Prayers and blessings on the occasion of the passage of same-sex marriage legislation in New York State.
Tony Blair Gets Hacked, Address Book Published [Hackers]
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair's address book—including the names, phone numbers, and addresses of members of government, plus Blair's own National Insurance Number—was apparently leaked to the public by a group of hackers on Friday. More »
Bonus Riddle Comin’ Up!
UPDATE: Solved by Thom Cope at 12:33
Here we are again, and guess what? Tom got a really cool prize lined up for a bonus riddle, so we’ll be running a bonus riddle Monday, July 4th. It’ll add a little something extra to your holiday celebration (if you’re American). You have today and next Saturday to get your name on the list, so you get busy with that, you hear? I know you’re ready to get going on the riddle, and I have an interesting one for your consideration.
Today’s riddle answer is found in the real world, but don’t leave the land of fancy too far behind.
This gorgeous image comes from the Deep Photographic Guide to the Constellations, and you can check out this genuinely mesmerizing website at: http://www.allthesky.com/constellations/const.html
It is correctly referred to by four “official” names and three “common” names.
It was independently discovered by three different people.
This was not known to your distant ancestors.
Mmmmmmm! Looks like dinner is ON!
There’s something rather remarkable about today’s riddle answer.
It’s doing something you don’t see happening every day.
Also, it’s quite the celestial beauty.
Disney Princesses - that's Snow White and Princess Aurora pictured
Recent studies indicate this sleepy-eyed beauty is probably the survivor of an ancient catastrophe.
If that’s not enough to grab you, your riddle answer hangs out in a very interesting neighborhood.
One thing is sure; just when you get comfortable, this lady will spin you around in a completely different direction.
...there's just something about them...
And there you have it. As always, I’ll be hanging out in the comments… waiting patiently for someone to talk to me (heavy sigh). So far, the people who are eligible to solve the bonus riddle are: Bill, John, Roger, Jeff, Rob, Patrick, and Editus. Hopefully, I’ll add your name to the list today. Good luck.
I’ve got your missing links right here (25 June 2011) | Not Exactly Rocket Science
Top picks
I have only just discovered the Paleofuture blog. It chronicles past visions of the future like jetpack mailmen.
“Was this my destiny? Writing words in order to make gullible people be auto-forced to watch ads?” An AOL content slave speaks out. And this comment nearly killed me. “Wait, AOL still exist?”
Beautiful Proteins are beautiful proteins.
The animal that’s a sheet: a fantastic look at placozoans
“Do you worry that the research you do might be exploited in a way that harms people?” A great post on an important topic by two students embedded in a lab that tests how the human body crumples and explodes.
The names of 30 elements are an anagram for the names of 30 other elements & THE SUM OF THEIR ATOMIC NUMBERS IS THE SAME. Mind-blowing.
“A giraffe had to be trained to urinate in a cup, & Ferrero had [an] encounter with an uncooperative jaguar” The smell of a meat-eater.
A brain implant restores memories in rats by recording and playing them back. That. Is. Incredible.
Incredible! A camera that enables you to focus long after the picture is taken
I Resistant snakes eat poisonous newts; resistant caddisflies eat poisonous ...
Who Wants To Eat Darth Vader’s Head Anyway? [Wtf]
McAfee Problem
My wife's computer seems to be having a problem with McAfee. This does not appear to be the April 2010 problem that was widely reported (although it could be), because her Windows XP system does not crash and refuse to boot again. Instead, McAfee refuses to run, although it keeps trying, constantly.
Seattle Muslim Terrorist looked like an Average Everyday American Guy
From Eric Dondero:
The glaring top-of-the-fold headline in the print version of the liberal-leaning Seattle Times, read:
Alleged terror plotter "looked like everyday guy"
That quote has since been scrubbed from the on-line version.
What is known from videos the two men posted, DVDs and literature found by the FBI, they were admirers of Osama bin Laden, were inspired by Major Nidal Hasan who murdered 13 soldiers at Ft. Hood Texas in 2009, and were vehement critics of the Wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
From the Seattle Times, "Two men arrested in plot to attack Seattle military processing facility":
There was a point in the alleged conspiracy to maim and kill recruits and workers at a Military Entrance Processing Station in South Seattle when one of the plotters predicted they would be making headlines.
Both men are U.S. citizens and converts to Islam... The men are charged with conspiracy to murder U.S. officers, conspiracy to use a weapon of mass destruction (a grenade) and other firearms-related counts.
