Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Cookie Chemistry
Want to make a better cookie? Ask a Chemist. Listen to Shirley Corriher talk about the Perfect Cookie on NPR.
What about how many cookies do you make for the season? Check out Food Blogga's Christmas Cookies from around the world.
What about how many cookies do you make for the season? Check out Food Blogga's Christmas Cookies from around the world.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Monday, December 8, 2008
Sunday, December 7, 2008
Barack.....keeping it COOL!
Alright, I didn't realize that John Malcovich was hosting SNL, so here is a little Christmas treat. John reading "Twas the Night Before Xmas"
Thursday, December 4, 2008
NASA Simulator Prepares Astronauts For Rigors Of An Interview With Larry King
I know some NASA scientists who have gone through Media Training and have heard their stories. Now NASA has created a training that rivals the rigors of astronaut training. This is beyond hilarious!
NASA Simulator Prepares Astronauts For Rigors Of An Interview With Larry King
NASA Simulator Prepares Astronauts For Rigors Of An Interview With Larry King
Monday, November 24, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
Friday, November 14, 2008
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Off Shore Drilling?
How is it that off-shore drilling that won't produce oil on the market for 6-10 year going to lower prices today?
It is STILL about the Economy
ReCAP - We need a $700 billion dollar Bail Out
What happened?
Stephen has a better analogy -
Lesson here: When things gets really bad, you need to understand that treatment may require repeat applications for several more months before you see signs of improvement.
Chris Matthews sums it up - your moment of Zen
What happened?
Stephen has a better analogy -
Lesson here: When things gets really bad, you need to understand that treatment may require repeat applications for several more months before you see signs of improvement.
Chris Matthews sums it up - your moment of Zen
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
George Carlin awarded Mark Twain Prize last night
I had a great time at the Kennedy Center last night. There were some great guests! Jon Stewart, Bill Maher, Joan Rivers, Lewis Black, Lily Tomlin, and others. The show will be aired on PBS on April 1, 2009.
One of my favorite clips they played in honor George was him singing Cherry Pie on the Arsenio Hall Show, November 30, 1989. First 5 minutes is Carlin talking about Rhythm and Blues in the early 50's ... then his performance starts at about 5 minutes in.
Another tribute that will have you in tears is Stephen's Colbert's Tonight's Word "Bleep" - where his does a skit about the 7 dirty words....
One of my favorite clips they played in honor George was him singing Cherry Pie on the Arsenio Hall Show, November 30, 1989. First 5 minutes is Carlin talking about Rhythm and Blues in the early 50's ... then his performance starts at about 5 minutes in.
Another tribute that will have you in tears is Stephen's Colbert's Tonight's Word "Bleep" - where his does a skit about the 7 dirty words....
Monday, November 10, 2008
Food Science - Splendid Table links
Shirley Corriher
Several good features about cooking vegetables, Starch, Potatoes and more.
Susan Hassler, editor-in-chief of the science and technology online magazine IEEE Spectrum, decided to reach out to science and techno geeks who cook. Find out what happened.
Lynne talks with Harold McGee, the man who took food science from the laboratory into home kitchens. He recently updated his classic tome from twenty years ago: On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. He fills us in on the discoveries contained in the 21st century edition. Listen
March 11: Molecular Gastronomy | Listen
This week we take a look at the new kitchen science that has haute restaurant chefs rethinking everything, taking foods apart and putting them back together in ways we can't imagine. The instigator is our guest, chemist Hervé This, author of Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor (Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History.)
March 25: Umami | Listen
If you've always suspected that taste goes beyond science's big four of sweet, sour, salt and bitter your instincts are right. This week we're looking at umami. It's what food types call the "fifth taste." Our guest, David Kasabian, tells us how to use this wunderkind to make everything we eat taste better. Coq au Vin Nouveau, from The Fifth Taste: Cooking with Umami by David and Anna Kasabian, demonstrates the principle.
