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Find out your ideal weight

Fri, 15 Aug 2008 14:02:13 GMT

clipped by: jimmy123

Clip Source: www.eatingdisordersonline.com

Body Mass Index Calculator

Please keep in mind that the Body Mass Index Calculator is just an estimate of ideal weight. There are other factors to consider and everyone is different. So don't use this method as a true way of determining your ideal weight. It only gives you an approximate average. Consult your physician for any questions.

Divide your weight in pounds by 2.2. This will give you your weight in kilograms.

Divide your height in inches by 39.4. This will give you your height in meters.

Now square that number. Example: (65" divided by 39.4=1.65)(1.65x1.65=2.72)

Divide weight number by the height number squared. That is your BMI.

Below 18: Underweight to Anorexic
19 to 27: Healthy
28 to 39: Overweight

40 and up: Severe Obesity

Tags: bmi, body mass index, wieght

Debunking 'Truths' About Offshore Drilling

Wed, 13 Aug 2008 11:55:35 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: No, the United States cannot drill its way to energy independence. But with the roaring economies of China and India gobbling up oil in the two countries' latter-day industrial revolutions, the United States can no longer afford to turn its back on finding all the sources of fuel necessary to maintain its economy and its standard of living. What's required is a long-term, comprehensive plan that includes wind, solar, geothermal, biofuels and nuclear -- and that acknowledges that oil and gas will be instrumental to the U.S. economy for many years to come.

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

According to the Interior Department's Minerals Management Service (MMS), while there are an estimated 18 billion barrels of oil in the off-limits portions of the OCS, those estimates were made using old data from now-outdated seismic equipment.

In the case of the Atlantic Ocean, the data were collected before Congress imposed a moratorium on offshore drilling in 1981. In 1987, the MMS estimated that there were 9 billion barrels of oil in the Gulf of Mexico. By 2006, after major advances in seismic technology and deepwater drilling techniques, the MMS resource estimate for that area had ballooned to 45 billion barrels.

According to the MMS, between 1993 and 2007, there were 651 spills of all sizes at OCS facilities (in federal waters three miles or more offshore) that released 47,800 barrels of oil. With 7.5 billion barrels of oil produced in that time, that equates to 1 barrel of oil spilled per 156,900 barrels produced.

That's not to minimize the danger. But no form of energy is perfect

Tags: offshore drilling, atlantic ocean, gulf of mexico

It's Good to be a Corporation in US!

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 12:56:04 GMT

clipped by: sahara
clipper's remarks: More than 38,000 foreign corporations had no tax liability in 2005 and 1.2 million U.S. companies paid no income tax, the GAO said. Combined, the companies had $2.5 trillion in sales. About 25 percent of the U.S. corporations not paying corporate taxes were considered large corporations, meaning they had at least $250 million in assets or $50 million in receipts.

The GAO said it analyzed data from the Internal Revenue Service, examining samples of corporate returns for the years 1998 through 2005. For 2005, for example, it reviewed 110,003 tax returns from among more than 1.2 million corporations doing business in the U.S. Dorgan and Levin have complained about companies abusing transfer prices -- amounts charged on transactions between companies in a group, such as a parent and subsidiary. In some cases, multinational companies can manipulate transfer prices to shift income from higher to lower tax jurisdictions, cutting their tax liabilities.

Clip Source: biz.yahoo.com

Two-thirds of U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes between 1998 and 2005, according to a new report from Congress

The study by the Government Accountability Office, expected to be released Tuesday, said about 68 percent of foreign companies doing business in the U.S. avoided corporate taxes over the same period.

Collectively, the companies reported trillions of dollars in sales, according to GAO's estimate

"It's shameful that so many corporations make big profits and pay nothing to support our country," said Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., who asked for the GAO study with Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich

An outside tax expert, Chris Edwards of the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington, said increasing numbers of limited liability corporations and so-called "S" corporations pay taxes under individual tax codes

"Half of all business income in the United States now ends up going through the individual tax code," Edwards said

The GAO study did not investigate why

Corporate Tax Dodging

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 16:07:10 GMT

clipped by: Brian Wingfield
clipper's remarks: Here's where the IRS might want to focus its efforts.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

WASHINGTON - Two-thirds of U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes between 1998 and 2005, according to a new report from Congress.

