Gel may protect soldiers from bullets

British defense officials say they hope a shock-absorbing gel already being used in sporting equipment can protect soldiers from bullets. The gel will be used inside military helmets The Telegraph reported. A small company that developed the substance has been awarded a $150 000 contract. The gel named d30 hardens when it is hit with a high impact. If a helmet lined with d30 was hit by a bullet or piece of shrapnel the gel would absorb much of the impact reducing the kinetic energy by half experts say.

“When moved slowly the molecules will slip past each other but in a high-energy impact they will snag and lock together becoming solid ” said Richard Palmer who invented d30. “In doing so they absorb energy.” The gel has been incorporated into shin guards riding equipment and even ballet pointe shoes.

via Gel may protect soldiers from bullets – UPI.com.

I wouldn’t mind owning a shirt made of this super material.

Sir David Attenborough: Yetis real

SIR David Attenborough said last night he believes there is “very convincing” evidence Yetis exist.

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The wildlife expert, 82, said he was “baffled” by the ape-like ‘Abominable Snowman’ — said to roam the Himalayas.

He said: “Very convincing footprints have been found at 19,000ft. No one does that for a joke.”

via Sir David Attenborough: Yetis real | The Sun |Showbiz|TV.

A New Kind Of Cigarette

With its slim white body and glowing amber tip it can easily pass as a regular cigarette. It even emits what look like curlicues of white smoke. The Ruyan V8 which produces a nicotine-infused mist absorbed directly into the lungs is just one of a rapidly growing array of electronic cigarettes attracting attention in China the U.S. and elsewhere — and the scrutiny of world health officials. Marketed as a healthier alternative to smoking and a potential way to kick the habit the smokeless smokes have been distributed in swag bags at the British film awards and hawked at an international trade show. Because no burning is involved makers say there s no hazardous cocktail of cancer-causing chemicals and gases like those produced by a regular cigarette.

There s no secondhand smoke so they can be used in places where cigarettes are banned the makers say. Health authorities are questioning those claims. The World Health Organization issued a statement in September warning there was no evidence to back up contentions that e-cigarettes are a safe substitute for smoking or a way to help smokers quit. It also said companies should stop marketing them that way especially since the product may undermine smoking prevention efforts because they look like the real thing and may lure nonsmokers including children. “There is not sufficient evidence that they are safe products for human consumption “

Timothy O Leary a communications officer at the WHO s Tobacco Free Initiative in Geneva said this week. The laundry list of WHO s concerns includes the lack of conclusive studies and information about e-cigarette contents and their long-term health effects he said. Unlike other nicotine-replacement therapies such as patches for slow delivery through the skin gum or candy for absorption in the mouth or inhalers and nasal sprays e-cigarettes have not gone through rigorous testing O Leary said.

via WBBM 780 – Chicago’s #1 source for local news, traffic and weather – A New Kind Of Cigarette.

Sex charge teacher walks free from court (From The Oxford Times)

Controversial judge Julian Hall today let a teacher who had sex with a 15-year-old boy walk free after saying he wasn’t sure she harmed him.

Catherine Armstrong, 33, had promised the boy a “birthday bonk” for his 16th and had sex with him several times while he was still 15.

She initially denied the charges but then admitted two counts of sexual activity with a child and one of touching him while in a position of trust.

The teenager — who cannot be identified but has learning difficulties — asked Judge Hall at the trial to be “nice to her” when he sentenced her.

He said it took him “a stupidly long time to realise that what we were doing was wrong”.

Mother-of-two Armstrong, of Hunt Road, Thame, wrote emails to her young lover after the relationship broke down, in which she declared her love.

Yesterday Judge Hall — criticised in the past for his sentencings of paedophiles — gave Armstrong a 12-month prison sentence but suspended it for two years after calling the case unique. He said: “I find it impossible to decide if he has been harmed by what you did but you shouldn’t have done it.”

She will sign the Sex Offenders’ Register for five years.

via Sex charge teacher walks free from court (From The Oxford Times).

Here is a similar story:

Judge Sees No Harm In 13-Year-Old’s Sex With Teacher

5-24-2

A teacher who admitted having a sexual relationship with a 13-year-old student was sentenced to five years probation. Pamela Diehl-Moore, 43, pleaded guilty in January to sexual assault as part of an agreement to avoid a possible three-year prison sentence.

“I really don’t see the harm that was done and certainly society doesn’t need to be worried,” Judge Bruce Gaeta said Wednesday. He ordered Diehl-Moore to continue counseling for severe depression. The boy had just completed Diehl-Moore’s seventh-grade class at Woodrow Wilson Middle School in Clifton when the six-month relationship began in the summer of 1999, authorities said. Gaeta said the boy did not appear to suffer any psychological damage. “Maybe it was a way for him, once this happened, to satisfy his sexual needs. People mature at different ages,” he said.

