Will Bush Deliver Atomic Rocket for a Mars Program?
The aerospace industry, NASA-scientists, and a host of space science advocates will be listening to determine if the President will actually seek Congressional backing for the construction of a major new space propulsion system that may launch the nation's science and engineering community on a course to put humans on Mars and other solar system bodies over the next quarter-of-a-century.
During the past week reports have surfaced starting with a Los Angeles Times interview by NASA Administrator Sean O'Keef indicating that the President will formally announce Project Prometheus --- to build a new rocket launch system designed for space travel at three times the speed humans have gone before --- during the January 28, 9 PM State of the Union address.
Friday, January 31, 2003
Keep February 22 free: war to begin
Middle East intelligence sources have revealed that a massive aerial assault on Iraq will begin in the early hours of February 22nd, give or take a day. Since September 2002, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has privately implored the U.S. not to launch an attack on Iraq before the Eid-al-Adha, one of Islam's greatest Feast holidays. The Greater Eid marks the end of Hajj, Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, on February 16th.
Middle East intelligence sources have revealed that a massive aerial assault on Iraq will begin in the early hours of February 22nd, give or take a day. Since September 2002, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has privately implored the U.S. not to launch an attack on Iraq before the Eid-al-Adha, one of Islam's greatest Feast holidays. The Greater Eid marks the end of Hajj, Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, on February 16th.
Thursday, January 30, 2003
Everest Melting? High Signs of Climate Change
A team sponsored by the United Nations Environment Programme has found signs that the landscape of Mount Everest has changed significantly since Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay's visit in 1953. A primary cause is the warming global climate.
The team found that the glacier that once came close to Hillary and Norgay's first camp has retreated three miles (five kilometers). A series of ponds that used to be near Island Peak -- so-called because it was then an island in a sea of ice -- had merged into a long lake.
Tashi Janghu Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountain Association, "told us that he had seen quite rapid and significant changes over the past 20 years in the ice fields and that these changes appeared to be accelerating.
A team sponsored by the United Nations Environment Programme has found signs that the landscape of Mount Everest has changed significantly since Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay's visit in 1953. A primary cause is the warming global climate.
The team found that the glacier that once came close to Hillary and Norgay's first camp has retreated three miles (five kilometers). A series of ponds that used to be near Island Peak -- so-called because it was then an island in a sea of ice -- had merged into a long lake.
Tashi Janghu Sherpa, president of the Nepal Mountain Association, "told us that he had seen quite rapid and significant changes over the past 20 years in the ice fields and that these changes appeared to be accelerating.
Wednesday, January 29, 2003
An interview with George Orwell
When you take words out of the vocabulary, when you change the meanings of words, and make some words synonymous with others when those words are supposed to have two different meanings, it gets very difficult for people to think about things like Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Example: In the Cambridge International Dictionary of English, Capitalism is defined as an economic, political and social system based on private ownership of property, business and industry, and directed towards making the greatest possible profits for successful organizations and people. Whereas in the Cambridge Dictionary of American English, the Newspeak version, Capitalism is defined as an economic system based on private ownership of property and business, with the goal of making the greatest possible profits for the owners.
In the rest of the world, capitalism means private ownership where success is financially rewarded. Using America's Newspeak Dictionary, capitalism means private ownership where the OWNERS, and not the company or the employees are the ones entitled to capital, regardless of how badly the business does.
Success doesn't even come into play. In America, the owners are entitled to the greatest possible profits, period.
When you take words out of the vocabulary, when you change the meanings of words, and make some words synonymous with others when those words are supposed to have two different meanings, it gets very difficult for people to think about things like Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.
Example: In the Cambridge International Dictionary of English, Capitalism is defined as an economic, political and social system based on private ownership of property, business and industry, and directed towards making the greatest possible profits for successful organizations and people. Whereas in the Cambridge Dictionary of American English, the Newspeak version, Capitalism is defined as an economic system based on private ownership of property and business, with the goal of making the greatest possible profits for the owners.
