Toasted Pesto Rounds

1/4  cup thinly  sliced fresh basil or frash dill

1/4 cup (1 ounce) grated parmesan cheese

1 medium clove garlic , minced

3 tablespoons reduced-calorie mayonnaise

12  French bread slices , about 1/4 inch thick

4 tablespoons chopped tomato

1 green onion with top , sliced

Black pepper  to taste

1) Preheat broiler

2) Combine basil , cheese , garlic  and mayonnaise in small bowl: mix well

3) Arrange  bread slices in single layer on large nonstick baking sheet or broiler pan . Broil , 6 to 8 inches from heat , 30 to 45 seconds or until bread slices are lightly toasted

4) Turn bread slices over ; spread evenly with basil mixture ,  broil 1  minute or until lightly browned . Season to taste with pepper . Transfer to serving plate.

Pestos are easy and fast   and you can make  as many as needed  to fit the occasion  , whether it's a snack for the kids or your husbands poker party .

Vintage Comedy.....Dean Martin Roasts Don Rickles

Vintage Vegas

Arsenic Loving Bacteria May Help in Search For Alien Life

 

The first organism able to substitute one of the six chemical elements crucial to life has been found. The bacterium, found in a California lake, uses the usually poisonous element arsenic in place of phosphorus.
The find, described in Science, gives weight to the long-standing idea that life on other planets may have a radically different chemical makeup. It also has implications for the way life arose on Earth - and how many times it may have done so.

The "extremophile" bacteria were found in a briny lake in eastern California. While bacteria have been found in inhospitable environments and can consume what other life finds poisonous, this bacterial strain has actually taken arsenic on board in its cellular machinery. Until now, the idea has been that life on Earth must be composed of at least the six elements carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, sulphur and phosphorus. No example had ever been found that violates this golden rule of biochemistry.

The bacteria were found as part of a hunt for life forms radically different from those we know.  "At the moment we have no idea if life is just a freak, bizarre accident which is confined to Earth or whether it is a natural part of a fundamentally biofriendly universe in which life pops up wherever there are Earth-like conditions," explained Paul Davies, the Arizona State University and Nasa Astrobiology Institute researcher who co-authored the research. "Although it is fashionable to support the latter view, we have zero evidence in favour of it. If that is the case then life should've started many times on Earth - so perhaps there's a 'shadow biosphere' all around us and we've overlooked it because it doesn't look terribly remarkable. Proof of that idea could come in the form of organisms on Earth that break the "golden rules" of biochemistry - in effect, finding life that evolved separately from our own lineage.  The take-home message is: who knows what else is there? We've only scratched the surface of the microbial realm”

Study lead author Felisa Wolfe-Simon and her colleagues Professor Davies and Ariel Anbar of Arizona State University initially suggested in a paper an alternative scheme to life as we know it.  Their idea was that there might be life in which the normally poisonous element arsenic (in particular as chemical groups known as arsenates) could work in place of phosphorus and phosphates. Putting it to the test, the three authors teamed up with a number of collaborators and began to study the bacteria that live in Mono Lake in California, home to arsenic-rich waters.

The researchers began to grow the bacteria in a laboratory on a diet of increasing levels of arsenic, finding to their surprise that the microbes eventually fully took up the element, even incorporating it into the phosphate groups that cling to the bacteria's DNA. Notably, the research found that the bacteria thrived best in a phosphorus environment.  That probably means that the bacteria, while a striking first for science, are not a sign of a "second genesis" of life on Earth, adapted specifically to work best with arsenic in place of phosphorus. However, Professor Davies said, the fact that an organism that breaks such a perceived cardinal rule of life makes it is a promising step forward.
"This is just a weird branch on the known tree of life," said Professor Davies. "We're interested ultimately in finding a different tree of life... that will be the thing that will have massive implications in the search for life in the Universe.

The general consensus is that this really could still be an evolutionary adapatation rather than a second genesis. But it's the early days of this project and it's certainly a theory to think about and keep looking for, that second genesis. What it certainly shows is the astonishing and perhaps under-appreciated versatility of life and prompts questions as to the possible elements on remote Earth-like planets. And what are the  implications regarding extraterrestrial life?

College Student Googles Himself : 'Sometime It's A Good Idea'

Zachary Garcia and Zachery Garcia  may have homonymous names , but , as you'd imagine  they're actually very different people . The  Zachary on the  left  is  a University of Florida student who works at a sandwich shop .  The Zachery on the right is a teenager accused of murder . Investigators in Polk Cunty Florida , however , failed to pick up on the subtle difference  in spelling between the two names ... a mistake  that came to light after  a casual  Google  search.

