Brain Stuff explains why Friday the 13th is considered unlucky

Happy Friday the 13th!*  Instead of telling my readers to drink up under a full moon, I'm sharing a video from BrainStuff - HowStuffWorks, which used to be Test Tube, answering the question Why Is Friday The 13th Considered Unlucky?

In countries like the United States, people have a superstitious fear of one particular date: Friday the 13th. But why? In this episode, Cristen discusses the two main fears that have fueled the Friday the 13th superstitions, as well as their origins.

It's a good day when I learn something new, even if it is Friday the 13th.

*I know I thought I would blog about the TV movies nominated for Emmy Awards, but that's not going to happen.  I was at a work meeting all day and just didn't have the time or energy when I got home.  Sorry.

Paris Agreement on Climate being signed on Earth Day

Happy Earth Day!  Today's celebration has global significance, as the Paris Climate Agreement, which prompted Colbert to say goodbye to oil, itself the fifth most read entry of the blogging year just completed, is being signed at the U.N. in New York.  Here is U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry giving the opening address to the Signing Ceremony of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry delivers remarks at the signing ceremony of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change at the United Nations in New York on April 22, 2016.

Next, here is Kerry signing the agreement on behalf of the U.S. with his granddaughter

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry signs the Paris Agreement on Climate Change with his granddaughter at the United Nations on April 22, 2016.

This is a great green day!

Follow over the jump for two videos from The Weather Channel and Test Tube News explaining the significance of the agreement being signed today.

Test Tube and DNews on burning trash for energy

I concluded last night's "Theme for January 2015: Balance" with a programming note.

I have something else planned for the first two weeks as I pursue my own version of work-life balance.  It's something I would normally have done around the Winter Solstice if I hadn't been all Star Wars all the time then.  Time for some balance in The Force.

What I would normally have done was post more of the videos from the talks students voted as their favorites, as I promised at the end of Trash to energy: Student sustainability video festival 46.   I'll get to that, but first I wish to revisit the idea with Test Tube News' Why Is Sweden Buying Trash From Other Countries?

Due to overpopulation, trash levels are rising, forcing nations to create new solutions. So what are countries doing with their waste?

That video does a good job of explaining my objections to this practice.  So does DNews' Why Don't We Burn Our Trash?

Sweden is able to recycle 99% of their trash, some of which they burn. Why isn't this practiced in the United States?

The drawbacks are why I was slightly disheartened when trash to energy became so popular that it was the most read post for September 2015 with 319 page views (420 according to the raw counter) thanks to first Infidel 753 and then Boat Bits linking to it.  Still, it works as a stopgap.

Stay tuned for Entertainment Sunday, which should include both an entry about the Golden Globes nominees and the resumption of the Student sustainability video festival with an entertainment-related episode 47.

Happy Winter Solstice 2015!

Happy winter solstice!  USA Today has the details of today's changing of the seasons in Monday's winter solstice marks the longest night.

Here comes the dark. The winter solstice — marking the longest night and shortest day of the year — is Monday night.

The solstice occurs at the same instant everywhere on Earth. In the United States, it happens at 11:48 p.m. ET Monday (or 10:48 p.m. CT, 9:48 p.m. MT and 8:48 p.m. PT).
...
The winter solstice is the precise moment the Northern Hemisphere is tilted its farthest from the sun all year, and usually occurs near the day when there is the least amount of daylight and the most darkness.
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The Earth's tilted axis causes the seasons. During the Northern Hemisphere's winter, the land north of the equator is tilted away from the sun, which lowers the amount of the sun's energy warming the Northern Hemisphere.

And why is the Earth tilted? It's probably the result of collisions with various proto-planets and other massive objects during the formation of the solar system billions of years ago, according to NASA. Just a bit unsettling to realize that the reason the Earth has the perfect temperature for life to form is a few random collisions with other space rocks a few eons ago.

That's the science of the solstice.  It also has religious significance.

One of the most famous solstice celebrations occurs at the ancient Stonehenge ruins in Wiltshire, England, where druids, pagans and other revelers gather each year to celebrate the event.

Coincidentally (or maybe not), TestTube News talks about these very religious movements in today's What Is Paganism?

In ancient, times before Christianity ruled, paganism was the primary faith of ancient Europe. So what is this old religion?

Whatever my readers believe, or don't believe, for that matter, Happy Solstice!

DNews and Test Tube explain where we get our oil

The next lecture I present to my students in environmental science will be about energy.  That will be on Tuesday of next week.  I'll give a nearly identical lecture to my geology students beginning on Thursday of next week.  Here are two videos I might show to those classes, most likely to geology, if I have time.

First, Discovery News answers its own question Where Does All Our Oil Come From?

We rely on oil to power our lives, but how do we go about getting it? How does oil even form?

This video covers all the ways oil can be extracted, including fracking, tar sands, and oil shale, along with coal production, all of which I cover in my classes.  In contrast, TestTube takes a much more focused view of oil and the economic and political aspects of its production and use in Where Does Our Oil Come From?

The majority of U.S. oil does not come from the Middle East. So, where exactly do we get it? TestTube Daily gives us a glimpse at the countries that supply America with the largest amounts of “black gold."

After I test drive these videos, I'll decide which one, if any, I'll continue using in my lectures.

What the Sith Jihad wants includes science crime scenes

When I posted ISIS looks like Sith, not Jedi on Facebook, someone called ISIS "The Sith Jihad" in comments.  That's such a good label, I'm using it for them from now on. Unfortunately, the best image is one from the prequel trilogy to "Dune."  The rest are too offensive.  So be it.

I begin with Test Tube's Who Is ISIS And What Do They Want In Iraq?


You heard the presenter right; ISIS prepares quarterly reports.  Here's what Vox had to say about one of them in The surreal infographics ISIS is producing, translated.

We know that ISIS, the al-Qaeda breakaway group that's gaining more and more ground in Iraq at the moment, is an exceptionally well-trained and disciplined fighting force, with a shockingly sophisticated social media strategy to boot. But did you know that they also produce annual reports with fancy infographics detailing all the operations they carried out over a given period?

The most recent report, published on March 31, details the group's operations from November 2012 to November 2013. It's a dense, text-heavy 410 pages, with plenty of data tables tallying up various actions the group took. A previous report covered the period from November 2011 to November 2012 over a much more concise 198 pages. Each report begins with a big, splashy infographic counting up various actions undertaken in the previous year.

The infographics at the link show how many bombings, assassinations, prisoner rescues, and other military operations took place during the reporting period.  The latest includes how many cities they've captured.  I don't know whether to be disgusted or impressed.

That's not all ISIS wants.  Apparently they want to create a bunch of science (and culture) crime scenes.  Follow over the jump for the story explaining how and why that I originally included in Overnight News Digest: Science Saturday (Summer Solstice 2014).