Morning Paper

Pics Of The Gigantic Squid

Unfortunately, the photos that have been taken of the Gigantic Squid that was "caught"  off the coast of Antarctica in February 2007, don't give a good perspective on how huge this thing really is. 

You may remember I posted the other day about it's 11 inch eye.  Although the pics are sharp and give a good look at the beast, they don't demonstrate it's full 26 foot glory.

So, as you check the pics, think of it this way.  Clone Shaq, and put the second one on the 1st Shaq's shoulders.  Then hoist Mini-Me up onto the 2nd Shaq's shoulders and imagine something like that with two 11 inch eyeballs coming at you.

Pics

Giant Squid Sees All, Largest Eyes On Earth!

How would you like to be scuba diving and come across a giant angry squid?  According to scientist, and logic, if the size of the thing coming at you doesn't give you a heart attack in the water, it's 11 inch angry eye will. 

That's right, 11 inches of eyeball connected to colossal blob with tentacle's.  Think of it this way, your head isn't even that big.

New Zealand - Marine scientists are studying the dead squid that was caught and frozen.  It's 26 inches long and weighs 1000 pounds.  They believe that it is one of the smaller of the species of deep water squid. 

I have to say, even if one was caught and put into a tank for folks to come and watch, I would have to stay home.  Having to eyes bigger then my head staring back at me would produce a lot of sleepless nights afterward.

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Bionic Eye Surgery A Success

What child of the 70's didn't grow up anxious over getting to the point that Bionics would be readily available.  Not because we thought mom was right and the TV we sat far to close too was going to ruin our eyes.  Nope.

The Steve Austin way was going to let us run faster and beat everyone up while catching that eye-popping Woman on the beach 10 miles away.

Well it looks as though we are closer that we no.   

"Surgeons have carried out the first operations in Britain using a pioneering “bionic eye” that could in future help to restore blind people’s sight.

Two successful operations to implant the device into the eyes of two blind patients have been conducted at Moorfields Eye Hospital in London." Timesonline

Now this is impressive stuff.  Not just a pill to be advertised for 10 minutes, real actually technology to help aid an eventual cure. 

We're Going To Have a EarthQuake! And The Sun will Come Out Tomorrow

  As long as I have lived in California, people have talked about the big one.  That single devastating earthquake starring Joe Don Baker, Pierce Bronson and Anne Heche.   The one that will tear us in two and send one of us out to sea to start our own colony and political party.

As long as I have lived here, it as yet to happen.  Not that it won't, but I just watched the middle of the country get ripped apart by a series of tornadoes.   And I have plenty years of watching Hurricanes whip out southern states on the ole TV.

And like clock work, those prognosticating scientist are at it again. 

How's this for a prediction?  They have concluded that there is a 99.7% chance that a 6.7 earthquake will hit California sometime within narrow time frame of 30 years.  Which is like saying "there is a 99.9% chance Bush will say, stay the course before he leaves office". 

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Earth's Long Lost Twin Has Been Found!

  Spanish scientist think they may have found Earths long lost twin. 

The Planet is the smallest Planet ever to be found outside our solar system.

Pretty interesting stuff.  Watch the video.

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Autism medical coverage is a must...Insurers have compassion, YEAH!!

Ryan Unumb a 7 year-old boy that like millions of others around the world, is normal, cute, and inquisitive youngster. However being diagnosed with Autism, the challenges of his young life may not seem apparent to him, but to his mom and dad, Lorri and Dan, it is all too real. Presently, most states don't have medical coverage for Autism, although it is slowly changing the financial burden for this semi-epidemic can be staggering. Dan and Lorri are lawyers that wrote a bill to change the law in South Carolina, and with the support of families and State Legislators, Ryan's Law will be in effect in July. "Ryan's Law mandates that insurance companies provide up to $50k a year for behavioral therapy up to the age of 16. It also prohibits insurers from refusing other medical care to children because of their Autism. It doesn't, however, apply to people or companies who are self-insured, such as the Unumbs." Read

5 Ways To Train Your Body To Sleep

I am one who often has difficulty falling asleep and/or staying asleep.  I like staying up late, but I also like getting up early. Those two don't work too well together.  My work day absolutely flies by, and then when I get home, I want to kick back and watch the tube or catch up on news, or enjoy some activity with the family.  Before I know it, it's already bed time....SIGH! The when the alarm clock goes off, I'm like..."Are you kidding me?!"

Reader's Digest has listed 5 ways to train your body and its biological clock to sleep better. 

