Archive for May, 2010
Plug in and Be Lit up by the American Hologram
May 18th, 2010Via: Joe Bageant: Ahhhh … Safely in the American national illusion, where all the world’s a shopping expedition. Or a terrorist threat. No matter, as long as it is colorful and wiggles on the theater state’s 400 million screens. Plug in and be lit up by the American Hologram. This great loom of media images, […]
‘Lack of Trust’ Pummels Bank Lending in Europe
May 18th, 2010Via: Bloomberg: Money markets are showing rising levels of mistrust between Europe’s banks on concern an almost $1 trillion bailout package won’t prevent a sovereign debt default that might trigger a breakup of the euro. Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and Barclays Plc led financial firms punished by rising borrowing costs, British Bankers’ Association […]
MIT-Led Team Designs Airplanes That Would Use 70 Percent Less Fuel Than Current Models
May 18th, 2010Via: MIT News: In what could set the stage for a fundamental shift in commercial aviation, an MIT-led team has designed a green airplane that is estimated to use 70 percent less fuel than current planes while also reducing noise and emission of nitrogen oxides (NOx). The design was one of two that the team, […]
ADHD Linked to Pesticide Exposure
May 17th, 2010Via: CNN: Children exposed to higher levels of a type of pesticide found in trace amounts on commercially grown fruit and vegetables are more likely to have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than children with less exposure, a nationwide study suggests. Researchers measured the levels of pesticide byproducts in the urine of 1,139 children from across […]
Air Tests from the Louisiana Coast Reveal Human Health Threats from the Oil Disaster
May 17th, 2010Via: Institute for Southern Studies: The media coverage of the BP oil disaster to date has focused largely on the threats to wildlife, but the latest evaluation of air monitoring data shows a serious threat to human health from airborne chemicals emitted by the ongoing deepwater gusher. Today the Louisiana Environmental Action Network released its […]
Specter of Inflation Haunts Europe
May 17th, 2010Via: Spiegel: If Europe’s single currency is really to be saved, fundamental reforms have to follow the emergency bailout by euro-zone members. The biggest danger comes, however, from the European Central Bank, which has given up its role as the protector of price stability. The risk of inflation is increasing.
Wikileaks Founder Has Difficulty with Australian Federal Police
May 17th, 2010Via: Times: The Australian founder of the whistleblower website Wikileaks had his passport confiscated by police when he arrived in Melbourne last week. Julian Assange, who does not have an official home base and travels every six weeks, told the Australian current affairs program Dateline that immigration officials had said his passport was going to […]
Scientists Find ‘Baffling’ Link Between Autism and Vinyl Flooring
May 17th, 2010Via: Scientific American: Children who live in homes with vinyl floors, which can emit chemicals called phthalates, are more likely to have autism, according to research by Swedish and U.S. scientists published Monday. The study of Swedish children is among the first to find an apparent connection between an environmental chemical and autism. The scientists […]
Euro Down Hard Again: EUR/USD Breaches 1.23 Intraday
May 17th, 2010We’re off to a pretty hairy start on the Asia FOREX session. EUR/USD 1.2288 Monitoring…
16X Fewer Federal Safety Inspections on Deepwater Horizon Than Required
May 17th, 2010Via: AP: The federal agency responsible for ensuring that an oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico was operating safely before it exploded last month fell well short of its own policy that the oil rig be inspected at least once per month, an Associated Press investigation shows. Since January 2005, the federal Minerals Management […]
