Ant Colony Comes To Halt After Death Of Popular Worker (from The Onion)

OLD BRIDGE, NJ—The transportation of nourishing bread crumbs came to an abrupt halt Thursday morning when ant colony 000082567KLN00067X collectively paused to remember the life of veteran worker FL77542PM4. Workers HJ997462M and IK002620FC secreted primer pheromones to signal the start of the solemn moment, and Queen XHB004-65B memorialized the event by releasing a scent trail from her engorged abdomen. Known throughout the superorganism for being in constant locomotion, FL77542PM4 had been a member of the colony since he first emerged from his pupal casing, and was considered an expert at nest construction. The service ended when fellow workers marched over his body, tore apart his thorax, and began feeding their fallen compatriot to their young

Funny Cartoon from Joe's Big Blog:

Why create life in a lab?

Well, because we can! Of course that's not the only reason. All good science proceeds through the " What is that?," to the "How does that work?," to the "Can I take that apart?," to the "Can I put it back together?", and finally, to the "Can I make it better?" stages. We always have the "how this will make human lives better" idea in the back of our minds, but in the front, it's just the desire to boldly go where no one has gone before idea.

On top of that, the new species they created has the names of its creators, and a web page, all encoded in its DNA! Frakin' Amazing! Hey, can I take that apart to get the web page address?

Amazing Original Thing To Become Hated Cliché In 6 Months

(from The Onion)

NEW YORK—An extremely clever and creative new thing will amuse the world for two and a half weeks in June, become passé by mid-September, and wind up as a trite and infuriating cliché by Christmas, sources said Monday. "Positive reviews on Boing Boing will signal the brief 'happy' phase of this exciting new thing's existence, about 11 weeks prior to the first backlash," said Wired magazine senior writer Stephen Levy. "I look forward to watching America fall in love with, make YouTube parodies of, sour on, forget about, and groan legitimately when hackneyed late-night talk show references are made to the thing." Levy estimated that the thing's creator will earn $400,000 from licensing its image for use on T-shirts that will all be donated to Goodwill by next spring.

This Day in Science History

On May 29 in 1898, Alfred Nobel's heirs sign a "reconciliation agreement," indicating their approval of final plans by lawyers and accountants to execute his will. The will created the Nobel Prizes, but for the 18 months following his death, it created only hassles and bitterness.
—from The Illustrated Almanac of Science, Technology, and Invention

Texas board adopts right-wing curriculum

Thanks Texas, you've given the country yet another gift! 

First it was George W, now it's ignorance, partisanship to the point of stupidity, and a smashing down of the wall between church and state. The Founding Fathers would be so proud! I'm sure Jefferson, Washington, Adams, Hamilton and Jay are rejoicing at the Texas school boards coup de grâce to rational thinking, accurate reporting of historical facts, and non-partisan intervention into our childrens' education. 

Oh, but wait, they're probably not allowed to be taught about in Texas schools now, so no one will know!

Dudes, I'm in Arizona, and I think you guys are whacked. Arizona babies, that's right, you're making us look enlightened! Thanks again, double bonus! Well, at least we don't have to worry about all those kids from Texas competing for jobs with the reality-based world. I mean, who will hire them, knowing how little they know. Sorry kids, but hey, Texas is a big state, maybe you can get a job helping George W clear brush?

OK, I know I'm being flippant and churlish about a serious issue, but I'm just pissed off, and I really feel for the majority of Texans who are good, intelligent people. Every Texan I've ever met is a fine American, but guys, come on, vote with your minds, not your hymn book. 

Also, Gov. Perry, I know you come from a very political world which dictates and parses your every move, but please, reconsider your choices for next years school board. This is the future you're playing with. America's competitive ability to advance in the world, not just some left verses right political checkers match. Do the right thing, man! Have some stones to say no to the extremists in your party. Is this the party of Lincoln?

From the Dallas News:

Board Democrats accused the Republicans of a “cut-and-paste” job on the standards that included a flurry of late amendments undoing much of the work of teachers and academics who were appointed to review teams to draft the curriculum requirements last year. 

“Here we are trying to approve standards for our children that will be used for years and we are being asked to approve all these last-minute cut-and-paste proposals,” said Mary Helen Berlanga, D-Corpus Christi.“I don’t think any teacher would accept work like this,” she said. “They would have thrown this paper in the trash. We’ve done an injustice to the children of this state.” 