For the Homeschooling Mom -
Wine critic Matt Kramer, author of Matt Kramer's New California Wine answers the controversial question: can you actually get cheap good wines?
Several good features about cooking vegetables, Starch, Potatoes and more.
Susan Hassler, editor-in-chief of the science and technology online magazine IEEE Spectrum, decided to reach out to science and techno geeks who cook. Find out what happened.
Lynne talks with Harold McGee, the man who took food science from the laboratory into home kitchens. He recently updated his classic tome from twenty years ago: On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen. He fills us in on the discoveries contained in the 21st century edition. Listen
March 11: Molecular Gastronomy | Listen
This week we take a look at the new kitchen science that has haute restaurant chefs rethinking everything, taking foods apart and putting them back together in ways we can't imagine. The instigator is our guest, chemist Hervé This, author of Molecular Gastronomy: Exploring the Science of Flavor (Arts and Traditions of the Table: Perspectives on Culinary History.)
March 25: Umami | Listen
If you've always suspected that taste goes beyond science's big four of sweet, sour, salt and bitter your instincts are right. This week we're looking at umami. It's what food types call the "fifth taste." Our guest, David Kasabian, tells us how to use this wunderkind to make everything we eat taste better. Coq au Vin Nouveau, from The Fifth Taste: Cooking with Umami by David and Anna Kasabian, demonstrates the principle.
For the Homeschooling Mom -
Wine critic Matt Kramer, author of Matt Kramer's New California Wine answers the controversial question: can you actually get cheap good wines?
Picks from Speaking of Faith (American Public Media)
Faith and Science
Science and Hope
Our guest straddles the worlds of cosmology and social activism. During a live audience interview in Philadelphia, he tells us
how he unites his convictions about faith, ethics, and cosmology.
Quarks and Creation
Science and religion are often pitted against one another; but how do they complement, rather than contradict, one another? We learn how one man applies the deepest insights of modern physics to think about how the world fundamentally works, and how the universe might make space for prayer.
Reimagining Environmentalism
Environmentalism and climate change are hot topics; yet they're still often imagined as the territory of scientists, expert activists, and those who can afford to be environmentally conscious. We discover two people who are transforming the ecology of their immediate worlds in Dunn, Wisconsin and New York's South Bronx.
Mathematics, Purpose, and Truth
As a theoretical physicist, Janna Levin probes whether the universe is finite or infinite. As a novelist, she explored the separate but parallel lives of two influential 20th-century scientists: Kurt Gödel and Alan Turing. Their work laid the foundations for computer intelligence while challenging fundamental notions about how we can know what is true.
Evolution and Wonder: Understanding Charles Darwin
We'll take a fresh and thought-provoking look at Darwin's life and ideas. He did not argue against God but against a simple understanding of the world — its beauty, its brutality, and its unfolding creation.
Food
Ethics of Eating
Kingsolver describes an adventure her family undertook to spend one year eating primarily what they could grow or raise themselves. As a citizen and mother more than an expert, she turned her life towards questions many of us are asking. Food, she says, is a "rare moral arena" in which the ethical choice is often the pleasurable choice.
Faith and Politics & Founding Fathers
The Religious Roots of American Democracy
Philosopher Jacob Needleman speaks on the spiritual and moral ideals of the American founders — and how these ideals resonate in our culture today. Democracy, Needleman says, is inner work, not just a set of outward structures.
Liberating the Founders
Americans remain divided about how much religion they want in their political life. As we elect a new president, we return to an evocative, relevant conversation from earlier this year with journalist Steven Waldman. From his unusual study of the American founders, he understands why 21st-century struggles over religion in the public square spur passionate disagreement and entanglement with politics at its most impure.
Religious Liberty in America: The Legacy of Church and State
At the center of our history of church and state is a troublesome irony. What began as an attempt to guarantee religious tolerance in the new world has at various times been commandeered by the most chauvinistic movements America has known. In spite of this, religious liberty has survived as an American ideal—one which we continue to test.
We live in a world of increasing religious pluralism—diversity beyond the imagining of our nation's founders—which suggests fresh nuance to the meaning of religious liberty. This much is clear: our modern conversation has few connections to the social, political, and religious impulses that led to the First Amendment.
Host Krista Tippett and her guests revisit the history and meaning of separation in thought-provoking and, at times, unsettling ways. Charles Haynes talks about his work in the American public school system—the arena in which our modern debates often center. Philip Hamburger describes his research into the surprising, and largely forgotten, origins of separation of church and state. And, Cheryl Crazy Bull speaks about the loss and reemergence of religious expression in tribal public life.
Evangelical Politics
A passionate discussion is unfolding in public and in private among Evangelical leaders and communities. Should Christians be involved in politics and if so, how? What has gone wrong, and what has been learned from the Moral Majority up until now. In this live public conversation, Krista probes these ideas with three formative Evangelicals.
Topics for Bible Study
Jewish Roost of the Christian Story
New Testament writings about Jews may sound inflammatory in modern ears. A New Testament scholar with ties to both Judaism and Christianity helps us put these writings in context and look for meaning in the Passion that Hollywood and popular culture can't convey.
Beyond the Atheism-religion Divide
In 1965, a young Harvard professor became the best-selling voice of secularism in America with his book The Secular City. He sees the old thinking in the "new atheism" of figures like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens. The either/or debates between religion and atheism, he says, obscure the truly interesting interplay between faith and other forms of knowledge that is unfolding today.
Science and Hope
Our guest straddles the worlds of cosmology and social activism. During a live audience interview in Philadelphia, he tells us
how he unites his convictions about faith, ethics, and cosmology.
Quarks and Creation
Science and religion are often pitted against one another; but how do they complement, rather than contradict, one another? We learn how one man applies the deepest insights of modern physics to think about how the world fundamentally works, and how the universe might make space for prayer.
Reimagining Environmentalism
Environmentalism and climate change are hot topics; yet they're still often imagined as the territory of scientists, expert activists, and those who can afford to be environmentally conscious. We discover two people who are transforming the ecology of their immediate worlds in Dunn, Wisconsin and New York's South Bronx.
Mathematics, Purpose, and Truth
As a theoretical physicist, Janna Levin probes whether the universe is finite or infinite. As a novelist, she explored the separate but parallel lives of two influential 20th-century scientists: Kurt Gödel and Alan Turing. Their work laid the foundations for computer intelligence while challenging fundamental notions about how we can know what is true.
Evolution and Wonder: Understanding Charles Darwin
We'll take a fresh and thought-provoking look at Darwin's life and ideas. He did not argue against God but against a simple understanding of the world — its beauty, its brutality, and its unfolding creation.
Food
Ethics of Eating
Kingsolver describes an adventure her family undertook to spend one year eating primarily what they could grow or raise themselves. As a citizen and mother more than an expert, she turned her life towards questions many of us are asking. Food, she says, is a "rare moral arena" in which the ethical choice is often the pleasurable choice.
Faith and Politics & Founding Fathers
The Religious Roots of American Democracy
Philosopher Jacob Needleman speaks on the spiritual and moral ideals of the American founders — and how these ideals resonate in our culture today. Democracy, Needleman says, is inner work, not just a set of outward structures.
Liberating the Founders
Americans remain divided about how much religion they want in their political life. As we elect a new president, we return to an evocative, relevant conversation from earlier this year with journalist Steven Waldman. From his unusual study of the American founders, he understands why 21st-century struggles over religion in the public square spur passionate disagreement and entanglement with politics at its most impure.
Religious Liberty in America: The Legacy of Church and State
At the center of our history of church and state is a troublesome irony. What began as an attempt to guarantee religious tolerance in the new world has at various times been commandeered by the most chauvinistic movements America has known. In spite of this, religious liberty has survived as an American ideal—one which we continue to test.
We live in a world of increasing religious pluralism—diversity beyond the imagining of our nation's founders—which suggests fresh nuance to the meaning of religious liberty. This much is clear: our modern conversation has few connections to the social, political, and religious impulses that led to the First Amendment.
Host Krista Tippett and her guests revisit the history and meaning of separation in thought-provoking and, at times, unsettling ways. Charles Haynes talks about his work in the American public school system—the arena in which our modern debates often center. Philip Hamburger describes his research into the surprising, and largely forgotten, origins of separation of church and state. And, Cheryl Crazy Bull speaks about the loss and reemergence of religious expression in tribal public life.
Evangelical Politics
A passionate discussion is unfolding in public and in private among Evangelical leaders and communities. Should Christians be involved in politics and if so, how? What has gone wrong, and what has been learned from the Moral Majority up until now. In this live public conversation, Krista probes these ideas with three formative Evangelicals.
Topics for Bible Study
Jewish Roost of the Christian Story
New Testament writings about Jews may sound inflammatory in modern ears. A New Testament scholar with ties to both Judaism and Christianity helps us put these writings in context and look for meaning in the Passion that Hollywood and popular culture can't convey.
Beyond the Atheism-religion Divide
In 1965, a young Harvard professor became the best-selling voice of secularism in America with his book The Secular City. He sees the old thinking in the "new atheism" of figures like Richard Dawkins and Christopher Hitchens. The either/or debates between religion and atheism, he says, obscure the truly interesting interplay between faith and other forms of knowledge that is unfolding today.
Friday, November 7, 2008
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Voting Shift
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Happy Election Day with the Best of the Best Election Videos
"Mr. Puddles, I have snausages!"
Craig's Rant - If you don't vote, you're a moron.
Who are those undecided voters?
Back in Black - Negative Advertising
Ed Helms and the mysteries of the Voting Process
The Palin-Couric interview
David Gergen's Secret Admirer
Les Mis - a musical treat from Obama Campaign Office
Thomas Hayden Church as "Joe Six Pack"
An ABSOLUTE must see - Ben Afflick as Olbermann
Senior Citizen's in FL watch the Debate
The Fonz speaks out on Sarah Palin
Ron Howard retro-endorsement for Obama
John Cleese on Sarah Palin
Vote to Cancel your neighbors
Why Vote Republican?
Farris Bueller's re-make
Now GO VOTE!
Craig's Rant - If you don't vote, you're a moron.
Who are those undecided voters?
Back in Black - Negative Advertising
Ed Helms and the mysteries of the Voting Process
The Palin-Couric interview
David Gergen's Secret Admirer
Les Mis - a musical treat from Obama Campaign Office
Thomas Hayden Church as "Joe Six Pack"
See more Thomas Haden Church videos at Funny or Die
An ABSOLUTE must see - Ben Afflick as Olbermann
Senior Citizen's in FL watch the Debate
The Fonz speaks out on Sarah Palin
Ron Howard retro-endorsement for Obama
See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die
John Cleese on Sarah Palin
Vote to Cancel your neighbors
Why Vote Republican?
Farris Bueller's re-make
Now GO VOTE!
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Our New Baby ... Puppy that is!
Hannah and Family are enjoying their new puppy. A Chihuahua & Beagle mix...he is SUCH a cutie. Mellow but with just the right amount of puppy spunk. We picked him up in Baltimore this morning around 10:30am. We adopted from Maryland Animation Sanctuary & Rescue. He was rescued from a kill shelter in West Virginia.
Hannah meets the new puppy and our 3yr old Simon gets a chance to meet him too. Simon still doesn't think much of the new puppy. He kinda stays out of his way and is basically indifferent. I think I caught him sulking in the playroom. We need to make sure he gets his fill of attention.
We went to PETCO today and got all the basics. Picked up a nice collar and a lime green harness and leash.
"Custard" - Hannah's first name pick - just loved getting out and walking in the front yard. He comes right up to you and rolls in the grass. A real outdoor guy.
Hannah and her new puppy.
