Category: Science and Stuff,

Remains found of African-Americans forced into labor

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Race,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

The remains are likely those of people who worked at a plantation through a “convict leasing program” in the late 1800s and early 20th century. Archaeologists estimated the cemetery was used from 1878 to 1910. (To give that some context: The emancipation proclamation was issued in 1863, while the 13th Amendment abolished slavery in 1865).

…The leasing program was a “system in which Southern states leased prisoners to private railways, mines and large plantations,” according to the Equal Justice Initiative. Though states profited from this arrangement, “prisoners earned no pay and faced inhumane, dangerous and often deadly work conditions. Thousands of black people were forced into what authors have termed ‘slavery by another name’ until the 1930s,” the school district continued.

…Between 1885 and 1887, many prisoners worked to build the Capitol building in Austin, while others worked to construct the Texas State Railroad between 1893 and 1909, according to the Texas State Historical Association.

…Out of the 95 burial sites identified thus far, 48 have been exhumed, according to a statement from the school district. All were male but one, archaeologists said. Their ages ranged from 14 to 70 years old.

In addition to finding the remains, archaeologists also uncovered rusted tools and chains laborers likely wore. 

Remains found of African-Americans forced into labor

hmmmm

Summer solstice 2018: Pythagoras’s theorem used to build Stonehenge

On By peanutgallerynhIn Europe,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

Greek philosopher Pythagoras discovered that the sum areas of two squares on two sides of a triangle will always add up to the area of a square on the hypotenuse – the longest side of a right angle triangle.

However, Pythagoras was not born until the 5th century BC – some 2,000 years after Stonehenge was erected.

…Contributor and editor of Megalith, John Matineau, told the Telegraph: “People think of our ancestors as rough cavemen but they were applying Pythagorean geometry over 2,000 years before Pythagoras was born.

…They were astronomers and cosmologists. …“They were studying long and difficult to understand cycles and they knew about these when they started planning sites like Stonehenge.

Summer solstice 2018: Pythagoras’s theorem used to build Stonehenge | Science | News | Express.co.uk

mmmhmmm

Internal Watchdog Blasts EPA’s Response To Flint Water Crisis In Blistering Report

On By peanutgallerynhIn Domestic Affairs,, Environment,, Local Interest,, Race,Leave a comment

The 69-page inspector general’s report said that those with responsibility for the crisis at EPA’s regional office did not sufficiently invoke their oversight authority under the Safe Drinking Water Act and, in their reluctance to act, let the crisis worsen. 

As is well known by now, the crisis began in 2014 when the city of Flint changed its water source from Lake Huron to the Flint River. Michigan officials repeatedly overlooked complaints from residents—the majority of whom are black—that the water was discolored and had a foul stench.

Behind the scenes, the EPA spent six months arguing with DEQ over whether Michigan was required to add chemicals to the water that would prevent contamination from lead in pipes and plumbing connections.

“We found that the EPA’s internal communications, and communications between the Michigan department and the EPA, did not convey key information about human health risks from lead contamination in Flint.”

Internal Watchdog Blasts EPA’s Response To Flint Water Crisis In Blistering Report | HuffPost

sigh….

‘Find Your Passion’ Is Awful Advice – A major new study questions the common wisdom about how we should choose our careers.

On By peanutgallerynhIn Chick Stuff,, Education,, Media and Culture,, Modern Parenting,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

Those who learned that interests are fixed throughout a person’s life were less captivated by [information unrelated to] their [own] interests.

…The authors also had students learn about either fixed or growth theory and then exposed them to a new interest: Astronomy. First, they had them watch a video made by The Guardian for a general audience about Stephen Hawking’s ideas. It was easy to understand and entertaining. Then the authors had the students read a highly technical, challenging article in the academic journal Science about black holes. Despite saying just moments ago, after viewing the video, that they were fascinated by black holes, the students who were exposed to the fixed theory of interests said they were no longer interested in black holes after reading the difficult Science article. In other words, when you’re told that your interests are somehow ingrained, you give up on new interests as soon as the going gets tough.

…K. Ann Renninger, a professor at Swarthmore College who was not involved with the study, has researched the development of interests and said that “neuroscience has confirmed that interests can be supported to develop.” In other words, with the right help, most people can get interested in almost anything. Before the age of 8, she said, kids will try anything. Between the ages of 8 and 12, they start to compare themselves with others and become insecure if they’re not as good as their peers at something. That’s when educators have to start to find new ways to keep them interested in certain subjects.

Though the authors didn’t examine adults, they told me their findings could apply to an older population as well. For example, people’s interest in parenthood tends to escalate rapidly once they have a real, crying baby in their house. “You could not know the first thing about cancer, but if your mother gets cancer, you’re going to be an expert in it pretty darn quick,” O’Keefe said.

How to Really Find Your Passion – The Atlantic

hmmmm

Astronomers at famed Greenwich observatory turn eyes to the skies again after 60-year break

On By peanutgallerynhIn Europe,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

The Royal Observatory was founded in 1675 by King Charles II and it was a working observatory until 1957, when its instruments were moved to Herstmonceux in Sussex, England. The observatory then became a museum and place that educates the public about modern astronomy. With the new telescope, the site will go back to being a working observatory.

