Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Human fat yields multipurpose stem cells

A new study by Stanford University School of Medicine has found that you can make stem cells from fat cells sucked out during liposuction. This is a huge breakthrough which could help create cures for many diseases. Stem cells used to be made by skin cells which took seven to eight weeks, but now the new fat cells can be turned into stem cells in about one or two weeks. The average amount of fat removed during liposuction is about six times more than the amount needed to create stem cells. This means the availability of the cells will be higher and more scientists will have access to them which means more research. Some uses for stem cells: muscle tissue repair, artificial organs, and cures for diseases.

One of the things I was most interested in was the ability to make artificial organs. I have a few family members who have passed away from failed organs and/or currently have organ problems. If somehow they do find a way to create those artificial organs, it would change many peoples lives for the better, giving them a second chance.

Source:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/09/04/stem.cells.liposuction.fat/index.html?iref=newssearch

Japanese Mothers Paid To Have Kids?

Source:
CNN

Japan has one of the worlds lowest birth rates. In fact the majority of the population is over fifty years old. They wish to lower the number from sixty-five to forty by 2050 but that's a long way away and the lack of young children and teenagers is a huge strain on their economy.

Don't worry! The Democratic Party of Japan is coming to the rescue! They're offering to pay Japanese families to have another child! A set amount every year until the child reaches High School. Some people are thrilled with the idea while others aren't quite as thrilled. A mother mentioned in the CNN article says it would help very much with a second child while an economist claims it doesn't help the problem.

What is the problem? Economist Yuri Okina believes it is the lack of day care centers. It's practically impossible for a mother to go to work and raise her kids due to the lack of day care. She wants to make it a normal thing for a woman to have a career and children in Japan. She isn't alone in her beliefs. Other critics have claimed this plan doesn't fix the day care issue as well.

It's up to the Japanese government to decide whether it would be more wise to throw money at indecisive parents or if it would be wise to open more day care. As of now, they're handing out money.

New Rat Species Discovered

One of the largest rats to ever be discovered was just discovered in Papua, New Guinea. It weighed about 3.3 lbs and was 32.3 inches long. It was found inside the extinct volcano Mount Bosavi in Southern Highlands province of Papua, New Guinea. Even though this new species is the largest rat ever to be discovered they aren't the largest rodent. Sadly the habitat where these extremely large rats were discovered are found to be very endangered.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/09/07/giant.rat.papua/index.html

This is a grand new discovery. I just hope that they won't be used and abused for human pleasures and hopefully environmentalist will do something to help their endangerd habitat.

2 China Wal-Mart workers arrested after death

In Beijing two employees of a Wal-Mart store in eastern China were arrested after a woman was beaten to death outside the store on suspicion that she was shop lifting. The 37-year old woman was going home Aug. 30 when she was surrounded by five Wal-Mart employees, four men and one woman, all in their twenties who accused her of shoplifting. One of the men requested a receipt. But after the woman handed it over, she took it back, saying no one was wearing a Wal-Mart uniform and she didn't believe they worked there. That’s when the Wal-Mart employees fought her to the ground and she was taken to a hospital where she died a couple days later.

The police statement said that two employees were detained but. It did not give details about the other three. Wal-Mart is cooperating with authorities and extends its condolences to the woman's family.(http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090908/ap_on_bi_ge/as_china_wal_mart)

I can’t believe that this happened at a Wal-Mart. I know this is in China but I’m pretty sure that all the stores no matter where their located go by the same rules procedures and in those procedures you cannot put your hands on anybody stealing or not. In this incident she was not even stealing. If this happened here in the states the family would get way more than just condolences they would be getting paid and they would have everybody evolved charged with murder.

Emil Gilbert

Monday, September 7, 2009

Jimena weakens to a tropical depression

Hurricane Jimena hit Mexico's Baja California peninsula that flooded the area and took a man's life. After passing through Mexico, Jimena's winds lowered to 35 mph and it's status dropped to a tropical depression.

When hurricane Jimena was heading towards Mexico at a category 4 with 150 mph winds, tourists left and local residents had to seek shelter. Jimena was heading towards Los Cabos, "multimillion dollar resorts, " but it seemed to miss it and hit smaller towns instead. Jimena destroyed 4,000 of the resident's homes and according to forecasters, flash floods and waves were heading that way too.

Some residents on the Island refused to leave their belongings because they feared that someone would come by and steal it. So a lot of residents were evacuated, but some stayed home with their stuff.

