The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:
Some big-time changes are coming your way.
Thankfully, right now you're actually able to appreciate what's going on -- or at least the outcome.
The path along the way might not be all that much fun, especially if you have to say goodbye rather abruptly to someone or something, but the ends definitely justify the means.
You've never been afraid of change, though you do prefer to stick with what you know when possible.

Some of our readers today have been in:

Calcutta, West Bengal, India

Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada

Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

London, Ontario, Canada

Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Bolton, England, United Kingdom

Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Bremen, Bremen, Germany

Buenos Aires, Distrito Federal, Argentina

Paris, Ile-De-France, France

Rome, Lazio, Italy

Almere, Flevoland, Netherlands

Molde, More Og Romsdal, Norway

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

London, England, United Kingdom

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Frankfurt, Hessen, Germany

Quebec, Quebec, Canada

Coffs Harbor, New South Wales, Australia

Antwerp, Antwerpen, Belguim

Groningen, Groningen, Netherlands

as well as Singapore, and the United States in such cities as Murfreesboro, Bridgewater, Orland Park, Chippewa Falls, Van Nuys, Moyock and more

Today is Monday, May 31, the 151st day of 2010.

There are 214 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holiday or celebration is:

What You Think Upon Grows Day

Local Hospitality

Local Hospitality

King Coal and Big Oil are in Big Trouble.

The true cost of fossil fuels is getting harder to ignore. It's time to level the playing field for cleaner energy by redirecting federal energy subsidies away from coal and oil and toward renewable energy.

Rampaging Agatha

Tropical storm kills 83 in Central America

Landslides and flooding from Agatha lead to deaths in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.

Rivers keep rising 

Also: 

• Tropical Storm Agatha
• Photos of devastation
• Predictions for the U.S.

Hurricane season looms over oil spill

Hurricane season looms over oil spill

Tropical storms may save marsh wildlife from the gulf oil spill — or make things much, much worse. 

'Untreaded water' 

Also: 

• Anger after fix fails
• BP disputes scientists
• Find: Toxic dispersants

Big Oil's other spill zone disaster: Nigeria

Being outside of the media spotlight for the rich countries, Nigeria doesn't receive the same media attention.  The ExxonMobil example is only one of many.

On May first of this year a ruptured ExxonMobil pipeline in the state of Akwa Ibom spilled more than a million gallons into the delta over seven days before the leak was stopped. Local people demonstrated against the company but say they were attacked by security guards. Community leaders are now demanding $1bn in compensation for the illness and loss of livelihood they suffered. Few expect they will succeed. In the meantime, thick balls of tar are being washed up along the coast.

Within days of the Ibeno spill, thousands of barrels of oil were spilled when the nearby Shell Trans Niger pipeline was attacked by rebels. A few days after that, a large oil slick was found floating on Lake Adibawa in Bayelsa state and another in Ogoniland. "We are faced with incessant oil spills from rusty pipes, some of which are 40 years old," said Bonny Otavie, a Bayelsa MP.

This point was backed by Williams Mkpa, a community leader in Ibeno: "Oil companies do not value our life; they want us to all die. In the past two years, we have experienced 10 oil spills and fishermen can no longer sustain their families. It is not tolerable."

In Matters Of Health

In Matters Of Health

Enlarged Prostate: Surgery Better Than Drug Therapy  

Surgery works best for benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), or enlarged prostate.

Scientists encouraged by breast cancer vaccine

This would be wonderful news if the vaccine turns out to be as successful as they believe it will be.

American scientists say they have developed a vaccine which has prevented breast cancer from developing in mice.

The researchers - whose findings are published in the journal, Nature - are now planning to conduct trials of the drug in humans.

But they warn that it could be some years before the vaccine is widely available.

On The Job

On The Job

Five careers that are making a comeback

In the post-recession economy, you could land a job that pays as much as $94,520.

Bachelor's degree you'll need 

Also: 

• Jobs in social networking
• Highest starting salaries
• Stand out in the job hunt

Call #%@&! Centers

A challenge to international call centers

A new bill would make companies tell customers when calls are transferred out of the U.S.  

