sizzle
02 Aug 2008
Rise in jellyfish swarms hints at oceans’ decline
New York Times - By Elisabeth Rosenthal - Aug. 3 (Special Report) - Jellyfish, relatives of the sea anemone and coral, in fact are the cockroaches of the open waters, the ultimate maritime survivors who thrive in damaged environments -- and that is what they are doing. Within the past year, there have been beach closings because of jellyfish swarms on the Côte d'Azur in France, the Great Barrier Reef of Australia, and at Waikiki and Virginia Beach in the United States...NewsTrust Rating: 3.7 from source rating - Review It
Mix It Up!
Greater Good - By Jennifer Holladay - Aug. 3 (Review) - Today's students are the most racially tolerant generation our nation has ever seen. According to recent studies, they are more likely to have friends, or to date, across racial and ethnic lines than the generations who came before them. On the whole, they believe racism is wrong. But we still have a long way to go...NewsTrust Rating: 3.2 from source rating - Review It
Look Twice
Greater Good - By Susan T. Fiske - Aug. 3 (Review) - Most people think they're less biased than average. But just as we can't all be better than average, we can't all be less prejudiced than average. Although the message--and the success so far--of Barack Obama's presidential campaign suggests an America that is moving past traditional racial divisions and prejudices, it's probably safe to assume that all of us harbor more biases than we think. Science suggests that most of us don't even know the half of it...NewsTrust Rating: 4.0 average - Reviews - Review It
Global Warming Did It! Well, Maybe Not.
Washington Post - By Joel Achenbach - Aug. 3 (Opinion) - We're stuck on the notion that climate change is the culprit every time a natural disaster strikes. But that's just muddying the waters. We're heading into the heart of hurricane season, and any day now, a storm will barrel toward the United States, inspiring all the TV weather reporters to find a beach where they can lash themselves to a palm tree. We can be certain of two things: First, we'll be told that the wind is blowing very hard and the surf is up...NewsTrust Rating: 3.6 from source rating - Review It
McCain, the Analog Candidate
New York Times - By Mark Leibovich - Aug. 3 (News Analysis) - Washington -- Big surprise: a lot of smarty-pants computer types have been snickering at John McCain lately. -- The self-described "Neanderthal" of the Grand Old Party (emphasis, old) has been catching flack for admitting that he is no techno-geek.NewsTrust Rating: 3.7 from source rating - Review It
Virginia Woolf, At Intersection Of Science And Art
National Public Radio - By Robert Krulwich - Aug. 3 (Review) - Virginia Woolf wanted to think about what it's like to think about nothing special, about ordinary things. "To feel simply, that's a chair, that's a table ... and yet at the same time, it's a miracle, it's an ecstasy," she writes in To the Lighthouse. Every so often, gazing at a fruit, at a flower, a bee, a friend, we all know what she means. Moments for no good reason can become extraordinarily beautiful, hauntingly so. [6 min 53 sec]NewsTrust Rating: 3.9 from source rating - Review It
McCain’s tech deficit poses problem
The Politico - By Ben Smith - Aug. 3 (Blog Post) - John McCain's low comfort level with the Internet, a technology familiar to 73 percent of American adults, poses a political problem for his campaign and exacerbates mostly unspoken concerns about his age. It also contains an element of irony: In 2000, he was buoyed by pioneering online fundraising efforts...NewsTrust Rating: 3.2 from source rating - Review It
Review interview: Richard Dawkins
The Times - By Rosie Millard - Aug. 3 (Interview) - Well, it's a distinction of sorts. Professor Richard Dawkins, who holds the chair for the public understanding of science at Oxford, was last week nominated as one of the country's Groovy Old Men - a group of sexy "silver foxes" that also includes the actors Bill Nighy and Terence Stamp. There is even an ongoing poll to choose the favourite...NewsTrust Rating: 3.4 from source rating - Review It
Stinging Tentacles Offer Hint of Oceans’ Decline
New York Times - Aug. 3 (News Report) - Blue patrol boats crisscross the swimming areas of beaches here with their huge nets skimming the water's surface. The yellow flags that urge caution and the red flags that prohibit swimming because of risky currents are sometimes topped now with blue ones warning of a new danger: swarms of jellyfish. In a period of hours during a day a couple of weeks ago, 300 people on Barcelona's bustling beaches were treated for stings, and 11 were taken to hospitals.NewsTrust Rating: 3.7 from source rating - Review It