2006-08-31

Our Brook is Quite Full

The water in our brook rose to this level with only a few minutes of rain.

2006-08-24

Planets and Dwarf Planets

Well, it's official! Our solar system now has eight planets and a small handful of dwarf planets [wiki]. The IAU General Assembly 2006 Resolution has thus demoted Pluto [wiki] to dwarf planet status to sit alongside Ceres [wiki] and the yet unnamed 2003 UB313.



8 Planets 3 Dwarfs



I'm excited about this bit of news, as it presents an open view of our solar system. I'm slightly disappointed about where the resolution has left Charon [wiki] as a moon of Pluto, even though both Pluto and Charon orbit each other and together orbit the Sun.

I definitely welcome the new "dwarf planet" celestial body type, since the size and mannerisms between these and standard planets are so different. And, as I mentioned in my previous post on this subject, we're still the third planet from the Sun!

2006-08-22

Dark Matter Exists | Cosmic Variance

Apparently, scientists have found conclusive evidence that Dark Matter Exists. The linked article explains a bit about dark matter. You can also find more information in wikipedia's dark matter article.



I have my doubts about how much dark matter there might really be and would tend to be more interested and comfortable with an altered view of gravity instead, but I do admit that there is definitely a gap in which dark matter fits nicely.

2006-08-16

New Grand Theft Auto Like Coke Commercial - Google Video





I hate Coke, but this commercial has a good message. Too bad the real GTA isn't like this.

We'll still be the third planet from the sun!

In this bit of International Astronomical Union (IAU) News we learn that there may be a new classification of planets coming soon to schools near you. I've embedded a video I uploaded to Google from the IAU website. It's a fly-by of the possibly "new" 12 planets!







I view this as an exciting and welcomed change. I've long awaited the recognition of bodies at the far reaches of our system as planets. Especially since some are larger than Pluto [wiki]. It has also perplexed me as to why Pluto's partner Charon [wiki] was never made a planet until now.



The IAU address these questions and more in the linked article. I hoped you'll follow the link and at least skim the summary of changes we may be seeing very soon and view some great graphics of the planets (both "old" and "new").

2006-08-15

The view from the new executive office we're setting up.

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Take Revenge, Sh*t on a Pigeon


Saw this on the road. Thought it was hilarious.

Let the moblogging begin!

I will now be posting from mobile phone. Mostly short quips and notable images.

2006-08-08

Microsoft Drops The Ball on IE7 Standards Compliance

It comes as no surprise that Idealog: Microsoft Drops The Ball on Internet Explorer 7 Standards Compliance. I have always thought that IE was the bane of the web. I had hoped that IE7 would help heal some of the wounds, but it only managed to dump salt into them.



Visitors of INDY.CC may have noticed that I have gradually made it more and more difficult to use my site in IE. IE7 has only served to accelerate this process.



I am awaiting a new version of the markup language standard called XHTML (currently the website is perfect XHTML 1.1), when that new standard is made public I WILL strictly comply with it. I have already ran tests with it and know that IE does not "render" it correctly. So be ready and "browse happy" now!



I, personally, use and highly recommend Firefox for all your web browsing needs. As can be read in the posted article, Firefox is far more compliant than IE.



If you find yourself in a situation where you are forced to use IE (e.g. public library, friends house, etc.), spread the word and let the managers of that location know that there are better options than IE.