tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post7421927966063644351..comments2024-03-27T23:12:08.917-07:00Comments on CONTRARY BRIN: The Changing Face of Earth -- and back to the sea?David Brinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comBlogger75125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-48078834650279041772017-01-28T19:19:09.922-08:002017-01-28T19:19:09.922-08:00From time to time I think about establishing my ow...From time to time I think about establishing my own religion, known as "Lifeology." The first principle of Lifeology is that the purpose of life is to create more life. Also, the definition of life is "that which creates itself."Creigh Gordonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05267728698204033199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-69991245221450466322017-01-28T19:15:49.646-08:002017-01-28T19:15:49.646-08:00This comment has been removed by the author.Creigh Gordonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05267728698204033199noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-1427614264867777292017-01-28T12:15:13.514-08:002017-01-28T12:15:13.514-08:00onward
onwardonward<br /><br />onwardDavid Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-60139883386873637152017-01-28T11:56:20.798-08:002017-01-28T11:56:20.798-08:00Robert: "institutionalize Trump, and declare ...Robert: "institutionalize Trump, and declare Pence the Acting-President."<br /><br />And may Trump be blessed with the presence of Big Nurse.<br /><br />As for Pence, everyone can start mailing him their personal emissions.Zepp Jamiesonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16261339498383415026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-84347318639239599102017-01-28T11:50:44.513-08:002017-01-28T11:50:44.513-08:00After someone posted the 25th Amendment to the Con...After someone posted the 25th Amendment to the Constitution I have seen another path Republicans might take.<br /><br />They aren't going to remove Trump from office through impeachment. They are going to declare him incompetent with a majority of the House and Senate agreeing with this, institutionalize Trump, and declare Pence the Acting-President.<br /><br />Thus they get 3.5 years of Acting-President Pence and then in their minds eight more years of President Pence. <br /><br />Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-87350121327875913102017-01-28T11:17:02.567-08:002017-01-28T11:17:02.567-08:00@matthew and @Zepp,
Yes, just like the admonition...@matthew and @Zepp,<br /><br />Yes, just like the admonitions from the right about how "You can't insult your way to the White House."<br /><br />What they don't tell mention is the emphasis that matters. "<b>You</b> [Democrats] can't insult your way to the White House. [However, <b>we</b> can and did.]"<br /><br />What they are unintentionally saying is not "That tactic doesn't work," but "Democrats don't know how to use it correctly, whereas Republicans are masters."LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-76956812040185400922017-01-28T10:58:44.590-08:002017-01-28T10:58:44.590-08:00Matthew:
I especially liked this piece of wisdom: ...Matthew:<br />I especially liked this piece of wisdom: "The Democrats are busily marginalizing themselves by being shrill, caustic, and vulgar. Give them room to do this."<br /><br /><br />Because, you know, Republicans are never shrill, caustic and vulgar.<br /><br />You gotta love how, out of pure concern for our well being, they advise us to avoid the tactics that worked for them.Zepp Jamiesonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16261339498383415026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-70559484081577679442017-01-28T10:30:01.779-08:002017-01-28T10:30:01.779-08:00Opinion piece at Fox today shows why the Trump pre...Opinion piece at Fox today shows why the Trump presidency will end in violence. <br /><br />http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2017/01/28/how-to-behave-in-age-trump-five-essential-lessons-for-republicans.html<br /><br />"Five essential lessons for Republicans:<br />1. Don't help the Democrats"<br /><br />The Murdoch empire doesn't seem to be backing off the culture wars any. As always, placing loyalty to party above nation. matthewhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17757867868731829206noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-90892041497764300892017-01-28T09:08:46.828-08:002017-01-28T09:08:46.828-08:00Apropos of nothing in particular, I wanted to toss...Apropos of nothing in particular, I wanted to toss this link in to some artwork of the universe:<br />https://timeline.com/before-photographs-these-amazing-illustrations-showed-us-what-deep-space-looks-like-4056442d1109#.udog18qvl<br /><br />It's from the late 19th century, and some of the images make for some pretty good guesses. <br />But, as Clarke said, it's "stranger than we CAN imagine."Zepp Jamiesonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16261339498383415026noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-75687211986477611732017-01-28T08:24:35.427-08:002017-01-28T08:24:35.427-08:00Musing on upgrading the grid. How to protect again...Musing on upgrading the grid. How to protect against solar magnetic catastrophes? All I can come up with is periodic breaks in the grid, with flywheels and regenerators, to break up electrical continuity.Jumperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11794110173836133321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-70361952211391307832017-01-28T07:18:59.858-08:002017-01-28T07:18:59.858-08:00Slim Moldie:
