OND is a community feature on Daily Kos, consisting of news stories from around the world, sometimes coupled with a daily theme, original research or commentary. Editors of OND impart their own presentation styles and content choices, typically publishing each day near 12:00AM Eastern Time. Our crew consists of founder Magnifico, current leader Neon Vincent, regular editors side pocket, maggiejean, wader, Man Oh Man, rfall, and JML9999. Alumni editors include (but not limited to) palantir, Patriot Daily News Clearinghouse, ek hornbeck, ScottyUrb, Interceptor7, BentLiberal, Oke and jlms qkw. The guest editors are Doctor RJ and annetteboardman.
Tonight's featured story comes from space.com:
Night Sky: Visible Planets, Moon Phases & Events, January 2015
The night sky tonight and on any clear night offers an ever-changing display of fascinating objects you can see, from stars and constellations to bright planets, often the moon, and sometimes special events like meteor showers. Observing the night sky can be done with no special equipment, although a sky map can be very useful, and a good beginner telescope or binoculars will enhance some experiences and bring some otherwise invisible objects into view. Below, find out what’s up in the night sky tonight
And another from the same site, looking at what might (if we are lucky) be worth seeking out:
How to Spot Potentially Dazzling 'New Year's Comet'
by Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist
A newfound comet could put on a spectacular show in Earth's skies in early 2015.
The comet — officially catalogued as 2014 Q2, or Q2 for short — should be a fine object to view in small telescopes and binoculars during much of January. In dark skies free of significant light pollution, the comet may even be visible with the unaided eye.
Follow me below the orange Milky Way for more space news and other cool stuff.
Space news:
from physorg.com
Dawn spacecraft begins approach to dwarf planet Ceres
Dec 30, 2014 by Elizabeth Landau
(Phys.org)—NASA's Dawn spacecraft has entered an approach phase in which it will continue to close in on Ceres, a Texas-sized dwarf planet never before visited by a spacecraft. Dawn launched in 2007 and is scheduled to enter Ceres orbit in March 2015.
Dawn recently emerged from solar conjunction, in which the spacecraft is on the opposite side of the sun, limiting communication with antennas on Earth. Now that Dawn can reliably communicate with Earth again, mission controllers have programmed the maneuvers necessary for the next stage of the rendezvous, which they label the Ceres approach phase. Dawn is currently 400,000 miles (640,000 kilometers) from Ceres, approaching it at around 450 miles per hour (725 kilometers per hour).
from livescience.cp,:
Are Ocean Asteroid Impacts Really a Serious Threat?
by Tia Ghose, Staff Writer
If a space rock were to hit the Earth at just the right location in the oceans, it could cause massive waves that could inundate U.S. coastlines, a new computer simulation suggests.
For instance, if an asteroid were to hit the continental shelf off the Maryland coast, it could produce 23-foot-high (7 meters) waves, causing flooding from New York to Georgia that would take hours to recede. A similar impact off the coast of California could flood major power plants along the coast, the research also suggests.
from space.com:
Mystery Object Appears Near Milky Way's Monster Black Hole
by Calla Cofield, Space.com Staff Writer
A mystery object at the center of the galaxy has astronomers scratching their heads, and a new piece of information won't be solving the case before the New Year.
In yet another twist to a saga of astronomical proportions, astronomers now say a gas cloud called G1 made a tight orbit around the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy 13 years ago. The object could be one in a series of gas clouds, the second of which may soon become a snack for the black hole.
Environment news:
from livescience.com:
Hottest Year Ever: 5 Places Where 2014 Temps Really Cooked
by Becky Oskin, Senior Writer
Though the official numbers aren't in for December, it's likely that 2014 will go down as the planet's hottest year on record, at least since scientists started keeping tabs on global temperature.
Data from three major climate-tracking groups agree: The combined land and ocean surface temperatures hit new highs this year, according to the United States' National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the United Kingdom's Met Office and the World Meteorological Association.
