flying, swarming autonomous pixels?
Posted on February 26th, 2010 at 10:08 pm by jaz

um… cool

Free the Willies
Posted on February 25th, 2010 at 3:23 pm by necco

In light of the most recent Killer Whale attack at Sea World I think that cetaceans should not be held in captivity and forced to perform. The animals are clearly intelligent. They should be given the option to perform… maybe an “open” aquarium where they can voluntarily open a door, swim into and out of the ocean as they please and interact with humans on their own terms when desired. I wonder how many would be interested in this type of interaction…

Don’t get me started on octopuses and cuttlefish.

An Incredible Voice
Posted on February 25th, 2010 at 1:42 pm by Steve

How did I miss David McAlmont for so long? He’s got an incredible three-octave range, and he’s been singing as an OUT gay man since the early 90’s. WTF!?

He’s shown above in a still frame singing a James Bond cover song, “Diamonds Are Forever.” The video is below.

Public Utility Chutzpah
Posted on February 22nd, 2010 at 6:35 pm by Mutt

PG&E Building in San Francisco
PG&E Building in San Francisco

Today, I noticed an ad for California Prop 16, with the catchline “Preserve Your Right To Vote.” Thinking that this sounded like a lot of spin, I decided to look it up.

According to Ballotpedia, this is basically an initiative funded by PG&E to make it more difficult for municipalities to start their own utilities.  It would amend the California state constitution to require that any Community Choice Aggregator be approved by a 2/3 vote.

Now, I already thought that California’s system for amending the constitution by a simple majority is ridiculous, but this really takes the cake.  (Perhaps even the lemon olive oil cake.  See below.)

Let me get this straight — you’re using a simple 50% vote to require that, in the future, individual communities need a 2/3 majority to do something?  That seems really backward.

But what really gets me is that PG&E, a monopoly public utility, is planning on spending $25-35 million dollars to singlehandedly fund the campaign for this initiative — that’s money that we’re paying them!

In Case You Were Wondering…
Posted on February 22nd, 2010 at 11:44 am by Steve

…the masters of the American economy (and, thus, the people whose largely unaccountable decisions determine the material fortunes of most people in our country) don’t give a flying fuck about you, me, or anyone else we know:

“American business is about maximizing shareholder value,” said Allen Sinai, chief global economist at the research firm Decision Economics. “You basically don’t want workers. You hire less, and you try to find capital equipment to replace them.”

(Source: New York Times, “The New Poor: Millions of Unemployed Face Years Without Jobs”)

What a shame that the structure of our economic and political life is simply a force of nature that is immune to modification. If only there were some way to structure a society so that the primary economic activities were directed toward something else in addition to “maximizing shareholder value.”

Or, wait…

Best…Area Forecast Discussion…EVER!
Posted on February 21st, 2010 at 11:54 pm by Steve

If you’re like me – and I know I am – you love trying to understand and predict the weather. On the off chance you’re not like me, I’m reposting below my favorite recent “Area Forecast Discussion” product from the National Weather Service’s Taunton, MA office. Even with the jargon and peculiar typographic conventions, you can get a pretty keen sense of how weather systems and forecasts work by reading this discussion:

838
FXUS61 KBOX 220357
AFDBOX

AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE TAUNTON MA
1057 PM EST SUN FEB 21 2010

.SYNOPSIS…
TWO LOW PRESSURE SYSTEMS ARE FORECAST TO DEVELOP OFF THE MID ATLANTIC COAST THIS WEEK AND COULD BRING PERIODS OF WINTRY WEATHER…MAINLY TO THE INTERIOR. THE FIRST SYSTEM IS LIKELY TO AFFECT THE REGION TUESDAY AND WEDNESDAY AS IT TRACKS ACROSS SOUTHERN NEW ENGLAND. A SECOND COASTAL STORM MAY AFFECT THE AREA LATE THURSDAY INTO FRIDAY AS IT TAKES A SIMILAR TRACK THROUGH OUR AREA.