Some of the world’s largest telescopes are located in very isolated places with little light pollution, such as the Atacama desert in Chile, but with new technology Londoners can look at the stars through the Annie Maunder Astrographic Telescope despite the city’s light pollution.

…The new instrument has several cameras and the images it captures will be available to the public via live-streams and workshops. The Royal Observatory is also inviting volunteers with research ideas to use the telescope. The instrument can be used to study the sun that gives life to Earth as well as asteroids and comets that can threaten it. It can be used to look at our own solar system as well as other galaxies. 

Astronomers at famed Greenwich observatory turn eyes to the skies again after 60-year break – ABC News

neat!

Where Marijuana Is Legal, Opioid Prescriptions Fall – Scientific American

On By peanutgallerynhIn American Injustice System,, Drugs & Drink,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

Two papers published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine analyzing more than five years of Medicare Part D and Medicaid prescription data found that after states legalized weed, the number of opioid prescriptions and the daily dose of opioids went way down.

That indicates that some people may be shifting away from prescription drugs to cannabis, though the studies can’t say whether this substitution is actually happening or if patients or doctors are the driving force.

…Previous research has pointed to a similar correlation. A 2014 paper found that states with medical marijuana laws had nearly 25 percent fewer deaths from opioid overdoses.

…One of the two new studies found that people on Medicare filled 14 percent fewer prescriptions for opioids after medical marijuana laws were passed in their states. The second study found that Medicaid enrollees filled nearly 40 fewer opioid prescriptions per 1,000 people each year after their state passed any law making cannabis accessible—with greater drops seen in states that legalized both medical and recreational marijuana.

Where Marijuana Is Legal, Opioid Prescriptions Fall – Scientific American

Opposition to Breast-Feeding Resolution by U.S. Stuns World Health Officials

On By peanutgallerynhIn Modern Parenting,, Money, Class, and Poverty,, Science and Stuff,Leave a comment

A resolution to encourage breast-feeding was expected to be approved quickly and easily by the hundreds of government delegates who gathered this spring in Geneva for the United Nations-affiliated World Health Assembly.

Based on decades of research, the resolution says that mother’s milk is healthiest for children and countries should strive to limit the inaccurate or misleading marketing of breast milk substitutes.

Then the United States delegation, embracing the interests of infant formula manufacturers, upended the deliberations.

Opposition to Breast-Feeding Resolution by U.S. Stuns World Health Officials – The New York Times

Good lord… is there any part of their own espoused values these people will not toss aside for money?

“Life is precious. Think of the children.”

Hawaii Passes Bill Banning Sunscreen That Can Harm Coral Reefs – The New York Times

On By peanutgallerynhIn Environment,, Hawaii,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

An estimated 14,000 tons of sunscreen is believed to be deposited in oceans annually with the greatest damage found in popular reef areas in Hawaii and the Caribbean. In 2015, the nonprofit Haereticus Environmental Laboratory surveyed Trunk Bay beach on St. John, wherevisitors ranged from 2,000 to 5,000 swimmers daily, and estimated over 6,000 pounds of sunscreen was deposited on the reef annually. The same year, it found an average of 412 pounds of sunscreen was deposited daily on the reef at Hanauma Bay, a popular snorkeling destination in Oahu that draws an average of 2,600 swimmers each day.

Sunscreen alternatives …[with] mineral sunblocks with zinc oxide and titanium dioxide ..must be “non-nano” in size to be considered reef-safe. If they are below 100 nanometers, the creams can be ingested by corals.

Hawaii Passes Bill Banning Sunscreen That Can Harm Coral Reefs – The New York Times

hmmmm

Don’t pack sunscreen on your next trip to Hawaii. These hotels will make sure you’re covered

On By peanutgallerynhIn Environment,, Hawaii,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

Before you pack for your next trip to Hawaii, be prepared to leave your favorite sunscreen at home. And don’t worry, your skin won’t fry.

Scientific research shows that oxybenzone – also known as BP-3, contained in many sunscreen lotions, cremes and sprays — is extremely harmful to the state’s fragile coral reefs

Check-in desks and towel supply stations at the company’s nearly 50 properties throughout the state will allow guests to swap their oxybenzone-containing sunscreen for a free bottle of Raw Elements, a reef-safe sunscreen.

Don’t pack sunscreen on your next trip to Hawaii. These hotels will make sure you’re covered

hmmm

Hawaii may ban sunscreen that kills coral reefs. What kind is safe?

On By peanutgallerynhIn Environment,, Hawaii,, Money, Class, and Poverty,Leave a comment

State lawmakers passed a bill Tuesday banning sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate, chemicals believed to cause harm to marine life and coral reefs.

..The bill …prohibit[s] the sale and distribution of sunscreen with those chemicals on the island “without prescription from a licensed healthcare provider.”

“Amazingly, this is a first-in-the-world law,” Gabbard, who introduced the bill, told the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. “When you think about it, our island paradise, surrounded by coral reefs, is the perfect place to set the gold standard for the world to follow. This will make a huge difference in protecting our coral reefs, marine life, and human health.”

Hawaii may ban sunscreen that kills coral reefs. What kind is safe?

hmmm