March 2011 archive
Mar 28 2011
Late Night Karaoke
Mar 28 2011
The Week in Editorial Cartoons, Part II – I Hold in My Hand the Names of…
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Mar 28 2011
Pique the Geek 20110327: How Nuclear Reactors Work. Part the Second
There was a good bit of feedback from last week’s installment, and I want to point out that I am always glad when people point out flaws in my treatment. I emphasized a particular sort of reactor, and neglected a couple of other ones. I intend to set this right tonight.
The concern that seems to be in the forefront at present is the radiation leakage from the stricken plants. As I write this (20110326), it is still not clear whence it comes, but I suspect that fuel rods are compromised and that nuclear fuel rod material is becoming commingled with the water that is supposed to cool the systems.
I say that because it is unlikely that if the spent fuel rod ponds were the source that the high levels of radioactive materials would have found their way into the turbine rooms, where the subcontractors were exposed to extremely high levels of radiation.
The primary thrust of this piece is to go through some of the fission products in the spent (and in use) fuel rods. This will give us a basic understanding as to why used nuclear fuel is so much more dangerous than new fuel.
Mar 28 2011
Social Security: Get On The Phone Tuesday And Wednesday And Help Fight Cuts
So it’s been about three weeks since we last had this conversation, but once again we have to take action to try to keep Social Security from being the victim of “deficit fever”.
I know that doesn’t make a lot of sense, considering the disconnect between Social Security and the deficit-but once again it’s “Continuing Resolution” time on Capitol Hill, where some use the threat of an impending shutdown of the Federal Government to extract concessions from the other side…and some on the other side try to make points with the voters by out-conceding their opponents.
So Tuesday and Wednesday of next week, there’s a national push on to get voters to call their Senators and remind them to vote for an Amendment that is a big ol’ “I’m not willing to cut Social Security just because other people philosophically want to cut Government any way they can” kind of reassurance to the voters, and I’m here to encourage you, once again, to make a couple phone calls and do some pushing of your own.
I’ve also been storing up a couple somewhat facetious random thoughts which will be the “garnish” for today’s dish; you’ll see them pop up as we go along.
Mar 28 2011
After Libya, how could we NOT bomb Syria?
The self-propelling logic of war, a “news analysis” courtesy of the New York Times:
Syria … could pose a thorny dilemma for the administration…. Having intervened in Libya to prevent a wholesale slaughter in Benghazi, some analysts asked, how could the administration not do the same in Syria?
Hmmm?
Elsewhere in the NYT, Greg Mankiw demands “austerity now.”
Mar 27 2011
from firefly-dreaming 27.3.11
Essays Featured Sunday the 27th of March~
Late Night Karaoke shines a spotlight on Massive Attack, mishima DJs
Six Brilliant Articles! from Six Different Places!! on Six Different Topics!!!
Six Days a Week!!! at Six in the Morning!!!!
Insanity from Alma in Sunday Open Thoughts
edger highlights a recent article from F. William Engdahl in The Curious Libya ‘opposition’
While spring cleaning the bookmarks RiaD found the question Is more equal more green?
In the latest edition of Sunday Bread Bill Egnor shares my long lost recipe(!) Oat Raisin Bread.
I am forever grateful.
Mar 27 2011
Today on The Stars Hollow Gazette
Our regular featured content-
- Six In The Morning by mishima
- On This Day In History by TheMomCat
- Punting the Pundits by TheMomCat
And these articles-
- F1: Melbourne by ek hornbeck (Formula One Season Opener Special Coverage)
- The Week in Editorial Cartoons – "I Have Here in My Hand a List of…" by JekyllnHyde
- Obama To Appoint a Bush Guantanamo Psychologist? by TheMomCat
- Rant of the Week: Stephen Colbert by TheMomCat (a weekly feature)
Also expecting the publication of-
- Evening Edition by TheMomCat
- Pique the Geek by Translator
Special live blogging of the NCAA Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournament-
Mar 27 2011
ACORN Rising Internationally
We may have fallen rapidly behind many as to our once vibrant and envied economy, workforce, innovations, advancing forward and much more, we were envied for, but we still are leading or on par for much of the ideologies an ACORN and NGO type communities bring forth and spread to the World Communities. These are now probably the only really important thing’s many don’t now either hate us for or are turning their backs on us for the many other issues and policies!
Mar 27 2011
Sports Betting Odds
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Mar 27 2011
Geraldine Ferraro’s Mixed Legacy
I begin this essay keenly aware of the fact that, before the end, I am probably going to strike a nerve with someone. A part of me feels that I ought to keep some of these thoughts to myself out of respect for the recently deceased. In ordinary circumstances, I would. But in today’s news cycle, sandwiched as the story is between a war in Libya and a nuclear disaster in Japan, if I don’t speak my mind now, I’ll likely not get a second chance. So I might as well say my peace.
Mar 27 2011
Six In The Morning
Japan nuclear: Workers evacuated as radiation soars
Radioactivity in water at reactor 2 at the quake-damaged Fukushima nuclear plant has reached 10 million times the usual level, company officials say.
The BBC 27 March 2011
Workers trying to cool the reactor core to avoid a meltdown have been evacuated.Earlier, Japan’s nuclear agency said that levels of radioactive iodine in the sea near the plant had risen to 1,850 times the usual level.
The UN’s nuclear agency has warned the crisis could go on for months.
It is believed the radiation at Fukushima is coming from one of the reactors, but a specific leak has not been identified.
Leaking water at reactor 2 has been measured at 1,000 millisieverts/hour – 10 million times higher than when the plant is operating normally.
