From the New York Times:
The Discovery of Shackleton’s Wreck Is as Disquieting as It Is Amazing
No, this is not about numerous members of the far-right Republican wing in Congress (though clearly many of them are plenty slimy).
This is a starfish, which, like the hagfish, produces immense quantities of slime when it senses it is about to be predated upon, and this tactic is apparently pretty effective discouragement.
Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute: Slime Star
Slime star sliming video
Is Maryland a bastion for moderate, sane Republicans?
Maybe.
Why Maryland is a test case for the GOP's future
"In the Maryland primary, Mr. Hogan last week endorsed Kelly Schulz, a former state lawmaker who served in Mr. Hogan’s Cabinet for nearly the entirety of his governorship, first as labor secretary and then, until January, as commerce secretary. She is a pro-business pragmatist and, perhaps more to the point, a Hogan friend and loyalist — the latter being a critical asset in a state where Mr. Hogan’s approval rating is about 75 percent." ...
"In Maryland’s GOP primary, the former president has backed Del. Daniel L. Cox, a two-term Republican from Frederick whose fringe views, which include oblique appeals to the QAnon conspiracists, would have made his candidacy a joke in an earlier era. He has embraced the lie that the former president won the 2020 election; called former vice president Mike Pence a “traitor” for refusing to reject the certification of that outcome; and moved to impeach Mr. Hogan, winning virtually no support in either party. These days, however, a Trump loyalist, even an obscure one such as Mr. Cox, might tap a sizable portion of the party’s base in a state election."
After Houghton, the next stop on the trek is Hancock, Michigan, which will be seen this time. And after that, it's just a few miles along the Keweenaw Peninsula to the end of Highway 41. And that's fairly amazing after all the time I've been doing this.
But first, Hancock.
This particular lighthouse is located about as far north as you can go in the Chesapeake Bay and still be on the water. It's in Havre de Grace, Maryland, which is one of the last towns of note in Maryland just off I-95 before it exits the Free State.
The lighthouse is the Concord Point Light, which has its own website (with a panorama and some tour videos), and which is one of the oldest operating lighthouses in Maryland.
As for location, it can be found here.
I'm going to go to Lighthouse Friends for information this time, because it has more history.
"At the time of its decommissioning in 1975, Concord Point Lighthouse had the distinction of being the oldest beacon in continuous use in Maryland. The name Concord Point is derived from Conquered Point, which is itself a rearrangement of the original christening, Point of Conquest.On the website, you can read about the heroic actions of the lighthouse keeper and his daughter during the battle of Havre de Grace during the War of 1812.
The 484-square-foot lighthouse tract was deeded to the federal government by the town commissioners in 1826, and on May 18 of that year Congress provided $2,500 for the lighthouse and added $1,500 to this amount on March 2, 1827. Donahoo built the thirty-foot-tall lighthouse and the associated keeper’s dwelling, which was located 200 feet away, between May and November of 1827. The lighthouse, a truncated conical tower topped by a lantern and deck, was built with Port Deposit granite, barged down the Susquehanna River."
I was watching the men's NCAA swimming championships, which just ended, and one of the swimmers from the University of Arizona was senior Brooks Fail, who finished seventh in the 1650-yard freestyle, which is definitely NOT a failure. (Made him an All-American.)
Anyways, because I thought that the name "Fail" might have some challenges to live with, I wondered where that name came from. Turns out it's probably Scottish in origin, and likely was a truncation of MacPhail (or McPhail).
Ancestry.com (not an advertisement): Fail
Hey, it's a photography contest! I haven't been able to post about these (and I have several backlogged). This is the most recent mobile / smartphone photography contest I've seen. The Daily Mail highlights some good ones:
Here's the link to the actual contest site.
It's probably at least 15 years too late, but the climate crisis plus the Ukraine war, which highlighted Europe's tenuous dependence on Russian oil and gas, have thrust nuclear energy back into consideration as an important alternative.
