Weapons makers are cashing in. This article is adapted from the new book by William D. Hartung on the arms industry and its intimate relationship with the White House and the Pentagon. more inside

Best in Show! Behold this year's winner at the the Westminster Kennel Club, a Newfoundland named Josh. Lord Byron had a Newfoundland named Boatswain, which he memorialized in poetry (judging by the painting, I'd guess Boatswain must have been a Landseer.)

The Physics of Cows. "Eventually, this vast and ever-growing cube of meat will implode under its own gravitational force, forming a singularity. This is why, as every astronomer knows, the surface of every black hole is always a cow." [Flash.]

China is tightening its control of the internet with the help of technology from foreign companies. Nevertheless, internet activism seems to be growing and many activists are successfully evading the government's control.

Nice tits !

IranFilter is another MeFi clone which is focused on Iran and is maintained by Hossein Derakhshan (AKA hoder.)

It's Peanut Butter Terror Time! The terror alert banana automatically changes to whatever colour the current Department of Homeland Security threat level is. No security-conscious monkey should be without one. [Via Blort.]

The main cause behind the catastrophic decline of Asian vultures may have been found. Hopefully this will lead to less use of the drug, and the Parsis won't have to resort to solar panels.

"Let's say 1 cookie equals $10 billion..." Ben Cohen explains the federal budget with Oreos. [Flash.]

"Interview with a Fungus" (PDF) is the winner of the 2003 Shell Economist Writing Prize. [Via World Changing.]

Rise of a ruling-class family. An excerpt from Kevin Phillips' new book about the Bush family, "American Dynasty."

Monkey morality. Sharing might not be as nice as it's cracked up to be.

Get Your War On Mars. Meanwhile, the Democrats have sent out rovers of their own [Flash.]

Lunar New Year makes monkey undies hot. [Via Fark.]

Bush in 30 Seconds. The winners have been announced.

A preview of the next Bush administration's foreign policy? "If Bush wins a second term with Cheney at his side, neo-conservatives such as Perle might well find themselves back on top. If so, you may be able to buy this book on remainder and use it as a scorecard."

New warning over monkeypox threat. "The US could face further outbreaks of dangerous monkeypox if the virus has gained a foothold among native animals, say experts."

Signs of a domestic terror plot: The discovery of an arms cache in Texas, including the makings of a cyanide bomb capable of killing thousands of people, has led to three convictions but few answers about what it was intended for. more inside

Chinese mothers donated their breast milk to save an abandoned baby Sichuan golden snub-nosed monkey. more inside

Robert Foster and Hellion have lived together for 25 years. Foster is a quadriplegic and Hellion is a capuchin monkey from the Helping Hands program, which trains monkeys to assist the disabled.