Weighte

Friday fun: Wacky warnings

The Problem with Surgical Sex by Paul McHugh

The implant that burrows into the brain

Lorenzo Albacete on Faith, Politics & the Scandal of Christ

The nights are hotting up, down on the wind farm

Lorenzo Albacete on ÂA Call to FreedomÂ

10/31/2004

10/31/2004

Don't handle with care: super-tough coatings for cellphones

THE EDUCATION OF E.F. SCHUMACHER

Smart fabrics - the softer side of mix-and-match gadgetry

Novy Dvur and the Stylish Austerity of John Pawson

Scientists beat the MRSA superbug into submission

New vein-camera means no more stabs in the dark

The Sacrament of Memory: The True Story of Saint Therese of Lisiuex

Clever cars read road signs for themselves

Gaudi, the Blessed: Genius or Saint?

Rats' brain waves put rescuers on the scent

Fellowship of the Ring: Boxing, Courage & Philosophy

PC users can now follow their noses

Self-sustaining killer robot creates a stink

The mysterious signals from light years away

Switch off your TV, before it switches off your back

Crash victims' head injuries spotted by 'pupilometer'

Crash victims' head injuries spotted by 'pupilometer'

Steroids boost athletic performance in just weeks

Stealth wallpaper keeps company secrets safe

A pump to get the heart racing

How urine could be used to cook food

How urine could be used to cook food

Hawking cracks black hole paradox

Weighte

Friday fun: Wacky warnings

The Problem with Surgical Sex by Paul McHugh

The implant that burrows into the brain

Lorenzo Albacete on Faith, Politics & the Scandal of Christ

The nights are hotting up, down on the wind farm

Lorenzo Albacete on ÂA Call to FreedomÂ

10/31/2004

10/31/2004

Don't handle with care: super-tough coatings for cellphones

THE EDUCATION OF E.F. SCHUMACHER

Smart fabrics - the softer side of mix-and-match gadgetry

Novy Dvur and the Stylish Austerity of John Pawson

Scientists beat the MRSA superbug into submission

New vein-camera means no more stabs in the dark

The Sacrament of Memory: The True Story of Saint Therese of Lisiuex

Clever cars read road signs for themselves

Gaudi, the Blessed: Genius or Saint?

Rats' brain waves put rescuers on the scent

Fellowship of the Ring: Boxing, Courage & Philosophy

PC users can now follow their noses

Self-sustaining killer robot creates a stink

The mysterious signals from light years away

Switch off your TV, before it switches off your back

Crash victims' head injuries spotted by 'pupilometer'

Crash victims' head injuries spotted by 'pupilometer'

Steroids boost athletic performance in just weeks

Stealth wallpaper keeps company secrets safe

A pump to get the heart racing

How urine could be used to cook food

How urine could be used to cook food

Hawking cracks black hole paradox

Lorenzo Albacete on ÂA Call to FreedomÂ

2005-02-04T07:21:00.000-08:00

Here are the winnners of the M-LAW competition for wackiest warning
label of the year:

1st prize
Do not use for personal hygiene on a toilet brush

2nd prize
This product moves when used from a childs scooter

Previous winners have included:
* Remove child before folding on a babys buggy
* Once used rectally, the thermometer should not be used orally -
on a digital thermometer
* Never remove food or other items from the blades while the
product is operating - on an electric hand blender
* Harmful if swallowed on a three-pronged brass fishing lure.
* Do not use this product as a toy, pillow, or flotation device -
on a bag of air used as a packing material
* Do not use as a ladder on a 30cm tall CD rack
* Never iron clothes while they are being worn - on a household
iron
* Do not use the Silence Feature in emergency situations. It will
not extinguish a fire - on a smoke detector
* Do not eat toner - on a laser printer cartridge
* And on a pair of cyclists shin guards Shin pads cannot protect
any part of the body they do not cover.

New Scientists Feedback regularly publishes absurd product
warnings, and other funny real-life tales. For more amusement, visit
newscientist.com/lastword at:

http://www.ProcessRequest.com/apps/redir.asp?link=XbjdfbdhCJ,ZcjcbhgggaDJ&oid=UcjjbCB&iclitemid=XbgbbgfbCB&tid=WbijfcbCG

You have been sent this message as a registered subscriber to
NewScientist.com ezines. To unsubscribe, or change your email
preferences, visit our Ezine management centre at

http://www.prq0.com/quickstart/LeadCapture/Display_LeadCapture.asp?e=XbcajfijDE-RaA&oid=UcjjbCB

2005-02-01T09:58:00.000-08:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF JANUARY 31, 2005

FEATURE:

SURGICAL SEX
by Paul McHugh

When I became psychiatrist-in-chief at Johns Hopkins, I realized that by doing sex-change operations the hospital was fundamentally cooperating with a mental illness. We would do better for these patients, I thought, by concentrating on trying to fix their minds and not their genitalia.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maac8EjabdPCqbn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

THE BUTTIGLIONE CASE AS SEEN BY BUTTIGLIONE
by Rocco Buttiglione

Europe is looking for its path. In order to discover its path, in order to discover Christ as an adequate response to the desire of the heart of man, it is necessary that there be Christians who give testimony, who have the courage to be that which they are.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maac8EjabdPCrbn0PumbaeQAX1/

FINDING FEMINISM
by Meredith Gould

Imagine my surprise: I'm with a bunch of women and I'm having fun. Were these women at my local parish the sisterhood I'd been looking for my entire life?

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maac8EjabdPCsbn0PumbaeQAX1/

SISTER PETER CLAVER SPENT LIFE WORKING FOR POOR AND FORGOTTEN
by Rosemary Fielding

A fledgling ballerina in New York City, 20 year old Hannah Fahy asked God to make her life worthwhile. She spent the rest of her 105 years as Sister Peter Claver, ministering to prisoners.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maac8EjabdPCtbn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

Gospel for Sunday, February 6, 2005
Fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mt: 5:13-16

YOUR LIGHT MUST SHINE BEFORE OTHERS.
by Pope John Paul II

"Faith is not just a collection of theoretical assertions to be accepted and approved by the mind, but an experience to be had, a truth to be lived, the salt and light of all reality."

January 31: Memorial of St. John Bosco

February 2: Memorial of the Feast of the Presentation of the Lord

February 3: Memorial of St. Blaise

February 5: Memorial of St. Agatha, Virgin and Martyr

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maac8EjabdPCubn0PumbaeQAX1/

NEWSWATCH:

Go to http://godspy.c.topica.com/maac8EjabdPAobn0PumbaeQAX1/ to view these items.

DOUBTING DARWIN: HERE COMES 'INTELLIGENT DESIGN'

"[Michael] Behe points out that while most Christians accept a God who set the universe in motion according to natural laws, evolution raises more difficult existential questions. People want to feel that God cares for them personally. British biologist Richard Dawkins has written that Darwin's theory 'made it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist.' But that's not what most Americans want for their children." [Newsweek]

SHROUD OF TURIN: OLD AS JESUS?

"The Shroud of Turin is much older than the medieval date that modern science has affixed to it and could be old enough to have been the burial wrapping of Jesus, a new analysis concludes." [NY Times]
THE SCANDAL OF THE EVANGELICAL CONSCIENCE: WHY DON'T CHRISTIANS LIVE WHAT THEY PREACH?

"Today's evangelicalism, [Alan] Wolfe says, exhibits 'so strong a desire to copy the culture of hotel chains and popular music that it loses what religious distinctiveness it once had.' Wolfe argues, 'The truth is, there is increasingly little difference between an essentially secular activity like the popular entertainment industry and the bring-'em-in-at-any-cost efforts of evangelical megachurches.'" [Christianity Today]

BEATITUDES 101: A REVIEW OF 'BORN LOSERS,' A HISTORY OF FAILURE IN AMERICA

"One of the truths of human existence is that, to one degree or another, all of us are born losers-in the end, of course, everyone loses, even Michael Jordan and Donald Trump-and that coming to terms with disappointment, accepting the inevitability of it, is one of life's inescapable challenges. Kris Kristofferson, not Raposo, got it right: 'Nobody wins.'" [Washington Post]

THE MAKING OF A MOLESTER

"[Roy] has made a point of answering everyone's questions. The company's owner, who has known Roy for five years, testified on his behalf at his sentencing. ''You're talking about a person I know,' the owner said to me. 'If you told me about a stranger I would write them off, I wouldn't talk to them, I wouldn't see them-if they did one-tenth of what he did.''' [NY Times Mag]

FAREED ZAKARIA: WHY ELECTIONS ARE NOT DEMOCRACY

"Iraq will still be a country that is substantially better off than it was under Saddam Hussein. There is real pluralism and openness in the society-more so than in most of the Middle East. Russia and Nigeria aren't terrible regimes. But it was not what many of us had hoped for." [Newsweek]

PEGGY NOONAN: FURTHER THOUGHTS ON THE PASSIONS OF THE INAUGURAL

"Here is an unhappy fact: Certain authoritarians and tyrants whose leadership is illegitimate and unjust have functioned in history as-ugly imagery coming--garbage-can lids on their societies. They keep freedom from entering, it is true. But when they are removed, the garbage-the freelance terrorists, the grievance merchants, the ethnic nationalists-pops out all over. Yes, freedom is good and to be strived for. But cleaning up the garbage is not pretty. And it sometimes leaves the neighborhood in an even bigger mess than it had been." [Opinion Journal]

WORLD 'MUST LEARN FROM HOLOCAUST,' SAYS UN'S KOFI ANNAN

"But Mr Annan admitted that taking action against genocide was much more difficult than repeating rhetoric. 'The world has, to its shame, failed more than once to prevent or halt genocide - for instance in Cambodia, in Rwanda, and in the former Yugoslavia,' he said. 'Terrible things' were happening now in Sudan's western region of Darfur, and action was needed." [BBC]

SELF-DOUBT LEAVES FRENCH FEELING DOWN IN THE MOUTH

"'The French no longer believe in anything,' the report said...'France has been anxious about its future, about its way of life, for the last 30 years, ever since the employment crisis and doubts about identity, ever since the absence of clear perspectives and collective projects.'" [The Scotsman]

PAYING A PRICE FOR DOUGHNUTS, BURGERS AND PIZZA

"It is a truly bizarre situation where food itself makes you sick... Throughout history, getting enough food to stay well was usually the challenge. Then again, most of this stuff is not food." [NY Times]

FORCED ABORTION IN CHINA: A CAUSE FOR CELEBRATION?

"In 1998, a former Chinese official testified to the US Congress about her experiences: 'Once I found a woman who was nine months pregnant, but did not have a birth allowed certificate. According to the policy, she was forced to undergo an induced abortion. In the operating room, I saw the child's lips were moving and how its arms and legs were also moving. The doctor injected poison into its skull and the child died and it was thrown into the trash can. Afterwards the husband was holding his wife and crying loudly and saying, 'What kind of man am I? What kind of husband am I? I can't even protect my wife and child.' What kind of human rights community do we have that ignores, rationalizes, even secretly cheers for such actions?" [The Fact Is]

FREE TO BE ANGRY: AMERICANS 'LIBERATED IRAQ,' BUT IT'S HARD TO FIND ANYONE WHO IS GRATEFUL

"Increasing violence feeds this disenchantment... In Tall Afar, a generally pro-American area in the north, a patrol of the Stryker Brigade shot up a car that approached them and didn't stop, the driver apparently oblivious to the soldiers' instructions in the dark. Mom and Dad were killed in the front seat, leaving six blood-splattered, but mostly unhurt, orphans in the back. 'They did everything they could to warn the vehicle to stop,' said military spokesman Lt. Col. Steve Boylan. 'In a perfect world, it wouldn't happen. But we're not in a perfect world.'" [Newsweek]

DISABLED GROUPS CONDEMN EASTWOOD EUTHANASIA FILM

"Ostensibly, the film is about a young boxer who turns to an elderly trainer to take her to the top. Yet audiences have been astonished by an unheralded plot twist in which a leading character becomes crippled in a serious accident and begs to be put to death... Steven Drake, a researcher for Not Dead Yet, said that the film 'plays out killing as a romantic fantasy and gives emotional life to the `better dead than disabled' mindset.'" [Telegraph]

DORM BROTHEL: THE NEW DEBAUCHERY, AND THE COLLEGES THAT LET IT HAPPEN

"Young men and women are being enticed to think of themselves as two selves, one that is mind and reason in the classroom and another self, active 'after hours,' that is all body and passion. They begin to imagine-though few entirely believe it-that they can use (that is, abuse) their bodies as they please for pleasure, and that choosing to do so has nothing to do with their academic studies or future lives. In reality, they are following a formula for self-disintegration and failure... This is the grisly underbelly of the modern American college; the deep, dark, hidden secret that many parents suspect is there but would rather not face." [Christianity Today]

THEY NEED A MIRACLE: WILL A FUTURE POPE RELAX THE RULES FOR SAINTHOOD?

"In highly secular northern Europe, doctors are very likely to believe that science will someday explain cures that today they themselves cannot. But in most other cultures, doctors are not so agnostic about inexplicable healings. In a recent survey of 1,100 office-based physicians in the United States, conducted for the Jewish Theological Seminary, 55 percent said that they had witnessed 'medical miracles' in their work. Even so, the church believes God makes many more saints than the official few credited with miracles." [Newsweek]

THE AMAZING TRUE STORY OF THE LIBERAL EVANGELICAL... AND HIS MISSION TO SAVE THE DEMOCRATS FROM THEMSELVES

"But don't peg {Jim] Wallis as a leader of the so-called 'religious left'... He rejects the term, partly because, as he points out, he's more conservative than liberal on issues like abortion, marriage, and the traditional family. But also because the label is distracting, even defeating..." [Boston Globe]

THE CAPITALIST SPIRIT: THE NEW NEW AGE IN THE ERA OF GLOBALIZATION.

"In the post-9/11 healing boom, a new battery of mystics like Sondra Shaye are raking it in... Part and parcel of this shift is a consumer-driven model of belief... New York, now, is the ultimate small-p protestant city, and everyone who buys a stick of incense, or takes a yoga class, or listens to Tibetan monks chanting is experiencing the cosmopolitan godhead just as Luther and Weber would have wanted: unfiltered, billable by the hour." [New York]

RUTH WISSE, HARVARD PROFESSOR, SAYS 'FEMINIST COMPLAINERS, NOT LARRY SUMMERS, OWE WOMEN AN APOLOGY'

"If women gravitate to the hard sciences less than to other fields, we ought to grant them the intelligence of sentient creatures, recognizing the potential loneliness of such choices while trying to understand why groups and individuals act as they do. It is not [Harvard President] Mr. Summers who owes women an apology; it is the complainers and agitators who owe both him and all of us an apology for trying to shut down discussion of an 'inequality' that is not likely to disappear."

CHRISTIAN ETHICISTS ADVOCATE JUST PEACEMAKING AS COROLLARY TO JUST WAR

"'Some of President Bush's rhetoric has led people to believe the war in Iraq is a Christian war,' Stassen said. When an audience member asked what churches and religious leaders could do to counter that impression, Stassen replied: 'We should all get a sandwich board that says 'Repent' and walk through the streets.'" [R&E Weekly]

NANCY KEENAN, PRESIDENT OF NARAL, SNUBS FORMER REP. TIM ROEMER, CANDIDATE TO HEAD DEMOCRATS

"Keenan is mobilizing NARAL's 27 state and local affiliates to contact the 447 DNC delegates and persuade them to oppose Roemer, the only anti-abortion candidate in the field of seven announced DNC aspirants. Despite fierce opposition from the abortion lobby, Roemer plans to stay in the race, stoking debate about whether the party can accommodate an anti-abortion leader and voters." [The Hill]

IS 'MILLION DOLLAR BABY' HOLLYWOOD'S BEST POLITICAL PROPAGANDA OF THE YEAR? MORE EFFECTIVE THAN 'FAHRENHEIT 911'

"Americans want to see positive movies, not be exploited. They think they're going to see one here... But they've been defrauded, manipulated into what appears to be "The Champ" with estrogen, but is really a promotional ad for the Netherland's euthanasia policy. Movie critics-most of whom are complicit in this deception-only hint at this "unexpected, surprise twist." [Frontpage.com]

A PORTRAIT OF MODERN AMERICAN MEDIOCRITY? DAVID DENBY REVIEWS 'SIDEWAYS'

"Payne and Taylor have always made movies about the melancholy middling-to-lower range of achievement and ambition, the near-losers that Americans hate but that so many of us at our most demoralized become... There is, I believe, a quiet but persistent spiritual ethos at the heart of their intention. The blinkered, semi-unconscious sinners stumble toward grace-a moment of clarity, of self-realization. Some of them may even get there." [New Yorker]

THERE'S NOTHING SINISTER ABOUT OPUS DEI, SAYS FORMER MEMBER

"It is not easy to explain to a post-Freudian secularist that ascetical practices - penance, fasting - are not exhibitions of self-hatred. The one thing everyone wants to know about Opus Dei is whether they beat themselves with knotted cords. The inquirers hope that this is a bit of kinky sex they can hear about... My departure was to do with me rather than them. I didn't like getting up early and things. But I have never since met a group who are kinder, more patient or less motivated by personal ambition." [Telegraph]

SPOTLESS MINDS, ETERNAL SUNSHINE: AS LONG AS I CAN REMEMBER, MY PARENTS COULDN'T GET ALONG. BUT LATER IN LIFE, THAT BEGAN TO CHANGE.'

"As debilitating dementia settled in, their marriage was about the only thing they wouldn't lose... I don't doubt that if my mother and father magically regained their old vigor, they'd be back fighting. I now see that something came of all those years of shared days-days of sitting at the same table, waking to the same sun, working and raising children together. Even the very fury they lavished on each other was a brick in this unseen creation, a structure that reveals itself increasingly as the world around them falls apart." [Newsweek]

GOD'S POLITICS: DOES JIM WALLIS' LEFTIST, BIBLE-BASED BOOK SLIGHT NON-CHRISTIANS?

"Progressive on the economy and foreign policy, conservative on sexuality and families, Wallis criticizes both the political right and left for having not taken the visions of justice articulated by the Hebrew prophets and the gospel writers sufficiently seriously. Framing the impasse of 'religion and politics' as one that pits 'religious fundamentalism' against 'secular fundamentalism,' Wallis presents 'God's politics' as a politically nonaligned and non-ideological third way." [Slate]

SHMUELY BOTEACH, AUTHOR OF 'KOSHER SEX,' ON HOW KINSEY RUINED SEX FOR THE REST OF US

"The taboos surrounding sex in many religious traditions imbue it with the aura it merits. To treat sex with cold, scientific detachment removes its beauty and mystery. This is something that pornographers can never understand... Kinsey may have increased our knowledge of such things as the frequency of sex and the varieties of positions. But such information is like listing a cake's ingredients without describing its taste." [Beliefnet]

WHY DID IRAQ WAR VETERAN AND 10-YEAR MILITARY MAN SGT. KEVIN BENDERMAN BECOME A CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTOR?

