Signs of the Times Archive for Tue, 26 Aug 2008

- Signs of the Times Archive for Tue, 26 Aug 2008 -

Sections on today's Signs Page:

SOTT Focus
Best of the Web
U.S. News
UK & Euro-Asian News
Around the World
Big Brother
Axis of Evil
Middle East Madness
Grand Theft Economics
The Living Planet
Health & Wellness
Science & Technology
Our Haunted Planet
Don't Panic! Lighten Up!

SOTT Focus

No new articles.

Best of the Web

'Shalom' Vice President Biden?

You tube
2008-08-25 18:04:00

Mainstream news pundits are calling the Obama/Biden ticket "the most liberal ever". Surprise, surprise, nothing could be further from the truth. If Cheney pulls Dubya's strings, then Biden will certainly pull Obama's, but who will be pulling Biden's?

Watch this short interview for a not-so-subtle hint.

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U.S. News

Legalized Child Abuse: Minorities more likely to be paddled

Associated Press
2008-08-20 17:04:00

Paddlings, swats, licks. A quarter of a million schoolchildren got them in 2007 - and black children, American Indians and kids with disabilities got a disproportionate share of the punishment, according to a study by a human rights group.

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FAA says communication breakdown delaying flights

Harry R. Weber
Associated Press
2008-08-26 17:08:00

Atlanta - The Federal Aviation Administration said a communication failure Tuesday at a Georgia facility that processes flight plans for the eastern half of the U.S. was causing flight delays around the country.

An FAA Web site that posts airport status information showed delays at some three dozen major airports coast-to-coast, advising passengers to "check your departure airport to see if your flight may be affected."

FAA spokeswoman Kathleen Bergen in Atlanta said there are no safety issues and officials are still able to speak to pilots on planes on the ground and in the air.

She said she doesn't know how many flights are being affected.

Bergen said the problem that occurred Tuesday afternoon involves an FAA facility in Hampton, Ga., south of Atlanta, that processes flight plans. She said there was a failure in a communication link that transmits the data to a similar facility in Salt Lake City.

As a result, the Salt Lake City facility was having to process those flight plans, causing delays in planes taking off. She said there were no problems with planes landing.

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Tennessee: 4 shootings in 4 days in Chattanooga

News Channel 9
2008-08-25 20:40:00

Chattanooga Police are investigating what could turn out to be the fourth shooting in the city since early Saturday morning.

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Obama assassination plot fears as armed men arrested

Tim Reid
Times Online
2008-08-26 07:53:00

US police are investigating whether they have foiled an assassination plot against Barack Obama after four people were arrested near the Democratic convention in Denver in the possession of high powered rifles.

©Aurora Police Department/AP Photo

Tharin Gartrell, who was arrested during a random police traffic stop

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Scaffolding collapse still a mystery

Star
2008-08-23 21:23:00

A week later, investigators don't know cause of mishap that left 3 workers dangling

A week after Indianapolis firefighters scaled the side of a Downtown high-rise to rescue workers left dangling from a scaffolding collapse, the cause of that accident remains unknown.

Sean Keefer, spokesman for the Indiana Department of Labor, said investigators still are trying to determine whether faulty anchoring, a bad cable or something else caused the mishap on Aug. 14.

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Alaska, US: Coffee-Seeking Driver Hits Grizzly Bear in Alaskan Street

Associated Press
2008-08-23 18:51:00

One moment Howard Hawkins Jr. was driving to get an early morning cup of coffee and the next he hit a large grizzly bear running at a full gallop across one of Anchorage's busiest streets.

"It is just unreal," Hawkins said Friday, less than 12 hours after his 2002 Land Rover struck the bear. "It just happened so fast. I didn't have time to react. I wasn't even able to hit my brakes or anything. What stopped the forward motion of the car is that I ran into a big bear."

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UK & Euro-Asian News

Cindy McCain flies to Georgia for talks with Mikheil Saakashvili

Daniel Nasaw
guardian.co.uk
2008-08-26 13:17:00

While attention in the US was focused on Michelle Obama's convention speech yesterday, another aspiring first lady was heading for Georgia.

Cindy McCain, the wife of the Republican presidential nominee, John McCain, flew to Tbilisi for a meeting with the Georgian president, Mikheil Saakashvili.

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Merkel Condemns Russia, Says EU Stands By Georgia

Ott Ummelas and Milda Seputyte
Bloomberg.com
2008-08-26 13:11:00

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Russia's decision to recognize two breakaway Georgian regions breaches international law and will not be accepted by European Union members meeting to discuss the fallout from the war in Georgia.

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US ships head to Georgia with humanitarian aid

radionetherlands.com
2008-08-26 13:08:00

A US military spokesman says a navy destroyer, the USS McFaul, and a coastguard cutter carrying humanitarian aid for Georgia are heading towards the Black Sea port of Poti. The aid was requested by the Georgian government. The ships are expected to arrive on Wednesday, while Russian forces are still deployed in the city.

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Russia Backs Independence of Breakaway Georgian Areas

Clifford J. Levy
The New York Times
2008-08-26 13:05:00

Russia on Tuesday formally recognized the independence of South Ossetia and Abkhazia, the two enclaves in Georgia whose separatist aspirations stirred the fierce conflict this month.

