6. mai 2003

Super-mouse immune to cancer A mutant mouse that was discovered quite by accident is capable of fighting off cancer. A routine study lead by Zheng Cui consisted of injecting cancer cells in nice to make it develop cancer. Typically, this procedure leads to a tumor within two weeks. One male mouse, however, showed no signs of cancer despite numerous injections. He bred with a normal female, and his offspring (now seven generations) has retained the ability. Either they don't get cancer at all, or they fight it so it spontaneously recedes. This mouse strain has a mutation that protects it against cancer. The rapid evolution indicates that the change might have been caused by a single mutation, and scientists are now trying to find that gene. And if they do, they will start searching for it in humans. 11:50:39 PM    comment []

Paris: wi-fi paradise Paris is about to become one large Wi-Fi hotspot, as dozens of antennas is placed around subways stations, providing Net access for anybody near them. Access will be free at first, but will be changed to subscription basis from June 30. This is part of a big experiment: give technology to the people, and see if something cool happens. I like it. Technological revolutions are only partially about gadgets and technology. They are really social revolutions. TV, records and even the Internet had existed for quite some time before it suddenly exploded in people's mind and caused widespread changes in the way people were spending their time. Mobile text messages (SMS) was an afterthrought, but it became a massive phenomenon (outside the US, apparently). I used Instant Messaging years ago, when few others did and 'IM' was not part of my vocubulary. But suddenly, it reached a critical mass and everybody is doing it. Will Wi-Fi become the next big thing? Only if a critical mass of people should consider it a cool thing to do. Geeks may like just playing with gadgets for their own sake, but successful social revolutions are about connecting people, not machines. 10:48:45 PM    comment []

FEDspeak translated Here's an amusing "translation" into plain English of what the Federal Open Market Committee actually meant. So, is the economy getting better? The Fed says: Although the timing and extent of that improvement remain uncertain, the Committee perceives that over the next few quarters the upside and downside risks to the attainment of sustainable growth are roughly equal. Here is what that really means: Honestly, we think the economy will improve sometime. Don't try to pin us down on exactly when we think it will happen. And we see that there's about a 50-50 chance that the economy will get better or worse over the next few months. I can do it one better: 'we don't have a friggin clue.' Now that's reassuring. 9:57:55 PM    comment []

Baghdad museum looting revisited Remember the stories about the extensive looting of priceless artifacts from Baghdad's museum? It was all over the press that maybe as many as 170,000 valuable artifacts had been stolen. The lower estimates were in the 50,000 items range. Now a group of military and civilian researchers headed by Marine Col. Matthew Bogdanos has investigated, and compiled a list of the lost items. A total of 38 pieces are believed to be missing, according to Christine Solar, writing in the Chicago Tribune (reg'n req'd). Yes, 38 items, not 38,000. Apparently, the museum was looted, but it was the administrative offices that was by far the worst affected. Many items were hidden, but very few were stolen, and those that were, appeared to be stolen through an inside job. For sure, some of these artifacts, especially 5000 year old white limestone bowl called the Vase of Warka, are indeed priceless and it will be tragic if they are lost. This story was brought to me by Rich's reader comment directing me to Jan Herman's blog. If this is correct, it should give serious pause to everybody who has been following the Iraq war through the press. Can we trust anything we read at all? 9:27:27 PM    comment []

Labour suspends Galloway George Galloway, the MP who has been accused of being on Saddam Hussein's payroll, has been suspended from Britain's Labour party. The Iraq money allegation was not the direct cause for this decision, as there were enough ammunition against the rabid parliamentary even before the Daily Telegraph published what it claims is intelligence documents showing Galloway is a traitor. At one time, Galloway called his own prime minister Tony Blair and President George Bush "wolves" and he even encouraged British troops to refuse to fight in Iraq. Galloway says he will stand for election for Glasgow as an independent. 8:40:58 PM    comment []

Not happy: the Sars brothers Ernst Sars (picture) repairs television sets, and his brother Hans Jørgen maintains cleaning equipment. They run a small business called the Brothers Sars (Brødrene Sars) here in Bergen, and they are not happy about the extra attention their business name, prominently displayed on their cars, receives these days. They aren't much happier at the Sars International Centre for Marine Molecular Biology, also here in Bergen, the instituition that owns the domain sars.no. They do biological research all right, but not anything that helps them replying to the countless emails they receive every day from people across the world who worry about the pneumonia-like epidemic.The Sars center is named after Georg and Michael Ossian Sars, pioneers in marine biology.  According to the Norwegian Bureau of Statistics, 35 persons in Norway have the last name Sars. Judging by these examples, most of them live here in Bergen. (From a Norwegian article in Aftenposten) 7:16:13 PM    comment []

Who wants to live forever anyway Eternal life may have been given up as the holy grail of science, but it's certainly the goal of many fringe practicioners. So also Alex Chiu, a self-proclaimed genius who modestly compares himself to Edison and Einstein and warns "many people have scorned and laughed at the persons below." That gives him a high score on the crackpotmeter from the very start of his incredibly ill-designed web site. At any rate, Alex argues that if you place the depicted rings on your fingers, and preferrably your toes, while you sleep, you will live forever. That's it. You don't even need to pray to anyone, or peddle magazines door to door. Alex is otherwise extremely helpful on his site. He wants to explain the world's mysteries to his readers. His explanation of gravity is particularly hilarious. Perhaps opening a text book on basic science would help more, though. At least you'd know the difference between magnetism and gravity. 6:08:32 PM    comment []

Web users against apathy The BBC wants to launch a project called iCan, which will provide a web site where Britons can organise grassroots political campaigns for or against anything. The objective is to make an online antidote for voter apathy, and of course give BBC journalists an inside look at what is happening. 4:38:16 PM    comment []

Did US troops encourage looting? Many have criticised US forces in Iraq got not doing enough to stop the looting taking place in Iraq in the days following the fall of Saddam Hussein's regime. More troubling, many eyewitnesses in Iraq now claim that US soldiers actively encouraged looters. If this is true, it's pretty wild, and indicates a lack of education about the rules of conduct in US troops, or a lack of discipline. 3:06:26 PM    comment []

Around the world, alone The 28 year old Briton Emma Richards reached Long Island in the US Sunday, after sailing around the world alone. Her trip took 132 days. She is both the first woman and the youngest person ever to complete the race. She is happy to be finished: "The solitude was soul destroying. I am looking forward to having a few beers with my family and friends and sleeping in a bed that does not move." (Picture from a Norwegian article in Nettavisen) 2:54:54 PM    comment []

US to release some Guantanamo prisoners After coming under heavy fire from human rights organisations over keeping underage prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, the US administration is now saying it will release around a dozen prisoners, among them the children. 4:21:08 AM    comment []

Nude-o-flights A Texas travel agency is organising flights where you are free to be naked. Seriously. There were some ground rules. No hot coffee or tea -- spills could be, eh, painful. And spilling cold drinks could lead to emberrassing shrinkage. 1:53:24 AM    comment []

© Copyright 2003 Jan Haugland. Last update: 01.06.2003; 03:29:29.