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Monday, April 28, 2008
what happens when you are unfaithful to your wife
10:10 Posted in Blog | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Funny signs, Marriage, USA, web, blog, journal, Jokes
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Bugs Use Plants as Telephones
"Hello? Yes, this is my plant. Thanks. Bye-bye."
That's the underground half of a conversation between bugs on a mustard plant. Scientists have discovered the insects below and above use the plant like a chemical telephone.
A team of researchers led by Roxina Soler, an ecologist at the Netherlands Institute for Ecology, are not sure how widespread the phenomenon is. The organic chat is a friendly one: Leaf-munching insects above ground prefer plants unoccupied by root-eaters.
When a subterranean insect takes up residence below a plant, it settles in to feast on the plant's roots. In order to alert leaf-eating insects of the "no vacancy," the underground insect sends a chemical warning signal through the plant leaves, so the leafeaters are alerted that the plant is occupied.
Recent studies have revealed different types of aboveground insects develop slowly if they feed on plants that harbor subterranean residents and vice versa. So the green phone lines keep insects from unintentionally competing for the same plant.
Turns out, the subterranean insects can also communicate with a third party via the biophone, namely the natural enemy of caterpillars — parasitic wasps.
The chemicals emitted by the leaves give the wasps information about the occupancy of different plants. Since the parasitic wasps lay their eggs inside aboveground insects, they would do well to stop by plants unoccupied by the underground root-eaters.
The research, announced today, was funded by the Free Competition of NWO Earth and Life Sciences.
22:03 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Insects, Bugs, Science, World, news, journal, web
Orangutan attempts to hunt fish with spear
A male orangutan, clinging precariously to overhanging branches, flails the water with a pole, trying desperately to spear a passing fish.
It is the first time one has been seen using a tool to hunt.
The extraordinary image, a world exclusive, was taken in Borneo on the island of Kaja, where apes are rehabilitated into the wild after being rescued from zoos, private homes or even butchers' shops. "Orang hutan" means "forest man" in one of Indonesia's many languages and our long-armed cousins do indeed show a remarkable ability to mimic our behaviour.
This individual had seen locals fishing with spears on the Gohong River.
Although the method required too much skill for him to master, he was later able to improvise by using the pole to catch fish already trapped in the locals' fishing lines.
19:40 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Borneo, world, news, animals, web, journal, blog
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
The World’s Most Dangerous Bird
The Cassowary lives in the rain forests of Australia and New Guinea and are actually pretty shy animals if undisturbed, but if you get to close and it thinks you’re a threat you could receive a bone-breaking kick or get sliced by its dagger-like sharp claws. During WWII, soldiers stationed in New Guinea were warned to stay away from these birds, but some of them still became victims.
The Cassowary is also one of the most difficult animals to keep in the Zoo because of the frequent injuries suffered by Zoo keepers that look after them.
More pictures...
18:30 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Birds, Science, Australia, New Guinea, World, Animals, Guiness records
Couch-potato culture may cut our lives short
Thanks largely to medical and public health advances, Americans are living longer than ever. The average life expectancy in 2005, the latest year for which figures are available, was nearly 78. That's up from 47 in 1900 and 68 in 1950.
But even as the market for anti-aging pills and products has never been hotter with Americans seeking a longer life, some experts say we as a nation are doing ourselves in with our couch-potato culture of eating way too much and exercising far too little. Some health professionals even raise the controversial notion that today's generation of kids like Justin — about a third of whom are overweight or obese — may be the first to live shorter lives than their parents.
"Young kids are getting what have traditionally been adult-type diseases — type 2 diabetes and heart disease," she says. "It's like advanced aging."
"These kids are headed for real trouble," agrees S. Jay Olshansky, a professor of public health and a researcher at the Center on Aging at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Their parents may not be faring so well, either, he says. Two-thirds of American adults are overweight or obese.
In 2005, Olshansky and colleagues published a paper in The New England Journal of Medicine predicting that in the coming decades, the obesity epidemic and its health consequences would reverse the upward longevity curve in America over the last century, slashing life expectancy by two to five years — more than the impact of cancer or heart disease.
more...
18:26 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Obesity, USA, Medicine, Health, News, Web, Living longer
Tuesday, April 22, 2008
Skipping breakfast may mean your baby is a girl
Women on low-calorie diets or who skip breakfast at the time of conception are more likely to give birth to girls than boys, British scientists said on Wednesday.
New research by the universities of Exeter and Oxford provides the first evidence that a child's sex is associated with the mother's diet, and higher energy intake is linked to males.
"This research may help to explain why in developed countries, where many young women choose to have low-calorie diets, the proportion of boys born is falling," said Fiona Mathews of the University of Exeter.
more...
20:30 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: UK, London, news, weird, medicine, babies, world
Brazil priest flying party balloons lost at sea
A Brazilian priest is missing after he drifted out to sea while trying to set a record for a flight using helium-filled party balloons, authorities said on Tuesday.
Father Adelir Antonio de Carli began his flight suspended in a harness-like seat from 1,000 balloons of various colors on Sunday in the southern port of Paranagua. He had intended to fly 20 hours due west but unexpected winds carried the 42-year-old Roman Catholic priest out over the south Atlantic on a southeasterly course.
Denise Gallas, coordinator of the parish where de Carli worked, said he was last heard from Sunday evening when he used his cell phone to give his coordinates.De Carli, who flew around 55 miles (90 kilometers) before losing contact, had wanted to draw attention to the work of his parish in Paranagua, which targets mostly truck drivers who transport goods to and from the port.
Rescue workers searched the coast farther south, in Santa Catarina state, on Tuesday by boat and plane in the hope of finding de Carli alive. The search will continue for some time.
more...
20:28 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Brazil, news, flying priest, balloons, Web, journal, world
Sunday, April 20, 2008
Oldest Living Tree Found in Sweden
The world's oldest known living tree, a conifer that first took root at the end of the last Ice Age, has been discovered in Sweden, researchers say.
The visible portion of the 13-foot-tall (4-meter-tall) "Christmas tree" isn't ancient, but its root system has been growing for 9,550 years, according to a team led by Leif Kullman, professor at Umeå University's department of ecology and environmental science in Sweden.
Discovered in 2004, the lone Norway spruce—of the species traditionally used to decorate European homes during Christmas—represents the planet's longest-lived identified plant, Kullman said.
The researchers found the shrubby mountain survivor at an altitude of 2,985 feet (910 meters) in Dalarna Province.
more...
22:33 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: National Geographic, Sweden, news, Trees, science, journal, web
Tai cheese, anyone?
A dairy farmer who believes a happy cow is a productive cow has discovered an unusual way to relax his herd and increase milk yields – tai chi.
Rob Taverner performs the ancient martial art in front of his 100 cows every morning to get them in the right moo-d to produce lots of milk.
The 44-year-old organic farmer visits the animals at 9am each day to run through his ten-minute routine of slow movements and breathing techniques – dressed in his distinctive overalls and wellies.
He said: 'Tai chi is all about leaving your problems behind and getting into a better zone and my mood definitely transfers to the cows.
more...
22:30 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Tai Chi, Cows, UK, Science, Vets, news, web
Thursday, April 17, 2008
Real life Garfield
A two-and-a-half stone cat has been hailed a real life Garfield in Italy. Orazio looks like not only the cat that got the cream but who ate the whole cow too.
Just like lasagne loving Garfield, this fat cat grew to such a gargantuan size by guzzling all the food treats that his native Italy can provide.
The three-year-old tabby is such a food fanatic that owner Laura Santarelli finds it impossible to get him to slim down.
The flabby feline is now so large that it's a struggle for Laura just to pick him up.
And, should any of Laura's other five cats get in his way at dinner time at his home in Eupilio, the results can be catastrophic...
00:05 Posted in Leisure | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Garfield, Cats, Italy, news, pets, world, journal
Ultimate nerd wedding proposal
A US man has been credited with the ultimate nerd wedding proposal after hacking into his girlfriend's favourite video game.
Bernie Peng, 26, of New Jersey, reprogrammed Bejeweled so a ring and a proposal popped up when Tammy Li, 27, reached a certain score.
Mr Peng, who works as a programmer of financial software, said he spent about a month reprogramming the game.
"I thought it was pretty cool, in a nerdy way," he told the Star-Ledger.
He presented the game to a surprised Li, who played until she hit the score that triggered a digital pink sapphire ring to drop down with Peng's proposal.
more...
00:02 Posted in news | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Weddings, videogames, USA, news, love
Sunday, April 13, 2008
The Martian Express
NASA rocket scientists have used the gravitational pull of one planet to “slingshot” space craft toward another planet. This method causes acceleration without additional fuel use. What if we could set up a system where craft were in (almost) perpetual motion between Earth and Mars, using each planet’s gravity to sling it toward the other. Such a trajectory is available, thanks to the work of Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin. The orbit is called the Aldrin Cycler.
The value of a perpetually repeating trajectory was immediately evident to NASA's engineers. Rocket scientists must contend with an immense expense when hefting material into low-Earth orbit– roughly $20 million per metric ton. Even a simple brain surgeon can grasp that a Cycler would allow mission planners to shed much of the rocket's fuel flab. In 1999, for example, NASA estimated that a rocket-powered manned mission to Mars would require 437 metric tons of stuff to be lifted into space. This equates to $8.74 billion to orbit the materials for one round trip to our rusty neighbor. Over half of that weight– 250 tons– is propellant for the Mars transfer. In contrast, a Cycler adheres to a philosophy of practical re-use rather than littering the cosmos with discarded multi-billion-dollar vehicles. Although Dr Aldrin's massive vehicle would need an initial thrust to insert it into the sweet spot, only occasional coaxing would be necessary to maintain the rhythmic encounters.
more...
