Ancient sea travellers had heads in the clouds

File under 'lost skills':

 

"...Its Hawaiian provenance confirms what Pacific peoples have long been
told through folklore - that their ancestors were among the most
skilled navigators in history.

Archaeologists and historians have likened their ability to find new
islands in the vastness of the Pacific as akin to sending a rocket
into space and hoping it will hit a planet.

Dr Marshall Weisler, of the University of Queensland, said the journey
between Hawaii and Tahiti "now stands as the longest uninterrupted
maritime voyage in human prehistory".

He said it was "mind-boggling" how Polynesian settlers found their way
from one speck of land to another and back again, colonising the last
uninhabited parts of the planet.

They are believed to have used signs such as tides, the presence of
driftwood and the flight of seabirds, which return to roost on land at
night.

They also closely observed the underside of clouds, which reflect
whatever lies beneath them - a darker tinge indicates the presence of
land..."

~ full article ~

the "Do Not Track" list proposal

Plan Would Limit Tracking of Web Surfing - New York Times:

A coalition of privacy groups Wednesday
called for creation of a "Do Not Track List," that would
prohibit advertisers from tracking online movements of
consumers.

Similar to the popular Do Not Call telephone lists, the
Internet proposal comes as online advertising revenues are
growing rapidly, providing critical revenue to startups and
Web giants such as Google Inc. and Yahoo Inc.

Online ad revenue is forecast to more than double to $44
billion in 2011 from $17 billion in 2006, according to
eMarketer.com.

Computer users should be notified when their Web surfing is
tracked by online advertisers and Web publishers, argue the
Consumer Federation of America, the World Privacy Forum and
the Center for Democracy and Technology, among other groups in
a coalition promoting the idea.

Rather than burying privacy policies in fine print, companies
should also disclose them more fully and provide easier ways
to opt out, the groups said.

The organizations submitted the proposals to the Federal Trade
Commission, ahead of the consumer watchdog agency's workshop
on Nov. 1-2 to study the increasing use of tracking technology
to target online ads...

 

~ source ~

 

of witches and broomsticks

" ... Without a doubt, it’s due to its high toxicity that Datura estramonium is generally ingested by people through their skin and through their mucous membranes. In some cases, the plant’s raw sap is used; in others, ointments are elaborated with this and other plants. It was this second system application which generated the old image of the witch flying on a broomstick: effectively the European women rubbed the stramonium-based potions that they brewed into their vaginal mucous membranes, using a stick for intravaginal application. Since the intoxication appears within a few moments, the women felt the sensation that they were flying while riding the stick.

On the other hand, the visions induced by the consumption of stramonium are more related to experiences of flying than other psychotropic substances. It produces an intense sensation that the intoxicated individual is flying in other dimensions of reality where he or she encounters new people and situations, but one especially gets the feeling of being able to know what is happening in faraway worlds. That’s why the Inquisition Tribunal often accused European witches of knowing of events that had happened far away from them, and that this could only be done with the help of the Devil—which was a good reason to burn them alive. Meanwhile, the witches claimed to have this knowledge thanks to the secrets of the potions that they used. ... "

~ Link ~

General Assembly urges observance of 'Olympic Truce' during Beijing Games

A note to those prone to excitement: this looks set to become a quadrennial exercise in futility.

31 October 2007 – The United Nations General Assembly today urged all countries to observe the Olympic Truce during the 2008 Beijing Games – a move backed by its president, who advocated greater use of sport to promote peace and development.

In a resolution adopted unanimously and sponsored by the vast majority of UN Member States, the Assembly also welcomed the decision of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) to galvanize actions to promote a culture of peace and harmony based on the spirit of the Olympic Truce, a revived ancient Greek tradition known as ekecheiria.

It called on all Member States to cooperate with the IOC in its efforts to use sport as an instrument to promote peace, dialogue and reconciliation in areas of conflict during and beyond the Olympic Games period...

~ continue reading ~

"They handle viruses that could kill tens of millions of people"

From the Wisconsin State Journal:

 

Flu lab nears completion

UW-Madison's $12.5 million Institute for Influenza Viral Research, nearing completion at University Research Park, will have a collection of safety and security features the university hasn't seen before.