Diehl-Moore, a divorcee with two daughters, was suspended following her 2001 arrest and has since lost her teaching license. – freerepublic

When I was a boy of 13 sleeping over at a friend’s house, I found myself in a situation where I might have had sex with an older woman. She was a hot blond college girl, probably 19, a friend of the family I was staying with. She was definitely interested and my hormones were raging, but she made a wise choice and told me that my first time should be special and with someone my own age. I honestly don’t think having sex with her that night would have damaged my brain, but I was glad in the long run. I thank her now, because my first time (16 years old) ended up being with someone my own age who I was also in love with.

Unfortunately, my first love was abused by an adult. She was raped by a man named Hank when she was 13. She had many problems including an eating disorder and depression. As a boy, I wanted to kill him, but she never told me more than his first name and the fact that he wore red. She hated red. Ultimately, as her trust was violated, she became untrustworthy. She did not get the help she needed. Instead, she’d learned selfishness and deception. She slept around, lied and broke hearts. Mine was the first of many. We got back together briefly in college. She was still messed up. It was so sad and ultimately motivated me to get a degree in Psychology because I wanted to help this friend I also loved, but I did not know how.

The circumstances of each case do matter. I’ve seen that working in group homes with kids. Some get very messed up mentally and some do not seem damaged. Still, I believe we are correct as a society in our current position.

The laws exist for a reason. The ripple effect is real.

U2 play surprise rooftop concert

Rock band U2 have played a surprise gig on top of BBC Broadcasting House, in central London.

A crowd of around 5,000 watched the rooftop show, which capped off a day of promotion for the Irish band’s 12th studio album No Line On The Horizon.

U2 had been special guests on BBC Radio 1 and rumours of the gig appeared on internet message boards during the day.

The band performed four tracks during the 20-minute gig, including new songs Get On Your Boots and Magnificent.

Bono told the crowd: “This is a great honour. This is the first time we’ve played these songs to people, so we hope we don’t screw it up.”

U2 also performed Beautiful Day and Vertigo, as onlookers danced, clapped and sang along in the street below.

via BBC NEWS | Entertainment | U2 play surprise rooftop concert.

US economy suffers sharp nosedive

The US economy shrank by 6.2% in the last three months of 2008, official figures have shown, a far sharper fall than had previously been reported.

Plunging exports and the biggest fall in consumer spending in 28 years dragged the annualised figure down from an earlier estimate of 3.8%.

The decline was much worse than analysts had expected, sending US stocks spiralling lower.

In 2008 as a whole, the economy grew by 1.1%, the slowest pace since 2001.

via BBC NEWS | Business | US economy suffers sharp nosedive.

I think Ron Paul’s ideas make the most sense.

It is difficult to fix something if you don’t understand it.  We all know that the economy is in a lot of trouble.  Ron Paul has been studying economics for decades and knows why the economy is in trouble.  He has been warning people in Washington about it for a long time and the more his “predictions” come true, (they are not really predictions, they are a rational analysis of what will occur if you take actions a, b and c), the more people are starting to listen to him and turn to him for answers.  Ron Paul is currently the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on domestic and International and Monetary Policy, Trade, and Technology.  He has also authored several books on monetary politics and economics.

On January 24, 2008, Ron Paul unveiled his four point plan to save our economy.  This plan is a mix of tax reforms, spending reforms, monetary policy reforms and ending burdensome regulations that stifle corporate growth and sends companies overseas.  In fact, if you look over the whole plan, it is quite beneficial to those near the bottom, and does not add a crippling debt to future generations and helps most of us now.

Ron Paul is the man for the people.  He was a doctor for many years, he delivered over 4000 babies and he cares about people – the little folks on the ground who wince when they have to pay $32.00 to buy two packages of toilet paper and fifty dollars to fill up a small sedan.  In the past few months, the cost of a bag of dry cat food has gone from $7.99 to $12.99.  These are big increases folks.  Increases that are starting to really hurt people who thought they were going to be fine and are devastating to those on fixed incomes.

Ron Paul’s tax reform includes eliminating taxes on dividends and savings.  This will give people an incentive to save rather than consume.  With the dollar falling so fast, and taxes on savings who can blame people for wanting to get rid of their dollars while they still have some worth?  Ron Paul can help.

Ron Paul also wants to repeal the Death Tax.  There is no reason why a parent should not be allowed to pass their money to their own children rather than give it to the government.

Ron Paul wants to eliminate taxes on Social Security benefits.  He writes: That money belongs to seniors, not the government. They paid into the system for a lifetime, and they should be free to spend every penny as they see fit. What more needs to be said?

