You smell them - not eat them, dear.
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Wagon ruts from Oregon Trail still visible today
More than 400,000 people traveled the Oregon Trail during the 19th century—so many that there are spots where wagon ruts are still visible. This photo was taken at Three Island Crossing, better known to children of the 1980s as the Snake River Crossing. (Don't ford it! Never ford it!)
When you first see this photo, taken by Flickr user gharness, you think, "No freakin' way." But, you can be assured by both the Associated Press and Idaho State University that this is for real. Wagons really did wear down certain patches of ground so much that nothing grows there to this day. The National Parks Service, Bureau of Land Management and other groups have marked many of these spots (you can see a marker in the above photo on the right) and have taken steps to preserve them.
Outback cave yields marsupial fossil haul
Fossil hunters in Australia have discovered a cave filled with the 15-million-year-old remains of prehistoric marsupials.
How Close Could a Person Get to the Sun and Survive?
How close could you get to the sun before burning up? Alessandra Calderin of Popular Science asked NASA engineer Ralph McNutt:The sun is about 93 million miles away from Earth, and if we think of that distance as a football field, a person starting at one end zone could get about 95 yards before burning up.The space shuttle, however, has greater heat resistance than a spacesuit, so it could get to the two-yard line before cooking its crew.
That said, an astronaut so close to the sun is way, way out of position. “The technology in our current space suits really isn’t designed to withstand deep space,” says Ralph McNutt, an engineer working on the heat shielding for NASA’s Messenger, a new robotic Mercury probe. The standard space suit will keep an astronaut relatively comfortable at external temperatures reaching up to 248°. Heat coming off the sun dissipates over distance, but a person drifting in space would begin encountering that kind of heat (the five-yard line) some three million miles from the sun. “It would then be a matter of time before the astronaut died,” McNutt says.
Moon tunnels could be homes for colonists
A NASA orbiter discovers aspects of the lunar landscape that could be shelter for humans.
Also: Now that's just Bizarre
Now that's just Bizarre
Biker found shot dead after collision with deer
Pennsylvania State Police are trying to piece together the puzzling death of a motorcyclist in Westmoreland County.According to police reports, William Mark Amos, 47, of Export, was riding on Route 819 in Salem Township when the deer crossed into his path on Friday morning.
The bike collided with the deer about 100 yards south of Ridge Road.
But police said that Amos had a gunshot wound to the head and that a gun was also recovered at the crash scene. Police said Amos, who was not wearing a helmet, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Man claims aliens are pelting his home
A Bosnian man whose house has been hit six times by meteorites claims aliens are targetting him. The white-hot rocks have hammered Radivoje Lajic's house repeatedly since 2007, forcing him to reinforce the roof of his Gornji Lajici home with a steel girder.Experts at Belgrade University have confirmed that all the rocks he has produced are meteorites, but Lajic believes their trajectory is no accident, claiming: "I am obviously being targeted by aliens."
He continued: "I don't know what I have done to annoy them but there is no other explanation that makes sense.
"The chance of being hit by a meteorite is so small that getting hit six times has to be deliberate. If you rule out the possible - then the impossible must be true." Lajic has had so many visitors to his house that he plans to erect a small museum in his back garden.
Curry spices could help reduce methane gases from cows & sheep
An interesting new method in battling climate change.
"Methane is a major contributor to global warming, and the slow digestive system of ruminant animals such as cows and sheep makes them a key producer of the gas," Mr Hasan explained. "What my research found was that certain spices contain properties which make this digestive process more efficient so producing less waste – in this case, methane.
"Spices have long been used safely by humans to kill bacteria and treat a variety of ailments," he added. The study looked at five curry spices – cumin, coriander, clove, turmeric and cinnamon. Each was "ground up" – as if chewed by the sheep – and added to an in-vitro solution mimicking that found in the rumen of the animal. The level of methane released by each was measured against a control.
The most effective was found to be coriander, which reduced methane production from 14 millilitres per gram of food to eight – a drop of 40 per cent. Turmeric produced a 30 per cent reduction and cumin 22 per cent.
Animal News
Rescue of platypus stuck in a pipe draws quite a crowd
The question of how many humans it takes to catch a platypus now has an answer, after a wandering duck-billed youngster stalled construction at the Penrith Sewage Treatment Plant yesterday. When the platypus was finally caught, there were 27 people milling around to see the results of a rescue effort that lasted more than six hours.The platypus was tucked away in a long pipe attached to a large open tank of treated water. After Sydney Water staff gently flushed the pipe, it took four National Parks and Wildlife Service rangers to corral the juvenile male in a net before he was whisked away to a vet for a check-up.
Sightings of platypus in Western Sydney are rare, said the NPWS area manager, Jonathan Sanders. A spokeswoman for the NSW Wildlife Information Rescue and Education Service said there were no records of a platypus rescue in Sydney in the past four years.
But cleaner waterways might be helping the animals to make a comeback, Mr Sanders said. ''It could be that we're getting a re-colonization of old habitats.''
