Did Tim Gunn Meet J. Edgar Hoover Dressed in Drag as Vivian Vance?
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Glenn Beck's Rally Recap Is One Way To Fill An Hour
Still waiting for Jon Stewart to return. This is the only thing I've read or seen about Glenn Beck's rally, Glenn Beck's rally recap is one way to fill an hour. It's pretty entertaining.
"It was all to Beck's greater good, giving him and the rest of Fox News enough to discuss, ruminate and refute for many hours to come. Even this review, I admit, is just another part of the depressing Moebius strip that guides the American news cycle. 'The gates of hell will open,' Beck calmly predicted, speaking of a backlash. Oh, how he hopes the gates open. How can he not?"
"It was all to Beck's greater good, giving him and the rest of Fox News enough to discuss, ruminate and refute for many hours to come. Even this review, I admit, is just another part of the depressing Moebius strip that guides the American news cycle. 'The gates of hell will open,' Beck calmly predicted, speaking of a backlash. Oh, how he hopes the gates open. How can he not?"
All About Bedbugs
Scientific American has reposted an article from Feb 2009, What Are Bedbugs? Are They Dangerous?. Lots of good info, but my favorite line is: "In medieval times, when people would travel to inns with bedbug problems, they would send a pig into the room first so the bedbugs would feed and be satiated."
Update: There is an online Bed Bug Registry.
Update: There is an online Bed Bug Registry.
Dancing at the Movies
Reasonably fun clips, though the broken aspect ratios of the older films really bothered me...
Figuring out how to get hot water from cold ice
Figuring out how to get hot water from cold ice "New laboratory research has attempted to figure out how hot water molecules have ended up near the icy regions of comets."
"In addition to understanding the reaction energies, the team suggested a mechanism that explained how D3O+ becomes D2O and D. They hypothesized that an electron attaches to the hydronium ion, forming an unstable intermediate that decays into the final products. The team found that the pathway that leads to D2O and D released an amount of energy far below the predicted reaction energy, suggesting that the remainder remains trapped in the resulting D2O molecule, held in the form of internal excitation. The heavy water molecules generated in the laboratory reaction had temperatures in excess of 60,000K, a finding that explains the signature of hot water found in the cold icy environment of a comet."
"In addition to understanding the reaction energies, the team suggested a mechanism that explained how D3O+ becomes D2O and D. They hypothesized that an electron attaches to the hydronium ion, forming an unstable intermediate that decays into the final products. The team found that the pathway that leads to D2O and D released an amount of energy far below the predicted reaction energy, suggesting that the remainder remains trapped in the resulting D2O molecule, held in the form of internal excitation. The heavy water molecules generated in the laboratory reaction had temperatures in excess of 60,000K, a finding that explains the signature of hot water found in the cold icy environment of a comet."
Palin’s Speaking Demands
Think Progress reports Palin’s Speaking Demands Confirmed: $75K, SUVs, Deluxe Hotel Suites, Bendable Straws, And No Public Access "The full contract confirms her ‘diva’ demands, and provides new details, from her $75,000 price tag to other extravagances she requires:"
Monday, August 30, 2010
My New Desktop
Universe Today wrote about Weird Crater on Mars. "This is one of the strangest looking craters ever found on Mars, and this platypus-tail-shaped depression, called Orcus Patera, is an enigma. The term ‘patera’ is used for complex or irregularly shaped volcanic craters, but planetary scientists aren’t sure if this landform is volcanic in origin."
Renaming Crayolas
I suspect some of you will want this for your kids, Educational Chemistry Crayon Labels set of 48. "Children play and draw with crayons practically every day, so why not make the experience more educational? This listing is for a set of 48 labels to stick in the crayons in a basic 48 pack of Crayola crayons so that while children are coloring, they are also exposed to the names of chemicals that will make those colors! So instead of thinking 'I want green' they will think 'I want Barium Nitrate Ba(NO3)2 Flame' and then when they take chemistry in high school and their teacher sets some gas on fire and it makes a green color and they ask the class what chemical it was your student will know it was Barium! Genius!"
Ramadan 2010 Pictures
I try not to post about every new posting in The Big Picture, but I usually lose. The photos in
Ramadan 2010 are just stunning.
"Muslim men and women across the world are currently observing Ramadan, a month long celebration of self-purification and restraint. During Ramadan, the Muslim community fast, abstaining from food, drink, smoking and sex between sunrise and sunset. Muslims break their fast after sunset with an evening meal called Iftar, where a date is the first thing eaten followed by a traditional meal. During this time, Muslims are also encouraged to read the entire Quran, to give freely to those in need, and strengthen their ties to God through prayer. The goal of the fast is to teach humility, patience and sacrifice, and to ask forgiveness, practice self-restraint, and pray for guidance in the future. This year, Ramadan will continue until Thursday, September 9th"
Ramadan 2010 are just stunning.
"Muslim men and women across the world are currently observing Ramadan, a month long celebration of self-purification and restraint. During Ramadan, the Muslim community fast, abstaining from food, drink, smoking and sex between sunrise and sunset. Muslims break their fast after sunset with an evening meal called Iftar, where a date is the first thing eaten followed by a traditional meal. During this time, Muslims are also encouraged to read the entire Quran, to give freely to those in need, and strengthen their ties to God through prayer. The goal of the fast is to teach humility, patience and sacrifice, and to ask forgiveness, practice self-restraint, and pray for guidance in the future. This year, Ramadan will continue until Thursday, September 9th"
Yelling at Birthers
JCPOK in Daily Kos wrote this weekend I got Obama's Back at Starbucks this Morning. He told off a birther at a Starbucks. Impossible to know if it's true or not but it's a fun read. One down, 20% of the population to go.
World War II Merged With Today
Sergey Larenkov has a great blog that merges World War II photos with present day photos of the same location.
The Two Stories of This Terrible Economy
Robert Reich wrote The Two Stories of This Terrible Economy, Yet Obama and the Dems Won't Tell Theirs.
"The public doesn’t understand specific policies but it does understand stories that link them together. The stories give the policies context and meaning, and thereby show where policymakers are taking a nation (and, by implication, where the opposition would take it). Republicans lack specific policies but they have a story. Obama and the Democrats have lots of specific policies but don’t have a story. That spells even more trouble for Democrats."
"The public doesn’t understand specific policies but it does understand stories that link them together. The stories give the policies context and meaning, and thereby show where policymakers are taking a nation (and, by implication, where the opposition would take it). Republicans lack specific policies but they have a story. Obama and the Democrats have lots of specific policies but don’t have a story. That spells even more trouble for Democrats."
Sunday, August 29, 2010
Art Director Robert Boyle Dead at 100
The Economist has a great obituary for "Robert Francis Boyle, art director for Alfred Hitchcock, died on August 1st, aged 100."
"The job of art director was then new in cinema. Before the 1930s movies needed little more than a theatre prop-and-set man, but now they were acquiring a ‘reality’ of their own that called for a look and a mood. Mr Boyle’s job, in his words, was to control the space in which the film was set. He had to infuse the emotional and psychological requirements of the screenplay into buildings, landscapes, rooms. Ruts in a road, clutter in a house, the paint on a wall, would evoke layers of living and feeling over the years. He had to present all this as real and then, by subtle placing of objects and use of light, draw viewers to see the scene as the director wished them to.
Most directors gave him merely a script and an outline. He worked for many over the years, on films ranging from ‘Cape Fear’ to ‘Abbott and Costello go to Mars’, but it was Hitchcock, he said, who taught him what he knew. At their first meeting in 1941 he found him at his desk making drawings on a little scroll of paper, and was invited, awestruck as he was, to sit down opposite and do the same. It seemed to be a sort of test. Hitchcock, who already held every shot in his head, drew stick men, all to proper image size, and Mr Boyle understood that his job was to give the story an atmosphere that would seem to wrap the figures round, be part of them, and contain their histories, as a small child could make a stick man represent all he felt and knew about mother, brother or friend."
The New York Times had on obit for him too, Robert F. Boyle, Film Designer for Hitchcock, Dies at 100
"The job of art director was then new in cinema. Before the 1930s movies needed little more than a theatre prop-and-set man, but now they were acquiring a ‘reality’ of their own that called for a look and a mood. Mr Boyle’s job, in his words, was to control the space in which the film was set. He had to infuse the emotional and psychological requirements of the screenplay into buildings, landscapes, rooms. Ruts in a road, clutter in a house, the paint on a wall, would evoke layers of living and feeling over the years. He had to present all this as real and then, by subtle placing of objects and use of light, draw viewers to see the scene as the director wished them to.
Most directors gave him merely a script and an outline. He worked for many over the years, on films ranging from ‘Cape Fear’ to ‘Abbott and Costello go to Mars’, but it was Hitchcock, he said, who taught him what he knew. At their first meeting in 1941 he found him at his desk making drawings on a little scroll of paper, and was invited, awestruck as he was, to sit down opposite and do the same. It seemed to be a sort of test. Hitchcock, who already held every shot in his head, drew stick men, all to proper image size, and Mr Boyle understood that his job was to give the story an atmosphere that would seem to wrap the figures round, be part of them, and contain their histories, as a small child could make a stick man represent all he felt and knew about mother, brother or friend."
