Disclosure: I’m Long Facebook
August 16th, 2012Warning: This is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any financial instrument.
Update: Out. No position in FB.
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Trying to catch a bounce after the insider unlock dump.
Clothes peg on nose for this one…
‘Who’s Your Daddy’ Truck Rolls Through NYC
August 16th, 2012Would you like fries with that?
Via: CBS:
It is a sign of the times — getting a quick DNA test is now as easy as walking up to a truck.
The “Who’s Your Daddy” recreational vehicle is selling DNA tests, mostly to fathers who suspect their children may not actually be theirs.
Windows 8 Review: Yes, It’s That Bad
August 16th, 2012Update: Microsoft Let’s Anyone Try RTM Version of Windows 8 Free for 90 Days
Spare drive or partition gathering dust? Bored? Glutton for punishment? Maybe you don’t have any other choice but to deal with it…
In any event, here you go: Windows 8 Evaluation Download Page. Note: Enterprise edition. No way to upgrade it to full. You’ll have to cleanse with fire after 90 days. Batteries not included. Your mileage may vary.
Via: The Verge:
The 90-day trial edition of Windows 8 Enterprise is available to download immediately and will give members of the public and developers an easy way to trial the operating system ahead of its debut on October 26th. A number of trial ISO images are available for a variety of languages in x86 and x64 flavors.
—End Update—
Via: InfoWorld:
I can confirm after months in the trenches and talking with many hundreds of testers that anyone who defines “real work” as typing and mousing won’t like Windows 8 one little bit. Let’s take that as a given and move on from there.
California: The Companies Trying to Stop Mandatory Labeling of Products Containing GM Ingredients
August 16th, 2012For a complete list, see the link.
Via: California Secretary of State:
MONSANTO COMPANY $4,208,000.00
E.I. DUPONT DE NEMOURS & CO. $4,025,200.00
PEPSICO, INC. $1,716,300.00
BASF PLANT SCIENCE $1,642,300.00
BAYER CROPSCIENCE $1,618,400.00
DOW AGROSCIENCES LLC $1,184,800.00
NESTLE USA, INC. $1,169,400.00
COCA-COLA NORTH AMERICA $1,164,400.00
CONAGRA FOODS $1,076,700.00
Unblinking Surveillance Stare: Army’s 7-Story Flying Football Field-Sized Blimp
August 15th, 2012Via: Network World:
The U.S. Army has a 7-story flying football field-sized blimp with a 21-day unblinking surveillance stare. The LEMV, described as a “Revolutionary ISR Weapon System” completed a successful 90-minute test flight directly over New Jersey where the fiery Hindenburg disaster happened.
…
The high tech blimp’s “skin” is made from “a blend of Vectran, Kevlar and Mylar” which “will be able to cope with a reasonable amount of small arms fire from Taliban fighters on the ground.”
25 Cutting Edge Firms Funded By The CIA
August 15th, 201225 In-Q-Tel companies: Business Insider.
Antibacterial Agent Triclosan Shown to Hinder Muscle Activity in Mice, Fish
August 15th, 2012Via: UC Davis:
Triclosan, an antibacterial chemical widely used in hand soaps and other personal-care products, hinders muscle contractions at a cellular level, slows swimming in fish and reduces muscular strength in mice, according to researchers at the University of California, Davis, and the University of Colorado. The findings appear online in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.
“Triclosan is found in virtually everyone’s home and is pervasive in the environment,” said Isaac Pessah, professor and chair of the Department of Molecular Biosciences in the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine and principal investigator of the study. “These findings provide strong evidence that the chemical is of concern to both human and environmental health.”
Triclosan is commonly found in antibacterial personal-care products such as hand soaps as well as deodorants, mouthwashes, toothpaste, bedding, clothes, carpets, toys and trash bags. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 1998 estimated that more than 1 million pounds of triclosan are produced annually in the United States, and that the chemical is detectable in waterways and aquatic organisms ranging from algae to fish to dolphins, as well as in human urine, blood and breast milk.
The investigators performed several experiments to evaluate the effects of triclosan on muscle activity, using doses similar to those that people and animals may be exposed to during everyday life.
In “test tube” experiments, triclosan impaired the ability of isolated heart muscle cells and skeletal muscle fibers to contract. Specifically, the team evaluated the effects of triclosan on molecular channels in muscle cells that control the flow of calcium ions, creating muscle contractions. Normally, electrical stimulation (“excitation”) of isolated muscle fibers under experimental conditions evokes a muscle contraction, a phenomenon known as “excitation-contraction coupling” (ECC), the fundamental basis of any muscle movement, including heartbeats. But in the presence of triclosan, the normal communication between two proteins that function as calcium channels was impaired, causing skeletal and cardiac muscle failure.
