Monthly Archives: October 2007

How Bacteria Nearly Destroyed All Life

From DamnInteresting.com by Alan Bellows.
..
The sea was host to a plethora of anaerobic microorganisms, but there were also a few members of a newly evolved variety: cyanobacteria. These adapted bacteria were the first to use water and sunlight for photosynthesis, producing oxygen as a by-product of their metabolism.
The cyanobacteria were a struggling minority at first, [...]

Falsely Accused Woman Freed after 70 Years

From Telegraph by David Sapsted.
Seventy years locked up in institutions hardly seems to be a punishment that befits the crime of stealing half-a-crown.
However, it is just such a fate that befell Jean Gambell when at the age of 15, in 1937, she was falsely accused of stealing 2s 6d (12.5p) from the doctor’s surgery where [...]

Interview with Chip Conley on Peak Performers

From Good Experience by Mark Hurst.
Chip Conley is CEO of Joie de Vivre Hospitality, the world’s second- largest boutique hotel company. After a severe downturn in his business after 9/11, Conley read Abraham Maslow’s works as inspiration for his turnaround plan. It worked: Joie de Vivre is again thriving, and Conley has written a book [...]

Another Earth Just 20 Light Years Away

From Daily Mail.
It’s got the same climate as Earth, plus water and gravity. A newly discovered planet is the most stunning evidence that life - just like us - might be out there. The discovery was announced today by a team of European astronomers, using a telescope in La Silla in the Chilean Andes.
The [...]

Largest Debt-for-Nature Swap for Costa Rica Forests

From The Nature Conservancy.
The Nature Conservancy has brokered the largest debt-for-nature swap in history — a deal that will secure long-term, science-based conservation for Costa Rica’s tropical forests:

The United States will forgive $26 million in debt owed to it by Costa Rica.
This move will in turn provide necessary funds that will be used to finance [...]

Modify WP-Cache to avoid caching Password Protected Post

This will allow the post to be seen after password is entered correctly.
Changes are made to wp-cache-phase2.php.

function wp_cache_ob_callback($buffer) {
..
/* we avoid caching incomplete files */
if (is_404() || !preg_match(’/(||)/i’,$buffer) ) {
$new_cache = false;
return $buffer;
}
// dun cache password protect post post_password)) {
$new_cache = false;
return $buffer;
}

Brain Teasers and Games with a Neuroscience Angle

From SharpBrains.
They have put together a selection of the 50 Brain Teasers that people have enjoyed the most in their blog and speaking engagements.
They classify them into attention, memory, pattern recognition and planning, visual workouts and illusions, logic, math puzzles and some fun experiments.
Have a good workout!