The New York Times had on obit for him too, Robert F. Boyle, Film Designer for Hitchcock, Dies at 100
Saturday, August 28, 2010
A McDonald's Happy Meal Doesn't Age
NYC Artist Sally Davies Photography A McDonald's Happy Meal For 137 Days. NYC artist Sally Davies "took a Happy Meal sized burger and fries, put it on her living room table, and as Bravo says, decided to 'watch what happens.' She photographs said meal every day, and 137 days into the project (with no end in site), the results are remarkable in the fact that they're really unremarkable. To our eyes, the burger and fries look exactly on day 1 as day 137. Hungry yet?"
Rob Pike on Pop Culture Science
Rob Pike (yes that Rob Pike) wrote Know your science ranting about entertaining abuses of science like Periodic Tables of sci-fi movies or typography and celebrity equations. "Making arbitrary cultural artifacts by abusing scientific ideas is not just wrong, it's offensive. It cheapens science."
He's right, but could have a little more fun. I was just surprised to see he watches The Big Bang Theory and reads (and writes to!) Entertainment Weekly.
He's right, but could have a little more fun. I was just surprised to see he watches The Big Bang Theory and reads (and writes to!) Entertainment Weekly.
Wheat’s Genetic Code Finally Unlocked
The Boston Globe reports Wheat’s genetic code finally unlocked.
"University of Liverpool scientist Neil Hall, whose team cracked the code, said the information could eventually help breeders of varieties of wheat better identify genetic variations responsible for disease resistance, drought tolerance, and yield. Although the genetic sequence remains a rough draft, and additional strains of wheat need to be analyzed for the work to be useful, Hall predicted that it wouldn’t take long for his work to affect the field."
"The reason for the delay in analyzing wheat’s genetic code, Hall said, was that the code is massive — far larger than corn or rice and five times the length of the one carried by humans. One reason for the outsize genome is that strains such as the Chinese spring wheat analyzed by Hall’s team carry six copies of the same gene (most creatures carry two.) Another is that wheat has a tangled ancestry, tracing its descent from three different species of wild grass."
"University of Liverpool scientist Neil Hall, whose team cracked the code, said the information could eventually help breeders of varieties of wheat better identify genetic variations responsible for disease resistance, drought tolerance, and yield. Although the genetic sequence remains a rough draft, and additional strains of wheat need to be analyzed for the work to be useful, Hall predicted that it wouldn’t take long for his work to affect the field."
"The reason for the delay in analyzing wheat’s genetic code, Hall said, was that the code is massive — far larger than corn or rice and five times the length of the one carried by humans. One reason for the outsize genome is that strains such as the Chinese spring wheat analyzed by Hall’s team carry six copies of the same gene (most creatures carry two.) Another is that wheat has a tangled ancestry, tracing its descent from three different species of wild grass."
Friday, August 27, 2010
30 Years of Asteroid Discoveries
Universe Today wrote about this Astounding Video Shows 30 Years of Asteroid Discoveries.
"This incredible video from the Arecibo Observatory (and recommended by Neil deGrasse Tyson on Twitter) shows the locations of all the known asteroids starting in 1980, adding more as they are discovered (highlighted in white so you can pick out the new ones.) But the final color of the asteroids tells you more about them: Earth crossing asteroids are red, Earth Approachers (with a perihelion less than 1.3AU) are yellow, while all others are Green.In the video you can see the pattern of discovery follows the Earth around its orbit and most discoveries are made in the region directly opposite the Sun."
"This incredible video from the Arecibo Observatory (and recommended by Neil deGrasse Tyson on Twitter) shows the locations of all the known asteroids starting in 1980, adding more as they are discovered (highlighted in white so you can pick out the new ones.) But the final color of the asteroids tells you more about them: Earth crossing asteroids are red, Earth Approachers (with a perihelion less than 1.3AU) are yellow, while all others are Green.In the video you can see the pattern of discovery follows the Earth around its orbit and most discoveries are made in the region directly opposite the Sun."
Thursday, August 26, 2010
A Look at the Iraq War Conflict and its Milestones
Nice Wall Street Journal infographic, A Look at the Iraq War Conflict and its Milestones. Puts the surge in some perspective. I wonder what the corresponding graph for other wars (in particular WWII and Vietnam) look like.
Deep Fried Beer?
Slashfood writes Fried Beer Comes to the Texas State Fair.
"Ever since the inauguration five years ago of the Big Tex Choice Awards at the Texas State Fair, food vendors have been deep-frying the impossible in their pursuit of the Most Creative and Best Taste awards...Big Tex has given us the Deep Fried Latte, Texas Fried Cookie Dough, Fried Coke, and last year's Most Creative winner: Deep Fried Butter...This year's contestants have batter-dipped their way into whole new territory with two new concoctions: Fried Beer and the Deep Fried Frozen Margarita."
"Ever since the inauguration five years ago of the Big Tex Choice Awards at the Texas State Fair, food vendors have been deep-frying the impossible in their pursuit of the Most Creative and Best Taste awards...Big Tex has given us the Deep Fried Latte, Texas Fried Cookie Dough, Fried Coke, and last year's Most Creative winner: Deep Fried Butter...This year's contestants have batter-dipped their way into whole new territory with two new concoctions: Fried Beer and the Deep Fried Frozen Margarita."
America's 10 Dying Cities: From Detroit to New Orleans
America's 10 Dying Cities: From Detroit to New Orleans.
"Most of America's 10 Dead Cities were once major manufacturing hubs and others were important ports or financial services centers. The downfall of one city, New Orleans, began in the 1970s, but was accelerated by Hurricane Katrina."
"24/7 Wall St. looked at a number of sources in order to select the list. One was the U.S. Census Bureau's list of largest cities by population by decade from 1950 to 2000 with estimates for 2007. Detroit, for example, had 1.9 million people in 1950 and was the fifth-largest city in the nation. By 2000, the figure was 951,000. The city was not even on the top 10 list in 2007."
"Most of America's 10 Dead Cities were once major manufacturing hubs and others were important ports or financial services centers. The downfall of one city, New Orleans, began in the 1970s, but was accelerated by Hurricane Katrina."
"24/7 Wall St. looked at a number of sources in order to select the list. One was the U.S. Census Bureau's list of largest cities by population by decade from 1950 to 2000 with estimates for 2007. Detroit, for example, had 1.9 million people in 1950 and was the fifth-largest city in the nation. By 2000, the figure was 951,000. The city was not even on the top 10 list in 2007."
First Use of Cosmic Lens to Probe Dark Energy
First Use of Cosmic Lens to Probe Dark Energy "This is the Hubble Space Telescope image of the inner region of Abell 1689, an immense cluster of galaxies located 2.2 billion light-years away. Dark matter in the cluster is mapped by plotting the plethora of arcs produced by the light from background galaxies that is warped by the foreground cluster's gravitational field. Dark matter cannot be photographed, but its distribution is shown in the blue overlay. The dark matter concentration and distribution is then used to better understand the nature of dark energy, a pressure that is accelerating the expansion of the universe. The imaging data used in the natural-color photo was taken in 2002 with Hubble's Advanced Camera for Surveys."25 Classic Science Fiction Movies That Everybody Must Watch
io9's 25 classic science fiction movies that everybody must watch is a pretty reasonable list.
My all time fav is (the original) Planet of the Apes. I'm not as big a fan of Robocop and would probably replace it with Verhoeven's Total Recall. I'm also not a huge fan of Ghost in the Shell but it does represent a genre very well.
I do agree that "The Incredibles is arguably the best Pixar film, and the best superhero film, of all" and would add, it's also a very good James Bond film.
I don't get all the raving about Children of Men and District 9. Men had some great filmmaking techique with a very underdeveloped story. It was all about the subtext (guantanamo) and forgot about the text. District 9 had a great idea and blew it by making the protagonist such an ass (I never got over that) and making the aliens (with a handful of excepts) into dumb drones so that moral question was easier. The best scene in the trailer, the interrogation, and all that it implied, wasn't in the film.
They also did a list of The top 20 essential science fiction TV shows which isn't nearly as strong. I've never seen Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Blake's 7 or Cowboy Bebop. The original V shouldn't be there (maybe the miniseries but it doesn't hold up) and the new one certainly shouldn't be there (it's not). BSG in spite of the last season should be closer to the top.
My all time fav is (the original) Planet of the Apes. I'm not as big a fan of Robocop and would probably replace it with Verhoeven's Total Recall. I'm also not a huge fan of Ghost in the Shell but it does represent a genre very well.
I do agree that "The Incredibles is arguably the best Pixar film, and the best superhero film, of all" and would add, it's also a very good James Bond film.
I don't get all the raving about Children of Men and District 9. Men had some great filmmaking techique with a very underdeveloped story. It was all about the subtext (guantanamo) and forgot about the text. District 9 had a great idea and blew it by making the protagonist such an ass (I never got over that) and making the aliens (with a handful of excepts) into dumb drones so that moral question was easier. The best scene in the trailer, the interrogation, and all that it implied, wasn't in the film.
They also did a list of The top 20 essential science fiction TV shows which isn't nearly as strong. I've never seen Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex, Blake's 7 or Cowboy Bebop. The original V shouldn't be there (maybe the miniseries but it doesn't hold up) and the new one certainly shouldn't be there (it's not). BSG in spite of the last season should be closer to the top.
Fire Alan Simpson
Paul Krugman says Fire Alan Simpson "At this point, though, Obama is on the spot: he has to fire Simpson, or turn the whole thing into a combination of farce and tragedy — the farce being the nature of the co-chair, the tragedy being that Democrats are so afraid of Republicans that nothing, absolutely nothing, will get them sanctioned."
