Hypotheses, theories and suppositions. And Google. I’m confused, mistaken or disgusted…

I’ve spent a significant percentage of my life, firm in the understanding that: a supposition is a guess, perhaps an educated one which one thinks might be true; an hypothesis roughly equals a proposal, idea or a guess which you don’t yet believe to be true and a theory is an established, proven principle or body of principles that explain some natural phenomenon. I’ve been under the impression that testing a hypothesis – several times – and proving it to be correct, results in a theory. Which is to say, a supposition is something without evidence that one might believe anyway, a hypothesis is an idea which isn’t believed that is to be tested and a theory is empirically tested truth; facts.

Now, I have to tell you, I seriously hope I’m not wrong about this and haven’t been wrong about this for what essentially amounts to my entire life. I have never considered those three words to mean the same thing or even similar things. They are explicitly not the same thing.

And if that is true, then will somebody please explain to me what the actual fuck is going on here:

Supposition

sup·po·si·tion: noun: “an uncertain belief.” | Synonyms: …theory, hypothesis…

Hypothesis

hy·poth·e·sis: noun: “a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation.” | Synonyms: …theory, supposition…

Theory

the·o·ry: noun: “a supposition or a system of ideas intended to explain something, esp. one based on general principles independent of the thing to be explained.” | Synonyms: …hypothesis, supposition…

Synonym

syn·o·nym: noun: “a word or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word or phrase in the same language, for example shut is a synonym of close.”

I’ve used Google’s Search with a “define” many thousands of times to get the definition of words. And now I wonder…

Surely, supposition, hypothesis and theory are not synonyms. Surely they are not “exactly” nor “nearly” the same thing. Surely they are not interchangeable? Surely?

How do you explain to your average religionut that a theory is empirically supported fact, not a guess nor a supposition nor an idea without evidence when that same religionut can go and do a Google search and prove to you that a theory, hypothesis and supposition are, in fact, synonyms. Interchangeable. Nearly or exactly the same.

It’s either a disgrace or I am sadly mistaken. I hope I’m not sadly mistaken.

What I wouldn’t give for some Google Analytics

Something happened today, right here on this blog and I haven’t the foggiest what it was. There was an inexplicable jump in traffic and I would give my left, nay, my RIGHT leg to know what it was that caused it (can’t have an arm, need it for coding).

It’s inexplicable since I haven’t posted anything in almost three weeks. I’ve been busy. In places that didn’t always have internet. And were possibly keeping my attention long enough to not feel the need to write. And jet lag. That’s why.

So, WordPress rocks, this much is clear, I have elaborated on my fanboy status in other posts. What (blogs at) WordPress.com lacks, however, seriously, is the ability to use Google Analytics.

I don’t much care what the piss poor excuses are for WordPress.com blogs having Google Analytics (the main site uses it, blogs aren’t websites, blah blah blah), the built-in stats are rather… how shall I put it… crap. It would be terribly useful, for example, to know where in the world the people who read this blog come from, for example, so that I can write more stuff relevant to their situation.

I bet the Bangkokians™ would love to hear more of my opinion on the issues in Bangkok, just to throw something out there (I don’t really have an opinion, haven’t been paying attention, but you get what I mean right?).

Anyway, WordPress.com, give me Google Analytics, I will give you money. Make sense?

Also, those people who came here for reasons I cannot fathom, come back tomorrow again. Not much will have changed to be sure, but it will make me happier. How could that not be a good thing?

The sound of the llama making groaning noises or going “mwa” is often a sign of fear or anger. If a llama is agitated, it will lay its ears back.

Google Nexus One – GMail

This post was re-posted from the Official Gmail Blog:

Posted by Anna de Paula Hanika, Android Product Marketing Manager

Not only does the just-announced Nexus One have a beautiful display, snappy processor, and five megapixel camera complete with flash and geotagging, but you can also buy it online with or without a service plan. Plus, it runs Android 2.1, which adds a couple of new features to the native Gmail application:

• Quick contact badge: Press the contact status icon within Gmail, and a handy box shows all of the ways you can reply to a contact — including email, chat, SMS, and Facebook.
• Voice input: Swipe the keyboard, then just speak to select contacts or write an email, complete with punctuation. Period!

Nexus One also features the Gmail updates of Android 2.0, including:

• Multiple Gmail accounts: Sync multiple accounts to the same device and switch between them without leaving the app.
• Undo: A handy ‘undo’ link makes it easier to retrieve messages when you hit archive or delete by mistake. (Note: you can’t yet undo send as you can with the desktop version of Gmail).

For more information on Nexus One visit google.com/phone. To learn more about Gmail on this and other Android devices, check out the Gmail page on mobile.google.com/android, or watch this video:

Read the original article here