Moments of Awareness

"We listen to music and talk to people." Watch live on Cable One  Channel 11  in southwestern Idaho and eastern Oregon or  on-line  (there's an approximately thirty-second delay) and give us a call at 1-208-343-1100 between 10 and 11PM MT. Check out rising local talents OCTO & Actual Depiction on tonight's show. Watch previous shows on YouTube  here  and background videos with music (now in widescreen HD)  here . Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Apparently more than one of you did a double-take at Mr. Darin Bangham's photo on the Ada County Sheriff's Office website . (Click the "From 6:00 AM on 4/7/2011 To 6:00 AM on 4/8/2011" button.) While I'm glad to say that no, it's not Dude, the mistake is entirely understandable, which is funny. Also amusing is how many people make a habit of checkin' out the arrest reports. :D I've killed some time pokin' around there myself - it can be good entertainment when you're all like, "Oh, no, not again. Why don't ya just at least put your pants on when the cops show up!?" :D - but I always thought it was just me. Thanks for checkin' up on us, and thanks for lettin' me know I'm not alone on the occasional rainy afternoon I spend perusing random mug shots. :D Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

"Don't call me a stoner, call me Farmer Jim's dirty rear-end hole." Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

There is a whole king eider sea duck, including feathers and head. And she has three plastic bottles filled with seal oil: liquid gold to a Yupik Eskimo like Mrs. Cooke Phillip. But the real prize is the spotted seal meat. “We call it the prime rib of the sea,” she said. Last year, Mrs. Cooke Phillip, 40, and her family left Kongiganak (population 439), their hometown near the Bering Sea, for a three-bedroom home in Alaska’s largest city. They are among thousands of rural Alaskans who have moved to urban areas in the last decade, having decided their old life was too hard and too expensive. “I was just sick of village survival,” she said. [...] Full article at  nytimes.com   Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Flood control releases from Lucky Peak Reservoir have pushed the Boise River above flood stage. Bureau of Reclamation officials said they planned to increase the flow of the river to 7,600 cubic feet per second Friday. Flood stage at the Glenwood Bridge gauge is 7,000 cfs. Officials warn the public to take caution near the river. [...] Full article at  idahostatesman.com   Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

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MY NEW CD "LOVE'S SWEET SONG" HAS JUST BEEN RELEASED AND IS AVAILABLE @  www.RichardHarrisLive.com  NEW SONGS ARE NOW UP ON MY PAGE - 30 DAY "RISK FREE" GUARANTEE NOW THROUGH THE END OF APRIL! [...] THE THOUGHT FOR TODAY IS ABOUT AMYLOIDOSIS ... "AMYLOIDOSIS is a very rare, progressive, debilitating, and fatal blood disorder for which there is currently no cure. The disease often attacks the heart, the kidneys, the liver, the gastrointestinal system, or the lungs. The disease is so rare than less than 8 out of 1,000,000 people will be diagnosed with Amyloidosis. Many doctors do not see a single case of the disease in their entire professional lifetimes. Untreated, an Amyloidosis patient typically has a life expectancy of 1 year. I am a patient with Primary Amyloidosis, and have been treating and battling the disease. I'm pleased to report that I performed at a dinner and gala fundraiser for Amyloidosis in New York very recently, and I am proud to sa...

See the full gallery on Posterous 2/6th of Actual Depiction, Austin & Other Dogs, the Dudes, Toe, Highway 21, Nest, Ellie's & Lil Red Cookhouse Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

From: Idaho Conservation League Date: Wed, Apr 6, 2011 at 2:42 PM Wednesday, April 6, 2011 There Is Nothing Like a River Trip... Our friends at ARTA River Trips are offering a special deal to ICL's supporters! Join them on a trip down the Middle Fork Salmon, the Main Salmon, or the Selway this summer and ARTA will take $100 off your per person cost and give it to ICL . This is the ultimate win-win! Whether you are a seasoned boater or a newbie to rafting, Idaho offers some of the best whitewater in the nation ! You support our work because you love Idaho. Here is a great excuse to get out and enjoy it! Your river vacation will be even more special because you'll know that you are supporting two great ...

UPDATE: Portrait (mug shot) of Susan Burns , from a previous arrest APRIL 4--The woman who allegedly tried to tear a Gauguin painting off a wall at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. has been identified as a 53-year-old convicted felon who, after her arrest Friday, told an investigator that the French artist was “evil” and that his artwork “has nudity and is bad for the children.” Suspect Susan Burns, who turned 53 Friday, also said that the Gauguin painting “Two Tahitian Women,” which is pictured at right and valued at $80 million, is “very homosexual. I was trying to remove it. I think it should be burned,” according to a criminal complaint filed in D.C. Superior Court. “I am from the American CIA and I have a radio in my head. I am going to kill you,” added Burns, who lives in Alexandria, Virginia. On Friday afternoon, Burns allegedly walked over to the Gauguin painting in Gallery 214-C and ...

Josh Anderson for The New York Times/ Class time at Whitehaven High in Memphis, where every student must take a course online. By  TRIP GABRIEL Published: April 5, 2011 MEMPHIS — Jack London was the subject in Daterrius Hamilton’s online English 3 course. In a high school classroom packed with computers, he read a brief biography of London with single-paragraph excerpts from the author’s works. But the curriculum did not require him, as it had generations of English students, to wade through a tattered copy of “Call of the Wild” or “To Build a Fire.” Mr. Hamilton, who had failed English 3 in a conventional classroom and was hoping to earn credit online to graduate, was asked a question about the meaning of social Darwinism. He pasted the question into Google and read a summary of a Wikipedia entry. He copied the language, spell-checked it and e-mailed it to his teacher. [...] Full article at  nytimes.com ...

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news , world news , and news about the economy Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

If MTV's "16 and Pregnant" is anything to go by, high schools might want to expand their curriculums to include anger management classes. (Because you know those sex ed programs are working so well!) In the preview for its teen parenting documentary series (premiering April 19), another young mom delivers an Amber Portwood-style beatdown on her baby daddy—but this time someone called the cops. [...] Full article at  today.msnbc.msn.com Do high schools not offer anger management courses? If not, that's insane. Also, how often do these girls (and the, I'm sure, many others like them) claim 'pregnancy hormones' as their excuse, and how often does it get them off the hook? In those instances where it does, why? Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

When one-eyed filmmaker Robert Spence wanted to sell a documentary film idea of becoming an "EyeBorg," he installed a cheap LED light in his prosthetic eye. The simple addition instantly made his cyborg concept recognizable to potential business partners as he closed in on a possible deal for his documentary. Bionic beings who are part-human, part-machine may sound like a concept that still belongs in science fiction stories. But experts say that cyborgs are already walking among us, and have been around for quite some time. "Cyborg is your grandma with a hearing aid, her replacement hip, and anyone who runs around with one of those Bluetooth in-ear headsets," said Kosta Grammatis, an engineer who also worked with Spence on the EyeBorg project. That illustrates the gulf between what experts and ordinary people think of when they imagine a cyborg. Many experts see a modern world filled with cyborgs, whether they wear exoskeleton robot suits and prosthet...

Intro  9   8   7   6   5   4   3   2   1 Medicine has made many recent advancements in repairing the human body and treating such disorders as blindness, deafness and missing limbs. Evolving technologies, many of them available right now, involve implants or wearable devices. They give their users a bionic appearance — an indicator of cyborg technology still to come. Here are some of the new developments, one of them strictly for art's sake: Next page >> via innovationnewsdaily.com Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Mice neural cells grow through tubes of semiconductor material. CREDIT: ACS Nano View full size image Combining neurons and computers in a new way could let scientists listen in on these cells talking to one another, deepening our understanding of the brain and paving the way for thought-controlled prosthetic limbs. The University of Wisconsin researchers constructed nanoscale tubes of silicon and germanium, common materials used to make computer chips. They then placed mice neuron cells next to these tiny straw like tubes and watched as the cells’ axons – branches that carry information from the neuron – grew through the tubes. While this is not the first time that axons have been grown in the lab, it is the first time that they’ve been grown in semiconductor tubes that could potentially interface with electronics . “Can we make devices that once are implanted can entice neurons to integrate and re-grow into t...