If December's figures are at least 0.76 degrees Fahrenheit (0.42 degrees Celsius) higher than the 20th century average, 2014 will beat the warmest years on record, NOAA said this month. The January-through-November period has already been noted as the warmest 11-month period in the past 135 years, according to NOAA's November Global Climate Report.
from livescience.com:
Ocean Warming: Probing a Blue Abyss
By John Upton, Climate Central
Editor’s Note: This is one in a series of stories in which we look back at key issues and events of 2014 and why they will continue to make headlines in 2015.
Probing a blue abyss can be an abysmal recipe for the blues.
For every 10 joules of energy that our greenhouse gas pollution traps here on Earth, about 9 of them end up in an ocean. There, the effects of global warming bite into fisheries, ecosystems and ice. But those effects are largely imperceptible to humans — as invisible to a landlubber as an albatross chomping on a baited hook at the end of a long line.
from livescience.com
Fate of Earth’s Ice Comes Further Into Focus
By Andrea Thompson, Climate Central
Editor’s Note: This is one in a series of stories in which we look back at key issues and events of 2014 and why they will continue to make headlines in 2015.
The frigid, ice-covered expanses that make up Earth’s poles are some of the fastest warming parts of the planet as human activity drives up greenhouse gas levels in the atmosphere, altering the global climate.
from redOrbit.com:
American cities emit several times more light than German cities
Eric Hopton for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online
Images of the Earth at night are an exceptional source of human geographical data, as artificial light illustrates human activity in a way that daytime images could never do.
Some of those images have shown that, when night falls, American cities are many times brighter than their German counterparts, and that those German cities emit several times less light per capita than comparably sized American cities. The findings have been published a recent publication in the journal Remote Sensing.
Animal news:
from physorg.com:
Pacific Coast sea bird die-off puzzles scientists
Scientists are trying to figure out what's behind the deaths of seabirds that have been found by the hundreds along the Pacific Coast since October.
Mass die-offs of the small, white-bellied gray birds known as Cassin's aucklets have been reported from British Columbia to San Luis Obispo, California.
It's normal for some seabirds to die during harsh winter conditions, especially during big storms, but the scale of the current die-off is unusual.
from physorg.com:
Newborn killer whale a good sign for imperiled pod
A newborn orca in the endangered pod that frequents Puget Sound is an encouraging sign following the death earlier this month of a pregnant killer whale from the same group.
"That was a pretty hard hit," Howard Garrett of the Whidbey Island-based Orca Network said Wednesday. "It's good to see a positive sign."
The baby orca was discovered Tuesday by Center for Whale Research scientist Ken Balcomb and another scientist monitoring members of J-pod off the Canadian Gulf Islands of British Columbia.
from redOrbit.com:
Surgery goes swimmingly for constipated gold fish
John Hopton for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online
It may quite literally drink like a fish, but one goldfish failed to loosen up until it was treated by a vet for constipation. The procedure cost hundreds of dollars, but the caring owner decided to go ahead and get things moving with an hour-long op.
British vet Faye Bethell and two veterinary nurses knocked out the goldfish with anaesthetised water before removing the blockages. They kept it wet and monitored its heart rate with a tiny probe as they worked.
“At the end of the day they’re all pets and everybody does have a commitment to their pet,” Miss Bethell told the BBC. “(The goldfish) was constipated because he had a lump blocking his bottom, rather than because of his diet or any other reason,” she added.
from redOrbit.com:
Humpback whales sound “dinner bell” when hunting at night
Do humpback whales “sing for their supper”?
Eric Hopton for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online
Communal behavior among humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) is well observed. Humpbacks demonstrate an amazing degree of collaboration when cooperating in groups to corral their prey near the surface of the ocean. To study this type of communal feeding and collaboration at the bottom of the sea has proved to be a much harder task for marine biologists. But biologist Susan Parks, assistant professor of biology in the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University, has been carrying out an intensive study of these unique deep water feeding behaviors.
