New York, NY (CBS) -- THE RUN UP TO INDIANA AND NORTH CAROLINA
Going into tomorrow's primaries in Indiana and North Carolina with 187 delegates are at stake, Barack Obama's lead over Hillary Clinton in delegates is only 135. But the math still favors Obama since neither will get all 187. And they're both still talking about change.
"The devil is in the details. Everybody's for change in general, but you got to bring people to the table in particular," said Hillary Clinton, Democrat of New York.
Right now in particular they both sense that what's on voter’s minds is the record high price of gasoline, over four dollars in some places.
"If we're gonna really bring down gas prices the only way to do it is to invest in alternative energy, and raise fuel efficiency standards on cars," said Barack Obama, Democrat of Illinois.
Clinton is pushing a gas tax holiday for motorists this summer and making the oil companies pay for it.
"We need a president who begins to draw some lines, and says, if the choice is between making you pay the gas tax this summer and making the big oil companies pay it out of their record profits, the choice to me is clear," said Clinton.
Obama says Hillary Clinton's gas tax holiday won't save the motorists much money.
"The gas tax holiday? This is an idea that will save you altogether 30 cents a day for three months, or 28 dollars. That's if the oil companies don't simply jack up their prices to fill the gap," said Obama.
Clinton comes up with different numbers.
"If you look at the record profits of the oil companies, they sure can afford to pay the gas tax for you, which will save the average family 70 dollars over the summer," said Obama.
"Does anybody here really trust the oil companies to give you the savings instead of pocketing the money themselves? It is a shell game, literally," said Obama.
ETHANOL AND THE "DEAD ZONE"
There is a so-called "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mexico. A huge area between seven and eight thousand square miles that forms every summer above the continental shelf with algae blooms on the surface and so little oxygen gets through that shellfish and bottom feeding fish can't survive there. Scientists say it's caused by the runoff of nitrogen fertilizers from farms in the Midwest.
"The threat we're concerned about is that increasing corn production and applying more fertilizer --- because of this push to grow ethanol --- is going to increase nitrogen pollution into the Gulf of Mexico, and worsen the dead zone," said Simon Donner, Professor of Geography, University of British Columbia.
Fisheries on the Gulf Coast are already being affected by the cultivation of subsidized crops far north that require a lot of nitrogen fertilizer.
"And on top of that, we're putting in a mandate now, saying that we need to create ethanol, and it's being done from corn --- this crop that uses a lot of nitrogen. They're pretty much making any chance of mitigating the dead zone almost impossible, because they're pushing nitrogen use in the wrong direction," Simon Donner, Professor of Geography, University of British Columbia.
Geography Professor Simon Donner of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, worked
"It's an example of where people's activities in one part of the world have some effect on the environment or the atmosphere very, very far downstream. And so, it's very disconnected --- it's not like the farmers in the Midwest know that by applying nitrogen, they're doing damage necessarily to the Gulf of Mexico. And that's what makes these problems so difficult to solve," said Donner.
It's all about trade offs, says Donner.
"You're weighing the value of the agriculture upstream versus the value of the fishery downstream. And in this case, agriculture seems to be winning," said Donner.
THE PHASING IN AND OUT OF FAT CELLS
In the years between the time that we are born and time we die, there are cells in our body that die and other cells that are born to replace them.
According to a study published in the online edition of the Journal "NATURE," the number of fat cells in our bodies always stays the same once we reach adulthood. And every year we lose about ten percent of our fat cells, only to have new ones form. And that remains true whether we lose weight, gain weight and whether we're fat or thin.
That's a completely new way of looking at obesity, and one that raises some fascinating questions.
No wonder it's so hard to keep weight off. When you go on a diet and lose weight, it doesn't mean that you've changed the number of fat cells in your body. It simply means that the cells shrank. But according to obesity researchers, this signals the cells that have shrunk to fill up again.
Obese people who've had weight loss surgery may be thinner two years later, but they have just as many fat cells as ever. You may not know how many fat cells you have in total, but your body does, and enough new cells form to exactly replace the ones that the surgeon cut out.
Some of your cells are a lot younger than you are. You are not your old self, and neither am I. When a man has been on death row for ten or 15 years, the person executed may be the same person who committed the crime. But the collection of cells that make up the human organism will be quite different.
Now that we know our fat cells are born and die several times in our lifetimes, what can we do about it? Stay tuned.
BUFFETT'S VIEW OF THESE FINANCIAL TIMES
At Omaha's Qwest Center this past Saturday, Warren Buffet entertained 31,0000 of his enthusiastic Berkshire Hathaway investors. It's an annual meeting that has been described as Woodstock for capitalists.
The Buffet followers at Quest, who sought the wisdom to invest.
Were pleased to hear the master say, that in his judgment today.
The risk of panic is behind us, and opportunity may find us.
And that as far as he's aware of, that's pretty much been taken care of.
That doesn't mean there won't be losses, for some big banks and their bosses.
As always there was a hunger, for advice from Buffet and Charlie Munger.
Who always seem to know the score. Buffet is 77 years old, Vice Chairman Munger 84.
When reporters asked them what stocks are attractive today.
Buffet did mention Berkshire Hathaway.
But it won't replicate the past, so don't expect that much that fast.
If that's what you expect Buffet said well.
It may be time for you to sell.
Of course he said it with a smile.
For that is the Buffet style.
The sound of music filled the room.
By minstrels from Fruit of the Loom.
And a portrait of Buffet was sure.
To be painted with paint by Benjamin Moore.
They sipped Cokes, and sampled Dilly Bars.
And all of them seemed very fond.
Of their new insurance business for municipal bonds.
Some firms these days may be taking a beating.
But all was bright at this annual meeting.
Markets may rise, markets may fall.
But there a good time was had by all.
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