chuck kottke

Anycolor Looks good, if you're in the right frame of mind. What frame are you in?

The Porch on the Restaurant at the End of the Universe This is an upper crusty thing?:toff: Where's the wine and cheese?:P:smug:

Not yet!:P Did you ever go sledding?

It's rather complex, and looking at it from a perspective of a few years is like trying to discern the quality of a road based on one inch or two centimeters of travel on it. While we may have been in a (long time-frame) natural cooling trend, that trend has been slowed or perhaps reversed from our activities (which encompasses more than CO2 emissions - everything from agriculture to methane from livestock to deforestation).. I tend to think there are those who go along for the ride, trying to get more funding for their research, those who can make a buck on the fear, and those who are stuck in a mindset. But then there are those who really want to understand the true nature of what's occurring, and are motivated by the moments of enlightenment - human nature throughout history tells us that this is the case. While modeling may be limited, it has come a long ways from the past, and we are getting a better grasp on what's going on - from both models and from empirical evidence. But one outstanding thing keeps cropping up in my mind - the earth's crust acts as a sort of dynamic buffer, a place where fixed carbon is stored. As we have in a short span of time burned a significant amount of the stored carbon in this crustal buffer, putting this into CO2 in the atmosphere, which winds up in a new equilibrium with the oceans, air, plant uptake, etc. - this is big, and no doubt cannot be ignored, whatever the effects may be. I think there is legitimate reason for concern, albeit from a careful, rational view of what is really happening, and what may likely occur in the future. To acidify the oceans is something to consider, as well as how CO2 levels and photosynthetic uptake keeps up or not, depending on the conditions. Slowing the warming trend may be a significant amount of soot particles in the atmoshere, that have been reducing the amount of light reaching the surface. As particulate emissions decrease, the latent effects of climate change may become more pronounced. Anyhow, it's been swell - I must go now!

High Speed.:mudkip:

***Boomp Thread***

Yellow. Inspired by Neil Young:[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ynLRyIcaTM]YouTube - Neil Young - Cinnamon Girl (live 2007)[/ame]

Marconi Berlusconi. Yes, he's one step further along the road to total control through the media; Frontline did a special on Italy's problems with one-party, one-man rule & media ownership, as I recall... It always amazes me how they never figure on someone going after them with common objects - pies, shoes, eggs, ....and now replica cathedrals!:laugh3:

Replace the word oil with sand, and see what emerges! For example: Today there was a major tanker accident, with over 400,000 gallons of sand spilling into the ocean. Containment was rapid, but over 20,000 gallons of the contents washed ashore, covering the beaches with sand. Rescuers worked frantically to save fragile marine and near-shore environments, washing sand from the feathers of stranded shorebirds to save their lives, and a major cleanup effort is underway to suck up as much of the spilled sand as possible. In other news, major sand exporting countries vowed to restrict their sales of crude sand, prompting sharp price increases for consumers at the pumps. Sand refineries are gearing up for an unusually cold heating season, where peak demand could send shockwaves through the economy. Market speculation over sand futures sent prices soaring further, as the risk of war in major sand exporting countries fueled speculation of future shortages. The sand cartel agreed to increase production, but only after stalled talks were restarted in Riyadh. The primary reason may be due to fears of inflation if the volatility of sand prices continues to rise as it has. Also today, a major sand refinery fire has slightly diminished production capacity, even as consumer demand grows. Putting in new refineries is a major industry undertaking requiring large capital outlays, and few investors are willing to forgo a drop in quarter profits for adding new refining capacity. "the price has to start to cause some major pain" said one analyst, adding that the price of crude sand could again top $120 a barrel before any new capacity is added. I guess what I'm hinting at is this: if we put into the equation all the uncertainties, environmental risks, control issues, market instabilities, and our dependence on fuel commodities such as oil, there's a lot of problems, besides the issue of climate change. Switching to a solar :sunny:economy means no monopolizing the resource, and much less problems with the base materials. Storage problems with solar? Oh sure - but there are answers: lithium iron-phosphate batteries, advanced flywheels, thermal storage, hydrogen storage in zeolites, pumped storage, biomass, and others. And that's not even considering the demand side of the equation. 90% of the energy is simply wasted from inefficient designs and layouts - and has nothing to do with our quality of life - it's simply waste, like a leaky faucet! Anyhow, just me on a soapbox.:P:bulb2: Food for thought though...

360, 450 .. I see a pattern developing! Next, 540!:P

The Gold Rush. how many joules of energy does the average cosmic ray contain?

But their site reads like a hybrid of the papal encyclicals and the National Enquirer!:laugh3: It's self-parodying is quite amusing - I find it closer to our beloved old paper, the Onion. Setting the standard for journalistic integrity... (if one peels back the layers enough, there might be a kernel of truth..) So who is the temptress that this site supposedly sent over to temp Father Drobbingdon?:P

What do you have to do to have your account suspended? I can only imagine!

Life's up, surf's up, grass is up s. of the equator, and here? Only Ian knows!:laugh3: I lost track of the latest developments - wandering the musical landscape in search of the lost chord.. Enjoy the site, and get an earful of music whenever possible.;)

Father Drobbingdon and a particular scarlet infidel sent over by Coldplaying.com? What the heck is this all about??:laugh3:

Welcome Layla from Holland !! :hat: Violet hill is a good song, indeed! Glad you stumbled upon us here!!:)

Back on the subject of walking.. Actually, I think it's a really neat idea.. There was that 85 year-old lady (Granny D) who walked from California to Washington DC, promoting campaign finance reform.. And John Muir (who came from this loony state) who walked his way across the country (largely a wooded nation then). And I did have a cousin who biked all the way from British Columbia - @ the Pacific Coast - to here, mid-continent - a great feat as well, and one I've dreamed of making (but in the other direction)! I would say 'go for it'! I've picked up hitchhikers, and with no troubles - they were on their way to Alaska, but first to Colorado to work construction, then up to the interior to homestead.. it's not all that uncommon. Read the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy first though..;) Good luck Nick!!

Thanks! It's not mine originally, but I cannot recall the source.;) Anyhow, enjoy the future - it's there for exploring, as the song goes..

I live in god's time - I only know sleep when the sun is at rest. Have you ever wanted to escape the civilization you're in, and live somewhere else permanently? (else being a totally different civilization)

This:[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OlEkOjmUXE]YouTube - Moody Blues - gypsy (1970)[/ame] :sultan:

Welcome PurpleMartinSt!!! :sunny::flutterby: Arkansas is a neat place!! Keep dreaming the impossible dream - without it, we would never have set foot on the moon.

Sam I am!:P Are there more atoms on earth than stars in the Universe?:sunny:

Gilligan's Island.:laugh3:

:lol:It's OK, as long as the neighbor's are either def or like Vivaldi too!:laugh3: (I actually like the four seasons - it's been a while since I've listened..)

What's next? Moon Pig??:P:laugh3: (maybe someone should take a pig into space? *writes NASA on the idea... *)