Clipmarks | debbyski's clips

Reduce Firefox Memory Usage

Tue, 16 Jan 2007 18:27:03 GMT

clipped by: abbysname

How to lower the amount of memory that Firefox uses?

Fist of all you should see this: How to Reduce Firefox Memory Usage

But if you are in a hurry...

1. In your Firefox address bar, enter the following text: about:config

2. Scroll down to the entry titled browser.cache.memory.enable and make sure the Value is set to true. If it’s not, double-click anywhere in the browser.cache.memory.enable line and the status will change to true

3. Right-click (Apple users ctrl-click) anywhere in the about:config window and select New and then Integer from the pop-up menu

4. Enter browser.cache.memory.capacity in the New integer value pop-up box

5. You’ll need to enter a number in the Enter integer value, but that number depends on how much memory you have (specifically, how much you want to 'give' Firefox). If you have 256MB or less RAM, enter 4096 as the value. If you have 512MB of RAM, enter 6144 or 8192. If you have 128MB or less RAM, you may want to consider upgrading - memory is getting very inexpensive.

6. Confirm that the new entry has been created and the integer value is correct

7. If for any reason you wish to restore the default settings, change the browser.cache.memory.capacity integer value to -1 (that’s minus one).

Source: simplehelp.net

Tags: firefox, computer, memory, practical

Did we cure cancer, but no one cares?

Tue, 30 Jan 2007 06:38:12 GMT

clipped by: B Rosen
clipper's remarks: While this may not be the miracle drug this article seems to make it out to be, it seems the this is something that deserves a lot more research.

Clip Source: media.www.studentprintz.com

Scientists cure cancer, but no one takes notice

Scientists cured cancer last week.

Here's the deal. Researchers at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada found a cheap and easy to produce drug that kills almost all cancers. The drug is dichloroacetate, and since it is already used to treat metabolic disorders, we know it should be no problem to use it for other purposes.

The drug also has no patent, which means it could be produced for bargain basement prices in comparison to what drug companies research and develop.

Scientists tested DCA on human cells cultured outside the body where it killed lung, breast and brain cancer cells, but left healthy cells alone. Rats plump with tumors shrank when they were fed water supplemented with DCA.

The side effect of this is it also reactivates a process called apoptosis. You see, mitochondria contain an all-too-important self-destruct button that can't be pressed in cancer cells. Without it, tumors grow larger as cells refuse to be extinguished. Fully functioning mitochondria, thanks to DCA, can once again die.

Here's the big catch. Pharmaceutical companies probably won't invest in research into DCA because they won't profit from it. It's easy to make, unpatented and could be added to drinking water. Imagine, Gatorade with cancer control.

Cancer cells don't use the little power stations found in most human cells - the mitochondria. Instead, they use glycolysis, which is less effective and more wasteful.

Tags: cancer cure, cancer, science, drug

Repetition Makes False Beliefs Permanent

Mon, 10 Sep 2007 03:24:18 GMT

clipped by: Kore7
clipper's remarks: Politicians and other unscrupulous types have long exploited what psychological studies are now confirming: due to the neurophysiology of the learning process, simple repetitive association between two concepts is enough to make false propositions "feel" true and well-supported.

Worse, after enough exposure to such associations, subsequent denials can strengthen the perception of the falsehood instead of weakening it. (This is a major reason why the stigma of a false accusation can persist even after innocence is proven.)

Indeed, repetition seems to be a key culprit. Things that are repeated often become more accessible in memory, and one of the brain's subconscious rules of thumb is that easily recalled things are true.

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

Persistence of Myths Could Alter Public Policy Approach

Contrary to the conventional notion that people absorb information in a deliberate manner, the studies show that the brain uses subconscious "rules of thumb" that can bias it into thinking that false information is true. Clever manipulators can take advantage of this tendency.

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

The experiments do not show that denials are completely useless; if that were true, everyone would believe the myths. But the mind's bias does affect many people, especially those who want to believe the myth for their own reasons, or those who are only peripherally interested and are less likely to invest the time and effort needed to firmly grasp the facts.

The research also highlights the disturbing reality that once an idea has been implanted in people's minds, it can be difficult to dislodge. Denials inherently require repeating the bad information, which may be one reason they can paradoxically reinforce it.

Tags: politics, psychology, bias, manipulation, urban legends, beliefs, brain, cognitive science, myths, learning

Create a back-up copy of your immune system

Fri, 22 Jun 2007 11:54:28 GMT

clipped by: wildcat

Clip Source: www.newscientist.com

Imagine having a spare copy of your immune system on ice, ready to replace your existing one should you fall victim to AIDS, an autoimmune disease, or have to undergo extensive chemotherapy for cancer.

