Welcome to ...

The place where the world comes together in honesty and mirth.
Windmills Tilted, Scared Cows Butchered, Lies Skewered on the Lance of Reality ... or something to that effect.


Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Tips to stretch your retirement benefits

Tips to stretch your retirement benefits

These five clever tricks can help you maximize your Social Security payouts.

Prehistoric building found in modern city

Prehistoric building found in modern city

The three-room structure is believed to be about 8,000 years old and was built in the Neolithic period.

Calf born with heart-shaped mark

Calf born with heart-shaped mark

A dairy farm welcomes a newborn with a forehead mark that makes some people suspicious.

Woman single-handedly beats IRS in court

Woman single-handedly beats IRS in court

Few taxpayers dare take on the IRS, but one Maryland nurse did it on her own and won.

Sarah Palin signs on with Faux News

And with the most appropriate post to follow a post about Dung Beetles ...

Sarah Palin signs on with Faux News

The former Alaska governor has inked a multi-year TV deal, the network reports.

How long until she quits?

Fitting one fake joining another fake.

Dung beetles' secret superpower

The cowpatty munchers have astonishingly sophisticated visual systems – and they're teaching us a few tricks about seeing in the dark.

Ultimate night sight

Grandma Jailed for Driving Too Slow

Broward's justice system is apparently doing their part to keep old people off of the roads in South Florida .

Grandma Jailed for Driving Too Slow

No here's an idea we should adopt here in our mountains for all Florida drivers ... 65mph means 65mph, not 15mph!
There is nothing more dangerous than rounding a curve in the mountains at 65 and coming upon some idiot from Florida doing 15!

Jane Goodall's Chimpanzees Win Prizes

From Treehugger:

jane chimp.photo
Images from Jane Goodall Institute

Jane Goodall has been around forever. Back in 1957 she was studying the habits of wild chimpanzees in Tanzania, under the tutorship of Sir Louis Leakey, the famous archaeologist and paleontologist. She never left...and in 1977 she set up her own institute, the Jane Goodall Institute which is still going strong, with her at the head. Its mission is protect chimpanzees and their habitats. It also is widely recognized for establishing conservation and development programs in Africa.

In recognition of the Institute's work, they have now received 2 grants and are in the money. One is from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to expand programmes to help local people become more involved in the conservation work, thus improving their lives and the chimp's as well. The Royal Norwegian Embassy in Tanzania has also given grant money to work on the sale of carbon credits with local community people.

Ancient Costa Rica Pt. 2: The narrow road to Guayabo

theentrypath.jpg

A thousand years ago, there wouldn't have been much jungle here, just terraced plots of maize and clear view off the mountain slopes to the valley far below. Visitors got a dizzying look at the drop from either side of a cobblestone road that lurched upward along the back of a steep ridge. At the edge of town, they'd find themselves funneled into a stairway shadowed on either side by stone walls and tall guard houses. Up the steps, a cobble-paved causeway stretched ahead, rising gradually, its edges lined with sculptures and the piked heads of conquered enemies. At the end, the chiefs' house stood on a tall stone foundation, its conical roof mirrored by the peak of the volcano in the distance.

The modern entrance to the ancient city of Guayabo is not nearly so dramatic. There's a pockmarked gravel road up a mountain, with chasms that threaten to swallow the front wheel of our boxy, little Honda. A wooden ticket booth, like a lemonade stand, marks the spot were you park the car on the roadside. Carefully maintained nature trails wind through rainforest less than a century old—this land was a dairy farm not so very long ago—and spit you out in the center of what was once a city of some 10,000 inhabitants.

Guayabo—pronounce it "Why-ahbo"—is one of many ancient cities in eastern and central Costa Rica that get overlooked by the general public, largely because their builders worked mostly with materials—wood, thatch, cane—that disintegrated in the tropical climate. The massive communal houses rotted away long ago. But the stone foundations, roads, tombs and aqueduct systems that remain are, in themselves, impressive enough to be named an International Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Science News

From BBC-Science:
Shar-pei (Alison L. Ruhe)
The genetic cause of the Shar-pei dog's wrinkled skin is explained by scientists.

