PBS has a new series that follows the USS Nimitz in its deployment to the Persian Gulf to support the Iraq War. The Documentary is insightful and gives a look at what’s going on over there off the land.

You can also watch the already aired episodes of the 10 part series on PBS’s website.

Carrier

The NPR Intelligence Squared US (IQ2US) audio podcast is a series of recordings of public debates held in New York focusing on hot-button issues (most specific to the U.S.) like immigration, affirmative action, and global warming. The debates are held in the Oxford-style meaning there are one motion (topic), one moderator, three speakers for the motion, and three speakers against the motion.

Prior to the start of the debate, visitors cast their votes for or against the motion. During the debate, the results of the initial vote are shown, and the visitors vote again at the end of the debate to decide which side “won.”

If you’re tired of cable news “debate” where the only real argument is who can yell louder and longer, then this is a wonderful change.  People properly informed, debating real issues for more than just sound bites.

Intelligence Squared

What we could have had for the price of the Iraq War - Now estimated at a final cost of $3 Trillion (conservatively):

• Forget drilling in Alaska, forget ethanol, forget hybrids. As long as we’re spending, let’s go straight to hydrogen. It is estimated to cost $500,000,000 to build the infrastructure.
• Design, build, and upgrade all US highways, roads, and streets needed for the next 50 years. Price: $950,000,000,000.00
• Completely eliminate world hunger along with the diseases associated with hunger and poverty for 365 days. Price: $195,000,000,000.00
• teach every man, woman and child on the planet to read. Considering the fact that nations like Somalia and Sierra Leone have adult literacy rates of only about 35%, that is money well spent. Price: $5,000,000,000.00
• Pay for 1 year of college for 20 million people Price: $400,000,000,000.00
• Advanced technology can save trillions of dollars lost in the transmission of electrical power. Think megawatt transistor switches, superconductor conduits, not to mention the gains from replacing worn out infrastructure. And JOBS Price: $100,000,000.00
• From ArsTechnica EDUCAUSE calls for the construction of a national fiber network that would reach every home and business, with the $100 billion cost split equally between the federal government, the states, and a private- or public-sector entity that would actually build and maintain the network. Because fiber networks can increase speeds simply by carrying more wavelengths at once, the report notes that such an investment in infrastructure might “provide adequate broadband connectivity for several decades.” Price: $100,000,000,000.00
• Provide an integrated national High Speed Rail system, using Alstom’s proven technology (which currently holds the world record for the fastest train at over 550kph (340+mph). This system would connect all of America’s major cities together with high-speed electric trains, powered at least partially by sustainable wind and solar energy facilities located in or near the Right Of Way. Price: $300,000,000,000.00
• Everyone secretly knows that switching to solar is a really, really good idea, though businesses invested in dirty coal, cancerous nuclear or other unclean options are unlikely to say it out loud. But how do we pay for the $420 billion overhaul of the nation’s energy infrastructure? Well, we could have picked up the tab easily if we didn’t spend $3 Trillion on this war. Price: $420,000,000,000.00

And there are many more.

Breathing Earth. Real-time tracker of carbon dioxide emissions in countries all over world; also births/deaths, constantly updating real-time tracking while you’re on the site.

Real Time “Map” of CO2 Emissions All Over World

ESA Provides Hi-Res Worrying Maps of Space Debris

Between the launch of Sputnik on 4 October 1957 and 1 January 2008, approximately 4600 launches have placed some 6000 satellites into orbit, of which about 400 are travelling beyond geostationary orbit or on interplanetary trajectories.

Today, it is estimated that only 800 satellites are operational - roughly 45 percent of these are both in LEO and GEO. Space debris comprise the ever-increasing amount of inactive space hardware in orbit around the Earth as well as fragments of spacecraft that have broken up, exploded or otherwise become abandoned. About 50 percent of all trackable objects are due to in-orbit explosion events (about 200) or collision events (less than 10).

Interesting pictures showing just how cluttered it’s getting up there.   And it’s all gonna be pulled back down by gravity eventually.

See Star Wars in all its full text glory!   Goto a command prompt and type    telnet towel.blinkenlights.nl to see a full telnet version of Star Wars!

A 22-year old student in Vancouver painted a large Waldo on a rooftop in the hopes of a few smiles among Google Earth users.

“I think that it’s within the spirit of the state of the Web now,” she told The Sun. Everything is a free-for-all, and I think the more Waldos, the better,”

Google Earth Now Featuring Waldo

In the modern world video has taken over.  YouTube, Television, camera phones, etc have taken over our visual news and experiences.   They allow people to experience things that are happening or have happened.  They brought to the American people troops, experiences, stories, and horror in Iraq.  They stir emotions and bring calls of action.  This week, many have seen what has happened  with the Olympic Torch relay protests.

Still photos only capture a moment in time.  By freezing that moment, you can look and absorb the instant.  Even with videos from previous wars, photos capture something that video seems to miss.  Even with video of the same period, photos from Vietnam and WWII are still in people’s consciousness.  News casts on television also use still images from stories they’re covering.  By seeing a still picture, the image stays with people.

Which format makes a bigger impact?  Which holds the bigger emotional impact?  Which stays with people more?

Google Earth’s new mapping program takes you on a virtual reality tour with the UN refugee agency of some of the world’s major displacement crises and the humanitarian efforts aimed at helping the victims.

The first use of this geospatial tool focuses on refugees and displaced people located in remote areas of Chad, Iraq, Colombia and Sudan’s volatile Darfur region. Sit in front of your computer and, with a few clicks, see, hear and develop an emotional understanding of what it is like to be a refugee.

Highlighted are not only the physical area of the camp and surrounding country, but key parts of daily life such as education and health in photo, text and video format. Within seconds, Google Earth brings the daily life of a refugee camp into your home thousands of kilometres away.

LINK

If you’re like me, you probably get tired of looking at the same background picture everyday.  Find some high-quality, high-resolution images to spruce up your background!  InterfaceLift has a large collection of high-res background images you can easily use on your computer.   Just find an image you like, choose the resolution of your screen, and set it as your new background.

InterfaceLIFT