[BLOG] Some Wednesday links

[rfmcdonald]

• Bad Astronomer Phil Plait notes that a recent massive flare at Proxima Centauri, one that made the star become a thousand times brighter, not only makes Proxima b unlikely to be habitable but makes it unlikely Proxima has (as some suggested) a big planetary system.


• The Dragon's Tales notes that South Korea, contrary to earlier reports, is not going to ban cryptocurrency.


• Hornet Stories notes that six American states--Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky, Missouri, Montana, and Oklahoma--have seen the introduction of legislation replacing marriage with a marriage contract, on account of marriage equality.


• JSTOR Daily reports on the deep similarities and differences between serfdom in Russia and slavery in the United States, both formally abolished in the 1860s.


• Language Hat links to a Telegraph article reporting on the efforts of different people to translate different ancient languages.


• The New APPS Blog notes that, after Delta dropped its discount for NRA members, the pro-NRA governor of Georgia dropped tax breaks for the airline.


• This call for the world to respond to the horrors in Syria, shared at the NYR Daily, is likely to fall on deaf ears.


• At Strange Maps, Frank Jacobs shares some maps showing areas where the United States is truly exceptional.


• Supernova Condensate notes how nested planetary orbits can be used to trace beautiful spirograph patterns.


• Window on Eurasia notes how no one in the Soviet Union in 1991 was prepared to do anything to save the Soviet Union.