This little guy is just a ReAL cutie - that is all there is to it! Hope to post more fun picts in the morning.
Poppa Chris and Puppy taking an afternoon siesta.
Sponge Bob is officially adopted!
Cheers!
Friday, July 11, 2008
Our very own Wood Fire COB Oven
More details coming soon, but here are the pictures.
Some good links:
Malaspina
Brick Oven Tampa
Traditional Oven
Heat Kit
Some good links:
Malaspina
Brick Oven Tampa
Traditional Oven
Heat Kit
Thursday, July 3, 2008
In Memory of Sgt. Richard Findley
A number of stories and videos from Richard Findley's funeral today.
News Channel 8 / ABC Video and Text.
News Channel 4 video report LIVE at 11am
And the 5pm video report - with our Beltsville Girl Scouts
Just a fabulous story in today's Post about Richard and the kind of guy he was.
Washington Post Article covering the funeral today
News Channel 8 / ABC Video and Text.
News Channel 4 video report LIVE at 11am
And the 5pm video report - with our Beltsville Girl Scouts
Just a fabulous story in today's Post about Richard and the kind of guy he was.
Washington Post Article covering the funeral today
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
Gas Tax Holiday - talk about putting your vacation on your credit card
Ok, the next time someone asks me why I like Obama, I have a good one for them. Besides his 'inspiring speeches', there are just some things that make sense and this is one. Hilary and John McCain BOTH are lining up for the gas Tax holiday. But did they think it through?
Well, Obama said something about this, and even put the issue upfront in a campaign ad. But I what drives me crazy and contributes to those days when I am "on the fence" is this... WHY did he stop short. WHY didn't explain to people the repercussions. It would not have taken too much more time to add "lower prices mean people would buy more gas. And if people buy more gas it increase DEMAND. And increased DEMAND would increase price PERIOD." SO, tell them Obama. Yes, people would save $25-$30 over the course of the summer, but in the end, the price of gas could go up beyond what you saved, and STAY at that price!
NPR Story on Can Washington deliver Lower gas prices. And Would the Gas Holiday Work? Like, hmmmm, do you know where the tax money on gas goes anyway? What impact is your 'holiday' going to have on our infrastructure? Think about it!
This COVERS is ALL!
This is Economics 101 people!! We rely on our elected officials to be informed!
Well, Obama said something about this, and even put the issue upfront in a campaign ad. But I what drives me crazy and contributes to those days when I am "on the fence" is this... WHY did he stop short. WHY didn't explain to people the repercussions. It would not have taken too much more time to add "lower prices mean people would buy more gas. And if people buy more gas it increase DEMAND. And increased DEMAND would increase price PERIOD." SO, tell them Obama. Yes, people would save $25-$30 over the course of the summer, but in the end, the price of gas could go up beyond what you saved, and STAY at that price!
NPR Story on Can Washington deliver Lower gas prices. And Would the Gas Holiday Work? Like, hmmmm, do you know where the tax money on gas goes anyway? What impact is your 'holiday' going to have on our infrastructure? Think about it!
This COVERS is ALL!
This is Economics 101 people!! We rely on our elected officials to be informed!
Monday, April 28, 2008
Friday, April 25, 2008
Stop motion recreation of 300
This is great. Just think of the things you can do with a computer, a weekend to burn, and a few good friends.
Wednesday, April 23, 2008
Knitting for gadgets
When you have too many sweaters from Aunt Martha, one could never go wrong with this little cozy. For warmth, privacy AND concentration in public spaces. Knitted Enclosure for a Laptop Photo by Sternlab
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Urban Bee Keeping
For those of you who want to give 'hand made' gifts from the heart...but don't have much of that Martha Stewart skill...perhaps this is the hobby for you. (BTW, I love the first shot. In a tie, just off work, drinking a few beers ;-)
Thursday, April 10, 2008
NASA Science web site live!
The site I have been working on for MONTHS (some might say years) has just launched. Visit NASA Science !