An Anglo-American company called Lifeforce has received permission from the US Food and Drug Administration to do just that. The firm collects 480-millilitre samples of blood from healthy individuals, extracts the white blood cells and stores them as an insurance policy against future disease. The service comes at a price, though: around $800 for taking the initial sample then $25 per month for storing the cells at -196 °C. "That sample would have the complete repertoire of all your white blood cells," says Del DelaRonde, co-founder of Lifeforce in Newport, UK.

“Whole new armies of white blood cells could be grown in the lab and reinfused into the patient”

Last month, Lifeforce also won permission to expand its UK operations.

Tags: science, technology, immune system, back up copy, lifeforce

I think you're the father of one of my kids

Wed, 01 Nov 2006 16:13:06 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: members2.boardhost.com

A guy goes to the supermarket and notices a beautiful blond woman wave at him and say hello. He's rather taken aback, because he can't place where he knows her from. So he says, "Do you Know me?"

She replies, "I think you're the father of one of my kids."

Now his mind travels back to the only time he has ever been unfaithful to his wife and says, "My God":

Are you the stripper from my bachelor party that tied me to the the pool table, gagged me with your sequined bra, shaved my pubes, while your partner whipped my butt with wet celery? My buddies still laugh themselves senseless over that night!

She looks into his eyes and calmly says, "No, I'm your son's math teacher."

Tags: joke

Redheads will be extinct in 100 years say scientists

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 09:45:47 GMT

clipped by: michellezm

Clip Source: www.news.com.au

REDHEADS are becoming rarer and could be extinct in 100 years, according to genetic scientists.

The current National Geographic magazine reports that less than two per cent of the world's population has natural red hair, created by a mutation in northern Europe thousands of years ago.

Global intermingling, which broadens the availability of possible partners, has reduced the chances of redheads meeting and producing little redheads of their own.

It takes only one red-haired parent to produce ginger-headed babies, but two redheads obviously create a much stronger possibility.

If the gingers really want to save themselves they should move to Scotland.

An estimated 40 per cent of Scots carry the red gene and 13 per cent actually have red hair.

Some experts say that redheads could be gone as early as 2060, but others say the gene can be dormant for generations before returning.

today's carriers are more prone to skin cancer and have a higher sensitivity to heat and cold-related pain.

Tags: genetics, anthropology, current affairs

An Orgasm Is All In The Mind

Sun, 16 Dec 2007 19:37:35 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: news.scotsman.com

IT’S a scientific fact: human brains are programmed for orgasms - with or without the actual sex act.

"It’s the same reward mechanism that encourages us to share our DNA," said Dr Lomas. "But it can be achieved without the physical act of copulation."

Only humans have this power to induce mental ecstasy, and it’s a complex set of responses that can be achieved by learned behavioural patterns or triggered by hyper-arousal during peak experiences, he says.

"At times of hyper-arousal, our brains are designed to freeload on the behavioural reward that encourages us to reproduce," he said. "And that is another name for orgasm."

Dr Cynthia McVey, a psychologist from Glasgow Caledonian University, said that from puberty onwards, achieving orgasm without sexual contact happens in our dreams.

Tags: inspired, by, rightys, comments, on, the, jodie, foster, clip

Who Discovered The Clitoris?

Sun, 09 Dec 2007 00:09:44 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: everything2.com

The clitoris was "discovered" (at least by males) and documented for the first time by Matteo Realdo Colombo: a lecturer in surgery at the University of Padua, Italy.

In 1559 he published a book called De re anatomica in which he described the "seat of woman's delight." He concluded, "since no one has discerned these projections and their workings, if it is permissible to give names to things discovered by me, it should be called the love or sweetness of Venus."

However others made claims to have discovered it. Gabriel Fallopius - Columbus' successor at Padua - disputed the assertion that Columbus discovered claiming credit for himself.

There are also several claims that knowledge of the clitoris was widely known well before either man's 'discovery'. But Colombo's remains the earliest physical documentation of the bud that would one day become a phenomenom leading to the sexual revolution.

Tags: columbo, discovered, more, than, america

Designs For The Poor

Thu, 31 May 2007 14:03:01 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Solutions The exhibition at the Cooper-Hewitt has many items to show a grasp of the depths of world poverty and ingenious ways to attack it. They include a 20-gallon rolling drum for transporting water, above.

A pot-in-pot cooler that relies on the evaporation of water from wet sand to cool the inner pot.

The Lifestraw drinking filter, which kills bacteria as water is sucked through it.

To that end, the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum, which is housed in Andrew Carnegie’s 64-room mansion on Fifth Avenue and offers a $250 red chrome piggy bank in its gift shop, is honoring inventors dedicated to “the other 90 percent,” particularly the billions of people living on less than $2 a day.

Their creations, on display in the museum garden until Sept. 23, have a sort of forehead-thumping “Why didn’t someone think of that before?” quality.

