Emptying my burgeoning browser tabs: Why this recession will be longer and worse than you think (Portfolio) Rice supplies set to fall to 25-year low (Times) Monthly versus daily data in stock... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 7:31 pm
With Bear Stearns investors peeved at the buyout price, lawyers are already out buying Google ads against Bear Stearns' ticker searches. Granted, it won't offset the revenue decline from decreased ad spending... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 6:57 pm
Interesting that, at least in the early going, JPMorgan, despite uncertainty over its Bear buy, has been the only material gainer among financials. Here is a live look via Google Spreadsheets: Looking... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 6:42 pm
Funny -- even if somewhat insider-ish -- graphic follows of a chartists' view (complete with Irwin Allen-style collapsing candles) of how tremors are affecting financial markets: [via FT] Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 5:53 pm
engadget_mobile reports on a recent patent filing by Apple, indicating that it has at least considered the possibility of an iPhone flip phone of sorts, among other dual-screen possibilities." ... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 4:49 pm
According to The First Post, French president Nicolas Sarkozy has been advised to behave in a more statesmanlike manner, starting with his visit to Windsor on March 26 as a guest of the Queen. "No more... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 4:41 pm
I don't think so. I think the folks at Google are pleased as punch that these two are wrangling and might merge. (story)... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 4:25 pm
When Amazon introduced their e-book reader, the Kindle, Steve Jobs made a strong proclamation regarding the book industry that received a lot of attention: "It doesn't matter how good or bad the product... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 4:10 pm
This past week I got a chance to catch up with Edward Mueller, CEO & Chairman of Qwest. Since taking over for Richard Notebaert in August 2007, Mueller has been quietly trying to shore up the Mountain... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 3:59 pm
Last week I mentioned the New York Times story on an art collector who purchased part of the RMB City project from my friend Cao Fei, known as China Tracy in Second Life. The article wasn't very clear... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 3:56 pm
buzzardsbay writes "Baseline is reporting on an upcoming survey from Symantec and Applied Research-West that confirms many suspicions about the generation gap in the workplace, namely that younger workers will use your corporate network to run most any device, technology or social networking software they can get their hands on. Dubbed "Millenials," these workers born after 1980 are nearly twice as likely to use cell phones and PDAs at work, and half admit to installing unauthorized software on their employer's computers. On the upside, the Millenials are more security aware than their older co-workers."
Iomega Corp., a data storage company best known for the Zip drive, said Monday it considers a revised $205.5 million takeover offer from EMC Corp. to be superior to a proposed all-stock... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 3:27 pm
We Make Money Not Art has a write-up of the Pricked: Extreme Embroidery show at the Museum of Arts & Design in New York -- I'm especially fond of these embroidered "Phrenology Heads" by Morwenna Catt.
One of the works that most impressed me was Morwenna Catt Phrenology Heads. Phrenology, developed by German physician Franz Joseph Gall around 1800, and very popular in the 19th century, is a discipline which claims to be able to determine character, personality traits and criminality on the basis of the shape of the head (i.e., by reading "bumps" and "fissures"). Catt's soft sculptures of heads have long animal ears, Frankenstein-like stitches all over their face, one eye is shut by a patch and a needle is stuck in their head as if the work was unfinished.
The heads are embroidered with fragments of texts: the Mother one has "You will need eyes at the back of your head". The Father has "The gloom and the silence, i am terrified when i realise i am alone", etc.
KentuckyFC writes "If we're ever going to benefit from the perfect security of quantum communication, we're going to need ways of transmitting entangled photons around the globe and certainly further than the current record of 144km through the atmosphere. Anton Zeilinger at the University of Vienna and colleagues have taken an important step towards this by bouncing individual photons off the Ajisai geodetic satellite (essentially a space-based disco ball) which is orbiting at 1400km. The group says the experiment is an important proof of principle for satellite-based quantum communications."
The head of entertainment programming at HBO, Carolyn Strauss, is leaving that role, the cable channel said Monday. The HBO veteran will remain with the premium cable channel but in a ... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:50 pm
It’s common knowledge that humans and other animals are able to visually judge depth because we have two eyes and the brain compares the images from each. But we can also judge depth with only one eye, and scientists have been searching for how the brain accomplishes that feat. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:45 pm
The Supreme Court on Monday handed Microsoft Corp. a defeat by refusing to rule on the software giant's request to halt an antitrust suit against it. The suit was brought in 2004 by... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:42 pm
Jamie found a cool story at MIT Tech Review. (As an aside, it sits behind an interstitial ad AND on 2 pages: normally I reject websites that do that, but it's a slow news day, so I'm letting it through) Essentially, software is used to analyize light patterns in still photographs. Once you can figure out where the light sources are, it becomes a lot easier to determine if an image has been photoshopped.
