December 2008
The Future of NASA →
(Update: I accidentally posted this with comments turned off, slip o’the’blogger, not intentional. I’ve republished with comments turned on. Blame it on the leftover ‘nog!)
The latest —…
Recipes For Health: Red Lentil Soup →
Forget the drab color — lentils make for wonderful soup, and they’re packed with nutrients.
The Future of NASA →
(Update: I accidentally posted this with comments turned off, slip o’the’blogger, not intentional. I’ve republished with comments turned on. Blame it on the leftover ‘nog!)
The latest —…
R.I.P. Freddie Hubbard →
Well folks, we’ve lost another legend. Jazz trumpeter Freddie Hubbard has passed away due to complications from a heart attack he suffered in November at the age of 70. Please check out the…
Can chimpanzees learn human language? →
So far, “Planet of the Apes” is pure fiction. But are chimps capable of learning human language and eventually taking over the world?
Vitamin supplements do not reduce cancer risk →
Anti-oxidant supplements do not reduce your risk of developing cancer, according to a trial involving more than 7,500 women. The researchers gave vitamins C, E, beta-carotene or placebo…
Radical alternatives proposed for cannabis... →
Cannabis is the world’s most widely used illegal drug – now a team of experts says governments should rethink how they control it
Why do we celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25? →
Why do we celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25?
New Lives, New Ethnic Identity For Chinese... →
Residents of a village in Sichuan province are building new lives amid the rubble of the massive earthquake that struck in May. A government plan to boost tourism means that for some, these new…
The most provocative, poetic and influential... →
Harold Pinter, who has died at the age of 78, was the most influential, provocative and poetic dramatist of his generation. He enjoyed parallel careers as actor, screenwriter and director and…
The Intersection of Poetry and Politics →
As America’s fourth inaugural poet, Elizabeth Alexander will have an outsize platform for her elliptical work.
TOP TEN ANIMAL FINDS: Most Read of 2008 →
A vampire moth, a gremlin-like primate, and an “alien” squid were among the discoveries that haunted the animal kingdom in the most read stories about creatures covered by…
Paper Cuts: Classics of Christmas Lit →
The newspaper clipping above is pasted into the back of an 1845 edition of “A Christmas Carol in Prose: Being a Ghost Story of Christmas,” by Charles Dickens, in the collection of Oxford University…
Silent Night, Perhaps, but a Day Full of News →
News doesn’t stop happening just because it’s Christmas. There are car crashes, executions and deadly snowstorms.
Check out more of my post on parisdjs.com →
Chico Mann : Analog Drift Gal Costa : 1969 (dustygroove) Guinée 70 : The Discothèque Years (syllart) Aqua Nebula Oscillator : Under the Moon Of (pan european) Juan Y Su Combo : Masters of…
Best of 2008: CJR's Ten Most Popular Stories →
10. Obama’s Lobbyist Line: Trudy Lieberman examined what Barack Obama really meant when he said he wasn’t going to take any money from lobbyists. 9. Bubble Trouble: Megan Garber on how, as of April,…
Carla Thomas - Gee Whiz, It’s Christmas →
Download or Listen to Carla Thomas - Gee Whiz, It’s Christmas from the Atco Records Lp Soul Christmas
It just doesn’t seem possible that the end of 2008 is near, but alas, it is….
Welcome to the Coldest Town on Earth →
As winter sets in, the 800 hearty denizens of the coldest town on earth are bracing for one of the most frigid blasts yet, as forecasters predict that temperatures in Oymyakon, Siberia, could plunge…
(Another) bogus trend of the week: a plague of... →
The myth of the skeptical reporter dies every time a news organization advances the bogus claim of a government agency, a nonprofit, or a trade association—which is to say, frequently. This month,…
Abroad: A Relic From Berlin Wheezes Out Another... →
During the 1970s Bruno S. starred in two remarkable Werner Herzog films. Then he dropped down the memory chute.
Skyeome.net » Blog Archive » Economic Flows and... →
Bookmark this on Delicious - Saved by cshalizi to logistics visual_display_of_quantitative_information labor networks to:blog - More about this bookmark
Don't get Fleeced Shopping for Sheets [Shopping] →
If you’ve been linen shopping, you’ve probably noticed the arms race of sorts among sheet manufacturers to produce the highest thread count sheets. What exactly is thread count and how do you…
Dirt-cheap sparkling wines to drink on New Year's... →
Seeing out a year filled with mostly grim headlines and ushering in a new one that threatens more of the same doesn’t exactly put one in the mood for Champagne. And given the noxious associations…
Christmas Star Mystery Continues →
Astronomers have long argued over what the Star of Bethlehem was—if it existed at all. Today, two theories fight it out: a single planetary conjunction vs. a series of meaningful…
In the Crisis, the Journal Falls Short →
“…The last great newsman. He may be the greatest newspaper man of all time”—Michael Wolff, author of The Man Who Owns the News: Inside the Secret World of Rupert Murdoch, on Murdoch, in an…
Liquor Pig →
Liquor Pig
Science Behind Mysterious 'Fifth Taste' Revealed →
Scientists have revealed how the fifth taste — termed umami — works, raising the possibility that food engineers could create a better alternative to MSG.
