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Mystery as dead birds fall from the sky over Western Australia
Dead birds are falling from the sky in Australia for the second time in seven months, raising fears of a possible public health threat.
At least 200 seagulls have been found dead in Perth's popular beachside suburbs of Woodman Point and Henderson this week, baffling local authorities.
Post-mortem examinations have failed to determine the cause of the birds' deaths. Last December 5,000 birds died in the coastal town of Esperance, 500 km south of Perth, after being poisoned by lead carbonate blowing through the town as it was being exported through Esperance Port.
The latest incident of dropping birds has led to a major investigation of local industries but government officials admit they are at a loss to know what is killing the gulls. A Department of Health spokesman admitted they could not rule out a risk to public health until the cause of the birds' deaths had been established.
When the Esperance birds began dying, tests showed that local children and adults had potentially dangerous levels of lead in their blood. A local company, Magellan Metals, escaped prosecution over the way it handled the transportation of lead through the town, but fears remain over the potential threat to humans.
The Department of Environment and Conservation (DoEC) believes the latest deaths may have been caused by a chemical or pollutant. The birds were found on Monday and Tuesday near water outfall pipes at Woodman Point, south of Fremantle and at nearby Henderson which has a large boat-building industry. Water and sediment samples have been taken from the area for testing.
Kevin Morrison, from the DoEC, said the birds appeared to die a quick and painless death.
"The birds, when they are showing signs of having been poisoned become a bit wobbly on their feet, they sit down and within 10 to 15 minutes they're dead," he told the Australian Broadcasting Coproration. He said it was particularly puzzling that the deaths were confined to seagulls. In Esperance, wattle birds, yellow throated miners and honey-eaters died.
Although many of the birds were found near the outflow pipes, Mr Morrison said the birds may already have ingested something toxic at a rubbish or landfall site before going there for water as they died.
The beach at Woodman Point, a popular sailing and fishing area, has been closed as a precaution until further notice. Officials do not expect the test results on the birds for a week. Dead birds are falling from the sky in Australia for the second time in seven months, raising fears of a possible public health threat... more -
Vanity Fair satirizes McCain
When the New Yorker came out with a cartoon on its cover of the Obamas as fist-bumping militants (complete with a burning flag), the blogosphere wondered if the magazine or someone else would come up with a satirical cover of John McCain. Well, Vanity Fair did just now.
The magazine posted a cartoon on its website featuring John McCain holding a walker with one hand and giving the fist bump to a pill-popping (well pill-holding) Cindy McCain. The Constitution burns in the fireplace of the Oval Office while a painting of George W. Bush hangs on the wall.
In a short accompanying article, Vanity Fair speaks of it's "affectionate rivalry" with the New Yorker. (They share a building and play softball against eachother).
"We had our own presidential campaign cover in the works, which explored a different facet of the Politics of Fear, but we shelved it when The New Yorker's became the "It Girl" of the blogosphere," Vanity Fair writes. "Now, however, in a selfless act of solidarity with our downstairs neighbors here at the Condé Nast building, we'd like to share it with you. Confidentially, of course." When the New Yorker came out with a cartoon on its cover of the Obamas as fist-bumping militants (complete with a burning flag), the b... more -
McMorning - news channels sell the right to McDonald's to place products in news s...
Several regional tv outlets in the states have begun to sell rights to McDonalds to place products on news desks whilst anchors read the news. Several regional tv outlets in the states have begun to sell rights to McDonalds to place products on news desks whilst anchors read t... more
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CBS edits McCain gaffe on Iraq
In an interview with Katie Curic this evening Sen. McCain, in response to Sen. Obama's assertion that conditions may have improved in Iraq regardless of the surge, claimed the Sunni awakening that pitted them against the Al Qaeda insurrection happened as a result of the surge. Stating it was a simple matter of historic fact McCain feigned to not understand how Obama could make such a gaffe. The only problem, or rather the latest problem, is the surge hadn't happened when the Sunnis turned against Al Qaeda in Iraq. In an interview with Katie Curic this evening Sen. McCain, in response to Sen. Obama's assertion that conditions may have improved in ... more
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Police officer tasers black youth to death
I mourn for this man and his family. Six months later, where is the justice??
