- I am a geography novice. Took this quiz a few times. The first attempt was brutal. The next couple tries were better, but only because I was getting countries such as Germany and Brazil rather than ones I’d never heard of. Clearly, I could spend more time studying maps of Africa, the former Soviet republics, and the island nations.
- A cool animation of a day of flights over North America.
- The Lincolnization of Bush. On Friday, President Bush continued his effort to compare himself to Abraham Lincoln. Asked about his weird comment on a “Third [Religious] Awakening,” Mr Bush responded:
I’d just read a book on Abraham Lincoln, and his presidency was right around the time of what they called the Second Awakening, and I was curious to know whether or not these smart people felt like there was any historical parallels.
Is our president learning American history? The Second Awakening actually occurred before Lincoln, primarily in the 1820s and 1830s. He might want to check that book again.
But it gets funnier:I also said that I had run for office the first time to change a culture . . . to helping to work change a culture in which each of us are responsible for the decisions we make in life. In other words, ushering in a responsibility era.
Uh, Bush being part of a “responsibility era”? That’s stand up comedy material.
- Health/diet:
The current [spinach E. coli] outbreak follows food-borne illnesses from cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce, strawberries, raspberries, cantaloupes and unpasteurized apple and orange juices over the last several years. In 2004, produce-related outbreaks surpassed those associated with beef, poultry or fish, with 86 outbreaks, compared with 29 in 1997, when the states started electronic reporting to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Hmm, widespread problems with fruits and vegetables? What is safe to eat these days?