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Latest Articles: Science/Tech
Stem cells extracted from amniotic fluid
Post Date: 2007-01-07 16:27:01 by robin
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Stem cells extracted from amniotic fluid Posted 1/7/2007 3:20 PM ET By Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY Researchers have been able to derive human stem cells from the amniotic fluid surrounding babies in the womb, potentially providing a source of stem cells that is easily available and uncontroversial. The amniotic stem cells grew readily into independent cell lines or colonies, doubling in just 36 hours, says the paper, published in Sunday's edition of the journal Nature Biotechnology. The researchers at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C., were able to get the amniotic cells to differentiate into fat, bone, muscle, blood, nerve and liver cells. Stem ...
CRS Views EPA Library Closures
Post Date: 2007-01-06 12:16:54 by robin
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CRS Views EPA Library Closures Last October the Environmental Protection Agency closed five of its libraries, including the headquarters library in Washington DC, and limited public access at four others. EPA said the closures were part of an ongoing restructuring and that public demand for EPA records would be increasingly satisfied online. Public interest groups and librarians warned that valuable documentary resources were in danger of being lost or destroyed. A report (pdf) from the Congressional Research Service fleshes out some new details of the library closures and finds some cause for concern. "EPA determined that the utility of some of its libraries had declined as the agency ...
DSS Views Foreign Collection of U.S. Technology
Post Date: 2007-01-06 12:04:53 by robin
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DSS Views Foreign Collection of U.S. Technology Foreign efforts to gather information on defense-related U.S. technologies are characterized in a 2006 report (pdf) by the Defense Security Service (DSS) Counterintelligence Office. "In 2005, DSS identified 106 countries associated with suspicious activities based on U.S. cleared defense industry reporting, up from 90 countries in 2004." Information systems, lasers, sensors and aeronautics were among the technology areas most frequently targeted by foreign intelligence. The unclassified DSS report is posted on the DSS web site, but is password-protected to block public access. A copy was obtained by Secrecy News. See ...
Hurricane Center Chief Issues Final Warning; Katrina was nothing compared with the big one yet to come...
Post Date: 2007-01-03 14:17:17 by Brian S
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A departing Max Mayfield is convinced that the Southeast is inviting disaster.By Carol J. WilliamsTimes Staff WriterJanuary 3, 2007MIAMI — Frustrated with people and politicians who refuse to listen or learn, National Hurricane Center Director Max Mayfield ends his 34-year government career today in search of a new platform for getting out his unwelcome message: Hurricane Katrina was nothing compared with the big one yet to come.Mayfield, 58, leaves his high-profile job with the National Weather Service more convinced than ever that U.S. residents of the Southeast are risking unprecedented tragedy by continuing to build vulnerable homes in the tropical storm zone and failing to plan ...
Toyota Creating Alcohol Detection System
Post Date: 2007-01-03 12:13:13 by Brian S
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(01-03) 04:13 PST TOKYO, Japan (AP) -- Toyota Motor Corp. is developing a fail-safe system for cars that detects drunken drivers and automatically shuts the vehicle down if sensors pick up signs of excessive alcohol consumption, a news report said Wednesday. Cars fitted with the detection system will not start if sweat sensors in the driving wheel detect high levels of alcohol in the driver's bloodstream, according to a report carried by the mass-circulation daily, Asahi Shimbun. The system could also kick in if the sensors detect abnormal steering, or if a special camera shows that the driver's pupils are not in focus. The car is then slowed to a halt, the report said. The ...
Science told: hands off gay sheep [Full Thread]
Post Date: 2007-01-01 15:08:50 by robin
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The Sunday Times December 31, 2006 Science told: hands off gay sheep Isabel Oakeshott and Chris Gourlay Experiments that claim to ‘cure’ homosexual rams spark anger SCIENTISTS are conducting experiments to change the sexuality of “gay” sheep in a programme that critics fear could pave the way for breeding out homosexuality in humans. The technique being developed by American researchers adjusts the hormonal balance in the brains of homosexual rams so that they are more inclined to mate with ewes. It raises the prospect that pregnant women could one day be offered a treatment to reduce or eliminate the chance that their offspring will be homosexual. Experts say ...
World faces hottest year ever, as El Niņo combines with global warming
Post Date: 2007-01-01 11:54:11 by Brian S
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A combination of global warming and the El Niño weather system is set to make 2007 the warmest year on record with far-reaching consequences for the planet, one of Britain's leading climate experts has warned. As the new year was ushered in with stormy conditions across the UK, the forecast for the next 12 months is of extreme global weather patterns which could bring drought to Indonesia and leave California under a deluge. The warning, from Professor Phil Jones, director of the Climatic Research Unit at the University of East Anglia, was one of four sobering predictions from senior scientists and forecasters that 2007 will be a crucial year for determining the response to ...
