New Book of Rules
in [Design]
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From: Paul Burke on 17 Aug 2006 06:59 John Woodgate wrote: > > Oryctolagus is not the rodent of choice to take over when we have become > extinct. The Sciuridae have arms and hands, and need only to evolve > opposable thumbs... (;-) Beware of pandas bearing thumbs...
From: John Woodgate on 17 Aug 2006 07:36 In message <1155812360.371324.164050(a)i3g2000cwc.googlegroups.com>, dated Thu, 17 Aug 2006, bill.sloman(a)ieee.org writes >That Enron had to go bankrupt before anybody noticed - or at least was >willing to notice -that they were crooks, does say something about the >U.S. supervision of its markets. and the influence of the >Republican-dominated legislature under Clinton. It's a case of 'quis custodet'. If you (allegedly) suborn your auditors, it's bound to be a while before the situation surfaces. -- OOO - Own Opinions Only. Try www.jmwa.demon.co.uk and www.isce.org.uk 2006 is YMMVI- Your mileage may vary immensely. John Woodgate, J M Woodgate and Associates, Rayleigh, Essex UK
From: John Woodgate on 17 Aug 2006 07:37 In message <4kj0o0Fcb229U1(a)individual.net>, dated Thu, 17 Aug 2006, Paul Burke <paul(a)scazon.com> writes >John Woodgate wrote: >> >> Oryctolagus is not the rodent of choice to take over when we have >>become extinct. The Sciuridae have arms and hands, and need only to >>evolve opposable thumbs... (;-) > >Beware of pandas bearing thumbs... > Diet too restricted. Squirrels are verging on omnivores. -- OOO - Own Opinions Only. Try www.jmwa.demon.co.uk and www.isce.org.uk 2006 is YMMVI- Your mileage may vary immensely. John Woodgate, J M Woodgate and Associates, Rayleigh, Essex UK
From: John Larkin on 17 Aug 2006 11:21 On 17 Aug 2006 03:23:49 -0700, bill.sloman(a)ieee.org wrote: > >John Larkin wrote: >> On 16 Aug 2006 07:50:29 -0700, bill.sloman(a)ieee.org wrote: >> >> > >> >John Larkin wrote: >> >> On 15 Aug 2006 20:10:25 -0700, bill.sloman(a)ieee.org wrote: >> >> >> >> >What survivors? Asteroid impacts that have had the same sort of >> >> >consequences tend to kill off all the big, slow-breeding land animals - >> >> >everything heavier than a few kilograms. >> >> > >> >> >It takes a few million years before the small, fast-breeding stuff >> >> >evolves variants to fiill all the empty niches. >> >> >> >> So whales and elephants evolved from mice, in a few million years? I >> >> never knew that! >> > >> >Good thing too. It isn't true. For whales >> > >> >"The short answer is that the best available evidence is that whales >> >evolved >> >from a terrestrial ancestor that resembled a wolf or hyaena, only with >> >its >> >five toes ending in small hooves rather than claws. This ancestral >> >species >> >belonged to a group called the mesonychids, or was closely related to >> >them." >> > >> >For elephants >> > >> >"Subclass Eutheria >> >Among the orders emanating from the subclass Eutheria are three that >> >are closely related. >> > >> >Order Hyracoidea: >> >Modern descendants are the hyraxes. African rodent-like animals the >> >size of rabbits. >> > >> >Order Sirenia: >> >Modern descendants are manatees and dugongs (sea cows). Seal-like >> >mammals living entirely in water. >> > >> >Order Proboscidea: >> >The order of modern elephants" >> > >> >So it would seem the both evolved from something closer in size to a >> >rabbit than a mouse, >> > >> >The mouse is a relatively small rodent, so no more closely related to >> >elephants or whales than we are (and more closely related to us than >> >either). >> > >> >http://biology.plosjournals.org/perlserv?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/journal.pbio.0040111 >> >> >> >> But, I quote, >> >> >> >What survivors? Asteroid impacts that have had the same sort of >> >> >consequences tend to kill off all the big, slow-breeding land animals - >> >> >everything heavier than a few kilograms. >> >> >> >> >It takes a few million years before the small, fast-breeding stuff >> >> >evolves variants to fiill all the empty niches. >> >> > >You are confused. A mouse weighs some 20 to 40 grams. I certainly am confused. I've been informed that one or more comets killed off everything over a few kilograms, and that all available ecological niches were filled a few million years later. So giraffes and walruses and mastadons evolved from rabbit-sized critters in a few million years. Have I got it right at last? John
From: John Larkin on 17 Aug 2006 11:26
On 17 Aug 2006 03:59:20 -0700, bill.sloman(a)ieee.org wrote: > >John Larkin wrote: >> On 16 Aug 2006 04:45:08 -0700, bill.sloman(a)ieee.org wrote: >> >> > >> >John Larkin wrote: >> >> On 15 Aug 2006 01:48:35 -0700, bill.sloman(a)ieee.org wrote: >> >> >> >> >> >> >Look at what Dubya - and his enthusiastic supporters in ENRON - have >> >> >done to the U.S. before you restrict that problem to Third World >> >> >governments. >> >> >> >> I wonder why the principals of Enron are enthusiastic supporters of W. >> >> Perhaps they enjoy prison? >> > >> >"Have done" refers to the past. The unpricipled principals of Eron were >> >enthusiastic supporters of Dubya in Texas and equally enthusiastic >> >about his bid for the presidency. >> >> They donated to both parties, and were pretty chummy with Bubba, too. >> They went wild while Clinton "it's the economy, stupid" was in charge, >> and are going to prison while Bush is in charge. Twist that as you >> please. > >The BBC obituary for Kenneth Lay does have him playing golf with Bill >Clinton, but suggests that he was much closer to Dubya. > >That Enron had to go bankrupt before anybody noticed - or at least was >willing to notice -that they were crooks, does say something about the >U.S. supervision of its markets. and the influence of the >Republican-dominated legislature under Clinton. The actual Clinton campaign slogan was misquoted. What he really said was "It's the stupid economy." Which it surely was. John |