Board member Mavis Knight, D-Dallas, called the proposal a “travesty.”“The board has made these standards political and had little academic discussion about what students need to learn,” she said. “I am ashamed of what we have done to the students and teachers of this state.”

Another statement from the extreme right wing-nuts on the board:

Board member Cynthia Dunbar, R-Richmond, another social conservative, opened Friday’s board meeting with an invocation that referred to the U.S. and its history as a “Christian land governed by Christian principles.”“I believe no one can read the history of our country without realizing that the Good Book and the spirit of the Savior have from the beginning been our guiding geniuses,” she said. 

Again, respect to whatever savior you may choose to believe in (I read the same books you do), but your personal religious views have no place in the design of educational curriculum. The Christian Taliban has struck again, it seems.

Finally, from Salon: Educators have blasted the proposed curriculum for politicizing education. Teachers also have said the document is too long and will force students to memorize lists of names rather than thinking critically. (emphasis added)

I guess that's what they were shooting for, after all... 

Today in Science History

On May 20 in 1747, British ship's surgeon James Lind begins an experiment on HMS Salisbury in which he strictly controlled the diets of 12 sailors with scurvy; those receiving lemons and oranges showed "sudden and visible good effects." The study is now a classic; it produced a cure for the disease that had killed millions, led to reforms in naval health practices, and shaped the fates of nations.
—from The Illustrated Almanac of Science, Technology, and Invention

Today in Science History

On May 16 in 1988, Surgeon General C. Everett Koop declares that nicotine is addictive in ways similar to heroin and cocaine.
—from The Illustrated Almanac of Science, Technology, and Invention

Today in Science History

On May 9 in 1794, mathematician-physicist Joseph-Louis Lagrange laments over the previous day's guillotining of Antoine Lavoisier, one of history's greatest chemists: "Only a moment to cut off that head, and a hundred years may not give us another like it." Lavoisier fell victim to the Reign of Terror in France at age 51.
—from The Illustrated Almanac of Science, Technology, and Invention

Say hi to our newest member of the family, Merlin...

Hawking: Aliens exist, but interaction would be risky

British astrophysicist Stephen Hawking says aliens are out there, but it could be too dangerous for humans to interact with extraterrestrial life.

Hawking claims in a new documentary that intelligent alien lifeforms almost certainly exist, but warns that communicating with them could be "too risky."

The 68-year-old scientist says a visit by extraterrestrials to Earth would be like Christopher Columbus arriving in the Americas, "which didn't turn out very well for the Native Americans."

He speculates most extraterrestrial life will be similar to microbes, or small animals - but adds advanced lifeforms may be "nomads, looking to conquer and colonize."

The Discovery Channel said Sunday it will broadcast "Stephen Hawking's Universe" in Britain next month.

Midterms Have Been Conquered!

Well, you've survived Midterms (well, most of you did, anyway) so you're probably saying either Invictus maneo!  (I remain unconquered!) or Nescio quid dicas (I don’t know what you’re talking about).

Either way, the first half is done, and you only have four more weeks to go! Remember, to win a race, you need to give your best at the end, not slow down and cruise to the finish line. Besides, you really don't want to have to see me again, with the same old stuff, next year, do you?

Peace,

JG

Man arrested at Large Hadron Collider claims he's from the future - From Crave at CNET UK

A would-be saboteur arrested today at the Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland made the bizarre claim that he was from the future. Eloi Cole, a strangely dressed young man, said that he had travelled back in time to prevent the LHC from destroying the world.

The LHC successfully collided particles at record force earlier this week, a milestone Mr Cole was attempting to disrupt by stopping supplies of Mountain Dew to the experiment's vending machines. He also claimed responsibility for the infamous baguette sabotage in November last year. Mr Cole was seized by Swiss police after CERN security guards spotted him rooting around in bins. He explained that he was looking for fuel for his 'time machine power unit', a device that resembled a kitchen blender.

Police said Mr Cole, who was wearing a bow tie and rather too much tweed for his age, would not reveal his country of origin. "Countries do not exist where I am from. The discovery of the Higgs boson led to limitless power, the elimination of poverty and Kit-Kats for everyone. It is a communist chocolate hellhole and I'm here to stop it ever happening."

