Thursday Recess

Yet again the cyberpranksters of the world have spent their free time creating a virus or some other program to inconvenience the rest of us. Word is that local governments around the country, the Congress, and other august institutions are learning just how dependent on the internet we all are. It probably means lost revenues and inefficiency, but for most of us it is just an excuse for a long lunch break.

What a shock that the electricity grid should go down, in part, because of years of neglect and a failure to invest in infrastructure. This is hardly news, as it was predicted for some time.

And of course there are articles on the dangers of genetically modified crops http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/08/19/biopharming/index_np.html, Rep. Janklow's accident and its impact on South Dakota politics http://www.nytimes.com/2003/08/21/national/21JANK.html, and the European Space Agency's solar powered ion drive spaceship http://www.economist.com/science/displayStory.cfm?story_id=2003365. Or, you could just take a day and go to the nearest body of water for some relaxation.