When's That Flight Arriving? Google It!

No need for more comment, Pooch Dog says...

Obama's Plan To Sign Freedom Choice Of Act Will 'Trigger Harsh Response' From Catholics, Opinion Piece Says

President-elect Barack Obama's pledge to sign the Freedom of Choice Act, which "seeks to codify Roe v. Wade into federal law," is "setting up a showdown with the Vatican" and will "trigger a harsh response" from Pope Benedict XVI and "political revolt among practicing American Catholics," columnist Jeffery Kuhner writes in a Washington Times opinion piece.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/131465.php

Scientists Produce Illusion Of Body-Swapping

Cognitive neuroscientists at the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet (KI) have succeeded in making subjects perceive the bodies of mannequins and other people as their own.  In the first experiment, the head of a shop dummy was fitted with two cameras connected to two small screens placed in front of the subjects' eyes, so that they saw what the dummy "saw." When the dummy's camera eyes and a subject's head were directed downwards, the subject saw the dummy's body where he/she would normally have seen his/her own. The illusion of body-swapping was created when the scientist touched the stomach of both with two sticks. The subject could then see that the mannequin's stomach was being touched while feeling (but not seeing) a similar sensation on his/her own stomach. As a result, the subject developed a powerful sensation that the mannequin's body was his/her own.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/131475.php

Behavioral screening -- the future of airport security?

Security experts say focus is shifting from analyzing the content of carry-ons to analyzing the content of passengers' intentions and emotions. Several Israeli-based technology companies are developing detection systems that pick up signs of emotional strain -- a psychological red flag that a passenger may intend to commit an act of terror. Speedier and less intrusive than metal detectors, these systems may eventually restore some efficiency to the airplane boarding process. One firm, WeCU (pronounced "We See You") Technologies, employs a combination of infra-red technology, remote sensors and imagers, and flashing of subliminal images, such as a photo of Osama bin Laden. Developers say the combination of these technologies can detect a person's reaction to certain stimuli by reading body temperature, heart rate and respiration -- signals a terrorist unwittingly emits before he plans to commit an attack.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/12/02/airport.security/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

Jimmy Durante Remembered

James Francis “Jimmy” Durante (February 10, 1893 – January 29, 1980) was an American singer, pianist, comedian and actor, whose distinctive gravel delivery, comic language butchery, jazz-influenced songs, and large nose — his frequent jokes about it included a frequent self-reference that became his nickname: "Schnozzola" — helped make him one of America's most familiar and popular personalities of the 1920s through the 1970s.

"Why can't everybody leave everybody else the hell alone." 

"Be nice to people on your way up because you meet them on your way down."

Can you say, Schnozzola and Inka Dinka Dee?

Garlic-Boy Footballer dropped by club

TOKYO (Reuters) – Former Japan international Kazuki Ganaha, banned last year for taking garlic IV infusions, has been released by Japanese club Kawasaki Frontale. The 28-year-old earlier this year won his appeal against a six-game suspension imposed for using intravenous drips in violation of the J-League's anti-doping rules. Ganaha, who took the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, has slipped down the pecking order at Frontale, scoring just two league goals this season. Ganaha's ban also cost him his place in the Japan national side. The striker scored three goals in six games after breaking into the team in 2006. Kawasaki were also fined around $100,000 (67,595 pound) after club doctors put the player on the drip. While Ganaha did not take an illegal substance, intravenous treatment is banned under FIFA guidelines.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20081202/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_soccer_japan_ganaha

I enjoy Frank Lieu's photographs.  You will too...

http://tumblr.franklieu.com/post/62502539

Rare Mineral Can Track Ancient Climates, And Foretells Major Meltdown

By discovering the meaning of a rare mineral that can be used to track ancient climates, Binghamton University geologist Tim Lowenstein is helping climatologists and others better understand what we're probably in for over the next century or two as global warming begins to crank up the heat What Lowenstein and his colleague Robert Demicco at Binghamton University have discovered is that nahcolite, a rare, yellowish-green or brown carbonate mineral, only forms on earth under environmental conditions marked by very high atmospheric CO2 levels. That establishes it as both a marker and a benchmark that can be used by scientists as they consider the likely climatic implications of ever-increasing CO2 levels in our atmosphere today. More specifically, nahcolite suggests that Eocene warming was concurrent with atmospheric CO2 levels of at least 1,125 parts per million (ppm), which is 3 times the current levels of 380 ppm, but not all that much higher than we can expect on earth in the next 100 years or so given generally accepted scientific projections based on fossil-fuel consumption.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081201200215.htm

