Day's Headlines: NATO's Rotation; NK's Latest Missile Failure; Lenski Rebutted; 1/3 For Boycotting Israel; Anti-BDS Summit; Atomic Submarine; Inflated NASA; Chatty Friends; Zenbo; Social Hate Purge; Pope 'n the Kids; Carter for Social Justice; Religious Symbol Ban Allowed; Summer Terror in Europe; Tourism Plummet; UnitedHealth's CA Exit; and Gunshot Wound Plug

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

NATO's Rotation; NK's Latest Missile Failure; Lenski Rebutted; 1/3 For Boycotting Israel; Anti-BDS Summit; Atomic Submarine; Inflated NASA; Chatty Friends; Zenbo; Social Hate Purge; Pope 'n the Kids; Carter for Social Justice; Religious Symbol Ban Allowed; Summer Terror in Europe; Tourism Plummet; UnitedHealth's CA Exit; and Gunshot Wound Plug

War

Stoltenberg says NATO ready to respond to ‘assertive Russia’ politico.eu

The Polish minister confirmed that Poland and the Baltic states would host four rotating battalions and that he talked with Stoltenberg about permanently stationing weapons stores in Poland, “which is crucially important for us and strengthens our sense of security.”

North Korea

North Korea's Test Launch of Musudan Missile Ends in Failure nbcnews

The intermediate-range Musudan missile exploded at a mobile launch pad as soon as the button was pressed, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported without citing a source.

If confirmed, the failed attempt would be North Korea's fourth unsuccessful try to test-launch a Musudan — which has a range of 1,200-2,400 miles and is theoretically capable of reaching bases on the U.S. Pacific territory of Guam.

Evolution

Scientists Beginning to Doubt Discovery Once Touted as Evidence for Evolution christiannews.net

...a growing number of scientists are now calling Lenski’s findings into question. In February, a journal article from the American Society for Microbiology written by a team of biologists from the University of Idaho rebutted one of Lenski’s central claims.

See also Bacteria ‘evolving in the lab’?

Anti-Semitism

A third of all Americans believe boycott of Israel justified jpost

Thirty-three precent of Americans and forty percent of Britons believe that boycotting Israel is “justified,” according to a poll conducted in the United Kingdom and the United States this month by the market research firm Ipsos.

Israel hosts largest ever anti-BDS summit at UN Headquarters jpost

The event, entitled “Building Bridges, Not Boycotts” begun with an opening session held in the General Assembly hall of the United Nations, a place often described as hostile to Israel. “Look around you,” Israel’s ambassador to the UN Danny Danon told attendees. “This is a historic moment in the UN.”

Research

World's smallest submarine dives beneath the atomic water line smh.au

The motors, comprising little more than a handful of atoms, run at speeds of more than a million revolutions per minute. This enables the tiny submarines to travel at up to 15 metres per second – extraordinarily fast on the molecular scale.

Space

AI

How happy chatbots could become our new best friends bbc w!

[Giving them emotions is] the radical suggestion of Patrick Levy Rosenthal, founder and chief executive of Emoshape, a tech firm that has developed a computer chip that can synthesise 12 human emotions.

Robotics

Meet Zenbo, the Asus robot that costs no more than a smartphone theguardian

The $599 (£410) robot rolls around on two wheels in the shape of a vacuum cleaner ball with cameras an oblong head extruding from the top with a colour touchscreen displaying a face with emotions. It is capable of independent movement, can respond to voice commands and has both entertainment protocols for keeping kids amused and home care systems to help look after older people.

Seems these personal, follow you around, watching every you do bots are the wave of the future. The article didn't have a video, so I hunted one down. If they wanted to make a spoof commercial on a family who owns a robot in the future, then ASUS did pretty well with the one they made for Zenbo. v

Society

Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Microsoft back EU hate speech rules in.reuters

As part of the pledge agreed with the European Commission, the web giants will review the majority of valid requests for removal of illegal hate speech in less than 24 hours and remove or disable access to the content if necessary.

Pope

YouTube creators meet Pope Francis to discuss promoting understanding and empathy youtube.googleblog

We want to continue empowering people to come to YouTube to tell stories and form connections that encourage empathy and understanding between diverse communities.

That’s why today 11 international YouTube creators met with Pope Francis, who cares deeply about bringing young people together. This first-of-its-kind dialogue took place during the VI Scholas World Congress, which the Pope created to encourage peace through real encounters with youth from different backgrounds.

Note: when they say "YouTube Creator", they don't mean a creator OF the site, but someone who makes videos ON the site :) I found the final paragraph from the author (on YouTube) who wrote this "article" particularly interesting:

We’re inspired by the many conversations these creators have sparked throughout their YouTube journeys. To hear more about what they discussed at the Vatican today, tune in to each of their channels for personal videos in the coming weeks. We hope to continue helping people share their stories - the more we can all understand, the more we can come together as a global community.

Apostasy

Jimmy Carter Makes One Final Push to End Racism theatlantic

Jimmy Carter, 91, has a wish for his fellow Baptists: end racism. “Our country is waking up now to the fact that we still have a long way to go in winning a battle that we thought was over in the 1970s or ’60s,” he said in an interview. The longtime Sunday school teacher and former United States president wants to start this change within his own faith: He’s pushing churches to organize around social-justice issues, including racial discrimination.

Society

Top EU court adviser backs workplace Muslim headscarf ban bbc

"A ban on wearing headscarves in companies may be admissible if the ban is based on a general company rule which prohibits political, philosophical and religious symbols from being worn visibly in the workplace. Such a ban may be justified if it enables the employer to pursue the legitimate policy of ensuring religious and ideological neutrality," the opinion from the advocate general said.

Also see Employers can forbid headscarf if general ban in place - EU court adviser

Terrorism

U.S Warns of Possible Terrorist Attack in Europe time

The grim warning says targets could include restaurants, commercial centers, tourist sites, transportation and major events. It also singled out big events happening in Europe this summer: the European Soccer Championship, the Tour de France and Catholic Church’s World Youth Day in Poland.

See actual warning

Paris Tourism Plummeting As France's Travel Chaos And Protests Extend, Threatening The Euro Cup forbes

Referring to the wave of hotel cancellations – 30% in recent weeks – the French tourism trade association GNI describes the strikes as “asphyxiation” for the industry. Since last November’s terrorist attacks in Paris, the Ile-de-France, which comprises Paris and the surrounding region, has reported fewer foreign tourists while the social unrest, protests and blockades accelerate the trend and “strengthen the incomprehension of visitors,” says the region’s promotional agency.

Healthcare

UnitedHealth To Exit California’s Obamacare Market californiahealthline.org

The nation’s largest health insurer announced in April it was dropping out of all but a handful of 34 health insurance marketplaces it participated in. But the company had not discussed its plans in California.

Medical Tech

This Bizarre Gunshot-Plugging Device Just Saved Its First Life gizmodo

The device was approved for military use back in 2014, but this incident marks the first time the system has been used in a real-world situation. The hemostatic device, developed by RevMedx Inc., was used by a United States forward surgical team (FST) after it failed to stanch severe bleeding in a patient using standard techniques. The XSTAT Rapid Hemostasis System works by pumping expandable, tablet-sized sponges into a wound, stanching bleeding while a patient is rushed to hospital.

No comments :

Post a Comment