In the rest of the world, capitalism means private ownership where success is financially rewarded. Using America's Newspeak Dictionary, capitalism means private ownership where the OWNERS, and not the company or the employees are the ones entitled to capital, regardless of how badly the business does.
Success doesn't even come into play. In America, the owners are entitled to the greatest possible profits, period.
Alleged Pedophiles at Helm of Britain's War Machine, Massive Cover-Up
A child-sex scandal that threatened to destroy Tony Blair's government last week has been mysteriously squashed and wiped off the front pages of British newspapers. Operation Ore, the United Kingdom's most thorough and comprehensive police investigation of crimes against children, seems to have uncovered more than is politically acceptable at the highest reaches of the British elite.
See also: Sunday Herald Child porn arrests 'too slow'
Sunday Herald How Cherie gained two houses ... but lost the plot
and
The Guardian New Age crankiness of Blair and Cherie
A child-sex scandal that threatened to destroy Tony Blair's government last week has been mysteriously squashed and wiped off the front pages of British newspapers. Operation Ore, the United Kingdom's most thorough and comprehensive police investigation of crimes against children, seems to have uncovered more than is politically acceptable at the highest reaches of the British elite.
See also: Sunday Herald Child porn arrests 'too slow'
Sunday Herald How Cherie gained two houses ... but lost the plot
and
The Guardian New Age crankiness of Blair and Cherie
Cell phone patents raise safety questions
Last year a study reported no ill effects from the radiation emitted by mobile cell phones, however even as major cell phone manufacturers argued that phones pose no health risks, the companies were filing patents for devices such as antenna shrouds designed to protect users from radiation emitted by the phones. Click here for CNN story.
Last year a study reported no ill effects from the radiation emitted by mobile cell phones, however even as major cell phone manufacturers argued that phones pose no health risks, the companies were filing patents for devices such as antenna shrouds designed to protect users from radiation emitted by the phones. Click here for CNN story.
US ally Pakistan in arms deals with 'Axis of Evil' Korea Since 1997, the C.I.A. said, Pakistan had been sharing sophisticated technology, warhead-design information, and weapons-testing data with the Pyongyang regime. Pakistan, one of the Bush Administration's important allies in the war against terrorism, was helping North Korea build the bomb.
Pakistan began paying for missile systems from North Korea in part by sharing its nuclear-weapons secrets. According to the report, Pakistan sent prototypes of high-speed centrifuge machines to North Korea. And sometime in 2001 North Korean scientists began to enrich uranium in significant quantities. Pakistan also provided data on how to build and test a uranium-triggered nuclear weapon, the C.I.A. report said.
Pakistan began paying for missile systems from North Korea in part by sharing its nuclear-weapons secrets. According to the report, Pakistan sent prototypes of high-speed centrifuge machines to North Korea. And sometime in 2001 North Korean scientists began to enrich uranium in significant quantities. Pakistan also provided data on how to build and test a uranium-triggered nuclear weapon, the C.I.A. report said.
Microchip Implants, Mindcontrol, Cybernetics
Thirty years ago brain implants showed up in xrays the size of one centimeter. Subsequent implants shrunk to the size of a grain of rice. They were made of silicon, later still of gallium arsenide. Today they are small enough to be inserted into the neck or back, and also intravenously in different parts of the body during surgical operations, with or without the consent of the subject. It is now almost impossible to detect or remove them.
It is technically possible for every newborn to be injected with a
microchip, which could then function to identify the person for the rest of his or her life. Such plans are secretly being discussed in the U.S. without any public airing of the privacy issues involved. In Sweden, Prime Minister Olof Palme gave permission in 1973 to implant prisoners, and Data Inspection's ex-Director General Jan Freese revealed that nursing-home patients were implanted in the mid- 1980's. The technology
is revealed in the 1972:47 Swedish state report, STATENS OFFICIELLA UTRADNINGER (SOU).
Thirty years ago brain implants showed up in xrays the size of one centimeter. Subsequent implants shrunk to the size of a grain of rice. They were made of silicon, later still of gallium arsenide. Today they are small enough to be inserted into the neck or back, and also intravenously in different parts of the body during surgical operations, with or without the consent of the subject. It is now almost impossible to detect or remove them.
