Our world may be a giant hologram

From New Scientist.com (1/15/09):

For the past seven years, this German set-up has been looking for gravitational waves - ripples in space-time thrown off by super-dense astronomical objects such as neutron stars and black holes. GEO600 has not detected any gravitational waves so far, but it might inadvertently have made the most important discovery in physics for half a century.

For many months, the GEO600 team-members had been scratching their heads over inexplicable noise that is plaguing their giant detector. Then, out of the blue, a researcher approached them with an explanation. In fact, he had even predicted the noise before he knew they were detecting it. According to Craig Hogan, a physicist at the Fermilab particle physics lab in Batavia, Illinois, GEO600 has stumbled upon the fundamental limit of space-time - the point where space-time stops behaving like the smooth continuum Einstein described and instead dissolves into "grains", just as a newspaper photograph dissolves into dots as you zoom in. "It looks like GEO600 is being buffeted by the microscopic quantum convulsions of space-time," says Hogan.

If this doesn't blow your socks off, then Hogan, who has just been appointed director of Fermilab's Center for Particle Astrophysics, has an even bigger shock in store: "If the GEO600 result is what I suspect it is, then we are all living in a giant cosmic hologram."

Interesting. I alluded to this in my "The Holographic Universe" blog entry toward the end of the blog entry.

Obama Should Emulate Ronald Reagan, Voters Tell Pollster

From CNSNews.com (January 21, 2009):

Americans would like to see incoming President Barack Obama use Ronald Reagan as a role model.
When given the choice of Abraham Lincoln, FDR, George Washington, Andrew Jackson, JFK, Dwight Eisenhower, Theodore Roosevelt, Harry Truman and Ronald Reagan – registered voters overwhelmingly said they want the new Democratic president to emulate the late conservative Republican president, who held office in the 1980’s. [read more]

Not only did Republicans put Reagan on top of the poll but so did voters overall. The pollster was surprised by the poll. I wasn't. President Reagan was optimistic and stressed conservative values and beliefs. He also connected with people on a basic level and made the citizens of America feel important. Reagan had faith in the individual citizen. He is the president most people remember recently. No-one is hardly alive today to remember Lincoln, Washington, and Andrew Jackson. These were good presidents but people only remember them from history books. Older adults remember FDR, Truman, JFK, Dwight Eisenhower, and Theodore Roosevelt personally but I think none of them connected with the populous like Reagan did.
I hope every Republican running for office reads this poll. Let this be a lesson to them. Conservative values are not dead. If they emulate Reagan more often they would win more often. They don't have to act like him or talk like him--just take on Reagan's philosophy of life. If John McCain would have done this he would have been president instead of Obama.

Scientists measure methane at the source

No this is not a photo of new cow accessory. According to Popsci.com (9/18/2008):

Researchers from Argentina's National Institute of Agricultural Technology connected inflatable tanks to the cows’ first stomach, where methane is made, through a small hole between their ribs. By measuring methane production directly inside each cow, biologist Silvia Valtorta hopes to more accurately determine the country’s overall agricultural contribution to global warming. [read more]

The article does not say how much that tank weighs on the cow but I don't think it is too comfortable for it. I wonder if PETA knows what these researchers are doing. Oh well. Even cows, I guess, have to be inconvenienced for the cause of stopping global warming. The article also said they had to make a small hole in the cow's second stomach so they could put a tube in there. Ouch! The tube connects to the tank on top. I hope they tranquilized the cow before they did all that.

Are the researchers putting tanks on deer and water buffalo too? They probably contribute to global warming too I would think. Or are cows just easier to catch?

I agree with one of the comments that this is just stupid research and a waste of money. I wonder if this idea is going to catch on in America. Could be. There's people in this country that like to waste money too for stupid causes.

Earth's Magnetic Field Changes Climate

From Discover News.com (Jan. 13, 2009):

The Earth's climate has been significantly affected by the planet's magnetic field, according to a Danish study published Monday that is unlikely to challenge the notion that human emissions are largely responsible for global warming.

"Our results show a strong [my italics] correlation between the strength of the Earth's magnetic field and the amount of precipitation in the tropics," one of the two Danish geophysicists behind the study, Mads Faurschou Knudsen of the geology department at Aarhus University in western Denmark, told the Videnskab journal. [read more]

Well isn't that surprising! Not! How dare that darn magnetic field that blocks solar wind from reaching the earth increase global warming! I remember reading that Mars has global warming on it too. Well Mars has a magnetic field too. I wonder if its magnetic field is causing global warming for it. Global warming on Mars can't be man-made. No people are on Mars. The only other thing in common with both planets is the sun. Hmmmm. The article says that the climate is an "incredible complex system." Duh. Ask any meteorologist and they would agree.

Obama's 'climate czar' tied to socialism

This is the headline of OneNewsNow.com's website. Is this really news? It almost warrants a "duh." A climate czar is basically going to try to stop "man-made" global warming. Or as it is called now since the world is getting colder "climate change." The fight against global warming is part of the plan to try to create a one world gov't. Just a power grab. As the article states she (the climate czar) is part a group that "calls for rich countries to shrink their economies in order to combat climate change." One of those rich countries is America. So, who do you think Obama would pick as a climate czar? A meteorologist? Most meteorologists think "man-made" global warming is a hoax and it is just nature going through cycles. No, he could not pick a skeptic. He had to pick a socialistic believer.

Some people think Obama might move toward the center. I hope he does, but I am not holding my breath. Let's see. He has Congress and House dominated by the left. So, where's the pressure for him to move to the center? Does he have any conservatives on his staff? That would be a real "team of rivals" the press talks about. Having moderates on the team does not count. This climate czar is definitely not a conservative. I'm going to take a wait and see attitude about him moving toward the center.

The Hemenway-Solnick Study at Harvard

Economists David Hemenway and Sara Solnick did a study at Harvard where they asked people if they would prefer to receive an annual salary of $50,000 when others are making $25,000 than to earn $100,000 a year when others are making $200,000. Most of the respondents said they would rather earn the smaller figure.

What this is just plain envy. This emotion is also what the Left loves to exploit. Raise taxes on the rich. "Economic justice" and all that. Well, Soviets did exactly that--implemented economic justice (read: Marxism). What happened? The poor stayed poor, the rich became poor, and the gov't became rich.

The Left tells people you will feel better if the rich lose their money. But this feeling is only temporary because your situation has not changed--only the situation of the envied people are. Your envy toward the once-rich may have gone away and replaced with satisfaction but again does this in the end help you at all? Think of this: wealth is relative. If you are envious of someone else because of their wealth then someone else is probably envious of you because of your wealth. You want your income reduced? Politics is not only local, it is also very personal when it effects you.

Most people who are envious are envious of strangers. If you are envious of friends--you friendship will be harmed. If you are envious of family members--then you are causing strife in the family. Envy is a very pernicious negative emotion because you not wishing someone else well because of what they have or even because of their talents. That I think why it is one of the deadly sins.