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China Violating Missile Proliferation Controls, Cables State
Recently leaked U.S. diplomatic memos assert that China has flouted missile proliferation controls by selling the arms and their components to Pakistan, Iran and Syria, the Washington Times reported on Wednesday (see GSN, June 2).
A classified September 2009 State Department memo written ahead of a meeting of the 34-nation Missile Technology Control Regime repeatedly references a “lack of political will” on Beijing’s part to block Chinese firms from proliferating missile technology.
The Missile Technology Control Regime is a voluntary coalition of nations that aims to constrain the sale of missiles with traveling distances in excess of roughly 185 miles and explosive payloads weighing more than 1,100 pounds. It also works to head off the proliferation of missiles designed to carry weapons of mass destruction.
“Chinese authorities and firms fail to Read more…
Earthquake hits English Channel ‘Largest since 1734’
The earthquake was the biggest in the area for nearly 300 yearsAn earthquake with a magnitude of 3.9 has struck in the English Channel, the British Geological Survey (BGS) said.
The quake had a depth of 10km and its epicentre was south of Portsmouth, according to the BGS.
Residents in parts of West Sussex reported buildings shaking for a few seconds at about 0800 BST.
Sussex Police, Solent Coastguard and West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service said they had not been called out to any incidents related to it.
‘Largest since 1734′
David Kerridge, from the BGS, said it was the biggest incident of Read more…
Melting glaciers store up trouble
by Julia Slater, swissinfo.ch
As the alpine glaciers shrink they will affect the flow of Europe’s biggest rivers, impacting areas of the economy ranging from shipping to power generation.
Glaciologist Matthias Huss of Fribourg University has discovered that right down to the sea, the Danube, Rhine, Rhone and Po contain a larger proportion of water from glaciers than previously thought.
For example, more than a quarter of the water that flows from the Rhone into the Mediterranean in August has its origin in alpine glaciers. At its mouth in the Netherlands seven percent of the water in the Rhine is Read more…
Silver shines bright, to climb steadily in second half
SINGAPORE/MUMBAI: Silver prices, deeply dented but unbroken by a rout in May, will climb steadily through the second half of the year as investors buy the metal as an alternative to expensive gold.
Despite a swoon following a 60 percent rally to a peak in April, silver continues to lead the precious metals complex with a gain of 24 percent so far this year, outstripping gold’s rise of 11 percent, and retains allure for inflation-wary investors.
Silver , notorious for its price volatility, stung many investors with a drop of 33 percent over six sessions in early May from a record of $49.51 an ounce on April 28.
Silver prices have held above $32 since mid-May, and are set to move higher in Read more…
Texas will be getting another eye in the sky
Second aerial drone is coming to Corpus Christi.
By Gary Martin
WASHINGTON — A second unmanned aerial vehicle soon will be based at Corpus Christi Naval Air Station, providing surveillance of the Gulf Coast and the U.S.-Mexico border above Texas, officials said Wednesday.
A third Predator drone maintained in Arizona is used to monitor Texas border areas over the Big Bend region and El Paso.
Retired Air Force Maj. Gen. Michael Kostelnik, who heads the U.S. Customs and Border Protection UAV program, told a House Homeland Security subcommittee the new drone would provide additional surveillance, and “on any given day there could be three or more (unmanned) aircraft in Texas.”
Texas lawmakers on the Homeland Security Committee asked Secretary Janet Napolitano in a letter this year to base in Texas one of two additional UAVs approved by Congress.
“Technology is part of Read more…
Military Hush-Up: Incoming Objects Now Classified .. Closing the Eyes of a Nation
The upshot: Space rocks that explode in the atmosphere are now classified.
“It’s baffling to us why this would suddenly change,” said one scientist familiar with the work. “It’s unfortunate because there was this great synergy…a very good cooperative arrangement. Systems were put into Read more…
Official confirms ‘carrier killer’ is being developed
GAME CHANGER:Reports claim the Dong Feng 21D anti-ship missile has a range of almost 3,000km, nearly twice as long as previously assessed by the US military
General Chen Bingde speaks during a meeting with US officials at the Bayi Building in Beijing on Monday.Photo: Reuters
People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Chief of General Staff Chen Bingde (陳炳德) confirmed earlier this week that China was developing the Dong Feng 21D anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM), the first Chinese official to publicly state that the missile is in development.
His comments came as the English-language China Daily reported that the DF-21D had a range of 2,700km, well beyond assessments by the Office of Naval Intelligence last year, which put it at about 1,500km.
The missile, which is capable of hitting moving targets at sea and is seen as a potential threat to aircraft carrier battle groups, would represent a powerful deterrent to the US Navy in the Pacific.
However, Chen said the DF-21D, which can be fired from mobile Read more…
Quantitative Easing Rounds 1 and 2 Hurt the Economy … Bernanke Proposes Round 3
georgewashington2.blogspot.com
Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke is hinting at a third round of quantitative easing.
But Dallas Federal Reserve Bank president Richard Fisher said today:
I firmly believe that the Federal Reserve has already pressed the limits of monetary policy. So-called QE2, to my way of thinking, was of doubtful efficacy, which is why I did not support it to begin with. But even if you believe the costs of QE2 were worth its purported benefits, you would be hard pressed to now say that still more liquidity, or more fuel, is called for given the more than $1.5 trillion in excess bank reserves and the Read more…
Nanobots To Swim In Blood Stream To Make Repairs, Rare Earth Replacements Found
Nanoscale robots that can flow through blood or repair complex electronics may yet be a possibility with the help of a new strategy developed at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Although devices such as computer processors can effectively handle electrical signals at the length scale of 10 nanometers, achieving motion at the nanoscale has remained elusive.
Cops to Get Facial Recognition Devices; Will They Need Warrants to Use Them?
Police departments in several states are getting new high-tech devices that can scan irises, recognize faces and collect fingerprints.
The devices, made by BI2 Technologies, are attached to an iPhone for immediate searches of criminal databases, the Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) reports. The development is “raising significant questions about privacy and civil liberties,” the story says.
Currently the technology, called “Moris” for Mobile Offender Recognition and Information System, is used by the military to identify insurgents. But B12 has Read more…
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