Ask sparxMind

If I had the opportunity to travel this summer, my top two choices would be New Zealand or Ireland. In that order.

You might want to check out Amsterdam.

You’ll probably get the best flight rates going somewhere in Europe, so I would suggest throwing darts at a map of Europe. That’s the best way to plan - incorporating chance, randomness, and things with sharp points into the decision making process.

A bit of advice: don’t watch any reruns of Lost for a few weeks before flying.

I had to consult a Magic 8-ball for this one:

Signs point to yes

Do they even need to play anymore now? I mean, since we know the outcome already…

The cheapest AT&T plan for the iPhone is $69.99. It does include unlimited data use, but no, there’s no way to get a non-data plan. If you get the phone, you’re stuck paying $70+taxes for the next 2 years.

The iPhone is both a UMTS/HSDPA and a GSM phone, and is now being sold in over 70 countries, so it should work fine just about anywhere overseas - as long as you’re not in the middle of nowhere. I have no idea what you’d be paying, since you’d be on a completely different network in a different country - you’d probably feel your wallet nailed by both AT&T and the local provider’s network that you’re on.

You should go to Italy. The iPhone will work there.

Centipedes prefer damp environments, so the first suggestion would be to put a dehumidifier in your basement.. a dehumidifier can also fix a lot of basement-related problems.

It also wouldn’t hurt to go around and figure out where they could potentially be getting in to the house. You can use caulk to fill any holes, but I like the “triple expanding” or “maximum expansion” foam that comes in a spray-paint-looking can. Caulk would be a lot less messy for small cracks and gaps, but the foam is just fun for some reason.

If that doesn’t do the trick, there are sticky traps (just seems messy and like too much work) and sprays. Since pesticide/insecticide/poisons scare me a bit, I’ll leave the research on those up to you if it comes to that.

The answer to this question requires a comparison to early sailors/explorers. Before comprehensive maps were created, explorers had to rely on crude maps and add to them as they went. Continents went unexplored because no one had visited and charted them yet. Things were primitive, but as time went on, the ships went further, the maps grew, and the voyages were potentially much more profitable.

Now, spammers are kind of like early explorers. Except they steal the ships that they use, are shot at wherever they go, and spread disease and pain rather than adding any value to human society. Actually, I guess spammers are more like the rats on the ship, and the spam that they send could be compared to the disease-spreading ticks that rats could carry.

As more of the internet is discovered (it’s not built as is commonly believed, all the content is there - sometimes it’s just hiding) these spammers use the new internet maps to spread their plague-filled spam further and faster.

So, the increasing quality of maps increases the amount of spam that is sent.

Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit by Daniel Quinn.

I’m fuzzy on the details, since it’s been years since the last time I’ve read it. The general story involves a telepathic gorilla and his conversations with a man about the downward spiral towards destruction that our society is in.

It’s a weird way to tackle such a serious subject, but Quinn pulls it off brilliantly. The ideas that are presented and the way they are presented in really gets the message to sink in. It’s one of those books that, given an open mind, could completely change the way a person thinks. And it did, which is why it was the first thing that popped into my mind when reading this question. I think it made me a bit more cynical, but it definitely pried my eyes open a bit. I would recommend this book to almost anyone - Quinn has several other good books, and, while they mostly tackle this same topic from different viewpoints, Ishmael was my favorite.

(I want to thank whoever asked this question, but since they submitted it anonymously.. I can’t directly. Since there’s almost no traffic coming here, I’m guessing it’s either someone I know, or.. someone else. Regardless - thanks. )

Readers: I like this question, so I’ll aim it back at you. What’s the most influential book that you’ve ever read? One of those that changed who you are or how you think/view life? Leave a comment.

Two words: “Gas Prices.”

Democrats:

Republicans: