SoylentNews

MrPlow writes:

Submitted via IRC for TheMightyBuzzard

Facebook banned libertarian Canadian commentator Lauren Southern for reporting a ban of the administrator of the Disdain for Plebs page.

Update: "Lauren Southern reports that Facebook has lifted her ban."

Source: http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2016/05/21/facebook-bans-canadian-commentator-for-saying-it-targets-conservatives/

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

Humans have changed the world's oceans in ways that have been devastating to many marine species. But, according to new evidence, it appears that the change has so far been good for cephalopods, the group including octopuses, cuttlefish, and squid. The study reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on May 23 shows that cephalopods' numbers have increased significantly over the last six decades.

"The consistency was the biggest surprise," says Zoë Doubleday of Australia's Environment Institute at the University of Adelaide. "Cephalopods are notoriously variable, and population abundance can fluctuate wildly, both within and among species. The fact that we observed consistent, long-term increases in three diverse groups of cephalopods, which inhabit everything from rock pools to open oceans, is remarkable."

According to the researchers, there has been growing speculation that cephalopod populations were proliferating in response to a changing environment, based partly on trends in cephalopod fisheries. Cephalopods are known for rapid growth, short lifespans, and extra-sensitive physiologies, which may allow them to adapt more quickly than many other marine species.

Climate change taketh away, but it also giveth.

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

Microsoft is taking an ax to its smartphone business.

The American tech company is cutting nearly 2,000 jobs, it announced Wednesday, including 1,350 from Finland as it ceases phone design and production in the country.

The Finland layoffs were reported earlier by the Finnish press. After years of partnership, Microsoft acquired Nokia's smartphone business in 2014, giving it a presence in the country. Steve Ballmer, then Microsoft's CEO, said before the acquisition that Finland would become the "hub and the centre for our phone R&D."

But Microsoft's phone business has struggled to eat into the market share of the major players Google and Apple, and Microsoft has since moved away from the Nokia brand, selling off its featurephone business earlier this month.

Microsoft...that name sounds familiar. Didn't they once play in the realm of videogame consoles...?

Original Submission

takyon writes:

A peer-reviewed study published in PLOS ONE has found that lego products "have become more violent over time":

Lego products are becoming increasingly violent as toymakers engage in an "arms race" to catch children's attention in the digital age, a new study says. New Zealand researchers say bricks with weapons have steadily become more commonplace and are now included in 30% of Lego kits. The study said Lego reflected a broader trend in children's entertainment. Lego says weapons are always used for a wider purpose such as saving the world, and are part of a child's development.

The last line of the abstract says "The LEGO Company's products are not as innocent as they used to be."

Have LEGO Products Become More Violent? (open, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0155401)

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Carnegie Mellon University will be hosting a competition pitting grad student teams against each other as they analyze one of several neuroscience-related datasets:

Carnegie Mellon University's BrainHub will host its first Neurohackathon, sponsored by Qualcomm, May 24-25. The event is one of the first hackathons to engage computer scientists in using one of the hardest systems to crack: the structure of neural data and the brain.

[...] During the hackathon, graduate [students] will be given data sets gathered from the labs of neuroscience researchers in the College of Engineering, Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences, Mellon College of Science and School of Computer Science and asked to develop solutions for analyzing the data. Datasets include:

• Human brain neuroanatomy from MRI images
• How is running represented in the mouse cortex
• Epigenetic regulation of genome function and brain disease
• Cell-type identification through electrophysiological fingerprinting

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Google's Paris offices have been raided as part of an ongoing tax investigation:

Google's office in central Paris was raided this morning by police, directed by French financial officials, over alleged underpayment of taxes. More than 100 investigators and five magistrates were involved in the raid, which happened shortly after 5am on Tuesday morning, Reuters reported.

This has been confirmed to The Register, with a Google spokesperson stating: "We comply with French law and are cooperating fully with the authorities to answer their questions."

Also at The Guardian and NPR:

Reuters says the company's practice of routing those profits first through Ireland and then on to Bermuda to avoid taxes has drawn criticism. The French government is seeking €1.6 billion in back taxes from Google, The Guardian reported in February, citing an unnamed source at the French Finance Ministry. In January, Google agreed to pay £130 million in back taxes to the U.K. government.

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

Six years ago we showed the crazy Chinese 3D fast bus and everyone thought it was silly vaporware. Three years ago we showed an updated version, the Land Airbus which got to the animated video stage. Now it appears that it is at the model stage, zipping through the International High-tech Expo in Beijing the other day.

At 60 Km/hr It's not quite as fast as a hyperloop, but it holds 1400 passengers in comfort as it zips down the highway, and it is really designed as urban transport. Designer Song Youzhou says it will save a lot of road space, costing only 15% what a subway costs but serving pretty much the same function. It can also be built much more quickly. Given that it has the capacity of 40 buses, it will significantly reduce pollution and carbon dioxide emissions.