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Georgia committed genocide: Russian investigators

Agence France Presse
2008-08-26 07:38:00

Russian investigators have proof that Georgian forces committed genocide in their attack on the rebel region of South Ossetia, a top Russian official says.

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Mid-air panic as plane plunges 26,000 feet - Passengers expected to 'meet their maker' as jet depressurizes over France

Associated Press
2008-08-26 07:36:00

A Ryanair plane made an emergency landing in central France after the cabin suddenly depressurized, French officials and the Irish carrier said Tuesday. Up to 26 people were hospitalized.

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Polish PM reportedly orders investigation into reports of secret CIA torture gulags

Canadian Press
2008-08-26 07:34:00

Poland's prime minister says he wants to get to the bottom of allegations that the CIA operated secret interrogation centres in his country between 2001 and 2004.

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Britain's "Iron Lady" Thatcher has dementia: daughter

Kate Kelland
Reuters
2008-08-25 22:04:00

LONDON - Former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher -- once known as one of the world's most formidable political minds -- has been suffering from dementia for the past seven years, according to her daughter, Carol.

Carol Thatcher tells in her memoirs of how her 82-year-old mother, nicknamed the "Iron Lady" for her tough reputation, often struggles to remember things and repeats questions.

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Around the World

'Stalemate' as counter-revolution in Bolivia

Jennifer N. Collins
North American Congress on Latin America
2008-08-25 17:28:00

Despite winning more than 67 percent of the vote in a recall referendum on August 10, Bolivian president Evo Morales faces serious political challenges to his rule and to his efforts to lead a "democratic and cultural revolution." Amid extreme antagonism between the national government and regional power brokers from the lowland departments, the referendum was a seen as a critical test of popular support for each opposing side. But the outcome strengthened both the government and the opposition prefects, preventing a decisive victory for either side and revealing a high level of political polarization.

©Joel Alvarez

Morales was elected in 2005 with nearly 54 percent of the vote.

The referendum asked Bolivians to vote yes or no on the continuance not only of their president, but also that of eight of the country's nine prefects (similar to elected governors). Nationwide, 67.41 percent of voters voted yes for Morales, an increase of almost 14 percentage points over his already impressive electoral victory in 2005. In almost any circumstance this would have been a decisive and remarkable win for a president more than halfway through a four-year term, and the numbers demonstrated a trend of increasing support for the president, even in parts of the country where he and his party are weakest.

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60 Children Among Afghan Dead, U.N. Finds

Carlotta Gill
New York Times
2008-08-26 17:40:00

Kabul, Afghanistan - A United Nations human rights team has found "convincing evidence" that some 90 civilians - among them 60 children - were killed in air strikes on a village in western Afghanistan on Thursday night, a statement issued by the United Nations mission in Kabul said, making it almost certainly the deadliest case of civilian casualties caused by any United States military operation in Afghanistan since 2001.

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Bolivia: Right-wing rebellion spurs left offensive

Federico Fuentes
Global Research
2008-08-26 17:13:00

Violent attacks on police officers, roadblocks, civic stoppages enforced by armed fascist youth groups and threats to cut off meat supplies and take over gas fields have all been part of what left-wing Bolivian President Evo Morales has denounced as an attempted "civil coup" by "desperate people" following his August 10 recall referendum victory.

However, the wave of protests appears to be quickly losing steam as social movements get organised to push for the approval of the draft constitution drawn up by an elected constituent assembly to "refound Bolivia".

The August 10 vote on the president, vive-president and eight out of nine prefects (governors) registered a historic 68% vote for Morales, an increase of 14% on the vote that brought him to power in December 2005.

While the opposition prefects of four eastern departments were also ratified with votes ranging from 56% to 68% (as well as the election of an opposition prefect in Chuquisaca in June), they lost an important ally with the revocation of the opposition prefect of Cochabamba, Manfred Reyes.

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Famine Relief in East Africa Doesn't Work

John Fisher
The John Birch Society
2008-08-25 16:20:00

Famine again is a problem in East Africa where poor rains and rising food prices have combined to cause acute shortages. Despite 25 years of western countries pouring aid into the region, the problem is not close to being solved.

©Unknown

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Afghan farmers stamp on poppies to beat food crisis

Relief Web
2008-08-25 16:17:00

The Governor of Afghanistan's Helmand province, where British soldiers are fighting the Taliban, has launched a bold new plan to stop farmers growing deadly poppy crops and cut down on food shortages.

Governor Gulab Mangal, backed by DFID, has launched the campaign to persuade 26,000 farmers to each grow a hectare of wheat at the expense of poppy cultivation.

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UN agencies warn of worsening food crisis in Somalia

Tehran times
2008-08-26 16:14:00

Nairobi -- UN agencies are warning that more than 3 million Somalis, about half the country's population, will be totally dependent of food aid and emergency assistance over the next 12 months.

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North Korea Develops New Noodle To Combat Hunger, Food Shortages

Linda Young
All Headline News
2008-08-25 16:11:00

Pyongyang, North Korea - North Korea has developed a new weapon to combat its worst food shortage in nearly a decade - a noodle made of corn and soybeans that it says leaves people feeling fuller than ordinary noodles.

