Genetically Engineered Plants Detect Land Mines

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9 December 2004
1 min read
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In Science
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A Danish company, Aresa Biodetection, has developed genetically-modified flowers that change colour when their roots come in contact with nitrogen dioxide in the soil. Explosives used in mines produce NO² as the chemicals gradually decay. The company plans to sow fields of NO²-sniffing Arabidopsis thaliana (Thale or mouse cress) in areas riddled with long-forgotten ordinance from Angola to Cambodia.

The effort’s life- and limb-saving potential is staggering: More than 100 million land mines kill or injure 26,000 people in 45 countries each year. Today’s most popular detection method is poking around with a stick — via Core77

Lone Activist Group Submits 99.8% Of FCC Complaints

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8 December 2004
39 second read
In Politics, Rights, Technology
564 views

Powell spoke before congress, detailing that complaints to the FCC are up from 14,000 in 2002, to nearly 240,000 in 2003. There were only 350 complaints during 2000 and 2001. Powell failed to mention however that 99.8% of those complaints came from PTC (Parents Television Council). It means that really a tiny minority with a very focused political agenda is trying to censor American television and radio

Wolves’ Genetic Diversity Worryingly Low

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8 December 2004
55 second read
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In Science, Wildlife
623 views

A new study reveals that Wolf eradication in the US has had a far more devastating impact on the genetic diversity of remaining populations than previously thought.

With the Canadian wolf population at a relatively healthy 70,000, it was assumed that the human impact of past mass eradications had been minor. But scientists found a 43% drop in genetic variability in the modern wolves. It is impossible for the wolf populations to recover this important diversity, which enables them to adapt to different environmental challenges.

Giant Squid To Be Plastinated

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7 December 2004
1 min read
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In Art
709 views

Out of its natural habitat, the giant squid Architeuthis dux is something of a flop. They’re so heavy, they collapse under their own weight. You lose the lovely cylindrical mantle and arms, says Steve O’Shea, squid expert at the Auckland University of Technology in New Zealand. So the Kiwis plan to have the squid plastinated by German anatomist Günther von Hagens.

To research the project, von Hagens visited O’Shea in October to study some much smaller species such as arrow squid. We dissected a number of ‘sacrificial’ squid, says O’Shea.

The plastination process could take up to a year, and the squid will need a rigid framework for support, but O’Shea is confident that von Hagens will be able to display the animals.

FairUCE: The Smart E-Mail Proxy

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7 December 2004
51 second read
In Technology
600 views

FairUCE, which stands for Fair use of Unsolicited Commercial Email, is an SMTP proxy, running between multiple instances of Postfix, that verifies e-mail by attempting to verify the sender through lookups, a user customised challenge/response. It claims to be able to stop a vast majority of spam without the need for content filters, and virtually eliminates spoofed addresses, phishing, and even many viruses with a few cached DNS look-ups and a couple of if/then statements

FTA Doubts After ISP Protest

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7 December 2004
56 second read
In Technology
598 views

The passage of the US Free Trade Agreement enabling legislation has been thrown into doubt after the government agreed to an eleventh hour review of key concerns outlined by the Internet Industry Association. The IIA claims the legislative changes would make possession of pirated materials a criminal offence, and could make ISPs criminally liable for pirated material that exists on their systems. The IIA also believes the system of take-down orders proposed through the legislation would put an onerous administrative burden on its members

Musicians Upbeat About The Net

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7 December 2004
40 second read
In Entertainment, Rights, Technology
680 views

A study by US researchers, Pew Internet, suggests musicians do not agree with the tactics adopted by the music industry against file-sharing. While most considered file-sharing as illegal, many disagreed with the lawsuits launched against downloaders. Independent musicians, in particular, saw the internet as a way to get around the need to land a record contract and reach fans directly

Printing Skin For Burn Victims

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5 December 2004
36 second read
In Health, Science
663 views

Looking for a place to toss your old inkjet printers? A team of scientists working to create human tissue may have a good use for them. Inkjets that are ten years old are perfectly suited to create sheets of human skin and other tissue that one day may help burn victims and even manufacture organs

Gunshot Tracking Cameras

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5 December 2004
44 second read
In Technology
578 views

USC engineer, Theodore Berger, has used his expertise with nerve cells to create a surveillance system that can recognise the sound of a nearby gunshot — and identify the shooter. In a unique pilot program, LA and Chicago will deploy test units in high-crime areas. The creator emphasises that the system cannot recognise voices or words, but his previous research into speech recognition systems suggests otherwise — via Slashdot

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