Fish more inclined to crash than bees
Lund, Sweden (SPX) May 29, 2014 -
Swimming fish do not appear to use their collision warning system in the same way as flying insects, according to new research from Lund University in Sweden that has compared how zebra fish and bumblebees avoid collisions. The fish surprised the researchers.
All animals need some form of warning system that prevents them colliding with objects in their surroundings. The warning system hel ...
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Video shows how wasp uses zinc-tipped drill to penetrate fruit
Bangalore, India (UPI) May 29, 2013 -
Despite what some environmental advocates might say, humans are not parasites; humans don't rely on another organism for habitat or reproduction purposes. Parasitic wasps - as their name implies - aren't so lucky.
Parasitic wasps must bore into unripe fig fruit in order to lay their eggs - eggs that then look for other larvae to attach themselves to. To do so - scientists from India ...
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US city drops threat to close 'smelly' hot sauce factory
Los Angeles (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
A California city has dropped its threat to close a factory that makes famed Sriracha hot sauce, after months of haggling over residents' complaints about pungent smells.
The city of Irwindale outside Los Angeles took legal action in October to close Huy Fong Food's facility, saying the company should be forced to improve odor-filtering measures.
In November, a judge ordered the hot sauc ...
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Beijing flaunts security might ahead of Tiananmen anniversary
Beijing (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
Police officers and commandos in Beijing showed off their anti-terrorist prowess Thursday, days ahead of the 25th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown and following a string of separatist attacks.
At an event open only to Chinese domestic media, Beijing police officers - including the elite Snow Leopard Commando Unit - flaunted their skills at handling attempted terror attacks, hijacking ...
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To Xi or not to Xi? Madame Tussauds launches in Beijing
Beijing (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
Waxworks company Madame Tussauds on Thursday launched its latest outpost in Beijing, with models of Chinese political leaders conspicuous by their absence.
US President Barack Obama was on display, along with a grim-looking Vladimir Putin of Russia, and Britain's Queen Elizabeth II. Even Karl Marx, founding father of Communism, was included.
But there was no sign of Mao Zedong, Deng Xia ...
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Flood damage to Serbia, Bosnia around 3 bln euros: EBRD
Belgrade (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) estimated Thursday that the damage from record floods in Serbia and Bosnia could cost some 3 billion euros ($4 billion).
"No official estimates as to the cost of this natural disaster are available as yet. However, some very rough preliminary estimates put the damage at around EUR1.5-2 billion in Serbia, and about EUR1.3 billion in ...
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Be prepared for hurricanes, despite calm forecast, NOAA warns
Miami (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
Despite the quiet forecast for this year's hurricane season, the director of the Miami-based National Hurricane Center warned Thursday not to let guards down completely.
Rick Knabb, director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's NHC, emphasized that even a single storm that hits land can have a huge impact.
He cautioned residents of all hurricane-prone areas, from the ...
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After 8,000 cholera deaths, Haiti faces new epidemic
Port-Au-Prince (AFP) May 28, 2014 -
Hard-hit by a cholera epidemic that started in 2010, Haiti now faces a new threat in the expanding chikungunya virus, authorities said Wednesday.
"We have had 8,561 deaths from cholera since its reappearance in Haiti in 2010, while 702,892 cases have been confirmed," said Health Minister Florence Duperval.
Now, the chikungunya virus that has been spreading in the Caribbean has emerged as ...
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Australia rules out swathe of ocean as MH370 crash zone
Sydney (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
Australia Thursday ruled out a large swathe of Indian Ocean as Malaysian Flight MH370's final resting place, compounding the frustration of passengers' relatives who are still without answers almost three months on.
The Joint Agency Coordination Centre said a lengthy underwater search of an area where acoustic transmissions were detected in early April was now complete, as a US Navy official ...
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Super typhoon cools Philippine economy
Manila (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
The Philippines' roaring economy cooled in the first quarter of the year as the impacts of Super Typhoon Haiyan and other natural disasters hit harder than expected, official data showed Thursday.
Economic growth slowed to 5.7 percent in January-March, compared with 7.7 percent in the same period last year, the government said.
"The relatively slow growth is expected given the magnitude ...
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Storm Amanda blamed for three deaths in Mexico
Morelia, Mexico (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
Torrential rains from tropical storm Amanda claimed the lives of three people in Mexico, authorities said Wednesday.
Waters rushing down mountainsides caused flash floods that swept away two people in the town of Zitacuaro in the western state of Michoacan, said the state's director of civil protection, Nicolas Alfaro.
The fatalities were a 50-year-old man and a girl of eight.
Roads ...
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New method discovered to protect against chemical weapons
Corvallis OR (SPX) May 28, 2014 -
Researchers at Oregon State University have discovered that some compounds called polyoxoniobates can degrade and decontaminate nerve agents such as the deadly sarin gas, and have other characteristics that may make them ideal for protective suits, masks or other clothing.
The use of polyoxoniobates for this purpose had never before been demonstrated, scientists said, and the discovery cou ...
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China's decision to replace IBM servers with domestic equivalents may boost national security
Moscow (Voice of Russia) May 29, 2014 -
The use of home-made servers in Beijing's national banks may prevent inclusion of hidden backdoors that facilitate intelligence gathering by the US National Security Agency, according to expert in the US-China relations, RIA Novosti reports.
