I Wouldn't Want That Phone Bill

AT&T is apparently dropping its attempts to collect a $1M phone bill from Michael Smith of Ipswich, Massachusetts, who says someone hacked into his company's phone system in 2009 and made nearly $900,000 in calls to Somalia. AT&T originally sued Smith for $1.15 million to recover the cost of the calls plus interest, but, on Monday, announced their intent to drop pursuit of this claim.

Moon #5 For Pluto

A team of scientists using the Hubble Space Telescope has now discovered another tiny moon belonging to Pluto. This mini-moon is estimated to be up to 15 miles across, smaller than the one that scientists spotted last year, which is up to 21 miles wide. The dwarf planet's largest moon, Charon, is about 650 miles across. Pluto's known moon count is now five. Until the newly found moon gets a name, though, it will be known as P5.

NFL Arrests More Likely in, say, Jacksonville or Kansas City?

Today, on thebiglead.com, a Jason Lisk post points out a negative correlation between the size of a market and the arrest numbers for their NFL teams.  For instance, the Minnesota Vikings, Cincinnati Bengals, and Denver Broncos claim the three highest totals (in that order).  By contrast, the two New York franchises (Jets and Giants) are at the bottom of the list.  Apparently, the mathematical correlation between metro area population size and number of arrests since 2000 is -0.39. While this number may not be that meaningful to most, he also presents the data in a couple different fashions. For instance, here are the average arrest totals since 2000, based on metropolitan area population size:

• Top ten markets (New York, Chicago, Dallas, Philadelphia, Washington, Houston, Miami, Atlanta, Boston, Bay Area): 14.2 arrests per team
• Middle ten markets (Detroit, Phoenix, Seattle, Minneapolis, San Diego, St. Louis, Tampa Bay, Baltimore, Denver, Pittsburgh): 20.1 arrests per team
• Bottom ten markets (Cincinnati, Cleveland, Kansas City, Charlotte, Indianapolis, Nashville, Jacksonville, New Orleans, Buffalo, Green Bay): 23.2 arrests per team

Similarly, the arrest averages by region were:

• North 22.4
• Southeast 22.4
• Midwest 20.4 
• Pacific 16.0
• Northeast 13.2

He also points out, however, that not all arrests are equal (e.g., the Northeastern teams had more gun related offenses, and drug offenses) and that there are a lot of factors that these statistics may oversimplify. All said, this may not be very meaningful, but it is kind of interesting.

CSI Technology = Cleaner Hotel Rooms?

In response to what it says is travelers' insistence on cleanliness, Best Western recently announced a new housekeeping initiative, which incorporates ultraviolet lights to detect biological matter otherwise unseen by the human eye, and ultraviolet light wands to sanitize unclean items.  Pillows and blankets will be wrapped in single-use covers and possibly the dirtiest object in your room — the TV remote control — designed specifically to allow for disinfection. They have invested anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million in the new program to roll it out in 700 Best Western properties. All North American Best Western hotels are expected to be compliant by year end.

It Really Has Been Hot

Nationwide, more than 4,500 record high daily temperatures have been set in the past 30 days, according to the National Climatic Data Center.  Since June 23, scores of cities have been the hottest they've ever been, on any day ever recorded (e.g., 107 in Colorado Springs, 109 in Nashville and 106 in Atlanta). In Washington, the thermometer has gone past 95 degrees for nine straight days -- the longest such streak since modern record-keeping began.

Thankfully, there may be a little relief to the discomfort and danger on the horizon. A cold front should move across the Upper Midwest and Great Lakes tomorrow, and then into Ohio and the Northeast by Sunday, bringing significantly cooler air with it.

Ancient Agua

According to a U.S. Geological Survey report, some of the water underneath Maryland is more than a million years old.  This is the first such ancient groundwater discovered along the Atlantic coast.

Apparently, water flowed from the land surface into the deep Upper Patapsco aquifer during cooler periods in our earth's history, when glaciers covered much of the northeastern U.S. and sea level was about 125 meters lower than it is today. Today, however, even this deep aquifer, which provides freshwater for the region east of Washington and Baltimore, may not meet future needs.

Worldwide, there aren't many aquifers containing million-year-old groundwater.   The Alberta Basin in Canada, the Nubian aquifer in the Sahara Desert, and the Great Artesian Basin in Australia are other examples.

A Fish With Choppers

In Lake Lou Yeager near Litchfield, Illinois, fish with teeth are being found. A fisherman caught one back on June 7th and now there are claims another was hooked ten days ago.  Apparently, these fish have been identified as Pacu, which live in the Amazon basin. Biologists claim that they are not dangerous because they mostly eat nuts, snails, and vegetation. They claim that they only eat other fish if these other food choices are not available. Further, they say that the Pacu cannot survive Illinois winters.  They are concerned, however, about the Pacu contaminating other species in the lake.

This Blind Bambi wouldn't be to thrilled about swimming with fish that could take a bite out of me.  I hope they find the person responsible for dumping them in the lake.