Politics

A new vaccine has been developed to fight the return of kidney cancer in patients who have previously had cancerous parts of their kidneys removed. The vaccine is some years from a publically available treatment -- as it must be 'custom made' for each patient, because it uses cells from the tumour to act as an immune system primer -- but it could soon be routinely given to kidney cancer patients after operations. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3502297.stm The UK's Ministry of Defence biological research facility at Porton Down has developed a vaccine against the Black Death (bubonic plague), one of the deadliest agents that could conceivably be used by …

this was a poll also on Sky News today, the results were quite remarkable. Please give your reason with your vote (eitherway).

I'm not sure if this topic belongs here or in the News Forum, but I'll put it here and let the moderator decide. I read an article in the New York Times that claims the Bush administration routinely distorts scientific facts to further its policies. Here's the link: http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/19/politics/19RESE.html?th (You may need to register to read the article, but registration is free.)

Assuming Kerry wins the Democratic nomination, who do you think he would have as a vice presidential running mate? Now that Clark has endorsed him, that seems more likely, as Clark has always looked more like a VP candidate than the Presidential one. Dean is definitely not a likely candidate. Edwards may be another good choice, and there may be other possibilities as well. What do you think?

A research team in South Korea have reported they have cloned several human embryos, and extracted a line of stem cells from one of them. In a paper to be put out in this Friday's issue of Science, they give instructions on the conditions used to culture the embryos, which have proved impossible to clone in the past. The work has already sparked calls for bans on all forms of human cloning, and would have been illegal in the US, due to the restrictions on the recency of embryos allowed for cloning. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/11/science/11CND-CELL.html?ex=1077166800&en=5db6cd19834eabbc&ei=5062&partner=GOOGLE http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/2004-02-11…

The article

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?click_id=79&art_id=qw1076573887833M323&set_id=1 Jerusalem - Israeli police have come up with plans to place bags of pig lard on buses in a bid to deter Palestinian militants from carrying out suicide attacks, the Maariv daily reported on Thursday. Rabbinical authorities have given the idea its approval on the grounds that it could be a life-saving measure even though pigs are also considered impure by Jews. Authorities believe that the move could discourage Palestinians from carrying out attacks as pieces of their exploded body could come into contact with the pig fat, prejudicing their chances of entering into paradise. …

What do people think about this news regarding the 'No child left behind' bill? Personally, the schools that want to be taken out of the loop are imbiciles and need to be taken out if the start complaining. That is because when I went through school I didn't even try and I got A's and B's throughout school.

What does everyone think of Libya's recent attempts to re-enter the international community? Should we meet these efforts with a certain degree of scepticism, or is it time to welcome the country back into the fold with open arms? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/3474001.stm

Field trials for a wearable, 'intelligent' computer are being undertaken in Spain. The system is designed to help astrobiologists select areas of special geological interest on future Mars missions. It includes a 667 MHz belt computer running Microsoft Windows, an eye display, finger mouse, camera and wearable keyboard. It can easily be adapted for use by robots. The software is designed to spot areas of "uncommonality" in image maps, and can be easily configured to pick out areas of interest or look for specific features. Full story: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3473139.stm

Who does everyone think will win the Democratic nomination for president? Why?

The NY Times is reporting on a few cases of gay animals including two male penguins, Ray and Silo, who have incubated and raised another penguin together. click here

A Canadian magazine is publishing a poll that shows only 15% of Canadians would definitely vote for Bush. Other numbers on Bush were similiarily low. David Frum, (the Bush speech-writer who coined 'Axis of Evil') claims that Canadians are seeing Bush through the 'distorted lens' from which the public sees him. Seems to me that the US is the one viewing Bush through a distorted lens, and that the Canadian neighbors see things clearly. <link>

A scientist has set back projections for the develpment of nano-technology by having his work subject to claims that results were falsified. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/3459769.stm

Excerpts from PopularScience.Full article available here The safety of cellphones has been called into question, again. This time the scientific community is paying very close attention. Last summer neurosurgeon Leif Salford and colleagues at Lund University in Sweden published data showing for the first time an unambiguous link between microwave radiation emitted by GSM mobile phones (the most common type worldwide) and brain damage in rats. If Salford's results are confirmed by follow-up studies in the works at research facilities worldwide, including one run by the U.S. Air Force, the data could have serious implications for the one billion?plus people glued …

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/3457823.stm "'If anyone's anger has no measure, it is the wrath of internet zealots who believe that code should be free to all (open source). So, it seems likely that the perpetrators of the MyDoom virus and its variants are internet vandals with a specific grudge." The slashdot crowd is not happy, at all.

As I understand it, the Us's war on Iraq was waged for three reasons: 1. Saddam Hussein is/was a tyrant, guilty of atrocities. 2. Iraq has/had WMD. 3. There is/was a link between Iraq and Al-Qaida. Obviously no sane person could argue against reason #1, but seeing as no WMD (as of yet) have been found and even more importantly no Iraq-Al Qaida link has been discovered, President Bush has set a dangerous standard for the US as the world's police force. The US is now responsible for invading any country found to have: 1. A tyrant, guilty of atrocities. 2. WMD. Using these guidelines, it is the US's duty to invade North Korea. Not only do th…

http://blugg.com/stuff/foxs_view_of_the_bbc_player.htm Oh. My. God. What is wrong with him? Who is he?

how do you guys feel about the controversial PATRIOT Act (i know thats an acronym, but im too lazy to look it up)? Doesn't this "Big Brother" type government make you nervous? hmm, looks like George Orwell was 20 years early on that one. This act makes it possible for government to virtually watch everything you do (including taking a shower or dropping a load for suspected persons, im sure) in your everday life. Can't remember how many gallons of milk you bought last week? just call up big brother himself, donald rumsfeld, and he can let you know! and with their electronic surveillance in place, who knows...maybe im getting monitored for writing this thread on this …

Anyone watching a speech by President Bush will notice the conspicuous references he makes to his religion and his God. He had ended his speeches with “God Bless America”, and he has often declared himself a ‘born again Christian’. He even told Palestinians that God told him to ‘attack’ Al-Qaida and to attack Iraq. And, Bush has consulted his faith in determining some of his principles such as Gay Rights or stem cell research. Yet in other areas, GW’s faith has seemed to have entirely left him. After the attacks of 9/11, Bush did not ‘Turn the other Cheek’ as commanded by his Lord. He took vengeance for himself, also a no-no with his savior. Bush’s speeches that su…

Not one , not two , but three different inquiries in the space of three days! Why has the Janet Jackson thing "sparked feverish debate in the US"? Who seriously cares? (Apart from Concerned Women for America. What are they concerned about, anyway?) Why isn't the whole country up in arms about bombing a country for, as it turns out, no real reason? This sort of thing makes me so mad.

I was wondering the other day, which president was the most pollitically incorrect?---I did a survey in my E/P science class, and came out with people saying bush, 8 clintion, 1 washington, and 1 JFK---I was wondering what you thought---I'm all washington---Oh well---

Georgia has now proposed that the term "evolution" be replaced with "biological changes over time." Decision scheduled for May

Seem's as if the BBC is in a bit of hot water recently. I guess this hits closer to home for the british folk. What do you guys make of it?

The original and the remix At least you'll never see a Republican acting like that