Did Early European Neanderthals Make Art?

There is some recent evidence that they did, but when you put it in context, the question becomes both more complicated (and unanswerable) and interesting. As is true of most things in Archaeology, once you add context. Here is the public summary of the work in question: It has been suggested that Neandertals, as well … Continue reading Did Early European Neanderthals Make Art? →

The post Did Early European Neanderthals Make Art? appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/28/early-european-neanderthals-make-art/

Politicking At The Polling Place: Minnesota at SCOTUS

There is a case being decided right now by the Supreme Court of the United States, about whether or not people can wear clothing or adornments that express political messages at the polling places. Minnesota has, it appears, a fairly strict rule, and it is being challenged. The Supreme Court seems poised to decide against … Continue reading Politicking At The Polling Place: Minnesota at SCOTUS →

The post Politicking At The Polling Place: Minnesota at SCOTUS appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/28/politicking-polling-place-minnesota-scotus/

A gun by any other name is still a gun…

Gun synonyms: firearm, pistol, revolver, rifle, shotgun, carbine, automatic, handgun, semiautomatic, machine gun, Uzi; A rifle has a long rifled barrel. Rifling is a spiral groove that causes the bullet to spin. A spinning bullet flies straighter, so point-blank range is longer. Point-blank is not gun-to-the-head (or rifle-to-the-head) distance, it is simply the distance over … Continue reading A gun by any other name is still a gun… →

The post A gun by any other name is still a gun… appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/28/gun-name-still-gun/

What does a carnivorous flying squid eat …

… when it is a baby squidette? That is not the opening line of a joke. This is very serious. Answer: Detritus. You might think of the flying squid as a strange and unusual form of squid, but actually, the term refers to an entire family of squids, the Ommastrephidae, which, in turn, includes the … Continue reading What does a carnivorous flying squid eat … →

The post What does a carnivorous flying squid eat … appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/28/carnivorous-flying-squid-eat/

Who is Brad Parscale?

Trump has just named Brad Parscale to run his 2020 campaign. LOL on the campaign, but you might want to know who Parscale is. The House Intel committee showed interest in him in mid 2017. Parscale had been Trump’s “digital director,” which would have put him right in the middle of any on-line activity related … Continue reading Who is Brad Parscale? →

The post Who is Brad Parscale? appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/27/who-is-brad-parscale/

Saving Snow

This is a documentary on addressing the carbon footprint of one of the biggest carbon polluters that is most affected by their own pollution: The ski industry. If you are in the Twin Cities, come by Davanni’s in Plymouth (on Harbor) on February 27th, 7:00 PM to see the movie. I don’t think it is … Continue reading Saving Snow →

The post Saving Snow appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/23/saving-snow/

I for one welcome Donald Trump’s policy to arm half the teachers …

… because of this: Some of my best friends are teachers, including my wife. Overall, teachers are the best people. When I imagine a trained armed force larger than the United States Marine Corps, made up of 100% teachers, teachers ready to put things right, I get all giddy. But seriously… Trump has suggested that … Continue reading I for one welcome Donald Trump’s policy to arm half the teachers … →

The post I for one welcome Donald Trump’s policy to arm half the teachers … appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/23/one-welcome-donald-trumps-policy-arm-half-teachers/

Tim Walz Can Not Waltz Back His Pro Gun Political Career

“Tim Walz. He works for us.” – the NRA (see video below) Tim Walz was a strong supporter of Republican/NRA gun policy from the beginning of his political career. There wasn’t a moment that he wavered in his support for access to assault style weapons such as those used to kill 17 people at Stoneman … Continue reading Tim Walz Can Not Waltz Back His Pro Gun Political Career →

The post Tim Walz Can Not Waltz Back His Pro Gun Political Career appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/23/tim-walz-can-not-waltz-back-pro-gun-political-career/

NRA Supported Politicians: They are coming for you.

I want to tell you one of my favorite political stories. Then, I want to tell you my newest favorite political story. The Minnesota Legislature has a High School Page program. They’ve been running it for decades. Each member of the Minnesota House of Representatives, from across the state (distributed uniformly by population density) brings … Continue reading NRA Supported Politicians: They are coming for you. →

The post NRA Supported Politicians: They are coming for you. appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/21/nra-supported-politicians-coming/

Trump and Gun Control. LOL Republicans.

Donald Trump will advance the regulation and control of deadly weapons but not in the way you might think. He is currently contemplating, which is a big word to use for Trump so maybe I mean having some verbal diarrhea that vaguely resembles an idea, banning assault style weapons and bump stocks. Of course, he … Continue reading Trump and Gun Control. LOL Republicans. →

The post Trump and Gun Control. LOL Republicans. appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/21/trump-gun-control-lol-republicans/

Minnesota Gubernatorial Candidate Calls For Gun Safety Bill

Minnesota gubernatorial candidate Rebecca Otto just released a letter calling on the Minnesota House and Senate, which returned to session this morning, to ban assault type rifles and bump stocks, and to institute universal background checks. Otto is currently State Auditor, and is running in a fairly large field for Governor. Her main opponent is … Continue reading Minnesota Gubernatorial Candidate Calls For Gun Safety Bill →

The post Minnesota Gubernatorial Candidate Calls For Gun Safety Bill appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/20/minnesota-gubernatorial-candidate-calls-gun-safety-bill/

How the US Political System Works: Legislatures and assemblies

Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump could not be more different is so many ways there is not enough ink to describe them. But they do share one thing in common. Well, great hair, but besides that. Sanders and Trump, through their respective runs for President of the United States, each brought a group of people … Continue reading How the US Political System Works: Legislatures and assemblies →

The post How the US Political System Works: Legislatures and assemblies appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/20/us-political-system-works-legislatures-assemblies/

How to make hot cocoa. Using science.

The premise is that you want to use cheap hot cocoa mix but you want it to be good. Chemistry can help you. I had already discovered these methods from trial and error, but it is nice to know that my folklore matches the actual chemistry.

The post How to make hot cocoa. Using science. appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/20/make-hot-cocoa-using-science/

How to Retrofit a 400 Watt HID Fixture

Where do you start? What are the options? Should you consider a retrofit kit or use a 360 degree post top screw in bulb? Here are some of the things you should consider before you purchase…

Source: https://www.myledlightingguide.com/blog-how-to-retrofit-a-400-watt-hid

source https://myledlightingguide1.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/how-to-retrofit-a-400-watt-hid-fixture/

How to determine if it makes sense to convert to led

We all know you can save a lot of money converting to LED. Depending on the product you select, energy savings can be as high as 75%, even more with controls. But how do you decide whether replacing your lights with LED is worth it? Follow the 1+1+1 rule.

Source: https://www.myledlightingguide.com/blog-how-to-determine-if-it-makes-sense-to-convert-to-led

source https://myledlightingguide1.wordpress.com/2018/02/19/how-to-determine-if-it-makes-sense-to-convert-to-led/

The Star Spangled Banner Done Right

I’ve never like the Star Spangled Banner. For one thing, it is a lie. The flag was still there, but the fort was utterly destroyed. It wasn’t “taken” by the British … they just bombed it all the way to Bolivia then sailed off. But it was a British Naval victory embodied in an American … Continue reading The Star Spangled Banner Done Right →

The post The Star Spangled Banner Done Right appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/19/star-spangled-banner-done-right/

Paul Ryan on the Massacre of Children

It appears that there never will come a time when we should do anything about the massacre of children or mass killings in general, according to the Republican leader:

The post Paul Ryan on the Massacre of Children appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/18/paul-ryan-massacre-children/

Are you ready for a national school walkout?

The idea is to protest how easily school shootings seem to happen, and how our country has not reacted to this problem ever, other than sending around a lot of thoughts and prayers. You should know that the planning of this event has already been adulterated by either idiotic Americans or smart Russian spies. Watch … Continue reading Are you ready for a national school walkout? →

The post Are you ready for a national school walkout? appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/18/ready-national-school-walkout/

Mueller Indicts 13 people

That’s 13 Russians and 3 Russian entities. The document filed in the US District Court for DC is HERE.

The post Mueller Indicts 13 people appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/16/mueller-indicts-13-people/

Gun Control and School Shootings

When a school shooting happens, good people become horrified and many ask for better gun laws. The answer that comes from the anti-safeguard lobby, those who mainly want guns to be unregulated with respect to ownership, safety, use, or disposition, is that such laws would not have stopped the tragedy that prompted the conversation. They … Continue reading Gun Control and School Shootings →

The post Gun Control and School Shootings appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/15/gun-control-school-shootings/

Photometric Results to Replace 400W Metal Halide Highbay

So you have a factory or warehouse, and you currently have 400W Metal Halide or HPS high bays, and you are thinking to convert over to LED. But you want to make sure that the light levels are good before you buy? How can you be sure?
Source: https://www.myledlightingguide.com/blog-photometric-results-to-replace-400W-metal-halide-highbay

source https://myledlightingguide1.wordpress.com/2018/02/12/photometric-results-to-replace-400w-metal-halide-highbay/

3 Key Points to Consider When Purchasing a LED Retrofit Kit

So you are in the market for a LED Retrofit Kit. You have existing fixtures and you want to save money by gutting them and installing a LED Head and Driver to replace your metal halide bulb and ballast. There are a lot of similar looking kits out there, so how do you choose. Well here’s a small list of 3 points to consider before you purchase.
Source: https://www.myledlightingguide.com/blog-3-key-points-to-consider-when-purchasing-a-led-retrofit-kit

source https://myledlightingguide1.wordpress.com/2018/02/12/3-key-points-to-consider-when-purchasing-a-led-retrofit-kit/

9 Steps to Choosing the Right LED Parking Lot and Area Light

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All commercial property owners might be considering converting over to LED. Outdoors, they may have Metal Halide Shoebox lights that are consuming 400W to 1000W each, and so installing new LED Shoebox Lights in their parking areas makes sense, right? 

Source: https://www.myledlightingguide.com/blog-how-to-choose-the-right-parking-lot-light

source https://myledlightingguide1.wordpress.com/2018/02/11/9-steps-to-choosing-the-right-led-parking-lot-and-area-light-2/

9 Steps to Choosing the Right LED Parking Lot and Area Light

.auto-style1 {
text-align: center;
}

All commercial property owners might be considering converting over to LED. Outdoors, they may have Metal Halide Shoebox lights that are consuming 400W to 1000W each, and so installing new LED Shoebox Lights in their parking areas makes sense, right? 

Source: https://www.myledlightingguide.com/blog-how-to-choose-the-right-parking-lot-light

source https://myledlightingguide1.wordpress.com/2018/02/10/9-steps-to-choosing-the-right-led-parking-lot-and-area-light/

President’s Daily Brief

Sometime after World War II, it became increasingly apparent that intelligence gathered by a growing number of US federal agencies needed to be part of the day to day policy decision making practice of the President. As the intelligence agencies themselves evolved (from the OSS to the CIA, in one lineage, for example) the idea … Continue reading President’s Daily Brief →

The post President’s Daily Brief appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/09/presidents-daily-brief/

Two books cheap

Neil de Grasse Tyson’s Merlin’s Tour of the Universe: A Skywatcher’s Guide to Everything from Mars and Quasars to Comets, Planets,Blue Moons, and Werewolves for Kindle for three bucks. Steven Kotler’s The Rise of Superman: Decoding the Science of Ultimate Human Performance on Kindle for two bucks. These prices are likely to change at any … Continue reading Two books cheap →

The post Two books cheap appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/08/two-books-cheap/

Military Parades

Donald Trump has ordered his military to stage a parade. This is not normal in America, but it is normal in dictatorships across the world and throughout history. Here are a few examples to give you a flavor. Mussolini Military Parade, Italy, 1936 Hitler Military Parade, Germany, 1938 Saddam Hussein Military Parade, Iraq Assad Military … Continue reading Military Parades →

The post Military Parades appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/08/military-parades/

Impeachment Party

Donald Trump is never going to be thrown out of office by Congress. Here is what is going to happen. In November, between 30 and 50 seats in the House of Representatives will switch from red to blue. (I’ll have a more detailed and regularly updated prediction on that later on, but that’s my rough … Continue reading Impeachment Party →

The post Impeachment Party appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/08/impeachment-party/

This Year’s Super Bowl Controversy Will Be …

… I’m not sure. We will see if anyone takes a knee, or if Pink has a wardrobe malfunction. I’m sure there will be controversial ads (there is already a controversy about the bro-osity factor being so large during a #MeToo year). My wife actually knows several people who will be performing during half time, … Continue reading This Year’s Super Bowl Controversy Will Be … →

The post This Year’s Super Bowl Controversy Will Be … appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/03/years-super-bowl-controversy-will/

Peak Trump

A man works tirelessly for months, acquiring parts, assembling them, making a machine that grows larger every day and eventually takes the intended form. Eventually it is ready. He rolls the machine to the edge of a cliff, climes into a makeshift chair near the center of it, and with help from his neighbor (who … Continue reading Peak Trump →

The post Peak Trump appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/02/peak-trump/

The Nunes Memo is out, here it is

This is a memo from the White House to Devin Nunes telling Nunes it is OK to release the memo, followed by the memo itself. (At this point you may want to know about this guy, the person running against Nunes for his seat in the House.) The memo is from the staff of the … Continue reading The Nunes Memo is out, here it is →

The post The Nunes Memo is out, here it is appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/02/the-nunes-memo-is-out-here-it-is/

Why I will caucus for Rebecca Otto on Tuesday

This Tuesday, February 6, Minnesotans will attend their precinct caucuses. There will be an essentially meaningless preference straw poll for Governor, and delegates will be selected to go on to the next level of conventioneering. I intend to vote for Auditor Rebecca Otto in the straw poll, and to join with others to represent my … Continue reading Why I will caucus for Rebecca Otto on Tuesday →

The post Why I will caucus for Rebecca Otto on Tuesday appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/01/will-caucus-rebecca-otto-tuesday/

Mechanical Keyboards: What are they and which one do you want?

Once upon a time there was the Northgate OmniKey Keyboard, most notably the OmniKey Plus. It was the best keyboard ever. It was sturdy, mechanical, and proffered a plethora of function keys. It was heavy, meaty, robust. You could pound on it an it would stay in place on your desk and just take it. … Continue reading Mechanical Keyboards: What are they and which one do you want? →

The post Mechanical Keyboards: What are they and which one do you want? appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/01/mechanical-keyboards-one-want/

Measurements of the human male kakadodo organ, does it matter and why?

This is a repost of an item I put up in 2013 based on some interesting scientific research. Today, I was told by Google that if I do not take the article down, I will lose my ad sense qualification. Google and companies like Google are giant behemoths that do not have humans to whom … Continue reading Measurements of the human male kakadodo organ, does it matter and why? →

The post Measurements of the human male kakadodo organ, does it matter and why? appeared first on Greg Laden's Blog.

source http://gregladen.com/blog/2018/02/01/measurements-human-male-kakadodo-organ-matter/