- Attention everyone who is actively seeking a home elsewhere in the galaxy: An international team of scientists has done its due diligence and come up with a list ranking which planets in outer space are the most inhabitable. Technically, their work is focused on which moons and planets are most likely to harbor extra-terrestrial life, but let’s not split hairs. The international team came up with two ratings systems to assess the probability of hosting alien life, based on two different indices: an Earth Similarity Index (ESI) and a Planetary Habitability Index (PHI). Obviously, the ESI rates planets and moons on how Earth-like they are, accounting such factors as size (which does matter clearly), density and distance from their parent star. Conversely, the PHI looks at a different set of factors, such as whether the world has a rocky or frozen surface, whether it has an atmosphere or a magnetic field and the energy available to any organisms. The PHI also factors chemistry into the mix - account chemistry, that is. Account chemistry focuses on whether organic compounds are present and whether liquid solvents might be available for vital chemical reactions. Factoring all of those standards into the mix, which celestial bodies came out on top? The most inhabitable alien worlds are……….Saturn's moon Titan and the exoplanet Gliese 581g - thought to reside some 20.5 light-years away in the constellation Libra. Note that the results don’t mean that there ARE aliens on these moons and exoplanets, but merely that researchers believe all of the key ingredients are there for life. Also, it’s on you to hitch a ride with Sir Richard Branson or one of the other private contractors currently launching humans into space if you want a ride to Titan or Gliese to check out some real estate there……….
- Ooooh, look at big, bad Iran. Passing a bill to downgrade its diplomatic ties with Iran and compelling its government to expel the British ambassador in retaliation for sanctions imposed over Tehran's nuclear activity is so, so badass. Iran’s Guardian passed the measure Monday in lightning-quick fashion after its parliament voted for the British ambassador’s expulsion. The council is a panel of 12 clerics and jurists who judge whether legislation is Islamic and their willingness to act so quickly underscores just how angry Iran feels about the sanctions announced by Britain last week. The British reaction came in response to a Nov. 8 report by the U.N. nuclear watchdog presenting intelligence it suggested Iran had worked on designing an atomic bomb. Iran quickly disputed the allegation and kept up its lie that its nuclear program is for peaceful, energy-generating purposes only. Thus, the condemnation of the British sanctions and the measure expelling with British ambassador to Iran. "The members of the Guardian Council, after examination of the plan, have approved it unanimously," council spokesman Abbasali Kadkhodai said. The bill mandates the departure of the British ambassador within two weeks, after which a charge d'affaires will be left to run the embassy. In response, the British government termed the legislation "regrettable" and "unwarranted." Its passage wasn’t exactly a surprise after legislators - legislators, not angry protestors in the street - chanted "Death to England" on Sunday. To an outsider, it certainly looks like a petulant reply to the British government’s decision to ban all of its banks from dealing with Iranian ones, including the Central Bank of Iran (CBI). Just so the rest of the world remains clear on where it stands on the issue, members of the Iranian parliament stated they would take similar action against any other countries that follow Britain's example. The list could expand quickly with European Union foreign ministers due to meet on Thursday to approve new sanctions that could cut financial links and ban oil imports from Iran. The EU fired an early salvo in that looming skirmish when Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi was allegedly refused entry to EU air space to attend a meeting of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in the Netherlands on Monday. Sources close to the situation claimed that Tehran had summoned the Hungarian ambassador to explain why Salehi's plane had been refused permission to cross the EU country's air space because claims of technical problems from Hungarian authorities were "unconvincing." Ultimately, the United States is leading the charge against Iran’s nuclear program even though the Obama administration stopped short of imposing sanctions that would stop other countries dealing with Iran's central bank. Such sanctions could affect Iran’s oil industry and as recent history has shown, the U.S. is wary of doing anything that could affect its supply of liquid gold……………
- Christian Bale is adamant: He is officially done playing the role of Batman on the big screen. No, seriously, dude is REALLY adamant. Last November, he spoke about next summer’s The Dark Knight Rises and made it clear he had no plans to play the Caped Crusader ever again. “This will be, I believe, until Chris [Nolan] says different, the last time I’ll be playing Batman,” Bale said then. “Absolutely, we want to go all out with it.” Those words have either been forgotten or were ignored all together because with hype for the film’s release already building to a near-fever pitch, Bale obviously felt the need to make it explicitly clear that he is done with the role and will not reprise it. “I wrapped a few days ago so that will be the last time I’m taking that cowl [Batman hood] off,” he insisted. “I believe that the whole production wrapped yesterday, so it’s all done. Everything’s finished. It’s me and Chris, that will be the end of that Batman era.” Neither Warner Bros. nor Bale’s representative responded to requests for comment on the issue, but it has long been common knowledge that Bale was signed for just three Batman films. He has also signed to film two Terrence Malick films back-to-back and likely wouldn’t have time for any additional films in the near future anyhow. With Bale out of the picture, the question then becomes whether the franchise can or should continue. Unlike the asinine decision to continue the Bourne franchise without Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) himself, the Batman franchise existed - albeit in crappy fashion - prior to Bale’s and Nolan’s involvement. With its established fan base and Hollywood’s propensity for keeping franchises alive long after they should be killed off, seeing another Batman movie a few years down the road doesn’t sound at all unrealistic……………
