Queue Up The Stratospheric Aerosols | The Intersection

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geoengineering

On Monday, I noted in Mother Jones that a failure in Copenhagen would strengthen the would-be geoengineers, some of whom–like the Russians–are already starting to fire sulfates into the air in field trial experiments.

Well, there has been a failure–or at least, a very weak agreement–in Copenhagen. Expect to hear more and more talk about geoengineering as this ongoing climate policy mess–now two decades old–continues and continues and continues.

I am not in favor of geoengineering, but I am in favor of geoengineering research–and pragmatic solutions. And if the policy process can’t deliver a global cutback in emissions sufficient to avert “dangerous anthropogenic” climate change, then I think geoengineering has to be in our toolkit as a last option.

Unfortunately.


Mumps outbreak in Brooklyn | Bad Astronomy

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Brooklyn, New York is suffering a large outbreak of mumps right now. There have been 600 cases either confirmed or suspected in the past few months. Compare that to the fewer than 300 cases total on average in the entire United States over the course of a whole year and you’ll see that this is clearly a major outbreak.

Interestingly, the population affected is overwhelmingly comprised of orthodox Jews. That surprised me; I didn’t know of any prohibitions against vaccinations in Jewish culture, and after some research have determined that there is none — in fact, vaccinations appear to be taken very seriously in Jewish teachings, and there have been times that rabbis have allowed people to get vaccinated even on the Sabbath! However, the report linked above indicates vaccination rates in that area of NYC are lower than the national average, about 80%. It’s not clear why.

A similar outbreak occurred in a Jewish community in Antwerp, Belgium in 2007-2008. In that case, a large number of the parents of unvaccinated children all went to the same physician, who "was opposed to vaccination". Nice work, doc! A vaccination campaign was quickly set up to prevent the outbreak from spreading; together with a high overall rate of vaccination in Antwerp (94%!) this appears to have worked in stemming the tide of the outbreak there.

Most vaccination rates need to be at 90% or higher to provide herd immunity — where enough people are vaccinated that the potentially infectious disease in question basically doesn’t have a place to live. Lower rates mean more people can host the bug, and an outbreak can occur. Worse, the mumps vaccine (usually given together with a measles and rubella vaccination, the so-called MMR shot) has a somewhat lower immunization rate of 80% effectiveness after one dose (that is, 80% of people receiving the shot develop immunity after that one dose — which is why two doses are recommended). That means herd rates must be higher to prevent outbreaks.

The outbreak in NYC has been traced to an infected child who was visiting the area from the UK. Vaccination rates in the UK are lower, in large part due to the antivax scare started by Andrew Wakefield and his now-discredited study linking vaccines to other illnesses. There have been over 6000 cases of mumps in the UK this year so far (not even including the last quarter of 2009) — 6000, more than twenty times the cases we get in the US, and we have five times the population here.

All those thousands of kids suffering through mumps — and potential deafness, encephalitis, meningitis, orchitis in boys, and ovarian swelling in girls — because of the antivaxxers and their misinformation campaign.

The good news here is that enough people are vaccinated in the Brooklyn area to prevent this from becoming an epidemic. It’s clear there would be many more cases if that weren’t the case.

As always, don’t listen to the lies of the antivax movement. Go to your board-certified physician an ask them about vaccinations, and do the research yourself. Get the truth.

Tip o’ the syringe to BABloggee Cristiana Senni.


The Dangers of Black Ice | The Intersection

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A bridge in Connecticut, January 2004: Having left New York at 4:30 am, I settled into my Honda hoping to reach Maine before nightfall. The first couple hours were uneventful until… suddenly the wheel locked, the brakes failed and my car spun haphazardly across three lanes to face oncoming traffic. Yet somehow, we didn’t suffer a scratch between us.

car snow.pngI was lucky, and I want to encourage readers in the northeast to keep black ice in mind as you brave the roads this morning. And since this is Discover blogs, what causes the slippery stuff anyway?

Black ice is ice that forms without many air bubbles inside, commonly occurring on roads as moisture from car exhaust condenses. Because it’s transparent, it takes on the color of whatever surface it forms on–and if you can detect black ice at all, it generally looks like wet asphalt. It can also form when temperatures are above freezing meaning it’s hard to be prepared. Unfortunately, four-wheel drive vehicles do not protect you from losing control and salt is also not as effective at freezing temperatures. And finally–as I observed firsthand–bridges and overpasses are often most dangerous because cold air circulates above and below elevated surfaces, making them freeze fastest.

