John Adams lived long enough to see his son become president in 1825, but he died before John Quincy Adams lost the presidency to Andrew Jackson in 1828. Fortunately, that meant he didn't have to witness what many historians consider the nastiest contest in American history.Was John Adams pimping Andrew Jackson's wife?
The slurs flew back and forth, with John Quincy Adams being labeled a pimp, and Andrew Jackson's wife getting called a slut.
Sunday, August 24, 2008
Interesting ...
... perhaps before we all start complaining about negative campaigning, we can at least see where we've been.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Carbon Sequestration ...
... new technique for storing carbon dioxide identified.
In his small-scale reactor, Van Essendelft grinds a serpentine rock mixed with water and acid. The combination of grinding and chemical action (mainly the acid) breaks down serpentine into magnesium and silica, which is essentially sand. He then adds ammonia and pumps CO2 in. The ammonia neutralizes the acid, allowing the CO2 to dissolve and react with magnesium, forming magnesium carbonate.This would be an interesting means of carbon sequestration for anaerobic digestion (AD) on-farm. You already have a surplus of ammonia from the animal waste, and about 35% of the bio-gas from AD is carbon dioxide.
Magnesium carbonate is similar to chalk and has several applications. For example, Van Essendelft says, it could be used instead of limestone to produce cement.
Tom Coburn (R-OK) says ...
... too many government workers not showing up to work in record numbers.
No word as to whether that includes Congress which is currently on their one month summer vacation through September 7th.
No word as to whether that includes Congress which is currently on their one month summer vacation through September 7th.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Generally ...
... I'm against the death penalty, but then people like this come along and make me reconsider. At the very least, it makes me willing to make exceptions.
Bless you, num num num ...
... WTF!
"He went into the pond hoping to be blessed when a crocodile attacked him and dragged him into the deep part of the pond,'' Kabir told the Australian Associated Press.The scary part? It's only an unusual incident because the crocodile ate him! What's not unusual is that people are wading into this crocodile infested pond! Mama mia!
"This is a very unusual incident. Normally, the crocodiles are very friendly and do not harm people.''
Save the Marshes, Save the Planet!
Nope, no saving cute cheerleaders, sorry.
Soil Scientists Restore Coastal Wetlands.
Soil Scientists Restore Coastal Wetlands.
Soil scientists spread material dredged from shipping channels over shore areas to help rebuild marsh areas. Wetlands along the shore protect the land from storm surges, create habitat for wildlife, and the plants that grow in them could sequester three to eight tons of carbon dioxide per acre every year.Why did New Orleans get it's ass kicked in 2005? The loss of her wetlands, that's why. And it got a lot worse after Katrina hit.
Hey, people ...
... vaccinate your children, damnit.
“When more than 10 percent of a community opts out of vaccinations, it leaves the entire community at risk because germs have a greater chance of causing an epidemic,” said Dr. Ari Brown, an Austin, Texas, pediatrician who represents the American Academy of Pediatrics.More from Morbidity and Mortality, a CDC publication (pdf, 36 pages).
During January 1–July 31, 2008, 131 measles cases were reported to CDC from 15 states and the District of Columbia (DC): Illinois (32 cases), New York (27), Washington (19), Arizona (14), California (14), Wisconsin (seven), Hawaii (five), Michigan (four), Arkansas (two), and DC, Georgia, Louisiana, Missouri, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, and Virginia (one each). Seven measles outbreaks (i.e., three or more cases linked in time or place) accounted for 106 (81%) of the cases. Fifteen of the patients (11%) were hospitalized, including four children aged
< 15 months. No deaths were reported.
Tuesday, August 19, 2008
The cost of a tapeworm?
For one man, it could be $100,000.
Though rare, tapeworm infection isn't really a laughing matter. If you're particularly scared about contracting such a disease, you'll need to lay off the sushi ... or baring that, you'll have to watch your poop closely and scan it for proglottids, which are the sections which break off and are excreted and carry up to a million eggs, which of course seek to start the tapeworm "circle of life" all over again.
Though rare, tapeworm infection isn't really a laughing matter. If you're particularly scared about contracting such a disease, you'll need to lay off the sushi ... or baring that, you'll have to watch your poop closely and scan it for proglottids, which are the sections which break off and are excreted and carry up to a million eggs, which of course seek to start the tapeworm "circle of life" all over again.
Is The World Slowly Dying?
CNN has an article which reports on a peer reviewed manuscript published in Science which discusses the fact that the world's oceans contain over 400 dead zones. That's not a good thing.These dead zones are the result of eutrophication, when massive amounts of nutrients are released into an ecosystem. It is particularly bad when that ecosystem happens to be a coastal watershed, stream, river, pond or lake. These nutrients are typically runoff from agricultural lands, into adjacent waterways, which are then flushed into the oceans. Eutrophication is not a "Good Thing" as it typically leads to excessive plant, algae, and/or microbial growth, which in turn effectively chokes off the existing biodiversity in the area. That's bad.
As Diaz and Rosenberg write:
The worldwide distribution of coastal oxygen depletion is associated with major population centers and watersheds that deliver large quantities of nutrients (Fig. 1 and table S1). Most of these systems were not hypoxic when first studied, but it appears that from the middle of the past century, the DO concentrations of many coastal ecosystems have been adversely affected by eutrophication. The observed declines in DO have lagged about 10 years behind the increased use of industrially produced nitrogen fertilizer that began in the late 1940s, with explosive growth in the 1960s to 1970s (4). For marine systems with data from the first half of the 20th century, declines in oxygen concentrations were first observed in the 1950s in the northern Adriatic Sea (5), between the 1940s and 1960s in the northwestern continental shelf of the Black Sea (6), and in the 1980s in the Kattegat (7). Localized declines of DO levels were noted in the Baltic Sea as early as the 1930s, but it wasn’t until the 1960s that hypoxia became widespread (7). Localized hypoxia had also been observed since the 1930s in the Chesapeake Bay (8) and since the 1970s in the northern Gulf of Mexico (9) and many Scandinavian coastal systems (7). Paleoindicators (foraminifera ratios and organic and inorganic compounds) show that hypoxia had not been a naturally recurring event in these ecosystems (10, 8). The number of dead zones has approximately doubled each decade since the 1960s (fig. S1 and table S1).DO stands for dissolved oxygen which is the measure of oxygen which is a measure of the level of oxygen saturation in a system. Since a sizeable portion of life relies on oxygen, a poor DO level is an ominous sign. There are several "levels of hypoxia", with about half of the dead zones being annual phenomenon, typically occurring once a year. An additional 25% have multiple hypoxic events each year. Some systems do not experience hypoxic episodes every year (~17% of the dead zones) but still are cause for concern. In all cases, these hypoxic events result in mortality for a portion of the existing organisms within the ecosystem.
Light at the end of the tunnel?
There is hope however. With effective nutrient management, several systems have reduced the dead zones in the surrounding ecosystems. As the authors relate:
The management of nutrients and carbon inputs has virtually eliminated dead zones from several systems, including the Hudson and East Rivers in the United States and the Mersey and Thames Estuaries in England (31, 32). However, in other systems, such as the Chesapeake Bay, the management of nutrient input has not improved DO. Nevertheless, the management of sewage and pulp mill effluents has led to many small-scale reversals in hypoxia (table S1).There are several ways to help reduce eutrophication, such as building riparian zone buffers around farmland, organic farming, better fertilization practices, as well as sound and effective environmental policy. These steps, and many more, are going to be necessary in order to help the worlds oceans survive and continue to provide us with food and life.
R. J. Diaz, R. Rosenberg (2008). Spreading Dead Zones and Consequences for Marine Ecosystems Science, 321 (5891), 926-929 DOI: 10.1126/science.1156401
So, is it the Democratic National Convention ...
... or the Oscars? Two of my favorite sets of people ... politicians who don't know crap, and actors who think they know more than they do. I guess if any two groups of people deserve each other, it's them ... unfortunately the rest of us "average Joes" have to suffer them gladly.
Monday, August 18, 2008
A sobering article ...
... not one I like to think about all that much. The United States is being bought out from underneath us.
We used to measure the economy in terms of GNP, which is the amount of income produced by U.S. citizens. But now we measure it by GDP, the income that is actually produced in America. The distinction becomes important, says Stiglitz, when an increasing proportion of the country is owned abroad. "If you were to look at America Inc. as a company, it's like owning a company and you own a smaller and smaller fraction of it. So the fraction of America Inc. owned by Americans is diminishing," says Stiglitz.*sigh*
That means that when the economy recovers, there will be less wealth left in the country to reinvest in it. But then returning to the original question--Why is the American yard sale not setting off alarms?--Stiglitz explains that the alternative is even worse. "There isn't an outcry," he says, "because the focus right now is the weakness of the American economy, and anything to keep our economy going is welcome." That's why no one really objected to Citibank's becoming a Middle Eastern--financed bank, because it's better than Citi's becoming a dead bank. "But clearly we're worse off as a country," he says.
