10:31 AM
Environmentally-friendly coating for glass, plastics, and a range of other materials may eliminate the need for harsh detergents and solvents...if you get a heavy oil spill on something, you can just wipe it off with plain water! It also can be used as an anti-fog coating on windshields and eyewear:
http://www.rdmag.com/News/2009/08/Materials-Eco-Friendly-Self-Cleaning-Material-Tough-On-Stains/
Mathematicians developed a new cloaking method to shield subs from sonar, planes from radar, buildings from earthquakes, and oil rigs and coastal structures from tsunamis:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-08/uou-anc081409.php
During the Russia-Georgia conflict, Russian hackers hijacked American IDs and software tools to attack Georgian government websites. Some of the software used was a modified version of Microsoft code for network administrators that is freely available on Microsoft's web site. Combining identity theft, social networking, and free commercial software took cyber attacks to another level:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125046431841935299.html
With all the talk about troop increases for Afghanistan, I was surprised to read about how the US's top General in Afghanistan has directed his commanders to come up with proposals to cut manpower by as much as 20%. They want to maximize the number of infantrymen and counterinsurgents and minimize support staff and any nonessential personnel:
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2009/08/top-general-explores-afghan-troop-cuts-to-make-way-for-trigger-pullers/
Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas and a maximum-security prison in rural Michigan are the finalists to house the Guantanamo Bay inmates if that facility is closed:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i4xYyvWDfL4tuqx_gqzGLQCH0i9gD9A238KO1
Deep tremors indicate that a *massive* earthquake (9.0 or greater!) could take place near the Seattle/Tacoma area that could also cause a tsunami. The mega-earthquakes in the Cascadia subduction zone occur every 400 or 500 years or so, and the last one in that area was a 9.2 earthquake that created a tsunami that reached Japan!
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/73757.html
Battery breakthrough may combine the latest in solar energy with the ability to store high energy density at normal temperatures. Solar power for $2 per watt combined with battery technology to store that energy for an extended period of time means that a home could be completely off the grid in an affordable manner:
http://www.heraldextra.com/news/article_b0372fd8-3f3c-11de-ac77-001cc4c002e0.html
Asian-American men are much less likely to think about or attempt to commit suicide than other Americans, but Asian-American women (born in the US) think about suicide more than the national average and attempt suicide more often:
http://www.physorg.com/news169743136.html
Study found that restricting the fertilizer that contained phosphorus improved the water quality of the surrounding area:
http://www.physorg.com/news169743896.html
Rapid economic development in China has resulted in panda's habitat being split up in increasingly smaller patches, which reduces their chances to find mates. This leads to a projection that China's panda population could be extinct in just 2 or 3 generations:
http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/08/17/giant-panda-extinct.html
Verizon completed LTE data calls (including streaming video, file uploads and downloads, web browsing, and VoIP voice transmissions) in both Boston and Seattle. Both Boston and Seattle have 10 LTE cell sites. Verizon's CTO said that the trial results indicate that LTE average download speeds will be between 7 and 12 Mbps:
http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/verizon-begins-lte-trials/2009-08-14?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal
Dell unveiled its Android-based smartphone that will be available through China Mobile. It is a 2G phone without any 3G or WiFi (WiFi isn't allowed on phones in China) capability:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/170294/dell_fails_to_wow_with_mini3i_smartphone.html
Research found that 90% of paper money circulating in the US contains traces of cocaine (Thanks Ben!):
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/08/14/cocaine.traces.money/index.html
A *cat* was earned a high school diploma--the online quiz was a series of multiple-choice questions with each question having 4 multiple choice answers and you get 4 chances to get each question correct...that isn't exactly the most challenging test in the world! I guess anyone with $199 can get a high school degree:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08/15/cat_awarded_online_diploma/
1,224-pound triple vanilla cupcake with pink frosting set the record for world's largest cupcake. It was more than 8x the size of the previous record holder and included 800 eggs and 200 pounds each of sugar and flour. People who donated to a breast cancer organization got slices of the cupcake:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/08/16/ap/strange/main5245437.shtml?tag=cbsnewsLeadStoriesAreaMain;cbsnewsLeadStoriesSecondary
