Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Microsoft Security Essentials

Microsoft Security Essentials is the new free protection software from Microsoft to eradicate Virus, Spyware or Malware from your XP, Vista or Windows 7 PC.

It’s free from Microsoft.

Official download page: http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials

 

(Via Luis MarĂ­a)

Photo of the day


Typical shot from Florida wetlands.
From a recent visit to Green Cay wetlands in Delray, Florida, about an hour drive from Miami.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

The Carpenters - Rainy Days And Mondays

 

The Carpenters – Rainy Days and Mondays

YouTube link

Photo of the day


The GoodYear blimp visits us every weekend, fairly low over the beach.
(from the archives)

Monday, September 28, 2009

Trunk monkey compilation

Watch all the Trunk Monkey series in one video

 

YouTube link

Photo of the day


Dragonfly

Sunday, September 27, 2009

Photo of the day


Sanderling

Saturday, September 26, 2009

Photo of the day


Sanderling at the beach

Friday, September 25, 2009

Close To You

 

The Carpenters

YouTube link

Photo of the day


Rudy Turnstone

Thursday, September 24, 2009

Distraxion

 

YouTube link

(Visa Miss Cellania)

Photo of the day


Rudy Turnstone - Bal Harbour, FL

Wednesday, September 23, 2009

Save the Insurance Companies!

 

 

Will Ferrell and friends explain how it is, and how you can help the real victims in the current health care debate.

(Via Miss Cellania)

The Making of Jive Talk From Airplane

 

YouTube link

 

(Via Andy’s blog)

Stunning shots of thirsty bats swooping down for a drink from garden pond

Follow the link to see the shots and the setup.
Mail Online UK

Worth a view.

Men’s brains vs women’s brains

Mark Gungor

YouTube link

(Via B&P)

Will this wind...?

From the 1979 “Secret Policeman’s Ball”. As one commenter put it, “...This must be what it's like going to a Jehovah's Witness church…”

YouTube link

Photo of the day


Coconut Grove Bed Race

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Pew Research – Science Quiz

Phil Plait points to a Pew Research Quiz on science knowledge. I scored 100%. Can you?

It consists of 12 simple science questions. Take it and then see how you did in comparison with 1,005 randomly sampled US adults.

(Via Bad Astronomer)

The beauty of logic and why you shouldn’t push your beliefs on others

 

Some people want to believe whatever they want. That is fine. When they start pushing it unto others is when they cross the line. If they want to teach their brand of religion or other non-scientific nonsense in public school, they can’t. Same goes for politics. If you are in the USA, and disagree with this, please read the Constitution again more carefully.

YouTube link

(Via Bad Astronomer)

Photo of the day


Coconut Grove Bed Race

Monday, September 21, 2009

Spectacular New York 1956

Another of the wonderful Travel Film Archive movies:

New York 1956

 

Photo of the day


At the Coconut Grove Bed Race

Sunday, September 20, 2009

Carnival In Rio 1955

Another wonderful Travel Film Archive movie.

 

Carnival In Rio 1955

 

Photo of the day


Coconut Grove Bed Race

Saturday, September 19, 2009

Friday, September 18, 2009

Argentina 1932

A wonderful video of what the English-speaking world saw in Argentina in the 1930s

 

 

YouTube link

 

(Thank you HĂ©ctor)

Photo of the day


Last week at the Annual Coconut Grove Bed Race

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Good Doonesbury recently

Check this Doonesbury cartoon.

 

doonesbury1

Technically it may be called belief. I call it ignorance.

The House of Tomorrow

 

YouTube Video

(Via Andy Farrell)

Photo of the day


Candid shot in Coconut Grove, Miami

Wednesday, September 16, 2009

How a train stays on the tracks

Physicist Richard Feynman explains how a train stays on the tracks.

 

YouTube link

(Via Andy Farrell)

Photo of the day


Candid shot in Coconut Grove, Miami

Tuesday, September 15, 2009

Mitchell and Webb - Vegetarians

YouTube video

Photo of the day


Candid shot in Coconut Grove, Miami

Monday, September 14, 2009

Star Wars – A New Pope

YouTube Link

 

(Via Andy Farrell)

Photo of the day


Candid shot in Coconut Grove, Miami

Sunday, September 13, 2009

6-1/2 Magic Hours

A beautiful video on the Boeing 707 unveiling. It was a beautiful plane, which I fondly remember even though I was too young to have flown it.

YouTube set of videos:

Part 1

Part 2

Those were the times!

Photo of the day


Candid shot in Coconut Grove, Miami

Saturday, September 12, 2009

Photo of the day


Tigre, Argentina

Friday, September 11, 2009

The Future of NASA

Phil Plait, the Bad Astronomernasa_logo_thumb  wrote a very good piece, on the future of NASA in these troubled times. The shuttle is scheduled to fly her last mission in September 2010, a year from now. The replacement, with Ares rockets are not scheduled to come online until 2015 and that’s optimistic.

A presidential commission just released a study of the issues. In a word, the future looks bleak. But I’ll let Phil explain it in more detail.

Photo of the day


Elvis in Toronto

Thursday, September 10, 2009

Photo of the day


Miracle Theater, Coral Gables

Wednesday, September 09, 2009

Photo of the day


Downtown Miami

Tuesday, September 08, 2009

Photo of the day


Downtown Miami

Monday, September 07, 2009

Photo of the day


Downtown Miami

Sunday, September 06, 2009

Photo of the day


Miami's Claughton Island (Brickell Key), viewed from Brickell Ave. coast.

Saturday, September 05, 2009

Photo of the day


Port of Miami

Friday, September 04, 2009

Photo of the day


Downtown Miami

Thursday, September 03, 2009

Photo of the day


Miami Main Library

Wednesday, September 02, 2009

The Chekershadow Illusion

Bob Atkins did a nice write up on the Checkershadow Illusion.

It shows how easy our brains can be fooled into seeing what it's not there in reality. In this case, squares A & B look different, right? A is darker than B. Wrong! They are both the same.

Of course you don’t believe me. Check out Bob Atkin’s article for an explanation and the original by Dr. Edward H. Adelson for a detailed explanation.

Photo of the day


Bayside marketplace, Miami

Tuesday, September 01, 2009

Recorded telemarketing calls without written permission now illegal!

The Federal Trade Commission said that starting September 1st (today), telemarketers will need written permission from consumers in advance in order to solicit them through automated pre-recorded telemarketing messages, (robo-calls).

Will they immediately stop? Doubt it but it will certainly cut down on them. Note that you will still receive calls from live ones, unless you put your name on state or federal "Do Not Call" lists, and even then as I don't trust them.

This is good news for all of us consumers.

ref: Miami Herald article.

Rook with a hook proves bird brains are the equal of monkeys

This interesting study showed that Rooks (a kind of crow), can create and modify tools and "have a sophisticated intelligence to rival that of chimpanzees".

"They were presented with a small bucket of wriggling worms out of reach at the end of a tube, and next to it a piece of straight wire.

Remarkably, despite never having seen the set-up before, they immediately got to work bending the wire so they could hook out the bucket and tuck in."

Read the full article with photos.

Monkeys Are Gadget Junkies, Too

From the archives, this interesting science article from last January in Wired.

Wired Science News for Your Neurons: Monkeys Are Gadget Junkies, Too.

It talks about how capuchin monkeys put nuts on boulders and smash them open with stones. The important observation was that they did not just merely use a stone but they selected the best one for the job at hand.

Photo of the day


La Boca, Buenos Aires