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http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2011/aug/2/rush-for-rare-earth-may-create-nebraska-boomtown/
By Claire Courchane
-
The Washington Times
Updated: 10:58 a.m. on Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Geologist Matt Joeckel displays a core sample of carbonatite rock containing niobium and rare-earth elements, which was taken from a deposit near Elk Creek, Neb., in early February. (Associated Press)Geologist Matt Joeckel displays a core sample of carbonatite rock containing niobium and rare-earth elements, which was taken from a deposit near Elk Creek, Neb., in early February. (Associated Press)
Elk Creek, Neb. (population 112), may not be so tiny much longer. Reports suggest that the southeastern Nebraska hamlet may be sitting on the world’s largest untapped deposit of “rare earth” minerals, which have proved to be indispensable to a slew of high-tech and military applications such as laser pointers, stadium lighting, electric car batteries and sophisticated missile-guidance systems.
Canada-based Quantum Rare Earths Developments Corp. last week received preliminary results from test drilling in the area, showing “significant” proportions of “rare earth” minerals and niobium.
The only people more excited than Quantum? The residents of Elk Creek, where nearly one in seven people live under the poverty line, but whose economy has been booming ever since the company showed up late last year to start laying the groundwork for a possible mining bonanza.
“It’s been a very, very positive experience for our community,” said state Sen. Lavon Heidemann, an Elk Creek farmer. “When Quantum came in here, they put money in the local community. And any time you have money flowing in a small town, that’s a positive.”
The potential mining operation, the first in the U.S. in a decade, could have an international impact as well. U.S. officials and lawmakers in Congress have been eager to break the near monopoly on global production of the 17 rare-earth elements in China, which has shown its willingness to use its power in the market for political ends.
Quantum acquired a circular piece of land - a bit more than 4 miles in diameter - near Elk Creek late last year. The land, which the U.S. Geological Survey projects may have one of the world’s largest deposits of niobium and rare earths, has since been poked, prodded and drilled to determine whether it held any niobium, which has never been mined in the U.S., or rare earths, which the U.S. has not mined in almost 10 years.
Boom times based on natural-resource strikes can disrupt a community and its economy, but it’s hard to find anyone in Elk Creek bad-mouthing the potential rare-earth bonanza.
“The whole community is behind Quantum,” said Greg Krueger, a local contractor. “When the drillers showed up this spring, people just opened their arms up.”
The town of Elk Creek consists of not much more than a Lutheran church, a village tavern and a grocery store called Scotty’s, owned by a local family. Even in the exploratory phase, Quantum has brought some big changes.
“They’ve rented houses, they go to our local grocery store for their food, and straight off they signed all of their leases with local farmers, just like they promised,” Mr. Heidemann said.
Mr. Krueger added that Elk Creek residents were eager to provide any help they could, including allowing the drills to be dragged across their land free of charge.
“It was, ‘What do you need? Where do you need to stay?’ Nobody is pessimistic, as far as thinking, ‘They’re here to destroy things,’ ” Mr. Krueger said.
“Elk Creek is a very small community,” he added. “And [Quantum] has provided a lot of business.”
The Quantum project is the latest example of U.S. attempts to become less dependent on foreign sources for the obscure minerals found in few places on earth, but essential to a variety of modern gadgets.
The U.S. has relied on China for years for the 17 minerals that are defined as rare earths by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry. Despite having such obscure names as praseodymium, promethium and samarium - no copper or zinc here - they are necessary for such routine contemporary technologies as magnets, laser pointers and miniature electronics, such as iPods.
“Without these minerals, our cellphones would be 3 pounds,” Quantum CEO Peter Dickie said.
The U.S. used to produce rare earths through the Mountain Pass Mine in California, but it was shut down in 2002, primarily because of environmental concerns, including the spillage of hundreds of thousands of gallons of water carrying radioactive waste into a nearby lake.
China has emerged as the world’s predominant supplier, controlling 97 percent of the global market for rare earths. In recent years, lawmakers have expressed concerns about China’s “rare earth” dominance, and these concerns were heightened when Beijing temporarily halted exports to Japan last year during a territorial dispute.
Another essential mineral Quantum hopes to mine is niobium, a steel strengthener used by the automotive and aerospace industries.
Using niobium, “you get a thinner, lighter, stronger steel,” Mr. Dickie said. “It’s important to the automotive industry, where they’re trying to get lightened-up vehicles” needed to meet fuel-economy standards without compromising safety.
The U.S. imports most of its niobium from Brazil, and has never mined it at home.
U.S. resources
Mineral mining has created many a boomtown in the West over the past two centuries, such as the Klondike gold rush and the copper industry of Butte, Mont. But some places have been left holding the bag, or turned into ghost towns, when the deposits were tapped out, leaving behind environmental damage from storage, mining processes and waste.
