] BRAUNSCHWEIG, Germany — In these girth-conscious times,
] even weight itself has weight issues. The kilogram is
] getting lighter, scientists say, sowing potential
] confusion over a range of scientific endeavor.
]
] The kilogram is defined by a platinum-iridium cylinder,
] cast in England in 1889. No one knows why it is shedding
] weight, at least in comparison with other reference
] weights, but the change has spurred an international
] search for a more stable definition.

Scientists Struggling to Make the Kilogram Right Again

] Canadian officials quarantined two more cattle herds on
] Thursday, as investigators scrambled to find out how a
] single cow contracted mad cow disease, and if any other
] animals in North America are infected.

New Scientist- Mad cow quarantine in Canada extended

] The Tennessee Department of Health announced Thursday the
] first suspected case of severe acute respiratory
] syndrome, or SARS, in a Tennessee resident.

KnoxNews: SARS in Tennessee

] You no longer expect your grandchildren to live the same
] lives that you did, and your lives are very different
] from your parents lives. Today theres an axiom that the
] only constant is change. But what people dont recognize
] is that the world itself has changed because the greater
] change is accelerating. So our whole concept of what it
] means to be human is going to be changing, and it is
] going to be merging with our technology.

In these slow times a reminder of the sort of thinking that drove the technology community 10 years ago is work having. This is a sort interview with Ray Kurzweil.

[IP] Understanding the Accelerating Rate of Change

] A set of four glass ramps positioned in a square clearly
] show water travelling up each of them before it pours off
] the top, only to start again at the bottom of the next
] ramp.
]
] It is a sight which defies logic, and has become probably
] the most memorable image of this year's show.
]
] Mr Dyson says his inspiration was a drawing by the Dutch
] artist MC Escher (he of Gothic palaces where soldiers are
] eternally walking upstairs, and of patterns where birds
] turn into fish).

Ummmm....I want one of these

BBC NEWS | UK | How does Dyson make water go uphill?

] TORONTO (AP) -- A cow in Alberta has been diagnosed with
] mad cow disease, Canadian officials announced Tuesday in
] what may be the first known case involving cattle born in
] North America.

Nashville - Tennessean.com NATION WORLD NEWS

] A survey has lifted the veil on an unexpected secret -
] many scientists believe in ghosts.
]
] The survey of 18 scientists at Waikato University and
] Britain's Leicester University found that most were not
] willing to rule out the possibility that "some houses are
] haunted by ghosts".
]
] Many also believed it was possible that "wearing
] jewellery made out of certain crystals can help to keep
] you healthy", and that "in the past aliens from some
] other planet have landed on Earth".
]
] But most said astrology and palmistry were "almost
] certainly untrue", and all agreed there was almost
] certainly no truth in the ideas that breaking mirrors or
] "black Fridays" brought bad luck.
]
] A Waikato University researcher and joint author of the
] survey, Dr Richard Coll, said the scientists gave much
] more credence to "superstitions" than he had expected.
] "You might reasonably have expected them to say these
] things are complete nonsense," he said.
]
] "They didn't. The ones they were more likely to believe
] were aliens and ghosts. The aliens one didn't surprise me
] greatly, but the ghosts one did."
]
] The research was inspired by other surveys that found
] widespread superstitious beliefs among the public, high
] school students and science teachers.
]
] The research was inspired by other surveys that found
] widespread superstitious beliefs among the public, high
] school students and science teachers.
]
] The result: The scientists were certainly more sceptical
] than both high school students and science teachers.
] "There was only one person who was totally sceptical
] about all the propositions. She happened to be a
] biologist who was a strong atheist."
]
] There were no differences between the Waikato and
] Leicester samples.

booooooooooooo....and stuff

New Zealand News - NZ - Ghosts lurking in scientist minds

] We make stuffed animals that look like tiny microbes...
] Now available: The Common Cold, The Flu, Sore Throat, and
] Stomach Ache.

These are fucking leet as hell, but my only question is, where is the coronavirus?!?!? I WANT PLUSH SARS damnit:) - Nano

Welcome to GIANTmicrobes!

more comentary on the Jose Padilla saga, this one is a puletser (yeah yeah i dont spell) prize winning jurnalist chastising the media for not giving any coverage to the Padilla case...

when exactly did the we all deside the government didnt need checks and balances any more...

[Hrm....Why is it that civil liberties seem to be a joke these days? Is this the downward spiral into 1984? - Nano]

no-one cares about civil liberties or reason 1502-B why i hate people

Speakers include Albert-Lásló Barabási, professor at Notre Dame and author of "Linked".

[Wow.....I really really really really really wanna go to this - Nano]

The Fourth International Georgia Tech Conference on Bioinformatics