"Help, I'm stuck in space."Funny Animal Photos
-------Australian Blog-------
Lead Remains High in the Blood of Children
Despite changes in the supply of motor fuel, i.e., the move toward unleaded petrol, high levels of lead in the blood of children is still an issue. In the northern hemisphere there are seasonal fluctuations in levels of lead.
Though the general amount of lead present in the environment has fallen, it remains significantly high in the blood of children. Much of the lead released decades ago is still there. The polluted fine particles are swept up into the air in the warmer months of July, August and September. This is the time when children are outside playing their sports.
Money would be better spent on "fixing" the suspended lead rather than reducing content in products we use. Finding a way to "lock-in" the lead particles would end the damage to future generations of people. Once lead reaches a high level in the blood it is extremely difficult to reduce. Damage to the brain and nervous system is permanent.
Health
Australian Blog★
Land of Mu in Indian Ocean?
Those who study ancient records have presumed that the claimed submerged continent of Mu was in the middle of the Pacific. They may be looking in the wrong place. An undersea continent has been identified beneath the Indian Ocean.
It was not sin or playing with dangerous science that caused the destructive disaster. Tectonic plates moving apart split the continent into many islands. Beneath the waves lava flows have covered the ancient land near the Seychelles which was part of the Indian subcontinent.
The region which includes the Seychelles, Mauritius, Maldives and Madagascar has an anomaly. It has a stronger gravitational field than other place around the world. This is because the crust is 25 kilometers thick, compared to as little as 5 kilometers elsewhere.
Geography
Australian Blog★
Create Your Own Country
Establish your own country. People have been doing this for decades. They pronounce kingship and plant crowns on their heads to rule in perpetuity. Don't laugh. These people are serious. Such "countries" have currencies made, issue stamps and visas, and even produce constitutions. People can become "citizens" on the Internet.
Why do they establish new countries? Some do it because they are fed up with the country they live in, others to highlight an issue of contention. Doing it just for laughs or getting an income from tourism is not uncommon.
Recently a meeting of micronations took place at a Sydney university. They discussed their place in The Lonely Planet Guide to Home-Made Nations. The meeting went well. There were Laughs aplenty. Just imagine how the leaders were decked out with flowing robes, scepters and crowns.
There is a problem, however. It is an illusion of independence. The "countries" are still part of the larger countries they are in. If the leader works, he/she has to pay income tax to the larger nation. Furthermore, a tiny new nation pays rates and land taxes to the local council.
Why do they establish new countries? Some do it because they are fed up with the country they live in, others to highlight an issue of contention. Doing it just for laughs or getting an income from tourism is not uncommon.
Recently a meeting of micronations took place at a Sydney university. They discussed their place in The Lonely Planet Guide to Home-Made Nations. The meeting went well. There were Laughs aplenty. Just imagine how the leaders were decked out with flowing robes, scepters and crowns.
There is a problem, however. It is an illusion of independence. The "countries" are still part of the larger countries they are in. If the leader works, he/she has to pay income tax to the larger nation. Furthermore, a tiny new nation pays rates and land taxes to the local council.
Politics
Australian Blog★
Society Ignores the Disabled
With workplace participation by those with disabilities being a prime goal touted by government there is no solid progress. Words are cheap and politicians know it. Funding is just not there. Businesses must make a profit to survive in a competitive world and they will not take the disabled on without subsidies. This is a fact.
Those with disabilities are even shunned by the public at large. They face discrimination every day. They feel that government ignores them as must as businesses. Ninety four per cent of disabled people said this in a recent survey.
Besides having a job, they want support in basic social contact. Many do not have a circle of friends. When they are with a carer, bank staff, for example, talk to the carer without speaking to the person cared for. The disabled are ignored as being "non-people".
Wheelchair access has not been improved for years. Public transport is out of the question for many. Parts of the city are never visited by the disabled. Such areas are impossible for wheelchairs.
Society
Australian Blog★
Reptiles Are at Greater Risk of Extinction
Though there are worries over extinction of all animals, it is reptiles who are in most danger. Some reptiles are pretty, but for the most part they are seen as ugly. Because of this they lose out on conservation funding. This is serious with one in five reptile species predicted to die out.