22:30 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Science, Mars, Space, USA, web, news
And The Dish Ran Away With The Spoon
Don't you hate it when the spoon handle falls into your food? This clever landing pad prevents such accidents and keeps used spoons off counters and tabletops. Multi-functional and stackable. Includes spoon. 
buy it here...
22:27 Posted in Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Shopping, dishware, USA, toilet paper, web, blog, news
Sunday, April 06, 2008
Dinosaur discovery: Boy spots rare, perfectly preserved 'Jurassic' footprints
An eight-year-old boy has impressed experts by finding a set of dinosaur footprints on a beach which date back an incredible 160 million years.
Rhys Nichols was strolling along the sands with dad Richard when he spotted the perfectly preserved nine-inch prints on a rock. The clever schoolboy immediately realised they could be from a dinosaur - and experts have hailed the find, believing they are the mark of a plant-eating iguanodon creature which roamed the area during the Jurassic era.
more...
11:37 Posted in Science | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: News, kids, world, Dinasours, science
Zimbabwean with ‘plenty’ of cash
The picture shows a Zimbabwean carrying pile load of cash to buy something. Seems like a lot of money… but fact is the pile of cash is probably worth less than 100 US dollars. Zimbabwe is suffering from an inflation crisis. The annual inflation in the African country has rocketed past the 100,000% barrier in Feb 2008, by far the highest in the world.
Zimbabwe’s currency has tumbled to a record low of 25 million Zimbabwe dollars to one US dollar. 100 US dollars could exchange for nearly 20kg of local currency.
11:32 Posted in Travel | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Zimbabwe, money, inflation, news, blog, web, Africa
Heineken World Bottle: Beer to Bricks
Manufacturing Beer bottles to convert to brick structures for later use.
“Upcycling is a 21st century term, coined by Cradle to Cradle authors William McDonough and Michael Braungart, but the idea of turning waste into useful products came to life brilliantly in 1963 with the Heineken WOBO (world bottle). Envisioned by beer brewer Alfred Heineken and designed by Dutch architect John Habraken, the “brick that holds beer” was ahead of its ecodesign time, letting beer lovers and builders alike drink and design all in one sitting.
Mr. Heineken’s idea came after a visit to the Caribbean where he saw two problems: beaches littered with bottles and a lack of affordable building materials. The WOBO became his vision to solve both the recycling and housing challenges that he had witnessed on the islands.”
11:19 Posted in Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: Beer, history, Europe, construction, blog
9 Common Idioms That Come from Technology
"Push the envelope"
Common definition: Extreme, testing the limits (e.g. "That backside 1440 on the halfpipe was really pushing the envelope, broseph!")
Original definition: In aviation, the term flight envelope has been used since WWII to define the limit of what is safe to fly (engine power, maneuverability, wind speed, altitude). By "pushing the envelope", test pilots were able to find out the limits of aircraft. The "envelope" was a mathematical term to describe the boundaries of a set of numbers-like performance data from test aircraft.
First use: The phrase was used in print as early as 1978 in an edition of Aviation Week & Space Technology magazine: "The aircraft's altitude envelope must be expanded to permit a ferry flight across the nation. NASA pilots were to push the envelope to 10,000 ft." However, it was Tom Wolfe's "The Right Stuff" that put the term into popular consciousness.
"Out of steam"
Common definition: Tired, given up. (e.g. "I find after sorting the hounds, dear brother, I am quite out of steam.")
Original definition: Obvious, when you think about it. In the days of steam engines, engines would slow and stop when there wasn't enough steam pressure produced by the boiler.
First use: From an 1898 edition of The Perry Daily Chief, an Iowa newspaper: "...that made it impossible for me to get in one word to her hundred. I stood it for a little while in hope she would run out of steam or material, but she gathered force as she went."
more...
11:16 Posted in History | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: English, Language, Idioms, USA, History, blog, journal
Wednesday, April 02, 2008
Chinese ‘iPhone’ With Dual Sim Card
What i am talking about is not the official iPhone from Apple, but a Chinese ‘iPhone’ that comes with dual sim card. There are dual sim phone is already available in market including one from Samsung and Philips. But this Chinese dual phone mimics Apple iPhone design. Featuring 3.2-inch LCD, this ‘iPhone equipped with 256MTF card, USB, and more.
This fantastic device retails for $199.67 and will also come with the “Double Dragon in Tang Dynasty” games preloaded. Now that sounds like loads of fun.
21:33 Posted in Shopping | Permalink | Comments (0) | Email this | Tags: China, Mobile Phones, telephones, technology, blog, web, journal