Virgin's Branson offers $25 mln global warming prize

Fri Feb 9, 2007 1:09 PM GMT

Gore, whose campaign film "An Inconvenient Truth" has helped spread the message, said all science showed something was drastically wrong but that Armageddon was not inevitable.

"We are now facing a planetary emergency. The planet has a fever," he said. "This is an initiative to stimulate someone to do something that no one knows how to do. This is right at the cutting edge."

The prize will initially only be open for five years, with ideas assessed by a panel of judges including Branson, Gore and Tickell as well as U.S. climate scientist James Hansen, Briton James Lovelock and Australian environmentalist Tim Flannery.

The winner will have to come up with a way of removing one billion metric tons of carbon gases a year from the atmosphere for 10 years -- with $5 million of the prize being paid at the start and the remaining $20 million at the end.

If no winner is identified after five years the judges can decide to extend the period.

"This is the world's first deliberate attempt at planetary engineering," Flannery said via videolink from Sydney. "We are at the last moment. Once we reach the tipping point it will have been taken out of our hands.

He said 200 metric gigatons of carbon had accumulated in the atmosphere since the industrial revolution, raising concentrations by 100 parts per million. The challenge was to find ways of bringing that back down again.

Maya calendar date

I was born on this Mayan date 12.18.6.5.17 10 Caban 5 Yax
find out more here http://www.world-mysteries.com/sar_3.htm
conversions here http://www.pauahtun.org/Calendar/tools.html

Belly of the Bug: Better Biofuels Through Termite Guts

Topic: Alt Fuel

Not satisfied with biofuels based on corn, cane, and chicken fat, metagenomicists are diving into the digestive tracts of termites in the hope of co-opting the microbial genes that let the house-chewing pests digest wood. MIT Technology Review quotes Jim Bristow of the Department of Energy's Joint Genome Institute:

Converting cellulose in trees and grasses into the simple sugars that can be fermented into ethanol is a very energy-intensive process. "If we had better enzymatic machinery to do that, we might be better able to make sugars into ethanol," Bristow says. "Termites are the world's best bioconverters."

Researchers at the institute, who "have just finished sequencing the microbial community living in the termite gut,"

have already identified a number of novel cellulases — the enzymes that break down cellulose into sugar — and are now looking at the guts of other insects that digest wood, such as an anaerobic population that eats poplar chips.

The expected end result: "a giant parts list that synthetic biologists can put together to make an ideal energy-producing organism."

Earth hottest in 400 years, report says

The last few decades of the 20th century were warmer than any comparable time in at least the past four centuries, a new report says.

The report from the U.S. National Academy of Sciences was requested by Congress after a controversy last year over climate reconstructions published in the late 1990s.

That work, by University of Virginia climatologist Michael Mann and others, found the warming of the Northern Hemisphere in the last decades of the 20th century was unprecedented in the past thousand years. They concluded that the 1990s were the warmest decade, and 1998 the warmest year.

Scientists believe they can glean evidence of past temperatures from tree rings, boreholes, retreating glaciers, corals, cave deposits and other sources, although the evidence becomes weaker further back in time.

Such evidence agrees with the globally averaged warming of about 1 degree Fahrenheit (0.6 degrees Celsius) that instruments have recorded during the last century, according to members of a committee that drafted the new report.

The committee of the National Research Council, part of the National Academy of Sciences, called “plausible” the Mann team’s conclusion that warming in the last few decades of the 20th century was unprecedented over the last millennium.

But the panel said it had less confidence that the warming was unprecedented before 1600, and in the Mann team’s conclusions about the 1990s and 1998 in particular.

Scientists’ reconstructions of Northern Hemisphere surface temperatures for the past thousand years are generally consistent, the dozen-member committee reported.

These reconstructions, members added, show relatively warm conditions centered around the year 1000, and a relatively cold period, or “Little Ice Age,” from roughly 1500 to 1850. None of the reconstructions show temperatures were warmer during medieval times than during the past few decades, the committee added.

Most scientists blame global warming on greenhouse gases, substances such as carbon dioxide emitted as a result of human activities and that collect in the atmosphere.

Scientist are predicting a host of evils for human health and the environment as a result of global warming. Among many other problems, they have reported that polar bears are being driven to cannibalism as their icy habitat melts away, and baby walruses are possibly being orphaned for similar reasons.

The committee wrote that surface temperature reconstructions for periods before the Industrial Revolution—when levels of atmospheric greenhouse gases were much lower—are one of many lines of evidence suggesting human activities are responsible for the warming.

The National Research Council is a private, nonprofit institution that provides science and technology advice under a congressional charter.