The noodles were developed at a research institute, according to reports in the Chosun Sinbo, a pro-North Korean newspaper based in Japan.

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'Suicide Bombers' in Pakistan Kill 70, Wound 100

Genevieve Long & Catherine Yang
The Epoch Times
2008-08-25 16:04:00

Government says killings not connected to recent changes in presidency

©Farooq Naeem/AFP/Getty Images

A Pakistani woman weeps for her injured relative after the suicide attack as she awaits for permission to visit him at the Pakistan Ordnance Factory hospital in Wah on Aug. 21

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Canada: Author attacks RCMP for terror-fighting strategy

Andrew Duffy
Ottawa Citizen
2008-08-26 14:12:00

Ottawa - A new book suggests Abdullah Almalki's imprisonment in Syria was the result of a "disruption strategy" employed by the RCMP after prosecutors refused to launch a criminal case against the Ottawa engineer.

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Deadly attack on Afghan women and children 'legitimate': Pentagon

Agence France Presse
2008-08-26 07:59:00

The US military said Monday that an attack by coalition forces in Afghanistan last week which allegedly killed dozens of civilians was a "legitimate" assault on Taliban forces.

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Jewish leaders seek improved ties with Chavez

Rachel Jones
Associated Press
2008-08-13 21:40:00

President Hugo Chavez met with Jewish leaders on Wednesday, pledging to work together against anti-Semitism and open up channels of communication despite strong differences on Mideast politics.

Both Chavez and leaders of the World Jewish Congress called the meeting a success.

"There may be some differences of opinion on some issues - on major issues such as Iran and also the Middle East," Michael Schneider, the organization's secretary-general, said after the meeting. "But when it comes to anti-Semitism, I think we're on the same page."

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India: Mystery virus kills 160

Pawan Dixit
Hindustan Times
2008-08-25 21:33:00

Rural Kanpur is fighting its most frightening scourge - a mystery disease that has left a long line of bodies in its trail and doesn't seem anywhere finished.

What started from one village two weeks ago has now spread to 350 and has so far claimed 160 lives. Thousands more are bed-ridden. On an average, 15 to 20 people have been dying every day; Saturday saw the highest toll in a day: 24.

The district's health department is somewhat confused about the nature of the disease that has struck. At the beginning, the diagnosis was viral fever. Then doctors concluded that it was falciparum malaria. But after two weeks, they have ruled out both but still don't have an exact answer.

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Canada: Mystery pair who saved kids called heroes

Kevin Crush
Sun Media
2008-08-24 21:29:00

Two city cops are calling a pair of mystery women heroes after they pulled three kids from a fiery wreck near Smoky Lake on Friday.

Consts. David Tchir and Jenine Bitorajac were on their way to his family home in Spedden, 159 km northeast of Edmonton, Friday morning when they came across a head-on crash on Highway 28.

One person in a car was killed at the scene while five people in a truck had to be taken to hospital.

The two women had already happened on the scene and pulled the kids from the backseat of the burning truck.

"I wish I could see them again and thank them for their help," said Bitorajac.

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Big Brother

US: Pittsburgh Man Hospitalized After Police Use Taser To Subdue Him

wpxi.com
2008-08-26 15:32:00

The family of a man who was stunned by police in Pittsburgh's Observatory Hill section is upset after they weren't being allowed to see their son, who is in the intensive care unit at a local hospital.

Police said they used a Taser on Jason Schmidt, 29, on Friday when they responded to a call along Haller Street. When police arrived, they said Andrew Balint and Schmidt were struggling outside the home, where Schmidt was allegedly trying to forcibly enter.

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Washington, US: Richland police Taser Kennewick man, 38

Tricity Herald
2008-08-24 15:28:00

Richland police Tasered a Kennewick man wanted on outstanding warrants after he purportedly ran from them following a traffic stop today.

Police also reportedly found heroin on the man during his arrest.

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Axis of Evil

Cheney heading to Georgia war zone

Associated Press
2008-08-26 17:35:00

President Bush is dispatching Vice President Cheney to Georgia, setting up a high-ranking diplomatic mission to an ally reeling from a short, intense war.

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Flashback: Evidence is Growing: Continuity of Government Plan is Currently in Effect

George Washington Blog
2008-04-12 06:41:00

In two previous posts (here and here), I showed that Continuity of Government (COG) plans were implemented on September 11th, and I argued that it is possible that they have never been suspended.

Now, one of the top investigative journalists in the country, Larisa Alexandrovna (the lead journalist at Raw Story), says:

"it seems to me that this administration has justified its crimes by NOT suspending the state of emergency that went up on September 11, 2001. They are using emergency powers if you look at the whole of the spying, military actions inside the US, etc. I would wager that if asked, this administration will admit that we have been in a state of emergency for their tenure in office."

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War With Russia Is On The Agenda

Paul Craig Roberts
Information Clearing House
2008-08-26 17:09:00

Thinking about the massive failure of the US media to report truthfully is sobering. The United States, bristling with nuclear weapons and pursuing a policy of world hegemony, has a population that is kept in the dark--indeed brainwashed--about the most important and most dangerous events of our time.