Where most calls go 

Also: 

• Reasons for outsourcing
• Pakistan YouTube block
• Rewriting Telecom Act

Wizard of Id

Latvian blonds hold festival to beat recession blues

Hundreds of blond Latvian women have been marching through the capital Riga to try to bolster the national spirit in time of recession. Most of the participants dressed in pink and wore high heels.

The blond parade began last year and was planned as a one-off but it is back by popular demand and is now a two-day festival.

Latvia has been hit badly by recession. Its economy shrank by 18% in 2009 and it has Europe's highest unemployment. Marika Gederte, president of the Latvian Association of Blonds, said the idea came out of the economic gloom.

"I was so tired, you know, every day opening the computer and reading the newspapers and just reading about problems. We decided... let's do something nice. And I asked myself the question: what can I do for my country? And this is what I did... We are very proud to be blond."

B.C.

Stay connected despite a busy life

How to stay connected despite a busy life

Planning a weekly movie night or daily meal with friends can give your life more meaning.  

10 invigorating rituals 

Also: 

• Beating stress symptoms
• Unplug for better health
• Making gratitude lists

Video Boot Camp

Navy considers video games for fitness

A new generation of less active recruits may need the Wii Fit, says the Navy's surgeon general.  

Injuries a factor 

Also: 

• More on his remarks
• A child-rearing Wii game
• 'Extreme gamers' defined

You retiring?

Get a bargain on a retirement hot spot now

A retirement town with year-round fun — mountain biking, skiing, and fishing — is cheaper than usual.  

Top 10 deals 

Also: 

• Retirement risks
• Time to adjust 401(k)?
• Saving for retirement

Crow only attacks blond joggers

Women joggers are under attack from a vicious crow with a long memory and a grudge against blonds. Five runners in the space of ten days have fallen victim to the bird which has been diving down from the heavens to peck at their heads. But Colin Jerwood, who runs the cafe and clubroom at Eltham Park South where the crow lives, claims it only has an eye for blond females, attacking just one brunette so far.

He said: “At first I thought it was just a one off. But then it started attacking another blond girl who was just running along. The rest of the time it just sits there looking menacing.” So far the bird has only left one jogger with a minor scratch, but Mr Jerwood is concerned it could cause more harm.

He said: “It could really hurt you if it scratched your eyes.” Park staff been trying to lure the crow down from its tree by making bird noises but so far the tactic has failed. Mr Jerwood admitted: “It didn’t even bat an eyelid.”

Tim Webb from the RSPB charity said a recent American study shows crows have a long memory. He said: “If they’re disturbed or upset by any person they’ve encountered, the image will stay in their minds. “At some point in the past this crow may have had a bad experience with a blond female.” 

Midges ‘prefer big targets’

It may not rank among the world’s most illuminating discoveries but scientists have found that fat and tall people are more likely to be bitten by midges — because they present a bigger target. This less-than-sensational finding has come from a wide-ranging study into the feeding habits of the Highland midge. It follows similarly questionable scientific revelations, such as that men with body odor are less attractive to the opposite sex, and people with low self-control tend to be fatter.

The research, partly funded by the Scottish government, set out to identify those at greatest risk from the midges plaguing our countryside. Academics from Aberdeen University and Rothamsted Research in Hertfordshire asked 300 people in the Highlands how often they had been bitten, and information was also gathered about their health and lifestyle. All the women who were overweight or obese had been bitten. There was no such correlation between fat men and the frequency of bites.

Among men, height was the main factor. Of those who were taller than 6ft, 90% had been bitten, compared with just 70% of those under 5ft 8in. The study, published in the journal BioMed Central Public Health, concluded: “Midges are known to rest in trees after they have emerged from pupae and are found in greater numbers with increasing height. It is, therefore, possible that midges searching for a suitable host would be descending from above and would encounter taller people, within a group, first. Additionally, larger people would provide a more substantial visual target for host-seeking midges as well as greater amounts of heat, moisture and attractant chemicals such as carbon dioxide.”

While the findings may seem obvious to lay observers, the scientists behind the study believe it could help them develop an effective repellent for midges and mosquitoes. “This helps us understand how midges interact with us and gives us clues about how to find people who are naturally repellent,” said Dr James Logan, an honorary research fellow at Aberdeen University and lead author of the study. Contrary to popular belief, people who consume alcohol, garlic, chili or onions are no less likely to be bitten. Smoking, exercise and diet were also ruled out as factors.