A platypus biologist, Tom Grant, of the University of NSW, said the animal was probably seeking a new home after leaving the place were it had been born. He may well have come down from the Blue Mountains, but they've also been recorded around Cattai Creek. Most of the males disperse, but we don't really know where they go,'' Dr Grant said.
The animal was discovered at 8.30am yesterday by contractors working for Sydney Water. A construction worker, Paul Robson, initially thought it was an otter. ''I'm English - it's the only time I've seen one apart from in pictures,'' he said. NPWS rangers arrived around midday but had to wait for the reservoir to be tested for carbon monoxide before a rescue could be attempted. They then waited for more than an hour in hip-deep water for the animal to emerge from the pipe. The platypus received a clean bill of health from the vet, Robert Johnson.
Chinese man sends suicide note by homing pigeon
A man in the central Chinese city of Zhengzhou appears to have used a homing pigeon to send his suicide note. Li Yong, a neighborhood watch volunteer in the city, picked up the pigeon over the weekend in a suburban housing compound."We brought it back to the office, and I found some sweet corn to feed it," he said. "When it flew down to eat, I saw a small scroll tied to its leg with a golden thread. Out of curiosity, my friend and I read the letter, and we were shocked to find it was a suicide note. I reported the matter immediately." The author of the note, who signed himself "Shiyazi" has not yet been found.
The note appeared to be addressed to his girlfriend, and read: "I really have not done anything to hurt you. We have been together for five years. Do you not know what kind of person I am by now? It is too bad that our 'Little Grey' is just a pigeon. It would be great if it could speak. It would be able to prove my innocence. I have no other choice. Is death the only way to prove it? Loving you is really hard! These are my last words."
Lu Qing, a member of the local pigeon fanciers club, said the pigeon had most likely been used by the couple to communicate, but that the bird had apparently interrupted a long flight by landing in the neighborhood. The pigeon, with the marking CHN2009-16-058201, was traced to a Mr Ma in Zhengzhou, who said he had lost the bird during a race last year and had no idea who might have written the note.
Charlotte's web spider thought to be writing
Chinese arachnologists are baffled after discovering a spider that appears to be trying to do put handwriting on its web as in the story Charlotte's Web.
More Animal News
Man fined £1,500 for drowning squirrel
In the first legal case of its kind a Burton window cleaner has been ordered to pay more than £1,500 in court costs – for killing a squirrel. Raymond Elliot, of Maple Way, Branston, admitted causing unnecessary suffering to a protected animal, namely a gray squirrel by drowning it to death, when he appeared at Burton Magistrates’ Court. The RSPCA has claimed the ‘test case’ ruling could pave the way for hundreds of other cases across the country as the extermination of squirrels continues to spiral nationally.
The court heard how grey squirrels had persistently targeted Mr Elliot’s bird feeders in his garden, driving him to buy a cage before trapping the squirrel. He then drowned the squirrel by immersing it in a water butt killing it “almost instantaneously.” Magistrates gave the 58-year-old a six-month conditional discharge and ordered him to pay £1,547 to cover investigation and legal costs incurred by the animal welfare charity.
John Sutcliffe, prosecuting, said: “This is a very unusual case indeed. It is the first ever case brought under the Animal Welfare Act 2006 in respect of a non-domestic animal. I have prosecuted for over 30 years and with this case I feel considerable sympathy for Mr Elliot. Catching and drowning squirrels is becoming a prevalent act and the RSPCA wants it known that this is illegal.
“The defendant was extremely open and frank about his actions. He believed it was the most humane way of disposing of the animal — however, this method is illegal. The manufacturers who supply such cages go to great lengths on advising customers how to trap the squirrels, but say nothing about what to do with them thereafter. The Forestry Commission gives the advice that squirrels should be caught in a sack, placed in the corner and killed with a single blow to the head with a blunt instrument. However, even this method could result in bludgeoning the animal which would be in breach of section four of the act.”
Doug Walton, defending, said: “The drowning of squirrels and rats is a widespread practice. So what are the alternatives for these people? Realistically, I can’t see many people opting to take the creatures to the vets to pay between £30 and £40 a time to have them euthanised.
“And if you follow the Forestry Commission advice you will end up putting squirrels in a sack and clubbing them to death. Here we have a man of good character that I don’t expect to see back before the court. He regrets his mistake.”
Birds of prey employed to tackle seagulls at school
A school which was under siege by seagulls who would steal pupils’ lunches has become the first in Britain to be protected – by three birds of prey. More than 90 troublesome gulls had taken up residence on the roofs of Sir John Hunt Community College in Plymouth, Devon. They had begun swooping on youngsters to pinch sandwiches and crisps and staff had feared for the children’s safety.
But the playground is now safe after officials hired two Harris Hawks and a Falcon to patrol the school. Jasper, Hope and Monty the Falcon have been working twice-weekly shifts since last month – patrolling the skies during breaks and lunchtimes. The school is the first in the UK to use the unorthodox pest control method and nearly all the gulls are now gone.
