Side effects of the placebo

Free Christmas Music

2009-12-15T00:53:42Z

Scots Choir is singing Handel's Messiah twice this year:

Friday 18 December, St Mary's Basilica, Geelong.
Saturday 19 December, Scots Church (corner Collins and Russel Streets, Melbourne).
Both performances start at 8pm and are free (though the church may hint at a donation).

We are accompanied by an excellent baroque orchestra. The soloists are Deborah Kayser, Felicity Bolitho, Elizabeth Anderson, Vaughan McAlley, Timothy Reynolds and Thomas Drent; the conductor is Douglas Lawrence.

Also, on Sunday 20 December, the 11am church service will be a service of nine lessons with carols. I believe this means there will be no sermon, only readings and carols, so some of you may be interested in that as well.

Free concert: choir and organ

2009-08-31T06:15:18Z

Scots is doing a choir and organ concert tomorrow night, featuring Elgar's Great is the Lord, Rutter's Winchester Te Deum, and Bairstow's Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silent (short, but an all time favourite church anthem).

6:15pm, Tuesday September 1, 2009
Scots Church, corner of Collins and Russell St, Melbourne
Entry is free (although a donation may be strongly hinted at).
Conductor: Douglas Lawrence
Organist: Robin Batterham

I feel obliged to mention that we haven't rehearsed with Douglas for the last two weeks, and will not have a chance to rehearse with him before the concert. So there may be some mismatch between the cues Douglas gives, and the cues Robin and the choir expect to see. But hey, it's free. Come along and see what happens!

Hello world

2009-07-17T16:58:33Z

I've recently attended several conferences: SPSP, AAP, AAHPSSS and ISHPSSB. I gave a paper at SPSP (on randomised controlled trials) and another at AAP (on peer disagreement). It's been a wonderful experience; I met crowds of great people and learned mountains of new stuff.

I've also achieved the cardinal purpose of travel: I appreciate being back home. I look forward to knuckling down and finishing my honours thesis over the next month, and to that end, the study groups restart first thing next week. Please let me know if you're interested in studying with me (i.e. not working on the same material, just sharing the same space).

How to get rid of hiccups

2009-07-10T00:42:17Z

I have just figured out a new way to get rid of hiccups. It's quick, easy, and has a theoretical and empirical basis. So I'd like to share this knowledge, and perhaps find out if it works on people other than myself.

Hiccups are myoclonic jerks of the diaphragm. Over the last couple of years I've been getting lots of myoclonic jerks in other muscle groups (imagine your arms hiccuping), and I've noticed that they don't occur when I'm using those muscle groups, only when they're relaxed.

So, to chase off a bout of hiccups, simply tense your diaphragm for some length of time. Make sure it really is the thoracic diaphragm you're using, not your abs - try pushing your tummy out. You can still breathe while doing this, by using the muscles in your ribs, so you could do it until your diaphragm gets tired, but I've found it doesn't take that long for the hiccups to go away.

Tell me whether it works for you (and for SCIENCE)!

Do it for SCIENCE

2009-06-23T08:23:59Z

An academic friend of mine is looking for participants in his survey. He wants to hear from people in any discipline, 3rd year uni or higher (up to PhD), who've encountered Confidence Intervals (CIs) before.

The survey takes under 15 minutes. It's not a test of you, it's a test of the materials, to see what materials produce what kind of intuitions.

http://psy6045.psy.latrobe.edu.au/survey.php

I should have done this years ago

2009-06-05T07:00:45Z

So instead of working on either of my soon-to-be-due papers, today I taught myself how to use LaTeX.

Thesis is SO PRETTY now. ^_^

This may technically count as working on my stats paper, in that I can't typeset the math properly in other programs, so I was going to have to do this at some point anyway. But it still feels like procrastination.

lizziesilver @ 2009-04-10T17:58:00

2009-04-10T08:08:03Z

Bad timing: getting a cold just before singing the St John Passion. Hopefully that'll be the only timing mistake I make tonight.

I do encourage you to come along, if only to check out the baroque orchestra - they even have a theorbo (bass lute)! Here's a video of a theorbo in action.

Easter Music

2009-04-02T15:06:13Z

On Good Friday (the 10th of April), J. S. Bach's St John Passion will be performed by the Scots' Choir, baroque orchestra and soloists. It's a lovely work, and Scots is good at it. I welcome everyone to come along - I love seeing faces I know in the audience. :)

Soloists: Deborah Kayser, Felicity Bolitho, Elizabeth Anderson, Vaughan McAlley (Evangelist), Timothy Reynolds, Jerzy Koslowski,Thomas Drent
Leader: Julia Fredersdorff
Conductor: Douglas Lawrence

Location: Scots Church, corner of Collins St and Russel St, Melbourne CBD
Date and time: 8pm, 10/4/09
Cost: Entry is free, though a donation is usually requested.

Lamentations

2009-02-15T06:25:35Z

Scots Church is putting on a concert to raise money to assist those who have suffered in the recent bushfires.

The concert is free, however a donation, large or small is requested and all proceeds will go to the victims of the bushfires.

The Choir of Scots' Church Melbourne
with
Organist: Rhys Boak
Conductor: Douglas Lawrence
Soloists: Deborah Kayser & Steven Hodgson
Trumpet: David Farrands

Date: Sunday 22 February 2009
Time: 15:00 - 16:00
Location: Scots' Church, Cnr Russell St and Collins St, Melbourne.

We'll be singing Steve Hodgson's 'Lamentations', and Ralph Vaughan Williams' 'Lord, Thou Hast Been Our Refuge', among other things. I haven't seen the programme yet.

Attention Americans: VOTE

2008-10-28T12:43:43Z

mistersteve pointed me to this article in the New York Times, because two of the authors are notorious republican Newt Gingrich, and last election's democratic presidential nominee, John Kerry. What could these two possibly collaborate on?

A big pile of stupid, apparently. The article is titled, "How to Take American Health Care From Worst to First". It points out that:

"the United States spends more than twice as much per capita on health care than almost every other country in the world — and with worse health quality than most industrialized nations."

True, and shameful. So what are the Americans to do about it?

According to Beane, Gingrich and Kerry, they ought to take their cue from the world of professional baseball: start using statistics to determine which medical practices give us the most bang for our buck. (The first author, Billy Beane, is probably responsible for the baseball analogy.) America needs to start evaluating how effective various treatments are, and start giving doctors incentives to use the most cost-effective procedures available. In short, the USA needs to start using Evidence-Based Medicine.

Start?! Welcome to the party, guys, it's been going for fifteen years or so.

Beane, Gingrich and Kerry propose a stereotypically American solution:

"the federal government and the private sector should create a new institute for evidence-based medicine. This institute would conduct new studies and systematically review the existing medical literature to help inform our nation's over-stretched medical providers."

That's right. Create a new department to fix everything. Never mind that the Cochrane Collaboration already does a decent job of systematically reviewing the evidence, for free.

This article misses the point by so far that you have to zoom out to satellite level to see where it landed. American health care doesn't suck just because doctors don't know what treatments to provide. It's not like the rest of the world is keeping some super secret health data away from the Americans - hell, much of the science we use is produced in the States! The reason we use that information so much better than the USA is, purely and simply, because we apply it to all patients.

American medicine doesn't lack evidence, it lacks adequate access to care. Too many Americans are uninsured, or inadequately insured. They can't afford to see doctors to get cheap, preventative medicine, so they end up getting sick in expensive ways. Rampant medical litigation pushes doctors' fees through the ceiling. Pharmaceutical companies are allowed to charge exorbitant prices - far in excess of what's necessary to recoup R&D expenses. The system is so goddamn broken. The incentives all flow the wrong way. It makes my head hurt and I don't understand how people can't see it.

American conservatives keep giving excuse after excuse for why their health care sucks, because they don't want to admit the real reason: a whole lot of Americans just don't have enough health care.

I discussed this with metisket. She said that given Newt Gingrich is one of the authors, I should not assume stupidity when malice is a perfectly good explanation.

lizziesilver @ 2008-09-28T16:47:00

2008-09-28T07:03:57Z

The cognitive bias underlying procrastination and addiction: Hyperbolic Discounting.

Edited to add a couple of fun essays:
Structured Procrastination
Muddle your way to success

lizziesilver @ 2008-08-15T19:43:00

2008-08-15T09:48:52Z

Dick Boyd (defender of the external world): "One of the common reasons people end up in philosophy is because they're interested in the humanities but they were always good at maths."

Serendipity!

2008-07-08T03:14:14Z

Everyone who commented on my last post (and everyone who had an idea but didn't bother to comment) should know about the build your own lifeform contest sponsored by io9.

Play God with me

2008-06-21T14:11:03Z

If you were a genetic engineer, with the power to manipulate DNA as you saw fit ... what would you do? What would you make?

Assume no ethical, monetary or time constraints, but limit yourself to abilities that could be built using biological apparatus (cells and proteins and so on). Wings and horns are fine, lasers and telekinesis are not.

Dragons, unicorns, and humans with wings are the obvious answers. But you could do so much more! I'm thinking, for starters, of giving humans the ability to synthesise all the essential amino acids and vitamins. You'd solve half the world's malnutrition problems in one fell swoop. Also: salt-resistant tomato plants. Not only could you grow them in saline soils, the tomatoes would taste salty and delicious!

So maybe salty tomatoes are not the height of mutant coolness. Tell me what is. :)

Flying Spaghetti Monster Save the Queen

2006-11-08T12:58:27Z

Another free concert! This one's in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation, so the music is all from her original coronation. It's on at 8pm this Saturday the 11th, at Scots church (corner of Collins and Russel St, CBD).

The programme:
Zadok the Priest - by Handel
I was glad - by Parry
O taste and see - by Vaughan Williams
O clap your hands - by Gibbons

And possibly more. The choir will be backed by a massive organ and a brass ensemble (really this time!).

lizziesilver @ 2006-10-30T09:16:00

2006-10-30T09:22:33Z

Reminder: FREE CONCERT tomorrow at 6:15pm, Scots Church (corner Russel & Collins Streets in the City).

Apologies: I was wrong about the two organs/organ and brass. Apparently there will only be one organ, and no brass. But that organ is massive enough to be worth at least three standard organs.

In other news: zanovar draws on the evidence for malign design to formalise his Misanthropic Principle.

Free Halloween Concert: Solemn Mass

2006-10-19T12:24:55Z

Okay, so it doesn't have anything to do with Halloween. But it is on October 31st. And I, for one, will want a ~~drink~~ bag of lollies afterward. I might even paint myself green, if I receive enough encouragement. Not that it takes much ...

The concert is on Tuesday October 31st, at 6:15pm, in Scots Church (corner of Russel and Collins Streets, Melbourne CBD. Entry is FREE.

The singers are the choirs of Scots Church and St Francis; the organists are Anthony Halliday and Tony Way; and the conductors are Tony Way and Douglas Laurence.

That's right. Two choirs. Two conductors. Two organists.

And two organs. Scots' organ is pretty deafening on its own; imagine that doubled. We're singing the Solemn Mass by Louis Vierne, which is set for SATB choir accompanied by two organs. It's going to be a hell-raiser. :D

[Edited to add: I may be wrong about the two organs - I just reread one of Douglas' emails, and apparently we'll be rehearsing "with organ and brass" at one point. So maybe one of the organ parts will be played by brass - wich would probably balance better, because portable organs are puny and weak compared to the Scots Church organ.

I suppose it'll either be one organ and brass, or ... two organs and brass. Excellent.]

[Edit #2: Douglas denies all knowledge of the rehearsal "with brass", and it seems there will only be one organ. The two organ parts have been condensed into one. SORRY GUYS.

On the other hand, Scots' Organ could probably take on any two other organs. That thing's massive.]

lizziesilver @ 2005-10-13T02:25:00

2005-10-12T16:24:14Z

Quote of the day:

"The great thing about doing medicine is that you finally learn what the spleen does."

- zanovar

Come to my concert!

2005-08-24T21:46:41Z

Should be a nice concert. The Bach is lots of fun. :)

Pluggery

2005-05-01T16:21:40Z

Before I forget:

The Choir of Ormond College
Directed by Douglas Lawrence

International Concert Tour 2005

Pre-tour concert:
Dining Hall, Ormond College
Wednesday 18 May 2005
@ 8:15pm
Tickets $28 (conc. $20), available through the College Office (03) 9344 1100

This program showcases the Choir's extensive repertoire with works from 16^th century European composers Handl, Gesualdo and Gabrieli, from 20^th century English composers: Stanford, Bairstow and Britten, the Australian, Philip Nunn and American: Samuel Barber.

Hear this outstanding Australian Choir as it prepares to leave for its 11^th international concert tour.

That means I have only a couple of weeks to learn all that music ...

[Error: Irreparable invalid markup ('<:|>') in entry. Owner must fix manually. Raw contents below.]

Before I forget: <lj-cut text="International Concert Tour 2005">

<center><big><big>The Choir of Ormond College</big></big>
Directed by Douglas Lawrence

<big>International Concert Tour 2005</big>

Pre-tour concert:
Dining Hall, Ormond College
Wednesday 18 May 2005
@ 8:15pm
Tickets $28 (conc. $20), available through the College Office (03) 9344 1100

This program showcases the Choir's extensive repertoire with works from 16th century European composers Handl, Gesualdo and Gabrieli, from 20th century English composers: Stanford, Bairstow and Britten, the Australian, Philip Nunn and American: Samuel Barber.

Hear this outstanding Australian Choir as it prepares to leave for its 11th international concert tour.</center>

That means I have only a couple of weeks to learn all that music ... <:| </lj-cut>

So, mesongles - if that is your real name ...

2005-01-17T12:53:38Z

Since I started blogging, I’ve sheltered under a psuedonym. I built a coherent persona and stuck to it. Fearing no worldly retribution for my online activities, I threw off the shackles of social inhibition; I wrote what I truly believed.

Well, that was the plan.

During the last year, I guarded this freedom of speech more than I used it. I hesitated to comment on some issues for fear that my name might be revealed. I tried not to mention information that could be used to identify me. I limited myself to the inconsequential, and consequently became so myself.

You can never be yourself without accepting responsibility, for your successes and for your mistakes. I no longer want the threat of exposure niggling at me; like a vaccination, it’s better over and done with. So I’m coming out.

My name is Elizabeth Silver.

This doesn’t mean that I’ll write deep, incisive articles from now on, you know. It just means that I can, if I feel like it. The geekery will continue. Oh yeah - and call me Lizzie.

BLATANT PLUG

2004-08-18T12:45:40Z

The Choir of Ormond College

Directed by Douglas Lawrence
Organist - Rhys Boak
Trumpet - Mark Shillington

presents

Three Great Romantics

Josef Rheinberger Johannes Brahms
Ralph Vaughan Williams

Rheinberger: Abentleid – for double choir
Cantus Missa – for double choir
Andante and Allegro from Organ Sonata no. IV

Brahms: The motet – Warum ist das Licht gegeben dem Mühlseligen
Two Marienlieder – for female voices
Geistliches Lied – for choir and organ

Vaughan Williams: The motet – O taste and see how gracious the Lord is
and Lord, thou hast been our refuge – for choir, soloists, organ, trumpet

At St Mary's Star of the Sea
Cnr Howard and Victoria Streets, North Melbourne
Friday 3rd September 2004 at 8pm

Tickets at Ticketek and at the door

Or you can buy tickets directly from me – I have to sell six, and it's cheaper to get them directly than go through Ticketek. Prices:

$28 adults
$20 concession
$15 Ormond students

It should be rather good; Rheinberger's mass and Brahms' Warum are both stunning.