We discuss science, fiction, and 'lablit' with biologist and science writer Dr. Jennifer Rohn. Plus, Robin Ince on the merits of science versus the arts. And, behind the scenes at the IgNobel awards tour Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:03 pm
support.com(R), which provides Instant Technology Relief(SM) to consumers and small businesses and is a unit of SupportSoft (NASDAQ: SPRT), today announced an initiative to create new work from home jobs in the vibrant Austin technology market by the end of 2008. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:01 pm
SIRE Technologies. Inc. today announced it has attained Gold Certified Partner status in the Microsoft Partner Program in multiple competencies, recognizing SIRE's expertise and impact in the technology marketplace. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:01 pm
WALTHAM, Mass., March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- MEARS Technologies, Inc., a provider of advanced silicon processes and engineering services to semiconductor device manufacturers and contract foundries, today announced that it has signed a commercial agreement with Elpida Memory, Inc. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:01 pm
What will technology look like in 2015? What will these new technologies mean to organizations-- and to the workforce? As part of its WIT.Connect series, Women in Technology (WITSM) presents -- Fast Forward to 2015: Technology and its Impact on our Future. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:01 pm
VANCOUVER, British Columbia and NEW YORK, March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Current Technology Corporation (OTCBB: CRTCF) and MSGI Security Solutions Inc. (OTCBB: MSGI) today announced Celevoke, Inc ("Celevoke") will exhibit at CTIA Wireless 2008 in Las Vegas, April 1-3. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:01 pm
To: HEALTH EDITORS Contact: Rosalind Jackson of Antenna Group, +1-415-977-1923, Rosalind@antennagroup.com, for TyraTech, Inc. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
ST. LOUIS, March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- -- Sigma- Aldrich Corporation announced today that it will be holding its 2008 Annual Business Review on Wednesday, March 19, 2008 at its Life Science & High Technology Center located at 2909 Laclede, St. Louis, Mo. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
Scientists led by the U.S. Human Genome Research Institute have identified new leads for treating parasitic worm disease. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
Ever wonder why you don't see fresh wild halibut for sale in February, or fresh Gulf flounder in August? We may not think of seafood as being seasonal, like peaches, but much of it is. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
SAN CRISTOBAL, Mexico _ Contrasts are what produce "wow" moments in Chiapas, Mexico's southernmost state. It's Mexican. But it's really more Mayan. The Spanish were afraid of the jungle and never succeeded in conquering the region. It's modern. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
By David Nivens, High Point Enterprise, N.C. Mar. 17--GUILFORD COUNTY -- When commissioners refused to buy a $509,000 conservation easement to protect a working dairy farm earlier this year, it appeared the county's open space policy was in trouble. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
NASSAU, Bahamas, March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Global Environmental Energy Corp., (Deutsche Borse: GLI; OTC Bulletin Board: GEECF http://www.geecf.ru/ -) has received a commitment from the Agricultural Bank of China to join the financing consortium funding the expansion of Shaoxing (Biosphere) Company Limited. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
Ethos Environmental, Inc. (OTCBB: ETEV), a San Diego-based company, announced today that EquityNet Research, a West-Coast independent research firm, has initiated coverage on the Company with a 'Buy' recommendation. Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
Vyatta, the leader in Linux-based networking, today released third-party testing results that demonstrate conclusively Vyatta's vast price/performance and scalability advantages over the Cisco 7200 Series routers. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
SOA Software, a leading Integrated SOA Governance Automation vendor, today announced that it has certified IBM WebSphere Message Broker as a Governed Service Platform. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
Researchers at IBM's (NYSE: IBM) India Research Laboratory have developed advanced software technology that uses sophisticated math algorithms to extract and deliver business insights hidden within the avalanche of information gathered by companies during customer service calls and other interactions. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
Calabrio, Inc., a leading provider of workforce optimization and unified desktop software for IP-based contact centers, today announced at VoiceCon that it has added ABS Technology Architects to its growing list of resellers of the Calabrio One™ suite of unified interaction products. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
CUPERTINO, Calif., March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Apple(R) today updated its AirPort Express(R) mobile base station with 802.11n to deliver up to five times the performance and twice the range of the previous model*. Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 17 Mar 2008 | 2:00 pm
kernowyon writes "The BBC has an interview with Sir Tim Berners-Lee during his visit to the UK on their website currently. In it, he voices his concern about the practice of tracking activity on the internet — with particular reference to Phorm. Quotes Sir Tim with regard to his data — "It's mine — you can't have it. If you want to use it for something, then you have to negotiate with me.""