Abdul-Latif said the attack was inspired by the murderous shooting spree at Fort Hood in 2009, where a Muslim Army psychiatrist, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, killed 13 people and wounded 29 others.
The men planned to storm the building, kill the security guards, order everyone to the floor and kill as many military recruits as possible, according to the federal complaint.
His wife is quoted:
He is a very good person. He worked hard and then he come home and watch TV," she said. "I don't even know how this could happen."
Photo of generic MEP, not Seattle MEP Center
Seattle Muslim Terrorist was a Burqa supporter
"Laws of the Hijab"
From the Seattle Times "Man arrested in plot to attack military center posted his beliefs on YouTube":
The SeaTac man accused of conspiring to kill military recruits in Seattle decries the wanton killing of innocent people in a self-recorded YouTube video.
Abu Khalid Abdul-Latif speaks into a camera at what appears to be his apartment and explains that Muslim belief may require jihad...
In another video, he explains the "laws of hijab" — which means "to cover" in Arabic, as his wife, who is completely covered except for her face and hands, smiles at the camera. Then he reads from the Quran, "Tell the women to lower their gaze and guard their modesty."
Photo credit - ShabbySheikReview
What is This Plumbing Item?
Screwed into the 3/4" FPT hot water outlet of a 40 gal water heater is a white plastic (PVC?) insert that has a cross in the center. It does not restrict air or water movement. What is this device? It appears the top part is gone. Is it the remnants of a check valve, whose ball is gone? If so, what
Turn Any Stick Into a Sword [Desired]
When I was growing up, you weren't a kid if you didn't have a sword. Foam, plastic, or even just a tree branch. Naama Agassi's Branch Holder is an elegant reminder of that time when you could really be the neighborhood samurai. More »
River Tubing inflatable not sufficient protection
NANNY-STATE WATCH!
First they enacted the Seat Belt laws; then they required Bicycle Helmets; and then, they came for the River Tube floaters
From Eric Dondero:
Who knew? A river tubing inflatable does not offer sufficient protection from drowning on King County rivers.
From the Seattle Times Editorials - "King County's new life-vest rule will save lives":
UNUSUALLY heavy snowmelt this year presents life-threatening conditions on King County rivers. An emphasis on life vests is a proper public-safety response.
The Metropolitan King County Council took a measured step by adopting a summerlong life-vest rule. Swimmers, floaters and boaters on waterways in unincorporated King County will be warned the first time they are caught without a personal flotation device. Subsequent infractions invite fines of up to $86.
Tubers were not exempted, leading some to wonder why not. But rescue workers who have to pluck them out of the water say including tubing in the life-vest rule is a natural. People can fall off inner tubes and find themselves unable to get back on.
Always anxious to promote a bigger and more encompassing Nanny-State the good liberals at the Times reminds Washingtonians:
Public mindsets ought to begin viewing life jackets as necessary on water as helmets are for cyclists and seat belts for drivers.
Photo credit - LadiesLoop.com
Palin the only "libertarian-conservative" in the race?
Michele Bachmann, Herman Cain, Gary Johnson left out
From Eric Dondero:
A staunch Sarah Palin-ite Robert Eugene Simmons, Jr. penned this piece over at American Thinker, "Why Palin Can Win" (excerpted):
If Palin doesn't run it will be a disaster for the Republican Party and quite possibly the country.
Aside from the fact that there isn't another libertarian-conservative in the race, at least not another one who isn't an international isolationist. If Palin doesn't run, it will represent an enormous victory for the Republican beltway establishment and the big players in the left-wing-dominated media.
On the issues, Palin's conservatism combined with her small-government libertarianism will make a stark contrast to Obama who will now be forced to defend his policies rather than run on emotion ad-hominem attacks and catchy phrases.
When the political calculus is done, it is clear that Palin is the only real conservative with libertarian leanings that can possibly be elected in the country.
Editor's comment - I'm about as hardcore Palinista as they come. But to say she's the only libertarian-conservative in the race, does a great disservice to Bachmann, Cain, and Johnson. All four are nearly identical on the issues.
NASA Autonomous Lander Hovers in Midair, in Infrared Video [Video]
Hovering landers or drones look as though they're suspended in the air, because you can't see the vortices caused by the propellers or the heat emitted by the thruster, or whatever mechanism enables the hovering. Well, here you can. And it proves that the act of hovering is anything but delicate. More »
Book Excerpt: Holy Eros
James and Evelyn Whitehead on how a spirituality of eros is especially concerned with the body.