The study by the Government Accountability Office, expected to be released Tuesday, said about 68 percent of foreign companies doing business in the U.S. avoided corporate taxes over the same period.

Collectively, the companies reported trillions of dollars in sales, according to GAO's estimate.

"It's shameful that so many corporations make big profits and pay nothing to support our country," said Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., who asked for the GAO study with Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.

Tags: irs, tax, corporate, gao

Five revolutionary minds

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 21:19:13 GMT

clipped by: sylviadafox

Clip Source: revminds.seedmagazine.com

Fernando Esponda

"What caught my eye was that the information being used by the immune system was a negative kind of information," he says. That is, the immune system doesn't have a record of every possible pathogen that could invade the body. Instead, it learns what the body itself looks like and knows to go on the offensive when it encounters anything that doesn't match its definition of "self." "Can we do the same thing with data?"

Reverse surveys reveal only a little about each subject but a lot about a population, and they can accurately estimate how common a behavior is without anyone having to admit to it.

Clip Source: revminds.seedmagazine.com

The mainstream approach to cognition holds that it happens in the mind and that material culture is nothing more than an outgrowth of our mental capacities. Archaeologist Lambros Malafouris is challenging this deep-seated idea

the hypothesis of extended mind, which posits that material culture is not a reflection of the human mind but an actual part of it.

Clip Source: revminds.seedmagazine.com

Aleksandra Walczak

Tags: ideas, science

Half of overweight US adults are heart-healthy

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 23:36:58 GMT

clipped by: Lexica
clipper's remarks: We have this idea that fat=unhealthy, unhealthy=fat, thin=healthy, and healthy=thin. However, more and more research seems to indicate that this simply isn't true.

It's not about your size or your shape, it's about your fitness. Can you do what you need to do on a daily basis with ease? Can you climb a flight of stairs or run a block for the bus without getting winded? Can you play tag with a couple of six-year-olds without passing out from overexertion? Can you carry your groceries home without needing to set them down several times?

Get fit. Get strong. Get active.

And tell anyone who still believes in "shaming the fatties into losing weight" to go jump in a lake.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

A new study suggests that a surprising number of overweight people — about half — have normal blood pressure and cholesterol levels, while an equally startling number of trim people suffer from some of the ills associated with obesity.

The first national estimate of its kind bolsters the argument that you can be hefty but still healthy, or at least healthier than has been believed.

The results also show that stereotypes about body size can be misleading, and that even "less voluptuous" people can have risk factors commonly associated with obesity, said study author MaryFran Sowers, a University of Michigan obesity researcher.

about 51 percent of overweight adults

had mostly normal levels of blood pressure, cholesterol, blood fats called triglycerides and blood sugar

Almost one-third of obese adults

also were in this healthy range

Yet about a fourth of adults in the recommended-weight range had unhealthy levels of at least two of these measures.

Tags: health, fitness, fat, research

Lack of Corporate taxes, New Orleans Non-profit corruption

Tue, 12 Aug 2008 13:42:33 GMT

clipped by: papananook
clipper's remarks: Trillions of untaxed income....wait, what?

Clip Source: www.freep.com

Most U.S. corporations and foreign companies doing business in the United States pay no federal income tax, according to a new report from Congress.

The study by the Government Accountability Office, expected to be released today, said two-thirds of U.S. corporations paid no federal income taxes from 1998 to 2005 and about 68% of foreign companies doing business in the United States avoided corporate taxes over the same period.

Collectively, the companies reported trillions of dollars in sales, according to the GAO's estimate.

"It's shameful that so many corporations make big profits and pay nothing to support our country," said Sen. Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., who asked for the GAO study with Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich.

NEW ORLEANS: FBI raids office hired in Katrina cleanup

FBI and Internal Revenue Service agents went to offices of the New Orleans Affordable Homeownership Corp. on Monday, the FBI said.

