Artificial reef near Miami is cemetery
MIAMI - About 45 feet beneath the ocean’s surface lies a cemetery with gates, pathways, plaques and even benches.
The Neptune Memorial Reef, which opened last fall, is seen by its creators as a perfect final resting spot for those who loved the sea. They hope that one day the reef will cover 16 acres and have room for 125,000 remains.
“This is simply as good as it gets,” said Gary Levine, a diver who conceived the reef and is now a shareholder in the company that owns it.
The Neptune Memorial Reef is located in open waters 3 1/4 miles off the coast of Key Biscayne, which means any certified diver can visit. The artificial reef’s first phase allows for about 850 remains.
The ashes are mixed with cement designed for underwater use and fitted into a mold, which a diver then places and secures into the reef. A copper and bronze plaque is installed with the person’s name, date of birth and death. There is also a line for a message.
Artificial reef near Miami is cemetery, diving attraction - Yahoo! News
May 13, 2008 No Comments
Scientist says texting is four times more expensive than data Hubble
A University of Leicester space scientist has worked out that sending texts via mobile phones works out to be far more expensive than downloading data from the Hubble Space Telescope.
He worked out the cost of obtaining a megabyte of data from Hubble – and compared that with the 5p cost of sending a text.
He said: “The bottom line is texting is at least 4 times more expensive than transmitting data from Hubble, and is likely to be substantially more than that.
“The maximum size for a text message is 160 characters, which takes 140 bytes because there are only 7 bits per character in the text messaging system, and we assume the average price for a text message is 5p. There are 1,048,576 bytes in a megabyte, so that’s 1 million/140 = 7490 text messages to transmit one megabyte. At 5p each, that’s £374.49 per MB - or about 4.4 times more expensive than the ‘most pessimistic’ estimate for Hubble Space Telescope transmission costs.”
Space scientist says texting is four times more expensive than receiving scientific data from space
May 13, 2008 No Comments
US Prison Finds Something New to Deter Escapes
US Prison Now Using a Bear to Guard Against Escapes
The way the warden sees it, the more than 400-pound 180-kilogram black bear living in the middle of the sprawling Louisiana State Penitentiary is an extra layer of security.
“I love that bear being right where it is,” Warden Burl Cain said Monday. “I tell you what, none of our inmates are going to try to get out after dark and wander around when they might run into a big old bear. It’s like having another guard at no cost to the taxpayer.”
The bear was first seen by an inmate crossing a road in the prison on Friday. It was taking a stroll near the center of the state’s only maximum security prison, which is about 115 miles 185 kilometers northwest of New Orleans. Most of the roughly 28-square-mile 73-square-kilometer prison is run as a farm, but about 5.5 square miles 14 square kilometers is mostly untouched piney woods.
Prison workers measured the bear’s footprints, which were 6 inches 15 centimeters in diameter, Cain said.
“Every inch equals 75 pounds, so that would make it about 450 pounds,” Cain said. “The wildlife people told us they think it’s a big female they’ve been tracking for a while.”
Prison officials believe they have eight to 10 bears on the grounds, said Gary Young, head of the executive management office at the prison.
Maria Davidson, manager of the Large Carnivore Program for the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries, doubts there are that many, but marvels that even one was spotted in an area of high activity such as the center of the prison.
US Prison Finds Something New to Deter Escapes - a Bear Living on the Grounds - News
May 8, 2008 No Comments
Amazon Kindle is now back in stock!!!
The Kindle, Amazon’s ebook reader, is back in stock and ready for purchase!
If you’re interested in purchasing one, why not consider purchasing Nathan Thoms’ book, Machiavelli Meets Mayor Quimby: Political Commentary in the First Season of The Simpsons in Kindle format for your reading [...] Continue Reading…
April 30, 2008 No Comments
NO MORE GAS Personal Electric Vehicle
With a name like ‘No More Gas’, you can bet that this cute little personal electric vehicle is as good to the environment as it is to the user. Its size, weight and fuel make it much better for the planet, while its look [...] Continue Reading…
April 30, 2008 No Comments
Miracle Fruit Makes (Almost) Everything Delicious
Miracle Fruit Makes (Almost) Everything Delicious
Willy Wonka came up with some pretty cool confectionary creations: Non-melting ice cream. The Everlasting Gobstopper. Edible wallpaper. And who wouldn’t have loved to try his Three-Course-Dinner-Gum? (Though we probably wouldn’t have been so wild about turning into a [...] Continue Reading…
April 27, 2008 No Comments
Life Expectancy Is Declining in Some Pockets of the Country - New York Times
Life Expectancy Is Declining in Some Pockets of the Country
By NICHOLAS BAKALAR
Published: April 22, 2008
Life expectancy has long been growing steadily for most Americans. But it has not for a significant minority, according to a new study, which finds a growing disparity in mortality [...] Continue Reading…
April 25, 2008 No Comments
6 Insane Cults (That Would Probably Be a Lot of Fun) - Page 2 | Cracked.com
#3. Family International
Also known as the Children of God and the Family of Love, these folks are the reason most of us know the word “cult” today. We say accept no substitute when you want to devote your life and soul to a group [...] Continue Reading…
April 9, 2008 No Comments
