SPIEGEL Surfs the Web Katrina: The Space Database
Like the landing of NASA's Pathfinder in 1997, when United States officials quickly posted downloadable pictures from Mars on the Internet, Katrina also proved to be an historic moment for the medium. This time around, the star was the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's National Geodetic Survey, which quickly provided satellite intelligence of the disaster region that could be used by relief workers, the government and even residents of New Orleans trying to get a grasp on what had happened to them and their homes. The images were of such high resolution that you could even detect whether a home on a specific street was flooded or not. NOAA's amaying service has proven that -- at least this time -- technology was more reliable than the government.
Katrina in Kodachrome
It could very well be that Katrina overload is setting in. But the Internet is proving to be a never-ending supply of blogs, sites, and quirky personal stories related to the disaster. And today, we bring you the ultimate in photo galleries. Almost 200 pictures from before, during and after Katrina, straight from downtown New Orleans.
Why Do Bad Things Happen to Good People?
Why do good people suffer? Why do people fall in love? How do you deal with existential depression? The eggheads at Pathways can tell you how history's great thinkers tackled these subjects and more. Just submit a question and they will answer it. They're even willing to help students with pesky homework assignments, like what did Heidegger mean when he said, "To think is to confine oneself to a single thought that one day stands still like a star in the world's sky"? Or overtly political conundrums, like how can natural law be applied to abortion? So far, no one has asked how to make the leader of the free world understand the needs of his people. But, maybe that's coming.