Arctic Ice Shelf Broke Off Canadian Island
Post Date: 2006-12-29 23:44:17 by robin
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A 41-square-mile shelf of floating ice that jutted into the Arctic Ocean for 3,000 years from Canada’s northernmost shore broke away abruptly in the summer of 2005, apparently freed by sharply warming temperatures and jostling wind and waves, scientists said yesterday. The Ayles ice shelf, as the ancient 100-foot-thick slab was called, drifted out of a fjord along the north coast of Ellesmere Island when the jumbled sheath of floating sea ice that tended to press against the coast there even in summers was replaced by open waters because of the warming, the scientists said. The change was first noticed by Laurie Weir of the Canadian Ice Service as she examined satellite images taken ...
Ice Shelf Breaks Off In Arctic
Post Date: 2006-12-29 11:11:47 by Arete
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Scientists Say Climate Change Is Major Reason For The 'Dramatic And Disturbing Event' (AP) TORONTO A giant ice shelf has snapped free from an island south of the North Pole, scientists said Thursday, citing climate change as a "major" reason for the event. The Ayles Ice Shelf - 41 square miles of it - broke clear 16 months ago from the coast of Ellesmere Island, about 500 miles south of the North Pole in the Canadian Arctic. Scientists discovered the event by using satellite imagery. Within one hour of breaking free, the shelf had formed as a new ice island, leaving a trail of icy boulders floating in its wake. Warwick Vincent of Laval University, who studies Arctic ...
The Many Faces of Santa Claus [Reconstructed Face of St. Nicholas]
Post Date: 2006-12-25 02:12:50 by Morgana le Fay
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Long before Clement Moore, Thomas Nast, and Haddon Sundblom gave us our modern concept of that “right jolly old elf,” St. Nicholas was the Bishop of Myra, a Christian city in Asia Minor, in the fourth century c.e. A prominent figure in the church during his life, Nicholas became far more prominent—superhuman, in fact—in legend in the centuries that followed his sainthood. Regarded highly in legend for his kind deeds and good acts, if St. Nicholas had a specialty, it was children. He was, in fact, the patron saint of children (among many other classes of people, churches, and geographical locations). Some of his legends have him even more specialized, focusing on ...
Unhappy feat: biologists baffled as millions of penguins vanish
Post Date: 2006-12-24 13:15:29 by robin
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Sat 23 Dec 2006 Global warming is suspected as the main force behind the huge decline in population of rockhoppers. Picture: Getty Images Unhappy feat: biologists baffled as millions of penguins vanishIAN JOHNSTON ENVIRONMENT CORRESPONDENT HOLLYWOOD has turned them into the cartoon stars of the film Happy Feet, but the real life story of the rockhopper penguin is not such a happy tale, scientists have discovered. Millions of the birds are disappearing in a "sinister and astonishing" phenomenon that is baffling biologists. In just six years their numbers have fallen from 600,000 to 420,000 in the Falkland Islands - one of its few remaining strongholds - according to the latest ...
Climate Change vs Mother Nature: Scientists reveal that bears have stopped hibernating
Post Date: 2006-12-23 15:02:33 by robin
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Climate Change vs Mother Nature: Scientists reveal that bears have stopped hibernating Published: 21 December 2006 Bears have stopped hibernating in the mountains of northern Spain, scientists revealed yesterday, in what may be one of the strongest signals yet of how much climate change is affecting the natural world. In a December in which bumblebees, butterflies and even swallows have been on the wing in Britain, European brown bears have been lumbering through the forests of Spain's Cantabrian mountains, when normally they would already be in their long, annual sleep. Bears are supposed to slumber throughout the winter, slowing their body rhythms to a minimum and drawing on ...
Face-hunting software will scour web for targets
Post Date: 2006-12-21 19:53:26 by innieway
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A search engine that uses sophisticated facial recognition to allow users to identify and find people in online images will launch next month. But civil liberties groups say the biometric-style tool could compromise the privacy of anyone who has their picture online. Search engine Polar Rose reconstructs the 3D shape of a person's face and then combines that with characteristics of their features to generate a unique "face print". This can then be used to search other photos for a match. In January users will be able to download a plugin for their browser that allows users to enter information about faces they recognise in online images. This data is then sent to a ...
Wise men testify to dragon's virgin birth
Post Date: 2006-12-21 16:03:25 by Tauzero
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Wise men testify to dragon's virgin birth Mark Henderson, Science Editor # Female Komodo doesn't need a mate # Scientists say it is truly immaculate A clutch of four Komodo dragons that hatched at London Zoo this year were all the result of virgin births, according to research that could help scientific efforts to protect the world’s largest lizards. Genetic tests conducted at the University of Liverpool have proved that all four born to a female called Sungai were conceived by parthenogenesis, a form of asexual reproduction that is known to take place in lizards but never documented in this species before. Sungai, who has died since her eggs hatched, is also about to be ...
Free Calls - Gizmo Project
Post Date: 2006-12-21 13:11:27 by Lod
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Learn more at the URL
Interesting New Search Engine
Post Date: 2006-12-21 11:54:36 by Lod
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http://www.msdewey.com
A Bunch of Little Scrooges?