(Photo: Getty Images)   It is instantly recognizable as a sign of peace , but what is the symbolism behind the peace sign? The olive branch came from ancient Greece, the dove from the Bible … but where did that circle with the chicken-footprint come from? Rewind back to 1958 when London textile designer, Gerald Holtom, wanted to create a symbol for marchers to carry on banners and signs at a "Ban the Bomb" march planned by the Direct Action Committee Against Nuclear War (DAC). The event was Britain’s first major demonstration against nuclear weapons -- a 52-mile march from London to the town of Aldermaston, home to an A-bomb research center. Members of the DAC came to the march emblazoned with Holtom’s circle-with-lines symbol; but to bystanders, its meaning was a mystery. [...] Full article at  green.yahoo.com   Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Mademoicell Chelsea Briganti Women who bemoan their once-a-month curse may soon have reason to appreciate it: Chelsea Briganti, a senior at the Parsons New School for Design, has developed a tampon-like kit made from silicone that collects and stores adult stem cells from [...] Full article at  popsci.com It's cool if this works the way it's meant to and leads to new treatments and cures. I must (or more accurately, I choose to) point out that menstrual cups have been around a long time, and are very different, much cleaner, 'greener', and less smelly and gross, than either tampons or pads. Still, they've never harvested stem cells before. :) Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Mukesh Ambani is having a few friends round to celebrate moving into his new Mumbai pad. But as the home has 27 storeys, soars to 173 metres and is worth an estimated £630m, it will be a housewarming like no other. The building – named Antilia, after a mythical island – will be home to Ambani, the richest man in India and the fourth richest in the world, plus his wife and their three children. It contains a health club with a gym and dance studio, at least one swimming pool, a ballroom, guestrooms, a variety of lounges and a 50-seater cinema. Those lucky enough to have received an invitation to the housewarming later this month will be able to choose a variety of means of transport to get there. If they want to avoid Mumbai's gridlock, there are three helicopter pads on the roof. If they do drive, they will not have any trouble parking: there is space for 160 vehicles on the lower floors. Once in, nine lifts will take the guests from the lobby to upper l...

Heating Buildings With the Paris Metro Pline via Wikimedia Leave it to the French to do something that’s undeniably awesome yet leaves us feeling somewhat uncomfortable at the same time. An experimental heating system, being installed in a public housing project in Paris, will use the warmth [...] Full article at  popsci.com   Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

(Photo via Todd Reichert ) A Canadian university student has done what Leonardo da Vinci had only dreamt of: Piloted a human-powered "wing-flapping" plane! Called an ornithopter , and the inspiration for modern day helicopters, the machine was first sketched by da Vinci way back in 1485 and never actually built. Todd Reichert, an engineering student at the University of Toronto, made history by sustaining flight in his ornithopter -- named Snowbird -- for 19.3 seconds and covering 475.72 feet. Snowbird is made from carbon fiber, balsa wood, and foam. The 92.59 pound vehicle maintained an average speed of 15.91 miles per hour. Todd and his plane made the accomplishment on August 2, 2010, at the Great Lakes Gliding Club in Tottenham, Ontario. The crew kept the achievement quiet for nearly two months to get the data finalized. Todd and some 30 other students had [...] Full article at  green.yahoo.com   Posted via email from Moments of Awarenes...

CANCUN, Mexico — The United States' top drug enforcer says that countries across the world are concerned about the long reach of Mexican drug cartels. Acting Drug Enforcement Administration head Michelle Leonhart says the U.S. also worries about the spread of the Zetas, a fierce Mexican cartel accused of killing of a U.S. immigration agent in February and of massacring 72 migrants in northern Mexico [...] Full article at  idahostatesman.com Well, he should know. He's the head of the organization creating a large portion of their market. For instance, as stated in the article, "Drug violence has killed more than 34,600 people in Mexico since a stepped-up crackdown began in 2006." Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

by Linda Merrill for Networx Steam showers are the modern day equivalent of the steam baths of ancient Rome and the traditional Finnish saunas.  Historically , wet steam baths have been used for cleansing, relaxation, detoxification and as a social activity. In Scandinavia and the Baltics, saunas and steam baths were often family activities. In fact, most cultures have a tradition of some kind of steam room, including Native American huts and Japanese mishiburo, dating to the 12th century. Warm, moist air opens the pores, increases blood pressure and stimulates the sweat glands. Hot steam relaxes muscles after a workout and opens bronchial passages in asthma sufferers. It cleans the skin of impurities through the pores and can be more beneficial and less aging than soap and water. Hot steam is even said to improve the immune system because it tricks the body into thinking it has a fever and therefore stimulates the body’s natural defenses. Nearly anyon...

