Nathan Green

Just to clarify: Stephan Hawking is talking about complete AI, when you have a computer system which is as flexible as a human brain. The computer scientists are in control, it doesn't just happen. The problem is that it could be used for terrorism. Or there is a loop hole in a programs logic which the robot finds. Cars learning to drive and phones recognising speech are no way near complete AI. Complete AI emcompasses complete flexibility.

Excerpt: A genetic analysis of 409 pairs of gay twins has provided the strongest evidence yet that gay people are born gay. The study clearly links sexual orientation in men with two regions of the human genome that have been implicated before, one on the X chromosome and one on chromosome 8. The finding is an important contribution to mounting evidence that being gay is biologically determined rather than a lifestyle choice. In some countries, such as Uganda, being gay is still criminalised, and some religious groups believe that gay people can be "treated" to make them straight. "It erodes the notion that sexual orientation is a choice," says study leader Alan Sanders of the NorthShore Research Institute in Evanston, Illinois. The region on the X chromosome picked out by the study, called Xq28, was originally identified in 1993 by Dean Hamer of the US National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, but attempts to validate the finding since have been mixed. The other region picked out is in the twist in the centre of chromosome 8. Known as 8q12, it was first signposted in 2005.

http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn26572-huge-twin-study-homes-in-on-gay-genes.html Let's hope this doesn't allow screening - either of embryos or real life people. Nathan Green

Yet another person famous for no reason. Well, he is cute, but that shouldn't make you famous. Nathan Green.

I'm sorry, I don't get the reference :P

As I said, I will continue reading it. It is too good not to.

These stories are too perfect, they're not true to life. The story line is unrealistic because of this. I will still read it, as I like the characters, and overall it is still a good story. At the beginning of the latest chapter, I thought, if they find Dodger, I am not going to be happy. Call me a sadist, but I like characters to have a little adversity. The coincidences add up to give unrealism. Sorry for any offence, I don't mean to offend, just my honest opinion. Nathan Green

I was surprised that this forum topic has not been created yet. Lessons learned is an excellent sequel to riding lessons. Riding lessons was a very optimistic story, about boys coming out of their shells, and making friends through houseriding. Lessons learned is a much darker story, which I really like, I like stories that make me afraid for the characters, or interested in their pasts. During the latest chapter - Dylan - I actually felt tearful (don't judge me). It is sad because that stuff does happen in real life. I like characters. Characters make a story, and in this story - while it is overly optimistic at times - does have believable characters, in my opinion. I have never been interested in horseriding, and I don't think I will take it up, but these stories does make it interesting. The technical language isn't so advanced that it makes it hard for those who don't ride. Sorry if parts of this post is unclear, I don't mean any offense. See you around. :) Nathan Green

This story is one of the ones that I really enjoyed on this website. Not saying I don't enjoy other stories, just that not all of them have the complexity, unpredictability and the "empathiness" of this novel - in that I really thought about the characters. (spoiler alert) Everything changed in that chapter where Mark dies, before that happened I thought it was almost the end of the story, but no, it was only the tip of the iceberg. I liked how this turned out. This story really shows the core of the stuggle of being gay - our society being hateful and ignorant towards us. If the sexual content was removed so it was only suggestive, this would be an excellent story to educate people, particularly on the 1960s attitude. While there are lots of spelling and grammar mistakes in awesome dude stories, they are high quality and there are so many of them! I wrote rather more than I meant to, oh well. Nathan Green