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Nas to protest at “racist” Fox studios
Nas is turning his words into action as he’ll join ColorOfChange.org and MoveOn.org in delivering a 600,000-signature petition to the channel’s Manhattan studios tomorrow afternoon. The petition demands that Fox “end its pattern of racist attacks against Black Americans including presidential candidate Barack Obama and his wife Michelle.” Nas is turning his words into action as he’ll join ColorOfChange.org and MoveOn.org in delivering a 600,000-signature petition to the ... more
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Japanese iPhone has setting to protect women from 'upskirt' attacks
The iPhone 3G in Japan has a special feature unique to that country: the camera always makes a conspicuous 'shutter' sound when a picture is taken, even when the phone is set to 'silent' mode.
The loud shutter sound is supposed to deter voyeurs from taking sneaky pictures up women’s’ skirts - or down their tops.
In Japan, upskirt and downblouse shots have become increasingly popular with the advent of high-resolution camera phones.
As a result, all cell phones sold in Japan make a conspicuous shutter sound, or say the word “cheese” when a snap is taken, according to Nobuyuki Hayashi, a tech reporter based in Tokyo. On almost all new cell phones, the camera shutter sound can not be muted, Hayashi says.
“Some manufacturers have even put louder shutter sound,” he reports.
The shutter on the first iPhone sold in Japan could be muted in silent mode; an anomaly that many wondered whether Apple would correct in the iPhone 3G, Hayashi says.
Apple did: The shutter sound cannot be turned off, even in silent mode, Hayashi says.
Is it not a little scary that so-called 'upskirts' are such a phenomenon in Japan (and elsewhere, no doubt) that local phone technology has to find ways to protect women from such abuse?
The iPhone 3G in Japan has a special feature unique to that country: the camera always makes a conspicuous 'shutter' sound when a pict... more -
Batman released after being arrested, accused of assaulting mother and sister
Batman star Christian Bale has been questioned by police over allegations he assaulted his mother and sister the night before the European premiere of his film, ``The Dark Knight,'' British media reported Tuesday.
Update: Bale has now left the London police station at which he was being questioned. The Sky.com article discusses Bale's demeanour on the night he is alleged to have assaulted his family members - he was interviewed by a reporter after it is said to have happened, who talks to Sky about his conduct that night.
http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Showbiz-News/Batman-st...
Batman star Christian Bale has been questioned by police over allegations he assaulted his mother and sister the night before the Euro... more -
Attack injures several near Obama's Jerusalem hotel
The driver of an excavator was shot and killed after he drove the construction vehicle over a number of cars near the Jerusalem hotel where Barack Obama is scheduled to stay Tuesday night, according to police.
The excavator used in the attack sits behind a car near the King David Hotel in Jerusalem on Tuesday.
Israeli medical sources said two people were wounded.
An eyewitness told CNN that he saw the machine overturn two cars near the King David Hotel in downtown Jerusalem, where the U.S. presidential candidate will be staying when he arrives in Israel.
The incident comes three weeks after a similar attack in Jerusalem, in which a Palestinian construction worker rammed a front-end loader into a string of vehicles, killing at least three people before he was shot and killed by Israeli police.
The driver of an excavator was shot and killed after he drove the construction vehicle over a number of cars near the Jerusalem hotel ... more -
Second rare white whale spotted in Australia
A white humpback whale has been spotted off the east coast of Australia: The whale was filmed by a TV news helicopter.
It is thought to be the offspring of 'Migaloo' ('White fellow' to the Aboriginies), another white whale which was sighted in the area two years ago: The two sightings off Byron Bay are thought to be the only two examples in the world.
A white humpback whale has been spotted off the east coast of Australia: The whale was filmed by a TV news helicopter. ... more -
75% of Americans say gays should serve openly in military
Seventy-five percent of Americans believe that gays and lesbians should be allowed to serve in the US military, according to a new Washington Post-ABC News poll.
The Washington Post reported that the number of Americans who support gays in the military is up from 62% in 2001 and 44% in 1993.
Eighty percent of registered Democrats support the repeal of "don’t ask, don’t tell," a policy barring gay service men and women from serving openly in the military. Enacted 15 years ago under the Clinton administration, the push for the repeal of DADT is gaining momentum. The Post reported that support from Republicans has doubled from 32% to 64 percent since DADT was enacted.
