How the Greeks Kept Time - (MISC)

The New York Times has an interesting story about an ancient Greek astronomical "computer" called the Antikythera Mechanism, which apparently predicted solar eclipses and kept time in a four year calendar.

The device was first discovered about one hundred years ago in the wreckage of a tiny ship that sank off the coast of a tiny island called Antikythera, north of Crete. It is believed the device was built between 140 and 100 B.C.

Using high-resolution imaging and three-dimensional X-ray tomography, researchers have discovered an ancient twelve month calendar and the names of all twelve months.

Apparently the device reconciled lunar months with the sun year (12 lunar months are 11 days short of the earth's rotation around the sun) by utilizing a 19 year calendar.

There is also a wealth of information about the device on the Nature Magazine web site.

Animal Rights - (PWE) & (CHL)

The New York Times's Nick Kristof has an 0p-ed today discussing the issue of animal rights. He puts it in the context of a California referendum that will be on voters' ballots in November to ban factory farms from raising chickens, calves or hogs in small pens or cages.

Mr. Kristof then discusses the broader issue of animal rights and the growing movement around the world to promote the ethical treatment of all animals and protect animal rights.

Mr. Kristof even says someday vegetarianism may be the norm. Along those lines, for people who are or are considereing being vegetarians or vegans, there is almost too much information out there about what you should and should not eat. And much of it is conflicting. If you are wondering about questions like those below, you are not alone.

Are soy products healthy or not healthy?
What about vitamin supplements?
How much protein do I need to eat in a day?
What are the risks and benefits of being a vegetarian or a vegan?
How bad for me are the hormones and antibiotics that are injected into the pigs and cows and chickens and turkeys we eat?

Who should you trust for answers? That's a good question. One site we think is very reliable for nutritional and other health information is the Physician's Committe for Responsible Medicine (PCRM) web site: http://pcrm.org/. On that site you will find information and Q&As on a host of topics, including:

How can vegetarians/vegans get enough protein?
How healthy is soy?
What are the health concerns about dairy products?

You can certainly find conflicting information out there about the healthiness of soy, for example. What to believe must be left to each individual, but the PCRM site is a good resource for health and nutritional information.

Baseball Trade Deadline - (S)

Today is Major League Baseball's trade deadline and there has been a flurry of activity in the last twenty-four hours.

There are a number of big names on the move (or potentially on the move), inclduing Ken Griffey Jr. who is on his way back to the American League and the Chicago White Sox. Griffey has never played in a World Series and will have a realistic chance this season.

Although, with the acquisition of Mark Texiera the Angels look like clear cut favorite to win the American League championship, especially after a second sweep of the Red Sox this month, this time at Fenway Park.

With the news that Jorge Posada is lost for the season, the Yankees traded reliever Kyle Farnsworth to the Tigers for Ivan Rodriquez. Rodriguez provides much better offense than Jose Molina and is still strong defensively, but losing Farnsworth is a blow to the Yankees' bullpen which has been outstanding the past two months. Farnsworth went more than a month and nine innings without giving up a hit before faltering in his last two outings before the trade. The Yankees' bullpen is still in okay shape; however, with Dave Robertson, Jose Veras, Edwar Ramirez and newly acquired Damaso Marte supporting Mariano Rivera.

The biggest name who could be traded today is Manny Ramirez. If he doesn't get traded, it will be interesting to see how Manny "bes" Manny during the next two months.

McCain Sinks Into Desperation - Addendum - (PWE)

Here is the McCain "Obama is the biggest celebrity in the world" ad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oHXYsw_ZDXg&eurl

Huh?

McCain Sinks Into Desperation - Succumbs to Rovian and Bushian Strategy - (PWE)

Glenn Greenwald of salon.com writes today about John McCain's new (old) strategy against Barack Obama - attack and discredit him personally. As Mr. Greenwald notes, this is page 1 of the Republican playbook:

"There's obviously nothing surprising about the McCain campaign's reliance on the standard, personality-based attacks that the GOP uses every election year."

