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POPSLunar Cycle affects Cyclone strength Known as Hurricanes, Typhoons and Cyclones, depending on the location Scientists have noticed the pattern, but are yet to discover the mechanism behind the variations
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POPS'Chemical equator' keeps southern air clean The virtual map says it all. Now it means the approach to the solution of the pollution problem needs to be tackled in different ways in each hemisphere. Atmospheric pollution is only one problem. More investigation needs to be done into the nature of oceanic pollution. it did make me wonder of the Nuclear Fusion experiments on Mururoa (Aopuni) and Bikini atolls in French Polynesia last Century. The first nuclear test was conducted on July 2, 1966, code named Aldebaran. France abandoned nuclear testing in the atmosphere in 1974 and moved testing underground in the midst of intense world pressure. A total of 147 underground nuclear tests were conducted at Mururoa and Fangataufa. This practice created much controversy as cracking of the atolls was discovered, A 1979 test conducted at half the usual depth caused a large submarine landslide on the southwest rim of the atoll. Just somehow seemed relevant
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POPSFossils tell of mass exodus from sea Creatures could develop some protection from the sun in the water, but the land was wide open, and predators were yet to get anywhere the efficiency of ocean based predators. They can understand why shelled arthropods had the protection to survive, but can't understand the survival of soft bodied things like worms and Molluscs? then perhaps they can explain why a slug like creature evolved a shell and branched unto the Snail genotype. i don't imagine life is safe anywhere for exposed slugs and worms, and solar radiation, particularly UV Light can accelerate development. and change. Perhaps they were moving to the place that was the least dangerous.
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POPSMinke whales shedding blubber The study is Japanese which puts the problem in a nut shell. They say the whales are 'suffering' because of a low krill number. What is significant about that? Tuna eat krill.
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POPSSeals help measure Southern Ocean It's not easy to measure for us to measure the currents,and temperatures under the ice, but the seals have no trouble. A simple solution to what may otherwise have been a difficult problem to solve. The ice caps and polar oceans can provide critical information concerning the temperature regulation of the planet so details of changes are necessary to contribute to any picture we might pretend to have. I wonder if they've tried penguins?
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POPSSnowy Mountains Hydro Electric Scheme 
If a man has the faith the size of a mustard seed, he can say to a mountain 'move', and it will move. Started in 1949, the scheme provided employment for returned soldiers, 'New Australians', who came to Australia after WW2 to start a new life, to provide electricity for the states of N.S.W. and Victoria, and to turn the 'Snowy' River from it's flow into the ocean, back inland to the irrigation area in central N.S.W. The Government tried to sell the scheme in 2005, but widespread protests, arguing it was not theirs to sell, from people including 100 Mayors from N.S.W., prominent politicians, and conservationists, prevented the sale. As a result of the drought-in Australia, droughts go hand in with bush fires, Lake Jindabyne reached an all time low of around 10%.in 2005. Today the level is around 60%. 'Old' Jindabyne is beneath Lake Jindabyne. They decided to move the town. when the dam was built. Parts of it can be seen when the dam is low or when fishing. Particularly the steeple.
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POPSViruses can catch colds, says study that redefines life itself Prof La Scola and his colleagues were surprised to spot a smaller type of virus attached to the virus-making factory inside infected cells. The new virus - Sputnik - was unable to infect cells by itself but seemed to hijack the larger to achieve its infectious aims. By regulating the growth and death of plankton, giant viruses - and satellite viruses such as Sputnik - could be a major influence on ocean nutrient cycles and climate. "These viruses could be major players in global systems," Nature is told by Prof Curtis Suttle, an expert in marine viruses at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver.
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POPSThe hottest water on Earth "Black smokers deep in the Atlantic are spouting 'supercritical' water at over 407 °C – something never before been seen in nature."
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POPS'Cut not sink' emissions says expert
Many things as our history has shown can't be, and should not be tested while being put into practice. A quick study of our history of DIY efforts shows us that. We still have trouble learning the hard way. I have trouble imagining many of our solutions doing more than taking a system that is unbalanced and making it more unbalanced. Many a persons famous last words have been 'this time it will be different.- and better'. Which can be clearly stupid, and the reason they are last words. We certainly need to give nature more credit and respect t that we are. It has its own means of self correction. We can work out how to work according to the principles of nature, rather than our own vanity, or we'll be corrected out of existence. Still, a new thread could start 'Homo Novalis' but it doesn't take very many individuals to establish the start of a new line. the rest of us may soon be obsolete. (soon in evolutionary time) and a subject in achaeology classes. Existential aversion therapy
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POPSRising seas threaten west Antarctica. the ice shelves have prevented the land locked ice from flowing into the ocean. Now with the shelves melting and liquid water beneath the ice, it can have the same effect in geological terms as popping a cork. Wet ice is slippery
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POPSOcean review finds warming on the rise.
It isn't just that ice is melting that is making the sea level rise, it is also the fact that water expands as it heats. With the volume of water in the ocean - 2/3 of the Earth's surface is covered with water, even a small temperature increase can have a dramatic effect. The way the expansion, and melting are factored into the research reports can make them a lot clearer, and more accurate. While there are the best of intentions, regarding some kind of remedy, I don't remember anyone being able to literally turn back the tide, which seems like the bottom line. King Canute had a go, but he was trying to prove that point to some knucklehead courtiers, who'd flattered him. He knew they were full of hot air, but figured it was worth getting wet to see the look on their faces. Don't you hate it when a King calls your bluff. Still you can look at the bright side. The world is getting more like Venice every day. All you have to do is buy shares in a Gondola Company.
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POPSCreating insignificant events -Futuristic art Vincent Callebaut 'work was lately exhibited in Paris ; ;" To believe in the world means to create events, even insignificant ones, that gets out of control, or create new space-times, even in reduced surfaces or volumes"
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POPSAustralia gets access to underwater bounty There seem to be the implication that we can 'own' an environment. While there is constant talk of conservation, it never seems to get in the way of a good profit. The world is a boat. and we are just passengers, not owners. We should feel obliged to leave it in a fit state for travelers on the next leg of the journey. I suppose it was a choice between oil rigs, and bottom trawlers. The black smoker' is the spout from a seabed hydrothermal vent. At the sea floor, due to the pressure, water is still liquid at 400deg C, and is as acidic as vinegar.
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POPSEarth hums while making love waves The seismic stations had to be boring, or the waves would not nave been heard above the noise. Named after Professor Augustus Love the mathematician who created the model of such waves in 1911. They are still unsure exactly how they are formed, but believe wind , ocean or solar forces may contribute. They say that now they know what to look for, they can find the waves at other stations, which might help point researchers in the direction of the source.