Post Date: 2006-12-20 18:44:32 by Tauzero
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A Bunch of Little Scrooges? Studies of children indicate that people may be inherently prejudiced against those less fortunate. Bah, humbug, indeed. By Wray Herbert Special to Newsweek Updated: 4:05 p.m. CT Dec 19, 2006 Dec. 19, 2006 - Alms for the poor. Sidewalk Santas with clanging bells. The words and images may seem a bit Dickensian, but the charitable sentiment still resonates throughout the winter holiday season. After all, every one of the world's major religions preaches compassion and generosity toward those less fortunate. Yet despite the universality of this simple message, a substantial body of scientific research shows that sympathy for the disadvantaged is not an ...
Woman medalist is not a woman
Post Date: 2006-12-17 20:13:42 by DeaconBenjamin
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NEW DELHI, Dec 17: On December 9, Santhi Soudarajan won a silver for India in the women’s 800m run at the Doha Asian Games. On Sunday, it was revealed that Santhi is not a woman. The 25-year-old runner failed a gender test, which was conducted in Doha during the Games after the race was over. The test report, which was sent to the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) by the organisers on Sunday, says that "she does not possess the sexual characteristics of a women". The startling revelation means India will lose the medal. The official word is awaited. The bizarre incident is also shocking since the Athletic Federation of India (AFI), which selected ‘her’ for Doha, ...
Is Anyone Else's Internet Connection Behaving Oddly?
Post Date: 2006-12-17 18:33:45 by Lod
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Just wondering if I was the only one this afternoon. Thanks.
Scientists identify gene mutation in autism
Post Date: 2006-12-17 16:52:43 by Diana
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PARIS (Reuters) - French scientists have identified genetic mutations in a small number of children with autism which could provide insight into the biological basis of the disorder. They sequenced a gene called SHANK3 in more than 200 people with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), which includes autism, and found mutations in the gene in members of three families. ASD covers a range of problems that affect communication, social interaction, verbal skills and behavior. "These mutations concern only a small number of individuals, but they shed light on one gene ... that is involved in autism spectrum disorders," Thomas Bourgeron, of the Pasteur Institute in Paris, said in a report ...
What IS This Thing at the Bottom of the Ocean?
Post Date: 2006-12-15 20:59:08 by tom007
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Winter Solstice: A Triumph For Light On The Darkest Day Of The Year
Post Date: 2006-12-15 01:24:47 by Morgana le Fay
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Two years ago, at dawn on a cold December morning, Kate and I piled rocks and stones into two cairns under an old maple tree in the yard. The tree stands at the crest of the hill that our property straddles. We were marking two points on a line to the southeast - a line that when extrapolated to the horizon hit the deep red bull's-eye of the rising sun. It was the beginning of the shortest day of the year, the winter solstice. The sunrise was at the southern terminus of its annual journey up and down the eastern horizon. People have been engaging in similar activities for thousands of years. Long before there was a month of December, more than 5,000 years ago, a remarkable tomb was ...
US Government Biological Weapons Legislator Says 2001 Anthrax Attacks Part Of Government Bio-warfare Program
Post Date: 2006-12-15 00:03:07 by richard9151
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US Government Biological Weapons Legislator Says 2001 Anthrax Attacks Part Of Government Bio-warfare Program Expert says FBI covered up the plot to attack Congress which may have been perpetrated by the same people who carried out the 9/11 attacks Steve Watson http://Infowars.net Wednesday, December 13, 2006 The real culprits behind the 2001 anthrax attack on Congress were most likely US government scientists at the army's Ft. Detrick, MD., bioterrorism lab according to a former government biological weapons legislator and University of Illinois Professor. Dr Franics A. Boyle says the FBI covered up these facts and has also quite clearly stated that he doubts the official ...
Study: Arctic basin ice free by September 2040
Post Date: 2006-12-12 19:59:23 by robin
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Study: Arctic basin ice free by September 2040www.chinaview.cn 2006-12-12 19:02:36 Arctic sea ice(Xinhua Photo)Photo Gallery >>> BEIJING, Dec. 12 (Xinhuanet) -- A recent climate study using computer models indicates that if greenhouse gases continue to be released at their current rate, most of the Arctic basin will be ice free in September by 2040. And winter ice, now about 12 feet thick, will be less than 3 feet thick. The most recent study by scientists from The National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, Colo., disputes a previous study that predicted the region will be free of summer ice by 2060, and another that forecasts ice until 2105. The rapid meltdown, caused ...
Major Solar Eruption - Little Comment in Western Press
Post Date: 2006-12-12 18:07:41 by Eoghan
5 Comments
If you are into following events involving sol, our system's central star, you may have heard of a major event in progress right now, but chances are you haven't heard as the Western media is strangely silent about the event. NASA has issued a communication about the event that plays down the importance of what is happening. Apart from an Item in Astronomy and Space News, the story was picked up - as far as I can tell - so far only by a paper in Brisbane, Australia. Solar_Flare.jpg A major solar flare not seen in 30 years But a more detailed account comes from Russia. The paper Commersant puts the event in perspective saying that the flare was classified an X-9, meaning an ...
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