Archive for the ‘Science’ Category

What the world looks like naked: The amazing image of Earth’s geology laid bare

Friday, August 1st, 2008

This amazing image reveals what our world looks like when it is stripped bare - shorn of all its plants, soils, water and man-made structures.

This, and other never-seen-before images of the Earth, were unveiled at One Geology - the world’s biggest ever geological mapping project.

The project hopes to do for the ground beneath our feet what Google has done for the Earth’s surface with its Google Maps, Earth and Street utilities. for more click here

Hope for MS sufferers as city scientist nears breakthrough

Tuesday, July 29th, 2008

AN Edinburgh scientist is nearing a breakthrough that will revolutionise the treatment of Multiple Sclerosis and change the lives of generations of future sufferers.

Edinburgh University’s Professor Charles ffrench-Constant, whose work has largely been funded with £2 million from the author JK Rowling, below, is working on a way of using stem cells to halt the deterioration of sufferers. for more click here

Hackers get hold of critical internet flaw

Friday, July 25th, 2008

Internet security researchers warned that hackers have caught on to a “critical” flaw that lets them control traffic on the internet.

An elite squad of computer industry engineers that labored in secret to solve the problem released a software “patch” two weeks ago and sought to keep details of the vulnerability hidden for at least a month to give people time to protect computers from attacks. for more click here

Nuclear missiles could blow up ‘like popcorn’

Thursday, June 26th, 2008

A design flaw in Britain’s nuclear arsenal means that warheads could set off a chain reaction “like popcorn” if they were accidentally dropped, according to Ministry of Defence documents.
More than 1,700 warheads are affected by the problem which would cause them to explode one after another, an effect known as “popcorning.” for more click here

The web time forgot

Wednesday, June 18th, 2008

MONS, Belgium: On a fog-drizzled Monday afternoon, this fading medieval city feels like a forgotten place. Apart from the obligatory Gothic cathedral, there is not much to see here except for a tiny storefront museum called the Mundaneum, tucked down a narrow street in the northeast corner of town. It feels like a fittingly secluded home for the legacy of one of technology’s lost pioneers: Paul Otlet. for more click here

Time Team’s Tony Robinson: Archaeological sites need Protection

Sunday, June 8th, 2008

Britain is losing its heritage to “metal detectorists”, erosion and ploughing, according to the nation’s best known archaeologists. for more click here

A quarter of US PCs infected with malware: OECD

Monday, June 2nd, 2008

An OECD study into online crime says that increased activity by cyber criminals has left an estimated one-in-four US computers infected with malware.

The report, entitled Malicious Software (malware): a Security Threat to the Internet Economy, gives an impression of two worlds engaged in an uneven war of virus invasion and belated defence. for more click here

Historic pictures sent from Mars

Monday, May 26th, 2008

A Nasa spacecraft has sent back the first historic pictures of an unexplored region of Mars.

The Mars Phoenix lander touched down in the far north of the Red Planet, after a 680 million-km (423 million-mile) journey from Earth. for more click here

Health threat of nanotubes may be similar to asbestos, study warns

Thursday, May 22nd, 2008

Scientists have warned that carbon nanotubes could pose a cancer risk similar to that of asbestos, saying the government should restrict the use of the materials to protect human health.

Carbon nanotubes were developed in 1991 and have proved extremely useful, conferring great strength while being very light. They are superb conductors of heat and electricity and have been touted as wonder materials that could form the basis of a new generation of electronics. for more click here

Doctors’ breakthrough on ectopic pregnancies gives hope to thousands of women

Thursday, May 8th, 2008

Experts have developed a breakthrough test for ectopic pregnancies which could help thousands of women. The condition occurs when a foetus develops outside the womb.

The special blood test can check for abnormalities when a women is just a few weeks pregnant. for more click here