By the light of the moon: Belgium experiments with mystical "full moon" beer

Now this is what I call a beer breakthrough! I wonder when it’ll be available here?

“Full moons are often associated with tides, insanity and creatures like werewolves, but it turns out they're also good for brewing beer.

In Peruwelz, a small, sleepy town in southern Belgium, a family-owned brewery has produced its first batch of specialist beer brewed by the light of a full autumnal moon.

It isn't so much a nod to mythology as a recognition of nature's impact on the science of brewing.

"We made several tests and noticed that the fermentation was more vigorous, more active," explained Roger Caulier, the owner of Brewery Caulier, which began in the 1930s when his grandfather started selling homemade beer from a handcart.

"The end product was completely different, stronger, with a taste lasting longer in the mouth," he said.”

Outsourcing safety: Airplane repairs move to unregulated foreign shops

'All the manuals are in English,' Spanish-speaking employee says through a translator

“In 1991, a mechanic at a Turkish repair shop overhauled an engine on a U.S. passenger jet and missed a crack in the engine.

Four years later, on a June afternoon, the 57 passengers on ValuJet Flight 597 heard a loud bang as the plane bolted down a runway in Atlanta. Shrapnel from the busted engine ripped through a fuel line. The engine and cabin caught on fire. One crew member suffered serious puncture wounds from the shrapnel, and another crew member and five passengers suffered minor injuries.

A National Transportation Safety Board investigation  of the ValuJet accident concluded that if the Turkish repair station had required the same rigorous record-keeping as U.S. airplane maintenance facilities, the crack probably would have been discovered and the engine part replaced.”

PHOTO-On January 8, 2003, negligent repairs to the tail section of the plane caused the pilot flying Air Midwest Flight 5481 to lose control and careen into a hanger at the Charlotte-Douglas International Airport, killing 21 people. Air Midwest had outsourced the plane's maintenance checks to a West Virginia company, which in turn outsourced them to another company

Fisher-Price recalls 11 million items for infants, toddlers

Injuries to young children include genital bleeding from tricycle wounds

“In the wake of multiple child injuries in the United States and Canada, Fisher-Price Inc. announced that it will recall more than 11 million items geared toward infants and toddlers, including tricycles, high chairs and toys.”

The sweeping recall, announced Thursday, comes after 24 reported incidents of injuries to young children. Seven kids needed stitches after being cut by pegs on Fisher-Price high chairs, and at least six 2- to 3-year-old girls experienced genital bleeding when they sat or fell against protruding plastic ignition keys on Fisher-Price toddler tricycles.

PHOTO: The protruding ignition keys on these Fisher-Price toddler tricycles have caused serious injuries, including genital bleeding in 2- and 3-year-olds who fell against them.

20 light-years away: alien planet looks 'just right' for life

So when do we start sending spaceships there to claim it? 

Alan Boyle writes: “Astronomers say they've found the first planet beyond our solar system that could have the right size and setting to sustain life as we know it, only 20 light-years from Earth.

"My own personal feeling is that the chances of life on this planet are 100 percent," Steven Vogt, an astrophysicist at the University of California at Santa Cruz, told reporters today. "I have almost no doubt about it."

The discovery, published online in The Astrophysical Journal, is the result of 11 years of observations at the Keck Observatory in Hawaii. Astronomers participating in the Lick-Carnegie Exoplanet Survey detected the planet by tracking the faint gravitational wobbles it produced in its parent star. Now they say there may well be many more planets out there like this one.

"The fact that we were able to detect this planet so quickly and so nearby tells us that planets like this must be really common," Vogt said in a news release.”

Guess what likable cartoon character is going to be 60 Saturday?

The great Charles M. Schulz character, Charlie Brown, turns 60 on October 2nd. I tell myself that 60 years wasn’t so long ago. Six decades isn’t that long. My reasoning is purely emotional as my 60th birthday looms near on November 7th.

I’ve always felt a kinship, of sorts, with Charlie Brown. He was nearly always misunderstood no matter how hard he tried to be like the rest of the gang.