TurningArt
I can't say I'm interested in signing up, but I am intrigued by the idea behind TurningArt, it's netflix for for art in your home.
Cooking With Mad Men
Carolyn Foster Segal writes in the Huffington Post Cooking With Mad Men. "The drinks menu is easy--anything from scotch on the rocks to wine to martinis to Mint Juleps. And we know what brand mad men and women smoke, at least for now--Lucky Strike. But what do mad men and women eat? When they dine out in season four, it's Chicken Kiev. And when they're staying in--well, it's easy to see why they don't eat in very often."
There just aren't enough shows that foster this kind of discussion and commentary.
There just aren't enough shows that foster this kind of discussion and commentary.
NASA Called in to Help Trapped Chilean Miners Stay Healthy
I heard a mention of this on NPR in the car and found this story in The Guardian. NASA called in to help trapped Chilean miners stay healthy. I thought it was a clever parallel.
"Chilean health officials are seeking advice from Nasa on how the 33 miners trapped underground can remain sane and healthy while rescue efforts continue.
The men appear to be healthy and optimistic but are likely to be confined in a tiny shelter 688 metres underground for up to four months while relief crews bore an extraction shaft.
According to officials at the Chilean health ministry, conditions in the chamber are similar to those faced by submarine crews or astronauts on the international space station."
"Chilean health officials are seeking advice from Nasa on how the 33 miners trapped underground can remain sane and healthy while rescue efforts continue.
The men appear to be healthy and optimistic but are likely to be confined in a tiny shelter 688 metres underground for up to four months while relief crews bore an extraction shaft.
According to officials at the Chilean health ministry, conditions in the chamber are similar to those faced by submarine crews or astronauts on the international space station."
Hitchens on the "Ground Zero mosque"
Christopher Hitchens writes ones of the better articles I've seen on The "Ground Zero mosque" debate is about tolerance—and a whole lot more.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Big Brother Is Searching You
PC World writes Big Brother Is Searching You "While everyone is concerned about privacy violations from Facebook Places, government agencies may be using powerful new technology to violate 4th-Amendment protection against unreasonable searches."
"The spirit of and the letter of this amendment is that government agencies are not allowed to go on hunting expeditions looking for violations or transgressions. If government officials want to search your property, they have to demonstrate good reason why they suspect you of committing a crime."
"The town of Riverhead on Long Island used Google Earth to search all back yards in the town for swimming pool transgressions. They found about 250 pools built without permits and collected about $75,000 in fines."
"A company called American Science and Engineering sells a high-end, tricked out security vehicle called the Z Backscatter Van. Its sole purpose, if used by government agencies, is to violate the 4th Amendment. The van sits there by the side of the road and X-rays cars passing by. It's like a full-body scan at the airport, but for cars...What the van does is unreasonable searches without probable cause and without the knowledge of the person who owns the property being searched."
Here's more on the Full-Body Scan Technology Deployed In Street-Roving Vans.
"The spirit of and the letter of this amendment is that government agencies are not allowed to go on hunting expeditions looking for violations or transgressions. If government officials want to search your property, they have to demonstrate good reason why they suspect you of committing a crime."
"The town of Riverhead on Long Island used Google Earth to search all back yards in the town for swimming pool transgressions. They found about 250 pools built without permits and collected about $75,000 in fines."
"A company called American Science and Engineering sells a high-end, tricked out security vehicle called the Z Backscatter Van. Its sole purpose, if used by government agencies, is to violate the 4th Amendment. The van sits there by the side of the road and X-rays cars passing by. It's like a full-body scan at the airport, but for cars...What the van does is unreasonable searches without probable cause and without the knowledge of the person who owns the property being searched."
Here's more on the Full-Body Scan Technology Deployed In Street-Roving Vans.
Former RNC Chair Ken Mehlman is Gay
The Atlantic writes Bush Campaign Chief and Former RNC Chair, Ken Mehlman: I'm Gay "'It's taken me 43 years to get comfortable with this part of my life,' Mehlman said. 'Everybody has their own path to travel, their own journey, and for me, over the past few months, I've told my family, friends, former colleagues, and current colleagues, and they've been wonderful and supportive. The process has been something that's made me a happier and better person. It's something I wish I had done years ago.'"
Maybe if his party, the one he was head of, wasn't actively demonizing it, he might have been more comfortable with it and might have come out years ago.
(and still, no relation)
Update: Pretty amusing that Fox News has ignored the story entirely.
Maybe if his party, the one he was head of, wasn't actively demonizing it, he might have been more comfortable with it and might have come out years ago.
(and still, no relation)
Update: Pretty amusing that Fox News has ignored the story entirely.
Court Under Roberts Is Most Conservative in Decades
Finally got around to reading Adam Liptak's review of the Roberts Court from a month ago, Court Under Roberts Is Most Conservative in Decades.
"Four of the six most conservative justices of the 44 who have sat on the court since 1937 are serving now: Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Alito, Antonin Scalia and, most conservative of all, Clarence Thomas. (The other two were Chief Justices Burger and Rehnquist.) Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, the swing justice on the current court, is in the top 10.
The Roberts court is finding laws unconstitutional and reversing precedent — two measures of activism — no more often than earlier courts. But the ideological direction of the court’s activism has undergone a marked change toward conservative results."
The related infographic puts it in a little more context.
"Four of the six most conservative justices of the 44 who have sat on the court since 1937 are serving now: Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Alito, Antonin Scalia and, most conservative of all, Clarence Thomas. (The other two were Chief Justices Burger and Rehnquist.) Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, the swing justice on the current court, is in the top 10.
The Roberts court is finding laws unconstitutional and reversing precedent — two measures of activism — no more often than earlier courts. But the ideological direction of the court’s activism has undergone a marked change toward conservative results."
The related infographic puts it in a little more context.
Bacteria seem to be doing a good cleanup job
The LA Times reports, Gulf oil: Bacteria seem to be doing a good cleanup job.
"Data collected in May and June showed populations of carbon-eating bacteria were increasing in parts of a plume of oil drifting in deep water in the gulf, said lead author Terry Hazen, head of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's ecology department. 'Within the last few weeks we've gone back and can find bacteria … but do not see detectable oil,' Hazen said. The most likely reason, he added, is that the voracious bugs ate it."
"Data collected in May and June showed populations of carbon-eating bacteria were increasing in parts of a plume of oil drifting in deep water in the gulf, said lead author Terry Hazen, head of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's ecology department. 'Within the last few weeks we've gone back and can find bacteria … but do not see detectable oil,' Hazen said. The most likely reason, he added, is that the voracious bugs ate it."
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Bush Tax Cuts - Now That’s Rich
Yesterday Paul Krugman wrotes on the Bush Tax Cuts - Now That’s Rich.
"What’s at stake here? According to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, making all of the Bush tax cuts permanent, as opposed to following the Obama proposal, would cost the federal government $680 billion in revenue over the next 10 years. For the sake of comparison, it took months of hard negotiations to get Congressional approval for a mere $26 billion in desperately needed aid to state and local governments.
And where would this $680 billion go? Nearly all of it would go to the richest 1 percent of Americans, people with incomes of more than $500,000 a year. But that’s the least of it: the policy center’s estimates say that the majority of the tax cuts would go to the richest one-tenth of 1 percent. Take a group of 1,000 randomly selected Americans, and pick the one with the highest income; he’s going to get the majority of that group’s tax break. And the average tax break for those lucky few — the poorest members of the group have annual incomes of more than $2 million, and the average member makes more than $7 million a year — would be $3 million over the course of the next decade."
And today he confirmed his math is right, Yes, $3 Million.
"What’s at stake here? According to the nonpartisan Tax Policy Center, making all of the Bush tax cuts permanent, as opposed to following the Obama proposal, would cost the federal government $680 billion in revenue over the next 10 years. For the sake of comparison, it took months of hard negotiations to get Congressional approval for a mere $26 billion in desperately needed aid to state and local governments.
And where would this $680 billion go? Nearly all of it would go to the richest 1 percent of Americans, people with incomes of more than $500,000 a year. But that’s the least of it: the policy center’s estimates say that the majority of the tax cuts would go to the richest one-tenth of 1 percent. Take a group of 1,000 randomly selected Americans, and pick the one with the highest income; he’s going to get the majority of that group’s tax break. And the average tax break for those lucky few — the poorest members of the group have annual incomes of more than $2 million, and the average member makes more than $7 million a year — would be $3 million over the course of the next decade."
And today he confirmed his math is right, Yes, $3 Million.
Orwell And Social Security
Paul Krugman is almost as good as Jon Stewart at calling out the liars for lying, he's just not nearly as funny about. Orwell And Social Security. "Back in the 1990s the Cato Institute had something called The Project on Social Security Privatization, which issued papers like this one from Martin Feldstein: Privatizing Social Security: The $10 Trillion Opportunity. Then the right discovered that “privatization” polled badly. And suddenly, the term was a liberal plot — hey, we never said we’d do that. Wait, it gets worse: Cato not only renamed its project, but it went back through the web site, trying to purge references to privatization. Bush also tried to deny that he had ever used the word."