It is technically possible for every newborn to be injected with a
microchip, which could then function to identify the person for the rest of his or her life. Such plans are secretly being discussed in the U.S. without any public airing of the privacy issues involved. In Sweden, Prime Minister Olof Palme gave permission in 1973 to implant prisoners, and Data Inspection's ex-Director General Jan Freese revealed that nursing-home patients were implanted in the mid- 1980's. The technology
is revealed in the 1972:47 Swedish state report, STATENS OFFICIELLA UTRADNINGER (SOU).
Australian fire ruins Big Isle telescope plans
A forest and brush fire in Australia has destroyed an astronomical instrument under construction which would have put the Gemini North Telescope on Mauna Kea in the forefront of certain infrared astronomical studies.
The $3 million Near-infrared Integral-Field Spectrograph, under construction since 1999 at Australia's Mount Stromlo Observatory, was six months short of completion and installation on the Gemini North telescope, said Gemini spokesman Peter Michaud.
The instrument would have been used to study the area around black holes at the centers of galaxies and to study star formation elsewhere.
A forest and brush fire in Australia has destroyed an astronomical instrument under construction which would have put the Gemini North Telescope on Mauna Kea in the forefront of certain infrared astronomical studies.
The $3 million Near-infrared Integral-Field Spectrograph, under construction since 1999 at Australia's Mount Stromlo Observatory, was six months short of completion and installation on the Gemini North telescope, said Gemini spokesman Peter Michaud.
The instrument would have been used to study the area around black holes at the centers of galaxies and to study star formation elsewhere.
Monday, January 27, 2003
US may use nukes on Iraq
THE United States is considering using nuclear weapons in a possible future war against Iraq to destroy underground command posts and stop Iraqi forces from using weapons of mass destruction, a top US private military expert has warned.
Citing multiple sources, William Arkin said plans for using nuclear weapons against Iraq are being fleshed out at the US Strategic Command in Omaha, Nebraska; inside planning offices of the Joint Staff at the Pentagon and at an "undisclosed location" in Pennsylvania where US Vice-President Dick Cheney used to spend time during terrorism alerts.
THE United States is considering using nuclear weapons in a possible future war against Iraq to destroy underground command posts and stop Iraqi forces from using weapons of mass destruction, a top US private military expert has warned.
Citing multiple sources, William Arkin said plans for using nuclear weapons against Iraq are being fleshed out at the US Strategic Command in Omaha, Nebraska; inside planning offices of the Joint Staff at the Pentagon and at an "undisclosed location" in Pennsylvania where US Vice-President Dick Cheney used to spend time during terrorism alerts.
Western "human shields" head for Iraq
LONDON, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Proclaiming they were prepared to die if necessary to stop war in Iraq, the first convoy of Western "human shield" volunteers drove out of London on Saturday on double-decker buses bound for Baghdad.
The roughly 50 volunteers, ranging from a 19-year-old factory worker to a 60-year-old former diplomat, formed the vanguard of a series of caravans organisers say will take hundreds, possibly thousands, of anti-war activists to Iraq.
LONDON, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Proclaiming they were prepared to die if necessary to stop war in Iraq, the first convoy of Western "human shield" volunteers drove out of London on Saturday on double-decker buses bound for Baghdad.
The roughly 50 volunteers, ranging from a 19-year-old factory worker to a 60-year-old former diplomat, formed the vanguard of a series of caravans organisers say will take hundreds, possibly thousands, of anti-war activists to Iraq.
Research team uncovers new UFO evidence
The museum of the unexplained, located in Reeds Spring Missouri, has obtained new information concerning an object recovered by Bob White in the 80s. To present this new information to the press and to the public, a press conference has been scheduled for 10am on Wednesday, February 5, 2003 in Nevada. The press conference is by invitation only. On February 6, 2003, the object will on display to the general public and the experts will be available to take questions. It bears a striking similarity to an object recovered in Denmark 40 years earlier. To see the objects click here.