But alas I would have gone with car...Slim Moldie:<br /><i><br /> But alas I would have gone with car-sin-again when handing out my pun-ishments :)<br /></i><br /><br />Heh. You're giving Lin-Manuel Miranda a run for his money.<br />LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-90045516234445037292017-01-28T07:14:31.846-08:002017-01-28T07:14:31.846-08:00Robert:
Republicans no doubt will hope that by el...Robert:<br /><i><br />Republicans no doubt will hope that by eliminating Trump, Pence will seem a nice palatable replacement. <br /></i><br /><br />My latest hopelessly-implausible theory has been that we're being set up to despair under Beast Rabban so that we'll welcome Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen as a savior.<br /><br />That's kinda what you're saying as well.<br /><br /><i><br />And in three years he'll be reelected because he's the sitting President who did his best to fix the country after that horrible mess that Trump caused. <br /></i><br /><br />Well, if it's any comfort, that didn't work out for President Ford.<br />LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-80461722131969705992017-01-27T22:02:19.754-08:002017-01-27T22:02:19.754-08:00What, I am supposed to carefully track the differe...What, I am supposed to carefully track the difference among "anon" and anonymous" posters? Hey Anon! If the shoe doesn't remotely fit you, then how about running through hypotheses in your head. Like "Maybe he's talking to someone else?.<br /><br />I am in fact, one of the most liberal popular bloggers online, allowing anonymous open posting and almost never banishing. Why? Well, philosophy plays a role. But mostly, when trolls come here, they find none of the usual payoffs. Just a lot of smart folks who shrug off most troll incitements.<br /><br />Or.. mabe I over-rate how "popular" this blog is! ;-)David Brinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14465315130418506525noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-52757692947456097012017-01-27T21:47:37.588-08:002017-01-27T21:47:37.588-08:00Robert, I hope you're right.
LarryHeart I’ve ...<br />Robert, I hope you're right.<br /><br />LarryHeart I’ve been thinking about the same thing as the 1st week wound down. And then tonight my brain exploded when I realized that Simon & Schuster is still publishing those Childhood of Famous American books.<br /><br />Luis, thanks for sharing about the bees. I have this haunting image of a beautiful summer day and my young children coming to show me the dying bumble bees flopping drunkenly through the grass. I get angry every summer smelling the Roundup along the bike trails when I commute. Weeding is good exercise and would give jobs to some of those hard-working rust belt factory workers who were replaced by robots. I try to stay positive but sometimes it feels like we’re entering J.G. Ballard’s “Deep End.”<br /><br />Today when I was picking by son up from his elementary school a group of boys were tossing a football onto the roof of one of the buildings. One of the boys shouted, “you better not get it stuck up there or you’re The Trump!” <br /><br />So “Tag. You’re Trump” is a thing. Meanwhile I will be the first person on the face of this earth to parse together these four words. “Tag, you’re the Obama.” I even Googled it to check. “No results found for "tag you're the Obama." Cool is the rule, but sometimes, bad is bad, right?<br /><br />I was reading the autobus traffic jam up stream and I have to confess as someone who likes to toss some rancid salad from time to time (like tonight) that for a fleeting moment the though stunk me that I’d stumbled into one of my online drunken journals. But alas I would have gone with car-sin-again when handing out my pun-ishments :)<br /><br />Slim Moldiehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04804029818709230857noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-49782509490584888902017-01-27T21:02:11.166-08:002017-01-27T21:02:11.166-08:00I am even more sure now that Trump will be evicted...I am even more sure now that Trump will be evicted - er, I mean removed from office. They might not even need to do an impeachment as various protests and such are slowly pushing him toward a tipping point. All they need is to declare him mentally unfit and remove him, lock him away somewhere for his safety, and show his ravings from time to time to "convince" voters that they did a good thing.