Just Another Blog

New Olympic troop named

Top sports bureaucrats Tuesday named the first 50 athletes who will represent Norway at the Summer Olympics in Beijing. The list is a mix of locally well-known and new names.

Probably only interesting to me, but two cyclists I like at there (both Thor Hushovd and Edvald Boasson Hagen are going). Moving on.

Dolphin deaths: Expert suggests ‘mass suicide’

The dolphins that died after beaching in Cornwall had ingested debris and mud, leading one of the scientists who examined them to compare their deaths to “mass suicide”.

Vic Simpson, a pathologist who examined some of the 26 dead mammals, said today: “On the face of it, it looks like some sort of mass suicide - but the question is why? The dolphins had swallowed and inhaled big chunks of mud from the estuary. Their lungs and stomachs were full of it. That is very bizarre indeed.”

Why does organic milk last so much longer than regular milk?

If you’ve ever shopped for milk, you’ve no doubt noticed what our questioner has: While regular milk expires within about a week or sooner, organic milk lasts much longer—as long as a month.

So what is it about organic milk that makes it stay fresh so long?

Actually, it turns out that it has nothing to do with the milk being organic. All “organic” means is that the farm the milk comes from does not use antibiotics to fight infections in cows or hormones to stimulate more milk production.

The Minimalist - Putting Meat in Its Place

LET’S suppose you’ve decided to eat less meat, or are considering it. And let’s ignore your reasons for doing so. They may be economic, ethical, altruistic, nutritional or even irrational. The arguments for eating less meat are myriad and well-publicized, but at the moment they’re irrelevant, because what I want to address here is (almost) purely pragmatic: How do you do it?

A huge line of storms zoom across my state yesterday evening. I don’t know just where they started (though I do know that they ended up causing damage in Wisconsin before crossing the lake), but they certain hit with a vengeance. Luckily for me, the storms weren’t too bad. We had a few small branches and leaves down (while I’ve been living down here, near Detroit, there have been worse storms for my small city), but nothing like the rest of the state.

The storms were strong, during the hour and a half (yes, I am lame, I know this) that I was watching the weather on WXYZ, they mentioned that wind speeds were around 80 mph. Which, you know, is pretty damn fast. And while, from what I can tell, no tornadoes actually touched down, but 80 mph winds will, well, kill you. People did die and thousands are without power.

Now, you’d think that it would be rather hard to notice these things (not the deaths, but the other storm related things) the next morning. Especially because these storms hit in the early evening. But, well, you’d be wrong. I left for work this morning, a little later than normal, and I ended up paying for it. Though I wasn’t actually late for work, I could have been. Basically, it was an adventure to get to work. It started about a mile and a half from my house, that’s when the first stoplights were out. People basically followed the law (taking turns) and some main lights were still working — at the bigger intersections. Then I passed yellow tape and blocked off entrances, the tape said ‘live wire’ and some other things.

I looked up, and the electric pole was leaning over in a way that was not normal. This would be a sign of what I would see once I got to M59 (via 75, for those of you living in Michigan). Basically, every other or every two lights were out. Those that were on had bright orange trucks powering the lights. I had very little trouble getting to work, mostly because my two lanes didn’t have a lot of traffic, and what was there basically obeyed all the laws. The most distressing thing I saw was a downed line, well set of lines. Basically the top of the pole had snapped off and it was lying down on the road. Needless to say, there was no power at that intersection and the road where the pole stood was closed.

Basically I drove the speed limit most of the way there and tried to be careful whenever I came to stoplights. I didn’t make too bad time and I definitely wasn’t late for work. Speaking of work. I was a little worried that we might not have power, but by the time I got to the library, those lights were working. And, of course, we had power (thankfully, I would have been totally pissed off if I’d driven all 40 minutes just to have to drive home again because we were closed). Not surprisingly, we were extremely busy in the morning and early afternoon (probably still busy now, but I worked my short day today).

People called to find out if we were open, because several libraries in the area were closed. There were lots of people I’d never seen before — people who had no power and needed to use our computers. Ironically, it was a really good way to get people to get library cards (since you have to have them to use our computers). But mostly, people were quietly upset and desperate to cheek their email. Most of them had no idea when their power would be restored and my guess is it won’t be for a few days.

