P.E. for Grown-Ups

I’m not terribly athletic and back in school, Physical Education was the most dreaded hour of the day for me. But I know a lot of kids looked forward to the hour out of the classroom, so it was with much amusement, but less surprise when I read that adults are getting a second chance to experience all the joy of P.E.

Across the country, adults are getting out on Friday night and hitting the gym. The school gym that is, for a chance to get fit and relive their childhood at the same time. At Oldschool P.E. in Newport, NH, the intention is very clear: have the fun of childhood, without all the rules. Couples play on opposing teams, there is no score-keeping and the commissioner, who changes each day, gets to pick the game and how it’s played.

Co-founder Mike Pettinicchio explains, “From the very beginning, we decided on a very small set of rules because we didn't want it to get that 'league' kind of feel. You want to go out, have some fun, be a little competitive, but we all have lives. There are not going to be any scouts in the stands."

In Portland, Ore., adult P.E. is in the form of Urban Recess, which has become so popular that people have been turned away for classes due to space constraints.

Part of the fun is in the social aspect. You get to meet people and workout, without feeling like the goal is working out.

Karin Schmidt got the idea for Urban Recess when talking with a fellow personal trainer, "We said, 'Well, you didn't have to twist a kid's arm to play at recess, why can't we do that as adults?'"

If P.E. was your favorite ‘subject’ in school, look out for a class near you. Or start your own. All the cool kids are doing it.

San Francisco Tops List of U.S.’s Most Walkable Cities

According to Walkscore.com, a website which uses an algorithm to figure out which of the nation’s cities and neighborhoods are easiest to navigate without a car.

San Francisco was dubbed the most walkable city, with a "Walk Score" of 86 out of 100. New York received a score of 83 and Boston a score of 79.

Scores greater than 70 indicate neighborhoods where it's possible to get by without owning a car, while scores greater than 90 qualify communities as a "Walker's Paradise," according to an article found on Reuters.

The site’s goal is to see an area’s walkability score included in the property’s listing. Mike Mathieu, founder of the company that created the site's software explains, “What we see is someone calling up a broker and saying 'I want three bedrooms, two baths, a walkability score of 85, what've you got?"'

To find out if your city is walkable, simply type in an address and watch as the site generates a map, complete with symbols for nearby grocery stores, cafes, movie theaters, schools and parks.

The site seems like it fits in with many of the nation’s new goals, like eliminating obesity and lowering oil use and gas dependency.

Chimps Possess Empathy Gene

Darwin’s theories on evolution have the human species paired with monkeys in many ways, and new evidence proves they may be more like us than we originally thought--through acts of physical affection.

There’s no question that a hug, kiss or pat on the back can help a human’s emotional pain and suffering. It turns out chimpanzees feel the same way, and are equally enamored with the outcome. Researchers found that stress was reduced in chimps if a fellow member of their species gave them some consolation.

Chimps are set apart form other similar species like monkeys, who don’t show the same affection.

“Consolation usually took the form of a kiss or embrace,” said Dr. Orlaith N. Frasier, who conducts research at the Evolutionary Anthropology and Paleoecology Center in Liverpool. Frasier and his team studied a group of chimps at the Chester Zoo in England for a year and a half, recording instances that prove his theory.

The reason this new finding holds such importance has to do with when the chimps offer the consolation, which is “rarely seen other than after a conflict,” Orlaith adds. The hugging or wrapping their arms around each other always resulted in a significant reduction in stress for the recipient.

The study also holds particular importance because there was once doubt that physical affection caused any reaction at all in chimps. Dr. Frans de Waal who works for Emory University in Atlanta says this new discovery proves those theories wrong. “This study removes doubt that consolation really does what the term suggests: provide relief to distressed parties after conflict,” he states. (AP)

Researchers compare the chimp’s behavior to those of human children, which de Waal says, “Is in fact identical to that of apes.” And like children, the chimps only appeared to calm aggression for those they already have loyal relationships with of some kind.

Not only is there evidence that chimps give affection, but in other animals as well, such as birds and dogs. Though more tests need to be conducted to show those species have the same effects.

Garbage to Gas

The biofuel debate is fierce, with some saying crops for biofuel use up food crop space and others saying that biofuel is the only way to get around reliance on oil. But within the next two years, two different companies are getting around the argument, introducing another biofuel option, which would turn garbage into gas.

Two companies, INEOS bio of Lyndhurst, U.K., and Coskata of Warrenville, Ill. have announced that they will soon be able to produce ethanol from garbage on a commercial scale.

