my father (who is a scientist) subscribed to Science; the AAAS journal among others. Weekly in my youth I was required to read the Abstract on every article. "I do not care if you understand it, just read it." was his instructions. One thing I learned was: Command of a discipline was seldom accompanied by a ability to communicate it in simple English sentences. The reason Sagan and people like him were popular was that they had such an ability. It is so rare among scientists that having it becomes noteworthy.

there are Three sorts of Lies: Lies, damned Lies, Statistics. but then he did plead......Clemmency...

Didn't Mythbusters attempt to light a giant cloud of gas?

As someone who has read English literature for the last 400 years, (and I do mean the last 400 years; I collect antiquarian books and read them) I can say the language has gone through various evolutions. At times profanity is suppressed at times used. Today it is abused. Go ahead, such does reflect our culture (or lack thereof). My choice is to read and not to watch the networks nor, by the way the commercials. As I said: I read.

Its wonderful to ride the developer ship. But once the brilliant code is down on silicon, and runs into reality it must be patched. Patching is so humdrum, so tedious. No admiring fans, just plodding day after day finding that routine that seems to always call the variable from nowhere "Object not set to an instance of an object". Frank Loyd Wright was a great architect. People marvel at his design. Few know the name of the roofer who has to repair the design flaw that makes every Wright Roof Leak....

" been ordered give back $1.08 million to the FTC" - Why is it any arrest results in fines that some fed agency collects....and eventually keeps? It seems Law enforcement is now more a money generation then a cost center..

and everyone KNOWS how well governments can keep secrets.

You take a typically crap MS opsys. loose it on a unsuspecting world. 6 months later you issue a patch, you then patch the patch. 7 years later it is a mass of duct tape, band aids and spot welds. but MAN it is robust! Windows 7: rinse and repeat 'tiss the Redmond Way.....

There is a possibly apocryphal tale of two gentlemen in England int he 18th century who made a bet that in 48 hours a new word could be entered into the English Language. One found every ragged street urchin in London, handed him some chalk and showed him how to write "quiz". Soon Graffiti adorned every wall and park bench and by the next day it was on every lip.

Rememebr the guy in San Fransisco IT guy who refused to do what political toadies asked? Damned if you do, damned if you don't

http://www.lmsd.org/staff/techmentor/podcast/LMSDPodologue.htm buncha pod...ophiles

stultorum calami carbones moenia chartae

Consider the antiquarian collector. A First Folio Shakespeare might be covered by a copyright issued for a new printing, edition, revised font, scholarly criticism edition of say the Tempest. Thus, a $12.95 modern paperback now can be used to halt the sale of a 6 figure valued volume? Are they really trying this hard to create a new black market for every sale possible? "Psst! I have some food.. Cheap!"

In 1964 the military euthanized a herd of cattle. Why? Because, when the Alamogordo blast went off, cows from a few herds were dusted with fallout. The military purchased these cows to keep an eye on them. Some had actual skin burns from the radiation; areas of discoloration where hair never grew back or grew back white -just like a thermal burn. Some were kept at Oak Ridge, some at Los Alamos. All were subjected to many many tests and allowed to live out their lives. If purchased in 1945 these cows would be about 2-3; by 1964 they would be about 25 or so (or 80-90 in cow years). Yep Radiation! Everyone panic..

I can already look at my "Smart" meter on the Net. now if I could just write to it. anyone know how to jailbreak a electric meter?