A little bit of news

When I was young, I used to wonder why my father insisted on watching news channels on TV all the time instead of the wonderful sexless cartoon characters. I don't wonder anymore. I've started doing it myself now. The joys of gettin old.

News that caught my distracted eyes (I've been distracted by work, for those who are curious).

The "Ashley Treatment". Can harmonal intervention be used on a severely disabled child to limit her growth? It brings so many vexing questions to the fore. I admire the parents for coming out and educating us all. We may agree with their decision; we may not. That's just a detail. Scientific American story. Bioethicists discussion.

ISRO launches the PSLV-C7 successfully and deploys a handful of satellites. Terrific. The mission is not done yet. A capsule recovery is on for Jan 22 when one of the satellites will fall into the Bay of Bengal. Nifty stuff. The Hindu story. ISRO Press release.

North America and Europe is still warm in the middle of winter. Who's there to care if Bangladesh freezes over. We are all fucked. New Scientist story.

More like this

From ISRO press release. In its eleventh flight, conducted from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota, this afternoon (April 23, 2007), ISRO's Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle, PSLV-C8, successfully launched the 352 kg Italian astronomical satellite, AGILE, into a 550 km circular orbit…
(I know Shelly has href="http://scienceblogs.com/retrospectacle/2007/01/post.php">already posted about this on Retrospectacle.  Hopefully, you'll see there is a different slant to this.)   Significant controversy arose over the idea of using pharmaceutical and surgical methods to permanently…
Critique of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows below the fold. Spoilers ahead. I think it's important to get one thing straight right off the bat: I am a fan of the Harry Potter series. I think Rowling is a great storyteller, and I have enjoyed the series so far. I think she has seriously dropped…
One small capsule in the ocean, a giant leap for ISRO. In a pathbreaking event heralding its arrival as a space power with capability to recover an orbiting satellite, India today successfully brought back a spacecraft to earth, giving a new impetus to the proposed manned mission to space in the…

We're being battered by storms and rain. The temperature is, indeed, unseasonably high. But the word "warm" carries other associations which do not apply.

I have slowly, reluctantly, and regretfully come to agree: We are all indeed fucked. I'm now actually sort of glad I'm old enough that I won't be around and that I'll leave no direct descendants to try desperately and unsuccessfully to cope when it all comes home to roost. It will not be a pleasant time for H. saps.