Non Sequitur

Shark Egg "Window" Proves Even As Babies They're Scary

 

Photos via Galileu

In hopes of better understanding the stages of fetal development in sharks, researchers from Brazil's Guaruja Aquarium have literally opened a window into the once elusive world of shark eggs. For researchers, this new, un-obscured peek into the humble beginnings of sharks may offer insights into how best to preserve them, many of which are threatened with extinction. For the rest of us who may only be acquainted with full-grown version, it just goes to show that the ocean's most fearsome predator started out as, well, one mean-looking little shark baby.

Article continues: Shark Egg "Window" Proves Even As Babies They're Scary

No Third Runway But Here's an Architectural Bunker to Block It

Images from makeshift

Much to the joy of environmentalists, in its first week the new coalition government in the UK announced that the third runway at Heathrow Airport was being canceled.
Last autumn, unaware of this twist of fate, Greenpeace held an architectural competition asking architects to design an impregnable fortress to block the runway. Despite the fact that it won't be built, the winner has been announced: London architects Alastair Parvin and Lukas Barry.

Article continues: No Third Runway But Here's an Architectural Bunker to Block It

The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:
You may wake up with the feeling that you're going to be lucky -- though not in the monetary sense -- and you might also have the urge to spend some cash to grease the karmic wheels.
There's no talking you out of it!
Still, take a loved one with some common sense along for the ride.
They can convince you to think before whipping out the plastic at the drop of a hat!

Some of our readers today have been in:

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Tranbjerg, Arhus,  Denmark

Bremen, Bremen, Germany

Porvoo, Southern Finland, Finland

Paris, Ile-De-France, France

Rosario, Santa Fe, Argentina

Montreal, Quebec, Cnada

Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia

London, England, United Kingdom

Cairo, Al Qahirah, Egypt

Coffs Harbor, New South Wales, Australia

Toronto, Ontario Canada

Poznan, Wielkopolskie, Poland

Copenhagen, Kobenhavn, Denmark

as well as Sweden, Scotland, and the United States in such cities as Gaffney, Norfolk, San Francisco, Chicago, Atlanta and more

Today is Sunday, May 30, the 150th day of 2010.

There are 215 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are:

Loomis Day

and

Hug your Cat Day

It is also the traditional day Memorial Day is held.

Memorial Wizard

The Perfect Game

Ace pitcher throws a perfect game

Philadelphia's Roy Halladay strikes out 11 Florida Marlins in the 20th perfect game in baseball history.

Details 

Also: 

• MLB perfect games
• A.L. All-Star tally
• Giants add two bats

Alabama Democrats may nominate 1st black for governor

Rep. Artur Davis, D-Ala., announces his candidacy for governor during a press conference in front of the Archives and History Building in Montgomery, Ala.

Full story

You want to bet there is some hand-wringing going on in wingnut-land tonight!?

As The World Turns

As The World Turns

1st tropical storm of season kills 12 in Guatemala

The first tropical storm of the 2010 season hit the Pacific coastline of Guatemala and Mexico on Saturday, killing 12 people under landslides and rockfall triggered by torrential rains.

Jamaica cops release most of 980 detained in raid

All but a handful of the roughly 980 Jamaicans detained during raids by security forces in gang-heavy Kingston slums have been released in recent days, police said Saturday.

Full story

Penthouse Shanty

In South America the slums are attached to the outskirts of mega-cities such as Caracas and Mexico City like wasps’ nests on a cliff face. In a hilly island city like Hong Kong, however, living space is limited. Here you only see the laboriously constructed huts made of corrugated iron and planks of wood in which the poorest of the poor live if you look upwards – they occupy, to put it in cynical terms, a penthouse location.

The Level Up

Headlines

Headlines:

• Scrutiny of Personal Gene Tests Increases  Direct-to-consumer gene tests have long been controversial, with many bioethicists worried they could mislead people about their disease risks.
• Some Schizophrenia Symptoms Caused by Virus  Cold sore virus is partly responsible for cognitive impairment in schizophrenics.

