Bugs

I returned from the salubrious and low-news northern lands, where only the steady $2.75/gallon at the gas station assured that few major regime changes were being reported. The Milky Way was still above, and I read about Cairene gang wars, Maldive coral construction, and other highlights of the 14th century. The summer had been warm and dry, and the mosquitos were sparse and slow and generally not in top form, but wandering swarms of stable flies could be noxious. The big local issue was an invasive insect, the emerald ash borer, which is hitching north on firewood.

Yahoo has an interesting story on possible indoor lighting applications of LEDs, which are becoming cheaper and, as purely electronic devices, can be programmed to turn on and off precisely. Their low power consumption also makes them a natural choice in a renewable energy society.