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Chestnuts are famously associated with the Christmas season through “The Christmas Song,” but they come into season in the fall, typically in the weeks prior to Thanksgiving. (“The Christmas Song” was written in 1946 and popularized by such singers as Nat King Cole and Bing Crosby.)
They’re a starchy nut, containing twice as much as potatoes, and are used as a substitute for this tuber in Europe, Asia and Africa. As the song suggests, they’re fantastic straight from the oven or fire, but they may also be used in a variety of ways in cuisine, both savory and sweet.
It’s possible the chestnut is one of the first foods consumed by man, as they’ve been part of our diet since prehistoric times.
Astronomers using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory have found evidence of the youngest black hole known to exist in our cosmic neighborhood.
The 30-year-old object provides a unique opportunity to watch a black hole develop from infancy.
The black hole is a remnant of SN 1979C, a supernova in the galaxy M100 approximately 50 million light years from Earth.
Data from Chandra, NASA's Swift satellite, the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton and the German ROSAT observatory revealed a bright source of X-rays that has remained steady during observation from 1995 to 2007. This suggests the object is a black hole being fed either by material falling into it from the supernova or a binary companion.
“If our interpretation is correct, this is the nearest example where the birth of a black hole has been observed,” said Daniel Patnaude of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics in Cambridge, Mass. who led the study.
Scientists think SN 1979C, first discovered by an amateur astronomer in 1979, formed when a star about 20 times more massive than the sun collapsed.
Many new black holes in the distant universe previously have been detected in the form of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). However, SN 1979C is different. Not only is it closer, but also it belongs a class of supernovas unlikely to produce gamma-ray bursts.
According to theory, most new black holes are not announced by a bright GRB.
“This may be the first time the common way of making a black hole has been observed,” said co-author Abraham Loeb, also of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. “However, it is very difficult to detect this type of black hole birth because decades of X-ray observations are needed to make the case.”
The idea of a black hole with an observed age of only about 30 years is consistent with recent theoretical work.
In 2005, a theory was presented that the bright optical light of this supernova was powered by a jet from a black hole that was unable to penetrate the hydrogen envelope of the star to form a GRB. X-ray data from Chandra and the other observatories fit this theory very well.
Although the evidence points to a newly formed black hole in SN 1979C, another intriguing possibility exists: A young, rapidly spinning neutron star with a powerful wind of high energy particles could be responsible for the X-ray emission.
This would make the object in SN 1979C the youngest and brightest example of such a “pulsar wind nebula” and the youngest known neutron star.
The Crab pulsar, the best-known example of a bright pulsar wind nebula, is about 950 years old. More observations will either confirm or rule out this alternate explanation; for now, however, the black hole hypothesis appears to be more compelling.
For more information and images, visit the Chandra home page: http://chandra.nasa.gov .
Click here to see an animation of a supernova producing a black hole: www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html?media_id=29520021 .
Dr. Tony Phillips works for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
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The National Weather Service issued a hazardous weather outlook for Lake County that predicted a 20-percent chance of rain and snow showers overnight Saturday, with a Sunday high of about 41 degrees expected.
The agency also forecast a northwest wind between 9 and 13 miles per hour on Sunday, with gusts as high as 20 miles per hour, and temperatures dropping as low as 28 degrees Sunday night.
Light winds are expected Monday, with the daytime high expected to be around 46 degrees and the nighttime low about 33 degrees.
The National Weather Service predicted a partly sunny Tuesday with a high of 43 degrees, and a chance of rain Tuesday night is forecast to raise the nighttime high to around 37 degrees.
There is also a chance of rain on Wednesday through Friday, with daytime highs ranging from as high as 48 degrees and down to 40 degrees over the three-day period, and nighttime lows as high as 38 degrees on Wednesday to 34 degrees on Thursday and 32 degrees on Friday, according to the forecast.
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The cold snap that arrived last week dropped temperatures into the 20s at night, a situation that can make it not just unpleasant but dangerous for animals.
Bill Davidson, Lake County Animal Care and Control’s interim director, said the agency has been inundated with calls from concerned individuals reporting people leaving dogs outside at night in freezing temperatures with nothing but a dog house to protect them.
As a result of such cold weather woes, Davidson said it was time to remind people to “weatherproof” their pets.
He said that during most of the year in Lake County animals that live outside can handle weather changes without much trouble.
However, when there are extreme weather changes – either heat in the summer or the recent freezing conditions – pets need extra help, Davidson said.
The recent cold snap caused the thermometer to hit the low 20s, and temperatures are even lower if wind chill factor is counted, Davidson said.
As such, he said that smaller, younger, older or sick pets shouldn’t be left out in such weather.
Davidson suggested setting up a warm place with dry blankets for pets in the garage or, better yet, the house.
For larger animals, such as horses and cattle, that must stay outside, Davidson said to make sure they have adequate shelter to protect them from the elements.