Do Tell - Don't Care

It's The Economy Stupid

It's The Economy Stupid

Six financial strains on American families

As the economy recovers, shell-shocked consumers face more pressures on their money than ever.  

Rising taxes, more 

Also: 

• Consumers more cautious
• One way to boost wealth
• 2011 tax brackets

Poll finds debt-dogged Americans stressed out

The economy trudges ahead yet debt dogs many Americans, stressing them out even as they firm up their own financial foundations.

It's Only The Environment After All

It's Only The Environment After All

'Top kill' technique fails to stop spill

BP admits that its latest attempt to cap the Gulf of Mexico oil leak was unsuccessful. 

New plan 

Also: 

• Ways to contain spills
• Oil deep into marshlands
• Gulf spill images

Things They Won't Tell You

Things They Won't Tell You

Growing number of close calls in the air

During one near-collision, pilots had to ignore instructions from air traffic control.

More than half a dozen incidents 

Also: 

• Airplane safety
• Sleeper locked in plane
• Airline okay's texting

Broom Hilda

Haitian Farmers Refuse Monsanto's Seeds and Instead Commit to Burning Them

photo: J. Novak

Food Freedom recently reported that Chavannes Jean-Baptiste, peasant farmer leader of the Peasant Movement of Papay (MPP) called the entry of Monsanto seeds into Haiti "a very strong attack on small agriculture, on farmers, on biodiversity, on Creole seeds. Monsanto's seed donations were an unwelcomed gift to a country with vocal opposition to GMO seeds for fear they would ruin what little agriculture the country has left.

Article continues: Haitian Farmers Refuse Monsanto's Seeds and Instead Commit to Burning Them

The ancient Chinese secret of sticky rice mortar

Scientists have discovered the secret behind an ancient Chinese super-strong mortar made from sticky rice, the delicious “sweet rice” that is a modern mainstay in Asian dishes. They also concluded that the mortar ― a paste used to bind and fill gaps between bricks, stone blocks and other construction materials ― remains the best available material for restoring ancient buildings.

Full Story

China executes man who attacked 29 children

A state news agency says China has executed a man who attacked a kindergarten in eastern China last month, wounding 29 children and three teachers.The official Xinhua News Agency says Xu Yuyuan was executed Sunday after being convicted of attempted murder by the Taizhou Intermediate Court in the eastern province of Jiangsu.

China executes man who attacked 29 children

Wizard of Id

Ancient Mayor's 'Lost Tomb' Found South Of Cairo

Archaeologists have discovered the 3,300-year-old tomb of the ancient Egyptian capital's mayor, whose resting place had been lost under the desert sand since 19th century treasure hunters first carted off some of its decorative wall panels, officials announced Sunday.

Ancient Mayor's 'Lost Tomb' Found South Of Cairo

Helpful Hints

Helpful Hints

What to buy at club vs. big-box stores

You could save 25% more at one type of store, but it really depends on what you buy.

Comparison shopping 

Also: 

• Top-rated BBQ grills
• Cool kitchen gadgets
• Save on groceries

US woman develops Russian accent after falling down stairs

Some people fall on their heads and wake up with their memories wiped out. A few revive with their personalities totally changed. Others die. Robin Jenks Vanderlip fell down a stairwell, smacked her head and woke up speaking with a Russian accent.

Vanderlip has never been to Russia. She doesn't remember ever hearing a Russian accent. She lives in Fairfax County, was born in Pennsylvania and went to college on the Eastern Shore. Yet since that fall in May 2007, the first question she gets from strangers is: "Where are you from?" "They say your life can change in an instant," she said in what sounds like a thick Russian accent. "Mine did."

For 42 years, Vanderlip, whose case is being studied at the National Institutes of Health and the University of Maryland, spoke with what NIH neurologist Allen Braun called a typical mid-Atlantic American accent. But since the fall, her clipped way with consonants - dropping the final "s" from some plural words, saying "dis" and "dat" for "this" and "that" or "wiz" instead of "with" - and her formation of vowels - "home" sounds more like "herm," "well" sounds like "wuhl" - identify her more like a transplant from Moscow. The more fatigued she becomes, the thicker her accent grows.