But he never gives up. He’s still appearing in cartoon strips across the nation, and his TV specials are as popular as ever. Here’s an article about them:

 You’ve had some great TV specials, Charlie Brown - A look at the five best efforts from the 'Peanuts' gang.

Charlie Brown and his "Peanuts pals,” have had loyal readers for decades. Charles Schulz’s perennial elementary schoolers starred in more than 17,000 comic strips, four feature films, two musicals and a heck of a lot of television specials.The entire multimedia collection is worthy of repeated viewings from faithful fans, but for those who grew up in the glow of the small screen, the specials are the best of the bunch. They marked holidays, explained some universal ups and downs, and brought life to the kids from the funny pages.

Simian swat squads: India hires monkeys to guard Games venues

I have to wonder how far these Langurs can chase offending monkeys when I see the short lines these guys have on them. They sure look alert don’t they?

Official: Langurs are 'very effective way' to protect sites from other simians

“Security officials at the Commonwealth Games aren't monkeying around anymore, deploying langurs at several venues in New Delhi to keep smaller simians from causing any trouble.

Because they are large and fierce, langurs are often used in India to keep other monkeys in check in public places.”

A family affair: it’s harvest time down on the farm in Arcata

  My eldest son Richard, and his two boys, Haydin (left) and Roanin (right) take a break from harvesting squash at Warren Creek Farms.

Richard’s wife Jassmine also works there, making it a family affair.

Warren Creek Farm has been growing organically since 1987 and certified organic by CCOF since 1991.

They conserve water and soil through crop rotation, cover cropping and dry farming. Dry farmed plants are more nutritious, store better and conserve water.

At Warren Creek Farms they manage weeds, pests, and diseases by mechanical and manual cultivation, crop rotation, strip grazing, soil testing, fertilizer management and as a last resort, application of organic program approved materials and practices.

Soil fertility is considered after annual soil testing. Green manure crops, compost, micronutrients and fallow years are used to maintain fertility and plant health.

At Warren Creek Farms they have a box recycling program. They pay their customers to save their boxes and many of them are used several times over.

Blue Lake & Arcata Bottoms (0-4 miles from packaging facility) Warren Creek Farms is owned by Paul Giuntoli, a third generation Humboldt County Farmer.

He and his wife Carla farm two plots of certified organic land – one on Warren Creek Road (shown above) between Arcata and Blue Lake, and one in the Arcata Bottoms.

They have been supplying the co-op with potatoes and winter squash for more than 20 years, making them one of our oldest suppliers.

World's oldest man marks 114th birthday in Montana

Secret to long life: 'Cigarettes, whisky and wild, wild women — and a good sense of humor'

“A Montana resident believed to be the world's oldest man celebrated his 114th birthday Tuesday at a retirement home in Great Falls.

Walter Breuning was born on Sept. 21, 1896, in Melrose, Minn., and moved to Montana in 1918, where he worked as a clerk for the Great Northern Railway for 50 years.”

I discovered at least two of Mr. Breuning’s secrets to life fit into my world view – whiskey and humor. I’ll have to pass on the cigarettes (I quit smoking them in 2000 after 30 years of puffing) and the wild, wild women. I’m just not sure I would want to live as long as this guy. All of your friends would probably be long gone when you stick around as long as Mr. Breuning has.

Is It Skin Cancer? How to Tell a Harmless Mole from a Melanoma

Know Your ABCDEs

Melanoma is the deadliest form of skin cancer but it can be hard to identify. 
The ABCDE guide helps. If your mole fits the characteristics below, call your dermatologist pronto:
Asymmetry—if the mole could be folded in half, the two halves wouldn’t match
Border irregularities—the mole’s borders are uneven or blurred
Color variations—the mole has mixed shades of tan, brown, black or other hues
Diameter—the spot is bigger than a pencil eraser
Evolution—its appearance has changed in some way
“Skin cancer is highly curable when it’s found early,” says iVillage skin expert Doris Day, M.D., a clinical assistant professor of dermatology at New York University. 
“Keep an eye on your skin and look for changes.”
Still, not every mole or mark is dangerous. Here are some more tips to tell the difference.

