Hope you're having or have had a delicious dinner. Probably the top story from the day, aside from the obvious, is a scientific study. A Case Western Reserve investigation found evidence to believe that the brain may not be able to handle empathetic action and analytical thinking simultaneously.
The number of implications that could arise from this study and possibly be verified in future studies is unimaginable. The SlashDot article linked to discussed possible links to underdevelopment. It may also bring a bio-psycho basis to a lot of cultural and social problems and perhaps lead to solutions/compromises.
More study required, but what a (possible) discovery. Have a good evening.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Waking in the Morning: Bring on the Speculation
The Oil Drum has a piece this morning breaking down and critiquing yet another report about the potential for all time high energy production here stateside.
There have been a lot of mixed reports on the state of energy in the US. Some sober, others noticeably high on fumes. There might be plenty of fuel left to burn, but given dynamics that could quickly drain that pot, alongside environmental concerns, leadership in conservation needs to be clear and a first priority.
Have a good morning.
There have been a lot of mixed reports on the state of energy in the US. Some sober, others noticeably high on fumes. There might be plenty of fuel left to burn, but given dynamics that could quickly drain that pot, alongside environmental concerns, leadership in conservation needs to be clear and a first priority.
Have a good morning.
Tuesday, October 30, 2012
A Sandy Start
Hi all. Not the best note to start this blog on, but Hurricane then Tropical Storm then Tropical Depression then extra-tropical low Sandy is at the top of most people's news minds today. Hard to overstate the damage done, but I'll pass that for a suggestion for outsiders to donate to relief efforts that will soon enough be under way. Texting "REDCROSS" to 90999 will bill you $10 for donating to the Red Cross for example. There are certainly many other channels.
Sandy is another big weather/climate event in this past year to have brought out the Global Warming alarms and climate change monitors. I would read CJR's piece on interpreting it all. Yeah, it's happening, but be careful in attribution to extreme events. Biggest, clearest impact in this current situation is on wave heights and storm surge with the sea level rise (See end of article). The rest is murky at best.
It will be interesting to see how Sandy impacts another aspect closely tied with human caused climate change, and that is the cornucopia of limited (or non-renewable) and slowly renewable resources. As an example, I have been following the MetaFilter thread (warning: large) and there have been some mentions of the need to buy new cars to replace water totaled vehicles. Of course, cars aren't the only thing: houses, businesses, etc. To rebuild, lots of resources will be required, all pulling from the same limited pool.
For now, we can probably take the hit as long as everyone works together (donations, again, fairly good idea). Detroit will likely be boosted by it due to a short term increase in demand for new automobiles. For later and long term planning: what's a more sustainable set up that can stay stable even in the worst of environments and weather conditions? Clearly, a lot of work to do, and having really thought about these things since the aftermath of Deepwater Horizon, I really don't know where to begin other than small acts, which can add up, but scalability is a big unknown...
I'll leave on that note. Later.
Sandy is another big weather/climate event in this past year to have brought out the Global Warming alarms and climate change monitors. I would read CJR's piece on interpreting it all. Yeah, it's happening, but be careful in attribution to extreme events. Biggest, clearest impact in this current situation is on wave heights and storm surge with the sea level rise (See end of article). The rest is murky at best.
It will be interesting to see how Sandy impacts another aspect closely tied with human caused climate change, and that is the cornucopia of limited (or non-renewable) and slowly renewable resources. As an example, I have been following the MetaFilter thread (warning: large) and there have been some mentions of the need to buy new cars to replace water totaled vehicles. Of course, cars aren't the only thing: houses, businesses, etc. To rebuild, lots of resources will be required, all pulling from the same limited pool.
For now, we can probably take the hit as long as everyone works together (donations, again, fairly good idea). Detroit will likely be boosted by it due to a short term increase in demand for new automobiles. For later and long term planning: what's a more sustainable set up that can stay stable even in the worst of environments and weather conditions? Clearly, a lot of work to do, and having really thought about these things since the aftermath of Deepwater Horizon, I really don't know where to begin other than small acts, which can add up, but scalability is a big unknown...
I'll leave on that note. Later.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
A Hat Tip and Welcome to the Non-Facebook Non-Twitter World
Hello world, for the nth time. This blog will be pretty simple. It will contain what I post to Facebook and Twitter already, and DON'T WORRY! It's not those silly pictures (but if I see an especially good one, yeah, it will trickle down here).
I post mostly news of interest and some with info that can clue you into as to WHY things are going the way they are. Not the basics like CNN or NBC, but stuff you'd have to know where to look. Mostly aggregated through Google Reader. I should have a list of sites I get sent to Reader somewhere here on the blog page. If not, bug me, and I'll get it up.
I'm careful about strong (i.e. fact based, not feeling based) opinions, liberal or conservative, these days. I have a pretty deep understanding that the freedom of speech comes with great responsibility. This does not mean we suppress it, because as good programming requires good output in case something goes wrong, good governing requires a robust platform to express feelings, reactions, observations, and opinions, to gauge what consequences result from some action and to form good policy in response. At the same time, however, we can, in a non-bullying way, convey the necessity to opine wisely.
That should do for a first post. See you around!
I post mostly news of interest and some with info that can clue you into as to WHY things are going the way they are. Not the basics like CNN or NBC, but stuff you'd have to know where to look. Mostly aggregated through Google Reader. I should have a list of sites I get sent to Reader somewhere here on the blog page. If not, bug me, and I'll get it up.
I'm careful about strong (i.e. fact based, not feeling based) opinions, liberal or conservative, these days. I have a pretty deep understanding that the freedom of speech comes with great responsibility. This does not mean we suppress it, because as good programming requires good output in case something goes wrong, good governing requires a robust platform to express feelings, reactions, observations, and opinions, to gauge what consequences result from some action and to form good policy in response. At the same time, however, we can, in a non-bullying way, convey the necessity to opine wisely.
That should do for a first post. See you around!
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