Environmental groups have remained silent on the Quantum project in Nebraska, but rare earths are used in many aspects of “green” technology, including hybrid-engine cars and wind turbines.
The Sierra Club of Nebraska has declined to comment on the mine until production begins.
Said Brian McManus, a spokesman for the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, “The project is still in early stages, so we don’t have a lot of detail on it.”
He added that the permits the company has obtained will help to make sure they stay environmentally cautious.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency did not return requests for comment.
Although studies have shown the U.S. has 13 million metric tons of rare-earth minerals, National Mining Association spokeswoman Carol Raulston said it does not mine any of it - partly as a result of the difficulty of obtaining permits.
“One of the key problems that investors tell us about is that the permitting regime in this country is so complicated and time-consuming that it has hurt investments here in the United States,” Ms. Raulston said.
Mr. Dickie said a bill approved by the House Natural Resources Committee late last month may help Quantum and other U.S. mining operations.
The National Strategic and Critical Minerals Policy Act of 2011 states that it is “essential to the national interest to ensure an expanding and competitive manufacturing industry built upon a healthy mining and minerals industry.”
The bill “helps to ensure a steady supply in the event of a breakdown of a normal supply chain, but the other thing that’s important to us is that it has brought to the forefront of the minds of politicians and users - who are, quite frankly, everybody - the knowledge that these materials are critical,” Mr. Dickie said.
On July 5, the U.S. and European Union won a major case against China when the World Trade Organization ruled that China was engaging in restraint of trade by keeping world supplies low on several other minerals on which it is the major supplier. Trade analysts said that ruling could set a precedent for a future rare-earth minerals case that also could loosen China’s grip on that market.
But Rep. Mike Coffman, Colorado Republican, who fought for rare-earth amendments on the bill, said that it is not enough to open up supplies from abroad.
“It’s important to develop other sources [for rare earths] in the United States and not be so reliant on China,” Mr. Coffman said. “It’s a bipartisan bill with a very strong chance of passage.”
Looking forward
Elk Creek residents say they know the riches won’t pour in overnight. They don’t care.
“It’s not short and sweet,” Mr. Dickie said of the process to open a mine. “There’s obviously regulatory and permitting issues that you run into.”
Mr. Dickie said the next step is to get results of metallurgical testing, followed by a full feasibility study.
He said the date for mine construction to begin is “fluid,” but hopes it will be in the next couple of years.
Minerals and money flow aren’t the only benefits to Elk Creek of the proposed Quantum mine: The project will create several hundred jobs in addition to the handful it created while test-drilling proceeds.
Other companies racing to exploit the rare-earth rush include Molycorp, which is attempting to reopen the former Mountain Pass Mine in California and recently secured the environmental permits to proceed there.
Molycorp did not return requests for comment on its permit, but Quantum does not see the California mine as a threat.
“They’ve been processing some of the mine tailings and building new facilities. It’s been very minor production,” Mr. Dickie said. “We don’t anticipate that we could supply the entire U.S. requirement of rare earths, so obviously there’s room for several other players.”
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Unlimited Detail Real-Time Rendering Technology Preview 2011
http://www.euclideon.com/
Brisbane-based Company's New Graphics Technology "100,000 Times Better"
Post by trog @ 10:33am 02/08/11
Euclideon, an Australian company based in Brisbane has made the remarkable claim that they've developed a new graphics rendering technology for video games that is "100,000 times better" than existing systems.
After their first announcement around a year ago, they dropped off the radar, and have recently resurfaced with a new statement as part of a video showcasing their new technology, built with nearly $2 million dollars of assistance from the Australian Government
While it is a bit light on the technical details, it is intriguing:
There is a better way to do computer graphics, which is used in medicine and the sciences. The better way to do computer graphics is to make everything out of tiny little atoms instead of flat panels. The problem is that this particular system uses up a lot of processing power. The more objects you have on the screen, the slower your computer will run. Having four or five detailed objects will run just fine, but you certainly can't do a level of a game.
We got a lot of attention because we made the claim that we could run unlimited "little 3D atoms" in real time.
The video below showcases a test island they've created, apparently comprising of over 21 trillion polygons and running at 20 FPS.
They're apparently a few months away from having an SDK available for game developers to start tinkering with the new technology, so we'll have to wait a bit and see. In the meantime, as AusGamers is also predominantly Brisbane-based, we've contacted them to see if we arrange a chat to discuss more about their new technology.
We're firm believers in the mantra of Carl Sagan - "extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence" - so we look forward to seeing more from Euclidean about their new technology soon!
