Author Archives: jolyon

Pipes Across the Nation Burst as US Water Infrastructure Rapidly Fails

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Hugh Pickens, Slashdot.com contributor, writes:

“Thom Patterson writes that, triggered by this summer’s record high temperatures, hundreds of crucial water pipelines have burst across the nation, temporarily shutting off water to countless consumers just when they need it most — a clear sign that Americans should brace for more water interruptions, accompanied by skyrocketing water bills. “It’s the heat and the high water usage,” says Debbie Ragan of Oklahoma City’s Utilities Department, adding that as days of 100 degree-plus temperatures bake the region, the utility has reported 685 water main breaks since July alone, four times the normal rate. Much of the nation’s underground water lines are 80 to 100 years old — and approaching the end of their lives as the shifting climate brings more droughts, record high temperatures and other weather conditions that will damage water infrastructure.”

Read more with source links.

Scientific Study adopts unrealistic stance on extraterrestrial contact

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From the article:

What “A Scenario Analysis” fails to do is to actively engage with the more than abundant evidence that humanity is currently being visited by extraterrestrial life. In the abstract, the authors categorically state: “humanity has not yet observed any extraterrestrial intelligence.” Yet there is an incredible amount of physical evidence concerning sightings of UFOs under intelligent control displaying flight characteristics far above what is known to be possible in conventional or even classified aerospace research. In addition, there are also numerous whistleblower reports concerning crashes of UFOs, and retrievals of extraterrestrial biological entities. Finally, there are also first hand witness reports of contacts, both voluntary and involuntary, with extraterrestrial entities. Rather than acknowledge the existence of such evidence, the scientific study chooses to dismiss it all together adopting the well known SETI perspective that no extraterrestrial contact has yet been made.

Read more at Exopolitics Institute

Dolphins Offer Insight to Healing

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In his letter published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology, [Michael] Zasloff recounts several documentations about how quick dolphins manage to heal the wounds caused by severe shark bites, adding that some of these wounds which are larger than a basketball are cured in weeks without causing notable pain or infection or leaving a significant scar.

“If I saw this in a human being, I wouldn’t believe it,” Zasloff added. “It should awe us. You have an animal that has evolved in the ocean without hands or legs, which swims faster than we can, has intelligence that perhaps equals our social and emotional complexity, and its healing is almost alien compared to what we are capable of.”

Read more at PressTV

Via UnknownCountry.com

13 Year Old Uses Fibonacci Sequence to Increase Solar Power Output by 50%

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After studying how trees branch in a very specific way, Aidan Dwyer created a solar cell tree that produces 20-50% more power than a uniform array of photovoltaic panels. His impressive results show that using a specific formula for distributing solar cells can drastically improve energy generation. The study earned Aidan a provisional U.S patent – it’s a rare find in the field of technology and a fantastic example of how biomimicry can drastically improve design.

Read more: 13-Year-Old Makes Solar Power Breakthrough by Harnessing the Fibonacci Sequence

Video of Saturn Cassini Flyby

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Using thousands of single frame images shot by the Cassini Spacecraft since 2004, researchers have assembled this impressive video ‘flyby’ of Saturn and its moons:  http://1.usa.gov/fVX1WQ

Amazing work; and some nice music, too!

Japan Earthquake Shifted Earth’s Axis

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According to one USGS scientist, the recent earthquake off the northeastern coast of Japan has moved the large island’s coast by 8 feet and shifted the Earth’s axis of rotation by almost four inches (10 cm).

Other reports are stating while only about 1500 deaths have been officially acknowledged as of 36 hours after the quake the final death toll will likely be in the tens of thousands.

Source (CNN World News)

Update:  The USGS has released an earthquake dataset and browser-enabled Google Earth explorer plugin to view earthquake data in real-time.  Click here view. Interesting to see the plate movement arrows.  Looks like the Pacific plate is explanding!

2011: Year of Wonder – US Government Changes Stance on Flouridation of Public Water Supplies

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Many of us have been reminded to expect major changes in our everyday lives for 2011, either by sources we respect, or by our own inner guides. Already seven days into the new year and several changes have cropped up in my own life. To add to that bliss, I was very pleasantly surprised to read this news article yesterday.

In a remarkable turnabout, federal health officials say many Americans are now getting too much fluoride because of its presence not just in drinking water but in toothpaste, mouthwash and other products, and it’s causing splotches on children’s teeth and perhaps more serious problems.

Full article

To say I was slack-jawed after reading this news would be an understatement – this is great news! Sure, it’s not a 100% reversal, but it is a step in the right direction. And that is what 2011 is should be all about.

Article from WebMD: http://www.webmd.com/oral-health/news/20110107/us-wants-to-reduce-fluoride-in-drinking-water