More on the Veg and IQ Study

Our last issue reported a study from the UK which found that people with higher IQs at age 10 were more likely to be vegetarians later in life. You can read the entire article at http://www.bmj. com/cgi/rapidpdf /bmj.39030.675069. 55v1

The article has quotes from Shakespeare and Benjamin Franklin, the famous scientist, publisher, and politician of the 18^th and 19^th centuries, about the effects of diet on intellect. One of Shakespeare’s characters, Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night (Act 1, Scene 3), states; “I am a great eater of beef and I believe that does harm to my wit.” Franklin is quoted as stating in his autobiography that a veg diet provides one with “greater clearness of head and quicker comprehension.”

Keynote Address at IVU World Vegetarian Congress 2006

To close the year, here’s an excerpt from the opening, keynote speaker at the 2006 IVU World Vegetarian Congress in Goa , Dada J. P. Vaswani. The October 2006 issue of the newsletter of the Vegetarian Society (Reverence for Life) of India contains a transcript of the speech. Below is an excerpt. (please excuse the use of ‘men’ to refer to all humans)

Men have their rights. Do animals have no rights? Men have their rights. Do they not have duties towards the animals who have befriended man since the dawn of creation: the dog, the horse, the cow? Do they have no rights? The time has come when all animal lovers should come together and formulate a charter of animal rights and a charter of man’s duties towards the animals. Every animal has certain fundamental rights and the very first right of every animal I believe, the very first right of every animal is the right to live, for we cannot take away that which we cannot give. And since we cannot give life to a dead creature, we have no right to take away the life of a living one.

The year 1789 is a landmark in the history of humanity. It was in that year over two centuries ago that the French National Assembly adopted a declaration of the rights of man. That was the beginning of a new era in the history of humanity. Until then, mean had no rights. Kings were sovereign’ they could do whatever they liked. The 18^th century gave rights to man. The 19^th century gave rights to slaves, for there was a time when slaves had no rights; they were treated as we treat animals today. … The 18^th century, as I said, gave rights to man. The 19^th century gave rights to slaves. The 20^th century has give rights to women. The 21^st century I verily believe will give rights to animals. That will be a great and glorious day in the history of humanity.

Vote for Your Favourite Veg Restaurant

More and more sites provide listings of veg restaurants, in Singapore and worldwide. Happy Cow is probably the best-known world-wide site of this type: http://www.happycow .net

Here’s another such site: Veg Dining http://vegdining. com/Home. cfm Currently, there are about 35 listings on the Singapore page. The site also has a feature that let’s you vote for your favourite veg restaurant, but you have to do it before the end of the year. Some features of the site require a small yearly fee.

Yao Ming Says No to Sharks Fin Soup

Chinese basketball star, Yao Ming of the Houston Rockets, one of the world’s top players, has joined the growing list of celebrities who have come out publicly against eating shark’s fin soup.

http://www.usatoday .com/sports/ basketball/ nba/rockets/ 2006-08-02- yao-wildlife_ x.htm?POE= SPOISVA

Yntrodxkshxn tu Nuspelynh

No, that's not a quote from Cult Cthulhu. It reads 'Introduction to New Spelling' and the line between genius parody and stupidity is so blurred on this one, I'm not going to hazard a guess as to whether it's exclusively one or the other...

In Nuspelynh, each vowel has one sound. The letters c, q, and x are no longer needed as consonants, so we recycle them into vowels. c has the sound of short a, so it may be helpful to see the c as an a without a stem. q has the sound of short oo, so it may be helpful to see the q as a modified o. x has the sound of short u, so it may be useful to see the top half of the x as a very short u. The vowels a, e, i, o, and u have sounds like in other languages, including Spanish, Hawaiian, and Japanese.

The c is a vowel with the sound of short a except when it is followed by an h. The y is a vowel with the sound of short i except when it is followed by a vowel.

Thus, in Nuspelynh, 'book' becomes bqk. 'Casual' becomes kczhuxl. And 'undoubtedly' becomes the amazing xndcutydli. I mean, now that I see it in action, this all makes sense! Too bad there isn't another unnecessary letter in the English language: nuspelynh doesn't appear to have a hard 'a' sound. Maybe it should use an emoticon of a smiley face screaming or something.

Look, at the risk of seeming foolish if Nuspelynh is a parody, let me point this out: spelling reform that bases proper spelling upon pronunciation is an idea that is inherently flawed because people pronounce words differently. For example, Nuspelynh's founder spells father fadhxr... or as a homonym for "foddar." But I pronounce it with a clear theta sound, because I'm not fucking Fran Dreischer.

15 Super Coupes ( TheMrBeng motorshow 2006 )

Bloody motoshow2006 entrance fee $10 so ex. i'll have my own mini motorshow.

so people, heres it is:
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In the 105 years since cars went into mass production, coupes have been the sonnets of the auto industry--the medium in which the great designers and engineers use their best stuff, their most artful and heartfelt ideas. When you hear the words "beautiful car," chances are the image that pops into your head is not that of a minivan or pickup truck, but rather that of the classic car form, a coupe.