The Post-ABC poll, conducted between July 10 and July 13, also showed that more than 80% of women support gays in the military, compared with approximately 67% of men.
(The Advocate) Seventy-five percent of Americans believe that gays and lesbians should be allowed to serve in the US military, according to a new Was... more -
Bosnia war crime suspect Karadzic captured!
"(CNN) -- Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has been arrested after more than a decade as a fugitive from war crimes charges, the U.N. tribunal that charged him announced Monday.
Karadzic, 63, was the Serb political leader during the 1992-1995 war that followed Bosnia-Herzegovina's secession from Yugoslavia. He is charged with genocide, crimes against humanity and violations of the law of war.
No details of his arrest were immediately available. But the chief prosecutor for the U.N. tribunal, Serge Brammertz, called it "an important day for the victims" and congratulated Serbian authorities for taking him into custody.
"It is also an important day for international justice, because it clearly demonstrates that nobody is beyond the reach of the law and that sooner or later all fugitives will be brought to justice," Brammertz said.
He said authorities "in due course" will determine when Karadzic is to be transferred to the tribunal at The Hague.
His arrest leaves former Gen. Ratko Mladic, the Bosnian Serb military commander, as the top-ranking war crimes suspect still at large.
Karadzic, a onetime psychiatrist, declared himself president of a Serb republic within Bosnia after the former Yugoslav republic declared its independence in 1992.
Backed by Serb-led Yugoslav troops, the Bosnian Serbs launched a campaign against the country's Muslim and Croat population that introduced the world to the term "ethnic cleansing."
In 1995, the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia accused Karadzic and Mladic of leading that campaign, ordering the roundup of thousands of non-Serb civilians into camps where they were killed, tortured or sexually assaulted.
Karadzic is also charged with genocide in connection with the killings of nearly 8,000 Bosnian Muslim men and boys at Srebrenica, the worst European massacre since World War II."
"(CNN) -- Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic has been arrested after more than a decade as a fugitive from war crimes charges, the U... more -
Volcanic eruptions wiped out ocean life 93 million years ago
University of Alberta scientists contend they have the answer to mass extinction of animals and plants 93 million years ago. The answer, research has uncovered, has been found at the bottom of the sea floor where lava fountains erupted, altering the chemistry of the sea and possibly of the atmosphere.
Undersea volcanic activity triggered a mass extinction of marine life and buried a thick mat of organic matter on the sea floor about 93 million years ago, which became a major source of oil, according to a new study.
"It certainly caused an extinction of several species in the marine environment," said University of Alberta Earth and Atmospheric Science researcher Steven Turgeon. "It wasn't as big as what killed off the dinosaurs, but it was what we call an extreme event in the Earth's history, something that doesn't happen very often."
U of A scientists Turgeon and Robert Creaser say the lava fountains that erupted altered the chemistry of the sea and possibly of the atmosphere.
"Of the big five mass extinctions in the Earth's history, most of them were some kind of impact with the planet's surface," said Turgeon. "This one is completely Earth-bound, it's strictly a natural phenomenon."
Turgeon and Creaser found specific isotope levels of the element osmium, an indicator of volcanism in seawater, in black shale-rocks containing high amounts of organic matter-drilled off the coast of South America and in the mountains of central Italy. University of Alberta scientists contend they have the answer to mass extinction of animals and plants 93 million years ago. The answ... more -
Beer Pong gives you herpes
According to the Center for Disease Control reports of the virus are up 230% in people ages 17 - 21. This increase is due to sharing cups while playing beer pong.
Scared of playing beer pong now? The CDC gives this great suggestion for safe ponging, “Flip cup is great because each individual has their own cup. If it’s absolutely necessary to play beer pong, use the waterfall method. Many young adults, when asked if they practice safe pong, responded that they rinse the ball after it bounces off the table.”
Get tested and play safe. According to the Center for Disease Control reports of the virus are up 230% in people ages 17 - 21. This increase is due to sharing... more -
David Goyer says he knows the theme for 'Batman 3'
Whether you agree or not, judging from both fan reaction and near universal critical acclaim, “The Dark Knight” will almost certainly go down as the greatest comic book movie of all-time, with a performance from Heath Ledger that is being hailed as one of the greatest on-screen villains ever.
Now all Christopher Nolan, his brother Jonathan, David Goyer, and an as yet unnamed villain have to do is top it.