What Mr. Greenwald correctly points out is much more disturbing is how the media willingly and obediently accepts and disseminates the Republicans' demonizing messages about Barack Obama. Case in point is today's piece by Jim Rutenberg of The New York Times which not only highlights the McCain shift in strategy, but also spews many of the attacking message points that the McCain team (now led by Steve Schmidt) is trying to disseminate.

As Mr. Greenwald writes:

"This is exactly what happens every single election cycle. The Right spews some petty, personality-based attack, and the chirping media birds then mindlessly repeat it until it's lodged into our discourse as accepted fact. That's the media strategy on which the Right is relying to win the election this year again -- dictating the songs sung by the vapid, chirping press birds -- even as they petulantly and incessantly complain that the same media stars who serve this strategy are stacked against them."

Mr. Greenwald provides a variety of links that relate to this issue, so feel free to peruse those as well. There is a lot.

At Dreg Blog, we have a feeling this strategy is going to backfire against McCain and Schmidt and Rove this year. We believe (optimistically) that the American people are too aware of this issue-less strategy and are sick of it. This time, they are looking for someone who can make a difference and do care about the issues that are making their lives more difficult. They are less likely to be swayed by silly personality attacks.

Just When You Thought it Was Safer to Swim in the Pool -- (CHL)

Apparently, not only is the water at many beaches unsafe, now comes a story from The Wall Street Journal about a dangerous chlorine-resistant parasite that has been found lurking in pools across the country and causing serious illnesses. As a result, new measures are being taken to ensure that pool water is safe to swim in, including use of ultra-violet water treatments.

By the way, it's always good advice not to drink pool water.

Monsters in Montauk?? -- (MISC)

This one has to go under the category of Everything Else.

What is this thing that apparently washed up on a beach in Montauk, NY?

This has to be some sort of publicity stunt, right? But that aninmal testing facility nearby ...

Sunscreen Report - (CHL)

As reported in The New York Times, the Environmental Working Group conducted a comprehensive study of 952 name-brand sunscreens and came up with some startling results. You can find them, as well as a copy of their report, here.

No More Fast-Food? - (PWE)

Don't know what to make of this story - apparently the City of Los Angeles wants to ban any new fast-food restaurants in South Los Angeles for one year. The city cites the poor health and fitness of residents of that neighborhood and the unhealthy nature of fast food as the rationales for the proposed moratorium.

On the one hand, the city should be looking out for the health and welfare of its citizens. But how can they infringe upon the rights of fast-food companies? How can they dictate what people eat? As the article notes, if the residents of that area wanted different food, wouldn't more "healthy" restaurants be there?

This may be going too far down the slippery slope.

Fail Blog - (MISC)

If you've never seen the Fail Blog, stop what you're doing immediately and go there. Be prepared to spend at least the next hour searching through their library of hilarious photos and videos of failure.

Ten Things You Don't Need to Worry About - (CHL)

From The New York Times, here are ten health, safety and environmental concerns, you don't need to be concerned about.

Eggs - Maybe They Aren't So Unhealthy - (CHL)

This blog posting from The New York Times Well blog cites a recent study which indicates that eggs are not as unhealthy as you may have been led to believe. According to a study reported by the University of California at Berkeley, the cholesterol in eggs only raises the blood cholesterol for only about one-third of the population. Even so, in those people, the bad cholesterol (LDL) in eggs causes the body to produced good cholesterol (HDL) in response, in effect partially off-setting the unhealthy aspect of eating eggs.

The study also did not find any link between eating eggs and heart disease (except for people with diabetes) or stroke.

Go enjoy a fluffy omelette, and don't worry about ordering it with egg whites.

"Preparing to Live Syndrome" - (CHL)

In this article from lawjobs.com, James Dolan, a professional coach and psychotherapist explains what he means by the Preparing to Live Syndrome or PtLS, a term he coined. He specifically focuses on attorneys suffering from this maladay, but it is obviously something that afflicts many of us. Essentially, Mr. Dolan describes an epidemic where many people suffer through their lives, unhappy, with the hope that one day they will reach a point when life will bring happiness and fulfillment. It is worthy reading.