&&

.NEAR TERM /UNTIL 6 AM MONDAY MORNING/… FOR THE OVERNIGHT FORECAST…HAVE LOWERED SKY COVER GRIDS TO ALMOST CLEAR OVER MOST OF THE AREA. SOME CIRRUS ADVANCING THROUGH EASTERN NY…SOME LOW CLOUDS IN THE HIGHER ELEVATIONS OF CHESHIRE COUNTY ARE THE TWO EXCEPTIONS. SATELLITE IMAGERY SHOWS HIGH CLOUDINESS SPILLING SOUTHWESTWARD OVER THE GULF OF MAINE AS ANOTHER SPOKE OF VORTICITY ROTATES AROUND THE UPPER LOW. 00Z NAM BRINGS THE CLOUD COVER INTO MASS BAY BY DAYBREAK THEN BACK EASTWARD OUT TO SEA…SO ADDED THIS TO SKY COVER GRIDS. NO CHANGES TO TEMPERATURE FORECAST OVERNIGHT. LOWERED WIND GUSTS IN WESTERN MA BUT KEPT WINDS AS FORECAST ALONG THE COAST OVERNIGHT SINCE BOS STILL GUSTING TO 24 KTS AS OF 10 PM.

&&

.SHORT TERM /6 AM MONDAY MORNING THROUGH MONDAY NIGHT/…
MONDAY…THE FORECAST AREA WILL RESIDE WITHIN A COL AREA BETWEEN HIGH AND LOW PRESSURE SYSTEMS. ANTICYCLONIC FLOW ALOFT WILL ALLOW FOR SUBSIDENCE AND MOSTLY CLEAR SKIES. WILL NOTE SOME INCREASING HIGH CLOUDS LATE IN THE DAY WELL AHEAD OF ADVANCING LOW PRESSURE ACROSS THE GREAT LAKES.

TEMPERATURES ARE EXPECTED TO REBOUND TO ABOVE SEASONAL NORMS…IN THE 40S MOST LOCATIONS. DEVELOPING LIGHT ONSHORE FLOW WILL ALLOW FOR COOLING TEMPERATURES ALONG THE COAST DURING THE AFTERNOON. STAYED FAIRLY CLOSE TO THE MILDER MAV MOS GUIDANCE MOST AREAS.

MONDAY NIGHT…THE WEAK H5 RIDGE WILL BE MOVING EAST OF THE AREA. NOTED AN APPROACHING H7 MID LEVEL JET PROVIDING INCREASING MID LEVEL CONVERGENCE ACROSS THE SOUTHWESTERN ZONES APPROACHING DAYBREAK FROM THE LATEST OPERATIONAL NAM/GFS. A LOW LEVEL ESE JET AHEAD OF DEVELOPING LOW PRESSURE OFF THE NORTH CAROLINA COAST WILL PROVIDE SOME INCREASING LOW LEVEL CONVERGENCE AND ATLANTIC MOISTURE AFTER 06Z ACROSS THE SOUTHWEST ZONES. THE MAIN FOCUS FOR DEEP LIFT WILL LIKELY OCCUR WELL AFTER 06Z.

THERE ARE TIMING ISSUES REGARDING THE ARRIVAL TIME OF PRECIPITATION BUT FEEL IT WILL TAKE SOME TIME FOR THE LOWER LEVELS FROM H85 TO THE SURFACE TO MOISTEN. THUS HAVE CHANCE POPS ADVERTISED FROM 06Z THROUGH 12Z ACROSS THE WESTERN ZONES…BUT REMAINING DRY UNTIL AFTER DAYBREAK ACROSS THE EAST. TEMPERATURE PROFILES REMAIN COLD ENOUGH TO SUPPORT MOSTLY SNOW THROUGH DAYBREAK.

&&

.LONG TERM /TUESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/…
VERY COMPLEX WX PATTERN DURING THIS EXTENDED PERIOD WITH PERSISTENT NORTH ATLANTIC BLOCKING REMAINING IN PLACE. SIGNIFICANT TROF AMPLIFICATION OCCURS OVER MIDWEST AND OHIO VALLEY EARLY IN THE PERIOD AS PIECE OF ENERGY BREAKS OFF FROM HUDSON BAY VORTEX AND FORMS ANOTHER CLOSED VORTEX WHICH DROPS SWD ACROSS OHIO VALLEY EVENTUALLY SHIFTING EAST OVER NEW ENG TOWARD THE END OF THE WEEK. POTENTIAL FOR 2 STORMS TO AFFECT SNE DURING THE PERIOD.

