- So…..who could possibly have a problem with the state of Vermont attempting to be more enviro-friendly and energy efficient by installing wind turbines? After all, clean energy from a renewable source should be the ultimate goal, but whether or not a specific type of clean energy from a renewable source is acceptable depends upon whom you ask. For example, a plan to place wind turbines around the Everglades in Florida has drawn opposition from a state hunting activist group that is unhappy over the possibility that a handful of birds might fly into and be killed by the turbines before the group’s members can blast them with their guns. In Vermont, the objectors to wind turbines are none other than proponents of another green energy source, solar power. On Thursday, a bunch of kook-ish protestors and their puppets (seriously) filled the lawn of Green Mountain Power in Colchester at a rally in opposition to wind turbines in Vermont. "We can't allow the destruction of our ridgeline for utility scale wind and Green Mountain Power," said Lukas Snelling of Energize Vermont, which organized the event. In their in(finite) wisdom, the group is backing solar power over wind to boost alternative energy across the state. The turbine project has Energize Vermont fueled up and speaking out……even if no one cares what it has to say. "We will not support this project. We don't want this project and incorporating this project into our energy future is wrong and a mistake," Snelling said. Okey doke, no problem. Support it, don’t support it, no one gives a damn. What, was the state waiting on the green light from Energize Vermont before going ahead with the wind turbines? For the record, Green Mountain Power says it supports solar power initiatives, but wants to include wind power in its portfolio as well. "Just as in a financial portfolio, you want diversity in a portfolio of energy resources, you want a diversity of different kind of mixes, you don't want to have all your power coming from one power plant," said Dorothy Schnure of Green Mountain power. Of course, there are critics who don’t support either option, people like the state's former chief technology officer, Tom Evslin, who believes both options have drawbacks. "That's nonsense, the wind isn't very effective and you can very well argue that it is not helpful to our portfolio, but solar is even less effective and it requires huge subsidies," Evslin said. What does this sage of energy sources suggest? “I think we contract for more power from Hydro-Quebec and other hydro sources which obviously is renewable energy," Evslin stated. All right……throw hyrdoelectric power into the mix two, let’s drop supporters of all three energy sources into the octagon and have them decide this battle MMA-style………….
- The rest of the world may have given in to the reality that the meatheads and skanks from The Jersey Shore and their reality TV brethren have invaded our public consciousness and there is nothing to be done other than waiting for their 15 minutes of fame to end, but don’t expect the good folks at the Hollywood Walk of Fame to do the same. MTV may look for every chance to cram talentless losers looking to launch their acting or music career by appearing on a reality show onto its airwaves, but they don’t possess the same high standards as the people who have already awarded stars to the likes of Mark Burnett and Ryan Seacrest. With so many reality shows and so many reality cast members becoming pop culture figures, the question of them being awarded stars was posed to Hollywood Walk of Fame officials and they issued their response Monday on the walk’s official Facebook page saying, "Someone asked if we give reality show characters stars? Hell to the No!" Hell to the No, Paris Hilton, you are not getting a star, even if you pony up the $30,000 fee required to have one installed!" All right then. Apparently that rule holds true for the likes of Kim Kardashian, Nicole Richie, the Situation, Kate Gosselin and anyone else known solely for being a reality star and not contributing anything of substance or worth to the world. "That's my personal opinion as the caretaker of the Walk of Fame for 24 years. I'm very protective. And people are kind of in agreement," said Ana Martinez, vice president of media relations for the Hollywood Walk of Fame. While it is unclear who “people” are, they seem very smart and infinitely correct in this case. Not that the walk is some sort of highly esteemed honor reserved only for the true Hollywood elite, but any group, organization, hall of fame or other entity that excludes reality TV losers can't be all bad. Recognizing someone for bring a cast member on "Big Brother," “The Real World” or “Teen Mom” is only going further these tools’ misguided impression that they actually matter, have talent and should keep pursuing their “inevitable” stardom. So stop naming your abs, punching random people, allowing cameras to film your every move and just go away, reality TV knobs……….
- Judging by what Hollywood showed the world in Ebola-centric movies and made-for-TV films a few years back when the virus was all the rage in the end-of-the-world debate, Ebola is not something to be trifled with. The battle against Ebola received a boost this week as an international team of scientists discovered a biochemical route used by the deadly virus to infect human cells. The discovery could lead to the creation of new drugs that could prevent or treat one of the world’s most lethal viral diseases. Ebola has been terrorizing the world since appearing in 1976 near the central African river from which it derives its name. The virus kills an astonishing 90 percent of the people and non-human primates it infects. Its effects include extremely high fever and both internal and external bleeding. So far, it has primarily affected sub-Saharan African countries, including Gabon, Sudan, the Ivory Coast and Uganda, since the first reported outbreak 35 years ago. Despite its rarity, Ebola and its 90-percent death rate inevitably cause panic whenever there is an outbreak, due largely to the extremely limited knowledge base about where the illness comes from or how it spreads. Some experts have theorized that infected bats may be one source of these sporadic occurrences of Ebola, while others believe it spreads from person to person through tainted body fluids or blood. In an attempt to better understand this viral killer, a team of researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, the Whitehead Institute at MIT and the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases studied how the virus actually infects cells. Kartik Chandran, a professor of microbiology and immunology at Albert Einstein, was the senior author of the study and explained what he and his fellow researchers were looking for. “The critical step that we were studying is what we call viral entry," Chandran explained. "And it’s basically the step that results in the virus getting into the cytoplasm where the [genetic] goodies are for making copies of itself.” Researchers observed normal cell proteins that the Ebola virus might be hijacking and focused on one protein in particular - called Neimann-Pick C1 or NPC1.