"Duty and loyalty weigh heavy on Benderman, who comes from a family that boasts a proud military tradition... 'When you see war for yourself, that's a profound effect. It's not an abstract thought process... War should be relegated to the shelves of history, as was human sacrifice. If you stop to think about it you become aware that war is just human sacrifice. There is no honor in killing as many as you can as quickly as you can.'" [Salon Premium]

HAPPINESS: RICHARD LAYARD'S 'LESSONS FROM A NEW SCIENCE'

"...once a country has lifted itself out of poverty, further rises in income seem not to create a meaningful rise in the proportion of people who count themselves as happy..." According to Layard, "a zero-sum game of competition for money and status has gripped rich societies, and this rat race is a big source of unhappiness." [Economist]

EMPTY NESTS, AND HEARTS: MORE WOMEN OVER 40 ARE CHILDLESS, WITH REGRETS. SHOULD WOMEN HAVE MORE CHOICES ABOUT HOW TO SEQUENCE THEIR LIVES?

"...it might make more sense to go to college, make a greater effort to marry early and have children... She could raise children from age 25 to 35. Then at 35 (now that she knows herself better) she could select a flexible graduate program specifically designed for parents. Then she could work in one uninterrupted stint from, say, 40 to 70." [NY Times]

MASTERS OF OUR DOMAINS: IN 'THE AGE OF EGOCASTING' WE MAY NEVER BE SURPRISED BY CULTURE AGAIN

"...the Walkman, the Video Cassette Recorder, Digital Video Recorders such as TiVo, and portable music devices like the iPod-have created... the illusion of perfect control...They encourage not the cultivation of taste, but the numbing repetition of fetish... In thrall to our own little technologically constructed worlds, we are, ironically, finding it increasingly difficult to appreciate genuine individuality." [The New Atlantis]

OH, TO BE IN ENGLAND: REFLECTING ON EVIL AFTER 14 YEARS WORKING IN A PRISON HOSPITAL

"Ultimately, the moral cowardice of the intellectual and political elites is responsible for the continuing social disaster that has overtaken Britain... There has been an unholy alliance between those on the Left, who believe that man is endowed with rights but no duties, and libertarians on the Right, who believe that consumer choice is the answer to all social questions..." [City Journal]

ITALIAN JOURNALIST ON INTERVIEWING 111 CARDINALS: 'THE CARDINALS ARE AS GREAT AS THE POPE.'

What are their concerns? "'The first topic is war and peace. The line indicated by this Pope is the line embraced by 100% of the cardinals. The Church is the sacrament of peace for the world. The strength of this papacy is the strength of its prophecy for peace. Because of this, John Paul II is regarded as a 'father' by Muslims... the Pope is seen as a 'father' of all peoples.'"" [ZENIT]

SPRINGER OPERA: ARE CHRISTIANS MISSING AN OPPORTUNITY TO DEBATE IMPORTANT MORAL AND ETHICAL ISSUES?

"During the opera, the character representing Jesus is challenged to respond to accusations of injustice and make sense of the world's problems. His response is to say 'respect me' without giving any meaningful answer or explanation to his accusers... Through their protests, Christian campaigners have reinforced the very stereotypes of God and Jesus Christ that they are protesting against." [Ekklesia]

THE CRISIS OF 'SAM'S CLUB' REPUBLICANS

"Liberals like Thomas Frank, author of 'What's the Matter With Kansas,' have long argued that populist conservatism is nothing more than a con. Conservatives sell values to the working class, but they deliver economic ruin. It's a view that is overheated, under-informed and more than a little condescending. Unfortunately, it contains a grain of truth...." [LA Times]

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2004-11-11T07:02:00.000-08:00

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11 November 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week unveils the neural implant that moves around in your brain, the sterilising shock waves that tear food bugs apart and the results that suggest stress really can cause miscarriages ...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Paul Marks, Technology News Editor, Print Edition		Moving brain implants
		A device that automatically pushes electrodes intothe brain to seek out the strongest signals is taking the idea of neural implants to a new level. Scary as this sounds, its developers say such devices will be essential if brain implants are ever going toallowparalysed people to control artificial arms or work a computer. The problem with fixed implants is that the signal fades after just a few months. The researchers expect to fit a paralysed person with a moving implant within a year... MORE

TOP STORIES

Shock waves tear food bugs apart
The method could be used instead of pasteurisation to sterilise dairy products and fruit juice without spoiling their taste

Stress can make pregnant women miscarry
An overactive immune system can turn on the placenta, but extra doses of a female hormone may save the pregnancy

Rogue finger gene got bats airborne
A single gene may explain the sudden appearance of thoroughly modern bats in the fossil record 50 million years ago

Early screening could cut cot deaths
Checking babies' heartbeats could prevent hundreds of deaths worldwide every year, but not everyone is convinced

Garbage betrays date of earliest village life
The occupants of the first permanent settlements were forced to develop a strategy for getting rid of rubbish

High doses of vitamin E may hasten death
Taking the popular supplement could carry a small increase in the risk of dying, say researchers, but the cause is a mystery

Titan has no breaking waves
The Cassini space probe discovers that the surface of Saturn's moon is not awash with liquid after all - ice or volcanism may prevail

Moas in decline before humans arrived
Volcanic eruptions or disease may have decimated the giant flightless birds before people arrived in New Zealand and finished them off

Worm lures users into online booby trap
Bofra exploits a bug in the Internet Explorer browser to convert PCs into web servers - currently there is no software patch

Cassini discovers music of the rings
NASA spacecraft hears the eerie tune played by Saturn's rings as meteoroids rain down on them

Trojan spammers take aim at mobile phones
Infected computers churn out cellphone spam messages, though only a handful of computers are infected so far

AND FINALLY...
Like trying weird and wonderful new flavours? It is often cited that snake venom is not harmful when swallowed. But no matter how adventurous you are you should stay well clear - you could be dicing with death. Find out more in this week's Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

SPECIAL ISSUE:
THE INTOXICATION INSTINCT
There's something about humans that draws us to mind-altering substances - from cannabis and alcohol to LSD and cocaine. Should we suppress the instinct to get out of our heads, or exploit it?

POSTCARDS FROM THE EDGE
Images from the outer limits of the cosmos are forcing cosmologists to an uncomfortable conclusion: the universe may be much older than we think

HOW TO MEND A BROKEN INTERNET
Experts agree the net is on the brink of collapse. Now an argument is raging over how to fix it

NEWS

Icy key to planet formation
Closing quantum security loophole
Promiscuity drives primate evolution
Wet tyres give friction the slip

SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION OFFER

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© Copyright Reed Business Information Ltd. 2004

2004-11-05T19:28:00.000-08:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF NOVEMBER 1, 2004

FEATURE:

BETTER OFF: FLIPPING THE SWITCH ON TECHNOLOGY
by Eric Brende

One day Eric Brende shut off his computer and asked himself: "Am I addicted?" Not to drugs-to technology. This Catholic convert began to suspect that modern men and women were shrinking their lives to fit their machines. To test his theory, he left M.I.T. and took his new wife Mary to live with a primitive Amish community. Their mission: To see how much technology is really necessary, and what life was like before it took over.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDLabbsJibn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

THE SIMPLE LIFE REDUX: AN INTERVIEW WITH ERIC BRENDE
by John Zmirak

Paris and Nicole? Who cares? Eric Brende, a graduate of hi-tech bastion MIT, and his new wife Mary, moved to a community so primitive in its technology that even Amish groups considered it antiquated. Here's their story.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDLabbsJjbn0PumbaeQAX1/

FAITH, POLITICS AND THE SCANDAL OF CHRIST
by Msgr Lorenzo Albacete

The National Chaplain for the international Catholic lay movement Communion and Liberation explains CL's statement before the 2004 Elections, and why only Jesus Christ is the answer to the problem of religion and politics.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDLabbsJkbn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

The Gospel for Sunday, November 7, 2004
Thirty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke: 20:27-38

HE IS NOT GOD OF THE DEAD, BUT OF THE LIVING, FOR TO HIM ALL ARE ALIVE.
by Pope John Paul II

"By the Incarnation the Word of God has taken on human flesh, enabling it to share, through his Death and Resurrection, in his own glory as the Father's Only-begotten Son. Through the gifts of the Spirit, the Father instills in all man's being and, in a certain way, in the universe itself, a yearning for this destiny."

November 1 & 2: All Saints & All Souls

November 3: Memorial of St. Martin de Porres

November 4: Memorial of St. Charles Borromeo

NEWSWATCH:

Go to http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDLabbsJgbn0PumbaeQAX1/ to view these items.

MORAL VALUES TOPS VOTERS' CONCERNS-BUT WHAT DOES IT MEAN?

"'When ordinary people think of morality, they think of traditional sexual morality. ... They don't think of social justice...' [Jim] Wallis, who pushed Kerry to talk more openly about how his faith affects his policies, said... the Democrats need to confront their own inner demons. 'The secular fundamentalism of the left is as much a problem as the religious fundamentalism of the right.'" [Christianity Today]

JIM WALLIS ON WHY PROGRESSIVE FAITH DID NOT LOSE THE ELECTION

"...Kerry should have challenged the war in Iraq as an unjust war, as many religious leaders did - including Evangelicals and Catholics. And John Kerry certainly did not advocate a consistent ethic of human life as we do - opposing all the ways that life is threatened in our violent world. We didn't lose the election, John Kerry did, and the ways in which both his vision and the Democratic Party's are morally and politically incomplete should continue to be taken up by progressive people of faith." [Sojourners]

FRANCIS FUKUYAMA'S MOMENT: A NEOCON SCHISM OPENS

"Fukuyama understands, quite correctly, that the Bush doctrine has washed up on the rocks.' Fukuyama's essay provides a 'great service in making plain that the neo-conservative strategy for dealing with Iraq has "crashed and burned.' Fukuyama is 'to be admired for his honesty here. He is confronting reality.'" [Open Democracy]

STUNNED DEMOCRATS LOOK TO THE INTERNAL DEBATE AHEAD

"One senior Democratic official suggested that the problem was deeper than communicating. 'I do believe there is a cultural shift going on in this country,' he said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the delicate nature of the intraparty debate. 'I think the country is becoming more conservative. I think their base is growing.''' [NY Times]

2004 ELECTION EXIT POLL RESULTS

[Beliefnet]

DEAL WITH IT: BUSH WON. IT'S TIME FOR THE DEMOCRATS TO GET BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD.

"If this doesn't add up to a mandate, it is hard to know what the word means. Increased turnout. Narrow but decisive wins on all fronts. What more can you ask for from a single campaign? Bush and his party won fair (well, probably) and square... We can hope that Bush takes note of the great (pro-American) English conservative Edmund Burke's dictum that 'magnanimity in politics is not seldom the truest wisdom...'" [Guardian]

THE LEFT IN DENIAL ABOUT MORAL ISSUES
"...this election shouldn't even have been close. We have a president that has saddled the nation with record deficits and who has little clue on how to rein in spending. A president who inflicted upon the nation (and Iraq, and our allies) a costly and bloody war that should never have been waged... So how did Bush even get this far? By demonising an entire group of people-gays and lesbians. By cynical appeals to religion..." [Guardian]

MORAL ISSUES BIGGER PRIORITY FOR VOTERS THAN ECONOMY, TERRORISM, OR WAR IN IRAQ. NEARLY A QUARTER OF VOTERS IDENTIFY THEMSELVES AS 'EVANGELICAL/BORN-AGAIN.'

"...yesterday, 22 percent of voters were white and described themselves as "evangelical/born-again" (favoring Bush over Kerry 77-22), and another 8 percent were white and called themselves "Protestant conservatives" (favoring Bush over Kerry 95-4). It might appear that white evangelical/conservative Protestants upped their share of the electorate from 14 percent in 2000 to 30 percent in 2004." [Christianity Today]

APRIL 2004 POLL: THE MAINSTREAMING OF AMERICA'S EVANGELICALS

"There is much more agreement among evangelicals and the country as a whole when asked whether moral values are on the wrong track. More than three-quarters of white evangelicals, 94% of African American evangelicals, 87% of all African Americans, 74% of all Hispanics, and 71% of all Americans think moral values are seriously on the wrong track." [R&E Newsweekly]

TOM WOLFE: JESTER AT THE COURT OF ALL POWER

"Wolfe is by no means afraid to offend the political right - 'I'm gratified if you find me to be hard on them too,' he says... So what is it about his liberal neighbors and fellow diners in his adoptive New York that Wolfe cannot abide? 'I cannot stand the lock-step among everyone in my particular world. They all do the same thing, without variation. It gets so boring. There is something in me that particularly wants it registered that I am not one of them.'" [Guardian]

FIND YOUR PRESIDENTIAL DREAMBOAT

"On your way to the poll and still undecided? Maybe a new online artificial intelligence program, Presidential Guidester, can help you decide for whom to pull the lever. Think of it as a Match.com that pairs voters with their ideal presidential candidate." [Wired]

BRAVEHEART STANDS ATHWART A BRAVE NEW WORLD: AN INTERVIEW WITH MEL GIBSON ON CALIFORNIA'S PROPOSITION 71

"...in 23 years of research with embryonic-stem-cells not one single cure has been obtained. Not so with adult and umbilical-cord stem cells, which have resulted in more than 300,000 effective cures including spinal-cord injuries, Parkinson's disease, stroke, and multiple sclerosis. That's not what Prop 71 is about." [National Review]

NAT HENTOFF ON THE GOP'S HEART OF DARKNESS: THE PRESIDENT SAYS HE OPPOSES TORTURE; HIS LEADERSHIP SUPPORTS IT. WHO WILL PREVAIL?

"'If this language . . . survives, it would shred the international treaty against torture that the United States signed on to 20 years ago. Beyond the diplomatic fallout, it would mock any claim to moral high ground offered up to justify the war in Iraq.'" [Village Voice]

CATHOLIC PHILOSOPHER ALISDAIR MACINTYRE ON THE ONLY VOTE WORTH CASTING ON NOVEMBER 2ND

"...we have already broken with both parties and both candidates. Try to promote the pro-life case... within the Democratic Party and you will at best go unheard and at worst be shouted down. Try to advance the case for economic justice... within the Republican Party and you will be laughed out of court. Above all, insist, as we are doing, that these two cases are inseparable, that each requires the other as its complement, and you will be met with blank incomprehension." [Center for Ethics & Culture]

JIM WALLIS ON WHY RELIGIOUS 'CENTRISTS' MAY DECIDE THE ELECTION

"If the 'religious issues' are successfully narrowed to just abortion and gay marriage, President Bush will carry most of the centrist Evangelicals and Catholics. But if the religious issues are defined more broadly to include poverty, the environment, human rights, the war in Iraq, and the White House's too-easy 'good versus evil' theology in the war on terrorism, John Kerry will get serious consideration by those same moderate Christian voters." [Sojourners]

CITIZENS OF ANOTHER CITY: FOUR CHRISTIAN CRITICS ON THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION

"...St. Augustine, after all, encouraged us to make good use of the peace and resources of the earthly city; we just should not place our hope on that city bringing about a lasting peace because it is essentially predicated on the 'inevitability' and centrality of war. Thus, I'll probably vote, but not for Kerry or Bush... The Church's political goal in a post-christian age is the development of a faithful, subversive counterculture." [New Pantagruel]

RED AND BLUE STATES? SORRY, SAYS JEFF SHARLET, BUT IT'S NOT THAT BLACK AND WHITE

"The other night I attended a meeting of an evangelical home church in the swing state of Oregon. The members of the Imago Dei Community adhere to a conservative Protestant theology. They're against gay marriage and for male 'headship' of families. When they talk about 'the culture,' they speak of it as something to be resisted.... The meeting I attended... seemed to disprove the contentions of those who say there are few undecided voters left...All were distressed by the fever pitch of the campaign. And nobody in the room felt a part of the battle. In the us/them divide, they are other" [Dallas Morning News]

EVANGELICALS CONFLICTED ABOUT ABORTION AND IRAQ WAR COULD COST BUSH VOTES

"'It's hard for me to say that Christians should be marching against abortion and carrying signs, and then turn around and giving a pep rally for the war in Iraq without even contemplating that hundreds and hundreds of people are being killed on a regular basis over there,' Urcavich said. 'I'm very antiabortion, but the reality is the right to life encompasses a much broader field than just abortion..." [LA Times]

QUESTIONS OF FAITH: A PASTOR REFLECTS ON THE RELIGIOUS QUESTIONS HE WISHES THE PRESS HAD ASKED BUSH & KERRY

"...with the election just days away, our knowledge of the beliefs of George W. Bush and John Kerry remains incomplete. Seldom have the candidates been asked tough questions about faith and the role it plays in forming public policy, and when such questions have been raised, the answers have been dissatisfying. " [The Revealer]

JOHN ALLEN: DIALOGUING WITH MISSIONARIES IN SAN ANTONIO; RATZINGER ON CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY; THE NEW COMPENDIUM OF THE SOCIAL DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH

"The challenge of communion is to think through what being part of a global family of faith really means... Are we prepared, for example, to step outside our prejudices to sympathetically consider the other? I noted that I heard during the weekend negative references to the Catholic TV network EWTN, and descriptions of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the Vatican's top doctrinal official, as if he were Genghis Kahn... (The same question could be put to some conservative Catholics who scorn, for example, Voice of the Faithful, the staff of the U.S. bishops' conference, and any number of bishops they regard as "soft" on dissent). [The Word From Rome]

MEL GIBSON WEIGHS IN AGAINST SCHWARZENEGGER'S CALIFORNIA PROPOSITION TO FUND EMBRYONIC STEM CELL RESEARCH

"Gibson, a Roman Catholic, said he had no faith in the cloning of human embryos but would support the use of adult stem cells: 'I found that the cloning of human embryos will be used in the process and that, for me, I have an ethical problem with that. Why do I, as a taxpayer, have to fund something I believe is unethical?'" [AP]

WHY I APOLOGIZED TO PLANNED PARENTHOOD: MY DIFFICULT UNPLANNED PREGNANCY IMPELLED ME TO SHOW A LITTLE MORE GRACE.

"We tentatively tiptoed inside. I was half expecting to see blood dripping down the walls or hear babies screaming from the ceiling. Instead I found a coolly lit, comfortable waiting area with neatly stacked brochures. I was pleasantly surprised to see glossy brochures about adoption and clothing programs for new mothers. What a contradiction: a place where they both welcome and kill little ones. Snapping me out of my thoughts, the receptionist asked, 'Can I help you?'" [Christianity Today]

LIFE OF THE PARTY: BILL MCGURN ON HOW THE DEMOCRATS' SILENCING OF BOB CASEY CONTINUES TO RATTLE THROUGH OUR POLITICAL HALLS TODAY.