Tim Wahlberg beneficiary of Michigan re-districting
From Clifford Thies:
The Michigan re-districting mostly benefits incumbent Republican Congressman Tim Wahlberg, who was elected in 2010 with 50 to 45, with 5 points going to third-party candidates (CD - 3). Wahlberg is a social conservative with a libertarian streak on taxes.
The legislature wanted #1 to force the loss of one seat unto the Democrats, and #2 shore up the most vulnerable Republicans, of which Wahlberg was first on the list and Benishek was second.
In 2010, freshman Republican Rep. Justin Amash won 60 to 38 percent, which was a pretty strong margin in an open race (CD - 4). However, he has lost some strong Republican areas and picked up some mixed areas.
There will be four potentially competitive Congressional races in Michigan in 2012: Wahlberg, Benishek, Amash and the district formed by the merging of two Democrat districts. With the state being a purple to feint blue state and a potentially exciting Senate race, all four of these Congressional races will be in play, at least initially.
Image - Current map
The AI Singularity is Dead; Long Live the Cybernetic Singularity | Science Not Fiction
The nerd echo chamber is reverberating this week with the furious debate over Charlie Stross’ doubts about the possibility of an artificial “human-level intelligence” explosion – also known as the Singularity. As currently defined, the Singularity will be an event in the future in which artificial intelligence reaches human level intelligence. At that point, the AI (i.e. AI n) will reflexively begin to improve itself and build AI’s more intelligent than itself (i.e. AI n+1) which will result in an exponential explosion of intelligence towards near deity levels of super-intelligent AI After reading over the debates, I’ve come to a conclusion that both sides miss a critical element of the Singularity discussion: the human beings. Putting people back into the picture allows for a vision of the Singularity that simultaneously addresses several philosophical quandaries. To get there, however, we must first re-trace the steps of the current debate.
I’ve already made my case for why I’m not too concerned, but it’s always fun to see what fantastic fulminations are being exchanged over our future AI overlords. Sparking the flames this time around is Charlie Stross, who ...
Llama ahora | Bad Astronomy
Emperor Kuzco?
[And hey, remember the turtle I videoed a couple of weeks ago doing a faceplant off a log? That was featured in Boulder's Daily Camera newspaper on Friday.]
Jellyfish Lake
This is a great video of Jellyfish Lake in Palau. I’ve posted about these lakes in the past as they truly are natural wonders in their own right. This video by Vimeo user Sarosh Jacob seems like a video out of some science fiction movie. If you are wondering how he is able to swim with these jellyfish without being stung to death, that is because these jellyfish have evolved without the poison. In an enclosed environment filled with lots of nutrients and ZERO predators, there simply is no need for protection. You can almost think of these lakes as pockets of jellyfish utopia.
Jellyfish Lake by Sarosh Jacob
Notes from the creator – read the original here.
A little information on Jellyfish Lake…
Jellyfish Lake is located on Eli Malk island in the Republic of Palau. Twelve thousand years ago these jellyfish became trapped in a natural basin on the island when the ocean receded. With no predators amongst them for thousands of years, they evolved into a new species that lost most of their stinging ability as they no longer had to protect themselves. They are pretty much harmless to humans although some people with very sensitive skin may get a minor sting from them. If you are allergic to jellyfish you should wear a wetsuit or protective clothing.
These fascinating creatures survive by sharing a symbiotic relationship with algae that live inside of them. At night, the jellyfish go down to the depths of the lake where the algae feed on nutrients. During the day, the jellyfish come back to the surface and follow the sun across the lake in a massive migration. The algae convert the energy of the sun via photosynthesis into a sugar that feeds the jellyfish.
It is not possible to scuba dive in this lake because the nutrient rich layer at around 50 feet and below contains hydrogen sulphide which is highly toxic to humans. If a scuba diver was to swim in that layer, the toxins would enter the body through the skin and that exposure could be fatal. Snorkeling however, is perfectly safe and if you ever find yourself in Palau one day, you should make your way to this special place. The experience of swimming through millions of jellyfish is quite surreal and Palau is the only place in the world where you can do just that!
I hope you enjoy the video and thank you for watching.
Beach Wheelchairs Help More People Enjoy the Beach
When his wife Karen was involved in an accident in 1990 that left her a quadriplegic, Mike was determined that she continue to enjoy all the activities that she had previously enjoyed–like going to the beach. When you leave the smooth pavement or sidewalk, it’s amazing how even the smallest irregularities in the ground can [...]
Hindu Temples of Fiji
Two of the most important Hindu temples in the South Pacific are in Nadi and Lautoka on opposite sides of Fiji’s main international airport.