"A small Australian software company — backed by almost AUD$2 million in government assistance — is claiming they've developed a new technology which is '100,000 times better' for computer game graphics. It's not clear what exactly is getting multiplied, but they apparently 'make everything out of tiny little atoms instead of flat panels.' They've posted a video to YouTube which shows their new tech, which is apparently running at 20 FPS in software. It's (very) light on the technical details, and extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, but they say an SDK is due in a few months — so stay tuned for more." John Carmack had this to say about the company's claims: "No chance of a game on current gen systems, but maybe several years from now. Production issues will be challenging."
Monday, August 1, 2011
China blames Muslim extremists for attack in Xinjiang
http://ca.news.yahoo.com/china-says-extremists-trained-abroad-behind-attack-west-034315503.html
BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Monday that Islamic militants had mounted an attack that left 11 people dead in the restive western region of Xinjiang, which announced a crackdown on "illegal" religious activities at the start of the Muslim fasting month.
The attack in Kashgar city on Sunday afternoon was the latest violence to rattle the region where Muslim Uighurs have long resented the presence of Han Chinese and religious and political controls imposed by Beijing.
It came less than 24 hours after two small blasts hit the city, which is dominated by Uighurs.
"The malign intention behind this violent terror was to sabotage inter-ethnic unity and harm social stability, provoking ethnic hatred and creating ethnic conflict," the Kashgar government said on its website (http://www.xjks.gov.cn).
Captured suspects confessed that their ringleaders had earlier fled to Pakistan and joined the separatist "East Turkestan Islamic Movement," and received training in making firearms and explosives before infiltrating back into China, the Kashgar government said.
"The members of this group all adhere to extremist religious ideas and adamantly support Jihad," said the statement, referring to the Arabic term for struggle used by advocates of militant Islam to describe their cause.
Police shot dead five people and arrested four others after they stormed a restaurant, set in on fire after killing the owner and a waiter, and then ran onto the street and hacked to death four people, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Chinese-language Global Times newspaper said all the suspected attackers were Uighur.
For the ruling Communist Party, the bloodshed presents a tricky test of its control in Xinjiang, where Uighur and Han Chinese residents view each other with suspicion. (For more on the issues see.)
Beijing has been wary of contagion from uprisings across the Arab world inspiring challenges to Party power in China.
"I think it's a testament to how tense the region remains, and the fact that you have increased polarization between ethnic groups," said Nicholas Bequelin, a researcher on China for Human Rights Watch, a New York-based advocacy group.
"There's a lot of pent-up anger and resentment of Chinese policies in Kashgar," added Bequelin, noting a controversial program to raze homes in traditional Uighur neighborhoods and relocate them to housing under firmer official control.
The top Communist Party official in Xinjiang, Zhang Chunxian, announced a crackdown on religious extremism and vowed harsh punishment for those found guilty of attacks, according to the region's official news website (www.tianshannet.com).
"(We will) resolutely attack religious extremist forces and effectively curb illegal religious activities," Zhang said.
DESERTED STREETS AFTER BURST OF ATTACKS
Kashgar city lies in Xinjiang's south and has a population of some 600,000 people, about four fifths of them Uighur, according to the government. The city is divided between Uighur and Han Chinese areas, and many residents depend on tourism for their livelihoods.
China sees Xinjiang as strategically vital, and Beijing has shown no sign of loosening its grip on the territory, which accounts for a sixth of the country's land mass and holds deposits of oil and gas.
In July 2009, the regional capital, Urumqi, was rocked by violence between majority Han Chinese and minority Uighurs that killed nearly 200 people, many of them Han Chinese.
Uighurs are a Turkic-speaking people who have usually not embraced stricter forms of Islam, but in recent years religious traditionalism has made inroads.
Critics of Chinese policy in Xinjiang and advocates of Uighur self-rule say that Beijing has exaggerated the influence of terror groups, and its tough policies have deepened Uighur anger by smothering avenues for peaceful protest.
Bequelin, the human rights researcher, said he was skeptical about Chinese suggestions that the "East Turkestan Islamic Movement" (ETIM) was behind the attack.
"It's now an umbrella term used by China for any kind of Uighur separatist or anti-state activity," Bequelin said of ETIM, which was designated as a terrorist organization by the United States in 2002.
Earlier on Sunday, Chinese media reported that two men wielding knives attacked a truck driver and then a crowd of people following two explosions in Kashgar on Saturday night, leaving eight people dead including one of the attackers.
Eighteen people including 14 "rioters" were killed in an attack on a police station in Xinjiang on July 18, according to the government.
In July 2009, Xinjiang was hit by a public backlash from Han Chinese residents of the regional capital Urumqi, who said officials acted too slowly to quell bloody rioting by Uighurs after police broke up a protest by Uighur students.
The latest attack also brought calls on the Chinese Internet for a harsh response.