Genentech's stock is sliding in premarket trading on carryover from Friday's losses and ahead of what is expected to be a significantly lower opening on Wall Street. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 1:34 pm
Formula Systems Ltd. , an information technology company, said Monday its fourth-quarter profit edged up more than 2 percent as growing revenue offset higher expenses. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 1:07 pm
BMC Software Inc. said Monday that it agreed to buy data center automation company BladeLogic for $28 per share. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 1:01 pm
Ezhenito noted some research pointing out the (maybe) surprising bit of research that 6 botnets are responsible for 85 percent of the world's spam. That seems a bit high to me, but the only aspect of spam I am an expert in is *getting* it.
Stanley Inc., which provides systems integration and professional services for the federal government, said Monday it was awarded a five-year, $570 million contract to support the Department of State's... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 12:49 pm
A Robert W. Baird & Co. analyst upgraded Omniture Inc. on long-term growth prospects at the Web analytics company despite the tepid economy. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 12:31 pm
An Associated Press article about the impact of the internet on journalism has a few interesting findings. A few years ago, it was expected that the internet would democratize news coverage. While print media is being rapidly reborn online, web-based news appears to be constraining the number of conversations instead of expanding them. "The news agenda actually seems to be narrowing, with many Web sites primarily packaging news that is produced elsewhere, according to the Project for Excellence in Journalism's annual State of the News Media report. Two stories - the war in Iraq and the 2008 presidential election campaign - represented more than a quarter of the stories in newspapers, on television and online last year, the project found. Take away Iraq, Iran and Pakistan, and news from all of the other countries in the world combined filled up less than 6 percent of the American news hole, the project said."
Axcelis Technologies Inc. said Monday that its board unanimously rejected an unsolicited bid by Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd. and its private equity partner, TPG, to buy Axcelis for $6 per share. Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 11:45 am
Astronauts flexed the giant arms of the international space station's new robot for the first time, testing the brakes and maneuvering the appendages into position for a Monday night... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 11:34 am
Popular Science has up a feature looking at "how it works", examining the innards of several new technology-based innovations. We've talked about the Sayaka endoscope in a pill, but did you know it captures images in 360 degrees? We've discussed the adorable little Pleo dino-bot, but did you know how adaptive it is to stimuli? And what about the tank-burning laser that can be fired from an airplane? Well, we haven't discussed that but I'm at a loss as to explain why. "A kind of reverse telescope called the beam expander inside a retractable, swiveling pod called the turret widens the beam to 20 inches and aims it. The laser's computer determines the distance to the target and adjusts the beam so it condenses into a focused point at just the right spot. Tracking computers help make microscopic adjustments to compensate for both the airplane's and the target's movement. A burst of a few seconds' duration will burn a several-inch-wide hole in whatever it hits."
WOBURN, Mass., March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Integra5, the leader in enabling service providers to blend quad play bundles into converged services that span multiple devices,... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:42 am
FOSTER CITY, Calif., March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Rearden Commerce, Inc., creator of the first on-demand personal assistant and the first on-demand platform for services,... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:41 am
Here is a warning to Lynda Clarizio: There may be a curse on your job. Ms. Clarizio was just appointed to head advertising sales at AOL, after her predecessor, Curt Viebranz, lasted five months in that... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:36 am
Building Dextre, the new robotic grappling device for the International Space Station, has meant frustration and elation for astronauts in space and experts on the ground. Shipping the device aboard... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:36 am
BEIJING, March 17 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- eFuture Information Technology Inc. (Nasdaq: EFUT, "eFuture"), a leading front-end supply chain management software and Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:33 am
GERMANTOWN, Md., March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Dr. Jan Dutton of WeatherBug(R) Professional will lead a workshop today on integrating live weather data into GIS-based decision Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:30 am
GLENDALE, Calif., March 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- YELLOWPAGES.COM, a subsidiary of AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), today announced a distribution agreement with Microsoft... Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:30 am
HOUSTON, March 17 /PRNewswire/ -- Shipcom Wireless, Inc., a leading global provider of Mobility, RFID and BPM solutions that help companies ensure efficient supply chains Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 17 Mar 2008 | 10:30 am
Love the custom baby blankets from Baby Leo Designs, in a variety of groovy retro prints -- we've got the retro robots (shown here) and the golgothan spiral of skulls ("I am become death, filler of nappies"), and we've given away a couple as gifts already. They're made to order -- you can choose coloring for the satin edge and the lining.
