December 2014

There were 8 posts published in December 2014 (this is page 1 of 1).

Tablets and E-readers May Disrupt Your Sleep

Screen time before bedtime disrupts your sleep, a new study says. I love the science of sleep.

People who receive a tablet or e-book reader for the holidays might wind up spending some sleepless nights because of their new gadget.

That’s because the light emitted by a tablet like an iPad can disrupt sleep if the device is used in the hours before bedtime, according to a new Harvard study.

People who read before bed using an iPad or similar "e-reader" device felt less sleepy and took longer to fall asleep than when they read a regular printed book, researchers found.

via Tablets and E-readers May Disrupt Your Sleep.

ICEd out of parking spots

The N&O’s Andrew Kinney writes about the topic of ICEing, which is what EV owners call it when their charging spot is blocked by an Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicle. Kinney reports that the city has collected a lot of fines from due to drivers not paying attention to where they park.

I agree with Bonner Gaylord: perhaps painting the EV parking spaces a bright color might help clueless drivers pay better attention.

RALEIGH — People can’t seem to resist Raleigh’s electric-vehicle parking and charging spots – even when they’re driving gas guzzlers.

A sign next to each of the city’s 23 special spaces warns that gasoline-powered vehicles blocking the charger will get a $50 ticket. Yet fuel-burners just keep coming, especially to spot No. 378, which may be the most frequent site of parking tickets in Raleigh.

via RALEIGH: Gas guzzlers can’t stay out of electric-only parking in Raleigh | The Raleigh Report | NewsObserver.com.

How ‘Jingle Bells’ by the Singing Dogs Changed Music Forever – The Atlantic

This is a fascinating account of the version of “Jingle Bells” recorded by The Singing Dogs. I always assumed this song was from the late 1970s – big deal, someone sampled dogs and made a song. I was shocked tonight to find out it was actually recorded in 1955! I had no idea that this was such a groundbreaking song, launching the arts of multitrack recording and sampling. Who knew?

Let’s, for a moment, consider "Jingle Bells" as performed by the Singing Dogs. With jaded, 21st-century ears, it’s easy to dismiss as Yuletide kitsch. It topped a 2007 survey of most-hated Christmas songs, but there was a time when listeners marveled at it—Dogs! And they’re singing!

It’s time we give the Singing Dogs their due. Created in Denmark in the early 1950s by a self-taught ornithologist and released in the U.S. in 1955, the record marks a turning point in how we listen to music. I’ll explain.

via How 'Jingle Bells' by the Singing Dogs Changed Music Forever – The Atlantic.

Cuban relations

President Obama caused quite a stir yesterday when he announced the normalization of relations with Cuba. Of course, Republicans quickly went ape-shit at this announcement and are already lining up to oppose it. Being that it’s the President’s constitutional prerogative to conduct foreign affairs, I’m not sure what whiny Congressmembers can do.

As for ditching restrictions on Cuba, I say good riddance! I’ve never understood the continuing economic embargo against Cuba. Yes, Cuba is a communist country but for decades we’ve had no trouble doing business with communist (and nuclear-armed) China. Hell, China actively spies on us, conducts provocative naval maneuvers, and is actively working to diminish the stature of the United States in the Pacific region. I suppose if Cuba had a population of a billion potential consumers like China we be falling all over ourselves to put aside our differences.
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Hallie to appear in HBO documentary

Hallie, Travis, and Nora on the HBO website

Hallie and Travis on the HBO website

Hallie’s climate change work last year with iMatterYouthNC.Org was filmed by HBO as part of a documentary they made about kids and climate change. We found out that documentary is airing Monday, December 15th at 7 PM on HBO. The film, called Saving My Tomorrow, features kids from all over, speaking about their planet. It’s really inspiring!

We don’t know how much of Hallie will appear in the film but the image the producers chose for their HBO webpage is a shot from Hallie’s march through downtown Raleigh, flanked by Travis and Hallie’s friend (and co-organizer), Nora. I’m hopeful we might see Hallie’s speech from the rally but we’re not sure what they used or not.

I’m hoping I can finagle a way to record the film as we don’t have cable. Any assistance out there would be greatly appreciated!

Questions raised over Queen’s ancestry after DNA test on Richard III’s cousins

Isn’t this interesting.

The bones of the king under the car park have delivered further shocks, 527 years after his death and more than two years after his remains were discovered in Leicester: Richard III was a blue-eyed blond, and the present Queen may not be descended from John of Gaunt and Edward III, the lineage on which the Tudor claim to the throne originated.

Five anonymous living donors, all members of the extended family of the present Duke of Beaufort, who claim descent from both the Plantagenets and Tudors through the children of John of Gaunt, gave DNA samples which should have matched Y chromosomes extracted from Richard’s bones. But none did.

Since Richard’s identity was proved by his mitochondrial DNA, handed down in an unbroken chain through the female line from his sister to two living relatives, the conclusion is stark: there is a break in the claimed line of Beaufort descent, what the scientists described as “a false paternity event”, which may also affect the ancestry of their distant cousins, the Windsors.

via Questions raised over Queen’s ancestry after DNA test on Richard III’s cousins | UK news | The Guardian.

Putin’s failures leave Russia reeling | MSNBC

Great, quick read on Putin’s failures.

It was poised to be the biggest arms deal ever between a NATO country and Russia. France had a deal worth more than 1 billion euros to deliver a warship to Russia, and given Europe’s economy and the number of jobs involved, French President Francois Hollande really wanted the deal to go forward. But it did not. President Obama urged Hollande to leave Vladimir Putin isolated and the French president agreed, announcing last week that the warship delivery was off “until further notice” in light of Russia’s aggression towards Ukraine. Late yesterday, Putin suffered yet another failure.

“President Vladimir V. Putin said Monday that he would scrap Russia’s South Stream gas pipeline, a grandiose project that was once intended to establish the country’s dominance in southeastern Europe but instead fell victim to Russia’s increasingly toxic relationship with the West.”

The New York Times characterized this as a “rare diplomatic defeat” for Putin, though I’m not sure why. Indeed, diplomatic defeats appear to be the only thing the Russian president has accomplished lately.

via Putin's failures leave Russia reeling | MSNBC.

Kicking gas

Our Ford Focus Electric

Our Ford Focus Electric

Kelly and I have finally gotten sick of the cars we own. With the Odyssey’s transmission bound to fail again within the next three years, it was time to check out other alternatives. We hate buying cars, though, and can’t stand car payments. Thus, when we buy cars we tend to drive them for a while.

We wanted a car that’s more efficient than the ones we have, so we went to the local Carmax to check out a Prius V (in other words, a Prius wagon). Having taken it around the block, we weren’t impressed with its feel for the road nor its space. As we were deciding whether to leave the lot or not, I noticed that a Ford Focus Electric was parked next to us. I’d only driven an electric vehicle one time before (which ended disastrously), so I thought it might be fun to take the Focus out for a test drive. After a short spin around the neighborhood and I-540, we were hooked. We became the owners of a Focus Electric last week.

Unlike my electric car experience of eight years ago, the Focus has some pickup! We tooled around I-540 with ease, merging into the fast-moving traffic and being able to pass anytime we needed. Plus, it’s super quiet. You get the sound of the tires and wind, with the electric motor making a slight, futuristic whirring sound. It turns out it was much more fun to drive than the Prius.
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