My mother is a very nice person who is selectively incredibly mean. Occasionally, she will say things that just boggle my mind. Other than these extremely narrow streaks of cruelty, she is an extremely moral, extremely kind person. What is the name for this quality? [more inside]
posted by kettleoffish on Mar 17, 2013 - 35 answers

Please help me win my FaceBook debate (or, at least, learn something new): MUST dogs be walked? Is it truly better for cats to be only indoors? Are cats less domesticated than dogs? I'd like fact-based support, not ASPCA party line. Gimme Science! [more inside]
posted by _paegan_ on Sep 1, 2011 - 30 answers

Help me formulate a response to the "personal responsibility" argument. [more inside]
posted by TorontoSandy on Feb 15, 2011 - 20 answers

I'm looking for quotations or video clips which deal with what it means to be human. [more inside]
posted by Pater Aletheias on May 30, 2008 - 23 answers

What experiments have been carried out where animals perform better than us at particular cognitive tasks? [more inside]
posted by 0bvious on May 9, 2006 - 13 answers

Why did consciousness evolve? [more inside]
posted by 0bvious on Jan 25, 2006 - 39 answers

Many years ago someone told me the recognised term for the kind of involuntary shudder that commonly affects people at rest. You know the kind that spontaneously rocks you, just for a moment, like you are shaking off the ghoulies, like the cliche says 'someone was walking on your grave'? I have since lost this word to time, and searching the internet has brought only partial results. Does anyone know it?
posted by 0bvious on Nov 15, 2005 - 31 answers