Tags: inventions, poor, better, life, quality

From Little Things, Big Things Grow

Thu, 20 Dec 2007 10:46:07 GMT

clipped by: debbyski
clipper's remarks: If the title doesn't fit this clip, then I'll explain the meaning. It's funny how the simplest random act of kindness can be so powerful. It can literally move one to tears. Like someone giving me this clip. I can't take credit where credit is due. Again, random acts of kindness are what make us better human beings. My New Year's resolution is to try to be a better human being. It's an entirely selfish one you know. It not only makes me feel better about myself. It hopefully makes me grow as a person. Thank you.

Clip Source: www.dailymail.co.uk

Some people will go to any lengths for a pint - even if it involves supping in a tree.

This bar in the trunk of a Baobab has punters travelling from miles around for a brew.

But tourists flock to see the amazing bar inside the hollow 155ft circumference of the trunk.

The tree even has its own cellar, with natural ventilation to keep the beer cool.

The huge tree, in the grounds of Sunland Farm, is so wide it takes 40 adults with outstretched arms to encircle it.

Carbon-dating, which can determine the age of organic materials, has shown the anicent tree is about 6,000 years old. "This tree is likely to be older than the Giza Pyramids of Egypt," said Heather van Heerden, owner of Sunland Farm.

"It is phenomenal to have such a magnificent tree in your back garden. It is possibly the biggest living thing on earth."

Tags: random, acts, of, kindness

Do Dogs Have A Sense Of Humor?

Fri, 15 Jun 2007 12:39:14 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: pets.yahoo.com

Does your dog ever make you laugh – on purpose? Does he know he’s being funny? An even stranger question – does your dog find things funny?

There are countless stories of dog antics and behavior that are funny, but most of those you’d have to say are unintentional. Humorous behavior may be repeated because of the positive reaction received. In this case, you can’t say the dog has a sense of humor, but is acting on positive reinforcement.

But dogs may be a little smarter than that. Just as some people enjoy making others laugh, it would seem, so do some dogs

A dog’s world of humor would have to be mostly on the physical level, through simply behaving in a goofy manner, or playing little tricks on you.

It’s really not so hard to believe that dogs have the mental prowess to grasp humor, since they so readily grasp the concept of play. Dogs completely understand the difference between play and something more serious, and are careful to make the distinction.

Tags: dogs, humor, play

Supreme Court Rules Gore Cannot Accept Peace Prize

Fri, 12 Oct 2007 22:30:56 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: www.opednews.com

In a stunning reversal, but true to their core beliefs, the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 today that Al Gore cannot accept the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize awarded him.

The court, in an unsigned finding (as are all Gore decisions) responded to George Bush's anticipatory plea for a restraining order based on the fact that "it's not all that hot out anyhow and what in the hell has that got to do with peace?"

Dana Perino said the White House would have no comment other than an unconfirmed report by a source that declines to be identified, that the president called Chief Justice John Roberts, effusing "this is the second time that bum has had his ears trimmed by this court and you'd think he'd have finally learned a lesson."

Tags: lololo

Offensive Drawing

Fri, 21 Sep 2007 06:50:14 GMT

clipped by: thefoxalmighty
clipper's remarks: ha ha.... see this man turn some adult stuff into cute pics....

Clip Source: www.youtube.com

[Video]

Tags: art, fun

Why kissing means more to women

Tue, 04 Sep 2007 21:51:17 GMT

clipped by: ekorstanje
clipper's remarks: Boy women are sure complicated

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Why kissing means more to women

If a picture is worth a 1,000 words, so may be a kiss - or certainly to a woman anyway, researchers say.

They use kissing as a way of assessing the recipient as a potential partner, and later to maintain intimacy and to check the status of a relationship.

But men placed less importance on it, using it to increase the likelihood of sex, Evolutionary Psychology reported.

Tags: kissing

Hormone spray could banish shyness

Wed, 18 Jul 2007 11:44:10 GMT

clipped by: wildcat

Clip Source: www.newscientist.com

It was hailed as the "trust" hormone, then the "mind-reading" hormone. Now it seems oxytocin may also help people with social phobia to interact.

Markus Heinrichs at the University of Zurich, Switzerland, and colleagues are studying 70 people with generalised social phobia, characterised by overwhelming anxiety and self-consciousness in social situations.

Half an hour before undergoing standard cognitive behavioural therapy, which is designed to alter negative thoughts and behaviour, the patients were given a dose of oxytocin by nasal spray.

Preliminary results suggest oxytocin improved their readiness to interact in role-playing and their confidence in tackling social challenges outside the sessions, says Heinrichs, who will present his results at the World Congress of Neuroscience in Melbourne, Australia, this week.

Tags: science, technology, hormones, spray, shyness