This isn't the first time time-travel has been blamed for mishaps at the LHC. Last year, the Japanese physicist Masao Ninomiya and Danish string-theory pioneer Holger Bech Nielsen put forward the hypothesis that the Higgs boson was so "abhorrent" that it somehow caused a ripple in time that prevented its own discovery.

Professor Brian Cox, a former CERN physicist and full-time rock'n'roll TV scientist, was sympathetic to Mr Cole. "Bless him, he sounds harmless enough. At least he didn't mention bloody black holes."

Mr Cole was taken to a secure mental health facility in Geneva but later disappeared from his cell. Police are baffled, but not that bothered.

My descendants have failed yet again! Oh, what will become of our future, if you can't get your grandson to do a simple thing like....jg

Teacher who inspired 'Stand and Deliver' dies

“Jaime exposed one of the most dangerous myths of our time – that inner city students can't be expected to perform at the highest levels,” Edward James Olmos said. “Because of him, that destructive idea has been shattered forever". (from here)

The math teacher at a tough East Los Angeles high school who inspired the movie "Stand and Deliver," has died. He was 79. A family friend says Jaime Escalante died Tuesday in Reno, Nev., where he was undergoing treatment for bladder cancer.

An immigrant from Bolivia, he transformed Garfield High School by motivating struggling students to tackle and excel at advanced math and science. The school had more Advanced Placement calculus students than all but three other public high schools in the country.

Edward James Olmos played Escalante in the film based on his story. Olmos says Escalante proved that inner city students can perform at the highest levels, and left an important legacy for American education.

Associated Press

A 1988 file shows Jaime Escalante teaching math at Garfield High School in Los Angeles.

From the Wikipedia entree on Mr. Escalante:

Determined to change the status quo, Escalante had to persuade the first few students who would listen to him that they could control their futures with the right education. He promised them that the jobs would be in engineering, electronics and computers but they would have to learn math to succeed. He said to his students "I'll teach you math and that's your language. With that you're going to make it. You're going to college and sit in the first row, not the back, because you're going to know more than anybody".

 

Welcome to Block 4!

Almost done guys! Congratulations to all those students who successfully navigated Biology I and Forensic Science I, and good luck in part two of both of those classes. 

As you should know by now, the point of this blog is to give you all some extracurricular information beyond what we talk about in class, to provide a a place to chat informally, and to offer you a chance for some extra credit.

To start off, it's easy peasy. Click on the small Comments link below (next to the email icon) and leave me a message telling me you were here (and who you are). 

For future assignments, I will have an article, an image, or a video for you to check out, and you can either leave a Comment, or email me a note at jgiacobbe_southpointe@cox.net and tell me what you think the article was about, and two important facts you learned from the article/image/video.

OK, so visit this page weekly for action, adventure, and really weird stuff! - JG

“I know it seems hard sometimes but remember one thing.
Through every dark night, there's a bright day after that.
So no matter how hard it get, stick your chest out, keep ya head up.... and handle it.” 

                   - Tupac Shakur

(from Brainmysteries.com) 


Study: Today's youth aren't ego-driven slackers after all!

A research paper co-authored by Brent Donnellan, associate professor of psychology at Michigan State University, contends that today's youth aren't the antisocial slackers that previous research has made them out to be. - Michigan State University

Today's youth are generally not the self-centered, antisocial slackers that previous research has made them out to be, according to a provocative new study co-authored by a Michigan State University psychologist.

In a scientific analysis of nearly a half-million high-school seniors spread over three decades, MSU's Brent Donnellan and Kali Trzesniewski of the University of Western Ontario argue teens today are no more egotistical - and just as happy and satisfied - as previous generations.

"We concluded that, more often than not, kids these days are about the same as they were back in the mid-1970s," said Donnellan, associate professor of psychology.

The study appears in the research journal Perspectives on Psychological Science. Donnellan acknowledges that many people will be surprised by the findings, which refute previous studies classifying today's youth as selfish loafers with extremely high levels of self-esteem.

But while much previous research has relied on "convenience studies" of relatively small samples of young adults, Donnellan said, the current study analyzes the psychological profile data of 477,380 high school seniors from 1976 to 2006. The data comes from the University of Michigan's federally funded Monitoring the Future survey, which each year tracks the behaviors, attitudes and values of American students.
In other findings:

• Today's youth are more cynical and less trusting of institutions than previous generations. But Donnellan said this is generally true of the broader population.
• The current generation is less fearful of social problems such as race relations, hunger, poverty and energy shortages.
• Today's youth have higher educational expectations.