Kites could provide electricity for 100,000 homes

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 22:53:25 GMT

clipped by: Silkweaver
clipper's remarks: Several other scientists are investigating the use of kites to harness energy from the wind - which some researchers estimate provides more than 100 times the amount required to power the entire planet. In 2007, Google´s philanthropic arm invested about $10 million in a US kite company called Makani. An Italian company called Kitegen has a multi-kite scheme that could generate a gigawatt of power, as much as a standard coal plant.

Clip Source: www.physorg.com

High-flying kites tethered to generators could supply as much as 100 megawatts of electricity, enough to power 100,000 homes, according to researchers from the Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands.

The scientists have recently demonstrated that flying a single 10-square-meter kite could produce 10 kilowatts of power, which could supply electricity for about 10 homes.

In their next experiment, the researchers plan to test a 50-kilowatt version, called Laddermill. Eventually, their goal is to build a multi-kite system that could generate a full 100 megawatts.

Electricity produced by kites in the wind could be inexpensive, too. The researchers predict prices to be comparable with generating electricity using coal power, and half that of using wind turbines.

kites generate power by pulling on their strings that are attached to generators on the ground. After reaching their maximum height, the kites are reeled back down to repeat the process.

Tags: energy, clean energy, wind, kites

We Are All Getting To Be That Someone

Sun, 10 Aug 2008 15:08:32 GMT

clipped by: debbyski

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

According to one estimate, there will be five billion people using mobile phones by 2011, which means that, for some part of each day, most of our species will be reduced to wandering aimlessly.

But smart phones are changing everything. They are not meant to be held to the ear, for the simple reason that they are barely phones at all.

Watching the passers-by holding their smart phones in front of them as they walked was like watching a parade of monks with heads bowed over their breviaries.

Were they Twittering? Following their G.P.S.? Checking their stocks? Reading their e-mail? Texting a friend?

It makes no difference

I remember how strange it used to seem just to see someone reading a paperback or a folded newspaper while walking down the street. Now we are all getting to be that someone.

Top Five Urban Myths Exposed

Sat, 09 Aug 2008 21:10:56 GMT

clipped by: moonspirit4ever
clipper's remarks: Ok, I want all the 1/2 hours that my Mom made me sit by the side of the pool BACK RIGHT NOW!!!!!!

Clip Source: www.metro.co.uk

1. You accidentally swallow about eight spiders a year in your sleep

Why it's not true:
Spiders have a natural instinct to stay alive and crawling into the heavy-breathing hot, wet mouths of animals goes strongly against this.

2. You Only Use 10% of Your Brain (but if you were only less lazy or stupid you could use more)

Why it's not true:
The parts of the brain are specialized, so trying to use all of it at once isn't going to make you any smarter.

3. Men think about sex every seven seconds

Why is it a load of rubbish?
If men thought about sex every seven seconds it would be hard to get anything done. Experts estimate that 30 per cent of men don't think about sex during the day at all.

4. You Must Wait 30 Minutes After Eating Before Swimming

Why is it a load of rubbish?
Because you're not a Gremlin. As you may have already guessed, water does not, in fact, bear properties that form a cramp of death, should you get in the water after eating.

Tags: myths

The Dead Zone

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 22:54:35 GMT

clipped by: debbyski
clipper's remarks: Now this is some REAL shit JT!

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Every year for the past couple of decades, scientists have tried to estimate the size of the dead zone that forms where the Mississippi River enters the Gulf of Mexico.

The dead zone is technically an area of hypoxia, or low oxygen content, first detected in the early 1970s. A decade later scientists realized it was caused largely by agricultural nitrogen — and some urban effluent — washed downstream from farms throughout the Mississippi watershed

The mechanisms that create the dead zone are entirely natural — algae feeding and dying — but there is nothing natural about the zone itself. It is almost entirely an artifact of modern agriculture, accompanied by treated and untreated sewage and industrial runoff.

There could be no starker reminder of the tragic human tendency to treat the oceans as dumping grounds.

