It's as effective as any other prayer

(via Halfway There)

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Disabling mouse enzyme increases fertility

Changing the sugars attached to a hormone produced in the pituitary gland increased fertility levels in mice nearly 50 percent, a research group at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has found. The change appears to alter a reproductive "thermostat," unveiling part of an intricate regulatory system that may one day be used to enhance human fertility.

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My Solar Water Heating Project

My interest in renewable energy has led to experiments with solar electricity and to home heating with bio-fuels, so I guess it?s only natural that I would want to experiment with solar water heating as well. My latest project is an attempt to build a solar-powered water heater for my above-ground swimming pool. I?m not concerned with storing hot water, so I won?t need a tank. I just want to be able to raise the water temperature in the pool during the day.

I started with a plan to pump water from the pool, circulate it through tubing where it would be heated by the sun, and return the heated water back into the pool. I planned to mount PVC tubing to the side of a storage shed, and to paint the tubing black to increase its ability to absorb the sun?s heat. As the experiment progressed, family members hinted that the backyard was beginning to look like a wastewater treatment plant. I had to admit that they were right, and I decided to change my approach. Since the storage shed has an insulated ceiling, I decided to take advantage of the heat that builds up in the attic. Instead of mounting the tubing on the side of the shed, I?ve mounted it to the inside of the roof. I currently have 120 feet of 1? PVC pipe installed, and I?ll add as much as 200 feet more if necessary. The cost for the tubing is $2.42 per 10 foot section. I?ve purchased a small pump, and it seems to be able to circulate the water. I won?t know how well the system works until I can test it on a hot day. I?m currently using a 55 gallon plastic drum as a substitute for the pool.

Mounting the tubing in the attic means that it will be out of sight and out of mind during the winter. I won?t have to clean around and under the pipe array. I?ll just have to make sure that the pipes are drained, and gravity will help with that. In addition to its use as a pool water heater, I also have the option of using it as a solar-heated shower. I can make that conversion by connecting a garden hose to the pipe array, instead of pumping water from the pool. Regulating the amount of flow should also regulate the water temperature. The entire project will cost less than $300.00, and it should last for years. I?ll post additional details later, but here are some pictures of the project as it stands today.





Many thanks to Solar Gary for ideas and advice on solar water heating strategies. Anyone considering a related project should check out his website for ideas: http://www.builditsolar.com/

John

Read The Full Article:
http://solarjohn.blogspot.com/2008/05/my-solar-water-heating-project.html

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Minnesota does the right thing

California may inspire a whole series of legislative actions. Minnesota has introduced a bill similar to California's.

The Marriage and Family Protection Act was introduced by Rep. Phyllis Kahn, DFL-Minneapolis, and Sen. John Marty, DFL-Roseville, on Friday. The bill would make marriage a gender-neutral proposition in Minnesota, allowing same-sex couples to marry. It would also protect religious institutions that have moral objections to same-sex marriage from being compelled to perform such ceremonies.

I love the title of the bill — that will have the wingnuts chewing their tongues in a frenzy.

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Interior of Mars Is Colder that Originally
Thought

New observations from NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter indicate that the crust and upper mantle of Mars are stiffer and colder than previously thought. The findings suggest any liquid water that might exist below the planet's surface and any possible organisms living in that water, would be located deeper than scientists had suspected.

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Get cracking, SCarolina!

You've got another of those wretched "academic (non)-freedom" bills in your state. They're like lice, crawling out everywhere.

Senate Bill 1386, introduced in the South Carolina Senate on May 15, 2008, and referred to the Senate Committee on Education, is the newest so-called "academic freedom" bill aimed at undermining the teaching of evolution, joining similar bills currently under consideration in Louisiana, Michigan, and Missouri. Similar bills in Florida and Alabama died when the legislative session in those states ended. The South Carolina bill contends that "[t]he teaching of biological and chemical evolution can cause controversy, and some teachers may be uncertain of administrative expectations concerning the presentation of material on these scientific topics" and that "public school educators must be supported in finding effective ways to present controversial science curriculum and must be permitted to help students understand, analyze, critique, and review the scientific strengths and weaknesses of theories of biological and chemical evolution in an objective manner."

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The anti-me

I thought about this carefully, and I’ve decided this guy is my antiparticle. He’s my opposite, taking what can charitably be called an incomplete understanding of physics, a total lack of logical process, and a laundry list of secret cabals, then lumping them all together into what can only be called the Grand Unified Conspiracy [...]

Read The Full Article:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/BadAstronomyBlog/~3/291682471/

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Embryonic pathway delivers stem cell traits

Studies of how cancer cells spread have led to a surprising discovery about the creation of cells with adult stem-cell characteristics, offering potentially major implications for regenerative medicine and for cancer treatment.

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We are such bad boys

I wish I hadn't missed this when it come out a few years ago. A professor of sociology and comparative religion asked why women were more religious than men, and he ruled out socialization and cultural differences somehow, to come to a surprising conclusion.

"We looked for an obvious simple explanation, but nothing worked except physiology," said Stark. "People studying crime also have looked at socialization and they can't find a reason that explains the gender difference except a physiological one. Not being religious is similar to any other shortsighted, risky and impulsive behavior that some men - primarily young males - engage in, such as assault, robbery, burglary, murder and rape."

Did this guy just compare atheism to murder and rape?

So not believing in Jesus is just like sticking a knife in someone?

Don't cross me, man. I'm dangerous.

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How Effective Are Trade Shows

There are lots of trade shows, and some are very specialized. It's not possible to attend them all, so you want to make the most of those you do. Sometimes, however, a long leash from the office leads to temptation. Do you actually discover new products that can improve the bottom line, or is the ti

Read The Full Article:
http://cr4.globalspec.com/blogentry/5797/How-Effective-Are-Trade-Shows?from_rss=1

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