Clipmarks | Big Clips

4,500-year-old ice shelf breaks away

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 13:05:47 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

4,500-year-old ice shelf breaks away

TORONTO, Ontario (AP) -- A chunk of ice shelf nearly the size of Manhattan has broken away from Ellesmere Island in Canada's northern Arctic, another dramatic indication of how warmer temperatures are changing the polar frontier, scientists said Wednesday.

Derek Mueller, an Arctic ice shelf specialist at Trent University in Ontario, told The Associated Press that the 4,500-year-old Markham Ice Shelf separated in early August and the 19-square-mile shelf is now adrift in the Arctic Ocean.

"The Markham Ice Shelf was a big surprise because it suddenly disappeared. We went under cloud for a bit during our research and when the weather cleared up, all of a sudden there was no more ice shelf. It was a shocking event that underscores the rapidity of changes taking place in the Arctic," said Muller.

Muller reported last month that seven square miles of the 170-square-mile and 130-feet-thick Ward Hunt shelf had broken off.

Tags: global warming

Drug-addicted elephant kicks heroin habit

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 09:12:38 GMT

clipped by: A53GG4

Clip Source: www.msnbc.msn.com

Drug-addicted elephant kicks heroin habit

'Big Brother' completes detox in China after being fed spiked bananas

BEIJING - A once drug-addled elephant fed heroin-laced bananas by illegal traders will return home after emerging clean from a three-year detox program on China's tropical island province of Hainan.

The four-year-old bull elephant, referred to alternately as "Big Brother" or "Xiguang" in state media reports, was captured in 2005 in southwest China by traders who used spiked bananas to control him.

After police arrested the traders and freed Xiguang a few months later, the elephant was confirmed to be suffering from withdrawal symptoms and sent to a wild animal protection center in Hainan for rehab, Xinhua news agency said on Thursday.

A year of methadone injections at five times the human dosage had helped wean Xiguang off his addiction.

Tags: animals

The Presidential Energy Scorecord - Side By Side Comparison of Obama & McCain.

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 02:58:43 GMT

clipped by: zalisan

Clip Source: www.thegoodhuman.com

The Good Human

Sustainability, Environment, Progressive Politics, Peak Oil, Being Green.

With energy at the top of the political agenda right now, and Americans demanding action from their leaders, the Sierra Club has released a new side-by-side comparison to help its members and the public compare the energy plans of John McCain and Barack Obama. The scorecard examines the candidates’ energy plans in four key areas: taking on Big Oil, investing in the clean energy economy, fixing global warming, and increasing fuel economy.

Taking On Big Oil

Investing in the Clean Energy Economy

Fixing Global Warming

Increasing Fuel Economy

Palin's Selective History

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 02:48:42 GMT

clipped by: Wisco
clipper's remarks: Also missing, Afghanistan.

Pretending you belong to some other party or that George W. Bush doesn't belong to yours is one thing, but overlooking a whole goddam big ol' flaming war?

That's pretty inexcusable.

Clip Source: marcambinder.theatlantic.com

Two words you did not hear in Gov. Palin's speech last night:

George W. Bush

and

Republican.

Tags: news

50 Billion Suns! -The Biggest Single Object in the Universe

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 01:17:51 GMT

clipped by: Silkweaver
clipper's remarks: Based on this self-regulating maximum rate, scientists at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Massachusetts, and the European Southern Observatory, Chile, have calculated an upper limit for these mega-mammoth masses. Fifty billion suns, that's 100 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 000 kg, otherwise known as "ridiculously stupidly big" and triple the size of the largest observed black hole, OJ 287.

Clip Source: www.dailygalaxy.com

Scientists have determined the mass of the largest things that could possibly exist in our universe, and they don't appear in the Oprah studio audience.

New results have placed an upper limit on the current size of black holes - and at fifty billion suns it's pretty damn big. That's a hundred thousand tredagrams, and you'll never get the chance to use that word in relation to anything else.

While there's theoretically no upper limit on how big a black hole can be, there are hard limits on how big they could have become by now. The universe has only existed for a finite amount of time, and even the most voracious black hole can only suck in matter at a certain rate. The bigger the black hole, the bigger the gravitational field and the faster it can pull in matter - but that same huge gravitational gradient means that the same matter can release huge amounts of radiation as it falls, blasting other matter further away.

Tags: astronomy, cosmology

Money and Palin's speech

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 23:21:31 GMT

clipped by: lp97702
clipper's remarks: Opps, galvanized the wrong base...

Clip Source: politicalwire.com

Palin's Speech Raises Big Money -- for Obama

The downside to big television ratings: An Obama aide confirms to Ben Smith that Sen. Barack Obama has raised about $8 million from more than 130,000 donors since Gov. Sarah Palin's speech last night -- and is on pace to raise $10 million by the time McCain reaches the stage tonight.

Update: The Republican National Committee tells Jonathan Martin that they raised "more than $1 million" since Palin's speech.

Tags: palin, obama

No kissing girls in Ohio

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 23:20:00 GMT

clipped by: pcmkrfn

Clip Source: perezhilton.com

You know you've made it big when others start making covers of your songs. But this remix is a bit different.

It seems that the people at a church in Blacklick, Ohio, aren't too thrilled with Katy Perry's catchy I Kissed A Girl song.

So…..they've decided to change it up a bit.

The Havens Corners Church now has a sign outside with the new lyrics they've added to the song.

It says, "I kissed a girl and I liked it" and adds, "Then I went to hell."

The church pastor, Rev. Dave Allison, says that the sign is intended as "a loving warning to teens" since the Bible states that homosexuality is a sin.

He did admit that the sign has confused some people who don't know the song or get the message.

Guess Katy isn't that big in Ohio.

What do U think of the message?

"What" "Who,ME?" Denying Uneven Questioning

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:15:13 GMT

clipped by: davboz

Clip Source: newsbusters.org

If a hypothetical tabloid owned by, say, Richard Mellon Scaife, had a cover story with scurrilous accusations about Joe Biden, do you think Chris Matthews would be waving it about on camera and Keith Olbermann citing it? Neither do I. But if for some reason they did, would they possibly fail to mention the mag's ownership?

But Matthews saw fit—not once but twice—to display the cover

story "Babies, Lies and Scandals" about Sarah Palin. Olbermann alluded to it as well. And who is the owner of Us? Jann Wenner

a big-time donor to Barack Obama. How big a donor?

The Countdown host began by getting off what could prove to be the evening's biggest laugh line.

KEITH OLBERMANN: As much as we try to steer this away from Governor Palin, I imagine that this is continuing to be a matter of interest

Stop, Keith. You're killing me.

OLBERMANN: How does a candidate's

winding up on a tabloid magazine with words "scandals" and "pregnancies"

help that composite picture that Mr. Davis is talking about?

gasms

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 21:53:57 GMT

clipped by: Nuathi
clipper's remarks: one of my favorite authors? -Lovecraft
one of my favorite directors? del Toro
together? - mental gasm.

Clip Source: news.yahoo.com

Deal Sheet: Frankenstein, Jekyll, Tarzan Resurrected

The fantastical filmmaker has been tapped by Universal to helm remakes of Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, per Variety, along with a big-screen adaptation of Charles Dickens' final novel The Mystery of Edwin Drood simply titled Drood, and a new take on Kurt Vonnegut's cult novel Slaughterhouse-Five.

Universal has also committed to another del Toro dream project, a big-screen version of horrormeister H.P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness. Del Toro will also produce two films for the studio, an adaptation of David Moody's apocalyptic tome Hater and Crimson Peak, a gothic romance del Toro cowrote with his Mimic collaborator Matthew Robbins.

Possible Big Three Bailout: Political Context

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 16:40:57 GMT

clipped by: Andrew Gillies
clipper's remarks: Pearlstein, a columnist for the Washington Post, weighs in on likely action inside the Beltway on auto biz. Later in the column, he concludes that "the best of a set of bad options might be for the government to step in and provide the Big Three with low-interest long-term loans, just as it did years ago with Lockheed and Chrysler." Note: GM's market capitalization is just under $6 billion, a shocking number given the company's $171 billion in latest-twelve-month revenues. Google's market cap is $144 billion.

Clip Source: www.washingtonpost.com

The Road to a Bailout They Don't Deserve

By Steven Pearlstein

Wednesday, September 3, 2008; Page D01

It's desperation time for the Big Three automakers. They are awash in gas-guzzling vehicles nobody wants to buy, bleeding red ink and running out of cash.