It makes sense, really ...
... if you're old enough to die in Iraq, you should be old enough to have a beer if you want. Heck, if you're going to vote in this upcoming election, you might want to have a drink or two before you cast your vote as it is! Of course, this is predicated on the fact that you exercise enough common sense to NOT drink and drive, and possibly text message at the same time (see blog entry immediately below), and that you understand what the word "moderation" means.
Ironically, where I live ... they're currently proposing to lift the blue laws (yes, we still legislate morality where I live) and sell alcohol on Sundays. This means that while 18 year olds can vote for the change, they can't benefit from it. While I can understand the sentiment of MADD, I don't think they're correct. Whatever happened to parents talking to their kids?
Ironically, where I live ... they're currently proposing to lift the blue laws (yes, we still legislate morality where I live) and sell alcohol on Sundays. This means that while 18 year olds can vote for the change, they can't benefit from it. While I can understand the sentiment of MADD, I don't think they're correct. Whatever happened to parents talking to their kids?
Jimminy ...
... yes, you shouldn't text and drive. And while you're at it ... you shouldn't DRINK AND DRIVE EITHER!
Like this reckless, and unfortunately dead, girl.
Like this reckless, and unfortunately dead, girl.
Authorities say Preuss had been driving drunk and was speeding. But another factor may have contributed to the crash.Bold emphasis mine.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Waiting for the ...
... other shoe to drop. Sometimes, when I read about the extremely hard times befalling the citizens of the United States, I wonder why I've been spared most of the worst of them. Don't get me wrong, I'm struggling to stay afloat myself sometimes ... but my home is secure and my bills get paid. I can't vacation in the Bahamas this year, or probably the next several, but I'm getting by ... so far. What I don't understand is ... who ever thought it was a good idea to get one of those adjustable rate mortgages?
When I started looking for a house, I figured I'd be more than happy to pay in mortgage form, what I was paying in rent during my postdoc. Matching that number to payments on a 30 year mortgage let me know pretty much the price of house I was looking at. So, I knew that when I started work full-time, even though my salary went up (Yay!) I knew I'd be able to make my payments (I would have had to pay rent anyways right?) but I was pulling in extra money that I could set aside so when things went wrong (plumbing, electrical, painting, roofs, appliances) that money would be there. If I went higher in my payments, it'd have been a wash and when something major hit, I wouldn't have the cash.
Yes, when I started looking my real estate agent took me to some that were over my looking price, but a stern comment and a threat to find someone who would actually work with me was enough to put a halt to that. Eventually we found some nice houses which would fit in my price range and were in a nice part of the city ensuring me (as much as things like that can be ensured) that it wouldn't become a ghetto (I live not to far from a private golf course/country club with two major developments on either side of my development, which is basically comprised of starter homes for middle class individuals like myself).
Anyways, so I sit here and read all this news and I wonder ... how did I avoid this mess? Was it smart planning on my part? I'd like to think that perhaps it was ... but it still leaves me with this uneasy feeling, as if I've missed something and that when it rears its ugly head it'll be too late for me to do anything about it. I guess that's what they call "consumer confidence" (or the lack thereof), eh?
When I started looking for a house, I figured I'd be more than happy to pay in mortgage form, what I was paying in rent during my postdoc. Matching that number to payments on a 30 year mortgage let me know pretty much the price of house I was looking at. So, I knew that when I started work full-time, even though my salary went up (Yay!) I knew I'd be able to make my payments (I would have had to pay rent anyways right?) but I was pulling in extra money that I could set aside so when things went wrong (plumbing, electrical, painting, roofs, appliances) that money would be there. If I went higher in my payments, it'd have been a wash and when something major hit, I wouldn't have the cash.
Yes, when I started looking my real estate agent took me to some that were over my looking price, but a stern comment and a threat to find someone who would actually work with me was enough to put a halt to that. Eventually we found some nice houses which would fit in my price range and were in a nice part of the city ensuring me (as much as things like that can be ensured) that it wouldn't become a ghetto (I live not to far from a private golf course/country club with two major developments on either side of my development, which is basically comprised of starter homes for middle class individuals like myself).
Anyways, so I sit here and read all this news and I wonder ... how did I avoid this mess? Was it smart planning on my part? I'd like to think that perhaps it was ... but it still leaves me with this uneasy feeling, as if I've missed something and that when it rears its ugly head it'll be too late for me to do anything about it. I guess that's what they call "consumer confidence" (or the lack thereof), eh?
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Check it out!
I recently was accepted as a member of the team blog The Alternative Scientist. I recently made my first post there, so check it out!
Tuesday, August 12, 2008
Dear Metropolitans ...
... Aaron Heilman sucks this year. Last year, he was lights out, with a 3.03 ERA. This year, it's 5.74. 5.74! Yet, with Billy Wagner down, he's the closer. Sheesh. Wagner can't get back soon enough!
About that contaminant ...
... you know, the Bacillus subtilis contaminant that was found alongside the Bacillus anthracis isolate which was used by the Anthrax Killer?
As other people have noted, B. anthracis is a very clonal organism. What this means is that individual strains are highly similar to each other, there is not a whole lot of diversity. On the other hand, B. subtilis has a high degree of heterogeneity within its genome. What does this mean? It means that B. subtilis is much easier to type (or differentiate) from other strains of B. subtilis.
Yeah, but B. subtilis was a contaminant. What's the big deal? Well, the devil is often in the details. Bruce Ivins worked on B. subtilis. In 2003, Ivins published a paper looking at expression of B. anthracis genes in B. subtilis, and how that effected immune responses in guinea pigs. The link to the paper is above, free of charge as all government publications are considered public domain.
Ok, so what? Well ... since B. subtilis (Bs) has a higher degree of heterogeneity within its genome, it is easier to type. For example: Bs in Lab B, if it didn't receive the strain from Lab A, will most likely hold more differences than Bs in Lab A ... when compared to B. anthracis (Ba) isolates from those two labs. What this means is ... if you have isolates of Ba AND Bs in Lab A, and another set of isolates of Ba and Bs in Lab B, it's easier to type the Bs isolates.
Make sense? So essentially, the FBI probably wasn't as concerned with the Ba in the letters as we might suspect. A goodly portion of the investigation could very well have been focused on the Bs contaminant found in some of the letters. Then, taking multiple Bs isolates from around the world, they probably typed those strains (which would be much easier to do than typing Ba isolates as the Bs isolates have more differences in their genome) to see if Ivins' Bs strain matched the one in the envelopes. I'm not sure if the results have been posted, but I imagine it did. Of course, this probably raises a lot of issues ... like whether or not he gave that Bs strain to anyone ... but it might shed a little more detail on the scientific aspects of this case.
As other people have noted, B. anthracis is a very clonal organism. What this means is that individual strains are highly similar to each other, there is not a whole lot of diversity. On the other hand, B. subtilis has a high degree of heterogeneity within its genome. What does this mean? It means that B. subtilis is much easier to type (or differentiate) from other strains of B. subtilis.
Yeah, but B. subtilis was a contaminant. What's the big deal? Well, the devil is often in the details. Bruce Ivins worked on B. subtilis. In 2003, Ivins published a paper looking at expression of B. anthracis genes in B. subtilis, and how that effected immune responses in guinea pigs. The link to the paper is above, free of charge as all government publications are considered public domain.
Ok, so what? Well ... since B. subtilis (Bs) has a higher degree of heterogeneity within its genome, it is easier to type. For example: Bs in Lab B, if it didn't receive the strain from Lab A, will most likely hold more differences than Bs in Lab A ... when compared to B. anthracis (Ba) isolates from those two labs. What this means is ... if you have isolates of Ba AND Bs in Lab A, and another set of isolates of Ba and Bs in Lab B, it's easier to type the Bs isolates.
Make sense? So essentially, the FBI probably wasn't as concerned with the Ba in the letters as we might suspect. A goodly portion of the investigation could very well have been focused on the Bs contaminant found in some of the letters. Then, taking multiple Bs isolates from around the world, they probably typed those strains (which would be much easier to do than typing Ba isolates as the Bs isolates have more differences in their genome) to see if Ivins' Bs strain matched the one in the envelopes. I'm not sure if the results have been posted, but I imagine it did. Of course, this probably raises a lot of issues ... like whether or not he gave that Bs strain to anyone ... but it might shed a little more detail on the scientific aspects of this case.
Astronomy Update
Well, the perseid meteor shower wasn't exactly what I was hoping for. I think it was a combination of light pollution, since from my house Perseus was directly over the city I live near, and the fact that I just couldn't stay up past 1 am. Went to the Astronomy Club get together though and got my first taste of a real telescope. Got to see Jupiter in an XT10 Dobsonian. Was able to once again make out the 4 moons and this time, two of the bands. I think I'm in love.