A Serious Sign of Sun Damage

A mole is simply a cluster of pigmented cells, creating a spot that can be flesh-colored, pink or very dark brown. Some moles are raised off the skin’s surface, and some sprout hairs, but neither is a bad sign in itself. 

Moles can usually be left alone but should be monitored for changes. If a mole appears suspicious (based on the ABCDE characteristics) or it becomes easily irritated, your dermatologist can numb the skin and remove it by cutting or shaving it off, explains Dr. Day. It will often be sent for evaluation to make sure it’s normal.

An actinic keratosis (AK) is a rough, red or brown, flat, scaly patch on the skin’s top layer—and it’s considered precancerous. “These occur in sun-exposed areas and you can often feel them before you can see them,” Dr. Day says. 
If left untreated, it can turn into squamous cell carcinoma, another form of skin cancer that can also spread but isn’t as deadly as melanoma. Dermatologists typically recommend using a topical cream (like Aldara or Efudex) to destroy the precancerous cells, or treating AKs with other treatments like liquid nitrogen, laser or photodynamic therapy that can destroy abnormal cells on the surface.

Just a Mysterious Mark or Melanoma?

A seborrheic keratosis can be flesh-colored, light brown or tan, and it may have a waxy or scaly, wart-like appearance. “Sometimes a seborrheic keratosis can have variations in color and be confused with a melanoma,” Dr. Day says, so it’s important to get them checked out.
These common growths, which can range in size, are benign. However, if they become itchy, red, irritated or inflamed or if they’re unsightly, they can be gently scraped off the skin’s surface or frozen off with liquid nitrogen.

Nothing to Do With Your Liver

A lentigo (or liver spot) is a flat, brownish blotch caused by long-term sun damage. They may be unsightly, but they’re benign. “They only occur in sun-exposed areas—for some people it takes a lot of sun exposure; for others, very little,” Dr. Day says.
Lentigos can be left alone, but if they bother you for cosmetic reasons, your dermatologist may recommend applying a tretinoin cream (such as Retin-A) and a topical bleaching cream. You can also have them removed with a chemical peel, liquid nitrogen or zapped with a laser, Dr. Day says.
Wear a sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher to prevent more from developing (not to mention, to protect your skin).

Melasma, not Melanoma

As if pregnancy doesn’t bring enough changes, some women develop brown patches on their faces during the nine-month stretch, often called the mask of pregnancy (melasma). While its exact causes aren’t known, there are genetic, sun-related, and hormonal components so melasma can also happen if you’re taking oral contraceptives, Dr. Day says.
 “The longer you’re on the Pill, the greater your risk.” Fortunately, melasma is harmless. Sun exposure can darken the patches though, so wear sunscreen with an SPF of 30 or higher every day, and stay in the shade as much as possible. 
Sometimes, melasma fades after childbirth or going off the Pill. If it doesn’t, a prescription-strength bleaching cream (such as hydroquinone), a chemical peel, or intense pulsed light treatment can help.
Source

Tomorrow is National Happy Hour - Make Sure to Get Your Free Beer

The good news: Budweiser is planning to give away at least half-a-million free beers at locations around the country beginning Wednesday.

Yes, the iconic American brewing company – which is now actually owned by a conglomerate from Belgium – is hoping its National Happy Hour will reacquaint American beer drinkers with a brand they’ve been steadily losing interest in for the past seven years. How do you take advantage of this deal? Simply be 21-years old or older, and show up on Sept. 29 where ever they happen to be giving away their beer.

Actually, once you hit 22, you’re eligible for yet another freebie: Bud and Facebook are, according to USA Today, teaming up so that Facebook members who turn 22 can get yet another free beer.

Despite the appeal of free suds, the ad campaign has been garnering a fair amount of ridicule from those who take their beer drinking veddy, veddy seriously. Hasn’t anyone who’s 21 or older already tried Budweiser, wondered Top Fermented, a blog offering “commentary on beer, brewing, and the craft brew industry.”