Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Harry Reid, Rep. Kucinich, Senator Gillibrand, oh the list could go on and on. What reason do they all have in common to vote yes?
It’s early yet. So far this spring, I’ve seen
some little household moths and one
brave fritillary at Alberta Park.
The pupae that the caterpillars spun
and hung from branches in the days between
the autumn’s last light and the winter’s dark
are mostly still unopened, presents wrapped
in precious stuff. When summer tears the silk
they’ll come: the black-and-yellow scalloped shapes
whose shadows interlocked and overlapped
against the unmarked linen of the drapes
that flowed as smooth and pale as mother’s milk
that night among the February gales,
the night I dreamed a flight of swallowtails.
I would like to welcome the Metropolitan Vacuum Cleaner Company as the newest advertiser with Mike’s Show-N-Shine. What is this unit all about? Let me tell you!
The Metro Master Blaster is a unit used to blow dry your classic car or motorcyle. Caught in the rain on the way to a show? Blow it dry! A quick wash before the show? Blow it dry. No using rags that can scratch your tender paint. Twin 4 hp fans for a total of 8 peak hp will blow a clean, filtered, warm airflow gently over your car to get it spotless in a jiffy!
Here is my thought. Install a AC/DC converter (18 amps) to your classic car, hidden away somewhere of course!! When you get caught in a light rain or a terrible rain storm, simply plug it in and blow off the rain with the warm gentle air that flows from this great invention. At home, don’t wipe it down, blow it off! Keep the towels away. Just a small piece of metal that got into that towel could ruin your paint job!
So, I welcome Metropolitan Vacuum Cleaner Company to Mike’s Show-N-Shine. Glad to have you aboard. To my readers, click within this article or in the sidebar and go see their many products. Not toys, not junk, but AMERICAN MADE by American workers. Go to www.metrovacworld.com and tell them you saw it on Mike’s Show-N-Shine!
As always, comments are welcome! Click below to leave one. Also, if you would like to join us in Google Reader, look in the sidebar and sign up!
Check out all of our fine sponsors. Look for us at local car shows and show and shines this spring and all summer into the fall. See you there! Stop by and see us. We have the Mustang called Big Red!
A rockin’ happy birthday to Paul Kantner, one of the co-founders of Jefferson Airplane and later Jefferson Starship.
Kantner and his pals, most notably Marty Balin, Grace Slick, Jorma Kaukonen and Jack Casady, helped to define the psychedelic San Francisco sound of the 1960’s.
The Airplane’s classic albums, including Surrealistic Pillow, Crown of Creation, Bless Its Pointed Little Head and Volunteers, have stood the test of time and are some of the finest records ever made.
Yesterday the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame held their annual induction ceremonies. This year ABBA, Genesis, The Hollies, Jimmy Cliff, and The Stooges were the honorees and, once again, disagreements have arisen over who is deserving of induction. As always, the only real eligibility requirements are that you can not be inducted until twenty-five years after you made your first record and (here is where the controversy begins) you must make a significant contribution to the art form.
There are artists in the hall who most definitely are not rock musicians but their influence on the music has been significant. That explains why Cliff was inducted. The Stooges were only marginally popular with the masses but were critical favorites. The opposite is true of ABBA. They were hated by the music snobs but were hugely popular worldwide. Genesis were lucky enough to receive both widespread popularity and artistic acceptance. My favorite among this year’s rookies are The Hollies who, like Genesis, were both popular and critically acclaimed.
Many of us, me included, often curse Jann Wenner and his minions because of the musicians the museum chooses to induct. Yet I’d like to suggest that the people running the often maligned institution mostly get it right, especially when you consider the meaning of the term rock ‘n roll. The All Music Guide believes that rock music had a clear definition only during its formative years. I agree. There have been so many colors broadening the genre’s palette since “Rock Around The Clock” that its boundaries have become clouded and controversial. Doo wop, the teen idol era, the British Invasion, Southern Rock, Heavy Metal, most singer-songwriters, and more are all considered rock ‘n roll. I believe its all-encompassing nature is a big reason why so many of us have problems with who is inducted year after year. I don’t believe the arguments will subside anytime soon.
The octane and oxygen advantages of ethanol can overcome the fuel economy deficit. But it requires an engine designed to take advantage of these factors. Such an engine would be a game-changer in the automotive and energy world. The CEO of Growth Energy talks about their prototype engine: Ethanol-Optimized Engine A Major Breakthrough for Producers - Ethanol Producer Magazine: “And, at blends of E40 to E50, the EBDI engine improves on the fuel economy of regular gasoline engines by as much as 10 percent. Think about that: One of the biggest criticisms of ethanol is that engines lose mileage when burning ethanol. But this engine proves that the problem isn’t the fuel—it’s the engine.”
