Trophic cascade. Or, on the need of predators in an ecosystem demonstrated by the reintroduction of the wolf to Yellowstone. The park became heather and fuller of all kinds of life. Even the rivers changed how they flowed. Also pointed to because I've heard the arguments, tainted with hubris, about how man can manage the wild better than having a diverse biosphere. Remind me to tell you what happened to my lawn when we introduced worms (our soils in Ashtabula County are notorious for being poor ground to find worms, it's very heavy clay). (Grokked from Morgan J Locke)
"The accident may have happened because owners have to pay for a special feature known as 'pedestrian detection functionality', which costs extra." Oh, you wanted it to NOT plough into people. Well, that'll be another few thousand. Frankly, I think we just saw Skynet's birth wail. And now, not only do you have to keep upgrading your computer, your tablet, your phone, your thermostat you now have to keep upgrading your car. Fantastic. (Grokked from John)
You have a face for radio. NPR uses software to just listeners voices. Damn, I missed this open call for samples. I've been told I have a voice that could put rocks to sleep.
"In a study published in the journal Environmental Psychology, the University of Melbourne’s Kate Lee and a group of colleagues found that interrupting a tedious, attention-demanding task with a 40-second 'microbreak' — in which one simply looks at a computerized image of a green roof — improved focus as well as subsequent performance on the task." Although it has also been shown that small breaks (of any kind) improve focus, and it might be that viewing images of concrete negatively impact performance. But given the choice, I'd take the grass and flowers image every single time. (Grokked from Morgan J Locke)
Bill Nye on the Universe talking to you (from "Inside Amy Schumer"). Hahahaha. Wait a sec, I use that line! Damnit! Bill Nye is cussing ME out. Okay, but, yea, I've seen others use it exactly (well, close) to how it's demonstrated in the show. For me, typically a theme needs to come up about 3 or 4 times from different vectors before I see it as the Universe trying to tell me something (it's mostly a shorthand for synchronicity). (Grokked from Dan)
The truth about that McDonald's Coffee Lawsuit that you've heard about. I don't know about you, but I hear it referred to as least once every other month (no, I'm not employing hyperbole here, it's probably more often, but just a quick mental check and I think I can prove the 6 times a year) from many different sources. What they don't talk about is why those McD's were serving coffee at 180° (which will scald your mouth, which, BTW, is illegal in most states, food can not be served at a temperature that will cause damage). But that's a whole entire post. But, yes, McD's has been very active in spinning this story, as have been the GOP. (Grokked from Saladin Ahmed)
"The Briefcase, premiering on CBS at 8 p.m. Wednesday, features 'American families experiencing financial setbacks,'… The family is given a briefcase with $101,000 in it, and then they're shown another family who's 'experiencing financial setbacks.' They have to decide how much money to keep and how much to give the other people, or whether they want to keep it all for themselves; neither family knows both families have in fact received a briefcase, and that their counterparts are also deliberating over if and how to share the money." Well, that sounds like fun. Hey, CBS, why don't we skip the human interest side and get straight to showing starving rats fighting over pieces of cheese, or if you want actual human interest I hear probate courts are just filled with it. Hell, you wouldn't even have to put up $202,000. And why am I reminded of the line from Drew Carry, "Why $68? Because we spent millions to find out that's what you people think of as 'a lot of money.'" I thought that with "reality shows" we already had the shark jumping moment, but I guess we now have to jump sharks with frickin' lasers on their heads. (Grokked from Kameon Hurley)
"The CEO of one of the world’s largest oil companies downplayed the effects of climate change at his company’s annual meeting Wednesday, telling shareholders his firm hadn’t invested in renewable energy because 'We choose not to lose money on purpose.'" Meanwhile, on the other side of the island, the heat wave in India has killed over 1000 and is melting the asphalt roads. No need to worry. "The company recently sent a representative to lobby the Vatican over an encyclical Pope Francis plans to deliver this summer on the impact of climate change. Exxon reportedly fears that such an encyclical could damage its business." Okay, maybe worry a little. (Grokked from Paolo Bacigalupi and Morgan J Locke)
"Potential 2016 Republican presidential candidate and Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) said in an interview on Friday that mandatory ultrasounds for women hoping to get an abortion was 'just a cool thing.'" He seems nice. Well, to be fair, his actual quote is that having ultrasound pictures of your children are kinda cool. But the implication that forcing a woman to look at an ultrasound before we allow her to get an abortion because then she'll choose to not get an abortion goes to the very poison in the minds of the pro-life movement (that they think women willy-nilly get abortions and that the women just don't understand what they're doing with their bodies). While this will play well to the conservative base, my response is, "Okay, thanks, we're done here." Go home, Scott Walker, you're drunk.
In the wake of the derailment of their train from speeding through a corner, Amtrak will now install cameras inside the control department of their trains. Because that'll help. You know, instead of using those funds and time to finish installing Positive Train Control along their routes.
What should come as little surprise, Fox News devoted less than 2 minutes for the Duggar story between May 21 and 25th. "The revelations drew widespread criticism in the media, with many outlets pointing out the Duggar family's reputation as a torch-bearer for conservative values and strong involvement in Republican politics and anti-LGBT activism." The friends we keep. (Grokked from CC Findlay)
Okay, most police officers are actually good people doing a tough job while trying to maintain their humanity. And then there are the assholes. Seriously, didn't they learn anything from Abu Ghraib? Posing with hunting rifles, over a black man (supposed drug dealer) on the floor with antlers on his head? Oh, you guys are so fucking fired (although one is appealing). To the good guys, you can't protect these people and retain the respect and trust of the populous. (Grokked from Ferrett Steinmetz)
Ricky don't lose that number. Just when we think he's out, Ricky Santorum pulls himself back in. Yea, actually if you've followed me you know I knew he would. Also, Ricky, unless he flames out will probably be the nominee (if history is any guide to go by). I would have, you know, Googled to find Ricky's website and his announcement, but, uh, you know.
No comments:
Post a Comment