Check out the amazing photo with this story from physorg.com:
Researchers able to perform extended study of stunning wild northern cardinal gynandromorph
by Bob Yirka
(Phys.org)—Ornithologists Brian Peer and Robert Motz, with Western Illinois University, found themselves with a unique opportunity a couple of years ago—to study a gynandromorphy in its native environment for an extended period of time. They have written a paper describing what they observed and have had it published in The Wilson Journal of Ornithology. The observations made by the pair of researchers represent the most extensive study of a bilateral gynandromorph bird in the wild to date.
Gynandromorphy is a condition where an organism unnaturally possesses both male and female traits. Examples have been observed in chickens, lobster, butterflies and other species. The cardinal in Illinois was particularly striking as males and females generally are colored very differently. The male is usually all bright red, while the female exhibits mostly a mix of soft and dark brown feathers. The gynandromorph wound up with plumage split right down the middle, literally—one half of the bird looks male, the other half female. In fact, when viewed from either side it is impossible to tell that anything is amiss.
Health news:
from livescience.com:
Bat-Filled Tree May Have Been Source of Current Ebola Outbreak
by Laura Geggel, Staff Writer
In the small village of Meliandou, in Guinea, stood a tall, hollowed-out tree where children loved to play. But thousands of bats lived in the tree, and one toddler — a 2-year-old named Emile Ouamouno — may have contracted Ebola from playing there.
Emile, who died in December 2013, was "patient zero," or the first person known to have contracted Ebola in the current outbreak that has now claimed at least 7,600 lives in the region. In a new study, researchers looking for the source of the outbreak found that free-tailed bats (Mops condylurus) lived in the tree. These bats are likely a reservoir of the disease, the researchers concluded.
from redOrbit.com:
Did Titanic make us smoke? A recent history of public smoking
John Hopton for redOrbit.com – Your Universe Online
On New Year’s Day 1971 America woke up to find smoking advertisements gone from its TVs.
Even by 1971, the golden age of tobacco advertising was over. There really wasn’t ever any “good” tobacco advertising, but even the staunchest non-smokers must be nostalgic for the days when public announcements about cigarettes told us that “More doctors smoke Camels than any other cigarette” and that other brands were “Fresh as mountain air,” rather than the much less catchy “smoking causes heart disease and strokes.” 1955’s admirably conscientious “Should a gentleman offer a Tiparillo to a violinist?” hinted at a future of discretion in smoking, even if the violinist’s for-some-reason-unbuttoned top made no prediction of 1960’s feminism.
from Physorg.com:
Guide for healthy eating may consider environment
By Mary Clare Jalonick
The government issues dietary guidelines every five years to encourage Americans to eat healthier. This year's version may look at what is healthy for the environment, too.
A new focus on the environment would mean asking people to choose more fruits, vegetables, nuts, whole grains and other plant-based foods—possibly at the expense of meat.
The beef and agriculture industries are crying foul, saying an environmental agenda has no place in what has always been a practical blueprint for a healthy lifestyle.
From physorg.com:
The biological spoils of war: Study finds those who take part in violent conflict have more wives, children
Violent conflict may, under certain conditions, offer a biological benefit to those who take part in it, a Harvard study has found.
The study, authored by Luke Glowacki, a doctoral student working with Richard Wrangham, Ruth Moore Professor of Biological Anthropology and Curator of Primate Behavioral Biology in the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, found that, among members of an East African herding tribe, those who engaged in conflict - in the form of violent raids carried out on neighboring groups - had more wives, and thus more opportunities to increase their reproductive success through having more children. The study is described in a December 29 paper published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
From Science and Scholarship in Poland:
Archaeologists from Kraków discovered Hellenistic agora in Nea Paphos
Success of Polish archaeologists in Cyprus. After four seasons of excavations they managed to locate the agora, the central square of the ancient city of Nea Paphos, founded at the end of the fourth century BC. The town of Paphos was included in the official UNESCO list of cultural and natural treasures of the world's heritage in 1980.
