Zombie Dogs!

You read it right. Since yesterday more bloggers have linked to this story about reincarnated dogs than any other. Mostly the response has been wry disbelief, but ipissmimus voices an obvious concern about the consequences this procedure might have on the animals: "They say the dogs are fine, but kibbles just aren't the same when one gets the taste for brains." Quite.

Just Like Halo, Without the Shooting or Aliens
On the matter of cutting-edge science, there also is this link, BlogPulse's no. 12, about a proposal to save Earth from global warming with an enormous artificial ring in space. Though the idea is little more than a thought experiment -- and, with a potential starting cost of $500 billion, could bankrupt entire countries -- it has taken hold of some bloggers. Ravenwood says it's proof the "environmental movement has been hijacked by wackos," but when anfaclicious saw it, she said she was left "speechless." At the idea of it, anyhow.

Southern Man
Bloggers haven't been speechless about the death of historian Shelby Foote, who is BlogPulse's burstiest name today. Many say that they appreciated Foote's ability to write conversationally throughout his landmark three-volume history of the Civil War, and at least one blogger simply loved to hear Foote talk.

The Supremes: Aftermath
Justice David Souter, private property and the Ten Commandments are all fixtures in BlogPulse these days -- the web is reacting to the recent spate of endlessly contentious Supreme Court decisions. Going in order, then: Check out the buzz that's building around this letter (its author, Logan Darrow Clements, is BlogPulse's no. 4 bursty name). Wags in the Northeast seem to be trying to use the court's eminent domain decision against Souter, to get him off his property and build a new hotel complex. And as for the Ten Commandments, almost nobody seems completely satisfied with the court's twin rulings. DriveDemocracy, however, strikes a hopeful tone that the rulings will help reduce the acrimony caused by the display of the commandments: "As people of faith, we should struggle not to hang the most plaques or to build the most monuments, but to show the most kindness and compassion to those less privileged than ourselves." Amen.

BLOGPULSE TECHNICAL UPDATE: Please be advised that the BlogPulse engineering continues to work through a data quality issue that affects blog posts from June 20 on. Because of the problem, trend charts from June 20 on are showing low percentages or unexplained dips. Other fixes and updates will be coming soon. Thanks for your patience!