The museum of the unexplained, located in Reeds Spring Missouri, has obtained new information concerning an object recovered by Bob White in the 80s. To present this new information to the press and to the public, a press conference has been scheduled for 10am on Wednesday, February 5, 2003 in Nevada. The press conference is by invitation only. On February 6, 2003, the object will on display to the general public and the experts will be available to take questions. It bears a striking similarity to an object recovered in Denmark 40 years earlier. To see the objects click here.
We make up the rules as we go along, says Rumsfeld
US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's briefings to the press are feisty affairs, in which the secretary sometimes debates the premise of reporter's questions. When reporters get frustrated or try to press him, Rumsfeld often breaks into laughter.
This gives his appearances a free-wheeling affair. As he said to reporters earlier this week, between chuckles, "Oh, we make up the rules as we go along. What the heck."
US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld's briefings to the press are feisty affairs, in which the secretary sometimes debates the premise of reporter's questions. When reporters get frustrated or try to press him, Rumsfeld often breaks into laughter.
This gives his appearances a free-wheeling affair. As he said to reporters earlier this week, between chuckles, "Oh, we make up the rules as we go along. What the heck."
Bush the Cowboy Leaves Europe Cold
"Terrorists are a hundred times more likely to obtain a weapon of mass destruction from Pakistan than from Iraq," one senior European official said, not permitting a reporter to identify even his nationality because tensions with Washington are so high. "North Korea is far more likely to sell whatever it's got. But can we say this in public? Can we have a real debate about priorities? Not with George Bush."
And while Vice President Dick Cheney has argued that a show of military might will begin to change the map of the Middle East, German and French officials say it will more likely lead to a radicalization of the Arab world, a fractured Iraq and a prolonged struggle with Washington over who will pick up the pieces.
"Terrorists are a hundred times more likely to obtain a weapon of mass destruction from Pakistan than from Iraq," one senior European official said, not permitting a reporter to identify even his nationality because tensions with Washington are so high. "North Korea is far more likely to sell whatever it's got. But can we say this in public? Can we have a real debate about priorities? Not with George Bush."
And while Vice President Dick Cheney has argued that a show of military might will begin to change the map of the Middle East, German and French officials say it will more likely lead to a radicalization of the Arab world, a fractured Iraq and a prolonged struggle with Washington over who will pick up the pieces.
Friday, January 24, 2003
France, Germany stand firm on Iraq
PARIS, France (CNN) -- French President Jacques Chirac said France and Germany have "the same point of view" on the Iraqi crisis.
Chirac said any decision on war in the end resides with the U.N. Security Council and that war should be avoided.
Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder held a news conference at the Elysee Palace on Wednesday after a joint Cabinet meeting to mark 40 years of reconciliation. During the briefing, they were asked about Iraq.
The French president said their mutual stance is based on two ideas: that any decision belongs to the Security Council alone.
A report on the status of inspections will be delivered to the Security Council on Monday.
"As far as we're concerned, war always means failure," Chirac said. "Everything must be done to avoid war.
PARIS, France (CNN) -- French President Jacques Chirac said France and Germany have "the same point of view" on the Iraqi crisis.
Chirac said any decision on war in the end resides with the U.N. Security Council and that war should be avoided.
Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder held a news conference at the Elysee Palace on Wednesday after a joint Cabinet meeting to mark 40 years of reconciliation. During the briefing, they were asked about Iraq.
The French president said their mutual stance is based on two ideas: that any decision belongs to the Security Council alone.
A report on the status of inspections will be delivered to the Security Council on Monday.
"As far as we're concerned, war always means failure," Chirac said. "Everything must be done to avoid war.
Rumsfeld: France, Germany are 'problems' in Iraqi conflict
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld Wednesday dismissed French and German insistence that "everything must be done to avoid war" with Iraq, saying most European countries stand with the United States in its campaign to force Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to disarm.
"Germany has been a problem, and France has been a problem," said Rumsfeld, a former NATO ambassador. "But you look at vast numbers of other countries in Europe. They're not with France and Germany on this, they're with the United States."
