Clipmarks | tabsey's clips

$8m cocaine stash stolen from police stationj

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 08:55:51 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: inside job? The rest of the story tells how they always test the powder before destroying it. Found this lot was talc or something similar.

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

Spanish police have been left red-faced after more than 100kg of drugs were stolen from police headquarters in Seville and replaced with talcum powder, a spokesman said.

The missing drugs, amounting to 95 per cent of the cocaine seized in police operations, would be worth about five million euros ($8.2 million) on the black market, the secretary general of the police union, Manuel Espino, told AFP.

The circumstances suggest that the thief or thieves who took the drugs were regular visitors and might even be police officers themselves.

There was no sign of the door having been forced so the thief entered "with one of the existing keys or a copy of the key," Mr Espino said.

According to the newspaper El Pais, the keys were usually kept by the head of Seville's organised crime unit, although he sometimes handed them over to other officers.

Tags: inside, jobs, are, weatherproof

Finding the weight of black holes

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 16:17:03 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: This is a composite image of data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory (shown in purple) and Hubble Space Telescope (blue) of the giant elliptical galaxy, NGC 4649, located about 51 million light-years from Earth.

Clip Source: www.astronomy.com

How do you weigh the biggest black holes in the universe? One answer now comes from a completely new and independent technique that astronomers have developed using data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory.

By measuring a peak in the temperature of hot gas in the center of the giant elliptical galaxy NGC 4649, scientists have determined the mass of the galaxy's supermassive black hole. The method, applied for the first time, gives results that are consistent with a traditional technique.

Astronomers have been seeking out different, independent ways of precisely weighing the largest supermassive black holes, that is, those that are billions of times more massive than the Sun. Until now, methods based on observations of the motions of stars or of gas in a disk near such large black holes had been used.

Tags: bloody, bright

First full 3-D view of cracks growing in steel

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:57:39 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Can study stress, etc in steel without destroying it.

Clip Source: www.eurekalert.org

Sample surface with cracks colored red.
Click here for more information.

Sample and cracks.
Click here for more information.

A team of researchers from the University of Manchester (United Kingdom), the National Institute of Applied Sciences in Lyon (France) and the ESRF has revealed how a growing crack interacts with the 3D crystal structure of stainless steel. By using a new grain mapping technique it was possible to determine the internal 3D structure of the material without destroying the sample. Afterwards, a crack was initiated in the stainless steel, and the scientists were able to study how the crack grew between the grains. This is the first time that such an experiment has used the 3D grain mapping technique, and the first results are published in the journal Science this week.

Tags: better, than, watching, paint, dry

'Ten Commandments' of race and genetics issued

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:33:30 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: the group composition wasn't clipped. Details on each point at the source.

Clip Source: www.newscientist.com

Even with the human genome in hand, geneticists are split about how to deal with issues of race, genetics and medicine.

Now the group has released a set of 10 guiding principles for the scientific community, published as an open letter in this week's Genome Biology.

1. All races are created equal

2. An Argentinian and an Australian are more likely to have differences in their DNA than two Argentinians

3. A person's history isn't written only in his or her genes

4: Members of the same race may have different underlying genetics

5. Both nature and nurture play important parts in our behaviors and abilities

6. Researchers should be careful about using racial groups when designing experiments

7. Medicine should focus on the individual, not the race

8. The study of genetics requires cooperation between experts in many different fields

9. Oversimplified science feeds popular misconceptions

10. Genetics 101 should include a history of racism

Tags: commandments, are, orders?

Bush Bureaucrats at Dept. of Health and Human Services Redefine Contraception as Abortion

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:15:54 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: No improvement in child services to go with it were mentioned.

Clip Source: www.buzzflash.com

We're all familiar with the popular chant among conservatives that "life begins at conception." But does that mean our government can say that life ends at contraception?

Apparently, yes, if a proposal from the Department of Health and Human Services that carefully redefines contraception as abortion is adopted.

The religious fervor is carefully hidden in the minutia. The leaked proposal initially reads as a defense of healthcare providers who fear being discriminated against for refusing to provide services that are contrary to their religious beliefs. Basically, just because a clinic or insurance plan receives federal funding "does not authorize any court or any public official or other public authority to require" the entity to provide or pay for services such as sterilization or abortion.

Which seems somewhat harmless, until you change the meaning of abortion to include contraceptive medicines that 40 percent of women in the U.S. use regularly.