Researchers have used a property of salad dressing to get electronics to self-assemble on a range of surfaces.


THE BIG PICTURE
Click to reveal

Today is ...

Today is Tuesday, January 12, the 12th day of 2010.

There are 353 days left in the year.

The moon is waning.

The morning stars are Mercury and Mars.

Today In History January 12

There are no unusual holidays and celebrations today.

Our Readers

Some of our readers today have been in:

London, England, United Kingdom
Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Athens, Attiki, Greece
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Gent, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium
Seoul, Kyonggi-Do, Korea
Kiel, Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
Goerich, Ontario, Canada
Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
Rotterdam, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands
Santiago, Region Metropolitana, Chile
Como, Lombardia, Italy
Apeldoorn, Gelderland, Netherlands
Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
Rome, Lazio, Italy
Paris, Ile-De-France, France

as well as Montenegro, Poland, and the United States

Daily Horoscope

Today's horoscope says:

Talk about busy.
There's a formidable astrological team on guard duty in your house of personality, and you'll be putting out 'pick me, pick me' vibes when any situation that requires leadership arises.
Anyone within shouting distance will be more than happy to let you have your wish, too -- especially with your past history of competence.
Don't forget your vitamins.

No, no, no, must not forget those!

Monday, January 11, 2010

Florida Freeze Damages as Much as 5% of Orange Crop

Florida's freezing weather may have damaged as much as 5 percent of the orange crop early today, in what were likely the coldest hours in the past several days of frigid temperatures.

Full Story

Obama Said to Consider Fee on Banks to Trim Deficit

President Barack Obama may propose a fee on financial-services companies as he tries to make good on a vow to cut the budget deficit in half, administration officials said.

Full Story

UFOs: One Of The Greatest Mysteries Of The 21st Century

Do UFOs actually exist?

That is a question that has been hotly debated all over the world for decades.
But as reports of UFO sightings continue to pour in all over the globe, the nature of the debate is changing.
Rather than asking whether or not UFOs exist, an increasing number of people are wondering who is piloting them, where they are...

Full Story

OK, for the last time UFO's DO exist!

Any flying object that you cannot identify is a UFO.

Now whether or not it is an extraterritorial 'spacecraft' is another ball of wax all together.

Doctor Gets Five Years For Assaulting Cyclists With His Car

doctor gets five years for cycling assault image
LA Times

Brian noted earlier how Charles Diez got four months in jail for shooting (and barely missing) a cyclist who was in his way, and considered it an embarrassment. In California, they are a bit tougher: In July 2008 Christopher Thompson, passed two cyclists and got in front of them and jammed on the brakes. Ron Peterson went face first into the rear window, breaking his teeth, slicing off his nose, and cutting his face; he needed ninety stitches.

He was sentenced last week to five years in prison for mayhem; assault with a deadly weapon, his car; battery with serious injury; and reckless driving causing injury.

Was Barack Obama's First Year a Breath of Fresh Air?

obama-fresh.jpg
Photo via UFOBC

This will be news to no one: some have soured on Barack Obama. The list of his missed opportunities and non-accomplishments thus far irks his supporters and gives ammunition to his enemies. But before we all get too disappointed, it's worth remembering that he actually accomplished a lot his first year, too. For every not-so-abolished Don't Ask Don't Tell law, there's a promising national auto emissions standard, for each not-closed-yet Guantanamo, there's an EPA mobilizing to regulate greenhouse gases. Here are some of his best accomplishments of 2009.

Himalayan Glaciers Entirely Gone by 2035?!?

gaumukh photo
photo: Barry Silver via flickr.
You've probably read claims about how the glaciers in the Himalayas are melting at such a fast pace that some of them could be entirely gone by 2035. I know I've made reference to the statement, made by Indian glaciologist Syed Hasnain and repeated around the internet, as have other posts on TreeHugger. Well, it seems according to a recent article in New Scientist by Fred Pearce, that Hasnain is backtracking on his assertion, saying that the statement was "speculative" and that he's never made that claim in any peer-reviewed journal. Yet it made it into the IPCC report of 2007:

Cittaslow Moves Out of Europe

good slow city italy photo
Image credit: Good

The slow cities movement started in Italy in 1999 when Mayor Paolo Saturnini chose to stay small and protect local business instead of courting industry and growing larger. With the help of three other Italian towns and the Slow Food organization he founded the Cittaslow movement.

Capricious Mis-Judge

Luzerne County Judge Mark A. Ciavarella, accused of getting kickbacks for sending minors to a private detention center, is alleged to have sentenced a "juvenile defendant to six months at a detention facility based solely on the number of birds perched on the ledge outside his courtroom."

And he wonders why he is accused and investigated?

Fugitive caught via World of Warcraft

Indiana cops caught a fugitive by getting Blizzard to turn over the IP address from which he was playing World of Warcraft:
Howard County, Indiana Sheriff Department Deputy Matt Roberson tracked down fugitive Alfred Hightower via the hugely popular massively multiplayer online game. Hightower was wanted on several counts of drug dealing but had fled the country to Canada.

After finding out Hightower was a WoW fan, Roberson sent a subpoena to the game's maker, Blizzard Entertainment. With the information they sent back, Roberson was able to pinpoint the perp's location.

Scanners can store and transmit images

You know those airport scanners that the TSA swore up and down that didn't store and couldn't transmit the compromising photos of your buck-naked self?

Well ...

They lied.

The documents, which include technical specifications and vendor contracts, indicate that the TSA requires vendors to provide equipment that can store and send images of screened passengers when in testing mode, according to CNN.

The TSA has stated publicly on its website, in videos and in statements to the press that images cannot be stored on the machines and that images are deleted from the scanners once an airport operator has examined them. The administration has also insisted that the machines are incapable of sending images.

US government employees doing Al Qaida's job for them: undermining the quality of life in the "free" world.

Osama's still free, how about you?

Miep Gies has died at age 100


Gies' website says she was among a group of Dutch citizens who hid the Frank family of four and four others in a secret annex in Amsterdam, Netherlands, during World War II.

Miep Gies, who hid Anne Frank's diary after the teen was arrested by Nazis, has died at age 100

Humanity is a virus

... Literally

People may not be quite the humans they think they are. Or so suggests new research showing that the human genome is part bornavirus.

Bornaviruses, a type of RNA virus that causes disease in horses and sheep, first inserted their genetic material into ancestral human DNA at least 40 million years ago, the study shows. The findings, published January 7 in Nature, provide the first evidence that RNA viruses other than retroviruses (such as HIV) can stably integrate genes into host DNA. The new work may help reveal more about the evolution of RNA viruses as well as their mammalian hosts.

“Our whole notion of ourselves as a species is slightly misconceived,” says Robert Gifford, a paleovirologist at the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, affiliated with Rockefeller University in New York City. Human DNA includes genetic contributions from bacteria and other organisms, and humans have even come to rely on some of these genes for basic functions like fighting infections.

Human Genome Is Part Bornavirus

Chemical computer that mimics neurons to be created

chemical computer

A promising push toward a novel, biologically-inspired “chemical computer” has begun as part of an international collaboration.

The “wet computer” incorporates several recently discovered properties of chemical systems that can be hijacked to engineer computing power. [...]

What distinguishes the current project is that it will make use of stable “cells” featuring a coating that forms spontaneously, similar to the walls of our own cells, and uses chemistry to accomplish the signal processing similar to that of our own neurons.

The goal is not to make a better computer than conventional ones, said project collaborator Klaus-Peter Zauner of the University of Southampton, but rather to be able to compute in new environments.

“The type of wet information technology we are working towards will not find its near-term application in running business software,” Dr Zauner told BBC News.

“But it will open up application domains where current IT does not offer any solutions – controlling molecular robots, fine-grained control of chemical assembly, and intelligent drugs that process the chemical signals of the human body and act according to the local biochemical state of the cell.”

Songs in the key of life

As with tunes, speech in a major key sounds cheerful, while minor-key tales sound gloomy and depressing.

Why is 'Neanderthal' still a byword for dumb brute?

The notion that Neanderthals went extinct because they were too dim-witted to compete with modern humans is losing its currency among the general public.
About time, says Ewen Callaway.

