Monday, February 10, 2014

Coffee and Provocation




MicroChips to Track Foraging Song Birds in Winter
In winter, the trick for songbirds is simply to find food and stay alive.  How do they do it? Researchers at the University of Oxford attached microchips to more than 2,000 songbirds to track the birds' movements to find a method in their madness.


The Feet of the First Britons
Archaeologists working in Norfolk, England, have found a series of footprints that were made by human ancestors between 780,000and one million years ago. Pressed into estuary mudflats that are now hard with age, these prints are the oldest ones known outside of Africa, where humanity got its start.

Spending too Much Time on Facebook?
There's an app for that!  This app will monitor how much time you spend on line and even time you out on site such as Facebook, if you want it to.

Don't Hound the Dog Torturer?
Depraved sociopath Russell Seese, beat and tortured a dog in Pennsylvania, and was planning to kill it before he was caught and prosecute.  Seese's lawyer then complained to the court that Seese was being "hounded" for the abuse (yes, that's really what he said).  Pike County, Judge Joseph Kameen then decided that canine abuse was not cause enough to ban Mr. Seese from having animals, even for the next two years. 

Snake Oil Salesmen
When Eric Ferguson of Mooresville, NC was bitten by a venomous snake-bite last August, the Lake Norman Regional Medical Center treated him with antivenin you can get online for $750. The medical facility charged Ferguson $81,000.  In the end, however, the hospital and Ferguson's insurer settled the matter for $20,227, of which Ferguson paid $5,400.  The hospital is owned by Health Management Associates (HMA) and the federal government has joined eight whistleblower-initiated cases filled against the company

When the Vietnam War Went to Shit 

The During the Vietnam War, military intelligence hid homing transmitters and magnetic and seismic sensors inside fake dog poop made out of rubber -- one way to make sure no one picked them up. Dropped along the Ho Chi Minh trail by air, the sensors would send out a warning when a metal object or heavy object passed at night.  With two beacons placed along the trail, monitors could also determine the speed of movement along the trail.

In the Land of New Zea
In New Zealand a fellow was attacked by a shark, which he fought off with a knife.  Then the man stitched up his own leg and headed to a bar. Yes, the Kiwis are tough!

THIS is Why I'm Not Getting My Mail. 
Damn Voldemort. Worse than Obama!

Kickstarter Win: The One Wheel "Hoverboard"
Kickstarter works IF you have something to sell.  They needed $100,000, and got over $630,000.


I CAN Believe It's Not Butter.
Margarine sales in the U.S.  are at their lowest point in 70 years, with sales down 30 percent since 2000. In contrast, U.S. butter sales are at a 40-year high, up 65 percent since 2000. 

The Forests of Antarcia

Scientists have discovered fossilized impressions of wood and leaves, and even stumps of ancient trees near Antarctica'sMount Achernar

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