I think it has more to do with the abnormally cold weather for the region rather than just 'can this species survive these temperatures?'
The plants and animals that were used to a certain temperature were not accustomed to what they experienced, nor were they prepared in any way, so they survived as best they could, but if plants are killed off, then herbivores have less to eat, carnivores have less, and the whole ecosystem is impacted. It doesn't sound that outrageous to me to have such phenomenon as exploding and splitting trees under such circumstances.

Sometimes Mother Nature marches to her own drummer. It'll be interesting to see where we're headed, into increasingly hot weather because of global warming, or into the next miniature ice age instead.

Looks like reservations are auctioned off. It'd be interesting to see a schedule of appearances, but I couldn't find one on their site.

Hmmm, the accompanying illustration almost makes the burning men appear to be joyfully dancing, not burning alive.

Quite a difficult situation, risking your life to give some dignity to those who already lost theirs. I applaud the efforts though.

This could go for phrases that don't really translate well too. Brazilians have "dar um jeito" which basically means find a way, but it is much deeper than that, delving into the entire cultural identity. Words and phrases like that simply do not translate well.

Ugh. I haven't eaten at McDonalds in probably fifteen years. I've never been tempted too, and adding the effects of this article gives me even less reason to want a quarter pounder with cheese.

Little did Henry know that hundreds of years later he would be looked back on as a visionary in the art of steampunk goggle making.

Great insights carbonfish.
My personal favorite bit was when "Sam" rolled around on his side with the ball. Very reminiscent to what our dogs do every now and again with something they find especially odoriferous or playful.

The one with the spiked cudgel to the bottom looks especially embarrassing and painful at the same time.

I've noticed the difference too, but I mostly use firefox for the added features and security. I even just discovered a new one (to me) yesterday that lets me block photos. Now I don't have to view annoying advertisements (perhaps I shouldn't have said that on a blog that uses advertising to supplement income)

My personal favorite is the Guinness "Rhythm of Life" evolution commercial. Pretty impressive CG and compositing.

That's why they have warnings on machines with spinning parts and in-house training hopefully. Good to know she's alright though.

I don't get it, I mean, the dog looks nothing like Fred Schneider. :)

I agree to an extent. I was lucky to have payment secured for my degree that didn't involve any form of loan (and I really, really appreciate the third party that funded my education).

The system makes it seem simple, easy and advantageous to acquire a degree no matter the costs. When I was in school I paid for all of my own supplies, books, software etc... out of my own pocket, but those with loans simply accepted the additional charge to their account at the (steeply marked up) school bookstore.

Our culture, and the advertising schools use does not make much mention of financing, other than to provide assistance in acquiring it. In reality, as graduation nears, those students with loans begin to see reality face to face. They are new to a job market with no guarantees, and faced with the realization that if they didn't push themselves to becoming capable in their chosen field, that their current part time job will not even begin to cover their future expenses.

Add to that any additional expenses already racked up through life experience, like child support or any thing else, and the experience can truly become overwhelming. I've seen all of this, and I'm just an observer, not a participant in the program. I'm sure it's a very stressful situation to be in, especially given our current economic state.

Oh geeze. I'm definitely steering clear of salsa cookies from now on.