Nanotechnology ... is an exciting and relatively unexplored scientific and technological frontier offering many new insights and applications but at the same time giving rise to much speculation and hyperbole. From an applications perspective, microtechnologies and nanotechnologies offer a particularly powerful combination [and] deserve careful consideration.

Read the full text of this National Academies Press book online.

Implications of Emerging Micro and Nanotechnology

Yet the very essence of democracy is the absolute faith that while people must cooperate, the first function of democracy, its peculiar gift, is to develop each individual into everything that he might be. But I submit to you that when in each man the dream of personal greatness dies, democracy loses the real source of its future strength."

Generation of Greatness

"If you dream of something worth doing and then simply go to work on it and don't think anything of personalities, or emotional conflicts, or of money, or of family distractions; if you just think of, detail by detail, what you have to do next, it is a wonderful dream even though the end is a long way off, for there are about five thousand steps to be taken before we realize it; and start taking the first ten, and stay making twenty after, it is amazing how quickly you get through those five thousand steps. Rather, I should say, through the four thousand nine hundred and ninety. The last ten steps you never seem to work out. But you keep on coming nearer to giving the world something well worth having."

    -- Edwin H. Land to Polaroid employees, 23 December 1942

On March 23-24, 2003, the second in a series of international workshops on interstellar message design will be held in Paris. The workshop will focus on two broad themes: first, the interface of art, science, and technology in interstellar message design; and second, how to communicate concepts of altruism in interstellar messages.

Now, this is a SETI project I like ... plus, it could help to revive a long-running debate.

Alternatively, if you're in the mood to ponder "The Question": have you considered becoming an intergalactically renowned author? Unfortunately, no matter how well your work sells, the royalty payments will never arrive within your lifetime. Unless you're Mickey Mouse, of course.

Encoding Altruism: The Art and Science of Interstellar Message Composition 2003 workshop

RIAA: "The import of those products would be an act of piracy. The industry is regretful that these absolutely piratical products are being released."

Larry Lessig reports that a decision in his Supreme Court case could be coming "as early as this month." Stay tuned ...

European Copyrights Expiring on Recordings From 1950's

Wow.

Watch the trailer now. Then see the film when it comes to a theater near you.

The Pianist (2002)

Dr. Pinker argued that these fears are based on fallacies. Scientific discoveries about the genetic, evolutionary, and neurobiological bases of the mind do not, in fact, threaten central values, but rather can strengthen them. Once empirical discoveries on how the mind works are distinguished from moral and political issues, we can have both an honest science of human nature and values such as individual responsibility and political equity.

Listen to an audio file of the lecture.

The Modern Denial of Human Nature | Steven Pinker Lecture

Decius wrote:
]] Al-Jazeera, the Arab satellite television channel
]] known to broadcast statements from Osama bin Laden,
]] will reach out to the West starting in February
]] with an English-language Web site.
]
] Yes! ... it'll be great to get Arabic news from
] the source (or at least closer to the source).

Indeed, this is a positive step. Now we can all engage in the "public diplomacy" that is necessary to avoid creating misunderstanding that fuels hatred and incites conflict. You'll see that the CFR has recently re-endorsed the idea of creating a market for Arabic-language Western media, which serves as a good complement to an English Al-Jazeera.

CNN has been running an Arabic-language Web site for some time now. I hope that Al-Jazeer will follow up with an English-language television channel, as well.

Tom, based on your prior posts, I know that you are aware of MEMRI, the Middle East Media Research Institute, which translates selected news articles and other media from the Middle East into English.

I've linked to MEMRI here in case others want to review it.

MEMRI: Middle East Media Research Institute

Abstract: We describe the generation of transgenic silkworms that produce cocoons containing recombinant human collagen. A fusion cDNA was constructed encoding a protein that incorporated a human type III procollagen mini-chain with C-propeptide deleted, a fibroin light chain (L-chain), and an enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP).

This cDNA was ligated downstream of the fibroin L-chain promoter and inserted into a piggyBac vector. Silkworm eggs were injected with the vectors, producing worms displaying EGFP fluorescence in their silk glands. The cocoons emitted EGFP fluorescence, indicating that the promoter and fibroin L-chain cDNAs directed the synthesized products to be secreted into cocoons.

The presence of fusion proteins in cocoons was demonstrated by immunoblotting, collagenase-sensitivity tests, and amino acid sequencing. The fusion proteins from cocoons were purified to a single electrophoretic band. This study demonstrates the viability of transgenic silkworms as a tool for producing useful proteins in bulk.

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Transgenic silkworms produce recombinant human type III procollagen in cocoons

] A silkworm that spins a protein from human skin has been
] created in Japan. The technology could introduce
] biotechnology to silk-manufacturing countries.
]
] The genetically engineered worms spool out thread that
] contains a form of the human protein collagen and weave
] it into their cocoons1. The insects carry sections of the
] human collagen gene.

Here's the news coverage from Nature Scence Update.

Silkworm spins skin