Science News

Arctic tern (Carsten Egevang)
The Arctic tern's extraordinary pole-to-pole 70,000km migration is detailed by Danish and UK scientists.

Seven simple dinners

Seven simple dinners

Put a delicious dinner on the table with these easy menus for every day of the week.

Joe Namath's daughter Olivia arrested in Florida pot bust

Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Namath's 19-year-old daughter has been arrested in South Florida.

Olivia Namath (pictured on the right) faces charges of possession of liquor by a person under 21 and two counts of possession of marijuana, including possession with the intent to sell. She has been released on bond.

According to the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office, a deputy smelled marijuana in a car driven by Namath during a traffic stop Sunday. Authorities found bags containing a green leafy substance that tested positive for marijuana in the car's floor board and trunk. They also found a bottle of rum and beer bottles.

The deputy's narrative states that Namath denied knowing about the drugs.

Truer words have never been spoken ...

I have come to the conclusion that politics are too serious a matter to be left to the politicians.

~ Charles De Gaulle

And I Quote

People can misinterpret almost anything so that it coincides with views they already hold.

~ Stanley Kubrick

Big marriage penalty in health care bill

Big marriage penalty in health care bill

Some married couples will pay more for the same coverage than unmarried people living together.

Road projects' disappointing effect on jobs

Road projects' disappointing effect on jobs

A federal surge in spending on roads and bridges was supposed to help local unemployment.

Make $30 an hour without a degree

Make $30 an hour without a degree

Highly skilled workers in these fields can earn $60,000 a year — or even more.

Google Toilet Paper?

Google has become a household name.
It’s a noun – the most popular search engine on the Internet – and it’s a verb – “Just Google it.” Now thanks to the Vietnamese it’s also a popular brand of toilet paper!

Full Story

Ancient Costa Rica Part I: Lost history in the land of the crossroads

Maggie Koerth-Baker posted this very interesting piece today over at BoingBoing:
twofrogs.jpg

The Maya built pyramids. The Inca constructed Machu Picchu. But what do you know about the historical exploits of the Maléku, the Cabécar or the Bribri?

Chances are, not a whole heck of a lot. All three are indigenous peoples native to Costa Rica, part of a larger cultural and linguistic group that archaeologists call Chibchan. Their ancestors were the earliest inhabitants of Costa Rica, but the general public (even within that country) knows very little about them.

Full Story

With a Archaeology degree the Chibchan culture isn't unknown to me but this is an interesting piece nonetheless.

Doing battle with the red devils of the Pacific

Join a research ship tagging Humboldt squid – diablos rojos to Mexican fishermen – which are invading the waters off central California

Doing battle with the red devils of the Pacific

Crystal mountains speak of moon's molten past

They may not sparkle like Superman's Fortress of Solitude, but giant outcrops of pristine crystal have been found on our nearest neighbor.

Crystal mountains speak of moon's molten past

Cop News

Diabetes News

A study suggests that the hormone leptin helps correct diabetes, and that "leptin's antidiabetic effects are independent of the hormone's well-known ability to reduce body weight."

Of course, years of testing stand between this finding and a dream come true for millions who have diabetes, and leptin isn't absorbed through the digestive tract so a miracle pill seems unlikely.

Other studies have shown that fake fructose reduces circulating insulin and leptin, another reason to avoid high fructose corn syrup, but again, smart people already do.

Here's a statistic for you

About one out of every fifty Americans now subsists on nothing but food stamps.
So, in keeping with they way things work in DC the budget for that will no doubt be cut, too.

Thinks he's a god

A county judge in Tennessee, Durwood Moore, is being sued for ordering a court spectator arrested and drug-tested because, says the judge, he had a hunch the guy was a user.

The test came back negative, but, more to the point, judges aren't gods and courtroom spectators who aren't making a ruckus should have no fear of arbitrary arrest out of nowhere.

Burning Bridges

Mike Curb Congregation

Turning wood in to bone

Scientists have developed a new method with which to turn a certain type of [rattan] wood in to bone that is nearly identical to that in humans.

