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Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Brain Surgery In Space

The mission:

The launch:

The backup: Endeavour ready for rescue mission.

The idea of a standby rescue spacecraft grew out of the 2003 Columbia disaster, in which that shuttle disintegrated over Texas during re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. That happened because of damage sustained during launch. But in Hubble's orbit, NASA has estimated there's also a 1-in-221 chance the shuttle could be struck and crippled by orbiting space debris.

All the previous missions since Columbia have gone to the International Space Station, where the crew of a damaged shuttle could take refuge there for months if need be until another shuttle was readied to retrieve them.

Article: USA Today, May 11th.

End of Daze

A new documentary called “Waiting for Armageddon” depicts the thinking of American evangelical Christians who see the end of days approaching in the Middle East, requiring destruction of one of Islam's holiest sites, blind support of Israeli resistance to peace with Palestinians (but ultimately using Jews as "placeholders"), and the necessity of provoking World War.

Here & Now's Robin Young speaks with filmmaker Franco Sacchi about what these beliefs are, and their impact on US policy.

Audio: BBC, PRI & WBUR's Here & Now. Host: Robin Young.

Progress, not Perfection

Any Southern Californian knows most urban adjacent wildfires have a human cause, and won't end without a break in the weather. Both these truths apply to Santa Barbara.

Weather is fickle along the coast in late Spring. Moisture laden cloudy conditions locals call "May Gray" and "June Gloom" can easily revert to the heat and "sundowner winds" that marked the start of the blaze. Fire crews watch the sleeping giant.

Today's forecast: Sunny, high 67, increasing northerly winds in late afternoon & evening.

KEYT 3, Santa Barbara (Latest Update)

The Marriage-Go-Round

Marriage, Cohabitation, and Kids

Take two children, one growing up with married parents in the United States, and one growing up with unmarried parents in Sweden; which child has the higher likelihood of seeing his parents’ relationship break up? Answer: the American kid, because children living with married parents in the United States have a higher probability of experiencing a breakup than do children living with unmarried parents in Sweden. That’s how high our breakup rates are.

Sociologist Andrew Cherlin has a new book called The Marriage-Go-Round. And yet despite the inherent instability our politicians continue to promote the formal legal institution of marriage, rather than addressing family life as it is lived.

The publisher offers an interview of Cherlin here.

Suggested by: New York Times - Freakonomics blog.

Monday, May 11, 2009

Another Mother from a Brother

Contributor Dan McGrath offered this additional track on our Mother's Day theme from the late Johnny "Guitar" Watson, one of the hottest West Coast blues guitarists of the 50's who adopted an image of what AllMuisc.com called a "pimp-styled funkster" in the 1970's. It's that 70's funk sensibilty that permeates this version of the song which he first recorded for the 1958 album "Gangster of Love."

Title: A Real Mother for Ya
By: Johnny "Guitar" Watson
Album: A Real Mother for Ya
Year: 1977

Start Strong & Prosper

'Star Trek' has galactic near $77 million opening*.

Chris Pine, center, and John Cho, right, are shown in a scene from 'Star Trek.'(Paramount Pictures - 2009)
"Star Trek" went where none of its 10 predecessors went before: straight to the top.

Even with ticket price inflation, it's an impressive figure and more than double the previous record opening weekend which was $30.7 million for 1996's "Star Trek: First Contact."

Not bad for a TV series cancelled 40 years ago for poor ratings. But the blockbuster debut does reflect all the hype, buzz and overwhelmingly strong reviews the reboot exploring the back stories of Spock, Capt. Kirk and the rest of the Enterprise crew garnered.