http://www.rdmag.com/News/2009/08/Materials-Eco-Friendly-Self-Cleaning-Material-Tough-On-Stains/
Mathematicians developed a new cloaking method to shield subs from sonar, planes from radar, buildings from earthquakes, and oil rigs and coastal structures from tsunamis:
http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2009-08/uou-anc081409.php
During the Russia-Georgia conflict, Russian hackers hijacked American IDs and software tools to attack Georgian government websites. Some of the software used was a modified version of Microsoft code for network administrators that is freely available on Microsoft's web site. Combining identity theft, social networking, and free commercial software took cyber attacks to another level:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125046431841935299.html
With all the talk about troop increases for Afghanistan, I was surprised to read about how the US's top General in Afghanistan has directed his commanders to come up with proposals to cut manpower by as much as 20%. They want to maximize the number of infantrymen and counterinsurgents and minimize support staff and any nonessential personnel:
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2009/08/top-general-explores-afghan-troop-cuts-to-make-way-for-trigger-pullers/
Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas and a maximum-security prison in rural Michigan are the finalists to house the Guantanamo Bay inmates if that facility is closed:
http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i4xYyvWDfL4tuqx_gqzGLQCH0i9gD9A238KO1
Deep tremors indicate that a *massive* earthquake (9.0 or greater!) could take place near the Seattle/Tacoma area that could also cause a tsunami. The mega-earthquakes in the Cascadia subduction zone occur every 400 or 500 years or so, and the last one in that area was a 9.2 earthquake that created a tsunami that reached Japan!
http://www.mcclatchydc.com/homepage/story/73757.html
Battery breakthrough may combine the latest in solar energy with the ability to store high energy density at normal temperatures. Solar power for $2 per watt combined with battery technology to store that energy for an extended period of time means that a home could be completely off the grid in an affordable manner:
http://www.heraldextra.com/news/article_b0372fd8-3f3c-11de-ac77-001cc4c002e0.html
Asian-American men are much less likely to think about or attempt to commit suicide than other Americans, but Asian-American women (born in the US) think about suicide more than the national average and attempt suicide more often:
http://www.physorg.com/news169743136.html
Study found that restricting the fertilizer that contained phosphorus improved the water quality of the surrounding area:
http://www.physorg.com/news169743896.html
Rapid economic development in China has resulted in panda's habitat being split up in increasingly smaller patches, which reduces their chances to find mates. This leads to a projection that China's panda population could be extinct in just 2 or 3 generations:
http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2009/08/17/giant-panda-extinct.html
Verizon completed LTE data calls (including streaming video, file uploads and downloads, web browsing, and VoIP voice transmissions) in both Boston and Seattle. Both Boston and Seattle have 10 LTE cell sites. Verizon's CTO said that the trial results indicate that LTE average download speeds will be between 7 and 12 Mbps:
http://www.fiercewireless.com/story/verizon-begins-lte-trials/2009-08-14?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal
Dell unveiled its Android-based smartphone that will be available through China Mobile. It is a 2G phone without any 3G or WiFi (WiFi isn't allowed on phones in China) capability:
http://www.pcworld.com/article/170294/dell_fails_to_wow_with_mini3i_smartphone.html
Research found that 90% of paper money circulating in the US contains traces of cocaine (Thanks Ben!):
http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/08/14/cocaine.traces.money/index.html
A *cat* was earned a high school diploma--the online quiz was a series of multiple-choice questions with each question having 4 multiple choice answers and you get 4 chances to get each question correct...that isn't exactly the most challenging test in the world! I guess anyone with $199 can get a high school degree:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/08/15/cat_awarded_online_diploma/
1,224-pound triple vanilla cupcake with pink frosting set the record for world's largest cupcake. It was more than 8x the size of the previous record holder and included 800 eggs and 200 pounds each of sugar and flour. People who donated to a breast cancer organization got slices of the cupcake:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/08/16/ap/strange/main5245437.shtml?tag=cbsnewsLeadStoriesAreaMain;cbsnewsLeadStoriesSecondary