By this time next year river rats will be cavorting in Boise's new whitewater park thanks to another hefty donation from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation. On Tuesday, the Albertson Foundation announced a $950,000 donation to the city’s river recreation park located on the Boise River upstream of Veterans Memorial Park. [...] Full article at  idahostatesman.com   Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

LAUFEN, Germany – When Regina Mayer's parents dashed her hopes of getting a horse, the resourceful 15-year-old didn't sit in her room and sulk. Instead, she turned to a cow called Luna to make her riding dreams come true. Hours of training, and tons of treats, cajoling and caresses later, the results are impressive: not only do the two regularly go on long rides through the southern German countryside, they do jumps over a makeshift hurdle of beer crates and painted logs. "She thinks she's a horse," the golden-haired Mayer joked on a recent sunny afternoon as she sat atop the impassive brown-and-white, grass-munching cow. It all started about two years ago, shortly after Luna was born on the Mayers' sprawling farm in the hamlet of Laufen, just minutes from the Austrian border. They started off with walks in the woods during which Luna wore a halter. Then Mayer slowly got her cow more accustomed to human contact and riding equipment. [...] ...

A lot has changed over the past few years. A grueling recession has rearranged America's economic landscape, like a hurricane that reshapes the coastline and leaves some places permanently underwater. Millions of lost jobs are probably gone forever. Many Americans lack the skills needed in a fast-paced, tech-driven marketplace. And a prolonged slump has left many people feeling like they're falling behind. To sort out what's changing, I spoke recently with business guru Tom Peters, author of 15 books, including The Little Big Things , his latest. We talked about the Gulf oil spill, overprotective parents, volunteering, and self-reliance. Business, too. Here are some excerpts: You recently said that we lack resilience in America. What makes you think that? Look at the Gulf disaster. Large numbers of people, way beyond the Tea Party folks, want us to have smaller government, while others are screaming bloody murder because the regulations we have weren't executed...

From: Josh Ritter Date: Mon, Apr 4, 2011 at 12:07 PM Hello! Our European tour starts this week (tickets HERE), and we have a special announcement to go with the tour... On a rainy summer evening in July 2010 , Dublin's wonderful Iveagh Gardens played host to its first ever set of concerts.  Josh & The Royal City Band were lucky enough to play the first ever rock show in the Gardens on that Sunday 18th July. And guess what?  We recorded and filmed the show, and it turned out GREAT. Available only as a limited edition 2xCD and 1xDVD, "Live at the Iveagh Gardens" will be available at ALL Josh's April European shows and in a select number of Irish shops and music venues.  Right now, this is a Europe-only release, but we are working on a US edition that will come out later in the year - please be patient with us (and enjoy the free songs) until then! Download TWO FREE MP3s , watch a CLIP ON YOUTUBE , and see the tracklistings here: http://joshritter.com/201...

Coral reefs are some of the oldest and biggest cities ever built, often dwarfing even the most prominent hubs of human civilization. Australia's Great Barrier Reef, the world's largest coral colony, is 440 times bigger and 1,300 times older than New York City, while the much smaller Maro Reef in Hawaii could still hold two Big Apples with enough room left over for Honolulu. Coral enclaves like these offer their residents and visitors a rare mix of food, shelter and socializing, growing into giant masses of aquatic commerce that play a key role in life both above and below the surface. But after nearly nonstop activity for thousands of years, reefs around the planet are now suddenly becoming ghost towns at an alarming pace. A process known as " coral bleaching " has triggered near-record rates of death and dormancy in 2010, especially among Asian and Caribbean reefs, echoing the historic wipeouts of 1998 and 2005 — and foreshadowing a widely expected side ...