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Iran and America, Friends or Foe?

Lee Jay Walker
Seoul Times
2008-08-26 14:48:00

America and Iran are meant to be natural enemies, however, their relationship is very complex and sometimes both nations share a common vision in the realm of geopolitics. Yet to the outside world both nations do not trust each other and this is based on so-called tension and mutual loathing. However, do both nations really hate each other or are quotes taken out of context or do they have cultural meanings? Or do both nations use each other in order to salvage domestic support at home? So what is the real relationship?

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Has US Crippled NATO?

Murray Dobbin
TheTyee.ca
2008-08-26 14:27:00

With the end of the Cold War, many analysts and policy makers imagined that the developed world might actually move away from its irrational attachment to militarization and war. The most optimistic envisioned a huge, international peace dividend, shifting untold billions previously spent on conventional and nuclear weapons to tackling poverty and inequality around the world.

Alas, the U.S. had no intention of dismantling NATO. For the U.S., it was simple: NATO provided the sheen of legitimacy for the extension of U.S. power well beyond its original mandate of Europe.

But ironically the Bush administration -- the most imperial of U.S. governments in generations -- may well go down in history as the one that crippled NATO and effectively left the U.S. isolated.

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Middle East Madness

Egyptian kinship with Fatah hampers mediation

Adam Morrow, Khaled Moussa al-Omrani
Inter Press Service
2008-08-26 16:33:00

Following renewed fighting between rival Palestinian factions Fatah and Hamas, Egypt has stepped up calls for dialogue and reconciliation. But critics say Cairo's partiality to Fatah -- which is backed, like the Egyptian regime itself, by the US -- prevents it from mediating fairly in the crisis.

"The Egyptian government is very sympathetic to Fatah," Magdi Hussein, political analyst and secretary-general of Egypt's frozen Labor Party, told IPS. "For that reason, any new Egyptian attempt to mediate the dispute is doomed to failure."

©Wissam Nassar/MaanImages

Palestinians wait to cross the main border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, May 2008.

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Propaganda Photo-op? Iraqis show video of teenage girl in suicide vest

Karin Laub
Associated Press
2008-08-25 17:06:00

BAGHDAD - Iraqi police publicly questioned a teenage girl after she was allegedly caught wearing an explosives belt, parading her in front of reporters and pressing her to confess she was planning a suicide bombing.

©AP Photo/Iraqi Police, HO

In this photo released by the Iraqi Police on Monday, Aug. 25, 2008, police appear to remove the outer clothing of a girl who they suspected of being a suicide bomber seen handcuffed to railings in a street in Baqouba, Iraq, on Sunday, Aug. 24, 2008 according to police. Iraqi police presented a teenage girl caught wearing an explosives vest to reporters on Monday, prodding her in the presence of the media to confess to plans to stage a suicide bombing. But the girl appeared confused and denied the allegation, saying that she never intended to carry out the attack and wanted to remove the vest. The circumstances of her arrest remained unclear. U.S. officials said she had turned herself in, while local police said she was caught after arousing suspicion

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Sailing into Gaza

Huwaida Arraf
The Electronic Intifada
2008-08-26 16:28:00

On Saturday, after 32 hours on the high seas, I sailed into the port of Gaza City with 45 other citizens from around the world in defiance of Israel's blockade. We traveled from Cyprus with humanitarian provisions for Palestinians living under siege. My family in Michigan was worried sick.

They are not naive. They knew that Israel could have attacked us -- as Israeli forces did in 2003, killing nonviolent American witness Rachel Corrie and Brit Tom Hurndall as well as thousands of unarmed Palestinian civilians over the years.

My family members, though, remember that 60 years ago part of our own family was uprooted and driven from their homes in Palestine by Israeli forces. This loss no doubt fueled my decision to risk my safety and freedom to advance the human rights of innocent men, women and children in Gaza.

©Wissam Nassar/MaanImages

Palestinian fishing boats in a Gaza harbor, August 2008.

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Al Aqsa Foundation hit last night

Palestine News Network
2008-08-24 15:44:00

Jerusalem - The Al Aqsa Foundation's northern wing is closed. The Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak ordered a raid on the institution claiming the building was unlicensed.

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Arab rights group protests closure of Islamic institute

Yoav Stern and Eli Ashkenazi
Haaretz
2008-08-26 15:36:00

Adalah, the Legal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, urged Defense Minister Ehud Barak on Monday to revoke an order closing the offices of a sub-branch of the Islamic Movement.

The order, outlawing the Al Aqsa Institute, was issued by Barak ten days ago but carried out by police only on Sunday, when large forces from the Valley District Police raided its offices in the northern Arab city of Umm al-Fahm.

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Israel is currently constructing 2600 settlement units in the West Bank

Saed Bannoura
IMEMC News
2008-08-26 15:10:00

A report prepared and published by the Israeli Peace Now group revealed that Israel is currently constructing 2600 homes for settlers in 1000 buildings in several settlements in the occupied West Bank.