People are moving into previously pristine regions of the tropics to log valuable trees and to practice logging. The conclusion about endangered reptiles has been reached by 200 of the world's scientific experts. Funding is not enough. We need to change human behavior. This of course means changing human needs, which is more challenging.
Concentrating on saving turtles is good for them. Other reptiles, however, remain at risk. The living and reproductive systems of many reptiles is still unknown. Out of sight, out of mind leads to extinction. Reptiles tend to live in the toughest of environments. Such specialization does result in their demise when humans change the habitat.
Those who should know better have forgotten about reptile extinction. Threatened species are logged in the IUCN Red List. Only a third of endangered reptiles are on the list. In depth recording of reptiles tends to be regional and is not collated worldwide.
Conservation
Australian Blog★
Your Body Runs Without You
The human body runs on its own. Think of the times your mind is working on a problem and during the evaluation process your body is continuing with daily routine tasks. It happens every day. You reach a conscious conclusion on a problem and then wonder have I had a cup of coffee? Oh yes, you have - you can still taste it.
The body can you give you unwanted pain as well. Your body can do things totally out of your control that really "bug" you, like teeth that hurt, hiccups, stitch, pins and needles or cramp.
Some get a headache or painful teeth when they eat or drink something cold. This is due to sensitive nerve endings in teeth. You can use special toothpaste that takes months before it becomes effective. In the mean time stay away from cold things.
Hiccups is caused by eating and drinking too fast, or taking in air. It can also be caused by becoming suddenly nervous. The only real known cure it to take beta blockers. Though you have to wait until the medication takes effect.
A stitch occurs during exercise when your body tries to tell you that is enough. Stopping the strenuous activity will "cure" the malady.
Pins and needles happens when the blood supply to nerve endings in the limbs is constricted. Get up and move around then normal feeling will return to the "dead" limb.
The cause of cramp is unknown. Dehydration and being unfit are not factors - well hydrated supremely fit sports people get afflicted with it. Spasmodic constricting muscles hurt. The only thing you can do is wait for them to settle down - perhaps more beta blockers.
Your body is a complex machine. Look after it. Service it well. The model you have has its own quirks. Just learn to live with them.
The body can you give you unwanted pain as well. Your body can do things totally out of your control that really "bug" you, like teeth that hurt, hiccups, stitch, pins and needles or cramp.
Some get a headache or painful teeth when they eat or drink something cold. This is due to sensitive nerve endings in teeth. You can use special toothpaste that takes months before it becomes effective. In the mean time stay away from cold things.
Hiccups is caused by eating and drinking too fast, or taking in air. It can also be caused by becoming suddenly nervous. The only real known cure it to take beta blockers. Though you have to wait until the medication takes effect.
A stitch occurs during exercise when your body tries to tell you that is enough. Stopping the strenuous activity will "cure" the malady.
Pins and needles happens when the blood supply to nerve endings in the limbs is constricted. Get up and move around then normal feeling will return to the "dead" limb.
The cause of cramp is unknown. Dehydration and being unfit are not factors - well hydrated supremely fit sports people get afflicted with it. Spasmodic constricting muscles hurt. The only thing you can do is wait for them to settle down - perhaps more beta blockers.
Your body is a complex machine. Look after it. Service it well. The model you have has its own quirks. Just learn to live with them.
Health
Australian Blog★
Agriculture Disrupts the Ecosystem
Human impact on native flora and fauna is real. There seems to be no way the detrimental affects can be ameliorated. Aboriginals have been in Australia for 40,000 years. apart from the unanswered question about extinction of mega fauna Aboriginals did not alter the external environment at all.
Sedentary agriculture is the major contributing factor to habitat damage. Planting mono-crops seriously changes land features. In Western Australia, for example, water points are located at 50 sq km on average. In its pre-European natural state water holes could be found 2.5 sq km apart. This is serious change with species of native birds declining.
Unless we set areas aside as pristine, protected sectors only introduced pest species will remain. Even without the pest birds, the proportion of native birds is altered. Some die out while others increase in number. The ecosystem is no longer in balance.
Conservation
Australian Blog★
Donkeys and Mules Are Celebrated
Donkeys and mules are not forgotten. There are people out there who care a lot for these animals. They have established the Donkey All Breeds Society of Australia National Donkey and Mule Show. They deserve a medal for creating such a long title for the celebratory weekend.
Entrants were brought in from all over Australia. The tiny Mediterean Miniature donkey was the cutest in the show. Very large animals were represented like the 16 hands high American Mammoth donkey.
Many animals performed for the spectators. It is a myth about the independent, angry mule. Indeed, they like to be trained. Donkeys really put on show in the trail, driven, sulky, halter and snigging classes. Trainers were as young as five years old. Some donkey entrants were elderly, in their mid-twenties. The show was such a success that it will continue. It is affectionately called the long ears show.
Society
Australian Blog★
Imaging More Advanced Than MRI
The MRI was the most advanced way of diagnosing what patients were suffering from. It was cutting edge technology that gave very detailed images of the human body. Technology moves forward and advances are made.
Macquarie University with CSIC and the Institute of Photonic Sciences (ICFO) have found a way of producing images even clearer than MRI. It is done by using artificial atoms and nitrogen doped diamond nanoparticles. Extremely weak magnetic fields in the human body can now be detected. MRI resolution is millimetric. The new system "sees" down to a millionth of a millimeter.
This technique is not invasive. It will provide an understanding of intracellular processes. The problem with the new diagnostic system is that very temperatures are required to make it work. Artificial atoms are encapsulated in a diamond crystal. They can be manipulated by lasers, dragging atoms above the surface for medical diagnosis.
Health
Australian Blog★
Models Show Lasers Can Produce Energy Using Hydrogen-Boron as Fuel
Energy created by lasers could be the way of the future. Researchers have used models and they show that lasers can produce "cold" energy by nuclear fusion. A new generation of fast, powerful lasers makes this possible. To achieve fusion a short, carefully controlled pulse is required. The pulse target is hydrogen and boron. Creating neutrons is not the objective because they cause radioactivity.
The Australian research is duplicating what is going on at the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the United States, but they are using deuterium-tritium fuel.
A single laser pulse can generate 500 times more electricity than all the power stations in the US. At first the research team did not believe hydrogen-boron fuel would work. However, models indicated that it was only ten times more difficult than deuterium-tritium. For it to work the laser pulse must be clean, that is, lasting only a million, millionth of a second. Optical energy is then converted to mechanical energy.
It is not commonly known but coal power stations actually emit radioactivity - it is a problem in Germany where they are considering burying polluted material. Producing energy by laser pulsing hydrogen-boron creates less radioactivity than using deuterium-tritium. Coal generation is very dirty compared to hydrogen-boron. The waste product is helium gas. Hydrogen-boron is also plentiful. Team leader Professor Hora say it could be some time before the research becomes reality.
The Australian research is duplicating what is going on at the National Ignition Facility at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the United States, but they are using deuterium-tritium fuel.
A single laser pulse can generate 500 times more electricity than all the power stations in the US. At first the research team did not believe hydrogen-boron fuel would work. However, models indicated that it was only ten times more difficult than deuterium-tritium. For it to work the laser pulse must be clean, that is, lasting only a million, millionth of a second. Optical energy is then converted to mechanical energy.
It is not commonly known but coal power stations actually emit radioactivity - it is a problem in Germany where they are considering burying polluted material. Producing energy by laser pulsing hydrogen-boron creates less radioactivity than using deuterium-tritium. Coal generation is very dirty compared to hydrogen-boron. The waste product is helium gas. Hydrogen-boron is also plentiful. Team leader Professor Hora say it could be some time before the research becomes reality.
Society
Australian Blog★
Return on Savings to Fall
Banks are to significantly cut the return on money invested. This is not surprising considering the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is cutting interest rates. As the banks follow the RBA down, which they are not obliged to do, they must cut outgoings on term deposits for example.
