Derren Brown Live – 08/09/10
Coming soon to Channel 4, Derren Brown, the acclaimed psychological illusionist, returns to Channel 4 for a thought provoking – and life transforming – special.
Following the successes of previous television specials such as Russian Roulette Live, Séance, The Heist and The Events, Derren once again creates edge-of-the-seat television as he takes ‘average Joes’ on an extraordinary psychological journey.
In a powerful transformation, which will include an amazing, must-watch live finale, Derren releases his subjects from the restraints that they have placed on themselves and allows them the opportunity to fulfil their true potential, opening the door to a new and exciting future…
Text Via Channel 4
PZ Myers on Religion in the science classroom
PZ Meyers admits he’s not the politest person in the world. In this talk he throws about some rather abrupt insults at the creationist movement and why he is justified in doing them. He mentions his talks with Dawkins
Prof. Paul Zachary Myers works with zebrafish in the field of evolutionary developmental biology (evo-devo). A selfavowed godless liberal and outspoken atheist, he is a vocal skeptic of all forms of religion, superstition, spirituality and pseudoscience.
He is quoted as having “nothing but contempt for Intelligent Design”, arguing that it is “fundamentally dishonest”. In 2009 Myers was named the American Humanist Association’s Humanist of the Year.
Via Atheist Media
1.25 Gigawatts of Solar Thermal Power Approved in California in Past Two Days Will Double US Capacity
“There’ve been multiple gigawatts of solar thermal power plants planned for various places in the California desert for some time, but finally some more of them are getting the approvals need so that construction can start: The US Bureau of Land Management has issued a final environmental impact statement for the 1,000 MW Blythe Solar Power Project; and the 250 MW Beacon Solar Energy project has received final California state approval as well.
The smaller of the two first: Renewable Energy World reports NextEra Energy Resources has been given the green light by the California Energy Commission to begin construction on the 250 MW Beacon Solar Energy project.
The $1 billion, 2,000 acre solar thermal power plant will use parabolic troughs to concentrate sunlight and generate electricity. NextEra expects the power plant to come online within the next three years, though as yet it has no power purchase agreement in place. In other words, no electric utility has yet committed to buy the power the plant produces.
And the larger of the two: With the final BLM environmental impact statement completed, and the CEC already saying it will approve the project once public comment closes next month, Solar Millennium Inc. will soon begin construction on the 1,000 MW Blythe Solar Power Project.
The 7,025 acre project, also using parabolic trough technology, is expected to produce enough power for approximately 800,000 homes, and alone will nearly double the installed commercial solar power capacity in the United States.
The price tag and time til completion: $6 billion and six years once construction actually begins.”
Read more at Tree Hugger
Rare fire tornado caught on film
“Severe drought and strong dry winds in Sao Paolo have caused a rare fire tornado in the northwest city of Aracatuba. A three month drought in the region has led to brush fires across Brazil, creating the conditions for the fire tornado. Fire tornados, also known colloquially as fire devils, happen when a fire acquires a vertical rotating column of air. Some can be more than a half a mile tall and contain winds over 100 mph.
In 1923, Great Kanto earthquake in Japan, ignited a firestorm that raged through the city and produced a gigantic fire tornado that killed 38,000 in 15 minutes in the Hifukusho-Ato region of Tokyo.”
Read more at The Telegraph (Thanks @whispywolf)
Great Guerrilla Advertising
“Guerrilla Advertising is an unconventional way of performing promotional activities. Usually very funny or subtle, it’s a great way to promote a business with a low budget and generate buzz. But you’ll need lots of creativity.
Here are some great guerrilla ads examples. They are simply brilliant.”
Vacuum cleaner ad:
Inventive mobile carrier ad:
See more at Funnymos (Thanks Tracey)
Tiny apartment shows the value of a good fit
“WE SIT IN the “cafe area” of Steve Sauer’s minuscule apartment enjoying the view from the home’s only window, street level. Dogs on leashes and legs on humans pass by on a warm Lower Queen Anne evening.
Sauer stands up. This is to demonstrate that at 6-foot-2 he has a no-more-than-needed 2-inch clearance between his head and the ceiling.
Sauer likes this precision. Awkward spaces, wasted places annoy him. Two alarm clocks, two music sources, extra furniture. Needless, needless, needless.
“What I really wanted was one place with exactly what I needed and wanted. Quality is more important than quantity for me, and extra space only a problem,” he has written, describing his nearby too-big-for-him, one-bedroom condo.
To me he says, “I tend to like things in their place.”
And that explains it: The uber-cool, fully functional 182-square-foot home for two on the basement floor of a 102-year-old apartment building that Sauer is finishing after seven years of work. It could also have something to do with his line of work — airplane interiors engineering for Boeing. And education — a master’s degree in whole-systems design.
Sauer’s tiny Seattle home is remarkable.”
Read more at The Seattle Times (Thanks Christopher C)
When getting away means staying in touch
“People used to go on holiday to unplug. Now they’re demanding to be plugged in. That secluded, desert island-type getaway may soon be as dated as the post-vacation slide show as more travelers use e-mails, Facebook and Twitter to nurture the ties that bind even while they get away from it all.