Cell Phones That Never Need To Be Charged? Sound Wave-powered Devices Possible

Imagine a self-powering cell phone that never needs to be charged because it converts sound waves produced by the user into the energy it needs to keep running. It's not as far-fetched as it may seem thanks to the recent work of Tahir Cagin, a professor in the Artie McFerrin Department of Chemical Engineering at Texas A&M University. Utilizing materials known in scientific circles as "piezoelectrics," Cagin, whose research focuses on nanotechnology, has made a significant discovery in the area of power harvesting – a field that aims to develop self-powered devices that do not require replaceable power supplies, such as batteries.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081201162127.htm

Escape cancer, but age sooner? The dark side of the tumor suppressing process

Cells shut down and stop dividing when their DNA is damaged, in a process known as cellular senescence, so as to prevent damaged DNA from leading to unregulated cell division and therefore cancer. However, a new study, published in this week's issue of PLoS Biology, has found that when these cells shut down they also spew proteins into their surrounding environment. This causes inflammation and sets up conditions that support the development of age-related diseases including, ironically, cancer. The new research includes the first comprehensive molecular description of a paradoxical process that prevents cancer in younger people, but promotes age-related cancers and other maladies later in life.

http://www.physorg.com/news147422865.html

Exercise builds small blood vessels in brain, study says

Exercise is known to help prevent cognitive decline and maintain the brain as people age, and now researchers think they know one reason why. People who engaged in long-term, regular exercise had substantially more small blood vessels in their brains and more blood flow than people who performed little exercise over the years, according to a study presented Monday.

http://www.physorg.com/news147424171.html

Memories may be stored on your DNA

REMEMBER your first kiss? Experiments in mice suggest that patterns of chemical "caps" on our DNA may be responsible for preserving such memories. To remember a particular event, a specific sequence of neurons must fire at just the right time. For this to happen, neurons must be connected in a certain way by chemical junctions called synapses. But how they last over decades, given that proteins in the brain, including those that form synapses, are destroyed and replaced constantly, is a mystery.

I've read about experiments with worms, I think it was, that seemed to indicate that some form of memory was inherited.  In an article I read a year ago in Newseek as I recall, inherited memory in rats was mentioned.  Forgive me for my patchy memory.  But, the evidence for inheriting the memory of the experiences of our ancestors seems to be mounting.  Stay tuned to this exciting and significant area of research says!          Pooch Dog

http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg20026845.000-memories-may-be-stored-on-your-dna.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=life

Consensus For Universal Health Care Coverage Appears To Be Emerging, According To Los Angeles Times

A "consensus appears to be emerging in Washington about how to achieve the elusive goal of providing medical insurance to all Americans," the Los Angeles Times reports. The "answer, say leading groups of businesses, hospitals, doctors, labor unions and insurance companies -- as well as senior lawmakers on Capitol Hill and members of President-elect Barack Obama's administration -- is unprecedented government intervention to create a system of universal protection." Meanwhile, the groups "largely have agreed" to maintain the current employer-based coverage system, through which most U.S. residents have insurance, the Times reports.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/131427.php

Washington Post Examines Waste, Inefficiency In U.S. Health Care System

The Washington Post on Sunday examined some health care experts' views on the U.S. health care system and suggestions on how to make improvements. According to the Post, CEOs of many health care institutions agree that "[w]hen it comes to medical care, the United States isn't getting its money's worth." The U.S. spends 16% of its gross domestic product on medical care, which is more than any other nation, but it remains behind in the overall health of its residents, according to the Post.  According to the Post, the U.S. ranks ...

29th worldwide in infant mortality, 

48th in life expectancy and 

19th out of 19 industrialized nations in preventable deaths.

My father was a doctor, I have two brothers who are physicians.  I practiced as a pharmacist for 14 years in a hospital before switching to software development for the government in the health sector, my two sisters are nurses as is one sister-in-law and my mother before her death.  My personal "evidence" is anecdotal admittedly.  But, the state of health care in this country is truly sad.  Poocher.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/131428.php

China Fears Restive Migrants As Jobs Disappear in Cities

Mr. Fan is among hundreds of thousands of China's 130 million migrant workers — known as the "floating population" — being cast out of urban jobs in factories and at construction sites. China's roaring industrial economy has been abruptly quieted by the effects of the global financial crisis. Rural provinces that supplied much of China's factory manpower are watching the beginnings of a wave of reverse migration that has the potential to shake the stability of the world's most populous nation. Fast-rising unemployment has led to an unusual series of strikes and protests. Normally cautious government officials have offered quick concessions and talk openly of their worries about social unrest. Laid-off factory workers in Dongguan overturned patrol cars and clashed with police last Tuesday, and hundreds of taxis parked in front of a government office in nearby Chaozhou over the weekend, one of a series of driver protests.

http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2008/12/china-fears-restive-migrants-as-jobs-disappear-in-cities/

Mormon church publishes journal of founder Joseph Smith

For a man considered by many a confident and charismatic religious prophet, the first sentence of Joseph Smith's journal betrays an inkling of self-doubt — it's scratched out. "He's making this very deliberate effort to keep a record. At the same time, he has this self-consciousness," said Richard Turley Jr., assistant historian for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. "So he writes it out, scratches it out, takes a deep breath, writes it again." By the next line, Smith is on his knees in prayer as he asks for God's help.