HIGH CONFIDENCE IN A PROLONGED WINTER WEATHER EVENT ACROSS SNE THROUGH AT LEAST WED ALTHOUGH THERE REMAINS CONSIDERABLE UNCERTAINTY IN DETAILS OF QPF AND PTYPE. GREATEST PROABILITY FOR SIGNIFICANT SNOW ACCUM DURING TUE-WED PERIOD WILL MOST LIKELY BE OVER NW HIGH TERRAIN.

COASTAL STORM DEVELOPS OFF MID ATLC COAST TUE AS PIECE OF SHORTWAVE ENERGY BREAKS OFF FROM DEVELOPING VORTEX DROPPING SOUTH INTO THE MIDWEST. THERE IS CONSIDERABLE MODEL SPREAD WITH THE TRACK OF THIS STORM SO CONFIDENCE IN THE DETAILS OF QPF/PTYPE IS LOW. GFS/NAM FURTHEST EAST AS THEY DEVELOP THE STORM WELL OFFSHORE ALTHOUGH INVERTED TROF HANGING BACK TO THE WEST ENSURES PRECIP ACROSS SNE. OP GFS HAS NO SUPPORT FROM MAJORITY OF ITS ENSEMBLE MEMBERS WHICH ARE FURTHER WEST BUT ALSO CONDISERABLE SPREAD AMONG ALL MEMBERS. GGEM ON WESTERN ENVELOPE OF SOLUTIONS TRACKING STORM NWD THROUGH NYS. ANSWER PROBABLY LIES SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN MORE IN LINE WITH ECMWF/GEFS MEAN/SREF BLEND WHICH TRACK STORM SLOWLY NWD INTO E NEW ENG DURING WED.

CURRENT THINKING IS PRECIP WILL OVERSPREAD THE REGION FROM WEST TO EAST DURING TUE…BUT HEAVIER QPF WILL PROBABLY BE FOCUSED ACROSS LOWER CT VALLEY TUE WITH STEADIER PRECIP MOVING EAST ACROSS REST OF SNE TUE NIGHT.

PTYPE IS TRICKY. PRECIP COULD BEGIN AS A PERIOD OF SNOW IN THE COASTAL PLAIN BUT WE THINK THERE IS TOO MUCH LOW LEVEL ELY FLOW WHICH SHOULD OVERWHELM THE BOUNDARY LAYER RESULTING IN MOSTLY RAIN FROM BOS-PVD SEWD WITH SOME MIXING POSSIBLE TUE NIGHT. NOT BUYING THE COLD NAM SOLUTION FOR BOS/PVD AS MAIN STORM IS LIKELY TOO FAR EAST. BEST CHANCE FOR ALL SNOW WILL BE OVER ELEVATED TERRAIN IN BERKSHIRES…MONADNOCKS AND HILLS ACROSS NORTHERN ORH COUNTY. IN BETWEEN THESE 2 AREAS FROM N CT AND MASS PIKE REGION NORTHWARD ALONG I495 BELT IS WHERE CONFIDENCE IS LOWEST IN PTYPE. WILL PROBABLY SEE A PERIOD OF SNOW THEN MIXED RAIN/SNOW AS BOUNDARY LAYER WARMS.

PRECIP CONTINUES INTO WED…BUT SHOULD BEGIN TO TAPER OFF FROM SOUTH TO NORTH DURING AFTERNOON/EVENING AS DRY SLOT MOVES IN WITH APPROACH OF SFC LOW. HIGHEST PROBABILITY FOR GREATER THAN 6″ WITH LOCALLY UP TO A FOOT WILL BE OVER NW HIGHER TERRAIN…WITH ADVSY SNOWFALL POSSIBLE IN INTERIOR NW OF I95. FOR THE COASTAL PLAIN…THINKING RIGHT NOW IS LITTLE ACCUM EXPECTED.