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Israel's weapon of house demolitions

Jill Shaw
Electronic Intifada
2008-08-26 14:18:00

©Jill Shaw

Israeli Yamam police invade the home of Abu Majed Eisha in Beit Hanina

The four-story building in Beit Hanina, a Palestinian neighborhood a few miles north of East Jerusalem, was clearly home to wealth. As our carload of internationals pulled up the small street leading to Abu Majed Eisha's house at around midnight on 27 July, I noticed several BMWs parked along the way. Upon exiting the car, we were greeted by a number of middle-aged Palestinian men in suits, asking us if we were there about the house demolition. From what I had learned during my brief time in the West Bank, Palestine, I knew already that this was not going to be an ordinary house demolition.

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By way of deception: Hamas blames "Israeli collaborators" for launching rockets

Al Bawaba
2008-08-12 19:25:00

The Hamas rulers of Gaza Strip on Tuesday lashed out at gunners who fire rockets at Israel from the Palestinian territory in violation of a seven-week-old calm, calling them Israeli collaborators. "About the rocket-firing, I think those who are responsible are those who collaborate with Israel because there is a consensus by all Palestinian groups to respect the truce," said Dr. Mahmud Zahar, a senior leader of the Hamas movement.

On Monday, a rocket fired from the Gaza Strip landed in an empty field outside the southern Israeli city of Sderot, causing no casualty or damage.

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Almost Half of Iraqi Adults Are Unemployed

Anna Badkhen
Truthdig
2008-08-20 18:00:00

"If you don't have money to pay bribes, you can't get a job," says one mechanical engineer. "I'd drive a garbage truck; I'd do anything,"

Baghdad -- Every morning for a year and a half, Tariq Razzaq has been coming to the decrepit entrance of a neighborhood maintenance office in southern Baghdad with a single goal in mind: to get a job. Every morning, the office employees turn him down.

It's not that Razzaq, a 29-year-old former soldier in Saddam Hussein's army, isn't willing to do the lowest-paid manual labor: On a rare good day, the maintenance office asks Razzaq to perform one-time jobs cleaning trash and war debris out of gutters. It's that he doesn't have the money to bribe his way into a job.

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Grand Theft Economics

Why Spain's banking sector could be facing a death blow

David Stevenson
MoneyWeek
2008-08-26 17:50:00

Sometimes it's the most innocuous-looking headlines that spell the most trouble.

With most papers leading on "here comes the recession"-type stories, it would be very easy to overlook the report on page five of yesterday's FT that the "ECB is to tackle abuse of liquidity aid". And no wonder. The story sounds either a) very technical or b) something about the financial equivalent of binge drinking.

But there's a bombshell being delivered here - the European Central Bank is about to stop bailing out eurozone commercial banks. And that could mean another big lender going 'bust'. Time to reach for your tin hat again...

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Oil prices end day above $115

Stevenson Jacobs
The Associated Press
2008-08-26 13:15:00

Oil prices ended a choppy session slightly higher Monday, edging back above US$115 a barrel after tropical storm Gustav formed in the Caribbean.

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Harper Arctic Cabinet Meeting Risks New Russia Cold War for Oil

Theophilos Argitis
Bloomberg News
2008-08-26 09:57:00

Beneath the melting ice of the Arctic Ocean, the world's last great land grab is under way.

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Russia shuts out West's supermajors

Deborah Yedlin
Calgary Herald
2008-08-23 08:13:00

As Calgary-based junior oil and gas companies successfully make their respective marks beyond Canadian borders, largely by flying under the radar screen and looking for niche plays, the big energy companies are grappling with a different set of challenges.

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Vietnam inflation hits 28 percent, trade gap grows

Associated Press
2008-08-25 20:33:00

Vietnam's inflation rate has reached its highest level in 17 years, hitting 28.3 percent in August, while the trade gap continued to widen, the government said Monday.

The skyrocketing consumer price index was driven by price increases in food, transportation, housing and construction materials, said the General Statistic Office, which often issues the data ahead of the month's end based on estimates.

Vietnam's inflation rate is among the highest in Asia.

Overall food costs were up 44.15 percent from a year ago, the government said. The price of housing and construction materials rose 27.4 percent, and transportation costs increased by 25.6 percent.

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The Living Planet

South Africa: Experts probe 'mini tsunami'

Jana Breytenbach, Die Burger
News24
2008-08-25 16:42:00

Cape Town - A mini tsunami may be the reason for the sudden rise and fall of the sea level along the West Coast over the last few days.

The National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI) received reports that the sea level in Hout Bay, St Helena Bay, Saldanha Bay and Lambert's Bay changed suddenly three times on Thursday.

In Hout Bay, the water level first fell by a metre and then rose again by the same amount in the space of 20 minutes.

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Amazon Trip Yields A Treasure Trove Of Diversity

Science Daily
2008-08-26 16:37:00

A group of Yale undergraduates have discovered dozens of potentially beneficial bioactive microorganisms within plants they collected in the Amazon rain forest, including several so genetically distinct that they may be the first members of new taxonomical genera.

The analysis of 135 endophytes - fungal and bacterial microorganisms living within the inner tissue of plants - by members of the Rain Forest Expedition and Laboratory course at Yale will be published August 25 in the journal PLoS One.

©Yale University

Yale undergraduate Sun Jin Lee discovered that an extract from a second fungal endophtye reduces inflammation in human tissue. A subsequent analysis of the molecule revealed it to be an inhibitor of apoptosis, or programmed cell death.

