Signs of the times

Odd news yesterday, worth recording even if I don't get to today's stuff. Since I spent most of yesterday in the library arguing with a bad internet connection and working on all sorts of irritating statistical problems, I had to wait until today. Stats really isn't that bad of a subject, if you can keep rules straight, and more importantly if your professor and your book agree on formulas. Neither condition was present yesterday, so it was rough.

On the flip side, OSU's library is gorgeous. And it's so quiet and academic like. I loved it.





On to news, if you remember my comment about the N. Korean new guy on the block having no military experience, well, he apparently wanted to get some. My thoughts immediately turned to those friends of mine in the military there. My best wishes for you during this tense time.

There was also another Nigerian package stopped in Massachusetts, and a lawsuit over a paintbrush poking a guy in the eye. Frankly, do you really deserve money just because you were a clumsy oaf and drove a paintbrush up your eye?

And finally fish shrink during the winter, well, at least some do. It's been observed in other species too, as noted by the article. It makes sense, but it's still fantastic science. I love this stuff.

Here's to your health

In all seriousness, as people are turning on the heat and using natural gas in this part of the world, be careful and use your nose. If it smells like gas is leaking, call your provider before you end up like this hotel (whose inhabitants are in my thoughts and prayers). It doesn't take much to spark any time of gas explosion as I can well testify from a few previous lives.

Speaking of your nose, it seems that they have linked a good sense of smell for food to the incidence of obesity. I wouldn't jump to any conclusions yet though, this seems pretty far-fetched. Maybe they need to find a way to quantify self-control first, because I'm pretty sure that every time I smell food I'm hungry, but that doesn't mean I go and eat at every Burger King I drive past. In fact, I don't eat at any of them, because I know that they small far more tempting than they taste.

Fish and their oily grossness yet again provide hope for our medical well-being in the future. Read more for yourself.


Finally, "How to get on and off a train". Next week's special, how to drive a car in town. Just because you put these things together, it doesn't mean that people will read them, or care about them, or remember to follow them. I can speak from personal experience riding the subway in Rome and with the train not even stopping at the same boarding location every time, it was madness to get on board. Faced with a brutal environment which included a man putting his hand around my neck to yank me off the train, I, despite my knowledge of ideal traffic flow, resorted to the same method of taking care of myself. I turned, stiff-armed him in the throat and waved goodbye as the doors closed and we rushed away. Just because you know what should happen, this doesn't mean that you have the power to sit there and let other people abuse you because they don't care.

Blog fish

In case you haven't noticed, if you scroll down to the bottom of my screen, you'll find 4 fish in a fake aquarium. It's not too super spruced up or anything, but they're down there. Click in the aquarium to feed them; they like it.

Lysol

Lysol, my best friend in the beginnings of the rabbit industry. The companion which sterilized anything, killed spiders and mites, and gave me piece of mind (and possible cancer from inhalation). Yep, this is the same Lysol that has a new product of which I'm a big fan. Now, granted that you all know I'm rarely the type to wash my hands from the barn before eating, or to shy away from dirt or scum (except for the hideous fishy smell the other day - Oh, how I love you, Amanda), but I do relish the idea of a soap dispenser which doesn't gather bacteria in a place that I have to expose myself every time I want to wash my hands. I just saw it advertised on TV today, so it can't be that old, but I assume it didn't just hit the market since I don't watch TV often by anyone's standards. Anyways, I got excited so I blogged about it.



Speaking of fish, I think that I failed to blog the arrival of our new family member, Jensen. I have always wanted a fish ever since Jeremy didn't get to keep his any more. So now we've got a pretty blue betta fish. I am really excited and we've got him sitting on the piano now. He seems to like the music and Amanda and I have something to take care to practice for getting a puppy next. :)

Going Fishing?

This guy's link this week to fish feeling pain, well, that's old news or so I thought. We've talked about that for a long time. I thought testing rats was tedious, but imagine testing fish? And how did this guy go fishing at some duke's place. Crazy. Also up for question, is it more ethical to kill the fish after catching it, or would it be better to let it go. I would think letting it go would by far be the better choice. But I guess I never got asked.

Also, pretty funny to me at least, for the day. The National Park Service is talking about vaccinating the bison herd in Yellowstone via rifle injections. Awesome! I can see how Brucellosis would be a huge deal to ranchers around there, especially if there is an infected herd transmitting the disease.

Finally, I have started a new blog. Feel free to check it out, but much of my specifically agriculturally related stuff will be posted there.