Hey! There’s a new poll (not invented here) on the right sidebar —>
I know my neighbors like…
…family (we lend each other money)
3%
2
…friends (we lend each other stuff)
19%
12
…acquanitances (we lend each other a hand)
41%
26
…strangers (we wave to each other)
31%
20
…enemies (we take stuff from them)
5%
3
…good food — I ate them
2%
1
I don’t have much to say about these results, except that they will vary by community (large or small) and country (neighbors are more friendly — across the board — in some countries).
Bottom Line: It’s good to have friends close by; they are handy when you need them.
In this one hour, 17 min water chat with Mike Young [27MB MP3], we discuss many important aspects of water policy, from prices to markets.
Mike co-authored the paper that laid down the foundations of Australia’s water rights reform, redefining rights into property that could be traded like land and dividends that would vary with water supplies. It is this paper, with its underlying goal of robustness, that has lead to en explosion in water trading in Australia, with proportionate increases in efficiency in water use and wealth for those who hold water rights. (Those are farmers, btw.)
Besides Mike’s research on the creation and evolution of institutions (see also Torrens land titling system, LLCs and the Tinbergen’s Law [what?! No wikipedia entry!]), we also discussed his role as a public intellectual — a role that I am also pursuing. It was very encouraging for me to hear of Mike’s successes.
He also recommended the government’s National Water Initiative for clear and relevant information on water policy in Australia, and elsewhere.
Bottom Line: You need the right tools for the right job, and those who design those tools need to worry more about communicating to potential users than job security.
Don’t make a new community when you can borrow an established one. If you want to spread a message, you can use the phone or internet. You don’t have to set up a new communications network. If you want to change peoples’ water or carbon behavior, you can use prices to send signals. There’s no need to create new currencies, footprints, or certification systems. Further, you can tap the mommy network if you want to discuss the next generation’s future — there’s no need to create a new networking hub for “Generation XY”
Tom Rooney has been trading water in markets for over 20 years. In that time, many things have changed, and brokerage has become faster and more automated as products have become simpler and more-homogenous (see tomorrow’s water chat with Mike Young for more on how he affected the process). Tom’s company — Waterfind — has put tremendous effort into codifying the 40,000 rules that affect water trades (at the irrigation district-, state- and country-level) and writing software that makes markets work.
(Just for definitions, note that two types of water are traded in Australia. Permanent rights for an allocation of water that can be separated from land, and temporary rights for deliveries of water (”wet water”) that are allocated as a percentage of the permanent right. The ratios of these two types, their prices and volumes vary with markets, regulations and water supplies. Most trades are for megaliters. One ML is 1,000,000 liters, or about 0.8 acre-feet.)
I talked to Tom Rooney on two occasions — when he was on the road, talking to farmers and others in the business (see photo) and at Waterfind’s Adelaide office.
In our first chat [18 min, 6 MB MP3], we had very little time to get into details, and Tom just makes some introductory remarks. In his presentation, I learned about the gaming that occurs around export caps (restrictions that limit exports to 4, 7 or 10 percent of available water or rights), the roles of government as buyer (for environmental water) and regulator, and how prices have changed with seasonal conditions and the change in rules to allow carry-over. One very interesting aspect was the way that government demand (and changes in those demands) has lead to wild swings in “free market” water prices. (Also note the interesting problem of crowding out — no environmental organizations will buy water if the government will do it with tax money.)
In our second chat [49 min, 17 MB MP3], I played the roles of farmer (seller), regulator and environmentalist. (Then Tom turned the tables and interviewed me
For more background, watch/read this piece and check out their 2008/2009 water year annual report [link coming]. In this last piece, you can see trading prices and volumes, the inverse relationship between the price of permanent water rights and temporary water deliveries,* and much more detail.
Bottom Line: Tom Rooney has been in this game from the start. He’s not just a broker — he’s helping the market evolve and work better. His clients pay five percent fees, but they get 95 percent of value that was not there a few years ago.
* As delivery allocations on rights (as a percentage) fall, the value of the rights falls, but the value of delivered (”wet”) water rises.
I’ve just received a review copy of The Birds of Europe, 2nd Edition with Text and Maps by Lars Svensson and Illustrations and Captions by Killian Mullarney and Dan Zetterström.
The first edition was widely considered to be the epitome of field guides, and the revisions found in this edition will cement its reputation as an archetype to which others will be compared.
I’d say that any serious North American birder needs this guide. I often turn to this book in reference to holarctic species that we share with Europe. For example, I think this book’s treatment of Jaegers (er, Skuas seeing that it is a European guide…) surpasses anything in the N.A. guides and rivals the specialty Skuas and Jaegers guide (out of print but available as pricey used versions) by Olsen and Larsson. Then there’s always the chance of vagrants from across the pond in need of ID- stint, anyone?
Anyway, I’d encourage anyone who doesn’t have this guide to check it out. Here’s more info from Princeton University Press, the publisher.
Since it was first published a decade ago, Birds of Europe has become the definitive field guide to the diverse birdlife found in Europe. Now this superb guide has been brought fully up to date with revised text and maps along with added illustrations. Uniquely designed for easy use in the field, this expanded edition covers all 772 species found in the region as well as 32 introduced species or variants and 118 very rare visitors. Detailed species accounts describe key identification features, voice, habitat, range, and size. More than 3,500 full-color illustrations depict every species and all major plumage variations, and color distribution maps provide breeding, wintering, and migration ranges for every species.
Complete with an introduction to each group of birds that addresses major problems of observation and identification, this new edition is the ultimate field guide to Europe’s fascinating birdlife.
Expanded and fully updated
Covers all 772 species found in Europe, 32 introduced species or variants, and 118 very rare visitors
Features more than 3,500 color illustrations that depict every species
Includes detailed species accounts
Provides color distribution maps for every species
Color plates face text and maps for at-a-glance identification
Lars Svensson is one of Europe’s foremost field ornithologists. Dan Zetterström and Killian Mullarney are two of Europe’s leading bird artists.
Reviews:
“The richest and the most comprehensive of the current guides.”–Times (London)
“If you are birding in Europe, you must have this guide. It should be on the shelf of many North American bird watchers, especially those who live along the Atlantic coast, where many European birds are found. It should also be in the library of anyone who collects field guides, if for no reason other than you can occasionally take it down and be reminded of what is possible when art and design and purpose are treated as equal parts of a final product.”–Bird Watcher’s Digest
One highlight of a visit to Kiawah Island, South Carolina, last week – March 8-11 – was a beautiful, close-up view of a Red-throated Loon.
It was low tide, late morning on a sunny, chilly day. We were walking east on the beach, close to the edge of the waves. Forster’s Terns flew along the edge of the surf, hovering, plunging and flashing silvery white. We passed few other birds, widely scattered – Willets and Sanderlings on the edge of the waves, Brown Pelicans, Ring-billed Gulls, Herring Gulls, Cormorants and one Laughing Gull, flying over. Further east up the beach, we came to several small Dunlins foraging in the sand with Sanderlings, Semipalmated Plovers and four pale Piping Plovers.
But the best part was seeing the Red-throated Loon at very close range. It was floating in the waves not far from shore, its long body riding low in the water, and a graceful white neck with the bill held slightly up. It dived repeatedly, staying up for only a few seconds at a time before diving again, but it stayed close and was up long enough to see the slender, silky-white throat, the distinct jagged edge of the dark crown and back of its neck, and the dark back speckled with white. These are two of several very good photos Clate took.
Though I’ve “seen” more than one Red-throated Loon before, it was always further out off shore, difficult to see well, and fellow birders were telling me that’s what it was as I peered through a scope – but this was the first time one was so clear and close, so that I really felt I could see it well, and had time to watch it for a while.
Red-throated Loons breed in very far northern reaches of North America and Eurasia, and are only found this far south during the winter. During breeding season the head and neck become gray and the dark red throat appears, making it more colorful – but the graceful shape, sleek white throat, black crown and speckled back of the winter plumage are elegant in their own way. “Numbers of this loon have declined recently in several parts of its range in North America,” notes the species account in Birds of North America, “although it is not clear why.” *
When we finally walked on, after watching the loon for several minutes, a very large white bird with long, slender wings tipped in black flew directly over our heads – a Northern Gannet. This was another unusually close view – I could even see the film of gold on the head and the dark-outlined shape of the long, pale, thick bill. Powerful and sleek, it sailed over, circled once, and almost literally disappeared, so quickly gone. I could find no other Gannets in sight, at that time or any other time on this trip to Kiawah, but there may have been others too far out to see.
*Jack F. Barr, Christine Eberl and Judith W. Mcintyre. 2000. Red-throated Loon (Gavia stellata), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.) Ithaca: Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Abraxis BioScience, Inc. (NASDAQ: ABII) is one of the top biotech gainers this morning. The company announced that its key ABRAXANE met the primary endpoint in a Phase 3 trial for advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
The company’s randomized Phase 3 clinical trial comparing ABRAXANE, the company’s protein-bound paclitaxel, along with with a Taxol injection, in combination with carboplatin met the study’s primary endpoint. ABRAXANE showed a significant improvement in overall response rate compared to Taxol alone as a first-line treatment for advanced non-small cell lung cancer patients.
The 1,052 enrolled patient study as of July 2009 was at 102 centers. The company noted that NSCLC is 85% of lung cancer diagnosis and noted that more than 200,000 are diagnosed with lung cancer each year with about 159,000 deaths per year.
The study was assessed by independent radiologist review and is the subject of a special protocol assessment with the FDA. Abraxis further noted that the design, clinical endpoints and statistical data and analysis have been previously agreed upon by the FDA. In that regard it said that the FDA agreed that the demonstration of a statistically superior response rate of the ABRAXANE and carboplatin combination over the Taxol and carboplatin combination is sufficient for the company to submit a supplemental new drug application for approval of ABRAXANE in combination with carboplatin as a first-line treatment of advanced non-small cell lung cancer.
Abraxis is surging. Shares opened at $46.45 this morning after a $39.85 close yesterday. The stock has run further and is now up almost 28% at $50.95 on the day. The problem here is that volume is very thin despite a $2 billion market cap. The 52-week high is $57.60. The company is also under-followed by Wall Street and that makes information less reliable or less covered by investors.
Today will b a near-term volume record if it continues. There has only been one day this calendar 2010 where it had 300,000 shares or more trade. In 2009, its most active day was 240,000 shares.
StemCells, Inc. (NASDAQ: STEM) has a new stem cell patent. For rats, issued in the United Kingdom. The company issued a release showing that the United Kingdom Intellectual Property Office granted patent number GB2451523.
The patent has broad claims covering true rat stem cells and genetically engineered rats derived from these cells, which is expected to have significant utility to academic and pharmaceutical industry researchers by enabling them to create novel rat models for the study of human diseases.
The company noted that both mice and rats are used by scientists to model various human diseases, but also noted that rat models are more frequently used by pharmaceutical companies because the physiological characteristics of rats make them better suited for assessing drug efficacy and toxicity.
StemCells Inc. (NASDAQ: STEM) now holds an exclusive license to commercialize this technology and is globally prosecuting the patent family that claims it. The company further noted that this is the first patent granted anywhere in the world that protects the derivation and use of pluripotent rat stem cells and the creation of genetically engineered rats. It also noted that this is the missing link to create rat models for a wider range of human diseases.
The patent details composition of matter claims to pluripotent stem cells of the rat, which includes both embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells; and it also covers genetically engineered rat models derived from such cells.
Because of the stem cell news yesterday, there seems to be a higher interest than on normal stem cell patent announcements. Right before the open we have shares up almost 5% at $1.27 on 340,000 shares. Average volume is 2.1 million shares and the 52-week trading range is $1.02 to $1.94.
How many movies and legends are based upon eternal youth? Hundreds or thousands for sure. BioTime, Inc. (NYSE Amex: BTIM) is seeing a massive surge of interest today after the company announced a “Peer-Reviewed Scientific Publication on the Reversal of the Developmental Aging of Normal Human Cells.”
The company is a small-cap biotechnology company (approximately $250 million) pursuing the development and marketing of products in the field of stem cells and regenerative medicine. The article was released online today in the peer-reviewed journal Regenerative Medicine ahead of the print publication showing that the aging of human cells can be reversed. The company noted that this “may have significant implications for the development of new classes of cell-based therapies targeting age-related degenerative disease.”
BioTime and its collaborators demonstrate the successful reversal of the developmental aging of normal human cells according to the article. The full article at Future Medicine is here.
BioTime is is led by Dr. Michael West as CEO. He was the Founder of Geron Corporation (NASDAQ: GERN), where he served until 1998. From 1998 to 2007 he was President and Chief Scientific Officer of Advanced Cell Technology Inc. (OTC: ACTC). Dr. West also gave a CNBC video here just this morning.
Also noted was that the aged differentiated cells became young stem cells capable of regeneration and transforming adult human cells back to a state very similar to embryonic stem cells. Does it come without exception or without differences? No.