Tags: religion, permeates, even, to, churches

From Humming Fish To Puccini: Vocal Communication Evolved With Ancient Species

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:11:39 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Bullfrog (male) singing its mating song. The neural circuitry behind vocalizations of amphibians, birds, reptiles and mammals, including primates vary in complexity, yet their fundamental attributes are conserved. (Credit: iStockphoto/Deanna Bean)

Clip Source: www.sciencedaily.com

ScienceDaily (July 18, 2008) — It's a long way from the dull hums of the amorous midshipman fish to the strains of a Puccini aria -- or, alas, even to the simplest Celine Dion melody. But the neural circuitry that led to the human love song -- not to mention birdsongs, frog thrums and mating calls of all manner of vertebrates -- was likely laid down hundreds of millions of years ago with the hums and grunts of the homely piscine.

By mapping the developing brain cells in newly hatched midshipman fish larvae and comparing them to other species, Andrew H. Bass, Cornell professor of neurobiology and behavior, and colleagues Edwin Gilland of Howard University and Robert Baker of New York University found that the neural network behind sound production in vertebrates can be traced back through evolutionary time to an era long before the first animals ventured onto dry land.

Tags: nature, and, puccini

Netherlands' Health Care Reflects National Values

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 14:00:33 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: The women lead by example.

Clip Source: www.npr.org

All Things Considered, July 17, 2008 · The Dutch like their health care system and feel comfortable with it, polls show, even when things don't go exactly as they want. This is in no small part because they have built a system that reflects national values such as pragmatism and stoicism.

Paul Schnabel, a sociologist at Utrecht University in The Netherlands, says this correlation is especially apparent when it comes to matters of birth and death.

In the Netherlands, most women try to have their babies at home. They view giving birth as something that should be natural, not medical, Schnabel says, and services across the country reinforce this idea. For example, in Amsterdam there's a center for pregnant that combines a spa, shopping center and school — not something one would likely see in the United States.

Only 8 percent of all Dutch women use epidurals for pain relief during childbirth.

Tags: medical, systems, can, work, for, everyone

McCain says Obama Europe trip amounts to politics

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:49:13 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: McCain has the foot-in-mouth disease that has haunted Bush

Clip Source: www.reuters.com

GRAND HAVEN, Michigan (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain said on Thursday he believes Democrat Barack Obama's upcoming trip to Europe is tantamount to holding political rallies abroad.

McCain, speaking to reporters, also ridiculed Obama's vow to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq in 16 months as risking losing the hard-fought gains won by U.S. soldiers under a troop build-up ordered 18 months ago.

Obama is soon to leave on a trip that will take him to Europe and the Middle East. At some stage the trip is also expected to take him to Iraq and Afghanistan, the two thorniest foreign policy challenges that will face the next president.

McCain sought to clarify remarks he made on his campaign bus in Kansas City, Missouri, in which he said he disagreed with his communications director, Jill Hazelbaker, who told the Fox News Channel that Obama's trip is "the first of its kind campaign rally overseas."

The McCain campaign had emailed out Hazelbaker's statement.

Tags: politicians, do, political, things, a, lot

American inequality highlighted by 30-year gap in life expectancy

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:38:26 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Wonder if any politicians will take this up. Some stunning facts. Not a time to be spending up on invasions, charity begins at home.

Clip Source: www.michaelmoore.com

The United States of America is becoming less united by the day. A 30-year gap now exists in the average life expectancy between Mississippi, in the Deep South, and Connecticut, in prosperous New England. Huge disparities have also opened up in income, health and education depending on where people live in the US, according to a report published yesterday.

The American Human Development Index has applied to the US an aid agency approach to measuring well-being – more familiar to observers of the Third World – with shocking results. The US finds itself ranked 42nd in global life expectancy and 34th in survival of infants to age. Suicide and murder are among the top 15 causes of death and although the US is home to just 5 per cent of the global population it accounts for 24 per cent of the world's prisoners.

Tags: yoyo, brrriiiiinngg

Planned Parenthood TV Ad Knocks McCain on Birth Control

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:27:00 GMT

clipped by: tabsey

Clip Source: www.truthout.org

Planned Parenthood Action Fund has seized on Sen. John McCain's recent on-camera hesitation when he was asked to clarify his position on forcing health insurance companies to cover birth control the way some cover Viagra, a male enhancement drug, by launching a television commercial slamming the presumptive Republican presidential nominee.