Painstakingly transcribed from hundreds of fragile, handwritten pages, the 500-page volume builds on decades of historical scholarship to provide a more accurate and complete look at the early church and Smith's life, Turley said. The inaugural work of The Church Historian's Press covers Smith's writings from 1832 to 1839 and includes his account of the "First Vision," in which God and Jesus Christ tell Smith he must restore the original church on Earth.

Historians have long criticized the Mormon church for glossing over the unflattering parts of its history and censoring materials of interest to scholars. Publishing Smith's papers marks a brave departure from that past

http://www.religionnewsblog.com/23004/joseph-smith

What is a Play Pump?

A play pump is a water pump which doubles as a merry go round for children. When children play on the merry go round, they power the pump, bringing clean water up into a storage tank which can be used to feed spigots and other plumping fixtures. The play pump is designed to be very simple and easy to maintain, so that it can be installed in rural areas to ensure a steady supply of safe drinking water. The bulk of such pumps are currently installed in Africa, but they can potentially be installed anywhere in the world.

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-play-pump.htm

How a Rogue Geologist Discovered a Diamond Trove in the Canadian Arctic

Eighteen years ago, there was no such thing as a Canadian diamond — as far as anyone knew. Diamonds came mostly from Australia, Botswana, South Africa, Namibia, and Russia. De Beers mined 75 percent of the world's output, much of it tainted by controversial "blood diamonds," sold to fund African wars. Today, Canada is the world's third-largest producer, by value, of rough stones.  The story behind the addition of Canada to the ranks of diamond-producing nations leads back to one man: a short, absentminded Canadian geologist named Chuck Fipke.

Prairie Pooch didn't know that, and you didn't either!  Read Chuck's story...

http://www.wired.com/science/planetearth/magazine/16-12/ff_diamonds

300 Chinese Cab Drivers Hold Strike In South China

CDT blogged Guangzhou cab drivers' calls for a strike earlier. The strike actually happened yesterday, and here is a story from AP: About 300 taxi drivers went on strike in a southern Chinese city, smashing cars and demanding a crackdown on unlicensed taxis in the latest protest against illegal taxi competition in China. Hundreds of cab drivers gathered Saturday in front of government buildings in Chaozhou, a city in Guangdong province, said an official Sunday from the Chaozhou city government who would only give his surname, Chen. More than 200 taxis were parked in front of the gate of a government office as drivers sought greater enforcement against unlicensed taxis, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. Chen said police detained seven people suspected of smashing cars belonging to drivers who had refused to participate in the strike.

http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2008/12/300-chinese-cab-drivers-hold-strike-in-south-china/

Supersize That Thanksgiving Dinner Please!

Ol Soup Hound just ran into this Wired magazine article about the breeding changes that have drastically modified the  traditional Thanksgiving food.  The topic is past due.  But, it's pretty amazing!  You should read this article anyway.  Here's some tidbits...

• Americans eat a pound of sugar every two-and-a-half days. The average amount of sugar consumed by an Englishman in the 1700s was about a pound a year.
• Between 1929 and 2007, turkeys more than doubled in size in that time from an average of 13 pounds to an average of 29 pounds, (see picture), at a lower cost to consumers.
  
• Sweet corn is the result of a mutation that replaces some of the corn's starchiness with sugar. It spread from the Iroquois to European settlers in the late 1770s. 
  

OK!  I'm done howling at the Thanksgiving moon.  Read the article.

http://blog.wired.com/wiredscience/2008/11/turkeytech.html

Another View of the Dallas Cowboys' Decembers Past

Any Dallas Cowboys fans (or enemies) around?  If so, you probably know about the abysmal December records of late.  Well, there is a grain of salt you should take if you believe everything you've heard!  Read this Mickey Spagnola article.

http://www.dallascowboys.com/news/news.cfm?id=F4EDDB51-0C2D-16AD-635D58484A6E9487