Also got to take in the M13 cluster with a C14 Schmidt-Cassegrain. I also was able to (I think) make out my first constellation, Cassiopeia. When I wasn't staring at Cassiopeia, I was taking in the Summer Triangle. Overall, it was a good night of star gazing. The weather certainly cooperated.
Also got to take in the M13 cluster with a C14 Schmidt-Cassegrain. I also was able to (I think) make out my first constellation, Cassiopeia. When I wasn't staring at Cassiopeia, I was taking in the Summer Triangle. Overall, it was a good night of star gazing. The weather certainly cooperated.
Dear IRS ...
... honestly, if you're going to audit anyone, why not pick one of these folks?
More than 38,000 foreign corporations had no tax liability in 2005 and 1.2 million U.S. companies paid no income tax, the GAO said. Combined, the companies had $2.5 trillion in sales. About 25 percent of the U.S. corporations not paying corporate taxes were considered large corporations, meaning they had at least $250 million in assets or $50 million in receipts.Or better yet, Congress ... write up a better tax code. I mean come on, $2.5 trillion in sales, and here I am struggling to get by, like every other poor soul I know, and getting squeezed for every dang penny.
Monday, August 11, 2008
If you like shooting stars ...
... tonight is the night. At their peak, the Perseid meteor shower will average a meteor every second. Of course, for best viewing ... wait until after midnight.
I have my second school board meeting tonight, and hopefully it won't run too late so I can get to the local astronomy club party early with the wife and catch a full night of star gazing. Damn, I'm such a geek.
I have my second school board meeting tonight, and hopefully it won't run too late so I can get to the local astronomy club party early with the wife and catch a full night of star gazing. Damn, I'm such a geek.
Avoid those vampire bats ...
... they can cause rabies. Well, only vampire bats which have the disease, and certainly not all of them do.
So, what about the foaming-at-the-mouth symptoms? It's known as "hydrophobia". The throat and jaw slowly become paralyzed in rabid animals. The foam is a build-up of saliva which hasn't been swallowed for hours, possibly days. It's not a pretty disease.
At least 38 Warao Indians have died in remote villages in Venezuela, and medical experts suspect an outbreak of rabies spread by bites from vampire bats.Rabies is caused by the Rabies virus, a single stranded RNA (ssRNA) virus, from the family Rhabdoviridae. It is typically transferred via bite, since the virus is present in saliva. Symptoms start as flu-like, but then progress into the neurological. Partial paralysis, anxiety, insomnia, abnormal behavior, paranoia, hallucinations, delirium ... all eventually leading to (most often) death within two to ten days after the symptoms start. All in all, infection typically ranges from between two to twelve weeks.
So, what about the foaming-at-the-mouth symptoms? It's known as "hydrophobia". The throat and jaw slowly become paralyzed in rabid animals. The foam is a build-up of saliva which hasn't been swallowed for hours, possibly days. It's not a pretty disease.
Friday, August 08, 2008
Jupiter!
Took the advice of Terry and went looking for Jupiter tonight. Went to Sky & Telescopes Sky Chart function, found Jupiter, checked my compass for proper orientation and then stepped outside. Set up my tripod, found what I thought was Jupiter, set my binoculars onto the tripod, aimed and looked. Awesome! Jupiter on the first try! And four of her moons as well. I saw Jupiter! The moons are as follows: On the left of Jupiter, that's Ganymede. Then three, in order of closest to farthest, are Io, Europa, and Callisto. Cool!
I do have a question for anyone who is an astronomy buff though. When viewing Jupiter, I had a red "flare" which emanated from the planet. It was sort of like a halo around the planet (though it was brightest at the top and bottom of the planet) and was clearly a viewing abnormality. Is this to be expected? I'm using Celestron 15 x 70 Skymaster binocs. Thanks for any answers people can provide.
I do have a question for anyone who is an astronomy buff though. When viewing Jupiter, I had a red "flare" which emanated from the planet. It was sort of like a halo around the planet (though it was brightest at the top and bottom of the planet) and was clearly a viewing abnormality. Is this to be expected? I'm using Celestron 15 x 70 Skymaster binocs. Thanks for any answers people can provide.
Give me a break ...
... read this entry over at The Intersection and couldn't agree less. Anyways, if this guy has as glass a chin as Mooney does, the comment I placed won't see the light of day ... so I'm posting it here as well.
This appears to be a case where science was moved along by government needs ...ETA: The comment was approved. I've also backed out my more "over the top" (read: ad hominem) comments in this entry. I got carried away, let my frustrations with Chris Mooney spill over to someone I didn't know, and posted unprofessionally, so my apologies to Philip H. Just goes to show, cross-blog drama never pays. Hopefully I've learned my lesson.
Hardly. The complete genome sequence of Haemophilus influenzae was completed in 1995. The complete genome sequence of Escherichia coli was completed in 1997. The rapid sequencing of bacterial genomes had been on-going for years, a decade even, prior to any FBI/DOJ involvement. So ... while you "suspect" that this might be the case, it hardly makes it so. Most of these processes and analytical methods were already firmly entrenched in the molecular biological field well beforehand.
Astronomy Geekage
Sky & Telescope's - What's Up This Week.
It was friggin cloudy last night so I didn't get to see anything in the night sky, which was a total bummer. But, hopefully the weather will clear up tonight. Why? Well, the Perseid meteor showers begin tonight and run through the weekend and a bit beyond. They peak on the morning of the 12th, and the local astronomy club here is getting together for viewing on the evening of the 11th.
It was friggin cloudy last night so I didn't get to see anything in the night sky, which was a total bummer. But, hopefully the weather will clear up tonight. Why? Well, the Perseid meteor showers begin tonight and run through the weekend and a bit beyond. They peak on the morning of the 12th, and the local astronomy club here is getting together for viewing on the evening of the 11th.
I work with pooh ...
No, not Winnie the Pooh. Pig pooh, cow pooh, and chicken pooh. Fortunately, I don't work with it all the time, but we (I'm using the "royal we" here, as in my support scientists work with it far more often than I do) do on occasion. We have several projects going, mostly revolving around wastewater processing (for elimination of nitrogen, phosphorous, trace metals, pathogens, etc etc) and bioenergy. In the bioenergy realm, the most currently direct route of pooh to bioenergy is via anaerobic digestion. Here, microorganisms convert the organics in the pooh to methane (see my entries entitled "Bacterial Farts"). That methane is then run through a combustion engine attached to an electric generator, and viola! electricity. Which reminds me, I probably should do an entry on anaerobic digestion. It'll be fun, honest!
At any rate, I haven't really hid my work from my friends, though it's certainly the type of work I wouldn't recommend bringing home (ha ha ha, funny eh?). And I guess that even though I work with pooh, someone has to do it right? Right? Well, at any rate ... speaking with one of my old college buddies, and very good friend, he tipped me off to one of the local power companies in his area which was working with the local farmers to generate electricity from their cow pooh. It's called Central Vermont Public Service (CVPS) Cow Power program.
According to CVPS:
Cow Power farms are located all across Vermont. There are currently four farms online and producing electricity in Bridport, Richford, Sheldon and St. Albans. All the farms have well over 500 cows, and produce or are expected to produce between 1.2 and 3.5 million killowatt-hours of electricity a year.
When you consider that the average electrical consumption per household is approximately 10,000 kWh, that means that CVPS Cow Power can provide enough electricity for about 120 to 350 families. At the low end, that's 30 houses for every farm. At the high end that's 85 houses for every farm. With a bit more efficiency (both in generating and using the electricity) we might approach a 1 farm to 100 houses ratio. And that's just on the farms that have ~500 cows. There are concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) which house thousands of animals. Not to mention that these are the systems which only deal with animal waste. Imagine turning human pooh into energy by bringing municipal waste online with our 300 million plus population here in the United States. Remember, everybody poops.So, kudos to CVPS and their Cow Power program. Hopefully we'll see a lot more of these initiatives in the near future. As we move towards these renewable sources of energy (it's renewable because animals just aren't going to stop pooping), it also frees up our reliance on foreign energy. This biogas could be cleaned up (also known as scrubbing, to remove contaminating gases such as carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide) for example and turned into CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) or LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) for vehicle fuel. Or, it could be used to displace NG which we are currently using for electricity production, which could then be diverted to transporation (a la T. Boone Pickens Plan). And another benefit? This doesn't impact our food supplies one bit. Heck, if anything ... it may lead to an increase in animal production!
Economic issues aside, one fact remains. We have a potential source of energy which is barely being utilized. I've listed a couple of success stories, and now it's up to us to demand that the infrastructure be put in place (it's going to cost us, but we've been down this road before) to bring these alternative energy sources online en masse. The sooner we do that, the sooner we become energy independent.
