I’ve been putting this off for a while, mostly because the end of the world seems as good a thing as any to put off till later. But ladies and gents, The End Is Near. Or might be, anyway: After analysing the eradication of millions of ancient species, scientists have found that a mass extinction […]
Them
The radiation may make ants grow, but the heat from global warming is liable to shrink them, new research suggests. (Though in fairness, the research speaks only of the latter effect. TV land speaks of the former.) (New Scientist: “Global warming could trigger ant invasions,” by Shaoni Bhattacharya [March 21, 2005])
Posted by Ben on May 12, 2005
https://www.swordbilled.com/them/
Let me tell you about my great enormous backlog of links
Going all the way back to mid-February, WorldPress Review carried an interesting story about the US Military’s recruitment schemes, both historical and contemporary. And did you hear about the starquake? Oh. You did. Well, did you hear that women are “less likely to get quality heart attack care,” or that cancer-stricken rats live longer if […]
Posted by Ben on April 14, 2005
https://www.swordbilled.com/let-me-tell-you-about-my-great-enormous-backlog-of-links/
The thoughtful cow worries
Once they were a byword for mindless docility. But cows have a secret mental life in which they bear grudges, nurture friendships and become excited over intellectual challenges, scientists have found. Cows are also capable of feeling strong emotions such as pain, fear and even anxiety—they worry about the future. But if farmers provide the […]
Posted by Ben on March 10, 2005
https://www.swordbilled.com/the-thoughtful-cow-worries/
Killer Cars
Not that this should necessarily come as news, but: The [Heart and Stroke] foundation’s first study of urban versus non-urban living shows that car-dependent Canadians are more sedentary and at increased risk of being overweight or obese. (via CBC News: “Cars killing suburban dwellers, heart foundation says” [February 10, 2004])
Posted by Ben on March 7, 2005
https://www.swordbilled.com/killer-cars/
random crap
More lies. The BoGlo has a quick & fluffy piece on the relevance of lie detection to modern-day struggles. On the verge of making an interesting statement, the article spends too much time bringing the presumably ignorant reader up to speed on the state of modern lie psychology (or whatever you want to call it). […]
Posted by Ben on February 13, 2005
https://www.swordbilled.com/random-crap/
General disorder
Nalgene, forever! Or not. Over at Grist, Umbra makes a case against Nalgene bottles. (Although the column is actually a clarification of an earlier column, so if you’re new to the Nalgene question, you may want to do a little reading.) How about Orangene? A research team at Cornell has apparently discovered a way to […]
Posted by Ben on January 26, 2005
https://www.swordbilled.com/general-disorder/
Squelch goes the permafrost
Via BBC: …Alaska is not the only region in a slump. The permafrost melt is accelerating throughout the world’s cold regions, scientists reported at the recent Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical Union (AGU) in San Francisco. In addition to northern Alaska, the permafrost zone includes most other Arctic land, such as northern Canada and […]
Posted by Ben on January 2, 2005
https://www.swordbilled.com/squelch-goes-the-permafrost/
The 52 Hertz Whale
Imagine roaming the world’s largest ocean year after year alone, calling out with the regularity of a metronome, and hearing no response. Such, apparently, is the situation faced by a solitary whale, species unknown, that has been tracked since 1992 in the North Pacific by a classified array of hydrophones used by the Navy to […]
Posted by Ben on December 21, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/the-52-hertz-whale/
We No Wanna Clean Up
Despite minimal oversight, now the Pentagon apparently feels it is too constrained by its existing environmental responsibilities. Lovely. The Pentagon is becoming a cold, calculating beast. Oh, er… Never mind. (truthout: “Pentagon to Jettison Environmental Responsibilities” [December 14, 2004], via Planetizen)
Posted by Ben on December 17, 2004
https://www.swordbilled.com/we-no-wanna-clean-up/