"Our hope rests in policy-makers completely cutting through entangling shackles, our hope rests with the military," said one comment about the assault on Sina's popular Weibo microblogging site (http://weibo.com).
(Additional reporting by Sally Huang; Editing by Ken Wills and Jonathan Thatcher)
BEIJING (Reuters) - China said on Monday that Islamic militants had mounted an attack that left 11 people dead in the restive western region of Xinjiang, which announced a crackdown on "illegal" religious activities at the start of the Muslim fasting month.
The attack in Kashgar city on Sunday afternoon was the latest violence to rattle the region where Muslim Uighurs have long resented the presence of Han Chinese and religious and political controls imposed by Beijing.
It came less than 24 hours after two small blasts hit the city, which is dominated by Uighurs.
"The malign intention behind this violent terror was to sabotage inter-ethnic unity and harm social stability, provoking ethnic hatred and creating ethnic conflict," the Kashgar government said on its website (http://www.xjks.gov.cn).
Captured suspects confessed that their ringleaders had earlier fled to Pakistan and joined the separatist "East Turkestan Islamic Movement," and received training in making firearms and explosives before infiltrating back into China, the Kashgar government said.
"The members of this group all adhere to extremist religious ideas and adamantly support Jihad," said the statement, referring to the Arabic term for struggle used by advocates of militant Islam to describe their cause.
Police shot dead five people and arrested four others after they stormed a restaurant, set in on fire after killing the owner and a waiter, and then ran onto the street and hacked to death four people, Xinhua news agency reported.
The Chinese-language Global Times newspaper said all the suspected attackers were Uighur.
For the ruling Communist Party, the bloodshed presents a tricky test of its control in Xinjiang, where Uighur and Han Chinese residents view each other with suspicion. (For more on the issues see.)
Beijing has been wary of contagion from uprisings across the Arab world inspiring challenges to Party power in China.
"I think it's a testament to how tense the region remains, and the fact that you have increased polarization between ethnic groups," said Nicholas Bequelin, a researcher on China for Human Rights Watch, a New York-based advocacy group.
"There's a lot of pent-up anger and resentment of Chinese policies in Kashgar," added Bequelin, noting a controversial program to raze homes in traditional Uighur neighborhoods and relocate them to housing under firmer official control.
The top Communist Party official in Xinjiang, Zhang Chunxian, announced a crackdown on religious extremism and vowed harsh punishment for those found guilty of attacks, according to the region's official news website (www.tianshannet.com).
"(We will) resolutely attack religious extremist forces and effectively curb illegal religious activities," Zhang said.
DESERTED STREETS AFTER BURST OF ATTACKS
Kashgar city lies in Xinjiang's south and has a population of some 600,000 people, about four fifths of them Uighur, according to the government. The city is divided between Uighur and Han Chinese areas, and many residents depend on tourism for their livelihoods.
China sees Xinjiang as strategically vital, and Beijing has shown no sign of loosening its grip on the territory, which accounts for a sixth of the country's land mass and holds deposits of oil and gas.
In July 2009, the regional capital, Urumqi, was rocked by violence between majority Han Chinese and minority Uighurs that killed nearly 200 people, many of them Han Chinese.
Uighurs are a Turkic-speaking people who have usually not embraced stricter forms of Islam, but in recent years religious traditionalism has made inroads.
Critics of Chinese policy in Xinjiang and advocates of Uighur self-rule say that Beijing has exaggerated the influence of terror groups, and its tough policies have deepened Uighur anger by smothering avenues for peaceful protest.
Bequelin, the human rights researcher, said he was skeptical about Chinese suggestions that the "East Turkestan Islamic Movement" (ETIM) was behind the attack.
"It's now an umbrella term used by China for any kind of Uighur separatist or anti-state activity," Bequelin said of ETIM, which was designated as a terrorist organization by the United States in 2002.
Earlier on Sunday, Chinese media reported that two men wielding knives attacked a truck driver and then a crowd of people following two explosions in Kashgar on Saturday night, leaving eight people dead including one of the attackers.
Eighteen people including 14 "rioters" were killed in an attack on a police station in Xinjiang on July 18, according to the government.
In July 2009, Xinjiang was hit by a public backlash from Han Chinese residents of the regional capital Urumqi, who said officials acted too slowly to quell bloody rioting by Uighurs after police broke up a protest by Uighur students.
The latest attack also brought calls on the Chinese Internet for a harsh response.
"Our hope rests in policy-makers completely cutting through entangling shackles, our hope rests with the military," said one comment about the assault on Sina's popular Weibo microblogging site (http://weibo.com).