The team also found that triclosan impairs heart and skeletal muscle contractility in living animals. Anesthetized mice had up to a 25-percent reduction in heart function measures within 20 minutes of exposure to the chemical.
“The effects of triclosan on cardiac function were really dramatic,” said Nipavan Chiamvimonvat, professor of cardiovascular medicine at UC Davis and a study co-author. “Although triclosan is not regulated as a drug, this compound acts like a potent cardiac depressant in our models.”
In addition, the mice had an 18-percent reduction in grip strength for up to 60 minutes after being given a single dose of triclosan. Grip strength is a widely used measure of mouse limb strength, employed to investigate the effects of drugs and neuromuscular disorders.
Finally, the investigators looked at the effects of triclosan exposure on fathead minnows, a small fish commonly used as a model organism for studying the potential impacts of aquatic pollutants. Those exposed to triclosan in the water for seven days had significantly reduced swimming activity compared to controls during both normal swimming and swim tests designed to imitate fish being threatened by a predator.
“We were surprised by the large degree to which muscle activity was impaired in very different organisms and in both cardiac and skeletal muscle,” said Bruce Hammock, a study co-author and professor in the UC Davis Department of Entomology. “You can imagine in animals that depend so totally on muscle activity that even a 10-percent reduction in ability can make a real difference in their survival.”
The UC Davis research team has previously linked triclosan to other potentially harmful health effects, including disruption of reproductive hormone activity and of cell signaling in the brain.
Chiamvimonvat cautioned that translating results from animal models to humans is a large step and would require further study. However, the fact that the effects were so striking in several animal models under different experimental conditions provides strong evidence that triclosan could have effects on animal and human health at current levels of exposure.
Khan Academy Offers Javascript Tutorials
August 15th, 2012I don’t know about calling this, “Computer Science,” but it might be useful for Cryptogon homeschoolers out there who are teaching kids about computers.
In case you’re curious about what a no-joke introduction to computer science looks like, or if you have older children, see: MIT: Introduction to Computer Science and Programming.
Via: Khan Academy:
We’re releasing a completely new platform that targets people with no programming knowledge and gives them an engaging and fun environment to learn in.
Over everything else we wanted to emphasize creativity and exploration and make it approachable for people of all ages, including young kids.
Related: Top U.S. Colleges to Offer Free Classes Online
Plaquemines Calls State of Emergency as Saltwater Moves up Mississippi
August 15th, 2012Via: WWLT:
Parish President Billy Nungesser declared a state of emergency Tuesday morning due to a salt wedge that is moving up the Mississippi River and that could threaten the parish’s drinking water supply.
The wedge is currently moving north because of low levels in the Mississippi River and lack of rain in the upper regions on the U.S. The leading edge of the saltwater is approaching Belle Chasse.
The parish says that Nungesser declared a State of Emergency as a precautionary measure and to insure that a plan is in place if the need for fresh water arises.
“There is no reason to panic,” said Nungesser. “We will not run out of water. We’ll make sure we have this in place before we run out water.”
Nungesser said the state of emergency was declared because drinking water will eventually need to be transported via barge to the Port Sulphur and the east bank in southern Plaquemines Parish.
Related: Contract Awarded to Build Saltwater Barrier to Protect Mississippi River Drinking Water
Lawmakers Suspect Money Laundering Issues at Wal-Mart
August 15th, 2012Money laundering and bribery. In Mexico. Gee, I wonder what other activities this involves?
(Rhetorical question of the year.)
Via: Reuters:
Two U.S. House Democrats investigating bribery allegations in Wal-Mart’s Mexico affiliate said on Tuesday they have obtained new internal records that may point to evidence of tax evasion and money laundering.
Reps. Elijah Cummings and Henry Waxman, who are the ranking members, respectively, of the House Oversight and House Energy committees, disclosed the latest details of their probe in an August 14 letter to the company.
“We have obtained internal company documents, including internal audit reports, from other sources suggesting that Wal-Mart may have had compliance issues relating not only to bribery, but also to ‘questionable financial behavior’ including tax evasion and money laundering in Mexico,” the lawmakers wrote in their letter to Wal-Mart Chief Executive Michael Duke.
A company spokesman had no immediate comment.