Tech Billionaires Rally Around Nuclear as Energy Crisis Looms"But as concerns over climate change grow, nuclear power’s advantages have become clearer. Like solar, nuclear power has no carbon emissions; unlike solar, it can reliably produce energy 24 hours a day. It’s also a path toward energy independence. The war in Ukraine drove gas prices in the U.S. to an all-time high earlier this month. While building more nuclear reactors won’t alleviate the current pain — even the new, smaller designs will take years to license and build — supporters say it could help head off the next crisis."Could? It would ... if they would just get started. But the article goes on to say that the Bill Gates nuclear startup, TerraPower, is expecting to start operations with two plants in 2028.
It's close to spring (actually, I guess in orbital terms, it IS spring), and that means that Michelle Keegan has released her spring fashion collection with VERY of the UK.
And fortunately for many of us men, while the women may be eyeing the fashion, the men are eyeing Michelle.
There's nothing overtly sexy here -- some cleavage in some dresses, nice poses and posing, but hey -- it's Michelle Keegan. From almost any viewpoint and angle, she's phenomenal.
And that smile - heart-stopping.
A couple of selections. This set is quite appealing.
And of course, there's the tempting prospect of Michelle in pajamas with dogs on them.
The Daily Mail, naturally, had an article about this.
I get Travel Trivia messages in my email, which are sometimes fun to play. And they have information, too. I've tried a couple of these "styles", but I want to try that Philadelphia tomato pie (pictured below).
11 US Regional Pizza Styles You Need to Try
This particular lighthouse is ornate and historic, a gorgeous landmark in the Italian coastal city of Trieste. They don't make lighhouses like this anymore; they didn't make many like this back then, either.
Let's first see where it is located. If you click that, it shows where Trieste is in relation to Venice, at the top of the Adriatic Sea.
Now, let's get the perspective of The Lighthouse Directory (linked this time).
"1927. Active; focal plane 115 m (377 ft); two white flashes every 10 s. 68 m (223 ft) round fluted stone tower with lantern and gallery, crowned by a bronze statue of Victoria (winged victory). ... This lighthouse was built after World War I brought Trieste and the Istrian peninsula to the south under Italian control. Built of Istrian stone on the foundation of a 19th century Austrian fortress, the lighthouse was designed by the architect Arduino Berlam with sculptures by Giovanni Mayer. The structure celebrates the Italian victory and is a memorial to Italian sailors lost in the war. It stands on the hill of Gretta, off the Strada del Friuli, about 2 km (1.2 mi) north of the central city and waterfront."
Basically, it's an impressive lighthouse.
So here are the pictures. There are many more, as you will see if you search.
Worth a read, because this is a pattern.
Which party is more ruthless? It's not even close.
"That’s hardly all. On subject after subject, Republicans in the states are going farther than anyone imagined just a short time ago, whether it’s attacking the families of trans kids, banning books, or eliminating any and all gun restrictions. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine just signed a law making his the eighth state just since 2021 to remove permitting requirements for concealed weapons after Alabama passed a similar law last week — no training, no background check, no license required."
Highway 41 is now approaching the last significant population center of the trek: Houghton, Michigan. Before it enters Houghton proper, it passes quickly through the Nara Nature Park, and the Streetview there is terrible. But there are lots of Streetview pictures, so here's one in the park. There are many wintry ones, but this is from July 2021.
A Civil War shell (unexploded) was recently found in Georgia; the finders were going to blow it up. I'm not sure if they did or not; experts on such things said that they didn't have to.
A live Civil War explosive was found in Georgia. Does it need to be destroyed?"The live round was discovered by archaeologists at Kennesaw Mountain, the scene of a major Civil War battle in 1864. Located near Marietta, Ga., this hallowed ground is where Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman of the Union Army charged into Confederate forces headed by Gen. Joseph E. Johnston during Sherman’s famous March to the Sea. Kennesaw Mountain was a tactical defeat for the North but also a strategic loss for the South, which could not prevent Sherman from reaching Atlanta."They should still be careful, or something like this could happen (but on a smaller scale):
Rand Paul has a bad idea, because he has a vendetta against Dr. Anthony Fauci.
