Free Republic

Is China’s ownership interest in Alberta oil sands being financed with Canadian tax dollars? Officials with Sinopec Corp.-- a company majority owned by the Chinese government has already been in Alberta for their own look-see--an actual tour of the oil sands. A second Chinese state-owned company, Minmetals Corp. is working on a bid to acquire Toronto-based mine company Noranda Inc.--a deal worth more than $7 billion. When the fix is in, the Canadian Liberal Government will have managed to sell off our nation’s coveted natural resources–allowing China to buy them with our own money! This story begins and ends with...

I have a small nursery where I propagate pachysandra, a perennial groundcover. I have a great over-abundance of my plants, as I've been doing this for over 30 years. Presently, I would like to get together with all the churches in my area in an effort to teach the value of plant propagation and an understanding of nature and the soil to young people (or the older folks too). I am about to begin to send letters and emails out to all the churches, but I need some help. Not being an expert at all about the words of the...

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2004 January 18 A Close-Up of Martian Soil Credit: Mars Exploration Rover Mission, JPL, NASA Explanation: Make your background the closest image of Mars yet. The Spirit Rover currently rolling on Mars has taken the highest resolution image to date of another planet. The above black and white image spans only about 1.5 centimeters across, with details smaller than 1/10 of a millimeter visible. A microscope attached to...

NASA gets good look at Mars soil and a true puzzle By Jeremy Manier, Tribune staff reporter Opening its primary digital eyes for the first time, the rover Spirit on Tuesday transmitted the most detailed photos ever sent from the surface of Mars, revealing an alien vista of deep russet sands, a mysteriously sticky form of soil and a far-off mesa in the light orange haze. The rocky scene is about four times sharper than any previous photos from the planet, and experts said the probe should be sending even larger, three-dimensional views of its terrain within a few days....

Fox news announces that the environmentalist whackos have now identified that there are as many as 500 types of dirt that might be endangered. (hello????) The dirt or soil is supposedly different than some other types of dirt and we should not build and destroy this dirt. Great way to stop building and progress.

India plans moon landing 04apr03 SCIENTISTS have met to debate India's plans to send an astronaut to the moon, with the chairman of the country's space agency saying the project would "electrify the nation". The Indian Space Research Organisation, or ISRO, is holding the meeting amid criticism from some scientists that the mission would strain scarce resources without yielding much scientific benefit. In a project that needs to be approved by the Indian government, the ISRO hopes to send a small unmanned satellite to circle the moon by 2005 and an astronaut by 2015. The unmanned satellite project would...

<p>Another powerful storm is expected to hit Northern California on Thursday, the National Weather Service forecasts.</p> <p>The upcoming storm will produce strong winds and significant rains and mountain snow.</p> <p>Winds are forecast to increase along the coastal range late Wednesday night. Winds will continue to increase over the interior Thursday as the storm moves inland.</p>

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2002 December 16 Night and Day in Melas Chasma on Mars Credit: Arizona State U., JPL, NASA Explanation: What types of terrain are found on Mars? Part of the answer comes from thermal imaging by the robot spacecraft 2001 Mars Odyssey currently orbiting Mars. The above picture is a superposition of two infrared images, a black and white image taken during Martian daylight and a false-color image taken...

Stealth bombers could be based on British soil The Pentagon may base B-2 stealth bombers on the British Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia. It would be the first time the bombers have been based outside the US and would be seen as preparation for war on Iraq. US military chiefs are reported to be considering the move and have reportedly discussed it with officials in the UK. The bombers flew many round trip attack missions over Afghanistan from their home base in Missouri. Basing the bombers at the Indian Ocean site would cut in half the distance they would...