Many people will be watching the work of the institute, to be directed by virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka.
The observers include health officials, who want a better understanding of the bird flu virus that is threatening a global flu epidemic. They include scientists, who are competing with Kawaoka to make discoveries about bird flu and other flu viruses.

They also include critics, who have charged Kawaoka with circumventing safety rules.
Critics objected three years ago to Kawaoka's research at UW-Madison involving the deadly 1918 flu virus, saying his safety measures were not strict enough.

This September, they revealed that the university halted his work on components of the Ebola virus last year after the National Institutes of Health said the studies must be done in a lab more secure than any on campus.
Without proper precautions, the critics say, such viruses can escape...

 

~ continue reading ~

GM Freeze Welcomes Suspension of GM Crops in France

GM Freeze has warmly welcomed the statement by French President, Nicholas
Sarkozy, that the commercial planting of GM crops in France has been
suspended.

The announcement was made at a national conference on the environment held
this week [1].

Previous refusals by French governments to approve commercial licenses for GM
herbicide tolerant oilseed rape allowed time for new evidence to emerge about
the long term harm the crop would cause to farmland wildlife [2].

Yesterday, EU Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas announced his intention
to ban two GM maize varieties resistant to insect pest (Syngenta Bt11 maize
and Pioneers 1507 maize) because of concerns about the Bt toxins they produce
harming the non target species such as butterflies [3].

Commenting Pete Riley of GM Freeze said

"The French Government has clearly listened to concerns about the uncertainty
surrounding the health and environmental safety of GM crops and we warmly
welcome this announcement. It is another clear message to the biotech industry
that Europe will not accept poorly tested GMOs. The Sarkozy announcement
should kick start a debate on whether the GM intensive farming model is the
right way forward  for agriculture in Europe and the rest of the world. Many
people now recognize that the long term care of the land, biodiversity and
natural resources and the production of high quality food is the way forward.
Let's hope Number 10 and Defra are also listening."


Notes

1.  See http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7062577.stm

2. In 1997 the French Government refused to sign commercial marketing
consents for two GM oilseed rape varieties produced by Plant Genetics Systems
(since taken over and now part of Bayer CropScience) after a qualified vote in
favour in December 1996. The Farm Scale Evaluations in the UK (1999-2003)
found that GM herbicide tolerant spring and winter oilseed rape both
significantly reduced the amounts of weeds and weed seeds in arable fields
this reducing the supply of food for farmland birds and other species.

3. See http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSBRU00606620071025

Reuters: 'Japan minister mulls "tranquil" executions'

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Justice Minister Kunio Hatoyama said on
Wednesday he wanted to consider more 'tranquil' methods of execution.

Japan generally executes several convicts a year, always by hanging.

"I am fully aware that 'death by hanging' is written in the criminal
code," Hatoyama said after a parliamentary committee meeting, Kyodo news
agency said.

"A square part of the floor opens up and they fall with a thud," he said.
"I honestly wonder if there isn't a more tranquil way of doing this,"
Kyodo quoted him as adding.

It was not clear what other methods he was considering...

 

~ full article ~

war protests: why no coverage?

From the Christian Science Monitor:

 

Newspapers have a duty to inform citizens about such democratic events.

By Jerry Lanson

from the October 30, 2007 edition

...it seems remarkable to me that in some of the 11 cities in which protests were held – Boston and New York, for example – major news outlets treated this "National Day of Action" as though it did not exist. As far as I can tell, neither The New York Times nor The Boston Globe had so much as a news brief about the march in the days leading up to it. The day after, The Times, at least in its national edition, totally ignored the thousands who marched in New York and the tens of thousands who marched nationwide. The Globe relegated the news of 10,000 spirited citizens (including me) marching through Boston's rain-dampened streets to a short piece deep inside its metro section. A single sentence noted the event's national context.

As a former newspaper editor, I was most taken aback by the silence beforehand. Surely any march of widespread interest warrants a brief news item to let people know that the event is taking place and that they can participate. It's called "advancing the news," and it has a time-honored place in American newsrooms.

With prescient irony, Frank Rich wrote in his Oct. 14 Times column, "We can continue to blame the Bush administration for the horrors of Iraq.… But we must also examine our own responsibility." And, he goes on to suggest, we must examine our own silence.

So why would Mr. Rich's news colleagues deprive people of information needed to take exactly that responsibility?...

~ full article ~