More than 56,000 in U.S. infected with AIDS each year

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 06:23:40 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

More than 56,000 in U.S. infected with AIDS each year

Sat Aug 2, 2008 5:30pm EDT

By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Editor

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New estimates show that least 56,000 people become infected with the AIDS virus every year in the United States -- 40 percent more than previous calculations, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said on Saturday.

The CDC stressed that actual infection rates have not risen but said better methods of measuring newly diagnosed infections and extrapolating these to the general population led to the higher estimates.

"CDC's first estimates from this system reveal that the HIV epidemic is -- and has been -- worse than previously known. Results indicate that approximately 56,300 new HIV infections occurred in the United States in 2006," the CDC said in a statement.

"This figure is roughly 40 percent higher than CDC's former estimate of 40,000 infections per year, which was based on limited data and less precise methods."

Tags: health

Would you like to know your gender?

Sun, 03 Aug 2008 12:17:02 GMT

clipped by: balthazarus
clipper's remarks: i like it, mainly because i believe that through observations of patterns one may discover many things...
BTW i am 84% male and 16% female (or was it the other way around ?-)-- try it.

Clip Source: www.mikeonads.com

Using your browser URL history to estimate gender

One of the things that I always wanted to do but never got around to was to analyze a user’s browsing history to estimate age and gender. Of course the idea is definitely not new, in fact Xerox (of all companies??) has a patent on the whole process and I’m certain plenty of networks already do something of the sort… but what the heck, let’s have some fun!

So what I did is I modified the SocialHistory JS so that it polled the browser to find out which of the Quantcast top 10k sites were visited. I then apply the ratio of male to female users for each site and with some basic math determine a guestimate of your gender. The math is really quite simple, I just take:

1 / (1 + r_1 * r_2 * … * r_n)
where p_i is the ratio of men-to-women for the specific site. For example, if you had been to two sites that had a 2-1 ratio of men to women, the probability of you being female would be:
1 / (1 + 2 * 2) = 1/5 = 20%

The Secret Curse of Expert Archers

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 02:36:09 GMT

clipped by: William Hung
clipper's remarks: The problem has spawned a cottage industry of coaches, books and specialized accessories that claim to cure target panic.

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

Joel Page

Clip Source: www.nytimes.com

There is an affliction so feared by elite archers that many in the sport refuse to even say its name. Archery coaches who specialize in treating the problem are sworn not to reveal the identities of archers in its grip, even though they estimate that 90 percent of high-level competitors will fall victim at least once in their careers.

Target panic, as the condition is known, causes crack shots to suddenly lose control of their bows and their composure. Mysteriously, sufferers start releasing the bow the instant they see the target, sabotaging any chance of a gold-medal shot. Others freeze up and cannot release at all. Target panic is akin to the yips in baseball and golf, when accomplished athletes can no longer make a simple throw to first base or stroke an easy putt.

The results can be mortifying, and archery is filled with tales of those who have caught the curse, never to shoot again.

Tags: archery

Anonymous Official Predicts "Record" Deficit

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 10:37:50 GMT

clipped by: merrie
clipper's remarks: AP Invites You To Set Your Head Ablaze.....
Another bit of news sure to scare the Malthusian bujeezus out of the press: world population is expected to hit an all-time record this year.

Clip Source: www.suitablyflip.com

This is bound to inspire a few follow-on freak-outs among recession-obsessed media types.

The next president will inherit a record budget deficit approaching $490 billion, a Bush administration official said Monday.

Nominal records are obviously fairly meaningless. In the case of government budgets, a more meaningful metric is the deficit as a percent of national output. When you measure the size of the government's revenue shortfall against the size of the economy (and compare it to previous years), you find something far less sensational.

Federal Surplus (Deficit) As % of GDP

At 3.4% of GDP, the 2008 deficit (as projected by the unnamed source) is not only not the largest ever, it isn't even the largest in the last 5 years.

Of the last 40 years, it barely cracks the top third.

The administration official spoke on condition of anonymity because the new estimate had not been formally released. Administration officials were scheduled to do that at a news conference later Monday.

Tags: budget deficit, government revenue shortfall/percent of gdp, 3.4% of gdp