Full Story

Slovak aviation cops sneak explosives into travelers' luggage, jailarity ensues

The Slovak aviation cops decided to test their airport security by planting explosives on travelers without their knowledge, to see if they'd be spotted by the security screeners.

Wait ... it gets better:

The screeners only caught seven out of eight explosive-plants.

The remaining one was left in the luggage of an Irish tourist, who was nabbed on his return to Dublin and thrown in jail.

Three days later, the Slovak cops contacted their Irish counterparts, who let the poor bastard out of jail, cordoned off his street, and had the bomb-squad remove the Slovak explosives.


Ludmila Stanova, spokeswoman for Slovakia's ministry of the interior, says Dublin airport was warned to expect a person carrying explosive samples, and that the passenger was also alerted after his arrival.

"He was supposed to wait for the police to take the sample from him," she told the BBC World Service...

On Tuesday morning the man's flat near Dublin city centre was cordoned off while bomb disposal experts removed the explosives for further examination.

The Irish Army said passengers had not been put in danger because the explosives were stable and not connected to any essential bomb parts.

The Slovak minister for the interior has expressed his government's "profound regret" to Mr Ahern.

Today is ...

Today is Monday, January 11, the 11th day of 2010.

There are 354 days left in the year.

Today In History January 11

There are no unusual holidays or celebrations for today.

Our Readers

Some of our readers today have been in:

Bangkok, Krung Thep, Thailand
Kassel, Hessen, Germany
Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
London, England, United Kingdom
Paris, Ile-De-France, France
Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia
Cobourg, Ontario, Canada

Daily Horoscope

Today's horoscope says:

Here we go again: You're in the mood to shop, big-time, and to buy whatever it is that you're absolutely sure no one else has -- or, at the very least, no one you know.
Before you whip out that plastic, though, think about this one thing: If you really want to be different, why not put your cards and your checkbook away and redo something you already own -- in your very own way.
Invest in some paint and a couple of stencils.
You might end up with a profitable part-time business.

Profitable, now there's the ticket.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

New Words

Beelzebug (n): Satan in the form of a mosquito that gets into your bedroom at three in the morning and cannot be cast out.
or (n): An insect so big you are sure it was sent by Satan himself.

Banks Prepare for Bigger Bonuses, and Public’s Wrath

Everyone on Wall Street is fixated on The Number. The bank bonus season, that annual rite of big money and bigger egos, begins in earnest this week, and it looks as if it will be one of the largest and most controversial blowouts the industry has ever seen.

Full Story

Radical Jamaican-born Muslim cleric returns to Kenya after his deportation fails

Officials say a Jamaican-born Muslim cleric who led a British mosque attended by convicted terrorists was flown back to Kenya after an attempt to deport him to Gambia failed.

Full Story

Rare self-rolling giant snow balls found in UK

Tombs suggest slaves didn't build pyramids

Tombs suggest slaves didn't build pyramids

A discovery upends long-held beliefs about who built ancient Egypt's towering monuments.

Gross eating habits to break

6 gross eating habits to break

Overdosing on condiments, shoveling food, double dipping — that's so 2009.

Interview myths that can cost you a job

Interview myths that can cost you a job

When asked to name your biggest weakness, ignore the conventional wisdom.

School for Shamans to Save Culture from Extinction

From Treehugger:

amazonian shaman photo

Photo via Mongabay

While environmental groups and governmental policies are aiming at reducing deforestation and development in the Amazon rainforest to help preserve the world's most diverse terrestrial ecosystem, traditional indigenous cultures in the region are being rescued from extinction as well. For native tribes of the Northwest Amazon, shamans have long played an important role in daily life, acting as spiritual leaders and medicinal healers. Throughout the twentieth century, shamans faced such intense persecution from Roman Catholic and Protestant missionaries that some feared their ancient wisdom would be lost to the ages, but a new school in the Amazon is working to make sure that doesn't happen.

How to Exterminate a Great White Shark

From Treehugger:

great white shark murder photo
Image: Flickr, hermanusbackpackers

How do you kill a shark? Well, you don't. Sure, sharks are responsible for the deaths of six humans swimming off of Western Australia. But WA law prohibits killing sharks. They are protected species. Even the widow and son of one shark victim, Brian Guest, have stated publicly that they believe sharks belong in the marine environment and should not be killed.