Bush Demands Amnesty for Spying Telecoms

SAN FRANCISCO — The Bush administration on Tuesday will try to convince a federal judge to let stand a law granting retroactive legal immunity to the nation's telecoms, which are accused of transmitting Americans' private communications to the National Security Agency without warrants. At issue in the high-stakes showdown — set to begin at 10:00 a.m. PST — are the nearly four dozen lawsuits filed by civil liberties groups and class action attorneys against AT&T, Verizon, MCI, Sprint and other carriers who allegedly cooperated with the Bush administration's domestic surveillance program in the years following the Sept. 11 terror attacks. The lawsuits claim the cooperation violated federal wiretapping laws and the Constitution. In July, as part of a wider domestic spying bill, Congress voted to kill the lawsuits and grant retroactive amnesty to any phone companies that helped with the surveillance; President-elect Barack Obama was among those who voted for the law in the Senate. On Tuesday, lawyers with the Electronic Frontier Foundation are set to urge the federal judge overseeing those lawsuits to reject immunity as unconstitutional. At stake, they say, is the very principle of the rule of law in America.

Pooch Dog is a big fan of Obama.  But, I have to admit being mystified by his vote.  And, disappointed.  Et tu, O?  I hope not...

http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/12/feds-eff-arguin.html

Truss Me: 1920

Washington circa 1920. "People's Drug Store, interior, 11th & G streets." In the Rubber Goods section in back you'll find the inevitable "trusses and abdominal belts." National Photo Company Collection glass negative.
http://www.shorpy.com/node/5006

Police seek would-be robber armed with hairspray

OPEKA, Kan. – Police are looking for a woman who used what's believed to have been hairspray as a weapon in a botched purse-snatching in a Wal-Mart parking lot. Police said the would-be thief on Saturday night first asked a 25-year-old shopper for directions, then sprayed the woman in the eyes as she tried to take her purse from her shoulder. But the shopper held on to the purse, and the woman fled empty-handed to a maroon minivan parked nearby. The victim suffered minor injuries to her face.

If Ol Pooch caught up with this dumb ass he'd nip artistic bite patterns into his ass!  

Oh, it was a woman would-be thief.  Just noticed.  Well, I would ask Seraphina to bitch-slap her...

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081201/ap_on_fe_st/odd_hairspray_attack

Ohio college adviser ran prostitute raffle

COLUMBUS, Ohio – An Ohio State University academic adviser and a real estate agent held a $10-a-ticket raffle that offered an evening with a prostitute who is also a child sex-abuse caseworker, police said. Christopher S. Johnson, 33, an academic adviser at OSU's School of Nursing, organized the raffle through a Craigslist.com chat board, police said. Real estate agent Rusty Blades, 42, held the invitation-only party at his house in October for the participants. Both Johnson and Blades were charged with promoting prostitution. A judge set bail Saturday at $50,000 for Blades and $25,000 for Johnson.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081201/ap_on_fe_st/odd_prostitute_raffle

Red Sox fans can show their loyalty for eternity

ROCKLAND, Mass. – Lifelong Red Sox fans can now take their love of the team to the next level — eternity. A Massachusetts funeral home recently took delivery of the first Red Sox casket, which features the team logo on the exterior as well as the inside.

The casket is manufactured by Eternal Image of Michigan, which has a licensing agreement with Major League Baseball.

Bob Biggins, co-director of Magoun-Biggins Funeral Home in Rockland, tells The Boston Globe families in mourning often want their loved ones buried with favorite items. In the past that's included Red Sox paraphernalia; the casket takes it to the next step.

Biggins says the family that chose the $3,000 Red Sox casket bearing serial number 0001 did not hesitate in picking it for their father.

(And, by the way, Poocher picks the pictures he wants to illustrate blogs.  He isn't at all interested in your criticisms, Bostonites!)

Deer gets revenge after hunter shoots him

SEDALIA, Mo. – A hunter bagged a big buck on the second day of firearms season, but the kill caused him a lot of pain. Randy Goodman, 49, said he thought two well-placed shots with his .270-caliber rifle had killed the buck on Nov. 19. Goodman said the deer looked dead to him, but seconds later the nine-point, 240-pound animal came to life. The buck rose up, knocked Goodman down and attacked him with his antlers in what the veteran hunter called "15 seconds of hell." The deer ran a short distance and went down, and died after Goodman fired two more shots. Soon Goodman started feeling dizzy and noticed his vest was soaked in blood. So he reached his truck and drove to a hospital, where he received seven staples in his scalp and was treated for a slight concussion and bruises.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081201/ap_on_fe_st/odd_deer_attacks_hunter

Man says God ordered him to ram vehicle at 100 mph

SAN ANTONIO – A man who rammed his truck into a woman's vehicle on a highway early Friday told authorities he crashed into her while going more than 100 mph because God told him "she needed to be taken off the road." The truck rear-ended the car on U.S. Highway 281, both vehicles spun across a median then came to a stop along a barrier in the opposite lanes. Both drivers suffered only minor injuries. "He just said God said she wasn't driving right, and she needed to be taken off the road."

