Phi for All

Why do you find the post insulting? Doesn't a viral internet campaign satisfy at least some of the conditions of a "man-made" epidemic? Why so sensitive?

They counter each other constantly to maintain proper blood glucose levels.

Too much effort and expense. You become the victim of the problem AND the solution. I really dislike it when people make *their* problems *my* problems. It shows a complete disrespect. As a pet owner who carries plastic bags so my problem doesn't stay on your lawn when me and my dog walk by, I object to anyone who would put a "neighbor" through such a hassle. If you could post a video of that on YouTube, it would be #1 for a month (or at least, and more appropriately, #2) The cheapest and most effective solution. Despicable? Not in the moral sense, since morally the cat isn't harmed, you aren't harmed, and the neighbors aren't harmed. But they may despise you because, as you said, you are taking away their magic crap pixies. Or rather you are arranging for the crap pixies to start costing them money. Please doo.

This shouldn't cost you any more than it already has. I think the next bag of "returns" should be accompanied by a friendly note: "Dear Neighbor, Per your suggestion, I am using the measures at my disposal to discourage your cat from using my garden as his toilet, since I have found out that my health is at risk if I eat vegetables contaminated by feces. Animal Control has provided me with a humane trap, but I wanted to let you know about their policy on collarless pets turned over to them. If they can't contact the owner, they will euthanize the animal after 24 hours. Since this was never my intention, I would urge you to purchase a collar with your contact info on it, so Animal Control knows who to call. Please check with them about the cost of reclaiming your cat. I didn't ask them about that part. The Gardener Next Door."

Since ectoplasm was in use by biologists before Richet "borrowed" the term for paranormal use, I would say the Wiki entry is wrong in using the term "coin", since that term implies that Richet made it up.

There are some obvious translation problems with some of your post, but this part is easily understood, and completely false. When you can't find a reference for something, please don't state it as fact. This is another statement I'll bet you can't find a reference for. Better. Using words like "maybe" and "I think" turn this into your opinion instead of a statement of fact. But you're still wrong. Here is a fairly easy to understand explanation based on several studies: http://www.webmd.com/sex-relationships/guide/masturbation-guide Zoo. Monkeys. Observe.

Would the Mexican government stand to profit somehow by only turning over to the BATF those guns they were pretty sure were US in origin (or at least 90% sure)? Are we giving them guilt-ridden aid funds to help combat this inconvenient "truth"? The reporters should be asking the Mexican government why *all* the weapons seized weren't turned over to the BATF for tracing.

Absolutely. I've been preaching this for years, and I think our military would benefit as much as the taxpayers. We could even have a larger military to satisfy just about everybody with this scenario. And of course, there's my old personal favorite, asphalt roads. Allow them to cure for 3 months before driving on them, the way Germany does, and we get Autobahn smooth roads that wear like iron. Tons of money saved, better driving experience, less damage to vehicles, probably fewer accidents, all for the price of some detours (which we'd get used to very quickly) and some jobs (which, now that you know it can be done, seem like paying people for work we don't need). My point, to keep this on topic, is that it may not be necessary to simply cut funding. If we rethink how we're spending it in the first place, we could have our cake and eat it too. With a glass of milk.

Each person sees their portion of taxes being wasted on many things. What if there was a way to save tens of billions of dollars on a certain segment of our federal spending, simply by changing the process we currently use on that segment? If it meant sacrificing a little convenience at the consumer level in the near future temporarily in exchange for much more convenience down the road, would that be okay? What if the same new process could be applied at the state level to save hundreds of billions of dollars? But what if the new process made certain jobs unnecessary? Would it be worth it then? Once you knew about the new process saving tons of money and meaning a better quality of life in the long run, wouldn't the jobs now seem like wasted time and money?

There's a very good reason for this, and it really has nothing to do with being close-minded or scared of something smarter than you. When you say "God" to a physicist (or anyone), you're opening a very wide door. When you ask someone to remain open-minded about "God", you are requiring them to suppress their skepticism about every aspect of the word. You know what *you* mean when you say "God", but the physicist doesn't. Same with "UFO". Do you mean a newly discovered object with a seemingly erratic trajectory or are you talking about the saucer you think abducted your prize milk cow? "God" and "UFO" are baggage-laden terms. Don't expect scientists to start nodding without rigorous clarification.

I was reading this article about the Kwok brothers in Hong Kong building a full-scale ark as an amusement park/hotel. I don't want to talk about the ark. I don't want to talk about the biblical story. And I don't want to talk about why the Kwok's think it's a good idea to build it in Hong Kong's harbor. What I want to talk about is this: The science proved too difficult?! I knew as soon as I read this that there is a group I know who would take up this challenge. So how would you do it, make a rainbow that could be turned on and off as an attraction at a theme park? Permanent doesn't mean it has to be on 24/7, just that it has to be in a single location and be reproducable at will (OK, just during daylight hours).

Free Online Dictionary: ec·to·plasm (kt-plzm) n. 1. Biology - The outer portion of the continuous phase of cytoplasm of a cell, sometimes distinguishable as a somewhat rigid, gelled layer beneath the cell membrane. So I would say that Richet didn't coin the term, but merely borrowed the coin for use in his description of the supernatural.

I believe in telling kids about the bad stuff. If people could actually sign away their right to sue, I'd say let's get them to sign an agreement that says they know the risks and accept them and no matter what they or their parents claim later, they will not sue us right off the web. Alas.... I would show you the Moderator's Position, but posting that sort of picture is also against the forum rules.

I say Presidential Medal of Freedom for Capt. Richard Phillips. Well done, well done all.

Top of the list = swansont. Brilliant AND funny, the quintessential SFNer.

While there was no single source for our present woes, I'm beginning to think the sharp increase in gas prices last summer had a LOT more to do with the downturn than I previously thought. The Fed couldn't quite figure out the housing bubble problems, but they knew what to do when gas prices rose. When you couple the resulting interest rate increase with the fact that people who already had shaky mortgages, mostly for properties that were farther away from their workplace, had to choose between buying $4/gallon gas to drive twice as far or paying their mortgages, it seems oil owns a bigger share of the blame than I had previously thought.

So your brother is an arrogant jock who is stronger than you, and probably taunts you and lords it over you, and you want to become stronger than him so you can... lord it over him, taunt him with it and be an arrogant nerd? I think the best way to win that game is not to play.

Don't push so deeply.

The history of ether as an anesthetic is pretty interesting. It started out as a party drug in Victorian England, IIRC. We don't? Oooops.

Pharmacology = $

Too bad you can't set it to register "dork". As you can see, Sayo's uniform is waaaaay cooler, and needs no helmet (though from the pained expression on his face, his inseam is too tight ).

Why? Do you know of some company that sells LED study lamps that would be better than CFLs?

Extremely well put. And kudos for those who took their fingers out of their ears long enough to listen to it.