University of Wisconsin-Madison scientists say they are developing a new lithium battery technology capable of making batteries smaller, last longer and, soon, accept a charge from outside the body without the need for surgery. These organosilicon batteries are projected to power tiny implantable devices for more than 12 years
Republican lawmakers are drafting new legislation that will make marriage a requirement for motherhood in the state of Indiana, including specific criminal penalties for unmarried women who do become pregnant by means other than sexual intercourse
. According to a draft of the recommended change in state law, every woman in Indiana seeking to become a mother through assisted reproduction therapy such as in vitro fertilisation, sperm donation, and egg donation, must first file for a petition for parentage
in their local county probate court — via JetAmI
Senator Christine Milne gave a interesting adjournment speech about the culture of fear, intimidation and menace that currently exists in Tasmania as a means of maintaining the power of the forest industry in Tasmania, particularly by Gunns Ltd which, in fact, has become the de facto government of Tasmania and the puppet-master of the Labor Lennon government
. She specifically talks about how their conniving screwed over a young journalist, Wes Young
The retarded monkey boy has asked Congress to consider giving him powers to use the military to enforce quarantines in case of an avian influenza epidemic. He said the military, and perhaps the National Guard, might be needed to take such a role if the feared H5N1 bird flu virus changes enough to cause widespread human infection
SpreadFirefox, the community marketing site for the Mozilla Foundation’s open-source browser Firefox has been hacked, just months after a similar breach occurred — via Kramut Kennels
Sony has an odd response to complaints from fans who have discovered they cannot import their CD content to an iPod. Individuals who complain to Sony BMG about iPod incompatibility are being directed to a web site that provides information on how to work around the technology. In short, some labels appear to have been instructing customers how to defeat DRM — which is a violation of DMCA
Ronnie Barker, who became one of the country’s most popular entertainers through appearances in The Two Ronnies, Open All Hours and Porridge, has died aged 76 after a long period of heart trouble
The Pentagon approved more than $2 billion in possible weapons sales to Saudi Arabia, including combat vehicles, aircraft parts and battlefield communications systems. The Defence Security Cooperation Agency notified Congress of three potential deals. It said the sales would help the US by contributing to the security of a friendly country that continues to be an important force for political stability and economic progress in the Middle East
Google today continues its march toward dominating computer desktops. Google is teaming with Sun in what Sun called a collaborative effort
Two Australian scientists, Robin Warren and Barry Marshall, have been awarded the Nobel prize for medicine for their discovery that stomach ulcers can be caused by a bacterial infection. Thanks to their work these ulcers are often no longer a long-term, frequently disabling problem. They can now be cured with a short-term course of drugs and antibiotics
The Australian Medical Association is backing calls for the Federal Government to consider making a drug used as an alternative to surgical abortion more readily available. The Australian Democrats are seeking to overturn a government decision to ban the use of the drug
The tenth planet in the solar system has a moon at least a tenth of its size. The discovery will allow astronomers to pin down the mass of both objects. The planet was nicknamed Xena after the television warrior princess, and the moon has been dubbed Gabrielle, after the princess’s companion
Centrelink has barred staff from accessing a union web site as the agency’s 25,000 workers in Victoria today start three weeks of rolling national stoppages. The Community and Public Sector Union claims the agency blocked access to its web site on Friday just as it started an online survey on the latest wage offer
It appears that the Hollywood monkeys have finally realised what the rest of us have known for years. Poor box office receipts over the summer weren’t caused by surging fuel costs, changes in audience preferences, or anything else. They were caused by mind-numbingly bad movies
After seven years of production, Star Wreck: In The Pirkinning, the Finnish Star Trek / Babylon 5 parody movie, was finally released on DVD a month ago and is now available for download. In spite of its practically zero budget, the film has a hilariously captivating story, top notch CGI and even a couple of performances from professional actors
MIT is showing off a prototype of a $100 laptop. It uses a 500MHz AMD processor, stores everything on flash memory, and runs Linux. The AC adapter acts as the carrying strap, and there is a hand crank so if you can’t find a source of electricity you can charge it kinetically. The prototype laptop is also much more flexible and durable than your average notebook. In addition the unit has a screen that has a special daylight-friendly black and white mode that makes a great ebook
BitTorrent just got a massive infusion of cash from venture capital firm DCM Doll. Neither BitTorrent nor DCM have publicly stated how a legitimate service would work, but industry insiders have been busy speculating on how the distributed peer-to-peer service could help movie studios and filmmakers make for-pay content available
Leon Holliman Jr of Jacksonville, Florida was reported missing from the River Region Human Services facility last month. On Sunday, he was found in North Carolina dressed like a doctor and driving a stolen ambulance with a dead deer in the back. The police had to shoot out the ambulance’s tyres to catch him. He’s now undergoing psychiatric evaluation — via BoingBoing
New Scientist has found a patent for a microphone that clips on your tooth, meaning you can stay in radio contact even the noisiest situations — like warzones. You use your tongue to flip it on and off
British palaeontologist, Dr David Penney from the University of Manchester, has revealed he has discovered a prehistoric spider preserved in amber, possibly meaning its DNA could be extracted — just as in the film Jurassic Park. The spider, four centimetres long by two centimetres wide, was trapped in resin 20 million years ago but has been perfectly preserved. It is believed to be the first time spider blood has been discovered in amber and could lead to its DNA being extracted
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