As much as I hate that Youtuber douchebag Justin Bieber, I think the cops were probably pretty stupid for arresting him, especially considering what appear to be the facts. However, I'd be pretty pissed off if I was a cop and I had to disperse a mob of whiny, caffeinated teenage girls congregating over *that* guy too, so I can empathize. I still anticipate a false arrest case.

Well, the NR2B gene is encoding for a very common and well known receptor within both rat and human brains - the NMDA receptor. These receptors have been the target of the majority of recent studies into working memory and synaptic plasticity, or so-called "long-term potentiation". Basically, the NMDA receptor is the most likely cause of memory reinforcement. The idea is that when two neurons fire simultaneously, the connection between them is strengthened for a long period of time. That is, the post-synaptic neuron becomes more sensitive to input from the pre-synaptic neuron. This effect is input-specific, in that it is only effective between the two specific neurons involved, and no similar input from other pre-synaptic neurons is necessarily potentiated. Most LTP relies on the NMDA receptors to function, via the calcium ion channels within most synapses. This is why increasing the number of NMDA receptors would likely reflect a quantitative increase in memory. This isn't exactly breaking news - researchers have known about the NMDA receptors/NR2B gene for years, and I've seen studies from several years ago with the same approximate findings in animal models.

I will not argue with you that "State Universities are run by mortal men and women, who make the same mistakes and misteps as the rest of us". However, it's ludicrous to think that large-scale universities don't have business administrators who are at least SUPPOSED to have a basic understanding of economic and managerial principles, for the purpose of running the university in an efficient manner. The issue is often neither a lack of educators doing their job, nor a lack of business-men/women doing their jobs. It's mostly the lack of proper understanding and communication between the two that causes inefficiency in most higher-education institutions.

Barney Fife would likely agree. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=de_P2aUZJyA

I was wondering the same thing. Since they are using the DNA for its physical properties, and not its chemical "code", why salmon DNA?

I hope this is the beginning of a trend. I like learning that mirrors real world situations. You can never underutilize your available resources, whether as a student or working for money in a career. This is an aspect of the world that is ignored in the classroom, historically speaking. The ability to phone someone you know for information is a good thing to teach.

I suggest you take a look at Kroc Camen's "Video for Everybody" HTML5 video element implementation. Not a hint of Javascript is necessary to implement it, and it's very cross-platform. It can play back in OGG, Flash, Quicktime (even on the iPhone), WMA, or alternatively provide a download link. http://camendesign.com/code/video_for_everybody

And you're using TOBACCO as an example? You do realize tobacco is a plant that grows anywhere, right? But how many people are growing it themselves to make their own cigarettes? The price of cannabis is directly linked to its illegality. After 10 years of it being legal, an quarter ounce of marijuana will cost as much as a six pack of beer.