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away on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Thu, 05 Nov 2009 02:38:31 -0800

Styofoam cup art.

PHP IDE - NuSphere PhpED - Complete PHP IDE for PHP Development.

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:27:35 -0800

Commercial software to assist php programmers.

Software to convert php into run-time "compiled" code, to avoid tampering with your code.

Australian internet fails pigeon test - Oddware - Technology - News - iTnews.com.au

Tue, 03 Nov 2009 04:18:12 -0800

From the page: A pigeon has transferred 700MB at a faster rate than Telstra ADSL.

A pigeon has transferred a 700 megabyte file faster than a car or a Telstra ADSL internet connection in rural Australia.

The bizarre experiment, conducted in rural New South Wales, was prompted by a comment by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd in Parliament last week whilst attacking the Liberal Party for its opposition to the bill that proposed to split Telstra.

"If the Liberals had their way Australians would be left using carrier pigeons for the future rather than accessing an internationally competitive broadband network," Rudd said.

ABC television's Hungry Beast program thought they'd take Rudd up on his challenge.

The hosts noted a similar test that had been done in South Africa where an IT company tested their own internet speeds by replacing it with a carrier pigeon. The pigeon won.

"Surely our internet speeds are faster than a pigeon," asked co-host Dan Ilic.

The race started in Tarana New South Wales and finished 132 kilometres away in Prospect.

The pigeon arrived first clocking in at one hour and five minutes, the car two hours and ten minutes and the internet dropped out twice and didn't even make it at all. When the upload began on the internet connection the estimated time of upload was between four and nine hours.

"So Prime Minister, maybe you should think twice before dissing carrier pigeons," Ilic said.

Unleashed: When will the shallowness end?

Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:21:24 -0800

One of the many opinion pieces the Australian Broadcasting Commission publishes on its website. Today an exhortation to lead ourselves away from superficiality if we are to experience the pain and satisfaction that intimacy brings.

"...so much of our every day life -- conversations in queues, reading newspapers, watching television -- is routinely superficial. It involves little reflection or analysis. It's what German philosopher Martin Heidegger called "groundless floating" -- a sort of existential treading water, which adds little to our character.

We lose ourselves in daily interaction with things and people, rarely questioning the fundamental ideas or values we're upholding -- perhaps they're a little frightening.

And the entertainment media feed on this, of course. If it's 'idle talk' we want, magazines like New! will supply it: a few minutes of distracted bliss, where the abstract failures or triumphs of famous strangers can take us away from ourselves.

Jordan's sex life is a vaporous lure for groundless floating.

But when, then, does the shallowness end? What moments offers us retreat from surfaces and reflexes? For someone like Heidegger, it presumably ends with philosophy or poetry -- with some radical authenticity, or re-envisioning of Western civilization. Others have replied with God, art or revolution.

But with Jordan in mind, I'm suggesting intimacy. In its genuine form, love is one genuine antidote to distraction and superficiality. I'm not talking Hollywood romance, with its predictable plots and happy endings -- though they're aiming at something valuable. And I'm not talking about sex, though it's often part of the magic.

The reason is simple: regardless of how the world changes, love enters into your mind as a non-negotiable fact. It is inescapably, painfully real.

You can fake marriages, orgasms and literary careers (Jordan's ghostwriter has written several best-selling books), but it's almost impossible to fake intimacy.

And if you can, it's a futile charade. This is chiefly because the sacrifices it demands are only worthwhile to someone rewarded by it. To love genuinely, you have to give up many things -- not simply time, or money, or a tidy lounge-room, but the sovereignty of your psyche.

To truly love is to give up shibboleths of absolute freedom, and admit that another person has a stake in your life; in the vicissitudes of your consciousness.

And this is particularly the case when we have children. Once they enter your life, kids push you again and again to recognise your faults and frailties, and reassess how and why you're living. They're the ultimate existential test."