Abortion rights groups have launched a push to highlight McCain's position on birth control after one of his top advisers, Carly Fiorina, seemed to criticize some health insurance companies for covering Viagra, but not birth control.

"There are many health insurance plans that will cover Viagra but won't cover birth-control medication. Those women would like a choice," Fiorina told reporters at a Christian Science Monitor breakfast in Washington D.C. last Monday.

"I don't know enough about it to give you an informed answer," the Arizona senator told a reporter last week, when asked to clarify his position on birth control after Fiorina's comments.

Ocean Quest: The Race to Save the World's Coral Reefs

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 11:05:00 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: This offers some hope that damage may be repaired and even more.

Clip Source: www.truthout.org

Last week, scientists issued their latest, grim assessment of the world's coral reefs. But as Steve Connor reports from Florida, extraordinary new ocean 'reseeding' techniques mean there may still be time to halt - or even reverse - the destruction of mother nature's marine marvels.

Coral reefs are often described as the tropical rainforests of the oceans. But marine biologists sometimes use another analogy: that of the canary in the coalmine. These birds were used by miners as an early warning for lethal gas; corals, too, are extraordinarily sensitive to environmental change. For Nancy Knowlton, a scientist at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum, it's an apt description: "If that's the analogy, then the canary has passed out on the floor of the cage. Coral reefs are potentially immortal. They only have to die if we make them."

Tags: nature, pollution

Man armed with samurai sword arrested after holing himself up

Fri, 18 Jul 2008 08:49:12 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Only clipped it for the headline. The rest of the story is about a man who was upset and decided to act. Took the wrong path.

Clip Source: mdn.mainichi.jp

SHINSHIRO, Aichi -- A man armed with a samurai sword has been arrested after holing himself up at his home here for six hours on Thursday, police said.

Tags: headlines, can, be, better, than, stories

Men need carbs, women need meat: study

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 11:47:16 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: It's amazing we have survived as a race. Or maybe we would be overpopulated to a greater degree.

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

The wisdom of feeding the man meat has been thrown into question by a study that shows the secret to a long reproductive life in males is carbohydrates.

A study - published today in Current Biology - suggests it is females who should be pulling out the steak knife to ensure their reproductive fitness.

What a woman wants: The study says meat is good for women's reproductive health (www.sxc.hu: Klaus Post, file photo)

University of New South Wales biologist and study lead author, Dr Alexei Maklakov, says his study on Australian black field crickets is the first of its kind to examine the influence of gender in determining which diet is best for long life and breeding success.

Dr Maklakov says although what is good for the goose is not necessarily good for the gander, males and females end up eating a compromise diet that is less than optimal for both of them.

Tags: reproductive, men, eat, quiche, sandwiches

Giant squid dissection stuff of 'myth and legend'

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 11:41:17 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: A few of these around lately. Food?

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

Scientists in Victoria say they have received worldwide interest in the dissection of one of the biggest squids ever caught.

Hundreds of people gathered at Melbourne Museum today to watch the public dissection of a 245-kilogram female squid captured off Portland in south-west Victoria last month.

Doctor Mark Norman says it has been one of the highlights of his career and has sparked huge interest in the community.

"They are these creatures of almost myth and legend and that just blows people away, but secondly, deep sea in general is just so fascinating because you don't have to travel to other planets to find alien creatures," he said.

"There's things down there where their entire bodies are made of snot, they've got detachable heads, their teeth fall out, they explode and they eat their snot jackets.

There is just weird things going on everywhere."

Tags: nature

Pearse warns of 'greenhouse mafia' influence

Thu, 17 Jul 2008 10:52:33 GMT

clipped by: tabsey
clipper's remarks: Lobbyists have well developed consciences so all should be well. The shareholders behind the companies will put the planet before profits.

Clip Source: www.abc.net.au

A speechwriter for the former government says Labor's Green Paper on climate change shows Australia's big polluters are still influencing policy.

Guy Pearse first documented his account of greenhouse policy under the Howard government in his recently published book, High and Dry, drawing on experiences as a speechwriter for then environment minister Robert Hill.

He coined the term "greenhouse mafia" as a catch-all phrase to describe the country's biggest polluters.

He says they basically ran policy under the old regime and he is now saying that the Labor Government has shown in its Green Paper that they're still influencing policy now.

Mr Pearse told The World Today's Emma Alberici John Howard and Kevin Rudd have seen different political advantages in climate change.

Tags: no, one, thinks, long, term