Posted May 14th, 2009 by mark
Posted May 14th, 2009 by mark
is a "randomly gathered network of individuals united in the pursuit of experiences beyond the pale of mainstream society through subversion, pranks, art, fringe explorations and meaningless madness."
I don't know why, but this appealed to me.
www.cacophony.org
Posted May 13th, 2009 by mark
Researchers are looking into ways of using banana waste for fuel in countries across Africa.
The simple, low-tech idea, was developed by researchers at Nottingham University.
see http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/8044092.stm
They used banana skins to create briquettes that can be burned for cooking, lighting and heating.
It could alleviate the burden of gathering firewood, the dominant energy source in many parts of the continent.
This would help reduce deforestation, which makes a significant contribution to global climate change.
In some African countries, like Rwanda, bananas are an important and versatile crop, used for food, wine and beer.
But experts estimate that the edible fruit makes up just a small part of what the plant produces.
“ The banana skins bind other materials together really well, they act like glue ” Joel Chaney, Nottingham University
Posted May 12th, 2009 by mark
From Somalia's worst drought in a decade is pushing growing numbers of children into near-famine conditions and deepening the humanitarian crisis caused by political violence, the United Nations warned Tuesday.
Some 3.2 million Somalis are among an estimated 19 million people in the Horn of Africa in urgent need of life-saving food assistance, top U.N. aid officials said.
Drought and high local food prices have also left 12 million people in Ethiopia and another 3.5 million in Kenya short of food supplies, they said.
"We're now facing a drought in Somalia that is worse than people have seen for at least a decade," Mark Bowden, U.N. humanitarian coordinator for the country facing its fourth straight year of drought, told a news briefing in Geneva.
"Roughly 45 percent of the (Somali) population is suffering from moderate malnutrition."
In parts of central and southern Somalia, 24 percent of children under five suffer from acute malnutrition, he told the briefing.
Posted May 11th, 2009 by mark
These posts are very cool. A mother’s perspective on the future of the planet for her grandchildren who don’t exist yet.
http://www.frankejames.com/debate/?p=34
