The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:
Do you keep a diary?
Today might be a really good day to start, if you don't, or to restart if you did but don't anymore, or to keep going if you do.
Putting your thoughts and feelings into words can have a remarkable result.
You understand yourself more clearly, and you understand the world around you differently when you take time to process it all in words.
Happy writing!

Some of our readers today have been in:

Perth, Western Australia, Australia
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Jakarta, Jakarta Raya, Indonesia
Maastricht, Limburg, Netherlands
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
London, England, United Kingdom
Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
Valencia, Comunidad Valencia, Spain
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Stoke On Trent, England, United Kingdom
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Paris, Ile-De-France, France

as well as Slovakia, Malta, Bulgaria, Israel, Finland, Austria, Norway, Georgia, Mexico, Peru, Kuwait, Serbia, Bangladesh, Latvia, Greece, Scotland, Hong Kong, Denmark, Wales, Iran, Singapore, Poland, Taiwan, Sweden, Afghanistan, Belgium, Tibet, Croatia, Pakistan, Romania, Paraguay, Sudan, Vietnam, Argentina, Cambodia, Egypt, France, Estonia, Puerto Rico, Maldives, Qatar, Brazil, New Zealand, United Arab Emirates, Slovenia, China, Iraq, Ecuador, Nigeria, Colombia, Chile, Honduras, Paupa New Guinea, Moldova, Venezuela, Germany, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Ireland, Czech Republic, Vietnam, Norway, Finland and in cities across the United States such as Methuen, Severna Park, Tucson, Valdosta and more.

Today is:

Today is Saturday, February 12, the 43rd day of 2011.

There are 322 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holidays or celebrations are: 

Darwin Day
Oglethorpe Day
and
Paul Bunyan Day.

Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

Witnessing Egyptian history

On the ground with Egyptian protesters

Between rounds of live ammo, the atmosphere in Tahrir Square was like a party, a reporter says.  

'He's gone!' 

Also: 

• Egyptians celebrate
• Regimes censor news
• Implications for U.S.

Return to Innocence

Enigma

Ziggy

Largest-ever snowflake

The largest snowflake ever reported

The person who found it more than a century ago described it as "larger than milk pans."  

Reader provides details 

Also: 

• How snowflakes form
• Record snowfall totals  
• How to spend a snow day

Expensive Snow Removal

In Boston, an elderly man paid $4,800 to have his roof cleared of snow. Salisbury man defends $4,800 roof shoveling charge.

One of the three men who police said charged an elderly Amesbury resident $4,800 to shovel his roof defended the cost of the job in an interview today, as details emerged of the family's prior legal problems in other states.
"I want people to know, I'm not scamming, I'm making a living," Kevin Snow Jr., 23, said in a phone interview.
Snow, his father Kevin Snow Sr., 47, and his brother George Snow, 21, all of Salisbury, charged the man for clearing his roof on Friday, but gave the money back on Saturday after Amesbury police said they could face criminal charges if they did not reimburse him, police said. No charges were filed.
The customer agreed on the price prior to the job and also requested that his garage roof be shoveled, which added to the cost, Kevin Snow Jr. said.

The job took six hours, and he claimed six people were doing the shoveling. That's $133 per hour per person.

Non Sequitur

Fossil find gets Web buzzing

New 'Lucy' fossil find sparks interest

A new study saying that the 3.2-million-year-old hominid walked upright lights up the Web.  

May redefine evolution 

Also: 

• Top archaeological finds
• How birds got 'fingers'
• Computer data quantified

Top 10 Lost Technologies

The world has never been more technologically advanced than it is now, but that doesn't mean that some things haven't been lost along the way. Many of the technologies, inventions, and manufacturing processes of antiquity have simply disappeared with the passage of time, while others are still not fully understood by modern day scientists.

Some have since been rediscovered (indoor plumbing, road building), but many of the more mysterious lost technologies have gone on to become the stuff of legend.

Here are ten famous lost technologies.

B.C.

Russian Obama

It is said everyone has a twin ...

This is not Obama playing a doctor, this is Zaur Akhmedov – a pediatrician from Samara city.  

Full Story

What will the wingnuts make of this ....

To repugicans: $1.6 billion for EPA bad but $4 billion for Big Oil is good

Only in their bizarro land does this make sense.

It makes it easier to get away with though when the opposition party isn't willing or able to make an issue out of such ridiculous policies.

Full Story

Tea bagger goes to prison

Tea bagger attacks Obama supporter, gets 8 year sentence.

Well, that's one ...

Teen Arrested For Sending Out School Threat Via Xbox Live

Authorities arrested a Maryland teenager who is charged with making threats of a mass shooting at a high school.

He's accused of impersonating another student while sending a threatening message to more than 100 people via Xbox Live.

Full Story

How Mubarak got so rich

What will happen to Mubarak's billions

Egypt's ousted leader may be richer than Bill Gates, according to one estimate.  

How he got so wealthy 

Also: 

• Profile of Mubarak
• Stocks up on Egypt news  
• Fallout in Arab world

Man trades up from a single penny to a plot of land in Bulgaria

In fewer than six weeks gardener Luke Seall has turned 1p into a plot of land in Bulgaria, through a series of astute trade-ups. The 27-year-old started his project on New Year’s Day, planing to see how much he could make from his initial investment over the year. He began by buying three goldfish from a friend, before turning down the first offer for them – 2p and a can of beer.

