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Eastern Antarctic a New Danger Area to Raise Sea Level

There is a lot of research on climate change. However, countries are doing very little to reduce pollution. They are not reacting at all to the clear data pointing to damage caused to the planet by humans. In the Antarctic the latest evidence shows some movement in the ice "plug" holding massive amounts of ice back from the ocean. If this plug fails, ice will slide into the sea raising the planet's water level by many meters, permanently. Cities on the coast around the world will be flooded. It was thought that only the western side of the Antarctic was in danger of raising sea level. It now appears that the eastern side where the plug is situated is also at risk. The weather in the US has been extremely erratic over the last ten years. The cost to the nation is in the billions of dollars. Insurance companies will react as they have done in Australia. Premiums have more than doubled in recent years. Some areas of Australia cannot get insurance cover a...

Sea Levels Fall in Eastern Australia

It seems the Earth is trying to balance out global warming itself. There could be a natural balance level that the planet is attempting to reach. In Australia an unusual phenomenon has taken place. We have had a lot of rain in coastal regions, while inland it remains dry. The arid regions have soaked up the excess water only gradually releasing it to the ocean, so sea levels have not increased. Indeed, sea level has fallen 7 millimeters. Damaging floods cost Queenslanders millions of dollars. It was so bad that insurance companies refused to reinsured low-lying towns. Even the dry Northern Territory had floods. One of two very close La Ninas was the strongest ever recorded. The year 2012 was rain, rain and more rain. This is not something that global warming critics should put forward as a natural solution. Only in Australia does the unusual geographic structure of the continent exist. Humid air moved slowly east but moved as far south as Melbourne, pushing up rainfall 20 pe...

Show Kitten

"Just take it more smoothly.  Like this." . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Funny Animal Photos Vista Computer Solutions Blog ------- Australian Blog -------

Lead Remains High in the Blood of Children

Despite changes in the supply of motor fuel, i.e., the move toward unleaded petrol, high levels of lead in the blood of children is still an issue. In the northern hemisphere there are seasonal fluctuations in levels of lead. Though the general amount of lead present in the environment has fallen, it remains significantly high in the blood of children. Much of the lead released decades ago is still there. The polluted fine particles are swept up into the air in the warmer months of July, August and September. This is the time when children are outside playing their sports. Money would be better spent on "fixing" the suspended lead rather than reducing content in products we use. Finding a way to "lock-in" the lead particles would end the damage to future generations of people. Once lead reaches a high level in the blood it is extremely difficult to reduce. Damage to the brain and nervous system is permanent. http://www.adventure--australia.blogspot.com/ htt...

Higher Carbon Levels in Sea Water Changes Hermit Crab Behavior

More research is proving that the theory of animals becoming bolder with climate is correct.  Sea water is retaining more carbon dioxide.  This is altering the body chemistry of some animals. Tests were done on the hermit crab and a "toy" of its main predator the octopus.  In a laboratory, hermit crabs were split into two group and put into aquariums.  The water in one aquarium was at a pH of 7.6; the other had a pH of 7.1.  This may seem to be only a small amount of difference in acidity but it was significant on behavior. The flicking of antennae (testing for danger of preying animals) and oxygen levels were measured.  The hermit crabs in the more acidic pH 7.1 water flicked their antennae less often.  Crabs in the 7.6 aquarium definitely responded much quicker when a toy octopus was dipped into the water. Visitors at the Third International Symposium on the Ocean in a High-CO2 World had a good laugh at the crab behavior.  A more serious pro...

Childcare Makes Men More Effeminate

Men become more effeminate after marriage. When men marry, particularly when they have children, the level of testosterone in men's bodies falls. Tests on Filipino men highlighted this phenomenon. It appears that the more men care for children, adopting female behavior, the lower their testosterone. Research subjects were 21 years old on average. They were tested at the beginning and after 4 years. At the latter time 50 per cent were married. These married men had very high testosterone levels initially, which indicates that testosterone makes men more attractive as marriage partners. Very low testosterone was found in married men with a child less than one month old. Males who cared directly for a child had 80 per cent of the testosterone level of men who left childcare to mothers. Obviously behavior drives hormone level. This is a new discovery. If testosterone is affected by behavior it is possible that other hormones levels are determined by the way people act. http://...