That may not stop the WA Government's Shark Hazard Committee, which -- according to the Perth Now Sunday edition -- has "put down in policy" a method for killing great whites that have attacked a human and hung around to get caught red-handed (red-toothed in this case, I guess).

Oh, Give Me a Home: Bison Relocation Controversy

From Treehugger:

bison on road photo
"Bison Lane" photo by V Man via Flickr

Eco-baron and media mogul Ted Turner has placed a bid to "borrow" 74 wild bison from Yellowstone National Park at the request of Montana's Governor Brian Schweitzer. But opposing forces to the plan claim the animals are being used for private profit instead of conservation, in violation of promises made. Should they stay or should they go?

Police Shoot Bull in Face to Prevent Car Accidents

From Treehugger:

police shooting bull photo

An officer opens fire on a bull in the roadway. Photo: Cristiano Couto

Lawyers for the International Union for the Protection of Animals (UIPA) are hoping that charges will be sought against an officer of the Brazilian Federal Highway Police for breaking animal protection laws when he shot and killed a bull on a highway road in the country last week. The questionable incident and shocking photograph above have propelled the story throughout South American news sources--leading some to wonder if the officer's actions were justified.

Artificial leaf could make green hydrogen

Mimicking a plant's photosynthetic machinery could be a clean way to generate hydrogen.

Artificial leaf could make green hydrogen

And I Quote

If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be.
Now put the foundations under them.

~ Henry David Thoreau

Winter Poem

I found this beautiful winter poem and thought it might be a comfort to you.
It was to me and it's very well written and I hope that you enjoy it too.

" WINTER "

by Abigail Elizabeth McIntyre



Shit It's Cold

The End

Billionaire investor's big warning

Billionaire investor's big warning

A hedge-fund investor who predicted the Enron scandal is betting on the next big economic crash.

6.5 earthquake near Eureka, California, snaps power lines and topples televisions

Centered under the Pacific Ocean, about 25 miles southwest of Eureka, a strong earthquake, estimated magnitude 6.5, rocked the Eureka, Calif., area, snapping power lines, toppling televisions, disrupting power throughout the region and forcing the evacuation of at least one mall.

Full Story

Coal from mass extinction era linked to lung cancer mystery

The volcanic eruptions thought responsible for Earth's largest mass extinction which killed more than 70 percent of plants and animals 250 million years ago is still taking lives today.

Full Story

Have we lost our minds?

A new poll by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion & Public Life concludes: "Large numbers of Americans engage in multiple religious practices, mixing elements of diverse traditions. Many also blend Christianity with Eastern or New Age beliefs such as reincarnation, astrology and the presence of spiritual energy in physical objects. And sizable minorities of all major U.S. religious groups say they have experienced supernatural phenomena, such as being in touch with the dead or with ghosts."

China overtakes Germany as biggest exporter

China overtook Germany as the world's biggest exporter after exports rose in December for the first time in 14 months, data showed Sunday, in a new sign of the rapid Chinese rise as a global economic force.

Full Story

Today is ...

Today is Sunday, January 10, the 10th day of 2010.

There are 355 days left in the year.

Today In History January 10

Today's unusual holidays and celebrations are:

National Cut Your Energy Costs Day

and

Stephen Foster Day

Our Readers

Some of our readers today have been in:

Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
Vienna, Wien, Austria
Pondicherry, Pondicherry, India
London, England, United Kingdom
Stuttgart, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany
Stoke On Trent, England, United Kingdom
Garbsen, Niedersachsen, Germany
Tarrasa, Catalonia, Spain
Berlin, Berlin, Germany

as well as Scotland, Hong Kong, and the United States

Daily Horoscope

Today's horoscope says:

You've been dealing with feeling off balance for days, wanting to completely let go of any semblance of control, even though you know this is prime time for you to keep things in order.
Your dilemma will end this evening.
The stars will inspire you to be practical and responsible, and you'll take hold of the reins and get things back to 'normal.'
Does this mean you won't have any fun?
Hardly.
It will just be fun of a far calmer variety.

Ah, fun ...