"In his op-ed Paul also reiterated accusations that Fauci allowed NIAID to fund controversial gain-of-function research in Wuhan, China, which he and other GOP lawmakers have blamed as the source of the pandemic."
"Paul on Monday also introduced legislation seeking to eliminate Fauci’s position at the National Institutes of Health, claiming that the longtime federal official has accumulated too much power, although the amendment failed to pass the Senate health panel Tuesday."
Good, it was.
Since New York's Long Island is a long island, it has several lighthouses (one site said 25). Some, by virtue of location and visitation, are fairly famous; this one, partly because it can't be visited, does not appear to be one of better known.
This is the Eaton's Neck Lighthouse, and it can't be visited because it's an active Coast Guard base. So first I'll help point out where it is (across the Sound from Stamford, CT) and then move on to both basic stats and a little history.
The Lighthouse Directory provides the basic stats:
"1799 (John McComb). Active; focal plane 144 ft (44 m); continuous white light. 73 ft (22 m) octagonal fieldstone tower with lantern and gallery, attached to 1-story utility building. A 3rd order Fresnel lens (1856) is in use; it is the only active Fresnel lens on Long Island. Lighthouse painted white, lantern roof red. ... This is a treasure: one of only six 18th century lighthouses in the U.S."Lighthouse Friends provides the history:
"The keeper’s dwelling was demolished in 1969, and eleven Coast Guard housing units were added to the station. Eaton’s Neck Lighthouse was also scheduled for demolition, but local activists went to work and succeeded in having the tower placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. The lighthouse continues to show a white light from its classic third-order Fresnel lens – the only Fresnel lens in active use at a Long Island lighthouse."
Just to emphasize the point of the previous post about Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, I'm linking to this political cartoon by the Washington Post's Ann Telnaes.
World-dominating Michelle Keegan (or at least she should be dominating the world) and husband Mark Wright, aka one of the luckiest men in the world, were recently seen in Los Angeles.
Unfortunately, the main picture of MK is not that great. So if you want more of that:
Michelle Keegan has just dropped a spring collection with Very and it's GORGEOUS
Justice Clarence Thomas had something to say recently.
"The court has leaned increasingly conservative since three justices nominated by former President Donald Trump joined its ranks. Progressives have in turn called to expand the number of justices on the court, including during the 2020 presidential primary. Democrats in Congress introduced a bill last year to add four justices to the bench, and President Joe Biden has convened a commission to study expanding the court.Let's look at something else:
'Let’s be honest. This is really about the results they want. They haven’t been able to make the institutions do what they want, to give them what they want. That’s no court at all. That’s no rule of law,' he said on Friday."
The Washington Post goes after stupid (i.e., Florida's leading governmental figures).
Vaccines work for children. Ignore the nonsense spoken in Florida.
"Two years into this nightmare, with more than 961,000 Americans dead, it is still mind-boggling to hear a governor of one of America’s most populous states express doubt about a proven lifesaving medicine. Earlier generations died in huge numbers from pandemics without the benefit of lifesaving vaccines, while we have shots that are remarkably effective, including for children. No one should be deterred from getting vaccinated by the crass politics of the Florida governor and his surgeon general."
More Highway 41 end-to-end Streetview trek views; I can't quite say the end is nigh, but it's closer.
This week, inspired by a recent article I read, the Lighthouse of the Week is the Dice (Dyce) Head Lighthouse, located in Castine, Maine.
Well, this is a subject I've been following closely for years. Man may not step foot in Mars in my lifetime (thought I still strongly hope that somehow I'm around when that happens), but I'm fairly certain that this achievement will be achieved before this decade is out.
(Echo ... echo ... echo ...)