Germany and France represent "old Europe," and NATO's expansion in recent years means "the center of gravity is shifting to the east," Rumsfeld said.
U.N. officials have stressed the report would be an update, not a conclusive determination about any Iraqi weapons programs.
Nevertheless, Secretary of State Colin Powell has told Security Council members that "difficult choices" would follow the report.
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld Wednesday dismissed French and German insistence that "everything must be done to avoid war" with Iraq, saying most European countries stand with the United States in its campaign to force Iraqi President Saddam Hussein to disarm.
"Germany has been a problem, and France has been a problem," said Rumsfeld, a former NATO ambassador. "But you look at vast numbers of other countries in Europe. They're not with France and Germany on this, they're with the United States."
Germany and France represent "old Europe," and NATO's expansion in recent years means "the center of gravity is shifting to the east," Rumsfeld said.
U.N. officials have stressed the report would be an update, not a conclusive determination about any Iraqi weapons programs.
Nevertheless, Secretary of State Colin Powell has told Security Council members that "difficult choices" would follow the report.
Wednesday, January 22, 2003
All eyes head towards Baghdad
Members of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment were allowed to wear their own hologram protective eyewear during exercises in Bergen-Hohne in Germany. The 40-pounds-slg reflective 3D goggles, which are designed for motorcyclists, have become a fashionable accessory, but they will not be seen on the battlefield. click here for the image
Members of the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment were allowed to wear their own hologram protective eyewear during exercises in Bergen-Hohne in Germany. The 40-pounds-slg reflective 3D goggles, which are designed for motorcyclists, have become a fashionable accessory, but they will not be seen on the battlefield. click here for the image
'Oldest star chart' found
The oldest image of a star pattern, that of the famous constellation of Orion, has been recognised on an ivory tablet some 32,500 years old.
The tiny sliver of mammoth tusk contains a carving of a man-like figure with arms and legs outstretched in the same pose as the stars of Orion.
The claim is made by Dr Michael Rappenglueck, formerly of the University of Munich, who is already renowned for his pioneering work locating star charts painted on the walls of prehistoric caves.
The oldest image of a star pattern, that of the famous constellation of Orion, has been recognised on an ivory tablet some 32,500 years old.
The tiny sliver of mammoth tusk contains a carving of a man-like figure with arms and legs outstretched in the same pose as the stars of Orion.
The claim is made by Dr Michael Rappenglueck, formerly of the University of Munich, who is already renowned for his pioneering work locating star charts painted on the walls of prehistoric caves.
Monday, January 20, 2003
Human Peace Sign from Antarctica
On Sunday, January 19, 2003 people from McMurdo Station in Antarctica joined with the millions of others around the world in calling for peace not war.
With the Antarctic Mt Range in the background we laid on the ice in a symbolic call for peace.
Seven continents united. click here for pictures.
On Sunday, January 19, 2003 people from McMurdo Station in Antarctica joined with the millions of others around the world in calling for peace not war.
With the Antarctic Mt Range in the background we laid on the ice in a symbolic call for peace.
Seven continents united. click here for pictures.
War concoted 5 years ago as oily cover story
Back in 1997, in the years of the Clinton administration, Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and a bunch of other right-wing men – most involved in the oil business – created the Project for the New American Century, a lobby group demanding "regime change" in Iraq.
In a 1998 letter to President Clinton, they called for the removal of Saddam from power. In a letter to Newt Gingrich, who was then Speaker of the House, they wrote that "we should establish and maintain a strong US military presence in the region, and be prepared to use that force to protect our vital interests [sic] in the Gulf – and, if necessary, to help remove Saddam from power".
Back in 1997, in the years of the Clinton administration, Rumsfeld, Dick Cheney and a bunch of other right-wing men – most involved in the oil business – created the Project for the New American Century, a lobby group demanding "regime change" in Iraq.
In a 1998 letter to President Clinton, they called for the removal of Saddam from power. In a letter to Newt Gingrich, who was then Speaker of the House, they wrote that "we should establish and maintain a strong US military presence in the region, and be prepared to use that force to protect our vital interests [sic] in the Gulf – and, if necessary, to help remove Saddam from power".
