The Iditarod is Underway

The 2007 Iditarod began Saturday (3/3)

Iditarod.com : A race over 1150 miles of the roughest, most beautiful terrain Mother Nature has to offer. She throws jagged mountain ranges, frozen river, dense forest, desolate tundra and miles of windswept coast at the mushers and their dog teams. Add to that temperatures far below zero, winds that can cause a complete loss of visibility, the hazards of overflow, long hours of darkness and treacherous climbs and side hills, and you have the Iditarod. From Anchorage, in south central Alaska, to Nome on the western Bering Sea coast, each team of 12 to 16 dogs and their musher cover over 1150 miles in 10 to 17 days.

The Iditarod Trail, now a National Historic Trail, had its beginnings as a mail and supply route from the coastal towns of Seward and Knik to the interior mining camps at Flat, Ophir, Ruby and beyond to the west coast communities of Unalakleet, Elim, Golovin, White Mountain and Nome. Mail and supplies went in. Gold came out. All via dog sled. Heroes were made, legends were born. In 1925, part of the Iditarod Trail became a life saving highway for epidemic-stricken Nome. Diphtheria threatened and serum had to be brought in; again by intrepid dog mushers and their faithful hard-driving dogs. The Iditarod is a commemoration of those yesterdays, a not-so-distant past that Alaskans honor and are proud of.

Every musher has a different tactic. Each one has a special menu for feeding and snacking the dogs. Each one has a different strategy — some run in the daylight, some run at night. Each one has a different training schedule and his own ideas on dog care, dog stamina and his own personal ability. The rules of the race lay out certain regulations which each musher must abide by. There are certain pieces of equipment each team must have — an arctic parka, a heavy sleeping bag, an ax, snowshoes, musher food, dog food and boots for each dog’s feet to protect against cutting ice and hard packed snow injuries. more…

Charlie Rose with John F. Burns of the NYT

Charlie Rose speaks with John F. Burns of The New York Times, just returned from Iraq (24 January 2007). Mr. Burns discusses the current conditions in-country and possibilities for the future. A great listen if you’d like a first-hand account of the situation in Iraq amidst the daily barrage of headlines.

FDA Approves Non-Prescription Diet Pill

Washington Post: Dieters got a new tool Wednesday to help them take off the extra pounds _ the first government-approved nonprescription diet pill. The Food and Drug Administration said the fat-blocking weight-loss pill orlistat, which has been available by prescription, can be sold in a reduced-strength version over the counter. The drug is intended for people 18 and older to use along with a reduced-calorie, low-fat diet and exercise. “Using this drug alone is unlikely to be beneficial,” Ganley said at a telebriefing.

While some dietary supplements make weight-loss claims, Ganley said this is the first nonprescription drug approved by the agency for that purpose. Ganley said in trials, for every five pounds people lost through diet and exercise, those using orlistat lost an additional two to three pounds. When taken with meals, orlistat blocks the absorption of about one-quarter of any fat consumed. That fat _ about 150 to 200 calories worth _ is passed out of the body in stools, which can be loose as a result. About half of patients in trials experienced gastrointestinal side effects.

MapQuest Introduces New Gas Mapping Portal

 

Mobissimotravel – “MapQuest just got cooler with the addition of their new gas portal, just launched. It’s easy to use; just enter your zip code to get a list of service stations in your hood separated by price, distance or name. I found out that the cheapest gas around, $2.82 a gallon, is at a place I had never even known existed and the total price to fill my yellow Hummer up will be $90.24—WOOOHOOOO!!”

The Australian Open is Upon Us

TV Schedule

Matches to watch for:

Roddick / Safin – Third Round (Friday)

Hewitt / Blake – Fourth Round (Sunday/Monday)

Nadal / Blake – Quarterfinals (Tuesday/Wednesday)

Federer / Monfils – Quarterfinals (Tuesday/Wednesday)

Nadal / Nalbandian – Semifinals (Thursday/Friday)

Roddick / Federer – Semifinals (Thursday/Friday)

Roddick / Nadal – Finals (Sunday)

10 Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2006

From Doctorswithoutborders.org

Somalis Trapped by War and Disaster
Fleeing Violence in the Central African Republic
Increasing Human Toll Taken by Tuberculosis
Consequences of Bitter Conflict in Chechnya
Civilians Under Fire in Sri Lanka While Assistance is Limited
Effective Strategies for Treating Malnutrition Not Implemented
Congolese Endure Extreme Deprivation and Violence
Living in Fear in Colombia
Violence Rages in Haiti’s Volatile Capital
Clashes in Central India