Pooch Doggy Dog also says women drivers need to put their cell phones down while driving, and "get their minds right"!  Not to be sacrilegious, but I doubt God actually said anything to that man.  But, Ol Pooch Hound is serious.  And, when he barks, not even flies dare to fly!!

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081201/ap_on_fe_st/odd100_mph_wreck

Real-time Beethoven

We can still play with Beethoven's works. And today's composers have been given a completely new instrument: a computer program for the processing of sound, where the actual act of composing is an integral part of the instrument itself. And where the composition takes place simultaneously with a performance, in real time. And the variations you can make on a single theme are infinite. "Ode to Joy" can be sampled (digitized), producing new and unexpected phrasing - but at the same time, the basic theme is instantly recognizable. The symphony is completely altered, in ever-changing varieties.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081121081055.htm

1921 Xmas Store Window Close-up From Previous Photograph

Be sure to expand photograph to max size to see merchandise details.  Historically very cool!

Shop Early for Xmas: 1921

Washington, D.C., circa 1921. "Sport Mart, 1303 F Street N.W." Shorpy would like one of each, please. National Photo Company glass negative.

http://www.shorpy.com/node/5004

A Short History of NASCAR Cheating

With the advent of the automobile came the desire to drive fast. One place this was exemplified was in the southern Appalachians during the wild years of the Prohibition. Shooting up and down dark mountain passes with trunks full of moonshine, bootleggers souped up their cars so they could outrun the law. It seems only natural that tales of high-speed chases would encourage bootleggers to test their mettle against fellow moonshine runners in weekend races. From legendary origins like these came stock cars -- based on general automobile design but modified for speed -- and they grew in popularity with races springing up across the country. In 1948, Bill Francis Sr. founded NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Racing) as a sanctioning body to unify the budding sport and provide a set of coalesced rules. There were few of those rules in the early days though, and in the spirit of their bootlegging predecessors, NASCAR competitors quickly began to look for ways to push the envelope. After all, if you ain't first, you're last, and in a field of fast cars and daring drivers, NASCAR teams were always looking for an edge up on the competition -- and still d o to this day. While in some cases this means blatant cheating, in others the line is a bit more blurred. A little confused? Let's take a closer look at an infamous example. Henry "Smokey" Yunick was a mechanical mastermind who had a knack for innovation. At one race, inspectors yanked the gas tank out of his racecar for a closer look -- but that didn't slow down Smokey, who proceeded to drive the car back to his garage from the track. The trick was a hefty 11-foot-long (around 3.4 meter) fuel line that could hold a whole 6 gallons (almost 23 liters) of gas [source: Yunick]. Not breaking any rules with that, right? Well after Smokey pulled that particular stunt, NASCAR was quick to add a few lines to the old rulebook. In fact, Smokey estimated that by 1970, more than half of NASCAR's rules were devoted directly to the efforts of his mechanical machinations -- according to him, a job well done[source: McGee]. On the next page, we'll take a closer look at some of the nefarious and not-so-nefarious ways of winning NASCAR races, and whether it's as easy to get away with them as it was back in the day.

http://entertainment.howstuffworks.com/easy-to-cheat-nascar.htm

Flyboy: 1912

1912. "Army aviation, College Park. Tests of Curtiss plane for Army. Single control." Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative.

http://www.shorpy.com/node/5002

Aeroplane: 1917

1917. "Langley, Samuel Pierpont. Secretary, Smithsonian Institute. Experimental tandem biplane on Potomac embodying Langley principles."

http://www.shorpy.com/node/5003

Scientists Invent Machine That Sorts Pomegranate Seeds

A team of investigators from Valencia has developed a machine that separates automatically the seeds from the rind and pith of the pomegranate. The mechanism uses a computer vision system to distinguish and sort the different parts of this fruit, according to a study published on-line by the Journal of Food Engineering. The difficulty in peeling pomegranates and separating out the seeds disheartens many consumers when they eat the fruit of the pomegranate (Punica granatum). Now a Spanish invention enables this food to be de-seeded automatically.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081121151912.htm

Iceman Oetzi's Last Supper

What we eat can say a lot about us - where we live, how we live and eventually even when we lived. From the analysis of the intestinal contents of the 5,200-year-old Iceman from the Eastern Alps, Professor James Dickson from the University of Glasgow in the UK and his team have shed some light on the mummy's lifestyle and some of the events leading up to his death. By identifying six different mosses in his alimentary tract, they suggest that the Iceman may have travelled, injured himself and dressed his wounds. The Iceman is the first glacier mummy to have fragments of mosses in his intestine. This is surprising as mosses are neither palatable nor nutritious and there are few reports of mosses used for internal medical treatments. Rather, mosses recovered from archaeological sites tend to have been used for stuffing, wiping and wrapping.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/12/081201101700.htm

