Starship Asterisk*

owlice wrote:
I heard a white-throated sparrow's "O sweet Canada Canada Canada" today,

http://dvice.com/archives/2006/11/top-10-wildest-wackiest-gadget.php wrote:
[c]The New Zero Toroidal Vortex Blaster
(from Scientific American)[/c][/color]

<<Twenty years ago, advertisements for a plastic gun that shoots fog rings would be found in the back of Amazing Spider-Man. Now that Spider-Man titles outnumber Tobey Maguire's entourage size, the plastic toys have graduated with their customers to highbrow science journals. The reality, though, is that there's little science — or even fun — involved in the New Zero Blaster. Yes, the fog rings get as big as four inches in diameter, and yes, they can sail as much as 12 feet. But unless you're aiming to drive away your friends and family with a noxious-smelling vapor or keep the tank empty of fluid and rely on the ray-gun sound effects to entertain, you're just blowing smoke. Price: $19.95>>

rstevenson wrote:Feeling pixieish, I decided to offer up a view of the huge sugar maple in our backyard, rendered using APOD images to build the mosaic.

maple_mosaic.jpg

Rob

owlice wrote:We had lashing winds-and-rain here yesterday; it was very dark until mid-afternoon, when that weather system moved out. Today is partly cloudy, but oh, so much brighter than yesterday!

The woods are really lovely now; so colorful and inviting! Such a pretty season! I love the way autumn smells and sounds, too. The pin oak leaves make a tinkling noise as they are blown through the streets. Can't whistle caps from those acorns; they are way too small!

owlice wrote:We had lashing winds-and-rain here yesterday; it was very dark until mid-afternoon, when that weather system moved out. Today is partly cloudy, but oh, so much brighter than yesterday!

Hi Owlice,

The woods are really lovely now; so colorful and inviting! Such a pretty season! I love the way autumn smells and sounds, too. The pin oak leaves make a tinkling noise as they are blown through the streets. Can't whistle caps from those acorns; they are way too small!

emc wrote:I had to look up “crepuscular”

owlice wrote:Whoa, Orin, is right! Did you feel/hear it?

owlice wrote:After a day of wind, the weather has turned cold, with lows in the 20s. Guess it's time to pull out a winter coat; now if only I could remember where I'd put mine!

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/02/snow-freezing-weather-europe wrote:

Snow strands Buffalo drivers for more than 12 hours

---

<<Millions of Europeans have been caught up in chaos caused by heavy snow, freezing temperatures and high winds following the coldest start to December since records began. Harsh conditions ground much of the continent's transport network to a halt and caused several deaths.

In Poland temperatures fell to -26C, leading to eight deaths from exposure, on top of several other cold-related deaths in recent days.

Almost the whole of Germany woke up to heavy snow this morning, which caused gridlock on roads and railway lines throughout the country. Hundreds of commuters were stranded at railway stations as conditions were deemed too severe for German trains to run.

At Leipzig and Frankfurt scores of passengers had to sleep in railway carriages as hotels ran out of room after train journeys were cancelled because of snow drifts.

Three people died in accidents on icy roads in Germany, while an undisclosed number were said to have died in other parts of central Europe because of exposure or traffic accidents.

Prague airport closed overnight following the heavy snow that gripped the whole of the Czech Republic.

More than 400 miles of traffic jams were reported in Belgium, with Flanders badly hit. Thousands of motorists were trapped in their cars in Brittany and Normandy, and 10,000 lorries were brought to a standstill as parts of France also faced harsh conditions. Hundreds of homes in central France were left without electricity after power cuts.

Elsewhere police were warning members of the public to inform them of the whereabouts of homeless people after two homeless men died in Lithuania.

Across the continent travellers were being advised to rethink travel plans or allow extra time for their journeys. Geneva airport, where 200 passengers were given emergency accommodation and a further 100 slept at the airport, was advising passengers to arrive two hours before the departure time of their flights and to leave motor vehicles at home where possible.

Meteorologists forecast that the snowy and freezing conditions would continue for several days due to the slow eastwardly movement of a low-pressure front over western Europe.

On northern Germany's Brocken mountain, at 1,142 metres one of the country's highest peaks, temperatures fell to -18C while winds of up to 62mph led to an apparent air temperature of -50C. Up to a metre of snow fell on Germany's highest peak, the Zugspitze, with more snow expected overnight.>>

BMAONE23 wrote:
Sounds like Europe is beginning to feel something and it isn't very warm

http://www.stoptheaclu.com/2010/10/06/europe-to-experience-coldest-winter-in-1000-years/ wrote:

After the record heat wave this summer, Russia’s weather seems to have acquired a taste for the extreme.
Forecasters say this winter could be the coldest Europe has seen in the last 1,000 years.

The change is reportedly connected with the speed of the Gulf Stream, which has shrunk in half in just the last couple of years. Polish scientists say that it means the stream will not be able to compensate for the cold from the Arctic winds. According to them, when the stream is completely stopped, a new Ice Age will begin in Europe.

Well, I would have to agree with P. Gosselin at NoTricksZone that this is a “nutty claim.”
Could it happen? Possibly. Will it happen? Probably not.
Will it be a colder winter? Most Realists say “yes.”

Did you catch the part where the reporter asked “is it climate change?” The response was “They don’t really know. They’re looking at global warming.” Got that? Now global warming, which is about greenhouse gases put out by man supposedly causing the Earth to warm up, is going to cause the “coldest winter in 1,000 years.” These people really are out of their minds. This is not science. This isn’t even as silly as Scientology or snake charming churches. This is Jim Jones stupid. Heaven’s Gate stupid. The Church Of All World’s stupid. The Church of Euthanasia stupid.

• Global warming of the Arctic reduces the jetstream which both:
  
  [list]1) decreases the warm Gulf Stream and
  2) allows Arctic air to dip deep into mid latitudes.