Dust flux, Vostok ice core

Dust flux, Vostok ice core
Two dimensional phase space reconstruction of dust flux from the Vostok core over the period 186-4 ka using the time derivative method. Dust flux on the x-axis, rate of change is on the y-axis. From Gipp (2001).

Friday, April 13, 2012

Celebrating the debasement of our coinage (once again)

. . . with full-page colour ads in major newspapers.

The Toronto Star today had a two-page spread right in the centre of the news section. The Royal Canadian Mint is boldly announcing that the loonie ($1 coin) and toonie ($2 coin) will now be made of glorious steel ("multi-ply plated steel"), as opposed to nickel, as has been the case until now.

I always thought debasing the coinage was something governments did surreptitiously. One can't imagine Septimus Severus boasting about wonderful new plating technology covering coins manufactured by Rome's greatest leadsmiths. Of course in those days people actually thought about money.

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