If dogs must be kept outside, Davidson suggested positioning kennels or dog houses on the wind-free side of the house or barn, and making sure the opening is close to and facing the building itself, so wind cannot directly go into the kennel or dog house.
Outdoor kennels or dog houses should be filled with dry blankets, or lots of straw or shavings from the pet store, Davidson said, adding that such bedding should be checked daily.
Keeping bedding dry is crucial, as Davidson said having animals sleep on wet bedding will make them more prone to hypothermia.
In addition to Davidson’s advice, the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) and Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) suggest a number of other precautions.
Outdoor dog houses must be large enough to allow the dog to sit and lie down comfortably, but small enough to hold the animal’s body heat, the HSUS said. The floor should be raised a few inches off the ground.
Regarding cats, the organizations said felines should be kept indoors during winter, as they can freeze, be lost or stolen, injured or killed, or even exposed to infectious diseases like rabies if left out in such conditions.
Cats that remain outdoors during winter tend to sleep under the hoods of vehicles, which can lead to injury or death when the vehicle is started. To prevent harm to the animals, bang loudly on the vehicle hood before starting the engine.
When taking dogs outdoors during winter weather, the groups urge owners not to take their canines off leash in snow or ice, and especially not during snowstorms, as dogs can lose their scent and easily become lost.
Because more dogs are lost during the winter than during any other season, it’s especially important to make sure yours always wears identification tags, according to the ASPCA’s guidelines.
To keep dogs safe and sound, wipe off their legs and stomach when they comes in out of snow, ice or sleet, since salt, antifreeze and other potentially dangerous chemicals can be ingested by dogs when they lick their paws, which also can bleed from snow or ice, the groups said.
While antifreeze is lethal for pets, it has a sweet taste that attracts them. As such, both organizations’ list of tips for winter pet health include cleaning up any antifreeze spills from vehicles. Another alternative is using antifreeze-coolant made with propylene glycol which, if swallowed in small amounts, will not hurt pets, wildlife or people.
The ASPCA also urges animal lovers not to leave animals alone in cars during winter weather. While a car can be like an oven in hot summer weather, cold weather can make it like a refrigerator, leading to the potential of animals freezing to death if left too long inside cars or trucks.
The HSUS said that pets that remain outdoors in winter need more food because the process of keeping warm depletes energy. Plastic food and water bowls are suggested to keep pets’ tongues from sticking to metal bowls.
Regarding wildlife, the HSUS said you can help wild animals in winter in a variety of ways.
Among them: In your garden, leave dead stalks, leaves and seedheads standing to feed wildlife and provide cover. Small brush piles also can provide a safe haven for ground-nesting birds, chipmunks, rabbits, and hibernating reptiles, amphibians and insects.
Water – including birdbaths and artificial ponds that are kept ice-free – also can help your wild neighbors during winter time, the HSUS said.
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Military personnel and federal civilian workers would see pay levels frozen for three years and their out-of-pocket medical costs rise under a proposed plan to cut federal budget deficits by $200 billion a year by 2015.
The 58-part “illustrative” plan was unveiled Nov. 10 by former Republican Sen. Alan Simpson (Wyo.) and Erskine Bowles, chief of staff to President Clinton, who serve as co-chairmen of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform.
That 18-member blue-ribbon panel is to deliver a final report to the president by December on ways to tackle a U.S. debt crisis that grows continually, with annual federal deficits nearing 10 percent of the gross domestic product, a rate higher than any year since World War II.
Yet the political minefield ahead for the co-chairmen’s proposal, at least in trying to squeeze savings out of the military community, became apparent in a phone interview Monday with Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.).
Wilson is expected to become chairman of the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel in the new Congress. He deems himself a member of the Tea Party. Many of them were elected this month on promises to reduce budget deficits.
But Wilson, whose districts includes Fort Jackson, Parris Island and several other bases, told me he is committed to protecting TRICARE beneficiaries from fee increases.
In fact, his priorities as panel chairman included expanding entitlements: ending a Survivor Benefit Plan offset for widows, lowering the age 60 start of reserve retirement and providing some military retired pay atop disability compensation for members forced to retire before reaching 20 years due to disability or injury.
The debt commission has a far different course in mind, to persuade the Obama administration and a more conservative Congress that a new era of fiscal restraint is needed to protect America.
The co-chairmen propose dramatic cuts across government including to Social Security, Medicare and federal retirement, presumably for future service members and civil servants.
They also call for a variety of higher taxes including on gasoline. Income taxes would be lowered and simplified, but popular deductions, including for home mortgages, would be cut.
“America cannot be great if we go broke,” Simpson and Bowles said. “We must stabilize then reduce the national debt,” which stands at nearly $14 trillion, “or we could spend $1 trillion a year on interest alone by 2020.”
