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Virus writers have girlfriends - official:

The stereotype of virus writers as spotty nerds who can’t pull is well wide of the mark, according to an expert on the psychology of virus writers. Sarah Gordon, senior principal research engineer at Symantec Security Response, said that the more recent idea that virus writing activity is focused mainly around money-making scams is inaccurate.

Gordon - sometimes described as the Clarice Starling of anti-virus security - has interviewed over a hundred virus writers in the course of years of research. She found the type of person who causes the disruption that accompanies the release of malicious code varied considerably by age, education, income, interests and social skills.

“Most of the adult males I’ve interviewed have had girlfriends. Female virus writers have had boyfriends. The stereotypes are wrong,” Gordon told El Reg.

Let this be a glimmer of hope for any male that thinks of computer games when a “network party” is mentioned in class. Or maybe the moral of the story should be: chicks dig bad guys, even if they have mad geek skills.

Scientist Urges Dormant Eggs to Life to Test Evolution:

The scientists exposed the eggs to sunlight and warmth, about what they would expect in the spring, and the eggs hatched. As they grew to maturity in tightly controlled experiments, they changed over the years, particularly in the length of their spines and the size of their helmets.

By examining the fossil record, the researchers found that fish that prey on the small animals also changed significantly over the years, at least in terms of abundance.

About 80 years ago, when the predators were all over the place, the Daphnia retrocurva extended the size of its helmet and spines to make itself less appetizing. Later, when the number of predators shrank, the animal reduced the size of those features, thus conserving its energy for other uses.

The researchers had hit pay dirt. The changes in Daphnia retrocurva were precisely what would have been expected as part of the predator-prey interaction.

Furthermore, DNA analysis shows that the changes were passed on genetically from one generation to the next, until they were no longer needed, thus confirming that the researchers had caught evolution in the act.

While somewhat off-topic, a lady friend of mine mentioned to me the other day about a book she felt explained the behavior of the grizzled half of our species. I have not bought it, but based upon various interviews and extracts, “He’s Just Not That Into You” touches on a number of issues involved with building and maintaining romantic relationships.

The basic premise of the book is that women (the intended audience) should stop torturing themselves over whether or not a guy truly likes them. Simply put, if a guy really likes you, they will call, visit or in some manner (i.e. message in a bottle) — communicate with you. So if he is not calling, that would be a signal that he is just not that into you.

Anyways, the books message seems fairly straight forward and easy to read (the authors were writers for the TV show, Sex and the City). So while I can not vouch for its citations in any academic journals, I can vouch for its practicality in real-life affairs (i.e. you might have given me your number, but that does not mean I am going to call).

And based upon my own conversations with the man himself, I think LJ would probably agree with the premise as well (seeing as he is the self-appointed resident relationship expert for the blogosphere).

Gentlemen, brothers, friends, cohorts and colleagues,

Looking back at my own life experiences, the one moment in time that prepared me for this role was as a generic officer in the 6th grade student council. There, on numerous occasions, I filibustered for legislation on improving the quality of life of those whom ran with scissors and double-dipped — neither issue should be taken lightly.

I went so far as to recruit passionate and abused members of society who had been victimized in this deleterious “domino effect” — Jack and Jill from the 4th grade. Spurred by a graphically horrendous experience involving mononucleosis, this young couple founded Students Against Double Dipping (SADD) which is the nation’s largest lobbying group dedicated to promoting awareness to this issue.

You see gentlemen, you may believe that double-dipping does not effect you directly, but through the silent effects of “second-hand” dipping, through this seemingly innocent halo effect, both men and women, old and older, black and white and red and yellow — and most importantly of all — the Children, are all perpetually effected.

Gentlemen, when you go to the polls tonight, vote Yes on No and ask yourselves not what One Army can do for you, but what you can do for One Army. Son of Swan for Leadership.

A couple days ago, Dave Peterson mentioned that AskMen.com did a top 10 list for the wealthiest men to have ever lived — adjusted for inflation in the year 2001. Not surprisingly, the original titans of industry (during the “gilded age“) dominated the top 3 spots.

Wealthiest men:

3. Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794-1877) — $100 billion
2. Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919) — $110 billion
1. John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937) — $200 billion

Another list that draws along a similar vein is the top grossing movies adjusted for inflation.

Domestic Grosses via BoxOfficeMojo:

5. The Ten Commandments (1956) - $818,750,000
4. E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial (1982) - $886,589,600
3. The Sound of Music (1965) - $890,096,100
2. Star Wars (1977) - $1,113,247,500
1. Gone with the Wind (1939) - $1,262,778,900

Eat that James Cameron.

Be sure to read the wikipedia entry on hyperinflation.