- Memo to Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback: Picking a fight with a high school senior over a supposedly offensive - but not threatening - tweet is probably not a solid use of your time. That’s why 18-year-old Emma Sullivan received a direct apology from the governor Monday for his staff’s “over-reaction” to an insulting tweet she sent last week. Sullivan sent out the tweet, was inexplicably ordered by her principal at Shawnee Mission East High School to apologize and rightly refused, touching off a national incident that has seen her Twitter followers increase from 60 to more than 6,000. “My staff over-reacted to this tweet, and for that I apologize. Freedom of speech is among our most treasured freedoms,” Brownback said in a statement. Way to step up and boldly issue an apology……in a written statement instead of face to face, Mr. Governor. Along with Brownback’s weak apology, the school district dropped its request that Sullivan write an apology and said it will leave that decision up to her. The district did try to spin its blatant attempt to stifle a person’s right to free speech with its own written statement. “The district acknowledges a student’s right to freedom of speech and expression is constitutionally protected. The district has not censored Miss Sullivan nor infringed upon her freedom of speech,” it said a statement. “She is not required to write a letter of apology to the Governor. Whether and to whom any apologies are issued will be left to the individuals involved.” Right, but your apology comes AFTER YOU TRIED TO CENSOR HER AN RESTRICT HER RIGHT TO FREE SPEECH. Saying you did not attempt to harm someone after you shoot them in the face from close range doesn’t mean you didn’t just blast a burning slug into the their grill, you idiots. Sullivan and her family made it clear that any apology would be insincere because she had done nothing wrong and didn’t want to give any more power to the governor. Sullivan posted offensive tweet from a youth event at which Brownback gave a speech. “Just made mean comments at gov. brownback and told him he sucked, in person #heblowsalot,” she tweeted. Odds are #heblowsalot wasn’t a common hash tag before the incident, but it probably will be going forward. Sullivan did not actually meet Brownback in person, nor did she tell him he sucked, but rather grew out of a discussion she was having with a friend, talking about what they would tell Brownback if they were to meet him. The joke was blown out of proportion when the government’s staff, which monitors comments on Facebook and Twitter containing his name, reported Sullivan’s tweet to Youth in Government, the program’s organizer. “That wasn’t respectful,” Brownback’s communications director Sherriene Jones-Sontag said. “It was important for the organization to be aware of the comments their students were making.” It might be important for YOU to be aware of it because Sullivan is one of Brownback’s constituents, but it’s not anyone else’s problem unless she’s threatening to harm the governor. Ironically, she now has more than double the number of Twitter followers Brownback has and greeted those followers with a tweet on Sunday explaining her decision not to write a letter of apology to the governor. “I’ve decided not to write the letter but I hope this opens the door for average citizens to voice their opinion & to be heard! #goingstrong,” Sullivan tweeted. Well said, Emma………….
- We’ve been here before. The houses look familiar, we passed those trees a while ago and that street sign has passed by our window before…..are we really just going around in one big loop when it comes to Buffalo Bills receiver Steve Johnson? He’s once again causing drama and failing to catch key passes at crucial moments in big games. Last season, he dropped what would have been a game-winning touchdown catch in what ended up as a 19-16 overtime loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. He had a surefire touchdown on the tip of his fingers, no defenders close to him and he dropped the ball. "I had the game in my hands and I dropped it," Johnson said after the. "Humbled. Humbled. I'll never get over it. Ever." For a great young receiver with a massive ego and plenty of swag, staying humble clearly does not last long. Nearly one year later to the exact date, Johnson is once again at the center of a crap storm for doing something dumb and for failing to catch a potential game-winning TD pass. After scoring in the second quarter of a loss to the New York Jets and giving his team a 14-7 lead they could not protect, Johnson pretended to shoot himself in the leg, mocking Jets receiver Plaxico Burress, who spent almost two years in prison after accidentally blasting a hole in his leg at a New York nightclub three years ago and then attempting to cover up the incident. Oddly enough, officials hit Johnson with a 15-yard penalty for excessive celebration and with a shorter field to navigate for their next drive, the Jets tied the game with a touchdown just before halftime and went on to win 28-24 to deal the Bills their fourth straight loss after a 5-2 start. The win was aided by Johnson dropping a key pass for a potential long gain on the Bills’ final drive of the game and then missing a throw in the end zone with eight seconds left that would have put the Bills ahead. After the game, an emotional Johnson once again claimed he would be better going forward. "It hurt our team. It was very stupid of me going through that, and I feel like I cost our team by doing that," he said. "It was a bad decision. It's irrelevant whether or not I rehearsed it or not. At the end of the day, it cost our team seven points. I have to apologize to everyone and talk to Coach. I can't be doing that. I need to be mature about the situation." Burress rolled with it and didn’t seek to keep the battle going after the game, although he did get a good dig in at Johnson. "I don't have any reaction to it. I'm a big fan of his,” Burress said. "He's a great, young talent, and I love to watch him play. I've seen worse, and I've heard worse. So, it doesn't bother me at all. The result I'm looking at is we won the football game ... and he turned around and dropped three wide-open balls to lose it for his team. And that should end that discussion……….
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