(Additional reporting by Sally Huang; Editing by Ken Wills and Jonathan Thatcher)
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Avatar Kinect
http://www.i-programmer.info/news/91-hardware/2788-avatar-kinect-available-now.html
Written by Harry Fairhead
Tuesday, 26 July 2011 10:19
Is Avatar Kinect a game changing innovation or is it just silly? With a little more work it could provide the sort of virtual or is it augmented, reality that creates a new way to interact and experience novel environments.
We first reported on the Avatar Kinect system back in January this year (2011) when it was first demoed. Now you can download it and try it out for yourself from the Kinect Fun Labs. The download is free but to use it you will need to be a Gold member of Xbox LIVE - but you can use it free until September the 8th via Xbox LIVE (silver or gold membership).
The idea of Avatar Kinect is simple enough. It uses the Kinect to determine body position and facial expression and maps these in real-time onto an avatar displayed on the screen with other similar avatars. The following short video shows in very roughly how this is achieved:
The point is that by making the body position and expression accurate something magical happens and you respond to the other avatars as if you were there in the group meeting. You can pick any of 24 "virtual stages" to explore and meet up to 7 other friends represented as avatars. You can record a scene and post it to the Kinect Share site.
The big problem for Microsoft is trying to figure out what this technology might be useful for. At the moment there are also big technical limitations with the system. Unless you are at the right distance the facial expression system misses many changes. The mouth tracking provides only reasonable lip sync and body movement are very limited. You can't touch yourself and there is no movement below the waist - this clearly simplifies the control problem and avoids the problems of users creating offensive avatars. Basically all you can do is treat your avatar as a static puppet that you control the upper body and facial expression of. This makes it great for "sitting around and talking" but not much else.
So what can it be used for?
Microsoft are suggesting that its ideal for virtual meetings and the rationale for using virtual rather video meetings is lower bandwidth - which doesn't seem like a huge plus. Another suggested use is in therapy sessions where avatars might make talking easier. Microsoft seem to get closer to a potential use when they suggest performance videos. You can get your avatar to sing, tell jokes or act its way thought a play. the advantage is that this frees you from the responsibility of looking the part in real light - you could even swap gender or race. To promote this idea there is a competition for the best stand-up comedian and all you have to do is create a 90-second film of your avatar telling jokes.
If you analyse what a system like Avatar Kinect offers then you have to conclude that it is basically a way for people to try on different bodies and interact with a group. It is an opportunity for anyone who feels less than confident about their appearance to become a performer for the delight of others. The internet has long provided an anonymous platform where users can express themselves and Avatar Kinect extends this to facial and body expressions.
If you ask why don't more people use video calling then the answer might well be that they aren't happy about revealing their physical appearance without spending time on polishing it to a level that they find acceptable - put bluntly would you want to take a video call just after you got out of bed, or even while you were still in bed? Perhaps an avatar, always presentable at any time of day and no matter what you are actually doing, could be the perfect stand in.
It is clearly a great piece of technology but you can't help think that we haven't worked out what it's good for. New ideas needed!
The Tech Behind Avatar Kinect
http://www.i-programmer.info/news/91-hardware/1855-avatar-kinect-a-holodeck-replacment.html
Written by Harry Fairhead
Tuesday, 26 July 2011 10:19
Is Avatar Kinect a game changing innovation or is it just silly? With a little more work it could provide the sort of virtual or is it augmented, reality that creates a new way to interact and experience novel environments.
We first reported on the Avatar Kinect system back in January this year (2011) when it was first demoed. Now you can download it and try it out for yourself from the Kinect Fun Labs. The download is free but to use it you will need to be a Gold member of Xbox LIVE - but you can use it free until September the 8th via Xbox LIVE (silver or gold membership).
The idea of Avatar Kinect is simple enough. It uses the Kinect to determine body position and facial expression and maps these in real-time onto an avatar displayed on the screen with other similar avatars. The following short video shows in very roughly how this is achieved:
The point is that by making the body position and expression accurate something magical happens and you respond to the other avatars as if you were there in the group meeting. You can pick any of 24 "virtual stages" to explore and meet up to 7 other friends represented as avatars. You can record a scene and post it to the Kinect Share site.
The big problem for Microsoft is trying to figure out what this technology might be useful for. At the moment there are also big technical limitations with the system. Unless you are at the right distance the facial expression system misses many changes. The mouth tracking provides only reasonable lip sync and body movement are very limited. You can't touch yourself and there is no movement below the waist - this clearly simplifies the control problem and avoids the problems of users creating offensive avatars. Basically all you can do is treat your avatar as a static puppet that you control the upper body and facial expression of. This makes it great for "sitting around and talking" but not much else.
So what can it be used for?
