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Science

Human Genome Contaminated With Mycoplasma DNA 123

Posted by timothy from the beer-goggles-to-the-nth-degree dept.
KentuckyFC writes "The published human genome is contaminated with DNA sequences from mycoplasma bacteria, according to bioinformatics researchers who blame an epidemic of mycoplasma contamination in molecular biology labs around the world. The researchers say they've also found mycoplasma DNA in two commercially available human DNA chips made by biotech companies for measuring levels of human gene expression. So anybody using these chips to measure human gene expression is also unknowingly measuring mycoplasma gene expression too. The mycoplasma genes are clearly successful in reproducing themselves in silico raising the possibility that we're seeing the beginnings of an entirely new kind of landscape of infection. One option to combat this kind of virtual infection is to protect databases with the genomic version of antivirus software, a kind of virtual immune system. But this in itself could make things worse by triggering an evolutionary arms race that selects genes most capable of beating the safeguards."
Google

Google's Bangalore Streetview Project Stalled 108

Posted by samzenpus from the not-in-my-town dept.
GillBates0 writes "The Bangalore Police have objected to the collection of data by Google's cars, which were criss-crossing Bangalore city taking high definition images to give users 360 degree views of streets. Talking about the security concerns in an earlier interview with CNN-IBN, Google India Product Head Vinay Goel said, 'We are only driving on public roads and taking publicly available imagery so what we are not doing is going into a specific installation and taking private pictures and obviously we are working with the authorities so if there are certain locations they don't want us to be there we won't go there, we are happy working with the authorities here.'"

Comment Re:The proper role of government (Score 1) 475

by omems (#36230100) Attached to: Large Scale 24/7 Solar Power Plant To Be Built in Nevada
That was precisely my point: The government's track record is bad (And their desire to meddle is only increasing.).
But there are some notable exceptions, foremost in my mind being the space program. The direct and indirect benefits are staggering, and none would have been possible at the time if not for government involvement. That is the sort of thing I think it should be involved in. Large scale, high risk, high reward endeavors.

Somehow though we need an oversight program that is immune to (or can compensate for) special interests, politics and the vicissitudes of popular opinion.
Hari Seldon?

Comment New Business Plan (Score 2) 398

by omems (#36046958) Attached to: Tech Experts Look To Help Save the Postal Service
Google should just buy the USPS. Then they'd have everyone's name and address, could mount cameras on the carrier's heads for mapping and insert advertising into each batch of mail.

Actually, that's what the USPS should do to raise some cash: sell us out to advertisers. It's not like I don't just throw away 95% of whats in the box anyway. Sifting past a few more dead trees wouldn't really be hard.
Cellphones

Why Users Don't Trust Mobile Apps 153

Posted by Soulskill from the all-of-the-convenience-none-of-the-security dept.
snydeq writes "Fatal Exception's Neil McAllister writes of the growing unease among consumers around mobile data privacy, and how this distrust will impact mobile app development. 'When every week seems to bring another news story about a data breach resulting in the theft of customer data, customers are growing increasingly jealous of their privacy. Given the unique nature of the data to be found on smartphones, it's only natural that they have begun to view mobile apps with a skeptical eye. If you're developing apps that use customers' mobile data, you need to do more than recognize these realities. You need to develop a policy that places secure, ethical, and appropriate handling of user data at the core of your application development process.'"
Japan

Japanese Government Will Censor Fukushima "Illegal Information" 411

Posted by samzenpus from the for-your-own-good dept.
dgilzz writes "The Japanese government says that the damage caused by earthquakes and by the nuclear accident are being magnified by irresponsible rumors, and the government must take action for the sake of the public good. The project team has begun to send letters of request to such organizations as telephone companies, internet providers, cable television stations, and others, demanding that they take adequate measures based on the guidelines in response to illegal information. The measures include erasing any information from internet sites that the authorities deem harmful to public order and morality."
Science

Scientists Unveil Worlds First Computerized Human Brain Map 73

Posted by samzenpus from the all-laid-out dept.
An anonymous reader writes "US scientists on Tuesday unveiled the world's first computerized human brain map, an online public resource developed to accelerate understanding of how the human brain works and in hopes to tackle neurological diseases like Alzeimer's and Parkinson's. Funded by Microsoft Corp. co-founder Paul Allen, the 55-million-US dollar project, named the Allen Human Brain Atlas, identifies 1,000 anatomical sites in the human brain, backed by more than 100 million data points that indicate the particular gene expression and underlying biochemistry of each site, said the Seattle-based Allen Institute for Brain Science. The human brain map released so far is only male."

Comment Requisite car analogy (Score 1) 223

by omems (#35176794) Attached to: Cancer Resembles Life 1 Billion Years Ago
"...colonies of eukaryotic cells in which cellular cooperation was fairly rudimentary, consisting of networks of adhering cells exchanging information chemically, and forming self-organized assemblages with only a moderate division of labor. These proto-metazoans were effectively small, loosely-knit ecosystems that fell short of the complex organization and regulation we associate with most modern metazoans. In short, proto-metazoans, which we dub Metazoans 1.0, were tumor-like neoplasms." Just because it has wheels, fenders, an engine, a steering wheel, etc doesn't make a car and a truck equivalent.
Image

Professor Rejects Camera Implanted In His Head Screenshot-sm 138

Posted by samzenpus from the bad-ideas dept.
Stenchwarrior writes "A New York University professor temporarily removed the camera he had surgically installed in the back of his head to get rid of one of the apparatus' parts after his body rejected it, myFOXny.com reported Wednesday. Photography professor Wafaa Bilal was in near constant pain after part of a thumb-nail-size camera, implanted in December as part of an art project commissioned by a new museum in Qatar, was rejected by his body."
Robotics

Robot Jet Fighter Takes First Flight 119

Posted by Roblimo from the look-ma-no-hands dept.
lysdexia writes "The X-47B is a Tailless Flying Robotic Overlord, which requires neither puny human pilot nor extraneous remote control. First flight was 29 minutes, climbing to a height of 5000 ft. Next step: landing on aircraft carrier."
Science

DoE Develops Flexible Glass Stronger Than Steel 242

Posted by Soulskill from the whale-tested,-scotsman-approved dept.
An anonymous reader writes "The Department of Energy Office of Science recently collaborated with the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and the California Institute of Technology to develop a resilient yet malleable new type of glass that is stronger than steel. The material can also be molded, and it bends when subjected to stress instead of shattering. The glass is actually a microalloy and features metallic elements such as palladium. This metal has a high 'bulk-to-shear' stiffness ratio that counteracts the intrinsic brittleness of glassy materials. The team that developed the material believes that by changing various ratios, they could make it even stronger."

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