Spinning the Stimulus
FactCheck.org wrote Spinning the Stimulus "Vice President Joseph Biden and House Republican Leader John Boehner both put their partisan spin on the effects of the administration’s economic stimulus spending. But Biden exaggerated, and Boehner got it wrong, according to a report issued later in the day by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office."
digby has more, Better Than Nothing.
digby has more, Better Than Nothing.
Voting Machine Hacked to Play Pac-Man
Pac-Man on the Sequoia AVC-Edge DRE Voting Machine "We received the machine with the original tamper-evident seals intact. The software can be replaced without breaking any of these seals, simply by removing screws and opening the case."
Jon Stewart v Fox News
Last night, Jon Stewart did an amazing job pointing out Fox News hypocracy. The Parent Company Trap. Fox was talking out again Al-Waleed bin Talal for funding the Iman trying to build the Park51 Mosque near Ground Zero without mentioning his name or that he's a 7% owner (the second largest after Murdock) of News Corp (Fox News' parent company).
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| The Parent Company Trap | ||||
| ||||
Monday, August 23, 2010
U.S. Court Rules Against Obama’s Stem Cell Policy
The New York Times reports U.S. Court Rules Against Obama’s Stem Cell Policy. "A U.S. district court issued a preliminary injunction on Monday stopping federal funding of human embryonic stem cell research, in a slap to the Obama administration's new guidelines on the sensitive issue.
U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth granted the injunction because he found that the doctors who challenged the policy would likely succeed because U.S. law blocked federal funding of embryonic stem cell research if the embryos were destroyed."
U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth granted the injunction because he found that the doctors who challenged the policy would likely succeed because U.S. law blocked federal funding of embryonic stem cell research if the embryos were destroyed."
What Is It About 20-Somethings?
The New York Times wrote a long article, What Is It About 20-Somethings? "Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, a psychology professor at Clark University in Worcester, Mass., is leading the movement to view the 20s as a distinct life stage, which he calls ‘emerging adulthood.’ He says what is happening now is analogous to what happened a century ago, when social and economic changes helped create adolescence — a stage we take for granted but one that had to be recognized by psychologists, accepted by society and accommodated by institutions that served the young. Similar changes at the turn of the 21st century have laid the groundwork for another new stage, Arnett says, between the age of 18 and the late 20s. Among the cultural changes he points to that have led to ‘emerging adulthood’ are the need for more education to survive in an information-based economy; fewer entry-level jobs even after all that schooling; young people feeling less rush to marry because of the general acceptance of premarital sex, cohabitation and birth control; and young women feeling less rush to have babies given their wide range of career options and their access to assisted reproductive technology if they delay pregnancy beyond their most fertile years."
Solar System is Two Million Years Older Than We Thought?
io9 reports The solar system is two million years older than we thought...and that changes everything "An ancient meteorite reveals the solar system is 4.5682 billion years old, 1.9 million years older than we thought. The difference seems insignificant, but it could mean our solar system was actually born in the blast furnace of a supernova."
Today's TEDTalks
Adam Sadowsky engineers a viral music video was quick and a lot of fun and ends with the video. "The band 'OK Go' dreamed up the idea of a massive Rube Goldberg machine for their next music video -- and Adam Sadowsky's team was charged with building it. He tells the story of the effort and engineering behind their labyrinthine creation that quickly became a YouTube sensation."
Rory Sutherland: Sweat the small stuff
"It may seem that big problems require big solutions, but ad man Rory Sutherland says many flashy, expensive fixes are just obscuring better, simpler answers. To illustrate, he uses behavioral economics and hilarious examples."
Rory Sutherland: Sweat the small stuff
"It may seem that big problems require big solutions, but ad man Rory Sutherland says many flashy, expensive fixes are just obscuring better, simpler answers. To illustrate, he uses behavioral economics and hilarious examples."
China Highway Jam Enters Its 9th Day, Spans 100km
Ok, I will never complain about Boston traffic (ok I will, but...) Highway jam enters its 9th day, spans 100km.
"Since August 14, thousands of Beijing-bound trucks have jammed the expressway again, and traffic has stretched for more than 100 kilometers between Beijing and Huai'an in Heibei Province, and Jining in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China National Radio (CNR) reported Sunday."
"'Insufficient traffic capacity on the National Expressway 110 caused by maintenance construction since August 19 is the major cause of the congestion,' a publicity officer with the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau, told the Global Times on condition of anonymity Sunday."
"The congestion is expected to last for almost a month, since the construction is due for completion September 13."
"For drivers, suffering the congestion on the Beijing-Tibet Expressway is nothing new. In a similar scene this July, traffic was also reduced to a crawl for nearly one month."
"Since August 14, thousands of Beijing-bound trucks have jammed the expressway again, and traffic has stretched for more than 100 kilometers between Beijing and Huai'an in Heibei Province, and Jining in Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China National Radio (CNR) reported Sunday."
"'Insufficient traffic capacity on the National Expressway 110 caused by maintenance construction since August 19 is the major cause of the congestion,' a publicity officer with the Beijing Traffic Management Bureau, told the Global Times on condition of anonymity Sunday."
"The congestion is expected to last for almost a month, since the construction is due for completion September 13."
"For drivers, suffering the congestion on the Beijing-Tibet Expressway is nothing new. In a similar scene this July, traffic was also reduced to a crawl for nearly one month."
Sunday, August 22, 2010
The 50 Best Cookbooks of All Time
The Guardian surveyed The 50 best cookbooks of all time. Here are 50-10 and here are the top 10. I've only heard of a handful of them.
How Jelly Belly Invents Flavors
The Atlantic Food Blog wrote Sweet Memories: How Jelly Belly Invents Flavors "Flavor and scent are beloved for their ability to bring back memories long buried in the sensory deluge, a point made by Proust with his madeleine decades before modern science let us peer into the physiology of flavor. The flavor designers at the Jelly Belly Candy Company make it their business to speak this sensory language, and, through a process alternately technical and zany, to suss out exactly what it is that makes those tastes—and by extension, those memories—jump. "
Beloit College Mindset List for the Class of 2014
Beloit College Mindset List "Each August since 1998, Beloit College has released the Beloit College Mindset List. It provides a look at the cultural touchstones that shape the lives of students entering college this fall."
"The class of 2014 has never found Korean-made cars unusual on the Interstate and five hundred cable channels, of which they will watch a handful, have always been the norm. Since "digital" has always been in the cultural DNA, they've never written in cursive and with cell phones to tell them the time, there is no need for a wrist watch. Dirty Harry (who’s that?) is to them a great Hollywood director. The America they have inherited is one of soaring American trade and budget deficits; Russia has presumably never aimed nukes at the United States and China has always posed an economic threat."
Much more here.
"The class of 2014 has never found Korean-made cars unusual on the Interstate and five hundred cable channels, of which they will watch a handful, have always been the norm. Since "digital" has always been in the cultural DNA, they've never written in cursive and with cell phones to tell them the time, there is no need for a wrist watch. Dirty Harry (who’s that?) is to them a great Hollywood director. The America they have inherited is one of soaring American trade and budget deficits; Russia has presumably never aimed nukes at the United States and China has always posed an economic threat."
Much more here.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Today's TEDTalks
This is the best discussion of copyright I've heard in a while. Johanna Blakley: Lessons from fashion's free culture. "Copyright law's grip on film, music and software barely touches the fashion industry ... and fashion benefits in both innovation and sales, says Johanna Blakley. At TEDxUSC 2010, she talks about what all creative industries can learn from fashion's free culture."
And this is the best explanation for suicide bombers I've seen. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy: Inside a school for suicide bombers. "Filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy takes on a terrifying question: How does the Taliban convince children to become suicide bombers? Propaganda footage from a training camp is intercut with her interviews of young camp graduates. A shocking vision."
And this is the best explanation for suicide bombers I've seen. Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy: Inside a school for suicide bombers. "Filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy takes on a terrifying question: How does the Taliban convince children to become suicide bombers? Propaganda footage from a training camp is intercut with her interviews of young camp graduates. A shocking vision."
Russia in Color, a Century Ago
The Big Picture shows Russia in color, a century ago. "With images from southern and central Russia in the news lately due to extensive wildfires, I thought it would be interesting to look back in time with this extraordinary collection of color photographs taken between 1909 and 1912."
Monday, August 16, 2010
Happy 80th Birthday to Fiddlesticks, the First Color Cartoon With Sound
Happy 80th Birthday to Fiddlesticks, the First Color Cartoon With Sound "On August 16, 1930, some eight years after he created Mickey Mouse for Walt Disney, animator Ub Iwerks debuted his newest cartoon, Fiddlesticks. It was the first to combine sound and color, setting the course for the entire animation industry."
Just Build the Mosque Already and Shut Gingrich Up
Over the weekend, Barack Obama weighed in on the horribly important issue of the proposed Mosque two blocks from Ground Zero. This is already taken up too much air time and maybe this was his attempt to take control of the news cycle. Yes, they have a right to build a mosque there on private property (of course). The problem is he just mentioned it quickly and didn't offer an alternative story to cover. Well his real problem was that he went back to it the next day and muddled his message saying that while they have a right to build, perhaps it wasn't wise. Yesterday and today, Republicans managed to coordinate their new message as "Obama attempted to have it both ways" (insert Daily Show segment of various people repeating this same phrase on different news shows). Ugh.
The News Hour tonight tried to have a segment on it and had two minor politicians debating it. The Democrat called it for what it was, political posturing to a radicalized base to raise funds and to avoid talking about the real issues, like the economy. He then asked what his counterparts economic plan was and looked foolish trying to change the subject from what they were brought on TV to talk about.