"One wonders: Al Gore, Richard Gephardt, even Teddy Kennedy all started out public life in Congress pro-life. There was a day that Jesse Jackson railed against abortion as black genocide. That was, of course the day before he sought the Democratic nomination for President... Might they not have remained pro-life had leaders like Governor Cuomo held?" [National Review]

FAITH, HOPE AND CLARITY: ROBERT WRIGHT ON PRESIDENT BUSH'S DAILY READING OF OSWALD CHAMBERS

"I respect Mr. Bush's religious impulse, and I even find Chambers's Scottish austerity true and appealing in a generic way. Still, it's another question whether Chambers's worldview, as mediated by Mr. Bush, should help shape the world's future. People who take drastic action based on divine-feeling feelings, and view ensuing death and destruction with equanimity, have in recent years tended to be the problem, not the solution." [NY Times]

ALEKSANDR SOLZHENITSYN: 'ONE OF THE GREAT SOULS OF THE AGE - AND AMONG ITS MOST MALIGNED AND MISUNDERSTOOD FIGURES'

"As any charitable reader of the Gulag will discern, Solzhenitsyn is no collectivist. But neither is he a 'libertarian' who ignores the indispensable moral foundations of human liberty... Solzhenitsyn is, in truth, a conservative liberal who wants to temper the one-sided modern preoccupation with individual freedom... he believes that human beings should not 'neglect their spiritual essence" or "show an exaggerated concern for man's material needs.'" [First Things]

SCIENTISTS FIND NEW SPECIES OF 3FT HUMANS

"The 18,000-year-old skeleton, nicknamed 'the Hobbit', has provided the first glimpse of a lost world east of Java inhabited by little people who crafted stone tools, roasted elephant, built rafts and probably used language." [Telegraph]

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2004-11-05T09:12:00.000-08:00

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4 November 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals that wind turbines heat the breeze beneath their blades, that cells released by growing babies help to heal their mothers and how zombie PCs can bring down big business...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Matt Walker, News Editor, Print Edition		In the heat of the night
		Wind power turbines spread across breezy landscapes are warming the ground around their bases. The finding was first predicted by a massive virtual wind farm before being backed up by real-world measurements. The tall turbines create turbulence which pulls down warmer air from the swirling currents above, especially at night. So not only is the ground level warmed up, but the breeze below is strengthened. Ironically, wind farms seem to be creating a wind all of their own. As to the effects of this local warming, only time will tell... MORE

TOP STORIES

US in U-turn over Gulf war syndrome
The US declares a link between chemical exposure and veterans' illnesses - other countries are adamant it does not exist

Massive peat burn is speeding climate change
Recent surges in atmospheric carbon dioxide may have been aided by smouldering peat bogs in Borneo

How zombie networks fuel cybercrime
So-called botnets, which can take down major websites or mount massive spam attacks, are being rented out by hackers

Cells from babies help heal their mothers
Pregnancy may have a surprising upside: a baby's cells could help heal a mother's wounds, even long after birth

Mothers' genetic skew linked to gay sons
The eggs of women with gay male offspring are more likely to have favoured a particular X chromosome, new research finds

Largest ever field of impact craters uncovered
The discovery is the first evidence that Earth suffered simultaneous meteor impacts in the recent past

Inkjet printing promises cheaper circuits
Printing conductive and insulating "ink" onto a circuit board should be cheaper and less environmentally harmful, says Epson

Prometheus caught stealing from Saturn's rings
The small, potato-shaped moon is stealing material from Saturn's rings, and the Cassini probe has captured the images

UK to screen embryos for cancer gene
Affected couples will now be able to implant IVF embryos that lack the gene causing early-onset bowel cancer

Arctic warming at twice global rate
Global warming in the region is in full swing, says the most comprehensive report yet, and the melting ice will have major impacts

US stem cells tainted by mouse material
The embryonic stem cells available for federally-funded US research may be inappropriate for human use, a study suggests

Sales in virtual goods top $100 million
Virtual items earned within online role-playing games are selling faster than ever as cyberspace "sweatshops" feed the market

AND FINALLY...
Were living organisms ever powered by anything other than the Sun? Plants use the star's energy for photosynthesis, and animals get their energy from eating those plants or each other. Would evolution have experimented with other means and, if it did, is there a fossil record to prove it? MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

WELCOME TO ATTOWORLD
If small is beautiful then imagine a world magnified and slowed down a billion billion times

SLEEP - WHO NEEDS IT?
Don't worry if you can't get a good night's sleep - you'd be amazed at the alternatives

PLUS:
DON'T LET THE MIND BUGS BITE
There's growing evidence that some mental illnesses may spread in an unexpected way

NEWS

Birds favour sweet smell of success
Nerve implants can be driven by lasers
Pesticide link to Parkinson's

SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION OFFER

2004-11-04T22:03:00.000-08:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF OCTOBER 25, 2004

FEATURE:

THE EDUCATION OF E.F. SCHUMACHER
by Joseph Pearce

Few realized when "Small is Beautiful" was published that E.F. Schumacher's economic theories were underpinned by solid religious and philosophical foundations, the fruits of a lifetime of searching. In 1971, two years before the book's publication, Schumacher had become a Roman Catholic, the final destination of his philosophical journey.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDqabbsG0bn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

E.F. SCHUMACHER-SMALL IS STILL BEAUTIFUL: A GODSPY INTERVIEW WITH JOSEPH PEARCE
by Angelo Matera

Who was E.F. Schumacher? And why should Catholics be interested in his ideas? Best-selling Catholic author Joseph Pearce explains why 'small is still beautiful,' and how Schumacher influenced his own conversion to Catholicism.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDqabbsGYbn0PumbaeQAX1/

CELEBRATING 'ALL HALLOW'S EVE': THE SEVEN DEADLY COURSES
By John Zmirak and Denise Matychowiak

This Halloween recall the festival's sacred roots by dressing as your favorite soul in purgatory, and serving up these seven deadly courses.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDqabbsGZbn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

The Gospel for Sunday, October 31, 2004
Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke: 19:1-10

FOR THE SON OF MAN HAS COME TO SEEK AND TO SAVE WHAT WAS LOST.
by Pope John Paul II

"Man is not left alone to attempt, in a thousand often frustrated ways, an impossible ascent to heaven. The Word became flesh, like us in everything except sin. He pours divinity into the sick heart of humanity..."

October 28: Memorial of Simon and Jude, Apostles

NEWSWATCH:
Go to http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacPDqabbsG1bn0PumbaeQAX1/ to view these items.

STEVEN WALDMAN ON GEORGE BUSH'S FAITH-BASED REALITY

"Conservatives are right when they say that the faith-makes-you-irrational idea is a gross caricature. What Bush supporters are less willing to admit is that President Bush has helped to promote this caricature that liberals now exploit... Bush has actively cultivated the image of the simple man of God; how does that reflect on the rest of America's born-again Christians? Is Bush a helpful spokesman, in the end?" [Slate.com]

THE GREAT I AM: JOHN UPDIKE REVIEWS ROBERT ALTER'S NEW TRANSLATION OF THE PENTATEUCH

"The miracle of the Pentateuch is that, unlike the numerous other tribes and gods that vitally figure in it, the Jews and their God have survived three millennia. The Israelites' effort to claim and maintain their Promised Land fuels a contemporary crisis and occupies today's painful headlines." [New Yorker]

THE JEWS VERSUS THE ISRAELIS

"This 'Jewish' existence that the settlers are now trying to sustain defines life, in the framework of messianic thought, as being constantly shadowed by catastrophe. In this way, the pogroms and harsh edicts were eternal proof of Jewish fate. When this shadow of catastrophe fade... the 'Jewish' settlers take pains to recreate it via refusal, a national rift, blowing up mosques and murdering a prime minister." [Haaretz]

THE LEGEND OF BONO VOX: LESSONS LEARNED IN THE CHURCH OF U2

"There are some Christians, of course, who say that the band left behind what was essential to the evangelical life (a squeaky clean lifestyle footnoted with chapter and verse) on their way up. 'Get Up Off Your Knees' clearly refutes such a charge, establishing beyond argument that the band's vision is rooted in Scripture." [Books & Culture]

CARDINAL MARTINO WRITES IN; HOW THE VATICAN VIEWS THE AMERICAN CHURCH; THE PURPORTED 'EXCOMMUNICATION' OF JOHN KERRY

Cardinal Martino: "'To say that a particular office was more supportive of President Bush or Senator Kerry is a sort of accusation that those working within an office have taken sides in the partisan politics of the democratic process. Nothing could be further from the truth, at least as far as this pontifical council is concerned. At the same time, this pontifical council cannot and will not remain silent in the face of positions taken or policies espoused by any politician or political candidate'" [The Word From Rome]

GROWING UP STRAIGHT WITH MOM AND MOM

"...when Ry goes to the popular gay vacation destination Provincetown, Mass., with her mothers, as she does every summer, she identifies more, appearance-wise, with the drag queens than with the lesbians... Sometimes she has the odd sense that she's passing for straight, even though she is straight." [NY Times Magazine]

A GUY THING: HERE'S AN EXCUSE-MY BRAIN MADE ME DO IT

"Decades of counterfeit Madison Avenue feminism have spawned ads portraying men as buffoons in the face of superior female wiles and intellect. Our culture, too quick to equate manhood with patriarchy, often labels us as temperamental boys who wreak destruction in boardrooms and on battlefields." [Denver Post]

SOPHIE MASSON ON WHY DEVIL WORSHIP AND SATANISM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED HARMLESS

"Trawling through the Church of Satan's website and its related links, one comes across such statements as 'Let our governments be toppled! Let the strong become Masters and the weak be swept away, as they should!" and "Kill all the deluded and weak'. The Church of Satan breezily informs us that though supposedly it venerates the 'Dark Force', in fact, 'we are our own gods'. All traditional sins are henceforth virtues." [SMH]

KENNETH POLLACK, AUTHOR OF 'THE THREATENING STORM,' ON IRAQ: 'I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY!'

"'I made a mistake based on faulty intelligence. Of course, I feel guilty about it. I feel awful...'" On Iran: "'I'd prefer not to have an Iran with nuclear weapons, but if it happens, I think we can probably deal with it. It's hard to imagine how the Iranians would see it in their interest to give nuclear weapons to a terrorist group. They hate Al Qaeda as much as we do.'" [NY Times]

VATICAN HANDBOOK GIVES WAR, ABORTION VIEWS

"A Vatican handbook released Monday laid out Roman Church teaching questioning preventive war and denouncing the "horrendous crime" of abortion. But Vatican officials sidestepped questions on whether the war in Iraq was illegal or if Catholics can vote for candidates who back laws permitting abortion." [Seattle Post Intelligencer]

WHY ARE PRO-WAR CHRISTIANS SO INDIFFERENT TO CIVILIAN DEATHS?

"Everything that happens in the execution of war, even that which is flagrantly in violation of the moral values that Jesus taught regarding violence and revenge, prayer for enemies and peacemaking, becomes acceptable when Jesus' teachings are compartmentalized as relevant only in our personal lives." [Antiwar.com]

TALK THAT DIMINISHES FAITH: TOM BEAUDOIN DOESN'T WANT TO HEAR FROM THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES ABOUT THEIR PERSONAL FAITH

"Today a public confession of faith by a presidential candidate is so deeply enmeshed in the calculating politics of manipulation that it simply should not be believed. Anyone who thinks a modern major-party candidate can talk about faith in a way that is not seen as angling for some political advantage, some movement in the polls, is asking the impossible." [Washington Post]

ARCHBISHOP CHARLES CHAPUT ON WHY CATHOLICS MUST ADVOCATE FOR THE COMMON GOOD AND THE DIGNITY OF EVERY PERSON
"We see abortion as a matter of civil rights and human dignity, not simply as a matter of religious teaching. We are doubly unfaithful-both to our religious convictions and to our democratic responsibilities-if we fail to support the right to life of the unborn child. Our duties to social justice by no means end there. But they do always begin there, because the right to life is foundational." [NY Times]

JOHN ALLEN ON JOHN PAUL II THE 'AVANT GARDE'

On the Pope's new apostolic letter on the Eucharist, Mane Nobiscum Dominer: " In terms of papal speech, this is fairly explosive stuff. John Paul is suggesting that the 'authenticity' of the Eucharist, a word historically reserved to proper execution of the rubrics, actually refers to how worship translates into social concern... 'You know, someday that letter will be on the Index.'" [The Word From Rome]

JUBILEE IRAQ ASKS: WHO'S GETTING $200 MILLION IN WAR REPARATION PAYMENTS FROM IRAQ?

"Here is a small sample... Halliburton ($18-million), Bechtel ($7-million), Mobil ($2.3-million), Shell ($1.6-million), Nestle ($2.6-million), Pepsi ($3.8-million), Philip Morris ($1.3-million), Sheraton ($11-million)... In the vast majority of cases, these corporations did not claim that Saddam's forces damaged their property in Kuwait-only that they "lost profits" or, in the case of American Express, experienced a 'decline in business,' because of the invasion and occupation of Kuwait." [No Logo]

VANITY OF RICHES: WEALTH BUYS NOTHING AFTER DEATH, SAYS POPE

"'A profound blindness takes hold of a man when he believes he will avoid death, being determined to accumulate material goods... Like all men and women, rich and poor, wise and foolish, he will have to go to the grave, as has happened to the powerful and he will have to leave on earth that much loved gold, those material goods so idolized.'" [ZENIT]

THE ETERNAL-OR INFERNAL?-CITY: OCTOBER'S THE PERFECT MONTH TO VISIT ROME, PERHAPS THE SPOOKIEST CITY ON THE CONTINENT

"...if you can get a sneak tour of the Crypt of the Cappuccini Monks... this is by far Rome's creepiest crypt... The bones of over 4,000 monks have been used to carefully decorate the crypt ceiling and walls. Intricate designs that at first look like carvings are really leg bones and rib cages. Stacks of skulls line the narrow hallways and vases decorated with finger bones and knuckles are scattered throughout the crypt." [MSNBC]

TELEVISION WITHOUT PITY- SHOULD A 'LEWD, CRUDE AND EXTRAVAGANTLY VULGAR'MOUTH BE A JOB REQUIREMENT FOR WORKING IN COMEDY?

"With few exceptions, situation comedies are written by large groups of predominantly young white guys-often under-socialized, smart-alecky guys for whom 'Portnoy's Complaint' and 'American Pie' are sacred texts-who are cooped up together in small spaces late into the night... The easiest way' to get a laugh is to make a masturbation joke 'or ask how many dead babies can you cram into a glove compartment.'" [NY Times]

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO DISNEY: MARK PINSKY'S NEW BOOK ABOUT FAITH, TRUST, AND PIXIE DUST

"'We have no obligation to make art,' [Eisner] wrote shareholders. 'We have no obligation to make history. We have no obligation to make a statement. But to make money, it is often important to make history, to make art, or to make some significant statement.'" [Jewsweek]

BROKEN PROMISES: A SERIOUS HERETIC LAMENTS THE UNSERIOUSNESS OF 'THE DA VINCI CODE'

"The Da Vinci Code's... promise of truth is broken in the moment it is made. The culture's habit of finding 'seriousness' acceptable only if offered by people who are finally not serious is yet another way that the culture makes certain that nothing alarming will come of our newfound interest in heretical ideas. On the other hand, this is all only as it should be in a culture that believes it can learn about theology by reading a pulp novel." [Village Voice]

INVENTOR OF THE 'TV-B-GONE' REJOICES AS TVS GO DARK

It's a "new universal remote that turns off almost any television. The device, which looks like an automobile remote, has just one button. When activated, it spends over a minute flashing out 209 different codes to turn off televisions, the most popular brands first. 'You've heard about the battle for eyeballs. They're your eyeballs. You should not have your consciousness constantly invaded...'" [Wired]

ARCHBISHOP CHAPUT SETS RECORD STRAIGHT ON NY TIMES INTERVIEW: IS IT A SIN TO VOTE FOR A PRO-ABORTION POLITICIAN?

"I don't believe that's where you should start. The place to start would be, does our voting for someone make us responsible for what that person does as a legislator or as a judge?... And the answer is yes... if you know someone is going to do evil and you participate in that in some way, you are responsible... Now, if you know you are cooperating in evil, should you go to confession? The answer is yes." [Archdiocese of Denver]

ROBERT NOVAK ON ARCHBISHOP CHARLES CHAPUT AND THE CATHOLIC ELECTION WARS

Chaput: "'If the Church challenges a President Kerry on [destruction of unborn children through embryonic stem-cell research], it will appear to be interfering. If the Church remains silent, it will appear cowardly.' "...He made clear he has no affection for the Republican Party beyond opposition to abortion: 'If it goes in the wrong way,' he said, 'we won't be natural allies.' If pro-choice Republican Rudy Giuliani were nominated for president in 2008, 'you're going to see the Republicans screaming at the Church for making such an issue of a pro-life matter.'" [Town Hall]

WHO'S PRO-LIFE HERE? E.J. DIONNE, JR. AND MICHAEL CROMARTIE DEBATE RELIGION AND PUBLIC LIFE AND THEIR CONSERVATIVE AND LIBERAL POLITICAL PHILOSOPHIES

Dionne: "...obviously you have some very difficult issues-abortion, stem cell research-that move a lot of voters. And that, I think, if we're honest with ourselves, are morally very difficult and very complicated issues... it was striking that the president didn't want to say he [would] overturn ROE V. WADE. And I think he understood that there is an ambivalence in the public about abortion.
Cromartie: 'Well, as the president said, he was not going to apply a litmus test to justices, as Senator Kerry is going to apply.'" [R&E Newsweekly]

RELATIVISM THREATENING DEMOCRACY, SAYS POPE JOHN PAUL II

"'Truth... is the best antidote to ideological fanaticism, in the scientific, political and also the religious realm... The evangelical message presents the central character of the person as a supra-ideological anchor that all can have as reference... Without being rooted in the truth, man and society are exposed to the violence of passions and to open or hidden conditioning.'" [ZENIT]

CHICKEN SOUP FOR THEIR WALLETS: THE NEW WAVE PROPHECIES OF BISHOP E. BERNARD JORDAN AND MARK VICTOR HANSEN

"Bishop Jordan, you see, is a pay-for-pray operator. He's got plenty of ways to prophesize for you, all billing at that minimum $150... And I learn that like the Bishop, Mark Victor Hansen [Chicken Soup for the Soul] is a protege of Rev. Ike... For all his flash, Hansen is shilling the same get-rich-quick scheme that you find on any number of infomercials at 3 a.m." [NY Press]

THIS IS YOUR BRAIN WHEN IT BUYS: 'NEUROMARKETING'

"'What would happen in this country if corporate marketers and political consultants could literally peer inside our brains and chart the neural activity that leads to our selections in the supermarket and voting booth? What if they then could trigger this neural activity by various means, so as to modify our behavior to serve their own ends?' Commercial Alert, a consumer group that is highly critical of neuromarketing... has called it Orwellian..." [NY Times]

OIL FUELS GENOCIDE: NAT HENTOF ON HOW THE ONLY CHANCE FOR THE SURVIVORS OF DARFUR MAY BE A MASS DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN

"...we must begin to enact [a] divestment campaign against American private and public institutions that profit from investing in the international oil companies whose revenues allow Khartoum to arm the government soldiers and Arab Janjaweed rapists and murderers committing this genocide." [Village Voice]

JACQUES DERRIDA, IN MEMORIAM: 'PHILOSOPHY AS A KIND OF DYING'

"It has been the mistake of his critics-both in the academy and media-to conclude from Derrida's preoccupation with death that deconstruction is simply the next nihilism. For in the end-or better, from the beginning-deconstruction is a work of love... 'It is not negative,' he once commented, 'For me, it always accompanies an affirmative exigency. I would even say that it never proceeds without love.'" [Books & Culture]

RON SUSKIND ON FAITH, CERTAINTY AND THE PRESIDENCY OF GEORGE W. BUSH

Quoting Bruce Bartlett, former Reagan domestic policy adviser: '''...he's always talking about... this sort of weird, Messianic idea of what he thinks God has told him to do... This is why George W. Bush is so clear-eyed about Al Qaeda and the Islamic fundamentalist enemy. He believes you have to kill them all. They can't be persuaded, that they're extremists, driven by a dark vision. He understands them, because he's just like them...'" [NYT Magazine]

====================================================================
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2004-11-02T11:09:00.000-08:00

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2004-11-02T00:22:00.000-08:00

2004-10-29T12:46:00.000-07:00

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28 October 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals that when the going gets tough, cellphones and CDs can now get tougher, that fetal tissue grafts can restore lost sight and that organised chaos can get robots going...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Rachel Nowak, Australasian Editor		Up to scratch
		A new super-tough transparent coating promises to make scuffed CD's that jump and scratched cellphone screens a thing of the past. The layered polymer is so resilient that New Scientist's attack with wire wool and permanent marker pens made no impression at all. Only resorting to a penknife resulted in any damage. Layers of fine silica particles prevent scratches, while fluorine-containing resins repel ink marks. The coating, developed by TDK in Japan could also boost the prospects of the new Blu-ray recording discs planned to succeed DVDs... MORE

This year there will be no excuses, no disappointments, and definitely no more socks!