THEN THERE IS THE SECOND COASTAL STORM WHICH DEVELOPS IN RESPONSE TO VORTEX MOVING EWD FROM OHIO VALLEY AND OFF THE MID ATLC COAST THU INTO FRI. AGAIN THERE IS CONSIDERABLE UNCERTAINTY ON THE EVOLUTION OF THIS STORM AS THE INTERACTION OF SEVERAL SHORTWAVES WILL ULTIMATELY DETERMINE THE POSITION OF THE VORTEX AND EVENTUAL DEVELOPMENT/TRACK OF COASTAL STORM. STILL WAY TOO EARLY TO EVEN ATTEMPT TO PIN ANYTHING DOWN SO WE JUST HAVE CHC POPS FOR NOW.

UNSETTLED WEATHER COULD LINGER INTO SAT WITH SOME IMPROVEMENT POSSIBLE BY NEXT SUNDAY.

&&

.AVIATION /04Z MONDAY THROUGH FRIDAY/…
OVERNIGHT…HIGH CONFIDENCE VFR.

MONDAY…HIGH CONFIDENCE VFR.

MONDAY NIGHT…VFR CEILINGS EXCEPT LOW TO MODERATE CONFIDENCE MVFR/IFR CEILINGS AND VSBYS IN DEVELOPING -SN KBAF-KBDL-WST BY 09Z.

OUTLOOK…TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY…

TUE-WED…HIGH CONFIDENCE OF MVFR CIGS/VSBYS IN MIXED RAIN/SNOW WITH PERIODS OF IFR POSSIBLE. GUSTY EASTERLY WINDS ALONG THE COAST.

THU-FRI…CONDITIONS DEPEND ON DEVELOPMENT/TRACK OF SECOND COASTAL STORM. THERE COULD BE MORE MVFR/IFR CONDITIONS AND GUSTY WINDS BUT CONFIDENCE IS VERY LOW.

&&

.MARINE…
OVERNIGHT…SMALL CRAFT ADVISORIES REMAIN IN EFFECT FOR THE OFFSHORE WATERS AS OF 10 PM…STILL HAD GUSTS TO 29 KTS AT BUOY 44018 AND TO 27 KTS AT 44013. ALSO SEAS WILL AVERAGE 4 TO 6 FEET OVERNIGHT.

MONDAY…A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY WILL MAY NEED TO BE EXTENDED UNTIL AROUND NOON FOR LEFTOVER HAZARDOUS SEAS ACROSS THE OUTER COASTAL WATERS.

MONDAY NIGHT…A SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY MAY BE NECESSARY APPROACHING DAYBREAK TUESDAY ACROSS THE SOUTHWESTERN WATERS AS LOW PRESSURE DEVELOPS OFF THE NORTH CAROLINA COAST.

OUTLOOK…TUESDAY THROUGH FRIDAY…

TUE-WED…INCREASING E-NE WINDS WITH PROLONGED PERIOD OF GUSTS TO 30 KT EXPECTED. LOWER PROB OF GALE FORCE GUSTS DEPENDING ON TRACK/DEVLOPMENT OF THE FIRST COASTAL STORM. ECMWF WOULD BRING STRONG GALES TUE NIGHT INTO WED FOR EASTERN WATERS BUT GFS IS WEAKER. SEAS LIKELY BUILDING TO OVER 10 FEET OVER OUTER WATERS BY WED…POTENTIALLY STRONGER IF ECMWF SOLUTION VERIFIES.

THU-FRI…WINDS/SEAS WILL DEPEND ON DEVELOPMENT/TRACK OF POSSIBLE SECOND COASTAL STORM. THERE IS CONSIDERABLE MODEL SPREAD WHICH RESULTS IN VERY LOW CONFIDENCE ON WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION.

&&

.TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING…
COASTAL FLOOD TREAT IS LOW THROUGH TUE DUE TO LOW ASTRO TIDES AND SEAS NOT HAVING BUILT UP ENOUGH BY THEN. COASTAL FLOOD POTENTIAL INCREASES FOR THE WED MORNING HIGH TIDE. STORM SURGE OF 2 FEET COMBINED WITH 10-15 FT SEAS OFFSHORE COULD YIELD WORST CASE SCENARIO OF MINOR FLOODING.

