At Tulane, a bacteria is turning newspapers into fuel. “Old editions of the Times Picayune, New Orleans’ daily newspaper, have been successfully used by the researchers to produce butanol from the cellulose in the paper.”
Tag: 08.26.11
Granny and Gramps Graffiti Germany – With State Support
“The stereotype of a lonely grandmother in a pink cardigan who only plays canasta is outdated. Today’s aging population came of age in a different time — they grew up with the Rolling Stones and some are ex-hippies.”
Can Classical Music Really Address 9/11? Maybe.
“The question is, how many commemorations do we need before we’re ready to move on, how many performances of Mahler’s ‘Resurrection’ Symphony, which appears to be the classical answer to ‘God Bless America,’ an unofficial anthem of memorial?”
Why Haven’t E-Textbooks Caught On? (Blame The Publishers)
“Simply put, this generation of scholars is helpless without technology. Many textbook publishers, meanwhile, are acting like 1990s music executives, slapping on high price tags and copyright handcuffs that conspire to make their products less valuable than their dead tree counterparts.”
There Is A Point To Bad Reviews, After All…
“I would rather live in a theater culture where discussions about plays can get as contentious (and occasionally rude) as those about politics. Theater may be known as the fabulous invalid, but artists and critics who go into this low-paying, highly competitive field are tougher than you think.”
Thieves Are Stealing Rhino Horns From Museums
The thefts, “as many as 30 so far this year, have been reported in museums, galleries, antiques dealerships, auction houses and homes across Europe as criminals try to feed a growing demand in China and other Asian countries, where medicine made from ground rhino horns is believed to act as an aphrodisiac and to cure cancer and other diseases.”
Review Aggregator Sites Are Gaining Clout
“These two film-review aggregators, Metacritic and Rotten Tomatoes, are becoming increasingly influential as studios look to such sites to help create a critical chorus for films, especially for the growing area of online home video.”
Why Attractive People Are Rewarded More
“Beauty is naturally rewarded in jobs where physical attractiveness would seem to matter, such as prostitution, entertainment, customer service and so on. But it also yields rewards in unexpected fields.”
Rethinking The War Movie
“The box-office taint on movies with a perceived political bent, combined with the budget pressures that combat narratives bring, have made many contemporary war stories seem too risky for the studios.”
UNESCO Warns About Looting In Libya
“Experience shows that there is a serious danger of destruction during times of social upheaval. It has taught us to look out for looting by unscrupulous individuals, that often damages the integrity of artefacts and of archaeological sites.”