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Archive for March 24, 2011

Scientists Create Animals That are Part-Human – stem cell experiments leading to genetic mixing of species

March 24, 2011 Comments off

Source: MSNBC, April 29, 2005


Sheep that have partially human livers, hearts, brains and other organs are shown here at the University of Nevada, in Sparks, Nev., on April 27. 

RENO, Nev. — On a farm about six miles outside this gambling town, Jason Chamberlain looks over a flock of about 50 smelly sheep, many of them possessing partially human livers, hearts, brains and other organs.

The University of Nevada-Reno researcher talks matter-of-factly about his plans to euthanize one of the pregnant sheep in a nearby lab. He can’t wait to examine the effects of the human cells he had injected into the fetus’ brain about two months ago.

“It’s mice on a large scale,” Read more…

Yemen passes emergency laws to quell protests

March 24, 2011 Comments off

www.guardian

MPs back president’s move to suspend constitution, ban street protests and give security agencies greater powers of arrest

Yemeni MPs vote in favour of state of emergencyYemeni MPs raise their hands as they vote in favour of a state of emergency declared by the president. Photograph: Mohammad Huwais/AFP/Getty Images 

Yemen‘s parliament has approved a sweeping set of emergency laws giving broader powers of arrest and censorship to the president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, despite growing calls from opponents demanding he quit to make way for a military-backed democratic transition.

The emergency law, last evoked during Yemen’s 1994 civil war, suspends the constitution, allows for greater media censorship, bans street protests and gives security agencies arbitrary powers to arrest Read more…

USDA Refuses to Enforce Organic Standards, Allows Synthetic Additives in Horizon Organic Milk

March 24, 2011 Comments off

naturalnews.com

The US Department of Agriculture is once again deliberately shirking its responsibility to properly oversee the integrity of the certified organic program. After admitting in a recent letter that a chemically-derived, synthetic omega-3 fatty acid additive produced by Martek Biosciences Corporation is not legitimately organic, the USDA also said it does not plan to take any enforcement action against companies that use it in certified organic products. The Cornucopia Institute (CI), a leading organic industry watchdog, continues to call the USDA out on the matter, exposing the fact that the additive not only has a questionable safety record, but also does not belong in any organic product.

The saga dates back to around 2002 when practically every major brand of infant formula began fortifying its blends with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and arachidonic acid (ARA), two omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids naturally found in human breast milk. Manufacturers began to claim these blends were superior than others, and the closest thing to actual human Read more…

India says Monsanto covertly, illegally conducted GM corn trials without approval

March 24, 2011 Comments off

naturalnews.com

(NaturalNews) Recent reports out of India say that multinational biotechnology giant Monsanto has once against skirted the law by clandestinely planting its genetically-modified (GM) corn without receiving approval to do so. Nitish Kumar, chief minister of the Indian state of Bihar, recently wrote a letter to India’s environment minister Jairam Ramesh explaining the situation. Just days earlier, Ramesh had denied Monsanto permission to plant the crops at all.

When he discovered that Monsanto had schemed with India’s Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) and the Indian Council for Agriculture Research (ICAR) to plant genetically-modified (GM) corn without official approval, Read more…

Critical U.S. Infrastructure at Risk of Cyber Attack, Experts Warn

March 24, 2011 Comments off

foxnews.com

Oct. 26: The reactor building of the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran.

AP

Oct. 26: The reactor building of the Bushehr nuclear power plant in Iran.

Just as the computers that ran Iran’s nuclear program were sabotaged and crippled by a cyber “super worm” virus, the software used to run much of America’s industrial, transportation and power infrastructure — including nuclear power plants and major airports — is vulnerable to cyber attack, and two software companies have revealed dozens of successful hacks to prove it.

The issue lies in specialized software systems sold by Siemens, Iconics, 7-Technologies and others to power plants and other infrastructure. Called “supervisory control and data acquisition” systems, or SCADA, they run software solely for industrial use.