New Scientist has launched its online gift guide, No More Socks, an eclectic mix of imaginative gift ideas submitted by New Scientist readers. WeÂve received loads of fantastic ideas and are hard at work putting them on the site. The first Gift of the Week winner is Ray Kipp of Northumberland, England for his suggestion of The Origami Experience. He wins an exclusive New Scientist T-shirt. If you think you have an idea worthy of the Gift of the Week position you can submit your idea at nomoresocks.newscientist.com

Terms and conditions of the competition are on the site.

TOP STORIES

Fetal tissue graft restores lost sight
Previously incurable diseases of the eye can be treated by transplanting retinal cells harvested from aborted fetuses

Organised chaos gets robots going
The maths behind the chaotic systems that create weather may reveal how machines, or even animals, can learn to walk

Totally artificial hearts offer hope
For people needing a heart transplant, a lack of donor hearts makes for a bleak outlook - but artificial-heart technology is coming of age

Threatened species may spiral into oblivion
Inbreeding puts big cats and other species at more risk from parasites and infections, a study suggests

Tiny new species of human unearthed
A one-metre-tall species of human living as recently as 13,000 years ago radically alters the picture of human evolution

Sunspots more active than for 8000 years
The Sun has been more energetic in the last 70 years than it has for the previous 8000 - but it is not to blame for recent global warming

High-fat diet could harm the brain
High levels of a common type of fat used to preserve shelf life could harm the brain, suggests a study of learning in rats

Compounded errors caused New York crash
The second-worst air crash in US history was due to training gaps and "unnecessary and excessive" co-pilot actions, the safety board finds

NASA steals the supercomputing crown
The space agency's new supercomputer, called Columbia, is the fastest in the world - but the competition is hotting up

Lungs lose power at lunch time
Their capacity drops around midday before peaking hours later - the finding could help time treatments for respiratory ailments

AND FINALLY...
Why is the sea blue? The traditional answer is that it reflects the sky. But that doesn't explain why water inside caves also appears blue. Find out more in this week's Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

BODIES SPECIAL
THE BODY
A comprehensive new look at the forces that made us and shape us

IN YOUR DREAMS
The growing gulf between the shape we are and the way we want to be

IDEAL IDOLS
Even Batman cannot escape our unrealistic notions of beauty

THE SHAPE WE'RE IN
The human form's amazing diversity

SMOOTH OPERATORS
What is it about body hair that gets us so het up?

SUPERSIZE ME
There's no need to beat yourself up if you're overweight

WOMB FOR IMPROVEMENT
You are what your mother ate

BIONIC BODIES
They can rebuild you - even better than you were to start with

BUILT TO WIN
What makes a sporting champion

EXTREME SURGERY
How far would you go in pursuit of perfection?

SECRET SIGNALS
Cryptic come-ons to the opposite sex

DO THE MATHS
Explore the body's amazing numbers

PLUS
HELL'S NURSERY
Forget soft lights and sweet music, our solar system was born in a firestorm

NEWS

Cosmic strings gave rise to stars
Caesareans linked to allergies
Entanglement goes the distance

SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION OFFER

2004-10-27T15:55:00.000-07:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF OCTOBER 25, 2004

FEATURE:

THE EDUCATION OF E.F. SCHUMACHER
by Joseph Pearce

Few realized when "Small is Beautiful" was published that E.F. Schumacher's economic theories were underpinned by solid religious and philosophical foundations, the fruits of a lifetime of searching. In 1971, two years before the book's publication, Schumacher had become a Roman Catholic, the final destination of his philosophical journey.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacNB6abbbVCbn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

E.F. SCHUMACHER-SMALL IS STILL BEAUTIFUL: A GODSPY INTERVIEW WITH JOSEPH PEARCE
by Angelo Matera

Who was E.F. Schumacher? And why should Catholics be interested in his ideas? Best-selling Catholic author Joseph Pearce explains why 'small is still beautiful,' and how Schumacher influenced his own conversion to Catholicism.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacNB6abbbVDbn0PumbaeQAX1/

CELEBRATING 'ALL HALLOW'S EVE': THE SEVEN DEADLY COURSES
By John Zmirak and Denise Matychowiak

This Halloween recall the festival's sacred roots by dressing as your favorite soul in purgatory, and serving up these seven deadly courses.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacNB6abbbVEbn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

The Gospel for Sunday, October 31, 2004
Thirty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke: 19:1-10

FOR THE SON OF MAN HAS COME TO SEEK AND TO SAVE WHAT WAS LOST.
by Pope John Paul II

"Man is not left alone to attempt, in a thousand often frustrated ways, an impossible ascent to heaven. The Word became flesh, like us in everything except sin. He pours divinity into the sick heart of humanity..."

October 28: Memorial of Simon and Jude, Apostles

NEWSWATCH:
Go to http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacNB6abbbVFbn0PumbaeQAX1/ to view these items.

STEVEN WALDMAN ON GEORGE BUSH'S FAITH-BASED REALITY

"Conservatives are right when they say that the faith-makes-you-irrational idea is a gross caricature. What Bush supporters are less willing to admit is that President Bush has helped to promote this caricature that liberals now exploit... Bush has actively cultivated the image of the simple man of God; how does that reflect on the rest of America's born-again Christians? Is Bush a helpful spokesman, in the end?" [Slate.com]

THE GREAT I AM: JOHN UPDIKE REVIEWS ROBERT ALTER'S NEW TRANSLATION OF THE PENTATEUCH

"The miracle of the Pentateuch is that, unlike the numerous other tribes and gods that vitally figure in it, the Jews and their God have survived three millennia. The Israelites' effort to claim and maintain their Promised Land fuels a contemporary crisis and occupies today's painful headlines." [New Yorker]

THE JEWS VERSUS THE ISRAELIS

"This 'Jewish' existence that the settlers are now trying to sustain defines life, in the framework of messianic thought, as being constantly shadowed by catastrophe. In this way, the pogroms and harsh edicts were eternal proof of Jewish fate. When this shadow of catastrophe fade... the 'Jewish' settlers take pains to recreate it via refusal, a national rift, blowing up mosques and murdering a prime minister." [Haaretz]

THE LEGEND OF BONO VOX: LESSONS LEARNED IN THE CHURCH OF U2

"There are some Christians, of course, who say that the band left behind what was essential to the evangelical life (a squeaky clean lifestyle footnoted with chapter and verse) on their way up. 'Get Up Off Your Knees' clearly refutes such a charge, establishing beyond argument that the band's vision is rooted in Scripture." [Books & Culture]

CARDINAL MARTINO WRITES IN; HOW THE VATICAN VIEWS THE AMERICAN CHURCH; THE PURPORTED 'EXCOMMUNICATION' OF JOHN KERRY

Cardinal Martino: "'To say that a particular office was more supportive of President Bush or Senator Kerry is a sort of accusation that those working within an office have taken sides in the partisan politics of the democratic process. Nothing could be further from the truth, at least as far as this pontifical council is concerned. At the same time, this pontifical council cannot and will not remain silent in the face of positions taken or policies espoused by any politician or political candidate'" [The Word From Rome]

GROWING UP STRAIGHT WITH MOM AND MOM

"...when Ry goes to the popular gay vacation destination Provincetown, Mass., with her mothers, as she does every summer, she identifies more, appearance-wise, with the drag queens than with the lesbians... Sometimes she has the odd sense that she's passing for straight, even though she is straight." [NY Times Magazine]

A GUY THING: HERE'S AN EXCUSE-MY BRAIN MADE ME DO IT

"Decades of counterfeit Madison Avenue feminism have spawned ads portraying men as buffoons in the face of superior female wiles and intellect. Our culture, too quick to equate manhood with patriarchy, often labels us as temperamental boys who wreak destruction in boardrooms and on battlefields." [Denver Post]

SOPHIE MASSON ON WHY DEVIL WORSHIP AND SATANISM SHOULD NOT BE CONSIDERED HARMLESS

"Trawling through the Church of Satan's website and its related links, one comes across such statements as 'Let our governments be toppled! Let the strong become Masters and the weak be swept away, as they should!" and "Kill all the deluded and weak'. The Church of Satan breezily informs us that though supposedly it venerates the 'Dark Force', in fact, 'we are our own gods'. All traditional sins are henceforth virtues." [SMH]

KENNETH POLLACK, AUTHOR OF 'THE THREATENING STORM,' ON IRAQ: 'I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY!'

"'I made a mistake based on faulty intelligence. Of course, I feel guilty about it. I feel awful...'" On Iran: "'I'd prefer not to have an Iran with nuclear weapons, but if it happens, I think we can probably deal with it. It's hard to imagine how the Iranians would see it in their interest to give nuclear weapons to a terrorist group. They hate Al Qaeda as much as we do.'" [NY Times]

VATICAN HANDBOOK GIVES WAR, ABORTION VIEWS

"A Vatican handbook released Monday laid out Roman Church teaching questioning preventive war and denouncing the "horrendous crime" of abortion. But Vatican officials sidestepped questions on whether the war in Iraq was illegal or if Catholics can vote for candidates who back laws permitting abortion." [Seattle Post Intelligencer]

WHY ARE PRO-WAR CHRISTIANS SO INDIFFERENT TO CIVILIAN DEATHS?

"Everything that happens in the execution of war, even that which is flagrantly in violation of the moral values that Jesus taught regarding violence and revenge, prayer for enemies and peacemaking, becomes acceptable when Jesus' teachings are compartmentalized as relevant only in our personal lives." [Antiwar.com]

TALK THAT DIMINISHES FAITH: TOM BEAUDOIN DOESN'T WANT TO HEAR FROM THE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES ABOUT THEIR PERSONAL FAITH

"Today a public confession of faith by a presidential candidate is so deeply enmeshed in the calculating politics of manipulation that it simply should not be believed. Anyone who thinks a modern major-party candidate can talk about faith in a way that is not seen as angling for some political advantage, some movement in the polls, is asking the impossible." [Washington Post]

ARCHBISHOP CHARLES CHAPUT ON WHY CATHOLICS MUST ADVOCATE FOR THE COMMON GOOD AND THE DIGNITY OF EVERY PERSON
"We see abortion as a matter of civil rights and human dignity, not simply as a matter of religious teaching. We are doubly unfaithful-both to our religious convictions and to our democratic responsibilities-if we fail to support the right to life of the unborn child. Our duties to social justice by no means end there. But they do always begin there, because the right to life is foundational." [NY Times]

JOHN ALLEN ON JOHN PAUL II THE 'AVANT GARDE'

On the Pope's new apostolic letter on the Eucharist, Mane Nobiscum Dominer: " In terms of papal speech, this is fairly explosive stuff. John Paul is suggesting that the 'authenticity' of the Eucharist, a word historically reserved to proper execution of the rubrics, actually refers to how worship translates into social concern... 'You know, someday that letter will be on the Index.'" [The Word From Rome]

JUBILEE IRAQ ASKS: WHO'S GETTING $200 MILLION IN WAR REPARATION PAYMENTS FROM IRAQ?

"Here is a small sample... Halliburton ($18-million), Bechtel ($7-million), Mobil ($2.3-million), Shell ($1.6-million), Nestle ($2.6-million), Pepsi ($3.8-million), Philip Morris ($1.3-million), Sheraton ($11-million)... In the vast majority of cases, these corporations did not claim that Saddam's forces damaged their property in Kuwait-only that they "lost profits" or, in the case of American Express, experienced a 'decline in business,' because of the invasion and occupation of Kuwait." [No Logo]

VANITY OF RICHES: WEALTH BUYS NOTHING AFTER DEATH, SAYS POPE

"'A profound blindness takes hold of a man when he believes he will avoid death, being determined to accumulate material goods... Like all men and women, rich and poor, wise and foolish, he will have to go to the grave, as has happened to the powerful and he will have to leave on earth that much loved gold, those material goods so idolized.'" [ZENIT]

THE ETERNAL-OR INFERNAL?-CITY: OCTOBER'S THE PERFECT MONTH TO VISIT ROME, PERHAPS THE SPOOKIEST CITY ON THE CONTINENT

"...if you can get a sneak tour of the Crypt of the Cappuccini Monks... this is by far Rome's creepiest crypt... The bones of over 4,000 monks have been used to carefully decorate the crypt ceiling and walls. Intricate designs that at first look like carvings are really leg bones and rib cages. Stacks of skulls line the narrow hallways and vases decorated with finger bones and knuckles are scattered throughout the crypt." [MSNBC]

TELEVISION WITHOUT PITY- SHOULD A 'LEWD, CRUDE AND EXTRAVAGANTLY VULGAR'MOUTH BE A JOB REQUIREMENT FOR WORKING IN COMEDY?

"With few exceptions, situation comedies are written by large groups of predominantly young white guys-often under-socialized, smart-alecky guys for whom 'Portnoy's Complaint' and 'American Pie' are sacred texts-who are cooped up together in small spaces late into the night... The easiest way' to get a laugh is to make a masturbation joke 'or ask how many dead babies can you cram into a glove compartment.'" [NY Times]

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO DISNEY: MARK PINSKY'S NEW BOOK ABOUT FAITH, TRUST, AND PIXIE DUST

"'We have no obligation to make art,' [Eisner] wrote shareholders. 'We have no obligation to make history. We have no obligation to make a statement. But to make money, it is often important to make history, to make art, or to make some significant statement.'" [Jewsweek]

BROKEN PROMISES: A SERIOUS HERETIC LAMENTS THE UNSERIOUSNESS OF 'THE DA VINCI CODE'

"The Da Vinci Code's... promise of truth is broken in the moment it is made. The culture's habit of finding 'seriousness' acceptable only if offered by people who are finally not serious is yet another way that the culture makes certain that nothing alarming will come of our newfound interest in heretical ideas. On the other hand, this is all only as it should be in a culture that believes it can learn about theology by reading a pulp novel." [Village Voice]

INVENTOR OF THE 'TV-B-GONE' REJOICES AS TVS GO DARK

It's a "new universal remote that turns off almost any television. The device, which looks like an automobile remote, has just one button. When activated, it spends over a minute flashing out 209 different codes to turn off televisions, the most popular brands first. 'You've heard about the battle for eyeballs. They're your eyeballs. You should not have your consciousness constantly invaded...'" [Wired]

ARCHBISHOP CHAPUT SETS RECORD STRAIGHT ON NY TIMES INTERVIEW: IS IT A SIN TO VOTE FOR A PRO-ABORTION POLITICIAN?

"I don't believe that's where you should start. The place to start would be, does our voting for someone make us responsible for what that person does as a legislator or as a judge?... And the answer is yes... if you know someone is going to do evil and you participate in that in some way, you are responsible... Now, if you know you are cooperating in evil, should you go to confession? The answer is yes." [Archdiocese of Denver]

ROBERT NOVAK ON ARCHBISHOP CHARLES CHAPUT AND THE CATHOLIC ELECTION WARS

Chaput: "'If the Church challenges a President Kerry on [destruction of unborn children through embryonic stem-cell research], it will appear to be interfering. If the Church remains silent, it will appear cowardly.' "...He made clear he has no affection for the Republican Party beyond opposition to abortion: 'If it goes in the wrong way,' he said, 'we won't be natural allies.' If pro-choice Republican Rudy Giuliani were nominated for president in 2008, 'you're going to see the Republicans screaming at the Church for making such an issue of a pro-life matter.'" [Town Hall]

WHO'S PRO-LIFE HERE? E.J. DIONNE, JR. AND MICHAEL CROMARTIE DEBATE RELIGION AND PUBLIC LIFE AND THEIR CONSERVATIVE AND LIBERAL POLITICAL PHILOSOPHIES

Dionne: "...obviously you have some very difficult issues-abortion, stem cell research-that move a lot of voters. And that, I think, if we're honest with ourselves, are morally very difficult and very complicated issues... it was striking that the president didn't want to say he [would] overturn ROE V. WADE. And I think he understood that there is an ambivalence in the public about abortion.
Cromartie: 'Well, as the president said, he was not going to apply a litmus test to justices, as Senator Kerry is going to apply.'" [R&E Newsweekly]

RELATIVISM THREATENING DEMOCRACY, SAYS POPE JOHN PAUL II

"'Truth... is the best antidote to ideological fanaticism, in the scientific, political and also the religious realm... The evangelical message presents the central character of the person as a supra-ideological anchor that all can have as reference... Without being rooted in the truth, man and society are exposed to the violence of passions and to open or hidden conditioning.'" [ZENIT]

CHICKEN SOUP FOR THEIR WALLETS: THE NEW WAVE PROPHECIES OF BISHOP E. BERNARD JORDAN AND MARK VICTOR HANSEN

"Bishop Jordan, you see, is a pay-for-pray operator. He's got plenty of ways to prophesize for you, all billing at that minimum $150... And I learn that like the Bishop, Mark Victor Hansen [Chicken Soup for the Soul] is a protege of Rev. Ike... For all his flash, Hansen is shilling the same get-rich-quick scheme that you find on any number of infomercials at 3 a.m." [NY Press]

THIS IS YOUR BRAIN WHEN IT BUYS: 'NEUROMARKETING'

"'What would happen in this country if corporate marketers and political consultants could literally peer inside our brains and chart the neural activity that leads to our selections in the supermarket and voting booth? What if they then could trigger this neural activity by various means, so as to modify our behavior to serve their own ends?' Commercial Alert, a consumer group that is highly critical of neuromarketing... has called it Orwellian..." [NY Times]

OIL FUELS GENOCIDE: NAT HENTOF ON HOW THE ONLY CHANCE FOR THE SURVIVORS OF DARFUR MAY BE A MASS DIVESTMENT CAMPAIGN

"...we must begin to enact [a] divestment campaign against American private and public institutions that profit from investing in the international oil companies whose revenues allow Khartoum to arm the government soldiers and Arab Janjaweed rapists and murderers committing this genocide." [Village Voice]

JACQUES DERRIDA, IN MEMORIAM: 'PHILOSOPHY AS A KIND OF DYING'

"It has been the mistake of his critics-both in the academy and media-to conclude from Derrida's preoccupation with death that deconstruction is simply the next nihilism. For in the end-or better, from the beginning-deconstruction is a work of love... 'It is not negative,' he once commented, 'For me, it always accompanies an affirmative exigency. I would even say that it never proceeds without love.'" [Books & Culture]

RON SUSKIND ON FAITH, CERTAINTY AND THE PRESIDENCY OF GEORGE W. BUSH

Quoting Bruce Bartlett, former Reagan domestic policy adviser: '''...he's always talking about... this sort of weird, Messianic idea of what he thinks God has told him to do... This is why George W. Bush is so clear-eyed about Al Qaeda and the Islamic fundamentalist enemy. He believes you have to kill them all. They can't be persuaded, that they're extremists, driven by a dark vision. He understands them, because he's just like them...'" [NYT Magazine]

====================================================================
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2004-10-21T07:20:00.000-07:00

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21 October 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week unveils the bag that never forgets, the babies born after surgery on eggs and the screen as clear and glossy as a printed magazine...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Will Knight, Online News Reporter		Bag that never forgets
		Imagine a bag that warns you if you are about to forget your umbrella or wallet. And later you could turn it into a scarf that glows when pollution levels are high. Bizarre objects such as these may soon be possible thanks to a system of multifunction fabric patches. Each contains a microprocessor and memory plus either a radio transceiver, a sensor, an LED-based light, a microphone, batteries or a display. Using conducting Velcro to connect the patches enables the creation of a multitude of useful gadgets... MORE

This year there will be no excuses, no disappointments, and definitely no more socks!

