Klaatu barada nikto (just in case)…
- Were the ancient Egyptians the first to use concrete? Pyramid construction theorists, start your engines…
- Think humanity is headed for extinction now? Just be thankful you weren’t here for the drought that nearly wiped us out 70,000 years ago.
- Although, with the price of rice in Thailand hitting $1,000 a tonne as well as the run on rice and flour in the States, perhaps history is already repeating itself…
- And now for something completely different… In arguably the most eagerly awaited but never conceived match-up of all time, I give you the aptly titled… ZOMBIE vs. SHARK! Local aquariums and mortuaries will accept bets until show-time.
- Ancient supercontinent break-up solved? A new twist on an old theory from the merry old blokes at Geophysical Journal International.
- Has the ‘Great Arctic Thaw’ already begun? With methane and carbon dioxide levels on the rise, the NOAA says it’s, “too soon to tell”. Thankfully, it’s never too soon to invest in hip waders…
- Paleontological paternity test proves Tyrannosaur is the long lost ancestor of *all* birds. Which would mean (according to the transitive property of equality)… T. Rex tastes like chicken.
- And in keeping with the above ‘genetics one-for-all’ theme… New study reveals how humans started evolving into two separate species before merging back into one population. More here from N.Geo…
- Survey of EPA Scientists depicts “an agency under siege” from widespread political interference – all thanks to the president with the lowest job approval rating in *history* (according to a recent Gallup poll).
- Supposedly extinct pygmy elephants are alive and well in the Northeast corner of Borneo. Perhaps Flores Man had an elephant named “Shep”.
- Australia, my how you’ve grown…unilaterally speaking, that is.
- Will planetary pinball wipe out life on Earth before the Sun’s expiration date (5 billion years from now)? Seats on Rocketship X-M are already sold out.
- Does sensing the Earth’s magnetic field lead to suicide? A Russian scientist sees a link (and he isn’t stationed in Siberia… yet)
- Scientists may have captured photos of a black hole emitting a super-charged plasma jet. More here.
- According to a study from the University of Colorado, climate change in the Southern Hemisphere could be affected as the Antarctic ozone holes recover.
- Was last weekend’s off-target Soyuz landing more dangerous than NASA first reported? Inquiring minds want to know…
- The big brains over at Princeton have discovered an exotic state of quantum matter that may lead to the first ‘spintronic’ devices. In other news, the first “spintronica” albums will be on shelves by Sunday…
- Darth Vader assaults Jedi Church. No… seriously (and it’s not just a shameless plug for the upcoming animated Clone Wars film).
Quote of the Day:
“A working prophet is able to see deeper than most of us into the human soul. Orwell in 1948 understood that despite the Axis defeat, the will to fascism had not gone away… the irresistible human addictions to power were already long in place… the means of surveillance in Winston Smith’s era are primitive next to the wonders of computer technology… most notably the Internet.”
Thomas Pynchon, foreword to ‘1984’
