Sunday, January 20, 2013

Giant, awesome ‘tree lobster’ survived 80 years in hiding

A giant, awesome bug that looks like an alien almost didn't survive because people are idiots.


The Lord Howe Island stick insect, which you see hatching below, looking like an alien struggling out of a human torso, will grow to the size of your hand. 

It’s also called a “tree lobster” — that’s how big it is.
English: Lord Howe Island phasmid
English: Lord Howe Island phasmid (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The most incredible thing about these insects, though, is not how big they are or how Geigeresque they look, but how close they came to not existing. In the early 20th century, a British trade ship crashed on the South Pacific island that these stick insects inhabited, and black rats from its hold took over the island and ate all the bugs. 

One very small population survived, hanging out around one tiny little bush on another island (really more of a bare outcropping of rock), until a pair of Australian scientists found them there.






I really recommend NPR’s Robert Krulwich’s telling of this story. Here’s a taste:
On their way down, on a precarious, unstable rock surface, they saw a single melaleuca bush peeping out of a crack and, underneath, what looked like fresh droppings of some large insect …The only thing to do was to go back up after dark, with flashlights and cameras, to see if the pooper would be out taking a nighttime walk. Nick Carlile and a local ranger, Dean Hiscox, agreed to make the climb. And with flashlights, they scaled the wall till they reached the plant, and there, spread out on the bushy surface, were two enormous, shiny, black-looking bodies. And below those two, slithering into the muck, were more, and more … 24 in all. All gathered near this one plant.
To sum up, a giant, awesome bug that looks like an alien almost didn’t survive because people are idiots (and rats are jerks). But it did, because sometimes people aren’t total idiots and are a little bit brave. And now you can watch how awesome this bug is on the internet.

Hat tip to the GristList

kthanxbai! 

 http://jumblerant.blogspot.com
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Monday, January 14, 2013

The 2012 Sports Illustrated Kids SportsKids of the Year, brothers

Just in case you were wondering what real heroes look like, Sports Illustrated is showing them off as the
2012 Sports Illustrated Kids SportsKids of the Year.

An inspired choice in my opinion;




And may I suggest you get a box of tissues ready for your potential blubbering at this video?


kthanxbai!

 http://jumblerant.blogspot.com
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Thursday, January 10, 2013

I'm British

Well, there's no denying it. I'm British.

I spell things in a different way; colour, grey, aluminium, favourite,

I have words that others don't understand; trousers, underpants, grocer

And of course, have a different meaning to some words; braces, buns, democracy...

Well, Prof. Elemental has really stated quite well what we're all about;



kthanxbai! http://jumblerant.blogspot.com
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Tuesday, January 8, 2013

So Many Bad Jokes

The main reason i loved this video, apart from a great wealth of jokes to taunt my son with? My favourite joke of all time is in there.

Horse walks into a bar. Barman says 'why the long face'?

Love it!!



Tommy Cooper will be laughing from up on high;

Tommy Cooper
Tommy Cooper (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

kthanxbai!

http://jumblerant.blogspot.com
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Monday, January 7, 2013

QEII and Her Majesty


Its not easy, being Queen. 

Especially when you've got a squadron of soldiers marching outside your house at all hours of the day! It must be nice when they mix things up a bit though:



kthanxbai!

 http://jumblerant.blogspot.com

Thursday, January 3, 2013

One Zany Minute

A good friend of mine created this video for her small business, run out of the TV room in her home. She really is an incredibly gifted and talented artist, producing some of the most beautiful and colourful Judaica out there. Heck we have at least 3 of her pieces hanging on our walls!

I'm also quite impressed with the energy she has in the video, and that she has the guts to do it at all!

Well done Marci, I'm passing it along, just like your Mama asked.