New Scientist is launching an online gift guide, packed full of imaginative gift ideas from New Scientist readers themselves. You could win an exclusive New Scientist T-shirt and have your idea featured as the Gift of the Week, so cast your mind back and let your fellow New Scientist readers know about the presents you were most thrilled by.

You can submit ideas at nomoresocks.newscientist.com

Terms and conditions of the competition are on the site.

TOP STORIES

Babies born after transplant surgery on eggs
Twenty children have been born following the injection of extra mitochondria into their mothers' eggs, but some fertility experts fear for safety

New display 'as clear as a glossy magazine'
Hewlett-Packard says its liquid-crystal still-image display technology will lead to ultra high-resolution flat screens that are both cheap and low power

Experts fear escape of 1918 flu from lab
Scientists working on reconstructions of the lethal Spanish flu virus are accused of compromising on safety and risking another pandemic

Quantum quirk may give objects mass
EntanglementÂ - the quantum effect that allows two particles to behave as one, even when separatedÂ - could responsible for the mass of everyday objects

Relativity tested on a shoestring budget
A $600 million NASA mission to test an esoteric aspect of Einstein's theory is pipped to the post by scientists analysing existing data

Recount slashes number of human genes
New analysis of the human genome slashes gene estimates, while a second study reveals flaws in "shotgun" gene sequencing

Miniature jet engines could power cellphones
The silicon-based microengines, now one step closer, could replace standard batteries and may revolutionise mobile electronics

Boy babies less likely for single mothers
Couples give birth to more boys on average, a new US study reveals - the finding might explain an overall drop in male births

Human testicular tissue grown in mice
The proof-of-principle experiment suggests that young boys who contract cancer could in future have their fertility preserved

Japan accused of illegal whaling in Australia
A Japanese company is killing whales illegally in Australian waters, claims a conservation group seeking a restraining order to stop the hunts

Planet formation is violent, slow and messy
A new view of planet formation is revealed by observations of nearby stars - it suggests Earth-like planets might be common

AND FINALLY...
The usual thing to see coming out of a chimney is smoke, but a number of readers have reported seeing trees. These sprout from what is essentially a brick wall. So how do the plants cling to life in such an inhospitable place? Find out in this week's Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

THE PERFECT VORTEX
They turn up everywhere, but no one understands how they form. Is it possible to tame the vortex?

FETAL FLAWS
Some of the most baffling human diseases begin to make sense when we rethink what we mean by "genetic"

BAD MEDICINE
The next time you see a doctor will the treatment you get be for your benefit, or theirs?

LIFE ON TITAN
Saturn's moon is dark, cold and forbidding, but someone might call it home

NEWS

Shoot a rhino to save a rhino
Are unseen asteroids lurking near Earth?
The monster amplifier

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2004-10-14T12:01:00.000-07:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF OCTOBER 11, 2004

FEATURE:

NOVY DVUR AND THE STYLISH AUSTERITY OF JOHN PAWSON
by Deyan Sudjic

Architect John Pawson is famous for his elegantly austere Calvin Klein store in New York. Now he has brought his minimalist vision to the new Cistercian monastery at Novy Dvur in the Czech Republic.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacKLEabaOPtbn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

PRETTY AS A PICTURE: A REVIEW OF 'THERESE'
by Debra Murphy

The ÂThÃ©rÃ¨seÂ movie is as pretty as a Thomas Kinkaide paintingÂand thatÂs the problem. ThÃ©rÃ¨se MartinÂs spiritual battle against ravenous emptiness was anything but pretty.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacKLEabaOPibn0PumbaeQAX1/

CONFESSIONS OF A GAY CONSERVATIVE: AN INTERVIEW WITH STEVE YUHAS
by James McCoy

San Diego journalist Steve Yuhas is a gay conservative. In this interview he speaks candidly about Gay Pride parades, gays in the military, and why he's against gay marriage.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacKLEabaOPjbn0PumbaeQAX1/

BEN FRANKLIN AND THE MOUSE: MULTI-TASKING IN AMERICA
by Eric Scheske

Multi-tasking is as American as General Motors. Old Ben Franklin would have loved it. But when I realized I couldnÂt do anything anymore without wanting to do something else at the same timeÂit scared me.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacKLEabaOPkbn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

The Gospel for Sunday, October 17, 2004
Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke: 18:1-8

BUT WHEN THE SON OF MAN COMES, WILL HE FIND FAITH ON EARTH?
by Pope John Paul II

ÂChrist is a divine judge with a human heart, a judge who wants to give life. Only unrepentant attachment to evil can prevent him from offering this gift, for which he did not hesitate to face death.Â

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacKLEabaOPlbn0PumbaeQAX1/

October 15: Memorial of St. Teresa of Jesus

NEWSWATCH:
Go to http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacKLEabaOPubn0PumbaeQAX1/ to view these items.

COMPROMISE, HELL! WENDELL BERRY ON ECONOMIC WMDS AND HOW GREED IS NOW THE DOMINANT VIRTUE

ÂBigness has a charm and a drama that are seductive, especially to politicians and financiers; but bigness promotes greed, indifference, and damage, and often bigness is not necessary. You may need a large corporation to run an airline or to manufacture cars, but you don't need a large corporation to raise a chicken or a hog. You don't need a large corporation to process local food or local timber and market it locally.Â [Orion Quarterly]

CRISIS OF FAITH FOR MCDONALDSÂFAST FOOD GIANT MAY REPLACE GOLDEN ARCHES WITH A GREAT BIG QUESTION MARK

ÂFrom the third world through to the developed west, only Coca-Cola and the crucifix are better knownÂÂThe difficult thing is how they do this without losing credibility and making it look like they lack confidenceÂ One of the things about being a so-called master brand is that you have to have absolute certainty of what it is you are doing and what it is you are selling.ÂÂ [Guardian]

WHAT THE CRUSADES WERE REALLY LIKE

ÂMyth 1: The Crusades were wars of unprovoked aggression against a peaceful Muslim world. This is as wrong as wrong can be. From the time of Mohammed, Muslims had sought to conquer the Christian world. They did a pretty good job of it, too. After a few centuries of steady conquests, Muslim armies had taken all of North Africa, the Middle East, Asia Minor and most of Spain.Â [ZENIT]

ISLAMIC MILITANTS LAUNCH ÂBRIDES FOR JIHADÂ CAMPAIGN

Â...Mr al-Jaburi has threatened his followers with death if they do not respond to the letters distributed at his mosque, which place a religious obligation on recipients. ÂJoin your daughters to our Syrian brothers who have come to help Iraq,Â they read. ÂAllah says you must marry your daughters to good men.ÂÂ [Telegraph]

I AM NOT THE MESSIAH: THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO BOB DYLAN

ÂThe Âgatecrashers, spooks, trespassers, demagoguesÂ who camped out in his garden at Woodstock all those years ago have dug trenches and poured concrete foundations. A rabble of balding Bobolaters, hemming and hawing, pursue this wizened figure across the arts pages like a transfigured scene from the Life of BrianÂ ÂNow, f--- off!Â commands Bob. And there is a pause. And then, from the back, a voice pipes up: ÂHow shall we f--- off, O Lord?ÂÂ [Telegraph]

THE ANSWER, MY FRIEND? IT'S HARD FOR ANYBODY TO BE IN CHARGE OF THE ZEITGEIST THE WAY BOB DYLAN WAS.

ÂÂI had very little in common with and knew even less about a generation I was supposed to be the voice of,Â he writes. Sure, he'd somehow gotten himself pegged as Âhe Big Bubba of Rebellion, High Priest of Protest, the Czar of Dissent,Â but all he really wanted, he says, was to be left alone with his wife and kids.Â [Washington Post]

IT'S HIP TO BE SO FIVE YEARS AGO: NOSTALGIA IS SUDDENLY BIG AGAINÂ AGAIN

ÂUrban life has become more overbearing and overwhelming. Young people are really scared and have no certainty. An example is the huge popularity of Hillsong [evangelical church] among young people. People are even turning back to philosophy at a popular level. It's all about fear and providing rules for livingÂa framework, a moral guide." [SMH]

DRAWING A LINE IN THE SANDBOX: NO MORE ÂSUPERMOMSÂ

ÂEvery year, thousands of working mothers rip the S off their chestsÂ Since 1997Âthe peak year of working mothers in the American labor forceÂmothers with infants have been dropping out, a loss of 6.3 percent in six years. Mothers with children of all agesÂbut particularly those under 6Âare quitting their jobs in droves and are not looking back.Â [Chicago Sun Times]

CAN PRAYERS HEAL? CRITICS SAY STUDIES GO PAST SCIENCE'S REACH

ÂÂeven many churchgoers are skeptical that prayer can be subjected to scientific scrutiny. For one thing, prayers vary in their purpose and content: some give praise, others petition for strength, many ask only that God's will be doneÂ ÂThere's no way to put God to the test, and that's exactly what you're doing when you design a study to see if God answers your prayers. This whole exercise cheapens religion, and promotes an infantile theologyÂÂÂ [NY Times]

A WORLD NEGLECTED: WHY BUSH AND KERRY ARE BOTH WRONG ABOUT ÂTHE WAR ON TERRORÂ

The Âchallenge is not how to militarily eliminate the growing number of local Al Qaeda-inspired terrorist groups but how to damp down the flames of Islamic revolution that US policy has unwittingly helped stoke before they engulf the region. This calls not just for a smarter war on terrorism, as the Kerry campaign at times has suggested, or a better PR campaign to win hearts and minds, as the Administration seems to think, but a more radical shift in US policy.Â [The Nation]

A HEARTLESS HOMELAND: MORE NORTH KOREANS THAN EVER ARE FLEEING THEIR COUNTRY
ÂÂWe have to remember that any Bible or portion thereof found in the possession of a person returning to North Korea will condemn them to deathÂÂ Word on the ground is that Scripture is imported into North Korea orallyÂÂvia one's memory, a few verses at a time.Â" [Christianity Today]

JONATHAN CAOUETTE MADE ÂTARNATION,Â A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT HIS TURBULENT CHILDHOOD AND HIS MENTALLY ILL MOTHER, ON HIS COMPUTER FOR $218

ÂI was essentially out of the closet, basically at 12, and I was constantly engaging myself in dangerous situations, like hanging out with random, really bizarre sorts of art fags and pedophiles, going to these gay teen clubs and getting into a lot of trouble.Â About Texas: ÂIf you're gay, or an artist, and/or both, get out and find somewhere else to live.Â [Salon]

A NEW KAFKA BIOGRAPHY: ÂSALVATION IS AN ENORMOUS PREOCCUPATION WITH HIM, ALL THE STRONGER BECAUSE IT IS HOPELESS, AND ALL THE MORE HOPELESS BECAUSE IT IS TOTALLY UNCOMPROMISING.Â

Â[Nicholas] Murray's Kafka is thoroughly human and yet more than human, too, one of those whom Kafka himself had in mind when he wrote: ÂNo people sing with such pure voices as those who live in deepest Hell; what we take for the song of the angels is their song.ÂÂ [The Nation]

JOHN ALLEN ON THE FRUSTRATIONS OF THE CONDOM DEBATE

ÂÂ27 percent of all AIDS relief in the world is run by the Catholic church. Complaints that the church has turned a blind eye to AIDS can't be sustained against this commitment, whether it's Sant'Egidio's DREAM project in Mozambique that gets antiretroviral drugs to the poorest of the poor, or the Nyumbani orphanage in Kenya that provides a loving home for 94 HIV-positive children.Â [The Word From Rome]

HEY, YOUR LOVE WAS INFECTIOUS: SF HEALTH OFFICIALS DREAM UP NEW WAY FOR GAY MEN TO NOTIFY PARTNERS OF STDSÂE-CARDS.

ÂÂHow awkward are those phone calls, 'Hey remember me?' I hope this service will be less threateningÂ STDs are an unfortunate consequence of sexual behavior the same way other infections may be a result of hiking, kayaking or contact sportsÂ We wanted to lighten up the issue a bit. It doesn't have to be all serious, fear-based and shameful.ÂÂ [SF Gate]

YOU'RE NOT SINGING: DAMN THOSE CHEATING, LIP-SYNCHING, OVER-PRODUCED POP SINGERS

ÂPop is about looks, ideas and attitude. As for musical ability and vocal skill, wellÂ As a rule of thumb: if someone is spinning on their head, executing back-flips or adopting complex yoga positions while singing their heart out, you might as well stay at home and listen to the records.Â [Telegraph]

WITH THE BEATIFICATION OF KARL I OF AUSTRIA, IS THE VATICAN SUGGESTING A ROLE MODEL FOR POLITICIANS TODAY?

ÂUpholding the belief that governments should be bound by higher moral law, a profoundly Catholic (and anti-neoconservative) idea at least since St. AugustineÂs City of God, he refused to go along with the new rules of war that applied to the treatment of prisoners and to the care of civilians. He banned, for example, the Sherman-esque practice of bombing cities.Â [Lew Rockwell]

WIRED MAGAZINE IS UP IN ARMS ABOUT ÂTHE CRUSADE AGAINST EVOLUTIONÂ

ÂIntelligent design advocates say that teaching students to Âcritically analyzeÂ evolution will help give them the skills to Âsee both sidesÂ of all scientific issues. And if the Discovery Institute execs have their way, those skills will be used to reconsider the philosophy of modern science itself: ÂOur culture has been deeply influenced by materialist thoughtÂ We think it's deeply destructive, and we think it's false. And we mean to overturn it.Â" [Wired]

THE ÂMALE PILL?Â: SLATE.COM LOOKS TO MALE CONTRACEPTION TO SOLVE FEMALE BIRTH CONTROL WOES

ÂShould I stay with condoms, even though they're uncomfortable and fail 10 percent of the time? Should I risk the side effects and go on the pill? Should I resort to something as clumsy and dated as a diaphragm? But even with so many issues still on the table, one seems to have been long ago put to bed: Birth control is unquestionably a woman's responsibility.Â [Slate.com]

DISEASE AND DEMOGRAPHY: IS RUSSIA DYING?

ÂRussian women already bear scarcely more than half the number of children needed to maintain the current population, and the situation will soon get worse. Between 2010 and 2025, the number of women between twenty and twenty-nineÂthe primary childbearing yearsÂwill plummet from eleven and a half million to six million. Unless there is sudden new immigration on a gigantic scale, fertility will fall even from todayÂs anemic level.Â [New Yorker]

ANDY CROUCH ON SALT AND PEPPER POLITICS: CHOOSING BETWEEN CANDIDATES WHOSE CONSCIENCES ARE TOO CLEAN.
ÂSuch is the state of our presidential politics: an evangelical President flummoxed at any suggestion of his own fallibility, and a Catholic candidate who sidesteps his church's teaching authority. And in both our political parties, concern for justice often serves as cover for self-justification; righteousness curdles all too quickly into self-righteousness.Â [Christianity Today]

PAT ROBERTSON: IF BUSH 'TOUCHES' JERUSALEM, WE'LL FORM 3RD PARTY

ÂÂThe President has backed away from [the road map], but if he were to touch Jerusalem, he'd lose all Evangelical support, Evangelicals would form a third partyÂ God says, I'm going to judge those who carve up the West Bank and Gaza Strip,Â It's my land and keep your hands off it.ÂÂ [Haaretz]

ASSISTED SUICIDE: ÂTORN FROM THE CURRENT HEADLINES, IT'S A TRENDY ISSUE. BUT MORALLY HOLLOW.Â

ÂDeath is never a mercy. To characterize death as merciful is to invest it with nearly altruistic qualities, with tenderness, which is a kind of anthropomorphizing, as if death has a personality and we can alter its features, render it more kindly, make of it even a friend.Â [The Star]

FROM MADRID TO ROME: THE SECULARIST OFFENSIVE AND THE CHURCH'S FEARS

Declared agnostic, Angelo Vescovi, commenting on a proposed Italian referendum on artificial fertilization: ÂÂCloning human beings and then destroying them is madness. Life begins at the moment of the formation of the zygote, or even with fertilization. From that moment on, there is a human being. And for me, a scientist after the manner of the Enlightenment, reason says two things: that embryos are human beings, and that creating them to destroy them is a defeat.Â" [Chiesa]

====================================================================
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2004-10-14T10:32:00.000-07:00

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14 October 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals that superbugs can be turned into ordinary bugs, that the US presidential election will be a huge experiment in voting technology and that lightning is natureÂs own genetic engineer...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Michael Le Page, Deputy News Editor		Superbug made ordinary
		It may be possible to strip away the armour that makes the MRSA superbug impervious to attacks. A UK company claims to have discovered a compound that renders MRSA vulnerable to methicillin, the antibiotic it normally resists. Lab tests suggest that the compound, already approved for human use for other purposes, restores the killing power of methicillin by altering the composition of the bug's cell wall. The compound could be given to infected patients along with methicillin, reducing the need for "last resort" antibiotics... MORE

TOP STORIES

Analysis: The great American e-voting experiment
E-voting is supposed to be more accurate, but what if votes can just as easily go missing or be miscounted?

