23. mai 2003

HIVs early days Researchers are using old blood samples and advanced statistical analysis to map the early spread of HIV in North America. The evidence seems to suggest that HIV entered the population at many different points, maybe in the late 1960s, and started spreading like wildfire. With its long incubation time, the disease suddenly exploded and became the AIDS epidemic we know in the early 1980s. 11:52:47 PM    comment []

Blix starts to doubt that Iraq had WMDs The chief UN weapons inspector, Hans Blix, says he is starting to suspect Iraq did not have any weapons of mass destruction. So why, then, didn't Saddam Hussein allow unfettered access to the country and account for its past stocks? If that were the case, he said, Iraq's evasive behaviour in recent years could be due to Saddam Hussein's fixation with Iraqi honour and a wish to dictate the conditions under which people could enter the country. "For that reason, he said 'no' in many situations and gave the impression he was hiding something," he said. But who's fault is that? My support for the coaltion was only secondarily concerns over WMDs, and primarily a conviction that the Iraqi people will be much better off without Saddam Hussein's murderous regime. So for me, at least, the action is justified. However, WMDs was the primary argument especially from the US administration. The coalition explicitly said it had hard proof that Iraq had these weapons, and were ready to use them and could pass them on to terrorists. If, after an extensive search no WMDs are found, it is obvious that the US and British governments were not correct in its pre-war assertions. Either they are as surprised as we are, and have been victim of a major intelligence snafu, or they have been less than honest with us. In both cases we are owed a very good explanation. 10:19:12 PM    comment []

Israel to adopt roadmap to peace Ariel Sharon is to present the international peace plan, the so-called roadmap, to his cabinet for approval. While cabinet approval is not a foregone conclusion, it is likely to pass, according to most observers. The US has addressed some Israeli concerns, but Powell indicated no changes will be made to the proposal. Israel continues to this day to build new settlements in occupied terrotories. When Israel approves the plan, the ball is back in the Palestinian's court, at least as Israel sees it, as Sharon will not freeze settlements before the terror is halted. And that seems to be the major roadblock now. 9:07:26 PM    comment []

High on hay A farmer was somewhat surprised to find marijuana growing on his property, and not being like me, he immediately contacted the police. An investigation revealed that the source of the weed was a large quantity of hay bought from Kansas to feed his cattle. The hay must have been cut from a field where a quantity of marijuana was growing, and its seed ended up in the bales. And eventually, the seeds sprouted new plants. I bet the cows wants him to buy hay from the same supplier again! 7:27:39 PM    comment []

"Sars from Space" Astronomer (!) Chandra Wickramasinghe uses the media attention Sars receives to try to blow some new life into his old and discredited theory that viruses fall down from space. The theory may have merited serious attention when it was first forwarded by him and excentric fellow astronomer Fred Hoyle many years ago, but since then no evidence has surfaced that supports it. Other virologists believe it simply isn't possible because the virus is too fragile to survive in outer space. "I think it is completely nuts," said Dr Anne Bridgen, a molecular virologist at the University of Ulster. "It has a lipid (fatty) coat on the outside and it would tend to dry out in an atmosphere such as space," she told Reuters. Professor Ian Jones, an expert in virology at the University of Reading in southern England, described the idea as bizarre. "SARS is a new virus but it is only a new relative of a family of viruses that we understand quite well," he said, referring to the coronavirus family which includes a virus linked to the common cold. "The difference is that it is a causing a severity of disease that we haven't seen before in the human population." Even if we don't currently know exactly how the Sars coronavirus evolved, we don't need to jump into space for an explanation. 6:32:28 PM    comment []

In Defence of Evolution "When we look at the world, we encounter vast evidence confirming the evolutionary account of the history of life, and nothing even remotely resembling a disproof of it. This is an inexplicable mystery if, as creationists insist, God created the variety of life through a means other than evolution. Had God done so, it would scarcely be possible for the world not to abound with clear evidence decisively refuting evolution--it would, in fact, be possible only if God deliberately went about after creation carefully rearranging the world to make it look as though evolution had occurred, so that His poor creations might be misled, and thereby condemn themselves to an eternity in Hell. In other words, assuming God exists in the first place, either He used evolution as His means of creating the diversity of life on Earth, or else He is an abhorrent liar and deceiver--titles which have traditionally been reserved for the Devil." [Read all of Mark Vuletic's excellent article here] 5:04:29 PM    comment []

— Uday Hussein will surrender Sources are claiming that Saddam Hussein's son Uday is negotiating with coalition forces about a surrender. Uday, known for his extravagant lifestyle and extreme cruelty, fears that he will be killed by vengeful Iraqis. Coalition forces are not interested in negotiating any specific terms, as they are confident of catching him sooner or later anyway. Uday is number 4 on the list of most wanted, listed as the ace of hearts on the now famous deck of cards. Rumours are that the Saddam Hussein family is hiding in a Baghdad suburb. 3:32:03 PM    comment []

First images of Earth from another planet Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) has taken the first pictures of Earth from another planet. In addition, thanks to some interplanetary luck, pictures were taken of the first planetary conjunction from another planet, in this case the Earth and Jupiter. 2:39:15 PM    comment []

The world didn't end Thursday, either Panawave Laboratory, the Japanese cult with a fetish for white sheets, missed with its postponed end-of-the-world prediction, too. After May 15th failed to bring the end of the world, they argued that yesterday would be it. And here we are. 1:04:00 PM    comment []

French journalists not wanted in US Reporters Without Borders protests the detention and forcible repatriation of six French journalists upon arrival to Los Angeles. The six journalists arrived to cover a video games trade show. It seems like an example of airport security arbitrarily targeting the journalists for being French. Thanks to Paris for bringing this story to my attention. 12:44:24 PM    comment []

US army targets game cheaters Americas Army, the highly successful free online multiuser game has experienced serious problems due to online cheaters lately. With custom made programs, hacks, that can be downloaded off the net, it is possible to improve your gameplay by highlighting opponents or getting perfect aim. Now the US army promises to clean up the game, and ban cheaters for life. Guantanamo Bay next if you cheat in AA! Even those who make the cheat hacks don't like the cheaters: One of them keeps track of his users. He secretly gathers information from his users. "Did you know most cheaters come from France?" Who'd have guessed? 1:40:53 AM    comment []

US imposes sanctions on China The US has imposed sanctions against China and Iran over alleged cooperation on missile systems. The sanctions will deprive a large Chinese conglomerate of exports worth more than $100M. The somewhat surprising move comes after a long period of improving relationship between the US and China. The Chinese are not known for passing up a chance to retaliate, either, but in this they seem to be the party with the most to lose. 1:28:28 AM    comment []

© Copyright 2003 Jan Haugland. Last update: 01.06.2003; 03:30:22.