For “Summary Saturday”, News, Some New, Some Old:
2012 Wounded Warrior Denali Challenge
“Three months ago, five wounded warriors – four of them retired – attempted to climb the Denali (Mt. McKinley) summit. The team members said the climb wasn’t only for them, but for others severely wounded in wars.
These five brave men came from the Iraq, Afghanistan and Vietnam conflicts and their ages ranged from 31 to 64 years old. But they all had one goal in mind: to get to the top. Five wounded warriors with a self-described total of four good legs.
From an Associated Press article: After nine days on the 20,320-foot mountain in the Alaska Range, the expedition was resting at 14,200 feet Thursday and was being warned by guides the climb only gets more difficult.
Unfortunately though, the men had to stop there. It wasn’t their limitations that stopped them; it was the weather.”
“Five wounded warriors challenge their disabilities to take on the tallest peak in North America.”
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Google Unveils Stunning Underwater ‘Street Views’ in Maps [PICS]
Google Street View is no longer limited to roads and sidewalks — now, you can browse stunning panoramic images from under the sea.
With a simple click or swipe, users can explore the subacquatic world, including Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, Hawaii’s Hanauma Bay and Apo Islands in the Philippines. In total, there are panoramas of six of the ocean’s coral reefs. More at: http://mashable.com/2012/09/26/google-underwater-street-views/
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Japan’s Underwater Crop Circle Was Made By A Tiny Pufferfish
“The mystery behind an underwater crop circle in Japan has been solved.
Underwater photographer Yoji Ookata spotted a strangely beautiful structure off the coast of the southern Japanese island of Anami Oshima. According to Geekosystem, the strange formation, dubbed the mystery circle, could not be explained by Ookata or the camera crew.
So what built it? Underwater aliens? An ancient sea creature? It turns out that the strange circle was created by an ordinary pufferfish.” Read more at: http://www.inquisitr.com/339040/japans-underwater-crop-circle-was-made-by-a-tiny-pufferfish/#va1dYhZRUfeRIlPi.99
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The Keystone Pipeline Myth Machine – 2012 Election Edition
“The Keystone XL tar sands pipeline is one of the most controversial environmental issues in years and has already figured prominently during this election season. President Obama rejected the original proposal back in the beginning of 2012 but is now considering a slightly modified blueprint. Meanwhile, Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney has promised he would approve KXL on his first day in office, saying “I will build that pipeline if I have to myself.”
It’s a topic that has transcended facts to become a political litmus test, but the truth is more complicated than Mr. Romney and Keystone XL’s owner, TransCanada, are admitting. And President Obama isn’t off the hook by any means, as there remain concerns that his Administration may not factor climate change — the million dollar question — into their analysis. Here are some of the biggest myths about KXL, and the facts behind this massive threat to our wildlife and the planet’s future.
MYTH #1: Keystone is a jobs juggernaut.
MYTH #2: Keystone XL will improve America’s energy security.
MYTH #3: Keystone XL is safe.
MYTH #4: The government review process for Keystone XL has been fair and thorough.
MYTH #5: Keystone XL will reduce our energy prices.
MYTH #6: Canadian tar sands will be developed anyway, even if we don’t build the pipeline.
MYTH #7: The pipeline poses no risk to the Ogallala aquifer.
MYTH #8: Keystone XL will generate billions in tax revenue for American federal, state, and local governments.”
Complete article at: http://blog.nwf.org/2012/09/the-keystone-pipeline-myth-machine-2012-election-edition/ from Wildlife Promise
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What’s Floating in the Mississippi? New Report Reveals Progress but Also Challenges for Historic River
“The Mississippi River is an icon of our nation that conjures up images from the pages of Mark Twain. Yet at the same time, the river has been a target for industrial waste that basically choked the life out of the river. Now, forty years after passage of the Clean Water Act, it is time to find out just how healthy our mighty Mississippi is today.
Major findings include:
- Elevated levels of mercury and other elements have compromised the healthfulness of fish caught in the river.
- Excessive bacteria have impaired some sections of the river.
- More water is flowing into the river than before, bringing pollution and destabilizing the watershed.
- Invasive populations of Asian carp continue to spread and threaten native aquatic life.
Not all the findings are negative. Bald eagles, mussels, and fish are thriving, for example, indicating that river restoration has had a positive impact on some wildlife. To read the full report, visit the new State of the River website.” More at: http://www.parkadvocate.org/what%E2%80%99s-floating-in-the-mississippi-new-report-reveals-progress-but-also-challenges-for-historic-river?p=1688
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Wash and Save on Laundry
“Many of us have been taught to wash colored clothing in cold water and white laundry in hot water, but that old rule of thumb doesn't necessarily apply when you're trying to save money.
