A former mechanic who lost his arms in an industrial accident four years ago is able to drive again thanks to thought-powered artificial limbs.
Christian Kandlbauer, who lost his arms after being electrocuted by 20,000 volts, retook his driving test and passed.
Using the nerves that previously controlled the healthy limbs, the 22-year-old Austrian merely has to think what he wants his arms to do and the command is obeyed.
The thought from his brain creates a particular electrical impulse in the nerve endings at the site of amputation.
Those impulses are picked up by electrical connections to the artificial arm, which respond to the specific impulse and so causing the arm to move as he wants.
Mr Kandlbauer, who became the first recipient in the world of such ‘intelligent’ artificial limbs two years ago, now drives to work in a modified disabled car after passing his test last week.
‘The driving is really important to me,’ he said. ‘But now I can also drink a glass of beer without needing a straw. Now that’s impressive!’
He will be in the German capital Berlin on Friday to further showcase his abilities with his arms after they were fitted in 2007.
Before being fitted, the apprentice, who lost his arms in September 2005, underwent a complex operation in which nerves are relocated.
The Otto Bock health care company invented in the prosthetics in conjunction with medical scientists in Vienna.
‘After this selected nerve transfer surgery, the signals that were once responsible for controlling the arm are used for controlling the new prosthesis,’ said the makers of his arms.
‘Electrodes installed in the socket of the prosthesis respond to these control signals. When the user sends movement signals, a complex electronic analysis inside the prosthesis converts the signals and recognises the movements the user would like to make.’
He now works as a warehouse clerk at the company where he was employed as a mechanic before his accident.
source....
Monday, November 23, 2009
Sunday, November 22, 2009
Fog shrouds early morning of an otherwise beautiful opening day Wisconsin deer season
Early dense fog dampened some areas of the state on the opening day of Wisconsin’s 2009 nine-day gun deer season, but hunters enjoyed balmy weather throughout much of the day that some thought was just a little too good.
In some areas the fog didn’t burn off until mid morning. But the remainder of the day was calm, with temperatures in the 50s. One of the questions hunters were asked this year on the registration stub for the first time was to rate the weather. Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Supervisor Tim Lizotte said some hunters were giving conditions a 10 to 11 on a 10-point scale.
Alan Crossley, DNR wildlife biologist also working the registration station, said “it’s kind of funny. If hunters shot a nice buck, they tended to rate the weather as a '10.'”
Wildlife managers at registration stations, especially in former earn-a-buck areas, were reporting a large percentage of older bucks, many with nice antler development. In many areas, deer appeared to still be in rut, or their mating season, in many areas. Tom Hauge, director of the DNR Wildlife Management program, was able to watch two bucks sparring for about 10 minutes. At another station, a 7-year old buck was registered with antlers badly damaged from recent sparring.
Jeff Pritzl, DNR wildlife expert aging deer in Northeast Region, recounted his favorite story of the morning: “A young boy on his first nine-day hunt shot a nine-point, 185-pound buck. The boy said his father had taught him that if he saw a doe that kept looking back, don’t shoot, because a buck was following her. Sure enough, he saw a doe that kept looking back, he waited and the buck came into view. Though the young hunter landed a good shot, the buck moved away and he and his dad spent the next two hours searching the wetland. The dad found the deer, and called his son, teary with pride.”
DNR Secretary Matt Frank, visiting with hunters registering deer in Montello, Westfield, Wautoma and Portage this morning, noted hunters were in good spirits, including one young girl registering her first buck at Wautoma.
“This is a great Wisconsin tradition, and it's just plain fun visiting with hunters and hearing their stories. Tomorrow, I will be out hunting myself. DNR is committed to maintaining a healthy deer herd so that we can enjoy deer hunting for many generations to come.”
Jim Shurts, Wisconsin Conservation Congress delegate chair from Dane County, registered his deer this morning. He was hunting in Columbia County east of Wyocena and heard more shooting than in the last few years. In one of those rare outdoors experiences, Shurts said a large flock of turkeys roosting near him gobbled loudly every time they heard a shot.
License Sales
As shooting hours opened, 626,404 hunters hit the woods for Wisconsin’s grand tradition of Gun Deer Season. Of these, 9,592 were 10- and 11-year-olds who were able to participate in this year’s hunt under the new Hunting Youth Mentorship Program. Nearly one-third of all hunters were under the age of 30.
DNR’s on-line licensing system – known as ALIS -- didn’t even break a sweat Friday as hunting license purchases peaked at 212 per minute at 5:30 p.m. Friday. All tolled 82,463 gun deer licenses were issued to anxious hunters who waited until the last minute to purchase. Nearly 270,000 licenses were issued in the eight days preceding the season opener. Deer license and tag sales will continue through the hunting seasons.
Of the hunters hitting the woods today:
* 592,287 (95 percent) were residents and 34,117 were nonresidents;
* Over 79,000 youth hunters under 18 years old participated in this year’s hunt, representing 13 percent of the total number of deer hunters;
* More than 54,000 hunters were age 65 or older, and over 191,000 (31 percent) are under 30-years-old;
* Females represent 8.5 percent of the total hunters, and 20 percent of new 10- and 11-year-old hunters;
* Hunters throughout the U.S. and several foreign countries purchased a Wisconsin gun deer license. The highest number of nonresident hunters came from Minnesota (16,413), Illinois (8,568), Michigan (1,078), and Florida (898);
* The most deer licenses were sold in Dane County (29,024), with Brown, Washington, Marathon and Waukesha counties following;
* More than 170,000 antlerless deer tags have been sold this year.
DNR Call Center hears from tree stands; sets record for calls
Operators at DNR’s call center began receiving calls at 7 a.m. Saturday morning from tree stands, deer camps and hunters afield. Questions ranged from, “Can I still buy a license” and “What is my hunter ed. number,” to one hunter saying that as the fog lifted, a bunch of cows appeared and were loose on state land. He wanted DNR let other hunters know so that none got shot by accident.
On Friday, the DNR call center bested its daily record by more than 500, answering 2,591 calls. During the week prior to the opener, customer service staff received 10,140 calls and 588 internet chats. The call center expects to handle over 260,000 calls this year, with approximately one-third of calls received on nights and weekends.
“It’s been really busy in the call center, and we love it. We’ve got a great staff just as excited about this season as the hunters are, and we’re here for you if you have a question,” said Customer Service Director Diane Brookbank.
Call center staff are available to serve customers from 7 a.m. through 10 p.m., seven days a week by calling 1-888-WDNR INFo (1-888-936-7463) or online at [dnr.wi.gov]. Spanish and Hmong service is available.
DNR call center staff manning the poacher hotline were also kept busy Saturday with reports of baiting violations, hunters shooting from the road, and ATV’s on public land. Hunters wishing to report a violation can call 24 hours a day and seven days a week at 1(800)TIP-WDNR [800-847-9367] or cell #367.
Two shooting incidents reported opening day
By late afternoon Saturday, DNR Hunter Safety Administrator Tim Lawhern had been notified of two shooting incidents, both non-fatal.
A male hunter in Grant County was shot just below the buttocks, reportedly when a nearby hunter was unloading his gun. A hunter in Green County received a shotgun wound to the thigh; it was not self-inflicted. No other details were available at time of publishing.
Lawhern notes that every shooting incident can be traced back to hunters failing to follow the four basic firearm rules.
“Every hunter – no matter the level of experience or years in the woods – should have these rules so engrained they are automatic,” Lawhern said. “Review these and review them with your hunting friends. It’s in your best interest and theirs. Make these rules your habits.”
The four rules are:
Treat every firearm as if it is loaded should be a habit.
Always point the muzzle in a safe direction at all times.
Be certain of your target and what is beyond it.
Keep your finger outside the trigger guard until ready to shoot.
Wardens wrote citations on opening day for illegal baiting, loaded firearms in vehicles and other violations, but no serious incidents were reported. A hunter in Clark County was cited after he cut down 25 pine trees on county property to improve a “shooting lane.” Another hunter was arrested and booked into jail for carrying a firearm while legally intoxicated.
Adams County
Plainfield – “It’s been horribly slow today,” says Stacy Knaus, working the deer registration station at the Wagon Wheel. “We’ve had 28 deer come in – four nice bucks but other years at this time we would have registered in the 100s and 200 to 300 total deer opening day.” Knaus says public hunting grounds in the area have been popular sites this year but hunters weren’t seeing many deer there. “I heard there were 118 vehicles parked in one area,” she says. One highlight for Knaus was meeting a boy who had gotten into hunting through the recent inaugural mentored hunt program. “He said his dad was his mentor and his dad looked so proud that his son brought in a deer,” Knaus says. Keith Warnke, DNR big game ecologist, reported that he was on his way to his hunting camp but that he’d heard from the folks already there that things were starting slowly with no deer shot in the morning.
A party of hunters on a parcel of private Adams County property, largely surrounded by timber land that is open to the public, came across a man and his young daughter who was on her first hunt. It turns out they had inadvertently crossed onto the private property. Keith Williams of Beloit, whose uncle owns the property, told the man and his daughter to stay put. He said it was a good day and they had a good location. “I told them now we know where you are so there won’t be any miscommunications about firing lines,” Williams told a DNR communications specialist working opening day. Williams handled that situation really well, said wildlife biologist Jon Robaidek. “That leaves a pretty good impression on a young hunter, on how things can be handled between groups of hunters,” Robaidek said. This act of kindness didn’t put a crimp in William’s hunting, Robaidek said. The four hunters in his party registered three deer opening morning, including an eight-point buck shot by Williams, and were heading back out.
Jackson County
Taylor – “It’s been a very slow day,” says Kristine Krencis, working her fifth year registering deer at the Taylor County Store. “We’ve registered 36 deer so far,” she says. But she was seeing registration pick up later in the afternoon after the morning fog had cleared out. “The deer have been small – the largest is an eight-point buck so far. Most people seem to be sticking to private land.”
Juneau County
Camp Douglas – Ron Kasulke, working at the Eagles Nest Resort, reports a slow opener. “I’ve only registered eight bucks and nine total deer,” Kasulke says mid-afternoon. But he expected registration to pick up before close. “The hunters are sticking with it and staying out. It was hard to see with the fog this morning and some came in for a while but have gone back out and I think we’ll see more deer coming in.” Kasulke, a bow hunter, says he enjoys working the registration station during the gun hunt because of the people he meets. “I just love to talk to hunters and hear them get excited and share their stories. Young girls and boys to older hunters. That’s what it’s all about.”
Monroe County
Sparta – Don Schmitzler, owner of Don and Vi’s Hunting and Fishing, says he was selling a lot of back tags and had registered 63 deer by 2 p.m. including 34 bucks and 29 antlerless. “We just had a real nice buck with a 21.5-inch spread and eight points,” Schmitzler says. Registrations were steadier than past years when Schmitzler says there would be a run on registrations followed by down time. “It’s the warm weather,” Schmitzler says. “Hunters are just bringing the deer in as they get them.”
Wood County - Hunters throughout west central Wisconsin found themselves shrouded in fog. “One guy said he couldn’t see past the end of his gun barrel,” reported wildlife biologist Greg Dahl, who was aging deer. The weather, which most hunters graded as less than desirable on their registrations stubs, did provide a few lucky hunters with a dramatic moment when a large buck deer came out of the fog, seeming to materialize out of thin air. Hunters were also hindered by thick condensation which fell from the trees like a light rain, creating a constant pitter patter of sound that made it difficult to hear deer as well as see them.
Waushara County
Wild Rose – DNR Area Wildlife Leader Tom Nigus taking deer heads for CWD surveillance at Mr. Ed’s Place said deer registrations had been steady. DNR is sampling deer for CWD in the area due to positive deer being found at the Hall Wild Game Farm, located nearby in Almond. Nigus said that though there was fog early, it soon lifted, and hunters reported hearing a lot of shots taken around 8 a.m. “It’s a good temperature for sitting,” he said. Of the 40 bucks registered at Mr. Ed’s by mid-afternoon, most were yearlings, but four had nice racks. One buck aged out at 4-years-old. He expected things to pick up. “It gets busy here after dark – it’s not uncommon to have 30 cars and trucks waiting once the rush starts,” he said.
Wild Rose -- Jerry Apps joined his son, brother and nephews opening day hunting family land in Wild Rose. “Haven’t missed a deer season since I was 12-years-old,” Apps says, “and that goes back to a time when we wore red coats rather than blaze orange. I hunted with my dad back then, and walked miles from farm to farm—no trespassing signs in those days. Not many deer either.” Apps says people sometimes seem surprised that he still hunts. “Yup,” I answer with a smile he says. “And they look at me like I’ve lost a marble or two. My cynical answer is because I still can. But the reasons are more complicated than that. I hunt deer because my family has hunted for generations. My dad still hunted when he was 92. Deer hunting season is when I see my brother, and my three nephews, who all hunt. My son (now 46) has hunted with me since he was 12.” The Apps party had seen a half-dozen deer Saturday morning but none had taken a deer by the time they broke for lunch. Fog hampered their ability to see much of the morning. “It’s one more opportunity to be outdoors, in the quiet of a late November morning when the countryside is saying goodbye to fall and waiting for winter. The smells and sounds of fall are all around when I sit on the edge of a field on the back end of my farm,” Apps says. “Oh, I still enjoy a slice of venison sausage. Nothing better, especially if it’s home grown.”
source....
In some areas the fog didn’t burn off until mid morning. But the remainder of the day was calm, with temperatures in the 50s. One of the questions hunters were asked this year on the registration stub for the first time was to rate the weather. Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Supervisor Tim Lizotte said some hunters were giving conditions a 10 to 11 on a 10-point scale.
Alan Crossley, DNR wildlife biologist also working the registration station, said “it’s kind of funny. If hunters shot a nice buck, they tended to rate the weather as a '10.'”
Wildlife managers at registration stations, especially in former earn-a-buck areas, were reporting a large percentage of older bucks, many with nice antler development. In many areas, deer appeared to still be in rut, or their mating season, in many areas. Tom Hauge, director of the DNR Wildlife Management program, was able to watch two bucks sparring for about 10 minutes. At another station, a 7-year old buck was registered with antlers badly damaged from recent sparring.
Jeff Pritzl, DNR wildlife expert aging deer in Northeast Region, recounted his favorite story of the morning: “A young boy on his first nine-day hunt shot a nine-point, 185-pound buck. The boy said his father had taught him that if he saw a doe that kept looking back, don’t shoot, because a buck was following her. Sure enough, he saw a doe that kept looking back, he waited and the buck came into view. Though the young hunter landed a good shot, the buck moved away and he and his dad spent the next two hours searching the wetland. The dad found the deer, and called his son, teary with pride.”
DNR Secretary Matt Frank, visiting with hunters registering deer in Montello, Westfield, Wautoma and Portage this morning, noted hunters were in good spirits, including one young girl registering her first buck at Wautoma.
“This is a great Wisconsin tradition, and it's just plain fun visiting with hunters and hearing their stories. Tomorrow, I will be out hunting myself. DNR is committed to maintaining a healthy deer herd so that we can enjoy deer hunting for many generations to come.”
Jim Shurts, Wisconsin Conservation Congress delegate chair from Dane County, registered his deer this morning. He was hunting in Columbia County east of Wyocena and heard more shooting than in the last few years. In one of those rare outdoors experiences, Shurts said a large flock of turkeys roosting near him gobbled loudly every time they heard a shot.
License Sales
As shooting hours opened, 626,404 hunters hit the woods for Wisconsin’s grand tradition of Gun Deer Season. Of these, 9,592 were 10- and 11-year-olds who were able to participate in this year’s hunt under the new Hunting Youth Mentorship Program. Nearly one-third of all hunters were under the age of 30.
DNR’s on-line licensing system – known as ALIS -- didn’t even break a sweat Friday as hunting license purchases peaked at 212 per minute at 5:30 p.m. Friday. All tolled 82,463 gun deer licenses were issued to anxious hunters who waited until the last minute to purchase. Nearly 270,000 licenses were issued in the eight days preceding the season opener. Deer license and tag sales will continue through the hunting seasons.
Of the hunters hitting the woods today:
* 592,287 (95 percent) were residents and 34,117 were nonresidents;
* Over 79,000 youth hunters under 18 years old participated in this year’s hunt, representing 13 percent of the total number of deer hunters;
* More than 54,000 hunters were age 65 or older, and over 191,000 (31 percent) are under 30-years-old;
* Females represent 8.5 percent of the total hunters, and 20 percent of new 10- and 11-year-old hunters;
* Hunters throughout the U.S. and several foreign countries purchased a Wisconsin gun deer license. The highest number of nonresident hunters came from Minnesota (16,413), Illinois (8,568), Michigan (1,078), and Florida (898);
* The most deer licenses were sold in Dane County (29,024), with Brown, Washington, Marathon and Waukesha counties following;
* More than 170,000 antlerless deer tags have been sold this year.
DNR Call Center hears from tree stands; sets record for calls
Operators at DNR’s call center began receiving calls at 7 a.m. Saturday morning from tree stands, deer camps and hunters afield. Questions ranged from, “Can I still buy a license” and “What is my hunter ed. number,” to one hunter saying that as the fog lifted, a bunch of cows appeared and were loose on state land. He wanted DNR let other hunters know so that none got shot by accident.
On Friday, the DNR call center bested its daily record by more than 500, answering 2,591 calls. During the week prior to the opener, customer service staff received 10,140 calls and 588 internet chats. The call center expects to handle over 260,000 calls this year, with approximately one-third of calls received on nights and weekends.
“It’s been really busy in the call center, and we love it. We’ve got a great staff just as excited about this season as the hunters are, and we’re here for you if you have a question,” said Customer Service Director Diane Brookbank.
Call center staff are available to serve customers from 7 a.m. through 10 p.m., seven days a week by calling 1-888-WDNR INFo (1-888-936-7463) or online at [dnr.wi.gov]. Spanish and Hmong service is available.
DNR call center staff manning the poacher hotline were also kept busy Saturday with reports of baiting violations, hunters shooting from the road, and ATV’s on public land. Hunters wishing to report a violation can call 24 hours a day and seven days a week at 1(800)TIP-WDNR [800-847-9367] or cell #367.
Two shooting incidents reported opening day
By late afternoon Saturday, DNR Hunter Safety Administrator Tim Lawhern had been notified of two shooting incidents, both non-fatal.
A male hunter in Grant County was shot just below the buttocks, reportedly when a nearby hunter was unloading his gun. A hunter in Green County received a shotgun wound to the thigh; it was not self-inflicted. No other details were available at time of publishing.
Lawhern notes that every shooting incident can be traced back to hunters failing to follow the four basic firearm rules.
“Every hunter – no matter the level of experience or years in the woods – should have these rules so engrained they are automatic,” Lawhern said. “Review these and review them with your hunting friends. It’s in your best interest and theirs. Make these rules your habits.”
The four rules are:
Treat every firearm as if it is loaded should be a habit.
Always point the muzzle in a safe direction at all times.
Be certain of your target and what is beyond it.
Keep your finger outside the trigger guard until ready to shoot.
Wardens wrote citations on opening day for illegal baiting, loaded firearms in vehicles and other violations, but no serious incidents were reported. A hunter in Clark County was cited after he cut down 25 pine trees on county property to improve a “shooting lane.” Another hunter was arrested and booked into jail for carrying a firearm while legally intoxicated.
Adams County
Plainfield – “It’s been horribly slow today,” says Stacy Knaus, working the deer registration station at the Wagon Wheel. “We’ve had 28 deer come in – four nice bucks but other years at this time we would have registered in the 100s and 200 to 300 total deer opening day.” Knaus says public hunting grounds in the area have been popular sites this year but hunters weren’t seeing many deer there. “I heard there were 118 vehicles parked in one area,” she says. One highlight for Knaus was meeting a boy who had gotten into hunting through the recent inaugural mentored hunt program. “He said his dad was his mentor and his dad looked so proud that his son brought in a deer,” Knaus says. Keith Warnke, DNR big game ecologist, reported that he was on his way to his hunting camp but that he’d heard from the folks already there that things were starting slowly with no deer shot in the morning.
A party of hunters on a parcel of private Adams County property, largely surrounded by timber land that is open to the public, came across a man and his young daughter who was on her first hunt. It turns out they had inadvertently crossed onto the private property. Keith Williams of Beloit, whose uncle owns the property, told the man and his daughter to stay put. He said it was a good day and they had a good location. “I told them now we know where you are so there won’t be any miscommunications about firing lines,” Williams told a DNR communications specialist working opening day. Williams handled that situation really well, said wildlife biologist Jon Robaidek. “That leaves a pretty good impression on a young hunter, on how things can be handled between groups of hunters,” Robaidek said. This act of kindness didn’t put a crimp in William’s hunting, Robaidek said. The four hunters in his party registered three deer opening morning, including an eight-point buck shot by Williams, and were heading back out.
Jackson County
Taylor – “It’s been a very slow day,” says Kristine Krencis, working her fifth year registering deer at the Taylor County Store. “We’ve registered 36 deer so far,” she says. But she was seeing registration pick up later in the afternoon after the morning fog had cleared out. “The deer have been small – the largest is an eight-point buck so far. Most people seem to be sticking to private land.”
Juneau County
Camp Douglas – Ron Kasulke, working at the Eagles Nest Resort, reports a slow opener. “I’ve only registered eight bucks and nine total deer,” Kasulke says mid-afternoon. But he expected registration to pick up before close. “The hunters are sticking with it and staying out. It was hard to see with the fog this morning and some came in for a while but have gone back out and I think we’ll see more deer coming in.” Kasulke, a bow hunter, says he enjoys working the registration station during the gun hunt because of the people he meets. “I just love to talk to hunters and hear them get excited and share their stories. Young girls and boys to older hunters. That’s what it’s all about.”
Monroe County
Sparta – Don Schmitzler, owner of Don and Vi’s Hunting and Fishing, says he was selling a lot of back tags and had registered 63 deer by 2 p.m. including 34 bucks and 29 antlerless. “We just had a real nice buck with a 21.5-inch spread and eight points,” Schmitzler says. Registrations were steadier than past years when Schmitzler says there would be a run on registrations followed by down time. “It’s the warm weather,” Schmitzler says. “Hunters are just bringing the deer in as they get them.”
Wood County - Hunters throughout west central Wisconsin found themselves shrouded in fog. “One guy said he couldn’t see past the end of his gun barrel,” reported wildlife biologist Greg Dahl, who was aging deer. The weather, which most hunters graded as less than desirable on their registrations stubs, did provide a few lucky hunters with a dramatic moment when a large buck deer came out of the fog, seeming to materialize out of thin air. Hunters were also hindered by thick condensation which fell from the trees like a light rain, creating a constant pitter patter of sound that made it difficult to hear deer as well as see them.
Waushara County
Wild Rose – DNR Area Wildlife Leader Tom Nigus taking deer heads for CWD surveillance at Mr. Ed’s Place said deer registrations had been steady. DNR is sampling deer for CWD in the area due to positive deer being found at the Hall Wild Game Farm, located nearby in Almond. Nigus said that though there was fog early, it soon lifted, and hunters reported hearing a lot of shots taken around 8 a.m. “It’s a good temperature for sitting,” he said. Of the 40 bucks registered at Mr. Ed’s by mid-afternoon, most were yearlings, but four had nice racks. One buck aged out at 4-years-old. He expected things to pick up. “It gets busy here after dark – it’s not uncommon to have 30 cars and trucks waiting once the rush starts,” he said.
Wild Rose -- Jerry Apps joined his son, brother and nephews opening day hunting family land in Wild Rose. “Haven’t missed a deer season since I was 12-years-old,” Apps says, “and that goes back to a time when we wore red coats rather than blaze orange. I hunted with my dad back then, and walked miles from farm to farm—no trespassing signs in those days. Not many deer either.” Apps says people sometimes seem surprised that he still hunts. “Yup,” I answer with a smile he says. “And they look at me like I’ve lost a marble or two. My cynical answer is because I still can. But the reasons are more complicated than that. I hunt deer because my family has hunted for generations. My dad still hunted when he was 92. Deer hunting season is when I see my brother, and my three nephews, who all hunt. My son (now 46) has hunted with me since he was 12.” The Apps party had seen a half-dozen deer Saturday morning but none had taken a deer by the time they broke for lunch. Fog hampered their ability to see much of the morning. “It’s one more opportunity to be outdoors, in the quiet of a late November morning when the countryside is saying goodbye to fall and waiting for winter. The smells and sounds of fall are all around when I sit on the edge of a field on the back end of my farm,” Apps says. “Oh, I still enjoy a slice of venison sausage. Nothing better, especially if it’s home grown.”
source....
the largest planet in the solar system
The Moon takes aim at Jupiter, the largest planet in the solar system, tonight. They are well up in the south at nightfall and set in late evening. Jupiter is to the upper left of the Moon and looks like a dazzling star. If you have a pair of binoculars, take a look at Jupiter and you can see up to four of it's giant moons. They look like small stars around it.
- Quads, hailing from Grand Marsh Observatory atop Elk Castle Hill
- Quads, hailing from Grand Marsh Observatory atop Elk Castle Hill
ISS Tonight
22 Nov -2.6 17:43:03 NW 34
- Quads, hailing from Grand Marsh Observatory atop Elk Castle Hill
- Quads, hailing from Grand Marsh Observatory atop Elk Castle Hill
Hindenburg airship beer auctioned
A blackened bottle of beer found in the wreck of the Hindenburg zeppelin is expected to fetch thousands of pounds at auction.
The bottle was found by a fire-fighter cleaning up the American airfield where the German airship exploded in 1937.
The bottle will be the most expensive ever bought if it meets its estimated price of £5,000 ($8,337) on Saturday.
The airship was engulfed by flames as it landed in New Jersey, killing 38 people and injuring 60.
Secret find
New Jersey firefighter Leroy Smith found six bottles of Lowenbrau beer and a pitcher intact on the scene of the crash.
He buried his secret find so he could collect them later, as the area had been sealed off by the authorities.
Mr Smith gave the other five bottles to his colleagues.
Most of the others are now lost, although one was given to the Lowenbrau company after the death of Mr Smith's friend.
The silver-plated pitcher, which bears the logo of the Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei, the zeppelin airline company, is expected to reach £12,000 ($20,000).
Evaporated
The bottle and jug were passed on by Mr Smith to his niece in 1966 and are now to be put on sale by auctioneers Henry Aldridge and Son.
The beer would have gone off within a year of being bottled.
"You wouldn't want to drink it - it is probably quite putrid to taste," auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said.
Some of the liquid has evaporated from the bottle and the label is burned, but the logo is still visible.
The previous record price for a bottle of beer was a limited edition sale of a Carlsberg lager which cost £240 ($400).
The flammable hydrogen that kept the giant zeppelin in the air exploded as the ship came in to land on a voyage across the Atlantic from Frankfurt.
The precise cause of the fire is not known, but it is thought that friction in the mooring ropes could have been responsible.
source....
The bottle was found by a fire-fighter cleaning up the American airfield where the German airship exploded in 1937.
The bottle will be the most expensive ever bought if it meets its estimated price of £5,000 ($8,337) on Saturday.
The airship was engulfed by flames as it landed in New Jersey, killing 38 people and injuring 60.
Secret find
New Jersey firefighter Leroy Smith found six bottles of Lowenbrau beer and a pitcher intact on the scene of the crash.
He buried his secret find so he could collect them later, as the area had been sealed off by the authorities.
Mr Smith gave the other five bottles to his colleagues.
Most of the others are now lost, although one was given to the Lowenbrau company after the death of Mr Smith's friend.
The silver-plated pitcher, which bears the logo of the Deutsche Zeppelin Reederei, the zeppelin airline company, is expected to reach £12,000 ($20,000).
Evaporated
The bottle and jug were passed on by Mr Smith to his niece in 1966 and are now to be put on sale by auctioneers Henry Aldridge and Son.
The beer would have gone off within a year of being bottled.
"You wouldn't want to drink it - it is probably quite putrid to taste," auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said.
Some of the liquid has evaporated from the bottle and the label is burned, but the logo is still visible.
The previous record price for a bottle of beer was a limited edition sale of a Carlsberg lager which cost £240 ($400).
The flammable hydrogen that kept the giant zeppelin in the air exploded as the ship came in to land on a voyage across the Atlantic from Frankfurt.
The precise cause of the fire is not known, but it is thought that friction in the mooring ropes could have been responsible.
source....
Saturday, November 21, 2009
AIR QUALITY ALERT
...AIR QUALITY ALERT IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT FRIDAY NIGHT TO MIDNIGHT CST
MONDAY NIGHT...
THE WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES HAS ISSUED AN AIR
QUALITY WATCH FOR PARTICULATES...IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT FRIDAY NIGHT
TO MIDNIGHT CST MONDAY NIGHT.
A STAGNANT AND INCREASINGLY DIRTY AIR MASS WILL INTENSIFY OVER THE
UPPER MIDWEST DURING THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. THERE IS A POSSIBILITY
THAT PARTICLE POLLUTION CONCENTRATIONS WILL REACH UNHEALTHY LEVELS
FOR PEOPLE IN SENSITIVE GROUPS FOR COUNTIES ACROSS THE SOUTHERN
TWO-THIRDS OF WISCONSIN.
DUE TO THE POSSIBILITY OF ELEVATED LEVELS OF PARTICLE POLLUTION IN
THE REGION THE WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES HAS ISSUED
AN AIR QUALITY WATCH FROM SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY.
CONCENTRATIONS OF PARTICULATES MAY APPROACH OR EXCEED UNHEALTHY
STANDARDS. AT THIS LEVEL OF PARTICULATES EXPOSURE...MEMBERS OF
SENSITIVE GROUPS MAY EXPERIENCE HEALTH EFFECTS. THE GENERAL PUBLIC
IS NOT LIKELY TO BE AFFECTED.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION...PLEASE VISIT WISCONSIN DNR AIR QUALITY
WEB SITE AT HTTP://DNR.WI.GOV/AIR/AQ/HEALTH/STATUS.ASP
- Quads, hailing from Grand Marsh Observatory atop Elk Castle Hill
MONDAY NIGHT...
THE WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES HAS ISSUED AN AIR
QUALITY WATCH FOR PARTICULATES...IN EFFECT FROM MIDNIGHT FRIDAY NIGHT
TO MIDNIGHT CST MONDAY NIGHT.
A STAGNANT AND INCREASINGLY DIRTY AIR MASS WILL INTENSIFY OVER THE
UPPER MIDWEST DURING THE NEXT SEVERAL DAYS. THERE IS A POSSIBILITY
THAT PARTICLE POLLUTION CONCENTRATIONS WILL REACH UNHEALTHY LEVELS
FOR PEOPLE IN SENSITIVE GROUPS FOR COUNTIES ACROSS THE SOUTHERN
TWO-THIRDS OF WISCONSIN.
DUE TO THE POSSIBILITY OF ELEVATED LEVELS OF PARTICLE POLLUTION IN
THE REGION THE WISCONSIN DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES HAS ISSUED
AN AIR QUALITY WATCH FROM SATURDAY THROUGH MONDAY.
CONCENTRATIONS OF PARTICULATES MAY APPROACH OR EXCEED UNHEALTHY
STANDARDS. AT THIS LEVEL OF PARTICULATES EXPOSURE...MEMBERS OF
SENSITIVE GROUPS MAY EXPERIENCE HEALTH EFFECTS. THE GENERAL PUBLIC
IS NOT LIKELY TO BE AFFECTED.
FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION...PLEASE VISIT WISCONSIN DNR AIR QUALITY
WEB SITE AT HTTP://DNR.WI.GOV/AIR/AQ/HEALTH/STATUS.ASP
- Quads, hailing from Grand Marsh Observatory atop Elk Castle Hill
Rebuilding of power line may result in incidental take of rare lizard
The rebuilding and maintenance of an existing electrical transmission line from Plainfield to south of Coloma in Waushara County could result in the “incidental taking” of a lizard that is listed as an endangered species in Wisconsin, under a permit the Department of Natural Resources proposes to authorize for the project.
American Transmission Company (ATC) is planning to replace damaged utility poles, string new shield wire, and complete other maintenance activities along the transmission line known as Y-90 or Chaffee Creek to Plainfield located in the Towns of Coloma, Hancock and Plainfield in Waushara County.
Portions of the project corridor include habitat that is suitable for the state endangered slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus), including oak savannas, sand prairies, old fields with sandy soils, and woodland edges. DNR biologists have confirmed the presence of the slender glass lizard in the vicinity of the project site and determined that the species is likely present and that the proposed project may result in the incidental taking of some lizards.
Incidental take refers to the unintentional loss of individual endangered or threatened animals or plants that does not put the overall population of the species at risk.
However, the department has concluded that the proposed project will minimize the impacts to the lizard by adhering to conservation measures; is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence and recovery of the state population of these lizards or the whole plant-animal community of which they are a part; and has benefit to the public health, safety or welfare that justifies the action.
In order to minimize possible impacts to the slender glass lizard, the project will conduct work during the lizard’s inactive period, minimize the area of project disturbance, and restore disturbed areas to pre-existing conditions.
source....
American Transmission Company (ATC) is planning to replace damaged utility poles, string new shield wire, and complete other maintenance activities along the transmission line known as Y-90 or Chaffee Creek to Plainfield located in the Towns of Coloma, Hancock and Plainfield in Waushara County.
Portions of the project corridor include habitat that is suitable for the state endangered slender glass lizard (Ophisaurus attenuatus), including oak savannas, sand prairies, old fields with sandy soils, and woodland edges. DNR biologists have confirmed the presence of the slender glass lizard in the vicinity of the project site and determined that the species is likely present and that the proposed project may result in the incidental taking of some lizards.
Incidental take refers to the unintentional loss of individual endangered or threatened animals or plants that does not put the overall population of the species at risk.
However, the department has concluded that the proposed project will minimize the impacts to the lizard by adhering to conservation measures; is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence and recovery of the state population of these lizards or the whole plant-animal community of which they are a part; and has benefit to the public health, safety or welfare that justifies the action.
In order to minimize possible impacts to the slender glass lizard, the project will conduct work during the lizard’s inactive period, minimize the area of project disturbance, and restore disturbed areas to pre-existing conditions.
source....
