Dinosaur Mummy Eats Whole Town, Nation Helpless

From out of the vast wasteland of the Midwest it creeps... The bounds of time are meaningless to the creature... Man has never witnessed such a beast...

...it's DINO-MUMMY.

Sorry, I couldn't help using the spooky movie preview voice. This story just screams for it. Well, it does if you only read the headline; afterwards, not so much.

Anyway, paleontologists have released new details on a remarkable fossil find from 1999. What makes this find so exciting is that instead of just fossilized bones, this specimen was "mummified" by mineral deposits before the tissue could decompose, leaving fossilized muscle, ligaments, and even skin. This is the best artifact of dinosaur anatomy yet and will likely lead to new conclusions about the life of those giants of yesteryear.

















I was a HUGE dinosaur fanatic when I was a little tyke. I knew all the various species and wanted to grow up to be a paleontologist. (That all lasted until I went to Sea World and fell in love with whales, dolphins, sea lions, otters, and sharks, leading to my next future career as a marine biologist. FYI - I am not now, nor have I ever been anything close to a marine biologist.)

Be that as it may, however, there are two points I'd like to make:

First, scientists have totally changed their thinking on dinosaurs in the last 20-odd years. We used to regard them as lumbering hulks of minimal intelligence who sat around in swamps because they were so damned massive. Then Michael Crichton single-handedly rewrote every paleo-history book. Alright, maybe not, but the dinos portrayed in Jurassic Park represented a new view on the extinct ones. Now we think of them as mobile, agile, and as intelligent as any mammal or reptile living today. So, the lesson to be learned is that the learning is never complete. Science - and scientists - can always add more to the story.

Second, this particular fossil was discovered by a teenager on his family's ranch in North Dakota. This find, and other digging, has led him to found a non-profit research organization dedicated to finding and preserving fossils, and to Yale, where he is currently working on his Ph.D. in paleontology. How wonderfully American dream-ish! Find some bones in your backyard, fall in love with them, and commit yourself to adding to the common understanding of our planet's past.

Oh, one more thing. Did you notice the hexagonal pattern on the skin in the picture above? Ah, the hexagon - Nature's miracle shape. Being a bit obsessive about things like efficiency myself, I admit to a secret love of the hexagon, and it's curvy cousin, the sphere. Why are you looking at me funny?

Worth a Read

Being a Yankee means appreciating creative (and usually astoundingly simple) solutions to problems, be they unique or ubiquitous. Thus, I'm pirating borrowing a format from the intelligent authors of Marginal Revolution.com and presenting my own "Markets in Everything" post.

The Economist reports from Africa on the proliferation of personal banking services:

They have taken branches to the unbanked, either in prefabricated form, or in vans that make regular visits to under-served areas. Other countries are doing the same. In remote areas where delivering cash is hard, mini-machines have been installed in corner shops where customers print out a slip confirming they are in the black and present it to the shopkeeper, who provides the cash. Some rural branches and ATMs rely on solar energy and satellite phone connections.

How cool is that?! Wait, it gets even more amazing.

Standard Bank supplies an isolated branch on an island in Uganda's Lake Victoria by having planes drop bags of cash from the air.

Who says money doesn't fall from the sky - I'd love to know how much security that requires. Anyway, this is the type of innovation (and risk taking) that powers economic growth and freedom. Sadly, it is not all whiz-bang progress.

According to the World Bank, in 40 out of 48 countries in the region, it still takes over a year—and a long list of procedures—to enforce a contract.

A year! 12 months! 365 days! I don't have any data, but I'm guessing most contract disputes in the US and other industrialized countries are resolved in a matter of weeks or months. Actually, I'd bet that most are resolved before they ever get to adjudication. This is important because contract disputes, and enforcement of contracts, can be a tremendous dead weight loss for the parties involved and for the economy and society as a whole. See this post (fourth paragraph, but read the whole thing) for a brief glimpse of what I think about the state of litigation in America .