INEOS bio has a two year plan for being able to commercially produce biofuel from waste, while Coskata is working on having a facility ready for demonstration by the middle of next year.

Both companies have similar plans for turning garbage into gas, beginning with gasification. Gasification occurs by heating the waste with limited amounts of oxygen to create carbon monoxide and hydrogen.

Incinerating garbage completely produces carbon dioxide and water, explains INEOS bio's Graham Rice, with the gasification, "We're trying to go halfway and produce carbon monoxide, which still has a lot of chemical energy."

The carbon monoxide and hydrogen mixture is then fed to bacteria, which convert the mixture into ethanol. The ethanol is then purified and blended with fuel.

The process uses any form of carbon waste, from tires to biomass, which gets around the controversial matter of using crops for biofuel instead of food.

Coskata’s Wes Bolsen also says the process uses less than half of the water used to convert corn into ethanol. Both companies say the cost is less than other biofuel methods that have been explored thus far.

"Wherever there are people, wastes are generated," Rice said. "What I'd like to see is every community converting its waste into renewable transport fuel."

www.WeEarth.com

'Snowy' River of Crystals Found in New Mexico

A wondrous underground river of crystals resembling a trail of snow was recently discovered in New Mexico, but don't think for a second you'll be able to see it for yourself. A seemingly endless cave in the region is to be closed off to the public and studied for scientific research. So far the cave is an estimated 4 miles long, with plenty more to discover.

Scientists have already found some three dozen species of microbes in the Fort Stanton Cave and have dubbed the majestical looking floor of it "Snowy River." The minerals making up the river of crystals are believed to be created by microorganisms that live in the water that mysteriously flows through the cave from time to time. Last summer scientists were surprised to see running water, which had not been the case when it was first discovered in 2001. So far no scientists can figure out how water permeates it, or where it ultimately ends up.

Penny Boston, a New Mexico Tech professor told the following to the Associated Press:

"The idea is that we're practicing to go to Mars, we're practicing to go to Europa (a moon of Jupiter) and all of these other places," she said. "It's very difficult to even prove some of the things we've studied here on this planet are alive. Imagine how much harder that is when you translate that to a robotic mission millions of miles from Earth."

Helping Baby Turtles Find Their Way

In Florida, “sand saviors” are helping baby turtles find their way back to sea. A video on Pet Sugar http://www.petsugar.com/1772120 shows volunteers walking along Palm Beach Shores in Florida, uncovering sea turtle nests and clearing a bath for the tiny turtles to find their way back to the sea.

Although the video is as cute as can be, I tended to agree with one of the comments posted that the volunteer aid seems like it may interfere with nature’s survival of the fittest. If the turtles can’t find their own way to the water, maybe they should be weeded out. But then again, another commenter justified the actions of the sand saviors, figuring that their efforts offset human encroachment on the environment that interferes with the survival of the turtles. I liked that better because it means the turtles get to be saved and I don’t have to feel guilty about human interference in a bigger plan.

Everybody Stresses, Even Octopuses

Did you know that your pet has a dominant hand? According to tests at the Institute for the Study of Animal Problems in Washington, DC, dogs and cats were shown to favor one paw over the other. I guess that’s just another way pets resemble their owners. Now, scientists in the UK are observing octopuses in captivity to see if they have a dominant arm too.

If octopuses are found to have a dominant arm, scientists are hoping that by giving octopuses objects to pick up with that arm, they will be able to reduce the stress of octopuses in captivity.

Claire Little, a marine life expert at the Sea Life Center in the UK explains:

We hope the study will help the overall well-being of octopuses. They are very susceptible to stress so if they do have a favorite side to be fed on, it could reduce risk to them.

In a month-long observational project, scientists will record which arm octopuses use to pick up objects.

The cool part is that visitors to the center will also get to participate in the study; by marking on a chart which arm the octopuses used to pick up the objects, including Rubik’s cubes, balls and Lego’s, that will be dropped into the tanks. According to The Mail Online, visitors will be asked to note:

Which arm was closest to the object when it landed and which arm picked it up.

If the octopus uses several arms to pick up the object, then visitors will be asked to note which arms touched the object and in what order.

During feeding times, staff will be asked to make the same observations.

Little says that the study will also help clarify the overall mystery of handiness in the Animal Kingdom.

The study will take place in the 23 centers found in the United Kingdom and the results will be analyzed and announced by scientists in the fall.