<a href="http://www.linkedtube.com/VA4F8bLfIBc1ab69a176c3470ccdd5ae41a0e705749.htm">LinkedTube</a>

What do you think of it?

kthanxbai!

http://jumblerant.blogspot.com
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Friday, December 28, 2012

Hey, Janet Hasson, Cyndee Royle and Nancy Cutler, Its Payback Time



Stage 1:
A newspaper in New York has received a wave of criticism from its readers after publishing the names and addresses of all of the individuals with handgun or pistol permits in its coverage area.
Hundreds of residents in New York's Westchester and Rockland counties were surprised to find their names and addresses listed on a map posted by The Journal News on Sunday. Users can click any dot on the map to see which of their neighbors has a permit for a gun.
 
The map sparked more than 500 comments from readers within a day of its appearance on the website, many of them voicing outrage at the paper's decision to make the information public.
The full article can be found HERE

So what would a proportional response be for the individuals whose details were published? Track them down and leave a horse's head in their beds?

Oh no, they're a bunch of conniving ne'erdowells down there

Stage 2:

The following has been published on literally hundreds of pro-gun blogs around the world

These are the phone numbers and addresses of the people that had the nerve to publish the names and addresses of the legal gun permit holders a few days ago in their news paper. Go and give em a piece of your mind.

Apparently these are the addresses of the "journalists":

Journal News President: Janet Hasson, 3 Gate House Lane Mamaroneck, NY 10534 (914) 694-5204
Editors: Cyndee Royle, 1133 Westchester Ave., Suite N110, White Plains, NY 10604, 914-694-9300
Nancy Cutler 9 Woodwind Ln, Spring Valley, NY. (845) 354-3485
Parent company of The Journal News Gannett CEO Gracia C Martore 728 Springvale Rd Great Falls, VA 22066 (703) 759-5954
The reporter on the story is Dwight R Worley 23006 139 Ave Springfield Gardens, NY 11413 (718) 527-0832

SOURCE
Oh yeah, these people gave as good as they got.

Now try and Google your own names Janet Hasson, Cyndee Royle and Nancy Cutler. You won't be getting any relevant results until page 20 at least!

Hat-tip to Wirecutter over at Knuckledraggin My Life Away


kthanxbai!

http://jumblerant.blogspot.com
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Thursday, December 27, 2012

What An E-commerce Website Shouldn't Look Like

I despise websites that make it nearly impossible to buy from them. I'm also lucky enough to work in a position where I can control my own clients' websites (to some degree) from becoming evil.
Image representing Google as depicted in Crunc...

Instead of showing you a variety of naff websites, I thought I'd show you how Google sees websites that just don't help users. Their explanations are great and should be shared to the world!*









kthanxbai!

 http://jumblerant.blogspot.com

* slightly over zealous, but heck, its what I do!
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Monday, December 24, 2012

Bacon. Mmmmm, bacon......

Yup, I finally managed to send a blog-friend the photo I took for him.

Go check it out. The one thing I miss now that I am who I am...

Knuckledraggin My Life Away: Bacon. Mmmmm, bacon......

kthanxbai!

 http://jumblerant.blogspot.com

Friday, December 21, 2012

School Shooting: Sandy Hook Elementary

The murder of innocent children.

What should our reaction be and what is our gut instinct?

My gut instinct reacts to the pain and anguish for the kids and their families. My reaction is to listen to all sides int his argument.

Like Insomniac Medic, here, I'm confused. I've discussed numerous times before, and again this week, with people in my office who say 'ban all guns' but that just cannot be the answer, if only because it's slamming the barn door shut after the horse has bolted.

English: New York Times Bestseller Larry Corre...
English: New York Times Bestseller Larry Correia at WorldCon 69: Renovation (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
The best, most level headed and expert opinion I have read has been from Larry Correia who is now a successful (and gifted!) author, but before picking up the pen, was a gun store owner, weapons instructor and gun enthusiast. I strongly suggest you read his excellent piece 'An Opinion On Gun Control'.


If, after reading Larry's opinion, you are still worried that the government are coming to take away your rifle or ammo, read this piece by AnarchAngel 'Stupidity, Politics and Math'.

And remember - let's keep safe out there.

kthanxbai!

http://jumblerant.blogspot.com
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