Happy 2008! We skipped December entirely because it’s been busy - not that you care. Regardless of our business, XEAI will be getting some new material up soon!
In other news, to celebrate the New Year, the USDOT has banned spare lithium batteries in carry-on luggage. The question is, are they banning then because they could be used to fire a detonator…or instead, repacked with explosive? Banned as of today.
Effective January 1, 2008, the following rules apply to the spare lithium batteries you carry with you in case the battery in a device runs low:
* Spare batteries are the batteries you carry separately from the devices they power. When batteries are installed in a device, they are not considered spare batteries.
* You may not pack a spare lithium battery in your checked baggage
* You may bring spare lithium batteries with you in carry-on baggage – see our spare battery tips and how-to sections to find out how to pack spare batteries safely!
* Even though we recommend carrying your devices with you in carry-on baggage as well, if you must bring one in checked baggage, you may check it with the batteries installed.
The following quantity limits apply to both your spare and installed batteries. The limits are expressed in grams of “equivalent lithium content.” 8 grams of equivalent lithium content is approximately 100 watt-hours. 25 grams is approximately 300 watt-hours:
* Under the new rules, you can bring batteries with up to 8-gram equivalent lithium content. All lithium ion batteries in cell phones are below 8 gram equivalent lithium content. Nearly all laptop computers also are below this quantity threshold.
* You can also bring up to two spare batteries with an aggregate equivalent lithium content of up to 25 grams, in addition to any batteries that fall below the 8-gram threshold. Examples of two types of lithium ion batteries with equivalent lithium content over 8 grams but below 25 are shown below.
* For a lithium metal battery, whether installed in a device or carried as a spare, the limit on lithium content is 2 grams of lithium metal per battery.
* Almost all consumer-type lithium metal batteries are below 2 grams of lithium metal. But if you are unsure, contact the manufacturer!
More: http://safetravel.dot.gov/whats_new_batteries.html
Funny we were just having a conversation in the carpool about why some animals choose to eat their young…then this article appeared on MSNBC: Cannibalism was found to increase the parent’s reproductive rate
We wonder if there are any historical cases of human infanticide/cannibalism?
Sclerochronologists1 from The University of Bangor (Wales) dredged a 405-410 year old clam out of the ocean near Iceland in 2006. The creature, a quahog clam, Arctica islandica beat the previous record of 374 years also held by an Artica.
It is believed that the clam would have lived even longer had it not been dredged out of the ocean by scientists seeking long-lived animals.
Read More: 400 Year Clam Found (University of Bangor)
1 Sclerochronologists count the rings in clam shells to determine age. Imagine the banter at office parties!
CNN ran an article about a recent auction of meteorites including a 30lb hunk of the Willamette Meteorite which is the largest recovered meteorite to have hit North America. The auction comprised 50 well-documented specimens and had bids that ran into the hundreds of thousands of dollars (those bids were canceled when they fell short of some 7-figure estimated values).
Scientific and historical value aside, according to CNN, the most interesting items for sale included a mailbox that had been struck by a meteorite (it went for nearly $83,000) and a meteorite whose claim to fame is that it caused the only known, recorded fatality (mass-extinction events excluded).
CNN’s headline to this high-profile, important auction? “Cow-killing meteorite sells for $1,554″ That’s good stuff.
The killer space rock, known as the “Valera” fell in Venezuela in 1972 and killed a cow. Compared to the mailbox price it really says terrible things about the value of a cow’s life. At least that death was not in vain, CNN was able to use it to disguise a science article in a way to make it interesting to the common folk.
Oh, here’s a shot of that mailbox:
Oh, and back to the Willamette Meteorite… that meteorite has been the source of controversy due a claim by The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde who say that the main 15.5 ton mass is a sacred object sent to Earth by some Sky People that they believe in. (The meteorite has been permanently housed at The American Museum of Natural History in New York City since 1908).
Read More:
CNN: Cow-killing meteorite sells for $1,554
Meteoritical Bulletin no. 85: Valera
New government study released: Depression among Adults Employed Full-Time, by Occupational Category
The highest rates of past year MDE among female full-time workers aged 18 to 64 were found in the food preparation and serving related occupations (14.8 percent), and the highest rates among male full-time workers aged 18 to 64 were found in the arts, design, entertainment, sports, and media occupations (6.7 percent)
I used to think that work was depressing but now, with this study, I can prove it!
NSDUH Report: Depression among Adults Employed Full-Time, by Occupational Category
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