Thursday, August 07, 2008
Food Recall
E. coli related food recall.
The label of the products subject to recall bear the establishment number "EST. 20375" inside the USDA mark of inspection and a case code beginning "06238" ink-jet printed on the side of the box
I can't get onto ResearchBlogging ...
... so the papers I want to review are just sitting here in front of my monitor. Yeah, yeah ... excuses, I know.
Anyways, here is another linkage: The Prokaryotes. Not everyone is going to have access, but if you do ... it's a great eResource.
Chapter 1.1 by Carl Woese is a great introduction. How We Do, Don’t and Should Look at Bacteria and Bacteriology, (.pdf, 21 pages.)
BTW: Everyone who heads over here from Mike the Mad Biologist, welcome!
Anyways, here is another linkage: The Prokaryotes. Not everyone is going to have access, but if you do ... it's a great eResource.
Chapter 1.1 by Carl Woese is a great introduction. How We Do, Don’t and Should Look at Bacteria and Bacteriology, (.pdf, 21 pages.)
BTW: Everyone who heads over here from Mike the Mad Biologist, welcome!
Mexico invades!
Mexican soldiers invade Arizona.
Four Mexican soldiers crossed into Arizona and held a U.S. Border Patrol agent at gunpoint before realizing where they were and returning to Mexico, federal authorities said Wednesday.Ok, so it was four of them. Not exactly shock and awe. I bet that border patrol agent crapped his pants.
The confrontation occurred early Sunday on the Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation, about 85 miles southwest of Tucson, in an area fenced only with barbed wire, said Dove Crawford, a spokeswoman for the Border Patrol.
The soldiers, outfitted in desert camouflage, pointed their rifles at the agent and shouted at him not to move, Crawford said. They lowered their weapons after about four minutes when the agent convinced them of who he was and where they were, she said. The soldiers then retreated into Mexico.
And "we have no incursions with Canada," he added. "Absolutely none."Oh, the jokes that could be had with that line.
Heh ...
... how's this Hank? Now, its pretty much a circumstantial case that is made when suggesting that Hank forcing Joba into the starting rotation lead to this tendinitis ... but it's always fun to have a laugh at the expense of the Wankees.
Oh, great.
Israel thinks it can kick Iran's ass. And it no doubt could. They also are ...
Oh joy!
... building up its strike capabilities amid growing anxiety over Iran's nuclear ambitions and appears confident that a military attack would cripple Tehran's atomic program, even if it can't destroy it.Yes, they could no doubt cripple Tehran's atomic program, and then cripple the world economy as well in the process.
Oh joy!
Bunsen Burners
Heh, read this blog entry by microbiologist xx, and all I can say is ... I hear ya.
Where I work? We don't have bunsen burners. Can't have them. No gas line. Which sucks. Instead, we get to work with those ceramic core "bio-cinerator sterilizers", like this one. Stick a platinum loop in that puppy for 5 to 7 seconds and anything on it is dead. Then, you just need to worry about whether you turned the damn thing off, but if left on ... I don't think it's wreck flammable chaos like a bunsen burner could. We also rely on portable butane bunsen burners, which we refer to as "Danger in a Can". If those are left on ... if they don't give anyone a 3rd degree burn beforehand, they burn out rather rapidly. Not exactly the tradeoffs I gladly accept in place of no gas line at our facility, but it is what it is.
Whenever I leave the lab last, I am haunted by thoughts like: "Did I turn off my flame? Surely I did. Didn't I? What if it's on? What if I burn the lab down? or the building?" Once this starts there is no way of convincing myself that I did in fact, turn off my flame. So, I get in the car, drive to lab, and check the burner. It is always off. ALWAYS!As a graduate student, I had that happen several times. Fortunately, I only lived about 4 miles away ... but the short distance didn't do much to alleviate the fact that I had to go back to the lab at 1 am because I just couldn't rest without knowing the absolute truth! I suggested that a webcam focused on the bunsen burner would be a good idea ... seems a bit overkill-ish, but hey ... whatever works right?
Where I work? We don't have bunsen burners. Can't have them. No gas line. Which sucks. Instead, we get to work with those ceramic core "bio-cinerator sterilizers", like this one. Stick a platinum loop in that puppy for 5 to 7 seconds and anything on it is dead. Then, you just need to worry about whether you turned the damn thing off, but if left on ... I don't think it's wreck flammable chaos like a bunsen burner could. We also rely on portable butane bunsen burners, which we refer to as "Danger in a Can". If those are left on ... if they don't give anyone a 3rd degree burn beforehand, they burn out rather rapidly. Not exactly the tradeoffs I gladly accept in place of no gas line at our facility, but it is what it is.
Puppy cuteness
Introducing Maximilian, my Norwegian Elkhound/GSD mix. He's a bit older now, having just turned three* a few weeks ago.
*He's a rescue, so I'm not sure of his exact age.
This is going to go over well ...
... Navy sub leaked radioactivity for two years.
Last week, Navy officials told Japan that the USS Houston, a Los Angeles-class fast attack submarine, had made one port call -- in March -- while leaking the contaminated fluid.Yay, another PR mess for the US!
But after reviewing records of the sub, the Navy told Japanese officials Thursday that the Houston had been leaking much longer, since June 2006, and had made port calls to Japanese bases at Sasebo, Yokosuka and Okinawa before the leak was discovered.
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
Geothermal candidate?
This place, sounds like a potential candidate for geothermal power.
The area has recorded high temperatures at least five times since 1987, Allen King, a retired geologist with the U.S. Forest Service told the newspaper.
The hot spot is located in steep, rugged terrain a few miles north of the town of Fillmore on land owned by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and leased by Seneca Resources Corp.
Officials who are familiar with the patch of land, which is near the large Sespe Oil Field, have come up with a few theories as to why the ground soared to 812 degrees fahrenheit on August 1.
One theory is that natural hydrocarbons, such as oil or gas, are burning deep in the earth and seeping out through cracks in the area, causing the surface to rapidly heat and generate smoke.
Naming Rights
If you're like me ... identifying a new organism/gene is exciting because it means you get to name it. Sometimes, that isn't always the case though.
Just think, today the FDA would've been looking for the source of Smithonella if Dr. Salmon hadn't been such an ass.
Just think, today the FDA would've been looking for the source of Smithonella if Dr. Salmon hadn't been such an ass.
Poor Favre ...
... NOT!
He can't seem to get past the "slights" he's endured because of his own retirement?
What a prima donna.
ETA: It's possible he'll be heading off to embroil my favorite team in some unneeded drama, the NY Jets. Lovely.
He can't seem to get past the "slights" he's endured because of his own retirement?
What a prima donna.
ETA: It's possible he'll be heading off to embroil my favorite team in some unneeded drama, the NY Jets. Lovely.
Astronomy Lesson #1
Lesson #1 - Acclimate your binoculars. Last night was a fairly clear night, so I decided to try out my new binoculars and tripod. So, I set up on my back porch and started viewing. Things were going well for the first couple of minutes and then stars which I had been making out started to fade. Then I couldn't see a damn thing in the sky at all. I thought perhaps I had hit some cloud cover, but when I pulled back from my binoculars all the stars were there. I looked at my binoculars and it seemed as if they were filled with smoke. What happened? Condensation had collected on them. I guess bringing them from the dry, cool 72 degree indoors to the hot, humid 90 degree outdoors was the culprit.
Lesson learned. Though the night wasn't a total loss. I identified my first star. Not the hardest trick in the book, seeing as how it was Vega, the second brightest star in the sky (see picture below, which I didn't take), but hey ... it was the first time I ever truly looked at a Sky Chart and tried to pick out individual stars. I'm waiting on Saturn, though she's only visible around 9 pm, and she's barely over the horizon ... so I'm going to have to wait for awhile.
Lesson learned. Though the night wasn't a total loss. I identified my first star. Not the hardest trick in the book, seeing as how it was Vega, the second brightest star in the sky (see picture below, which I didn't take), but hey ... it was the first time I ever truly looked at a Sky Chart and tried to pick out individual stars. I'm waiting on Saturn, though she's only visible around 9 pm, and she's barely over the horizon ... so I'm going to have to wait for awhile.
Monday, August 04, 2008
It is finished ...
... sorta. My latest manuscript has been sent out to the co-authors for review. It still needs a bit of work, but the bulk of the content is there. Hopefully my co-authors can fill in a majority of the blanks and I can handle the rest. From there, it's time to send it off to a journal for peer-review.
Linkage - Electric Vehicles
Global Electric Motors (GEM)
Green Vehicles
Kurrent
Tesla Motors
ZAP Electric Cars
ZENN Motor Company
For those of us truly feeling the pinch of gas, I doubt we'll be able to afford the Tesla, but most of the others are feasible. Especially the NEVs (Neighborhood Electric Vehicles). You'll just have to get your city politicians to drop the town/city speed limits to 35 MPH or less.
