Errata

Bokashi!

An example--and perhaps the house's most unique feature--is its zero-energy heating and cooling system, which uses only dried straw and agricultural fermentation. In the summer, the straw dries up in transparent window shelves that act as "heat shield panels" by releasing cool moisture into the home as the straw dries. The straw is then composted in acrylic cases inside the house during winter and can heat the home up to 30 degrees Celsius for up to four weeks through "bokashi," a Japanese low-odor fermentation method. Additionally, the straw only needs to be changed a few times a year.

The Pope:

The pagan world, which hungered for light, had seen the growth of the cult of the sun god, Sol Invictus, invoked each day at sunrise. Yet though the sun was born anew each morning, it was clearly incapable of casting its light on all of human existence. The sun does not illumine all reality; its rays cannot penetrate to the shadow of death, the place where men’s eyes are closed to its light.

I dunno, Pope, the last bunch of dead people I saw were not directly sunlit but I saw 'em pretty good.

The whole world conspires to make a bad person:

OTTAWA — A month after Omar Khadr was transferred to an Edmonton prison for his own safety he was assaulted by a fellow inmate.

The former Guantanamo Bay detainee was attacked at Edmonton Institution just after 8 p.m. on June 14.

[...]

The Toronto-born Khadr, 26, was transferred to Canada last September to serve out the remainder of an eight-year sentence handed down by U.S. military commission for war crimes he pleaded guilty to committing as a 15-year-old in Afghanistan.

This guy may not wish death on all of us, but why shouldn't he?

Today in Conclusions That Conveniently Conform to My Preconceptions:

Trying to find out how the autistic brain is “different” can be like studying a spinning coin: one side says its circuits are over-connected; the other, under-connected.

How can the autistic brain do extraordinary things, like retain a photographic memory of city streets, yet fail to recall a face? Store a large vocabulary, yet fall flat in social conversation?

New evidence from a Stanford University study published online Wednesday in JAMA Psychiatry freezes the coin on the hyper-connection side, at least for a time. It suggests that children with autism have higher connectivity in certain large-scale circuits, including one that helps determine the relative importance of stimuli, and another that mediates between the “inside” and “outside” world of the mind.

Totally ripping this post off:





Another obvious thing I did not know demands regulation:

Celebrities who brazenly plug freebie products on Twitter have been warned to use the hashtag “ad” to avoid falling foul of the law.

A tweeted endorsement by a celebrity to their army of followers is now seen as the most effective form of direct advertising for many youth-focused brands.

Sponsored tweets don’t come cheap - socialite Kim Kardashian earns up to £6,300 for every message she posts on her account.

The director of the Urbana Free Library thinks books that are more than ten years old are embarrassing to read. Hard-to-read FOIA documents here, in which workers tell the story of Brand New Technology - spiffy RFID checkout system! - making some bossy nitwit called Deb Lissak go crazy. Tinfoil would protect against RFID radiation.