The only good thing that came out of the storm was rain that they needed because they have gone with no rain for a while.

http://www.msnbc.com/id/32687274/ns/weather/

It is sad that the Islands are more at risk for hurricanes and tropical storms than any other country. When we went through Hurricane Charley, I remember going without electric for over a week and witnessing the storm tearing through the city like nothing. Pool cages, trampolines, and tree branches were some of the things that I witnessed blowing down the street during that time. Only a couple stores were open if they had a generator to run it, and there was barely any gas to go around, along with food and supplies. It was just a terrible time that I don't ever want to relive and would never wish that anyone to go through that.

Friday, September 4, 2009

Korea's won't stop Nuclear program

Korea is developing Nuclear weapons which are in the final stage of enrichment. They are using the most deadly elements in their program, Uranium and Plutonium. Uranium can be used in weapons and Plutonium can be used in atomic bombs. The Security Council tried to come to a resolution with Korea to prevent them from continuing the program and Korea rejected it. Within the next few days, China, Japan, South Korea, Russia and the United States will be discussing about the nuclear program.

If you ask me what the point is for nuclear missiles; I'd say there is no point. Why did anyone even invent them All they do is create an inhabitable space on land when they are detonated. They fill the land with highly toxic radiation which can kill people very quickly. I think that a country should know that if they used one that maybe their opponent would use one back on them and just create this nasty black hole in their country where nothing could live.

Source:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/asiapcf/09/03/nkorea.nuclear/index.html

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Gunmen kill 17 people at a drug rehab in Mexico

The drug wars in Mexico continue with the killings of 17 people in a rehab center. In Ciudad Juarez, Mexico the gunmen broke into a drug rehabilitation center and started to line people against a wall. They shot 17 dead and injured 5 in one of Mexico’s bloodiest day yet. This attack followed the killing of the No. 2 security official in President Felipe Calderon's home state.

Dozens of sobbing relatives rushed to the rehabilitation center to find out if their loved ones were among the dead there were soldiers and federal agents that patrolled the streets surrounding the center in the Bellavista neighborhood. Calderon, sent thousands of more troops and federal police to Ciudad Juarez earlier this year, but the surge has done little to stem the raging violence. (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090903/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/lt_drug_war_mexico)

Since 2006 when Calderon was elected drug gang violence has surged, claiming more than 13,500 lives, including more than 1,000 police officers. With the death toll being so high I don’t know why their government hasn’t been able to take control. I don’t think we would ever have a problem like this in the U.S. there is no way are government would even let it get that bad. We wouldn’t be able to leave the house if this was the case.
Emil Gilbert

No More Cords. ... Ever.

Source:
CNN

What I mean to say by the title of this post isn't that we are 100% free of cords. What I mean to say is that we're heading towards a cordless future. A reality in which we don't need any cords at all. Ever.

Impossible you say? WiTricity disagrees with all sense of their being. How can I tell? Who else has wireless electricity? Soon you won't need a cord to charge your laptop or cell phone. You won't have to plug in your TV or computer to an outlet. Even electricity can be made wireless. The technology is not yet commercially available but the CEO of WiTricity believes it will be soon. This kind of revolution could change the way we use electronics in general. Electric cars for example. The article makes a point of just driving into a garage fitted with a charge pad and it would charge then and there.

We already have smaller versions of these devices. There are pads you can set your cell phone and game system on that will charge them without wires but what they're looking towards goes beyond that. It's one thing to imagine your house attached to an electric wire with electric pads within to send the power throughout your house... it's another to imagine no more electrical wiring strung up around the city. Sending the power large distances wirelessly is the overall goal... but is it safe? There are indeed health concerns and I don't know about you, but constantly being exposed to the magnetic equivalent of electricity doesn't spark me as a good thing.

As I said before, this could be revolutionary. This could change EVERYTHING. Freedom from restraint of the cords that "bind us". I'm very... what's the term... techy? I have a lot of electronics and they're stuck in certain places due to cords. Elimination of cords would allow me to better set up my entertainment center. To better set up my computer. To overall do everything better than I did before. Eliminate the safety concerns and I'd be all for this idea. It would lead us to a future with no more cords. ... ever.

'Extremely dangerous' Hurricane Bill churns in Atlantic

Hurricane Bill was said to be "extremely dangerous" at a Category 4, heading towards Bermuda, Wednesday. Forecasters warned that people should take all precautions necessary to be ready just in case the hurricane hit the Islands in the Caribbean Sea.

Hurricane Bill's winds were reported at "up to 85 miles of Hurricane force winds from the eye, and tropical storm-force winds up to 230 miles out." It was moving NW, "passing between the U.S. coast and Bermuda" but it was to early to say where it was going to land.

Hurricane Bill could make some serious rip tides and swells close to the U.S. coastline. Also some flooding could occur while Bill is making it's move towards land.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/weather/08/19/hurricane.bill/index.html?iref=mpstory...

