Attribute to L. Neil Smith’s The Libertarian Enterprise

I hope all y'all had a good Christmas holiday. I watched my grandkids open presents over one of those picture-phone services, on Christmas morning. Very nice. I miss 'em. Need to move back to Texas.

And I hope all y'all had a good New Years holiday. I did show my house to an interested party, and also finally got the bathtub drain unclogged. Took a shower for the first time in a while (and let me tell you, taking a bath out of a wash basin just does not do the job (at least psychologically) the way a shower does!).

 

If you have ever looked into a book on Historical Geology you have seen these maps of the old super-continents that the earth had before plate tectonics moved stuff around. Here is a set of maps with current countries placed on them showing what went where. Or what came from where. Very interesting.

This is what the world looked like 300 million years ago
by Louis Staples
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And then there is this:

Silicon Valley elites are fleeing the region for states like Texas and Florida, but that shouldn't be surprising — it's the culmination of a culture clash that has been brewing in the tech industry for years
by Avery Hartmans

The Silicon Valley exodus is real.

Since the onset of the pandemic, billionaires, venture capitalists, and even major tech firms like HP and Oracle have started to flee the Bay Area. What at first seemed like a one-off response to our new remote-work reality has become a trend: Tech's elite are leaving, and they're citing a mixture of high taxes, state regulations, and a homogenous, liberal culture as their reasons for decamping to Texas, Colorado, or Florida.
[Read More]

 

I can't remember if I have mentioned this or not (another example of that Age Related Mental Decline thing):

Drug reverses age-related cognitive decline in a matter of days by erasing ‘blockages’
by Chris Melore

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. — Whether the damage is caused by a traumatic injury or just the stress of growing old, scientists have considered brain damage to be irreversible for years. Now, researchers from the University of California-San Francisco say an experimental drug reverses memory and cognitive declines connected to aging. The drug, ISRIB, has already proven effective at restoring brain functions of patients dealing with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and Down Syndrome.

Their study adds this drug can unblock brain pathways which handle memory and mental flexibility in just a few doses. Results begin to show themselves overnight, as if the damage was never there.

“ISRIB’s extremely rapid effects show for the first time that a significant component of age-related cognitive losses may be caused by a kind of reversible physiological ‘blockage’ rather than more permanent degradation,” says Susanna Rosi, PhD, professor in the departments of Neurological Surgery and of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science, in a university release.
[Read More]

Sign me up!

 

Nuclear-Powered Rockets Get a Second Look for Travel to Mars
by Prachi Patel

For all the controversy they stir up on Earth, nuclear reactors can produce the energy and propulsion needed to rapidly take large spacecraft to Mars and, if desired, beyond. The idea of nuclear rocket engines dates back to the 1940s. This time around, though, plans for interplanetary missions propelled by nuclear fission and fusion are being backed by new designs that have a much better chance of getting off the ground.

Crucially, the nuclear engines are meant for interplanetary travel only, not for use in the Earth’s atmosphere. Chemical rockets launch the craft out beyond low Earth orbit. Only then does the nuclear propulsion system kick in.
[Read More]

 

And finally:

This Coffee Habit You Haven't Tried Could Extend Your Life, Says Study
Japanese researchers shed light on the surprising benefits of drinking both coffee and tea every morning.
by Keenan Mayo

If you're like most people, you start your day either as a coffee person or a tea person. But according to a study published in the journal BMJ Open Diabetes Research & Care, it could benefit your health—and potentially extend your life—to become both. After analyzing the effects of green tea and coffee consumption among a large sample size of nearly 5,000 diabetic adults, a team of researchers in Japan observed that the risks of premature death were the lowest among the study participants who drank both four cups of tea and two cups of coffee every day. Read on for more about this study, and for some important tips you need to know regarding your daily pick-me-up, make sure you're aware of The Most Dangerous Way to Drink Your Coffee, According to Science.

The health benefits of drinking tea and coffee daily and in moderation are well-known. Both drinks can help you regulate your weight, optimize your metabolism, keep you alert, and boost your brain health. But this new study is one of the first to look into the health effects on diabetics of combining the drinks into a single diet.

Over the course of five years, researchers in Japan provided questionnaires to nearly 5,000 study participants who had enrolled in The Fukuoka Diabetes Registry. The questions involved diet and lifestyle topics, probing into how much the study participants exercised, smoked, slept, and consumed coffee and green tea on a daily basis. By the end of the study, 309 of the people had died.
[Read More]

Okay, 40% eh? I've been drinking 2 cups of coffee and one cup of green tea for quite a few years now. No problem to add 3 more cups of tea, no problem at all!

I like very much these two types:

Lipton Pyramid Green Tea Bags - Mandarin Orange - 20 ct - ( Pack of 3 )

Lipton Green Tea Bags Flavored with Other Natural Flavors Orange Passionfruit Jasmine - 20 ct - (Pack of 6)

Here's to joining the 40%, eh?

 

 

So stay deplorable, live long, and prosper too!