When you hear the words bubonic plague, the Black Death usually comes to mind. But the first plague pandemic happened 800 years earlier, when the Justinian plague wiped out nearly a quarter of the world’s population. Scientists have decoded the bacteria responsible, which had roots in China.
via News http://ift.tt/1nhZxou
Two Norwegian politicians say NSA whistleblower’s actions have led to a ‘more stable and peaceful world order’
Two Norwegian politicians say they have jointly nominated the former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden for the 2014 Nobel peace prize.
The Socialist Left party politicians Baard Vegar Solhjell, a former environment minister, and Snorre Valen said the public debate and policy changes in the wake of Snowden’s whistleblowing had "contributed to a more stable and peaceful world order".
Being nominated means Snowden will be one of scores of names that the Nobel committee will consider for the prestigious award.
The five-member panel will not confirm who has been nominated but those who submit nominations sometimes make them public.
Nominators, including members of national parliaments and governments, university professors and previous laureates, must enter their submissions by 1 February.
The prize committee members can add their own candidates at their first meeting after that deadline.
via The Guardian World News http://ift.tt/1dNoZd3
Portlandia returns for its fourth season February 27, but in the meantime, they have a goofy web series about tailgating for "Prairie Home Companion." (It’s also a car commercial masquerading as a Portlandia sketch, so don’t be too surprised when, for no reason, talk turns to the wonderful features of a car.) The sketches are everything the show does well, namely ultraspecific gentle mocking of the tote-bag crowd. How does one tailgate for "Prairie Home Companion"? The same way one does everything on Portlandia: With yerba mate, slow-cooked soup, tales of Peter Segal, surprisingly good wigs, background actors who seem very amused to be on the show, and terrible middle-aged-white-guy dancing. NPR jokes! Let the fun never end.
Read more posts by Margaret Lyons
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via Vulture http://ift.tt/1mXY5Vt
Converged storage is the coming together of storage and compute in the same box. Didn’t this used to be called a server, before the days of networked storage?…
via The Register – Data Centre http://ift.tt/1mWwqEi
Google has confirmed an agreement to sell Motorola Mobility to Lenovo for $2.91 billion.
via Gigaom http://ift.tt/1cvV4KR
Of the 500 richest people in the world, 167 are in the U.S. and 15 of those are tech entrepreneurs.
via Entrepreneur http://ift.tt/1mX8NeC
After NASA scientists analyzed data from 1,000 meteorological stations from around the globe, they found a strange pattern.
Perspective, they say, is everything. Donald Trump may not believe in climate change because it’s cold during North American winters, but last week, NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) released a compelling report to the contrary, based on a 60-year temperature analysis from 1,000 meteorological stations from around the globe. The scientists found that 2013 was one of the warmest years on record, "continuing a long-term trend of rising global temperatures" driven by man-made emissions.
via Fast Company http://ift.tt/1e51fY2
The Gap: A new typographic interpretation of Ira Glass’s iconic quote about the creative process created by Daniel Sax. (via Colossal)
via swissmiss http://ift.tt/1jK6kah
A state of emergency has been declared in Georgia, as a rare snowstorm has dumped up to four inches across the state. Babies born on the interstate, hundreds of schoolkids unable to get home, and for Atlanta residents, it’s a travel nightmare unseen in years. Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman was one of those stranded, but he’s got a guardian angel.
via Deadspin http://ift.tt/MumNli
Farking run about a bit 