The last question was about a Newt Gingrich quote, "Nazis don't have the right to put up a sign next to the Holocaust museum in Washington." Now this pisses me off, because Gingrich knows they do. And if he doesn't he needs to lookup the 1977 Supreme Court case National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie. If Nazi's can march in a Jewish town with swastikas, they could put them up in Washington near the Holocaust museum too. And to all the idiots that think theres some Jewish conspiracy with the ACLU, the ACLU was on the side of the Nazis in the case.
As usual, Jon Stewart said everything that needs to be said (and he said it a week ago).
The News Hour tonight tried to have a segment on it and had two minor politicians debating it. The Democrat called it for what it was, political posturing to a radicalized base to raise funds and to avoid talking about the real issues, like the economy. He then asked what his counterparts economic plan was and looked foolish trying to change the subject from what they were brought on TV to talk about.
The last question was about a Newt Gingrich quote, "Nazis don't have the right to put up a sign next to the Holocaust museum in Washington." Now this pisses me off, because Gingrich knows they do. And if he doesn't he needs to lookup the 1977 Supreme Court case National Socialist Party of America v. Village of Skokie. If Nazi's can march in a Jewish town with swastikas, they could put them up in Washington near the Holocaust museum too. And to all the idiots that think theres some Jewish conspiracy with the ACLU, the ACLU was on the side of the Nazis in the case.
As usual, Jon Stewart said everything that needs to be said (and he said it a week ago).
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Municipal Land-Use Update - Ground Zero Mosque | ||||
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| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Municipal Land-Use Hearing Update | ||||
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Singapore 2010 Youth Olympics
I didn't know about the Singapore 2010 Youth Olympics but The Big Picture has great photos. "On Saturday, Singapore welcomed young athletes from around the world in a ceremony opening the inaugural Youth Olympic Games. This is the first ever Summer Youth Olympics, an event designed to be celebrated in the same tradition of the Olympic Games - the major difference being that the competitors are all between 14 and 18 years of age. This year, 3,500 athletes from more than 200 countries are competing in 184 events in 26 sports. Collected here are some photographs of the inaugural Youth Olympic Games, which will run until its closing ceremony on August 26th"
Friday, August 13, 2010
Landslides strike Zhouqu County, China
The Big Picture does it's usual amazing job covering Landslides strike Zhouqu County, China. "At midnight on Sunday, August 8th, a temporary lake caused by a recent landslide broke loose above the town of Zhouqu, in Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, China. The outflow slid down the valley as a wall of mud, wiping out houses and muli-story buildings, and killing at least 1,144 residents - with over 600 still reported as missing. More than 10,000 soldiers and rescuers arrived soon to comb through the mountains of mud that buried several parts of Zhouqu County. Engineers also worked to blast the debris that had passed through the town to partially block the Bailong River, causing further flooding. Collected here are images of the landslide-affected area of northwestern China, part of a series of disasters in Asia caused by recent heavy rains. (41 photos total)"
Ripping Apart Paul Ryan's Article in The Washington Post
Brad DeLong asks Can We Please Shut the Washington Post Down Today? because of "their running their unfact-checked piece by Republican representative Paul Ryan. You'd think they'd be embarrassed to be complicit in yet more selling of deficit-exploding plans as deficit-reducing ones." He then cites Dean Baker who shreds Ryan's article.
Mark Thoma weighs in too. "The Washington Post gives Paul Ryan space on its op-ed pages to present an idea to reform Medicare that is not new -- it is little more than the voucher proposal from Newt Ginrich in 1995 -- and that is full of inaccuracies. The proposal, if implemented, would dismantle Medicare as we know it, but it does not solve the main underlying issue driving future budget problems, the growth in medical costs."
Mark Thoma weighs in too. "The Washington Post gives Paul Ryan space on its op-ed pages to present an idea to reform Medicare that is not new -- it is little more than the voucher proposal from Newt Ginrich in 1995 -- and that is full of inaccuracies. The proposal, if implemented, would dismantle Medicare as we know it, but it does not solve the main underlying issue driving future budget problems, the growth in medical costs."
So I'm Supposed to Go To Starbucks and Use Their Web?
How Starbucks Plans to Capitalize on Free Wi-Fi. "The Starbucks Digital Network (SDN) will be available to customers at company-operated stores beginning this fall. With SDN, Starbucks hopes to engineer an in-store, third-place experience like no other by offering exclusive and premium content from hand-picked content providers, including Apple, The New York Times and leading health publisher Rodale."
"In the News channel, customers will have unfettered access to the Wall Street Journal, USA Today and The New York Times. Brotman explained that access to the latter of the two will be the paid versions not available for free to readers anywhere else."
"In the News channel, customers will have unfettered access to the Wall Street Journal, USA Today and The New York Times. Brotman explained that access to the latter of the two will be the paid versions not available for free to readers anywhere else."
Prosecutorial Flim-Flam at Gitmo
Scott Horton writes in Harpers, Prosecutorial Flim-Flam at Gitmo "The military commissions are back underway at Guantánamo, and so far the Obama Administration proceedings look an awful lot like the end-phase proceedings under Bush"
"The cases of al-Qosi and child warrior Omar Khadr, now underway, highlight America’s current prosecutorial dilemma. Any prosecutor worth his salt would want to start the process just as Justice Jackson did at the end of World War II: with high-profile targets against whom powerful evidence has been assembled. But nine years after 9/11, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri remain at large. Thus the world is shown not the mastermind of a heinous crime but a short-order cook and a 15-year-old child who offers credible evidence that he was tortured in U.S. custody. The spectacle is so pathetic that we can understand why those running it want to turn to carnival tricks to conceal the unseemly reality."
"The cases of al-Qosi and child warrior Omar Khadr, now underway, highlight America’s current prosecutorial dilemma. Any prosecutor worth his salt would want to start the process just as Justice Jackson did at the end of World War II: with high-profile targets against whom powerful evidence has been assembled. But nine years after 9/11, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri remain at large. Thus the world is shown not the mastermind of a heinous crime but a short-order cook and a 15-year-old child who offers credible evidence that he was tortured in U.S. custody. The spectacle is so pathetic that we can understand why those running it want to turn to carnival tricks to conceal the unseemly reality."
A toothpaste-like gel that can heal wounds six times faster than normal
A toothpaste-like gel that can heal wounds six times faster than normal "A gene therapy in the form of a thick gel is about to revolutionize wound treatment. The gel is called Nexagon, and when you apply it to a wound, it reprograms the cells to heal more quickly and efficiently."
iHelp for Autism
SF Weekly wrote iHelp for Autism "Since the iPad's unveiling in April, autism experts and parents have brought it into countless homes and classrooms around the world. Developers have begun pumping out applications specifically designed for users with special needs, and initial studies are already measuring the effectiveness of the iPod Touch and the iPad as learning tools for children with autism. Through the devices, some of these children have been able to communicate their thoughts to adults for the first time. Others have learned life skills that had eluded them for years."
Now This Would Be Good Train Service
The Philadelphia Inquirer wrote Penn students create ambitious plan for rail service "The Penn students proposed a $98 billion project, with two dedicated high-speed tracks on a reconfigured route and a number of new stations, including a main Philadelphia stop at the Market East station in Center City.
'We wanted to be bold, to actually make an impact,' said Lisa Jacobson, 28, one of the student authors of the plan. 'Instead of 'let's straighten a curve here or replace a bridge there,' we wanted to think big.'
The Penn plan would cut travel times in half. A trip between Philadelphia and New York would take 37 minutes instead of the Acela's current one hour, 12 minutes. A trip between Washington and New York would take 1 1/2 hours instead of the current two hours, 45 minutes, and a trip between New York and Boston would be one hour, 45 minutes, instead of the current 3 1/2 hours.
The Penn plan proposes an average of 12 trains per peak hour, instead of the current three to five.
The Penn students envisioned about 100 miles of tunnels, including beneath downtown Philadelphia and Baltimore to provide fast, direct routes to new downtown stations. And they suggested a new route from New York to Boston - beneath Long Island Sound and inland through Connecticut and Massachusetts."
'We wanted to be bold, to actually make an impact,' said Lisa Jacobson, 28, one of the student authors of the plan. 'Instead of 'let's straighten a curve here or replace a bridge there,' we wanted to think big.'
The Penn plan would cut travel times in half. A trip between Philadelphia and New York would take 37 minutes instead of the Acela's current one hour, 12 minutes. A trip between Washington and New York would take 1 1/2 hours instead of the current two hours, 45 minutes, and a trip between New York and Boston would be one hour, 45 minutes, instead of the current 3 1/2 hours.
The Penn plan proposes an average of 12 trains per peak hour, instead of the current three to five.
The Penn students envisioned about 100 miles of tunnels, including beneath downtown Philadelphia and Baltimore to provide fast, direct routes to new downtown stations. And they suggested a new route from New York to Boston - beneath Long Island Sound and inland through Connecticut and Massachusetts."
Today's TED Talks
Philip K. Howard: Four ways to fix a broken legal system | Video on TED.com "The land of the free has become a legal minefield, says Philip K. Howard -- especially for teachers and doctors, whose work has been paralyzed by fear of suits. What's the answer? A lawyer himself, Howard has four propositions for simplifying US law."
Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the learning revolution! "In this poignant, funny follow-up to his fabled 2006 talk, Sir Ken Robinson makes the case for a radical shift from standardized schools to personalized learning -- creating conditions where kids' natural talents can flourish." I really like his restaurant analogy.
Sir Ken Robinson: Bring on the learning revolution! "In this poignant, funny follow-up to his fabled 2006 talk, Sir Ken Robinson makes the case for a radical shift from standardized schools to personalized learning -- creating conditions where kids' natural talents can flourish." I really like his restaurant analogy.
Asteroids in Lagrangian Points
io9 has a nice succinct article, Asteroid in gravitational dead zone holds secrets of ancient solar system.
"There are locations in our solar system where the gravitational forces of a planet and the Sun cancel out, allowing objects to exist there stably. These regions are known as Lagrangian points. Every Sun-planet combination has five such points (as do other pairs of bodies, like the Earth and the Moon), as you can see in the image up top. Astronomers have detected asteroids in some of the Lagrangian points around Jupiter and Neptune - these have been dubbed Trojan asteroids. These asteroids share the orbits of their planets, and they also help preserve vital clues about how our solar system formed."
"There are locations in our solar system where the gravitational forces of a planet and the Sun cancel out, allowing objects to exist there stably. These regions are known as Lagrangian points. Every Sun-planet combination has five such points (as do other pairs of bodies, like the Earth and the Moon), as you can see in the image up top. Astronomers have detected asteroids in some of the Lagrangian points around Jupiter and Neptune - these have been dubbed Trojan asteroids. These asteroids share the orbits of their planets, and they also help preserve vital clues about how our solar system formed."
Thursday, August 12, 2010
Hiding in Plain Sight
Liinda Greenhouse wrote a great column Hiding in Plain Sight that relates the Prop 8 gay marriage case with Roe and no-fault divorce among other things. Really worth a read.
Lawrence Lessig: On the Rage of Gibbs
Lawrence Lessig: On the Rage of Gibbs "Obama's strategy as president has not been to 'change the way Washington works.' Rather, he has pushed reforms in the same old way, with the same old games."
"But beefed up Clintonism is not what Obama promised. He promised to "take up the fight." His failure to deliver on that critical promise -- the promised that distinguished him from his main primary rival -- or even to try, is a failure that everyone, Lefties included, should be free to complain about without suffering the rage of Gibbs."
"But beefed up Clintonism is not what Obama promised. He promised to "take up the fight." His failure to deliver on that critical promise -- the promised that distinguished him from his main primary rival -- or even to try, is a failure that everyone, Lefties included, should be free to complain about without suffering the rage of Gibbs."
Comparing Democratic and Republican Tax Plans
The Washington Post has a great graphic Comparing Democratic and Republican tax plans "The Republicans' plan to extend the Bush administration tax cuts for the wealthy would cost $36.6 billion more than the Democrats' plan, which extends cuts only for families making less than $250,000 a year and individuals making less than $200,000."
(via Ezra Klein via Brad DeLong)
(via Ezra Klein via Brad DeLong)
Paul Krugman Today
Why We Need An Inflation Target.
"Look at the lower left-hand corner: the real interest rate on 5-year inflation-protected securities is now negative. In other words, prospects for other investments are so poor that some investors prefer a safe asset that doesn’t quite keep up with inflation.
Yet to maintain employment, we need to sustain spending, one way or another. One way is to have the government take advantage of its low financing costs to spend on useful things; but the deficit peacocks in Congress are blocking that solution. Another is to get real interest rates low enough to get the private sector spending; but that, as we can see, means that the real interest rate on medium-term government debt has to be negative."
And also, The Meaning Of 2.71 which is the 10-year bond rate.
"As it happens, interest rates are also now lower than they were when the big debate over fiscal policy and its interest-rate effects began. For those who don’t remember or don’t know, this started with the claim that government borrowing would send rates soaring, crowding out private investment, and that this would abort the recovery. I tried at the time to point out that this reflected a failure to understand basic macroeconomics; but as usual, made no headway with the culprits."
And, The Price Stability Trap. "The analysis also suggests something else, however: as the inflation rate goes toward zero, it seems to become “sticky”: in the modern world, rapid deflation doesn’t happen, and in fact slight positive inflation often persists in the face of an obviously depressed economy."
"And this raises the specter what I think of as the price stability trap: suppose that it’s early 2012, the US unemployment rate is around 10 percent, and core inflation is running at 0.3 percent. The Fed should be moving heaven and earth to do something about the economy — but what you see instead is many people at the Fed, especially at the regional banks, saying ‘Look, we don’t have actual deflation, or anyway not much, so we’re achieving price stability. What’s the problem?’ And the slump will just go on."
As a bonus, The Baseline Scenario writes Why Won’t “Fiscal Hawks” Discuss The Real Issues?. "To see where our current deficits come from, we need only look at the budget office’s baseline projections. In January 2008, the budget office projected that total government debt in private hands – the best measure of what the government owes – would fall to $5.1 trillion by 2018 (23 percent of GDP). As of January 2010, the budget office now projects that debt will rise to $13.7 trillion (more than 65 percent of GDP) – a difference of $8.6 trillion. Of this change, 57 percent is due to decreased tax revenues resulting from the financial crisis and recession; 17 percent from increases in discretionary spending, much of it the stimulus package necessitated by the financial crisis; and another 14 percent to increased interest payments on the debt – because we now have more debt."
"What do matter are taxes and entitlements. Therefore, the coming battle over the Bush tax cuts is of real importance. According to the Congressional Budget Office, extending the Bush tax cuts would add $2.3 trillion to the total 2018 debt. The single biggest step our government could take this year to address the structural deficit would be to let the tax cuts expire. And a credible commitment to long-term fiscal sustainability should reduce interest rates today, helping to stimulate the economy."
"Look at the lower left-hand corner: the real interest rate on 5-year inflation-protected securities is now negative. In other words, prospects for other investments are so poor that some investors prefer a safe asset that doesn’t quite keep up with inflation.
Yet to maintain employment, we need to sustain spending, one way or another. One way is to have the government take advantage of its low financing costs to spend on useful things; but the deficit peacocks in Congress are blocking that solution. Another is to get real interest rates low enough to get the private sector spending; but that, as we can see, means that the real interest rate on medium-term government debt has to be negative."
And also, The Meaning Of 2.71 which is the 10-year bond rate.
"As it happens, interest rates are also now lower than they were when the big debate over fiscal policy and its interest-rate effects began. For those who don’t remember or don’t know, this started with the claim that government borrowing would send rates soaring, crowding out private investment, and that this would abort the recovery. I tried at the time to point out that this reflected a failure to understand basic macroeconomics; but as usual, made no headway with the culprits."
And, The Price Stability Trap. "The analysis also suggests something else, however: as the inflation rate goes toward zero, it seems to become “sticky”: in the modern world, rapid deflation doesn’t happen, and in fact slight positive inflation often persists in the face of an obviously depressed economy."
"And this raises the specter what I think of as the price stability trap: suppose that it’s early 2012, the US unemployment rate is around 10 percent, and core inflation is running at 0.3 percent. The Fed should be moving heaven and earth to do something about the economy — but what you see instead is many people at the Fed, especially at the regional banks, saying ‘Look, we don’t have actual deflation, or anyway not much, so we’re achieving price stability. What’s the problem?’ And the slump will just go on."
As a bonus, The Baseline Scenario writes Why Won’t “Fiscal Hawks” Discuss The Real Issues?. "To see where our current deficits come from, we need only look at the budget office’s baseline projections. In January 2008, the budget office projected that total government debt in private hands – the best measure of what the government owes – would fall to $5.1 trillion by 2018 (23 percent of GDP). As of January 2010, the budget office now projects that debt will rise to $13.7 trillion (more than 65 percent of GDP) – a difference of $8.6 trillion. Of this change, 57 percent is due to decreased tax revenues resulting from the financial crisis and recession; 17 percent from increases in discretionary spending, much of it the stimulus package necessitated by the financial crisis; and another 14 percent to increased interest payments on the debt – because we now have more debt."
"What do matter are taxes and entitlements. Therefore, the coming battle over the Bush tax cuts is of real importance. According to the Congressional Budget Office, extending the Bush tax cuts would add $2.3 trillion to the total 2018 debt. The single biggest step our government could take this year to address the structural deficit would be to let the tax cuts expire. And a credible commitment to long-term fiscal sustainability should reduce interest rates today, helping to stimulate the economy."
America's Biggest Jobs Program -- the U.S. Military
Robert Reich on America's Biggest Jobs Program -- the U.S. Military "Wouldn’t it be better to have a jobs program that created things we really need — like light-rail trains, better school facilities, public parks, water and sewer systems, and non-carbon energy sources — than things we don’t, like obsolete weapons systems?"
David Byrne: How architecture helped music evolve
Just one TEDTalk today, David Byrne: How architecture helped music evolve "As his career grew, David Byrne went from playing CBGB to Carnegie Hall. He asks: Does the venue make the music? From outdoor drumming to Wagnerian operas to arena rock, he explores how context has pushed musical innovation."
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
The Gashlycrumb Terrors
In the June 15, 2010 Crypto-Gram, Bruce Schneier announced the Fifth Annual Movie-Plot Threat Contest Winner. "Your task, ye Weavers of Tales, is to create a fable of fairytale suitable for instilling the appropriate level of fear in children so they grow up appreciating all the lords do to protect them." The winner...
