Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Sunday, March 9, 2008
Red Tail Hawk
It seems that we get a visit every Sunday from a Hawk. Today it was this Red Tail. (someone corrected me - thank you!)
He was soon chased away by some Crows. Another day in paradise for a Hawk.
Thursday, March 6, 2008
Toyota Camry Hybrid Dashboard
So, this is the dashboard of my new Toyota Camry. A few things to note:
Miles driven this tank: 430
Miles left: 21
Total miles this tank: 451
Miles per gallon: 35
Oh, and sorry about it being so shaky - I was going 75 miles per hour.
Here is some more info on this car: www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/noframes/22825.shtml
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
Monday, March 3, 2008
Sunday, March 2, 2008
2000 Census available for free download
From the site:
"We are pleased to present the complete content, in PDF format, of the recently published Census Atlas of the United States, the first comprehensive atlas of population and housing produced by the Census Bureau since the 1920s. The Census Atlas is a large-format publication about 300 pages long and containing almost 800 maps. Data from decennial censuses prior to 2000 support nearly 150 maps and figures, providing context and an historical perspective for many of the topics presented.
"We are pleased to present the complete content, in PDF format, of the recently published Census Atlas of the United States, the first comprehensive atlas of population and housing produced by the Census Bureau since the 1920s. The Census Atlas is a large-format publication about 300 pages long and containing almost 800 maps. Data from decennial censuses prior to 2000 support nearly 150 maps and figures, providing context and an historical perspective for many of the topics presented.
A variety of topics are covered in the Census Atlas, ranging from language and ancestry characteristics to housing patterns and the geographic distribution of the population. A majority of the maps in the Census Atlas present data at the county level, but data also are sometimes mapped by state, census tract (for largest cities and metropolitan areas), and for selected American Indian reservations. The book is modern, colorful, and includes a variety of map styles and data symbolization techniques."
Want to take a guess what this is a picture of?
It's a photo taken in Georgia, a British territory near the Falklands...
There are over 25,000 of them...
The temperature was 5 degrees Fahrenheit...
The brown ones are babies....
Click here to find out
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Thursday, February 28, 2008
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Sunday, February 24, 2008
What's the loudest thing in the ocean?
Shrimps.Though the blue whale produces the loudest noise of any individual animal in the sea or on land, the loudest natural noise of all is made by shrimps.
The sound of the "shrimp layer" is the only natural noise that can white out a submarine's sonar, deafening the operators through their headphones.
Below the layer they can hear nothing above it and vice versa. Hearing from below can only be accomplished by raising a mast up through it.
The noise of the collected shrimps amounts to an earsplitting 246 decibels, which even adjusting for the fact that sound travels five times faster in water, equates to about 160 decibels in air; considerably louder than a jet taking off (140 dB) or the human threshold of pain. Some observers have compared it to everyone in the world frying bacon at the same time.
The noise is caused by trillions of shrimps snapping their single oversized claw all at once. Snapping shrimps, members of the various Alpheus and Synalpheus species, are found in shallow tropical and subtropical waters.
But it's even more interesting that in sounds. Video shot at 40,000 frames per second shows clearly that the noise occurs 700 microseconds after the claw has snapped shut. The noise comes from burst bubbles, not the shutting of the claw itself, an effect know as cavitation.
It works like this. A small bump on one side of the claw fits neatly into a groove on the other side The claw is shut so rapidly that a jet of water traveling at 62 miles per hour squirts out, fast enough to create expanding bubbles of water vapor When the water slows down and normal pressure is restored, the bubbles collapse, creating intense heat (as high as 20,000 degrees celsuis), a loud pop, and light - this last being a very rare phenomenon called sonoluminescense, where sound generates light.
Shrimps use this noise to stun prey, communicate, and find mates. As well as ruining sonar, the sharp, hot intense noise makes dents in ships' propellers.
Shrimp: The Endless Quest for Pink Gold
--Taken from "THE BOOK OF General Ignorance" by John Lloyd and John Mitchinson. (I got it for Christmas, thanks Chris!)
Friday, February 22, 2008
Eclipse - view from the moon
I go to great lengths to insure your blog viewing satisfaction. The battery on my Olympus went dead right after this picture, so I never got the full eclipse. Sorry - next time.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap070302.html
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Phillies Pitcher Kyle Kendrick told he is traded to Japan
And everyone on the team and the media is in on the joke. He was traded for Takeru Kobayashi. The only problem with that is Kobayashi is the World Record Holder Japanese Hot Dog Eating Champion. Poor guy!
Phillies Pitcher Kyle Kendrick Punked - Watch more free videos
Phillies Pitcher Kyle Kendrick Punked - Watch more free videos
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)