<br /><br />Before they push Trump out of office they will pass things like their tax breaks and dismantling of Obamacare and the like. Because they know that the shit will hit the fan as a result. The economy is going to go south. The Stock Market is in a bubble at the moment and we'll very likely see things turn south within a year. Heck, we've already gotten warning signs like less-than-stellar-sales during Christmas this year.<br /><br />Republicans no doubt will hope that by eliminating Trump, Pence will seem a nice palatable replacement. And in three years he'll be reelected because he's the sitting President who did his best to fix the country after that horrible mess that Trump caused. <br /><br />I'm hoping that women don't let up just because Mr. Crotch Grabber gets tossed out.<br /><br />So... within the first 100 days. And if we keep doing marches and the like, that will do the Republican Party's dirty work. But... the alternative is far far worse.<br /><br />Rob H.Acacia H.https://www.blogger.com/profile/07678539067303911329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-54684360067083153112017-01-27T20:14:16.342-08:002017-01-27T20:14:16.342-08:00It is a good idea to have bee hives.
In Mexico, be...It is a good idea to have bee hives.<br />In Mexico, bee honey is falsified up to 90% using glucose (I think) and artificial flavoring.<br />If you manage to have many hives, that could be good business.<br />I suggest you throw flower seeds of harmless plants into abandoned fields near hives. That way, your bees will have lots of honey.<br />A relative who had a varicose ulcer in his leg managed to close the ulcer by pouring honey into the wound. Long ago, I heard that honey can stop infections in wounds.<br />Dr. Barbara Shipman has been in contact with the bees ever since she was a child. She has the theory that bees can perceive quarks in some way. She believes that the dance of the bees could be inspired by the spectral magnetic structures; Created by the palpitating quarks that disappear and reappear, forming pulsating magnetic fields that bees use as a "template" to create their dance. (Perhaps those fields of force are the template used by bees to construct the hexagons of hives.) Perhaps bees could become living sensors in particle physics research.<br />How would you react to different types of energy fields? How would bees react to being on a sheet of paper in which a telescope reflects a dim image of the sun? Would they be attracted by sunspots or the images of solar flares?<br />Around the world the hives are disappearing, because of humans. Certainly, the activities of the chemical industry is a danger to bees.<br /><br />Sincerely: Luis Ortiz Flores<br /><br />The same text in Spanish:<br />Es buena idea tener colmenas de abejas.<br />En México, la miel de abeja es falsificada hasta en un 90% utilizando glucosa (creo) y saborizante artificial.<br />Si logras tener muchas colmenas, eso podría ser un buen negocio.<br />Sugiero que arrojes semillas de flores de plantas inofensivas en campos abandonados cercanos a las colmenas. De ese modo, tus abejas tendrán mucha miel.<br />Un pariente que tenía una úlcera varicosa en la pierna, logró hacer cerrar la úlcera untando miel en la herida. Ya hace tiempo, yo escuché que la miel puede detener infecciones en heridas. <br />La Doctora Bárbara Shipman, ha estado en contacto con las abejas desde que ella era niña. Ella tiene la teoría de que las abejas pueden percibir de alguna manera los quarks. Ella cree que la danza de las abejas podría estar inspirada en las estructuras magnéticas espectrales; creadas por los palpitantes quarks, que desaparecen y reaparecen, formando palpitantes campos magnéticos que las abejas usan como “plantilla” para crear su danza. (Quizás esos campos de fuerza, son la plantilla que usan las abejas para construir los hexágonos de las colmenas) Quizás las abejas pudiesen convertirse en sensores vivos, en las investigaciones en física de partículas. <br />¿Cómo reaccionarían ante distintos tipos de campos de energía? ¿Cómo reaccionarían las abejas al estar sobre una hoja de papel en la que un telescopio refleja una imagen atenuada del sol? ¿Serían atraídas por las manchas solares o por las imágenes de las llamaradas solares? <br />En todo el mundo las colmenas están desapareciendo, por culpa de los humanos. Ciertamente, las actividades de la industria química es un peligro para las abejas.<br /><br />Sincerely: Luis Ortiz Flores<br />Winter7https://www.blogger.com/profile/16829856315044551289noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-66840388939572111852017-01-27T18:51:28.493-08:002017-01-27T18:51:28.493-08:00OMG!