Bacteria are genetically modified by lightning
A study using artificial lightning finds that bacteria can pick up stray DNA when zapped, perhaps giving an insight into early bacterial evolution

Dinosaurs were struck down in their prime
They were wiped out in the midst of breathtaking diversity and success, suggests a new analysis of fossils

Flu vaccine crisis need not cost lives
Despite the vaccine shortfall in the US, there could in fact be fewer deaths than normal this winter if people follow official advice

New trees cancel out air pollution cuts
Dramatic cuts in industrial pollution have been more than offset by the volatile organic compounds churned out by trees

Instant messenger could control hacked computers
The software robot allows a hacker to find vulnerable machines and mount attacks, but it could be used to protect networks too

Man's face rebuilt with single skin graft
For the first time, surgeons have reconstructed a burn victim's entire face from a single sheet of skin grown on his back

Survival of genetic homosexual traits explained
Genetic factors that contribute to male homosexuality may produce "hyper-heterosexuality" in women, creating more babies

Nuclear equipment vanishes in Iraq
Entire buildings housing equipment which could be used to make nuclear arms have disappeared, warns the UN's nuclear watchdog

New radioactivity limit could sink shellfish
Large amounts of British shellfish - eaten across Europe - could be banned, warns the UK's food agency

Genesis scientists analysing simulated samples
Tests on how to analyse the solar wind ions saved from the crashed Genesis capsule begin this week

Scrubbing up for robotic surgery in space
Astronauts wait in an undersea lab to help conduct the world's first wireless robot-assisted surgery - the technique may be used in space

AND FINALLY...
Have you ever wondered what happens to birds when thereÂs a thunderstorm? Do they ever get struck by lightning? Find out more in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

OUR MOLTEN UNIVERSE
Recreating the awesome conditions at the birth of the cosmos has revealed something very, very strange

FREE FROM DESIRE
If you absolutely, positively have no desire for sex, youÂre not alone

BEAN THERE, DUNG THAT
The distasteful secret of the worldÂs most sought-after coffee is revealed

TECHNOLOGY SPECIAL: PHOTOGRAPHY
Film is dying and the digital photography revolution has begun

NEWS

Signs of dark matter in galactic core
A bioweapon like no other
When past and present merge

SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION OFFER

2004-10-07T09:03:00.000-07:00

If you would prefer to receive a text-only version of the newsletter, please visit
http://www.prq0.com/quickstart/survey.asp?e=XbcajfijDE-RaA&oid=UcjjbCB

7 October 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals the infrared vein-camera that allows medics to find a vein first time when giving injections or taking blood, that black holes haunt the ghost particle theory and that organic farming is good for wildlife...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Damian Carrington, Online Editor		Veins made visible
		A new device which projects a ghoulish green video image of a patientÂs veins onto their skin may spare the discomfort of botched attempts to pierce a vein for injections or blood tests. A prototype of the vein contrast enhancer uses a near-infrared camera to capture a real-time video image of the patientÂs veins which is beamed back onto the skin to reveal the exact location of the target veins... MORE

TOP STORIES

Black holes haunt ghost particle theory
Ghost condensate theory says that space is filled with a fluid of massless particles, but new calculations suggest that black holes would be sucking it all up

Organic farming boosts biodiversity
Every level of the food chain - from bacteria to mammals - sees an increase in biodiversity when farmed organically, a major review finds

Artificial throat speeds taste tests
The latest weapon in food-taste chemistry - the artificial throat - swallows, breathes, salivates and will drink almost anything

Kyoto protocol is just the beginning
With RussiaÂs backing, the Kyoto protocol might finally come into force, but it is what comes next that counts

T. rex descended from feathered ancestor
The ancestors of Tyrannosaurus rex were covered in protofeathers, reveals the most complete fossil found yet

Science of cell protein destruction wins Nobel
Revealing the workings of the "kiss of death" protein has earned three scientists the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for 2004

Childbirth simulator provides hands-on training
The mechanical system can simulate contractions and even complications to help doctors learn how to deliver a baby

Clean green cars move one step closer
A new generation of cheap and efficient hydrogen fuel cells may bring the dream of environmentally-friendly cars closer to reality

Frog glue repairs damaged cartilage
Defensive glue secreted by the reclusive frogs is strong enough to repair sheep cartilage - it may work on humans too, researchers say

Lice may reveal early human interaction
Modern humans may have fought or mated with Homo erectus, research into the evolution of human lice suggests

Robotic capsule to crawl through intestines
The many-legged device is designed to allow doctors to remotely view - and one day treat - internal ailments

AND FINALLY...
Is there any need to worry when the aeroplane you are flying in starts shaking violently in the air and you feel as though you are on a rollercoaster? Find out what causes turbulence, and how dangerous it really is this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

US ELECTION SPECIAL: ARE YOU LISTENING AMERICA?
Global issues a president cannot ignore

THE BEAST WITH NO NAME
It lives in the jungle of Congo. Reports describe it as a cross between chimp and gorilla. Could this really be a new species of ape?

DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES?
Maverick researchers claim to be saving peopleÂs lives with a stem cell therapy that medical text books say cannot exist. New Scientist investigates

SPLATBUSTER
Liquids have an uncanny ability to make a complete mess whenever they spill. But there is a way to vanquish the splatter factor...

NEWS

Superbugs are hitting the healthy
Global warming will intensify hurricanes
Sulphate could be storing water on Mars
An oil-free economy within 50 years

SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION OFFER

2004-10-05T11:16:00.000-07:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF OCTOBER 4, 2004

FEATURE:

THE SACRAMENT OF MEMORY
by Fr. Peter Cameron, O.P.

Therese Martin: "For eighteen months I have been tortured with the conviction that I am damned." Fr. Alexis: "Dear, good SisterÂif you want GodÂs justice, you will have GodÂs justiceÂ and nothing more."

The True Story of Saint Therese of Lisiuex: A Scene from the Play

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacIF6abayGRbn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

ET TU, BUDDHA? BEAUTIFUL BLASPHEMIES, HEARTFELT HERESIES
by Read Mercer Schuchardt

ÂKilling the Buddha: a HereticÂs BibleÂ is a weeping beauty of a book, edited by Âtwo religiously flippant intellectualsÂ who think theyÂre swimming against the tide. But what the authors have mistaken for heresy is, in fact, electronic cultureÂs orthodoxy.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacIF6abayGSbn0PumbaeQAX1/

LINDSAY YOUNCE: A GODSPY INTERVIEW
by Tony Rossi

When Lindsay Younce was a Quaker, she believed Catholics werenÂt Christians. But she eventually found her way to the Church, and to the lead role in the new movie, ThÃ©rÃ¨se. HereÂs her story.

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacIF6abayGTbn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

The Gospel for Sunday, October 10, 2004
Twenty-eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke: 17:11-19

http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacIF6abayGUbn0PumbaeQAX1/

TEN WERE CLEANSED, WERE THEY NOT? WHERE ARE THE OTHER NINE?
by Pope John Paul II

Jesus comes to offer us a salvation which, although primarily a liberation from sin, also involves the totality of our being with its deepest needs and aspirations. Christ frees us from this burden and threat and opens the way to the complete fulfilment of our destiny.

October 4: Memorial of St. Francis of Assisi
October 7: Memorial of Our Lady of the Rosary

NEWSWATCH

Go to http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacIF6abayGVbn0PumbaeQAX1/ to view these items

ALFRED KINSEY, THE MOVIE: WAS HE A LIBERATOR OR PERVERT?

ÂThough some hail him for liberating the nation from sexual puritanism, others revile him as a fraud whose Âjunk scienceÂ legitimized degeneracyÂ. One independent scholar has even accused him of sexual crimesÂ ÂI think if you're unsympathetic to Kinsey, there's plenty, lots in the movie that would support that point of view,ÂÂ said the filmÂs director. [NY Times]

BOTOX BABIES: MANHATTAN KIDS HAVE THE MONEY FOR A DIFFERENT KIND OF AFTER-SCHOOL PROJECTÂTHEMSELVES

"At Karma Kids Yoga, on West 14th Street, owner Jeannene Levinson said that pre-teens are already growing self-conscious about their bodies, too. ÂYou have 10-year-olds asking, How do I make my abs tight? How can I keep this from jiggling?' Ms. Levinson said. ÂAnd itÂs like, Are you kidding? You weigh 70 pounds!'" [NY Observer]

THE RISE OF THE VALUES VOTER: BAD FOR DEMOCRATS, GOOD FOR REPUBLICANS

ÂAfter trailing roughly 3-2 in the early 1990s, pro-lifers pulled even with pro-choicers in the late 1990s and may enjoy a small but growing advantage among all voters todayÂ What is undeniable is that Democratic candidates at all levels of politics have become markedly less inclined to talk about abortion rights.Â [Weekly Standard]

VATICAN CALLS FOR NATO SUPPORT OF DEMOCRACY IN IRAQ

"ÂIt is no coincidence that those who authoritatively opposed both sanctions and the war now ask that the Iraqi people not be left defenselessÂ The child has been born. It may be illegitimate, but it's here, and it must be reared and educated.Â" [Chiesa]

GIRLS JUST WANNA BE SWAPPED: WHY POST-FEMINIST WOMEN ENJOY ÂTRADING SPOUSESÂ AND ÂWIFE SWAP.Â

The "two TV shows cater to a woman's need to both escape her home and family and make them over, [a] curious outgrowth of the post-feminist dilemma. Having learned the hard way that women just can't have perfect homes, kids, and jobs, we're offered a chance to escape our own impossible choices, and an opportunity to completely remodel someone else's. None of us, it turns out, can decide if we want to be Laura Bush or Teresa Heinz Kerry, but Wife Swap lets us at least try out both." [Slate.com]

HIP: THE HISTORY. SUPERFICIAL REFLECTIONS ON AMERICA

"The word ÂhipÂ is commonly used in approval, but this glosses its many limitations. Though it likes a revolutionary pose, hip is ill equipped to organize for a causeÂ Hip is not genius, though it is often mistaken for such by people who ought to know better... ÂJazz June. We / Die soon.Â Hip rationalizes poor life choices; it squanders money, love, talent, lives. This is not a book about devoted fathers, good husbands or community pillars. Hip is a convenient excuse for f---ups." [Newsweek]

IT'S TIME TO GROW UP Â LATER. ÂQUARTERLIFE CRISISÂ

"Twenty-somethings have seen their parents' early marriages end in divorce and the jobs their parents thought they'd have for 30 years end with corporate downsizing. As boomers resist aging and watch TV programs like Nip/Tuck that glorify youth, their offspring are paying attention." [USA Today]

ETHICS AND LIFEÂS ENDING: AN EXCHANGE

"ÂChoosing lifeÂ does not mean doing whatever is needed to stay alive as long as possible. But choosing life clearly means never aiming at anotherÂs deathÂeven if only by withholding treatment... One person may choose a life that is longer but carries with it considerable burden of treatment. Another may choose a life that is shorter but carries with it less burden of treatment. Each, however, chooses life. Neither aims at death." [First Things]

JEFF SHARLET SLAMS FRANK RICHÂS ÂBIGOTEDÂ AND ÂILL-INFORMEDÂ REVIEW OF A NEW BUSH DOCUMENTARY
"ÂFaith in the White HouseÂ does indeed sound like it's determined to make the case for Bush as God's tool at any cost, but Rich is equally determined to lump all ChristiansÂand all foolsÂ into one congregationÂ RichÂs confusuion is the kind of stupid mistake that makes Christian conservatives believe in the myth of the liberal media." [The Revealer]

VATICAN MAKES FIRST U.N. SPEECH: SECRETARY CONDEMNS CLONING, IRAQ WAR, AND SOLO RESPONSE TO TERRORISM

"Archbishop Giovanni Lajolo, secretary of the Holy SeeÂs relations with statesÂ referred to Pope John Paul IIÂs fervent opposition to the war in Iraq. ÂEveryone can see that it [military action] did not lead to a safer world, either inside or outside Iraq.Â He stressed, however, that it was imperative to support IraqÂs new government in bringing normalcy and democracy to the country." [MSNBC]

IT'S NOT ABOUT STEM CELLS: WHY WE MUST CLARIFY THE DEBATE OVER HARVESTING EMBRYOS.
"...the ÂsoonestÂ even the most optimistic researchers say cures can be developed is in five to ten years. Second, Bush didn't institute a "stem-cell ban." In an ethically unsatisfying move, he actually allowed federal funding for limited embryonic stem-cell research. Third, the implication that Bush's ban and Christians' opposition has to do with stem cells is a fallacy committed so frequently that it seems intentional. It's not about stem cells. It's about embryonic stem cells." [Christianity Today]

HUGH HEFNER EXPLAINS HIMSELF
"ÂReligion was a very important part of my upbringing. I saw in it a quality in terms of ideals, and a morality that I embraced. I also saw parts of it, related to human sexuality and related to other things, that I thought were hypocritical and hurtful. And I think they are the origins of who I am. I think the heart of who I am is a result of thatÂtrying to make some sense of all of that.Â" [Sun-Times]

RON ROSENBAUM ON ELISABETH KÃBLER-ROSSÂ ÂLOVE AFFAIR WITH DEATHÂ
"I'm sure KÃ¼bler-Ross was well intentioned and serious-minded [but] her growing belief that Âdeath does not existÂ had made her fall prey to a host of spirit mediums and charlatans who claimed they could make contact with the beautiful beings on the Other sideÂ I think it can be seen as part of the Me-Decade ideology that denial is always bad. We must constantly be staring death in the face and rubbing everybody's nose in it, or we're really not living life. (Although if we spend all our time staring death in the face we have little time left to live life.)" [Slate.com]

IÂM A PRO-LIFE DEMOCRAT: AN INTERVIEW WITH DEMOCRATS FOR LIFEÂS KRISTEN DAY
"We are losing the Democratic majorityÂ I think a lot of it has to do with the money issue and how much the control of the DNC is now run by Planned Parenthood and NARALÂ I think we need to band together, unite our voices and become much more active in local party politics. And if someone tries to kick you out of the Democratic Party, bring two or three friends back with you and become more active on the local level. It has to come from the bottom up." [Oldspeak]

ADAM SMITH NEVER SAID ÂGREED IS GOODÂ AND OTHER MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT CAPITALISM AND THE MORAL LIFE

"People following Jesus would not pursue the illusory immortality of Work to the extent we do today, and would instead make the good, plain pottery that an economy of moderation would demand and spend a lot more time with their kids. ButÂ the plain pottery would still be produced most efficiently in a market-oriented, free-trade, private-property, enterprising and energetic economy, as, in fact, it was in the Lower Galilee of Jesus' time." [Opinion Journal]

UNMASKING A SURREAL EGOTIST: THE CENTENARY OF SALVADOR DALÃ
"In painting, his break with Surrealism led him, in his words, to Âbecome classic.Â Surrealism remained present in some work, but from the late 1940's, he displayed new interest in the disintegration of matter and, more surprisingly, religionÂ" [NY Times]

JONATHON KEATS IS ENGINEERING GOD IN A PETRI DISH

"To begin, he gathered petri dishes and bell jars, light and decibel meters, a healthy supply of cyanobacteria and about 160 caged fruit fliesÂ ÂThen I put it in controlled lab conditions that would be amenable to God,Â he saidÂ Keats found the Christian Kyrie prayer brought about increased and statistically significant reproductionÂ ÂIt's hard to tell from this whether Mr. Keats is just having some fun or is seriously deranged,Â said Michael Behe, Lehigh University biology professor and renowned anti-Darwinist author." [Wired]

WILL IN THE WORLD: A NEW SHAKESPEARE BIOGRAPHY LINKS HIS LIFE, MORALITY, BELIEFS AND CATHOLIC INFLUENCES

"Mr. [Stephen] Greenblatt goes so far as to imagine an encounter between the young Shakespeare and [St. Edmund] Campion to place their respective views into a clear juxtapositionÂ ÂThe mix of political and religious angst and the peculiar situation of Catholics, prohibited, oppressed, outlawed, is only beginning to be understood and reevaluatedÂ I think Shakespeare certainly registered these anxieties and conflicts in his works.Â" [Chronicles]

IN THE BIBLE BELT, A GAY TEEN FINDS ACCEPTANCE IS HARD WON

"Something is different about Michael. His blond hair is now styled in glossy little spikes that look like shocks of frozen wheat. He bought a pair of delicate tinted sunglasses more common on J. Lo than residents of Sand Springs. He tells his mother that he needs some new outfits. She corrects him. ÂI wear outfits,Â she says. ÂYou wear clothes.Â ÂHis cell phone vibrates. It's Victor, an 18-year-old he met at a teen clubÂ ÂWe're completely different,Â Michael says, ÂI'm a white-trash redneck and he's from L.A.ÂÂÂ [MSNBC]

RAGE FINDS AN OUTLET IN SUDAN'S REBEL CAMPS
"This region of north-western Darfur is controlled by the Sudan Liberation Army, the rebel movement which prompted the Sudanese government to unleash the Janjaweed militiaÂ Khalid, who wore a camouflage vest and a long knife at his waist, said: "After they killed my father and mother, and my two brothers, I heard that there were people who were fighting against the government. I kept asking for them until I arrived at a [rebel] camp. Now I'm fighting the Janjaweed.Â" [Guardian]

====================================================================
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30 September 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals the smart cars that can read signs, the simple measures that could save swordfish and the new test that could expose sports cheats...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Paul Marks, Technology News Editor, Print Edition		Reading the signs
		Drivers may soon have to come up with a better excuse than "Sorry officer, I didnÂt know I was speeding" thanks to a new electronic device that can recognise passing road signs, such as speed limits, and warn drivers not to ignore them. The Australian invention is aimed at making drivers more aware of road signs, especially those concerned with safety. Eventually, GPS-based systems could entirely replace road signs, the researchers say... MORE

TOP STORIES

Simple changes could save swordfish
Modifications to fishing practices will help Mediterranean populations recover from intensive fishing, says an environmental group

Blood doping test cannot be cheated
A test for a previously untraceable method of blood doping - which has nailed a US cyclist - does not make mistakes, say scientists

Microchip imperfections could cut cloning
The counterfeiting of electronics could be stopped by using the unique patterns of metal tracks on every silicon chip

The perils of facial perfection
Movie star faces made on the operating table depend crucially on Mr or Ms Average. But becoming Brad Pitt or J-Lo may actually be bad for you

Rough ride won't stop next X Prize shot
The rolling experienced by SpaceShipOne on Wednesday will not spoil plans for the second clinching flight, team members say

Earth's 'hum' springs from stormy seas
A mysterious humming sound made by the Earth may be caused by choppy ocean waters in winter, reveals a new study

Predicted earthquake arrives - 16 years late
The magnitude 6 earthquake that rocked central California on Tuesday will be the most precisely measured earthquake ever

Buckyballs made safer for humans
The soccer-ball-shaped carbon molecules, which hold promise for nanotechnology - but cause brain damage in fish - could be neutralised

DNA testing to pinpoint origin of illegal ivory
A new genetic technique to uncover where smuggled ivory is coming from could help thwart the poachers, researchers say

Controversial AIDS vaccines are 'plausible'
A leading scientific journal publishes a report on a Nigerian doctor's claims, but experts express serious safety concerns

Optical technique promises terabyte disks
Future disks could hold more than 100 hours of high quality video, using the polarity of light to store information

AND FINALLY...
How can oceanographers calculate the average depth of the ocean to the nearest centimetre? Surely even on a windless day the ocean surface rises and falls by much more than that. Find out how in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT: SECRETS OF THE FACE

We now know how to turn average faces into beautiful ones. We can create morphs, and totally digital faces that belong to electronic beings or resurrected dead actors. Six articles in this special section investigate how this new-found ability to imitate life and improve on it - is changing our world. You may never take anything at face value ever again

WHICH WAY IS UP?
Before we can harness the power of the quantum world thereÂs just one small problem to overcome...

