According to Karl Gawell, executive director of the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA), "High prices and climate change are definitely creating a renaissance in geothermal interest, particularly on a state and local level." So, to further geothermal research, Alaska’s Division of Oil and Gas plans to lease out its Mount Spurr (a 2 mile tall, snowcapped volcano near Anchorage, which erupted in 1992 covering much of the city in ash) to energy companies who would search for ways to harness the mountain’s power. A wise move on both parts, as geothermal projects are eligible for numerous tax benefits, with many already in effect in most Western States and on the coast between Texas and Florida. Gawell: "If we really want to go all out for it, we could easily achieve a substantial amount, 20, 25 per cent of US energy needs within a few decades. We’re limited more by public policy than the resource - the resource is enormous." Though mentioned recently by Sen. Barack Obama, geothermal energy has had little play in the alternative energy debate. Nonetheless, the GEA estmates that by 2010, the number of countries producing geothermal energy will double to 46.

Harness volcanoe power, energy experts say, Telegraph.Co.Uk

Tiananmen Square, June 5, 1989

Classics in Lego, Flickr.com
Mike Stimpson’s prints, RedBubble.com

The International Cryptozoology in Portland, Maine, is in dire straits following an IRS lawsuit, and needs $15,000 in donations to move to a new location. Loren Coleman, the curator of the museum and author on numerous books on the study of ‘hidden’ animals, says the case began as a challenge of "the reality of cryptozoology as an occupation," which in turn called the validity of the museum into question. According to Code 183 of the IRS, cryptozoology is a hobby, so the museum needs more income to support itelf. Coleman argued that combined with publications, and the visibility of the museum on the internet, he lived above poverty level, but since the museum is a separate entity, that didn’t fly, loosing him an appeal. It is a little strange that cryptozoology does not merit more consideration as a science. Every day new species are discovered, widening our understanding of evolutionary diversity. Considering some of the species already discovered, like the egg-laying venomous mammal the duck-billed platypus, a unicorn or Big Foot no longer seem that exotic. Further, a history of hidden animals may lend clues to animals already extrinct, as well as those we have not ‘officially confirmed’ yet. On a curious note, when Magellan returned from his journey, having for the first time seen a rhinocerous, he declared that he found unicorns, but that they look somewhat different from how people imagined them. If nothing else, a cryptozoology museum is a unique place preserving preserving both our earlier understanding of the animal kingdom and our creative imagination thereof, which is often all science ever is.

Save The Museum, Cryptomundo.com

RyoheiHase.com

Wikileaks, has recently released the sensitive but unclassified US Special Forces counterinsurgency manual FM 31-20-3, which outlines tactics to be used in the suppression of rebellions and guerilla movements worldwide. Official Special Forces policy, the document promotes pervasive surveillance, censorship, warrantless searches, imprisonment without charges, hiding human rights violations from the media, and particularly psychological operations (PsyOps) to facilitate population and resource control.

But it was the recent death in Afghanistan of UK’s Corporal Sarah Bryant, a member of the Psychological Operations Group, a tri-service PsyOps support service to the British Armed Forces, which really brought PsyOps to the news foreground. The key role of PsyOps is Target Audience Analysis (TAA), similar to US military’s human terrain system, or for that matter, market research. It is the systematic study of people’s attitudes to map the military psychological environment, identifying weaknesses, and using them to base lines of persuasion. The key to its success is ‘maneuverism’, that is, striking suddenly and unpredictably at weak spots, instead of trying to overwhelm by sheer force. Armies recruit human scientists (a mixture of psychologist, sociologist, anthropologist, economist) for their PsyOps branches. The US Army is forbidden from carrying out such operations within the country, but the FBI and police seem to be excluded from this ban, as PsyOps tactics were used in the 1993 Waco Siege.

US Special Forces counterinsurgency manual FM 31-20-3, Wikileaks.org
‘I love her now and always’ - husband’s tribute to Sarah Bryant, first female soldier killed in Afghanistan,TimesOnline.Co.Uk
15 (UK) Psychological Operations Group Annual Report 2007/08, PsyWar.org
PsyWar.org

DD now has a splinter blog, Amusementality, an entertainment blog, which will cover tv, music, anime, art and sexy stuff that I can’t post on this here respectable publication. Go there now, go there repeatedly, and if you’re interested in becoming a contributing author, drop me a comment.

amusementality.wordpress.com

According to a new study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry, internet addiction is a common disorder that should be included in Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders V (DSM-V). The disorder consists of excessive gaming, sexual preoccupations, excessive email/text messaging, and variants typically include 1) a loss of sense of time and neglect of basic drives, 2) internet withdrawal when a computer is not available, 3) a tolerance, which leads to a search for better equipment, faster connection, and more hours of use, and 4) negative repercussions, including lying, fatigue and social isolation. This comes after a series of studies published in South Korea, which had 10 cardiopulmonary deaths in internet cafes, as well as a game-related murder. According to government estimates from 2006, 210,000 South Korean children 6-19, 2,1% of the population are addicted and require treatment, with 80% deemed to need medication, and 20-24% requiring hospitalization. So if you spend more than 23 hours/week on the internets, you may have a problem. Seek help immediately! And I don’t mean on Google!!