Green Vehicles
Kurrent
Tesla Motors
ZAP Electric Cars
ZENN Motor Company
For those of us truly feeling the pinch of gas, I doubt we'll be able to afford the Tesla, but most of the others are feasible. Especially the NEVs (Neighborhood Electric Vehicles). You'll just have to get your city politicians to drop the town/city speed limits to 35 MPH or less.
So ... what technique was it?
FBI claims new DNA technique led them to Anthrax Killer.
I wonder if it was multi-locus sequence typing (MLST), multi-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA), or a mixture of the two, or none of the above.
I wonder if it was multi-locus sequence typing (MLST), multi-locus variable-number tandem repeat analysis (MLVA), or a mixture of the two, or none of the above.
Friday, August 01, 2008
Yesterday, it was Exxon ...
... today it's Chevron.
The San Ramon, Calif.-based company said it made $5.98 billion, or $2.90 per share, during the three months ended June 30, versus income of $5.38 billion, or $2.52 per share, a year earlier.And we're still paying over $3.50 a gallon. Aren't you glad?
Revenue rose significantly to $82.9 billion from $56.1 billion a year ago.
Sometimes ...
... very strange happenings in the world of infectious diseases can wind up being reported.
Here is a link to the entire letter. "With some hesitation, he told the story." No kidding.
Did the FBI solve the case of ...
... the "Anthrax Mailer"? Perhaps.
Then the fun starts. At this point, a lot of ugly stuff can happen in what is known as the "secondary stages" of inhalation anthrax. The organisms can pass through the lung tissue and infect the area between the lungs. The medical term for this is mediastinitis. From this point the organism can spread to the heart, other blood vessels, bone tissue and into the bloodstream. The individual can also develop hemorrhagic meningitis, which is essentially bleeding of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. From there, it's shock ... and essentially the entire body is going to shut down with multiple organ failure. The prognosis isn't good. People who get into the secondary stages have a recovery rate of about 10%. The further into the complications one gets, the less likely they are to survive.
All in all, it's not a good end. If Bruce Ivins was responsible ... well, I guess one could say that he reaped what he sowed.
*Links to information on the bacterium and its diseases can be found at the links. Also here and here as well. The organism has also been sequenced.
The Times said federal investigators moved away from Hatfill and concluded Ivins was the culprit after FBI Director Robert Mueller changed leadership of the investigation in 2006. The new investigators instructed agents to re-examine leads and reconsider potential suspects. In the meantime, investigators made progress in analyzing anthrax powder recovered from letters addressed to two U.S. senators, according to the report.Inhalation anthrax isn't one of the nicest ways to go. It's caused when an individual inhales spores of the organism Bacillus anthracis*. Over the next sixty days or so, the spores germinate and then the organisms start to go to work. At first, an infected individual will suspect that they have the flu. Fever, chills, sweating, fatigue, cough, shortness of breath ... they're all typical signs.
Besides the five deaths, 17 people were sickened by anthrax that was mailed to lawmakers on Capitol Hill and members of the news media in New York and Florida just weeks after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The victims included postal workers and others who came into contact with the anthrax.
Then the fun starts. At this point, a lot of ugly stuff can happen in what is known as the "secondary stages" of inhalation anthrax. The organisms can pass through the lung tissue and infect the area between the lungs. The medical term for this is mediastinitis. From this point the organism can spread to the heart, other blood vessels, bone tissue and into the bloodstream. The individual can also develop hemorrhagic meningitis, which is essentially bleeding of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. From there, it's shock ... and essentially the entire body is going to shut down with multiple organ failure. The prognosis isn't good. People who get into the secondary stages have a recovery rate of about 10%. The further into the complications one gets, the less likely they are to survive.
All in all, it's not a good end. If Bruce Ivins was responsible ... well, I guess one could say that he reaped what he sowed.
*Links to information on the bacterium and its diseases can be found at the links. Also here and here as well. The organism has also been sequenced.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Algae starts to look ...
... real promising. Especially if it has nothing to do with ExxonMobil.
Exxon (XOM) both produces oil and refines it to make gasoline, and profit margins for gasoline were weak during the quarter, holding back earnings slightly.*choke*
Wednesday, July 30, 2008
It's a bio-fuel road trip!
CNN producer Cody McCloy is taking his 1978 diesel Scout for a cross country trip using biodiesel. He's also going to be blogging about it the entire way.
Cool. And Hot!
Bacteria adapt to sun irradiation by altering cell membranes.
'Evolution Canyons' I and II are in Israel. They are similar, each with a hot south-facing slope and a cooler north-facing slope. The sun-exposed 'African' south-facing slopes get eight times more solar radiation than the shady, green, lush 'European' north-facing slopes. Scientists studied 131 strains of Bacillus simplex and found that bacteria on different slopes have evolved differently, forming different 'ecotypes' of the same species.How did they do it?
"Bacteria respond to temperature by altering their fatty acid composition in a constitutive, long-term fashion," said Dr Sikorski. We found that 'African' ecotypes from the hot slopes had more heat-tolerant fatty acids and 'European' ecotypes from the cool slopes had more cold-tolerant fatty acids in their membranes."
Poo makes the world go round ...
Animal waste essential for ecosystem survival.
Take, for instance, salmon. Born in rivers, they head out to sea to fatten up as adults. A couple of years later, they head back inland en masse to mate and die. Their decaying carcasses enrich the rivers and feed, among others, the next generation of salmon. "Salmon fry are literally sustained by their parents," say Wilcove and Wikelski.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Quack or Croak?
The poor duckies who reside at the Reflecting Pool in Washington D.C. are dying of avian botulism. That's a bit of a bummer. When my wife and I went to D.C. in April I snapped a few pictures of the ducks in the pool (see one of them below). It's surprising the number of ducks I've seen in that city. They're at the pool, I've seen them at the Museum of the Native American (who had their own accident with ducklings recently).
Unfortunately, the Reflecting Pool is the perfect place for this to happen. There is no circulation or aeration into the pools, they're dirty beyond belief and the rotting hay bales don't help much either. Essentially, it's stagnant water with plenty of nutrients in it. This of course leads to ideal growth condition for Clostridium botulinum the causative agent of avian botulsim.
What needs to be done? The damn things need to be cleaned for starts. Then, they need to model the Reflecting Pool in D.C. to the one at the Oklahoma City Memorial. It is constantly circulated, which should drastically reduce (if not eliminate entirely) the occurrences of botulism poisoning.
Unfortunately, the Reflecting Pool is the perfect place for this to happen. There is no circulation or aeration into the pools, they're dirty beyond belief and the rotting hay bales don't help much either. Essentially, it's stagnant water with plenty of nutrients in it. This of course leads to ideal growth condition for Clostridium botulinum the causative agent of avian botulsim.
What needs to be done? The damn things need to be cleaned for starts. Then, they need to model the Reflecting Pool in D.C. to the one at the Oklahoma City Memorial. It is constantly circulated, which should drastically reduce (if not eliminate entirely) the occurrences of botulism poisoning.
Linkage
Desktopography - A cool site with lots of desktop images. From their "About" page ...
At their best, desktop wallpapers bring animation to often lifeless computer screens, reflecting the personality of the user and acting as a calling card for creative talent. The desktopography project arrived in 2005 as a place to download nature / topological themed wallpapers with edits from selected designers.
Monday, July 28, 2008
Yay ...
... Bush projected to attain record budget deficit. I wish I could run up half a trillion in debt and get to walk away from it with nary a scratch.
Cuil
Pronounced "cool".
It's supposedly the worlds biggest search engine. Brought to you by the inventor of Google's own search engine, Anna Patterson.
It's supposedly the worlds biggest search engine. Brought to you by the inventor of Google's own search engine, Anna Patterson.
Here we go!
So the wife and I sat down to get my birthday present. I'm geeked. Here it is. Yep, I'm serious about giving this astronomy hobby a try, and these binocs are very highly rated. And they're well priced IMO, especially when one is simply desiring to test the waters without getting in over their head. Went to the local Astronomy Club meeting last week, the topic was on Galactic Collisions. There are some awesome examples, taken by the Hubble telescope. Sort of like this one of the Antennae Galaxy.
Of course, I've already caught the technology bug, and I'm fixated on this parrallelogram-style mount/tripod. It's a tad pricey though. I wonder if I can make one myself.
Of course, I've already caught the technology bug, and I'm fixated on this parrallelogram-style mount/tripod. It's a tad pricey though. I wonder if I can make one myself.
Friday, July 25, 2008
You know what ...
... throw them all in jail (including the grandmother). Damn, bat-shit crazy family. Hopefully they'll find this child alive, and then find a family who can really take of her. Neither the mother, nor the grandmother appear fit to do so.
Don't knock it ...