“I think that’s the scariest thing – to think, could we come up with a third movie that was as good as the first two? Can we top ourselves?” screenwriter David Goyer asked aloud, almost rhetorically, in a recent conversation with MTV News. “Doing it a third time would be a big proposition.”
Make no mistake about it, though, a third film HAS been discussed, Goyer confessed, revealing that, while nothing is concrete, both a villain and a theme have been bandied about.
“We’ve only talked loosely about it, though, Chris and I,” Goyer said.
Interestingly, it’s the theme, and not the villain, that most interests me, especially given how the latter seems inexorably tied to the former in this new modern Batman universe. (Fear the predominant issue in “Begins” precipitating the introduction of Scarecrow, escalation in “Knight” similarly calling for The Joker.
The fact that Goyer has a theme he wants to keep in mind for a possible “Batman 3″ means he also has a direction, a crisis, and, yes, a villain.
So what is it?
“I have one,” Goyer said laughing. “But I’m not going to tell you. Chris is very particular about that.
“I do think, though, that if there’s not a third film – these two movies stand on their own,” he added. “I think it could go either way.”
Not us. We want a “Batman 3.” So we’ll throw it out to you: Now that you’ve seen “The Dark Knight,” now that you know how it ends, what could be the theme of “Batman 3″? Who could be the villain to fit that theme? Sound off below. Whether you agree or not, judging from both fan reaction and near universal critical acclaim, “The Dark Knight” will almost certainly ... more -
CBS cleared of fine in wardrobe malfunction
A federal appeals court on Monday threw out a $550,000 indecency fine against CBS Corp. for the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show that ended with Janet Jackson's breast-baring ``wardrobe malfunction.'' A federal appeals court on Monday threw out a $550,000 indecency fine against CBS Corp. for the 2004 Super Bowl halftime show that end... more
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Revolutionary filling-preventing mouthwash could replace the toothbrush in just t...
The dreaded dentist's drill and common toothbrush could become a thing of the past.
Scientists have created a solution that mimics the way the body forms new teeth - allowing natural repairs of holes without the need for drilling and filling.
Oral hygiene experts at Leeds Dental Institute have also made a mouthwash that kills plaque-making bacteria when a light is shone into the mouth.
They believed the new liquid could be available in less than three years - and perform the same job as using a toothbrush.
The mouthwash uses a molecule that is absorbed by bacteria in the mouth and destroys the harmful bug when it is activated by a bright light.
It is deemed safe as the molecule is already used by the food industry and not harmful if accidentally swallowed.
Called photo dynamic therapy, it was developed from a cancer treatment as a way of helping disabled people look after their mouths if they were unable to use a toothbrush.
The institute's research director, Professor Jennifer Kirkham, said the mouthwash could be used to treat gum disease and would only take a hygienist to perform the treatment.
She added: 'We feel confident that this is a major step change for the future.
'It is a safe way of improving oral hygiene for those patients for whom brushing is not feasible or as an adjunct to brushing.
'At the moment we are not saying it is going to take over brushing as the trials have not been done yet.
'We have now to look at how much it is going to cost. At the moment it is very cheap.'
The drilling alternative that uses a protein to naturally repair holes on the tooth's enamel, could be ready for patients within five years.
The compound works by creating a scaffold and attracting minerals that form enamel in the same way as the body creates teeth.
The chemical can be painted on teeth in small holes to prevent them decaying and becoming larger. The same treatment can be used to fill in tiny holes in teeth that cause them to become sensitive to hot and cold food and drinks.
The protein must pass British safety checks, which are currently underway. The institute is hopeful that trials will start early next year, with a view to getting a licence within five years.
Ultrasound could 're-grow' broken teeth in just 12 weeks
In a separate development, scientists revealed recently that teeth broken in an accident could soon be 'regrown' using an ultrasound machine half the size of a thumbnail.
The process could take just 12 weeks. Ultrasound is already used to help heal broken bones, now the technology is being applied to teeth.
Nanotechnology, which can reduce electronic circuitry to one thousandth of the size of a human hair, has enabled scientists to develop an ultrasound device small enough to fit inside the mouth.
A wafer-thin ultrasound chip, which is preprogrammed so that it turns on automatically, can be clipped onto the teeth. When it is on, ultrasound waves massage the gums to stimulate and increase blood flow to produce new tooth tissue.
