Bill's Blog

Richard Wolff: Capitalism Hits the Fan

2012-01-02T09:52:00.000-08:00

This is the most informative discussion on our economic situation that I have seen in many years.
VIEW VIDEO

U.S. Teen Births Hit Record Low

2011-12-14T02:30:00.001-08:00

In 2010 there were 34.3 births among every thousand girls between the ages of 15 and 19. That’s down 9 percent from 2009. And it’s the lowest number in nearly seven decades of reporting.

The figure comes from a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention called Births: Preliminary Data for 2010. [Brady E. Hamilton, Joyce A. Martin and Stephanie J. Ventura] And it’s filled with interesting stats. For one, teen births have hit that record low. And that statistic includes more good news – birth rates are at record lows for all ethnic and racial groups, and even for younger teenagers.

The number of births to unmarried moms also declined. And pre-term births declined. The trend towards lower numbers is general - the birth rate fell overall by 3 percent. It’s also down for women in their twenties and thirties.
http://www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=us-teen-births-hit-record-low-11-12-12

Fish uses fins to walk and bound

2011-12-13T11:15:00.000-08:00

The fish use their pelvic fins as hind legs to propel itself along the bottom of the tank

Scientists have filmed an African lungfish using two fins to walk and "bound" along the bottom of its tank.

The lungfish appeared to use their pelvic fins as hind legs - stepping along the tank bottom. This suggests, the researchers say, that some fundamental features of walking on land arose in similar fish before the animals made the transition to land.

The findings are published in the journal PNAS.

The fish uses its pelvic fins to walk along the bottom of the tank

The team studied the lungfish Protopterus annectens because this group of species is so closely related to tetrapods - land animals with four limbs and backbones, including humans, birds mammals and reptiles. What the group hoped to learn about was one of the greater shifts in animal evolution.

"One really important event that happened in evolution was that fishy kinds of things evolved into tetrapods, and onto the land out of the water, in the Devonian period, about 360 million years ago," said lead author of the study Heather King from the University of Chicago. "Since they're so closely related and everything else in their group is extinct, they're a really great animal to look at."

Researchers believe that these "lobe-finned" fish provide a living glimpse at the evolutionary stage between aquatic animals and the earliest creatures that walked on land. "The water-to-land transition - a huge event over a long period - is easier [to understand if we] break it down into smaller events," Ms King explained.

She said that these experiments indicate what the order of this sequence of smaller events may have been. Lungfish do not have any of the anatomical features associated with walking on land. They have no sacrum - the supportive bone at the base of the spine - and no digits (fingers or toes) on their limbs. But in the videos captured by the researchers, the lungfish seemed to overcome their anatomical limitations by bending their fins along their length to form regions of support that functioned as "feet".

The fact that they were able to propel themselves along the base of a tank - using the floor as a substrate - suggests that this ability arose before the evolution of digits and before animals made the transition from water to land. The findings have led Ms King to study the anatomy of the fishes' fins further, to compare them with the limbs of tetrapods. She hopes that further studies can analyse the motions of the other four species of lungfish - which may show how we walked up onto the land in the Devonian.
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Shock as retreat of Arctic sea ice releases deadly greenhouse gas

2011-12-13T06:20:00.000-08:00

Dramatic and unprecedented plumes of methane – a greenhouse gas 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide – have been seen bubbling to the surface of the Arctic Ocean by scientists undertaking an extensive survey of the region. The scale and volume of the methane release has astonished the head of the Russian research team who has been surveying the seabed of the East Siberian Arctic Shelf off northern Russia for nearly 20 years.

In an exclusive interview with The Independent, Igor Semiletov, of the Far Eastern branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, said that he has never before witnessed the scale and force of the methane being released from beneath the Arctic seabed.

"Earlier we found torch-like structures like this but they were only tens of metres in diameter. This is the first time that we've found continuous, powerful and impressive seeping structures, more than 1,000 metres in diameter. It's amazing," Dr Semiletov said. "I was most impressed by the sheer scale and high density of the plumes. Over a relatively small area we found more than 100, but over a wider area there should be thousands of them."

Scientists estimate that there are hundreds of millions of tonnes of methane gas locked away beneath the Arctic permafrost, which extends from the mainland into the seabed of the relatively shallow sea of the East Siberian Arctic Shelf. One of the greatest fears is that with the disappearance of the Arctic sea-ice in summer, and rapidly rising temperatures across the entire region, which are already melting the Siberian permafrost, the trapped methane could be suddenly released into the atmosphere leading to rapid and severe climate change.

Dr Semiletov's team published a study in 2010 estimating that the methane emissions from this region were about eight million tonnes a year, but the latest expedition suggests this is a significant underestimate of the phenomenon. In late summer, the Russian research vessel Academician Lavrentiev conducted an extensive survey of about 10,000 square miles of sea off the East Siberian coast. Scientists deployed four highly sensitive instruments, both seismic and acoustic, to monitor the "fountains" or plumes of methane bubbles rising to the sea surface from beneath the seabed.

"In a very small area, less than 10,000 square miles, we have counted more than 100 fountains, or torch-like structures, bubbling through the water column and injected directly into the atmosphere from the seabed," Dr Semiletov said. "We carried out checks at about 115 stationary points and discovered methane fields of a fantastic scale – I think on a scale not seen before. Some plumes were a kilometre or more wide and the emissions went directly into the atmosphere – the concentration was a hundred times higher than normal."
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Thailand's Woman of a Second Kind

2011-12-12T04:47:00.000-08:00

Transvestism is a common enough feature of Thai society, but one which is often little considered and less understood. Practically every town in Thailand has at least two or three open transvestites - men who dress as women and assume - or are born with - feminine characteristics. Indeed, so common is the phenomenon that it has assumed a semi-institutionalised status, with transvestites working not just where one might expect - in bars, reviews and theatres - but also in restaurants and post offices, department stores and travel agencies.

In the higher echelons of Thai society a handful of particularly feminine and socially skilled kathoey (who are usually transsexuals as well as transvestites) become fully accepted and nationally acclaimed as singers, actresses and even businesswomen. Such people are admired for their attainments and courage in much the same way as western transsexual intellectuals like Jan Morris. They are people who "come out of the closet" and make a success of the way they are. In Thailand, however, this admiration is both more genuine and more widespread than in the West, where admirers tend to be limited to the like-minded and to "politically correct" progressive circles.

Thailand's Woman of a Second Kind

"Thailand's Got Talent" surprises its' audience with a transgender singer! She's pretty, hot, sexy and talented. Singing at Thailand's Got Talent.

Try guessing. Is this a he or she? You'll be the judge.

Listen and decide

Theravada Buddhism is highly respected in Thailand.

Thai culture has been shaped by many influences, including Chinese, Lao, Burmese, Cambodian, and Indian.

Its traditions incorporate a great deal of influence from India, China, Cambodia, and the rest of Southeast Asia. Thailand's national religion Theravada Buddhism is important to modern Thai identity. Thai Buddhism has evolved over time to include many regional beliefs originating from Hinduism, animism as well as ancestor worship. The official calendar in Thailand is based on the Eastern version of the Buddhist Era, which is 543 years ahead of the Gregorian (western) calendar. For example, the year AD 2011 is 2554 BE in Thailand.

Wikipedia

Buddhism in Thailand is largely of the Theravada school. Nearly 95% of Thailand's population is Buddhist of the Theravada school, though Buddhism in this country has become integrated with folk beliefs as well as Chinese religions from the large Thai-Chinese population.^[1] Buddhist temples in Thailand are characterized by tall goldenstupas, and the Buddhist architecture of Thailand is similar to that in other Southeast Asian countries, particularly Cambodia and Laos, with which Thailand shares cultural and historical heritage.

Wikipedia

Wat Pho, or the Temple of the Reclining Buddha, is the oldest and largest Buddhist temple in Bangkok. It is home to more Buddha images than any other Bangkok temple and it shelters the largest Buddha in Thailand.

Off to the side of Wat Traimit is a small chapel containing the Golden Buddha, which is the world's largest solid-gold Buddha. The graceful seated Buddha is nearly 10 feet high and weighs over 5 tons.

Wat PO Temple

China’s economy and the WTO

2011-12-12T00:56:00.000-08:00

In two articles, we examine how China has been altered by its entry into the WTO ten years ago.
First, the economy. Second, the political impact

THE World Trade Organisation (WTO), like many clubs, denies patrons the right of automatic readmission. Having quit the organisation’s predecessor shortly after the Communist revolution of 1949, China had to wait 15 long years to gain entry after reapplying in the 1980s. The doors finally opened on December 11th 2001, ten years ago this week.

The price of re-entry was as steep as the wait was long. China had to relax over 7,000 tariffs, quotas and other trade barriers. Some feared that foreign competition would uproot farmers and upend rusty state-owned enterprises (SOEs), as to some extent it did. But China, overall, has enjoyed one of the best decades in global economic history. Its dollar GDP has quadrupled, its exports almost quintupled.

Many foreigners also prospered. American foreign direct investment reaps returns of 13.5% in China, compared with 9.7% worldwide, according to K.C. Fung of the University of California, Santa Cruz. China imposes lower tariffs on average than Brazil or India. The gap between what it can charge, under WTO rules, and what it does charge is also unusually small. So unlike its peers, China could not raise tariffs much even if it wanted to (see chart).

Yet in America, China’s single biggest trading partner, sentiment towards the country has turned starkly negative. In a recent poll, 61% of Americans said that China’s recent economic expansion had been bad for America; just 15% thought it had been good. This partly reflects China’s controversial currency regime. By keeping the exchange rate down, China’s critics allege, it has gained a substitute for the mercantilist measures it gave up to join the WTO.
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Private Prison Expansion Becomes Big Business

2011-12-12T00:31:00.000-08:00

Private prisons are one of the fastest growing sectors of the prison industrial complex. Under contract by the government to run jails and prisons, and paid a fixed sum per prisoner, corporate firms operate as cheaply and efficiently as possible to insure a profit. This means lower wages for staff, no unions, and fewer services for prisoners. Substandard diets, extreme overcrowding, and abuses by poorly trained personnel have all been documented as practices of this private business approach to incarceration.

The “need” for more prisons was created in the 1980s, say the authors, when many businesses in the United States decided to take their factories out of the country, seeking higher profits and lower wages. Most seriously hurt by these plant closures and layoffs were African-Americans and semi-skilled workers in urban centers. Both a drug economy and the international prison industrial complex have filled the gaping economic hole left by the exodus of jobs from the U.S. cities. Currently 1.8 million people are behind bars in the U.S. Many who once made a living wage are now making only 22 cents per hour from behind prison walls.

For those who have invested in private prisons, say the authors, prison labor is like a pot of gold. There are no strikes, no unions, no unemployment insurance, or worker’s compensation. Prisoners can now be found doing data entry for Chevron, telephone reservations for TWA, raising hogs, shoveling manure, and sometimes making lingerie for Victoria’s Secret.

Investment houses, construction companies, architects, and support services such as those which provide food, medical supplies, transportation, and furniture, all profit by prison expansion, say Goldberg and Evans. Investment firm Smith Barney is partial owner of a prison in Florida. American Express and General Electric have invested in private prison construction in Oklahoma and Tennessee. Communication giants such as AT&T, Sprint, and MCI are getting into the act as well; gouging prisoners with exorbitant rates for phone calls, often six times the normal long distance charge.
Small businesses are now competing with the prison industry. Many small furniture businesses are closing due to the cheap labor provided by UNICOR, the federal prison industry corporation. UNICOR pays 23 cents per hour, and also has the inside track on all governments contracts. In another case, U.S. Technologies sold its electronics plant in Texas, leaving 150 workers unemployed, and opened in a nearby prison six weeks later.

With the transformations in the global economy that have occurred over the past two decades, the authors say, wage decreases and standards for workers have suffered. Privatization of prisons contributes to this cycle as the prison industrial complex rapidly becomes a primary component of the U.S. economy.

UPDATE BY AUTHORS EVE GOLDBERG AND LINDA EVANS: “1.8 million and counting. While the corporate media was looking the other way, mass incarceration became a reality in the U.S. About one in every 150 citizens is now behind bars. The Prison Industrial Complex is becoming the defining institution of our era.

“One prison story did make headlines: At California’s Corcoran State Prison, guards organized ‘gladiator’ fights between rival gang members—then shot the fighting inmates dead. Luckily, courageous guards blew the whistle; the father of a slain inmate sued; and for now the Corcoran killings have ceased.

“Most prison stories, however, never make the news. Pennsylvania and California have passed laws denying prisoners the right to speak with the media. Already muzzled by this gag rule, journalist Mumia Abu-Jamal, now on death row, will be silenced forever by execution unless popular support can stop it. Thousands more are locked away in ‘control units’—tiny isolation cells commonly used to punish inmates who file law suits against prison officials, participate in work stoppages, or generally ‘speak up.’

“But the other half of the story, also being ignored by the mainstream media, is the rapid growth of a movement to confront prison issues. Grassroots groups are springing up everywhere. A 1998 national conference called ‘Critical Resistance: Beyond the Prison Industrial Complex’ drew over 3,000 participants to University of California Berkeley.”

A good place to find out what’s happening and how to get involved is the Prison Activist Resource Center Web site: http://www.prisonactivist.org/.

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TV interview of German transgirl Kim Petras

2011-12-11T10:19:00.000-08:00

TV interview of German transgirl Kim Petras on the Morning Show. The interview draws a more realistic picture of Kim than in the CBS show "The Insider" on April 30, 2009. Kim speaks about her past as a boy and the latest single she has released: "Die for you".
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RDJXR1wXofA

Kim Petras was born on 27 August 1992 as Tim Petras. Her parents, Lutz and Konni, have said that from the age of two, she began insisting she was a girl. It slowly became apparent this was "not just a phase" and so her parents tried to be supportive but made her wear gender neutral clothes in public.

Eventually her parents sought professional help but struggled to find people who were knowledgeable on the subject. In time they found Dr. Bernd Meyenburg at Frankfurt University who was head of a clinic for children and had studied transsexuality since the 1970s.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Petras

Led by the child who simply knew

2011-12-11T09:47:00.000-08:00

The twin boys were identical in every way but one. Wyatt was a girl to the core, and now lives as one, with the help of a brave, loving family and a path-breaking doctor’s care.

Jonas and Wyatt Maines were born identical twins, but from the start each had a distinct personality. Jonas was all boy. He loved Spiderman, action figures, pirates, and swords. Wyatt favored pink tutus and beads. At 4, he insisted on a Barbie birthday cake and had a thing for mermaids. On Halloween, Jonas was Buzz Lightyear. Wyatt wanted to be a princess; his mother compromised on a prince costume.

Once, when Wyatt appeared in a sequin shirt and his mother’s heels, his father said: “You don’t want to wear that." “Yes, I do,’’ Wyatt replied. “Dad, you might as well face it,’’ Wayne recalls Jonas saying. “You have a son and a daughter."

That early declaration marked, as much as any one moment could, the beginning of a journey that few have taken, one the Maineses themselves couldn’t have imagined until it was theirs. The process of remaking a family of identical twin boys into a family with one boy and one girl has been heartbreaking and harrowing and, in the end, inspiring — a lesson in the courage of a child, a child who led them, and in the transformational power of love.

Until recently, there was little help for children in such situations. But now a groundbreaking clinic at Children’s Hospital in Boston — one of the few of its kind in the world — helps families deal with the issues, both emotional and medical, that arise from having a transgender child — one who doesn’t identify with the gender he or she was born into. The Children’s Hospital Gender Management Services Clinic can, using hormone therapies, halt puberty in transgender children, blocking the development of secondary sexual characteristics — a beard, say, or breasts — that can make the eventual transition to the other gender more difficult, painful, and costly.

Founded in 2007 by endocrinologist Norman Spack and urologist David Diamond, the clinic — known as GeMS and modeled on a Dutch program — is the first pediatric academic program in the Western Hemisphere that evaluates and treats pubescent transgenders. A handful of other pediatric centers in the United States are developing similar programs, some started by former staffers at GeMS.

It was in that clinic, under Spack’s care, that Nicole and her family finally began to have hope for her future. The Maineses decided to tell their story, they say, in order to help fight the deep stigma against transgender youth, and to ease the path for other such children who, without help, often suffer from depression, anxiety, and isolation. “We told our kids you can’t create change if you don’t get involved,’’ says Wayne, 53, sitting in the living room of their comfortable home in a southern Maine community they do not want identified.
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VHA Health Eligibility Center Health Benefits Website

2011-12-06T18:07:00.000-08:00

VHA Health Eligibility Center (HEC) has enhanced its ability to communicate with the Veteran community by launching the new Health Benefits website. This site replaces the previous Health Eligibility website and is designed for easier navigation and is more interactive to enhance the user’s experience. The new website is an online resource for Veterans, family members and care givers to learn about eligibility, enrollment options and benefits offered by VHA. It also provides detailed information about how to apply for VHA health services, cost of care, accessing VA health care and VA’s Medical Benefits Package. The Health Benefits website, which launched on November 11, 2011 (Veterans Day) provides the following new features:

Simple, easy instructions on how to obtain and access health benefits
Organized informational flow
Medical benefits package and priority group information
Income threshold determination widget
Copay mapping

The HEC will produce posters for the VA medical centers and other VA health care facilities to inform the Veteran community about the new website.
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Toms Dispatch: William deBuys, The Parching of the West

2011-12-05T07:18:00.000-08:00

A recent study indicates that Arctic ice is now melting at rates unprecedented in the last 1,450 years (as far back, that is, as reasonably accurate reconstructions of such an environment can be modeled). As the Arctic warms and temperatures rise in surrounding northern lands -- someday, Finland may have to construct artificial ski trails and ice rinks for its future winter tourists -- a report on yet another study is bringing more lousy news. Appearing in the prestigious science journal Nature, it indicates that the melting permafrost of the tundra may soon begin releasing global-warming gases into the atmosphere in massive quantities. We’re talking the equivalent of 300 billion metric tons of carbon over the next nine decades.

Recently, Fatih Birol, the chief economist for the International Energy Agency, suggested that, by century’s end, the planet’s temperature could rise by a staggering 6º Celsius (almost 11º Fahrenheit). International climate-change negotiators had been trying to keep that rise to a “mere” 2º C. “Everybody, even the schoolchildren, knows this is a catastrophe for all of us,” was the way Birol summed the situation up. If only it were so, but here in the U.S., none of the above news was even considered front-page worthy. Nor was the news that, in 2010, humans had pumped more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere than at any time since the industrial revolution began: 564 million more tons than in 2009 to be exact. We’re living today with just less than a degree of those six degrees to come, and the results in extreme weather this year should have made us all stop and think.

If you want to focus in on damage here in the U.S., consider Rick Perry’s Texas, where, according to scientists, “daily temperatures averaged 86.7° in June through August -- a staggering 5.4°F above normal.” According to the WMO, that’s the highest such average “ever recorded for any American state.” And still global politicians yammer on and do little; still, the U.S. shuffles its political feet, while Canada’s government has announced that it will make no new commitments and may even be preparing to withdraw from the Kyoto protocol, and countries with booming developing economies like China, India, and Brazil hedge their bets when it comes to action.
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Three-quarters of climate change is man-made

2011-12-05T06:22:00.000-08:00

Natural climate variability is extremely unlikely to have contributed more than about one-quarter of the temperature rise observed in the past 60 years, reports a pair of Swiss climate modellers in a paper published online today. Most of the observed warming — at least 74 % — is almost certainly due to human activity, they write in Nature Geoscience¹.

Since 1950, the average global surface air temperature has increased by more than 0.5 °C. To separate human and natural causes of warming, the researchers analysed changes in the balance of heat energy entering and leaving Earth — a new ‘attribution' method for understanding the physical causes of climate change.

Greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide have contributed around 0.85 °C to global warming since the 1950s, Swiss researchers have found.

L. RINDER/GLOWIMAGES.COM

Their findings, which are strikingly similar to results produced by other attribution methods, provide an alternative line of evidence that greenhouse gases, and in particular carbon dioxide, are by far the main culprit of recent global warming. The massive increase of atmospheric CO₂ concentrations since pre-industrial times would, in fact, have caused substantially more surface warming were it not for the cooling effects of atmospheric aerosols such as black carbon, they report.

Previous attempts to disentangle anthropogenic and natural warming used a statistically complex technique called optimal fingerprinting to compare observed patterns of surface air temperature over time with the modelled climate response to greenhouse gases, solar radiation and aerosols from volcanoes and other sources.

“Optimal fingerprinting is a powerful technique, but to most people it’s a black box,” says Reto Knutti, a climate scientist at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich, one of the authors of the report.

A balanced view

Knutti and his co-author Markus Huber, also at ETH Zurich, took a different approach. They utilized a much simpler model of Earth’s total energy budget and ran the model many thousands of times, using different combinations of a few crucial parameters that contribute to the energy budget. These included global values for incoming shortwave radiation from the Sun, solar energy leaving Earth, heat absorbed by the oceans and climate-feedback effects (such as reduced snow cover, which amplifies warming by exposing darker surfaces that absorb more heat).

By using the combinations that best matched the observed surface warming and ocean heat uptake, the authors then ran the so-constrained model with each energy parameter individually. This enabled them to estimate the contribution of CO₂ and other climate-change agents to the observed temperature change. Their study was greatly assisted by a 2009 analysis² of observed changes since 1950 in Earth’s energy balance, says Knutti.

Knutti and Huber found that greenhouse gases contributed 0.6–1.1 °C to the warming observed since the mid-twentieth century, with the most statistically likely value being a contribution of about 0.85 °C. Around half of that contribution from greenhouse gases — 0.45 °C — was offset by the cooling effects of aerosols. These directly influence Earth's climate by scattering light; they also have indirect climate effects through their interactions with clouds.
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NOooo NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!

2011-11-29T09:19:00.000-08:00

Senators Demand the Military Lock Up American Citizens in a “Battlefield” They Define as Being Right Outside Your Window

While nearly all Americans head to family and friends to celebrate Thanksgiving, the Senate is gearing up for a vote on Monday or Tuesday that goes to the very heart of who we are as Americans. The Senate will be voting on a bill that will direct American military resources not at an enemy shooting at our military in a war zone, but at American citizens and other civilians far from any battlefield — even people in the United States itself.

Senators need to hear from you, on whether you think your front yard is part of a “battlefield” and if any president can send the military anywhere in the world to imprison civilians without charge or trial.

The Senate is going to vote on whether Congress will give this president—and every future president — the power to order the military to pick up and imprison without charge or trial civilians anywhere in the world. Even Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) raised his concerns about the NDAA detention provisions during last night’s Republican debate. The power is so broad that even U.S. citizens could be swept up by the military and the military could be used far from any battlefield, even within the United States itself.

The worldwide indefinite detention without charge or trial provision is in S. 1867, the National Defense Authorization Act bill, which will be on the Senate floor on Monday. The bill was drafted in secret by Sens. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) and John McCain (R-Ariz.) and passed in a closed-door committee meeting, without even a single hearing.

I know it sounds incredible. New powers to use the military worldwide, even within the United States? Hasn’t anyone told the Senate that Osama bin Laden is dead, that the president is pulling all of the combat troops out of Iraq and trying to figure out how to get combat troops out of Afghanistan too? And American citizens and people picked up on American or Canadian or British streets being sent to military prisons indefinitely without even being charged with a crime. Really? Does anyone think this is a good idea? And why now?

The answer on why now is nothing more than election season politics. The White House, the Secretary of Defense, and the Attorney General have all said that the indefinite detention provisions in the National Defense Authorization Act are harmful and counterproductive. The White House has even threatened a veto. But Senate politics has propelled this bad legislation to the Senate floor.
read article

Letter to the President

2011-11-27T18:55:00.001-08:00

Dear President Obama,

I am disgusted by photos of police pepper spraying peaceful protesters and Washington doing nothing about the folks who caused our financial disaster.

I will definitely vote for you and all Democrats, but I really wish you would put some of these criminals in jail. There is NO EXCUSE for the disaster they caused.

There is NO GETTING ALONG with republicans--they are paid minions for zillionaires who want nothing more than being in charge of an OLIGARCHY ruling our nation.

The weapons provided police have provided tools of suppression of legitimate protest. I am completely disgusted by this. It is reprehensible.

I pray that you will breath some common sense into these bureaucratic despots.
Peaceful protesters are beaten and jailed while financial criminals go free.
WHAT SORT OF COUNTRY DO WE HAVE???
I cannot believe that you would want this.

Best wishes to you and your family,
Billie Rene

SoleraU.com -- get business cards cheap

2011-11-26T23:47:00.000-08:00

Pick the background and add your info. Just pay shipping from VistaPrint.com
Click Free Products on their site.
You can also add your photo to others for a slight charge.
I just wanted you to know--I use them.
Billie

Scientists invent lightest material on Earth. What now?

2011-11-24T05:28:00.000-08:00

Scientists have invented a new material that is so lightweight it can sit atop a fluffy dandelion without crushing the little fuzzy seeds. It's so lightweight, styrofoam is 100 times heavier. It is so lightweight, in fact, that the research team consisting of scientists at UC Irvine, HRL Laboratories and Caltech say in the peer-reviewed Nov. 18 issue of Science that it is the lightest material on Earth, and no one has asked them to run a correction yet.

The material has been dubbed "ultralight metallic microlattice," and according to a news release sent out by UC Irvine, it consists of 99.99% air thanks to its "microlattice" cellular architecture. "The trick is to fabricate a lattice of interconnected hollow tubes with a wall thickness 1,000 times thinner than a human hair," lead author Tobias Shandler of HRL said in the release.

To understand the structure of the material, think of the Eiffel Tower or the Golden Gate Bridge -- which are both light and weight efficient -- but on a nano-scale. The material in the picture above is made out of 90% nickel, but Bill Carter, manager of the architected materials group at HRL, said it can be made out of other materials as well -- the nickel version was just the easiest to make.

As for the uses of such a material? That's still to be determined. Lorenzo Valdevit, UCI's principal investigator on the project, brought up impact protection, uses in the aerospace industry, acoustic dampening and maybe some battery applications.

In the meantime, we asked Bill Carter what would happen if we threw this material in the air and waited for it to fall to the ground. "It’s sort of like a feather -- it floats down, and its terminal velocity depends on the density," he said. "It takes more than 10 seconds, for instance, for the lightest material we’ve made to fall if you drop it from shoulder height."
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Health Care Innovation Challenge

2011-11-23T12:54:00.000-08:00

The Health Care Innovation Challenge will award up $1 billion in grants to applicants who will implement the most compelling new ideas to deliver better health, improved care and lower costs to people enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid and CHIP, particularly those with the highest health care needs.

The objectives of this initiative are to:

Engage a broad set of innovation partners to identify and test new care delivery and payment models that originate in the field and that produce better care, better health, and reduced cost through improvement for identified target populations.
Identify new models of workforce development and deployment and related training and education that support new models either directly or through new infrastructure activities.
Support innovators who can rapidly deploy care improvement models (within six months of award) through new ventures or expansion of existing efforts to new populations of patients, in conjunction (where possible) with other public and private sector partners.

Awards will range from approximately $1 million to $30 million for a three-year period. Applications are open to providers, payers, local government, public-private partnerships and multi-payer collaboratives. Each grantee project will be monitored for measurable improvements in quality of care and savings generated.

The Health Care Innovation Challenge will encourage applicants to include new models of workforce development and deployment that efficiently support their service delivery model proposal. Enhanced infrastructure to support more cost effective system-wide function is also a critical component of health care system transformation, and applicants are encouraged to include this as an element of their proposals.
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The Difference Between Democrats and Republicans

2011-11-23T06:04:00.000-08:00

This is for those who want a clear description of the differences in their ACTIONS AND PROGRAMS.
WATCH VIDEO
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TRUTH -- OWS AND POWER OF THE 1%

2011-11-23T05:39:00.000-08:00

‎*** MUST SEE VIDEO -- TRUTH & CLARITY ***
One of America’s greatest journalists anticipated the entire Occupy Wall Street protests against the 1% back in 2010.

This is from the final broadcast of Bill Moyers Journal, which included an interview with Jim Hightower who said:
"Most news sources are funded by corporations and investors. Their goal is to drive people to advertisers while pushing the corporate agenda."
LISTEN TO VIDEO

Greenhouse Gases Hit Record Levels; Concentrations Exceed Scientists' Worst-Case Scenarios

2011-11-22T06:46:00.000-08:00

GENEVA -- Global warming gases have hit record levels in the world's atmosphere, with concentrations of carbon dioxide up 39 percent since the start of the industrial era in 1750, the U.N. weather agency said Monday. The new figures for 2010 from the World Meteorological Organization show that CO2 levels are now at 389 parts per million, up from about 280 parts per million a quarter-millenium ago. The levels are significant because the gases trap heat in the atmosphere.

WMO Deputy Secretary-General Jeremiah Lengoasa said CO2 emissions are to blame for about four-fifths of the rise. But he noted the lag between what gets pumped into the atmosphere and its effect on climate. "With this picture in mind, even if emissions were stopped overnight globally, the atmospheric concentrations would continue for decades because of the long lifetime of these greenhouse gases in the atmosphere," he said.

Negotiators from virtually all the world's nations will gather later this month in South Africa to try to agree on steps to head off the worst of the climate disruptions that researchers say will result if concentrations hit around 450 parts per million. That could happen within several decades at the current rate, though some climate activists and vulnerable nations say the world has already passed the danger point of 350 parts per million and must somehow undo it.

The WMO said the increase of 2.3 parts per million in CO2 in the atmosphere between 2009 and 2010 shows an acceleration from the average 1.5 parts per million increase during the 1990s. But there are seasonal fluctuations, too. During the summer growing season, plants absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. In winter, the concentration of C02 rises as vegetation and other biomass decompose. Since 1750, WMO says, atmospheric concentrations of CO2 have risen 39 percent, those of nitrous oxide have gone up 20 percent and concentrations of methane jumped 158 percent. Its report Monday cites fossil fuel-burning, loss of forests that absorb CO2 and use of fertilizer as the main culprits.
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Fox News Viewers Know Less Than People Who Don't Watch Any News: Study

2011-11-22T06:32:00.000-08:00

Fox News viewers are less informed than people who don't watch any news, according to a new poll from Fairleigh Dickinson University.

The poll surveyed New Jersey residents about the uprisings in Egypt and the Middle East, and where they get their news sources. The study, which controlled for demographic factors like education and partisanship, found that:

"people who watch Fox News are 18-points less likely to know that Egyptians overthrew their government" and

"6-points less likely to know that Syrians have not yet overthrown their government" compared to those who watch no news.

Dan Cassino, a political science professor at Fairleigh Dickinson, explained in a statement, "Because of the controls for partisanship, we know these results are not just driven by Republicans or other groups being more likely to watch Fox News. Rather, the results show us that there is something about watching Fox News that leads people to do worse on these questions than those who don’t watch any news at all."
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A beginners guide to Google Chrome: Why it’s time to ditch Internet Explorer

2011-11-20T21:22:00.000-08:00

Between IE, Firefox, and Opera the choice might not be easy to make, but with our helpful guide, we will show you why we think Google Chrome stands out among the rest and deserves your attention.

In 2010, Internet Explorer for the first time dipped below 50% market share, an impressive slide from ten years ago, when nearly 90% of users decided on it. Part of the problem has been IE itself, as Microsoft’s development of the browser tends to be slow, but much of the blame for IE’s slide can be levied at the fact that there is actual competition in the form of Chrome, Firefox and Opera web browsers, all of which are now mature alternatives.

For the most part, users who abandon Internet Explorer end up joining the Firefox crowd, but not me. I’m a dedicated Chrome user, and have been since just a few months after its release. Despite the high-profile brand (Google) behind Chrome, only 13% of users choose it as their browser. I believe that’s awfully low, so allow me to help you become acquainted with the wonderful world of Chrome.

Chrome’s development focused on two important themes. One was speed, and the other was excellent web page rendering. Many steps were taken to achieve this, among which was the development of the V8 JavaScript engine, which used new optimization techniques to achieve better performance.
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Welcome to our readers from Mongolia

2011-11-20T12:17:00.000-08:00

I continue to be amazed and gratified by the diversity of our readers.
Today we have readers from Mongolia.
I am delighted that so many find so many viewing information at SoleraU

Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only 38 kilometres (24 mi) from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest city, is home to about 45% of the population. Mongolia's political system is a parliamentary republic.

At 1,564,116 square kilometres (603,909 sq mi), Mongolia is the 19th largest and the most sparsely populated independent country in the world, with a population of around 2.75 million people. It is also the world's second-largest landlocked country after Kazakhstan. The country contains very little arable land, as much of its area is covered by steppes, with mountains to the north and west and the Gobi Desert to the south.

Approximately 30% of the population are nomadic or semi-nomadic. The predominant religion in Mongolia is Tibetan Buddhism, and the majority of the state's citizens are of the Mongol ethnicity, though Kazakhs, Tuvans, and other minorities also live in the country, especially in the west. About 20% of the population live on less than US$1.25 per day. Mongolia joined the World Trade Organization in 1997 and seeks to expand its participation in regional economic and trade regimes.
Wikipedia

YouTube Symphony Orchestra 2011 Grand Finale

2011-11-19T19:51:00.000-08:00

EXCELLENT!!!
Listen to the more than two hour program.
LISTEN

New Data Provides A Complete Description Of A Black Hole

2011-11-19T08:45:00.000-08:00

An artist’s illustration depicts what astronomers think is happening within the Cygnus X-1 system. Cygnus X-1 is a so-called stellar-mass black hole, a class of black holes that comes from the collapse of a massive star. New studies with data from Chandra and several other telescopes have determined the black hole’s spin, mass, and distance with unprecedented accuracy.

Cygnus X-1 is one of the most studied objects in the night sky, as you might imagine. (It was also the source of a famous bet. In the 1970s, Stephen Hawking bet Kip Thorne that X-1 wasn’t a black hole. In 1990, Hawking conceded he was wrong and ponied up.) And now some new research has given us substantially more information about how the black hole works. The Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, working in conjunction with the Chandra X-Ray Observatory and several other telescopes, have announced that they have a virtually complete description of the black hole, including its mass, spin, and approximate age.

From their telescope data, scientists have determined that the black hole is about 6,070 light years from Earth, and it’s mass is almost 15 times that of the Sun’s. The Event Horizon of the Black Hole – which is the point where nothing, not even light, can escape, is spinning at about 800 revolutions per second. The team was also able to determine that Cygnus X-1 is not the result of a supernova – the proposed cause for some black holes – but rather the collapse of a star that at one point was most likely 100 times the mass of the Sun. From all of this data, the scientists were able to determine that the black hole itself is about 6 million years old – just a baby, in stellar terms.

Kip Thorne, who had won the bet with Hawking about Cygnus X-1′s black hole status, surprisingly admitted until this point, he actually hasn’t been convinced that X-1 was a black hole. ”For forty years, Cygnus X-1 has been the iconic example of a black hole. However, despite Hawking’s concession, I have never been completely convinced that it really does contain a black hole — until now,” said Thorne. “The data and modeling described in these three papers at last provide a completely definitive description of this binary system.”
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Many Info Sources

2011-11-18T01:31:00.000-08:00

The pages of SoleraU have lots of mags and news sources--all free.
You can visit to read them or bookmark your favorites.
Most of these sources are maintained monthly by their provider.
It is truly an impressive resource.

Are you tired of the Liberal Social Agenda???

2011-11-10T05:34:00.000-08:00

Vincent van Gogh

2011-11-06T07:03:00.001-08:00

Vincent van Gogh (March 30, 1853 - July 29, 1890) is generally considered the greatest Dutch painter after Rembrandt, though he had little success during his lifetime. Van Gogh produced all of his work (some 900 paintings and 1100 drawings) during a period of only 10 years before he succumbed to mental illness (possibly bipolar disorder) and committed suicide. His fame grew rapidly after his death especially following a showing of 71 of van Gogh's paintings in Paris on March 17, 1901 (11 years after his death).

Van Gogh's influence on expressionism, fauvism and early abstraction was enormous, and can be seen in many other aspects of 20th-century art. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam is dedicated to Van Gogh's work and that of his contemporaries.

Several paintings by Van Gogh rank among the most expensive paintings in the world. On March 30, 1987 Van Gogh's painting Irises was sold for a record $53.9 million at Southeby's, New York. On May 15, 1990 his Portrait of Doctor Gachet was sold for $82.5 million at Christie's, thus establishing a new price record (see also List of most expensive paintings).

Life and Work
Vincent was born in Zundert, The Netherlands; his father was a protestant minister, a profession that Vincent found appealing and to which he would be drawn to a certain extent later in his life. His sister described him as a serious and introspective child.

At age 16 Vincent started to work for the art dealer Goupil & Co. in The Hague. His four years younger brother Theo, with whom Vincent cherished a life long friendship, would join the company later. This friendship is amply documented in a vast amount of letters they sent each other. These letters have been preserved and were published in 1914. They provide a lot of insight into the life of the painter, and show him to be a talented writer with a keen mind. Theo would support Vincent financially throughout his life.
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Michelangelo

2011-11-06T06:58:00.000-08:00

Michelangelo (full name: Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni) was born March 6, 1475 at Caprese, a village in Florentine territory, where his father, named Ludovico Buonarroti Simoni was the resident magistrate. A few weeks after Michelangelo's birth the family returned to Florence, and, in 1488, after overcoming parental opposition he was formally apprenticed to Domenico Ghirlandaio for a term of three years.

Later in life Michelangelo tried to suppress this fact, probably to make it seem that he had never had an ordinary workshop training; for it was he more than anyone else who introduced the idea of the 'Fine Arts' having no connection with the craft that painting had always previously been. His stay in the Ghirlandaio shop must also have coincided with his beginning to work as a sculptor in the Medici Garden, where antiques from their collection were looked after by Bertoldo. Although this connection drew him into the Medici circle as a familiar, the account by Vasari of an established 'school' is now discredited. It must, however, have been Ghirlandaio who taught him the elements of fresco technique, and it was probably also in that shop that he made his drawings after the great Florentine masters of the past (copies after Giotto and Masaccio; now in the Louvre, in Munich, and in Vienna). Michelangelo produced at least two relief sculptures by the time he was 16 years old, the Battle of the Centaurs and the Madonna of the Stairs (both 1489-92, Casa Buonarroti, Florence), which show that he had achieved a personal style at a very early age.

In 1492, Lorenzo de' Medici died. Michelangelo then studied anatomy with the help of the Prior of the Hospital of Sto Spirito, for whom he appears to have carved a wooden crucifix for the high altar. A wooden crucifix found there (now in the Casa Buonarroti) has been attributed to him by some scholars. The next few years were marked by the expulsion of the Medici and the gloomy Theocracy set up under Savonarola, but Michelangelo avoided the worst of the crisis by going to Bologna and, in 1496, to Rome. He settled for a time in Bologna, where in 1494 and 1495 he executed several marble statuettes for the Arca (Shrine) di San Domenico in the Church of San Domenico.
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Massive new iceberg forming -- right now -- in Antarctica

2011-11-04T23:16:00.000-07:00

A new iceberg is forming in western Antarctica -- set to break off from the Pine Island Glacier -- and it's a big one. When the massive chunk of ice is finally fully separated from its even more massive parent chunk of ice, it will measure about 308 square miles, scientists say, about the same size as New York City.

The formation of an iceberg is called "calving," and while it's a semi-regular event -- and likely not related to global warming -- it's still pretty cool. After all, icebergs this big calve off only about once every 10 years.

So what would it be like to see an iceberg up close in the process of calving? In an interview with The Times, Claire Parkinson, a climate scientist at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, said it would be noisy and dramatic. "When icebergs calve off, it's actually quite a loud noise," she said. "It would definitely be something you would hear — like a loud cracking sound — and visually it would be interesting too because there would be different pieces calving off at the same time and some of them would end up turning upside down and sideways."

She added that it would be fun to see only if one were watching a significant distance from the crack. "If you were standing in the midst of it, you would be in a great deal of danger," she said. The people at NASA are especially excited about this iceberg because they happened to catch it in the midst of its calving.
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Climate change linked to Ice-Age animal extinctions

2011-11-03T07:40:00.000-07:00

Climate change and human activity caused the extinction of some Ice-Age animals, such as the woolly rhinoceros, woolly mammoth, and wild horses, and the near extinction of others including reindeer, bison, and musk ox, says an international study.

The scientists say their study, published in the journal Nature, is the first to combine genetic, archeological, and climatic data to track the population history of six large Ice-Age mammals and can shed light on the possible fates of today's animals as the Earth continues its current warming cycle.

"Although these cold-adapted animals certainly fared better during the colder, glacial periods, they still managed to find places where the climate was just right -- refugia -- so that they could survive during the warmer, interglacial periods. Then, after the peak of the last ice age around 20,000 years ago, their luck started to run out," co-author Beth Shapiro, a biology professor at Penn State University, said in announcing the findings.

The study adds to the scientific debate about what caused the extinction of large mammals. A 2010 study by researchers at the University of Wollongong and the University of Adelaide said humans caused them in Australia and a 2009 study said mammoths and mastodons began dying out 1,000 years before humans arrived in North America.

In the case of the woolly rhinoceros, the new study found that the species never overlapped with humans in Europe, so climate change is the main reason for its extinction. "Still, we expect humans might have played a role in other regions of the world where they did overlap with woolly rhinos," Shapiro said.
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The Greenhouse Effect Explained

2011-10-23T05:40:00.000-07:00

By Chef Jeff

There is much talk about the greenhouse effect, greenhouse gasses, and global warming/global climate change. I wanted to take a moment to explain as best I can what the greenhouse effect is, and how it has been seen to work on planet Earth.

The term greenhouse effect comes from the way a greenhouse is warmed internally by sunlight. Sunlight enters our atmosphere in the form of solar radiation, which passes easily through the greenhouse gasses in our atmosphere, much as in the analogy of how sunlight passes through the glass panes of the greenhouse.

The solar radiation warms the Earth's surface, just as direct sunlight will warm your skin or metal objects left out in the sunlight. If you walk down any city street just before sundown you can still often feel the effects of this solar warming coming from the sides of buildings that have been exposed to sunlight shortly before.

Now that the solar energy has been converted into heat, which is a different type of energy, it rises, as we all know heat is prone to do. Energy in the atmosphere, especially heat energy, is often responsible for those late-afternoon storms that seem to rise out of nowhere. It is also easily barred from exiting the earth's atmosphere by what are known as greenhouse gasses.

Scientific studies show that if we had no greenhouse effect, the Earth's average temperatures would be much colder than they are today. How much colder? Scientists postulate that our atmosphere would be about 33 degree Celsius colder, which is of course lower than the freezing point.

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Inland Empire hospitals stand on shaky future

2011-10-16T04:55:00.000-07:00

When the 1994 Northridge earthquake damaged 11 hospitals, California legislators issued an ultimatum to hospital owners statewide: Fix your highest-risk buildings by New Year's Day 2008, or the state will shut them down.

The law might have brought a burst of new construction to the Inland Empire and a wealth of tough-walled hospitals designed to survive a major rupture on the southern San Andreas Fault, the most dangerous fault in the state. That never happened. Today, nearly four years after the initial deadline passed, more than 40 buildings at 10 hospitals in San Bernardino County are still rated highly collapsible, according to regulators' reports and records obtained under the state's Public Records Act.

The findings raise profound questions about the effectiveness of state rules, the ability of hospitals to bankroll construction projects and the chances that hospitals will operate after a major quake.

Championing the delays, the state Legislature repeatedly extended the 2008 deadline to 2013, 2015, even 2020 for some hospitals, under pressure from hospitals that said they can't afford the fixes.

Some key medical services are housed in high-risk buildings.

Loma Linda's emergency department sits at the base of one of two buildings at high risk of collapse. The hospital is the Inland Empire's only Level I trauma center, treating its most critically injured patients.

At Pomona Valley Hospital, pediatrics, emergency, and intensive-care services are located in two high-risk buildings.

Two buildings in Ontario and West Covina rank among the most fragile in the state, according to a 2010 investigation by California Watch. One of them, Kindred Hospital Ontario, has nearly a 32 percent chance of collapsing in a major quake, records show.
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On Christian Pretenders

2011-09-21T18:44:00.000-07:00

To those who claim the U.S.A was founded as a Christian Nation, I ask if genocide, Slavery, hatred, and greed are Christian principles. I wonder too, if knowing "Jesus" is an excuse for war, war profiteering and killing? Many Politicians of a certain persuasion claim that God speaks to them. I would appreciate if those Pols and those who support them will share with us the opinions of Jesus on the above matters. If you know your savior, why not share his answers with us?
Interesting observation from Joe McKee on Facebook

IMO Joe makes an important point!!!

The Republican Legacy

2011-08-06T04:57:00.000-07:00

1. Reagan's "trickle down economics"; called "voodoo economics"
2. Financial deregulation (with friends) enabling financial manipulation
2. Two unnecessary wars to benefit corporate and personal interests
3. Tax Cuts for zillionaires
4. Lowered financial rating for the US
5. A huge debt
6. Export jobs creating unemployment
7. General insanity in the political process inhibiting sound decisions

Mind, Brain and Behavior

2011-08-02T16:54:00.000-07:00

Fast forward through three decades of rapid growth in the field to 2004, where, as part of Columbia’s 250th anniversary celebrations,

CU President Lee Bollinger formally launched a university-wide initiative in Mind, Brain and Behavior at a major symposium on this topic The Jerome L. Greene Science Center will serve as the intellectual home for Columbia’s expanding research initiative in Mind, Brain and Behavior.

It is widely believed that beyond molecular analysis, a more complete understanding of the human mind poses problems of great complexity. This compelling endeavor will require the intellectual resources of the entire university. Columbia is committed to expanding the realm of traditional neuroscience to include other disciplines such as psychology, philosophy, anthropology, and sociology on the more macroscopic level, and physics, chemistry, bioengineering, nanotechnology, computer sciences on the other. The establishment of the Center for Neuroscience Initiatives (CNI) and the plans for the new Jerome L. Greene Science Center are the first phase and foundation for development of this comprehensive initiative in Mind, Brain and Behavior.

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Telecommunications Breakthrough

2011-08-02T16:51:00.000-07:00

Researchers at Columbia Engineering School have built optical nanostructures that enable them to engineer the index of refraction and fully control light dispersion. They have shown that it is possible for light (electromagnetic waves) to propagate from point A to point B without accumulating any phase, spreading through the artificial medium as if the medium is completely missing in space. This is the first time simultaneous phase and zero-index observations have been made on the chip-scale and at the infrared wavelength.

The study, published on Nature Photonics’s website July 10, was led by Chee Wei Wong, associate professor of mechanical engineering, and Serdar Kocaman, electrical engineering Ph.D. candidate, both at Columbia Engineering, in collaboration with scientists at the University College of London, Brookhaven National Laboratory, and the Institute of Microelectronics of Singapore.

“We’re very excited about this. We’ve engineered and observed a metamaterial with zero refractive index,” said Kocaman. “What we’ve seen is that the light disperses through the material as if the entire space is missing. The oscillatory phase of the electromagnetic wave doesn’t even advance such as in a vacuum — this is what we term a zero-phase delay.”

This exact control of optical phase is based on a unique combination of negative and positive refractive indices. All natural known materials have a positive refractive index. By sculpturing these artificial subwavelength nanostructures, the researchers were able to control the light dispersion so that a negative refractive index appeared in the medium. They then cascaded the negative index medium with a positive refractive index medium so that the complete nanostructure behaved as one with an index of refraction of zero.

“Phase control of photons is really important,” said Wong. “This is a big step forward in figuring out how to carry information on photonic chips without losing control of the phase of the light.”

“We can now control the flow of light, the fastest thing known to us,” he continued. “This can enable self-focusing light beams, highly directive antennas, and even potentially an approach to cloak or hide objects, at least in the small-scale or a narrow band of frequencies currently.”

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Study Outlines Economic and Environmental Benefits to Reducing Nitrogen Pollution

2011-08-02T16:49:00.000-07:00

A new study co-authored by Columbia Engineering professor Kartik Chandran and recently published in the journal, Environmental Science & Technology, shows that reducing nitrogen pollution generated by wastewater treatment plants can come with "sizable" economic benefits, as well as the expected benefits for the environment.

Chandran was one of five scientists from around the U.S. who worked on the study, along with James Wang of NOAA's Air Resources Laboratory and formerly of Environmental Defense Fund (EDF); Steve Hamburg, Chief Scientist for EDF; Donald Pryor of Brown University; and Glen Daigger of CH2M Hill, a global environmental engineering firm based in Englewood, Colorado.

The study found that adding available technology to the existing infrastructure at a common type of wastewater treatment plant could create a trifecta of reductions in aquatic nitrogen pollution, greenhouse gas pollution, and energy usage. It also found that creating an emissions crediting system for the wastewater treatment sector could make the addition of new technologies much more affordable.

“As wastewater permits on wastewater treatment plants become more and more restrictive, the resultant increased capital and operating costs can pose quite a burden to utilities and municipalities,” said Chandran, associate professor of earth and environmental engineering. “Our study shows that, if the reduced emissions associated with well-designed and operated biological nitrogen removal operations can be used to earn CO2 credits, then this could be a big benefit both for the utilities from a cost perspective and for the environment from water quality and air quality perspectives.”

The majority of wastewater treatment plants already have systems to reduce ammonia levels in effluent, but pay relatively little attention to overall nitrogen pollution reduction, especially in the form of nitrous oxide (N2O), a potent greenhouse gas. Using emissions credits to address the problem could create an economic incentive of up to $600 million per year for U.S. plants to reduce nitrogen pollution, with the added benefit of up to $100 million per year in electricity savings if they do so.

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Beauty and Brains

2011-06-16T12:11:00.000-07:00

Tamily Weissman, Jeff Lichtman, and Joshua Sanes of Harvard made this photomicrograph (above left) of a mouse hippocampus, an area of the brain critical for learning and memory, in 2005.

Iused to carry images of the brain in my wallet,” says Carl Schoonover ’11GSAS, a fourth-year graduate student in Columbia’s neuroscience program. “I’d show them to other people and their response was, ‘Whoa, that’s the human brain? How is that possible? It’s so beautiful.’ I was surprised that people who didn’t know the meaning of the pictures also found them beautiful. That convinced me that there was interesting material here, and not just for the scientist in me.”

Portraits of the Mind: Visualizing the Brain from Antiquity to the 21st Century (published by Abrams) is Schoonover’s coffee-table tour of how philosophers and scientists have represented that most mysterious of human workings. Schoonover compiled images from archives and from neuroscientists around the world to create a visually explosive book that includes essays by Jonah Lehrer ’03CC, Columbia professors Michael Goldberg and Joy Hirsch, and other leaders in the field. The pictures — from speculative drawings to micrographs to computer-assisted scans — are elegantly simple here, impossibly complicated there.

“Neuroscience is a field with a lot of beautiful data,” says Schoonover, who works in assistant professor Randy Bruno’s CUMC laboratory studying how the somatosensory cortex of rodents processes information from their whiskers to make sense of their environment.

“The selection of images for the book was based on aesthetic value and their having a story to tell. I think the book works because the pictures are beautiful enough that one wants to know what they’re about and how they were made.”

from Columbia Magazine

The White House Announces LGBT News Page

2011-06-02T05:53:00.000-07:00

To kick off June as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Pride Month, the White House this week unveiled a new landing page dedicated to LGBT rights issues called "Winning the Future for LGBT Americans."

Why create this page? The introductory text reads:
"The landing page, which you can find here, links through to news on the administration's recent work for the LGBT community, provides fact sheets on LGBT rights issues, and also gives links to various related resources.

"Since taking office, the President has demonstrated that his vision for a brighter future includes greater equality for LGBT Americans. The President and his Administration are dedicated to eliminating barriers to equality, fighting discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and engaging LGBT communities across the country."

The White House LGBT Page

Historical Recordings from the Library of Congress

2011-05-12T11:47:00.000-07:00

The Library of Congress presents the National Jukebox, which makes historical sound recordings available to the public free of charge. The Jukebox includes recordings from the extraordinary collections of the Library of Congress Packard Campus for Audio Visual Conservation and other contributing libraries and archives. Recordings in the Jukebox were issued on record labels now owned by Sony Music Entertainment, which has granted the Library of Congress a gratis license to stream acoustical recordings.

National Jukebox

Study Links Ozone Hole to Broader Climate Change

2011-05-03T07:44:00.000-07:00

In a study to be published in the April 21 issue of Science magazine, researchers at Columbia University’s School of Engineering and Applied Science report their findings that the ozone hole, which is located over the South Pole, has affected the entire circulation of the Southern Hemisphere all the way to the equator.

While previous work has shown that the ozone hole is changing the atmospheric flow in the high latitudes, the Columbia Engineering paper, “Impact of Polar Ozone Depletion on Subtropical Precipitation,” demonstrates that the ozone hole is able to influence the tropical circulation and increase rainfall at low latitudes in the Southern Hemisphere. This is the first time that ozone depletion, an upper atmospheric phenomenon confined to the polar regions, has been linked to climate change from the Pole to the equator.

"The ozone hole is not even mentioned in the summary for policymakers issued with the last IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) report,” noted Polvani, professor of Applied Mathematics and of Earth & Environmental Sciences, senior research scientist at the Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, and co-author of the paper. “We show in this study that it has large and far-reaching impacts. The ozone hole is a big player in the climate system!"
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Ozone Hole May Have Caused Australian Floods

2011-05-03T07:41:00.000-07:00

A new scientific study suggests that the severe flooding that hit northern Australia earlier this year may have not been caused by rising global temperatures induced by greenhouse gases, but rather by the hole in the ozone layer.

Research published last week by scientists at Columbia University's School of Engineering and Applied Science, in conjunction with partners in Canada, purports to demonstrate how the massive hole in the ozone layer of the atmosphere high above Antarctica is altering rainfall patterns in the Southern Hemisphere. The study ran in Science magazine Friday.

The scientific team says its members ran computer simulations designed to predict how changes in precipitation would likely be affected by the ozone hole, which scientists already say pulls the southern jet stream closer to the South Pole and leads to a southerly shift in tropical moisture. They then compared what that modeling predicted to the actual observed changes in climate recorded in the southern half of the planet.
read article

Republic of Slovenia

2011-04-28T19:59:00.000-07:00

We have several readers from Slovenia so I thought I would share this with you.

Slovenia - Wikipedia

Slovenia (ⁱ officially the Republic of Slovenia is a country in Central Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy on the west,Croatia on the south and east, Hungary on the northeast, and Austria on the north, and also has a small portion of coastline along the Adriatic Sea. It covers an area of 20,273 square kilometres (7,827 sq mi) and has a population of 2.05 million.^[5]^[6] The capital and largest city isLjubljana.^[13]

Historically, the current territory of Slovenia was part of many different state formations, including the Roman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire, followed by the Habsburg Monarchy. In 1918, the Slovenes exercised self-determination for the first time by co-founding the internationally unrecognized State of Slovenes, Croats, and Serbs. During World War II, Slovenia was occupied and annexed by Germany, Italy, Hungary and Croatia only to emerge afterwards reunified with its western part as a founding member of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In 1991, Slovenia declared full sovereignty. Today, Slovenia is a member of the European Union, the Eurozone, the Schengen area, NATO and OECD. Per capita, it is the richest Slavic nation-state, at 85.5% of the EU27 average GDP (PPP) per capita.^[14]

Culturally and demographically, Slovenia has been a border area throughout its history. Here, four linguistic and cultural groups of the continent have been meeting: Slavic, Germanic, Romance and Uralic.^[15]^[16]^[17] The population of Slovenia has become more diverse in regard to its language and ethnic composition through recent decades but is still relatively homogeneous.^[18]^[19]^[20] Approximately 83% of inhabitants considered themselves Slovenes in the 2002 census.^[21]^[22] Another major group are immigrants from the countries of Former Yugoslavia.^[19]^[23]

Obama Administration’s Achievements

2011-03-31T02:54:00.000-07:00

This is quite a list...

Obama Administration’s Achievements

I tried to resist this, but...

2011-03-27T22:06:00.001-07:00

And, So Are Most Americans !!!!

Irish Music & Tap Dancing, Riverdance

2011-03-21T04:15:00.000-07:00

Watch River Dance

Danny Boy Ireland

Celtic Woman - A New Journey - Mo Ghile Mear

Celtic Woman - Caledonia

Britains Got Talent 2009 Susan Boyle 47 Year Old Singer

2011-03-21T03:29:00.000-07:00

Everyone thought that she would be no good cause of her looks, but boy were they wrong!!!

She's amazing!!

Listen to Susan

Born This Way -- Lady Gaga

2011-02-12T07:08:00.000-08:00

Born This Way, Lady Gaga’s new album and single, are out today.
The song is a real ode to individuality. And Lady Gaga, with her awesome freakshow fashion sense, is clearly a woman who can appreciate individuality. The Born This Way Lyrics celebrate the beauty of difference and the unique qualities inherent in every one of us. I’m sure she meant this as a shoutout to her varied fan base. But through my everpresent mother-colored glasses, I can see how this song could be a message to parents, too.

I’m the mother of two kids with quite different personalities. And I swear I could feel some of those differences when my kids were still fetuses. (Fetii?). So you could say I have good reason to believe in the Born This Way lyrics, both personally and politically.

Read Article and Lyrics

Belize is an interesting country in South America

2011-02-10T08:19:00.000-08:00

Belize (formerly British Honduras) is a democratic constitutional monarchy, and the northernmost Central American nation. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Although Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official language. Belize is bordered to the north by Mexico, south and west by Guatemala, and to the east by the Caribbean Sea. Belize’s mainland is about 180 miles long and 68 miles wide.

From Jan 11 to Feb 9, 2011 Bill's Blog received 26 page views from Belize. SoleraU.com is receiving more view internationally and I suspect our readers are interested in other countries. I think you might like looking at the Wikipedia entry about this South American country. You might also like the free courses and other subjects available at SoleraU.

Appsolution -- priests on soup lines??? -- not likely

2011-01-30T03:49:00.000-08:00

Camery Cano believes sins can be forgiven. But the 18-year-old Cal State San Bernardino student doesn't plan to download a new iPhone application for those seeking absolution. "I just think it's not for me," Cano said. "I don't need a game to make me feel better by giving me a halo. It's not going to change the fact that you did sin."

The app is called Penance.

It works by having users create both "Sinner" and "Saint" accounts. Sinners anonymously confess anything they want to other users' Saint accounts. Saints can respond with penances to confessions they get from Sinner accounts. Sinners have the ability to reward Saints with halos should they deem a particular penance fair, manageable,

Pageviews by Countries - May to January

2011-01-21T03:57:00.000-08:00

AudienceRefresh

Now

Day

Week

Month

All time

2010 May – 2011 January

Pageviews by Countries

United States

1,685

United Kingdom

554

Australia

215

Germany

163

Netherlands

129

Canada

114

Russia

Japan

India

Turkey

Ronald Reagan's son says Alzheimer's may have started in '80s

2011-01-15T04:54:00.000-08:00

Ronald Reagan's son suggests in a new book that his father suffered from the beginning stages of Alzheimer's disease while he was in the White House. The memoir quotes excerpts from Ron Reagan's book "My Father at 100," published by Viking, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA).

Reagan's son writes that he believes his father would have left office before his second term ended in 1989 had the disease been diagnosed then. U.S. News & World Report was the first to break the publishing embargo.

"I've seen no evidence that my father (or anyone else) was aware of his medical condition while he was in office," Reagan writes. "Had the diagnosis been made in, say 1987, would he have stepped down? I believe he would have." Ronald Reagan was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in 1994, five years after leaving office. The popular Republican president died in 2004 at age 93 from complications of the disease.

The younger Reagan recalls how his father became uncharacteristically lost for words and looked "lost and bewildered" during the 1984 presidential debates with Democratic rival Walter Mondale. He says his father may have suspected the onset of Alzheimer's in 1986 when he was flying over familiar canyons north of Los Angeles and became alarmed that he could no longer remember their names.
read article

CIA World Factbook

2011-01-05T16:02:00.000-08:00

The World Factbook provides information on the history, people, government, economy, geography, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues for 267 world entities. Our Reference tab includes: maps of the major world regions, as well as Flags of the World, a Physical Map of the World, a Political Map of the World, and a Standard Time Zones of the World map.
CIA World Factbook

This is one of many interesting web sites included on
Our National Government

Too much rain? Next few months will tell

2010-12-30T00:35:00.000-08:00

The wettest December since 1889 has left hillside areas across Southern California dangerously saturated, bringing a heightened risk of landslides and further flooding in the next few months.

More than 14 inches of rain has fallen in some hillside areas in just the last two weeks, and officials said the saturation levels could intensify in January and February, when Southern California typically gets most of its rain for the year. Engineers are using helicopters to fly over some hillside areas hit by recent fires, looking for signs of fissures or earth movement.

"It gets to the point where the water that's falling is no longer even going into the ground — it's just skipping off the ground," said Bob Spencer, spokesman for the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works. "A lot of residents are under the false impression that once the sun comes out, everything is fine. That's not the case. The soil beneath the surface can take months to completely dry out."

read article

In a region that imports water, much goes to waste

2010-12-24T06:49:00.000-08:00

It is one of the Southland's enduring contradictions. The region that laid pipe across hundreds of miles and tunneled through mountains to import water also built an extensive storm drain system to get rid of rainfall as quickly as possible.

That's exactly what happened during the last week, when tens of billions of gallons of runoff that could lessen the region's need for those faraway sources were dumped into the Pacific. Enough water poured from Los Angeles streets to supply well over 130,000 homes for a year.

"This isn't wastewater until we waste it," said Noah Garrison, an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council who co-wrote a 2009 paper on capturing and reusing storm water.

The report concluded that the region could increase local supplies by an amount equal to more than half of Los Angeles' annual water demand by incorporating relatively simple water-harvesting techniques in new construction and redevelopments. These include installing cisterns and designing landscaping to retain runoff and let it seep into the ground.

Los Angeles is poised to adopt an ordinance that takes a step in that direction. Most new and redeveloped commercial, industrial and larger apartment projects would have to be designed to capture the runoff generated by the first three-quarters of an inch of rain. New single-family homes would have to install a rain-harvesting device, such as a rain barrel or a hose that diverts water from gutters to landscaping.
read article

Akiko Meyers -- magnificent violin player

2010-12-23T19:02:00.000-08:00

Hubble celebrates 20 years in space with a jaw-dropper

2010-12-14T11:48:00.000-08:00

Ye gods.

This is a stunning close-up of a section of the vast Carina Nebula, a sprawling and complex Escher-like region of gas and dust about 7500 light years away. It’s the scene of chaotic star birth and death, slammed and reslammed by winds from stars being born and others busy blowing up.

In this image — which is only a part of the full view of this magnificent vista — the tentacles of dust tower light-years in length, and at the tips of those fingers are stars that are just now forming. The material around them is thicker than what surrounds it, and can partially withstand the onslaught of subatomic particles and fierce ultraviolet being blasted about by hot, young, massive stars nearby, off the top of the image. This wind and light blow away the lighter material, leaving behind these structures that are essentially sandbars in space, material protected by the denser gas and dust at the tips.

read article

This is one of many interesting posts at my Facebook page.

Facebook

US nuclear stockpile in half after the end of the cold war

2010-11-28T09:04:00.000-08:00

Here is some REALLY important info on nuclear weapons.
Everyone should look at this --
It won't make you happy, but we all need to understand.

Please look and consider this when you vote for President.

HERE IS THE LINK

Hiroshima and Nagasaki were destroyed by much smaller bombs.

Look and consider when you vote...

HERE IS THE LINK

Journey through Canyons - beautiful video

2010-08-16T07:22:00.000-07:00

I went on the trip to Canyons in Arizona and Utah, visited Grand Canyon, Glen Canyon, Bryce Canyon, Zion Canyon and this film is the coverage of my trip.

I tried to stay away from the people and cars, so had to hike up, down and in the river for many of those shots, but could not avoid planes, but hey, those are not planes, but shooting stars.

I also spent several nights down at Bryce Canyon at full moon making timelapses and I must tell that hiking at full moon in Bryce Canyon is one of the most amazing hiking experiences, even better than going into Narrows of Virgin River.
*** Here, "I" refers to the creator of the video ***

Karate Has Gone Global, But the Real Masters Are Still in Its Japanese Birthplace

2010-06-17T13:30:00.000-07:00

While since World War II the sport's popularity has become global, only in Okinawa can a grandmaster still send a judo student flying simply by twitching his hips. When the average person thinks of karate, they think of Japan. But that is only partly correct.

The true birthplace of what we now call karate is Okinawa, which is to karate what Mecca in Saudi Arabia is to Muslims; a pilgrimage to the birthplace. Students truly invested in their training go there to learn what karate truly is. Karate was developed when Okinawa was its own kingdom, long before it was invaded and conquered by Japan in the early 17th century, let alone its 19th century annexation by Japan.

As someone who has practiced shotokan karate (one of many karate styles) for over two decades, I thought I understood at least most karate basics. But last month I spent a week training in traditional karate seminars in Okinawa and realized how little I actually understood.

To see what these instructors can do is nothing short of staggering. Higa Sensei sent a six-foot, six-inch tall, 285 pound (129 kilogram) judo student flying just by placing his hand on his side and twitching his hips. All karate students know that the start of any karate movement starts with the hips, but rarely does one see such a powerful display of it. According to Chambers, "When we were filming [24 frames per second] Higa Sensei, who is 68 years old, he hit his third dan student with nine clear, well-controlled blows in two seconds, none of which was blocked."
read article

Abraham Lincoln -- The Gettysburg Address

2010-06-06T08:02:00.000-07:00

Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived, and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met here on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of it as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But in a larger sense we can not dedicate - we can not consecrate - we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled, here, have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but can never forget what they did here.

It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they have, thus far, so nobly carried on. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us - that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion - that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain; that this nation shall have a new birth of freedom; and that this government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
read article

The Really Creepy People Behind the Libertarian-Inspired Billionaire Sea Castles

2010-06-02T07:15:00.000-07:00

The stinking rich are planning billion-dollar luxury liners that keep the land-based Americans they've plundered at a safe distance.

What happens when Americans plunder America and leave it broken, destitute and seething mad? Where do these fabulously wealthy Americans go with their loot, if America isn't a safe, secure, or even desirable place to spend their riches? What if they lose faith in their gated communities, because those plush gated communities are surrounded by millions of pissed-off Americans stripped of their entitlements, and who now want in?

We finally have the answer, and you're not going to like it: a new fleet of castles that float in the oceans. The super-wealthy are already building their first floating castle, a billion-dollar-plus luxury liner that offers permanent multimillion-dollar housing with the best protection of all: moats made of oceans, keeping the land-based Americans they've plundered at a safe distance.

The first such floating castle has been christened the "Utopia"--the South Korean firm Samsung has been contracted to build the $1.1 billion ship, due to be launched in 2013. Already orders are coming in to buy one of the Utopia's 200 or so mansions for sale--which range in price from about $4 million for the smallest condos to over $26 million for 6,600 square-foot "estates." The largest mansion is a whopping 40,000 square feet, and sells for $160 million.
read article

China chases US in latest supercomputer ranking

2010-06-01T07:15:00.000-07:00

China has finally achieved its ambition of becoming a calculating superpower with news that one of the country's supercomputers is now the second most powerful number-cruncher on earth. The Nebulae system at the National Supercomputing Centre in Shenzhen in southern China has been ranked by the prestigious Top500 list as having a sustained calculating power of 1.271 petaflops, or in layman's terms, 1,271 trillion calculations per second.

That is still slower than the US Department of Energy's 'Jaguar' in Oak Ridge Tennessee, the world's number one supercomputer, which can manage 1.75 petaflops, but is the first time that China has appeared so high up the Top500 site's twice-yearly rankings. To put all this calculating power into perspective, according to figures quoted by the BBC, an average PC would take 10 hours to match the Jaguar's output for one second.
read article

By 2050, solar could produce 25% of the world's electricity

2010-05-12T18:08:00.000-07:00

Solar power could produce up to a quarter of global electricity by 2050, according to two new reports Wednesday from the International Energy Agency. The agency released two “roadmaps” for photovoltaics technology and concentrating solar power – or solar power stations -- during the Mediterranean Solar Plan Conference in Valencia, Spain. Together, the two types of solar systems could generate 9,000 terawatt hours of energy in 2050.

Concentrating solar power will be dominated by North America, North Africa and India, some of the world’s sunniest regions, the agency’s Renewable Energy Division said. It will be able to compete with coal and nuclear power plants by 2030. Solar photovoltaics technology is expected to provide around 11% of global electricity by 2050, avoiding 2.3 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions each year.
read article

Tranquilized bear stuck in Oxnard tree

2010-05-04T10:32:00.000-07:00

Photo: With the aid of a ladder truck, the Oxnard Fire Department lowers a tranquilized bear down from a tree in Santa Clara Cemetery in Oxnard Tuesday morning.

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President Obama to Visit Charlotte, NC

2010-04-02T08:55:00.000-07:00

The high tech company produces a component for lithium-ion batteries—polypropylene (PP), polyethylene (PE), or trilayer PP/PE/PP electrolytic membranes if you really want to know. These batteries can be found in products ranging from cell phones to electric drive vehicles. Celgard recently won $49.2 million in Recovery Act grants to expand its capacity, growth that will create between 200 and 300 new jobs in North Carolina and provide more than 1,000 jobs among Celgard's contractors and suppliers.
listen to video

What are the economic drivers of social change?

2010-03-31T11:30:00.000-07:00

I was just asked this somewhat indirectly so I thought of a few books that seem to explain some of the forces. The theme is that this is based on a struggle for money and power which has been ongoing for some time.

Production is shifting from high cost producers to low cost countries. Yet developed countries still have wealth that is being transfered to other regions. This also is occurring in a struggle to obtain raw materials like oil. Additionally people are cashing in their houses to maintain a lifestyle that they have difficulty maintaining.

With a high unemployment, part-time and under-employment those less economically advantaged are protesting and fomenting social unrest.

The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century

What Friedman means by "flat" is "connected": the lowering of trade and political barriers and the exponential technical advances of the digital revolution that have made it possible to do business, or almost anything else, instantaneously with billions of other people across the planet. This in itself should not be news to anyone. But the news that Friedman has to deliver is that just when we stopped paying attention to these developments--when the dot-com bust turned interest away from the business and technology pages and when 9/11 and the Iraq War turned all eyes toward the Middle East--is when they actually began to accelerate. Globalization 3.0, as he calls it, is driven not by major corporations or giant trade organizations like the World Bank, but by individuals: desktop freelancers and innovative startups all over the world (but especially in India and China) who can compete--and win--not just for low-wage manufacturing and information labor but, increasingly, for the highest-end research and design work as well.
Amazon

A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century by Thomas L.Friedman

Publishers Weekly: For Friedman, cheap, ubiquitous telecommunications have finally obliterated all impediments to international competition, and the dawning "flat world" is a jungle pitting "lions" and "gazelles," where "economic stability is not going to be a feature" and "the weak will fall farther behind." Rugged, adaptable entrepreneurs, by contrast, will be empowered. The service sector (telemarketing, accounting, computer programming, engineering and scientific research, etc.), will be further outsourced to the English-spoken abroad; manufacturing, meanwhile, will continue to be off-shored to China. As anyone who reads his column knows, Friedman agrees with the transnational business executives who are his main sources that these developments are desirable and unstoppable, and that American workers should be preparing to "create value through leadership" and "sell personality." This is all familiar stuff by now, but the last 100 pages on the economic and political roots of global Islamism are filled with the kind of close reporting and intimate yet accessible analysis that have been hard to come by. Add in Friedman's winning first-person interjections and masterful use of strategic wonksterisms, and this book should end up on the front seats of quite a few Lexuses and SUVs of all stripes.

Web of Debt: The Shocking Truth About Our Money System and How We Can Break Free

It's frankly difficult to find a good book that will help a person become literate about our modern money supply. Most that are accurate are hopelessly dense and written for graduate students in economics....Ellen Brown has translated a dense subject into a readable and fascinating story....Web of Debt by Ellen Brown not only demystifies money, but provides some thought-provoking and realistc solutions to our nation's dangerous dependence on a for-profit banking system that is sucking the financial lifeblood out of our nation....Buy it, read it, and get active! --Thom Hartmann's Review of the Month for Buzzflash, April 2009

Ms. Brown has taken two subjects considered boring - history and monetary policy - and turned them into a book as thrilling as any Tom Clancy novel, except that this book is true....If you are looking to have an understanding of the monetary mess we are in, this is an excellent historical overview with some truly elegant and ingenious ideas about correcting the problems we presently face. As you read this book you may find yourself feeling like "Neo" in The Matrix, newly awakened from the slumber of ignorance and deceit. Best of all, she offers viable solutions to the problems that have plagued our planet for millennia. This may well be one of the most important books you will ever read.
Amazon

Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins

John Perkins started and stopped writing Confessions of an Economic Hit Man four times over 20 years. He says he was threatened and bribed in an effort to kill the project, but after 9/11 he finally decided to go through with this expose of his former professional life. Perkins, a former chief economist at Boston strategic-consulting firm Chas. T. Main, says he was an "economic hit man" for 10 years, helping U.S. intelligence agencies and multinationals cajole and blackmail foreign leaders into serving U.S. foreign policy and awarding lucrative contracts to American business. "Economic hit men (EHMs) are highly paid professionals who cheat countries around the globe out of trillions of dollars," Perkins writes. Confessions of an Economic Hit Man is an extraordinary and gripping tale of intrigue and dark machinations. Think John Le Carré, except it's a true story.

The Secret History of the American Empire: Economic Hit Men, Jackals, and the Truth about Global Corruption

Perkins offers similarly entertaining but disturbing accounts of the American government wreaking havoc around the world in support of American business. In Perkins's view, American presidents willingly comply with their CEO masters, distributing foreign aid to corrupt Third World leaders who keep a share and return the rest to U.S. business for major projects, leaving their nations poor and massively in debt, and requiring more loans and slavish obedience to U.S. policy. If any leader objects, the CIA destabilizes his government, by assassination if necessary. Gathering evidence is not Perkins's strong suit. Typically, a shadowy figure pulls him aside, insists on anonymity, then reveals all. Critics will rightfully accuse Perkins of dreadful journalism and a taste for conspiracy theories. Yet economists admit that loans and "expert advice" to poor nations are often harmful. Few deny that America has ruthlessly undermined uncooperative governments and supported dictators including Saddam Hussein. Perkins's assertions that the U.S. assassinated Ecuador's reformist president and connived at genocide in Timor and Sudan are not absurd, merely unproven. This book's greatest value may be to encourage a competent journalist to cover the same ground.

amazon

YouTube's 50 Best Videos

2010-03-29T07:11:00.000-07:00

YouTube — breeding ground for the Web's wackiest and wildest viral videos — turns five in 2010. In recognition, TIME takes a look back at the site's 50 greatest hits.
see videos

Foreign Languages on iTunes

2010-02-06T17:55:00.000-08:00

I have been using iTunes Podcasts for years, but I just noticed that you can change countries anytime. I only know English, but it is handy for my wife. It is great because you can choose Podcasts in several languages and see all your choices on your Podcast list regardless of the language you have currently selected.

So select "Podcast" using the menu on the left; then select "Podcast Directory" at the bottom. This takes you to the iTunes web site they call their "iTunes Store". I like Podcasts because they are free and I can watch the news without commercials any time I want because iTunes automatically downloads the programs to my computer. You can also update anytime you wish.

Next, scroll to the bottom of the screen and select "change country" which will take you to a presentation of the countries. Pick your choice and the "iTunes Store" display will show Podcasts for the country you picked. Slick, huh!

The menu at the bottom will now be in the language for the country you chose and the "Change Country" will be in the same location which is good for me because I don't understand Japanese and I can get back to the "United States" and good old English.

Have fun... Bill

California to get $2.25 billion in high-speed rail funding

2010-01-28T07:57:00.000-08:00

California will receive $2.25 billion, the largest amount for any state, in federal economic stimulus funds to develop a high-speed rail line running from Anaheim to San Francisco -- a big boost for the long-discussed project aimed at accelerating the state's economic recovery. Overall, the Obama administration plans to distribute $8 billion for work on 13 rail corridors. Those include a Midwest line from Chicago to St. Louis and one in Florida running from Tampa to Orlando.

Trains on the proposed Anaheim-to-San Francisco line, which is projected to cost about $42 billion, would whisk passengers the 400 or so miles in no more than 2 hours, 40 minutes. The project would take a decade to complete, with extensions to San Diego and Sacramento planned.

read article

"Do you still take cash?" -- not a joke anymore.

2010-01-24T06:08:00.000-08:00

Beginning Feb. 1, your money's no good on American Airlines. The carrier is the latest to go completely cashless during flights, meaning that if you don't have plastic, you won't be buying food, drinks, duty-free items or whatever.

"The implementation of cashless cabins on select flights last summer has simplified the in-flight transaction process for both customers and flight attendants," Lauri Curtis, American's vice president of onboard service, said in a statement.

Yet American now joins United Airlines, Continental Airlines, Southwest Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Alaska Airlines, Frontier Airlines and other carriers in rejecting cash during some or all flights.
read article

Rise in sea levels threatens California ports

2009-12-10T03:04:00.000-08:00

The Mol Elbe from Japan is docked at the Port of Los Angeles, where cargo container wharves are about 15 feet above sea level.

Global warming and a resulting rise in sea levels present a direct threat to the world's seaports -- and many of California's harbors are nowhere near ready, state officials say.

Sea levels in California are expected to increase 16 inches over the next 40 years, causing flooding and endangering facilities throughout the state, according to a report by the California State Lands Commission. By 2100, the ocean could rise as much as 55 inches, the report said.

Most of the 40 ports and shipping hubs surveyed by the state said they were not prepared for the rise in sea levels. At the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, rising water could damage ground-level facilities and toxic-waste storage sites, said Geraldine Knatz, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, the state's largest.
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Introducing the Google Chrome OS

2009-11-13T12:10:00.000-08:00

Google Chrome OS is an open source, lightweight operating system that will initially be targeted at netbooks. Later this year we will open-source its code, and netbooks running Google Chrome OS will be available for consumers in the second half of 2010. Because we're already talking to partners about the project, and we'll soon be working with the open source community, we wanted to share our vision now so everyone understands what we are trying to achieve.

Speed, simplicity and security are the key aspects of Google Chrome OS. We're designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds. The user interface is minimal to stay out of your way, and most of the user experience takes place on the web. And as we did for the Google Chrome browser, we are going back to the basics and completely redesigning the underlying security architecture of the OS so that users don't have to deal with viruses, malware and security updates. It should just work.
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Deja vu: Wal-Mart, Amazon, Target in DVD price war

2009-11-08T05:38:00.000-08:00

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. started another price war Thursday, trimming the online preorder prices of some upcoming DVDs following its price cut on books last month. And, once again, competitors Amazon.com and Target scrambled to match the prices. But when Amazon reduced some of its DVD prices to $9.99, Wal-Mart shot back by cutting its DVDs to $9.98 as of Friday morning. Target got into the act Friday morning, too. All three companies also sweetened the pot by offering free shipping for the DVDs being sold.
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Facing foreclosure? Here's what you can do

2009-11-08T05:36:00.000-08:00

Don't wait. At the first sign of trouble, call your servicer. If you can't get through, keep trying. "Expect long wait times," advises Greg Hebner of MOS Group, an Irvine company that helps servicers contact hard-to-reach borrowers. Ask for the "home retention team." If you are put on hold, hang on until someone comes back on the line. Keep a record of whom you speak to and what was said.

* Know your options. The Making Home Affordable Mortgage Modification Program is the government's main program to prevent foreclosures. More than 2,300 servicing companies participate, covering about 85% of all single-family home loans, according to the Treasury Department's Laurie Maggiano.

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An inspired choral performance

2009-10-04T23:32:00.000-07:00

Amazing choir (Perpetuum Jazzile) uses their hands to simulate storm

Source: www.youtube.com

Amazing chore uses there hands to stimulate storm n if u want amazing article,stories images ,softawre n other stuff then visit my blog www.funstayshun.blogspot.com www.softwarecorner.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05ip-N0H1Ig&feature=player_embedded#7

Dr. Oz on health care

2009-09-27T09:49:00.000-07:00

Oz called the more than 40 million uninsured Americans "a national catastrophe ... but one that we can engage and actually embrace and probably overcome." Texas has the nation's highest uninsured rate and one in every three Harris county adults lacks health insurance. More than 4 million Americans receive care from the nation's free clinics.

"I think part of the goal today is to make it clear that there are Americans here who will help those who need the help," Oz said. "There are ways of supporting those who do not have health care coverage. We need to create a system where all of us can be part of it." The cardiac surgeon, who gained popularity as a regular guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show, also congratulated the hundreds of medical personnel who donated their time.
article & video

AARP - Get the Health Reform Facts

2009-09-19T13:09:00.001-07:00

AARP members are asking important questions about how they would be affected by health reform. As the process moves forward, AARP will continue to provide information you need to decide for yourself about what health care reform means for you. You can count on this site for the most up to date about health care reform will impact older Americans, and where stands on important provisions.
Get The Facts
Kaiser Family Foundation

Tax-Friendly Places to Retire

2009-09-10T11:05:00.000-07:00

Maybe you’re thinking about relocating in retirement, in hopes of enjoying milder weather and lower expenses. Before you make a move, it pays to assess the overall tax burden of your future home. Some states that are currently tax-friendly could get a lot less chummy as they scramble to find new sources of revenue to plug gaping holes in recession-shredded budgets.
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Effects of Marijuana on cancer and pain

2009-08-30T16:21:00.000-07:00

Cancer:some research has shown that marijuana has properties that protect against certain malignant tumors. However, all smoke contains carcinogens.http://www.norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=5441
" I. Galve-Roperph et al. 2000. Antitumoral action of cannabinoids: involvement of sustained ceramide accumulation of ERK activation. Nature Medicine 6: 313-319."
"M. Van der Stelt et al. 2001. Neuroprotection by delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol, the main active compound in marijuana, against ouabain-induced in vivo excitotoxicity. The Journal of Neuroscience 21: 6475-6479; J. Joy et al. 1999. Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base."

----
Written references to the use marijuana as a medicine date back nearly 5,000 years. Western medicine embraced marijuana's medical properties in the mid-1800s, and by the beginning of the 20th century, physicians had published more than 100 papers in the Western medical literature recommending its use for a variety of disorders. Cannabis remained in the United States pharmacopoeia until 1941, removed only after Congress passed the Marihuana Tax Act which severely hampered physicians from prescribing it. The American Medical Association (AMA) was one of the most vocal organizations to testify against the ban, arguing that it would deprive patients of a past, present and future medicine.

Evidence Supporting Marijuana's Medical Value

Divorce and Health Care Reform- Lawyer's Perspective

2009-08-30T13:25:00.000-07:00

William J. Hamilton is a lawyer in South Carolina. He is very experienced in Family Practice, Divorce, Wills, etc. He has a blog with interesting insights on this subject. I very much recommend reading it. -- Bill

Divorce, one of the most common processes shaping the contemporary American family and the struggles of families operating after a divorce or legal separation is complex and virtually unconsidered issue in the health care reform debate. It's relevant and important to consider what real American families of all types might get from healthcare reform and what the current system is doing to them.

Preexisting conditions can make it virtually impossible for a separated spouse to establish their own independent healthcare coverage after the 36 month COBRA period has expired. Some couples deal with this by obtaining an order for separate maintenance and support (SC's form of "legal separation") and then simply never obtain a divorce. A party who wishes to obtain a divorce might choose to accept this option and keep their would be ex spouse on their employers plan rather than pay an amount of alimony sufficient to pay for a separate insurance policy for their former spouse and liability for charges excluded as resulting from a prior existing condition.
read article

Boyfriend with Health Benefits -- great video

2009-08-29T10:30:00.000-07:00

watch video

Health Innsurance letter from Melissa

2009-08-20T04:23:00.000-07:00

Ok Bill, I'm going out on a limb here. I don't really know you at all, except through (name omitted), but I love your posts. Here is our story. Feel free to use it but not my last name because my husband would die of shame.

I will be 43 in October. My husband is 47. I am a stay-at-home mom since 2004. My husband is self-employed, therefore, we don't have health insurance. Our children do, we pay for crappy coverage, but my husband and I don't.

When I worked full time, I worked for an adoption agency. Though they were a multi-million dollar company, it was classified as a small business. Therefore, it was not required to provide health insurance, or COBRA, if it did. The insurance policy changed yearly, with many gaps in coverage, and when I found out I was pregnant with our first child, I realized that pregnancy was not covered. Then I got fired, for being pregnant, but as a small business,ligation was not an option.

We paid cash for both our babies, negotiating hospital rates, doctor's rates, cringing if I needed an extra ultrasound, my pregnancies were not happy. We paid about $16,000 for our son, and $12,000 for our daughter. That doesn't include the hospital bills, because I applied for Medicaid, and was granted it both times, to cover that. When our daughter was born, that year out income was $0. We couldn't even afford parking at the hospital.

My husband could get health insurance for about $2,000 a month. That's just for him. I was denied coverage because I had high blood pressure for the last 4 weeks of my first pregnancy. (BTW, I only gained 20 pounds my first pregnancy, only 12 pounds my second because I tried to stay healthy to have healthy babies. I weighed 142 pounds at both my deliveries.) I may qualify for coverage after my son turns 5 but God knows what else is wrong with me since I haven't seen a doctor/dentist for over 10 years now. Except for my gynecologist, because I pay $78 a month for birth control pills.

Anyway, thought I'd share with you. Not expecting anything in return, just wanted to speak the truth. I just get tired of hearing all the rhetoric about socialized medicine and how people don't want to pay for bums, etc. We are not bums, my husband is self-employed, the American dream. Some years we do well, some not so well, that's just life. We don't have any credit cards, or debt, we pay our bills. We pay a shitload of taxes every year, and are audited often, because of our self employed status. I can't sleep at night thinking I am going to die because of the history of high blood-pressure/strokes/diabetes/skin cancer that runs in my immediate family. I couldn't tell you today what my blood pressure is. Don't want to have a pre-existing condition...My children are 4 1/2 and 2 1/2.

Thank you for listening.
(name omitted by request)

Home Prices: There's No Quick Recovery Ahead

2009-08-16T10:09:00.000-07:00

So, is our long national nightmare over? Has the housing market finally hit bottom? There has been some muted -- albeit exhausted -- cheering from homeowners in recent weeks. But before we break out the champagne, look out for further potential problems just down the road.

The good news? According to the closely watched Case-Shiller Home Price Index, which tracks home prices across 20 major cities nationwide, the three-year housing slump slowed sharply in April and May. May's decline was just 0.2%, the slowest in two years. And several cities actually saw prices rise -- among them Denver, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Boston, Cleveland and Dallas. Even Miami only fell about 1% in May. That's a great month down there. Previously, prices had been falling 3% a month.

But beyond the headlines, there are plenty of reasons to stay cautious. There may even be fresh dangers just ahead. And it's hardly a surprise the market saw some green shoots this time around. It's enjoying not one, but two, gigantic taxpayer subsidies -- an $8,000 refundable tax credit, or gift, for first-time buyers, as well as those cheap mortgage rates.

The Federal Reserve has been spending billions of dollars to keep interest rates down. Both are only short-term fixes. Any sustained economic upturn would be expected to send long-term mortgage rates rising again, dousing the real-estate market with fresh cold water.
read article

Income Inequality Is At An All-Time High: STUDY

2009-08-14T18:57:00.000-07:00

Income inequality in the United States is at an all-time high, surpassing even levels seen during the Great Depression, according to a recently updated paper by University of California, Berkeley Professor Emmanuel Saez. The paper, which covers data through 2007, points to a staggering, unprecedented disparity in American incomes. On his blog, Nobel prize-winning economist and New York Times columnist Paul Krugman called the numbers "truly amazing."
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from AARP on health care reform

2009-08-06T03:12:00.000-07:00

I received the following from AARP -- note their logo on the web site. -- Bill

My inbox has been flooded with emails spreading crazy rumors about health reform so I wanted to share some facts from AARP about what's really going on. Please join me in forwarding these facts to everyone you know. Print them out and pass them around at your social gatherings and other places where people are discussing the issues of the day.

FACT #1: Medicare will not be ended, and no benefits or services will be cut.

Your services will not be ended, nor will your benefits be cut. AARP's position on this could not be clearer. And we have sent this message loud and clear to Congress. While the current proposals include savings in Medicare by cutting out fraud, abuse, waste, and inefficiency, we're standing up and making sure benefits for Medicare recipients are not only fully protected, but are improved.¹

FACT #2: No legislation currently in Congress would mandate the rationing of care. Period.

Our staff has read all of the legislation circulating in Congress and there are no provisions in these bills that would ration care for our members. None. If any ever did, we would vigorously fight to stop that legislation.²

FACT #3: There is no provision of any piece of legislation that would promote euthanasia of any kind.

The rumors out there are flat out lies. Right now Medicare does not cover counseling for end-of-life care. The portion of the bill in question would simply provide coverage for optional end-of-life consultations with doctors, so that the patient can be aware of all of the treatment options on the table. It is not mandatory and it has nothing to do with euthanasia.³

FACT #4: We have not endorsed President Obama's plan.

In fact, we haven't endorsed any plan. We are supporting reform of our health care system, something that AARP has pushed for many years. We're working closely with Republican and Democratic members of Congress to lower health care costs and to ensure quality affordable coverage for older Americans – and we want reform legislation passed and signed by the president this year.⁴

So what is AARP fighting for in health reform?

Stopping insurance companies from charging older Americans unaffordable premiums because of their age.
Ending the practice of excluding people from insurance because of pre-existing conditions.
Holding down health costs and making insurance coverage more affordable for all Americans.
Making prescription drugs more affordable by narrowing the Medicare doughnut hole, bringing generics to market faster, and allowing Medicare to negotiate better drug prices.

Find out more and take action at HealthActionNow.org.

What's behind breaking up of political meetings?

2009-08-05T22:47:00.000-07:00

The first few minutes of the Rachael Maddow show of August 5th discusses this in detail. It describes politicians, financiers, etc. It is available on iTunes Podcasts for MSNBC. In summary, it isn't the average folks who are organizing this--it is the moneyed interests and the professional lobbyists.

My Kenyan Birth Certificate

2009-08-05T16:19:00.001-07:00

Bill Hogerty: Here is my "genuine" Kenyan Birth Certificate to answer any questions.

Tyson Fultz: I demand to see the LONG FORM certificate!!!!!
What are you trying to hide from us with this one?

Bill Hogerty: I have been hounded for days by mobs demanding proof of my birth. So I hope this FINALLY satisfies your questions.

Kathy O'Kelly: So it IS true, You ARE black Irish!

Bill Hogerty: Unfortunately the original long form was lost in a fire due to the use of flammable construction materials in the maternity wing. This makes it very hard to prove beyond a shadow of doubt whether I was spontaniously conceived as a result of a chant by the tribal witch doctor or whether he was my real father. I maintain it was as stated here, but questions remain in the minds of many. I fondly hope this finally settles this question.

Weak economy makes solar panels more affordable to homeowners

2009-08-01T07:06:00.000-07:00

An installer looks over a new panel on a roof in Los Angeles. June was a record month for state rebate applications by California homeowners. Price cuts by manufacturers, tax credits, California incentives and innovative financing ease the cost of going solar. If you're searching for a bright spot in a dismal economic climate, look no farther than your roof. The downturn is helping to make solar panels more affordable.

Manufacturers are cutting prices to move inventory. Uncle Sam is helping too. As part of the economic stimulus package, the federal government this year boosted tax credits to homeowners who switch to solar power. Together with state incentives, those subsidies could slash the cost of some systems in California by 50% or more. Some homeowners are banding together into buying groups for even bigger savings.
read article

Are We Always Going to Be Preoccupied with Racism?

2009-07-25T12:10:00.000-07:00

Has the election of Barack Obama put to rest the debate of historians about race in America? Especially, whether they think race will continue indefinitely to divide American society?

This depends first on how one interprets the origins of the nation’s racial situation. Such early twentieth century historians as U. B. Phillips thought that the lowly jobs held by African Americans could be explained by their limited mental capacity. During the Cold War, however, when blacks took to the streets in the 1950s and ‘60s, the theory of their inferiority fell into disfavor. But then a school of white historians, stressing psychology and culture, held that the problem lay not with the nature of blacks but with the nature of whites. Whites’ prejudice derived, not from the way they treated blacks–from black slavery and segregation–but from the way they perceived them. These scholars thought that black had always been a color that whites associated with disagreeable things, and that this limited the white majority’s ability to fully accept black people. Two narratives but one conclusion: the status quo. Because of either the nature of blacks or the nature of whites, American society was likely to remain racially stratified.
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World's largest telescope to be built in Hawaii

2009-07-22T08:11:00.000-07:00

A consortium of U.S. and Canadian universities on Tuesday announced it has decided to build the world's largest telescope in Hawaii. Mauna Kea volcano was picked by Thirty Meter Telescope Observatory Corp. The other finalist candidate site was Chile's Cerro Armazones mountain. The $1.2 billion telescope should allow scientists to see some 13 billion light years away — a distance so great and so far back in time that researchers should be able to watch the first stars and galaxies forming.

Mauna Kea, a dormant volcano, is already home to 12 telescopes. It's popular with astronomers because its summit sits well above the clouds at 13,796 feet, giving scientists a clear view of the sky above for 300 days a year. The Thirty Meter Telescope would collect 10 times more light than existing telescopes, helping researchers more clearly see objects that appear faint with current devices. It is expected to routinely offer views of hundreds of planets orbiting around other stars and stars that are near the sun. Current telescopes have only rarely been able to show these images.
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Jeff Sharlet Reveals Disturbing Details About Conservative "C Street House" Organization On Rachel Maddow Show (VIDEO)

2009-07-21T12:45:00.000-07:00

More and more information is beginning to leak out about the "C Street House" and the conservative and religious brethren of GOP politicians who live or have lived in the now infamous house. The house made headlines recently when it was discovered that among its occupants had been John Ensign, Mark Sanford and Charles Pickering, all religious Republican politicians who were revealed to be having extramarital affairs.

Rachel Maddow interviewed author Jeff Sharlet, who went undercover at the organization that owns C Street House and is known as "The Fellowship," on her show Monday, where he revealed more disturbing details gathered from his reporting. Especially bizarre was this anecdote told to GOP Congressman Todd Tiahrt (who has speculated about President Obama's mother aborting him) by the group's leader regarding the its philosophy of "the totalitarianism of Christ":
article & video

The 9 Craziest Japanese Ads Of All Time (VIDEO)

2009-07-21T12:40:00.000-07:00

Every culture has their share of weird advertisements (remember those PSAs?), but some of the craziest in the world come from Japan. Sit back, relax, and prepare to be completely freaked out.

view commercials

Toyota Tests Solar Power Cargo Ship; It’s Seaworthy

2009-07-21T12:22:00.000-07:00

Toyota’s 60,000-ton, seven story cargo ship can carry more than 6,200 cars at a time and regularly does so, transporting Toyota, Lexus and Scion vehicles from Toyota Motor Co. factories in Japan to Toyota’s 144-acre spread at this port in Los Angeles. Normally, the eco-saintly Priuses onboard are heralded into port by the noxious fumes of climate-unfriendly fossils as they slide into the Golden State.

But seven months ago, (Wow. That places this decision right around the time of the financial apocalypse last Fall!) Toyota installed this test array, comprising 328 solar panels, on the top deck as an experiment to see if such a system would work effectively aboard a car carrier. So far, so good, State said, adding that not a single problem had arisen since the panels were installed last December. “She may be the first of her kind,” he said, “for sure, she will not be the last.”
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Brian Boitano's new website

2009-07-17T18:20:00.000-07:00

Brian Boitano has a new website that includes his interests, accomplishments and figure skating videos. Brian is an Olympic medal champion and he has included many of his exciting videos.
Brian's website

Shopping for banking deals

2009-07-14T07:47:00.000-07:00

High-Interest Free Checking Account
Bank Deals - Best Rates and Deals
BankRate.com

Money Magazine Best Places To Live List 2009

2009-07-13T19:58:00.000-07:00

Money Magazine has just released their much anticipated annual rankings of the best places to live in the U.S., which appears in the August issue. This year's list focused on best small towns, and the top ranking went to Louisville, Colorado (sorry Louisville, Kentucky, you're not a small town), while Oviedo, Florida sneaked onto the list at number 100. Louisville, CO ranked 3rd on the 2007 list. Why should you want to move to Louisville? Here's the top reason, according to the magazine...
read article

Dozens of Dazed Giant Squid Wash Up On San Diego Beach After Earthquake (VIDEO)

2009-07-13T08:32:00.000-07:00

San Diego residents were stunned when dozens of dazed giant squid washed up on La Jolla beach after an earthquake. One resident said she's never seen anything like this in 42 years. It's unclear whether it was the initial earthquake or the aftershock that jolted the giant squid onto the beach.
watch video

Nanopillar Solar Cells - much cheaper

2009-07-06T12:11:00.000-07:00

Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have made a new kind of solar cell by growing an array of upright nanoscale pillars on aluminum foil. They make bendable solar cells by encapsulating the entire cell inside a transparent, rubbery polymer. The design, the researchers suggest, could lead to solar cells that cost less than conventional silicon photovoltaics.

The nanopillars allow the researchers to use cheaper, lower-quality materials than those used in conventional silicon and thin-film technologies. What's more, the technique used to make the cells could be adapted to make rolls of flexible panels on thin aluminum foil, cutting manufacturing costs, says Ali Javey, an electrical-engineering and computer-sciences professor who led the work. The work is at an early stage, and "you won't know the cost until you do this using a roll-to-roll process," he says. "But if you can do it, the cost could be 10 times less than what's used to make [crystalline] silicon panels."
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Bill's Blog

Richard Wolff: Capitalism Hits the Fan

U.S. Teen Births Hit Record Low

Fish uses fins to walk and bound

Shock as retreat of Arctic sea ice releases deadly greenhouse gas

Thailand's Woman of a Second Kind

China’s economy and the WTO

Private Prison Expansion Becomes Big Business

TV interview of German transgirl Kim Petras

Led by the child who simply knew

VHA Health Eligibility Center Health Benefits Website

Toms Dispatch: William deBuys, The Parching of the West

Three-quarters of climate change is man-made

A balanced view

NOooo NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!

Letter to the President

SoleraU.com -- get business cards cheap

Scientists invent lightest material on Earth. What now?

Health Care Innovation Challenge

The Difference Between Democrats and Republicans

TRUTH -- OWS AND POWER OF THE 1%

Greenhouse Gases Hit Record Levels; Concentrations Exceed Scientists' Worst-Case Scenarios

Fox News Viewers Know Less Than People Who Don't Watch Any News: Study

A beginners guide to Google Chrome: Why it’s time to ditch Internet Explorer

Welcome to our readers from Mongolia

YouTube Symphony Orchestra 2011 Grand Finale

New Data Provides A Complete Description Of A Black Hole

Many Info Sources

Are you tired of the Liberal Social Agenda???

Vincent van Gogh

Michelangelo

Massive new iceberg forming -- right now -- in Antarctica

Climate change linked to Ice-Age animal extinctions

The Greenhouse Effect Explained

Inland Empire hospitals stand on shaky future

On Christian Pretenders

The Republican Legacy

Mind, Brain and Behavior

Telecommunications Breakthrough

Study Outlines Economic and Environmental Benefits to Reducing Nitrogen Pollution

Beauty and Brains

VIEW SLIDESHOW

The White House Announces LGBT News Page

Historical Recordings from the Library of Congress

Study Links Ozone Hole to Broader Climate Change

Ozone Hole May Have Caused Australian Floods

Republic of Slovenia

Obama Administration’s Achievements

I tried to resist this, but...

Irish Music & Tap Dancing, Riverdance

Britains Got Talent 2009 Susan Boyle 47 Year Old Singer

Born This Way -- Lady Gaga

Belize is an interesting country in South America

Appsolution -- priests on soup lines??? -- not likely

Pageviews by Countries - May to January

Ronald Reagan's son says Alzheimer's may have started in '80s

CIA World Factbook

Too much rain? Next few months will tell

In a region that imports water, much goes to waste

Akiko Meyers -- magnificent violin player

Hubble celebrates 20 years in space with a jaw-dropper

US nuclear stockpile in half after the end of the cold war

Here is some REALLY important info on nuclear weapons.Everyone should look at this --It won't make you happy, but we all need to understand.

Journey through Canyons - beautiful video

Karate Has Gone Global, But the Real Masters Are Still in Its Japanese Birthplace

Abraham Lincoln -- The Gettysburg Address

The Really Creepy People Behind the Libertarian-Inspired Billionaire Sea Castles

China chases US in latest supercomputer ranking

By 2050, solar could produce 25% of the world's electricity

Tranquilized bear stuck in Oxnard tree

President Obama to Visit Charlotte, NC

What are the economic drivers of social change?

YouTube's 50 Best Videos

Foreign Languages on iTunes

California to get $2.25 billion in high-speed rail funding

"Do you still take cash?" -- not a joke anymore.

Rise in sea levels threatens California ports

Introducing the Google Chrome OS

Deja vu: Wal-Mart, Amazon, Target in DVD price war

Facing foreclosure? Here's what you can do

Here is some REALLY important info on nuclear weapons.
Everyone should look at this --
It won't make you happy, but we all need to understand.