More planetary rhyme

I found this whilst researching twinkle twinkle little star.


I think that I shall never see
A planet fast as Mercury.

The clouds are so thick on Venus
The people there have never seen us.

I stand upon the planet Earth,
Place of my birth, for what it's worth.

The surface of reddish Mars
Is much more cold and dry than ours.

The largest planet by far is Jupiter;
Knowing that, I feel slightly less stupider.

Icy rings make a lovely pattern
Circling the planet Saturn.

The fierce winds of Uranus
Are stronger than hurricane-s.

NASA's Voyager 2 flew past Neptune
They won't be sending another probe soon.

I tried to think of a rhyme for Pluto,
But it's no longer considered a planet, you know?

Educational Nursery Rhymes: Twinkle Twinkle Little Universe

Well I am now singing "twinkle twinkle little star" 20 times a night!
.. and only really knowing the first verse, this is getting tough.
So I have been updating it a bit more for or current thinking at the start of the 21st century, and spicing it up a bit with more educational content....

Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are
Up above the world so high
Like a diamond in the sky
Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are

Twinkle twinkle little star
Now we know what you are
Up above the world so high
Like a our sun, but far away
Twinkle twinkle little star
Now we know what you are

Twinkle twinkle Mercury
Why is it that you're so hard see
Close to to sun, you do fly
Making it hard for the naked eye
Twinkle twinkle Mercury
Why is it that you're so hard see

Twinkle twinkle little Venus
How far away are you from us
Nice and bright, in the sky
Next to Mercury you do fly
Twinkle twinkle little Venus
How far away are you from us

Twinkle twinkle little Mars
Do you hold life, we all ask
Spacehips go so hope we'll know
You're far away, so it maybe slow
Twinkle twinkle little Mars
Do you hold life, we all ask

Twinkle twinkle Jupiter
You're a big planet that's for sure
Thousand times the size of Earth
Almost a star, but avoided birth
Twinkle twinkle Jupiter
You're a big planet that's for sure

Twinkle twinkle big Saturn
With lots of rings you do turn
With you rings you look so nice
Who would think they were made of ice
Twinkle twinkle big Saturn
With lots of rings you do turn

Twinkle twinkle Uranus
Coldest planet we've visited in the universe
Cold and greenish you do fly
while on your side you do lie
Twinkle twinkle Uranus
Coldest planet we've visited in the universe

Twinkle twinkle blue Neptune
So far away it's dark at noon
Clouds of gas and methane
Full of clouds and no terrain
Twinkle twinkle blue Neptune
So far away it's dark at noon

Twinkle twinkle little Pluto
Are you a planet, we don't know
If not a planet, maybe a moon
In any case we will see you soon
Twinkle twinkle little Pluto
Are you a planet, we don't know

Twinkle twinkle little Eris
Are you a planet, we don't know
If not a planet, maybe a moon
In any case we will see you soon
Twinkle twinkle little Pluto
Are you a planet, we don't know

Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are
Up above the world so high
Like a diamond in the sky
Twinkle twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are

Dedicated to Sophia, 2008

Let me know if you know rhymes for Larger Magellanic cloud, and NGC1952 (Crab Nebula)!

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star

Finding that "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" was a great nursery rhyme to send someone to sleep I decided to investigate.

I was surprised to discover a couple of things
* That this was written in the 18 century, first published 1806. So when it says "Twinkle twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are", I suppose they really did not know and it gives you a sense of the great mystery it was.
* I only really now the first verse,, or condensed version there are lots more.!!

Have pasted the full version below

Twinkle twinkle little star, how I wonder what you are?
Up above the world so high , like a diamond in the sky
When the blazing sun is gone, when he nothing shines upon,
Then you show your little light, twinkle, twinkle all the night.
Then the traveller in the dark, thanks you for your tiny spark,
He could not see which way to go, if you did not twinkle so.
In the dark blue sky you keep, and often through my curtains peep,
For you never shut your eye, 'till the sun is in the sky.
As your bright and tiny spark lights the traveller in the dark,
Though I know not what you are - twinkle, twinkle little star.

Litter Kwitter: Toilet train your pet

This product Litter Kwitter is right up there with the Flowbee on the most unusual of all time.
Flowbee is still a personal favorite though!

Will oil reach $200 a barrel?

I have decided it is worth writing something on the oil price. This is a hot topic at the moment, it seems to be creeping up ever more. Question being asked is, will it reach $200 a barrel (it is 135$ today I think).

Is this peak oil. I think this is the start of peak oil, one of the commentaries I was reading was that we would see a lot of volatility in the market. This is probably one of those peaks.

Is there under supply and over demand. No I think this is not the main driver. The USA accounts for much of the worldwide demand in oil, 25%. Although other nations are catching there is still a long way to go in absolute terms.

