06 Jul 2004
Old is young, study finds

Just a clever headline: the study actually concerns the evolutionary advantages conferred by having a grandmother around. Fascinating stuff...

Researchers have discovered a dramatic increase in human longevity that took place during the early Upper Paleolithic Period, around 30,000 B.C. In their study of more than 750 fossils to be published July 5 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, anthropologists found a dramatic increase in longevity among modern humans during that time: the number of people surviving to an older age more than quadrupled.

(link) [Science Blog - Science News Stories]

00:00 /Technology | 0 comments | permanent link

Well, Damn!

I guess that I won't be voting for Kerry this year after all. Despite my general agreement on most of his policies, and despite my absolute disgust with the current administration, I cannot bring myself to vote to put a trial lawyer anywhere near the White House.

The Almanac of American Politics notes that Edwards began his legal career by representing recording companies accused of pirating Elvis Presley records.

As a senator, Edwards has fought GOP-led efforts to place award limits on lawsuits.

When my eldest daughter told me she was contemplating law shcool, I told her that under no circumstances could she expect any monentary support from me in such an endeavor, and urged her to pick a more honest and upstanding profession, like, say, prostitution.

Bush, the Religious Right and the neocons are all huge problems for this country, but lawyers are the root off all our problems, and for me to pull the lever for one this fall would be unthinkable.

Since everybody else seems to be comparing pols to Hitler this campaign season, I have to chime in that I wish Kerry had picked Hitler as his running mate rather than Edwards. If he had, his banner would still be up on my sites, and I'd still be voting Democratic this November, rather than wondering who the Wingnuts are running... actually, if you'll notice the bumper stickers at the left, I think I've made a choice already.

After months of speculation and a highly secretive selection process, presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry, has chosen his colleague Sen. John Edwards as his running mate for the 2004 presidential election, sources close to the campaign say.

(link) [CNN]

00:00 /Politics | 3 comments | permanent link