Bottom line, conditions are improving in Africa because of creative people and a little bit of risk taking. Although compared to the alternative of continued poverty, maybe the risk isn't that big.


Don't you love the irony of me blogging about innovation in a format that I effectively stole from another blogger. Ah, the glory of the Internet!

Noooooooooooooooo!!!

Cue cheesy horror-movie music and a freaked out guy/girl huddled in a corner plaintively repeating "This isn't happening, this isn't happening."

From the AP (via FoxNews):

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Here's a sobering thought: Hundreds of bottles of Jack Daniel's whiskey, some of it almost 100 years old, may be unceremoniously poured down a drain because authorities suspect it was being sold by someone without a license.

...Tennessee law requires officials to destroy whiskey that cannot be sold legally in the state, such as bottles designed for sale overseas and those with broken seals.

The story quotes the Executive Director of the Tenn. Alcoholic Beverage Commission on the prospect of dumping poor Mr. Daniels down the drain thusly, "It'd kill me."

My sentiments exactly. And I'm not a huge Jack Daniels drinker. I much prefer single malt scotch, but good liquor deserves respect dammit! Frankly, this is destroying a piece of America. It might be time for another whiskey rebellion.

Picture from Ludwig Von Mises Institute. Learn more about how Americans react to unjust treatment of their distilled spirits here.

Innovations for Life

It has been a slow day for me, so for inspiration I went to my personal web archives and found this from about a month ago, which I now offer up to you...

2007 Breakthrough Awards from Popular Mechanics

Classic examples of Yankee ingenuity and creativity. And wherewithal to nurture an idea to life. We need to make better examples of these types of people in our schools and communities. They are the ones who make the leaps that make all our lives safer, more comfortable, and more efficient.

My personal favorite: The hands-on computer (seen above) wins for most cool, while I highly admire the spunk of the young chemist to find an economical fix to a world-wide problem.

What do you mean, "comical"?

Howdy! I have been away being a productive Yankee citizen while quietly watching the world turn. Now, I am back to proffer a quick tidbit about this blog.

This isn't a literature class, so I will not force you to consider on your own the various meanings of "comical", as in my blog sub-header A Comical Attempt at Ingenuity and Common Sense. Sometimes what I write will be intentionally funny - either sardonically, satirically, or astonishingly crudely. Other times my opinions will probably read like the drivel of the mentally-enfeebled brain from which they arose. In short, it will be comical to observe me try to communicate coherently and persuasively on the vast information network known as the world wide web.

A Day to Honor the Brave

To all those who have served in time of peace or time of war...

Thank you for your sacrifice.

Oh Yankee, Where art thou?

That snot my problem

This is kinda old news, but since it has re-emerged in the blogging world, let me add this:

If I ever run into some piss-ant suburban kid making/doing/selling meth made from cold medicine, I'm going to take him by the scruff of the neck and give 'em a swift kick in the ass!

It's because of you junkies that buying explosives requires fewer hassles and inconveniences than purchasing pseudoephedrine (e.g., Claritin and Sudafed). You will rue the day you cross my path, wastoids!

For more, see my comments (#18, I think) at the link above.

One Nation, with a Purpose, revisited

It looks like the White House has found and read my blog. Must have been the NSA with all their "illegal" techno-powers.

Anyway, I have a question for the leaders of the Democrats. First you say that the campaign in Iraq was a distraction from fighting al Qaeda in Afghanistan and the reason why Bin Laden is still alive and on the loose. Then you say that Bush needs to bring the troops in Iraq home. So, why aren't you saying that we need to send the troops to Afghanistan to find Bin Laden? I seem to recall John Murtha saying something about re-deploying to Okinawa, but that ain't the same thing.

Also, is it just me, or are the Dems missing an opportunity here. They could support Petraeus, declare (partial) victory in the Surge, and call for a re-deployment to hunt Bin Laden. Such a plan would deflect some, if not a lot of the criticism that they just want to cut-and-run and are invested in American defeat on the field of battle. Their current position really pits them against American victory in Iraq and undermines their assertions that they support the troops.

For the record, I don't endorse the strategy above. I think we have to stay committed to the fledgling democracy in Iraq and continue to fend off the ambitions of the regime in Iran. Petraeus said what many have known or suspected for a while, the fighting in Iraq is a proxy war with Iran. It is not a civil war.

Sorry to be all political again, folks, but sometimes you have to confront reality. I promise to post some more whimsical musings soon.

One Nation, with a Purpose

Everyone knows what today is. I didn't intend for my first real post to be on 9/11, but in a way that is appropriate - I will have to save the stuff that's all about me for a later time and devote my attention now to the honorable fallen of this day six years ago and since.

I had a conversation today with a Korean national who has been living in the US for the past 6 or 7 years. He noted that in South Korea, home to approximately 45 million, national events hold the attention of everyone for a long time. The place just isn't that big so important events are more personal to people there. He contrasted this to his observations of Americans, the 300 million or so of us, that many have apparently lost all interest in the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. I had to agree that, lamentably, many (hopefully not a majority) don't seem to follow the military and political developments from our anti-terror campaigns with much interest or sense of personal involvement. The conversation ended there, but I was left thinking about his observations in the larger context of September 11th.

Americans are a free people and it is their prerogative to ignore what happens in the world around them, although this is not, in this humble bloggers opinion, a health prescription for republican (small "r") government and society. In fact, in times of national crisis and war, everyone should feel that they have a personal stake in it because our freedoms and polity are based on the concept that what affects one citizen is reflected in and naturally transferable to all citizens; i.e., we all have the same rights and to take away my rights is precedent for taking away yours, or certain benefits are available to me and you regardless of race, sex, religion, etc. That's essentially what I mean. I suspect that reasons vary for not paying attention to the war, but general prosperity and calm at home are probably the most prevalent. By and large, American do not feel the sting of lost blood and treasure; no significant tax increases to pay; no rationing; no large scale mobilization a la WWII. And as a percentage of the total population, the military is a small slice. I bet some Americans do not even personally know anybody in the service. Compare this the to endless supplies of entertainment distractions and work/family obligations and it's easier to understand the lack of personal involvement and focus.

Here's the bottom line. We need a national mission, a goal. Something around which we can rally and direct our energies toward. Preventing the next 9/11 is great for the federal government - that is their job. But John and Jane Q. Citizen need something more definitive and motivating. I think we can all agree that the Administration has failed to coherently and consistently articulate a national goal. This failure has left a space for partisan bickering, conspiracy theories, and general apathy. It has also allowed for the continuation of paralysis in many institutions. Unfortunately, one lesson that we as a nation have apparently not learned from that tragic day in 2001 is the dangers and malignancy of hyper-litigation as an acceptable status quo. Because of our tacit acceptance of endless lawsuits and court proceedings for so long and a lack of a national mission, Ground Zero remains a hole and captured non-state combatants enjoy privileges not extended to uniformed personnel, among other staggering failures of rebuilding and security improvements. The squeaky wheel has to once again become the American people united with a grand mission so that the next generation might know peace and be ignorant of fear.

I don't mean to preach (although there are a million more points I could offer) so I will end with this suggestion. Donate to charities and good works. Operation A/C and Operation Helmet are excellent groups who are sending care packages and armor to our troops overseas. Of course there is always the Red Cross and the funds for the relatives of 9/11 victims. The generosity and economic might of the United States is unrivaled. It's high time that we have a specific and meaningful purpose towards which to direct our industriousness and strength of character.

May Providence guide us in our noble endeavors and protect us from evil and indifference. May it be with our defenders under arms and bless our fallen.

Break out the Crayons!

I don't think Google understands the difference between a scribble and a doodle.