Mr Seall, of Brighton, later swapped the fish for a guitar, saying: ‘The main advantage a guitar has over fish is you don’t have to feed it. And you can’t kill it.’ From there, the enterprise began to gain attention online on Mr Seall’s Twitter and Facebook sites – and the offers started flooding in. He swapped the guitar for a mountain bike, which in turn was sold for £50. Mr Seall followed up that transaction with an online appeal for suggestions on how to spend the money.

And he was astonished to receive a call offering him a 10sq m (107sq ft) plot of land near the Black Sea coast in Bulgaria. He said: ‘The seller said I can do anything with the land, including camp on it, build on it, grow things on it or even use it for a memorial for a dead dog. It was an offer I couldn’t refuse. I am now an international landowner.’ Mr Seall said he was already looking to swap the land for something more valuable, to build on his project’s impressive start.

He added: ‘I have absolutely no idea what will be next. I don’t really have any big aspirations of what to end up with. I just started it as a bit of fun and adventure.’ He could not remember the name of the village his land was in but said: ‘I would like to visit. It looks lovely from the photos.’ However, as soon as the land deal paperwork arrives, Mr Seall will try to trade the plot. ‘I’m willing to consider offers of cash or other items or land,’ he said.

How to increase sales

Monty Python puts their material on YouTube for free, sees their DVD sales increase by 23,000%

Well, what do you know ... it works.
(As it has always done, by the way)

Now if those idiots trying 'protect' their income flow would pay heed ... Lars?!

Tax return audit red flags

Tax claims that draw IRS attention

The agency knows precisely how much people at your income level typically write off.  

See average deductions 

Also; 

• More audit red flags
• 16 smart tax deductions  
• Tax document checklist

Frugal 91-Year-Old Woman Was A Secret Millionaire

A 91-year-old woman who passed away in Washington state shocked her community by leaving behind millions. 

She was known for wearing tattered clothing and hanging onto broken furniture, but was sitting on $3 million.  

Full Story

From the New Yorker

Immortality Only 20 Years Away

Scientist Ray Kurzweil claims humans could become immortal in as little as 20 years' time through nanotechnology and an increased understanding of how the body works.

Kurzweil says that, theoretically, at the rate our understanding is increasing, nanotechnologies capable of replacing many of our vital organs could be available in 20 years time.

He adds that although his claims may seem far-fetched, artificial pancreases and neural implants are already available.

Gene tests inadvertently exposing cases of incest

New gene-based tests that map out a person's entire genetic code can help explain why a child has birth defects or developmental delays, but they are also exposing some dark family secrets.

Full Story

Wizard of Id

Climate Change to Worsen Severe Water Shortages in US Southwest

Photo: Heat USA

We're already well aware that the American Southwest, which is naturally hot and dry, is seriously strapped for water. And the situation is getting worse every day, with populations in California, Nevada, Arizona, and New Mexico continuing an unimpeded growth trend that began decades ago. The fact there are too many people vying for limited resources in the region have lead experts to predict a major water shortfall that will cost billions to ameliorate. But add in a new study that reveals climate change is going to dry out the region even further, and we're slated to see a potentially catastrophic water shortage.

Article continues: Climate Change to Worsen Severe Water Shortages in US Southwest

New food safety law protects whistleblowers

Food industry workers who become whistleblowers gained protection against retaliation from their employers with a little-noticed provision in the sweeping food safety law President Barack Obama signed last month.

The Food Safety and Modernization Act is best known for sections that aim to prevent foodborne illnesses, allow the Food and Drug ...

Full Story

Rain in Saskatchewan, revolution in Egypt: How soaring food prices helped topple dictator

Heavy rains and flooding were widespread across Canada's prairie breadbasket last summer, helping to drive up food prices around the globe.

Full Story

Indonesians fired up by soaring chili prices

In spice-crazed Indonesia, a meal without fresh chilies is almost unthinkable.

But prices have soared as much as 10-fold in recent months - some say because of climate change - driving up inflation and pulling everyone from housewives to the president into the debate.

Full Story

Buying Food In The Arctic

Some examples of High Arctic Food Costs.

These grocery shelves in the High Arctic community of Arctic Bay, Nunavut, have people talking this week — $38 for cranberry cocktail, $29 for Cheez Whiz, and a whopping $77 for a bag of breaded chicken.
While groceries in Canada's remote northern communities are generally more expensive than elsewhere in the country, due to shipping costs, Elliott said prices in his communities have skyrocketed since the federal government changed its northern food subsidy program in the past year.
Here's some spaghettini for you.

Keep in mind that the $13.29 price is in Canadian dollars. The equivalent U.S. price is $13.36.

Always Declare Your Raspberries

This woman learned her lesson the hard way: Canadian woman says was groped at border.

A Canadian woman who owns a vacation home in Georgia says a U.S. Customs agent strip-searched and groped her at the Ambassador Bridge in Detroit.
Loretta Van Beek, 46, of Stratford, Ontario, filed a federal lawsuit Wednesday in Detroit, the Detroit Free Press reported. She listed two unnamed Customs Enforcement agents as defendants.
Van Beek said the Customs agents targeted her because she had not reported she was bringing raspberries in from Canada in March 2010. She was on her way to Georgia.

Well, it better be