Why the Auto Bailout's a Dead End →
This should be a case study in an industrial organization class on how to screw consumers (and, in the long run, yourself). Remind me never to buy a car on credit. …
It's time to stop reporting on the "wind chill." →
Wind chill dropped to 30 below zero in Chicago and other parts of the Midwest, prompting the Drudge Report to declare an “ICE AGE” on Monday. Negative wind chill was also forecast for Pennsylvania,…
MDMA and loud music affects rat sex life →
No, it’s not a joke. Researchers at the University of Bari, Italy, studied how MDMA (ecstasy) and loud music impact the sexual activity of rats. They report their results in the scientific journal…
Stanley Milgram's shocking experiment, redux →
A Santa Clara University professor is the latest person to replicate Stanley Milgram’s shocking 1960s psychological experiments around obedience to authority. As regular BB readers know, Yale…
Slithering Beast - Midnight Royalty →
Raise your hand if you are tired of hearing much buzzed about indie bands being hyped with comparisons to The Band (my hand is raised as high as I can raise it). Darling indie bands such as…
EU Prefers iTunes 2 to 1 But Amazon Gaining Share →
European broadband consumers who regularly listen to music on computers and MP3 players are twice as likely to purchase music from iTunes than from any other online store…
To Save the Parks--Turn Off the TV! →
Getting yourself and your kids into the great outdoors may be the most essential step you can take to save the planet. Children (and adults) are increasingly plugged into electronic screens for…
Pope urges defence of heterosexuality →
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? Not to worry Benedict, it’s being pursued quite avidly. Yet another example of the epistemological… problem with sex in the Church.
The pope has sparked…
ALLABOUTJAZZ.COM: Jazz Musician of the Day: Chet... →
All About Jazz is celebrating Chet Baker’s birthday today! JAZZ MUSICIAN OF THE DAY Chet BakerChesney Henry “Chet” Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 in Yale, Oklahoma, died May 13, 1988 in Amsterdam, The…
Liquor Pig →
Laurie Hogin's strange animal paintings →
I’m enchanted by the curious menageries painted by Laurie Hogin. According to her gallery page, the “allegorical canvases of faulty fauna, mutant fruit and brand-loyal monkeys suggest the…
Laurie Hogan's strange animal paintings →
I’m enchanted by the curious menageries painted by Laurie Hogan. According to her gallery page, the “allegorical canvases of faulty fauna, mutant fruit and brand-loyal monkeys suggest the…
Standards Are the Enemy of Achievement [Uncertain... →
The US Chamber of Commerce has a education website, which provides “grades” for states based on various measures of their educational performance. One category is “Academic Achievement,” based on…
GENERAL: Oscar Peterson: Piano Master →
Famed jazz pianist Oscar Peterson commanded the entire keyboard with incredible dexterity, drive and precision. He performed around the world for more than 50 years, accruing countless honors, awards…
Why Obama chose Elizabeth Alexander for his... →
The tradition that a president-elect should choose a poet for his inauguration goes back to JFK and Robert Frost. Frost stole the heart of a nation with his performance on an icy January…
Davy Graham: 1940-2008 on JamBase →
One of the under-recognized players of the folk revival era. He’s on a couple of our ID spots …
Leonard Feather Said It →
“The story of the Shearing sound is interesting. I had encouraged George to come over from England in ‘46. He stayed about three months, did one record date for Savoy, and went back…
Angry monkeys in China give trainer a beating →
A monkey trainer was on the receiving end of some simian range after dishing out one too many bashings
Charles Brown - Christmas In Heaven (Jewel 814) →
Christmas In Heaven With the possible exception of Nat ‘King’ Cole, Charles Brown is the person I think of first when it comes to Christmas Music. The composer of two absolute…
Top 10 Jazz Albums of 2008 →
The best jazz album of 2008 is such a clear choice—not just a stunning disc of music but a breakthrough in music history—that I will say this: If any jazz critics out there leave it off their Top 10…
The Sweet Delirium of the Perfect Eggnog →
Every year, I do it right.
Sure, I dabble in the supermarket eggnogs, the rice and soy variations- I appreciate every earnest effort.
But the ne plus ultra of nogging ecstasy can only…
Investigating John Yoo. →
John Yoo and other lawyers who were involved in developing the Bush administration’s interrogation policies have been roundly criticized for the shoddy and controversial nature of their legal advice….
Security Experts Advising You Stay Off Internet... →
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Firefox!
A serious scripting hack that can grab passwords (or, potentially, do worse) from any version of Internet Explorer is leading security and malware experts to…