It depends on how strong you want your security to be. While traveling by train in Europe, I generally use a simple cable lock (like the Master Lock 4605D, $10 at Amazon). It's small and easy to deploy. Obviously, a determined and well-equipped thief could cut through the cable pretty easily, but it's enough to deter the casual grab-and-dash artist. I've used it for twenty years, and I have yet to lose a bag. Of course, having said that, my next trip will be the one where I encounter a well-equipped thief...

The truly sad part of all this is that the issue has become highly politicized on both sides. The pros spin their science, and the antis spin theirs. They engage in an emotional battle for hearts and minds, to the point where the issue resembles a religious debate, far more than a scientific discussion. On both sides, people take a position and look for whatever evidence supports it. And the media lines up behind the junk science on both sides--their only interest is in stirring the pot and keeping folks tuning in or logging on. Those of us who are genuinely concerned, but who have serious scientific doubts about both sides, are left to shake our heads and try to sort out the overwhelming junk, pro and con, from the paltry scientific evidence that actually exists to try to arrive at some reasonable conclusion. So long as the spin and the name-calling goes on, public discussion of this important issue will remain little more than a circus sideshow.

I photocopied some old (1888) plat maps from my county recorder's office and scanned the copies using an HP all-in-one. Then I used Paint.Net to assemble the scans into digital versions of each plat map. Finally, I imported each digital plat map into Google earth as an image overlay and aligned the features on the map with terrain in Google Earth. So, for my local area, I can go to any place in Google Earth and, by turning on the overlay, see what was there 120 years ago. It's pretty cool.

Well, of course 90% of movies are crap. 90% of movies have always been crap. Movies aren't getting worse, my friends; you're just getting older.