What she has, Braun and other doctors say, is Foreign Accent Syndrome - a legitimate though rare and little understood medical condition that can follow a serious brain injury. "It does sound strange," Braun said. "It certainly does sound like someone has a foreign accent." The syndrome was first described by a neurologist in the closing days of World War II, when a Norwegian woman injured by a shrapnel hit to the head fell into a coma and woke up speaking - most unfortunately for her - with a German accent. (Fellow Norwegians ostracized her as a result, according to the medical literature.) Since then, fewer than 60 cases have been reported worldwide.

Full Story

Ziggy

Thousands march to protest Arizona immigration law

Thousands of people from around the country descended on the Phoenix area Saturday as supporters and opponents of Arizona's tough new crackdown on illegal immigration held separate rallies.

Full story

Caught on Camera

Real Time with Bill Maher

Lunatic Fringe

Lunatic Fringe

When dealing with wingnuts ... Remember the rule: 

If they accuse someone of something, then they're already guilty of it.

Beck Accuses Jewish Social Justice Worker Of Advocating A New Holocaust 

 This lunatic is dangerous, folks!

Nazis in Color

Life Magazine has the Nazis in color.

Just thought you'd like to know

In Spite of State Law, Maryland Law Enforcement Officials Still Arresting, Charging People for Recording Cops

Burqa is Banned

The French Parliament has voted unanimously to ban the burqa in public, becoming the second European country to do so after Belgium

Full Story

Indonesian Islamic police stage checkpoints and raids against jeans and tight skirts

Islamic police in Indonesia's Aceh province have been issued with 20,000 long skirts and ordered to cover up women deemed to have broken Muslim dress codes.

The province on Sumatra island has banned Muslim women from wearing figure-hugging clothing such as tight trousers, under Islamic by-laws that have outraged less conservative parts of the mainly Muslim archipelago.

Photo 

Vice and virtue officers in West Aceh district have been told that from yesterday they should ask women wearing the wrong clothes to put on the government-issue skirts on the spot.

" I will hand over some 20,000 skirts to the sharia police in West Aceh," West Aceh district chief Ramli Mansur said. "Female offenders can then immediately change their tight pants to the long, loose skirts if the sharia police catch them."

Non Sequitur

Beach Butts Scarier Than Sharks

 

Credit: Flickr via tata aka k.

Summer time is beach time, if you can find the time. And if you're not too frightened to show off your winter/spring body. It turns out more people are frightened of finding discarded bottles and cigarette butts than they are of being eaten by sharks at the beach. East Coast beaches also are better than West Coast beaches.

Article continues: Beach Butts Scarier Than Sharks, Survey Says

Interesting In General

Interesting In General

How was the term 'piggy bank' coined?

The lovable money holder wasn't originally in the shape of a barnyard animal.  

People reveal its origins 

Also: 

• Collectible piggy banks
• Spending to save money
• Tips on kids' allowances

The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:
You've been feeling conflicting emotions for quite a while now -- and you may want to completely let go of control, for once, even though you know you also need to keep things in order.
Your dilemma can only end with a big decision, and you've got to make it alone (this time).
If you don't completely trust whomever it is who might be taking charge of the steering wheel, grab the keys -- both figuratively and literally.

Some of our readers today have been in:

Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia

Windsor, Ontario, Canada

Paris, Ile-De-France, France

Milano, Lombardia, Italy

Bremen, Bremen, Germany

New Delhi, Delhi, India

Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia

Oldenburg, Niedersachsen, Germany

Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland

London, England, United Kingdom

Coffs Harbor, New South Wales, Australia

Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Jakarta, Jakarta Raya, Indonesia

Strasbourg, Alsace, France

Boras, Vastra Gotaland, Sweden

as well as Chile, Singapore, Spain, Malta, and the United States in such cities as Kailua Kona, New Braunfels, New York, Loudon and more

Today is Saturday, May 29, the 149th day of 2010.

There are 216 days left in the year.

