Archives for August, 2008
North Carolina Senator Race gets Interesting
Posted by Greg Laden on August 18, 2008 Democratic Senatorial candidate Kay Hagan has cut the lead of her incumbent Republican opponent, Elizabeth Dole, from 12 to 5 points, according to the latest Survey USA poll. If you are in North Carolina it is time to get working on this, if you are not already. Need more Democratic senators.
18,000 seabirds killed annually in South African trawl fishery
Posted by Greg Laden on August 18, 2008 The Shy Albatross A study of trawl fishing in South Africa suggests that around 18,000 seabirds may be killed annually in this fishery, highlighting trawl fisheries as a major threat to seabirds, especially several species of albatross already facing a risk of extinction.
Olympic Moment: 1964 South Africa Banned
Posted by Greg Laden on August 18, 2008 On this day in 1964… South Africa has been barred from taking part in the 18th Olympic Games in Tokyo over its refusal to condemn apartheid. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced the decision in Lausanne, Switzerland, after South Africa failed to meet an ultimatum to comply with its demands by 16 August. The IOC…
Havasupai Village Threatened as Dam Breaks in the Grand Canyon
Posted by Greg Laden on August 18, 2008 Wait, there’s a dam in the Grand Canyon? Why don’t we just leave these rivers alone!!!! US rescue crews have airlifted some 170 people to safety from a remote village in the Grand Canyon after a dam burst following days of heavy rain. Grand Canyon National Park spokeswoman Maureen Oltrogge said water from the Redlands…
The Oldest Olympic Sport?
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 Continuing with our series on Boycotting the Olympics … Have you seen the male gymnasts? Some will be disappointed that they wear boxer shorts, but that is not what I wanted to talk about. Watching them (do very badly, by the way) I recalled that the argument has been made that this is probably the…
What I Had for Breakfast: Atheist Talk Radio. Oh, and we found Jebus, too!
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 I know none of you heard this because you were sleeping or at church or whatever, but for breakfast, I went down to the south (way south) side of town and appeared on Mike Haubrich’s show on Atheist Talk Radio, where I was interviewed by artist and science aficionado Lynn Fellman. Lynn did an excellent…
The OpenSource Census (The Movie)
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 This is intereting, but I hate the word “The Enterprise.” Unless, of course, you are talking about The Enterprise. The OpenSource Census is here.
How to end an Olympic game
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 I find it interesting (not that I’m watching the Olympics or anything) that a) the Olympics can have totally different rules for a game than other forms of the sport and b) that the rules change from time to time. This is interesting because whenever I propose changes in sports rules, say to my in…
The Beagle Board
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 The beagle board, which costs only about 150 bucks, is a full blown Linux-capable computer that is so simplified and low powered that it does not need a fan. Its main method of communication (other than video output) is via USB (no ethernet). But that can work. For a write-up about this cutie, go here.…
Free Tibet, Free the Olympics and Kudos to YouTube
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 The Olympics in Beijing (pronounce) are of course being boycotted by this blog. Not only because they are in China, and China is annoying, but also because they are the Olympics, and the Olympics are Annoying. In particular, tie IOC (International Olympic Committee) is annoying. The IOC is owned by the networks that are making…
Helen Fisher: The brain in love
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 This photograph needs a caption
Posted by Greg Laden on August 17, 2008 Olympic Voyeurism: The Naked, the Nearly Naked, The Prideful, and The Annoyed.
Posted by Greg Laden on August 16, 2008 Watching (collecting data for the boycott) men’s Olympic water polo, it occurred to me that the little tiny bathing suits the men wear were absurd. Why not just skip the bathing suit and get on with it? As I was thinking this, the commentators on the TV were learnin’ me something new closely related to…
The King is Dead
Posted by Greg Laden on August 16, 2008 Elvis In 1977 I drove from Nashville down to Memphis with no particular plans regarding Memphis. It was just a place to stop on the way to Hot Springs, Arkansas. I had the name of a cheap motel and a vague idea of where it was. But I kept getting lost. Every time I came…
THIS is a SPORT?
Posted by Greg Laden on August 16, 2008 No, no, of course not. But this is:
Minnesota Atheist Talk Radio Show on Air America … Don’t miss the show this Sunday!!!!