The endophytes were collected during a 2007 trip to Peru organized by Scott Strobel, chair of the Department of Molecular Biophysics and Biochemistry at Yale, with a grant from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

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Why Wind Turbines Can Mean Death For Bats

Science Daily
2008-08-26 16:30:00

Power-generating wind turbines have long been recognized as a potentially life-threatening hazard for birds. But at most wind facilities, bats actually die in much greater numbers. Now, researchers reporting in Current Biology, a Cell Press journal, on August 26th think they know why.

©Grady Semmens, University of Calgary

The majority of bats killed at wind turbines are the migratory bats that roost in trees, according to PhD candidate and project leader Erin Baerwald.

Ninety percent of the bats they examined after death showed signs of internal hemorrhaging consistent with trauma from the sudden drop in air pressure (a condition known as barotrauma) at turbine blades. Only about half of the bats showed any evidence of direct contact with the blades.

"Because bats can detect objects with echolocation, they seldom collide with man-made structures," said Erin Baerwald of the University of Calgary in Canada. "An atmospheric-pressure drop at wind-turbine blades is an undetectable - and potentially unforeseeable - hazard for bats, thus partially explaining the large number of bat fatalities at these specific structures.

"Given that bats are more susceptible to barotrauma than birds, and that bat fatalities at wind turbines far outnumber bird fatalities at most sites, wildlife fatalities at wind turbines are now a bat issue, not a bird issue."

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Hurricane Gustav takes aim at Haiti

Michael Christie
Reuters
2008-08-26 14:28:00

Miami - Hurricane Gustav barreled toward vulnerable Haiti on Tuesday and appeared set to become a "major" storm later in the week as it neared the Gulf of Mexico where the United States produces a large amount of oil and gas.

©REUTERS/NOAA/Handout

Hurricane Gustav is seen in a satellite image taken August 26, 2008.

The 7th storm of the 2008 Atlantic hurricane season had top sustained winds of 85 miles per hour (140 km per hour) by 5 a.m. EDT, making it a Category 1 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale of storm intensity, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Gustav was likely to become a Category 2 storm before striking the southwestern peninsula of impoverished Haiti later on Tuesday and then move westward south of Cuba over deep warm waters that provide tropical cyclones with fuel.

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Monkeys Enjoy Giving To Others

Science Daily
2008-08-26 14:23:00

Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, have shown capuchin monkeys, just like humans, find giving to be a satisfying experience. This finding comes on the coattails of a recent imaging study in humans that documented activity in reward centers of the brain after humans gave to charity.

©iStockphoto/Robert Deal

Capuchin monkeys, just like humans, find giving to be a satisfying experience, new evidence suggests.

Empathy in seeing the pleasure of another's fortune is thought to be the impetus for sharing, a trait this study shows transcends primate species.

Frans de Waal, PhD, director of the Living Links Center at the Yerkes Research Center, and Kristi Leimgruber, research specialist, led a team of researchers who exchanged tokens for food with eight adult female capuchins. Each capuchin was paired with a relative, an unrelated familiar female from her own social group or a stranger (a female from a different group).

The capuchins then were given the choice of two tokens: the selfish option, which rewarded that capuchin alone with an apple slice; or the prosocial option, which rewarded both capuchins with an apple slice. The monkeys predominantly selected the prosocial token when paired with a relative or familiar individual but not when paired with a stranger.

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Polar Bears Found Swimming Miles From Alaskan Coast

Science Daily
2008-08-26 13:43:00

An aerial survey by government scientists in Alaska's Chukchi Sea has recently found at least nine polar bears swimming in open water - with one at least 60 miles from shore - raising concern among wildlife experts about their survival.

Polar bear. An aerial survey by government scientists in Alaska's Chukchi Sea has recently found at least nine polar bears swimming in open water -- with one at least 60 miles from shore -- raising concern among wildlife experts about their survival.

Geoff York, the polar bear coordinator for WWF's Arctic Programme, said that when polar bears swim so far from land, they could have difficulty making it safely to shore and are at risk of drowning, particularly if a storm arises.

"To find so many polar bears at sea at one time is extremely worrisome because it could be an indication that as the sea ice on which they live and hunt continues to melt, many more bears may be out there facing similar risk," he said.

"As climate change continues to dramatically disrupt the Arctic, polar bears and their cubs are being forced to swim longer distances to find food and habitat."

Scientists say the Arctic is changing more rapidly and acutely than anywhere on the planet, noting that 2007 witnessed the lowest sea ice coverage in recorded history.

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Cows seem to know which way is north

Associated Press
2008-08-25 20:56:00

WASHINGTON - Talk about animal magnetism, cows seem to have a built-in compass. No bull: Somehow, cattle seem to know how to find north and south, say researchers who studied satellite photos of thousands of cows around the world.

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Scientist says cat owners threatening fish supplies

RIA Novosti
2008-08-25 18:04:00

©Unknown

Cat owners who feed their pets with fish are contributing to overfishing, which is threatening fish stocks worldwide, a scientist at an Australian university said.

Dr Giovanni Turchini of Deakin University said the global cat food industry each consumes 2.48 million metric tons of forage fish - small, rapidly breeding fish that are eaten by larger fish - each year.

