Hungry crows may be behind exploding toads - Science - MSNBC.com

Hungry crows may be behind exploding toads - Science - MSNBC.com: "Hungry crows may be behind exploding toads
More than 1,000 creatures have puffed up and popped
Image: Toad in Hamburg pond.
Florian Quand / AP
The pond in Hamburg where the corpses have been found has been tested, but its quality is no better or worse than elsewhere in the city.

The Associated Press
Updated: 4:10 p.m. ET April 28, 2005

BERLIN - What’s making toads puff up and explode in northern Europe? More than 1,000 toad corpses have been found at a pond in an upscale neighborhood in Hamburg and over the border in Denmark after bloating and bursting.

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It’s left onlookers baffled. The pond water in Hamburg has been tested, but its quality is no better or worse than elsewhere in the city. The toad remains have been checked for a virus or bacterium, but none has been found.

One German scientist studying the splattered amphibian remains has a theory: Hungry crows are pecking out their livers.

“The crows are clever,” said Frank Mutschmann, a Berlin veterinarian who collected and tested specimens at the Hamburg pond. “They learn quickly from watching other crows how to get the livers.”

Based on the wounds, Mutschmann said, it appears that a bird pecks into the toad with its beak between the amphibian’s chest and abdominal cavity, and the toad puffs itself up as a natural defense mechanism.

But, because the liver is missing and there’s a hole in the toad’s body, the blood vessels and lungs burst and the other organs ooze out, he said.

As gruesome as it sounds, it isn’t actually that unusual, he said.

“It’s not unique — it’s in a city area, and that makes it spectacular,” Mutschmann said. “Of course, it’s something very dramatic.”

There have also been reports of exploded toads in a pond near Laasby in central Jutland in Denmark.

Horror scene
Local environmental workers in Hamburg have described it as a scene out of a horror or science fiction movie, with the"

EO Newsroom: New Images - Earth’s Energy out of Balance

Any debate or discussion about climate change starts from the basic fact that Earth’s temperature depends on the balance between how much solar energy the Earth absorbs and how much it radiates back into space. Scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) have completed a study of the Earth’s energy balance using a combination of global climate models, ground-based measurements, and satellite observations, and they have some important news. Not only is Earth absorbing about 0.85 Watts of energy per square meter more than it is radiating back to space, but a sizable chunk of that excess energy is “hiding” in Earth’s oceans, its full effect on the climate system still unrealized.

These maps show observed (top) and modeled (below) energy imbalances in the top 750 meters (2,461 feet) of the world’s oceans from 1993-2003. Areas where there was an energy surplus are shown in shades of yellow to red, while areas where there was an energy deficit are in shades of green to purple.

Ten years of observations show that Earth’s oceans absorbed an average of 6.02 excess watt-years of energy per square meter (a watt-year is the total amount of energy supplied by 1 watt of power for a year.) Model simulations are in close agreement: an average of five “runs” of the GISS climate model to simulate evolution of the climate since 1880 predicts that by 2003, the imbalance would be about 5.98 watt-years per square meter.

According to the scientists,

The present planetary energy imbalance is large by standards of Earth’s history. For example, an imbalance of 1 Watt per square meter maintained for the last 10,000 years…is sufficient to melt ice equivalent to 1 kilometer of sea level (if there were that much ice), or raise the temperature of the ocean above the thermocli"

Tracks by Mitch Hedburg

Tracks by Mitch Hedburg: "
1. Sesame Seeds - Mitch Hedberg
2. This Cd Is In Stores - Mitch Hedberg
3. Candy Bars - Mitch Hedberg
4. Pop - Mitch Hedberg
5. Business Cards - Mitch Hedberg
6. Three Easy Payments - Mitch Hedberg
7. Movie Pot - Mitch Hedberg
8. Saved By The Buoyancy Of Citrus - Mitch Hedberg
9. Mitch In The S'th - Mitch Hedberg
10. Bed And Breakfast - Mitch Hedberg
11. Arrows - Mitch Hedberg
12. Sandwiches - Mitch Hedberg
13. Houses - Mitch Hedberg
14. The Pipe - Mitch Hedberg
15. X - Mitch Hedberg
16. Teeth - Mitch Hedberg
17. Not Track Five, Not Chainsaw Juggler - Mitch Hedberg"

New Scientist Breaking News - Stink bomb gas puts mice into suspended animation

"Stink bomb gas puts mice into suspended animation

* 19:00 21 April 2005
* NewScientist.com news service
* Andy Coghlan"

Suspended animation has been deliberately induced in a species of mouse which does not naturally hibernate. It is the first time such a feat has been achieved, say the procedure’s pioneers.

If a similar response could be triggered in humans, there would be major healthcare benefits and the futuristic idea of putting astronauts into suspended animation on long-haul space flights could move a step closer to reality.

New Scientist Breaking News - Stink bomb gas puts mice into suspended animation

Sorry. lol :)

                                                                       
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http://www.network-science.de/ascii/

All new #HolidayInn Blog Alerts..

#HolidayInn Digest Alerts
on MSN Messenger

Every now and then I find something new that will make the blog better. Today I may have finally out-done myself. Probably not though.

I stumbled across a beta service that takes our blog's RSS/Atom feed, converts it, and then delivers it to MSN/Windows Messenger users. It uses the .NET Passport system. It's also free.