1. Wake at the Same Time Every Day. A good night's sleep actually starts in the morning.
2. Hit the Sheets Only When Sleepy.  No, not just tired. Sleepy, as in your eyes are droopy and you keep losing track of what people are saying to you.
3. Get Up. If you wake at 2:00 A.M., get up and go read a book in the living room.
4. Give Yourself an Hour. The one right before bed.
5. Beware Sunday Night Insomnia. Staying up late on Friday and Saturday nights and sleeping in on Saturday and Sunday mornings is frequently the gift we give ourselves on weekends after a hard week at work. Yet that little gift -- small as it is -- is enough to screw up our biological clocks.

Reader's Digest

Did You See The Exploding Star?

  Halfway across the universe a record was broken by a little known Star whom always believed it could.  it's day in the sun was so bright that it could been seen here on earth by the naked eye.  Did you see it?

"The aging star, in a previously unknown galaxy, exploded in a gamma ray burst 7.5 billion light years away, its light finally reaching Earth early Wednesday.

The gamma rays were detected by NASA's Swift satellite at 2:12 a.m. "We'd never seen one before so bright and at such a distance," NASA's Neil Gehrels said.

It was bright enough to be seen with the naked eye.

However, NASA has no reports that any skywatchers spotted the burst, which lasted less than an hour.

Telescopic measurements show that the burst -- which occurred when the universe was about half its current age -- was bright enough to be seen without a telescope."  MSNBC

Neither did I, and I'm bummed.

10 Ways To Control Cravings

Reader's Digest.com has a list of 10 great ways to control those cravings we all have.  I for one could stand to lose a few pounds and I despise dieting, so I think I'll give them a try.

1. Avoid your triggers. "You crave what you eat, so if you switch what you're eating, you can weaken your old cravings and strengthen new ones

2. Destroy temptation. If you've succumbed to a craving and bought a box of cookies or some other trigger food and start to feel bad while eating it, destroy it.

3. Go nuts. Drink two glasses of water and eat an ounce of nuts (6 walnuts, 12 almonds or 20 peanuts).

4. Jolt yourself with java. Try sipping a skim latte (for me just strong coffee) instead of reaching for a candy bar.

5. Let it go. Since stress is a huge trigger for cravings, learning to deal with it could potentially save you hundreds of calories a day.

6. Take a power nap. Cravings sneak up when we're tired.

7. Get minty fresh. Brush your teeth; gargle with mouthwash.

8. Distract yourself. If only ice cream will do, it's a craving, not hunger.

9. Indulge yourself -- within limits. Once in a while, it's OK to go ahead and have that ice cream. But buy a small cone, not a pint.

10. Plan or avoid. Vary your usual routine to avoid passing the bakery or pizzeria.

RD.com

Shame on the IOC...China should have never been a candidate!!

China, a country known for it's dogged secrecy has been involved in more than one scandal over the past year, from widespread lead poisoning to an epidemic of mining accidents/censoring the families of the deceased. Also, with the most recent issue being the "little misunderstanding" involving Tibet, you know, that absolutely lawless and hostile region of miscreants. Oh, that should go away any day now. FYI, China has 16/20 most polluted cities in the WORLD, and Beijing is the air pollution capital of the World. My question is, how in the bloody hell can you allow a country with such a horrible grasp of air quality, to host the Summer Olympics? This absolutely boggles my mind, but I do hear that Mosul, Iraq is vying for the next one. Haile Gebrselassie, a long distance record holder who has exercise related asthma, actually has to sit out this Olympics because of the short-term and long term effects. How can a governing board not look at pollution as a criteria for candidacy? I have nothing personal at all against the people of China, but to hear that their government is giving assurances that the air quality will be much better prior to the Olympics, leads me to my next head scratcher. Why the hell hasn't something been done about the air quality prior to getting the Olympics? I can only imgine the cancer and respiratory failure that is going to befall the citizens who are trusting their government to protect their safety. It is astounding the parallels that exist between the U.S., China, Russia, Iran, Venezuela, and North Korea, as all of it's citizens are at the mercy of leaders/regimes that compromise citizens rights. There seriously needs to be a citizen revolution as the greater part of the world is tired of the incessant bullshit being lobbed at us by our respective leaders as just having a decent job and funds to support our family is far more important than hating one another. I say to all of the leaders of the world talking "big game", let them all fight one another in the squared circle or the octagon, instead of having us to fight their battles for them! Read