Friday, November 20, 2009
Deer hunters urged to help eliminate feral pigs
State wildlife officials are encouraging hunters who have small game licenses heading out for Wisconsin’s traditional nine-day gun deer hunting season to keep an eye out for feral pigs. Since 1997 feral pigs have been found in at least 39 Wisconsin counties.
“Each year we receive reports of feral pig sightings and harvests from around the state,” says Brad Koele, wildlife damage specialist for Department of Natural Resources. “Most of these reports are of 1 or 2 pigs. However, any report of feral pigs is of interest and concern given the negative impacts they can have on the environment, Wisconsin’s agriculture production and our domestic swine industry.”
Feral pigs have been defined as “existing in an untamed or wild, unconfined state, having returned to such a state from domestication.” Feral pigs can be found across a wide variety of habitats and are highly destructive because of the rooting they do in search of food. They’re also efficient predators preying on many species including white-tailed deer fawns and ground nesting birds like grouse, woodcock, turkeys, and songbirds.
Feral pigs are known to carry a number of diseases of danger to humans and the domestic swine industry, including swine brucellosis, pseudorabies and leptospirosis. In 2008 a feral pig shot during the gun deer hunting season in Crawford County initially tested “positive” for pseudorabies however because of the poor sample quality test results could not be labeled definitive.
For removal purposes, feral pigs are currently considered unprotected wild animals and may be hunted year-round. The only day they cannot be hunted with a gun is the Friday before the nine-day gun deer hunting season. Also, feral pig hunting hours are the same as for deer during the nine-day season. During the rest of the year, there are no hunting hour restrictions for feral pigs.
There is no bag limit on feral pigs. Landowners may shoot feral pigs on their own property without a hunting license. Anyone else can shoot a feral pig as long as they possess a valid small game license, sport license, or patron license and have landowner permission if they are on private land.
While the Department encourages the removal of feral pigs when ever possible, Koele cautions that before shooting “hunters need to be sure the pigs are feral and they are not someone’s domestic pigs that may have just escaped. Hunters could be liable for the replacement cost of the pig if they are domestic.”
Information on feral pig hunting, including a list of counties where feral pigs have been sighted or killed, is available on the Department of Natural Resources Web site.
State officials request that anyone shooting a feral pig call a DNR service center or contact a DNR wildlife biologist so that blood and tissue samples can be collected for disease testing in collaboration with USDA and the State veterinarians office.
source....
“Each year we receive reports of feral pig sightings and harvests from around the state,” says Brad Koele, wildlife damage specialist for Department of Natural Resources. “Most of these reports are of 1 or 2 pigs. However, any report of feral pigs is of interest and concern given the negative impacts they can have on the environment, Wisconsin’s agriculture production and our domestic swine industry.”
Feral pigs have been defined as “existing in an untamed or wild, unconfined state, having returned to such a state from domestication.” Feral pigs can be found across a wide variety of habitats and are highly destructive because of the rooting they do in search of food. They’re also efficient predators preying on many species including white-tailed deer fawns and ground nesting birds like grouse, woodcock, turkeys, and songbirds.
Feral pigs are known to carry a number of diseases of danger to humans and the domestic swine industry, including swine brucellosis, pseudorabies and leptospirosis. In 2008 a feral pig shot during the gun deer hunting season in Crawford County initially tested “positive” for pseudorabies however because of the poor sample quality test results could not be labeled definitive.
For removal purposes, feral pigs are currently considered unprotected wild animals and may be hunted year-round. The only day they cannot be hunted with a gun is the Friday before the nine-day gun deer hunting season. Also, feral pig hunting hours are the same as for deer during the nine-day season. During the rest of the year, there are no hunting hour restrictions for feral pigs.
There is no bag limit on feral pigs. Landowners may shoot feral pigs on their own property without a hunting license. Anyone else can shoot a feral pig as long as they possess a valid small game license, sport license, or patron license and have landowner permission if they are on private land.
While the Department encourages the removal of feral pigs when ever possible, Koele cautions that before shooting “hunters need to be sure the pigs are feral and they are not someone’s domestic pigs that may have just escaped. Hunters could be liable for the replacement cost of the pig if they are domestic.”
Information on feral pig hunting, including a list of counties where feral pigs have been sighted or killed, is available on the Department of Natural Resources Web site.
State officials request that anyone shooting a feral pig call a DNR service center or contact a DNR wildlife biologist so that blood and tissue samples can be collected for disease testing in collaboration with USDA and the State veterinarians office.
source....
Thursday, November 19, 2009
GREAT WESTERN FIREBALL
Yesterday, Nov. 18th, something exploded in the atmosphere above the western United States. Witnesses in Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and Idaho say the fireball "turned night into day" and issued shock waves that "shook the ground" when it exploded just after midnight Mountain Standard Time. The fireball was so bright it actually turned the sky noontime blue, as shown in this image from KSL TV in Utah:
Although the fireball appeared during the Leonid meteor shower, it was not a Leonid. Infrasound recordings of the blast suggest a small asteroid hitting Earth's atmosphere and exploding with an energy of 0.5 to 1 kiloton of TNT. Experts liken the event to the Park Forest fireball of 2003, which scattered dozens of meteorites across a suburb of Chicago. Meteorites are likely from this fireball as well.
Approximately 6 hours after the fireball, people in Utah and Colorado got another surprise. As the sun rose over those states, a twisting electric-blue cloud appeared in the dawn sky:
"These curious clouds on the horizon caught my attention just before sunrise," says photographer Don Brown of Park City, Utah. "They were strangely bright relative to the rest of the sky."
The cloud strongly resembles artificial noctilucent clouds formed at high altitudes by rocket and shuttle launches. Yet there was no (officially reported) rocket launch at dawn on Nov. 18th. Could the cloud be associated with the fireball? The geographical coincidence is certainly striking. Debris from the fireball should have dissipated by sunrise, but the cloud remains unexplained and a connection to the fireball cannot yet be dismissed.
source....
Although the fireball appeared during the Leonid meteor shower, it was not a Leonid. Infrasound recordings of the blast suggest a small asteroid hitting Earth's atmosphere and exploding with an energy of 0.5 to 1 kiloton of TNT. Experts liken the event to the Park Forest fireball of 2003, which scattered dozens of meteorites across a suburb of Chicago. Meteorites are likely from this fireball as well.
Approximately 6 hours after the fireball, people in Utah and Colorado got another surprise. As the sun rose over those states, a twisting electric-blue cloud appeared in the dawn sky:
"These curious clouds on the horizon caught my attention just before sunrise," says photographer Don Brown of Park City, Utah. "They were strangely bright relative to the rest of the sky."
The cloud strongly resembles artificial noctilucent clouds formed at high altitudes by rocket and shuttle launches. Yet there was no (officially reported) rocket launch at dawn on Nov. 18th. Could the cloud be associated with the fireball? The geographical coincidence is certainly striking. Debris from the fireball should have dissipated by sunrise, but the cloud remains unexplained and a connection to the fireball cannot yet be dismissed.
source....
Early returns on deer stubs and hunter self-survey indicate hunters are “seeing deer”
Hunters report seeing between one to three deer per hunting trip during the early hunting seasons.
The data come from a preliminary count of deer registration stubs and new Department of Natural Resources online hunter observation reports through October 28.
“Every successful hunter must fill out a Deer Harvest Information stub when they register their kill,” said Keith Warnke, DNR big game ecologist. “This year, there are blanks on the stub asking whether or not the deer was killed on public or private land, the number of deer seen on the day of the kill, the numbers of hours hunted on the day of the kill and weather conditions.”
With only a portion of registration stubs entered and much hunting still to come, officials emphasize that these numbers will almost certainly change.
The early tally of successful hunters shows 31,470 trips reported and 95,229 hours hunted; 92,029 deer were seen for an average sighting of one deer per hour hunted and two-and-half to three deer seen per trip. Overall weather ratings were reported as six on a 10-point scale with one being worst and 10 best.
Hunters filing voluntary hunter observation reports logged 3,430 trips 12,904 hours hunted and one-and-a-half to two deer seen per trip. Information on the Wisconsin Deer Hunter Wildlife Survey is available on the DNR Web site.
The eastern and southern farmland areas [PDF 294KB] saw the most hunting trips (9,659 and 9,940 respectively) by successful hunters. The greatest number of hunter field observation reports also came from eastern farmland (1,056 reports filed) and southern farmland (932 reports filed).
In both categories, hunters in the western farmland saw the most deer with 3.47 deer observed per trip for successful hunters and 2.09 deer observed per trip in the field observation reports.
As wildlife managers expected, preliminary registration returns entered through Nov. 5 show a decreased total archery harvest (about 31,000 in 2008 vs. about 22,000 in 2009).
“The archery antlerless harvest in this time period dropped by about 39 percent and the buck harvest climbed by about 7 percent,” said Warnke. “This was expected due mainly to fewer herd control units and no Earn a Buck outside of the CWD management zone.”
Antlerless registrations during the October antlerless gun hunt in herd control units were down also with about 11,000 deer registrations in the database in 2009 compared to about 26,000 by this date in 2008.
There are one-third fewer herd control units this year and no earn-a-buck requirements outside the CWD Zone thus, hunter opportunity to participate in the October gun hunt was more limited this year according to wildlife officials.
The registration numbers will most certainly change, say wildlife managers, as more stubs are entered.
source....
The data come from a preliminary count of deer registration stubs and new Department of Natural Resources online hunter observation reports through October 28.
“Every successful hunter must fill out a Deer Harvest Information stub when they register their kill,” said Keith Warnke, DNR big game ecologist. “This year, there are blanks on the stub asking whether or not the deer was killed on public or private land, the number of deer seen on the day of the kill, the numbers of hours hunted on the day of the kill and weather conditions.”
With only a portion of registration stubs entered and much hunting still to come, officials emphasize that these numbers will almost certainly change.
The early tally of successful hunters shows 31,470 trips reported and 95,229 hours hunted; 92,029 deer were seen for an average sighting of one deer per hour hunted and two-and-half to three deer seen per trip. Overall weather ratings were reported as six on a 10-point scale with one being worst and 10 best.
Hunters filing voluntary hunter observation reports logged 3,430 trips 12,904 hours hunted and one-and-a-half to two deer seen per trip. Information on the Wisconsin Deer Hunter Wildlife Survey is available on the DNR Web site.
The eastern and southern farmland areas [PDF 294KB] saw the most hunting trips (9,659 and 9,940 respectively) by successful hunters. The greatest number of hunter field observation reports also came from eastern farmland (1,056 reports filed) and southern farmland (932 reports filed).
In both categories, hunters in the western farmland saw the most deer with 3.47 deer observed per trip for successful hunters and 2.09 deer observed per trip in the field observation reports.
As wildlife managers expected, preliminary registration returns entered through Nov. 5 show a decreased total archery harvest (about 31,000 in 2008 vs. about 22,000 in 2009).
“The archery antlerless harvest in this time period dropped by about 39 percent and the buck harvest climbed by about 7 percent,” said Warnke. “This was expected due mainly to fewer herd control units and no Earn a Buck outside of the CWD management zone.”
Antlerless registrations during the October antlerless gun hunt in herd control units were down also with about 11,000 deer registrations in the database in 2009 compared to about 26,000 by this date in 2008.
There are one-third fewer herd control units this year and no earn-a-buck requirements outside the CWD Zone thus, hunter opportunity to participate in the October gun hunt was more limited this year according to wildlife officials.
The registration numbers will most certainly change, say wildlife managers, as more stubs are entered.
source....
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