Worse than an oil spill...farming

The Other Gulf Stain - Dot Earth Blog - NYTimes.com
As if the BP oil spill didn't cause enough damage to the coastal areas of the Gulf of Mexico, large amounts of nitrogen and other nutrients from midwest agricultural lands has washed down the Mississippi river and entered the Gulf.

So...what are the repercussions of this?
The abundance of nutrients causes a dramatic increase in the plant life initially (e.g. algal bloom) but then creates what is known as a 'hypoxic zone' or 'dead zone' as all the oxygen dissolved in the water gets used up by the photosynthesizing plants. This has huge ramifications for the animal life in those areas, and could be costlier to the ecosystem and the Gulf fishing economy than the BP oil spill.

The end of tv

A Portable Movie Theater - Gadgetwise Blog - NYTimes.com

I knew it was only a matter of time before televisions (even 100" plasma LCD HD ones) would go extinct and I think the beginning of the end has begun. A new portable projector from Tumi can be used on "most video-enabled MP3 players, the Apple iPhone and laptop computers." With the ever-expanding market of online viewing (Hulu, ESPN3, Netflix, etc...) it's only a matter of time before all you'll need for in-home entertainment is an internet connection, a laptop/iPhone, and a wall.

Radio waves & vibrations... what's the first thing that comes to mind? Batteries, duh

Bye-Bye Batteries: Radio Waves as a Low-Power Source

Using only radio waves for its electrical power, the SmartHat has a beeper that alerts the wearer to dangerous construction equipment nearby.

Vibration-powered Generators Replace AA, AAA Batteries

For example, when the generator, which the company calls "Vibration-powered Generating Battery," is set inside a remote control, it is possible to use the remote by shaking it to generate power.

Ever wonder how to dig a hole at the bottom of the ocean...

Dot Earth: BP, Shell and the Design of Deep Wells As the gulf gusher stops, an opportunity to compare how different companies do deep drilling.

The video is a presentation from a Shell engineer describing how exactly deep sea oil drilling works and why their system is safer than BP's. It's pretty long but you can skip ahead to around 13:00 where he describes how this concept is humanly possible and why BP sucks.
 
http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/07/15/bp-shell-and-the-design-of-deep-wells/

Come on med schools, pick up the slack

Until recently, most medical schools provided little information on financial factors, like how the insurance system works and how treatment costs affect patients’ behavior.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/04/health/04cost.html

It's about time windmills grew sea-legs

Regulators Approve First Offshore Wind Farm in U.S.

After nine years of review, the approval of the 130-turbine farm off the coast of Cape Cod gives a significant boost to the nascent offshore wind industry n the U.S.

How to make a cell for dummies

Peering Over the Fortress That Is the Mighty Cell

The scientists who created a synthetic variant are in debt to nature, time and billions of years of evolution.

Primary care doctors - an endangered species

An excellent interview with a geriatric doctor regarding the problems of the current primary care model and how changes can make it not only financially viable but also beneficial for the patient's health and wellness.

HEALTH

Delivering Better Primary Care

By PAULINE W. CHEN, M.D.

Published: May 13, 2010

Can a patient-centered medical practice help ease the crisis in primary care?