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Is AGW a religion?

Is AGW a religion?

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Look what's happening in Britain! 

I have just been reading a newspaper article:  Climate change belief given same legal status as religion  which starts:
An executive has won the right to sue his employer on the basis that he was unfairly dismissed for his green views after a judge ruled that environmentalism had the same weight in law as religious and philosophical beliefs.
Can apples have tramp stamps?

Can apples have tramp stamps?

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

So, back in the 60's, I had a weather changing machine that was, in essence, a sophisticated heat beam which we called a "laser."

Now this "laser"  is used ubiquitously for everything from medicine to technology to tattooing fruit. Wait, what? Tattooing fruit?
Up, up and away in my beautiful space elevator

Up, up and away in my beautiful space elevator

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

An elevator to space? No, this isn't a reprise of Charlie and Chocolate Factory. As I mentioned in a blog back in January, an elevator into space is the end goal - a 100,000 km long tether anchored to the Earth as a "lift into space" for cheaper space missions.
The Concept Of Fairness

The Concept Of Fairness

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

I recently read, in one of the posts, the following statement.

"Evolution is not fair, economics is not fair."

http://www.scientificblogging.com/news_articles/chemical_engineer_solves_capitalism_problem

I'm sure we've all heard the platitude that "life is not fair", which set me to thinking about what these statements even mean.
The Say of the Week: Lederman's Shoulder

The Say of the Week: Lederman's Shoulder

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

"The yield of muon pairs decreased rapidly from 1 GeV to the kinematic limit of nearly 6 GeV with the exception of a curious shoulder near 3GeV. The measurement of muons was by range as determined by liquid and plastic scintillation counters interspersed with steel shielding. Each angular bin (there were 18) had four range bins, and for two muons this made a total of only 5000 mass bins into which to sort the data. Multiple scattering in the minimum of 10 feet of steel
made finer binning useless. Thus we could only note that "Indeed, in the mass region near 3.5 GeV, the observed spectrum may be reproduced by a composite of a resonance and a steeper continuum." This 1968-1969 experiment was repeated in 1974 by Aubert et al. (1974), with a
MIT Researchers Develop Affective Intelligent Driving Agent (AIDA)

MIT Researchers Develop Affective Intelligent Driving Agent (AIDA)

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

MIT researchers and designers are developing the Affective Intelligent Driving Agent (AIDA) - a new in-car personal robot that aims to change the way we interact with our car. The project is a collaboration between the Personal Robots Group at the MIT Media Lab, MIT’s SENSEable City Lab and the Volkswagen Group of America’s Electronics Research Lab.
Discussion on R&D needs in Jatropha and need or possibility for an EU role.

Discussion on R&D needs in Jatropha and need or possibility for an EU role.

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Discussion on R&D needs in Jatropha and need or possibility for an EU role. First Hans-Joerg.Lutzeyer lined out the reasons why the EU might be interested to link or to support R&D activities in Jatropha. Next, a round was made in which participants could comment. The participants were requested to mention their views on networking and R&D topics. Diego Breviarion noted that from preliminary R&D, it is found that the genetic variation of Jatropha is not so wide, however the phenotypes are quite different in character. He suggested that gene expression studies are needed. Since this phenomena is unusual, the EU can be challenged to work on this. A number of participants noted that not only the detoxification of Jatropha cake is an important issue to
Jatropha curcas and EU

Jatropha curcas and EU

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

1. The Jatropha plant; 2. The Jatropha activities (1987 – 2007) of Mr. Henning; 3. High yielding plants; 4. Ecology Aspects; 5. Economic Aspects; The objective of the presentation of Mr. Henning, besides introducing the plant and worldwide Jatropha activities, was to show how the economic feasibility depends on the selection of high yielding plants for Jatropha plantations. It is very clear, that plants from seeds have a large biological variation and that it is necessary to select high yielding plants and to multiply them vegetatively (by cuttings) to get an economic feasible production rate of fruits per ha. It is also important to consider an optimum spacing of plants, depending on water and nutrient availability and operational aspects, like planting at a
The use of natural products with therapeutic properties is as ancient as human civilization

The use of natural products with therapeutic properties is as ancient as human civilization

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

The use of natural products with therapeutic properties is as ancient as human civilization and these natural products are the foundation of preventing and curing diseases. Numerous present day medicines of the western world have been developed based on traditional medicines by studing and recognozing the mechanisms of action and their receptors.
Pharmacognosy of Chlorophytum tuberosum

Pharmacognosy of Chlorophytum tuberosum

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Pharmacognosy of Chlorophytum tuberosum Family Liliaceae This is a genus of two hundred species and twelve are native to India. These are rhizomatous herbs and roots fascicled, often thick fleshy and tuber like. It is a rhizomatous herb. Leaves are suberect lanceolate and many nerved. Inflorescence is an erect, dense-flowered racemes. Flowers are star like, white upto 2 cm across, sepals are acute, anthers are longer than filaments are green or yellow in colour, bracts are long. Seeds are black in colour with angular edges.
Pharmacognosy of Calotropis procera

Pharmacognosy of Calotropis procera

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Pharmacognosy of Calotropis procera Botanical Origin : Calotropis procera ( Ait.) R.Br. Family : Asclepiadaceae Arka, an important drug of Ayurveda is known in this country from the earliest time. It is mentioned by the earliest Hindu writers and the ancient name of the plant which occurs in the vedic literature was Arka alluding to the form of leaves, which was used in the sacrifical rites. There are two common species of Calotropis, viz. C. gigantea ( Linn.) R.Br. and C. procera (Ait.) R.Br. described by the Sanskrit writers. Both the species are used as substitutes for one another and are said to have similar effects. One species is more commonly used in some parts of the country, while the other parts use the other species depending on the availability of their distribution.
Pharmacognostical characterization of some selected medicinal plants.

