Taiwan’s ‘Carrier Killer’ Aims To Sink China’s Carrier
TAIPEI – In the event of war, Taiwan plans to sink China’s new aircraft carrier, the Varyag, with its new “aircraft carrier killer” missile, the ramjet-powered supersonic anti-ship cruise missile Hsiung Feng 3. The revelation was made Aug. 10 on the same day China launched the Varyag for its first sea trials.
The disclosure came during a preshow media tour of the biennial Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition (TADTE). Journalists inspecting the Hsiung Feng 3 were shocked to see a large mural of the Varyag being attacked by three Hsiung Feng 3 missiles. Two of the missiles impact the carrier’s starboard bow and starboard quarter, with a third missile is en route to the ship.
The mural was reminiscent of similar displays at the Read more…
Italy, Naples: Garbage Truck Swallowed by Sinkhole
Translated:
One dead and two wounded, is the budget of the incident last night in Casalnuovo, near Naples, where a truck for the collection of municipal solid waste ended up in a sinkhole opened up along the roadway. The event happened around one o’clock on a Strettola. As Read more…
Hand sanitizers may increase norovirus risk
Of the 45 facilities that reported preferential use of alcohol-based hand sanitizers in a recent survey, 53% experienced a confirmed outbreak of norovirus, compared with 18% of the 17 facilities that used hand sanitizers less often than soap and water.
Alcohol-based hand sanitizers may not be the panacea for hand hygiene they were once supposed, as mounting research indicates they may not be effective substitutes for soap and water, and in some cases may actually increase the risk for outbreaks of highly contagious viruses in health care settings.
Public health experts, however, say more rigorous investigations will be necessary to trump the convenience of using hand sanitizers, among other benefits, or substantially alter existing recommendations that strongly encourage their use by health care professionals.
It’s widely recognized that improper use of antibiotics contributes greatly to the development and spread of super bugs in health care settings, but the link between hand sanitizers and Read more…
London riots: water cannons to be used on ‘sick society’
David Cameron said that the cannon, previously only used in Ulster, would be available at 24 hours’ notice to deal with the “despicable violence” being seen in cities. Police had already been authorised to use baton rounds, he said. In a sign that other, more draconian, measures will now be at their disposal, he added: “We will do whatever is necessary. Nothing is off the table.”
In his strongest comments yet on the perpetrators of the violence, Mr Cameron said: “There are pockets of our society that are not only broken, but Read more…
Chinese Carrier Sea Trial Raises Concerns
China to give more information about its first aircraft carrier, which was sent out on an initial sea trial Wednesday.
A spokeswoman for the U.S. State Department told reporters that Washington would welcome any kind of explanation China would like to give for needing this kind of equipment. She said China’s lack of transparency about its military acquisitions and its military budget raises concerns.
Earlier Wednesday, Beijing announced that the carrier it purchased from Ukraine in 1998 had left the port of Dalian for its inaugural sea trial.
Little was said about the vessel formerly known as the Varyag until last month when Chinese defense officials said it would Read more…
Think gold is high? Wait till dollar bonds are dumped, Davies says
The West is close to the point where its paper currency system is insolvent, and as a result gold is heading to $5,000 an ounce, according to the manager of a gold fund.
“A paper currency system ultimately ends in insolvency,” said Ben Davies, the chief executive of Hinde Capital in an interview with CNBC.com on Tuesday. “We have arrived at this point in the West. So why own worthless paper?”
His belief that gold will hit $5,000 an ounce is not shared by many major players in the market. On Sunday, Goldman Sachs raised its 12-month price target for gold to $1,860 an ounce. In early trading Tuesday, spot gold hit a record $1,778 an ounce, before pulling back.
Goldman based its new target on Read more…
China releases 600 million wasps to combat moths
Chinese forestry officials have released some 600 million parasitic insects into the north China city of Baoding to combat the spread of the American White Moth that has been (in their caterpillar stage) eating the leaves off of forest and domestic orchard trees, as well as some farm crops. This is the fifth year in a row that Chinese officials have released wasps hoping to reduce the damage caused by the moths.
The American White Moth, known in the U.S. as the Fall Webworm, (though some call them “forest locusts”) creates, during its larval stage, the familiar webbed nests seen on hardwood tree limbs all across the country. It is one of the few insects that have migrated from North America to other parts of the world. The Fall Webworm doesn’t generally harm the trees where it lives, though it does reduce the amount of leaves on them, which isn’t considered all that much of a problem until it moves to Read more…
Religious violence, abuse growing: world study
WASHINGTON — Religious-linked violence and abuse rose around the world between 2006 and 2009, with Christians and Muslims the most common targets, according to a private US study released Tuesday.
“Over the three-year period studied, incidents of either government or social harassment were reported against Christians in 130 countries (66 percent) and against Muslims in 117 countries (59 percent),” said the Pew Research Center’s Forum on Religion and Public Life study.
In 2009, governments in 101 nations, more than half the globe, used at least some measure of force against religious groups. A year earlier only 91 nations had done so, the report said.
As of 2009, more than 2.2 billion people, or nearly a third of the world’s population of 6.9 billion, lived in countries where religious restrictions had risen substantially since Read more…
Solar Storms Building Toward Peak in 2013, NASA Predicts
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| This image from the Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the X6.9 solar flare of Aug. 9, 2011 near the western limb (right edge) of the sun. CREDIT: NASA/SDO/Weather.com |
Solar flares like the huge one that erupted on the sun early today (Aug. 9) will only become more common as our sun nears its maximum level of activity in 2013, scientists say.
Tuesday’s flare was the most powerful sun storm since 2006, and was rated an X6.9 on the three-class scale for solar storms (X-Class is strongest, with M-Class in the middle and C-Class being the weakest).
Flares such as this one could become the norm soon, though, as our sun’s 11-year cycle of magnetic Read more…
Report: Global smart card shipments will overtake mag-stripe by 2015
Smart card shipments, which include contactless payment cards, EMV and non-EMV payment cards, will reach one billion during 2011, according to a recently released report from ABI Research, a market intelligence company specializing in global connectivity and emerging technology.SBI Cards, a joint venture between State Bank of India and GE Capital, has announced that is has migrated to the EMV platform for the majority of its new customers and cards. It is the first credit card company in India to do so.
“The launch of the EMV chip-based cards for over 85 percent of our new cards will help our customers with greater security features and also help us launch more relevant offers for our customers. We will move to EMV for 100 percent of all new customers and cards within a few weeks,” said Kadambi Narahari, CEO, SBI Cards.
ABI Research forecasts that smart card shipments will overtake mag-stripe card shipments by 2015. Smart cards are being endorsed over mag-stripe cards, especially in developing countries, because of the enhanced security and widespread adoption.
“The entire banking population worldwide is Read more…
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