... until you know all the details. If I told you that I did research on snow fleas, would you be impressed? Probably not. If I told you that this work was paid for by your tax paying dollars, would you be upset? Probably so.
Why? Because I doubt you would make the connection as to why work on snow fleas would be of use to you and me.
This is the problem with "sound bytes". If someone told you "Hey, the NIH is funding work on snow fleas." you'd be annoyed. That's keeping money from important work on Alzheimer's, cancer, heart disease, infection diseases, etc. But, while you may be annoyed/upset/pissed, it still doesn't explain/answer why the NIH would be funding such work (if it was ... I don't know if this work is funded by the NIH, NSF, or any other group).
So, instead of being outraged ... ask questions. Like "If this is being funded by the National Institutes of Health, where is the connection?" If you ask questions like that, you'd most likely find a suitable answer.
In this case, certain proteins in the snow flea may be useful for preserving organs prior to transplantation. This research will save lives, and as far as I am concerned (and you should be too) it'll be money well spent.
Why? Because I doubt you would make the connection as to why work on snow fleas would be of use to you and me.
This is the problem with "sound bytes". If someone told you "Hey, the NIH is funding work on snow fleas." you'd be annoyed. That's keeping money from important work on Alzheimer's, cancer, heart disease, infection diseases, etc. But, while you may be annoyed/upset/pissed, it still doesn't explain/answer why the NIH would be funding such work (if it was ... I don't know if this work is funded by the NIH, NSF, or any other group).
So, instead of being outraged ... ask questions. Like "If this is being funded by the National Institutes of Health, where is the connection?" If you ask questions like that, you'd most likely find a suitable answer.
In this case, certain proteins in the snow flea may be useful for preserving organs prior to transplantation. This research will save lives, and as far as I am concerned (and you should be too) it'll be money well spent.
Anecdotal != Objective
Anecdotal evidence can undermine scientific inquiry.
The recent medical controversy over whether vaccinations cause autism reveals a habit of human cognition—thinking anecdotally comes naturally, whereas thinking scientifically does not.
On the one side are scientists who have been unable to find any causal link between the symptoms of autism and the vaccine preservative thimerosal, which in the body breaks down into ethylmercury, the culprit du jour for autism’s cause. On the other side are parents who noticed that shortly after having their children vaccinated autistic symptoms began to appear. These anecdotal associations are so powerful that they cause people to ignore contrary evidence: ethylmercury is expelled from the body quickly (unlike its chemical cousin methylmercury) and therefore cannot accumulate in the brain long enough to cause damage. And in any case, autism continues to be diagnosed in children born after thimerosal was removed from most vaccines in 1999; today trace amounts exist in only a few.
The reason for this cognitive disconnect is that we have evolved brains that pay attention to anecdotes because false positives (believing there is a connection between A and B when there is not) are usually harmless, whereas false negatives (believing there is no connection between A and B when there is) may take you out of the gene pool. Our brains are belief engines that employ association learning to seek and find patterns. Superstition and belief in magic are millions of years old, whereas science, with its methods of controlling for intervening variables to circumvent false positives, is only a few hundred years old. So it is that any medical huckster promising that A will cure B has only to advertise a handful of successful anecdotes in the form of testimonials.
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Break out the ARP 2500 ...
NASA Astronaut claims aliens exist.
Dr Mitchell, 77, said during a radio interview that sources at the space agency who had had contact with aliens described the beings as 'little people who look strange to us.'
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Poor Chris Mooney ...
Chris Mooney posted a slightly histeric blog entry over at the Intersection to which I responded. I don't have the exact text of what I wrote, but basically I told him that I hoped that n = 1 was not a part of his statistical model. You know, that he sampled a bit more outside the year 2005. And that if he didn't, wasn't he being a bit alarmist?
My comment obviously was not worth publishing. Which makes Mooney, IMNSHO, a whiny little twit. Can't take a little criticism, Chris?
My comment obviously was not worth publishing. Which makes Mooney, IMNSHO, a whiny little twit. Can't take a little criticism, Chris?
Interview with Pickens (Lou Dobbs)
Lou Dobbs interviews T. Boone Pickens.
Once again, in a nuthshell. Natural Gas makes up 20% of our electricity. Pickens suggests freeing up that 20% to move into transportation fuel (as LNG or CNG) and replacing it with wind (though any other energy source would work as well. That would reduce our oil imports by roughly 40%. We currently import 70% of our oil.
Once again, in a nuthshell. Natural Gas makes up 20% of our electricity. Pickens suggests freeing up that 20% to move into transportation fuel (as LNG or CNG) and replacing it with wind (though any other energy source would work as well. That would reduce our oil imports by roughly 40%. We currently import 70% of our oil.
The use of [SPOILER ALERT] tags ...
... sonofagun, if you're going to blurb* an INTEGRAL PART OF A MOVIE (in my particular case, The Dark Knight) ... let people know you're going to do it! Idjits!
*It happened over at Mark Shea's site by a poster named Athos (I'm not going to link to Athos' website cause he's a moron). Be careful if you read the comments in Mark Shea's Dark Knight blog entry.
*It happened over at Mark Shea's site by a poster named Athos (I'm not going to link to Athos' website cause he's a moron). Be careful if you read the comments in Mark Shea's Dark Knight blog entry.
Think you can tell if you've got food poisoning?
Most of the time, definitely. You're hanging over the can from one of two ends (hopefully it's not both ... or if so, you're bath tub is within range of your projectile vomiting).
Here are some descriptions and symptoms from some of the most common food poisoning culprits.
Escherichia coli
This guy can contaminate all sorts of food. Why? Because transmission is via the fecal-oral route, and that's as disgusting as it sounds. Either food comes in close contact with animal or human waste, or someone preparing your food hasn't washed their hands properly. Yummy, huh? Food poisoning from E. coli isn't felt immediately. The organism needs time (24 to 72 hours typically) to produce the toxins which are going to eventually make you sick. When it does hit though ... expect lots of diarrhea and stomach cramps. Some strains are worse than others, and if the diarrhea turns bloody, you better go seek help.
Salmonella
Salmonella, another nasty little critter. This guy can get into you via the fecal-oral route, but is also a frequent contaminant of chicken. Uncooked eggs, improperly cooked chicken ... can all lead to food poisoning. If you're a lover of reptiles, you better also beware. Salmonella colonizes these guys too, and their poop is loaded with potentially sickening organisms. If you're infected you'll start to feel the effects between 8 to 72 hours after ingestion. Expect stomach cramping and some good old diarrhea. An additional benefits are vomiting and fever.
Staphylococcus aureus
The way I describe food poisoning with S. aureus? A total bitch. If you go out to eat, and get food poisoning with this guy, you might not even make it out of the restaurant before you start hurling. Onset of symptoms can be anywhere from one to six hours. Expect vomiting and severe abdominal cramps. As quickly as it arrives, it'll go just as quickly, usually between an additional one to six hours (if you're particularly lucky, it'll last for 24 hours). Then it's gone. Yay!
Listeria monocytogenes
Try to avoid this guy. It doesn't take many of him to get you sick in the first place (100 cells is often enough to do the job), and when you do get sick you'll probably not remember what you ate that did it. He is also adept at growing in/on refrigerated foods, which means your "ready to eat" foods are great vectors for him to infect. This is why there is a "Zero Tolerance" policy for foods with this guy. Even one organism cultured is enough to send that food into the trash. Soft cheese has a soft spot in this guys heart as well. If you're pregnant, avoid them! In terms of infection/symptoms, this organisms isn't in any sort of rush. Incubation periods can range from 8 days to 8 weeks. When it hits, expect a fever, fatigue/muscle aches, nausea and diarrhea. If, after those symptoms appear, you start getting headaches, stiff neck, start feeling disoriented and confused ... get to a doctor! Listeria can also cause meningitis. It also is fond of causing miscarriages in pregnant women (and 1/3rd of Listeria infections occur in pregnanct women).
Well, those are four common food poisoning organisms. Maybe I'll post more as time permits.
Here are some descriptions and symptoms from some of the most common food poisoning culprits.
Escherichia coli
This guy can contaminate all sorts of food. Why? Because transmission is via the fecal-oral route, and that's as disgusting as it sounds. Either food comes in close contact with animal or human waste, or someone preparing your food hasn't washed their hands properly. Yummy, huh? Food poisoning from E. coli isn't felt immediately. The organism needs time (24 to 72 hours typically) to produce the toxins which are going to eventually make you sick. When it does hit though ... expect lots of diarrhea and stomach cramps. Some strains are worse than others, and if the diarrhea turns bloody, you better go seek help.
Salmonella
Salmonella, another nasty little critter. This guy can get into you via the fecal-oral route, but is also a frequent contaminant of chicken. Uncooked eggs, improperly cooked chicken ... can all lead to food poisoning. If you're a lover of reptiles, you better also beware. Salmonella colonizes these guys too, and their poop is loaded with potentially sickening organisms. If you're infected you'll start to feel the effects between 8 to 72 hours after ingestion. Expect stomach cramping and some good old diarrhea. An additional benefits are vomiting and fever.