It is getting into hurricane season again and I am hoping we do not get hit because I don't know how we would recover from it. The economy is so bad right now that if we were to get hit by a hurricane, like Hurricane Charlie years ago, we would not recover as fast as we did then.

Four U.S. Troops charged with soldier cruelty

A 19 year old soldier named Keiffer P. Wilhelm, shot himself inside a portable toilet a few days after arriving in Iraq. He was harrassed because he was over weight and the Sgt.'s were extremely hard on him. He stopped going around crowded areas to prevent further harrassment.

The four guys, "Sgt. Enoch Chatman, Staff Sgt. Bob Clements, Sgt. Jarrett Taylor, and Spc. Daniel Weber were all of B Troop, 2nd Squadron, 13th Calvary Regiment from Fort Bliss, Texas."They were picking on keiffer every day because he was over weight. They were also accused of picking on other soldiers as well. They are being charged with false statements, cruelty and mistreatment and reckless endangerment. If they are found guilty of the charges against them, they are all facing a good amount of time in prison.

http://www.msnbc.com/id/32509172/ns/us-news-military/

I think these soldiers deserve what they being charged with. It is not right to treat anyone in a terrible way at all. People should treat everyone how they want to be treated.

Wednesday, September 2, 2009

Africa's Growing Obesity Problem

Hearing about problems if starvation and malnutrition many won't believe now Africa is facing problems of obesity. 64% of blacks and 50% of whites in South Africa are either obese or overweight . Many feel like being obese or overweight is a good thing. It's their way to prove they aren't infected with HIV/AIDS, a huge epidemic in Africa. Being obese is easy in cities with jobs requiring less energy and has a large supply of foods and cheap meat loaded with trans fat.
Sadly even with starvation in some areas of Africa, South Africa is facing a crisis of obesity.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/212556
Africa is facing two very crises starvation on one hand and obesity on the other. I think they need help finding a balance. Even though unfortunately the areas starving aren't starving by choice. But the obesity problem could be managed they need to learn that even though you may prove you don't have AIDS your causing many more serious health complications , such as high blood pressure diabetes and many other things associated with being overweight.

Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Leaders mark 70th anniversary of World War II

Almost 20 world leaders gathered Tuesday in Poland to commemorate the start of World War II. 70 years ago today in a battle which 6 million Polish people died. The attack of the battleship Schleswig-Holstein set off a chain of events.The Russians took half of Poland in this war.Leaders from many nations were in Gdansk for a wreath-laying ceremony at the Cemetery of Defenders, where speeches took place in front of the Westerplatte memorial. Although this war was many years ago, their are still people suffering, and they feel it's unfair to them. The war is over, and all the pain and suffering should be over with. Most countries have overcome these types of controversies, when will this country be done with theirs??? It's a new day, age and time, so lets get the problems resolved.

Mexico tries to evacuate thousands ahead of Jimena

In Los Cabos, Mexico emergency workers were trying their best to get residents to evacuate the are, due to the incoming hurricane Jimena. Jimena was forecast ed to be a category five hurricane by the time it makes landfall late Tuesday night. Police, firefighters, and navy personnel are in the little towns trying to get residents who lived in little shacks to evacuate. But a lot of the people were scared there possessions would be stolen if they left, so most of them were skeptical. Even though the government warns who ever hadn't evacuated would be force to evacuate by the time the storm. Meetings have been moved, over 75 percent of the tourists have left, and the city's port has been shut, the remaining tourists are embracing the waves and such brought on by the hurricane. And just a little ways over in the pacific, Tropical storm Kevin is brewing.


http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090901/D9AEGSKG0.html

Germany arrests suspect in plot to attack U.S. targets

In Berlin, Germany, a German of Turkish origin known as Kadir T, was arrested under suspicion of helping terrorists that planned to attack the U.S troops in Germany. he was getting a video camera and night-vision equipment to ship to Wairistan in Pakistan for the terrorist group.

A terrorist group named the Islamic Jihad Union Group trained four men that are on trial in Germany for planning attacks against U.S. installations. These four men, Fritz Gelowicz, Martin Schneider, Adem Yilmaz and Attila Selek are known as the "Sauerland Group." Three of the men mixed together explosive combinations that would have caused a massive explosion in September 2007, but were arrested before anything could happen. The charges they are facing are "membership in foreign and domestic terrorist groups, preparation of explosives, plotting to murder and plotting to commit a crime using explosives," the court said.

The group killed about 47 people when they set off a bunch of suicide bombs in April 2004, but up until that time they were not known, "according to the Memorial Institute for the prevention of Terrorism. The nonprofit organization is funded by the Department of Homeland Security.

"http://www.cnn.com/2009/WORLD/europe/08/28/germany.terror.arrests/index.html