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Health & Wellness

Anti-psychotic Drug Use In The Elderly Increases Despite Drug Safety Warnings

Science Daily
2008-08-26 17:33:00

Three regulatory warnings of serious adverse events slowed the growth of use of atypical antipsychotic drugs among elderly patients with dementia, but they did not reduce the overall prescription rate of these drugs, found a research analysis of prescription drug claims data in Ontario.

The rate of use of these drugs actually increased 20% from the month prior to the first warning in September 2002 to the end of the study period in February 2007.

About 70% of people receiving antipsychotic drugs lived in nursing homes, and approximately 40% were aged 85 or older.

Three new atypical antipsychotic drugs approved for the treatment of schizophrenia and other related psychiatric conditions by Health Canada, however only one of them was approved for short term use to treat symptoms of aggression and psychosis in elderly patients with dementia. Between October 2002 and June 2005 Health Canada released three warning of increased risk of stroke or death in elderly patients with dementia taking these drugs.

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Australia: Palau dengue reaching epidemic, says public health director

ABC News (Australia)
2008-08-25 16:10:00

Palau's public health director says dengue fever has reached epidemic levels, and a reduced budget may make it difficult to combat the debilitating and potentially deadly disease.

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Autism statistics alarm Somalis

Maura Lerner
StarTribune.com
2008-08-26 01:36:00

A cluster of affected kids has sparked an investigation in Minnesota. Health officials are puzzled by the data.

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Fourth child succumbs to mystery virus in Hong Kong

Deutsche Presse-Agentur
2008-08-21 21:17:00

A fourth child has fallen ill with a mystery virus that is suspected to have killed two children and left one in serious condition, health officials said Thursday.

The latest patient, a 3-year-old boy, was admitted to hospital Tuesday with fever and vomiting. His conditioned worsened after convulsions and he fell into a coma, the Centre for Health Protection said.

His condition was said to be critical Thursday with signs of blood poisoning and brain abnormalities.

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Tennessee, US: Mystery Illness Remains a Mystery

Richard Simms
NewsChannel9.com
2008-08-14 21:10:00

The Chattanooga-Hamilton County Health Department still has not been able to determine the source of mystery illness which struck at least ten construction workers last week at the BlueCross BlueShield construction site on Cameron Hill.

The health department began the investigation on Thursday, August 7 (2008).

Today a spokesperson tells NewsChannel9.com, "We are continuing to investigate to determine, if possible, the cause or causes of these illnesses and if these illnesses are related. All of the ill persons that we were notified of on Thursday and Friday have reported recovery from their symptoms."

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79 Million Americans Struggle to Pay Medical Bills

Amanda Gardner
HealthDay News
2008-08-20 18:21:00

Working-age Americans are facing mounting problems when it comes to affording health care, a result of what analysts are calling a "perfect storm" of economic woes.

In 2007, 41 percent of working-age Americans -- 72 million people -- reported having medical bill problems or trouble paying off medical debts, up from 34 percent in 2005.

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Science & Technology

Intel CTO: Gap between Humans, Machines Closing

CXOtoday
2008-08-25 17:32:00

Intel Chief Technology Officer Justin Rattner agrees with futurist Ray Kurzweil's assessment that the "singularity", when machine intelligence surpasses human intelligence, is nigh.

Justin Rattner, CTO of Intel Cop. has predicted big changes in social interactions, robotics, and improvements in the computer's ability to sense the real world and he believes these changes will be seen sooner rather than later.

"The industry has taken much greater strides than anyone ever imagined 40 years ago," Rattner said, speaking at the Intel Developer's Forum. "There is speculation that we may be approaching an inflection point where the rate of technology advancements is accelerating at an exponential rate, and machines could even overtake humans in their ability to reason, in the not so distant future."

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New Evidence Debunks 'Stupid' Neanderthal Myth

Science Daily
2008-08-26 15:31:00

Research by UK and American scientists has struck another blow to the theory that Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis) became extinct because they were less intelligent than our ancestors (Homo sapiens). The research team has shown that early stone tool technologies developed by our species, Homo sapiens, were no more efficient than those used by Neanderthals.

Early stone tool technologies developed by our species, Homo sapiens, were no more efficient than those used by Neanderthals (like the one shown in the above model), new research shows.

Published in the Journal of Human Evolution, their discovery debunks a textbook belief held by archaeologists for more than 60 years.

The team from the University of Exeter, Southern Methodist University, Texas State University, and the Think Computer Corporation, spent three years flintknapping (producing stone tools). They recreated stone tools known as 'flakes,' which were wider tools originally used by both Neanderthals and Homo sapiens, and 'blades,' a narrower stone tool later adopted by Homo sapiens. Archaeologists often use the development of stone blades and their assumed efficiency as proof of Homo sapiens' superior intellect. To test this, the team analysed the data to compare the number of tools produced, how much cutting-edge was created, the efficiency in consuming raw material and how long tools lasted.

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Massive Galaxies Caught In The Act Of Merging

Science Daily
2008-08-26 15:26:00

Astronomers have caught multiple massive galaxies in the act of merging about 4 billion years ago. This discovery, made possible by combining the power of the best ground- and space-based telescopes, uniquely supports the favoured theory of how galaxies form.