Microsoft are suggesting that its ideal for virtual meetings and the rationale for using virtual rather video meetings is lower bandwidth - which doesn't seem like a huge plus. Another suggested use is in therapy sessions where avatars might make talking easier. Microsoft seem to get closer to a potential use when they suggest performance videos. You can get your avatar to sing, tell jokes or act its way thought a play. the advantage is that this frees you from the responsibility of looking the part in real light - you could even swap gender or race. To promote this idea there is a competition for the best stand-up comedian and all you have to do is create a 90-second film of your avatar telling jokes.
If you analyse what a system like Avatar Kinect offers then you have to conclude that it is basically a way for people to try on different bodies and interact with a group. It is an opportunity for anyone who feels less than confident about their appearance to become a performer for the delight of others. The internet has long provided an anonymous platform where users can express themselves and Avatar Kinect extends this to facial and body expressions.
If you ask why don't more people use video calling then the answer might well be that they aren't happy about revealing their physical appearance without spending time on polishing it to a level that they find acceptable - put bluntly would you want to take a video call just after you got out of bed, or even while you were still in bed? Perhaps an avatar, always presentable at any time of day and no matter what you are actually doing, could be the perfect stand in.
It is clearly a great piece of technology but you can't help think that we haven't worked out what it's good for. New ideas needed!
The Tech Behind Avatar Kinect
http://www.i-programmer.info/news/91-hardware/1855-avatar-kinect-a-holodeck-replacment.html
Friday, July 22, 2011
150 human animal hybrids grown in UK labs: Embryos have been produced secretively for the past three years
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2017818/Embryos-involving-genes-animals-mixed-humans-produced-secretively-past-years.html
By Daniel Martin and Simon Caldwell
Last updated at 12:42 AM on 23rd July 2011
Scientists have created more than 150 human-animal hybrid embryos in British laboratories.
The hybrids have been produced secretively over the past three years by researchers looking into possible cures for a wide range of diseases.
The revelation comes just a day after a committee of scientists warned of a nightmare ‘Planet of the Apes’ scenario in which work on human-animal creations goes too far.
Undercover: Scientists have been growing human animal hybrids in secret for the last three years (Posed by models)
Undercover: Scientists have been growing human animal hybrids in secret for the last three years (Posed by models)
Last night a campaigner against the excesses of medical research said he was disgusted that scientists were ‘dabbling in the grotesque’.
Figures seen by the Daily Mail show that 155 ‘admixed’ embryos, containing both human and animal genetic material, have been created since the introduction of the 2008 Human Fertilisation Embryology Act.
This legalised the creation of a variety of hybrids, including an animal egg fertilised by a human sperm; ‘cybrids’, in which a human nucleus is implanted into an animal cell; and ‘chimeras’, in which human cells are mixed with animal embryos.
Scientists say the techniques can be used to develop embryonic stem cells which can be used to treat a range of incurable illnesses.
Three labs in the UK – at King’s College London, Newcastle University and Warwick University – were granted licences to carry out the research after the Act came into force.
All have now stopped creating hybrid embryos due to a lack of funding, but scientists believe that there will be more such work in the future.
The figure was revealed to crossbench peer Lord Alton following a Parliamentary question.
Research centre: Warwick University has been growing animal human hybrids over the last three years
Research centre: Warwick University has been growing animal human hybrids over the last three years
Last night he said: ‘I argued in Parliament against the creation of human- animal hybrids as a matter of principle. None of the scientists who appeared before us could give us any justification in terms of treatment.
‘Ethically it can never be justifiable – it discredits us as a country. It is dabbling in the grotesque.
‘At every stage the justification from scientists has been: if only you allow us to do this, we will find cures for every illness known to mankind. This is emotional blackmail.
‘Of the 80 treatments and cures which have come about from stem cells, all have come from adult stem cells – not embryonic ones.
‘On moral and ethical grounds this fails; and on scientific and medical ones too.’
Josephine Quintavalle, of pro-life group Comment on Reproductive Ethics, said: ‘I am aghast that this is going on and we didn’t know anything about it.
‘Why have they kept this a secret? If they are proud of what they are doing, why do we need to ask Parliamentary questions for this to come to light?
‘The problem with many scientists is that they want to do things because they want to experiment. That is not a good enough rationale.’
Test centre: Newcastle University was another site where human animal hybrid testing was being undertaken
Test centre: Newcastle University was another site where human animal hybrid testing was being undertaken
Earlier this week, a group of leading scientists warned about ‘Planet of the Apes’ experiments. They called for new rules to prevent lab animals being given human attributes, for example by injecting human stem cells into the brains of primates.
But the lead author of their report, Professor Robin Lovell-Badge, from the Medical Research Council’ s National Institute for Medical Research, said the scientists were not concerned about human-animal hybrid embryos because by law these have to be destroyed within 14 days.
He said: ‘The reason for doing these experiments is to understand more about early human development and come up with ways of curing serious diseases, and as a scientist I feel there is a moral imperative to pursue this research.
