New federal policy aims to expand US fish farming

The federal government is moving to open up large swaths of coastal waters to fish farming for the first time in an effort to decrease Americans' dependence on imports and satisfy their growing appetite for seafood.

Full Story

Grocery stores removing self checkout lanes

 The concept is great but when anything goes wrong you have to wait for someone to come around and fix it. Finding them is usually the start to the problem. It's faster and easier to go through the old fashioned but effective lines where actual people are working.

Albertsons LLC, which operates 217 stores in seven Western and Southern states, will eliminate all self-checkout lanes in the 100 stores that have them and will replace them with standard or express lanes, a spokeswoman said.

"We just want the opportunity to talk to customers more," Albertsons spokeswoman Christine Wilcox said. "That's the driving motivation."

Wilcox said the replacement of automated checkout lanes with human-operated lanes likely would mean more hours available for employees to work.

Dirty Secrets of Supermarket Tomatoes

 

To-may-to, to-mah-to … fruit, vegetable – whatever you call it, one thing’s for sure: people love it. But if you have only tasted tomatos bought from the supermarket shelves, you’re missing out on flavor.

Barry Estabrook of Politics of the Plate blog has the inside story of the dirty little secrets of supermarket tomato over at NPR:

… the tomatoes you see in those supermarkets have been bred for high yields and durability, not flavor. "As a farmer once said — an honest farmer — ‘I don’t get paid a cent for flavor,’" Estabrook says.
There’s an even darker side to the modern commercial tomato, too, he says. Up until recently, workers on many of Florida’s vast industrial tomato farms were basically slaves. "People being bought and sold like animals," Estabrook says. "People being shackled in chains. People being beaten for either not working hard enough, fast enough, or being too weak or sick to work. People actually being shot and killed for trying to escape. That sounds like 1850’s slavery to me, and that, in fact, is going on, or has gone on."
Estabrook adds that there have been seven successful slavery prosecutions in Florida in the past 15 years.

Full Story

Awesome Pictures

The science of happiness

Although genetics help determine your sense of well being, life choices and goals play an important part as well.

Measuring happiness is a tricky business. Still, that hasn't stopped individuals and institutions from trying to gauge how happy people…

Read More

New genetic clues for schizophrenia

De novo mutations – genetic errors that are present in patients but not in their parents – are more frequent in schizophrenic patients than in normal individuals, according to an international group of scientists led by Dr. Guy A. Rouleau of the University of Montreal and CHU Sainte-Justine Hospital. The discovery, published today in Nature [...]

New genetic clues for schizophrenia

Holes in fossil bones reveal dinosaur activity

New research from the University of Adelaide has added to the debate about whether dinosaurs were cold-blooded and sluggish or warm-blooded and active. Professor Roger Seymour from the University’s School of Earth & Environmental Sciences has applied the latest theories of human and animal anatomy and physiology to provide insight into the lives of dinosaurs. [...]

Holes in fossil bones reveal dinosaur activity

Ziggy

A turn of a phrase

Fair to middling

Meaning

Slightly above average.

Origin

'Fair to middling' comes to the party with two friends, fair to middlin' and fair to midland. Both of these gatecrashers derive from the original phrase, but in different ways. Fair to middlin' is just a colloquial version written in the way that the expression is often spoken, in mid-west America at least, which, as we will see, is where the expression originated.

Fair to midland is an odder fish and comes from the mispronunciation of 'middling' as 'midland'. The question is, why would anyone do that? It could be just a simple mistake, although that seems unlikely as 'fair to midland' doesn't really mean anything. More likely is that it was the result of a deliberate jokey mispronunciation, along the lines of san fairy Ann, taking the Miguel etc. This could have originated in the English Midlands. It is widely used there and the English are inveterate 'accidentally on purpose' mispronouncers - Cockney Rhyming Slang is an entire dialect built along those lines. In the case of 'fair to midland', the origin is more likely to be the USA, specifically Texas, the reference being to that state's city of Midland. The earliest printed citation of 'fair to midland' that I can find comes from The New York Times, May 1935:

Dr. William Tweddell, who is what might be called a fair-to-Midland golfer...

The current usage of the expression is predominantly American and has been boosted by the popularity of the US hard rock band that has adopted it as its name.

As to the original version of the phrase 'fair to middling', that is also of American origin. 'Middling' was and is a term used by farmers to describe the quality of farm produce, especially sheep. There were several loosely defined grades of produce: 'good', 'fair, 'middling', 'ordinary' and 'poor'.

'Middling' is an old Scots word and has been in use since at least the 15th century with the same meaning as now, that is, 'of medium or moderate size, strength, quality'. Around 1450, the Marquis of Bute wrote the Dictionary of the Older Scottish Tongue, which includes what appears to be the earliest example of 'middling' in print:

'The ynch sulde be with the thoum off midling mane nother our mikil nor our litil bot be tuyx the twa'.

I interpret that Old Scots text as meaning 'The inch should be measured with the thumb near the middle, neither at the largest point nor the smallest but between the two' but, if there are any old Scots out there who know better, I would be happy to be enlightened.

'Fair' was used in the UK from the 18th century onward to describe farm produce. An example of that usage is found in John Mortimer's farming handbook The Whole Art of Husbandry, 1707:

As you gather your Fruit, separate the fairest and biggest from the middling.

These farming terms traveled to America with the early Scottish and English settlers. Like sailors who, when they needed finer designations of direction than North, East South and West, came up with South-west, North-east etc., farmers needed a name for 'not quite fair but better than average' and they opted for 'fair to middling'. The earliest uses of the expression all come from the USA, as does this example from an 1829 edition of John Stuart Skinner's farming journal The American Farmer:

Two or three lots of good wethers [castrated rams] brought from $2.50 a 3 per head, and a few lots of fair to middling, $1.50 a 2.

Farmers didn't stop there and came up with other intermediate grades, like 'good fair'. Needing finer and finer classifications of quality, they again followed the sailors' lead and copied their 'North-north-east' style. In 1873, Beeton's Dictionary of Commerce described a delivery of cotton as:

Good fair to good saw-ginned Surat cotton.

Ten Fascinating Facts About Phone Numbers

 

image credit

You probably dial a few of them every day, but do you ever stop and think about the history behind a phone number? When were the first numbers introduced? How did you end up with a particular area code?

Here are 10 fascinating facts that you might not know about the common phone number.

Lazy Housekeeper Mop Slippers

Lazy Housekeeper Mop Slippers.

Lazy housekeepers rejoice! Instead of wasting your time with the dust broom, you can just wear these Mop Slippers every day and they'll sweep up dust bunnies while you shuffle back and forth from the couch to the fridge. Great for bachelors, college students and obsessive multitaskers.

Random Photos

Is it just me or is this photo a little bit disturbing ... I mean look at all those Disney masks!

The Witches’ Market

Take a visit to the Mercado de Hechecería, or The Witches’ Market in La Paz, Bolivia. But be prepared for what you will find.

We stepped inside one of the stores to get a closer look. Note: this is serious, sacred business to the people who shop and work here, and irony-seeking tourists aren’t exactly appreciated. But after we made a “contribution”, the elderly owner of the store, Dominga, agreed to answer our questions and let us take pictures of her wares.
Of course, we went straight to the dead baby llamas; their hollow eyes and ghastly, grimaced mouths beckoned us. The rows and rows of llama corpses, in stages of development ranging from fetus to toddler, are by far the most disturbing image in the Witches’ Market. Dominga explained that burning these corpses is a powerful way to bless a home, or improve a sick person’s health. Sometimes, they’re buried underneath the lot of a new house.
The llamas are what most tourists stop to take pictures of, and Dominga seemed to disapprove of our morbid fascination with them. She directed our attention to other, more cheerful items.

See some of those cheerful items, but be aware that there are pictures of the llamas as well at For 91 Days.

Icelandic Elves

Nothing worse than a bunch of angry elves: Icelandic town hopes angry elves have been soothed by songs.

It is hoped that elves and hidden people around the north-western Icelandic town of Bolungarvik will start to calm down again following their recent dangerous pranks and humans’ subsequent efforts to appease them.
Local residents sang songs and said prayers in honor of the peeved hidden folk and elves this week in an effort to smooth ruffled feathers. Dynamiting began again midweek following a nasty incident, reported here, where rocks and soil rained down on Bolungarvik.
Some people pointed the finger of blame on angry elves who had finally snapped. The dynamiting for the town’s new avalanche defense barrier comes less than a year after a new road tunnel through the Oshlid hill was completed — neither of which with the prior blessing of the hidden people.
Seers requested the Bolungarvik municipal government make a full apology to the hidden people and elves for the disturbance the avalanche barrier and tunnel have caused them.

Apparently, many Iceland residents actually believe in elves.

Expression of belief in huldufólk or "hidden folk", the elves that dwell in rock formations, is common in Iceland. If the natives do not explicitly express their belief, they are often reluctant to express disbelief.

Nighttime look inside Alcatraz

Creepy nighttime look inside Alcatraz

Visitors get a rare sundown tour of the notorious prison that once housed Al Capone.  

See the eerie images 

Also: 

• Bulger's new plea
• Girlfriend seeks bail
• Jailer taken hostage

Sun dog

A "double sunset"

Photo from Paul Douglas' On Weather blog:

I took this photo a few days ago (with my trusty new Olympus SZ-30 MR), showing a spectacular example of a "sun dog". An example of parhelia, sun dogs are triggered by sunlight being refracted (bent) off hexagonal ice crystals about 25,000 feet above the ground. Cirrus clouds act as billions of microscopic prisms, bending white light into the colors of the rainbow. Pretty cool.

B.C.

Upping the cute factor

Baths' algae fuels biodiesel hopes

Algae growing in Bath's Roman Baths could one day be used to make fuel for our cars, scientists have claimed.

Baths' algae fuels biodiesel hopes

Species Placed in Simulator of Earth's Future Climate

 

Photo: { pranav } / cc

If the projections of countless scientists are correct, the climate of this planet will be markedly different by the end of this century -- but for a group of plants and animals, that future is now. A team of biologists have undertaken an unprecedented experiment to see how species native to the Amazon rainforest will fare in changing climates by subjecting them to conditions that mimic the hotter, more polluted world that may be on its way.

Article continues: Species Placed in Simulator of Earth's Future Climate

Via Treehugger

Jellyfish Cause 4 Nuclear Reactor Shutdowns

Four reactors in Japan, Scotland and Israel were recently shutdown after jellyfish blocked the screens used to filter out the seawater needed to cool down the reactors. Apparently there have been dozens of similar shut downs over the last few decades and scientists still are struggling to figure out why there has been such a large increase in the jellyfish population.

Full Story

I have faced wild buffalo, elephants and lions but I will never cross another Scottish cow

A safari guide who faced down lions and elephants is lucky to be alive after she was flattened...by a herd of Scots cows.

I have faced wild buffalo, elephants and lions but I will never cross another Scottish cow

Bear Caught Napping with Fish

This photograph was taken by Rick Sheremeta, who tells us about the shot.

On a recent photo trip to Alaska’s McNeil River, I spent four days observing and photographing Brown Bears. The bears routine became pretty obvious – they’d fish for a while until their bellies were full, then they’d wander off into the grass for a little nap. This ole gal never quite got that far – after snaring this salmon, she wandered into a shallow pool at the side of the river, cradled the fish under her arm, and promptly nodded off. It was really comical to see her just sitting there sound asleep.

It’s an entry in the 2011 National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest, which is still open for entries, but only through July 11th! Find out all about the contest at National Geographic Traveler.

Animal Pictures

The Daily Drift

The Daily Drift

Today's horoscope says:
Right now your career doesn't just require that you put in time and energy while you're actually at work.
You have to go above and beyond to truly succeed in the position you're in.
You might not realize the level of responsibility you've been given, but a lot of people have a lot of faith in you.
To ensure that you don't disappoint yourself or anyone else, put in a little bit of extra effort and go the extra mile.

Some of our readers today have been in:

 Warsaw, Mazowieckie, Poland
Geneva, Geneve, Switzerland
Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
Nice, Provenece-Alpes-Cote D'Azur, France
Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Amsterdam, Noord-Holland, Netherlands
London, England, United Kingdom
Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan, Malaysia

Alicante, Comunidad Valenciana, Spain
Rome, Lazio, Italy
Graz, Steiermark, Austria
Milan, Lombardia, Italy
Katowice, Slaskie, Poland
Docking, England, United Kingdom
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 Dana Point, Doylestown, Durham, Daytona and more.

Today is:

Today is Sunday, July 10, the 191st day of 2011.

There are 174 days left in the year.

Today's unusual holiday or celebration is:

Don't Step On A Bee Day.

Don't forget to visit our sister blog!

Rennie Adoption Manual

Before getting to the news of the day we thought we would re-post one of our most popular posts - The Rennie Adoption Manual:

Congratulations on your decision to adopt a Rennie!

Many of these fascinating creatures are in need of good homes where they will be loved and cared for. While keeping a Rennie can be expensive, time-consuming, and sometimes confusing, the results can be well worth all the effort. A well turned out Rennie who is happy and healthy is amazing to watch in action. The guidelines below will help you care for your new charge, but they are only guidelines. Every Rennie is quite unique and you should get to know your Rennie's personal quirks, preferences and skills.

Introduction

The most important step in caring for your Rennie is selecting the right one. Rennies come in many varieties. You will find them of both sexes, and in every imaginable size, color, age, health and plumage. But, far more important than their physical differences are the differences in their personalities. Every Rennie has a very unique set of skills, preferences and attitudes, and you need to take these into consideration as you make your choice.

If you have a nervous condition, a Daredevil Rennie is not for you. Likewise, do not adopt a Fighter Rennie unless you have a large yard in which he or she can chase around other Rennies with a sword. If you have small children in the house, you might prefer to adopt a Rennie other than the Arms Collector, and if you like your nights silent, keep in mind that Stitching Rennies are known to stay up quite late, whirring away at their machines, punctuated by occasional loud bouts of cursing.

Food & Drink

Once you have selected a Rennie and brought him or her home, your first concern may be, "What do I feed this strange creature?" Luckily, most Rennies are not picky about what they eat, and indeed, will consume with relish most anything you offer them. Do not be afraid to offer your Rennie exotic or strange foods. They have a highly evolved sense of adventure and will likely at least try whatever it is. Keep in mind, that through some strange quirk, your Rennie will enjoy almost any food more if it is presented on a stick.

Your Rennie requires large quantities of water. Your Rennie will want large quantities of liquor. There is a very fine balance between the two that you must find to keep your Rennie (and in cases of more belligerent Rennies, yourself) happy and healthy.

Rennies are very affectionate creatures, and will often cuddle and love on you for treats. Favorite treats tend towards chocolate or nice liquor, though your Rennie may have different favorites. Recently, several varieties of Rennie have devolved a taste for Sushi, so you may wish to try that as well.

Sleep

While your Rennie may seem to have inexhaustible supplies of energy, they need a good nights sleep like any other creature. When they are having fun, but are exhausted, usually at the end of a faire day, they may behave much like a 4-year-old, insisting on staying up and playing, "just a few more minutes." It is advised that you be firm with your Rennie and insist that they come home and go to bed. It is also advised that this will almost never work, and when it does, Rennie goodbyes have been know to take upwards to two hours at a large gathering. Sit down near the door and have another drink.

Grooming

Rennies take great joy in grooming both themselves and others and can take hours to prepare in the morning. Rennie females, in particular will often need the help of others in preparing for the day. While they may seem inconsequential or frivolous to you, each pin, knot, and accessory is very important to your Rennie. When your Rennie is being slow in the morning, exhortations of "Hurry up!" will not speed matters along. "What can I hold/tie/pin/pull/lace?" will work much more efficiently.

That being said, by the end of that self-same day, your Rennie may be unrecognizably dirty, disheveled and grungy, though likely quite happy. While Rennies appreciate and enjoy a shower or bath every day, like sleep, this is not always something they feel is required. If your Rennie shows no inclination to bathe after a long day, helping them undress and drawing a bath or starting the shower for them may encourage them to get clean.

Please note that your Rennie will take great joy in all their clothing and accessories, and will constantly want to be adding to the horde. Every once in a while, please go through all your Rennies "garb" with them and help them to let go of pieces they no longer wear. Promising to donate the pieces to another Rennie will help ease the pain of separation, as will offering to replace it with something the Rennie likes better. New garb can work as a treat even better than chocolate or liquor.

Under no circumstances get rid of anything from a Rennies garb without their knowledge and permission unless you want your sweet happy Rennie to instantly transform into Furious Rabid Fighter Rennie and attempt to take of your head.

Communicating with Your Rennie

Rennies are extremely intelligent, and will likely understand everything you say, possibly in several languages. It is far more likely that you will not understand your Rennie when they are speaking in BFA, Gaelic, Romany or some other obscure or not so obscure language. Also, they can get quite animated when speaking about their favorite hobbies or most history. The correct response to almost anything from, "I can't do French seams in the gussets in that camica because the twill is too thick to turn twice," to "Henry VIII and Cardinal Richelieu weren't even alive at the same time, and France and England were at war in 1620! They can't put the Musketeers in England!!!!" is a nodding of the head and saying, "Yes, yes, of course.

There are two terms your Rennie may use frequently that you will need to be familiar with right off. The first is a loud exclamation of "HUZZAH!" This is a Rennie sound of joy and excitement, something you wish to hear often. The second is "privy." Your Rennie is asking where the bathroom is, and you'd best show them quickly unless you want to be cleaning up Rennie messes. Eliminating in garb can be a difficult and time consuming process.

All other terms can usually be picked up with familiarity.

Your Rennie and Play

Rennies have a highly devoloped sense of play and will often play any opportunity they get. The idea of what is play varies greatly from one Rennie to the next, though they will almost always be happier to play in groups. Some may enjoy contact juggling, some fencing, some equestrian pursuits, some computer games. However nearly all Rennies, whether or not they are skilled, thoroughly enjoy the arts of Music and Flirting. Given a good tune and the opportunity to sing, stomp or clap along, most Rennies will be quite happy. Likewise, what may seem to the untrained observer as heavy duty sexual harassment is usually two Rennies who have missed each other's company greeting one another. Unless your Rennie looks truly upset, it is better to leave him or her alone in these situations. See more under the Breeding section.

Your Rennie also loves toys. Amongst Rennies, favored toys may be sharp, shiny, pointy, sparkly, made of wood, leather, metal, pottery or fur. Get to know your Rennie to discover his or her particular preferences.

Illness, Injury, and Keeping Your Rennie Healthy

For some reason not yet determined by modern science, Rennies seem to have a slightly greater concentration of diseases, which range from irritating to debilitating, than those not of the breed. Common ailments can include hypoglycemia, fibromyalgia, MS, diabetes, osteoporosis and a range of bum knees, trick elbows and the like. These will likely only slow your Rennie down, not stop them completely. Your Rennie and others around him or her are usually well advised on the maladies in the group and will band together to take care of one of their number that is ill or injured, so that they can all return to the fun as soon as possible.

An injured Rennie is for some reason fairly happy. They do like to show off gruesome scars and talk about their gory wounds. Should your Rennie become injured, your best course of action is to simply dress the wound, give them a drink of water and then your Rennie will go back to whatever it was doing. Except in the cases of extreme injury, they tend to be a hardy breed.

To keep your Rennie as healthy as possible, make sure that he or she drinks plenty of water, gets lots of rest and exercise and limit their consumption of fried food on a stick. Keep the supplies for dealing with heat stroke, sunburn, dehydration and hypothermia on hand, as these are the most frequent complaints. Make your Rennie wear sunscreen. He or she will protest this. Make them do it anyway. Make them reapply frequently and when they get burned anyway, make them put on Aloe gel. They will protest this as well. Insist. While Rennies are extremely intelligent, sometimes they're not very smart.

Breeding your Rennie

Nearly all Rennies love children, whether or not they have one of their own. They like to play with children, talk to children and show children things that interest them as adults. The adult Rennies overdeveloped sense of play makes them perfect companions for children, barring a tendency amongst the entire breed to curse. A Rennie child very nearly is raised by a village and may have dozens of Aunties and Uncles not related to them by blood scattered all over the continent.

Despite decades of observation by many interested parties, no one has yet determined a successful program for breeding Rennies. Their sense of high drama, passionate natures, and overly affectionate friendships have clouded the issue so deeply that it is still a mystery how they manage to breed at all. So, should you wish to breed your Rennie, it is suggested that you adopt an already mated pair. Even that is no guarantee of success.

You Rennie may have its own ideas about breeding. The best course of action to take should this happen is to stand back and observe your Rennie closely. In the event of a heartbreak step in and feed your Rennie his or her favorite treats. While this will probably not heal your Rennie, it will make them more pleasant to be around until they find another potential mate.

Conclusion

While the above may make adopting a Rennie seem daunting, it is an enterprise with great rewards. They are attractive, affectionate creatures, who will brighten your life for many years to come. Thank you for your interest.

Telling it like it is

Telling it like it is:

"If you’re a working-class American who still votes Republican ... you’re stupid" 

~ Bill Maher

Batshit Crazy Bachmann

Michele 'Batshit Crazy' Bachmann Salutes the Upside to Slavery

Michele Bachmann's Family Values, circa 1861. Say what you will about slavery, at least the 'peculiar institution' kept Black families intact. 

That’s according to a “marriage pledge” signed recently by the repugican presidential joke Michele 'Batshit Crazy' Bachmann. Bachmann’s grasp of American history has never been firm, particularly when it comes to slavery.

Full Story

***

Michele 'Batshit Crazy' Bachmann: The John Wayne of political lies

Whether making the round of Sunday morning talk shows, giving the tea party response to President Obama's State of the Union address, or announcing her own presidential candidacy, Michele 'Batshit Crazy' Bachmann does one thing consistently - lie.

Full Story

Paper's final front page

Scandalized paper prints final edition

The News of the World pays tribute to its 7.5 million readers with an unusually low-key message.

  'We lost our way' 

Also: 

• Hacking crisis grows
• Police: Hacking cover-up
• Murdoch supports Brooks

Murdoch’s UK paper deleted millions of emails

Not good.

Why is Rebekah Brooks still working for Rupert Murdoch?

Police are investigating evidence that a News International executive may have deleted millions of emails from an internal archive in an apparent attempt to obstruct Scotland Yard's inquiry into the phone-hacking scandal.

The archive is believed to have reached back to January 2005, revealing daily contact between News of the World editors, reporters and outsiders, including private investigators. The messages are potentially highly valuable both for the police and for the numerous public figures who are suing News International (NI).

According to legal sources close to the police inquiry, a senior executive is believed to have deleted "massive quantities" of the archive on two separate occasions, leaving only a fraction to be disclosed. One of the alleged deletions is said to have been made at the end of January, just as Scotland Yard was launching Operation Weeting, its new inquiry into the affair. The allegation directly contradicts NI claims that it is co-operating fully with police in order to expose its history of illegal news gathering.

Epic Fail

Forty killed in Mexico in 24-hour period

Battles between the vicious Zetas gang and other drug cartels killed more than 40 people in a 24-hour span, a government official said Saturday.

Full Story

Experts expect more Missouri River levee failures

Several hundred thousand acres of rich Midwestern farmland and even some urban areas near the Missouri River are at risk of flooding this summer during months of historically high water that experts fear will overwhelm some levees, especially older ones.Engineers who have studied past floods say the earthen levees in rural areas are at greater ...

Full Story

Non Sequitur

The First Synthetic Trachea Transplant

Swedish surgeons at Karolinska University Hospital have successfully grown a donor free trachea and transplanted it into a patient, who is now recovering and doing well. The organ was created using the patients own stem cells, which were harvested from his bone marrow, and was grown in just two days. Using stem cells in this manner means the body is less likely to reject the organ, and lab grown organs could be grown as needed, in a very short amount of time.

Read more about the future of medicine over at PopSci.

World War II Bombers May Have Affected The Weather

Climatologists have found that the bomber planes used in World War II may have changed the temperature of the ground below with the contrails they left in their wake. Contrails are air vapor trails left by certain aircraft, and they affect climate by trapping heat below like a thermal barrier while reflecting incoming solar heat back up into the atmosphere. Research has shown that, by measuring the contrail information which was tracked by pilots, climatologists can measure the effect they had on global climate.

Full Story

Is the Universe Spinning?

The consequences of a spinning universe would be profound because a cornerstone of modern cosmology is that the universe has no preferred orientation.  

Read more 

Awesome Pictures

Ten reasons to go on all-cash diet

'Reasons I'm cancelling my credit cards'

One personal-finance writer declares he's going on an all-cash diet — for good.  

Say goodbye to debt 

Also: 

• $300K in credit cards
• Consumers spending less
• Best bargains of 2011

U.S. cities brace for baby boomers

American cities are finding creative ways to accommodate the coming crush of older adults.  

School bus for seniors 

Also: 

• More on baby boomers
• Medicare in debt talks
• Author's clear message

Best places to retire abroad

Most alluring places to retire abroad

Retired couples can live comfortably for cheap at eight terrific spots outside the U.S.

One as low as $750 a month 

Also: 

• Five tax-friendly states
• Forming a retirement plan
• Savings near all-time high

Unemployed for 99 weeks

Unemployed for 99 weeks or even more

Mary Kay Coyne used to earn $70,000, but she's been without a job for three long years.  

Her 1,862nd job application 

Also: 

• 'Ugly ugly' jobs report
• Americans borrow more
• Obama's reaction to jobs

Jobs to prep for in two years

Careers you can prepare for in two years

The demand for dental assistants is expected to grow 36% in the next seven years. 

  Earning potential in five fields 

Also: 

• Most valuable degrees
• Top entry-level careers
• U.S. college rankings

Homes that $1 million buys

What $1 million gets homebuyers today

For the cost of three bedrooms in one city, you could have nearly triple the space in another.

Plus $100K left over 

Also: 

• Bubble's lasting effect
• Priciest house markets
• Best places to live

Ziggy

America's most ticketed cars

Cars that attract the most traffic tickets

Some of the vehicles that get the most police attention are innocent-looking sedans.  

No. 1 is expensive and fast 

Also: 

• Future of sports cars
• Overpriced 2011 autos
• Biggest car-buying ripoffs

Attorney Hunting Regulations.

(Regulation 370)
Sec 370.01 Any person with a valid in-state rodent or snake hunting license may also hunt and harvest attorneys for recreational and sporting (non-commercial) purposes.

Sec 370.02 If an attorney gains elective office, it is not necessary to have a license to hunt, trap, bag, shoot or possess same.

Sec 370.03 Taking of attorneys with traps or deadfalls is permitted. The use of United States currency as bait, however, is prohibited.

Sec 370.04 Stuffed or mounted attorneys must have a state health department inspection for rabies and vermin.

Sec 370.05 The willful killing of attorneys with a motor vehicle is prohibited, unless such vehicle is an ambulance being driven in reverse. If an attorney is accidentally struck by a motor vehicle, the dead attorney should be removed to the road side and the vehicle should proceed immediately to the nearest car wash.

Sec 370.06 It is unlawful to chase, herd or harvest attorneys from a power boat, helicopter or aircraft.

Sec 370.07 It is unlawful to shout, "WHIPLASH," "AMBULANCE," or "FREE SCOTCH" for the purposes of trapping attorneys.

Sec 370.08 It is unlawful to hunt attorneys within 100 yards of BMW, Mercedes or Porsche dealerships except on Wednesday afternoons.

Sec 370.09 It is unlawful to hunt attorneys within 200 yards of courtrooms, law libraries, health clubs, country clubs, hospitals or brothels, except on Saturdays and Sundays.

Sec 370.10 Use of any type killing device is legal including shotguns with the choke removed, high powered rifles, handguns of any caliber, all types and kinds of game traps and snares. Poisoning, however, is prohibited because of the danger to rattlesnakes, coyotes and skunks.

Sec 370.11 It is unlawful to wear a disguise such as a reporter, drug dealer, pimp, female legal clerk, sheep, accident victim, bookie, physician, chiropractor or tax accountant for the purpose of hunting attorneys.

Bag and Possession Limits, per day:

Yellow-bellied sidewinders - 2

Two-faced tortfeasors - 1

Back-stabbing divorce litigators - 3

Horn-rimmed cut-throats - 2

Minutiae-advocating dirtbags - 4

NOTE: Honest attorneys are protected under the Endangered Species Act. Honest attorneys can be identified by their drab plumage, as they do not wear Rolex watches, drive Porsches, BMWs or other expensive luxury automobiles, or wear $500 shoes or $1500 suits. If you can find one that is.

Terrorist Alert!

A group of terrorists burst into the conference room at the Ramada Hotel where the American Bar Association was holding its Annual Convention.

More than a hundred attorneys were taken as hostages.

The terrorist leader threatened that, unless their demands were met, they would release one attorney every hour.

All Four Members Of The Beatles Arrested For Burglary In Merseyside

All four members of The Beatles have been arrested in Merseyside? 

Well, that's what we thought when we read that  George John Paul Ringo Hughes has been charged with six burglaries in Merseyside.

All Four Members Of The Beatles Arrested For Burglary In Merseyside

Say what!

From the "This is fucked up" Department:

A man tries to cash chase bank check in a chase bank; gets arrested

Trucker charged with murder in deadly buggy crash

Authorities say the driver of a tractor-trailer that crashed into a horse-drawn buggy in southern Kentucky, killing a young Amish girl and injuring three members of her family, has been charged with murder.

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Mormons Have Jesus Arrested

In Utah: Homeless man charged with stalking Mormon church president.

A homeless man was charged Friday with stalking the president of The cult of jesus christ of latter-day saints. Benjamin Tucker Staples, 36, was charged with stalking, a class A misdemeanor.
Salt Lake police officers were called to the LDS cult office building, 50 E. North Temple, on July 5 after receiving a report of a trespasser. Officers were told Staples had been to the building about five times since June 25 asking to speak with President Thomas S. Monson.
Staples was "told on every prior appearance that he is not to return to the premises," the charges filed in 3rd District Court state. "Each prior incident, the defendant was arrested and booked into the jail."
Staples, who has the alias of "Jesus Christ" listed in the Salt Lake County Jail booking information, told officers "he intends to keep returning to the offices" until he meets President Monson, the charges state.
Each time, he refused to leave voluntarily, "choosing instead to be arrested by police," according to the charges.

That's exactly what Jesus would have done.

It's kind of odd that members of a cult that will believe any absurd thing they're told, don't believe this man is Jesus.

The Cult of Scientology threatens to sue for being called a cult

The cult of Scientology is threatening to sue a volunteer organisation for publishing a brochure it claims labels the cult a ''cult''.

But the Cult Information and Family Support (CIFS) group, which helps victims of cults and their families, refuses to bow to the demands of the Scientologists, saying they will continue their ''humanitarian support work''.

The brochure advertises the support group's national conference in Brisbane next month and quotes one of the speakers, Senator Nick Xenophon, from a speech in Parliament in 2009 in which he labelled Scientology a criminal organization.

The brochure contains allegations from that speech that members of Scientology had experienced ''blackmail, torture and violence, labour camps and forced imprisonment and coerced abortions''.

But in a legal letter, the Scientology lawyer, Kevin Rodgers, of Sydney firm Brock Partners, said the brochure was ''grossly defamatory of [the cult of Scientology], its officers and parishioners''.

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California oddity's creator ordered jailed by judge

The eccentric creator of a Mojave Desert compound of whimsical buildings known as Phonehenge West was jailed Friday for failing to obey an order to cut electricity and keep guests out of the illegal structures.

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Woman beat husband with basket of knives

An estranged wife attacked her husband with a “basket of pocket knives” inside the home they formerly shared in Springfield, New Jersey.

Kathleen Patricia Shearn, 52, is charged with aggravated assault, simple assault and criminal mischief. Police said she was not allowed at the home as a bail condition on charges she assaulted her husband with a fork in May.

Police said that Eric Shearn said his wife and he were arguing in the house when she began destroying things inside the home. Shearn told officers his wife no longer lives in the house. Shearn told officers his wife hit him in the head with a basket of pocket knives. She then got in her car and drove it onto the lawn, tearing up the turf, and then left.

That’s when Shearn called police. But his wife returned before troopers got there, broke an end table on his head and left again. Police said they found the home in disarray and Shearn had cuts and a lump on his head. After an arraignment before District Judge Kay Dubree, Shearn was sent to county prison and released.

Hitler's hometown revokes his honorary citizenship

The Austrian town of Braunau, Adolf Hitler's birthplace, has revoked the Nazi dictator's honorary citizenship -- even if he never actually was awarded one.

Hitler's hometown revokes his honorary citizenship

Advertising Crap

Bacon Sandwich Really Does Cure A Hangover

 

image credit

Is there anything bacon can't do? A bacon sandwich really does cure a hangover - by boosting the level of amines which clear the head, scientists have found. Researchers claim food also speeds up the metabolism helping the body get rid of the booze more quickly.

Elin Roberts, of Newcastle University's Centre for Life said: Food doesn't soak up the alcohol but it does increase your metabolism helping you deal with the after-effects of over indulgence. So food will often help you feel better.

Top sandwiches for summer

Sandwiches to spice up your summer

From a mouth-watering melt to a unique panini, these fresh combos will boost any bag lunch.

Ingredients you'll need 

Also: 

• Lemonade with a twist
• Party dips and appetizers
• Food festivals to attend

There's nothing fancy about this tomato-and-mayo combo, but it may be the best thing you eat all season. 

Truth is ...

Balestrino

The Gorgeous Ghost Town of Europe

Photo: bluestardrop – Andrea Mucelli [Flickr]

Balestrino, Italy, has got to be the most picturesque ghost town I’ve ever seen. Read all about that and 7 other ghost towns in Europe over at Bootsnall:

Balestrino is a very curious case of ghost town particularly because it’s hard to find information about the city. Records date back to the 11th century when the city was owned by the Benedictine abbey of San Pietro dei Monti. In late 19th century the area was struck by a series of earthquakes, although it’s not sure how they affected the city. Records show repairs being done in the city at about the same time. Finally, in 1953 the town was abandoned. About 400 inhabitants left moved to a safer area (to the west) where the city still exists.

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