Link
The DHS wants airlines to foot the bill for fingerprinting foreigners as they leave the US; this is part of the failed US VISIT program, which has spent $15,000,000,000 without catching a single terrorist (the program has caught approximately 1,000 minor immigration cheats who'd overstayed their visas -- a cost of $15,000,000 per cheat).
The airlines are playing hardball in fighting the proposal -- they don't want to assume all those costs.
The Homeland Security Department, which currently fingerprints foreigners coming into U.S. airports, wants airlines to be responsible for taking fingerprints as these travelers leave...
"Carriers are pulling out all the stops to kill" the proposal, said Stewart Verdery, a former Homeland Security assistant secretary for border and transportation policy. "My guess is they're going to be successful."
Robert Mocny, who heads the fingerprint program, said fingerprinting foreigners as they leave is essential. The information helps track those whose visas have expired and allows monitoring of people whose movements in and out of the USA suggest terrorist plotting. "It's a better way of monitoring the movement of individuals we have an interest in without them hiding behind a fake name," he said.
In honor of St Paddy's day, here's a classic Muppet sketch -- a rendition of "Danny Boy," performed by Animal, the Swedish Chef, and Beaker on the high notes. I nearly wept.
Link
(via Making Light)
Robbo sez, "As reported in The Guardian: Gary Pugh, director of forensic sciences at Scotland Yard, says primary school children should be eligible for the DNA database if they exhibit behaviour indicating they may become criminals in later life.
Civil liberty groups condemned his comments last night by likening them to an excerpt from a 'science fiction novel'. One teaching union warned that it was a step towards a 'police state'."
Gary Pugh, director of forensic sciences at Scotland Yard and the new DNA spokesman for the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo), said a debate was needed on how far Britain should go in identifying potential offenders, given that some experts believe it is possible to identify future offending traits in children as young as five.
'If we have a primary means of identifying people before they offend, then in the long-term the benefits of targeting younger people are extremely large,' said Pugh. 'You could argue the younger the better. Criminologists say some people will grow out of crime; others won't. We have to find who are possibly going to be the biggest threat to society...'
Concern over the issue of civil liberties will be further amplified by news yesterday that commuters using Oyster smart cards could have their movements around cities secretly monitored under new counter-terrorism powers being sought by the security services.
Pickens writes "Mankind has always had a fascination with monsters, and mythologies from around the world include stories of strange and terrifying creatures. Examples include the half-bull, half-human Minotaur of Greek myths, the living clay Golem of Jewish traditions, British elves and Chinese dragons. Live Science has an interesting photo essay on their ten favorite monsters that may have a basis in real life. Their rogue's gallery includes the Ogopogo, a mysterious monster in Canada's Lake Okanagan; the Chupacabra, that Latin Americans believe is the unholy result of secret US government experiments in the jungles of Puerto Rico; and the perennial favorite Bigfoot."
arogier writes "After numerous delays and an actual release reversal, the official release date for Vista service pack one has been set for Tuesday, March 18th on Windows Update and Microsoft Downloads. It will be released as an automatic update on April 18th. 'It's unclear so far how a February snafu will affect SP1's roll-out. Last month, after Microsoft pushed a pair of prerequisite patches to users, some reported that their machines refused to finish installing one of the fixes, then went into an endless series of reboots. Several days later, Microsoft pulled the update from automatic delivery, said it was working on a solution and promised it would "make the update available again shortly after we address the issue."' It would be a good time for those planning to adopt early to perform requisite backups and locate their restore media."
Today on Boing Boing tv: Klaus Pierre, a French/German actor, aspires against all odds to become America's next great action hero -- so the BBtv crew is doing all we can to help him reach that goal, by forcibly embedding him in superhero training quests. Today, he must sing and swordfight his way through a Pirate Musical, performed in a public park.
Gibbs-Duhem writes "An MIT graduate student has up a page showcasing a standout art project. He's designed custom LED light fixtures which are seven times brighter than the closest similar commercial models, and include colors which can't be reproduced by a normal RGB cluster (including two ridiculously bright UV LEDs). The result: some beautiful mixed media artwork. The author's goal is to eventually publish a guide to make getting into creating such artwork more accessible to the general public. The site includes lots of great photos and a movie of the art in action. It also has in depth descriptions of the theory involved in this relatively new form of art, an explanation of how the paints were chosen, and an in depth technical discussion of how such lights are designed with schematics and board layouts for those who might wish to build their own lights."
