I probably shouldn't respond to your post but...
Martian gravity is so low that it's atmosphere just gradually escaped to space over millennia.
You might agree with me that having almost no atmosphere quite significantly alters a planetary climate.

Check this article out:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atmosphere_of_Mars

Google thinks it does have a good reason for not wanting memory card slots on Android devices.
First thing - a card mounted via UMS (USB Mass Storage) to a PC isn't available to Android OS. Think of all apps (and their data) installed on the card and how would they behave if the card suddenly becomes invisible to Android...
Second thing - security issues. FAT filesystem on most SD card - no file ownership.
Third thing - One of the core Android principles is that you never need a file manager. With a memory card mounted a user can start to wonder where data (photo, music, file) ends up.

I miss memory card slots on Android devices a lot but I can understand Google reasons for shunning them.
A nice (albeit long) article on the subject:
http://www.androidpolice.com/2011/11/18/impromptu-qa-session-with-android-engineer-dan-morrill-brings-to-light-reasons-behind-galaxy-nexus-lack-of-usb-mass-storage/

Exactly.
The difference between high and low solar activity is small (0.1% difference).
With solar radiation at the average level of ~1366 W/sqm the variation is a tiny 1.3 Watts...

The temperatures during the so-called Little Ice Age were lower than average by less than 1 degree Celsius.
Calling the period an "Ice Age" is incorrect.

a candle in the wind [']

What amuses me is the universal hatred for Lotus Notes across the board on /.
I'm currently using Lotus Notes 9 Social Edition at work and I have to say it's good.

I'm interested in how many of your bad experiences can be attributed to pre-8 version of Notes.
Versions 8+ are quite decent IMO.

Sad news. It would be great if Disney open sourced the X-Wing and Tie Fighter code... :-O

Version 3.6, released on January 21, 2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Firefox

> I don't know a single person that doesn't bike because they have to wear a helmet.

I can't find the original article as it was a few years ago but here's a summary:
"Researchers from Lancaster University questioned 1400 people over three years to see what deters us from cycling to work. Arriving with ‘helmet hair’ stopped 27 per cent of women from cycling (...)"
http://www.redonline.co.uk/news/in-the-news/helmet-hair-fear-stops-cyclists

Report link:
http://www.lancs.ac.uk/users/ext-rel/press/LU%20News%20web%20links/Understanding_Walking_%26_Cycling_Report.pdf

First World Problems...

Geez.. Get a bicycle man.
I cycle to work every day.
15.5 km one way (~45 minutes).

Most of these textbooks will be printed out anyway so the "problem" of small e-book readers is a non-existing one. The whole project is more about a free and open access to knowledge. Electronic gadgets in Polish schools are not welcome - they turn children attention from what the teacher is saying.

If Google made such an extension for Firefox I'd consider the option of installing it. SInce I'm not using Chrome - I won't bother.

A small correction... It were actually Polish mathematicians - Marian Rejewski and Henryk Zygalski who broke the Enigma code in 1932. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marian_Rejewski Alan Turing based his Bombe design on the results of their work. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bombe

or digiKam: http://www.digikam.org/ http://windows.kde.org/