I'm kinda slow, yo, but check out Planet Jefferson , y'all. :) We have the honor and the privilege of workin' with Jeff every week at MOA - he's the wizard at the helm - and I love what he's done with his place. :) Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Material ConneXion , a global materials consultancy, recently gave its material of the year award to Novacem for the company’s “ carbon negative ” cement.  The product is being touted with increasing frequency and — it would seem from the [...]  Full article at  jetsongreen.com   Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Photos courtesy of Jason deCaires Taylor Coral reefs are an integral part of oceanic wildlife. They make up less than 0.2 percent of the world’s oceans , but they are home to one-fourth of all marine life. They filter the water, feed the fish , buffer coastal areas from storms, and provide homes for oceanic life. And as the Los Angeles Times recently reported , a coral reef-like structure can also take the form of an impressive underwater art exhibit. Artist Jason deCaires Taylor recently completed “The Silent Evolution,” an underwater museum and permanent sculpture exhibit set up in the waters near Cancun, Mexico. It is located in the National Marine Park   of Isla Mujeres, Cancun and Punta Nizuc. Experts hope that the exhibit, easily accessible by snorkeling, will alleviate some of the tourist traffic on the nearby natural coral reefs. Cancun Marine Park is in close proximity and receives up to 750,000 tourists annually. Called “awe-ins...

AP Photo/JOHN MCCONNICO AMSTERDAM (AP) -- Scientists are monitoring a massive pool of fresh water in the Arctic Ocean that could spill into the Atlantic and potentially alter the key ocean currents that give Western Europe its moderate climate. The oceanographers said Tuesday the unusual accumulation has been caused by Siberian and Canadian rivers dumping more water into the Arctic and from melting sea ice. Both are consequences of global warming. If it flushes into the Atlantic, the infusion of fresh water could, in the worst case, change the ocean current that brings warmth from the tropics to European shores, said Laura De Steur of the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research. German researcher Benjamin Rabe, of the Alfred Wegener Institute, said the Arctic's fresh water content had increased 20 percent since the 1990s - about 8,400 cubic kilometers. That is the equivalent of all the [...] Full article at  hosted.ap.org   P...

Wood floors aren't normally what you would think of as high tech. But a Dutch company called Bolefloor is using computers and CNC production to produce attractive and distinctive wood flooring that maximizes the amount of wood used. By [...] Full article at  green.yahoo.com There's a place I've been told is in Sweden that's been making whole houses this way (without the aid of computer design) for years, but I can't remember the name of it off-hand and I can't find it on-line. Anyone know what it's called? Posted via email from Moments of Awareness

Americans are in deep denial about our wealth inequality. In the US, the richest fifth have 84 percent of the wealth – and most of us don’t consider this to be a problem. In fact, we don’t even guess at the distribution close to correctly. In a recent poll by Duke’s Dan Ariely and Harvard’s Michael Norton , respondents thought that lucky fifth has more like 59 percent of all US wealth and favor them owning just 32 percent of it. But our blindness to the amount of inequality and its effects on our society isn’t pure ignorance or apathy. It’s at least partly a function of how we talk about the issue. We say things like “the wealth gap” and “bridge the gulf” – phrases that obscure some basic truths about inequality. It’s automatic and necessary to explain the world in metaphors – to describe abstractions by comparing them to concrete things. In the case of inequality, we’re characterizing th...

Andrew G. Rosen We often have to show up at the office even when there's a serious issue unfolding at home. Death, divorce, fights, and a myriad of other unfortunate life situations might stop your life in its tracks, but the harsh reality is that work must go on. To maintain your work-life balance and keep your job, here are several tactics employees can use to make a tough time a bit easier: 1. If you trust your supervisor, tell them what’s going on. Be aware of your company's Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) policy before you do this, as unpaid leave may not be a viable option for you. Bosses may be more understanding than they’re given credit for, and proper work-life balance is an asset to both you and the organization. But revealing a personal problem to your boss can have unintended consequences. Though against the law, your issue could hold you back from future advancement. On the flip side, telling your boss could build your trust qu...