The Gashlycrumb Terrors, by Laura
A is for anthrax, deadly and white.
B is for burglars who break in at night.
C is for cars that have minds of their own
and accelerate rapidly in a school zone.
D is for dynamite lit with a fuse.
E is for everything we have to lose.
F is for foreigners, different and strange.
G is for gangs and the crimes they arrange.
H is for hand lotion, more than three ounces;
let's pray some brave agent soon sees it and pounces.
I is for implants (I'll explain when you're older).
J is for jokers who only grow bolder.
K is for kids who aren't afraid
to play in the park or drink lemonade.
L is for lead in our toys and our food.
M is for Mom's cavalier attitude.
N is for neighbors -- you never can tell:
is that a book club or terrorist cell?
O is for ostrich, with head in the sand.
P is for plots to blow up Disneyland.
Q is for those who would question authorities.
R is for radical sects and minorities.
S is for satanists, who have been seen
to give children razor blades on Halloween.
T is for terrorists, by definition.
U is for uncensored acts of sedition.
V is for vigilance, our leaders' tool
for keeping us safe, both at home and at school.
W is for warnings with colors and levels.
X is for xraying bags at all revels.
Y is for you! So don't be a dope.
Z is for zero tolerance, our finest hope.
The Gashlycrumb Terrors, by Laura
A is for anthrax, deadly and white.
B is for burglars who break in at night.
C is for cars that have minds of their own
and accelerate rapidly in a school zone.
D is for dynamite lit with a fuse.
E is for everything we have to lose.
F is for foreigners, different and strange.
G is for gangs and the crimes they arrange.
H is for hand lotion, more than three ounces;
let's pray some brave agent soon sees it and pounces.
I is for implants (I'll explain when you're older).
J is for jokers who only grow bolder.
K is for kids who aren't afraid
to play in the park or drink lemonade.
L is for lead in our toys and our food.
M is for Mom's cavalier attitude.
N is for neighbors -- you never can tell:
is that a book club or terrorist cell?
O is for ostrich, with head in the sand.
P is for plots to blow up Disneyland.
Q is for those who would question authorities.
R is for radical sects and minorities.
S is for satanists, who have been seen
to give children razor blades on Halloween.
T is for terrorists, by definition.
U is for uncensored acts of sedition.
V is for vigilance, our leaders' tool
for keeping us safe, both at home and at school.
W is for warnings with colors and levels.
X is for xraying bags at all revels.
Y is for you! So don't be a dope.
Z is for zero tolerance, our finest hope.
Air Marshal Service Useless?
In April, Bruce Schneier pointed to this post by Rep John Duncan (R-TN) from a year ago
Duncan Blasts "Useless" Air Marshal Service which cites a USA Today story from Nov 2008, but still...
"And listen to this paragraph from a front-page story in the USA Today last November: ‘Since 9/11, more than three dozen Federal air marshals have been charged with crimes, and hundreds more have been accused of misconduct. Cases range from drunken driving and domestic violence to aiding a human-trafficking ring and trying to smuggle explosives from Afghanistan.''
Actually, there have been many more arrests of Federal air marshals than that story reported, quite a few for felony offenses. In fact, more air marshals have been arrested than the number of people arrested by air marshals.
We now have approximately 4,000 in the Federal Air Marshals Service, yet they have made an average of just 4.2 arrests a year since 2001. This comes out to an average of about one arrest a year per 1,000 employees.
Now, let me make that clear. Their thousands of employees are not making one arrest per year each. They are averaging slightly over four arrests each year by the entire agency. In other words, we are spending approximately $200 million per arrest. Let me repeat that: we are spending approximately $200 million per arrest."
I wonder what's happened?
Duncan Blasts "Useless" Air Marshal Service which cites a USA Today story from Nov 2008, but still...
"And listen to this paragraph from a front-page story in the USA Today last November: ‘Since 9/11, more than three dozen Federal air marshals have been charged with crimes, and hundreds more have been accused of misconduct. Cases range from drunken driving and domestic violence to aiding a human-trafficking ring and trying to smuggle explosives from Afghanistan.''
Actually, there have been many more arrests of Federal air marshals than that story reported, quite a few for felony offenses. In fact, more air marshals have been arrested than the number of people arrested by air marshals.
We now have approximately 4,000 in the Federal Air Marshals Service, yet they have made an average of just 4.2 arrests a year since 2001. This comes out to an average of about one arrest a year per 1,000 employees.
Now, let me make that clear. Their thousands of employees are not making one arrest per year each. They are averaging slightly over four arrests each year by the entire agency. In other words, we are spending approximately $200 million per arrest. Let me repeat that: we are spending approximately $200 million per arrest."
I wonder what's happened?
Old Art with New Tech
Last night I saw Shakespeare's Othello performed (for free) on Boston Common. This is an annual event performed by the Commonwealth Shakespeare Company It was a great show and is playing through Sunday and I highly recommend it.
To prep for it I streamed from Netflix (via my TiVo) the 1965 film version with Lawrence Olivier and Maggie Smith. To date it, Olivier performed in blackface. Normally it takes me about 15 minutes to get used to the language but I found I had a hard time throughout most of it. I was also surprised I only knew two quotes from the play, "wear my heart on my sleeve" and "making the beast with two backs". This version is close to filmed play with few edits and sparse sets. The acting is strong, the film got four acting nominations though no wins. Lawrence Olivier lost to Lee Marvin.
When the performance started last night I immediately recognized Othello as Carver from The Wire and checked the program to find his name was Seth Gilliam and verified my recognition on IMDb. Reading the program, I also saw that Iago was James Waterston who was Mr. Pitts in Dead Poets Society ("A very unfortunate name.").
The play had an interesting set. Basically a bare stage with a large stone wall in the back. There were two large panels that rotated to act like doors. Occasionally props such as boxes, tables, chairs and a bed were brought out. Around the back wall was scaffolding that provided a balcony on one side and a spiral staircase on the other. The characters were dressed in 1940s costumes, mostly military which I found odd at first but mostly worked. The play talks about swords and includes some sword fights, and while all the soldiers had pistols, the fights used knives.
I found the language much easier to follow in the play. During a conversation at intermission someone wondered about how faithful it was. When it started up again, I turned on my iPhone and started Stanza and downloaded the play from Project Gutenberg and read along. I found that every couple of screens worth they removed about two sentences (maybe about 10%). This allowed them more time to speak a little slower and I think it helped a lot (it's still about 2h45m, the same as the movie).
Today I learned that I saw Othello on an interesting anniversary. "1942 When Paul Robeson opens as the title role in Othello tonight at the Brattle Hall Summer Theatre in Massachusetts, he becomes the first African-American actor to play the Moor in the United States. His performance receives rave reviews."
To prep for it I streamed from Netflix (via my TiVo) the 1965 film version with Lawrence Olivier and Maggie Smith. To date it, Olivier performed in blackface. Normally it takes me about 15 minutes to get used to the language but I found I had a hard time throughout most of it. I was also surprised I only knew two quotes from the play, "wear my heart on my sleeve" and "making the beast with two backs". This version is close to filmed play with few edits and sparse sets. The acting is strong, the film got four acting nominations though no wins. Lawrence Olivier lost to Lee Marvin.
When the performance started last night I immediately recognized Othello as Carver from The Wire and checked the program to find his name was Seth Gilliam and verified my recognition on IMDb. Reading the program, I also saw that Iago was James Waterston who was Mr. Pitts in Dead Poets Society ("A very unfortunate name.").
The play had an interesting set. Basically a bare stage with a large stone wall in the back. There were two large panels that rotated to act like doors. Occasionally props such as boxes, tables, chairs and a bed were brought out. Around the back wall was scaffolding that provided a balcony on one side and a spiral staircase on the other. The characters were dressed in 1940s costumes, mostly military which I found odd at first but mostly worked. The play talks about swords and includes some sword fights, and while all the soldiers had pistols, the fights used knives.
I found the language much easier to follow in the play. During a conversation at intermission someone wondered about how faithful it was. When it started up again, I turned on my iPhone and started Stanza and downloaded the play from Project Gutenberg and read along. I found that every couple of screens worth they removed about two sentences (maybe about 10%). This allowed them more time to speak a little slower and I think it helped a lot (it's still about 2h45m, the same as the movie).
Today I learned that I saw Othello on an interesting anniversary. "1942 When Paul Robeson opens as the title role in Othello tonight at the Brattle Hall Summer Theatre in Massachusetts, he becomes the first African-American actor to play the Moor in the United States. His performance receives rave reviews."
Today's TED Talks
For all my friends with young children, you should watch this...Julia Sweeney has "The Talk" "Despite her best efforts, comedian Julia Sweeney is forced to tell a little white lie when her 8-year-old begins learning about frog reproduction -- and starts to ask some very smart questions."
William Li: Can we eat to starve cancer?
Here's the list of foods, these foods seem to make all the good lists:
Green tea
Strawberries
Blackberries
Raspberries
blueberries
Oranges
Grapefruit
Lemons
Apples
Pineapple
Cherries
Red grapes
Red wine
Bok choy
Kale
Soy beans
Ginseng
Maitake mushroom
Licorice
Turmeric
Nutmeg
Artichokes
Lavender
Pumpkin
Sea Cucumber
Tuna
Parsley
Glarlic
Tomato
Olive Oil
Grape seed oil
Dark Chocolate
William Li: Can we eat to starve cancer?