Some Brains Are Wired for Change

If you're among those who think it's time for change, your attitude may be strongly influenced by how your brain is wired. People who welcome new experiences have stronger connections between their memory and reward brain centers than people who tend to avoid anything new, research now shows. Specifically, people who actively seek lifestyle changes may have a more developed connection between two specific brain areas: the hippocampus, a site for storing and retrieving new and old memories, and the ventral striatum, a reward system which is responsible for those carpe diem moments, said researcher Dr. Bernd Weber of the Life & Brain Center at the University of Bonn in Germany. Turns out, if the hippocampus identifies an experience as new, it then relays signals to the striatum to release neurotransmitters which lead to positive feelings. "The strength of the connection is positively correlated to novelty seek[ers] ... but this does not imply that having weaker connections is a 'bad' thing," Weber told LiveScience.

http://www.livescience.com/health/081201-brain-personality.html

Clean People Are Less Judgmental

A vigorous hand wash or shower could cause a person to be less judgmental. A new study, set for publication in the December issue of the journal Psychological Science, reveals that when a person feels physically clean, he or she cuts others more moral slack. The findings add to past research that has shown a link between physical warmth and generosity as well as physical chill and social isolation. Other past research has shown that sins seem to nudge people to clean themselves, a phenomenon the researchers dubbed the "Macbeth effect" after the dramatized murderess who tried scrubbing her hands to clean off imaginary blood.

http://www.livescience.com/culture/081201-clean-morality.html

Sending spam in Israel could mean a big fine

JERUSALEM - Israel has gotten fed up with spam. Anyone who sends out messages without receiving the recipient's consent can now be slapped with a big fine.

Last June, a new law gave solicitors six months to ask prospective clients if they wanted to receive unsolicited messages. The deadline expired Monday.

The communications ministry says violators can be sued for $250 for every unsolicited message. Pestered Israelis can go to court five times a year and each time file up to 30 claims against a single company.

Pooch says Israel is starting to wise up.  But, that Israel should listen to the biker gang contemplating what to do with Pee Wee Herman after he'd knocked over their bikes.  Then, apply the lessons to spammers!

Biker #2: I say we kill him!

Biker Gang: [shouts] Yeah!

Biker #3: I say we hang him, then we kill him!

Biker Gang: [shouts] Yeah!

Biker #4: I say we scalp him!

Biker Gang: [shouts] Yeah!

Biker #4: Then we tattoo him!

Biker Gang: [shouts] Yeah!

Biker #4: Then we hang him!

Biker Gang: [shouts] Yeah!

Biker #4: And then we kill him!

Biker Gang: [shouts] Yeah!

Pee-wee Herman: [trying to throw voice without moving lips] I say we let him go.

Biker Gang: [shouts] No!

Biker Mama: [whistles] I say you let me have him first!

Biker Gang: Yeah!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27998100/

Iraq, Iran Swap 1980s War Dead

BAGHDAD - Iraq and Iran on Sunday exchanged the remains of 241 soldiers killed during an eight-year war between the two countries - the latest sign of increased cooperation between the neighboring nations that were fierce rivals under Saddam Hussein. It was the first such handover since the two sides signed an agreement in October to work together in tracing tens of thousands still missing after the war. The Iraqis and the Iranians have previously exchanged remains and prisoners of war, but Sunday's pomp-filled ceremony raised hope that the agreement could lead to closure for the relatives of those killed or missing on both sides.

http://www.military.com/news/article/iraq-iran-swap-1980s-war-dead.html?ESRC=topstories.RSS

Airlines Charged Pooch Dog Too

You scoff at this headline at your own risk!  Read the Onion.com article, and then check your credit card charges!

Public Service Announcement by Pooch.

http://feeds.theonion.com/~r/theonion/weekly/~3/471323946/american_airlines_now_charging

High Tech Remote-finder That Amazes Scientists All Around the World

OK.  Pooch Doggy Dog confession time.  In the previous post I implied that my wife and I battle over TV remote location.  Well, in actuality, we battle no more!  Peace reigns like a calming balm...

My wife, Seraphina, saved our marriage some years back when she invented - I think - a high tech remote finder.  No more yelling matches about who last had the remote, and no more couch cushion nether region expeditions!

I think the basic details for the remote finder are self-explanatory.  I will provide the electronic schematic to anyone who requests via separate email message.