I hope those driving on wintry roads today remember to be extra cautious.

* * * * * * * * * *

Given the winter storm blanketing the northeast, this is a re-post from March. Please drive carefully today.


Stoning: Judeo-Christian values vs. Muslim fundamentalist interpretation of the Koran

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From the Editor: We apologize for the graphic nature of this article. But in order to truly show the horrors of Radical Islam and Jihadist ideology, we felt it was extremely important to take this step. Such graphic photos are out of the norm for this weblog and will be done so, only on the rarest of occasions. -- Eric Dondero, Publisher

by Clifford F. Thies

Shocking news coming out of the war-torn region of Somalia...

From the London Daily Mail, Dec. 15:

This barbaric scene belongs in the Dark Ages, but pictures emerged today of a group of Islamic militants who forced villagers to watch as they stoned a man to death for adultery.

Mohamed Abukar Ibrahim, a 48-year-old, was buried in a hole up to his chest and pelted with rocks until he died. The group responsible, Hizbul Islam... The executions took place yesterday in Afgoye, some 20 miles south-west of the capital of Mogadishu.A woman who had confessed to fornication had been sentenced to 100 lashes, he added.

'This is their day of justice,' the judge, Osman Siidow Hasan, told the crowd. 'We investigated and they confessed.'

Al Shabaab, and to a lesser extent Hizbul Islam, are fighting the government to impose their harsh interpretation of Islamic Sharia law across the drought-ravaged country.

Al Shabaab clerics have banned movies, dancing at weddings and playing or watching soccer in the areas under their control, as well as carrying out executions and amputations.

The Jewish scriptures identify several offenses for which stoning is the punishment, for two examples: a rebellious son (Deut. 21:21) and the man and the woman who are engaged in adultery (Deut. 22:23-24). Yet, it is clear from Jewish practice even from ancient times, that this punishment was a euphemism. It actual meaning was to declare the person legally dead and, thus, stripped of all rights as a member of the family or as a member of the community. This is also clear from two of the most beloved teachings of Jesus of Nazareth.

In the Parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32), Jesus spoke of a father who had expelled a son who was engaged in riotous living. When the son repented of his ways and returned to his father, the father declared, "my son was dead and now is alive." We might insert the word "legally" into the phrase. "My son was [legally] dead and now is alive." Jesus was saying to parents that if you raise your children in the faith and they nevertheless behave badly so that you have to expel them, trust that they will return to the faith and be willing to then accept them back, and don't shun them forever. Jesus was also saying to us, both insofar as we are like the prodigal son and as we are like the faithful son, we can trust that will be forgiving of our sins and will honor our good works.

In the story of the woman caught in adultery (John 8:1-11), certain learned and holy men brought the woman to Jesus, as though he were a judge, and asked him to sanction her being stoned. Apparently, they thought Jesus was something of an ignorant country preacher who had only a superficial understanding of the scriptures. But, Jesus deflected their feigned righteousness, by saying "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone," and, when they departed, he turned to the woman and said, "go and sin no more." Jesus upheld the Law exactly as it was intended. She, being an adulteress, no longer had any right to be supported by her husband but had to "go;" but, hopefully, she would repent of her evil ways "and sin no more."

The world is nowadays a spectator to the practice of stoning for offenses such as adultery and homosexuality in a small number of Islamic countries, mostly anarchic countries or ungoverned regions within larger countries. Famously, in Kabul, Afghanistan, the Taliban made a public display of stoning and other punishments in a sports stadium that was constructed with foreign aid. Today, soccer is played in that stadium; and, along with that, citizens are free to fly kites on the hillside adjoining the city (which had been forbidden by the Taliban).

Yes, there is a basis for the practice of stoning in the Koran, but scholars grapple with whether the verses are to be understood as literal or as allegorical. Islamic Jihadists do not grapple, though. They're minds are made up on the issue.

Notes - Dr. Thies is a professor of economics, and a Messianic Jewish scholar.

Photos are of actual recent stonings in the Muslim world, Iran, Sudan, and Somalia within the last year. (H/t Spencer at Jihad Watch for Somali photo).

Top Photo - The Stoning of Soraya, a 2008 film depicting the real life killing in a small Iranian village, of a women accused of adultery is now available on DVD at Netflix and other video outlets.

Forget the Wealth, Share the Trash [Trashcans]

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Seriously, folks, this is not what we do with your tips when you hit Share up there in the masthead. I swear. Well, for most of them, anyway. This is actually a concept trashcan build on a popular meme.