‘As long as we have sufficient controls – as we do in this country – we should be proud of the research.’
However, he called for stricter controls on another type of embryo research, in which animal embryos are implanted with a small amount of human genetic material.
Human-animal hybrids are also created in other countries, many of which have little or no regulation.
By Daniel Martin and Simon Caldwell
Last updated at 12:42 AM on 23rd July 2011
Scientists have created more than 150 human-animal hybrid embryos in British laboratories.
The hybrids have been produced secretively over the past three years by researchers looking into possible cures for a wide range of diseases.
The revelation comes just a day after a committee of scientists warned of a nightmare ‘Planet of the Apes’ scenario in which work on human-animal creations goes too far.
Undercover: Scientists have been growing human animal hybrids in secret for the last three years (Posed by models)
Undercover: Scientists have been growing human animal hybrids in secret for the last three years (Posed by models)
Last night a campaigner against the excesses of medical research said he was disgusted that scientists were ‘dabbling in the grotesque’.
Figures seen by the Daily Mail show that 155 ‘admixed’ embryos, containing both human and animal genetic material, have been created since the introduction of the 2008 Human Fertilisation Embryology Act.
This legalised the creation of a variety of hybrids, including an animal egg fertilised by a human sperm; ‘cybrids’, in which a human nucleus is implanted into an animal cell; and ‘chimeras’, in which human cells are mixed with animal embryos.
Scientists say the techniques can be used to develop embryonic stem cells which can be used to treat a range of incurable illnesses.
Three labs in the UK – at King’s College London, Newcastle University and Warwick University – were granted licences to carry out the research after the Act came into force.
All have now stopped creating hybrid embryos due to a lack of funding, but scientists believe that there will be more such work in the future.
The figure was revealed to crossbench peer Lord Alton following a Parliamentary question.
Research centre: Warwick University has been growing animal human hybrids over the last three years
Research centre: Warwick University has been growing animal human hybrids over the last three years
Last night he said: ‘I argued in Parliament against the creation of human- animal hybrids as a matter of principle. None of the scientists who appeared before us could give us any justification in terms of treatment.
‘Ethically it can never be justifiable – it discredits us as a country. It is dabbling in the grotesque.
‘At every stage the justification from scientists has been: if only you allow us to do this, we will find cures for every illness known to mankind. This is emotional blackmail.
‘Of the 80 treatments and cures which have come about from stem cells, all have come from adult stem cells – not embryonic ones.
‘On moral and ethical grounds this fails; and on scientific and medical ones too.’
Josephine Quintavalle, of pro-life group Comment on Reproductive Ethics, said: ‘I am aghast that this is going on and we didn’t know anything about it.
‘Why have they kept this a secret? If they are proud of what they are doing, why do we need to ask Parliamentary questions for this to come to light?
‘The problem with many scientists is that they want to do things because they want to experiment. That is not a good enough rationale.’
Test centre: Newcastle University was another site where human animal hybrid testing was being undertaken
Test centre: Newcastle University was another site where human animal hybrid testing was being undertaken
Earlier this week, a group of leading scientists warned about ‘Planet of the Apes’ experiments. They called for new rules to prevent lab animals being given human attributes, for example by injecting human stem cells into the brains of primates.
But the lead author of their report, Professor Robin Lovell-Badge, from the Medical Research Council’ s National Institute for Medical Research, said the scientists were not concerned about human-animal hybrid embryos because by law these have to be destroyed within 14 days.
He said: ‘The reason for doing these experiments is to understand more about early human development and come up with ways of curing serious diseases, and as a scientist I feel there is a moral imperative to pursue this research.
‘As long as we have sufficient controls – as we do in this country – we should be proud of the research.’
However, he called for stricter controls on another type of embryo research, in which animal embryos are implanted with a small amount of human genetic material.
Human-animal hybrids are also created in other countries, many of which have little or no regulation.
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Wolfram launches its own interactive document format
http://www.wolfram.com/cdf/
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http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/enterprise/368815/wolfram-launches-its-own-interactive-document-format
By Barry Collins
Posted on 21 Jul 2011 at 09:41
Wolfram Research has launched its own document format, which it claims is "as everyday as a document, but as interactive as an app".
The Computational Document Format (CDF) allows authors to embed interactive charts, diagrams and graphics into their documents, allowing readers to adjust variables to see how increasing a price affects profits, for example, or display different segments of a brain scan.
The idea is to communicate the world's quantitative ideas much better than has been possible before
"The idea is to communicate the world's quantitative ideas much better than has been possible before," said the company's director of strategic and international development, Conrad Wolfram.
The key to the CDF format is that anyone - not only mathematicians or programmers - will be able to create interactive documents, according to Wolfram.