Chinese government institutions, including the People's Bank of China and the Ministry of Finance, are reviewing domestic commercial banks' reliance o ...
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Microsystems Technologies Office: Creating A New Electronics Revolution For National Defense
Washington DC (SPX) May 29, 2014 -
Since its inception in 1992, DARPA'S Microsystems Technology Office (MTO) has helped create and prevent strategic surprise through its investments in compact microelectronic components such as microprocessors, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), and photonic devices.
MTO's revolutionary work applying these advanced capabilities in areas such as wide-band gap materials, phased array rada ...
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Earthly Conflicts Threaten US-Russia Space Cooperation
Washington DC (SPX) May 29, 2014 -
Angered over U.S. sanctions against Russian officials involved in the annexation of Crimea, and unrest in Eastern Ukraine, Russian deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said Moscow may retaliate by re-assessing the space cooperation between the two countries.
If his threat becomes reality, it could affect future space explorations aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Russia h ...
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China lambasts US spying tactics
Moscow (Voice of Russia) May 28, 2014 -
China has labeled the US take on cyber-spying a "complete disregard for moral integrity" and has accused the country of taking advantage of its geopolitical hegemony to spy on others, a Chinese report by an internet information body stated on Tuesday. Beijing said that US methods involved broad-scale attacks against the Chinese government.
"America's spying operations have gone far beyond ...
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Future Coast Guard National Security Cutter receiving Lockheed Martin system
Moorestown, N.J. (UPI) May 28, 2013 -
The U.S. Coast Guard's seventh National Security Cutter will be equipped with a C4ISR system from Lockheed Martin.
Lockheed said the contract for its command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance system was awarded by Huntington Ingalls Industries, which will build the cutter, Kimball.
"The NSC's C4ISR system is critical to ensuring th ...
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ISAF soldier killed in Afghanistan chopper crash
Kabul (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
A member of the US-led NATO coalition in Afghanistan has been killed in a helicopter crash in the south of the country, the force said Thursday.
The accident comes a month after five British soldiers were killed when their Lynx chopper came down on a routine flight.
"An International Security Assistance Force service member died as a result of a helicopter crash in southern Afghanistan W ...
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British helicopters getting new missile warning system
Nashua, N.H. (UPI) May 29, 2013 -
BAE System's third-generation Common Missile Warning Systems are being procured by Britain's Ministry of Defense for use on its helicopters.
The contract is the first direct commercial sale off the third-generation CMWS system and carries a value of $28 million.
"Our Common Missile Warning System has a long track record of success with more than 2 million combat hours," said Bill ...
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BAE Systems offers vehicle in Army M113 replacement competition
Arlington, Va. (UPI) May 29, 2013 -
BAE Systems has officially offered the U.S. Army its armored multi-purpose vehicle to replace Vietnam-era M113 armored personnel carriers now used in support roles.
The Army ended the M113 program in 2007 and is holding a competition for its replacement.
"Today's (Wednesday's) submission is the culmination of more than 15 years of concept development and validation and two years ...
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Vietnam accuses Chinese ships of gun threats
Hanoi (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
Vietnam on Thursday accused Chinese war ships of pointing their weapons at Vietnamese vessels during an escalating standoff near an oil rig in contested waters.
The tense confrontation came as China moved its deep-sea rig to a new location earlier this week that Hanoi considers is still within its territory.
"When we approached (the Chinese warships guarding the rig) they uncovered their ...
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Cyprus settlement 'worth 20 billion euros'
Nicosia (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
A Cyprus reunification deal would generate a 20-billion-euro ($27.2 billion) peace dividend for the recession-hit island, according to a study released Thursday.
The study predicts an elusive UN-brokered peace deal would raise per capita incomes by approximately 12,000 euros, expand the size of the economy by around 20 billion euros and add an average 2.8 percentage points to real GDP growth ...
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Latin American country orders security system from Elbit
Haifa, Israel (UPI) May 29, 2013 -
An unidentified country in Latin America has ordered systems from Israel's Elbit Systems Ltd. for homeland security applications.
Elbit said the award is in the amount of $133 million but would not describe or name the systems, saying instead that they are "based on highly advanced and unique technologies, including command, control and "intelligence capabilities."
The capabiliti ...
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Post-election wave of Iraq attacks kills 74
Baghdad (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
A post-election wave of attacks across Iraq, including car bombings in Baghdad and a northern city, killed at least 74 people, officials said Thursday.
The compiled death toll for Wednesday, with the number rising to 74 after late-night attacks, made it the bloodiest single day in Iraq in more than seven months.
It was the latest in a protracted surge in unrest fuelling fears that the co ...
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Britain's Iraq inquiry to see parts of Blair-Bush letters
London (AFP) May 29, 2014 -
Britain's government agreed on Thursday to give extracts of letters from Tony Blair to George W. Bush to an inquiry into the Iraq war, overcoming the main hurdle to publication of the long-awaited report.
The probe will receive "gists and quotes" of communications from former prime minister Blair to ex-president Bush in the run-up to the conflict in 2003, inquiry chief John Chilcot said in a ...
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