Ninety percent of energy used by washing machines goes into heating water, which means washing clothes on the hot or warm cycle is actually more costly than washing them on cold. When you break it down, doing laundry with a hot wash and warm rinse costs 60 cents per load, while a cold wash and cold rinse costs just 4 cents per load.
So, when it comes time to do laundry, only use hot water for white sheets and towels. Also, pre-treat stains when you can. This breaks down oils so they can be removed more easily. Follow these easy tips and you'll never wash savings away again.” From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2012/08/28/wash-and-save-on-laundry-savings-experiment/?icid=maing-grid10%7Chtmlws-main-nb%7Cdl7%7Csec3_lnk3%26pLid%3D211619
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Neither fortune or misfortune
Here's a story I found helpful in worrying times... It came from an email.
“One day while working out in the fields the farmer's son fell and broke his leg. The villagers came to the farm and said, 'My, that's a great misfortune. Your son has broken his leg: now he can't help you in the fields.' The farmer said, 'It is neither a fortune nor a misfortune.'
A day later, the government troops came to the village looking for young men to conscript into the army. They had to leave the boy behind because his leg was broken. Again, the villagers came to the farm and said, 'My, that's a great fortune.' The farmer replied, 'It is neither a fortune nor a misfortune.'
Then one day the farmer's only horse jumped the fence and ran away. The villagers came to the farm and said, 'What a great misfortune that your horse has run away.' The farmer said, 'It is neither a fortune nor a misfortune.'
Two or three days later, the horse came back with a dozen wild horses following behind him. The villagers came to him and said, 'It's a great fortune that your horse came back with twelve others.' The farmer replied, 'It is neither a fortune nor a misfortune.'
You see the farmer was wise enough to know that everything that was happening had a purpose and meaning beyond the simple appearance of the event that had occurred. So many times we are trapped by the emotion of the events in our lives. Remember the teaching that . . . 'nothing is long or short, hot or cold, good or bad.'
If you define it as good or bad, you always must ask yourself 'Good in relation to what or bad in relation to what?'
Until we decide what the event means to us there is no meaning. Once you accept this and apply it to your life, you're free and that's important. Life is indeed what you make it.”
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On This Day:
Inventor Rudolf Diesel vanishes, Sep 29, 1913:
“On this day in 1913, Rudolf Diesel, inventor of the engine that bears his name, disappears from the steamship Dresden while traveling from Antwerp, Belgium to Harwick, England. On October 10, a Belgian sailor aboard a North Sea steamer spotted a body floating in the water; upon further investigation, it turned out that the body was Diesel's. There was, and remains, a great deal of mystery surrounding his death: It was officially judged a suicide, but many people believed (and still believe) that Diesel was murdered.
Such an engine would be unprecedentedly efficient, Diesel argued: In contrast to the other steam engines of the era, which wasted more than 90 percent of their fuel energy, Diesel calculated that his could be as much as 75 percent efficient. (That is, just one-quarter of their energy would be wasted.) The most efficient engine that Diesel ever actually built had an efficiency of 26 percent--not quite 75 percent, but still much better than its peers.
At the time of Diesel's death, he was on his way to England to attend the groundbreaking of a new diesel-engine plant--and to meet with the British navy about installing his engine on their submarines. Conspiracy theories began to fly almost immediately: "Inventor Thrown Into the Sea to Stop Sale of Patents to British Government," read one headline; another worried that Diesel was "Murdered by Agents from Big Oil Trusts." It is likely that Diesel did throw himself overboard--as it turns out, he was nearly broke--but the mystery will probably never be solved.”
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Yesterday:
My journal is like Seinfeld, “The Journal About Nothing”! Because nothing really has been happening around here.
Ray wanted to mow, but first I had to get gas for the mower. Then when we put it in there, it wouldn’t start, and started leaking gas out of the carburetor. This is the same problem as before, and I have had two people work on it. So Ray had to use the old mower, while I went ahead of him picking up twigs, little branches and pine cones.
The rest of my afternoon was spent doing procedures that HP Customer Care had emailed me to do, to make a printer work. After I had done those steps, I emailed them back that it still said “Scanner Failure” across the screen.
Then after an hour or so, they emailed back and told me to hold down on # and 6 while plugging it in, as that was supposed to set it back to factory settings. So I dragged the darn thing back out of it’s box, and tried that. Then I emailed them that it still didn’t work. Then came; “Penny, I would like to inform you that your printer is facing a hardware malfunction.” Then they emailed back wanting the serial number etc, which I furnished.
Come to find out, that it wasn’t the printer that came in the box, and it is out of warranty. Someone must have returned their old printer in their new printer’s box, and I bought it. The store won’t do anything about it, because I can’t prove it.
Then more emails back and forth to another company, about different steps to make the new battery for my laptop work, as it won’t hold a charge.
So how was your day?
1 comment:
I think my day was better than yours.
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