"It's easy enough for citizen authorship," Wolfram claims, although he admits the company aims to make authoring even easier by allowing interactive charts to be created using the linguistic commands familiar to users of the company's Wolfram Alpha "knowledge engine".
So, for example, users will be able to create a basic application that uses a slider to vary the degree of blur in a photo, simply by typing "blur image of Abraham Lincoln with radius x".
"[Currently] anyone who can make an Excel macro should easily be able to make interactivity for CDF," said Conrad Wolfram. "Where I'd like to get is that anyone who can make an Excel chart can make interactivity in CDFs."
Users will require Wolfram's Mathematica 8 software to create CDFs, while end users will require the free Wolfram CDF Player to view the documents.
More details and a demonstration video are available from the Computable Document Format site.
Read more: Wolfram launches its own interactive document format | Enterprise | News | PC Pro http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/enterprise/368815/wolfram-launches-its-own-interactive-document-format#ixzz1Sn9qSrkt
--
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/enterprise/368815/wolfram-launches-its-own-interactive-document-format
By Barry Collins
Posted on 21 Jul 2011 at 09:41
Wolfram Research has launched its own document format, which it claims is "as everyday as a document, but as interactive as an app".
The Computational Document Format (CDF) allows authors to embed interactive charts, diagrams and graphics into their documents, allowing readers to adjust variables to see how increasing a price affects profits, for example, or display different segments of a brain scan.
The idea is to communicate the world's quantitative ideas much better than has been possible before
"The idea is to communicate the world's quantitative ideas much better than has been possible before," said the company's director of strategic and international development, Conrad Wolfram.
The key to the CDF format is that anyone - not only mathematicians or programmers - will be able to create interactive documents, according to Wolfram.
"It's easy enough for citizen authorship," Wolfram claims, although he admits the company aims to make authoring even easier by allowing interactive charts to be created using the linguistic commands familiar to users of the company's Wolfram Alpha "knowledge engine".
So, for example, users will be able to create a basic application that uses a slider to vary the degree of blur in a photo, simply by typing "blur image of Abraham Lincoln with radius x".
"[Currently] anyone who can make an Excel macro should easily be able to make interactivity for CDF," said Conrad Wolfram. "Where I'd like to get is that anyone who can make an Excel chart can make interactivity in CDFs."
Users will require Wolfram's Mathematica 8 software to create CDFs, while end users will require the free Wolfram CDF Player to view the documents.
More details and a demonstration video are available from the Computable Document Format site.
Read more: Wolfram launches its own interactive document format | Enterprise | News | PC Pro http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/enterprise/368815/wolfram-launches-its-own-interactive-document-format#ixzz1Sn9qSrkt
Caltech Scientists Makes Biochemical Neural Network 'Brain' from DNA Strands
http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/183895/20110720/caltech-scientists-makes-biochemical-neural-network-brain-from-dna-strands.htm
Scientists from the California Institute of Technology have created an artificial neural network (or a "tiny brain," in the words of the lead scientist) from DNA strands that interact with biochemical inputs.
The artificial neurons of this network can take incomplete inputs, interact with each other, and come up with a complete conclusion. This is what the human brain does on a much more complex scale. It's also a principle scientists have used for computing and robotics.
The building block of the Caltech neural network is double-stranded DNA molecules with loose ends. These loose ends then receive the input of single-stranded DNA that binds with the double-stranded DNA, which, through DNA strand replacement, releases an output DNA strand from the double-stranded DNA.
Using this input-output mechanism, the Caltech team assembled four neurons that give out specific DNA strand outputs that serve as both 'yes' or 'no' indicators in themselves and also inputs strands into other neurons.
The end result is a neural network capable of churning out outputs for all four neurons in the absence of input for all four neurons.
The specific experiment the Caltech researchers conducted was guessing the identity of four scientiststs. The four neurons corresponded to the following four questions.
Then, by inputting only 'yes' for Q3 and 'no' for Q4, for example, the neural network is able to deduce 0 1 1 0, or Rosalind Franklin. The research claims that there are 27 combinations of incomplete inputs that would yield a correct identification.
Moreover, if the incomplete information doesn't describe anyone (for example 'yes' for 2 and 'no' for 3), the neural network would return both 'yes' and 'no' for all four neurons, indicating an input error.
"Biochemical systems with artificial intelligence-or at least some basic, decision-making capabilities-could have powerful applications in medicine, chemistry, and biological research," stated Caltech in a press release.
Lulu Qian, a Caltech senior postdoctoral scholar in bioengineering, is the lead author of the study, which is publsihed in the July 21 issue of journal Nature. Below are YouTube videos from her that explains this study. The three images used in this article are from the YouTube videos.
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