Today In History May 29

Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are:

International Jazz Day

and

Julia Pierpont Day

President Obama's Weekly Address

Remarks of President Barack Obama

Saturday, May 29, 2010
Weekly Address
Washington, DC

This weekend, as we celebrate Memorial Day, families across America will gather in backyards and front porches, fire up the barbeque, kick back with friends, and spend time with people they care about. That is as it should be. But I also hope that as you do so, you’ll take some time to reflect on what Memorial Day is all about; on why we set this day aside as a time of national remembrance.
It’s fitting every day to pay tribute to the men and women who wear the uniform of the United States of America. Still, there are certain days that have been set aside for all of us to do so. Veterans Day is one such day – when we are called to honor Americans who’ve fought under our country’s flag.
Our calling on Memorial Day is different. On this day, we honor not just those who’ve worn this country’s uniform, but the men and women who’ve died in its service; who’ve laid down their lives in defense of their fellow citizens; who’ve given their last full measure of devotion to protect the United States of America. These are the men and women I will be honoring this weekend, and I know many of you are doing the same.
There are any number of reasons America emerged from its humble beginnings as a cluster of colonies to become the most prosperous, most powerful nation on earth. There is the hard work, the resilience, and the character of our people. There is the ingenuity and enterprising spirit of our entrepreneurs and innovators. There are the ideals of opportunity, equality, and freedom that have not only inspired our people to perfect our own union, but inspired others to perfect theirs as well.
But from the very start, there was also something more. A steadfast commitment to serve, to fight, and if necessary, to die, to preserve America and advance the ideals we cherish. It’s a commitment witnessed at each defining moment along the journey of this country. It’s what led a rag-tag militia to face British soldiers at Lexington and Concord. It’s what led young men, in a country divided half slave and half free, to take up arms to save our union. It’s what led patriots in each generation to sacrifice their own lives to secure the life of our nation, from the trenches of World War I to the battles of World War II, from Inchon and Khe Sanh, from Mosul to Marjah.
That commitment – that willingness to lay down their lives so we might inherit the blessings of this nation – is what we honor today. But on this Memorial Day, as on every day, we are called to honor their ultimate sacrifice with more than words. We are called to honor them with deeds.
We are called to honor them by doing our part for the loved ones our fallen heroes have left behind and looking after our military families. By making sure the men and women serving this country around the world have the support they need to achieve their missions and come home safely. By making sure veterans have the care and assistance they need.  In short, by serving all those who have ever worn the uniform of this country – and their families – as well as they have served us.
On April 25, 1866, about a year after the Civil War ended, a group of women visited a cemetery in Columbus, Mississippi, to place flowers by the graves of Confederate soldiers who had fallen at Shiloh. As they did, they noticed other graves nearby, belonging to Union dead. But no one had come to visit those graves, or place a flower there. So they decided to lay a few stems for those men too, in recognition not of a fallen Confederate or a fallen Union soldier, but a fallen American.
A few years later, an organization of Civil War veterans established what became Memorial Day, selecting a date that coincided with the time when flowers were in bloom. So this weekend, as we commemorate Memorial Day, I ask you to hold all our fallen heroes in your hearts, and if you can, to lay a flower where they have come to rest.

Storms Usher in The Holiday Weekend

And they were too!

Strong thunderstorms leave damage in their wake.

Storms Usher in The Holiday Weekend

Scientific Minds Want To Know

Scientific Minds Want To Know

Sahara cave may hold clues to dawn of Egypt!

Did early hunters cause climate change?

By wiping out North America's large mammals and their methane burps, early hunters may have brought on a global cool spell.

Speeding Snails

Biologists turned snails into tweakers to learn more about how crystal meth seems to improve memory in humans. According to the Washington State University and University of Calgary researchers, memories formed while on methamphetamine may be more durable. (They ran another snail study in 2006 using cocaine instead of meth.) Their work could someday provide a deeper understanding of addiction.

 From EurekAlert!:

...The team wondered whether meth could improve the snails' memories. First they immersed the snails in meth-laced pond water, then they moved them into regular de-oxygented pond water and gave them a training session that the snails should only recall for a few hours. In theory the snails should have forgotten their training 24 hours later, but would the meth improve the snails' memories so they remembered to keep their pneomostomes closed a day later? It did. A dose of meth prior to training had improved the snails' memories, allowing them to recall a lesson that they should have already forgotten. And when the team tested whether they could mask the meth memory with another memory, they found that the meth memory was much stronger and harder to mask

"Snails on methamphetamine"

In Matters Of Health

In Matters Of Health

Failure to brush your teeth twice a day increases risk of heart disease

People who have poor oral hygiene have an increased risk of heart disease compared to those who brush their teeth twice a day. That's according to research published in the British Medical Journal. There has been increased interest in links between heart problems and gum disease over the past 20 years.