We received a surprise in the mail today from Archive supporter James Tucker- a DVD of great fifties industrial films, including UPA's groundbreaking Man On The Land. This film includes animation by Pat Matthews, Grim Natwick and Art Babbitt, but animation isn't the primary attraction here. It's the drop dead brilliant layouts by Director Bill Hurtz, Associate Director Art Heinemann and background artists Bob Dranko, Boris Gorelick and Paul Julian (among others). Just about every setup in this film is strong enough to be an illustration in a book. Check out the depth and lighting in these backgrounds. They may be painted flat, but they sure aren't composed flat. If this sort of design sensibility was applied to a cartoon with vivid characters, humor and entertainment value, wouldn't it be incredible?
A major theme of this present century will be the pursuit of our collective identity. We are on a search for who we are. What does it mean to be a human? Can there be more than one kind of human? In fact, what exactly is a human?
On average science unveils a new invention every day, and almost without fail these days, that daily invention disrupts the notion of ourselves. Every day we are getting news that challenges our identity. Stem cell therapy, genetic sequencing, artificial intelligence, operational robots, new animal clones, trans-species hybrids, brain implants, memory enhancing drugs, limb prosthetics, social networks -- each of these tools blurs the boundaries between us as individuals and among us as a species. Who are we and who do we want to be?
We get to play with answers to these questions online. In Second Life, or in chat rooms, we can chose who we want to be, our gender, our genetics, even our species. Technologies gives us the means to switch genders, inhabit new forms, modify our own bodies.
The "elephant man" became the world's most celebrated physical freak, but an ironclad explanation as to what caused Joseph Merrick's gross deformities remains elusive to this day.
A study on the news industry released Sunday finds that journalism has changed profoundly as a result of the internet, but not necessarily in ways that were predicted even a few years ago.
Scientist Hiroo Inokuchi wins the equivalent of $500,000 for his groundbreaking work in organic chemistry, which led to carbon as a substitute for silicon in electronics.
Senate hearings have been scheduled in response to an Associated Press investigation that documented the presence of pharmaceuticals in major portions of the nation's drinking water supplies. In the meantime, experts say, we need more testing.
There's an interesting documentary on ESPN tonight titled Black Magic, about the struggle for civil rights as experienced by basketball players and coaches at Historical Black Colleges and Universities. Directed by Dan Klores, the four-hour program airs in two parts, concluding tomorrow (Monday) evening. Wynton Marsalis and Samuel L. Jackson narrate. From a New York Times article about the program:
“Black Magic” opens with the details of a secret basketball game played in Durham, N. C., in a locked gym with no fans to witness it. On a Sunday morning in 1944 the innovative African-American coach John McLendon (at right in photo) led his fast-breaking team from the North Carolina College for Negroes in a home game against an intramural squad from Duke University’s medical school.
It was illegal. It was dangerous.
And the black team won 88-44. “They never saw anyone run up and down the court like we did,” a McLendon player says.
Link to ESPN "Black Magic" page,
Link to NYT article
At last year's South by Southwest, gossip blogger Perez Hilton was just a spectator. This year, Hilton is a key player in the music industry as he plays host at one of SXSW's more coveted parties.
The U.N. Environment Program warns that the world's glaciers are shrinking at record rates and many could disappear within decades. Scientists studying the health of glaciers around the world found that ice loss reached record levels in 2006.
Two spacewalking astronauts attach 11-foot arms to Dextre, the international space station's huge new robot, preparing the giant machine for its handyman job on the orbital outpost.
Forensic investigators traveled to one of the Manson Family hide-outs in Death Valley National Park to explore old rumors of other victims that may have been buried there in the late 1960s. According to the new research described in an Associated Press article, there "are two likely clandestine grave sites at Barker Ranch, and one additional site that merits further investigation." From the AP:
For years, rumors have swirled about other possible Manson family victims -- hitchhikers who visited them at the ranch and were not seen again, runaways who drifted into the camp then fell out of favor.
The same jailhouse confessions that helped investigators initially connect the band of misfits living in the Panamint Mountains to the gruesome killings that terrorized Los Angeles hinted at other deaths. Manson follower Susan Atkins boasted to her cell mate on November 1, 1969, that there were "three people out in the desert that they done in." Other stories surfaced. In the absence of bodies, they were forgotten...
(Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher Arpad) Vass said that, considering the quantity and the types of markers of human decomposition found, the cadaver dog's response, and the probing exercise, he found enough evidence to warrant further testing at a deeper level and a full scale excavation at Barker Ranch, according to the report he issued to law enforcement.
"I'd recommend a dig, excavate the sites," said (police detective Paul) Dostie, who reviewed the report.
“Black Magic” opens with the details of a secret basketball game played in Durham, N. C., in a locked gym with no fans to witness it. On a Sunday morning in 1944 the innovative African-American coach John McLendon (at right in photo) led his fast-breaking team from the North Carolina College for Negroes in a home game against an intramural squad from Duke University’s medical school.
