US astronomers launch search for alien life on 86 planets

Nice, now that we know where some plants actually are it's about time they actually started listening to them instead of random sections of space... although I doubt we will find anything unless a civilization specifically have set up radio beacons as extra-planetary radio broadcast didn't even last long here on Earth as it was mostly just an accident/byproduct of transmitting at high powers until Satellites came along.

 

A massive radio telescope in rural West Virginia has begun listening for signs of alien life on 86 possible Earth-like planets, US astronomers said Friday.

The giant dish began this week pointing toward each of the 86 planets -- culled from a list of 1,235 possible planets identified by NASA's Kepler -- and will gather 24 hours of data on each one.

"It's not absolutely certain that all of these stars have habitable planetary systems, but they're very good places to look for ET," said University of California at Berkeley graduate student Andrew Siemion.

The mission is part of the SETI project, which stands for Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence, launched in the mid 1980s.

Last month the announced it was shuttering a major part of its efforts -- a 50 million dollar project with 42 telescope dishes known as the (ATA) -- due to a five million dollar .

 

See the rest HERE

Man Officially Cured of HIV

I mean the title kinda says it all... this is awesome, now to develop a repeatable cure from this that isn't so dangerous and not an accident.

 

For the first time, a man has been declared officially cured of HIV. The remedy may nearly have killed him, but it opens a door—just a crack—to hope that we may someday kill off the scourge for good.

Strangely enough, the diagnosis that most concerned Timothy Ray Brown in 2007 was acute myeloid leukemia. HIV has been increasingly thought of as a manageable disease, though certainly a terribly burdensome one. What brought the 42-year old Brown under the care of Germany's Charite Universitatsmedizin Berlin hospital was the more immediate threat his cancer posed.

The treatment Brown underwent was aggressive: chemotherapy that destroyed the majority of his immune cells. Total body irradiation. Finally, a risky stem-cell transplant that nearly a third of patients don't survive—but that appears to have completely cured Brown of HIV.

See the rest HERE

 

FBI tracking device found; disassembled

[ifixit] has apparently grown tired of tearing apart Apple’s latest gizmos, and their latest display of un-engineering has a decidedly more federal flair. You may have heard about Yasir Afifi’s discovery of a FBI-installed tracking device on his car back in October of last year. Apparently, the feds abandoned a similar device with activist Kathy Thomas. Wired magazine managed to get their hands on it, and gave it to ifixit to take apart. There’ve even posted a video.

The hardware itself isn’t that remarkable, it’s essentially a GPS receiver designed before the turn of the century paired with a short range wireless transceiver. The whole device is powered by a set of D-sized lithium-thionyl chloride batteries which should be enough juice to run the whole setup for another few decades–long enough to outlast any reasonable expectations of privacy, with freedom and justice for all.

Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels Signs NRA-Backed “Firearm Preemption Reform” and “Firearm Transport Permit Reform” Bills Into Law!

ndiana Governor Mitch Daniels Signs NRA-Backed “Firearm Preemption Reform” and “Firearm Transport Permit Reform” Bills Into Law!

Yesterday, Governor Mitch Daniels signed the “Firearm Preemption Reform” bill and the “Firearm Transport Permit Reform” bill into law!

 

Senate Enrolled Act 292, the “Firearm Preemption Reform” bill, passed the General Assembly on the final day of Indiana’s legislative session. SEA 292 passed by a 38 to 12 vote in the state Senate and a 77 to 21 margin in the state House. Senate Bill 292 would mandate a strong and meaningful statewide standard for all firearm laws in Indiana. 

 

This bill was authored by state Senator Jim Tomes (R-49) and was coauthored by Senators Jim Smith (R-45), Scott Schneider (R-30), Jim Banks (R-17), Brent Waltz (R-36), Brent Steele (R-44), Dennis Kruse (R-14), John Waterman (R-39), Brandt Hershman (R-7), and NRA Board Member Senator Johnny Nugent (R-43). The measure was sponsored in the House by state Representative Mike Speedy (R-90) and cosponsored by Representatives Sean Eberhart (R-57), Eric Koch (R-65), Heath VanNatter (R-38) and Terry Goodin (D-66).


Senate Enrolled Act 506, the “Firearm Transport Permit Reform” bill, passed in the Indiana Senate by an overwhelming bi-partisan 43 to 7 vote. This bill then passed in the House of Representatives with comparably strong support in an 84 to 13 vote. This bill would make important reforms to Indiana’s current “transport permit” requirement. It is currently illegal to transport a handgun in your vehicle without some form of state-issued permit for any reason unless driving from the point of purchase to your home or to your fixed place of business, or from your home or fixed place of business to a gunsmith for repair.

 

SEA 506 was authored by state Senator Jim Tomes (R-49) and coauthored by Senators Dennis Kruse (R-14), Jim Smith (R-45), Scott Schneider (R-30), Brent Waltz (R-36), Michael Young (R-35), John Waterman (R-39), Travis Holdman (R-19), Jim Banks (R-17) and NRA Board Member Johnny Nugent (R-43). The measure was sponsored in the House by state Representative Heath VanNatter (R-38) and cosponsored by Representatives Sean Eberhart (R-57) and Robert Morris (R-84).

 

2011 marked one of the most successful pro-gun legislative sessions in the Hoosier State’s history, with five NRA-backed firearm bills passing in the Indiana General Assembly an being signed into law by Governor Mitch Daniels.