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POPSBlack Holes May Act Like Cosmic Factories for Building Galaxies
The stream of material was likely to be fuelling star formation in the galaxy, the scientists believe. In effect, the quasar was building its own host galaxy. At a later stage the quasar was expected to end up at the galaxy’s centre. ‘The two objects are bound to merge in the future: the quasar is moving at a speed of only a few tens of thousands of kilometres per hour with respect to the companion galaxy and their separation is only about 22,000 light-years,’ said lead scientist Dr David Elbaz, from the CEA research institute in Saclay, France. ‘Although the quasar is still ‘naked’, it will eventually be ‘dressed’ when it merges with its star-rich companion. It will then finally reside inside a host galaxy like all other quasars.’ A similar process may have led to the formation of other large galaxies with massive black holes nestling within them, the scientists believe. The research appears in the journals Astronomy & Astrophysics, and the Astrophysical Journal.
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POPSA Terrible Case of GOOD vs. EVIL To paraphrase one of Dora’s favorite old saying, evil triumphs when good men (and women) do nothing. Will you help to keep all little girls safe and join us in writing the Governor and the Illinois Prisoner Review Board? Please ask that Scott W. Darnell be denied all clemency. Write to: Illinois Prisoner Review Board, 319 E. Madison St., Suite A, Springfield, Ill., 62701. And/or contact Governor Pat Quinn, 207 State House, Springfield, IL 62706.
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POPSMens Luminite Rain Jacket It's designed for biking, so the back flap extends down over your butt when you're in the saddle. And they're Scottish, so they know rain. Tried on a size M and it fit me well, but they only had it in the gunmetal grey . It's slim-fitting enough to run comfortably in, but if I'm biking/running in the rain I'm going for the one in "don't-hit-me-you-fucking-oblivious-driver-yellow" rather than the one named "Stealth". ;-)
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POPS Astronomers See 'Skeleton' of the Universe Viewed through the world's most powerful telescopes, the discovery "is the first observation of such a prominent galaxy structure in the distant universe, providing further insight into the cosmic web and how it formed," according to a statement by the European Southern Observatory (ESO). The assembly of galaxies form filaments "millions of light years long and constitute the skeleton of the universe," it says. "Galaxies gather around them, and immense galaxy clusters form at their intersections, lurking like giant spiders waiting for more matter to digest," it adds. The filaments are located about 6.7 billion light-years away and extend over at least 60 million light-years, the scientists say, adding the structure very likely stretches beyond the area they probed, warranting further observations. "This is the first time that we have observed such a rich and prominent structure in the distant universe," says ESO's Masayuki Tanaka, who led the study.
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POPSMonkeyLectric LED bike wheel lights WANT ONE!!! This would add SO much peace of mind in terms of knowing that the often-oblivious car drivers around me would be able to see me better. Plus it's hella cool. :-D
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POPSTips for winter bike riding More: And what of darkness?… accident stats show that is unlikely. Far more collisions occur when a car turns in front of a bike—which means that bikes need headlights more than they need taillights. As for reflectors and reflective clothing, they only show when you're directly in the beams, so they won't prevent as many accidents as lights and bright colors such as yellow or light green (but not red, which the eye doesn't easily see in the dark). Bluish-white LEDs arrived on the scene a few years ago, but the original red LED color is still the brightest. This makes small, battery-powered LED "blinkies" great as taillights, but marginal as headlights. A better choice is a halogen system. For city riding, it's more important to point it up, where it shines in drivers' eyes, so they see you, rather than down onto the road, which is already illuminated by streetlights and house lights. Look for something that puts out at least ten watts.
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POPSConservatives Plan: Putting Patients First! It also expands the individual market by creating several pooling mechanisms. #3: Improve the Health Care Delivery Structure Physicians know the best care for their patient. That's why this legislation establishes doctor-led quality measures, ensuring that you get the quality care you need. It also reimburses physicians to ensure the stability of your care, and encourages healthier lifestyles by allowing employers to offer discounts for healthy habits through wellness and prevention programs. #4: Rein in Out-of-Control Costs A key concern in positive reform is reining in out-of control costs. This legislation does this by reforming the medical liability system. Also, the cost of the plan is completely offset through decreasing defensive medicine, savings from health care efficiencies, sifting out waste, fraud and abuse, plus an annual one-percent non defense discretionary spending step down.
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POPS"The central tenets of 'natural childbirth' are racist, sexist lies"
More: Pain in childbirth served a very important function…it was the punishment that befell women who became too educated, too independent…The idea that "primitive" women had painless childbirth was fabricated to contrast with the painful childbirth of "overcivilized" women. Grantly Dick-Read was issuing a warning to women of a certain social class: if you step beyond the roles prescribed for women, you will be punished with painful labor… In light of this, the contemporary popularity of natural childbirth is more than a bit ironic. The central claims of natural childbirth, that childbirth is not inherently painful, and that if you "prepare" properly, your birth will be painless, too, were utter fabrications. Read would be delighted that these fabrications have been embraced by many women and that his philosophy has been propagated so successfully that most women don't even realize that the central tenets of natural childbirth are racist and sexist lies.
