AccuWeather says, “To this day ball lightning has never been scientifically reported or documented and all attempts to reproduce it have failed.” However, National Geographic reported in 2007 that a scientist created golf ball sized orbs of electricity in the lab. Wired reported in 2009 that a scientist wants to weaponize ball lightning. So I guess the jury is still out, at least at Accuweather.
I wonder if the cops ever thought of sending them to their rooms?
Random found image of bongs.
Pa. brothers face charges after broken bong brawl
January 23, 2012 | WPVI.com
Two western Pennsylvania brothers are charged with simple assault and marijuana possession charges after what police are calling a brawl over a broken bong
Ferndale police tell the Tribune-Democrat of Johnstown they responded to a fight call Wednesday in which one man was reportedly brandishing a screwdriver while the other hid in his bedroom.
After investigating, police say 18-year-old Tyler Kamler told them 23-year-old Brandon Kamler became upset when Tyler asked him about the broken bong – a glass or plastic water pipe commonly used to smoke marijuana. Police say they later found some small bags of marijuana, an ashtray and two smoking pipes buried in a flower bed after asking Brandon Kamler if there were other drugs in the house.
The brothers don’t have attorneys and declined immediate comment when called at home Friday.
(Copyright ©2012 WPVI-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)
45 years ago this week one of the worst tragedies in America’s space program happened. Apollo I had a terrible fire, killing the 3 astronauts, Edward White, Virgil (Gus) Grissom, and Roger Chaffee inside. Of all the space tragedies this one speaks to me the most. Grissom, unlike many of his peers had such a difficult career. In the end he was just unlucky I guess.
I found some new, strong, and eerie images while researching this, but I placed them after the jump out of respect.
Apollo I crew. Image www.universetoday.com
Apollo I astronauts Edward White, Virgil (Gus) Grissom, and Roger Chaffee horsing around during a photo shoot. Image www.de-la-terre-a-la-lune.com
Interior view of the Apollo 204 spacecraft after the fire, which killed astronauts Grissom, White and Chaffee during a plugs-out test at the Kennedy Space Center on January 27, 1967. Image Ed Hengeveld, www.apolloarchive.com.
"NASA combustion experts examine spacecraft outside late 3rd Feb 1967. Image posted by robsouth to www.collectspace.com
Photo showing internal fire damage. Image posted by robsouth to www.collectspace.com
The Apollo 1 Disaster
© Copyright 2003, Jim Loy
On January 27, 1967, on launch pad 34, Edward White, Virgil (Gus) Grissom, and Roger Chaffee (shown on the left) died in a fire, during a preflight test. Their mission had been designated Apollo 204. After the accident, it was renamed Apollo 1. There were no Apollo 2 and 3 missions. The next manned mission was Apollo 7. Numerous problems developed with oxygen and communications, and the test dragged on and on. Various communications methods went awry. Then five and a half hours after they had entered the command module, Chaffee said, “Fire, I smell fire.” Two seconds later, White shouted, “Fire in the cockpit.” A few seconds later, they were dead from smoke inhalation.
Numerous things contributed to the disaster.
The test was performed in a pure oxygen atmosphere at nearly full atmospheric pressure. While this is considered hazardous, it had been done on all flights since the beginning of the Mercury program, as far as I can tell. After the accident, air was used while on the ground, and pure oxygen at reduced pressure was used once the spacecraft gained high altitude.
What if the kid is just a Dukes of Hazard fan? Apparently, the stars and bars is a “symbol of white supremacy.” Hmm. She was not suspended for wearing the garment but for her attitude when asked to remove the garment. Hmm. What crap.
East Windsor teen suspended over Confederate flag shirt, mom says school is wrong
Lisa Coryell, For The Times | nj.com | November 14, 2011, 3:54 PM
EAST WINDSOR — A Kreps Middle School parent who says her daughter was suspended for wearing a sweatshirt emblazoned with the image of the confederate flag says the school overstepped its boundaries and violated her daughter’s right to free speech.