It will work wonderfully if drivers stay neatly within their lanes and never block the box at intersections.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

A team at Oak Ridge National Laboratory has produced quantum dots using a biological process that is cheaper and less toxic than competing methods:

A method to produce significant amounts of semiconducting nanoparticles for light-emitting displays, sensors, solar panels and biomedical applications has gained momentum with a demonstration by researchers at the Department of Energy's Oak Ridge National Laboratory. While zinc sulfide nanoparticles – a type of quantum dot that is a semiconductor – have many potential applications, high cost and limited availability have been obstacles to their widespread use. That could change, however, because of a scalable ORNL technique outlined in a paper published in Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology.

Unlike conventional inorganic approaches that use expensive precursors, toxic chemicals, high temperatures and high pressures, a team led by ORNL's Ji-Won Moon used bacteria fed by inexpensive sugar at a temperature of 150 degrees Fahrenheit in 25- and 250-gallon reactors. Ultimately, the team produced about three-fourths of a pound of zinc sulfide nanoparticles – without process optimization, leaving room for even higher yields.

Manufacturing demonstration of microbially mediated zinc sulfide nanoparticles in pilot-plant scale reactors (DOI: 10.1007/s00253-016-7556-y)

Related: ORNL Demonstrates Large Scale Production of Graphene

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

In general, supercapacitors can store several times more charge in a given volume or mass than traditional capacitors, have faster charge and discharge rates, and are very stable. Over the past few years, researchers have begun working on making supercapacitors that are transparent and flexible due to their potential use in a wide variety of applications.

"Potential applications can be roughly divided into two categories: high-aesthetic-value products, such as activity bands and smart clothes, and inherently transparent end-uses, such as displays and windows," coauthor Tanja Kallio, an associate professor at Aalto University who is currently a visiting professor at the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology, told Phys.org. "The latter include, for example, such future applications as smart windows for automobiles and aerospace vehicles, self-powered rolled-up displays, self-powered wearable optoelectronics, and electronic skin."

[...] In the new study, the researchers demonstrated a new method to fabricate thin films made of single-walled carbon nanotubes using a one-step aerosol synthesis method. When incorporated into a supercapacitor, the thin films exhibit the highest transparency to date (92%), the highest mass specific capacitance (178 F/g), and one of the highest area specific capacitances (552 µF/cm2) compared to other carbon-based, flexible, transparent supercapacitors. The films also have a high stability, as demonstrated by the fact that their capacitance does not degrade after 10,000 charging cycles.

Smart clothes sound great as long as they don't spy on you or try to sell you stuff.

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

Scientists in Japan have designed new molecules that modify the circadian rhythm, opening the way to the possibility of managing jet lag and improving treatments for sleep disorders.

The negative impacts of jet lag and shift work could be significantly reduced if it were possible to reset our 24-hour natural circadian or sleep/wake cycle. Researchers at Nagoya University's Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (ITbM) have taken the first step in that direction by synthesising molecules that can shorten the circadian period. These molecules act directly on one of our "clock proteins", called CRY.

Most living organisms, including humans, have a biological clock that resets every 24 hours, regulating functions such as sleep/wake cycles and metabolism. When this cycle is disrupted, like in jet lag, sleep disorders ensue. Long-term sleep loss may affect the cardiovascular, endocrine, immune and nervous systems with severe consequences including hypertension, obesity and mental health disorders, among others.

Our biological clock is basically run by four "master regulator" proteins that work in tandem. CLOCK and BMAL1, when combined, promote the production of the proteins PER and CRY. These proteins, in turn, block CLOCK and BMAL1, thus closing the cycle. This cycle of activation, production and stop/block goes around once a day and is also influenced by a compound called FBXL3, which flags CRY for degradation by cellular enzymes.

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

Forecast: cloudy with a chance of poetry? Invisible verse sees the light of day during drizzly weather.

Street art adds spark and creativity to sometimes bleak urban environments; meanwhile, graffiti damages property and is a sign of blight to many. But what if you could leave your mark in invisible ink?

A public art project by Mass Poetry, in collaboration with The City of Boston, is doing just that. Launched in honor of National Poetry Month, "Raining Poetry" is a series of poems stenciled throughout the city's sidewalks. The spray used to write the poems is invisible; when the surrounding pavement is darkened by rain, the dry words emerge and treat pedestrians to the secret poems that quietly wait to be read.

Sounds like something that would appeal to the Geocaching crowd or the flash-drive dead-drop crowd (funny aside: the guy in that picture is Bre Pettis, co-founder of MakerBot).