Says designer Burak Kaynak, the 'can was conjoured up after seeing all the Share buttons that populate the Internet these days. Why not apply it trash? And so he did:

Sharing content on social networking sites is as simple as stepping on a foot pedal to open the lid and toss your trash. Share//Trash Can is a smart step-on trash can which includes a LED - live counter that counts the amount of steps that are stepped on the foot pedal.

I guess in the end I really don't see the point. Is it to shame you into wasting less, in this particular trashcan, so that you'll just go down the hall and use the next one? [Burnak Kaynak - Thanks, Camila]



No Christmas Cheer for Rifqa: Ohio State Authorities ban Christmas Cards for Christian Youth

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State of Ohio, Court-appointed Counselors and Liberal Media become Mr. Scrooge

From Denise Clark:

Things just keep getting worse in the case of Rifqa Bary, the islam apostate who fled her Columbus, Ohio, home for fear of the fate that could await her for converting to Christianity. Though her family has said that they have no issues with Rifqa's new faith, the actions of the Bary family lawyer say otherwise.

Omar Tarazi, a CAIR (Council for American Islamic Relations) attorney representing Rifqa's parents, filed a motion in Franklin County court last week to ban Rifqa from receiving any Christmas cards through her attorneys and asking for confiscation of any cards the teenager may have already received. Tarazi cites that the Christmas cards are "dangerous to her health and safety".

The Counselors for Rifqa appointed by the Judge in Ohio, have filed an affidavit in favor of the motion from the radical Islamic group.

Ironically, as Jawa Report(s):

Meredith "Hijab" Heagney of the Columbus Dispatch to Michael Kruse of the St. Petersburg Times, insisted that the Bary family intends to respect Rifqa's Christian faith? Haven't these media stooges repeated assurances from the Bary parents that Rifqa has nothing to fear from returning home?

ADDENDUM:

A hearty Christmas Cheer to Pamela Geller at Atlas Shrugs, who originally called attention to Rifqa's plight and the plight of other muslim women who have become victims of "honor killings." Had Pamela not taken on the task of exposing this aspect of the "religion of peace," we would have no idea what an "honor killing" is or who Rifqa Bary is. Thank you Pamela!

A hearing to settle the matter of Rifqa receiving Christmas cards will take place on December 22. Pamela and other supporters will be there to rally for Rifqa.

Continuous coverage of Rigqa and information on the rally at Atlas Shrugs.

Join them! And as always, please keep Rifqa in your prayers.

Editor's Note - Denise Clark resides in Western Pennsylvania. Her blog, from a right libertarian pro-Family pro-Christian view, is the RightStuff.

Wii BOSS Controller Case: Great In Theory, Poor In Execution [Wii]

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There's a lot of useless accessory crap for the Wii, but the B.O.S.S. controller case looked to buck the trend by addressing Nintendo's baffling lack of classic controller support for New Super Mario Bros Wii. Too bad it doesn't work.

Ars Technica says the additional bulk just makes things unwieldy. One needs big, beefy hands to use this thing properly, they report, and the additional heft in back—junk in the trunk, if you will—only makes things worse. And since the buttons on the case are just pressing down the original Wiimote buttons below, things got a tad unresponsive. Even at $10, the reviewer "breathed a sigh of relief" when he tore it off after an hour of play time.

It's too bad. That tiny directional pad and those tiny 1 and 2 buttons really cramp me up after an extended play session in the Mushroom Kingdom. [ars technica]



Jumping The Gun

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Report that Obama decided on space policy may be premature , Orlando Sentinel

"A report by a respected science publication that said President Barack Obama has decided on a new space policy for NASA may be premature, according to Write Stuff sources. The report, which was posted Thursday night on the "Science Insider" blog at the web site of the journal Science, quoted unnamed sources saying that in a meeting on Wednesday with NASA chief Charlie Bolden, the president decided to add an extra $1 billion to NASA's budget."

Keith's note: It would seem that Science Magazine jumped the gun a bit. As is the case with the Orlando Sentinel, NASA Watch sources report that the story published in Science is incomplete and, in some cases, is just plain wrong. Specifically it asserts that a final decision has been made as to what NASA will be told to do. That is not the case. But it is likely that NASA will be getting a budget bump of upwards of $1 billion.

After last week's Obama/Bolden meeting, NASA is on the hook from White House to provide additional information between now and January to be factored into the final decision making process. Among other things, these decisions include the fate of Ares 1 and the new path that may be chosen regarding launch vehicle utilization and development. Moreover, sources report that the impetus for this "leak" was someone in or around the White House - someone who is not necessarily all that thrilled with certain options that are on the table. So, in classic Washington style, they leaked someone else's potentially good news - but did so early - and the results were counterproductive.

