According to this New York Times article, scientists who study the differences between people today and people of the recent past have found, "one of the most striking shifts in human existence — a change from small, relatively weak and sickly people to humans who are so big and robust that their ancestors seem almost unrecognizable."

According to "Robert W. Fogel of the University of Chicago, humans in the industrialized world have undergone “a form of evolution that is unique not only to humankind, but unique among the 7,000 or so generations of humans who have ever inhabited the earth.”

The difference does not involve changes in genes, as far as is known, but changes in the human form. It shows up in several ways, from those that are well known and almost taken for granted, like greater heights and longer lives, to ones that are emerging only from comparisons of health records.

The biggest surprise emerging from the new studies is that many chronic ailments like heart disease, lung disease and arthritis are occurring an average of 10 to 25 years later than they used to."

Sugarmegs.org allows you to listen to streaming audio recordings of concerts from hundreds of bands.

Stylus Magazine picks (and links to) the Top 100 Music Videos of All Time.

The Observer selects The 50 Albums That Changed Music.

Human Space Invaders

Moonpans.com has hi-res panoramic photos taken by the Apollo Astronauts when they visited the Moon between 1969 and 1972. These panoramas are Quicktime VR Movies are that you can navigate around using your mouse.

Sailwx.info's Shiptracker shows the current position of ships worldwide. Sailwx.info also tracks Tall Ships, Cruise Ships, and ships on the Great Lakes.

The Sci Fi Channel has put the pilot episode of their new animated comedy, "The Amazing Screw-On Head" on their website. After watching the show, you can vote to let the Sci Fi Channel know if you think the show should join their schedule. The show, based a comic book by Mike Mignola, is summarized below.

"In this hilarious send-up of Lovecraftian horror and steampunk adventure, President Abraham Lincoln's top spy is a bodyless head known only as Screw-On Head.

When arch-fiend Emperor Zombie steals an artifact that will enable him to threaten all life on Earth, the task of stopping him is assigned to Screw-on Head. Fortunately, Screw-On Head is not alone on this perilous quest. He is aided by his multitalented manservant, Mr. Groin, and by his talking canine cohort, Mr. Dog."

According to this Slate article, "The Republican answer to runaway health-care spending is to cap jury awards in medical malpractice suits. For the fifth time in four years, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist tried and failed to cap awards at $250,000 during his self-proclaimed "Health Care Week" in May. But this time, the Democrats put a better idea on the table.

Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama also want to save on health care. But rather than capping jury awards, they hope to cut the number of medical malpractice cases by reducing medical errors."

As this Beloit Daily News article explains, citizens of Beloit, Wisconsin recreated the George Seurat painting “Sunday Afternoon on the Island of LaGrande Jatte” in Beloit's Riverside Park.

Is a major illness or injury necessary for an American cyclist to win the Tour de France? Greg Lemond survived an accidental gunshot wound to win the Tour de France three times. Lance Armstrong survived cancer and won the race seven times. Now Floyd Landis, who is currently in 2nd place in the Tour, has announced that he has osteonecrosis in his hip and will have to have hip replacement surgery after the Tour. Learn more about Floyd Landis and his injury in this New York Times magazine profile.

Kyle MacDonald has succeeded in trading one red paperclip for a house. He started with one red paperclip on July 12, 2005 and 14 trades later, on July 12, 2006 he will trade with the Town of Kipling, Saskatchewan for a house. Read the full story and see details of all 14 trades on his blog One Red Paperclip.