They learned that in both human cells and in mice, the Ebola virus was unable to gain a toehold in cells that were missing the NPC1 protein. “You couldn’t infect the cells with Ebola. And there are also mice that, like the human[s], don’t have the protein and develop Neimann-Pick disease," Chandran said.
That sounds……riveting. For the uninformed, the Neimann-Pick protein, which is embedded naturally in cell membranes, helps transport cholesterol throughout cells. Those born with a rare genetic defect that causes their bodies not to manufacture the protein eventually die of Neimann-Pick disease, in which fatty substances called lipids collect and clog various internal organs. Now, these unfortunate souls may also be more susceptible to Ebola as well, should they ever come into contact with it. Chandran believes it may be possible to design a small molecule that interferes with production of the Neimann-Pick protein in cells temporarily -- too briefly to cause problems with elevated cholesterol. Find more (confusing and detailed) information on this (possibly) meaningful study in the latest fascinating edition of the journal Nature…………
- Umm, this is probably not good for the LSU football program. As police continue to investigate a late-night bar fight that occurred last week outside a Baton Rouge club, the four LSU players allegedly involved in the fight are looking more and more culpable in a beating that left four people hospitalized. LSU starting quarterback Jordan Jefferson and offensive lineman Chris Davenport, linebacker Josh Johns and receiver Jarvis Landry were all interviewed by police this week about the fight and after the interview, the players’ attorney chastised the media for “scaring these boys to death.” Never mind that as all four are legal adults, none of them qualifies as a boy by any standards. Also, set aside that the victims who were allegedly pummeled by these four Div. I athletes were probably scared for their lives much more so than their alleged tormentors were when questioned by police or faced with negative news stories. Just allow the investigation to play out and I’m sure…….crap. As it turns out, an eyewitness account from 19-year-old Victoria Long was included in a police report released Thursday and Long told police she saw Jefferson kick someone in the face during the fight. The release of her statement comes one day after police seized 49 pairs of athletic shoes from Jefferson's apartment. While Baton Rouge police Sgt. Don Stone wouldn't explain why police took the shoes, having a witness tell you that the person whose shoes you seized was punting someone in the head would qualify as a solid reason to have a closer look at their kicks. As a quick aside……49 pairs of athletic shoes? D-1 athletes receive a lot of gear from their team and shoes are a common get, but 49 pairs? Jefferson seems to have aspirations of being the Imelda Marcos of the LSU football team. For now, he should probably focus on staying out of jail. Although Stone said no arrests were expected Thursday, Jefferson and Johns – who was also seen by Long attacking Jefferson’s alleged victim – should probably be expecting a ride downtown in a squad car sooner rather than later……….
- The unrest in Syria is crossing a plethora of lines, but perhaps none as stomach-churning as the severe beating of the country's best-known political cartoonist, Ali Ferzat. While he may be a political cartoonist, Ferzat’s job is still drawing animated characters to delight and entertain the masses, so his beatdown by Syrian security forces is disturbing. The cartoonist was found by passers-by on a road outside Damascus, human rights groups claimed, after he was kidnapped, beaten and dumped on the side of that street. One of his relatives alleged that Ferzat’s attackers threatened to break his bones as a warning for him to stop from drawing cartoons of government officials. He won’t be lampooning anyone via cartoon for the next few days, as he is currently hospitalized with serious injuries. Arabic TV network Al-Jazeera showed a man identified as Ferzat lying on a hospital bed with his face severely bruised and his hands heavily bandaged. During Syria’s ongoing revolution, Ferzat has been an outspoken critic of Syria's government and its five-month crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators and dissent. He has boldly mocked President Bashar al-Assad in several cartoons and those images are likely what led to his not-so-friendly visit from security forces. The timing of the beating and kidnapping is unfortunate because Ferzat would have plenty to cartoon about right now, with Syrian tanks relentlessly shelling areas near the eastern city of Deir al-Zour, a flashpoint in the five-month-old uprising. Someone clearly needs to speak out, as the United Nations says more than 2,000 people have died in Syria during the government's crackdown and more casualties seem inevitable. Attempting to intimidate/cripple someone who draws the political cartoons on the back page of the front section of the newspaper seems like an insecure, weak play on the part of the government. Perhaps Assad should send his goons over to the headquarters of the European Union to do some coercing after the EU expanded sanctions on Syria on Wednesday to target the elite unit of Iran's Revolutionary Guard for its role in helping Syrian security forces combat the uprising against Assad. Assad has tried to blame armed "gangs" and "terrorists" for the violence while ignoring his regime’s own über-violent tactics. But hey, when one man is tearing down your regime with a few clever political cartoons, you do what you need to do to silence him…………
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