Just a short post....now back to work ;-)
Just a short post....now back to work ;-)
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Friday, April 4, 2008
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Friday, March 28, 2008
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
One back breaking weekend
What better thing to do on a Saturday morning than to get a large shipment of compost...mmmmm! We found a source on Craigs List for some PRIMO compost. Combination of horse and sheep manure that was mixed with shredded yard waste. Then drawn out into 'wind rows' to cook. Yes, comes up to 160 degrees on its own. It is turned multiple times and finally sifted into the wonderful compost. A year old and doesn't smell bad at all.
We got over a dozen strawberry plants in - will probably transplant some when we build the 2nd strawberry bed. Then we got the potatoes and onions in the vegetable raised bed.
The online calculators said we needed 16 cubic yards to fill three 4'x8' raised bed for the veges, and three 3'x3' raised beds for the strawberries. Well, three beds are full and one of the strawberries and doesn't even look like we made a dent in this pile!
Needless to say, I am still laying on a heating pad on Tuesday!We didn't get to the cold frame project yet - but I picked up the windows. Geez, we have enough windows to build a greenhouse! Not sure the coldframe will happen this spring. It might just become a Fall project. We used all the wood on the raised beds, and I probably maxed out my honey-do list for the yard. Chris will be on to other projects like a shed. We also got our delivery of mulch from the Boy Scouts - so I guess our spring yard work is just beginning ;-)
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Spring Fever
Can't believe it has been 3 weeks since my trip to Williamsburg. All you need is one nice day in February where the temperature hits 60+ degrees, and you've caught Spring Fever. So how can one treat the symptoms so early in the season...well...we might learn a few tips from history.
Even in February, you can see colonial technology in use to extend the growing season in Williamsburg. In fact the Romans would force vegetables and extend their growing season by placing mica over boxes like mini-greenhouses. For me, I was inspired by these classic coldframes in the colonial city. And thought THIS was the cure for my Spring Fever.
Even in February, you can see colonial technology in use to extend the growing season in Williamsburg. In fact the Romans would force vegetables and extend their growing season by placing mica over boxes like mini-greenhouses. For me, I was inspired by these classic coldframes in the colonial city. And thought THIS was the cure for my Spring Fever.
I began plotting immediately. But where can I get some old windows? When we got home, I made a post to my homeschool yahoo groups and BAM...I got a reply in 15 minutes from a mom getting her windows replaced in just a few weeks. Awesome!
So tomorrow is the big day and I can pick up the windows any time. We have some old lumber left over from our deck project and I have cleaned out the prefect 'south facing' spot for the cold frame. There are some great resources on the internet to build your own cold frame. University extension centers rock! A pdf on constructing Hotbeds and Coldframes was my favorite as it talked about using manure for heat.
Now one other detail that I just loved was the twig weaves and hay surrounding the cold frame for insulation. My husband wants to reuse some chicken wire...but this looks SO much better. Perhaps we can use the tops of the bamboo we plan to use for the tomato cages.
So, what to plant? It is amazing that we all don't have some basic knowledge of gardening. I mean, it should be as common as reading and simple math. But unless you lived on a farm, had parents who gardened, or joined a 4H club, you more than likely didn't get an education in gardening.
It amazes me how much research I need to do about WHAT I should plant in a cold frame and WHEN I should plant it. Most seed packets, of course, give you the best time to starting outdoors after frost or indoors. But a cold frame? From what I gather, it is a good place to grow cold crops like lettuce and radishes (those are on our list). Spinach is another...but we aren't big spinach eaters.
This weekend is the best timing for building the cold frame - we have a plan, a location, and materials. Unfortunately, the forecast is for rain through Saturday night.
Monday, January 7, 2008
Still gotta get an iPhone?
Some days you wonder if you aren't quite keeping up with the Joneses. I mean, it must be so much better over there with their MacMansions and iPhone gadgets. But then David Lynch is there to set the record straight.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)