TIME Magazine: America's Ultra-Secret Weapon
High-power microwaves are man-made lightning bolts crammed into cruise missiles. They could be key weapons for targeting Saddam Hussein's alleged stockpiles of biological and chemical weapons -- frying the sophisticated computers and electronic gear necessary to produce, protect, store and deliver such agents.
The powerful electromagnetic pulses can travel into deeply buried bunkers through ventilation shafts, plumbing and antennas.
High-power microwaves are man-made lightning bolts crammed into cruise missiles. They could be key weapons for targeting Saddam Hussein's alleged stockpiles of biological and chemical weapons -- frying the sophisticated computers and electronic gear necessary to produce, protect, store and deliver such agents.
The powerful electromagnetic pulses can travel into deeply buried bunkers through ventilation shafts, plumbing and antennas.
Friday, January 17, 2003
Pentagon database plan hits snag
A plan to link databases of credit card companies, health insurers and others--creating what critics call a "domestic surveillance apparatus"--raises concern on Capitol Hill.
If fully implemented, the Pentagon's proposed Total Information Awareness program would link databases from sources such as credit card companies, medical insurers and motor vehicle departments for police convenience in hopes of snaring terrorists. It's funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
A plan to link databases of credit card companies, health insurers and others--creating what critics call a "domestic surveillance apparatus"--raises concern on Capitol Hill.
If fully implemented, the Pentagon's proposed Total Information Awareness program would link databases from sources such as credit card companies, medical insurers and motor vehicle departments for police convenience in hopes of snaring terrorists. It's funded by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).
Wednesday, January 15, 2003
Fluoride, Teeth, and the Atomic Bomb
Some fifty years after the United States began adding fluoride to public water supplies to reduce cavities in children's teeth, declassified government documents are shedding new light on the roots of that still-controversial public health measure, revealing a surprising connection between fluoride and the dawning of the nuclear age.
Today, two thirds of U.S. public drinking water is fluoridated. Many municipalities still resist the practice, disbelieving the government's assurances of safety.
Since the days of World War II, when this nation prevailed by building the world's first atomic bomb, U.S. public health leaders have maintained that low doses of fluoride are safe for people, and good for children's teeth.
Fluoride is a powerful central nervous system (CNS) toxin, and might adversely affect human brain functioning, even at low doses. New epidemiological evidence from China adds support, showing a correlation between low-dose fluoride exposure and diminished I.Q. in children.
Some fifty years after the United States began adding fluoride to public water supplies to reduce cavities in children's teeth, declassified government documents are shedding new light on the roots of that still-controversial public health measure, revealing a surprising connection between fluoride and the dawning of the nuclear age.
Today, two thirds of U.S. public drinking water is fluoridated. Many municipalities still resist the practice, disbelieving the government's assurances of safety.
Since the days of World War II, when this nation prevailed by building the world's first atomic bomb, U.S. public health leaders have maintained that low doses of fluoride are safe for people, and good for children's teeth.
Fluoride is a powerful central nervous system (CNS) toxin, and might adversely affect human brain functioning, even at low doses. New epidemiological evidence from China adds support, showing a correlation between low-dose fluoride exposure and diminished I.Q. in children.
Not All White House Reporters are Pushovers
"At the earlier briefing, Ari, you said that the president deplored the taking of innocent lives," Helen Thomas began. "Does that apply to all innocent lives in the world?"
It was a simple question -- and, unfortunately, an extraordinary one. Few journalists at the White House move beyond the subtle but powerful ties that bind reporters and top officials in Washington. Routinely, shared assumptions are the unspoken name of the game.
In this case, Thomas wasn't playing -- and Fleischer's new year wasn't exactly off to a great start. His tongue moved, but he declined to answer the question. Instead, he parried: "I refer specifically to a horrible terrorist attack on Tel Aviv that killed scores and wounded hundreds."
"At the earlier briefing, Ari, you said that the president deplored the taking of innocent lives," Helen Thomas began. "Does that apply to all innocent lives in the world?"
