BBC Nature - New species of genuflecting plant buries its own seeds 23 September 2011Last updated at 11:42 By Alejandra Martins Reporter, BBC Latin America service Spigelia genuflexa bends over to release its seeds to the ground A new plant that "bends down" to deposit its seeds has been discovered in the Atlantic forest in the state of Bahia, northeastern Brazil. The new species has been named Spigelia genuflexa after its unusual adaptation. After fruits are formed, the fruiting branches bend down, depositing the capsules of seeds on the ground and sometimes burying them in the soft cover of moss The discovery is reported in the journal PhytoKeys. S. genuflexa was described by Alex Popovkin, an amateur botanist who has catalogued and photographed over 800 species in his property in Bahia. A friend of Mr Popovkin's noticed the unusual plant, and brought it to his attention. In his efforts to identify it, Popovkin contacted experts in several countries. 'Short-lived' Continue reading the main story “Start Quote End QuoteLena Struwe Rutgers University
Is Android really free software? | Technology To what extent does Android respect the freedom of its users? For a computer user that values freedom, that is the most important question to ask about any software system. In the free/libre software movement, we develop software that respects users' freedom, so we and you can escape from software that doesn't. By contrast, the idea of "open source" focuses on how to develop code; it is a different current of thought whose principal value is code quality rather than freedom.Thus, the concern here is not whether Android is "open", but whether it allows users to be free. Android is an operating system primarily for mobile phones, which consists of Linux (Torvalds's kernel), some libraries, a Java platform and some applications. The version of Linux included in Android is not entirely free software, since it contains non-free "binary blobs" (just like Torvalds' version of Linux), some of which are really used in some Android devices. The phone network firmware comes pre-installed.
Scientists Disarm AIDS Virus’ Attack on Immune System | Health Scientists say they have found a way to disarm the AIDS virus in research that could lead to a vaccine. Researchers have discovered that if they eliminate a cholesterol membrane surrounding the virus, HIV cannot disrupt communication among disease-fighting cells and the immune system returns to normal. Scientists have discovered that HIV needs cholesterol, which it picks up from the first immune cells it infects, to keep the virus' outer membrane fluid. That allows it to communicate with - and disrupt - the body's immune system. The long-term effect of this disrupted communication is to destroy the body’s normal defense against the AIDS virus, which is responsible for 1.8 million deaths each year. But researchers say they can prevent HIV from damaging the immune system, if they remove the cholesterol from the virus’ outer membrane. David Graham is a molecular biologist at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. “These cells are just saying, 'No way.
Gamers solve molecular puzzle that baffled scientists MSNBC's Thomas Roberts talks with University of Washington Center for Game Science director Seth Cooper and researcher Firas Khatib about a video game that helped unravel a protein structure in an AIDS-like virus. By Alan Boyle, Science Editor, NBC News Last updated 12:45 p.m. ET Sept. 20: Video-game players have solved a molecular puzzle that stumped scientists for years, and those scientists say the accomplishment could point the way to crowdsourced cures for AIDS and other diseases. "This is one small piece of the puzzle in being able to help with AIDS," Firas Khatib, a biochemist at the University of Washington, told me. The feat, which was accomplished using a collaborative online game called Foldit, is also one giant leap for citizen science — a burgeoning field that enlists Internet users to look for alien planets, decipher ancient texts and do other scientific tasks that sheer computer power can't accomplish as easily. That's where Foldit plays a role. They could.
Obama Tax Plan Would Ask More of Millionaires Scott Eells/Bloomberg News, left; Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images The investor Warren E. Buffett, left, inspired the name of President Obama's proposal. With a special joint Congressional committee starting work to reach a bipartisan budget deal by late November, the proposal adds a new and populist feature to Mr. Obama’s effort to raise the political pressure on Republicans to agree to higher revenues from the wealthy in return for Democrats’ support of future cuts from and . Mr. Mr. Mr. In a speech on Thursday, Speaker John A. “Tax increases, however, are not a viable option for the joint committee,” Mr. The Obama proposal has little chance of becoming law unless Republican lawmakers bend. It could also reassure Democrats who have feared that Mr. The millionaires’ tax is among several changes Mr. The millionaires’ rate would affect only 0.3 percent of taxpayers, they said. Mr. Mr. Mr.
European Philosophers Become Magical Anime Girls | Ayashii World: Japan's Hidden News Network Author Junji Hotta has blessed the world with “Tsundere, Heidegger, and Me”, a tour de force of European philosophy… in a world where all the philosophers are self-conscious anime girls. The books went on sale September 14. The table of contents includes: “Chapter 1, Descartes: proving the existence of God”; “Chapter 2, Spinoza: man is the greatest for man”, “Chapter 3, Berkeley and Hume: to exist is to be aware”, “Chapter 4, Kant: the starry heaven above me and morality within me”, “Chapter 5, Hegel: the world is an infinite progression towards wisdom”, “Chapter 6, Nietzsche: God is dead, but nothing has changed”, “Chapter 7, Heidegger: without a world, we do not exist, without us, the world does not exist, we are not alone”. “I think. Therefore, there’s me, K?” The main character, reincarnated as a high school student after a fatal accident, is summoned by the 7 characters for secret after-school lessons. Without further ado, photos: Descartes Spinoza Berkeley and Hume Kant Hegel Nietzsche
Albert Einstein: Death of a Genius Almost every morning for the last 22 years, a self-effacing little man, careless-clad in baggy pants and a blue stocking cap, stepped down from the front porch of a modest frame house at 112 Mercer Street, Princeton, N.J., and trudged off to the Institute for Advanced Studies. At a glance, the little man could have been the caretaker or a gardener. He puffed meekly at his pipe; he sidled in quietly; he seldom spoke unless spoken to. But on a second look, a rare quality seemed to glow in that sad and wizened face, with its disordered halo of white hair... Subscribe Now Get TIME the way you want it One Week Digital Pass — $4.99 Monthly Pay-As-You-Go DIGITAL ACCESS — $2.99 One Year ALL ACCESS — Just $30!
Guy Who Created The TSA Says It's Failed, And It's Time To Dismantle It One of the politicians instrumental in creating the TSA, Rep. John Mica, who wrote the legislation that established the TSA, has apparently decided that the whole thing has been a failure and should be dismantled. He notes that "the whole program has been hijacked by bureaucrats." “It mushroomed into an army,” Mica said. “It’s gone from a couple-billion-dollar enterprise to close to $9 billion.” There's a lot more at that link. Doctors campaign against 'risky and painful' circumcision of boys Doctors campaign against 'risky and painful' circumcision of boys Wednesday 14 September 2011 The Dutch doctors federation KNMG has again called on ministers, MPs and human rights organisations to speak out against the practice of circumcising young boys. Between 10,000 and 15,000 boys are circumcised in the Netherlands every year, often on religious grounds and without anaesthetics, the organisation says. The intervention is not without risk and is increasingly being seen as 'not normal', the organisation says. It is not calling for an outright ban because of fears this would drive the practice underground and lead to more complications. In particular, the KNMG says insurance companies should ask if they should be using public funds to pay for an unnecessary operation. © DutchNews.nl