“For many travelers figuring out how to stay connected is as integral to the travel process as packing sun lotion and swimwear,” said Amelie Hurst of travel website TripAdvisor. “In times gone by this just wasn’t an option. Traveling went hand in hand with being disconnected,” she said. Hurst said clients planning their trips routinely factor in the best means of staying in contact. “Travelers ask the quality of cell phone service, international data plans. Staying connected can offer travelers a real comfort,” she explained.
A recent survey of 2000 travelers by American Express found that 77 per cent of Americans intend to stay connected while on vacation via Internet, phone, social media and other channels. The motivation is social, not business. Only 14 per cent said they would stay connected for work. “Eighty-nine percent of people want to talk to family and friends, to be very connected in real time,” said Audrey Hendley of American Express Travel. “Even five years ago that wasn’t the case.”
Connectivity means more than just checking e-mail. “Sharing information, sharing photos, it’s a change in lifestyle, it’s ‘Now I want to tell you about me,’” she said. The poll revealed that 20 percent updated their social media sites while on vacation.”
Read more at Reuters (Thanks @XxLadyClaireXx)
Cows given waterbeds to improve milk
“A dairy farmer has supplied his herd with waterbeds to encourage them to produce better quality milk. Cows at Brue Valley Farms, in Glastonbury, Somerset, are also treated to classical music in the milking shed. The cattle can spend up to 18 hours a day lounging on their specially-designed rubber beds, which are cleaned and filled with 50 litres of fresh water every day.
Bosses at the farm, which has been producing Farmhouse Cheddar for half a century, say their unusual methods have helped to produce a better quality product.
Robert Clapp, Director of Herds, said: “In order to make the best possible cheese you need to be completely ‘cow centric.’ “It’s not about what is best for the farmer, but about what is best for the cow. “Our herds enjoy top quality treatment and in return they create delicious, creamy milk that goes into producing the best quality Farmhouse Cheddar.” The 35-year-old added: “We treat our cows as individuals and care for every aspect of their lives including socialising and comfort as well as obvious needs such as food and health care.”
To celebrate fifty years of cheesemaking, the team at Brue Valley Farms has developed an extra-mature Farmhouse Cheddar. The new recipe will be sold exclusively in Marks and Spencer’s supermarkets.”
Read more at The Telegraph
The Pizza Burger: A 2,500-Calorie ‘Fat Bomb’
“Burger King is set to launch the Pizza Burger – a two-in-one dish that contains more than 2,500 calories and is four times the size of the chain’s Whoppers.
The meal will delight fast-food fans when it is exclusively introduced at Burger King’s Whopper Bar in Times Square, New York, next month. Besides the beef and a 9.5-inch sesame bun, the Pizza Burger is topped with pepperoni, mozzarella, Tuscan pesto and marinara sauce. It also comes in six slices, just like a pizza.
According to blogger Me So Hungry, it is the perfect mix between a pizza and a burger. “The visual highlight was the New York Pizza Burger… it’s not bad. Tastes kinda like pizza, but also like a burger,” the blogger said. It has been dubbed the “fat bomb” because, for $13 (£8.40), customers can bite into 2,520 calories – the recommended daily intake is 2,500 calories for men and 2,000 for women.
One Pizza Burger contains 144g of fat – 59g of which is saturated. It also has 3,780mg of salt, which is more than double the daily limit for adults. John Schaufelberger, Burger King’s vice president of global marketing, insisted the Pizza Burger is “intended to be shared”. But he also admitted that it “demonstrates the type of menu offerings our guests can expect”. According to Mr Schaufelberger, the Pizza Burger is a homage to New York, the home of Burger King.”
Read more at Sky News (Thanks Liam R)
Double meteorite strike ’caused dinosaur extinction’
“The dinosaurs were wiped out 65 million years ago by at least two meteorite impacts, rather than a single strike, a new study suggests. Previously, scientists had identified a huge impact crater in the Gulf of Mexico as the event that spelled doom for the dinosaurs. Now evidence for a second impact in Ukraine has been uncovered. This raises the possibility that the Earth may have been bombarded by a whole shower of meteorites.
The new findings are published in the journal Geology by a team lead by Professor David Jolley of Aberdeen University. When first proposed in 1980, the idea that a meteorite impact had killed the dinosaurs proved hugely controversial. Later, the discovery of the Chicxulub Crater in the Gulf of Mexico, US, was hailed as “the smoking gun” that confirmed the theory. The discovery of a second impact crater suggests that the dinosaurs were driven to extinction by a “double whammy” rather than a single strike.
The Boltysh Crater in Ukraine was first reported in 2002. However, until now it was uncertain exactly how the timing of this event related to the Chicxulub impact. In the current study, scientists examined the “pollen and spores” of fossil plants in the layers of mud that infilled the crater. They found that immediately after the impact, ferns quickly colonised the devastated landscape. Ferns have an amazing ability to bounce back after catastrophe. Layers full of fern spores – dubbed “fern spikes” – are considered to be a good “markers” of past impact events. However, there was an unexpected discovery in store for the scientists. They located a second “fern spike” in a layer one metre above the first, suggesting another later impact event.”
Read more at BBC News (Thanks @XxLadyClaireXx)