The treatment takes just 20 minutes a day. The current version of the machine has a small handheld device which tells the patient when it is working.
Dr Tarek El-Bialy, of the University of Alberta in Edmonton, Canada, discovered the use of ultrasound to form new dental tissue from his research on rabbit incisors. He then moved on to humans and found similar results. The dreaded dentist's drill and common toothbrush could become a thing of the past. ... more -
Obama Raises $25 Million in one day
The AP reports that Barack Obama reversed a two-month downward trend by raising more and spending less. He took in $52 million in June, more than twice the nearly $21.5 million raised by John McCain. Obama had $72 million cash on hand to McCain's $27 million.
The Politico points out that Obama raised $25 million on the last day of June alone:
His one-day haul represents nearly half of his monthly total and more than Republican rival John McCain generated for the entire month. During the month, McCain did not have a single day in which he raised a million dollars.
The AP reports that Barack Obama reversed a two-month downward trend by raising more and spending less. He took in $52 million in June... more -
Gypsy girls' corpses on beach fail to put off sunbathers
Questions about the attitude of Italians to their Roma minority were again being asked yesterday after photographs were published of sunbathers continuing as normal with a day at the beach despite the bodies of two Gypsy girls who had drowned being laid out on the sand nearby.
The incident took place outside Naples, where a Roma encampment was burned to the ground this year after its inhabitants had been evacuated for their own safety. Accounts given by Italian media varied, but according to the news agency Ansa, the victims - aged 14 and 16 - and two other young Gypsies had been begging from daytrippers on the beach at Torregaveta, west of Naples, on Saturday. Other reports indicated they were selling trinkets. The area is easily reached from the city by a railway line that ends near the shore.
At about 1pm, the four girls decided to go into the water even though none of them, it seems, knew how to swim. They soon got into difficulties because of strong currents in the area and were hit by an unusually big wave. Two of the girls were rescued by life-savers from a nearby private beach. But rescuers were unable to reach the two oldest until they were already dead. Their corpses were dragged ashore and laid out on the sand under beach towels.
"But the knot of curious onlookers that formed around the girls' bodies dissolved as [swiftly] as it had formed," the newspaper Corriere della Sera reported. "Few left the beach or abandoned their sunbathing. When the police from the mortuary arrived an hour later with coffins, the two girls were carried away on the shoulders [of the officers] between bathers stretched out in the sun." La Repubblica also expressed astonishment at the behaviour of those present. "While the lifeless bodies of the girls were still on the sand, there were those who carried on sunbathing or having lunch just a few metres away," it reported.
The civil liberties group EveryOne said it was unconvinced by reports of the incident at Torregaveta and asked whether there might be something more sinister behind it. A statement from the group said: "Two young Roma would never have left their scant merchandise for 'a refreshing dip' in the waves. Two Gypsy girls would never have gone bathing in full view of everyone because of the modesty that is one of their distinguishing characteristics."
(Excerpts / John Hooper, Guardian) Questions about the attitude of Italians to their Roma minority were again being asked yesterday after photographs were published of s... more -
Israeli filmed shooting prisoner
If this hadn't been filmed and released internationally...what's the likelihood the IDF would care??
"An Israeli human rights group has released a video that shows an Israeli soldier shooting a blindfolded Palestinian man with a rubber coated steel bullet at close range.
BTselem released the video on Sunday, saying it had forwarded a copy to the Israeli military police and was demanding an investigation be opened.
The video shows a Palestinian man, whom BTselem named as Ashraf Abu Rahma, handcuffed and blindfolded standing by a group of Israeli soldiers.
One soldier aims his weapon at the Abu Rahma's legs, from about 1.5 metres away, and appears to fire at him.
Everytime I hear about how monstrous and barbaric Hamas or Hezbollah is, I remind myself that the only reason people think this way is because the mainstream mediafails to report on how horrible Israel is. This is in kind with the recent waves of attacks on journalists by the IDF and there overall lack of concern for arabs. It was also kicked out of the Lebanon by Hezbollah. Is the IDF falling apart internally, is this a sign that morale among the Israelis is falling?...let's hope so (because maybe they'll be forced to work out peace then)
If this hadn't been filmed and released internationally...what's the likelihood the IDF would care?? ... more
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