Original Submission

HughPickens.com writes:

Ron Nixon reports at The New York Times that facing a backlash over long security lines and management problems, TSA administrator Peter V. Neffenger has shaken up his leadership team, replacing the agency's top security official Kelly Hoggan and adding a new group of administrators at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Beginning late that year, Hoggan received $90,000 in bonuses over a 13-month period, even though a leaked report from the Department of Homeland Security showed that auditors were able to get fake weapons and explosives past security screeners 95 percent of the time in 70 covert tests. Hoggan's bonus was paid out in $10,000 increments, an arrangement that members of Congress have said was intended to disguise the payments. During a hearing of the House Oversight Committee two weeks ago, lawmakers grilled Mr. Neffenger about the bonus, which was issued before he joined the agency in July. Last week and over the weekend, hundreds of passengers, including 450 on American Airlines alone, missed flights because of waits of two or three hours in security lines, according to local news reports. Many of the passengers had to spend the night in the terminal sleeping on cots. The TSA has sent 58 additional security officers and four more bomb-sniffing dog teams to O'Hare.

Several current and former TSA employees said the moves to replace Hoggan and add the new officials in Chicago, where passengers have endured hours long waits at security checkpoints, were insufficient. "The timing of this decision is too late to make a real difference for the summer," says Andrew Rhoades, an assistant federal security director at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport who testified his supervisor accused him of "going native" after attending a meeting at a local mosque and that TSA's alleged practice of "directed reassignments," or unwanted job transfers were intended to punish employees who speak their minds.. "Neffenger is only doing this because the media and Congress are making him look bad."

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Archaeologists have unearthed an approximately 5,000-year-old brewery in China:

It's the oldest beer-making facility ever discovered in China – and the evidence indicates that these early brewers were already using specialized tools and advanced beer-making techniques. For instance, the scientists found a pottery stove, which the ancient brewers would have heated to break down carbohydrates to sugar. And the brewery's underground location was important for both storing beer and controlling temperature – too much heat can destroy the enzymes responsible for that carb-to-sugar conversion, explains Patrick McGovern, a biomolecular archaeologist at the University of Pennsylvania Museum in Philadelphia, who was not involved in the current research.

[...] The research group inspected the pots and jugs, and found ancient grains that had lingered inside. The grains showed evidence that they had been damaged by malting and mashing, two key steps in beer making. Residue from inside the uncovered pots and funnels was tested with ion chromatography to find out what the ancient beer was made of. The 5,000-year-old beer "recipe" was published [DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1601465113] on Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

India has launched a miniature space shuttle called the Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV-TD). The purpose of the launch was to collect data about hypersonic flight and autonomous landing. The 1.75-ton model craft cost just $14 million to build:

India has launched an unmanned model space shuttle, joining the race to develop reusable spacecraft. The 7m-scale model took off from Andhra Pradesh and was expected to fly about 70km (43 miles) into the atmosphere before coming down at sea. Since Nasa stopped its Space Shuttle programme in 2011, there has been strong international competition to design alternative reusable spacecraft. Such vehicles could significantly cut the cost of space exploration.

India has been putting substantial research and resources into its space programme. A Mars orbiter launched in 2013 is its most high-profile space venture to date. It hopes to launch a full-scale reusable shuttle within a decade.

At The Space Review:

The experience and knowledge gained by the SRE-1 and CARE missions will be used for the human spaceflight program. While the RLV-TD flight has nothing to do with human missions, the experiment has great utility and hence the landing tests would add to competencies of ISRO. Nonetheless, the landing experiments (LEX) phase is yet to follow. Quite clearly, what is planned for May is but the first small step in a series of tests. One needs to be cognizant of the challenges inherent in the endeavor before prematurely raising expectations to the same levels as the American Space Shuttle.

Original Submission

Phoenix666 writes:

The lack of participation in clinical research may be the Achilles' heel of today's cancer community. According to a new survey of more than 1,500 consumers and nearly 600 physicians conducted on behalf of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK), only 35 percent of Americans indicated that they were "likely" to enroll in a clinical trial. Other studies have shown that only 4 percent of cancer patients enroll in clinical trials nationally each year.

Additionally, the new data shows that only 40 percent of Americans have a positive overall impression of clinical trials. Taken together, these statistics are sobering given that nearly every advance in cancer today was first evaluated in a clinical trial. Clinical research is increasingly dependent upon larger numbers of cancer patients participating. Fortunately, education makes a measurable and immediate difference. After reading a brief statement defining clinical trials, the number of respondents who had a positive impression of these studies jumped significantly, from 40 to 60 percent.

"When it comes to advancing cancer care, clinical research is the rocket fuel for better treatments, more accurate diagnoses, and, ultimately, cures," said José Baselga, MD, PhD, Physician-in-Chief and Chief Medical Officer at MSK, where more than 900 cancer clinical trials are currently under way. "If this trend of low enrollment continues, we will face a crisis in cancer research and discovery. Further education is the key to participation and progress."

Consumer respondents cited a range of concerns as barriers to clinical trial participation:

• Worry over side effects / safety (55 percent)
• Uncertainty about insurance and out-of-pocket costs (50 percent)
• Inconvenience of trial locations (48 percent)
• Concerns about getting a placebo (46 percent)
• Skeptical of a treatment that is not yet proven to work (35 percent)
• Worries over feeling like "guinea pigs" (34 percent)

Experiences like the Tuskegee Experiments reduce the public's willingness to trust medical personnel? You don't say...

Original Submission