Staphylococcus aureus
The way I describe food poisoning with S. aureus? A total bitch. If you go out to eat, and get food poisoning with this guy, you might not even make it out of the restaurant before you start hurling. Onset of symptoms can be anywhere from one to six hours. Expect vomiting and severe abdominal cramps. As quickly as it arrives, it'll go just as quickly, usually between an additional one to six hours (if you're particularly lucky, it'll last for 24 hours). Then it's gone. Yay!
Listeria monocytogenes
Try to avoid this guy. It doesn't take many of him to get you sick in the first place (100 cells is often enough to do the job), and when you do get sick you'll probably not remember what you ate that did it. He is also adept at growing in/on refrigerated foods, which means your "ready to eat" foods are great vectors for him to infect. This is why there is a "Zero Tolerance" policy for foods with this guy. Even one organism cultured is enough to send that food into the trash. Soft cheese has a soft spot in this guys heart as well. If you're pregnant, avoid them! In terms of infection/symptoms, this organisms isn't in any sort of rush. Incubation periods can range from 8 days to 8 weeks. When it hits, expect a fever, fatigue/muscle aches, nausea and diarrhea. If, after those symptoms appear, you start getting headaches, stiff neck, start feeling disoriented and confused ... get to a doctor! Listeria can also cause meningitis. It also is fond of causing miscarriages in pregnant women (and 1/3rd of Listeria infections occur in pregnanct women).
Well, those are four common food poisoning organisms. Maybe I'll post more as time permits.
Atlantic Ocean bigger carbon sink ...
... than previously expected.
Moreover, much of this carbon ends up in long-term storage instead of being recycled quickly like most carbon in the ocean. That's because the main photosynthesisers are diatoms, single-celled algae that build a heavy silica shell around their bodies.Now, time to use this to our advantage.
This glassy shell makes diatoms sink rapidly after they die, removing 20 million tonnes of carbon from the atmosphere each year, the researchers estimate.
That's not much compared to the amount emitted by human activity each year but it represents a major shift in our knowledge of the oceans' carbon balance, says Subramanian. And although the Amazon is the largest of the world's rivers, other major tropical rivers such as the Congo and the Orinoco may have similar effects, he says – a conjecture he is now aiming to test.
Monday, July 21, 2008
FDA says: Jalapenos are bad.
At least until they find a better candidate for the continuing Salmonella outbreak issue.
No word yet as to whether Solanum lycopersicum (i.e., the tomato) is going to sue the FDA for libel.
No word yet as to whether Solanum lycopersicum (i.e., the tomato) is going to sue the FDA for libel.
Wetland destruction = GHG emissions
Destroying wetlands leads to release of green house gases.
Some 60% of wetlands worldwide -- and up to 90% in Europe -- have been destroyed in the past 100 years, principally due to drainage for agriculture but also through pollution, dams, canals, groundwater pumping, urban development and peat extraction.60%.
These waterlogged (either seasonally or year-round) areas contain an estimated 771 gigatonnes (771 billion tonnes) of greenhouse gases -- both CO2 and more potent methane -- an amount in CO2 equivalent comparable to the carbon content of today's atmosphere.
A tale of the moose and the wolf
On Isle Royale. I visited the island back when I was a teenager (a couple of decades ago ... sheesh), and it's a lovely place. I intend on getting back there eventually. Maybe I can find the pictures of that trip and post a couple ... especially the one of the moose that I met face-to-face (less than 10 yards separated us).
The Isle Royale Wolf/Moose Study website.
The Isle Royale Wolf/Moose Study website.
GPS has gone to the dogs ...
At $199 for a unit, it's a bit pricey, but ... it's probably worth it. Of course, there is the monthly service contract too.
Then of course there are the other GPS-for-your-dog systems:
1. GlobalPetFinder, which you can supposedly buy for $289.99 (which I cannot confirm since their webstore it broken).
2. RoamEO Pet Location System, but the damn thing is almost $500 and only has a 1 mile range. Nevermind the battery-life is about 8 hours, so if your dog goes on a nightlong jaunt ... you're both screwed.
Then of course there are the other GPS-for-your-dog systems:
1. GlobalPetFinder, which you can supposedly buy for $289.99 (which I cannot confirm since their webstore it broken).
2. RoamEO Pet Location System, but the damn thing is almost $500 and only has a 1 mile range. Nevermind the battery-life is about 8 hours, so if your dog goes on a nightlong jaunt ... you're both screwed.
You will go to the moon ...
You will go to the moonSend Your Name To The Moon.
You'll probably be heading there soon
Someday flowers will grow there
But first you've got to go there
Oh, You will go to the moon - Moxy Fruvous
h/t: Sheril @ The Intersection.
About those algal blooms in China ...
... you know, the ones threatening the Olympic sailing venue. Earlier I wondered if they'd use it for energy. The answer is: Nope. Though it may find a use as fertilizer. Eventually. Maybe.
How the animal kingdom is ...
... reacting to global warming. And before people get their panties in a wad I'm not saying, anything either way (in this blog entry at least), about whether it's man-made or not. It's just how some species have been observed behaving differently than they have in the past.
Penguins in Peril: A rapid population decline among penguins because, in addition to a warming planet, they face the triple whammy of oil pollution, depletion of fisheries and aggressive coastline development.
"Penguins are among those species that show us that we are making fundamental changes to our world," said Dee Boersma, a University of Washington biology professor who has studied the flightless birds for more than 25 years. "The fate of all species is to go extinct, but there are some species that go extinct before their time and we are facing that possibility with some penguins."
Linkage
The Pickens Plan - T. Boone Picken's website where he touts his new plan. Essentially to make a move into wind power. This move into wind power will also free up the natural gas used to generate electricity and allow it to be shuttled into the liquid fuel (as compressed natural gas [CNG]) market, thereby reducing our dependency on foreign oil. This dependency currently plays to the tune of ~700 billion dollars annually.
Bentham Open Access Journals - These all look to be relatively new journals, and they don't appear to be indexed by two of the major indexing sources (MedLine/Pubmed and Scopus). However, you've got to start somewhere, right?
Bentham Open Access Journals - These all look to be relatively new journals, and they don't appear to be indexed by two of the major indexing sources (MedLine/Pubmed and Scopus). However, you've got to start somewhere, right?
Friday, July 18, 2008
Bingo!
A h/t goes to Illusory Tenant who cites an article which hammers the nail square on the head. Pelosi has no room to talk when she levels her criticism at G.W. Bush. They. Both. Suck. Hard.
My opinion? Anyone who wants the most powerful positions in the land (i.e., the Presidency, Speaker of the House, etc etc) ... shouldn't have them!
My opinion? Anyone who wants the most powerful positions in the land (i.e., the Presidency, Speaker of the House, etc etc) ... shouldn't have them!
Bicycles and cars ...
... do not mix!
So what does that mean? I think it means that local authorities need to be proactive about making their areas more bicyclist-friendly. All new roads with wide shoulders would be an excellent start.
There are no nationwide statistics on bicycle-related injuries and deaths for the first half of 2008. But authorities across the country say they are seeing a sharp rise in the number of accidents involving bicyclists.I like this part ...
Fischer said that “in almost every case, the bicycle was doing something that put them at significant risk.”Yeah, the "something" was that they were on a bicycle. Sorry, but I've been down this road before, and I think a majority of these issues come down to crappy drivers. I'm not alone in this line of thought either.
“Most of the crashes that we’ve seen are a result of inattentive driving,” said Rob Sadowsky, executive director of the Chicagoland Bicycle Federation.There is going to be a learning curve for both sides ... the problem is, the learning for the driver often goes ignored IMO because ... well ... because they're in a ton plus vehicle and they're not in any physical danger when confronted with a bicyclist.
So what does that mean? I think it means that local authorities need to be proactive about making their areas more bicyclist-friendly. All new roads with wide shoulders would be an excellent start.
How fat is your state?
Huh? Huh?
The following are the states, listed according to percentage of the population regarded to as obese.
The following are the states, listed according to percentage of the population regarded to as obese.
1. Mississippi: 32%There appears to be something wrong with West Virginia (no surprise there). Either they need to move up a spot, ahead of Arkansas, or the 29.5% is actually 28.5%. If I really wanted to, I suppose I could figure it out by looking at the actual report issued by the CDC.