Uplifted

2004-07-29T10:35:22Z

The Redmond Barry lifts are wonderful creations. Willy Wonka himself would admire them. I've only been abducted once (when the lift ignored every button its cargo pressed, and took a whimsical tour of the elevator shaft), but I've heard worse from old Redmond Barry vets.

They have pages stuck to the walls, on which passengers are supposed to write the date, time and lift malfunction. I was idly reading these yesterday. The first few read something like,

'17/7/04 3:10pm - Lift would not go above the eighth floor,'
or,
'18/7/04 10:55am - Lift not level with floor; tripping hazard.'*

The third was somewhat alarming:

'21/7/04 2:15pm - Sideways shunting,'

but the fourth is cause for concern:

'23/7/04 11:30am - Behaved like a time machine. Was 1960 when we got out.'

I couldn't walk away without doing my bit. I encourage all to follow the first student's example, and give the maintenance men - and anyone who must stay inside a lift longer than they intended to - something to read.

'27/7/04 9:00am - Displayed Tardis qualities.'

[Edit: New lift quote!

'11/8 - The lift was not romantic enough to facilitate me getting any.'

Collected on the way hom from my psych lab (during which I argued with my tutor over whether a triangle could be considered a normal curve. She said it could. I said, "That's ridiculous. It's a sodding triangle." But more on that later ... maybe).]

*Times and dates are complete fabrications. The comments are not, or at least, are not my fabrications. Except when they are.

Riddle challenge!

2004-04-19T05:29:51Z

Just for fun. :) If you get ten or more correct, I'll write you a drabble on the topic of your choice. (Because your hopes must be so high after my last drabble-on-commission.)

Thirty white horses on a red hill.
First they champ,
Then they stamp,
Then they stand still.
I have two arms, but fingers none;
I have two feet, but cannot run;
I carry well, but I have found,
I carry best with my feet off the ground,
A box without hinges, key or lid,
Yet golden treasure inside is hid.
Walk on the living, they don't even mumble.
Walk on the dead, they mutter and grumble.
At night they come without being fetched,
And by day they are lost without being stolen.
There was a green house;
Inside the green house there was a white house;
Inside the white house there was a red house,
And inside the red house there were lots of babies.
Alive without breath,
As cold as death;
Never thirsty, ever drinking,
All in mail never clinking.
The beginning of eternity,
The end of time and space;
The beginning of every end,
And the end of every place.
It goes up, but at the same time goes down;
Up towards the sky, down towards the ground.
It's present tense and past tense too,
Come for a ride, just me and you.
Runs over fields and woods all day,
Under bed at night sits not alone;
With a long tongue hanging out,
A-waiting for a bone.
My heart is stone, yet I bleed red blood. Who am I?
Voiceless it cries
Wingless flutters
Toothless bites
Mouthless mutters.
I never was, am always to be;
No-one ever saw me, nor ever will -
And yet I am the confidence of all
To live and breathe on this terrestrial ball.
I can sizzle like bacon; I am made with an egg.
I have plenty of backbone, but lack a good leg.
I peel layers like onions, yet still remain whole,
I can be long, like a flagpole, yet fit in a hole.
It cannot be seen, cannot be felt,
Cannot be heard, cannot be smelt.
It lies behind stars and under hills,
And empty holes it fills.
It comes first and follows after,
Ends life, kills laughter.
My first is a Roman hundred
My second is the sign of the Lion
My third is an Irishman
My fourth is the Egyptian god of the sun
And Julius Caesar loved my whole.
Who am I?
This thing all devours;
Birds, beasts and flowers;
Gnaws iron, bites steel;
Grinds hard stones to meal;
Slays king, ruins town,
And beats high mountain down.
Only one colour, but not one size;
Stuck at the bottom, yet easily flies.
Present in sun, but not in rain,
Doing no harm, and feeling no pain.
If a man carried my burden, he would break his back.
I am not rich, but leave silver in my track.
Who am I?
My favourite:
What falls but never breaks?
What breaks but never falls?