Six in the Morning

Yeah... I know... wasn't this supposed to be done yesterday? What can I say? I was fresh back from Ottawa and killed the day playing with my daughter.

1. AMERICAN CITIES DEAL WITH SHANTYTOWNS: The number of shantytowns in and around major US cities is on the rise. (NY Times)

2. GROUP CALLS FOR PHOSPHOROUS INQUIRY: Human Rights Watch is calling for an inquiry into Israel's alleged use of white phosphorous during its 22-day offensive against Gaza. (Al Jazeera)

3. RED RIVER ON RISE: Flooding of the Red River is much higher than anticipated. Things are very bad for folk in North Dakota, getting very bad for smaller communities in Manitoba, and Winnipeggers are bracing for the worst. (Globe and Mail and CBC)

4. MONTREAL PROTOCOL SAVED PLANET: Scientists have been saying for years now that the Montreal Protocol, by severely limiting CFC, likely saved our planet from death-by-UV. And this week, over at scienceblogs, geologist Chris Rowan lays out the evidence that global regulatory action is the reason we'll have an ozone layer in 2060. (Science Blogs)

5. INTERNET TO PUT TELESCOPE MANUFACTURERS OUT OF BUSINESS: Well... not really. But NASA has agreed to put 100 terabytes of space photos online through Microsoft's WorldWide Telescope project. (TG Daily)

6. MATH MAKES BUSES RUN BETTER: Mathematicians at the University of Burgos, Spain, have come up with a way to use a math strategy called the taboo search to improve bus wait times and travel times by 13%. (Science Daily)