While it has been established that inflammation in the body (including mouth and gums) plays an important role in the build up of clogged arteries, this is the first study to investigate whether the number of times individuals brush their teeth has any bearing on the risk of developing heart disease, says the research. The authors, led by Professor Richard Watt from University College London, analyzed data from more than 11,000 adults who took part in the Scottish Healthy Survey. The research team analyzed data about lifestyle behaviors such as smoking, physical activity and oral health routines.

Individuals were asked how often they visited the dentist (at least once every six months, every one to two years, or rarely/never) and how often they brushed their teeth (twice a day, once a day or less than once a day). On a separate visit, nurses collected information on medical history and family history of heart disease, blood pressure and blood samples from consenting adults. The samples enabled the researchers to determine levels of inflammation that were present in the body.

The results demonstrate that oral health behaviors were generally good with six out of ten (62%) of participants saying they visit the dentist every six months and seven out ten (71%) reporting that they brush their teeth twice a day. Once the data were adjusted for established cardio risk factors such as social class, obesity, smoking and family history of heart disease, the researchers found that participants who reported less frequent toothbrushing had a 70% extra risk of heart disease compared to individuals who brushed their teeth twice a day, although the overall risk remained quite low. Professor Watt says:'Our results confirmed and further strengthened the suggested association between oral hygiene and the risk of cardiovascular disease - furthermore inflammatory markers were significantly associated with a very simple measure of poor oral health behavior.'

It's Only The Environment After All

It's Only The Environment After All

When the photos of oil-drenched wildlife start to hit the presses, politicians should become very nervous

Particularly repugicans.

Gut wrenching

Massive 22-mile oil plume stirs new fears

An invisible but toxic swath discovered Thursday nears a crucial undersea canyon.

Why researchers are worried 

Also: 

• 3 million feet of boom
• Latest on 'top kill' progress
• How oil flow is measured

Bank of America tries to take away another house

Documents? Who cares about documents. Seize the house! 

Who cares that the problem has happened once, twice, thrice or more, before? 

Bank of America is above the law. They are the law.

Nancy Willmes paid cash for her Tuolumne home in 2001. So she was quite surprised when Bank of America send her a notice of default on the property in February.

"I honestly felt like Bank of America was trying to steal my property," Willmes said.

She contacted Bank of America to try to find out why the bank believed it could foreclose on property she had purchased outright.

Willmes has chain-of-ownership records, which show Bank of America had sold the property to Fannie Mae years earlier. Fannie Mae foreclosed on the previous owner, and Willmes purchased the property with cash from Fannie Mae.

But Willmes said Bank of America did not care about the documentation.

*****

Please stop

Even the squirrels have begun to plead with us not to compare the wingnuts to them - because 'them wingnuts is crazy'.

The vile piece of shit that he is ...

Glenn Beck smears Obama's 11 year old daughter

Media Matters has the entire ugly recording.

Lunatic Fringe

Lunatic Fringe

When dealing with wingnuts ... Remember the rule: 

If they accuse someone of something, then they're already guilty of it.

Faux host's poll for viewers backfires

Greta Van Susteren's retaliation against a critical viewer becomes a public battle of smarts.

'Who is dumber?' 

 You can bet it's not the viewer.

Also: 

• Glenn Beck's boycott
• Larry King's future in doubt
• Greta Van Susteren

Just in case you thought the mainstream right was too accepting of the “multicultural agenda” and StormFront is blocked at your place of work, Alternative Right has all the pro-white “analysis” you need.

Red Star Times: Right-Wing Blog Watch: Alternative Right

Just to spice things up a bit ...

Chilies Rojo

Culinary DeLites

Culinary DeLites

An ancient drink goes mainstream

Celebs like Lindsay Lohan and Kirsten Dunst are popularizing a strange organic brew.  

Its purported health benefits 

Also:

• More on the brew
• Worst 'health' drinks
• The chocolate milk diet