Thursday, December 4, 2008
Don't They Float?
$200,000 worth of inflatable boobs are lost at sea. Last seen on a cargo ship bound for the land down under, the 130,000 breasts, intended to be a free giveaway in the January issue of men's magazine Ralph, have mysteriously disappeared, according to a story (called "Storm in a C Cup") in WAToday. Ralph editor Santi Pintado has issued a cry for help, urging anyone who has information regarding the displaced breasts to contact him. So far, the only explanation he has come up with is pirates. A likely explanation. In the world of booty, they're moving on up.
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Phone conversations distract drivers more than passengers
By John Timmer | Published: December 01, 2008 - 11:52AM CT
Human beings have a finite capacity for working memory, which tracks a limited number of items for the short periods of time it takes to complete the task at hand. So it's no surprise that many studies have found that cell phone conversations have a serious impact on driving skills, in some ways comparable to that of alcohol. A cursory analysis would suggest that all conversations should be equally distracting, but real-world experience shows that this isn't the case—it appears that passengers actually improve the performance of the people driving them about. A new study gets into the reasons for this discrepancy.
The introduction to the study describes a variety of previous work that describe at least three aspects of driving that appear to be negatively impacted by cell phone use. The first is basic control; drivers on cell phones have a pronounced tendency to drift around in (and potentially out of) the lane they're occupying. The second is tactical, which involves adjusting to the cars around you on the road through activities like maintaining a braking distance. Finally, studies have shown that drivers engaged in cell phone conversations are bad at strategic or task-focused processes, such as actually getting to their intended destination.
In the view of the new study's authors, there are two major issues with this past work. The first is that the prior studies simulate both driving and conversation with varying degrees of accuracy. But the second is that real-world data suggests that not all conversations are created equal. Epidemiological studies of auto accidents suggest that cell phone usage quadruples the risk of getting involved in a crash; in contrast, having an adult passenger in a vehicle actually reduces the chances of being involved in an accident.
Full Story:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081201-for-drivers-passenger-and-phone-conversations-arent-equal.html
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I believe that Sash may disagree.
Human beings have a finite capacity for working memory, which tracks a limited number of items for the short periods of time it takes to complete the task at hand. So it's no surprise that many studies have found that cell phone conversations have a serious impact on driving skills, in some ways comparable to that of alcohol. A cursory analysis would suggest that all conversations should be equally distracting, but real-world experience shows that this isn't the case—it appears that passengers actually improve the performance of the people driving them about. A new study gets into the reasons for this discrepancy.
The introduction to the study describes a variety of previous work that describe at least three aspects of driving that appear to be negatively impacted by cell phone use. The first is basic control; drivers on cell phones have a pronounced tendency to drift around in (and potentially out of) the lane they're occupying. The second is tactical, which involves adjusting to the cars around you on the road through activities like maintaining a braking distance. Finally, studies have shown that drivers engaged in cell phone conversations are bad at strategic or task-focused processes, such as actually getting to their intended destination.
In the view of the new study's authors, there are two major issues with this past work. The first is that the prior studies simulate both driving and conversation with varying degrees of accuracy. But the second is that real-world data suggests that not all conversations are created equal. Epidemiological studies of auto accidents suggest that cell phone usage quadruples the risk of getting involved in a crash; in contrast, having an adult passenger in a vehicle actually reduces the chances of being involved in an accident.
Full Story:
http://arstechnica.com/news.ars/post/20081201-for-drivers-passenger-and-phone-conversations-arent-equal.html
====================
I believe that Sash may disagree.
Ky. atheists want God out of homeland security
State law requires office to acknowledge divine help in anti-terror efforts
FRANKFORT, Kentucky - A group of atheists filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking to remove part of a state anti-terrorism law that requires Kentucky's Office of Homeland Security to acknowledge it can't keep the state safe without God's help.
American Atheists Inc. sued in state court over a 2002 law that stresses God's role in Kentucky's homeland security alongside the military, police agencies and health departments.
Of particular concern is a 2006 clause requiring the Office of Homeland Security to post a plaque that says the safety and security of the state "cannot be achieved apart from reliance upon almighty God" and to stress that fact through training and educational materials.
The plaque, posted at the Kentucky Emergency Operations Center in Frankfort, includes the Bible verse: "Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
"It is one of the most egregiously and breathtakingly unconstitutional actions by a state legislature that I've ever seen," said Edwin F. Kagin, national legal director of Parsippany, New Jersey-based American Atheists Inc. The group claims the law violates both the state and U.S. constitutions.
FRANKFORT, Kentucky - A group of atheists filed a lawsuit Tuesday seeking to remove part of a state anti-terrorism law that requires Kentucky's Office of Homeland Security to acknowledge it can't keep the state safe without God's help.
American Atheists Inc. sued in state court over a 2002 law that stresses God's role in Kentucky's homeland security alongside the military, police agencies and health departments.
Of particular concern is a 2006 clause requiring the Office of Homeland Security to post a plaque that says the safety and security of the state "cannot be achieved apart from reliance upon almighty God" and to stress that fact through training and educational materials.
The plaque, posted at the Kentucky Emergency Operations Center in Frankfort, includes the Bible verse: "Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain."
"It is one of the most egregiously and breathtakingly unconstitutional actions by a state legislature that I've ever seen," said Edwin F. Kagin, national legal director of Parsippany, New Jersey-based American Atheists Inc. The group claims the law violates both the state and U.S. constitutions.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Study finds Internet searches boost brain
LOS ANGELES , Nov. 30 (UPI) -- Searching the Internet exercises the brains of older people by activating their neural circuitry, says UCLA's Memory & Aging Research Center.
Internet searches activate regions in the brain that control complex reasoning and decision making, the Center found in a nine-month study of 24 neurologically normal volunteers, with similar education levels, ages 55 to 76.
The test subjects showed richer sensory experience and heightened attention when conducting Internet searches, as opposed to reading book-like text on computers, said Gary Small, the Center's director, noting the brain activity was recorded in MRI results.
Not enough research yet exists to show whether Internet use can ward off dementia, The San Francisco Chronicle reported Sunday, noting Alzheimer's cases in the United States are expected to quadruple by 2050.
The Center's findings are to be published next month in the Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.
====================
If that were true I'd be a genius right now.
Internet searches activate regions in the brain that control complex reasoning and decision making, the Center found in a nine-month study of 24 neurologically normal volunteers, with similar education levels, ages 55 to 76.
The test subjects showed richer sensory experience and heightened attention when conducting Internet searches, as opposed to reading book-like text on computers, said Gary Small, the Center's director, noting the brain activity was recorded in MRI results.
Not enough research yet exists to show whether Internet use can ward off dementia, The San Francisco Chronicle reported Sunday, noting Alzheimer's cases in the United States are expected to quadruple by 2050.
The Center's findings are to be published next month in the Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.
====================
If that were true I'd be a genius right now.
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