Ultimately, Donnellan said, it's common for older generations to paint youth in a negative light - as lazy and self-absorbed, for example - which can perpetuate stereotypes. It can be easy, he added, to forget what it's like to grow up.

"Kids today are like they were 30 years ago - they're trying to find their place in the world, they're trying to carve out an identity, and it can be difficult," Donnellan said. "But lots of research shows that the stereotypes of all groups are much more overdrawn than the reality."

Note: This story has been adapted from a news release issued by the Michigan State University

OK, so none of you know who the hell Alex Chilton or the Box Tops were. Cool.

How about some Tubac? Now listen to the frakin' words, babies, and maybe you'll learn something from the master...JG

Alex Chilton, Influential Rock Singer, Dies at 59

By DAVE ITZKOFF

Published: March 19, 2010 - New York Times

Alex Chilton, a mercurial rock musician whose work ranged from the soul songs of the Box Tops to the multiple incarnations of his pop band Big Star, and who left a legacy more easily measured in artistic influence than in commercial impact, died on Wednesday in New Orleans, where he had been living since the 1980s. He was 59.

for the rest of the article, click here.

Chilton was one of those guys who everyone who knows anything about music admired, and many tried to emulate, but never quite made it to the "top of the pops." Still, he made some great tunes that will be listened to for decades to come - Peace Alex....jg

For a sample of his music, check this out:

A Hilarious Clip Shows Us How 'Twilight' Should Have Ended

Click here to view the video

By Matt Thompson
"Twilight" … in animation … with a different ending? Now that’s certainly original. You need to watch this clip that just went live on HowItShouldHaveEnded.com, a site that pokes fun at "questionable" movie endings by morphing them into a whole new storyline. The short starts off at the end of "Twilight" where Bella has been bitten and mangled by evil vampire James. She is dying, or well, uh, "turning into a vampire." All the Cullens are shown coupled around Bella in a reenactment, and it's more of a laughingstock than anything else.

The new ending has Bella turning into a bloodsucker after Edward ponders for a moment being with an old grandma while he still has the appearance of a young 17-year-old. Alice jokes she can see into the future and sees Jacob getting bigger with washboard abs, stealing Bella from Edward. With jokes from all the Cullen members, it’s very comical and makes light of one of the movie franchises that has just about everyone talking this week. (Two words: "New Moon.") HISHE, which recently partnered with Starz Digital Media, was launched in 2005 after the terrible ending of the "Flight of the Phoenix" remake coerced a few creative minds to redo the finale. Now, millions of streams later, we think it's about time they mocked the beloved vampire franchise!
What did you guys think of the clip? 

EXTRA CREDIT - OK Guys, this is your last change to get some extra credit before the block ends. Read one or more of the following articles, and write me some comments suggesting what the article is about. If you must, you can also email me your comments at jgiacobbe_southpointe@cox.net

Remember, next week is our last week of the block, so get your stuff together and get it to me yesterday. Your final exam will be Wednesday, March 10th. DON'T PANIC! (well, maybe, on the other hand, some of you should panic, and/or study harder...

Others May Know Us Better Than We Know Ourselves, Study Finds

sciencedaily.com  —  Humans have long been advised to "know thyself," but new research suggests we may not know ourselves as well as we think we do. While individuals may be more accurate at assessing their own neurotic traits, such as anxiety, it seems friends, and even strangers, are often better barometers of traits such as intelligence, creativity and extroversion.

For the rest of the article, click here

Building a More Survivable ‘Future’ for the Army

wired.com  —  The Army once planned to build a family of networked, electric-powered combat vehicles that would use information — instead of inches of armor — to help them survive on the battlefield. Now, it looks like the service is completely rethinking its approach.

For the rest of the article, click here

An Infrared View of the Galaxy

 

nasa.gov — This sweeping panorama is the sharpest infrared picture ever made of the Galactic core. The center of our Milky Way galaxy reveals a new population of massive stars and new details in complex structures in the hot ionized gas swirling around the central 300 light-years.

For the whole galaxy, click here