Issues for DSM-V: Internet Addiction, PsychiatryOnline.org

Caroline’s Dreams: The Other Family

Miuki, Photosight.ru

The summer solstice, the longest day of the summer when the sun reaches its furthest point north of the equator, is today, 7:59 EST. It’s the earliest solstice since 1896.

Are you ready to celebrate? Well, get ready: We have ICE!!!!! Yes, ICE, *WATER ICE* on Mars! w00t!!! Best day ever!!

This came from the Mars Phoenix Lander’s Twitter at 5:15pm today, followed 9 minutes later by: "Whoohoo! Was keeping my eye on some chunks of bright stuff & they disappeared! Sublimated! So it can’t be salt, it’s ice." The Phoenix Lander has been on Mars for 25 days now, exploring the geologic history of the planet’s arctic, investigating whether the planet could have supported microbial life in the past. The machine, powered by two 18-foot solar panels, has been digging around in a trench informally called Dodo-Goldilocks, uncovering clumps of “bright stuff” on June 15, and when it came back to the same place today, several of those clumps were gone, vaporized after being uncovered by the lander. “It must be ice, these little clumps completely disappearing over the course of a few days, that is perfect evidence that it’s ice,” said Phoenix Principal Investigator Peter Smith of University of Arizona, Tucson. NASA and the university will have a teleconference tomorrow at 1pm Eastern, to present the findings.

Mars Phoenix Twitter
Phoenix Mars Lander, NASA.gov
Ice Water Found on Mars, LAist.com

A long time ago, Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism, when he was over a hundred years old, made a three year long journey from India to China to meet with Emperor Wu. The Emperor himself was a Buddhist, tho unfamiliar with Zen, and wanted to brag about all the charity he performed for the religion.

"I have endowed many temples and authorized countless ordinations - what is my merit?"
Bodhidharma replied, "None at all."
Then the emperor asked, "What is the first principle of the holy teaching?"
Bodhidharma said, "All is empty, nothing holy."
The emperor was upset and asked, "Then who am I’m talking to?"
"How should I know?" answered Bodhidarma and walked away.

The Skeleton Bar in Gruyere is something of a Sedlec Ossuary in space, where the bones decorating the interior are not human, but something else. The bar was designed by H. R. Giger, who is most famous for his design work on the film Alien, which earned him an Oscar. His style tends to present human bodies and machines in a cold, co-dependent relationship, dubbed ‘biomechanical’. Originally an architect, Giger got into painting as a form of art therapy for his nightmares. His work can be seen on several music albums, including ELP’s Brain Salad Surgery and the insert to the Dead Kennedy’s Frankenchrist, which was involved in an obscenity lawsuit. There used to be a number of Giger bars in America, Japan, and Switzerland, but many have closed down, notably New York’s legendary club Limelight used to have a bar with fake embryos floating in pink-fluid filled jars. Interestingly, Giger was a personal friend of Timothy Leary, which may help explain the psychedelic elements of his art.

Skeleton Bar, Funtasticus.com
Sedlec Ossuary Gallery

The Gunwharf Quays mall in Portsmouth, UK, turns out to have been monitoring its shoppers’ movements via their cell phones. Using Path Intelligence software, the management was able to see the ‘slug trail’ left by people as they went around the mall, monitoring which stores they went to, how long they stayed there, and when they went to the bathroom. This is but another instance of Big Brother tactics, as councils nationwide misuse the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act designed to combat terrorism. Over 900 reported phone and email records have been accessed under the act to investigate misdemeanors like dog quarantine breaches, unlicensed storage of petrol, and underage smoking. Peter Emery, the operations manager at Gonwharf, defended the system saying that it’s not as invasive, since there is no data capture, however, some are still outraged that their phone numbers are used for market research without their consent. This is a portent of the looming panopticon future, for those who think they are not being watched. If covert surveillance bothers you, consider taking out the battery and SIM from your phone next time you go shopping.

Shopping centre tracks customers via mobile phones, Telegraph.co.uk

The new version of the free, open internet browser Firefox is out today, and it’s trying to set the world record for the most downloads ever. Some of the 15,000 improvements made in Firefox 3 include a smart location bar, faster performance, one-click bookmarking, and full zoom for any part of a web page. So go be part of something big, kinda, and download yours now.

Firefox 3

Michael Owens and others at the Center for Alcohol and Drug Abuse, University of Arkansas, have found an antibody for amphetamines, which effectively remove the drug from the bloodstream. Crystal meth and ecstasy abuse has been a growing issue, and with no ways to remove the drug from the body, therapies usually focus on treating side-effects. An antibody can be of great help in recovery. However, such a compound would likely find its way to the black market, where it would be used by people who undergo mandatory drug-testing.

Invention: Anti-ecstasy antibodies, NewScientist.com