The worst part, of course, is that we’re expected to get more storms, which is just what we don’t need. But this is what it’s like living in Michigan. Sure, it’s not as bad as some places, but we get it pretty crappy here, too. I’m just happy that most people were okay and that the roads were slow, but clear.

Photos (c) La Llena de Vida and OtisDude respectively and are from Flickr.

Somehow I was wrong yesterday. Well, partly wrong. Gonzo, did in fact lose after taking the fist set from Federer. But it was Monfils that blew my mind. He calmly (well, I’m just guess, it probably wasn’t calm) swept David Ferrer away. It’s totally and completely unbelievable. I am so proud of him and, for a least one more round, I have a ‘favorite’ playing.

His next match is against Federer, and he’ll probably lose. But this is Monfils best surface (for now!) and he’s on fire. He’s a driving force and I think that he has a chance, small as it might be. I don’t know if he’ll do it, but I kind of definitely hope he does.

It’s been, again, forever since a French player has gotten this far. And no one would be surprised if he lost to Federer, but damn. If this kid (and he is a kid) can come up big and end up in a final? It’ll be one of the greatest semifinals in the history of Roland Garros, at least for me (and probably the French, too).

I don’t make any promises, I mean, how can I? But I secretly, or maybe it’s not really a secret after all, hope that Monfils can show us that Federer isn’t mean to win RG. And maybe, just maybe, it’s time for the French to take their tournament back.

At least for me. Sometimes it’s awfully hard being a fan and sometimes you feel like you know what the outcome will be before the tournament even started. That’s not to say that I predicted a Rafael Nadal/Roger Federer final, because I didn’t, especially given Federer’s recent results and Nadal’s injury issues (minor though they were). I might be predicting it now, but what I was really talking about is how players I like will do. The answer? Mostly not well. Notable exceptions have been Ernests Gulbis (who finally lost, to Novak Djokovic, yesterday), Gaël Monfils and Fernando González. Of those, only Monfils and González are left, and by the end of today, I expect that neither of them will survive.

First, let’s talk about Monfils. He is an excellent player, but he was out almost all of last year. He’s come a long way to get to this point, but he’s playing David Ferrer, who is on fire. I have no problem imagining that Monfils could defeat Ferrer, but the issue is that he’s a French player playing at the French Open. This is, as with all players at their home tournaments, a hell of a lot of pressure. There hasn’t been a French player on the men’s side advancing this far in what feels like forever (yes, I am too lazy to figure out stats). The really shocker would be if Monfils beat Ferrer to advance, again.

I would be thrilled beyond belief. They have never played each other at ATP level, so the match should and could be really good. Or it could be like Nadal and Almagro, and be the lamest match ever. Maybe we’ll be lucky, and it’ll be closer to the Gulbis/Djokovic match (with Monfils on the winning side, of course). But my thoughts are that Ferrer will just be too good for Monfils, who is young enough that he’ll have several more chances to win RG.

The second men’s match today? Fernando González and Roger Federer. I bet you can guess which one will win. Now, I know I have this totally unhealthy thing for González. I don’t know why, I don’t even understand it, but I really like this guy. But, he’s playing Federer, who has looked better and better with each passing around at RG. I’m almost certain that Federer will win, why? They’ve played 11 times and Federer’s record is 10-1 against González. Though the last time they played was in 2007, at the end of the year, and González won that match (3-6 7-6(1) 7-5).

But, as much as I like González, I don’t think he can stop Federer today. As much as I want him to stop Federer, I just don’t think he’s good enough any more. While it would more of an upset for Monfils to defeat Ferrer (based solely on rankings), I think that media would hype a González defeat of Federer much more. After all, Federer is number one for a reason. He is just that good.

As a side note, I really hope that Marat Safin’s little sister, Dinara Safina comes back to beat Elena Dementieva. And I’ve just gone and looked at the scores, and what the hell, world. González is a set up (6-2) on Federer. How did this happen!? I am so excited all of a sudden. But, this is a match based on the best of five, so Federer still has some time. But, man. I’m really hoping González can pulls this off, even if it means he might play Monfils in the next round.