Pooch "Grateful To Seraphina" Dog

Robots that fetch: Device could help disabled at home

It took Norma Margeson a few minutes to learn to control the skinny metal robot. But instead of viewing it as a machine, she soon warmed up to it as a companion. "Oh, I love it," she said. "I think it is such a unique character. It has a personality all its own. It can be a friend, a very good friend." Margeson, an artist from Marietta, Georgia, is learning how a health care robot dubbed El-E (pronounced "Ellie") can help her accomplish some simple household tasks. El-E is being tested by Margeson and other patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. "We named it El-E because she reminds us of an elephant. She has this one arm that is sort of gray that can lift objects and move up and down," said Professor Charles Kemp, director of the Center for Healthcare Robotics at Georgia Tech in Atlanta. Right now Kemp and his colleagues are focusing on programming El-E to locate and fetch common household items such as a hairbrush, a bottle of pills, a cell phone or a TV remote. 

Did you say REMOTE!  Fetch a remote?  Might save Pooch Dog's marriage.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/12/01/robot.health.aide/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

Media Commentary On Mass Incidents: Masses ‘Out Of Touch With The Facts’ Is Official Dereliction Of Duty

Reporter Huang Huo (黄豁) of Beijing based Observer (Liaowang) Magazine published the following article on recent “mass incidents.” Thanks to Dr. David Kelly for the translation:

“A small group of people with ulterior motives,” “masses out of touch with the facts” and “evil forces plotting behind the scenes,” ……in recent times, at the start of some quite large mass incidents, local government have been constantly rushing to make these sorts of statements. Such “self-fulfilling definitions” were in evidence at the beginning of the “Weng’an incident” in Guizhou, the “Menglian incident” in Yunnan and, more recently the “Longnan incident” in Gansu.

“Masses out of touch with the facts” seems to regard the masses as “idiots” lacking independent personality or freedom of thought, or as “obedient citizens” able just to grin and bear it; their discontents can only be due to their having been deceived, misled, and incitement. By contrast, government officials and policy makers understand the facts, grasp the truth, and never get things wrong.

http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2008/12/media-commentary-on-mass-incidents-masses-out-of-touch-with-the-facts-is-official-dereliction-of-duty/

Church tries Goth Liturgy

Nanticoke, Pennsylvania — Churches continually strive to attract fresh faces into their flocks, and one of the challenges they face is getting the attention of younger people who may have turned their backs, according to the Rev. Lou Divis, deacon in charge at St. George's Episcopal Church. To address this quandary, the church on Main Street in Nanticoke embraced a new approach called the Goth Liturgy on Saturday night at 9. Unlike the traditional Sunday-morning service in which an organist, choir and congregation join in energetic hymns of praise, the Goth Liturgy is more "meditative," Divis said. The church is dimly light, lined with candles and full of the aroma of burning incense. Gregorian chants from the 12th century and faith-based music from techno bands such as Depeche Mode and Love Spirals Downward played softly during the hymn segments. The servers were dressed in black robes and the guest celebrant, the Rev. Peter D'Angio from St. Luke's Episcopal Church in Scranton, was clothed in a flowing white robe. The sanctuary had a noticeably more intimate ambiance.

http://www.religionnewsblog.com/22997/goth-liturgy

Parts of Venice neck deep in flood water

Venice has suffered its worst flooding in 22 years, leaving some parts of the historic Italian city neck-deep in water, reports said Monday. Water burst the banks of the coastal city's famed canals, leaving the landmark Piazza San Marco -- St Mark's Square -- under almost a meter of water at one point, news agency ANSA reported. Strong winds pushed waters reached to a high of 156 centimeters (5 feet 2 inches) at 10:45 a.m. local time, prompting the city government to issue warnings to the public, the agency said. The flood level began to drop soon afterwards, prompted by a change in the direction of the wind. Previous highs include 1.58 meters in 1986 and 1.66 meters in 1979, the news agency said. Photographs showed people wading through inundated piazzas and waves lapping over waterside cafe tables. Don't Miss iReport.com: Are you there? Share photos, video Venice, built around a network of canals and small islands, has for years been trying to tackle the problem of floods that have regularly blighted the city.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/europe/12/01/venice.floods/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

Obama Steers Down The Center

President-elect Barack Obama has been solidly centrist in his appointments so far.  This has disappointed some of his more liberal supporters.  And, surprised many Republicans.  I wonder whether Palin and McCain, who attacked O unmercifully for being a rabid liberal are surprised so far?

