Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 2008 Election Early

This is brilliant... props to Karl for passing it on....

Diebold Accidentally Leaks Results Of 2008 Election Early

The More Things Change

One of the reasons I don't expect a lot from the presidential election south of the border. (thanks and a shout-out to Lila for showing me this...)

Energy Crisis? What Energy Crisis?

Here's an interesting fact:
Each day, the US Air Force hauls 3.7 million pounds of fuel above Iraq and Afghanistan daily to refuel aircraft in flight.

More Wierdness from the World's Oceans

Now that we've seen the Yeti crab, "Giant sea creatures, including sea spiders the size of dinner plates and jellyfish with six-metre long tentacles, have been found by Australian scientists in the deep waters around Antarctica.
Huge worms and giant crustaceans have been filmed during an expedition which
trawled the floor of the Southern Ocean almost a mile below the
surface. Many of the animals could not be identified and are to be sent
to labs, possibly to be classed as newly discovered species."[The Guardian]
the expedition was lead by Dr. Martin Riddle, and found some fascinating creatures:

Brightly coloured coralline, bryozoans and
sponges sit on the ocean floor at a depth of about 600 metres (1970
feet) on the Antarctic continental shelf are shown in this handout
image made available on February 19, 2008. Scientists studying
Antarctic waters have filmed and captured giant sea creatures and an
unknown species of sea life. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)


Animals known as tunicates which
look like metre-tall glass tulips sit on the ocean floor at a depth of
about 220 metres (722 feet) on the Antarctic continental shelf are
shown in this handout image made available on February 19, 2008.
(Xinhua/Reuters Photo)


Sponges, gorgonians and lace
corals sit on the ocean floor at a depth of about 400 metres (1310
feet) on the Antarctic continental shelf in this handout image made
available on February 19, 2008. (Xinhua/Reuters Photo)

(all images from the Xinhua website) The CBC's coverage is roughly similar.You can get an idea of what the Collaborative East Antarctic Marine Census is up to in this PDF. And the CAML (Census of Antarctic Marine Life) website has some interesting video footage as well.

We are in the middle of the International Polar Year: "The International Polar Year is a large scientific programme focused on the Arctic and the Antarctic from March 2007 to March 2009."

There's some video footage here, and the Australian Antarctic Division press release is here.

Still Trust Doctors and Drug Companies?

Maybe you should read this blog.Dr. Aubrey Blumsohn savages bad science and drug trials (which appear to often be the same thing), on a regular basis.Very much worth keeping in touch with.

Commercial time!

the UK seems to get some of the best commercials, like this one from Greenpeace UK.

I suppose you already knew this

But I sure didn't. Ian Sample, writing in The Guardian on Thursday, November 30th 2006 (and updated October 11th 2007), writes about the 2000-year-old computer salvaged from a Roman shipwreck that has been reconstructed. Turns out to be a highly sophisticated astronomical calendar "capable of tracking with remarkable precision the position of the sun, several heavenly bodies and the phases of the moon." It is suggested that it dates back to 150-100 BCE and, among other things, can track the irregular orbit of the moon. A truly fascinating story and mind-bending discovery.

Global Warming: Nine Things that Will Put us Over the Edge

Yup. We're screwed.



Global Warming: Nine Things that Will Put us Over the Edge

By Steve Connor, The Independent UK. Posted February 8, 2008.

Irreversible changes

* Arctic sea ice: some scientists believe that the tipping point for the total loss of summer sea ice is imminent.

* Greenland ice sheet: total melting could take 300 years or more but the tipping point that could see irreversible change might occur within 50 years.

* West Antarctic ice sheet: scientists believe it could unexpectedly collapse if it slips into the sea at its warming edges.

* Gulf Stream: few scientists believe it could be switched off completely this century but its collapse is a possibility.

* El Niño: the southern Pacific current may be affected by warmer seas, resulting in far-reaching climate change.

* Indian monsoon: relies on temperature difference between land and sea, which could be tipped off-balance by pollutants that cause localized cooling.

* West African monsoon: in the past it has changed, causing the greening of the Sahara, but in the future it could cause droughts.

* Amazon rainforest: a warmer world and further deforestation may cause a collapse of the rain supporting this ecosystem.

* Boreal forests: cold-adapted trees of Siberia and Canada are dying as temperatures rise.

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No Idea

if this is for real. Lord knows, it sounds like most Canadian Conservative politicians, but who can tell if it's a set up or for real? Judge for yourself (warning, unrestrained laughter or tears may result from viewing this video).



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