2. Alabama: 30.3%
3. Tennessee: 30.1%
4. Louisiana: 29.8%
5. Arkansas: 28.7%
6. West Virginia: 29.5%
7. South Carolina: 28.4%
8. Georgia: 28.2%
9. Oklahoma and Texas: 28.1%
10. North Carolina: 28%
11. Michigan: 27.7%
12. Alaska, Missouri, and Ohio: 27.5%
13. Delaware and Kentucky: 27.4%
14. Pennsylvania: 27.1%
15. Iowa and Kansas: 26.9%
16. Indiana: 26.8%
17. North Dakota: 26.5%
18. South Dakota: 26.2%
19. Nebraska: 26%
20. Minnesota: 25.6%
21. Oregon: 25.5%
22. Arizona and Maryland: 25.4%
23. Washington: 25.3%
24. New York: 25%
25. Illinois: 24.9%
26. Maine: 24.8%
27. Wisconsin: 24.7%
28. Idaho: 24.5%
29. New Hampshire: 24.4%
30. Virginia: 24.3%
31. Nevada: 24.1%
32. New Mexico: 24%
33. Wyoming: 23.7%
34. New Jersey: 23.5%
35. California: 22.6%
36. Montana, Utah, and Washington, D.C.: 21.8%
37. Hawaii and Rhode Island: 21.4%
38. Massachusetts and Vermont: 21.3%
39. Connecticut: 21.2%
40. Colorado: 18.7%
Thursday, July 17, 2008
Hobbies
A few months ago my wife and I were discussing several matters. One of those matters had to do with how we spent our free time. Mostly, this free time was spent sitting in front of the television, doing essentially ... nothing. Well, we both decided that nothing was not a very Good Thing. So, we decided that we needed to do something, anything. We needed to find some hobbies.It's not as easy, finding this hobby, as some might expect. Or perhaps, I'm not very adept at it. I had to search high and low, and long and hard to find something that captured my interest. Now, I play softball when the season comes around, and I play racquetball every other day with some friends of mine at the local gym (it's forcing me to wake up around 5:30 am, which has taken some getting used to) ... but I don't consider those "hobbies". Those are activities, and healthy ones at that, that I enjoy doing ... but they don't quite have hobby status to me. For me, a hobby is something that you can do with friends or alone, and you'd be fine either way.
I think I finally settled on my first hobby: Astronomy*. I remember the few times growing up that I was able to really view the night sky; when we escaped the light pollution of NYC when we went on vacation into upstate NY. I'd track satellites, gaze at the moon, try to find as many constellations as I could. I thought it was cool, but never really pursued it. Well, I want to pursue it now. But, I'm trying to be practical about it. As much as I'd love to jump in feet first and buy myself a nice telescope in the $1-2K range, I think that's a bit over the top. Especially if after a couple of tries, I find out it's not for me. So, I'm starting out small. Fortunately, a local college has an observatory and a couple of assistant/associate professors who teach astronomy there. In talking to one of them, they confirmed my thoughts that I should start out with a pair of good binoculars. That was the recommendation from Sky & Telescope. A good pair seems like it'll run me close to $100. I have a tripod so the price will be reduced somewhat. Then with a good field guide, I'll be ready to go. The local college also has an astronomy club, so I should be able to supplement my star gazing with the telescopes that others bring. That'll also allow me to gather data on what telescope, should I continue on with this hobby, that I would like to buy as well.
In the meantime however, if anyone is an amateur (or professional) astronomer, any and all comments/suggestions are more than welcome.
*I'm fascinated with the idea of being able to view the rings of Saturn (see picture below), and the Space Station from where I stand. Maybe even the Space Shuttle. The picture at the top of the blog entry was taken by an amateur astronomer. It's a truly inspiring photo.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Mark Shea - For the Win!
Over at Catholic and Enjoying It! Mark Shea summarizes the problem with PZ Myers as succinctly as anyone ever could. Kudos to Mark.
No basis?
Murderer Denied Release Because of Brain Cancer.
According to her lawyer (bold emphasis mine):
These sound like good enough reasons (once again bold emphasis mine):
According to her lawyer (bold emphasis mine):
"Obviously, it was too hot of a potato for them to handle," said one of Atkins' attorney, Eric P. Lampel. "Of course we're disappointed. There's no basis for denying this."O RLY?
These sound like good enough reasons (once again bold emphasis mine):
Atkins told the grand jury that she stabbed Frykowski in the legs and that she held Tate down while Watson stabbed her. She also testified that Tate had pleaded for her life and that of her unborn child, to which Atkins replied, "Woman, I have no mercy for you."Writing the word "Pig" in the Polanski/Tate house with Tate's blood also isn't exactly worthy of praise.
Monday, July 14, 2008
I probably won't ...
... be blogging for the rest of today and tomorrow. Meetings and a manuscript have forced me to give myself a short leash, which means I'll be restricting my science reading (other than material for my manuscript). Ergo, my reporting on my reading will be limited as well. Hopefully I'll get this manuscript wrapped up sooner, as opposed to later.
Primum Non Nocere - Part IV (Scientists and the Media)
Scientists Generally Happy With Their Media Interaction. (Title compliments of Science Daily).The article cited is based on a report in Science, entitled Interactions with the mass media (see Reference).
Key findings of the survey included:The survey was sent to over 1,300 (1,354 to be exact) researchers over a two year period (2005-2006). They had a response rate of 43%, so a little over 580 of them responded.
1. Increasing the public's perception of science was the most important benefit mentioned by scientists as an incentive to interact with the media, with 93% indicating that achieving 'a more positive public attitude towards research' was an important motivator;
2.However, lack of control of media outcomes remains an issue for many scientists, with nine in 10 respondents identifying the 'risk of incorrect quotation' as an important disincentive.
So, what does this all mean? I think it's clear that this begins to eliminate the stereotype that scientists simply hole up the lab and don't speak to anyone from the outside. I think it means that scientists are comfortable with working with the media, and see the interactions as generally pleasant. Scientists do care about how the public perceives them and their research, and they will go to great lengths to get the word out accurately. I think this reflects positively and runs true to my comments about the obligation of scientists to do nothing to harm the reputation of science as being a very beneficial tool (see my Primum Non Nocere series). Scientists are concerned with people taking their science seriously, and I think they know that in this day and age, they need to keep the public well informed if they're going to generate interest for their research. Interest does equate to dollars. The scientist that can put their research into easily understandable terms, and can point out the importance of their work, is IMNSHO, bound to have a better chance of generating the interest that will allow them to receive funding. It's all about communication folks.
Perceived impact of media contacts on career by country. Distribution of answers to the question: "Consider the totality of your media contacts over your career. How great has their positive or negative impact been on you professionally?" Only respondents reporting media contact(s) in the past 3 years are included in the graph.
References
Peters, H.P., Brossard, D., de Cheveigne, S., Dunwoody, S., Kallfass, M., Miller, S., Tsuchida, S. (2008). SCIENCE COMMUNICATION: Interactions with the Mass Media. Science, 321(5886), 204-205. DOI: 10.1126/science.1157780
Friday, July 11, 2008
Kudos to Bill Donohue and the Catholic League
This whole deal with the student from the University of Central Florida and the Catholic Eucharist is a mess. The responses from some people against the misguided student are even worse. The follow up by P.Z. Myers was profoundly stupid. I'm not even going to provide a link to his nonsense. He gets tons of traffic anyways.
As such, Bill Donohue of the Catholic League has fired off a letter to the President of the University of Minnesota Morris in protest. I say excellent.
Here is why. As Mr. Donohue states, P.Z. Myers blog was accessible from his departmental webpage. I say was, because as of yesterday it was ... it's not today.
To which Mr. Donohue stated:
If anything, it was a supremely stupid move on Myers part. It's not the first, I doubt it'll be the last.
As such, Bill Donohue of the Catholic League has fired off a letter to the President of the University of Minnesota Morris in protest. I say excellent.
Here is why. As Mr. Donohue states, P.Z. Myers blog was accessible from his departmental webpage. I say was, because as of yesterday it was ... it's not today.
To which Mr. Donohue stated:
The Myers blog can be accessed from the university’s website. The university has a policy statement on this issue which says that the ‘Contents of all electronic pages must be consistent with University of Minnesota policies, local, state and federal laws.’ One of the school’s policies, ‘Code of Conduct,’ says that ‘When dealing with others,’ faculty et al. must be ‘respectful, fair and civil.’ Accordingly, we are contacting the President and the Board of Regents to see what they are going to do about this matter. Because the university is a state institution, we are also contacting the Minnesota legislature.Imagine being a Catholic in P.Z. Myers class. Think you might feel entirely comfortable sitting there, knowing what he thinks about your beliefs and knowing that they're a simple click away on the university-run and sanctioned webpage? Simply put, the link must go.
If anything, it was a supremely stupid move on Myers part. It's not the first, I doubt it'll be the last.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
Little Green Army Men
Do you have any of these guys floating around your house? Think about donating them.Donations of plastic army men or pictures of fallen personnel may be sent to:
Mrs. Mimi Graves
C/0 Flagler Palm Coast High School
5500 E. Hwy. 100
Palm Coast, FL 32164
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