Facilities manager Mel Starr said: “We haven’t had an actual attack but they are very bold. They have been swooping on children and of course they also carry diseases, which is not something we want around our pupils. Not only is it an efficient way of removing the seagulls, but we can also use it for educational purposes, teaching the pupils about wildlife and the effects of littering. We had a problem with some pupils leaving food around and feeding the birds.”
Staff feared the seagulls, which had also been pecking away at roof insulation, could become aggressive if allowed to nest. They called in experts from Rentokil, who suggested hiring fearsome-looking birds of prey to scare off the seagull menace. The tame trio have done such a good job they are now set to make monthly returns throughout spring and winter.
A man with a mysterious bulge under his T-shirt was stopped, searched and detained at Mexico City's international airport after authorities found 18 tiny endangered monkeys in a girdle he was wearing.
The Public Safety Department said in a statement Monday that 38-year-old Roberto Cabrera arrived on a commercial flight Friday from Lima, Peru, when authorities noticed the bulge and conducted a body search.
The department says Cabrera was carrying the 6-inch titi monkeys in pouches attached to the girdle.
Two of the monkeys were dead.
Cabrera was arrested on charges of trafficking an endangered species.
Cabrera told authorities he was carrying the monkeys in a suitcase but decided to put them in his girdle "so the X-rays wouldn't hurt them."
Many species of titi monkeys, a species from South America, are in an endangered animal list by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
The Mexican government recently restricted imports of primates.
But the playground is now safe after officials hired two Harris Hawks and a Falcon to patrol the school. Jasper, Hope and Monty the Falcon have been working twice-weekly shifts since last month – patrolling the skies during breaks and lunchtimes. The school is the first in the UK to use the unorthodox pest control method and nearly all the gulls are now gone.
Facilities manager Mel Starr said: “We haven’t had an actual attack but they are very bold. They have been swooping on children and of course they also carry diseases, which is not something we want around our pupils. Not only is it an efficient way of removing the seagulls, but we can also use it for educational purposes, teaching the pupils about wildlife and the effects of littering. We had a problem with some pupils leaving food around and feeding the birds.”
Staff feared the seagulls, which had also been pecking away at roof insulation, could become aggressive if allowed to nest. They called in experts from Rentokil, who suggested hiring fearsome-looking birds of prey to scare off the seagull menace. The tame trio have done such a good job they are now set to make monthly returns throughout spring and winter.
Man Arrested With 18 Tiny Monkeys Stuffed in his pants
The Public Safety Department said in a statement Monday that 38-year-old Roberto Cabrera arrived on a commercial flight Friday from Lima, Peru, when authorities noticed the bulge and conducted a body search.
The department says Cabrera was carrying the 6-inch titi monkeys in pouches attached to the girdle.
Two of the monkeys were dead.
Cabrera was arrested on charges of trafficking an endangered species.
Cabrera told authorities he was carrying the monkeys in a suitcase but decided to put them in his girdle "so the X-rays wouldn't hurt them."
Many species of titi monkeys, a species from South America, are in an endangered animal list by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora.
The Mexican government recently restricted imports of primates.
Dumb Crooks
Dumb Crooks
Burglar caught after leaving false teeth at crime scene Lee, 43, of Oakenhurst Road, Blackburn, pleaded guilty to burglary at Khonat’s Newsagents and burglary at a factory on Limbrick and was jailed for a total of 32 weeks.
Liz Parker, defending, said Lee, a chronic alcoholic, had broken into the shop intending to get his head down for a few hours.
“He was hungry and took his false teeth out and put them on a table before eating a beef butty,” said Mrs Parker. “He left without his teeth and when he sobered up he wondered where they were.”
Liquid cocaine in smuggler's rum killed taxi driver
A taxi driver died after unwittingly drinking pure liquid cocaine from a rum bottle given to him as a gift, a court heard. Lascell Malcolm, 63, was given the bottle of Bounty Rum by a friend, Antoinette Corlis, after declining payment for a lift home after her Caribbean holiday. She had been given the bottle by a friend, Michael Lawrence, who was carrying it to the UK from St Lucia for acquaintance Martin Newman, Croydon crown court heard. Only Newman, 50, knew there was 246g (8.7oz) of pure cocaine dissolved into the alcohol, the court in south London was told. He allegedly had given two bottles to Lawrence before flying to Gatwick airport, claiming his baggage was overweight. He intended to retrieve the bottles upon arrival, but was detained by Customs officers, the court heard. Lawrence left for a connecting flight to his home in Switzerland, giving one of the bottles to Corlis.Oliver Glasgow, prosecuting, told the court: "Corlis, unaware of the dangers posed by the defendant's bottle of rum, decided to give it to Lascell Malcolm as a thank you … It was gratefully received. Corlis was only to realize the full import of what she had done when she tried to contact Lascell Malcolm over the following days." Malcolm, a father-of-two from Haringey, north London, had drunk a shot of the rum with a pint of Guinness, hours after Corlis gave him the bottle on 25 May last year. At 4am the next day, he called emergency services telling them he could not walk and had a headache. He was discharged from hospital but later collapsed and died after a heart attack brought on by cocaine poisoning.
