Supermassive Black Hole at the Center of our Galaxy - Images of Intrigue

 

Links:  

NPR - This is the First Image of the Black Hole at the Heart of the Milky Way

BBC - Black Hole:  First Picture of Milky Way Monster

Nature.com - Black Hole at the Center of Our Galaxy

The Washington Post - Supermassive Black Hole...

RIP Omar Little (MKW)

'At the entrance to paradise…the cry is echoing off the pearly gates tonight… 

”OMAR COMIN’!”'

Thank you for all that you gave us, and all that you lived.  You will be missed.

Link:  nytimes Michael K. Williams, Omar From ‘The Wire,’ Is Dead at 54

Images of Interest - 'Visionary, Not Reactionary': Artists Take Political Commentary To Streets And Skies

Since targeting the current administration in his art, 74-year-old Robbie Conal has never been more prolific.

Listen to the NPR story above, or follow the link to the article and more images.

Link:  NPR: 'Visionary, Not Reactionary': Artists Take Political Commentary To Streets And Skies

Politics Meets Humanity - Sen. Jeff Flake Confronted by Protesters Ahead of Kavanaugh Vote - Media with Purpose

The strength, courage and conviction of the women protesters confronting Flake is nothing short of inspiring to action, and endless admiration and appreciation.

Now, I also want to note the truth seeking ability of the camera's eye, and the infinite strength of media when driven by noble forces.  The camera offers the peoples' voice amplification like nothing else can, if we use it.

Nothing really needed be said.  Just watch.




Link:  NPR - WATCH: Assault Victims Confront Jeff Flake After He Says He Will Vote For Kavanaugh

Steve Jobs - In Memory of an Innovator (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011)

Innovation is the rarest and highest level of human thought and capability.

Steve Jobs: The Link Between Machines And Humans

by LINTON WEEKS

October 6, 2011

With his black turtleneck, wire-rimmed glasses and conspiratorial grin, Steve Jobs was arguably the best ambassador ever between androids and humans.

When Jobs died Wednesday at 56 after protracted combat with pancreatic cancer, the world lost a valuable shuttle diplomat between computers and tablets and gadgets and animated robots, and the people who so desperately long to relate to them.

"We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today," Apple, the company Jobs co-founded, said in a brief statement. "Steve's brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve."

In memoriam, the Apple.com website last night featured a full-screen photo of Jobs — turtleneck, glasses and grin — and this epitaph: "Apple has lost a visionary and a creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple."

The tech world lost a leader; the creative world lost a soulmate. He straddled both worlds like a colossus...

For the complete article follow the Link:  NPR - Steve Jobs: The Link Between Machines and Humans

Magic Mushrooms Can Make Lasting Personality Changes, Study Says

Elizabeth Lopatto, ©2011 Bloomberg News
Thursday, September 29, 2011 - SF Gate

Psilocybin, or "magic mushrooms," can make people more open in their feelings and aesthetic sensibilities, conferring on them a lasting personality change, according to a study by Johns Hopkins researchers. People who had mystic experiences while taking the mushrooms were more likely to show increases in a personality trait dubbed "openness," which is related to creativity, artistic appreciation and curiosity, according to the study in the Journal of Psychopharmacology. The change was still in place a year later, suggesting a long-term effect.

"The remarkable piece is that psilocybin can facilitate experiences that change how people perceive themselves and their environment," said Roland Griffiths, a study author and professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at Johns Hopkins University of Medicine in Baltimore. "That's unprecedented."

Magic mushrooms, also known as "shrooms," are hallucinogens native to tropical and subtropical regions of South America, Mexico and the U.S. The fungi were favored by former Harvard psychologist Timothy Leary, who founded the Harvard Psilocybin Project, and explored by '60s writer and anthropologist Carlos Castaneda. They are typically eaten but can also be dried and smoked or made into a tea.

Openness is one of five major personality factors known to be constant throughout multiple cultures, heritable in families and largely unvarying throughout a person's lifetime. The other four factors, extroversion, neuroticism, agreeableness and conscientiousness, were unchanged by being dosed with the hallucinogenic mushrooms, the study found. This is the first finding of a short-term intervention providing a long-term personality change, researchers said...

To read more go to:  SF Gate - Magic Mushrooms...

Nuclear Waste - Image of Intrigue

Michael Mariant/AP

Above-ground casks at the Diablo Canyon nuclear power plant store some of the utility's nuclear fuel.

 Because of a lack of a central repository, nuclear waste is piling up at individual reactor sites across the United States.

Link:  Nuclear Waste Piles Up... NPR

LucasFilm Shuts Down Small Star Wars Marathon

LucasFilm Shuts Down Small Star Wars Marathon
Of course they do. Why is he such a...? You can fill in the blank. Growing up, the Lucas name was always synonymous with positive associations of justice and moral honor, like Obi-wan, Yoda, Luke - the Force (for god's sake). We all assumed that he was creating these great fantasies from that perspective. Never did I realize, until I was much older, that he was actually writing with sympathy for the Emperor. What a goon! Then again, we are all big enough Star Wars fans to truly care, so...

Portugal drug law shows results ten years on... AFP Reports - Progressive Resolutions #01

(AFP) – Jul 1, 2011 

Lisbon

LISBON — Health experts in Portugal said Friday that Portugal's decision 10 years ago to decriminalise drug use and treat addicts rather than punishing them is an experiment that has worked.

"There is no doubt that the phenomenon of addiction is in decline in Portugal," said Joao Goulao, President of the Institute of Drugs and Drugs Addiction, a press conference to mark the 10th anniversary of the law.

The number of addicts considered "problematic" -- those who repeatedly use "hard" drugs and intravenous users -- had fallen by half since the early 1990s, when the figure was estimated at around 100,000 people, Goulao said.

Other factors had also played their part however, Goulao, a medical doctor added.

"This development can not only be attributed to decriminalisation but to a confluence of treatment and risk reduction policies."

Portugal's holistic approach had also led to a "spectacular" reduction in the number of infections among intravenous users and a significant drop in drug-related crimes, he added.

A law that became active on July 1, 2001 did not legalise drug use, but forced users caught with banned substances to appear in front of special addiction panels rather than in a criminal court.

The panels composed of psychologists, judges and social workers recommended action based on the specifics of each case.

Since then, government panels have recommended a response based largely on whether the individual is an occasional drug user or an addict.

Of the nearly 40,000 people currently being treated, "the vast majority of problematic users are today supported by a system that does not treat them as delinquents but as sick people," Goulao said.

In a report published last week, the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) said Portugal had dealt with this issue "in a pragmatic and innovative way."

Drug use statistics in Portugal are generally "below the European average and much lower than its only European neighbour, Spain," the report also said.

"The changes that were made in Portugal provide an interesting before-and-after study on the possible effects of decriminalisation," EMCDDA said.

Copyright © 2011 AFP. All rights reserved.

Link: Portugal Drug Law... AFP

Today's Total Eclipse Of The Moon: How To Watch - NPR News Blog

Those of us in North America won't be able to see it happen "live," but if all goes well we can catch a webcast of what's going to be "an unusually long total lunar eclipse" today.

Basically, every continent except North America will get a view. Adding to the celestial drama: Spaceweather.com says "exhaust from the erupting volcano in Chile could alter the appearance of the eclipse." The moon may look darker than in other eclipses.

Now, for those who can't go out to watch, there's this option: the Sky Watchers Association of North Bengal, India, is hosting a live webcast.

Check it out:

Watch live streaming video from swansiliguri at livestream.com

For more information and the complete Blog from NPR follow the Link:  NPR News Blog
This post is actually more for the sake of my nephew, Henry, but enjoy the intrigue nonetheless.

50 Years Later: Learning From The Bay Of Pigs - Article and Image of Intrigue - NPR

Members of Fidel Castro's militia gather in Cuba's Escambry Mountains during the ill-fated 1961 Bay of Pigs invasion.

Fifty years ago Sunday, a brigade of around 1,500 CIA-trained soldiers stormed the beach in Cuba's Bay of Pigs. It was the opening phase of a secret mission to overthrow Fidel Castro and, President John F. Kennedy hoped, halt the spread of communism throughout the world. 
Things did not go as planned.

For the full article follow the Link:  NPR

NASA Provides First Continuous Look At The Sun In 3-D Report by NPR

by EYDER PERALTA

An artist's concept of STEREO surrounding the sun.

A 3-D Video Of The Sun

Rotating solar sphere made from a combination of imagery from the two STEREO spacecraft, together with simultaneous data from the Solar Dynamic Observatory.

For the full report, follow the Link:  NPR's News Blog

Arizona Gun Control? - Image of Interest... reflections and observations

People shoot their guns at a shooting range near the Crossroads of the West Gun Show in Tucson, Ariz., on Jan. 15. - image by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

Curious thoughts jangle through my head - thoughts of reason and ration and basic human comprehension and simple civil deduction and sympathy and heartache and bewilderment and the horridly painful, hopelessly burdensome desire for us to be just a little bit better, a little bit smarter, as the human race, as a community, as a collective of communities, as a species... And this image, in conjunction with its location, transforms into a landscape of absurdity - and my head hurts.
I'll leave you to your own deductions and considerations...

Links:
NPR - Obama Pushed To Address Gun Control
The Atlantic - The Geography of Gun Deaths (this article provides some intriguing, and disturbing, regional statistics and charts)

Could Climate Change Have Led To The Fall Of Rome? Image/Story of Intrigue - NPR

Ruins of the Villa of the Quintilii on the outskirts of Rome. Gregorio Borgia/AP

Could Climate Change Have Led To The Fall Of Rome? NPR STAFF

Rome may have fallen hundreds of years ago, but much of the civilization the Romans built still dots the landscape today. One team of scientists recently unearthed a different kind of Roman artifact that may hold a strange clue to the empire's downfall.

A study of tree rings recently published in the journal Science provides evidence of climate shifts that, perhaps not coincidentally, occurred from A.D. 250 to 550, a period better known as the fall of the Roman Empire...

"Like any large civilization — including the civilization we have today — it was highly dependent on predictability of natural resources," Mann says. "It was very heavily adapted to the climate conditions that had persisted for centuries."

But while the tree rings show variability, there is no data for why these climate changes occurred. Global warming contributes to modern climate change, but Rome fell from power long before industrialization.

"Presumably it was some combination of these external natural factors like solar variability and volcanic eruptions, and just the pure sort of chaotic variability of the climate system," Mann speculates.

This new research may not establish cause-and-effect, but it does contribute another factor to explain Rome's fall. It also creates another clue for scientists sleuthing their way into an uncertain climate future.

For the complete article, follow the Link: NPR

I have always noted a definitive parallel between the Roman Empire and the contemporary US domain (post WWII in particular). Unfortunately, America is not always so keen on learning from the past, or even owning up to it. An interesting note from that old liberal arts education - the average Empire throughout history has extinguished within a 300 year span (loosely) - you can do the math. I by no means intend this as some absurd apocalyptic wrangling, and nor do i view the end of US supremacy as a matter of fear or a necessarily devastating blow to humanity. In fact, to some degree, i hold to the possibly foolish notion of social romantics that believe we may yet be capable of evolving from the past and moving forward through progression, innovation, and modesty - into a bold new global reality. The following article is interesting within this context and the image is particularly striking.

States’ Rights, but to What? - Featured Editorial and Social Commentary - NY Times

The standards in Fugitive Slave law were weak, and many Northerners feared it would lead to kidnapping.

States’ Rights, but to What?

By PAUL FINKELMAN

December 20, 2010

One hundred and fifty years ago today South Carolina declared its independence from the United States. The move had been in the offing since early November, when Abraham Lincoln’s election led the state’s leaders to fear that Washington would begin to restrict slavery in the territories and in their own state. That was the proximate cause, at least; there was more to it. Beyond the election, South Carolina was no longer happy in a union with the free states, where northern opponents of slavery were allowed to openly denounce the “peculiar institution” in Congress and in their home states.

It’s true, then, that South Carolina seceded over states’ rights: though, as neo-confederates are loath to admit, the specific right in question concerned the ownership of human chattel. One of the South’s persistent complaints was the northern states would not vigorously cooperate in the return of fugitive slaves and that the free states allowed antislavery organizations to flourish.

In other words, for South Carolina, slavery and states’ rights were not mutually exclusive; in fact, they were the same thing. Today too few people understand the intricate legal history that connects slavery to states’ rights — and as a result a needless debate continues, 150 years after secession began...

...South Carolinians no longer trusted the national government, the free states or the Constitution. In that sense, secession was most definitely about states’ rights. But it is vital to remember just which rights South Carolina was committed to defending.