Welcome to Pasture Cropping & No Kill Cropping

Sun, 01 Nov 2009 20:26:18 -0800

Direct drilling winter grain crops into pasture. Improving retained soil carbon, and many other advantages.

http://saltwatermatt.stumbleupon.com/review/37179984/

Tue, 27 Oct 2009 03:18:13 -0700

From a Market Farming discussion list I enjoy:

(This contribution was made by Alex McGregor of
Walden Ridge, TN)

Don't know of any graphs- probably because carbon loss after tillage differs
because of different tillage methods, depth, bioactivity of the soil... But
there is carbon loss after all tillage. Tillage incorporates relatively
oxygen rich atmospheric air into the soil. This causes a population
explosion in the soil biology and carbon compounds get processed at a faster
rate than in untilled soil. The end product of carbon compound processing
for food is carbon dioxide a gas.

Simplified, carbon compounds are processed by the soil biology and at the
end of this chain it is converted to carbon dioxide, a gas. The CO2 in the
soil readily leaves the soil through a number of mechanisms- gas dispersion,
heating and cooling of soil, displacement of soil gases by water, etc.

As for your second question, mulching will not prevent carbon loss. Mulching
has other benefits I'm sure you're aware of- preventing soil crusting.
suppressing weeds, retaining soil moisture, slowing soil heat/cool cycle,
reduce erosion, food at the surface for the soil ecosystem.

I also practice no till gardening- double dug beds one time 24 years ago and
only do surface cultivation. And I've grown sweet potatoes in beds- it hurts
me to tear up the beautiful soil structure diggin' taters, but they sure
taste good! The only thing I know of to heal the soil (rebuild structure and
replace lost carbon) is to add finished compost at or near the soil surface
and plant or transplant a cool weather crop that will overwinter. Then
adding mulch would help protect the soil from crusting and erosion until the
soil biology can rebuild a stable structure.

I hope I haven't gotten too technical, but my thinking is that I have to
know as much as I can about the soil and soil biologic processes to be able
to manage it.

Enjoy those taters!

Alex McGregor
Walden Ridge, TN

Runaway bus misses man - ABC News (Australian Broadcasting Corporation)

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 04:40:22 -0700

look left, look right, expect runaway bus!

Nine seconds that almost took all of this man's nine lives.

TOM_1838 on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:42:11 -0700

Best Nude Beaches In The World

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:37:59 -0700

Best nude beaches in the world.

25 Secrets

Thu, 15 Oct 2009 03:31:35 -0700

From the page:

Dare I say it happened to me? It was a long time ago but I remember it like it was yesterday. We had been flirting online for weeks and had progressed to phone conversations. I thought he had a great voice and he said he was turned on by mine. Who wouldn't have been flattered by that? I thought he was perfect for me and couldn't wait til we had an opportunity to meet. We'd meet online to chat and we'd talk on the phone and soon the phone bills were more than a plane ticket. Could someone, anyone, be perfect for me? I had to know.

My grown children were shocked. I was NOT to meet this man.

"He could be an axe murderer," said my daughter.

"He could be a jerk," said my son.

They both were worried for my safety and all I could think of was what if he WAS perfect for me. Did I want to go through my entire life wondering if I'd missed out on the good one? I'd already had a bad one and didn't want another one like that.

We made plans to meet but all we promised each other was that we would each have a good time. No other promises were made. I think many people meeting through the net make a big mistake by promising love or sex or anything in particular. What if you don't like them? You might feel obligated to have sex with someone you have no desire for - no thanks. I knew we'd have a good time because we enjoyed each other's company online and on the phone so in person couldn't be too bad.

I made the journey and he was waiting for me with a bouquet of roses and when he saw me he threw them on the floor and put his arms around me and kissed me. How cool was that? He did pick up the flowers and give them to me after the kiss. He was exactly like he'd been on the net. He was intelligent, fun, sexy, friendly, honest, witty and did I say sexy?

We got to his place and in his great concern for my exhaustion from the travel, he suggested that I take a shower and lie down.

"Nothing will happen, you just need some rest."

Uh huh. I took the shower and went to lie down and we got up after we'd had sex SEVEN times.

It's been more than 13 years since we met and he's still perfect for me.