NASA admits it may be time to study sex in space as experts claim it's 'crucial' for long-haul missions to the Moon and Mars"While people going to space for long-durations are currently professional astronauts, in the future it is likely ever more civilians, including couples, will venture into orbit.I'm going to have to read this proposal (published in the Journal of Sex Research, naturally.) The link goes to the abstract; I'm not sure if it's illustrated, and I'm not a subscriber -- I know, amazing, right?
Some of these will want to join the 62-mile-high club, especially if proposals for future space hotels come to fruition."
"While there have been some minor studies on the ISS looking at sex among animals, there has been no detailed look at how humans might copulate in orbit, and it goes beyond that, there has been an active attempt to avoid the subject.he team say that is changing though, with researcher and major space players starting to look at the subject, especially new private industry players.Maria Santaguida, proposal for 'space sex study' co-author, said change is happening, and opening avenues for a proposal to study sex in space."
Despite all the potential dangers (really?), a weightless Kate Upton makes it seem that it certainly is worth taking the moon shot.
Science moves in mysterious ways. Who was actually wondering how long this process takes?
Einstein's Photoelectric Effect: The Time It Takes For An Electron To Be Released
“The length of time between photon absorption and electron emission is very difficult to measure because it is only a matter of attoseconds," explains Till Jahnke, the PhD-supervisor of Jonas Rist. This corresponds to just a few light oscillations. “It has so far been impossible to measure this duration directly, which is why we have now determined it indirectly." To this end the scientists used a COLTRIMS reaction microscope – a measuring device with which individual atoms and molecules can be studied in incredible detail."
Just to make it somewhat easier to comprehend the incomprehensible, an attosecond is one-millionth of a picosecond. And a picosecond is one-trillionth of a second.
Does the world really need a cruise ship this big?
Oh, and I was planning to bring my ice skates on a cruise to Puerto Rico.
This particular Bahamian lighthouse is not in the best of shape, but it may still be operating. Not even the Lighthouse Directory knows for sure.'
Here's a more specific location. It's very close to the Florida peninsula, and it looks to be about halfway between the diminutive Bimini Islands and Grand Bahama.
The Lighthouse Directory says this, in part:
"1859. Reactivated (inactive ca. 2000-2009?). 46 m (151 ft) round cast iron tower with lantern and gallery, painted white. 1-story keeper's house, abandoned and falling into ruin, and other buildings. ... Marking the entrance to the Northwest Providence Channel, this lighthouse is a familiar landmark for cruise ship passengers en route to Nassau from Florida. Great Isaac is the scene of a famous lighthouse mystery: on 4 August 1969 the light station was discovered undisturbed but abandoned. Its two missing keepers were never found. ... Apparently the lighthouse was repainted and relit sometime in 2008-09, although the lantern remains in poor condition with most of its panes missing."
Below are pictures, and first, a short video.
Returning after a couple of weeks to the Highway 41 end-to-end Streetview trek, which will continue to the end, which is rather close.
Australia's Simone Holtznagel is one of the world's supreme beauties.
This picture is but one example.
A quick cut from the Washington Post:
Jan. 6 committee’s hint at possible crimes by Trump exposes deep rot in GOP
"The key point here is this: The truth about Trump’s true insurrectionist intent will be demonstrated with ever more clarity in the coming weeks and months. When that happens, how will Republicans manage to muster up the same old evasions?"Yes indeed; will they?
Not long ago I posted a black-and-white picture of Hannah Godwin from The Bachelor and Bachelor in Paradise. She posted a couple more, and they were traceable to a shoot with a fairly well-known glamour photographer who goes by Gregorio (full name Gregorio Campos). Here's his Instagram, which has lots of pretty women pictures, many of them in which the woman is wearing few or any clothes, and the rest with more clothing are still quite fetching. Being Instagram, the fullness of the experience is not provided, but excellent samples of that genre can be found with just a little ingenuity in the search phraseology.
Here's the other two of the delightful Hannah.