The link to the cocaine-laced rum emerged when two friends, visiting Malcolm's house to pay their respects, found the bottle and decided to make a toast. Charles Roach and Trevor Tugman spat out the foul-tasting liquid but were taken to hospital after suffering seizures. Glasgow told the jury: "Subsequent analysis of the contents of the bottle established that 246 grams of cocaine had been dissolved into the rum, which resulted in a mixture of such toxicity that a teaspoonful could kill anyone who consumed it. Had the alcohol and cocaine been separated, the potential wholesale profit that could have resulted from the sale of the cocaine is in the order of £10,000." He told the court that Newman, who was born in St Lucia, had a duty of care to anyone who came into contact with the bottles.
Two other passengers on the Virgin Atlantic flight, Samantha Edwards and Anthony Fessal, had also been tricked into smuggling bottles by Newman, the court heard. Neither knew the true contents. Newman was arrested on 3 June last year and denied drug smuggling, claiming Fessal had asked him to carry alcohol back to the UK for him and that he had refused. Glasgow said Newman believes "he is the victim of an elaborate conspiracy designed to frame him". Newman, of Romford, Essex, denies manslaughter and importing Class A drugs. The hearing continues.
Odds and Sods
Odds and Sods
Aging may be a natural life process but for our animal friends, it's more often a curse: predators pick out the slow, weak and old for an easier kill.
As pampered pets and protected in zoos, however, animals have a much greater chance of reaching ages simply not possible in the wild.
These 10 'grand paws' lead the senior circuit with the most golden years.
Monday, July 19, 2010
The Daily Drift
The Daily Drift
Today's horoscope says:Ordinarily, today's energy would inspire you to plan a crazy day -- and maybe a romantic evening.
With the mood you're in, though, focus may not be at the top of your list of assets.
Your best bet is to spend time with someone you love.
Even worker bees like you get to eat some honey now and then.
Take the whole day off and enjoy it, free of guilt.
Today is:
Today is Monday, July 19, the 200th day of 2010.
There are 165 days left in the year.
Today's unusual holiday or celebration is:
National Get Out Of The Doghouse Day
Don't forget to visit our sister blog!
World Cup Schmerld Cup
Swamp Soccer: Match In Mud Defeats Spaniards
Spain may have taken home the World Cup, but they lost out on an equally prestigious title at the 2010 Swamp Soccer World Championships.
Traits of world's happiest countries
A high level of prosperity is key, but a new poll reveals another element that matters.
Also: The Apaches of Paris
Each gang was dressed slightly differently, often wearing something such as a red scarf that would be both a sign of belonging and a means of identification in other territories. However, certain elements were the same in all gangs. All wore a certain type of trouser, tight at the knees and flared at the bottom, known as a Bénard. These were named after the tailor who made them, a certain Auguste Bénard, and the word is still used in Parisian slang today to designate a pair of trousers (bénard, ben’ or bénouze).On their heads there was always a hat of some description, generally something flat in the form of a sailor’s cap, but it was what was put on the feet that was the most important. Claude Dubois in his depiction of the Bastille area of Paris (La Bastoche, 1997) describes the ideal pair:“Le comble de la coquetterie apache étant les bottines jaunes à bouts pointus cirées de frais avec des boutons dorés”. (The height of Apache vanity was a pair of freshly polishedpointed yellow boots with golden buttons).
Sweden's Redneck Greaser Subculture
The Faster Times and The Guardian report on a thriving youth subculture in Sweden called “raggare” that Katie Natopolis describes as:[...]a delightful mix of the style of a’50s greaser, the corpulence and bad hygiene of a biker, the love of the Confederate flag of a southern redneck, and the enthusiasm for drinking of a British soccer hooligan. Basically, every stereotype about poor white trash spanning both time and globe, rolled into one.The Faster Times then presents a gallery of fourteen photos of raggae folk. Conor Creighton of The Guardian further describes the subculture:
The raggare have always tended to be drawn from country folk: farmers, petrol station owners, low-skilled workers. The growth in their numbers is the result of the differing fortunes of the US and Swedish economies over the decades: successive oil crises and a poor exchange rate saw Americans trading in gas-guzzlers for more economical models; the Swedes, relatively rich in comparison, bought their cars for a song.
For young Swedes, these giant American cars, which contrasted with the safe, boxy Volvos their parents drove, were the ultimate symbols of rebellion. And they were dirt-cheap. “They were stupid,” Georg says about the Americans. “Some of the cars were limited edition. They built maybe 70 of them and they were selling them to us for a few thousand when they were collector pieces.”
Faster Times and Guardian
Flight of the Dreamliner
The highly anticipated fuel-efficient plane touches down in England amid big buzz.
Also: Sign Post Forest
Sign Post Forest is a collection of signs at Watson Lake, Yukon, and is one of the most famous of the landmarks along the Alaska Highway. It was started by a homesick GI in 1942. Visitors may add their own signs to the 65,000 already present.
