happiness, space, china, ramadan

WARNING: Happiness is highly contagious... as is obesity and quitting smoking. Quote:

Well-connected nodes in the graph (i.e., people with more friends) are more likely to be happier than less-connected nodes, even when the edges represent more distant friendships. Individuals quitting smoking, or becoming obese, influence not only their immediately connected friends but also friends of friends, with the effect sometimes skipping the intermediary node. The contagion effect is most noticeable when a tendency is passed from one person to another of the same sex — friends of the opposite sex, including spouses, are not as influential.

Looking for life in all the right places: First earth-like exoplanet found (and it's very close to us!) "The environment on COROT-7b is probably too extreme to support life. But it’s helping to tell us that these things must be pretty common."

Salvation is from the Jews... as are the Wild Things.

China breaks ground on its fourth space center.

Ramadan is wrapping up for Muslims.

The Framers were Gamers... the U.S. Constitution as game design. (What successful game doesn't have finely tuned checks & balances?)

omodaka

Created with a Game Boy! ...The song fits Japanese language much better!

atoms, animal emotions, women, subs

Atoms are finally ready for their close up ... actual photographs of atoms.

One of the major arguments against animal emotions is that they cannot reflect on their own mental states (and there's no possible way we could ever study it) ... but perhaps we can and have.

Women may be better politicians than men.

For fans of SeaQuest... super-light subs [By the way, why isn't there a race to the ocean bottom like there was a race to the moon? I would imagine there are a lot more resources to be gained from ocean exploration than from trips to Mars.]

blogs, podcasts-- favorites I can't get over

I read a lot of blogs and podcasts. Today I had a few hours to clean out the lame ones and keep the good ones. Here's a few of my favorites:

Blogs:

3QuarksDaily - Charles Darwin film 'too controversial for religious America'

I've said this before but this blog is better than any magazine in print--and it's jam-packed every day. Everything linked or written is brilliant and it covers everything from videos, culture, science & tech, even poetry! (The poetry was really awful for a long time but I think it's getting better.)

Bad Astronomy - The Might Be Scientists

Explaining amazing astronomy in lay terms and also attacking pseudoscience with snarky humor, this blog is one of my faves. The energy and humor of this guy is infectious.

ScienceDaily - Giant stone axes found in African lake basin

Very well-written short articles on the most amazing stuff you'll never learn about.

Slashdot - Students take pictures from space on a $150 budget

A techie/hacker site that finds a lot of quirky bits generally lost in the news.

Podcasts:

Are We Alone? (cannot recommend this enough, not about aliens)

The Economist

Frontline/World (video podcast)

BBC Global News

TED Talks

Wide Angle (video podcast)

Slate Daily Podcast

+ I want to live a really long time--at least to 100 (2084 C.E.). A few of my relatives have lived a long time so my chances (genetically) may be pretty good. I want to see the future, be apart of whatever happens next. The quality of life seems to always be improving--expensive, difficult sugeries become routine, telescopes see farther into space, food production becomes more humane and efficient. People learn more, dream more, do more. This universe/multi-verse is a wonderful place to be.

+ I just started teaching for the first time this month. I think I really love it. But what will the future of education be? What will universities become? ...and The New Libraries?

+ I recently watched "In The Shadow of the Moon" about the Apollo missions. I forgot they landed six different times. It is truly awe-some to watch the NASA footage. And yet with all the technological advances, it isn't any cheaper. Why is this? Well, rocket technology really has changed--and chemical fuel is heavy to lift. I think that NASA should open up to the private sector more and develop more programs like the Mars rover missions and more deep-space telescopes, for example, on the moon.

+ Recent Rentals:

Fog of War - ** - Extended interview with Robert McNamara
W. - ** - Richard Dreyfuss as Cheney was fantastic.
Frost/Nixon - **** - Excellent movie. Frost was the original Anchorman.
In The Shadow of the Moon - ***** - If you didn't see it when it happened, see this movie.

+ Currently Reading: A Secular Age by Charles Taylor, Animals Make Us Human by Temple Grandin

A Storm of Fat Black Snowflakes: Purple Martins migrating through Omaha

Monkey Music!

Year of the Dog: East Asia 16,000 years ago

Aiming for the bottom: U.S. Internet providers tell the FCC that people don't want fast internet
(Current U.S. Speed: 9.6 mpbs Japan: 92.8 mpbs!) ...But they will be so happy to advertise how 'lighting-fast' their services are.