From the UK's Daily Record:
Ancient coins worth more than £1 MILLION found buried in lead bucket in farmer's field
By Jack Evans
AMATEUR treasure hunters armed with metal detectors unearthed the hoard of Anglo-Saxon coins during Christmas dig.
A HOARD of ancient coins worth more than £1MILLION has been found buried in a bucket in a farmer's field.
Amateur treasure hunters armed with metal detectors unearthed the rare Anglo Saxon coins near Aylesbury, Bucks., during a Christmas dig.
From Russian News and Facts:
Under-cabinet director general of the Tver Museum found an ancient treasure
Archaeologists have suggested that it hid in the earth noblewoman, hiding from the invasion of Batu
Archaeologists from Tver historical and archaeological research and restoration center, together with colleagues from the Institute of Archaeology RAS New Year’s Eve discovered during excavations in the building of the Tver Museum & ndash; directly under the floor of the cabinet director & ndash; treasure.
Under the floor of the cabinet general director of the museum at a depth of 2 meters, archaeologists found a small hole, where he finds a treasure, closed at the top inverted small ceramic vessels.
From Canada's The Globe and Mail:
Human bones discovered on Gaspé peninsula ‘witnesses to a tragic event’
by Ingrid Peritz
The human bones arrived in a cardboard box and the investigators scrutinized them one by one: About a dozen long bones, more than 25 vertebrae, pieces of a jawbone.
Laid out on a long, rectangular table, the remains held a tale of human tragedy. The investigators – anthropologists working for Parks Canada – began to piece that tale together, helping bring some resolution to a mystery that straddles time and two continents.
from livescience.com:
Hidden World War II Battlefields Reveal Germans' Secret Tactics
by Tanya Lewis, Staff
Deep in the forests of northwestern Europe, the ghosts of battle from World War II remain. These landscapes preserve troves of bomb craters, trenches and even the remains of supply depots — all of which have not been well studied until now.
These battleground remnants may shed new light on logistical support of German field armies and the impact of Allied bombings, researchers said in a new study.
Science crimes:
From The Times of Israel (timesofisrael.com):
Antiquities thief busted with over 800 ancient coins
Beit Shemesh man caught while prowling archaeological site with metal detector; found to have immense trove of currency, necklaces, seals, arrowheads and more at his home
By Ilan Ben Zion
Hundreds of ancient coins and ancient artifacts were found at the home of a suspected antiquities thief in Beit Shemesh last week after the man was caught in the act at a nearby archaeological site, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced Wednesday.
The suspect, an unidentified man in his 50s, was nabbed by Border Police officers at Khirbat Marmita, an archaeological site near the town of Naham, equipped with a metal detector and digging tools. The man had several bronze pieces in his possession, but he initially denied illegally searching for antiquities and knowing anything about ancient coins, the IAA said in a statement.
Ain't it cool news:
from livescience.com:
Mystery Illness That Struck Oscar Wilde's Wife Finally Identified
by Megan Gannon, News Editor
Constance Wilde — the wife of 19th century Irish writer Oscar Wilde — suffered from a mysterious illness during the last decade of her life. A new analysis of her unpublished letters suggests that she most likely had multiple sclerosis.
The diagnosis, published today (Jan. 2) in the medical journal The Lancet, comes 116 years after Constance's death at age 40. At the time she died, Constance was living in exile in Genoa, Italy, with her two sons. They had left London and changed their surname to "Holland" to escape the scandal surrounding her husband's imprisonment for homosexual acts in 1895.
from phys.org:
Thanking customers can reap rewards
Dec 29, 2014
Companies rarely acknowledge customers who fill out those ubiquitous satisfaction surveys. But a sincere, well-timed "thank you" can reap huge rewards, finds first-of-its-kind research led by a Michigan State University marketing scholar.
According to the study, which focused on an upscale sit-down restaurant, satisfied customers who received an acknowledgement of their comments from the company president increased patronage to the business by more than 50 percent. The simple gesture of thanking customers was just as effective—and less damaging to the company's bottom line—as acknowledgements that included rewards in the form of gift cards and guaranteed reservations.