In 1942, a simple signpost pointing out the distances to various points along the tote road being built was damaged by a bulldozer. Private Carl K. Lindley, a US Army Engineer, was ordered to repair the sign, and decided to personalize the job by adding a sign pointing to his home town, Danville, Illinois.
Wal-Marting of Weed
California's medical marijuana growers see a new threat to their tenuous existence: the "Wal-Marting" of weed.
Culinary DeLites
Culinary DeLites
Indulging in these hot-weather treats will cost you plenty in calories and fat.
Also: 
Feeding a crowd of 10 or more is easy and affordable with these menu ideas.
Also: 
Put together satisfying morning meals with these easy supermarket finds.
Also: Chocolate Prices to Rise
Cocoa bean prices are on the rise, and some say a hedge fund is to blame.
Also: Cheeseburgers With Cheese
Oh my God!
At Checkers Restaurants they sell cheeseburgers with cheese.
What will they come up with next.
Owe less than a C-Note ... Go to Jail
Senator Franken is pissed that this is happening...and, he's good enough and smart enough to voice up his concerns...and, you know, people are going to like him even more.
Federal regulators are looking into the growing use of arrest warrants in Minnesota over unpaid debts, following a star tribune investigation and a letter calling attention to the practice from sen. Al Franken.
A staff attorney with the federal trade commission said Thursday the agency is trying to determine why debtors are being jailed in this state, and if they have been notified properly of any debt collection claims made against them in court. The agency said it was responding to a letter sent by Franken, which accused Minnesota debt collection firms of “abusing the state court system to reap profits.” Franken urged FTC chairman Jon Leibowitz to take “immediate enforcement action.”
Couple beat up woman to stop her attending her brother's funeral
A brutal couple beat up a woman and left her fighting for life – to stop her attending her brother's funeral. Paul Jenkinson, 47, and Linzi Hughes, 43, carried out a three-hour attack on Eileen White in May last year, only days after her brother, Alex Hughes, died from cancer. Hughes had been married to Alex until two years before his death and Jenkinson had been best man at their wedding.
Both defendants had also been close friends of Ms White for years – but had fallen out shortly before his death over Alex's care. The violent pair decided that grieving Eileen should not be allowed to attend her brother's funeral – and carried out the vicious attack to make sure she would be fighting for her life in hospital as her brother was buried.
The attack happened at Mr Hughes' house at Elm Park Court, Parker Street, Derby, where Ms White had cared for him until his death. Birmingham Crown Court heard that the pair had even discussed killing Ms White as she lay in a heap in her own home – but Jenkinson decided she "wasn't worth doing life for".
They carried out a brutal and prolonged attack, leaving Ms White with all of her ribs broken, a collapsed lung, and serious bruising to her face and body. Jenkinson, of Morleston Street, Derby, who pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent in March, and Hughes, of Leytonstone Drive, Mackworth, who was found guilty at a trial on June 9, were both sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison.
Both defendants had also been close friends of Ms White for years – but had fallen out shortly before his death over Alex's care. The violent pair decided that grieving Eileen should not be allowed to attend her brother's funeral – and carried out the vicious attack to make sure she would be fighting for her life in hospital as her brother was buried.
The attack happened at Mr Hughes' house at Elm Park Court, Parker Street, Derby, where Ms White had cared for him until his death. Birmingham Crown Court heard that the pair had even discussed killing Ms White as she lay in a heap in her own home – but Jenkinson decided she "wasn't worth doing life for".
They carried out a brutal and prolonged attack, leaving Ms White with all of her ribs broken, a collapsed lung, and serious bruising to her face and body. Jenkinson, of Morleston Street, Derby, who pleaded guilty to grievous bodily harm with intent in March, and Hughes, of Leytonstone Drive, Mackworth, who was found guilty at a trial on June 9, were both sentenced to six-and-a-half years in prison.
Bangladesh police arrest 'cough syrup smuggler'
Police in northern Bangladesh have arrested an army major for allegedly carrying hundreds of bottles of a cough syrup which is illegal there.
Millions of drug addicts use Phensedyl, which contains codeine and is said to relax the nerves. It is also used as an alternative to alcohol, which is forbidden to the mainly Muslim population.
If abused, Phensedyl can damage the liver and central nervous system, and may kill in the long run. But thousands of bottles are smuggled across the border from India where it is legal and can be bought over the counter.
The syrup sells for around $2 (£1.3) a bottle across the border but the price goes up six- or seven-fold once it reaches Bangladeshi territory.
Millions of drug addicts use Phensedyl, which contains codeine and is said to relax the nerves. It is also used as an alternative to alcohol, which is forbidden to the mainly Muslim population.
If abused, Phensedyl can damage the liver and central nervous system, and may kill in the long run. But thousands of bottles are smuggled across the border from India where it is legal and can be bought over the counter.
The syrup sells for around $2 (£1.3) a bottle across the border but the price goes up six- or seven-fold once it reaches Bangladeshi territory.