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POPS"Pope proposes Catholic-Muslim merger"
more: And I’m laughing, and he’s laughing. And then, we look at each other, and we’re both, like, you know, that’s not a bad idea. So we batted around some ideas for names, logos, market share and so on. We’re just trying some stuff out.” The Pope was not concerned that devout Catholics may be upset by the new combined-faith church. “Let’s just say, if they’re that devout, they’ll do what I say. I can switch to infallibility mode any time I like. And if any of my people don’t like that, they can just kiss my ring goodbye.” The Pope downplayed concerns that the merger could bring Muslim terrorists into the Catholic church, dismissing the attacks of recent years as youthful hijinks. “Hey, what kid hasn’t joined an extremist group at some time or other. I feel for those young mujahideen scallywags. It’s just a phase. I was in the Hitler Youth, myself.” “I’ll tell you one thing, though,” quipped the aged pontiff, “when this deal goes through, those Jews better watch out! No, I’m k
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POPSfacing the #reality of #collapse #extinction Facing the reality of death (mass extinctions), rather than collapse, might be a more accurate description of the experience the world is going through. However, apart from intimations of a light at the end of the tunnel coming from reports of near death experiences, death is beyond our ken leaving its reality an open question. So the question is more about accepting death (which we must all do, anyway), than facing collapse.
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POPS"Salvation" By Langston Huges "So I got up. Suddenly the whole room broke into a sea of shouting, as they saw me rise. Waves of rejoicing swept the place. Women leaped in the air. My aunt threw her arms around me. The minister took me by the hand and led me to the platform. When things quieted down, in a hushed silence, punctuated by a few ecstatic "Amens," all the new young lambs were blessed in the name of God. Then joyous singing filled the room." Well worth the time to read in it's entirety
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POPSObama, Minions cave in to Big Coal, Mountaintop Mining
Gawd what a buncha hypocrites and LIARS they are becoming. More: And EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said this year that the agency had "considerable concern" about the projects. She pledged that her agency would "use the best science and follow the letter of the law in ensuring we are protecting our environment." Soon afterward, the agency blocked six major mountaintop projects in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio. But this month, after White House meetings with coal companies and advocates such as Rahall and West Virginia Gov. Joe Manchin, the EPA gave the green light to at least two dozen projects. "It was a big disappointment," said Joan Mulhern, a lawyer for Earthjustice, an environmental law firm that has led court challenges to mountaintop removal. Mulhern charged that the EPA "blew off" Jackson's earlier promises that the agency would adhere to science and conduct an open process. Ed Hopkins, a top Sierra Club official, said that some of the projects that obtained
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POPSWhat happens when people catch fire? Meet a team who have made it their macabre mission to find out. "A human limb burns a little like a tree branch," says John DeHaan, a fire investigator at Fire-Ex Forensics in Vallejo, California, who works with Pope. First, he says, the thin outer layers of skin fry and begin to peel off as the flames dance across their surface. Then, after around 5 minutes, the thicker dermal layer of skin shrinks and begins to split, allowing the underlying yellow fat to leak out. "That's when the fire gets most interesting," says DeHaan. Body fat can make a good fuel source, but it needs material such as clothing or charred wood to act as a wick. Like that in a wax candle, a wick absorbs the fat and pulls it into the flame, where it is vaporized, so enabling it to burn.
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POPS'Green' lightbulbs poison workers I've tried these bulbs and they are supposed to have a much longer life, however I've gone through many of these expensive bulbs because they don't last like they are supposed to. I also didn't like the idea of my toddler being exposed to Mercury if a bulb breaks, so I've gone back to standard light bulbs, although I refuse to by GE bulbs because of the reports that at one point they were funneling weapons to Iran which were being used against our troops.
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POPSDonohue's Knickers Knotted Anew Bill Donohue riles up the wing nuts again. It makes one wonder if he is capable of rational thought at all? Can he discern fact from fiction? Looks like no to all. It's sad that so many sheeple defend this person. IMO, this is parallel to the "war on Christmas" non-event that has become a yearly laughing point. If I was religious, I think I'd be very embarrassed by having this person in such an influential position. Later in the clip Donohue says: "It's not a secret, OK? And I'm not afraid to say it. That's why they hate this movie. It's about Jesus Christ, and it's about truth. It's about the Messiah." He later apologised for his remarks, saying he regretted the use of the word "controlled". :-(
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