Jane West says she’s thinking about withdrawing her daughter, Torri Albrecht, from the school even as district officials insist that the flag — viewed by many as a racially charged symbol — was not the reason the girl was suspended.
“They’re saying that now because they know they really went too far this time,†West said. “If there wasn’t a problem with the sweatshirt, why did the vice principal call at 10 after 8 on Monday to demand that I bring a change of clothes for my daughter?â€
“He told me he had a bunch of students and a bunch of teachers come into his office to say they were disturbed by it,†she said.
West said she told the assistant principal, Jermaine Blount, he was crazy if he thought she was coming out with a change of clothes for the eighth-grader.
“The Indian kids wear their turbans. The Jewish kids wear their yarmulkes. That’s their birthright,†she said. “I told him that Torri was born in Virginia. That flag is her heritage and I’m not telling her to take it off. He said ‘I guess she’ll have to suffer the consequences.’â€
Selling plants for 10¢ each is small time poaching, marginally better than collecting aluminum cans, but times are tough all over. Perhaps the state should the raise the fine for collecting to more than $25?
Venus fly traps in the wilds near the NC coast. Note the plants clumping habit as well as the tall attractive blooms. Image Miss Fidget circa 2003.
Poaching a threat to rare Venus flytrap plant
by Joel Allen | http://www.carolinalive.com | 01.26.2012
Three people have been arrested in Brunswick County, NC and charged with digging up 200 Venus flytrap plants. Joyce Whaley, 71; her nephew, Kasey Whaley, 31; and his wife Elizabeth Whaley, 27, reportedly told North Carolina wildlife officers that they wanted to sell the rare plants for about 10 cents a piece.
Those who study the Venus flytrap say poaching can be a real problem for the plant’s continued survival.
Its unique ability to capture insects makes the plant popular with kids and adults, but it’s our fascination with this rare carnivorous plant that also makes it a tempting target for poachers.
“People mistakenly think if they find a patch, they can harvest the entire patch, take them home and make money. That’s not really the case. You can buy Venus flytraps now in any of the big box stores,” said Coastal Carolina University botanist Dr. James Luken.
The only place in the world where the Venus flytrap is found in the wild is within a small stretch of coastal North and South Carolina, including Horry County.
Drew Carey recently tweeted about the 10th anniversary of the “Price is Right” riots in Vegas. Which is a kind of a funny thing to riot about.
Random image showing the LA riots from 1992.
Vegas bets wrong in ‘Price’ riot
About 10,000 people waited for gamer’s anni show tickets
By Lily Oei | www.variety.com | Jan. 23, 2002
Hell hath no fury like an audience scorned, as the staff of Las Vegas’ Rio Hotel learned when a ticket giveaway for a taping of “The Price Is Right” turned into an episode of “Cops.”
Thousands of hopeful contestants — many of them retirees — flocked to the hotel Jan. 17 in search of tickets to a special anniversary taping of the classic gamer. Problem was, there were only 900 seats.
Show was celebrating 30th anniversary by taping at the Rio, the first time the program has ever filmed outside its usual Television City studio. Since contestants on the program are culled from the audience, some would-be participants began waiting as early as the night before; others had secured rooms at the hotel. An estimated 10,000 people showed up for the well-publicized taping.
It is nice to be reminded that kind people exist.
Baby Noel receives a special baby shower
Lisa Thomas-Laury | 6abc.com | December 29, 2011
PHILADELHPHIA – December 29, 2011 (WPVI) — It was a special baby shower for a special little baby who was left on the street with the trash.
The newborn found in a box last week in Strawberry Mansion, is still being monitored at St. Christopher’s Hospital Thursday night.
But hospital staff says the baby girl, known as “Noel”, is doing just fine and is expected to be released any day.
Noel will be released into the custody of DHS, and then turned over to a foster home.
