Etc

Advisory: I am not a scientist, so it's entirely possible that I have this all wrong.

I occasionally bore people with a story about a relatively recent discussion with an old friend about something that happened to us when we were much younger. The intriguing thing was that she and I remembered the details very differently. Neither of us had a reason to remember it differently, but we did. Had it been a matter of consequence, which is wasn't, we would have both sworn in a court of law that our version of events was the correct one.

Yesterday, I stumbled upon this piece in the Huffington Post, where Dr Robert Lanza says some scientists are now suggesting that the past is not a fixed thing, and that whether things actually occurred in the past may depend on events in the future.

Imagine the ramifications of this -- and not just for the scriptwriters of Doctor Who. For example, that lie you told the wife about what you were doing last night may not have been a lie, because the past isn't set in stone. On a more serious level, a person convicted of and punished for a crime may, in fact, prove to be innocent once the past is properly paid out, or the dead may in fact prove to be alive. It's intriguing, and scary stuff.

But wait, there's more. Some scientists believe in the theory of parallel universes. And some people have taken this to mean that there are multiple but different versions of our "reality" out there -- in which case, presumably, there are many pasts and many futures.

This creates a whole new raft of mindblowing possibilities. As Sheldon Cooper in The Big Bang Theory puts it: "You know, it just occurred to me, if there are an infinite number of parallel universes, in one of them, there’s probably a Sheldon who doesn’t believe parallel universes exist."

Or, as I put it, "There's a Brett out there who's having a lot more fun than me. And I'm envious."

1. The world will not end in 2012, just like it doesn't end on December 31 every year. It will just be time to get a new calendar.

2. However, many people will die, and others will be sad because of this.

3. The fans of a small number of sporting teams will be very happy by year's end, but the fans of all the other teams will be somewhat disappointed.

4. It will be a year of turmoil.

5. A celebrity couple will get divorced very soon after they get married, and some people who have never met them will be inexplicably surprised and upset by this.

6. A former star of a "reality" television program will become briefly famous again because of some mundane thing that happened to him or her after he or she ceased to be famous the first time.

7. It will become apparent that a prominent figure is even more pompous and ridicuous than we originally imagined.

8. Apple will release a must-have item of personal technology that will very quickly be branded as being not as cool as everybody hoped it would be. Nevertheless, it will sell in its squillions.

9. This will occur more than once in 2012.

10. In late December, the internet will be awash with useless lists of 10 predictions for 2013.

Proofreaders wanted. Beginners welcome.

As this is a forum topic, I suppose the editors of this website didn't make this error. But they really should fix it:

When I first started doing a weekly spot on Spencer Howson's breakfast show on Brisbane's 612 ABC, Spencer used to bill me as a "grumpy old man". He even bought me a coffee mug featuring the logo of the British television show of that name.

I used to say then that I didn't mind being called grumpy but I hated being called old. I feel the same way now. Statistically I'm not old at all. But, sometimes to the embarrassment of my friends, family and even myself, I definitely am grumpy.

Now I suppose you're expecting me to say that I plan to reform, to turn over a new leaf, and be all sunshine and happiness from now on. If so, I'm sorry to disappoint.

To the contrary, I plan to embrace my inner whinger - but I'm going to do it in a positive and, hopefully, humorous way. Complaining about things can sometimes create change, and it certainly can help to create focus for a creative person.

I've been talking about writing a book for many, many years, and I've always found an excuse not to do it, or have been sidetracked by other things that have come to naught. I am now telling the world, right here and right now, that I will write that book. I plan to channel my energy, positive and negative, into it. (If there are any publishers reading this, I'd be very happy to accept an advance. Even so, I'm going to do it anyway.)

But wait, there's more. There's an audio documentary I want to create, too, and I've already started work on that. And I want to blog more often, expanding my repertoire and, if I do it properly, engaging a larger readership.

Why am I telling you all this? Because I want you to keep me honest. Tweet me, Facebook message me, email me and ask me how it's all going, and berate me if I'm not making any progress.

Together, we can do this.

A media release announcing the sale and relaunch of Queensland's iconic Big Pineapple tourist attraction notes:

The Big Pineapple burnt down and was rebuilt in 1978, and during its life has been owned by various operators, including Rupert Murdoch during the 1880’s ...

Oh, come on. Rupert's not that old.

PS: It's good news that the new owners, Big Pineapple Corp. Pty Ltd, plan to "rejuvenate the site, restore the Heritage-Listed icon and create a market hub for locals and visitors alike".

Something I didn't expect to see on the DC Comics website:

Sign in a Bangkok pub. Can you imagine the licensing and health authorities allowing this in Australia?

Thanks to xamuel.com for this: Choose any Wikipedia entry at random and click on the first link (not counting links within brackets, links in italics, links in Wikipedia info boxes, or links outside of Wikipedia). Keep on doing it and, eventually (often within a dozen clicks), you will get to the entry for Mathematics. Try it; you'll be amazed.

From Familyradio.com:

This advertisement appeared in a Thai language newspaper in Bangkok yesterday. Any guesses what it's about?

This is by no means scientific, I know, but it seems US cultural imperialism is spreading in Thailand. I saw a rack of kids' shoes outside the play area* at Rama IV Tesco-Lotus in Bangkok's Klong Toey district, and noticed that most of them had cartoon characters on them. Of 13 pairs, four featured Ben 10, two depicted Barbie and two had Disney motifs. Only two pairs featured Asian characters: one each for Doraemon and Hello Kitty.
* Yes, I had a good reason to be there.

It's not a toilet, it's a ...

From a Bangkok Airlines advertisement:

You never know what your possessions are going to do: