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Geologist Explains Why Haiti Earthquake Was Such A Disaster

Geologist Explains Why Haiti Earthquake Was Such A Disaster

Jan 14 2010 | comment(s)

The disastrous magnitude 7.0 earthquake that triggered destruction and mounting death tolls in Haiti this week occurred in a highly complex tangle of tectonic faults near the intersection of the Caribbean and North American crustal plates, according to a geologist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI).

Jian Lin, a WHOI senior scientist in geology and geophysics, said that there were three factors that made the quake particularly devastating: First, it was centered just 10 miles southwest of the capital city, Port au Prince; second, the quake was shallow—only about 10-15 kilometers below the land's surface; third, and more importantly, many homes and buildings in the economically poor country were not built to withstand such a force and collapsed or crumbled.
Blame Lousy Airport Security On Evolution

Blame Lousy Airport Security On Evolution

Jan 14 2010 | comment(s)

While people typically blame incompetency when airport security screeners fail to keep dangerous weapons off airplanes or when doctors miss developing cancer tumors, the real culprit may be evolution, according to researchers at Harvard Medical School. Their new study published in Current Biology suggests that people simply haven't evolved superior skills for finding things that are rare.

"We know that if you don't find it often, you often don't find it," said Jeremy Wolfe of Harvard Medical School. "Rare stuff gets missed." That means that if you look for 20 guns in a stack of 40 bags, you'll find more of them than if you look for the same 20 guns in a stack of 2,000 bags.
Reviewing The Review Of Sowell's

Reviewing The Review Of Sowell's "Intellectuals And Society"

Jan 14 2010 | comment(s)

It's interesting that in reading this review the first thing one is struck by is that Sowell is guilty of the very thing he's railing against.  Setting himself up as a individual intellectual with "ideas" to tell others how things should work.

I'm sure readers of this post may argue that I'm doing the same thing and they would be correct.  Therein is Sowell's fatal flaw, because anyone with an idea can be labeled an "intellectual" and be subject to the criticism that he levels.  It is noteworthy that apparently, in his view, the only "intellectuals" worth criticizing are liberals, but that's just his bias showing I suspect.
Enough With Government Waste Already!

Enough With Government Waste Already!

Jan 14 2010 | comment(s)

As someone that has little use for government, I find myself in the awkward position of actually defending it when I hear the utter nonsense put forth by people suggesting that the private sector can do a better job.

There is no doubt that any large organization is going to do things wrong and generate a significant amount of inefficiency.  However, this is true of corporations just as it is with government.  Corporations do not hold a privileged position in somehow having solutions to these problems, because they often perform worse than government,but without the public visibility.

In addition, most corporations simply don't have as many people to serve as the government, so simple scaling is sometimes enough to create large differences.  
Solomon Woz Here?

Solomon Woz Here?

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

A few days ago, I read Oldest Biblical Inscription Deciphered, Archaeologists Say by our News Staff, and found it fascinating.  It takes one back to Solomon, who, according to the Bible, had a thousand wives (that’s includin’ concubines, I have to tell ya.)  Now people like to embellish these stories, and my mother sometimes would sing this:



Oh Solomon, he had a thousand wives
And bein' a kind hearted fella,
He wanted all o' them
To lead contented lives
So he bought each mamma
A grand piana, ....

New Rare B Decays Nailed By CDF: The Door To New Physics ?

New Rare B Decays Nailed By CDF: The Door To New Physics ?

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

The CDF Collaboration has recently produced a new analysis of proton-antiproton collisions at the now second-world-best collision energy of 1.96 TeV. They searched for very rare decays of the B mesons, particles composed of, would you guess, a b-quark and a lighter partner orbiting around each other.
Multiverse 101?

Multiverse 101?

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

This article is about physics but it fits under random thoughts also. My writing here on Scientific Blogging is self-educational, about what I am wondering and learning about. Today, it's multiverse theory.
Zanthoxylum armatum DC has medicinal value.

Zanthoxylum armatum DC has medicinal value.

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

Zanthoxylum armatum DC. syn. Z. alatum Roxb. and its var.planispinum (Sieb. & Zucc.) Rehd. & E. H. Wils.; Z. planispinum Sieb. & Zucc.) ( I agree with Dr. Komatsu that Z. armatum and Z alatum are separate species and not synonym Kumar) Family Rutaceae Used Part Fruits. Distribution Area Found in the hot valleys of the Himalayas from Jammu to Bhutan at altitudes of 1,000-2,100 m.
Phragmites karka Trin. ex Steud

Phragmites karka Trin. ex Steud

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

Phragmites karka Trin. ex Steud. ( Syn  P. karka Retz. , P. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Entada phaseoloides (Linn.) Merr. syn. E. scandens has medicinal properties

Entada phaseoloides (Linn.) Merr. syn. E. scandens has medicinal properties

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

Scientific Name Entada phaseoloides (Linn.) Merr. syn. E. scandens Benth. (Ref no.9 page 59 names this as E.pursaetha DC and puts E. scandens Benth.) Family Fabaceae Used Part Fruits. Distribution Area The plant occurs throughout the sub-Himalayan tract, from Nepal eastwards ascending to 4,000 ft. in Sikkim, in Assam, Bihar and Orissa, and in the monsoon forest of western and eastern ghats; it is abundant in Andaman Islands. Common Uses . The seeds are considered tonic, emetic, antiperiodic and anthelmintic. A paste prepared from the seeds is applied locally for inflammatory glandular swellings. The stem is used as emetic. The juice of the wood and bark is used as an external application for ulcers.
Vanda tessellata (Roxb.) Hook ex Don (=V.roxburghii R.BR.) has medicinal properties

Vanda tessellata (Roxb.) Hook ex Don (=V.roxburghii R.BR.) has medicinal properties

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

Scientific Name Vanda tessellata (Roxb.) Hook ex Don (=V.roxburghii R.BR.) Family Orchidaceaae Used Part Root. Distribution Area An epiphytic orchid, 30-60 cm. high, found from Uttar Pradesh to West Bengal, extending southwards to Kerala. . Common Uses . The root is a bitter heating alexiteric, antipyretic, useful in dyspepsia, bronchitis in lammations, rheumatic pains, diseases of the abdomen, hiccough, tremors. In Yunani system root is used as tonic to the liver and brain ; good for bronchitis, piles, lumbago toothache, boils of the scalp; lessens inflammation; heals fractures. The root is said to be fragrant, bitter and useful in rheumatism and allied disorder, in which it is prescribed in a variety of forms.
Should Federally Funded Research Be Available To The Public?

Should Federally Funded Research Be Available To The Public?

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

An expert panel of library scientists, publishers, and university academics said today that the results of scientific research funded by the federal government should be made freely available to the public "as soon as possible after those results have been published in a peer-reviewed journal."

The Scholarly Publishing Roundtable was convened last summer by the U.S. House Committee on Science and Technology, in collaboration with the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP).  Policymakers asked the group to examine the current state of scholarly publishing and seek consensus recommendations for expanding public access to scholarly journal articles.
Loss Of Smell Function May Predict Onset Of Alzheimer's

Loss Of Smell Function May Predict Onset Of Alzheimer's

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

 Loss of smell function may predict the onset of Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study published in the January 13 issue of the Journal of Neuroscience. The research links a loss of smell function in Alzheimer's disease (AD) model animals with amyloid ß (protein) accumulation in the brain, a distinguishing hallmark of Alzheimer's disease.
Obesity Rate Slowing In The U.S.

Obesity Rate Slowing In The U.S.

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

While much concern has been generated by the obesity epidemic in the United States in recent years, with about one-third of adults obese in 2007-2008, new data suggest that the rate of increase for obesity may be slowing, say the authors of a study appearing in the January 20 issue of JAMA.

"Data from 1988-1994 showed that the prevalence of obesity in adults had increased by approximately 8 percentage points in the United States since 1976-1980, after being relatively stable over the period 1960-1980. Analyses of data from 1999-2000 showed further increases in obesity for both men and women and in all age groups," the authors write.
Economists Lay Out Path To Fiscal Stability For U.S.

Economists Lay Out Path To Fiscal Stability For U.S.

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

If left unaddressed, the U.S. government's growing debt will inevitably limit America's future wealth and risk a disruptive fiscal crisis, claims a new report from the National Research Council and the National Academy of Public Administration. The report lays out several tax and spending options that would stabilize the national debt within a decade as well as a set of simple tests to determine whether any proposed federal budget would lead to long-term fiscal stability.
Nursing Students Smoke More Than The General Public

Nursing Students Smoke More Than The General Public

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

The rate of smoking among nursing students is twice that of the general population, indicates a survey of over 800 new nursing students published in the Journal of Advanced Nursing. Busy bodies in the health community argue the results indicate that smoking cessation programs should be incorporated into nursing studies. They say that smoking among healthcare professionals undermines the credibility of anti-smoking campaigns aimed at the general public.
South Asian Monsoon Caused By Himalayan Heat And Moisture

South Asian Monsoon Caused By Himalayan Heat And Moisture

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

 The Tibetan Plateau—thought to be the primary source of heat that drives the South Asian monsoon—may have far less of an effect than moist, warm air insulated over continental India by the Himalayas and other surrounding mountains, say Harvard climate scientists writing this week in Nature.

The team says that understanding the monsoon's proper origin, especially in the context of global climate change, is crucial for the future sustainability of the region. The findings also have broad implications for how the Asian climate may have responded to mountain uplift in the past, and for how it might respond to surface changes in the coming decades, the researchers say.
Want To Save Gorillas And Elephants? Understand Their Human Neighbors First

Want To Save Gorillas And Elephants? Understand Their Human Neighbors First

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

Conservation efforts aimed at protecting Gorillas And Elephants in African parks and reserves  are well intentioned but are often based on incorrect assumptions about the local culture, say Purdue University anthropologists. In a new Conservation Biology paper, the team says that understanding local human communities is key to protecting the wildlife they live alongside.
'Biochar': Ancient Technology That Could Slow Climate Change

'Biochar': Ancient Technology That Could Slow Climate Change

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

While most researchers and policy makers are looking to new technologies to slow the pace of climate change, scientists from Cornell University and the University of New South Wales are reporting that "biochar" — a material that the Amazonian Indians used to enhance soil fertility centuries ago — has potential in the modern world to help slow global climate change. Mass production of biochar could capture and sock away carbon that otherwise would wind up in the atmosphere as carbon dioxide, the main greenhouse gas. .
2010 Summed Up So Far In Squid

2010 Summed Up So Far In Squid

Jan 13 2010 | comment(s)

Hey, I'm back! I went to a rockin' party and an awesome conference and now I am full of interesting tales. Also, I am full of determination to finish my thesis this year, and an unfortunate byproduct of that resolution is a need to cut down on my blogging. Therefore, as you can see from my mutilated banner, squid-a-day is temporarily squid-a-week, until I finish my degree.

So once a week I will be delivering a concentrated dose of squid! Are you ready for the first? It's extra concentrated, since I had to cover the first twelve days of the new year . . .