Here are highlights that, if adopted, would impact the military:
“MODERNIZE” TRICARE – TRICARE premiums and fees would climb for working-age military retirees, except more modestly than proposed earlier by the Bush and Obama administrations. Employers, however, would have to reimburse the government their normal share of health costs if a military retiree on the payroll opts to use TRICARE rather than employer health insurance. The aim is to end a $3 billion a year government “subsidy” of what should be “a normal business expense” for civilian employers.
All TRICARE beneficiaries including active duty family members would face a co-payment for office visits, to reduce their “higher than average usage of health care.” Also, a “modest enrollment fee” would be set for all three TRICARE options, including fee-for-service coverage under TRICARE Standard and the preferred provider network using TRICARE Extra.
Finally, TRICARE would be subject to PAYGO or “pay-as-you-go” budget deficit rules so that any future increases in military health benefits are paid for through higher premiums, co-pays and deductibles.
FEDERAL PAY FREEZE – Military and federal civilian employees would see pay charts frozen for three years “to reflect the current economic and fiscal crisis” that has hit most private sector employees. Only combat pay would be exempt. The freeze would affect basic pay and housing allowances saving $7.6 billion in compensation and tax breaks in 2015. Holding down basic pay also would dampen accrual retirement costs by $1.6 billion a year.
PERSONNEL OVERSEAS – The number of military members assigned to bases in Europe and Asia would fall by a third, from 150,000 down to 100,000, to save $8.5 billion.
STATESIDE SCHOOLS – The Department of Defense would close 58 primary and secondary schools that it still operates for more than 19,000 dependent children in Alabama, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. Begun on base when schools in the South were racially segregated, “it is no longer clear why the system is still necessary” at a cost per student of $51,000 in fiscal 2011, rising to $81,000 by 2015.
COLA “REFORM” – A new, more efficient formula would be used to set cost-of-living adjustments [COLAs] for Social Security and veterans benefits, military and federal annuities and survivor benefits. The co-chairmen said the current COLA formula fails to take into account new consumer choices made for their market basket when other products become too pricey.
FUTURE MILITARY RETIREMENT – The current 20-year system would be replaced, presumably for new entrants with a plan that vests some benefits after only 10 years and delays immediate, full annuities until age 60.
To critics who complain often that the first budget items cut should be U.S. foreign aid and support for the UN, well, those are targeted here too. The full proposal can be read at: www.fiscalcommission.gov .
Steve Strobridge with Military Officers Association of America, who testified at the commission’s June public forum, said most of these cost-cutting ideas for the military have been seen before.
But an era is at hand of “increasingly severe budget constraints,” he said. “It is different when the deficit is as large as it is.”
These ideas will make many lawmakers nervous, he predicted, and early on they only will be “dabbling at the edges.” But many newly elected Republicans did campaign on cutting budgets, Strobridge noted. “So I think there’s going to be some serious efforts to do some of these things.”
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Anything that can be done to prevent, or lessen, such family contention is desirable for the family involved.
Let’s discuss the different approaches one might take.
One is to specifically gift assets individually to named beneficiaries. This entails inventorying them, taking a list of who gets what, and who takes in their place if a named beneficiary dies or declines to accept the gift.
Once made, that list can then be turned into a gift schedule and specifically incorporated into your trust or will – for legal effect by reference. Using an external gift schedule allows for revisions to be made without amending the underlying trust or will instrument and saves on legal fees.
Another approach is that your trustee or executor, as relevant, be put in charge of dividing the heirlooms when settling the estate. That still leaves the question of how the trustee actually divides the heirlooms.
One way is for the trustee/executor to be allowed to use his or her reasonable discretion to divide the assets. If you are confident in such person’s judgment and you aren’t concerned over possible abuse of discretion then all encompassing nature of this approach may be desirable. Of course, you can use different approaches for different types of assets.
Alternatively, you might devise a method to divide such assets. For example, the beneficiaries could each take turns selecting one object, and the order of turns could either be determined either using a lottery or age order.
This “taking turns” approach works well when there are numerous items of roughly equivalent value and you don’t foresee particular unhappiness. It can be used to divide those remaining assets which are not specifically given to certain individuals, or those that were declined. Any remaining assets can either be donated to charity or sold and the cash proceeds distributed to the beneficiaries.
For very special assets – such as a family diamond engagement ring – which you wish to give to someone upon attaining a certain age or happening of an event, like getting engaged, you can transfer the asset in a trust containing the necessary written stipulations. Avoid oral trusts as they typically create disputes and enforceability problems.
Lastly, many persons enjoy the personal satisfaction associated with giving their special objects to their loved ones, at the right time. Also, you are personally around to address any issues which such gifting creates. You can do this incrementally, however you like. Whatever you give makes settling your remaining estate that much easier.
Dennis A. Fordham, attorney (LL.M. tax studies), is a State Bar Certified Specialist in Estate Planning, Probate and Trust Law. His office is at 55 First St., Lakeport, California. Dennis can be reached by e-mail at
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