I was just wasting some time waiting for my ...OMG!<br /><br />I was just wasting some time waiting for my daughter to clean up as part of the tech crew after the high school talent show, and I was thinking...well, we've survived one week of Cheetolini which means there are only...207 left to go (plus 5 days, so I guess that's almost 208).<br /><br />No sooner to I get home and listen to the last hour of Norman Goldman's radio show, but he says the exact same thing (without mentioning the 5 extra days).<br /><br />I know that's no big deal, but the timing was just one of those things that makes one believe there's someone writing this stuff.<br />LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-43275492306393646602017-01-27T17:07:20.539-08:002017-01-27T17:07:20.539-08:00Jumper: "Disaster relief is going to cost mor...Jumper: <i>"Disaster relief is going to cost more than carbon-free power."</i><br /><br />It will cost SOMEBODY more than carbon-free power. Alas, the folks who benefit from carbon-power are also likely to be the folks who will not pay the costs. The only way to protect against the machinations of that group of folks will be for those of us trying to be responsible to unite. <br /><br />(Anon, you might help us unite with you by adopting a clearer handle so that you don't get mixed up with Carsitter... ;-)<br />donzelionhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05991849781932619746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-79670830622726542292017-01-27T17:05:08.588-08:002017-01-27T17:05:08.588-08:00LarryHart: First, I love the notion of our naming ...LarryHart: First, I love the notion of our naming 'Carsitter Anonymous.' He'll never even know we are referring to him as such, what with his nonresponsive jeremiad assault.<br /><br />The writing style of the person styling him/herself as Anon is not like that of the 11:18 Anonymous - but Anon did raise his view that our host is attacking straw men, and Anon responded to that mistaken identity by asserting Anon's laudable efforts to be conscientious. <br /><br />But is our host really attacking a straw man, as even our more cogent 'Arctic Anon' claimed? Brin's statement that neo-feudal masters are at work and 'at war' with knowledge professionals has quite a bit of support. I certainly know of few others (outside the socialists, whom I typically find tiresome) who so persistently pillory the would-be looters, and all their various types of agents.donzelionhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05991849781932619746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-8928582549095559792017-01-27T17:01:16.211-08:002017-01-27T17:01:16.211-08:00There is no "the" tipping point. There a...There is no "the" tipping point. There are a whole bag full of tipping points. That was my point. Disaster relief is going to cost more than carbon-free power.Jumperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11794110173836133321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-83623517238581623082017-01-27T16:15:41.441-08:002017-01-27T16:15:41.441-08:00jumper,
I know what you are saying is the convent...jumper,<br /><br />I know what you are saying is the conventional wisdom and i used to agree with it but I am not so sure anymore.<br /><br />From my point of view, the number one goal when we still could avoid dangerous climate change was to rapidly reduce our carbon emissions. (we collectively failed to even seriously try this option)<br /><br />But once we passed the tipping point, and the natural feedback processes kick in and become self sustaining, the first priority becomes adapting the new climate. Reducing carbon emissions should still be a goal (coal is still really bad, we are well past the peak of easily extracted/cheep oil).<br /><br />I know that it is not yet the consensus of the scientific community that studies the arctic, that we have indeed crossed that tipping point. They probably need a couple more freezing seasons like last year and this year. (there have been days this freezing season in which the arctic lost more than a 100,000 square kilometers of ice, something that typically only happens at the height of summer. 10 meter ocean waves have been breaking up the ice cap. The arctic winter is no longer very cold and dry, it is now cold, wet and stormy. Water in the air is a powerful greenhouse gas, trapping in the heat. And the storms are smashing the ice and stirring the arctic seas, bringing additional heat from ocean depths.) anonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-86837833733569182492017-01-27T15:52:28.833-08:002017-01-27T15:52:28.833-08:00donzelion:
BUT if you're the same 'anon&#...donzelion:<br /><i><br />BUT if you're the same 'anon' as the '11:18 anon' (what rhymes with ghetto?<br /></i><br /><br />See, that's how this discussion is spinning out of control.<br /><br />Every specific that Dr Brin responded to was from a post by "Anonymous". But he used the diminutive "anon" to address that guy, whereas "anon" was the actual name of a different poster, who then took offense because he thought Dr Brin was addressing him.<br /><br />Read the posts. It's all pretty obvious what happened.<br />LarryHartnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-67960179972313397992017-01-27T15:47:25.172-08:002017-01-27T15:47:25.172-08:00Anon: "I have been working my entire adult l...Anon: <i>"I have been working my entire adult life trying to avoid climate change, I have taken many steps to personally reduce my carbon footprint...But none of that has made any difference..."</i><br /><br />When you make a difference, you may not be able to measure the impact or the results, but it is still a difference.<br /><br />But the 'imaginary straw man' our host is most concerned (obsessed?) with is feudalism, the most persistent state of governance for humanity for the vast majority of our recorded history - and a structure with a ridiculous propensity to gouge the easy fruit of the earth while making others (the serfs) pay the price. <br /><br />I am frequently a critic here, even of people I vehemently agree with on most things. BUT if you're the same 'anon' as the '11:18 anon' (what rhymes with ghetto? stiletto, amaretto, libretto, forget-o...'what the heck-o?') - the "confederate cult" our host likes to refer to is his personal, literary coinage (um, he is a fairly respected author btw, so one should expect that). It's also a fairly apt testament to the environmental degradation typical of Southern aristocrats (King Cotton raped and wrecked the land as well as the people - and the primary solution of those engaged in the rape and pillage was to find more land in which to pursue the same agenda - then, as now).<br /><br />You cannot argue for responsible policies, in the workplace or elsewhere, with people who are convinced that they must strip as much as they can, as fast as they can, let the rest be damned. There are many such people; if you are not in that group, then good. But the 'straw man' most frequently being beaten on here, from what I've seen, has been the folks who will never acknowledge a label of 'feudalists' - but who in their daily lives, take steps to shape a world to maintain their extravagant indolence.donzelionhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05991849781932619746noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-74090172383049458242017-01-27T15:45:41.280-08:002017-01-27T15:45:41.280-08:00One blog operator banishes posts by wack jobs, but...One blog operator banishes posts by wack jobs, but moves them to another page: a blog jail of sorts. And always provides a link to blog jail, so he can't be accused of too much intellectual fascism. Jumperhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11794110173836133321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8587336.post-13863583435672155932017-01-27T15:42:04.922-08:002017-01-27T15:42:04.922-08:00What future technologies could we use to alter the...What future technologies could we use to alter the orbit of Mercury to bring it close enough to be captured as a moon for Venus? Such a maneuver could give Venus a more reasonable spin, maybe even push Venus's orbit out a bit. Then throw up a partially reflecting nano-shroud and we could cool down Venus to a nice Mediterranean level in a few short millennia.<br /><br />-AtomicZeppelinManAntonymhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03152277046285134692noreply@blogger.com