The collapse of the US dollar. I do think this is a factor. The US dollar is weak, and the increase in the price in dollars in some way reflects the fall in the dollar.

Is there some speculation? Yes I think there is. If you look at the price of oil vs gold, this is normally in a range (with some timing issues). Remember that this will take the dollar exchange rate out of the equation. The last couple of months this seems to have broken out of the range. Either gold is still under valued, or oil is over priced. My vote is on the later, especially given the hysteria in the media. The last couple of months there has been plenty of financial speculation is my view.

So what will happen? This is the big question. Adding these together I would see the price to continue to climb, as more pressure is put on the USD. The US dollar will continue to weaken and this will stress the economy.
The downturn in the US will impact major trading partners such as China, EU, and Canada (Mexico less so), 6 months from now.

Due to the high oil price, consumption will reduce in the US, easing supply and stabilising prices for a while.

Overall this will result in the gradual and continued movement of wealth to other countries around the world. (to a new equilibrium). (look out for Russia, Brazil, India, M East [& China from shear size], in the next 10 years, although much will depend how they use their money)

Will it reach $200? Who knows, it may indeed do, I do expect a lot of volatility and this could fit.

Euro 2008

I wanted to try this out. These are the predictions for the Euro 2008 tournament.
Updated in Google Spreadsheet. Check back for updates.

Raccoons in Toronto

Having been discussing Raccoons on Friday. Love them or hate them, most people are the latter, I was looking for more info.
Interesting link at this site here.
Amongst recipes for barbecue Raccoon, what type of pellet gun to use etc, there are some more even keel articles. I have copied below the one I liked

"Raccoons are as "intelligent as any primate" (this from a friend who is a behavioural science prof at the University of Western Ontario). They may carry rabies, but so may squirrels, dogs, cats, and wolves. They are wild animals, and as such, one should NOT approach a raccoon any more than one would approach a bear or a wolf. A cornered raccoon is an extremely dangerous wild animal. They can indeed make a mess; this occurs when they are searching for food or a new accommodation. Given that they are blessed with little "hands" (no opposable thumb, but rather five tiny fingers), they have a greater capability when it comes to making a huge mess.

If you can keep your trash locked up and beware of weaknesses in attic roofs, you should be fine. Should you suspect that there is a chance raccoons are coming into your home, your fastest and easiest response is to find the place they are getting into, and put a radio there playing the most obnoxious music available on the dial. Raccoons do not like loud noises, and are extremely jittery.

They will eat the fish in your Koi pond (they love to fish!), but they also eat insects like earwigs, cockroaches, and junebugs. They are omnivorous, meaning that they will eat just about anything.

They are not evil creatures; they're just looking for a place to live and some food, just like all animals. Because they have discovered that living in urban areas provides them with plenty of food and few natural enemies, they can find living in the city works to their advantage.

And finally, about eating raccoons: not a good idea. Raccoons carry a roundworm that lives in their intestinal tracts without harming them. HOWEVER, if passed on to a human, it will nest in the human intestine until it grows, at which time it will freely burrow out of the intestine and go wherever it pleases in your body. This roundworm seems to like the human brain, which is where it usually heads, resulting in blindness or even death.

Raccoons are an important part of natural biodiversity, and because it is we, the humans, who have intruded on their habitat, the best thing we can do is learn to live with them and understand that they serve a purpose in the scheme of things. I have spent a great deal of time with these animals, and they are beautiful, charming creatures. When they're small, they learn their names, come when called, and are the most loving little babies. They learn everything quickly and love to play, remaining playful even as adults. They have a huge vocabulary of sounds they use to chitter and talk to each other. When they become adults, of course, they grow wild and must be respected as such. Protect your property and protect yourself. Stay away from raccoons, and if they get too close to you try the radio trick. If that doesn't work, I implore you to call a reputable "no-kill" animal removal service.

These animals have a natural value, and they also have an intrinsic value. Besides, they're real cute! Enjoy them at a distance."

I have to say that I am not a fan of picking up my 7 day old garbage, which they seem to find tasty, however this is probably more a reflection on my garbage than anything else.

Also seem to love decks and living under houses.... Baby's diapers are a good deterant!

Eating and Speech development

Apparently speech development and eating solids are linked in babies. Someone told us this, this week. I thought this was interesting, but is kind of makes sense.

Soccer Scores

Dandelions

Why are there so many dandelions in North America. Some lawns have none some have huge numbers. I have never really seen this in Europe. It is like something is missing from the ecosystem here and so they grow unchallenged.

Update on Hockey Beards

Apparently the reason for beards on Ice Hockey players is due to tradition. If you are in the playoffs, you do not shave. This is the reason.