Greed Without Borders

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“Did you hear they’re going to execute the guy who was responsible for the poisoned pet food?”

Really” I would say, “Why?”

“Well, he brought a lot of grief into people’s lives.”

“I don’t think that’s why they’re executing him” I’d say to some people who CLEARLY thought I was missing the point.

Some of my friends really thought this was about American Cats and Dogs and the wrong that was done to their American owners.

 In other words…it was all about us

But of course it wasn’t- it was about ALL OF US.

from the LA Times

Zheng Xiaoyu was convicted of taking bribes worth about $850,000 and dereliction of duty.

During his tenure, the administration reportedly approved six medicines that turned out to be fake, including an antibiotic blamed for at least 10 deaths in China.

In North America, authorities this year have blocked or recalled toxic seafood, juice made with unsafe color additives and toys coated with lead paint imported from China.

This followed the death of several dogs and cats last year who ate pet food containing Chinese wheat gluten tainted with the chemical melamine, a fire retardant.

In Panama last year, dozens of people died after ingesting medicine contaminated with highly toxic diethylene glycol, an ingredient in brake fluid, that originated in China and was confused with harmless glycerin.

Counterfeit Colgate toothpaste containing traces of the same liquid was found on store shelves in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland. No deaths have been reported from the counterfeit toothpaste…

read the entire article HERE

Like I said, this is about all of us.

amm

I.B. Field Trip

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I’m bored-

So we’re going on a Field Trip.

You lucky little Devils.

First Stop

Alien Graveyard 

Want to help scientists organize galaxies?

This is for real, read the article and then check out the link at the bottom of the story.

Okay, I’m not taking you to other worlds but this is close.

Want to help scientists organize galaxies?

By Associated Press

LONDON (AP) – Scientists need help sorting through an unusual digital photo album: pictures of about 1 million galaxies.

They are asking volunteers on the Internet to help classify the galaxies as either elliptical or spiral and note, where possible, in which direction they rotate. It would be the largest galactic census ever compiled, something scientists say would provide new insight into the structure of the universe.

“We’re in the golden era of astronomy,” said Bob Nichol, an astronomer at the University of Portsmouth in southern England. “We have more data than we can assimilate, and we need help.”

Astronomers say computer programs have been unable to reliably classify the star systems.

Without volunteers, researchers would need years to wade through the photographs, which were taken automatically by a massive digital camera mounted onto a telescope at the Apache Point Observatory near Sunspot, N.M., Nichol said. With 10,000 to 20,000 people working to classify the galaxies, the process could take as little as a month.

Volunteers would sign on to the Web site, complete a brief tutorial and pick through one galaxy after another. The galaxies would be identified by several people to guard against errors and pranks, and scientists would rule on any disputes.

The catalog would help researchers understand how galaxies form and interact.

“At some level, what we learn about these galaxies could tell us something quite fundamental about cosmology and particle physics,” Nichol said.

The project was inspired by similar projects at NASA, such as Stardust(at)home, which enlisted the help of thousands of volunteers to sift through grains of space dust gathered during a 2006 mission.

On the Net:

Galaxy Zoo: http://www.galaxyzoo.org

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Next Stop

Peru

Have Fun HERE I know I did

There you go, I hope you enjoyed the I.B. Field Trip.

Later Gators.

amm