3
POPSDo Our Political Beliefs Have a Biological Basis? It's a golden rule of democracy that people are free thinkers. There's just one problem: we aren't wired that way—not, at least, according to a new study that probes past the rational mind in search of a biological basis for our political beliefs. The results seem to suggest that our ideas about the world are shaped by deep, involuntary reactions to the things we see.
10
POPSThe joy of taking some time out Embrace the faff. Stare out of the window. Bend paperclips. Stand in the middle of the room trying to remember what you came downstairs for. Pace. Drum your fingertips. Move papers around. Hum. Look at the garden.Go to the shed with the intention of tidying up and instead fall asleep. Make mental notes. Read every single word of the newspaper - even the job ads - before getting down to work. Lose yourself in erotic reveries. Pat your pockets. Resolve to be more organised in future. Be useless.
1
POPSCulture Machine: Generating Research in Culture & Theory The aim of Culture Machine is to seek out and promote the most provocative of new work, and analyses of that work, in culture and theory from a diverse range of international authors. Culture Machine is particularly concerned to promote research which is engaged in the constitution of new areas of inquiry and the opening of new frontiers of cultural and theoretical activity. It is also committed to the generation of possibilities for new scholarship and research.
15
POPSThai school offers transsexual toilet Thailand is well known for its tolerance of transgender men, and they are very visible in everyday life. Sex-change surgery has become a speciality of the Thai health industry, and it is relatively inexpensive; patients come here from all over the world for the operation. Despite their high profile in Thailand, transsexuals complain that they are still stereotyped - they can find work easily enough as entertainers, in the beauty industry, the media, or as prostitutes, but it is much harder to become a transgender lawyer or investment banker. And their biggest complaint is that they cannot change their legal status. Despite a proposal during the drafting of a new constitution last year, to allow them to change the gender on their identity cards, this has not yet been approved. What the third toilet looks like .
3
POPSPenis Theft Panic Hits City Reports of so-called penis snatching are not uncommon in West Africa, where belief in traditional religions and witchcraft remains widespread, and where ritual killings to obtain blood or body parts still occur.
5
POPSAround the World for 12 Months Calendar series by Andrey Gordeev: A look through the windshields of a dozen international drivers, though it does rely a little too heavily on cultural stereotypes.
5
POPSChild Genius Japanese TV commercial. The teacher says, "You can draw your imagination as it appears in your heart." Then watch the rest of the vid. Melodramatic but makes a lot of sense.