How clipping coupons can cost you
Sometimes couponing is worthwhile, but often it has you spending more on things you don't need or want.
Also: On The Job
On The Job
Simply sending in a resumé without a personal connection isn't enough to get you hired these days.
Also: HIV study gives hope for slowing spread
Provocative new research shows treating people with the AIDS virus lowers their risk of infecting others.
Also: Tea party leader expelled
Don't you just love it when the Nazis fight amongst themselves
Internal strife erupts when Mark Williams posts an imaginary letter to Abraham Lincoln.
Also: Lunatic Fringe
Lunatic Fringe
When dealing with wingnuts ... Remember the rule:
If they accuse someone of something, then they're already guilty of it.
Liars and Fools
WingNutDaily lies: "Comrade Obama" is "a godless Marxist" and "moral degenerate".Spoken like the true godless Marxists and moral degenerates they are.
Faux's Glenn Beck lies: "My tax dollars, your tax dollars" are "going to fund the murder of children".
OK, when are we going to lock this insane madman away for ever?!
John Culberson (reptile-Texas) lies that President Obama is intentionally killing jobs in repugican areas.
Nope, you've done that all on your own - now reap what you've sown.
Mark Davis, guest host for hate radio liar Lush Dimbulb, lies that White House is disappointed by halting of Gulf oil leak.
No, that would be you and your ilk - you moron.
CNS News lies: the "Obama administration is racist ... using that racism to let black criminals off the hook" and "continues to ramp up the anti-white rhetoric".
The only 'anti' anything rhetoric is spewing out your pie holes and at a prodigious rate to boot.
Mark Davis, guest host for hate radio liar Lush Dimbulb, hypes the lie that "if you're white, you have no civil rights" according to the Obama administration's Justice Dept.
You can thank the shrub and the cabal and the over-reaction after the tower bombings for the erosion of your civil rights not the color of your skin.
Faux's Glenn Beck fearmongers about "civil unrest" in November elections because of "groups like the Black Panthers, like ACORN".
Nope, Glen ol'boy, it'll be the Aryan Brotherhood groups, the religi-o-militias, and the other assorted wingnuts on the lunatic fringe that will cause any 'unrest' in November if there is any.
Patient has eyes ripped out by roommate
A Queens man being treated for depression at a group residence was blinded by a racist behemoth who gouged out his eyes, a lawsuit alleges.
Seep on the sea floor
Anomalies near the capped well stoked a weekend clash between BP and government officials.
Also: Future uncertain after the oil spill
Many Gulf residents say they've had enough already — but "already" has just begun.
Also: 
Bacteria may deposit gold on hair
...scientists now find that bacteria can sprinkle gold dust onto the hair of corpses, which suggests microbes could deposit arsenic and other poisonous metals on bodies as well, potentially complicating criminal and archaeological investigations.
Appenzeller and his colleagues incubated samples of Appenzeller's hair for up to six months in soil from an Australian gold mine. In some experiments, this soil contained the bacterium Cupriavidus metallidurans, which thrives in environments loaded with heavy metals and can help form grains of gold.
The researchers found gold levels did not increase in the hair to any statistically significant degree when it was incubated without the microbes in naturally gold-laden soils. However, gold levels rose dramatically in the hair if the bacterium was there.
Did Toxic Bacteria Kill Alexander the Great?
According to Greek mythology, the water of the Styx River is toxic (indeed, it’s bandied about for ages as one of the things that could’ve killed Alexander the Great). But what made the water of Styx so poisonous? A new toxicological study have uncovered the reason:
"Indeed, no ancient writer ever casts doubt on the existence of a deadly poison from the Styx River," Mayor, author of the Mithradates biography "The Poison King," said.And could calicheamicin be the poison that killed Alexander the Great?
The researchers believe this mythic poison must be calicheamicin. "This is an extremely toxic, gram-positive soil bacterium and has only recently come to the attention of modern science. It was discovered in the 1980s in caliche, crusty deposits of calcium carbonate that form on limestone and is common in Greece," author Antoinette Hayes, toxicologist at Pfizer Research, told Discovery News.
Retrodiagnoses for his mysterious death have included poisoning, heavy drinking, septicemia, pancreatitis, malaria, West Nile fever, typhoid, and accidental or deliberate poisoning (hellebore, arsenic, aconite, strychnine).
"Notably, some of Alexander’s symptoms and course of illness seem to match ancient Greek myths associated with the Styx. He even lost his voice, like the gods who fell into a coma-like state after drinking from the river," Mayor said.
The poisoning diagnoses were rejected by many experts because few poisons induce fever. Furthermore, even fewer such poisons were available in Alexander’s time.
However, naturally occurring calicheamicin, which is extremely cytotoxic, could still be the culprit.
"Cytotoxins cause cell death and induce high fever, chills, and severe muscle and neurological pain. Therefore, this toxin could have caused the fever and pain that Alexander suffered," Hayes said.
Chateau Jiahu
Neolithic Beer Made From 9,000-Year-Old Recipe
If you love exotic beer, this may just be the beer for you. No, it doesn’t have fancy ingredients outside of grapes and flowers, but Chateau Jiahu by Dogfish Head Brewery is quite unique: it’s made from 9,000-year-old recipe found in a Neolithic burial site in China.It all started with biomolecular archaeology:
McGovern is a biomolecular archaeologist at the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology. He studies fermented beverages — otherwise known as booze — by analyzing the ancient pots that once held them.
"We use techniques like infrared spectrometry, gas chromatography and so forth," he explains. McGovern helps Dogfish Head revive long-dead brews by figuring out what used to be inside the ancient pottery he comes across.
About 10 years ago, he set out to find some of this primordial crockery on a trip to China. In one town, he found pottery from an early Neolithic burial site. The pieces were about 9,000 years old — as were the skeletons they were found with.
The Neolithic period, which began about 12,000 years ago, is thought to be about the time when humans started settling down, raising crops — and apparently getting a little tipsy. McGovern suspects that once humans stayed put, it didn’t take them long to discover the fermentation process that led to the world’s first alcohol.
The molecular evidence told McGovern the vessels from China once contained an alcoholic beverage made of rice, grapes, hawthorn berries, honey and chrysanthemum flowers.
"What we found is something that was turning up all over the world from these early periods," he says. "We don’t have just a wine or a beer or a mead, but we have like a combination of all three."
Khroma, the Baby Woolly Mammoth
Photo: Henri Vuillet / Puy en Velay townhall
The good news is that scientists are pretty sure that it’s free of the anthrax bacteria that killed it:
The mammoth was delayed by three weeks after concerns surfaced about the transfer of an animal that might contain lethal bacteria. Russia’s chief epidemiologist, Gennady Onishchenko, said the mammoth died of anthrax, according to Russian news reports. Russian scientists carried out further study of the risks involved, and the trip was given the go-ahead, Gorbunov said.
After arriving in France, Khroma went to a special conservation facility in Grenoble, where it underwent gamma ray treatment for eliminating any potentially lethal bacteria. The presence of anthrax could not be totally confirmed from the first studies, but the treatment was used as a precaution, said the museum’s paleontologist, Frederic Lacombat.
Bahamian Caves
They are beautiful, otherworldly, full of secrets, and can kill you. It takes bravery and special training to venture into the hydrogen sulfide atmosphere of the Bahama caves known as inland blue holes. Those who dare are looking for the chemistry of how our earth supports evolving life.Offshore flooded caves, so-called ocean blue holes, are extensions of the sea, subject to the same heavy tides and host to many of the same species found in the surrounding waters. Inland blue holes, however, are unlike any other environment on Earth, thanks largely to their geology and water chemistry. In these flooded caves, such as Stargate on Andros Island, the reduced tidal flow results in a sharp stratification of water chemistry. A thin lens of fresh water—supplied by rainfall—lies atop a denser layer of salt water. The freshwater lens acts as a lid, isolating the salt water from atmospheric oxygen and inhibiting bacteria from causing organic matter to decay. Bacteria in the zone just below the fresh water survive by exploiting sulfate (one of the salts in the water), generating hydrogen sulfide as a by-product. Known on land as swamp or sewer gas, hydrogen sulfide in higher doses can cause delirium and death.These strange but natural environments are threatened by both rising sea levels and people who use them for garbage dumps.
Also:
Could "blue holes" offer clues about the biology of extraterrestrials?
In the Bahamas' submerged inland caverns, or "blue holes," a thin layer of fresh water separates oxygen from salt water. This creates a submerged, oxygen-free environment that could resemble underground water pockets on Mars or the seas of Europa.In the blue holes of the Bahamas, the anoxic salt waters supports ecosystems that are completely unique to individual caverns. This diversity and ability to thrive in aquatic, oxygen-free environments could offer insights into both Earth's early conditions and the anatomy of extraterrestrial life that could exist within our solar system. Says astrobiologist Jenn Macalady of Penn State's Department of Geosciences:
"The universe is made of the same elements and habitable planets are likely to share many of the same characteristics, like a temperature range conducive to life and the presence of water [...] We analyzed the DNA of microbes from five inland blue holes and didn't find any shared species [...] Some of these organisms use tricks we used to think were chemically impossible [...] If we can understand precisely how these microbes are making a living, we know what to look for on oxygen-free worlds."
Snarling dogs may merely be depressed
Dogs that growl and bite people may not be hostile by nature - merely depressed, according to new research. Scientists who studied badly-behaved pets concluded that they had low levels of the "feel good" hormone serotonin. In humans, low serotonin levels are known to be linked to depression and anxiety.
The researchers hope their findings will lead to new ways of treating canine aggression, which is the most frequent behavior problem seen by vets. In the study, reported in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science, blood sample were taken from 80 dogs which had been referred to veterinary teaching hospitals after their owners reported that they had behaved aggressively towards humans. Samples from normally-behaved dogs were also taken. Tests showed that the aggressive dogs had significantly lower concentrations of serotonin in their blood – 278 units compared to 387.
The lowest readings of all were from a group of dogs whose bad behavior appeared to be an attempt at self-defense. The aggressive pets also had significantly higher levels of a second blood chemical, the "stress hormone" cortisol – 21 units compared to 10. Just what had caused the dogs to have different levels of the hormones in their blood is not known, but the findings could open the door to news ways of diagnosing and treating aggression.
The researchers, from Zaragoza university in Spain, said the results suggested that antidepressant drugs, which can raise serotonin levels in depressed humans, may be of help in treating aggressive dogs, in conjunction with other techniques to change their behavior. Mark Johnston, spokesman for the British Small Animals Veterinary Association, said, "The ability to identify dogs with lower levels of serotonin may help in identifying those dogs who could benefit from the use of pharmacology."
The researchers hope their findings will lead to new ways of treating canine aggression, which is the most frequent behavior problem seen by vets. In the study, reported in the journal Applied Animal Behavior Science, blood sample were taken from 80 dogs which had been referred to veterinary teaching hospitals after their owners reported that they had behaved aggressively towards humans. Samples from normally-behaved dogs were also taken. Tests showed that the aggressive dogs had significantly lower concentrations of serotonin in their blood – 278 units compared to 387.
The lowest readings of all were from a group of dogs whose bad behavior appeared to be an attempt at self-defense. The aggressive pets also had significantly higher levels of a second blood chemical, the "stress hormone" cortisol – 21 units compared to 10. Just what had caused the dogs to have different levels of the hormones in their blood is not known, but the findings could open the door to news ways of diagnosing and treating aggression.
The researchers, from Zaragoza university in Spain, said the results suggested that antidepressant drugs, which can raise serotonin levels in depressed humans, may be of help in treating aggressive dogs, in conjunction with other techniques to change their behavior. Mark Johnston, spokesman for the British Small Animals Veterinary Association, said, "The ability to identify dogs with lower levels of serotonin may help in identifying those dogs who could benefit from the use of pharmacology."
Caught on camera for the first time
Scientists finally track down a primate so rare and elusive it was thought to be extinct.
Also: Animal Pictures That Will Make You Smile
Animal pictures are sometimes both strange and funny. The photographers have to choose the right moments to capture their action.
Here are 20 funny animal pictures that will make you smile.
Technological Advances Your Children Will Laugh At
You may have felt cool with your Sony Walkman as a teenager but contemporary teens can fit more music onto a device smaller than a box of matches. And they don't have to flip the tape over halfway through an album.There can be little doubt: yesterday's cutting edge technology looks silly to today's children and much of today's technology will look silly to tomorrow's children.
Here's a list of 50 technological advances, past and present, that will have young people asking: 'you used to have to do what?'
40 Things You Need to Know About the Next 40 Years
1. Sophisticated Buildings Will Be Made Of Mud
2. Coral Reefs Will Be Devastated
3. The Catch of the Day? Jellyfish
4. New Cars Will Be Given Away, Free
5. Industry Will Generate Energy In Space
6. Oysters Will Save Wolves From Climate Change
7. 2,000 New Mammal Species Will Be Discovered
8. It’s Curtains For The World’s Rarest Dolphin
9. Farmers Will Plant Spinach In Tall Buildings
10. The Nation Will Meet The Tests Of The Century Ahead
11. The Heartland Will Rise Again
12. The Top U.S. Social Problem? Upward Mobility
13. By 2050, One Out Of Three U.S. Kids Will Be Latino
14. World War III Will Begin. In Space
15. Most Americans Fear For The Planet’s Health
16. Unless We Conserve, More People Will Go Hungry
17. An Ancient Grain, Fonio, Will Fight Starvation
18. Afghanistan Risks Turmoil For 40 Years
19. Glowing Squid Will Lead To New Antibiotics
20. Health Workers Will Eradicate Malaria
21. Science Could Enable A Person To Regrow A Limb
22. Astronomers Will Discover Life Beyond Earth
23. How Will We Avert The Dinosaurs’ Fate? Telescopes
24. Brain Scans Will Illuminate The Infant Mind
25. Artists Will Run The World
26. Novelists Will Need A New Plot Device
27. Everyone Will Make His Own Music
28. Secrets Will Reveal If Young JFK Was “Vacuous”
29. James Cameron Will Still Be Making Movies At 96
30. Stand-up Comedy Will No Longer Kill
31. Native American Youths Will Revive Their Culture
32. U.S.-Muslim Relations Will Improve
33. Evolution Will Continue In Reverse, Humorist Says
34. A Medical Lab Will Fit On A Postage Stamp
35. Viruses Will Help Build Machines
36. Goodbye, Stereo; Hello, Hyper-Real Acoustics
37. Electricity Will Be Harvested From Your Skin
38. Crucial Energy Will Be Generated With Mirrors
39. Your Refrigerator Will Talk To You
40. Reading Will Become An Athletic Activity
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