So it should be no surprise that when Congress returns next week, the companies and their unions will put on a full-court press to win approval for $50 billion in federal loans to be used to re-engineer and retool their plants for a new generation of energy-efficient vehicles.

Even before top industry executives arrive in Washington later this month to lobby for their program, General Motors' vice chairman, Robert Lutz, who never misses an opportunity to put his foot in his mouth, was telling reporters in Chicago last week that the industry "deserves" government loans because of all the challenges that have been inflicted upon it. In fact, it's hard to imagine an industry less deserving of government help.

Insurance Commisioner Proposes Big Brother

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:06:34 GMT

clipped by: cheapogroovo
clipper's remarks: It's called pay as you drive

Clip Source: www.insurancejournal.com

Under the new regulations, consumers could verify mileage by odometer readings, automotive repair records, or a technological device used to collect mileage data. Commissioner Poizner's regulations would explicitly prohibit insurance companies from requiring policyholders to participate in a pay-as-you-drive program.

Tags: autos, insurance, big brother, government, fascism

Thieves

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 10:10:42 GMT

clipped by: bobbyelliott

Clip Source: www.google.co.uk

The big thieves hang the little ones.
- Czech Proverb

Tags: thieves, hang

The Battle of Words

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 09:16:26 GMT

clipped by: katsteevns
clipper's remarks: (cont.)Unfortunately, Adolf Hitler understood the power of speech, the power of propaganda and the power of the “big lie.” Physical power was paramount since he believed, “is not right that matters, but victory.” However, physical strength is not sufficient to consummate the revolution. It must be escorted, heralded by its honor guard: the power of speech. How did Hitler know this? Why did it ultimately fail?

Clip Source: shiurtimes.com

The Battle of Words

By Rabbi Pinchas Kantrowitz 31 July 2008

Those who study the background to the rise of Nazism and the Holocaust may be aware how much of an emphasis Adolph Hitler (yimach shmo v’zicro–may his name and memory be erased), put on speech. In his inciting, yet seminal work, Mein Kampf, he writes:

“The broad masses of the people can be moved only by the power of speech.
All great movements are… volcanic eruptions of human passions and emotional sentiments, stirred …by the firebrand of the word hurled among the masses.” (Mein Kampf, Ch. 3)

He writes elsewhere in the book, “the great masses of the people…will more easily fall victim to a big lie than to a small one.” (Ibid, Ch. 10). Additionally, W. L. Shirer, in his book, The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich, writes: “the victor will not be asked afterwards whether he told the truth or not. In starting and waging a war it is not right that matters, but victory.” (Ch. 16)

What Christ Would Need to Do

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 05:52:48 GMT

clipped by: Abykale

Clip Source: ntwrong.wordpress.com

That is, humankind only ever came about as a result of millions of years of suffering, extinctions, and brutality. In other words, Christ needed to be much more than the New Adam. Christ needed to be the ‘new’ Big Bang.

The Round Ice

Thu, 04 Sep 2008 03:34:42 GMT

clipped by: amgumen

Clip Source: englishrussia.com

Recently a lot of strange round-ice formations have been met in Russia. People don’t know what causes ice to form first big ice circles and then ones of smaller size appear around the mother-formation.

Clipmarks | Big Clips

4,500-year-old ice shelf breaks away

4,500-year-old ice shelf breaks away

Drug-addicted elephant kicks heroin habit

Drug-addicted elephant kicks heroin habit

'Big Brother' completes detox in China after being fed spiked bananas

The Presidential Energy Scorecord - Side By Side Comparison of Obama & McCain.

The Good Human

Taking On Big Oil

Investing in the Clean Energy Economy

Fixing Global Warming

Increasing Fuel Economy

Palin's Selective History

50 Billion Suns! -The Biggest Single Object in the Universe

Money and Palin's speech

Palin's Speech Raises Big Money -- for Obama

No kissing girls in Ohio

"What" "Who,ME?" Denying Uneven Questioning

*gasms*

Deal Sheet: Frankenstein, Jekyll, Tarzan Resurrected

Possible Big Three Bailout: Political Context

The Road to a Bailout They Don't Deserve

Insurance Commisioner Proposes Big Brother

Thieves

The Battle of Words

The Battle of Words

By Rabbi Pinchas Kantrowitz 31 July 2008

What Christ Would Need to Do

The Round Ice

gasms