At last! The mystery solved!

Ever get caught in one of those "mystery jams" on the freeway, where you come to a complete standstill for absolutely no reason? Well, this discounts my friend's theory that "traffic ghosts" stop cars. :)

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071219103102.htm

Tricksy hobbitses...

A new species of human was discovered a couple years ago, and the title link shows some new details about the discovery. What I find interesting was that this was a three-foot tool-using hominid that apparently existed alongside Homo Sapiens, not so very long ago in cosmic terms. Sure, this has just been discovered in Indonesia right now... but could this species have existed elsewhere? Like, perhaps, the British Isles? And if so, could this be where the legends of elves came from? Just a thought...

Happy birthday to :-)

So if the first emoticon was created 25 years ago, what system would that have been on? The article just says an "electronic bulletin board system." CompuServe, do you suppose? Or something like FIDONet? Was FIDONet around 25 years ago? Now I'll have to look that up...

(of course, the fact that I remember ANY of this identifies me as (a) too much of a geek, and (b) Way Too Old. :-) )

Okay, someone 'splain this to me...

A town in Germany is trying to reduce accidents by removing all traffic signals, lights, etc: http://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSGOR14512420070911
Say what?

How does this reduce accidents?

I'm not saying I know anything at all about this... just, it defies common sense.

(not that I have so much of that, now that I think about it...) :)

edited to add the Wikipedia link that explains the theory - not that it helps me understand it much... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shared_space

Ok, someone explain how this can be true...

From the National Weather Service website:

A total lunar eclipse will occur during the early morning hours on Tuesday. The eclipse will begin at 4:51 am EDT, with the total eclipse beginning at 5:52 am EDT. The end of the entire eclipse will occur at 8:22 am EDT but will not be visible in Indiana, as the moon will set at 7:14 am EDT. Interestingly, sunrise will occur at 7:09 am EDT, so both the moon in eclipse and the sun will be in the sky at the same time. (Note: Times referenced here are for Indianapolis. The time may vary slightly for other Indiana locations).

I like to think that I'm somewhat scientifically astute. But how can totality not end until 7:22 am (per the graphic on the link above)... AFTER sunrise? Wouldn't that mean that the sun and moon are not in a straight line from our perspective, if they're both in the sky? And if so, how can the eclipse still be total?

I CONFUZZLED. :)

I knew this would happen someday...

Back in my MUSHing days, I said, someday computers would be fast enough that there would be a graphic version of a MUSH, and would suck braincells out of lots of people. I haven't explored Second Life, but... it's he-eere!

Someday, I will post something that's not a comment on a news article...

...But for now:

Judge OKs clergy abuse payout

As usual, it's a line within the article that is blowing my mind:

"The deal settles all 508 cases that remained against the archdiocese, which also paid $60 million in December to settle 45 cases that weren't covered by sexual abuse insurance." [italics mine]

There is such a thing as sexual abuse insurance now???

Is that, like, something you can take out on your kids if you're a Catholic parishioner? Or if you live too close to Michael Jackson?

Well, -this- is getting people stirred up...

"New law eases up on teen sex" - http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070709/LOCAL/707090408

I'm reading the Star forums about this article, and am amazed at the number of people who think this 'sanctions' teen sex. Do people really so blindly follow their government that they believe that a law 'sanctions' activities? Maybe -that's- what's wrong with our country in general.

Personally, I'm glad of this. The issue is not whether teens should have consentual sex. The issue is that, if they do, it shouldn't make one of them registered as a sex offender for the rest of his/her life.

To me, complaining about this law is, once again, wanting the government to make up for lack of parenting. Frankly, I don't trust the government to guide a snail, much less my kids!!!

Ok, which is more bizarre about this story...

Just read this news story: "11-Year-Old Girl Charged With DUI After 8-Mile Police Chase". Note the last line in the story.

Which is more mind-boggling, that an 11-year-old girl got DUI? Or that there is a legal limit for minors? Does that mean it's not actually illegal to drink if you're 11, as long as your BAC isn't over 0.2???

Make love, not war!

Apparently, someone in the Air Force tried to take that catchphrase a little TOO literally: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,281217,00.html

Wait... what???

From Fox News: California Woman Fakes Abduction to Get Out of Date

As if it isn't mind-boggling enough that she dragged 60 police officers away from real work to hunt her not-really-abducted butt DOWN... the last line of the article is what got me:

White, who spent two nights in jail after her arrest Monday night, said she feels bad about lying to the police. Her engagement is still on, and she plans to get married in April.

Um. Married to the guy who she met in the chat room, who she got 'abducted' to avoid? Or married to someone else? In which case, via national news, he now knows she was a) going to go out on him, and b) thought that lying like a psychotic madwoman was the appropriate way to deal with this. And yet he's still marrying this chick?????

Blimey, Mate, that's one bonzer rabbit!

Okay. I would never have imagined that you can have a PET KANGAROO in Indiana without a permit. But apparently you can.

I'm sorry it died. But the part of this article that is making me ROTFLMAO is this line, about the escaped kangaroo:

Neighbor Jim Greider saw the kangaroo hopping toward his son's graduation party Friday night and thought it was a huge rabbit.

I, of course, find myself speculating that the neighbor might have had a few "Fosters: Australian for beer" before that incident!!!