You can be certain that neither the White House or the 9th Floor at NASA HQ are remotely thrilled that this stuff is leaking out this soon given that some final number and policy crunching needs to be done. Having to bat down stories - accurate and inaccurate - serves only to distract them from that process. Given that there is lingering concern in some quarters about NASA's capabilities, seeing this stuff dribble out - regardless of the source(s) works against the agency as it strives to make its case to President Obama.

That said, having a high profile meeting at the White House just before Christmas and then expecting everyone to stay silent until the FY 2011 budget comes out in February is unrealistic - and somewhat naive in this day and age since no one can keep their mouth shut any more.

As always, stay tuned.

Create your own tour of the Universe! | Bad Astronomy

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On Friday I posted about a video created by the NYC American Museum of Natural History taking you on a tour of the Universe.

I just received a note from Ben Oppenheimer, the Associate Curator and Professor at the Department of Astrophysics of the American Museum of Natural History (phew!), thanking me for linking to the video, but also noting that there is a lot more information available online about it, including background about the production, and his own blog.

But perhaps the coolest thing is that you can download their atlas — which has stars, galaxies, nebulae, everything — and use it to create your own fly-through of the Universe!

The software is not all that simple, but it can be used to create all sorts of tours of space. If you download it and make some, then post links to what you’ve done in the comments!


iPhone Reception an Easy Target On SNL Weekend Update Last Night [IPhone]

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Hey Seth Meyers made a joke! About the iPhone! And it was funny!

The bit came during SNL last night, and like all good jokes, was funny because it's true.

As an iPhone user, I definitely chuckled a bit, before I returned to weeping silently in a corner as my phone tried to make an outgoing call from the greater Boston area without success. Must be the storm. Must be. [YouTube via Engadget]



Democrat Health Care Bill: Switches Tax on Botox to Tax on Tanning Salons

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A last minute deal was cut on the Senate floor to switch the originally proposed tax on cosmetic procedures for an equal percentage tax on tanning salons. Lobbyists for the cosmetic industry had pushed hard for the removal of the tax. Tanning salon small business owners were caught off guard.

Breaking News from the LA Times:

Senate plan would tax tanning services

Democrats replace the 'botax' on cosmetic procedures with a 10% sales tax on the use of tanning beds, citing skin cancer concerns. The tax would raise an estimated $2.7 billion over 10 years.

Citing concerns over skin cancer, Senate Democrats inserted a last-minute provision into their healthcare overhaul that would tax the use of tanning beds.

The 10% sales tax would be imposed on individuals who purchase tanning services...

The tanning tax would help pay for the massive overhaul by raising an estimated $2.7 billion over 10 years. It replaces a proposed excise tax on elective cosmetic surgery that was previously included in the bill. The "botax" would have raised more than twice the amount as the tanning tax. But cosmetic surgeons, who argued that it would discriminate against middle-class women, launched a successful lobbying campaign against it.

Jennifer Fermino at the NY Post opines this morning:

If Botox users could move their faces, they'd be smiling wide over the proposed Senate health-care plan, but tanning-bed fanatics are sure to be seeing red.

The bill's provisions that will likely sail through the Senate will slap a 10 percent tax on all trips to the tanning bed.

The fake-bake tax replaces an earlier tariff on cosmetic procedures like Botox, tummy tucks and hair transplants, which were scrapped in the latest negotiations.

A number of prominent Democrat Senators and even a Vice-President have been known to have Botox procedures and hair-transplants.

Blogger Far Right Democrat quipped:

The tanning association trade organization (if there is one) needs to hire better lobbyists and start giving campaign donations to Obama.

Can You Advance Your Career Through Education?

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Want to get ahead in your supply chain career? Continuing education is a key element in that pursuit, but what is the best approach to attaining that education? There are lots of choices — what courses should you take? Is an MBA really worthwhile these days? Should you go for online education

What Engineering Degree is Best These Days?

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If you have children, you probably want them to go to college and get a degree. But which degree? One study says a BSME degree is popular, because it allows a student to work in emerging technologies, like alternative and renewable energy or mechatronics. If you were advising high school kids, what

Social Networking: Useful Tool or Time Sink?

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As social networking evolves from a game for high school and college students to a tool for adults, business professionals are increasingly leveraging the medium. Forget about LinkedIn, even Facebook is getting into the act with the formation of various technical working groups. At the same time, so