REBUILDING ROME
An ancient archaeological jigsaw is revealing a remarkable new picture of the imperial city

NEWS

Can stem cells save eyesight?
How antifreeze proteins work
How Windows XP blocks PC add-ons

SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION OFFER

2004-09-27T10:20:00.000-07:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 27, 2004

FEATURE:

GAUDI, THE BLESSED
by Austen Ivereigh

The Barcelona architect Antoni GaudÃ is set to be the first professional artist to be declared a saint. But is it his work, or his life, which should be recognised as holy?
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacGYPabakqZbn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

DARK YOUNG THOUGHTS
by John Zmirak

For all his cultural libertinism, director Stephen Fry imbues his new film, 'Bright Young Things'Â an adaptation of Evelyn WaughÂs 'Vile Bodies'Â with more of a Christian spirit than WaughÂs pre-Catholic novel ever had.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacGYPabakq0bn0PumbaeQAX1/

ON WAR AND ABORTION: A FRENCH EMIGRANT'S VIEW
by Michele Szek

From where I stand, I see a line being drawn in the sand, with the war in Iraq on one side and abortion on the other. Each side offers a cohesive worldview, but with one large, blind spot.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacGYPabakq1bn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

The Gospel for Sunday, October 3, 2004
Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke: 17:5-10

IF YOU HAD FAITH THE SIZE OF A MUSTARD SEEDÂ
By Pope John Paul II

The kingdom is God's effective but mysterious action in the universe and in the tangle of human events. He overcomes the resistance of evil with patience, not with arrogance and outcry.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacGYPabakq2bn0PumbaeQAX1/

PAST WEEK'S NEWSWATCH:

Go to http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacGYPabaksmbn0PumbaeQAX1/ to view these items.

IN IPOD AMERICA, EVERY CITIZEN Â BOLSTERED BY HIS SELF-CREATED ECHO CHAMBER ÂIS A LANDSLIDE VICTOR IN HIS OWN HEAD

ÂThe problem is, American politics are un-American. At least, they no longer fit the a la carte ethos of iPod America. You and I can't each have our own President. We can't have our own Supreme Court or our own assault-weapons law. If you don't like the USA Patriot Act, you can't delete it from your digital playlist.Â [Time]

POLITICS AS USUAL? HASTA LA VISTA BABY: ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER AND THE NEW AMERICAN IDOL

ÂThe radical center has flexed its muscle in California, short-circuiting the parties and going direct to the people. Now it could sweep the nationÂ voters will see Schwarzenegger's success and say, I want a leader like him. I want a pragmatist, an optimist, a problem solver, a politician free of obligationsÂ Republican moderates like Arizona senator John McCain, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani, and secretary of state Colin Powell. ÂThese guys are easily the most popular politicians in the country today.ÂÂ [Wired]

JOHN ALLENÂS ÂALL THE POPEÂS MEN: THE INSIDE STORY OF HOW THE VATICAN REALLY THINKSÂ
ÂHe is fired by the idea of helping conservative and progressive Catholics to understand each other, or, in the case of All the Pope's Men, 'to bring the American Church into a more fruitful conversation with the centre of the universal Church in Rome'. This starts, he believes, from Americans beginning to understand the Vatican's psychology and values.Â [Tablet]

GLENN REYNOLDS ON WHY THE PROPOSED LAW RESTRICTING FEDERAL COURTS MIGHT HAVE THE PERVERSE EFFECT OF JEOPARDIZING THE PHRASE "UNDER GOD" RATHER THAN PRESERVING IT

ÂIf people are worried that federal courts may hold that "under God" is unconstitutional, they should be equally worried about some state supreme courts doing the sameÂ If a state supreme court does hold the "under God" unconstitutional under the U.S. Constitution... an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court won't be possible, because this proposed law would have stripped the Court of jurisdiction to hear the case.Â [MSNBC]

HEIL TO THE CHIEF: IS PHILIP ROTHÂS ÂTHE PLOT AGAINST AMERICAÂ ANTI-CATHOLIC?

In RothÂs alternative "nightmare" history, Charles Lindbergh wins the presidency in 1940 and "working-class Catholics erupt in anti-Semitic riots... It is here that RothÂs loathing of Catholicism, with its ÂwitchyÂ nuns and Âcreepily morticianlike priests,Â reaches a fever-swamp pitchÂ" [American Conservative]

THE HUMAN HITLER: DOES THE NEW GERMAN FILM DEPICTING HIM AS A COMPLEX CHARACTER DIMINISH THE EVIL HE DID?

Hitler biographer Ian Kershaw: ÂOf all the screen depictions of the FÃ¼hrer, even by famous actors such as Alec Guinness or Anthony Hopkins, this is the only one which to me is compelling. Part of this is the voice. [Bruno] Ganz has Hitler's voice to near perfection. It is chillingly authenticÂ but an inner core is still unfathomable. Hitler will always remain in some senses an enigma.Â [Guardian]

HELL: ON THE IRAQ INFERNO

ÂIt's as if the United States had gone to war against the tribal system itself. There are so many new fighter cells that they are at a loss to distinguish themselves, and so use kidnapping and videotapes as branding strategies. In this market, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi's Tawhid wa al Jihad, with its monstrous beheading trademark, is the undisputed brand king. Some of the groups are crazier than others. It is a free market of demons.Â [Salon.com]

THE WOMB AS PHOTO STUDIOÂ3-D ULTRASOUND TECHNOLOGY

ÂÂHe's yawning, he sticks his tongue out, he smiles,Â she said. ÂIt gives you a realization of what's going on when your stomach is moving around and bouncing around.ÂÂ [NY Times]

CATHOLICS, POLITICS & ABORTION: KEN WOODWARD CONFRONTS MARIO CUOMO

ÂÂI asked him [Cuomo] why he did not deploy the same passion on behalf of abortion that he used in fighting the consensusÂeven in New York StateÂsupporting capital punishmentÂ Neither logic nor consistency has been the hallmark of our foremost Âphilosopher-politician.ÂÂ [Commonweal]

SINNER TAKE ALL: ÂTHE LIFE OF GRAHAM GREENE,Â IN THREE VOLUMES

ÂThough arguably Greene's greatest Catholic novel, ÂThe Power and the GloryÂ is also a deeply political work that, like ÂDarkness at NoonÂ and Â1984,Â offers a searing vision of secular utopianism run amokÂ It gives us one of his great fallen menÂperhaps the iconic Greene characterÂthe whiskey priest, the last cleric in a region where war has been declared against GodÂ As an evocation of the ideological fanaticism of the mid-twentieth century, Orwell or Koestler could not have bettered this.Â [Bookforum]

LEADERS OF THE WORLDWIDE ANGLICAN COMMUNION SAY THE COMMISSION STUDYING HOW TO AVOID SCHISM OVER ISSUES OF HOMOSEXUALITY WILL PUBLISH ITS REPORT ON OCTOBER 18.

ÂRev. Douglas: ÂPeople are looking to the Lambeth report to give some kind of direction, some kind of indications as to how we will move forward as the Anglican Communion today. But I am afraid that even the wisdom of Solomon in such a report might not get us out of this mess that we seem to be in right now.ÂÂ [R&E Newsweekly]

INSIDE THE DARK CORNERS OF THE NET: WHO WATCHES THE HORRIBLE FOOTAGE OF HOSTAGE BEHEADINGS THAT CIRCULATES ON THE WEB? AND WHY?

ÂNo matter how drenched we are with stylized Hollywood violence, the real thing remains traumatic. Nothing prepares you for it. Watching feels disrespectful to the deceased and their mourning families.Â [Newsweek]

THE LAST DAYS OF LANCE LOUD: LOVE TOOK AN UNUSUAL EXPRESSION FOR THIS MAN DYING OF AIDS

ÂEverything about Lance was loud. Lance had been a writer, stripper, roadie, model, artist, rock star, band manager, television personality, and icon of gay cultureÂ His unspoken condition was that he be my friend, not my project. I don't believe anyone wants to be a project. I wasn't Lance's friend because of his homosexuality or in spite of it. And this unexpected friendship brought healing to my own fear and prejudice toward gays.Â [Christianity Today]

FRUITFUL, CONSUMING PARANOIA: A JOURNEY INTO THE MIND OF SCI-FI MASTER PHILIP K. DICK

ÂBy the time Dick, in the last decade of his life, came to the conclusion that reality as we know it is an illusion used by the Roman Empire to numb the minds of Christians, the animating idea of his unfinished Exegesis, the reader feels as simultaneously trapped and enlightened as Dick must have at the moment of his epiphany.Â [NY Observer]

CHRISTIAN CHICK LIT: THE NEW BODICE-RIPPERS HAVE MORE GOD AND LESS SEX

ÂÂChristian and secular romance houses are rolling out what they call "Christian chick lit" lines. These novels typically feature Bridget Jones types looking for the right man, the right chocolate, the right friendsÂand the right relationship with God. ÂChick lit can be all about me, me, meÂ The Prada bag, the Lexus, that has to be more balanced with a less materialistic Christ-conscious life.Â" [NY Times]

TRUE BELIEVERS: SEYMOUR HERSH'S ALTERNATIVE HISTORY OF THE IRAQ WAR

ÂWouldn't it be great if the reality was that they were lying about WMD, and they really didn't believe that democracy would come when they invaded IraqÂ Saddam would be driven out, a new Baath Party would emerge that's moderate? Democracy would flow like water out of a fountain. These guys believe it. These guys are utopians. They're like Trotskyites. They really believeÂÂ [Salon.com]

GRAHAM GREENE: ÂTHE QUIET AMERICANÂ SHOWS HIM TO BE THE GREATEST JOURNALIST THERE EVER WAS

ÂÂI had to find a religion,Â said Graham Greene, Âto measure my evil against.Â ÂBefore he chose Christ as his highest value, he was first a man obsessed with scale itselfÂ If more journalists could report as well as Greene bringing us the explosion in the square, how long could we retain the stomach to fight the wars we do?Â [Guardian]

GOODBYE, DARKNESS: THE NEW SCIENCE OF ÂEXUBERANCE: THE PASSION FOR LIFEÂ

ÂIf I am reading the tea leaves right, our fascination with emotional paralysis may be nearing an endÂ Observing this shift, we may mourn what is lost, in terms of respect for emotional complexity. At the same time, we may acknowledge that the change is overdue. The centuries-long romance with depressionÂwhat was that about?Â [Slate.com]

CHRISTIAN MORALITY MUST BE CONSIDERED MOST POWERFUL FACTOR IN ECONOMIC RELATIONS, SAYS POPE TO BANKERS

ÂÂThe complex world of credit,Â said the Holy Father, Âcalls for reflection by the Church because of the many ethical implications that regard it. It would in fact be decidedly inadequate to limit oneself to pursuing only maximum profit; it is necessary, rather, to always refer to the higher values of human living if one wants to help the true growth and full development of the community.ÂÂ [CNA]

WHEN GENDER ISN'T A GIVEN: ÂINTERSEXÂ

ÂThe term describes cases that arise from a host of conditions that cause sex chromosomes, external genitals and internal reproductive systems not strictly to fit the male or female standardÂ. For decades, parents and pediatricians have sought to offer children whose anatomy does not conform to strictly male or female standards a surgical fix. But... some adults who underwent genital surgeryÂ speak of a high physical and emotional toll.Â [NY Times]

THE UNQUIET AMERICAN: THE MURDER OF FERN HOLLAND AND THE CULTURAL CONTRADICTIONS OF IMPOSING ÂDEMOCRACYÂ IN IRAQ

ÂHassaneinÂ said that when he spoke to Iraqis about the murder, their answer was simple: ÂShe crossed the line. She went deep into the land of male superiority. She was trying to bring with her a very Westernized women's-emancipation program, and she hit the wall.Â Alhilaly recalled: ÂShe asked me how we can change Iraqis. I told her we need years, not months. We know nothing about democracy or human rights or freedom.Â And then he recalled that she said to him: ÂI've failed. I've discovered I've been fighting for nothing.''' [NY Times Magazine]

CHE GO HOME: WE DONÂT NEED A REVOLUTION. WE NEED A CLUE.

ÂThe United States is a miracle. Almost everything in America works. We want to build something, it's done. If there's a need for a new service, it's created literally overnight... America is an awesome thing. That's why the idea of revolution is ridiculousÂ On the other handÂ it does need a government. Because it doesn't have one right now. What we have is an idiotic facade of political choice, masking a completely unrestrained corporate plutocracy that makes all of this country's important decisions virtually on its own.Â [NY Press]

CARDINAL PARADOX: JOHN ALLEN ON THE CONTROVERSIAL JOSEPH RATZINGER

ÂÂWhen Joseph Ratzinger speaks, it is difficult for people not to hear Âthe VaticanÂ Â even when they ought to know betterÂ The idea that there exists a single entity out there called Âthe VaticanÂ, with one mind and one will, and hence only one view of any issue, has always been essentially a myth; that point has never been more clear than it is today.Â [The Tablet]

BORN TOO SOON: AS MEDICINE SAVES EVER YOUNGER PREEMIES, A FAMILY CONFRONTS MORAL CHOICES

ÂIn 1998 a Texas jury awarded $43 million to a couple whose 23-week preemies were resuscitated Â and ultimately survived with severe disabilities Â after they asked that there be no medical intervention at delivery. The verdict was reversed on appeal to the Texas Supreme Court, but acrimonious debate about the case continues in bioethics literature.Â [Boston Globe]

====================================================================
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2004-09-23T05:24:00.000-07:00

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23 September 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals that sniffer dogs could be replaced by rats, that eavesdropping computers can cut call centre talk times and that a vaccine can reduce the greenhouse gas emitted in sheep burps...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Will Knight, Online News Reporter		Rats to the rescue
		Rats could soon be giving rescue dogs some serious competition in the race to find trapped people. The rodents have an exquisitely sensitive sense of smell and can crawl just about anywhere - making them the perfect candidates for sniffing out earthquake survivors buried in wreckage. Researchers have now equipped the animals with radios that transmit their brainwaves, and have taught them to seek out explosives as well as people... MORE

TOP STORIES

Eavesdropping call centre computers cut talk time
The next generation of call centre will utilise eavesdropping artificial intelligence to hunt down the information required while you chat

Burp vaccine cuts greenhouse gas emissions
Sheep and cows produce prodigious amounts of methane - a new vaccine targets the bugs that produce the gas

Jupiter drifted towards sun in its youth
The giant planet drifted tens of millions of kilometres towards the sun in its youth, a new study suggests, perhaps even helping to form the Earth

Crying wolf over predator attacks
Wolves and other predators have long been hunted by farmers hoping to protect their livestock - but new research suggests the slaughter may be unnecessary

Lack of vaccine raises fears of flu pandemic
Worries that bird flu could combine with human flu to create a deadly new strain have heightened in Thailand, where vaccines are in short supply

Seismic surveys may kill giant squid
The mysterious denizens of the deep may, like whales, be damaged by humans surveying the sea bed, new findings suggest

Mars rovers given six more months
NASA's rovers have their missions extended by six months after weathering the Martian winter solstice, announces the space agency

Spinach could power better solar cells
Solar panels which harness photosynthesis could be more efficient than existing solar cells, say researchers

Misbehaving liquid sent into space
A water-filled satellite will aid the design of spacecraft fuel tanks by showing engineers how liquids "slosh" in space

Google omits controversial news stories in China
The web search giant says results are removed to improve user experience but some accuse it of reinforcing censorship

Traffic deaths rise after terror attacks
The number of fatal road crashes jumps by a third a few days after a terrorist attack - stress may be the cause, reveals a new study

AND FINALLY...
ItÂs pink, fluffy, incredibly sweet and probably reminds you of fairground attractions. ItÂs also surprisingly easy to make. Find out how candyfloss is produced in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

SPECIAL ISSUE: RANDOMNESS

GRAND ILLUSION
Is randomness real or merely the invention of our superstitious minds?

WHAT ARE THE CHANCES?
Lottery numbers, footballersÂ birthdays and killer horses are all linked, if you know where to look

THE JUMBLE CRUNCHER
Fancy upgrading to a quantum computer? Just add a spot of randomness

FEATURE

MENDING BROKEN HEARTS
A new treatment of heart disease can pull patients back from the brink of death, but the risks are high

NEWS

What cars say about fast food choice
Wind energy could power the world
Forecasting stock markets

SPECIAL SUBSCRIPTION OFFER

2004-09-17T13:23:00.000-07:00

GODSPY NEWSLETTER | WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 15, 2004

FEATURE:

FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING: BOXING, COURAGE & PHILOSOPHY
by Gordon Marino

The capacity to tolerate fear is essential to leading a moral life, but itÂs hard to learn how to keep your moral compass under pressure when youÂre cosseted from every fear. Boxing gives people practice in being afraid.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacE7Jaa95A0bn0PumbaeQAX1/

OPINION:

ALWAYS OUR NEIGHBORS: WHY THE ÂNEW OXFORD REVIEWÂ GETS THE GOSPEL WRONG
by David Morrison

When I wrote recently that Catholics and other Christians should befriend same-sex couples and treat them with respect, I was harshly criticized by the editors of the New Oxford Review. HereÂs why we disagree.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacE7Jaa95A1bn0PumbaeQAX1/

BLADE RUNNER: WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN
by John W. Whitehead

When it opened in 1982, Ridley ScottÂs movie ÂBlade RunnerÂ was a box office flop. But the worldÂs top scientists recently voted it best science fiction film ever. Maybe now the film will finally gain the audience it deserves.
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacE7Jaa95A2bn0PumbaeQAX1/

THIS WEEK'S GOSPEL MEDITATION:

The Gospel for Sunday, September 19, 2004
Twenty-fifth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Luke: 16:1-13

YOU CANNOT SERVE BOTH GOD AND MAMMON
by Pope John Paul II

ÂIt is necessary to create lifestyles in which the quest for truth, beauty, goodness and communion with others for the sake of common growth are the factors which determine consumer choices, savings and investments.Â
http://godspy.c.topica.com/maacE7Jaa95A3bn0PumbaeQAX1/

NEWSWATCH:

Go to www.godspy.com to view these itemsÂ

CATHOLICS FIERCELY DEBATE COMMENTS MADE BY THE VATICAN'S TOP THEOLOGIAN THAT GIVE SOME LEEWAY TO VOTE FOR POLITICIANS WHO SUPPORT ABORTION RIGHTS

ÂEarlier this month, [Archbishop] Burke clarified his controversial comments after Ratzinger's statements became publicÂ Catholics opposed to abortion rights could support a candidate who supports them if they feel the candidate's positions on other moral issues outweigh the abortion issue, although Burke said he couldn't imagine any issue outweighing abortion.Â [Detroit Free Press]

POPE JOHN PAUL II ON THE BIBLICAL FOUNDATIONS OF MARRIAGE AND SEXUALITYÂÂTHEOLOGY OF THE BODYÂ

ÂEvangelical Protestants have worked hard to promote good sexual ethics, particularly abstinence before marriage, but discussion about the ethics of sex within marriage itself is another matter. If anyone could spark this conversation among evangelicals, it is John Paul IIÂ the pope teaches what he does about marriage and sexuality from a foundation of biblical revelation, not natural lawÂÂ [Christianity Today]

DOES TORTURE WORK? SEYMOUR HERSH EVADES THE QUESTION.