The man was later identified as David Allen Canterbury. Maybe if he has used stuffed monkeys instead of a light saber he would not have been tasered.
David Allen Canterbury. Image kgw.com
Portland police arrest man after alleged ‘Star Wars’ light saber assault at Toys R Us
By Kate Mather, The Oregonian | December 14, 2011 | www.oregonlive.com
Police arrested a man who allegedly assaulted three people with a blue light saber at a Hayden Island Toys R Us Wednesday night.
A 9-1-1 caller reported the incident about 9:50 p.m. and said the man was inside the store, 1800 Jantzen Beach Center, swinging the “Star Wars” weapon of choice at customers, said Sgt. Pete Simpson, a spokesman for the Portland Police Bureau. While the caller was on the phone, the man then left the store — light saber in hand — and walked out to the parking lot.
This year yoga lifestyle retailer lululemon gets lots of attention for promoting an Ayn Rand character on its shopping bags.
Lululemon's bag.
Ayn Rand wrote books. John Galt is in one of the books.
Image via Wikipedia
Occupy Your Yoga Pants: Lululemon’s Toxic Mix Of Commerce And Ideology
Todd Essig, Contributor | www.forbes.com | 11/21/2011
Lululemon, a company that sells high-end yoga and workout gear to people, well, people like me, really stepped in it with their new Ayn Rand tote bag. The company has shown a genuine disrespect towards customers by remaining irony-free and proudly defiant in their effort to promulgate an ideology many find repugnant, dangerous in its popularity, inconsistent with the company’s mission to date, and just plain dumb and wrong.
Just the other day, before I found out about the tote debacle, Lululemon was my first stop for an autumn running shirt suitable for a 5K charity Turkey Trot, and they had exactly what I wanted. The shirt was functionally luxurious. I was all set for Thursday; when I crossed the finish line I was going to look good and feel great.
But then I learned the company has been ginning up support for Rand’s ideology of selfish rationality: “Who is John Galt†(a character and phrase from Atlas Shrugged) is emblazoned on a new version of their hip tote bag and the company blog proudly proclaims founder Chip Wilson built Lululemon on a Rand-esque “quest to elevate the world from mediocrity to greatness.â€
Goodbye Booie. Like many who give up smoking, Booie turned to sweets afterwards. It is unknown if the smoking contributed to his death.
Booie, the 44-year-old chimp, lived at the Wildlife WayStation from 1955, after being retired from a research lab. Image Daily Mail.
Bye Bye Booie! California’s smoking chimpanzee who learned sign language dies at 44
12/11/11 | http://www.dailymail.co.uk
Bye Bye Booie! California’s smoking chimpanzee who learned sign language dies at 44
Heart condition: Booie, the 44-year-old chimp, lived at the Wildlife WayStation from 1955, after being retired from a research lab
This video uploaded to youtube by StooTV is a
“Shot-by-shot comparison of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” vs. scenes from 30 different adventure films made between 1919-1973. My love letter to Indiana Jones and the films which served as inspiration.”
As far as simulacra go, this one is not bad. Better than the marmite and the iron, not as good as the Mother Theresa Cheeto and not as reverent as the South Philadelphia praying Jesus.
The Holy Sock. Image telegraph.co.uk
Woman sees face of Jesus in sock
A woman claims she can see the face of Jesus in the creases of a drying sock.
www.telegraph.co.uk | 28 Dec 2011
Sarah Crane, 38, said she was stunned when she saw a bearded man staring back at her from the laundry line.
Her boyfriend agreed the crumpled grey “holy sock” bore an uncanny likeness to the traditional image of Christ, and the couple took photographs to show their friends.
They even talked about creating a shrine to the sock but then the face was lost when they moved it.
Miss Crane, from Orpington, Kent, said: “I’d left the washing out to dry overnight – and it had probably been sitting there a bit too long when I noticed the face in the sock.