Posted by Greg Laden on August 16, 2008 Sunday, August 17, 2008, 9-10 a.m. Central Time Biologist Greg Laden discusses “Food, Cooking, and Human Evolution.” Also, local author John Coy discusses his new young adult novel “Box Out.” “Atheists Talk” airs live on AM 950 KTNF in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. To stream live, go here. Podcasts of past shows are available at…
If only the teachers had guns…. (Texans = Morons)
Posted by Greg Laden on August 16, 2008 A tiny Texas school district will allow teachers and staff members to carry concealed firearms to protect against school shootings, provided the gun-toting employees follow certain requirements. The small community of Harrold in north Texas is a 30-minute drive from the Wilbarger County Sheriff’s Office, leaving students and teachers without protection, said David Thweatt, superintendent…
Just say it in English: The 2008 Northern City Olympics
Posted by Greg Laden on August 16, 2008 Inspired by a question from Matt of Built on Facts, I give you this.
This Blog is Still Boycotting the Olympics …
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 But I thought I’d throw together a few of the more amazing scenes from earlier olympics. Hey, did you see the Cuba/US baseball game? Anybody know how Nix is? Anything broken? (Boy, that was rough…. talk about the agony of rolling around on the ground bleeding….) And now for today’s closing ceremonies….
Cassini Pinpoints Source of Jets on Saturn’s Moon Enceladus
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 This sweeping mosaic of Saturn’s moon Enceladus provides broad regional context for the ultra-sharp, close-up views NASA’s Cassini spacecraft acquired minutes earlier, during its flyby on Aug. 11, 2008. See PIA11114 and PIA11113 for the higher resolution views. This false-color mosaic combines Imaging Science Subsystem (ISS) narrow-angle camera images obtained through ultraviolet, green, and near-infrared…
George Feigley, Sex Cult Leader, Released This Morning
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 The leader of a religious group that authorities believe preys on children was released from a Pennsylvania prison Friday but won’t be required to register as a sex offender, triggering outrage in the community where he plans to live. George Feigley, now 68, was convicted in 1975 on charges including statutory rape, indecent assault and…
A Portrait of The Brain by Adam Zeman
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 Published by Yale University Press A Portrait of the Brain by Adam Zeman is a new book describing how the brain works (and does not work) in something of an Oliver Sack’s experiential manner, but with a twist. Zeman is a Professor of Cognitive and Behavioral Nerology at the Pininsula Medical School. A Portrait of…
NASA Discovers Dust on Mars. It’s everywhere!
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 This color image is a three dimensional (3D) view of a digital elevation map of a sample collected by NASA’s Phoenix Mars Lander’s Atomic Force Microscope (AFM). The image shows four round pits, only 5 microns in depth, that were micromachined into the silicon substrate, which is the background plane shown in red. This image…
The latest on the Georgia Bigfoot in the Freezer
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 The much-anticipated Bigfoot press conference Friday afternoon in Palo Alto, Calif., revealed little more than two men — introduced by a self-styled Sasquatch seeker — claiming to possess the 7-foot “body” of a “bipedal creature” on ice in a secret location, awaiting an autopsy. * Bigfoot finders Matthew Whitton and Rick Dyer and bigfoot expert…
DNS Bug: It is still there.
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 Assume for a moment that I’ve used this DNS exploit to take control of your email account. The most obvious effect is that I can now read your mail. Also, I can read your mail and continue forwarding it to you, so that you never realize there is a problem. I can add attachments to…
Carnivals
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 The 2nd Giants’ Shoulders Oekologie # 18 Carnivals of the Vanities Carnival of Space #67: Planets, Rockets, Books and Olympic Torches The Carnival of Cinema: Episode 87 – BVP: Bloggers Vs. Predator Friday Ark #204
Human Evolution on the Radio, Sunday
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 Betsy This Sunday on Air America Minnesota AM 950, Digital Artist Lynn Fellman (see: FellmanStudio and gallery) will interview … let’s see, who’s on the list this week … Oh, right, ME! As soon as they send me the information on the rest of the show, I’ll pass on the schedule for Sunday’s Atheist Talk…
Further Olympic Racist Absurdity from Europe: What, sending Marco Polo east wasn’t enough already?
Posted by Greg Laden on August 15, 2008 This is an exclusive repost of this exclusive post from Gawker regarding yet another “slanty-eyed Chinese” photograph from a Spanish sports team. Read the story at Gawker. Hattip: Phil.
This Blog Continues Its Olympic Boycott …
Posted by Greg Laden on August 14, 2008 Especially after seeing this unbelievable display of racism and disrespect:
, which is now available for the 
