International

"Panel Challenges Japan's Account of Nuclear Disaster"

"TOKYO — A powerful and independent panel of specialists appointed by Japan’s Parliament is challenging the government’s account of the accident at a Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant, and will start its own investigation into the disaster — including an inquiry into how much the March earthquake may have damaged the plant’s reactors even before the tsunami. "

Source: NY Times, 01/17/2012

"Herpes, HIV Viruses Enter USA via Smuggled African Bushmeat"

"NEW YORK, N.Y. -- Evidence of retroviruses and herpes viruses in illegally imported wildlife meat products confiscated at U.S. international airports has been found using new technology known as DNA barcoding. This method uses a short genetic marker in an organism's DNA to identify it as belonging to a particular species."

Source: ENS, 01/11/2012

"Doomsday Clock Ticks Closer to Midnight"

"The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists (BAS) moved its Doomsday Clock one minute closer to midnight on Tuesday. It now reads 11:55 p.m.

Two years ago, when it appeared that world leaders might actually address the global threats around us, the BAS ratcheted the clock backward by a minute, to 11:54pm. Now that petite burst of optimism has dissolved. Why?

It's mostly about the global failure deal with climate change."

Source: Mother Jones, 01/11/2012

"Activists Detained on Japan Whaling Vessel: Sea Shepherd"

"Three Australian environmental activists were detained on board a Japanese whaling ship on Sunday after boarding in protest at Japan's annual whale cull in the Antarctic, anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd said.

The three activists from Forest Rescue, an Australian group specializing in direct action to prevent logging, boarded the ship early on Sunday with assistance from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, Sea Shepherd said in a statement.

Source: Reuters, 01/09/2012

Fukushima: Domestic Robots Failed To Ride To Rescue After Plant Blew

"After the March 11 tsunami slammed into the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant and wrecked three reactors, many people expected the nation's cutting-edge robotic technologies to come to the rescue.

That, however, turned out to be wishful thinking, and the public was left wondering why Japanese robots, such as Honda Motor Co.'s Asimo humanoid, weren't sent to the power plant to assist firefighters and workers trying to bring the crippled reactors under control.

Source: Japan Times, 01/06/2012

"'Zombie' Fly Parasite Killing Honeybees"

"A heap of dead bees was supposed to become food for a newly captured praying mantis. Instead, the pile ended up revealing a previously unrecognized suspect in colony collapse disorder -- a mysterious condition that for several years has been causing declines in U.S. honeybee populations, which are needed to pollinate many important crops."

Source: Scientific American, 01/05/2012

"WHO "Deeply Concerned" By Mutated Birdflu Research"

"The World Health Organization issued a stern warning on Friday to scientists who have engineered a highly pathogenic form of the deadly H5N1 bird flu virus, saying their work carries significant risks and must be tightly controlled."

"The United Nations health body said it was 'deeply concerned about the potential negative consequences' of work by two leading flu research teams who this month said they had found ways to make H5N1 into a easily transmissable form capable of causing lethal human pandemics."

01/05/2012
Source: ,

"Nuclear Awakening: Mothers First To Shed Food-Safety Complacency"

"The disaster at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant and the threat of radioactive fallout changed the lives of many people, including Mizuho Nakayama and other mothers of young children whose primary goal suddenly became that of keeping their kids out of harm's way."

Source: Japan Times, 01/04/2012

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - International