116 Years Old!

Here are some highlights from the year 1896:

- Utah becomes the 45th U.S. state (January 4th)
- Opening Ceremonies for first modern Olympics are held in Athens (April 6th)
- Queen Victoria becomes the longest reigning monarch in Britian (September 22nd)
- William McKinley is elected president of the United States by defeating William Jennings Bryan (November 3rd)

You know what else happened?  Besse Cooper was born.  She joined the women's suffrage movement at age 24.  She married in 1924, had four children and was widowed in 1963.  She became a school teacher during World War I.  She also claims eleven grandchildren, thirteen great-grandchildren and amazingly two great-great granchildren!

In January 2011, Guinness World Records gave her the distinction of the oldest living human.  She died peacefully on Tuesday, December 4th, 2012, aged 116.

What an amazing life!!

LINK to her story on CNN.com: http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/04/us/georgia-oldest-person-dies/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

LINK to her story on ABCNews: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/12/05/15690486-worlds-oldest-woman-besse-cooper-dies-at-116-in-georgia-nursing-home?lite

Not quite Old Tom Parr, but her story is one for the record books!

Serengeti Story

I have a thing for books.  It's tragic, really - I'll spend $50 in Barnes and Noble without batting an eye.  This is why Viggle and their B&N gift cards are excellent.  Look into it.

Anyway, I caught this synopsis for "Serengeti Story: A Scientist in Paradise" in last week's Nature magazine.  Now, I want it.  The book is written by Anthony Sinclair who has spent 50 years studying this area of East Africa.  The book covers its ecological, social, political and economic history.

One day, I'm going to the Serengeti.  Absolutely.

Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/Serengeti-Story-scientist-paradise-ebook/dp/B009SNGLDK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1354635237&sr=8-1&keywords=serengeti+story

Serengeti's Official Website: http://www.serengeti.org/

Happy Birthday!

I missed it, but Mini-Amedeo turned one on November 16th.  I was probably knee-deep in some beers due to my papers finally being sent out.  That, and it was a Friday.

Thanks for reading!!

Giant Sequoias

National Geographic is publishing some majestic pictures of the 3,200 year old and second largest Giant Sequoia 'President' in the Sierra Nevada mountain range. 

Link, The Daily Mail summary: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2235452/Giant-sequoia-National-Geographic-pictures-giants-forest-Sierra-Nevada.html

Link, National Geographic: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2012/12/sequoias/quammen-text

Preview Shot:

Walking Again

::waves::  I'm back from a short blogging break.  I have three manuscripts in various levels of review/publication so I was very focused on that work for the past few weeks.  But, I'm back now!  Just in time for Thanksgiving!

I recently listed to a podcast on exoskeletons ("Stuff You Should Know").  As science minded as I am, I originally thought they were going to tell me how crustaceans and bugs made their hard skins, but exoskeletons also refers to the design of robotics to help human achievement.  These are machines that a human would physically wear while doing work.  DARPA recently asked for designs that will help soldiers carry heavier loads for longer periods, walk faster, and jump higher. 

One area they are truly amazing is helping those with paralysis to walk again.  Their muscles no longer respond to their central nervous system due to the severing of their spinal columns, but the robotics, acting as bones and muscle, can respond to other cues, such as leaning forward.  Here's an article from the New York Times about their progress.  Fascinating.

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/12/technology/wearable-robots-that-can-help-people-walk-again.html