It was a simple question -- and, unfortunately, an extraordinary one. Few journalists at the White House move beyond the subtle but powerful ties that bind reporters and top officials in Washington. Routinely, shared assumptions are the unspoken name of the game.
In this case, Thomas wasn't playing -- and Fleischer's new year wasn't exactly off to a great start. His tongue moved, but he declined to answer the question. Instead, he parried: "I refer specifically to a horrible terrorist attack on Tel Aviv that killed scores and wounded hundreds."
Tuesday, January 14, 2003
New theories take flight on speed of gravity, light
Ninety-eight years after Albert Einstein began to transform physics, scientists continue to question his ideas.
So far, he's survived every crucial challenge, including the latest: a challenge to his premise that light and gravity travel at the same speed. Last week in Seattle, scientists announced that in fact, gravity and light travel at the same speed, at least within a 20 per cent margin of error.
But 20 per cent, they admit, is a huge margin of error. To put it in perspective: Twenty per cent of the speed of light is more than more than four times the diameter of Earth per second.
Conceivably, so huge a margin of error might conceal a significant difference in gravity and light speeds. So Einstein's challengers still hope to find flaws in his general theory of relativity.
Ninety-eight years after Albert Einstein began to transform physics, scientists continue to question his ideas.
So far, he's survived every crucial challenge, including the latest: a challenge to his premise that light and gravity travel at the same speed. Last week in Seattle, scientists announced that in fact, gravity and light travel at the same speed, at least within a 20 per cent margin of error.
But 20 per cent, they admit, is a huge margin of error. To put it in perspective: Twenty per cent of the speed of light is more than more than four times the diameter of Earth per second.
Conceivably, so huge a margin of error might conceal a significant difference in gravity and light speeds. So Einstein's challengers still hope to find flaws in his general theory of relativity.
Bar Patrons Arrested for Being Drunk
Heidig, who was at the bar Champps with a group of his work colleagues, complied. After failing a breath test designed to test his sobriety, Heidig was loaded into a van and taken to jail on charges of public intoxication.
Civil libertarians are saying the police have gone too far, and restaurant and bar owners fear that the raids are scaring away their customers who are drinking responsibly.
When police came to the bar in mid-Decembe "it looked like a full-scale invasion, with seven squad cars pulling up and 12 officers walking in single-file".
Heidig, who was at the bar Champps with a group of his work colleagues, complied. After failing a breath test designed to test his sobriety, Heidig was loaded into a van and taken to jail on charges of public intoxication.
Civil libertarians are saying the police have gone too far, and restaurant and bar owners fear that the raids are scaring away their customers who are drinking responsibly.
When police came to the bar in mid-Decembe "it looked like a full-scale invasion, with seven squad cars pulling up and 12 officers walking in single-file".
US.mil launches Operation Desert Spam
Emailed propaganda messages, written in Arabic and targeted at senior officials and military, include a helpful guide on how to defect, along with an appeal to turn over any information on Iraq's supposed chemical and biological weapons programme to UN inspectors.
The messages, titled 'Important Information', also urge military personnel to disable weapons of mass destruction or refuse to use them in the event of war, which is starting to look increasingly likely.
Emailed propaganda messages, written in Arabic and targeted at senior officials and military, include a helpful guide on how to defect, along with an appeal to turn over any information on Iraq's supposed chemical and biological weapons programme to UN inspectors.
The messages, titled 'Important Information', also urge military personnel to disable weapons of mass destruction or refuse to use them in the event of war, which is starting to look increasingly likely.
Monsters, Inc., The Pentagon's Plan to Create Super-Warriors
Pentagon dark lord Donald Rumsfeld is shoveling billions of tax dollars into the research furnaces of federal laboratories and private universities across the land in the wide-ranging effort to spawn "super soldiers," fired by drugs and electromagnetic "brain zaps" to fight without ceasing for days on end. The work is being directed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)--yes, the same outfit now laboring under convicted terrorist-conspirator John Poindexter to build the "Total Information Awareness" network that will allow the government to monitor the electronic records and communications of every citizen.