Pharmacognostical characterization of some selected medicinal plants.

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Pharmacognostical characterization of some selected medicinal plants. History of Pharmacognosy:
Date A Water Strider, Where Nice Guys Get The Girls

Date A Water Strider, Where Nice Guys Get The Girls

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Female water striders don't like the bad boys and they don't even have to reach the age of 30 before they wise up about choices in males.

Water striders are those insects commonly seen skittering hurriedly across the surface of streams but when it comes to romance, male water striders who played it cool mated with more females than did groups of aggressive males, according to a study led by Omar Tonsi Eldakar of the University of Arizona's Arizona Research Laboratories.
Ecuador's Plan To Save The Amazon And Fight Climate Change--The Yasuní-ITT Initiative

Ecuador's Plan To Save The Amazon And Fight Climate Change--The Yasuní-ITT Initiative

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

The Ecuadorian government has devised a novel, albeit idealistic, plan to prevent gas and oil development in the Yasuní National Park in hopes of protecting biodiversity and combating climate change. The proposal, known as the Yasuní-ITT Initiative, would leave untouched nearly
one billion barrels of oil that lie beneath the national Park in Ecuador.
Experts Say They Can Keep Google's Grubby Hands Off Your Internet Searches

Experts Say They Can Keep Google's Grubby Hands Off Your Internet Searches

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

When you use popular search engines like Google or Yahoo to find something on the internet, the information you input is collected and built into a profile that helps those companies market products you may find interesting. Your favorite search engines justify this practice by claiming that it allows them to learn about your interests and offer more efficient responses as a result.

That's well and good if you don't care about privacy. But if you do, a team of researchers has developed a new protocol based on cryptographic tools to distort the user profile generated by internet search engines, in such a way that they cannot save the searches undertaken by internet users and thus preserve their privacy.
Is There A Connection Between Thyroid Cancer And Volcanoes?

Is There A Connection Between Thyroid Cancer And Volcanoes?

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

People living in volcanic areas may face a higher risk for thyroid cancer, says a new study published online in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

While the increasing incidence of thyroid cancer has been attributed to more sensitive screening, recent evidence suggests that this may not be the only cause. Various environmental factors, such as those associated with volcanoes, have not been excluded as risk factors.

The authors point out that a volcanic environment—which can produce toxic compounds that are suspended particulate matter and gases and elements that may pollute the water—could increase the incidence of thyroid cancer; however, the mechanism by which it affects risk is unknown.
Caught In The Act: Butterfly Mate Preference Shows How 1 Species Becomes 2

Caught In The Act: Butterfly Mate Preference Shows How 1 Species Becomes 2

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Biologists say they have found a population of tropical butterflies that may be on its way to a split into two distinct species. The cause of this particular break-up? A shift in wing color and mate preference.

In a paper published this week in the journal Science, the researchers describe the relationship between diverging color patterns in Heliconius butterflies and the long-term divergence of populations into new and distinct species.
Want To Promote Literacy? Let Kids Read Comics

Want To Promote Literacy? Let Kids Read Comics

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Comics have typically been shunned by educators and parents who want to promote literacy among children. After all, kids should be reading "real" books, which are more complex and require more effort to understand than colorful, picture-filled comic books. 

But according to University of Illinois library scientist Carol L. Tilley, this critical view of comics is unnecessary--and even harmful. Tilley says that comics are just as sophisticated as other forms of literature, and children benefit from reading them at least as much as they do from reading other types of books.
Iconic Lee Harvey Oswald Photo Authentic, Says Forensics Expert

Iconic Lee Harvey Oswald Photo Authentic, Says Forensics Expert

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

A photograph of John F. Kennedy assassin Lee Harvey Oswald holding a rifle and a copy of The Militant communist paper in 1963 is authentic, says Dartmouth Computer Scientist Hany Farid, a pioneer in the field of digital forensics, who digitally analyzed the iconic image of Oswald pictured in a backyard a few months before the assassination. 

Oswald and various conspiracy theorists claimed that the incriminating photo was a fake, stating the lighting and shadows were inconsistent, but after analyzing the photo with modern-day forensic tools, Farid says the photo almost certainly was not altered.

Experts long ago said that this image had not been tampered with, but a surprising number of skeptics still assert that there was a conspiracy.
Parents Who Meddle Too Much Could Drive Their Children Nuts

Parents Who Meddle Too Much Could Drive Their Children Nuts

Nov 05 2009 | comment(s)

Everybody understands that good parents have to lay down rules for their children as they grow up. However, too many rules can be a bad thing, says a new report in Current Directions in Psychological Science.

According to the authors, numerous studies have found that in Western countries, when parents are too strict with their children, they can impede their psychological development. It has also been suggested that this effect may not be as strong in East Asian countries — researchers have posited that certain aspects of East Asian culture may make children more accepting of their parents' intrusive behavior.