Ron Paul would also eliminate taxes on capital gains and eliminate taxes on tips.  That last one is a big deal to a lot of hard working single mothers, college students, heck, anyone living off of tips works hard for the money. …

End of the World 3D Street Art

Some great stuff:

Edgar Mueller is a 3-D street artist like Julian Beever, except he works in paint instead of chalk. This is one of three massive, street-filling pieces by Edgar … – geekology

Obama backs Moon return in NASA budget

NASA will stay on track to return humans to the Moon by 2020, according to an overview of President Obama’s 2010 budget request released on Thursday.

Recently, various groups – including Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin and the space advocacy group the Planetary Society – have called for NASA to send astronauts to new destinations, such as asteroids.

But the budget request backs a plan developed under the Bush administration to retire the space shuttle by 2010 and develop a system to return humans to the Moon by 2020.

However, the document does not specify whether the Moon return will be accomplished by NASA’s Constellation programme, which aims to build a crew capsule called Orion and rockets called Ares to replace the shuttle.

Obama’s transition team was reported to have raised questions about the programme’s Ares rockets, which have been plagued by design concerns that include excess vibrations.

Some argue that existing rockets, such as the Atlas V or Delta IV currently used to loft spacecraft, would be better alternatives, while others back a new design.

NASA’s former chief, Mike Griffin, was a staunch supporter of the Constellation programme, but he resigned in January and his successor has not yet been named.

via Obama backs Moon return in NASA budget – space – 26 February 2009 – New Scientist.

Been there, done that.  Why would Buzz not want people to try to return the Moon?  The US Department of Space has a nice ring to it.

There is limited value in returning to the Moon, according to a report co-authored by Apollo astronaut Buzz Aldrin … “There is neither significant (or short-term) science value nor space exploration and operation value in revisiting an Earth-orbit destination that was explored by mankind four decades ago.”

Instead, the authors say the US human exploration programme should focus first on sending astronauts to an asteroid or to L2, one of five gravitational ‘sweet spots‘ around Earth’s orbit. There, spacecraft essentially could be parked so that they could keep pace with Earth on their orbits around the Sun.

The authors say the site, which is farther away than the Moon, could host a space-station-like outpost. It could also act as an intermediate step on the way to Mars, where human missions could initially be sent to Mars’s moon Phobos before landing on the Red Planet itself.

If the US did return to the Moon, the venture should be part of larger commercial or international efforts, the authors say.

To explore those options better, the authors propose that a new cabinet-level office be developed – the US Department of Space. It would take over from NASA and expand the agency’s current efforts to work with businesses on space vehicles to reach destinations in low-Earth orbit, such as the International Space Station. The department would also help spur the development of other technologies, including beaming solar energy down from space.

- ns

Colorado Backyard Yields Cache of Stone Age Tools

Researchers into the ancient human past are used to wandering the world in search of artifacts. But scientists at the University of Colorado said Wednesday that a major cache of Stone Age tools, believed to be 13,000 years old, had been found in a suburban backyard just six blocks from the campus in Boulder.

“I’m used to going hell and gone across the landscape to look,” said Douglas Bamforth, a professor of anthropology who analyzed the cache. “This time I walked.”

The 83 stone-cutting implements, some with enough blood residue on them to identify the animals they had been used to butcher, are believed to have belonged to a nomadic people who probably buried the tools for later retrieval, but never returned, Professor Bamforth said.

He added that the trove was one of only a handful of major tool caches ever found of that age in North America, and the first to identify protein residue from a now-extinct camel that the hunters had perhaps eaten before hiding their equipment and moving.

The homeowner, Patrick J. Mahaffy, said landscapers were digging out a space to build a fish pond last May when their shovels struck stone, unearthing the space where the tools had been buried. Reporting of the find was delayed until Wednesday to complete analysis, university officials said.

Mr. Mahaffy said that his area of Boulder, northwest of Denver, has been developed for decades — the house itself was built in 1969 — but that somehow that part of the yard had never been dug out.

He said he was struck by the beauty of the tools and also how well designed they seemed to be.

“They’re ergonomically perfect,” Mr. Mahaffy said. “They fit perfectly in your palm, and your fingers curl over just where they should.”

via Colorado Backyard Yields Cache of Stone Age Tools – NYTimes.com.

Engineers probing why Mars orbiter unexpectedly entered safe mode; 6th time since 2005 launch – Los Angeles Times

NASA engineers are trying to figure out why an orbiting Mars spacecraft went into safe mode this week.

The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter rebooted its computer Monday, the sixth time it has done so since launching in 2005.Engineers think the craft may have been hit by a cosmic ray that caused it to mistakenly believe there was a power surge. The orbiter is programmed to go into safe mode when it encounters an unknown event.

An exact cause is still under investigation.

Project managers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory say it will take several days for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to return to normal science operations.

via Engineers probing why Mars orbiter unexpectedly entered safe mode; 6th time since 2005 launch – Los Angeles Times.