Delicious genetically altered corn disturbs mouse immune systems
December 25, 2008
The amount of GM corn that the mice ingested was almost their entire diet for 30-90 days, but it is still an important reminder that gene modification in living things is a tricky road. More attention needs to be given to sustainibility before we jump straight to remaking corn.
The researchers said that the study’s findings underscore the importance of considering the gut and peripheral immune response to GM crop ingestion as well as the age of the consumer when evaluating GM crop safety.
A press release issued by the Institute of Science in Society stated, “It is clear that genetic modification is inherently hazardous, as it invariably results in unpredictable and uncontrollable changes in the genome and the epigenome (pattern of gene expression) that impact on safety.”
Original Story | via extinguish
Burglar held captive by ghost
December 16, 2008
A man in Malaysia broke into a house while the owners were on vacation, and ended up being help captive for 3 days. His captor? He claims it was a ghost.
Police official Abdul Marlik Hakim Johar told The Star newspaper the house’s owners found the 36-year-old man fatigued and dehydrated when they returned from vacation Thursday.
He says they called an ambulance to take him to a hospital.
The man told police that every time he tried to escape, a “supernatural figure” shoved him to the ground.
Patriotic Omniphage (Part: The First)
October 30, 2008
The final day to vote for the next leader of the US is right around the corner, and the outcome doesn’t seem to be positive either way. In a country that values small-business and diversity (lol) – we sure seem to love a 2-party system. But, from the mouths of the candidates themselves, whoever comes out as alpha-dog in this election won’t be that much different than the others. And the global meltdown and spiral downwards will continue.
The masses responsible for the votes will continue to stumble about their daily live, oblivious to the underlying stagnation and decay of an unhealthy society. It is a part of their culture and part of their psyche. Our lives have become as the zombie; a near-infinite consumption of goods and services, blind to the destruction and scarcity that results. We’ve even crossed the ‘quarantine’ border and have consumed the lives and resources of entire civilizations.
How are we to act in a world where to media bombards us constantly with the images of our own destruction, flashing across our magic lanterns? The decay and rot we have inflicted on the world constantly surrounding us; glamorized on the screen and in print. Our subconscious minds absorb these horrors and turn back to the here and now – the protective bubbles we have made. But the knowledge is still there…the root of most of our anxieties and discomfort, our general unhappiness.
io9 recently made a chart comparing war and social upheaval with the proliferation of zombie films. Read the rest of this entry »
Martial Law 2008
January 28, 2008
Note: This is a repost from my old blog WordsForFree. The original post date is September 13, 2007. Although what I predicted with the Air Force base hasn’t happened, I still believe that the current state of our freedoms is in jeopardy more and more every day. Thanks G.W.
What is going on right now does not bode very well for America at all. What would you do if I told you that there is a plan in action right now to strip you of your freedoms, inter you in a detention camp indefinitely, and take control of every aspect of our country?
This plan goes back decades, but I would like to keep it recent. We’ll say, the past 2 years. It all starts with H.R. 5122 (John Warner National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2007)[text of bill] which was passed in congress on September 30, 2006 and signed by President George W. Bush on October 17, 2006. This bill effectively (and officially) paved the way for the complete control of our country by one man – The President himself.
European Commission Raids Pharmaceutical Offices
January 19, 2008
The European Commission conducted a series of early-morning raids on major pharmaceutical company offices in Europe on Thursday. This was part of an investigation into he companies preventing important medicine from being released and accusations of anti-competitive behavior.
It is the first time a so-called EU sectoral inquiry has begun with surprise inspections of companies, and Neelie Kroes, competition commissioner, made plain this was to prevent “highly confidential” information being “withheld, concealed or destroyed”.
She said the groups, selected according to 40 criteria including size, might hide or shred thousands of documents. They include generic drug-makers and subsidiaries of non-European groups.
Some of the companies raided included GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca, Sanofi-Aventis, Pfizer and Merck. Hopefully this will bring to light some of the unfair business practices that these companies engage in, and perhaps lead the way for better, more efficient drugs to be released into the market. (via GNN)
U.S. worst in preventable death ranking
January 9, 2008
I’ve noticed that many Americans consider us a ‘civilized’ country. Although civilized we may be, we apparently don’t compare to other countries when it comes to preventable deaths. Researches tracked deaths that could have been prevented by available and timely health care and found that the USA was the worst out of the 19 countries studied.
France, Japan and Australia rated best and the United States worst in new rankings focusing on preventable deaths due to treatable conditions in 19 leading industrialized nations, researchers said on Tuesday.
If the U.S. health care system performed as well as those of those top three countries, there would be 101,000 fewer deaths in the United States per year, according to researchers writing in the journal Health Affairs.
Boy scout saves president of the Maldives knifing assassination
January 8, 2008
A boy scout just saved the life of the president of the Republic of Maldives. I’m pretty sure that not something they typically train for in scouts, but maybe it was ninja boy scouts or something…
The president of the Maldives, Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, escaped an assassination attempt Tuesday while on a tour of the Indian Ocean archipelago, a senior minister told AFP.
Officials said a 20-year-old unemployed man tried to plunge a knife into Gayoom’s stomach, but that Asia’s longest serving president was unhurt thanks to a boy scout who wrestled with the attacker before he was detained.