And it’s just as vulnerable as every other program on your Read more…

Report warns flu pandemic could kill 200,000 in Britain

March 24, 2011 Comments off

allheadlinenews.com

50 percent of the British population could develop symptoms of the flu pandemic and may cost the British economy $42 million (GBP 28 billion).

A report released Tuesday identifies the outbreak of a new influenza pandemic as one of the greatest threats facing Britain. The U.K. Influenza Pandemic Preparedness Strategy 2011 estimates the number of potential deaths because of a new flu pandemic could be as high as 200,000.

clearpxl

Aside from the anticipated deaths, the report by the Department of Health said 50 percent of the British population could develop symptoms of the flu pandemic and may cost the British economy Read more…

China May Match India as World’s Biggest Gold Consumer on ‘Amazing’ Demand

March 24, 2011 Comments off

bloomberg.com

Chinese consumption of gold may climb to rival that of India, the top user, as investors buy the metal as a store of value, said GFMS Ltd. and INTL FCStone.

Demand in China, the world’s second-biggest economy, almost tripled to 580 metric tons last year from 206 tons in 2001, data from the producer-funded World Gold Council show. Use in India may slump 5 percent to 26 percent this year from 963 tons in 2010, Morgan Stanley said in a report yesterday.

Bullion soared to a record $1,444.95 an ounce on March 7 and rallied 30 percent last year for a 10th annual gain as investors sought to preserve their wealth against inflation, Middle East unrest and currency debasement. Consumer prices in China climbed 4.9 percent in February from a year ago, exceeding the government’s 4 percent goal for the full year.

“The level of interest in gold as an asset class is just amazing,” Jeffrey Rhodes, global head of precious metals with INTL FCStone in Dubai, said in an interview. “There is potential for China to Read more…

Geologists warn another earthquake could tear Tokyo in two after weakening of fault line below capital

March 24, 2011 Comments off

dailymail.co.uk

Geologists have warned that another powerful earthquake could inflict terrible damage on Tokyo because the Size 9 monster which struck on March 11 has altered the earth’s surface.

The quake has put pressure on the fault lines near the Japanese capital and experts have suggested that a size 7.5 magnitude earthquake could hit.

The structure of the tectonic plates and fault lines around the city makes it unlikely that Tokyo, home to 13million people, would be hit by a quake anywhere near the intensity of the one 10 days ago, said Roger Musson of the British Geological Survey.

Bustling: The busy Japanese capital Tokyo has 13million people living in its centre - and it could be hit by another earthquake very soonBustling: The busy Japanese capital Tokyo has 13million people living in its centre – and it could be Read more…

Libya no-fly zone cost could hit $1 bln in months

March 24, 2011 1 comment

reuters.com

WASHINGTON, March 22 (Reuters) – The no-fly zone over Libya could end up costing the Western coalition more than $1 billion if the operation drags on more than a couple of months, defense analysts say.

Zack Cooper, a senior analyst at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, said the initial cost of eliminating Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi’s air defenses was likely to be between $400 million and $800 million.

The expense of patrolling the no-fly zone once it is established is likely to be $30 million to $100 million a week, he said.

The U.S. military has no official cost figures yet for the operation, which has been going on less Read more…

US bars some Japan foods over radiation fears

March 24, 2011 Comments off

AFP

WASHINGTON – The United States has announced it was barring some food imports from Japan due to fears of radiation and nuclear contamination in the wake of an earthquake and tsunami disaster.

The US Food and Drug Administration said it had placed an import alert on all milk, milk products, fresh vegetables and fruits from certain regions.

This means that no products of these types from the prefectures of Fukushima, Ibaraki, Tochigi and Gunma can enter the United States without first being shown to be safe.

“In addition, FDA will continue to flag all entries from Japan in order to determine whether they originated from the affected area. FDA will test all food and feed shipments from the affected area,” an email statement said.

“FDA import investigators operating at ports of entry have radiation detection devices (radiation pagers) available to them for their personal safety,” the statement Read more…