Read the article to find out more.  Pooch Dog.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/12/01/zelizer.centrist/index.html?eref=rss_topstories

Decision expected this week on whether parents will face trial in faith healing death

A judge is expected to decide this week whether to dismiss reckless homicide charges against parents accused of praying instead of seeking a doctor’s care as their 11-year-old daughter died of untreated diabetes.

Marathon County Circuit Judge Vincent Howard has said that courts in two states have tossed out similar cases while courts in two other states allowed them to go to trial.

Dale and Leilani Neumann of Weston have pleaded not guilty to second-degree reckless homicide. Their attorneys want the charges dismissed on constitutional grounds.

Prosecutors say the couple’s daughter, Madeline, died at their Weston home on Easter after becoming too weak to speak, eat, drink or walk. They claim the girl likely had symptoms for weeks that should have prompted the parents to seek medical treatment.

http://www.religionnewsblog.com/22996/madeline-neumann-faith-healing-2

An Alleged Counterrevolutionary Teacher’s Personal Plea

Pooch Dog warns you not to flip by this post.  It is from China Digital Times, about a college professor who was turned in by two students for being counterrevolutionary.  Read the professor's plaintive reply from his blog below.

You must read the following translated comments added to his blog.  Apparently, Chinese - or at least the "advanced" Chinese who added comments, are not as on board with openness and democracy as one would expect and desire!

Here's the article...

In relation to a previous post on CDT, two female students accused their political science professor, Yang Shiqun, of being “counterrevolutionary.” This is in line with a growing trend of bloggers and journalists(recently Chen Daojun), and now teachers (recently Guo Guanglin) being censored for their criticisms. The power of the internet is also in this story as Yang Shiqun posted his story on his blog, generating support for his cause. The Foreign Expert’s Jason Weinberg has translated the original post and comments. Yang Shiqun laments about Chinese student’s nationalism and pride over criticism, and the future of Chinese students:

It needs to be known, if this kind of thing were discovered during the late  Qing dynasty, maybe people would still believe it: and to say that it occured during the republic’s “ May 4th” period, nobody would believe it. You know, young people at that time already basically accepted the concepts “democracy,” “freedom,” “human rights,” so normally we wouldn’t find this kind of strange event. Nonetheless, now, in 21st Century China and in Chinese universities, there can often be found such incredible things. Thinking about the most recent strange events found in Chinese schools, I just have a silent prayer for Chinese society and people: when will Chinese society be able to walk away from ignorance? When will Chinese education be able to get on track? When will Chinese students be able to compare well-balanced ideas?

Here is a continuation of the article, as well as some blog comments added by readers:

作者：oouiojfsd 回复日期：2008-11-25 15:31:12

放你妈的屁，呵呵
“抵制”杨老师的言论？到公安局告密，这是抵制”言论”
这俩傻逼，想的是”因言获罪”，想的是用”文字狱”把杨老师抓进牢里关起来。
居然有这么恶毒的女学生，她们家庭绝对是当官的

Your mom’s farts, hehe
“Reject” Professor Yang’s speech? Go to the police and squeal, this is rejecting “speech”
These two idiots, they think they are “getting a conviction because of speech,” think they are using “character law” to get Yang into prison.
There actually are girls this evil, their families are definitely officials.

作者：农村户口小学文化 回复日期：2008-11-25 16:12:17

这和文革有什么关系，
你反传统时，违背伦理道德，
。
违反公共价值观，
难道不能反对。
而且别人是通过法律途径的，有什么错吗？
说明，现在的大学生法律意识空前提高
是应当值得大大表扬的事情

What’s the relationship between this and cultural revolution?
When you are anti-tradition, you breach ethics and morality.
It disobeys communal values,
So, you cannot argue against it.
Also, what is wrong with people who follow the law?
To say it clearly, contemporary college students’ legal consciousness used to be empty and has increased,
It should be something to praise highly.

http://chinadigitaltimes.net/2008/12/an-alleged-counterrevolutionary-teacher’s-personal-plea/

Gates steered US toward exit in Iraq

US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has steered US forces toward the exit in Iraq in a deft two-year performance that helped pull the United States back from the brink of failure in the Middle East. With candor and a dry, self-deprecating sense of humor, the former spymaster, who seems set to be nominated Monday to stay on his post by president-elect Barack Obama, disarmed critics in Congress even while undertaking an unpopular but ultimately successful 30,000 troop surge in Iraq. Two years after Gates succeeded Donald Rumsfeld as defense secretary, the US military is pivoting toward Afghanistan, the "forgotten war" that Obama has said should be the top US priority.

From Pooch Dog's perspective, General Petraeus and Defense Secretary Robert Gates have saved our bacon!   Brilliant...

http://www.spacewar.com/reports/Gates_steered_US_toward_exit_in_Iraq_999.html