As if the environment weren't already screwed enough...

Methane Gas Upwellings Threaten to Increase Climate Change

Excerpt:

"The first evidence that millions of tons of a greenhouse gas 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide is being released into the atmosphere from beneath the Arctic seabed has been discovered by scientists. [...] massive deposits of sub-sea methane are bubbling to the surface as the Arctic region becomes warmer and its ice retreats.

Underground stores of methane are important because scientists believe their sudden release has in the past been responsible for rapid increases in global temperatures, dramatic changes to the climate, and even the mass extinction of species. Scientists aboard a research ship that has sailed the entire length of Russia's northern coast have discovered intense concentrations of methane – sometimes at up to 100 times background levels – over several areas covering thousands of square miles of the Siberian continental shelf."

The good news just keeps a-coming, doesn't it?

Public Service Announcement

For anyone who may not have seen this entry over at Making Light, Teresa Neilsen Hayden is in the hospital following what is suspected to have been a heart attack. From information given over there, she is resting comfortably and appears to be doing all right... check the entry and the comments thread over there for updates.

Because you can never have too much Douglas Adams...

...I offer the following:

"There is a theory which states that if ever anybody discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable. There is another theory which states that this has already happened." -Douglas Adams

(For more quotes from Adams' wonderful books, go here.)

As seen on alt.callahans

Although it isn't exactly a joking matter, I present the following link in the spirit of laughter being better than crying:

Good joke: Homeland Security Alerts

Breaking Radio Silence

Because I've found something to say.

It's September already?? Sheesh, summer was short this year. Took forever to get here, too, so I hope winter will do likewise. School just started a couple of weeks ago, and I've picked up a college course again, after fifteen years sitting out of academia. It feels good. Interestingly enough, I'm not even the oldest person in my class; more like middle of the pack from what I can tell. It's a small class, about fifteen people, with an interesting mix of personalities which is really good in a creative writing class. It's having the intended effect of getting me past my recent bout of writer's block, so definitely worth a couple hours out of my day twice a week. On the other hand, I've spent more of my writerly energies on material for class rather than on anything here. I promise to try to bring that more into balance over the next week or so.

I'm not going to say much about the current election season right now, as so many others have said the things that are on my mind right now so much better than I can. Let me just register my opinion that Obama is pretty much the only hope I think this nation has, McCain is frighteningly, increasingly delusional, and his choice of Palin as a running mate will, I HOPE, put paid to any chance he may have had for winning the election. More about politics later when I'm feeling more in the mood to write in that mode...

And I just got a very nice delivery this afternoon of some microbrewed beers from Texas, courtesy of a Houstonian friend. Thank you, David. You rock.

More later...