hobolinks :: December :: 2005

It almost seems like this must be a prank video, but it’s not quite tongue-in-cheek enough. Could it be legit? It’s pretty convincing.

Shark meets Octopus

I’ve had the desire to create a database of trip reports before. This attempt has a nice clean layout and looks fairly functional. At this point, though, I’d really like to see a map interface on it. And make it worldwide instead of organizing by US state. I’m guessing if that’s not out there yet, it will be soon. There’s always www.TrailJournals.com, of course, for more extended US trip reports than you can skewer with a trekking pole.

www.WeBackpack.com

An update from the Triple Crown hiker since my last post, I think this conversation took place on December 18, with 338 miles remaining. I still don’t know if he’s done or not, but I’m dying to find out!

Incidentally, I think www.trailcast.org will be the first podcast I subscribe to.

A Podcast interview with SQUEAKY

I would love to see one of these things - the nut of the Patience Tree is a natural seven-piece, 3-dimensional puzzle.

Puzzle Nut

(Via J-Walk Blog)

Bay Area birders are mystified at the appearance of thousands of red phalaropes that normally land only in the artctic.

Rare Seabirds Being Spotted in California

I’m not sure if this should be comforting or not, but it was definitely a warm Christmas, and I would love to get on some snow in the backcountry soon. I’ll be curious to see if the backcountry reports at weknowsnow.com will back this up.

Good Weather Lowers Western Avalanche Risk

gChart has some interesting international Google Maps mashups, including a mashup of travel blog home locations. I’ve thought about doing something like that, so it must be a good idea.

gChart

The first article I’ve seen that gives a good idea of how some of the major roadmap info aggregators keep their databases fresh, and how many people they hire to do it.

More on Digital Map Field Researchers

(Via The Map Room)

News on the definitive extinct species:

The Dodo has become a byword for an extinct animal, giving rise to the expression “dead as a dodo.” But it was just one of many animals driven to extinction, including half the native bird species of Mauritius. The archaeological find also included remains of extinct birds, giant tortoises, trees and plants.

Scientists Find Cache of Dodo Bird Bones

I’ve conducted similar experiments, making my way in the world without a home or money. It can be very illuminating.

Choosers Can Be Beggars

Galilieo is the European Space Agency’s system to rival GPS. I think it’s going to be fun to see the two go head-to-head. Which will serve users better, the military or the civilian system?

Galileo gets into position

I was often frustrated when I worked on a Navy base that many of the sites I needed were blocked. This would have, and will, solve that problem.

Google As Web Proxy

(Via J-Walk Blog)

The town this 83-year-old woman lives in has sued her and confiscated her home for failing to mow her lawn. This kind of thing is one reason I moved into a fifth wheel.

Millionaire Loses Everything Because of Lawn

(Via J-Walk Blog)

This caught my eye having just watched March of the Penguins. I was amazed to watch the penguins live in water that would kill me instantly. Lewis Pugh spent 20 minutes in it, swimming a record kilometer at 65 degrees south.

Man breaks world records with Antarctic swim

Growing up in Wyoming I recall harboring resentment against Utah, whose cloud seeding program we suspected of stealing our snow (which were interested in for snowboarding, not agriculture).

Wyoming Launches Cloud-Seeding Project

I’ve seen this buzzword everywhere, but had no idea what it meant. Finally I broke down and read about it. In short, Web 2.0 is just a name for what’s popular and successful on the web right now. It implies that this is different from what used to be popular and successful on the web, which is true. There are lot of good observations in the article about why this is, but if you’re looking for a more concrete definition than that, prepare for disappointment.

What Is Web 2.0

Interesting flash interface to Google & Microsoft satellite imagery.

Flash Earth

This kind of playing with numbers, finding patterns, and relating them to more familiar patterns is part of what stops me from losing my interest mathematics. Exploring it can be as amazing as exploring the natural world outdoors.

Number Spiral

This definitely goes on my reading list. If you’ve ever been facinated by that “alive” sensation you can get when encountering a glacier, it looks like this could turn it into an obsession.

Glaciers of the World

(Via Ursi’s Blog)

This is the first estimate I’ve found on the number of recent extinctions:

According to the World Conservation Union, almost 800 species have become extinct since 1500, when accurate historical and scientific records began.

I can’t imagine that this or the estimate of 794 species currently at risk of extinction are very well substantiated (are microbe species included?), but if I had to bet I’d guess they fall short of the truth. The article argues for more protected habitat. As a nature lover I don’t oppose this, but I also don’t get too excited about humans becoming the proprietors of too many of the species we threaten. My best hope is that we’ll learn that biodiversity pays better long term dividends than immediate exploitation of other species’ habitat.

Study Pinpoints Species Facing Extinction Threat