Sandblasting Saturn’s Moons
February 13, 2007
This is a photo I took of our own moon rather than one of Saturn’s moons, but it is the best I can do with a 300mm lens. CBC Radio’s Quirks and Quarks podcast discusses how the moon Enceladus releases ice that sandblasts some of the other moons of Saturn making them shiny. Click below to listen to the podcast.
Rodent of Enormous Size
February 13, 2007
Cartoonist Scott Adams has a funny post on The Dilbert Blog: Man Mistaken for Rodent
To reiterate, there is nothing funny about being shot in the head. Unless you were snorkeling in a river, someone thought you were a rodent, and your skull is so dense it can stop a bullet.The shooter mistook the snorkeler for a nutria. That’s a rat-looking thing that swims. Apparently the river has a lot of swimming rodents in it. I don’t think I have to tell you that the very best place you can snorkel is a river that’s full of swimming rats. It is good scenery and good friends all in one.
MENTAL NOTES TO SELF:
- get some photos of the muskrats living under the dock at the cottage… wet rodents are FUNNY
- never take the bright orange reflective tape off my snorkel
- if I’m ever injured trying to get an in-water photograph of an animal I will be MOCKED
- avoid felons on drugs carrying rifles
Test Tube Markets
February 13, 2007
The Globe and Mail reports that president Hugo Chavez’s government has threatened to take over food distribution chains (e.g. supermarkets) in Venezuela.
Industry and Commerce Minister Maria Cristina Iglesias said the decree would help curb supply problems that have caused severe shortages of meats, milk and sugar in recent weeks.
Oh boy.
Shortages of items ranging from milk to coffee have occurred since early 2003, when Mr. Chavez began regulating prices for 400 basic products as a way to counter inflation and protect the poor.
This is the problem I was hinting at with my Cold Compassion post. Protecting the poor is certainly a good thing, however, the policy that was designed to help the poor will do the exact opposite. This social experiment has been carried out so many times now that the results are completely predictable. Compassion should be reserved for measuring outcomes. In the case of Venezuela the outcomes make me want to cry.