Pentagon dark lord Donald Rumsfeld is shoveling billions of tax dollars into the research furnaces of federal laboratories and private universities across the land in the wide-ranging effort to spawn "super soldiers," fired by drugs and electromagnetic "brain zaps" to fight without ceasing for days on end. The work is being directed by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)--yes, the same outfit now laboring under convicted terrorist-conspirator John Poindexter to build the "Total Information Awareness" network that will allow the government to monitor the electronic records and communications of every citizen.
Monday, January 13, 2003
Jesus 'healed using cannabis'
Jesus was almost certainly a cannabis user and an early proponent of the medicinal properties of the drug, according to a study of scriptural texts published this month. The study suggests that Jesus and his disciples used the drug to carry out miraculous healings.
The anointing oil used by Jesus and his disciples contained an ingredient called kaneh-bosem which has since been identified as cannabis extract, according to an article by Chris Bennett in the drugs magazine, High Times, entitled Was Jesus a Stoner? The incense used by Jesus in ceremonies also contained a cannabis extract, suggests Mr Bennett, who quotes scholars to back his claims.
Jesus was almost certainly a cannabis user and an early proponent of the medicinal properties of the drug, according to a study of scriptural texts published this month. The study suggests that Jesus and his disciples used the drug to carry out miraculous healings.
The anointing oil used by Jesus and his disciples contained an ingredient called kaneh-bosem which has since been identified as cannabis extract, according to an article by Chris Bennett in the drugs magazine, High Times, entitled Was Jesus a Stoner? The incense used by Jesus in ceremonies also contained a cannabis extract, suggests Mr Bennett, who quotes scholars to back his claims.
Fuzzy Strands Fill Skies Over Texas City
Galveston residents are still trying to figure out what caused the skies over their coastal city to literally be filled on Friday with floating strands of wads that looked like spider webs.
The webs were visible in the air for five hours, and poles were left wrapped with the sticky strands and fuzzy wads.
Galveston residents are still trying to figure out what caused the skies over their coastal city to literally be filled on Friday with floating strands of wads that looked like spider webs.
The webs were visible in the air for five hours, and poles were left wrapped with the sticky strands and fuzzy wads.
Sunday, January 12, 2003
Georgian skull's link to our past
In his hands he held the almost perfectly preserved skull of the most ancient human being ever found in Europe - 1.8 million years old.
More extraordinary still, it was about to throw into question all accepted theories about the migration of our ancestors out of Africa.
The remains of seven individuals have been found at Dmanisi - the most recent this summer - but what made this discovery so special was that it did not look like the skull of any human ever found outside Africa before.
Its brain cavity was far smaller - half the size of a modern human - and it had the huge canine teeth and thin brow of an ape.
In his hands he held the almost perfectly preserved skull of the most ancient human being ever found in Europe - 1.8 million years old.
More extraordinary still, it was about to throw into question all accepted theories about the migration of our ancestors out of Africa.
The remains of seven individuals have been found at Dmanisi - the most recent this summer - but what made this discovery so special was that it did not look like the skull of any human ever found outside Africa before.
Its brain cavity was far smaller - half the size of a modern human - and it had the huge canine teeth and thin brow of an ape.
Thursday, January 09, 2003
Large Star Undergoing Eruptions
"The star did an amazing thing," said Andrea Dupree, an astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. "We were exceptionally lucky to witness a stunning explosion."
Over a 200-day period, Rho Cassiopeia, a hypergiant with 20 to 40 times the mass of the sun, became brighter by 20 per cent, released a flare that made it one of the brightest stars in the universe, and then it dimmed, dropping in brightness by two magnitudes.
"The star did an amazing thing," said Andrea Dupree, an astronomer at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. "We were exceptionally lucky to witness a stunning explosion."
Over a 200-day period, Rho Cassiopeia, a hypergiant with 20 to 40 times the mass of the sun, became brighter by 20 per cent, released a flare that made it one of the brightest stars in the universe, and then it dimmed, dropping in brightness by two magnitudes.
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