Lamborghini

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Best Coupe For under US$50,000

Porsche Cayman

Base Price: US$49,400

Engine: 2.7-liter, 245-horsepower 6-cylinder

Top speed: 160 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 5.8s

Beautiful and not in a love-it-or-hate-it way like BMW's Z4 M Coupe. We settled this category by erring on the racy, sporty side, not the side of luxury family cars--hence Cayman over BMW 3 Series or Infiniti G35.

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Best Psychotically Fast Coupe

SSC Ultimate Aero

Base Price: US$655,000

Engine: Turbocharged, 6.3-liter, 1,180-hp V-8

Top speed: 273 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 2.8 seconds

What's more fun than 1,180 horsepower? Stuffing 1,180 horsepower into a car that weighs as much as a Dodge Neon. The Aero's brakes had better be forged in Mordor.

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Best American Supercar (tie)

Chevrolet Corvette Z06

Base Price: US$70,000

Engine: 7.0-liter, 505-hp V-8

Top speed: 198 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: n/a

The champion of the hottest-performance-for-the-bucks category. Permanent winner. Category retired.

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Best American Supercar (tie)

Dodge Viper SRT-10

Base Price: US$86,995

Engine: 8.3-liter, 510-hp V-10

Top speed: 190 miles per hour (estimated)

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: Under four seconds

Dodge recently started selling a Viper coupe too, apparently because the convertible wasn't hardcore enough.

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Coupe That Goes Beyond Beyond

Bugatti Veyron 16.4

Base Price: US$1.2 million

Engine: 8.0-liter, 1,001-hp 16-cylinder
Top speed: 253 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: Under 2.5 seconds

No car has ever been so famously over the top.

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Best German Supercar

Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren

Base Price: US$452,750

Engine: Supercharged, 5.4-liter, 671-hp V-8

Top speed: 207 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 3.8 seconds

So civilized--literally the Mercedes-Benz of race cars.
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Best British Supercar (tie)

Aston Martin DB9

Base Price: US$165,000

Engine: 5.9-liter, 450-hp V-12

Top speed: 186 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 4.7 seconds

Monstrous torque, the world's most authoritative exhaust note, gorgeous interior leather and wood, world-beating handling and as high-class a brand name as there is. What more do you want from a car?

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Best British Supercar (tie)

Bentley Continental GT

Base Price: US$165,000

Engine: Turbocharged, 6.0-liter 12-cylinder

Top speed: 198 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 4.7 seconds

As potent as a freight train, as stately as a wood-paneled club room and as fast as a race car. Has already become an icon for success, taste and happiness.

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Best Italian Supercar (tie)

Ferrari F430

Base Price: $168,000

Engine: 4.3-liter, 483-hp V-8

Top speed: Over 195 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 3.9 seconds

Unbelievable acceleration. High-revving engine emits banshee wail. World's most engaging steering? World's most engaging car? Spend more for Ferrari's 599 or 612 if you like; a car can't make you happier than an F430 can.

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Best Italian Supercar (tie)

Lamborghini Murciélago LP640

Base Price: US$320,000

Engine: 6.5-liter, 632-hp V-12

Top speed: 211 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: Under 3.4 seconds

All you have to do is look at the Murciélago to know what it's capable of.

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Best New Arrival (tie)

Aston Martin V-8 Vantage

Base Price: US$110,000

Engine: 4.3-liter, 380-hp V-8

Top speed: 175 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 4.9 seconds

A sexy, fast and relatively affordable Aston. Not many cars scare Porsche. This one should.

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Best New Arrival (tie)

BMW M6

Base Price: US$98,600

Engine: 5.0-liter, 500-hp V-10

Top speed: 155 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 4.5 seconds

Just awesome. A ten-cylinder, racing-style engine in a gorgeous coupe. For the moment, this is the ultimate BMW--and that's not a minor distinction.

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Best New Arrival (tie)

Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano

Base Price: n/a

Engine: 6.0-liter, 620-hp V-12

Top speed: Over 205 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: Under 3.7 seconds

Missed out on the US$650,000 Enzo Ferrari supercar? The newest Ferrari has an Enzo-based engine. The 599 is made from Formula 1 technology, like all other Ferraris.

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Best New Arrival (tie)

Porsche 911 Turbo

Base Price: US$122,900

Engine: Turbocharged, 3.6-liter, 480-hp six-cylinder

Top speed: 193 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 3.7 seconds

With a revolutionary, turbocharged engine, the 911 Turbo has blistering acceleration but can also be a steady family car for an hour or two if that's what you need.

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Best New Luxury Coupe

Mercedes-Benz CL600

Base Price: n/a

Engine: 5.5-liter, 510-hp V-12

Top speed: 130 miles per hour

Zero-to-60 mph acceleration: 4.5 seconds (preliminary figure)

Mercedes' great, low-volume flagship coupe is back for a new generation. Among coupes, perhaps only Bentley's Continental GT rivals the CL for opulence.