The first few times I tried to add the alert to Messenger I got an error page, but eventually it went through. I suppose that's the way it goes with any Beta service. Aside from Google.

To sign up for this site's MSN Messenger Alerts just scroll down and find the link on the left hand side of the page. After clicking that you'll be taken to the MessageCast website where you sign into your .NET Passport. Once you're signed in just configure your delivery settings and that's it!

If everything works as advertised then anyone should be able to have up to three different types of alerts sent to their PC through MSN/Windows Messenger, to their Hotmail Inbox, or to their Mobile Phone/Internet Device. Dang that was a long sentence. The alerts should be instant. When someone makes a post to the blog the specified alert should be delivered immediately.

I really hope this feature works out. For my own convenience if anything. It would be great to see someone else get a little use out of this feature as well though.

Find more information about MessageCast and what they do:
http://www.messagecast.net

*Update: It doesn't work quite as planned. The alerts will tell you that the blog was updated and give you a short description of the post. However when you click the alert Messenger will take you to MSN.com instead of to the blog post. I'm working on the problem and will email customer support at MessageCast if I have to.

*Update2: I did at least add some nifty Blogger logo's to the alerts. Before I did that the alerts just used generic MessageCast graphics. There's still hope for this after all.

*Update3: The new Alerts system is running just fine now. Thanks Mike! The links sent both Messenger and Hotmail will now direct everyone to the full text of the updated post.

Fox News , CNN , MSNBC , Your Death Watch Networks ....Shame On You !

I just have to comment on this whole death watch thing ... I used to be an avid watcher of all the cable news channels... I am sorry to say that i have turned them all off and plan to never watch them again .... Mainly for one reason I do not feel in my mind that it is appropriate to sit outside someones House , Apartment , Care Facility , Capital Of Jesus Or Whatever ! ... and wait for them to die .... Even worse , to be so excited about them dying that you report it wrong on several occasions and kill them off before there time ... What has become of us ??? When did we think that this was ok ???? Do you really want one of these stations showing a dead person on the air ???? Is that even appropriate at all ?? Isnt it a little disrespectful ??? It to be honest makes me sick and I dont understand how you can watch it .... How would you like your life to be turned into so sick media watch standing outside your window trying to peek in just so some reporter can be the first to let people know you died ???? It could happen ..... Dont think it can't ..... We have to stop this now before its too late ..... I say join me in boycotting the stations who tell us that this is what we want ?? I dont remember asking for a dead person to be shown on my tv .. And yes i have changed the channel ... FOREVER ! I am boycotting all of you as well as your sponsors !

Gmail storage ticker

Gmail storage ticker

Google is giving us even more Gmail storage space! I just found out about an hour ago. The link in this post will take you to a "Gmail Storage Ticker" that is counting the ever growing storage in your account.

At the time of this writing the account storage is at 1,515+ MB.

Very cool stuff. I'll post more about this when I figure out wether the amout is going to stop. Some people are convinced that this number will keep rising. Forever.

Mitch Hedberg Dead at 37

Mitch Hedberg Dead at 37

Apr 1, 8:05 AM EST

Comedian and Actor Mitch Hedberg, 37, Dies

ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- Mitch Hedberg, a Minnesota-born comedian who worked in nightclubs, television and film in a wide-ranging career, died in New Jersey, his family said. He was 37.

Hedberg, who struggled with drugs and alcohol, died Wednesday in a hotel room in Livingston, N.J.

Pending the medical examiner's report, the cause of death appears to be heart failure, said his mother, Mary Hedberg. She said her son was born with a heart defect and frequently felt anxious about his condition.

Mary Hedberg said speculation that her son's death was drug-related was gossip.

"We don't know that for a fact," she said, but added, "it's not a secret Mitch used drugs. Whether that played a role in his death or not, we don't know."

A hit on "The Late Show With David Letterman," on which he appeared 10 times, and "The Howard Stern Show," Hedberg once was dubbed "the next Seinfeld" by Time magazine. But TV-series fame eluded him because his unique style of mumbled one-liners didn't lend itself to the sitcom format.

Hedberg delivered absurdist, random observations in a spacy staccato. His long, dirty blond hair harkened to the image of a 1970s stoner.

Jokes about Hedberg's drug use were a staple of his act. He took a hiatus from performing for several months after a May 2003 arrest in Austin, Texas, for felony possession of heroin.

Born in St. Paul, Hedberg rose through the ranks at Minneapolis' Acme Comedy Co. and caught his big break through a Comedy Central special.

His rambling, non-sequitur style often drew comparisons to Steven Wright, but Hedberg disagreed.

"If I made potato chips and put them in a can, people would say I was ripping off Pringles," he said. "But what if I put them in a bag?"

Hedberg had two popular comedy CDs, "Strategic Grill Locations" and "Mitch All Together." He acted in the movie "Almost Famous" - smoking fake pot with Peter Frampton - and appeared on Fox's hit series "That '70s Show."

Hedberg is survived by his wife, comedian Lynn Shawcroft, his father and mother, Arne and Mary Hedberg of St. Paul, and sisters Wendy Brown of Woodbury and Angie Anderson of South St. Paul.

© 2005 The Associated Press.