HOWEVER…BEACH EROSION MAY BECOME A PROBLEM ON EAST FACING BEACHES DUE TO PERSISTENT EASTERLY FLOW OVER MULTIPLE HIGH TIDE CYCLES.

NEXT STORM AFFECTING REGION TOWARD END OF WEEK ALSO BEARS WATCHING AS ASTRO TIDES ARE HIGHER.

&&

.BOX WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES…
CT…NONE.
MA…NONE.
NH…NONE.
RI…NONE.
MARINE…SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY UNTIL 6 AM EST MONDAY FOR ANZ250-254>256.

&&

$$
SYNOPSIS…KJC/STRAUSS/GAF
NEAR TERM…GAF
SHORT TERM…STRAUSS
LONG TERM…KJC
AVIATION…KJC/STRAUSS
MARINE…KJC/STRAUSS
TIDES/COASTAL FLOODING…KJC

Mmmm…This Looks Yummy!
Posted on February 18th, 2010 at 5:39 pm by Steve

Via the Boston Globe comes this delicious-sounding recipe for Italian Olive Oil Lemon Cake! Note to self: buy springform cake pan!

Butter (for the pan)
Flour (for the pan)
7 eggs, separated and at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 cup top-quality olive oil
1 cup flour
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
Grated rind of 1 lemon
Confectioners’ sugar (for sprinkling)

1. Set the oven at 375 degrees. Butter a 9-inch springform pan and dust it with flour, tapping out the excess.

2. In a bowl using a whisk, beat the egg yolks and gradually beat in the granulated sugar and olive oil.

3. Add the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and lemon rind. Mix well.

4. In an electric mixer, beat the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Gently fold the whites into the yolk mixture until no white patches show.

5. Transfer the batter to the pan. Bake the cake for 40 minutes or until the top springs back when pressed with a fingertip.

6. Let the cake cool. Unlatch the spring and slide the cake onto a flat platter. Sprinkle generously with confectioners’ sugar.

Author James Herod’s Book “Getting Free”
Posted on February 16th, 2010 at 4:16 pm by Steve

“The knowledge that we are slaves being bought by the hour rather than the lifetime has also been lost. We have been wage slaves for so long that we have forgotten there is any other way to live. We have forgotten that once we had land and tools and could live independently, providing for ourselves, without being forced to sell our labor power for wages.”

I’ve linked to him before… and now I’ll do it again. Highly worth reading.

Neurogastroenterology. Really.
Posted on February 16th, 2010 at 12:48 pm by Steve

You have more neurons in your stomach and intestines than in your spinal cord or peripheral nervous system. Some call it “the second brain:”

Technically known as the enteric nervous system, the second brain consists of sheaths of neurons embedded in the walls of the long tube of our gut, or alimentary canal, which measures about nine meters end to end from the esophagus to the anus. The second brain contains some 100 million neurons, more than in either the spinal cord or the peripheral nervous system…

And yes, apparently there is a new field of medicine known as Neurogastroenterology!

Who Needs Courts When You’ve Got “History’s Judgment”?
Posted on February 15th, 2010 at 7:16 pm by Steve

Andrew Sullivan calls out Dick Cheney’s admission this weekend, “I was a big supporter of waterboarding,” and correctly notes that the former Vice President has thereby admitted to being guilty of a war crime. War Crimes must be investigated and prosecuted under U. S. law and international treaty, and the principle of Universal Jurisdiction applies (meaning, Cheney could be indicted and arrested by agents of a foreign government and held to account).

Of course, the Attorney General of the United States doesn’t seem to understand his solemn obligation:

[Attorney General Eric Holder] added that he had seen documents making clear that Cheney’s office was the driving force behind the Bush Administration’s most controversial counterterrorism policies, especially those sanctioning brutal interrogations. He said of Cheney, “I think he’s worried about what history’s judgment will be of the role that he played in making decisions about everything from black sites to enhanced interrogation techniques.”

Thanks, Eric Holder. Let’s all just sit on our hands and wait for history to render a judgment. It’s not like it’s your JOB to go around enforcing the laws of the United States!

(The Holder quote comes from this excellent article by Jane Mayer in the New Yorker, which I also referenced in a prior post.)

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