Turns out authorites  in the region mistakenly  circulated a drivers' license  photo of Zachary  ( with the 'a') whom they clearly confused with the real suspect , Zachery (with the 'e') . The college student became aware of the mistake  only after Googling his name , and discovering that (surprise) he was wanted for murder . "I was just very shocked to find my picture  and the article saying that I was  convicted of  a felony murder charge , he told Tampa Bay station WTSP . "And I was just very shocked  and angry that someone put my name  and picture up there  and said I did something I didn't do.

The actual suspect , along with four other teenagers , allegedly  broke into a house  on September 23rd . One of the  homeowers shot and killed one of the teens , but , because  the death took place in the middle of a felony , all three kids  (including Zachery)  were charged  murder ... Zachary , the sandwich-maker claims his everyday problems aren't nearly as dramatic . "Everyone  makes mistakes ," Garcia added .

Garcia said , "I work at Publix and I might get some sub (order) wrong , but for someone to get (the photo of a suspect) wrong ... it's not a sandwich , It's  a persons' life you are dealing with . "

My take : Very true , but  on the bright side , at least Garcia's not wanted for murder , and that's certainly  something we take for granted each day.... know what , I think I will  google myself  , I may find I'm wanted for poking a man.[giggles]

Deep Inside a Volcano

The closest most of us have ever been to a volcano was when we made one with baking soda in grade school. Some people, however, make it their life's work to get much, much closer. Adventurer Geoff Mackley has spent the last 24 years chasing thrills inside caves, storms and volcanoes. During a recent trip to the South Pacific island of Ambrym, Mackley took some terrifying footage of the Marum volcano. Wearing protective suits that look like something out of a Stanley Kubrick film, Mackley and his team descended into the fiery void.

The result? Some of the most dramatic footage of boiling lava we've ever seen.
Guys, I don't know if you are incredibly brave or completely crazy and perhaps you're both, but thankyou for the remarkable video.

Duchess of Windsor's Jewels Sold by Sotheby's...Mystery Buyer

 
In this portrait by Cecil Beaton, Wallis wears on her left arm one of the pieces that will go on the block, a cross bracelet by Cartier.

This Cartier chain bracelet set with diamonds links nine Latin crosses set with saphhires, emeralds, rubies and diamonds. Each of the crosses is inscribed and dated to mark a different occasion or sentiment, including Wallis' marriage to Edward.

This brooch was created in May 1957 by Cartier to commemorate the Duke and Duchess of Windsor's 20th wedding anniversary. The initials W and E (for Wallis and Edward) are set with emeralds above the Roman numeral XX in the center of a heart-shaped field of diamonds.

 

Watch, compass and sundial

Inscribed beneath the dial of this gold watch with built-in compass and sundial is the message: "No excuse for going in the wrong direction Easter 1939." That was the year that the Duke and Duchess settled in a house in

paris

  

Panther braceletThis onyx and diamond bracelet in the form of a panther is articulated so that it will encircle the wrist and assume a stalking pose. The eyes are emeralds. Designed by Cartier in 1952, the dramatic bracelet was the star of the sale, despite a few missing stones. Sotheby's said it sold for $7 million, the highest price it had ever received for a bracelet at auction. 

Sotheby's said it sold the entire complement of 20 brooches, bracelets and other gems, highlights of which included an onyx and diamond Cartier bracelet in the shape of a panther; a jewel-encrusted flamingo clip and a heart-shaped brooch with the initials W.E. — Wallis and Edward — commissioned for the couple's 20th wedding anniversary.

The dramatic, emerald-eyed panther bracelet was the star of the sale, despite a few missing stones. Sotheby's said it sold for $7 million, the highest price it had ever received for a bracelet at auction.
All the jewels once belonged to Simpson and Edward, who abdicated to marry the twice-divorced 40-year-old in 1937.
Their relationship caused a scandal that culminated when the king made an abdication broadcast to the nation in December 1936, declaring "I have found it impossible ... to discharge my duties as king as I would wish to do without the help and support of the woman I love." The British government opposed the king's marriage to Simpson, leaving him little choice if he wanted to marry her.

David Bennett, head of Sotheby's jewelry for Europe and the Middle East, said last month that the gems represented "the most important jewelry collection put together in the 20th century." The items were last sold in 1987, as part of a Sotheby's auction that fetched $50 million, still a record for a jewelry collection. Sotheby's would not disclose the identity of the current seller.

The story of Edward and Mrs. Simpson continues to fascinate, and is currently being turned into a movie, "W.E.," directed by Madonna. The identity of the jewels' purchaser wasn't made public. Is it possible, do  you think that Madonna has purchased the jewels, perhaps to lend authenticity to her film ?