

Anyway, the piece I chose as my favourite piece of music is below. Enjoy!

Violin - just strings scraping together?

Why do people smoke?

Ooh, this is a big topic. Why exactly do people smoke? It damages their health (their teeth and their breath), the people around them and so much more. What is so good about smoking?

Well, it is addictive. I’m told. You may have been offered just one, then decided you want/need much more. You may realise you don’t have enough money for a lot of packets, and you could even resort to stealing from people you know, or even complete strangers. Even if you didn’t resort to stealing, you would be very short of money. There are some pieces of computer software that can tell you how much money you would save if you didn’t smoke – usually it’s a lot. Smoking costs (if you’re in the UK) the NHS lots, too.

So, it’s addictive but bad in a lot of ways. Let’s look at some more reasons. A reason people may smoke is peer-pressure, either at work or at school. Their classmates or co-workers persuade them to start.

To conclude, there are different reasons to smoke and not to smoke. Do the world a favour today, and quit smoking. Need help? Ask your doctor.

No smoking sign

Computer Updates – One way or another you’re trapped (via The Change Revolution)

Just read the post below. Do you agree?

Courtesy: In Web We Trust … Read More

via The Change Revolution

Keep Your Coat Off Public Restroom Floors, Please

Not the nicest topic today, really. But I’m sure there have been worse. And not many comments from me, either. Read on…

 Last week here in the book store, I was in the restroom washing my hands–scrub 20 seconds, kids!– when I glanced to my left and saw that someone was in the nearest of two toilet stalls. He wore dirty white Reeboks, the kind I would have loved in the early 90s. Big deal, right? Well, the guy had his coat on the floor in front of him. Ewwww! As … Read More

via plum bananas