Oh, look, tennis! I’ve been following RG for the past week and a half (the whole tourney) and in particular, following several players. All but three of them have been knocked out and right now, my number one is heading out as well, though with a little bit of faith he’ll manage to take a set. But this is how I watch tennis, usually by the semifinals, there’s no one left in the draw that I like. I’m used to it, so it’s not as much of a huge deal as it could be. I mean, I am a fan of teams that lose!

It’s a little different in tennis because I have favorites (ex: Ernests Gulbis, see picture on the left). But then I have people that I like, but not as much as my favorites. That way, when people get knocked out, I’ll have others to root for. Of course, as I stated in the first paragraph, that doesn’t always work out. Usually, especially considering I don’t like Roger Ferderer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic, my boys don’t make it to the final. Sometimes they do, sometimes, like Gilles Simon and Stanislas Wawrinka, they win minor tournaments, which really makes me happy.

This year at RG, I have Ernests, Fernando González, and Gaël Monfils left in the draw. I do not expect any of them to make it further than this round. Gonzo plays Federer, I believe. I cannot remember who Gael plays, but if he does make it past, I think he’ll have to play Federer, which sigh. All of my boys lose to Federer (or Nadal or Djokovic or …). So really, I just keep rooting until I run out of players to root for, which is hilarious and that’s just the way things go, I suppose.

In spite of all of that, or maybe because of it, I do really love tennis. Even if it is really heartbreaking.

• The Science of Irrationality: Why We Humans Behave So Strangely: MIT’s Dan Ariely discusses his research in behavioral economics and explains how to deal with our brain’s flawed decision-making process

• Astronomers Witness Supernova’s First Moments: Lucky catch supports long-standing view of supernova shock wave

• Does Time Run Backward in Other Universes?: One of the most basic facts of life is that the future looks different from the past. But on a grand cosmological scale, they may look the same

• “Benders” Make Sweet Noise from Old Toys: So-called “circuit benders” rearrange old toys and musical instruments to produce a chorus of drones, whistles and bleeps

• Blogging–It’s Good for You: The therapeutic value of blogging becomes a focus of study

• Universe Now Twice as Bright: Scientific American: Astronomers have long known that interstellar dust—microscopic grains made of carbon and silica—obscures starlight by soaking it up and reradiating it as infrared.

• The beaches that time forgot: The unspoilt Albanian Riviera is a snapshot of the Mediterranean as it used to be - idyllic beaches, glorious sunshine and an unhurried pace of life, says Nick Easen

• Living Color: Toxic nudibranchs—soft, seagoing slugs—produce a brilliant defense

I wanted to post this this morning, but I didn’t bother to turn my computer and then I go to work and was too busy doing other things. Anyway. Just in case you thought your life sucked. All links from BBC.

» In pictures: Chile volcano erupts
» In pictures: Burmese aid crisis (cyclone pictures here and here).
» In pictures: US tornadoes
» In pictures: China earthquake

Sometimes I get caught up in how bad my life is and how unhappy I am and I forget that I’m lucky. That, for the most part, my life is good. I mean, these disasters could happen at any time for me (except the volcano, unless there’s something about Michigan that I don’t know). But they aren’t. I don’t live in Burma or Oklahoma or China.

I’m a lucky girl who can spend $60 on DVDs and gas and buy new pajamas and work clothes and afford food. There are people who are less fortunate than me. And then the shit above happens. And if you don’t know what’s going on in Burma, read this. The people are running out of time and the government is not helping.

This is the kind of world we live in. Isn’t it awesome*?

*The answer is, of course, yes it is awesome, but we’re not talking about that right now

I know that I should be happy that there’s no snow on the ground. And I am the cold weather fan, but I’m really not happy that it’s 35 degrees in April. I know that this is normal, but we’ve had such a weird winter that I really expect snow whenever I look outside. Of course, my three day forecast on my Firefox browser (thanks to the WeatherBug firefox extension) shows only rain, no snow.

So I hold out hope, but please, bring back the 57/60 degree weather we had the previous three days. I liked that quite a bit.

Via Scalzi.