Sunspots 497

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to someone else:
Christianity: A good blog post on why congregations aren't singing, only listening, in some churches.
Health: (or not!) National Public Radio reports that the victims of a hospital medical mistake are seldom told about that mistake, and seldom receive any apology. Over 200,000 patients die each year because of a mistake in a hospital.
Literature: (or something) A rant, with instructions, on how to make last names into plurals.
Politics: National Public Radio reports on the lottery for office locations, won or lost by incoming US Congressional electees.
Science: (or something) The tweel may eventually replaced inflatable tires. Michelin now has a plant to produce them.

 Image source (public domain)

Sunspots 490

Things I have recently spotted that may be of interest to

someone else:

The Arts: (And Christianity) A fascinating discussion of so-called "white magic," which is illustrated thus:
Many Christians, including many parents, are practicing “white magic” whenever they fear and shun objects, symbols, and Things more than they fear Jesus Christ and hate inner sin.
Health: National Public Radio reports on how many days dying patients spend in hospitals, and what causes the variation. It varies widely, almost three times as much in New York and New Jersey as in Utah and Idaho.
Science: NPR reports on a portion of the brain that may be a main cause of unselfish behavior.
The BBC asks if all the ants on earth weigh more than all the people. I thank one of my brothers for this link.
Wired reports on a spider that lives its entire life underwater.
(And politics) Some right-wing news outlets are trumpeting a recent study, by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, as showing that global climate change is not caused by human activity. Not exactly. Here's a report on the study, from the Associated Press. To quote the AP: "The study ... does not question global warming but argues that there is evidence that in at least one place, local winds are a more important factor explaining ocean warming than greenhouse gases." Critics of the study have pointed out that local winds, themselves, are probably influenced by human activity. And, of course, even if human activity has no effect on winds, the report is not global, and it does not question that human activity effects ocean warming. Here's a press release, from NOAA, on the report.
Sports: The scoring summary of the September 21, 2014 NFL game between the New England Patriots and the Oakland Raiders. All of the scoring (a touchdown, an extra point, and six field goals) was done by three players, Sebastian Janikowski, Rob Gronkowski and Stephen Gostkowski. That must be some sort of record . . .

Image source (public domain)