©ESO

Composite colour-image of the brightest galaxies in four groups located about 4 billion light-years away. The galaxies are ordered in increasing stellar mass, i.e. a rough time sequence (upper left, upper right, lower left, lower right).

How do galaxies form? The most widely accepted answer to this fundamental question is the model of 'hierarchical formation', a step-wise process in which small galaxies merge to build larger ones. One can think of the galaxies forming in a similar way to how streams merge to form rivers, and how these rivers, in turn, merge to form an even larger river. This theoretical model predicts that massive galaxies grow through many merging events in their lifetime. But when did their cosmological growth spurts finish? When did the most massive galaxies get most of their mass?

To answer these questions, astronomers study massive galaxies in clusters, the cosmological equivalent of cities filled with galaxies. "Whether the brightest galaxies in clusters grew substantially in the last few billion years is intensely debated. Our observations show that in this time, these galaxies have increased their mass by 50%," says Kim-Vy Tran from the University of Zürich, Switzerland, who led the research.

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Human exoskeleton suit helps paralyzed people walk

Ari Rabinovitch
Reuters
2008-08-26 15:15:00

Haifa, Israel - Paralyzed for the past 20 years, former Israeli paratrooper Radi Kaiof now walks down the street with a dim mechanical hum.

That is the sound of an electronic exoskeleton moving the 41-year-old's legs and propelling him forward -- with a proud expression on his face -- as passersby stare in surprise.

Radi Kaiof walks using an electronic exoskeleton at a development center in the northern city of Haifa August 18, 2008. The device, called ReWalk, slated for commercial sales in 2010, consists of motorised leg supports, body sensors and a back pack containing a computerised control box and rechargable batteries. It also requires crutches to help with balance. Picture taken August 18, 2008.

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Flashback: Longest underground river found near Mexican coast

Reuters
2007-03-02 11:12:00

Cave divers in Mexico's Yucatan peninsula have discovered what may be the world's longest underground river, connecting two cave systems with a waterway at least 95 miles (154 km) long.

A group of foreign divers exploring the area near the Caribbean beach resort of Playa del Carmen have yet to name the stretch, but believe it could be connected to two other major systems, adding more than 125 miles (200 km) to its length.

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Portal to Maya Underworld Found in Mexico?

Alexis Okeowo
National Geographic
2008-08-22 19:56:00

A labyrinth filled with stone temples and pyramids in 14 caves - some underwater - have been uncovered on Mexico's Yucatán Peninsula, archaeologists announced last week.

The discovery has experts wondering whether Maya legend inspired the construction of the underground complex - or vice versa.

According to Maya myth, the souls of the dead had to follow a dog with night vision on a horrific and watery path and endure myriad challenges before they could rest in the afterlife.

In one of the recently found caves, researchers discovered a nearly 300-foot (90-meter) concrete road that ends at a column standing in front of a body of water.

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Our Haunted Planet

Wales: 'White rain' mystery baffles Flintshire town

Evening Leader
2008-08-26 15:55:00

A mystery white substance that fell on parts of a town in Flintshire has left residents baffled.

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UK: UFO spotted above Burnley?

Burnley Express
2008-08-20 18:54:00

A bizarre formation of lights over Burnley has left residents baffled.

The strange sight was seen around 10-40 p.m. on Friday.

Landscape manager Mr Phil Hargreaves (49) said he was driving back to Brierfield from Bacup after picking up his 17-year-old son, Jarod.

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Don't Panic! Lighten Up!

New Jersey, US: Men Dressed Like Ninjas Targeted Drug Dealers

Associated Press
2008-08-21 18:57:00

Clifton police said they arrested two men dressed liked ninjas and armed with Asian martial arts weapons who said they were sending a warning to drug users.

Calling themselves "Shinobi warriors," the men wore black SWAT-type vests and carried knives, throwing stars, swords, nunchucks and a bow and arrows.

After being arrested early Wednesday in a car on Route 46, the men said they were delivering warning letters to drug dealers and drug users urging them to stop their "impure" activities.

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US: Angel Pantoja Medina is Dead Man Standing

Cathryn Friar
Right Pundits
2008-08-25 18:42:00

©Unknown

The body of Angel Pantoja Medina stands leaning against a wall during his wake in his mother's home in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The last wish of Medina was to be standing at his own wake. Thankfully, he was embalmed for the occasion.

File this one under "insanely creepy." A funeral home used a special embalming treatment to keep the corpse of 24-year-old Angel Pantoja Medina standing upright for his three-day wake.

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Serbs unveil statue to Bob Marley

Reuters
2008-08-25 17:18:00

A Serbian village unveiled what it said was Europe's first statue to the late Jamaican reggae star Bob Marley on Saturday, to promote tolerance in a region still recovering from war.

Two Balkan musicians, one from Croatia and one from Serbia, unveiled the monument in the village of Banatski Sokolac at midnight during a gathering of rock bands from the Balkans.

Fireworks explode in the sky above a statue of late Jamaican reggae music legend Bob Marley during the opening ceremony of a rock festival in the Serbian village of Banatski Sokolac.

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