Mitochondrial DNA can show that two people have the same maternal ancestor on their direct maternal line (mother's mother's mother's mother's, ect.) at some point in time. However mtDNA mutates very slowly so usually millions of people belong to the same halogroup, or are said to "match". I worked for a DNA testing…

I think the evidence they have, if it can be verified, is enough to prove that the shawl was present at the murder. However, even if all their evidence is validated, I don't think it proves Aaron Kosminski was the Ripper - there is a rather more obvious way that semen could get onto the shawl of a prostitute.

He's not evil, he's hurt. And yes, my parents and I had some violent fights about my sexual orientation. I feel a lot of empathy for him. His experience can't be discounted just because he taped it.

Do we REALLY need to have a conversation about the history of American Indian boarding schools run in this country for hundreds of years and their policy of forcibly cutting children's hair in direct violation of their native cultures in an effort to destroy their identities and reshape them as good little Christian…

School district officials say they followed procedure "one hundred percent", pointing toa page in the district handbook that states, "certain recognized religious or spiritual beliefs may qualify for an exception from provisions of the dress code."

Maybe he hoped that the people who have said that they loved him all his life would live up to that and accept him.

I've spent time working at the Green Bank site, and can clarify some issues. The NRQZ is a federally determined area inside of which Green Bank and Sugar Grove get veto power over the construction of any substantial permanent radio transmitter, not an area in which no transmissions are allowed – they allow many…

Gray Pride Parade!

Great article. BTW is there a list of all the various subblogs? I feel like every time I click a link it's a new blog.

I defended the English judge's comments from yesterday, but this guy really is an idiot.

This is a very real reality that never gets addressed. The "solution" is to seemingly snap your fingers and pretend that standards of evidence and/or measures of guilt are rather different from the system set up.

Her observations seem pretty reasonable. She's not saying that it is right for it to be that way; she's just describing the way it is. The juries are doing as they're instructed - only convicting if guilt is proven beyond a reasonable doubt. And when the only witness and accuser is not reliable, because they were…

This is crazy! I just found out that someone I know is a cam boy! He said he mostly talks to lonely guys. :'(

I disagree, because he goes from being stable and not spinning, to a spin that's painfully fast. "Correct" posture or not, once you start to whip around like that, you're going to attempt to stop your rotation. And I doubt that feet spread is an approved posture for a static line tangle.

My PIN is ten numbers. As I enter it I deliberately pause on other keys without actually pressing them. It would take a pretty good camera shot to detect which of the 15 or so touches were actually the PIN.

You need to verify that he's conscious first, and then (at least from what I've read) the pilots have to ascend and circle back to the drop zone. You want to give him more time to get his reserve out, so you don't drop him from the normal static line height, you ascend some.

Where the fuck was the Jumpmaster on that? He needed to cut that kid loose IMMEDIATELY after realizing that he wasn't going to unfoul.

make the banks liable for money taken in these schemes.