Here's the list of foods, these foods seem to make all the good lists:
Green tea
Strawberries
Blackberries
Raspberries
blueberries
Oranges
Grapefruit
Lemons
Apples
Pineapple
Cherries
Red grapes
Red wine
Bok choy
Kale
Soy beans
Ginseng
Maitake mushroom
Licorice
Turmeric
Nutmeg
Artichokes
Lavender
Pumpkin
Sea Cucumber
Tuna
Parsley
Glarlic
Tomato
Olive Oil
Grape seed oil
Dark Chocolate
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Trade Secrets of English Muffins
On Saturday, the New York Times wrote A Man With Muffin Secrets, but No Way to Cash Them In. "Bite into a Thomas’ English muffin and, it turns out, you are about to swallow one of the most closely guarded secrets in the world of baking. The company that owns the Thomas’ brand says that only seven people know how the muffins get their trademark tracery of air pockets — marketed as nooks and crannies — and it has gone to court to keep a tight lid on the secret."
But sentences like this made check if Stephen Glass wrote it: "Mr. Botticella, who lives in Southern California, has worked in the baking business for nearly four decades, spending the last eight years with Bimbo USA, the American division of the Mexican bakery giant Grupo Bimbo."
But sentences like this made check if Stephen Glass wrote it: "Mr. Botticella, who lives in Southern California, has worked in the baking business for nearly four decades, spending the last eight years with Bimbo USA, the American division of the Mexican bakery giant Grupo Bimbo."
Mad Men Season Four
Mad Men started up again and we're now three episodes into the fourth season. After the first I was surprised how much I had missed the show, now after the third, I'm hoping it improves. It's focusing most squarely on Don Draper and he's close to bottom but not there yet. The result is not much happy, which is par for the course of Mad Men, but we're also not getting a lot of fun.
Perhaps because we're not getting a lot of the other characters, and what we do get is mostly them in scenes with Don (Lane this week, the secretary last week). We did get some Joan this week which was nice, but I want more of Peggy and Roger and the crazy Cooper. See how much fun they can be: Pete Campbell's Bitchface "A tumblelog dedicated to everyone's favorite little shit from Mad Men and his beautifully bitchy facial expressions."
While Terry Gross' Interview with Matthew Weiner taught me a few things, nothing has made me think as deeply as I have before here and here. I get it, "who is Don Draper", now tell me more about the sixties.
Perhaps because we're not getting a lot of the other characters, and what we do get is mostly them in scenes with Don (Lane this week, the secretary last week). We did get some Joan this week which was nice, but I want more of Peggy and Roger and the crazy Cooper. See how much fun they can be: Pete Campbell's Bitchface "A tumblelog dedicated to everyone's favorite little shit from Mad Men and his beautifully bitchy facial expressions."
While Terry Gross' Interview with Matthew Weiner taught me a few things, nothing has made me think as deeply as I have before here and here. I get it, "who is Don Draper", now tell me more about the sixties.
Today's TED Talks
Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action
"
I saw this one last week and I like it more in conjunction with the above one, Derek Sivers: How to start a movement
And for fun, nothing beats the end of this, Nathan Myhrvold: Could this laser zap malaria?
"
I saw this one last week and I like it more in conjunction with the above one, Derek Sivers: How to start a movement
And for fun, nothing beats the end of this, Nathan Myhrvold: Could this laser zap malaria?
Spinal-Fluid Test Is Found to Predict Alzheimer’s
The NY Times reports Spinal-Fluid Test Is Found to Predict Alzheimer’s - NYTimes.com "Researchers report that a spinal fluid test can be 100 percent accurate in identifying patients with significant memory loss who are on their way to developing Alzheimer’s disease."
Rescue the Hitchcock 9
The British Film Institute is asking for donations to Rescue the Hitchcock 9 "Hitchcock's 9 surviving silent films are a vital part of British cinematic history. Decades of wear and tear have left them in urgent need of restoration. Every penny counts. So please give whatever you can, and help bring a cinemati"
Monday, August 09, 2010
Proof that P ≠ NP ?
Computational Legal Studies writes P ≠ NP ? [ Vinay Deolalikar from HP Labs Publishes His Proof to the Web, $1Million Clay Institute Prize May Very Well Await ] "After sending his paper to several leading researchers in the field and acquiring support, Vinay Deolalikar from HP Labs has recently published P ≠ NP to the web. While it has yet to be externally verified by folks such as the Clay Mathematics Institute, it looks very promising. Indeed, this very well represent a Millennium Prize for Mr. Deolalikar."
Update: Perhaps not.
Update: Perhaps not.
Nagasaki, August 9th 1945
Iconic Photos covers Nagasaki, August 9th 1945 too. "On the day after the Nagaski Bombing,a military photographer Yosuke Yamahata took over a hundred photographs of the devastated city. His photographs, taken in an interval of twelve hours in the afternoon of August 10th, were the most extensive record of the atomic bombings. In between Japan’s surrender and arrival of the American Occupation Forces, these photos were widely circulated; for instance, the 21 August issue of Mainichi Shinbun printed them."
Everything You Wanted to Know About Meteor Showers
This is a great 2 year old article, What Causes a Meteor Shower? | How to Observe a Meteor Shower. THe Parseids are Thursday night.
The Library of Congress Unlocks The Ultimate Archive System
The Library of Congress Unlocks The Ultimate Archive System "The Library of Congress is working to preserve film for hundreds, even thousands of years. Seriously. In this article from Creative COW Magazine, Ken Weissman, Supervisor of the Library's Film Preservation Laboratory, tells the steps they're taking toward the ultimate archive system, starting with the restoration of films first printed on paper instead of film!"
Sunday, August 08, 2010
NPR Audience Picks: Top 100 Killer Thrillers
Audience Picks: Top 100 'Killer Thrillers' "The NPR audience nominated some 600 novels to our 'Killer Thrillers' poll and cast more than 17,000 ballots. The final roster of winners is a diverse one to say the least, ranging in style and period from Dracula to The Da Vinci Code, Presumed Innocent to Pet Sematary. What these top 100 titles share, however, is that all of them are fast-moving tales of suspense and adventure."
I've read a few but a ton of them have been made into movies and I've seen most of them.
I've read a few but a ton of them have been made into movies and I've seen most of them.
The Hidden Evolution of Babylon 5
A friend sent me these two Republibot articles from last year on The Hidden Evolution of Babylon 5: part 1 and part 2.
Saturday, August 07, 2010
Huge ice sheet breaks from Greenland glacier
BBC News writes Huge ice sheet breaks from Greenland glacier "A giant sheet of ice measuring 260 sq km (100 sq miles) has broken off a glacier in Greenland, according to researchers at a US university. The block of ice separated from the Petermann Glacier, on the north-west coast of Greenland. It is the largest Arctic iceberg to calve since 1962, said Prof Andreas Muenchow of the University of Delaware."
"Calve"? huh.
CNN says, "The freshwater stored in this ice island could keep the Delaware or Hudson rivers flowing for more than two years. It could also keep all U.S. public tap water flowing for 120 days," Muenchow said."
"Calve"? huh.
CNN says, "The freshwater stored in this ice island could keep the Delaware or Hudson rivers flowing for more than two years. It could also keep all U.S. public tap water flowing for 120 days," Muenchow said."
Friday, August 06, 2010
Pictures of Mercury
Universe Today has twin posts: Picture of Planet Mercury and Pics of Mercury the Planet. Some are duplicates but all are amazing photos taken by the MESSENGER space craft.
Color Photos From America in 1939-1943
I'm not sure why I'm finding so many interesting photos lately. Plog Photo Blog writes Captured: America in Color from 1939-194 "These images, by photographers of the Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information, are some of the only color photographs taken of the effects of the Depression on America’s rural and small town populations. The photographs are the property of the Library of Congress and were included in a 2006 exhibit Bound for Glory: America in Color."
Reminds me of (and doesn't disprove) one of my favorite Calvin & Hobbes.
Reminds me of (and doesn't disprove) one of my favorite Calvin & Hobbes.
Hiroshima, 6th August 1945
Iconic Photos wrote Hiroshima, 6th August 1945 and I've never seen these photos.
"Today marks the 65th anniversary of the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima...Nuclear blast and wind destroyed buildings within its 1.5-mile radius. Yoshito Matsushige was barely out of this radius at a little over 1.6-miles from the ground zero. Heading out to the citycentre, Matsushige took the only photographs taken of Hiroshima on that calamitous day. Matsushige himself was not seriously injured by the blast, but the scenes of carnage and dying people prevented him from taking further pictures. (He had 24 possible exposures, in the 10 hours he spent wandering the devastated city, but only seven came out right. He ruined two in darkroom process)."
Update: More Hiroshima pics.
"Today marks the 65th anniversary of the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Hiroshima...Nuclear blast and wind destroyed buildings within its 1.5-mile radius. Yoshito Matsushige was barely out of this radius at a little over 1.6-miles from the ground zero. Heading out to the citycentre, Matsushige took the only photographs taken of Hiroshima on that calamitous day. Matsushige himself was not seriously injured by the blast, but the scenes of carnage and dying people prevented him from taking further pictures. (He had 24 possible exposures, in the 10 hours he spent wandering the devastated city, but only seven came out right. He ruined two in darkroom process)."
Update: More Hiroshima pics.
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