Considering banks make 60 per cent of their funds from various savings products, it is no wonder cutting what they pay out is on the horizon. If rates fall much lower people will be drawing out their savings and hiding their "loot" under the bed.
Customers are borrowing less because the bar for loans has been pushed too high. Well, perhaps that is a good thing. Australians were condemned for not saving enough; now they are criticized for not borrowing enough.
With an election date already set the government will push for full RBA flow-ons in the popular media. This does not look good for retirees who rely on money put aside in investments for their retirement. Money is getting cheaper in the wholesale market so fewer deposit options will be offered by the banks.
Economics
Australian Blog★
"If someone doesn't adopt me soon, I'm going to break out." Spicy Food Stimulates the Same Endorphin Centers as Alcohol
It is well known that alcohol increases one's desire for spicy snacks. The personal drive not to eat is also weakened. This is why it is widely acceptable to head for the local curry shop after a drinking session.
It is believed that the two drives support each other. Those who like spicy food when they are sober tend to be heavy drinkers of alcohol. Both spicy food and alcohol stimulate the same centers in the brain. There is hope: spice lovers respond better to medication that reduces alcohol dependency.
It is all to do with the feel-good chemicals put out by the brain when stimulated. More endorphins are released by both substances. Because many people do not experience raised endorphins when consuming alcohol, drugs that lessens this affect do not work to stop alcohol consumption in them.
It was found that making "alcohol endorphin high" mice eat spicy food before offering them alcohol stopped them drinking as they were already getting the spicy high.
Apparently, there are two forms of alcohol dependency. One that is driven by endorphin highs and another in genetically 'low endorphin' people who crave alcohol for an unknown reason.
Society
Australian Blog★
New Zealand Wants Drivers to Wear Gloves
Calls from New Zealand to cover up one's hand by wearing gloves when driving a car is silly to say the least. This may be something to think about if one is a delivery van or a truck driver but ordinary people don't drive enough to warrant it. They say the belief that glass provides protection from ultraviolet radiation is a myth.
Sunscreen maker "Oasis Beauty" has suggested putting sunscreen on hands before driving. This is sound advice, coming from a producer of sunscreen. The International Agency for Research on Cancer says drivers should wear gloves, long sleeved shirts and sun glasses. Unless one is a professional driver this is a bit much.
Car producers state that laminated windscreens do block UV radiation: 80 percent of UV-a. It is side windows that are dangerous, though 37 percent of UV-a and 97 percent of UV-b are blocked. From these data obviously the New Zealand Cancer Society and Oasis Beauty are wrong and car glass does offer protection. Furthermore, most countries do allow side windows to be tinted which helps.
Sunscreen maker "Oasis Beauty" has suggested putting sunscreen on hands before driving. This is sound advice, coming from a producer of sunscreen. The International Agency for Research on Cancer says drivers should wear gloves, long sleeved shirts and sun glasses. Unless one is a professional driver this is a bit much.
Car producers state that laminated windscreens do block UV radiation: 80 percent of UV-a. It is side windows that are dangerous, though 37 percent of UV-a and 97 percent of UV-b are blocked. From these data obviously the New Zealand Cancer Society and Oasis Beauty are wrong and car glass does offer protection. Furthermore, most countries do allow side windows to be tinted which helps.
Society
Binge Drinking Causes Type 2 Diabetes
Drinking alcohol is not an innocent pastime. We know it damages the liver. However, a link has been found between binge drinking and the onset of type 2 diabetes. How it does this is not fully understood.
Rats were put on a "diet" of 3 g/kg of alcohol for only three days. Even when the alcohol had completely left their systems insulin resistance was still occurring. The effect lasted 54 hours after ingestion of alcohol had ceased.
Impaired adipose tissue and hepatic functions were believed to be the cause. There was more hypothalamic inflammation affecting insulin signaling.
There is hope for a treatment. Inhibiting brain protein tyrosine phosphatase 1B (PTP1B) can block the detrimental action on insulin of binge drinking,
Society
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