Still, this is sending BioTime shares through the roof. Usually we see just over 100,000 shares trade hands. Today we have 3.3 million shares traded at 12:50 PM EST and BioTime’s stock is up 28% at $7.43 today.
ibteachnu asks…I can no longer afford Arbonne. What drugstore brands are comparable to their hydrating wash, balancing toner, facial serum, and day creme? I’ve already replaced their RE-9 foaming body wash with Olay’s age defying body wash. What are your thoughts on that product?
Right Brain responds
After that big battle about Arbonne, we no longer […]
LoonyLolipop asks…Many news articles are gushing about the revolutionary development of sunscreen supplements, specifically SunPill and Heliocare. These products would be a wonderful alternative to topical sunscreens because I am very allergic to oxybenzone and avenobenzene, two common ingredients in over-the-counter topical sun blocks. However, no article has mentioned whether this pill offers broad spectrum […]
Gisele Bundchen recently gave birth to a gorgeous new baby but she’s been busy on all fronts with the launch of her new Sejaa Pure Skincare collection. Having graced the covers of more than 500 magazines, countless runway shows and too many ad campaigns to list here, you’d be forgiven for thinking she has time for little else. However, the amazonian beauty has been a Goodwill UN Embassador since 2009 and has been deeply involved in humanitarian and environmental issues throughout the course of her career. Only natural then that she would create a skincare collection that reflects her values, with pure natural ingredients that have as little impact on the earth as possible. Each ingredient has been extracted from whole plant sources using manufacturing techniques that retain their healing properties and potency. Not just created by a pretty (well, ok… stunning) face, the formulations contain chlorella, aloe, algae, shea butter, argan oil, jojoba oil and more, making this a sophisticated, well-considered and thoughtful skincare line that gets the job done. You could say… much like Gisele herself. Writer :: Emma Pezzack – www.futurenatural.com: the best organic beauty products in the world.
Throughout history the Brits have charted a course that always seems just a little further out there, a little more edgy and a little more daring than their commonwealth counterparts. Leading the way as they’ve always done and completely counter to the common conception – shrinking violets & conservative types they are not! Launched today, this latest issue of Coco Eco Magazine celebrates all that is creative, cutting edge and chic about Brittania. A fashion exclusive with Stephen Jones OBE (one of the worlds greatest millners), Gary Harvey (eco-couture genius), Sir Richard Branson (need I say more), avante-garde fashion, coverage of Global Green + Eco Chic Geneva, and a retrospective of key makeup trends to emerge out of the UK that have shaped beauty as we know it. The issue is jam-packed from cover to cover with the icing on the cake… an eco-chic guide to London. Coco Eco is fast becoming the magazine of choice for smart girls everywhere who appreciate that green is gorgeous, glamorous and going places! Get your copy by clicking over to Coco Eco (www.cocoecomag.com) and signing up for a FREE subscription. Writer :: Emma Pezzack – www.futurenatural.com: the best organic beauty products in the world.
If you love your lips ultra-red and luscious, then look no further than this gorgeous specimen from the All For Eve Range. Designed by make up artist Daniel Sandler (isn’t it about time we had a resurgence of the trend for his amazingly lovely Watercolours for cheeks?), ALL the net profits from the sales of Eve Red go straight to The Eve Appeal. The brand All For Eve was inspired by the untimely death of George Hammer’s sister in law, Nadia, from ovarian cancer. Profits go directly to research into gynaecological cancers and awareness raising. Eve Red goes on sale through the All For Eve website from 26th April and in Harrods on 1st May. For red afficionados, Daniel will be demonstrating Eve Red during Harrods’ Red Lipstick Day on 27th May. www.allforeve.co.uk
Hey, it’s not exactly Christmas, but it’s always nice to get a present
I found that today on a wall in Westbahnstraße. I haven’t anything better, so this will have to do. But it’s not only an ironic “Thank You” to the anonymous sprayer, no, it’s also a heart-felt Thank You to you all. We just had #1000, and now it’s already a quarter of a thousand more. Time flies.
I recently mentioned a new project. Well, at least one thing is clear now: I will create a new blog just for programming-related things. If you are interested in program design, model driven architectures, code generation and Java, stay tuned, I intend to go live around next week.
The decision to create another blog is motivated by the fact that I want to have separate RSS feeds, and the second reason is, that though black backgrounds are fine for photography, they strain the eyes when the content is mostly text.
The Song of the Day is “Thank You“, again from Dido’s 1999 album “No Angel”. Hear it on YouTube.
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