For the complete editorial follow the link: The NY Times

This adds a bit of clarification and context to the concept, historical origins, and political rhetoric around "states' rights." Growing up in SC (rarely admitted), i consistently heard the polite but veiled sentiment of revisionist history - that the southern secession was over "states' rights," not slavery. The integral part of that perspective that was so often omitted by SC-loving adults (and repeated by their children) was the fact that the only state right that was of concern to SC was the institution of slavery. If you read the entirety of the Declaration of the Immediate Causes Which Induce and Justify the Secession of South Carolina from the Federal Union, the predominant reason for secession and the only specific delineation becomes quite clear - and the myth of any other explanation disintegrates. The above article further develops and defends that fact.

Also, it is quite eery how much the social/political divisiveness of that sad period in US history parallels the current cultural trends and political landscape of this country. Ignorance holds a strong ground - sad.

McCain Calls Pentagon's 'Don't Ask' Study Flawed (NPR) - and Subjective Commentary

Sen. John McCain (right) delivers his opening remarks during a hearing Thursday on the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. The Arizona Republican is the ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Sen. John McCain rejected a Pentagon study on "don't ask, don't tell" as flawed and said it would be dangerous to allow gays to serve openly in the military during a time of war.

For the continued article, follow the link: NPR, McCain on 'Don't Ask'.

It's official... though there was a time when I wasn't absolutely certain (before campaign Palin 2008, Arizona Immigration Legislation, and DADT debate), but I should have known - all of the significant signs were there. Here it is (my commentary), a revelation to some and common knowledge to others -

John McCain is a complete Douchebag!

Photo Captures Double Lightning Strike - Images of Intrigue

Sometimes, a photographer goes out in search of a good photo--and, because of unforeseen circumstances, he comes back with a great photo, one that gets displayed all over the world.

Links: NPR

Chicago Tribune

Photojournalism - To Win Afghan Trust, Village By Village (NPR) - Images of Intrigue

Photojournalism from Afghanistan - by David Gilkey/NPR

Follow the link to view a 13 image slide show of these extraordinarily poetic, but intensely reflective photographs recently taken on assignment by David Gilkey. There is honesty between the stylistic artistry of the images and the brutal realism of subject matter.

Poet Peter Orlovsky, Ginsberg's partner, dies at 76 - SF Gate reports

Peter Orlovsky was a sweet and handsome 21-year-old with a troubled past when he met Allen Ginsberg in San Francisco in 1954, and the two forged a relationship that would last for decades and transform their lives.

Mr. Orlovsky, who became a poet in his own right but was always overshadowed by Ginsberg's fame, died Sunday in Vermont. He was 76 and had battled emphysema and lung cancer.

"When Peter and Allen met, they were both troubled," said Gerald Nicosia, a Marin County poet and biographer of Jack Kerouac. "Ginsberg was troubled by his homosexuality and afraid to be a poet, and Peter had come from this family defined by mental illness, and he was living in San Francisco and wondering where his own life was going."

Within a year of meeting Mr. Orlovsky, Ginsberg started writing "Howl," a poem that was first performed Oct. 7, 1955, at the Six Gallery in San Francisco and published a year later. The controversial poem became a seminal work of the Beat Generation.

"Allen was the brains, and Peter was the heart," said Nicosia. " You couldn't be around him without feeling this love radiating from his eyes."

Read more:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2010/06/03/BA741DO3IS.DTL#ixzz0pwJmRtWR

Another lost Beat - so sad, so few left to tell the stories from one of our most intriguing generations.

Ohhh, Those 'South Park' Boys - In Trouble Again...

Two recent “South Park” episodes on Comedy Central satirized the Prophet Muhammad — one, showing Muhammad in a bear costume, left, elicited an ominous message from an Islamic group.

I would love to comment on the most recent 'South Park' vs Muhammed controversy and all of the absurdity that swarms around it - not to mention the old fashioned censorship (though possibly well intentioned for care of Matt and Trey, but I doubt it) - but I think it has been well taken care of by the media circus, blog world, and beyond. Follow the link below to watch the video of John Stewart's logical, masterful rant that pretty much covers it all:

Jon Stewart 'South Park' Rant On 'The Daily Show' Watch Entire Rant Here [VIDEO]

Below is a link to the NY Times article that covers the entire affair, just in case someone, somehow has missed it.

‘South Park’ Episode Altered After Muslim Group’s Warning