ÂI do not mean to advocate tortureÂ If al-Qaida strikes the United States again, our leadersÂwhoever they areÂwill be tempted to resort to torture as a method of getting vital intelligence quickly, and we or they or someone should have mapped out crucial distinctions ahead of time: What is acceptable, what isn'tÂÂ [Slate.com]

IMAGINING AN IRAN/ISRAEL CONFLAGRATIONÂIS ÂNUCLEAR REVERSALÂ POSSIBLE?

ÂBarring a solid and lasting peace settlement between Israel and its Arab neighbors, the countries of the Middle East are far from nuclear disarmamentÂ. Iran is unlikely to give up its nuclear deterrence as long as Israel remains a nuclear power. Israel is unlikely to cede its nuclear capability as long as it feels threatened by the Arab/Islamic worldÂÂ [American Conservative]

ARI GOLDMAN, FORMER RELIGION REPORTER FOR THE NY TIMES, COMES TO APPRECIATE THE ÂOPPRESSIVENESSÂ OF HIS JEWISH FAITH

ÂThe main reason that I look forward to nine days of 'yom tov' in the coming weeks is the galloping growth of technology in our daily livesÂ Between the five of us in our family, there are six computers, five cell phones, two Palm Pilots and two Ipods. My children, with earphones in place, remind me of Secret Service agents.Â [Jewish World Review]

HATING AMERICA: FAREED ZAKARIA SAYS ANTI-AMERICANISM IS FILLING THE VOID LEFT BY DEFUNCT BELIEF SYSTEMS

ÂOn September 12, 2001, Jean-Marie Colombani, the editor of Le Monde, famously wrote, ÂToday we are all Americans.Â Three years on, it seemsÂ hostility to the United States is deeper and broader than at any point in the last 50 yearsÂ With the exception of Israel and Britain, no country today has a durable pro-American majority.Â [Foreign Policy]

A BUSH BIOGRAPHY FOR THE AGE OF INNUENDO

Kitty KelleyÂs book Âis a perfect artifact of a cultural climate in which gossip and innuendo thrive on the Internet; more and more biographies of artists and public figures dwell, speculatively, on familial dysfunction and disorder; and buzzÂbe it based on verified facts or sheer rumor-mongeringÂis regarded as a be-all and end-allÂ this book may provide yet another distraction from issues here and now.Â [NY Times]

IS THE SURGE IN GIRL CRIME REAL OR NOT?

ÂHave the butt-kicking antics of the likes of Lara Croft and the sexing up of female violence in the media finally spun out into real life? ÂThey get the message from movies ... where women are not only gorgeous but they beat another woman up without thinking twice about it.ÂÂ [CS Monitor]

DOES GOD EXIST? AN INTERVIEW WITH THE PROMOTER OF THE FREUD VS. LEWIS DEBATE, WHICH AIRS THIS WEEK ON PBS

ÂOut of the [world] war, Freud developed his theory of the death instinct. There is something very destructive in our makeup. Freud and Lewis would agree that it's not because God created that in us. He gave us free will and we've used it to do evil. They just gave it different names.Â [Beliefnet]

GEORGE LUCAS DOES DYSTOPIA, TOO: MORE THAN 30 YEARS LATER, THX 1138 IS RE-MASTERED AND RE-RELEASED

ÂFor its various failures, THX 1138 succeeds in many waysÂ At times [it] feels like a visionary film, foreseeing a world in which double talk flows freely from the lips of those in charge, and emotional ebbs and flows are considered unnatural enough to require medication.Â [Wired]

CHINA IS ASKING WHERE ALL THE GIRLS HAVE GONE

ÂThe sobering answer is that this vast nation, now the world's fastest-growing economy, is confronting a self-perpetuated demographic disaster that some experts describe as ÂgendercideÂÂthe phenomenom caused by millions of families resorting to abortion and infanticide to make sure their one child was a boy.Â [MSNBC]

TWO WOMEN, A MAN, AND A BABYÂCOURT HEARS LESBIAN COUPLE'S ATTEMPT TO PREVENT SPERM DONOR FROM GAINING PARENTAL STATUS

ÂThe mothers were shocked and tried unsuccessfully to have the visits cancelled in appeals court, arguing sperm donors traditionally have no rights or obligations under the law. To them, the man has no more claim to their daughter than any other family friend.Â [Montreal Gazette]

VIOLATING 'SOVEREIGNTY': QUESTIONING A CONCEPT'S LONG REIGN

ÂÂIt is worshiped like a god, and as little understood. It is the cause of untold strife and bloodshed. Genocide is perpetrated in its sacred name. It is at once a source of power and of power's abuse, of order and of anarchy. It can be noble and it can be shameful. It is sovereignty.Â" [Chronicle]

JOHN WILSON WANTS TO LET THE NY REVIEW OF BOOKS IN ON A SECRET

ÂÂwe Protestant evangelicals are wise as serpents. Some of us are double agents. We learn to speak the language of culture, to penetrate the networks of the soon-to-be-damned. [You] might bump into us at a concert or a poetry reading, where we sip Starbucks and speak easily of Neruda and pretend that we believe in cause and effect. All the while, of course, we're thinking to ourselves who will be the first to go when the theocratic revolution finally comes.Â [Books & Culture]

RON ROSENBAUM: ITÂS NOT JUST IRAQÂWHY IS KERRY WAFFLING ON VIET NAM?

ÂÂthe abstract justness of the cause did not mean it was a justly (or wisely) waged war. McNamara tells us in ÂThe Fog of WarÂ that two to three times as many bombs were dropped on Vietnam than on all of Western Europe during World War II... ShouldnÂt John KerryÂ have the political courage to say something critical about VietnamÂif not as critical as Mr. Kerry was in 1971, perhaps as critical as McNamara was in 2003, at leastÂrather than merely exploit it for self-promotion?Â [NY Observer]

COSMETIC SURGERY LIVE? MAYBE THE MULLAHS HAVE A POINT AFTER ALL

ÂCosmetic Surgery Live is one of those programmes that make you understand what people mean when they speak of the decadence and corruption of Western cultureÂa culture that sees humanity as so many lumps of meat, put here on earth for no higher purpose than to copulate with members of the same or the opposite sex.Â [Telegraph]

FATHERS STRUGGLE WITH BOUNDARIES: FOR AFFECTION WITH THEIR DAUGHTERS

Â...a lot of people feel comfortable embracing friends, even strangers, which explains New York's latest fad, Âcuddle parties.Â And yet, when it comes to dads and daughters, this new enlightenment is tempered by uncertainty, caution and fear. Confused about how and when to touch the girls in their lives, men are distancing themselves from maturing daughters who still yearn to be held.Â [Career Journal]

CHRISTIAN MORALITY AND TEST TUBE BABIES

Â...human dignity is compromised by the artificiality of the IVF technology. The absolute separation of conjugal union and the sex act from the process of conception creates a new and artificial process of human reproductionÂone that demands technological intervention at virtually every stage, from the collection of the sperm and eggs, to the actual fertilization, to the implantation of the embryo in the uterus.Â [Crosswalk]

WITH BIRTHRATE FALLING, SINGAPORE TARGETS 'LIFESTYLE IMPOTENCY'

ÂThe government is not alone in pushing parenthood. A Singapore doctor, Wei Siang Yu, known as Dr. Love, is producing a reality television show for the Asia-Pacific region in which couples compete to be the first to conceive.Â [Washington Post]

DAVID MILLS ON ÂREORGANIZING RELIGION: WHY THE CHURCH BUREAUCRACIES HAVE TO GO

ÂThe great models of this, of course, are to be found in the New Testament, in JesusÂ relationship with his disciples and St. PaulÂs with Timothy, and in the life of the early Church. The early Christians shared what they had not because they were forced to but because the apostles had showed them how to live sacrificially and created both a general expectation that they would do so and a community that helped them to do it.Â [Touchstone]

WIM WENDERS GETS AWARD FROM VATICAN OFFICIAL

ÂThe German film director received the 2004 Robert Bresson Award this week at the Venice Film FestivalÂ Wenders acknowledged during the ceremony his admiration for Robert Bresson, especially because the latter's films were made with Âpoverty of means and I think that poverty is one of the ÂmeansÂ to live Christianity,Â he said.Â [Zenit]

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2004-09-16T09:42:00.000-07:00

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16 September 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals the computer cursor you can control with your nose, the bacterial "ghosts" that could help cut pesticide use and the double-barrelled syringe that could combat contamination...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Damian Carrington, Online Editor		Follow your nose
		Does your arm ache from using a mouse to control your PC? Soon, you may be able to use your nose instead. The new system lets users shift the cursor on screen by waving their nose in the air. What's more, blinking the left or right eye twice takes the place of mouse clicks. The "nouse" could provide more intuitive ways for people to explore computer-generated environments or play 3D games, as well as making using a PC easier for some people with disabilities... MORE

TOP STORIES

'Ghost bugs' could help cut pesticide use
The empty shells of bacterial cells can be filled with chemicals and will stick to leaves and stems even after heavy rain

China's changing farms damaging soil and water
Rapid urbanisation is destroying China's agriculture and its ability to feed one-fifth of the world's people

Double-barrelled syringe combats contamination
Skin bacteria contaminate about 6 per cent of the 6 million blood cultures performed every year in the US alone

China's GM trees get lost in bureaucracy
China has planted a million genetically modified trees to tackle desertification and flooding - but no one knows for sure where they all are

Starry nights clearest in Antarctica
A desolate, icy dome could be a better location than space for telescopes searching for Earth-like planets, say astronomers

Software bug raises spectre of 'JPEG of death'
Ten years ago the idea of an image infecting a computer became a hoax as it was so absurd - not anymore, say experts

Gene technique to fight human blindness
The first human trial of RNA interference is set to start - the technique may halt a condition which is the leading cause of blindness in the west

9/11 search dogs unscathed by dust
The finding may bode well for human rescue workers who also breathed in dust and smoke, but who may take longer to develop any illness

Jacuzzi users risk Legionnaire's bug
One in four jacuzzis harbours the killer bug responsible for Legionnaire's disease, an alarming new study suggests

File-sharing leaps from internet to cellphones
Music, videos and games could soon be swapped between cellphones using mobile peer-to-peer networks

AND FINALLY...
When Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin decided to launch the company on the stock market, they were asked to estimate the total proceeds of the flotation. The sum they quoted was "$2,718,281,828". Why this exact figure? Find out more in this week's Feedback section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

CIVILISATION - SPECIAL REPORT
Startling new discoveries show that humanity's journey from nomad to urbanite was not as straightforward as it once looked

BORN TO TRADE
Did an obsession with material goods lay the foundations of the modern world?

MANNA OR MILLSTONE
There was more to the start of farming than the need to fill people's bellies

URBAN LEGENDS
After years as the undisputed first city dwellers, the people of Uruk now face competition from out-of-towners

BEYOND THE X PRIZE
What's next for private space travel? We ask Burt Rutan, the media-shy pioneer behind the success of SpaceShipOne

NEWS

Quantum gravity's data limit
Genetic sabotage from within
Black holes tie up quasar mystery

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2004-09-09T07:36:00.000-07:00

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9 September 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week unveils the stinking robot that needs to kill, the transgenic fish that could save gunshot victims and the wave-shaped ships which could wipe out deadly wakes...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Paul Marks, Technology News Editor, Print Edition		Robot eats flies - and leaves
		It eats flies and stinks to high heaven, but if this robot works, it will be an important step towards making robots fully autonomous. To survive without human help - perhaps to rove in dangerous or inhospitable terrain - a robot needs to generate its own energy. Now a robot has been developed that catches flies and digests them in a special reactor cell to generate electricity - but to do so it will most likely have to attract flies by using a stinking lure made from human excrement ... MORE

TOP STORIES

GM fish produce cheap blood-clotting agent
Genetically modified fish are designed to make a cheap blood-clotting factor - it could help treat haemophiliacs and accident victims

Ships shape up to fight killer waves
Bizarre new "wavy" hull designs could dramatically reduce the wash produced by fast ferries, saving lives as well as fuel

Great lice debate comes to a head
For centuries, scientists have argued whether the head louse and the body louse are distinct species - a new genetic analysis may settle it

Neutron stars steal space probe's glory
Nearly 50 years - and $700 million - in the making, NASA's Gravity Probe B may now be usurped by ground-based telescopes

Linnean naming system faces challengers
Rethinking the names of every organism on the planet is a radical step but it might be worth the upheaval, say renegade biologists

Dinosaurs may have been doting parents
A fossilised "creche" of 34 young dinosaurs and an adult - buried alive - suggests that dinosaurs may have been caring parents

Dear diary, you make me sick
Diarists are more likely to suffer from health problems than those not keeping a journal, according to psychologists

Magnets could pull cancer drugs to tumours
Tiny iron particles could be used to deliver targeted drugs specifically to cancer cells using a magnetic field

Proteins slow the progress of Parkinson's disease
The polymer used to coat golf balls is able to instantly 'heal' bullet holes, giving hope of lighter fighter planes for the US navy

Nickel 'nanodots' could mean tiny hard drives
Terabytes of data could be stored on a computer drive the size of a postage stamp using the minuscule magnetic dots

Hair analysis could reveal recent travels
A person's recent whereabouts could now be discerned through the analysis of their hair - immigration officials and the police may benefit

AND FINALLY...
Which would you expect to exert more pressure on the ground, an elephant or a cow? And what about a woman in stilettos - how would she compare to a brontosaurus? Find out in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

FAT-FREE OBESITY
Rare individuals born with no body fat face a cruel paradox: the condition carries all the health risks of being overweight

BATTLE OF THE BAG
Think about how many plastic carriers you stash or trash each week and you soon see why campaigners want us all to kick our bag habit

SILENT ALARM
Strange quakes that produce a barely audible growl are trying to tell us something, and weÂd better listen up

THE ORIGIN OF HARRIET
SheÂs 173 years old and enjoying quiet retirement in Australia. But was this giant tortoise friends with Charles Darwin in her younger days?

NEWS

Faking caller ID
The "no diet" diet
Pocket-sized atomic clocks are coming

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2004-09-02T10:23:00.000-07:00

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2 September 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week uncovers the best candidate yet for first contact by intelligent aliens, the bizarre animal behaviour triggered by pollution and how bending sound the "wrong" way could sharpen ultrasound scans...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Will Knight, Online Reporter		Alien candidate
		Astronomers involved in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) have found an unexplained radio signal. This signal, now seen on three separate occasions, is an enigma. It could be generated by a previously unknown astronomical phenomenon. Or it could be something much more mundane, maybe an artefact of the telescope itself. But it also happens to be the best candidate yet for a contact by intelligent aliens... MORE

TOP STORIES

US plans portable nuclear power plants
Sealed, portable reactors could solve developing countriesÂ power problems, but fears persist over misuse of nuclear material

Pollution triggers bizarre behaviour in animals
Pollution is doing greater, wider-ranging damage to animal behaviour than previously realised, say two major analyses

Bending sound the 'wrong' way sharpens scans
Researchers have achieved the negative refraction of sound - it could lead to dramatic improvements in ultrasound scanners

Robots invade the table football pitch
Take a foosball table, some high-torque motors, an electronic control system and a person with no friends - and let play commence

Holidays in space are on the horizon
For interstellar communication, it seems that using radio is an inefficient alternative to sending a postcard

Intergalactic messages 'in a bottle' are best
For interstellar communication, it seems that using radio is an inefficient alternative to sending a postcard

Two new rocky 'super Earths' found
The discoveries may herald a new class of planet outside our Solar System - making the hunt for Earth-like planets more hopeful

Egyptian mummy 'unwrapped' by modern scanning
An ancient Egyptian mummy, his bandages untouched, is revealed using the latest scanning and modelling techniques

Annual CT scans boost cancer risk
One scan produces radiation equivalent to that received by some Hiroshima survivors - younger patients are most at risk

Cloning from the dead claim attacked
A researcher's claim to have cloned human-cow hybrid embryos from dead people is met with scepticism and revulsion

Single gene removes sex differences in mice brains
Significant structural differences in male and female brains may result from selective cell death orchestrated by just one gene

AND FINALLY...
Is it safe to eat old potatoes that are turning green, asks this week's Last Word? And find out why the potato might be banned by if it were introduced to Europe today... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

THE MYSTERIES OF LIFE
The 10 biggest questions of the living world, and the best answers that we have today

HARVESTING HEAT
Convert the waste heat from your car or computer into free electricity

HALF THE UNIVERSE IS MISSING
How come all the antimatter vanished after the big bang, and we are here instead?

NEWS

The diet that really works
The physics of tenpin bowling
More than one way to live longer

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2004-08-26T04:48:00.000-07:00

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26 August 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals that slumping in front of the TV could switch off your back muscles, that a cannabis-like substance in your brain may keep you sane and that messy homes lead to messy minds...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Damian Carrington, Online Editor		TV switch-off
		Worried about a bad back? Then switch off your TV, before it switches off your back muscles. Slumping in front of the TV or computer could deactivate muscles that support and protect your spine, triggering many otherwise inexplicable cases of lower back pain. A European Space Agency study on young men who spent eight weeks in bed showed that an absence of load on spinal support muscles can sometimes be just as debilitating as a physical injury... MORE

TOP STORIES

Brain may produce its own antipsychotic drug
The cannabis-like compound may dampen delusional experiences, despite the links between cannabis and psychosis

Chaotic homes hamper child development
Growing up in a noisy, disorganised home hinders a childÂs developing mind, according to a new study of twins

First practical plastic magnets created
Researchers create the first plastic magnet that works well at room temperature - computers may be the first to benefit

Asian farmers sucking the continent dry
Farmers are using electric pumps to draw ever more water from deep underground, with potentially disastrous consequences

Crop health checker stems water pollution
Nitrate pollution caused by excess fertiliser is a serious problem, but a system that precisely gauges a cropÂs needs should help

Tiny telescopes discover distant planet
A small array of tiny telescopes has discovered its first extrasolar planet, showing it is not always size that counts

Nervous sheep are pleased to see ewe
Viewing photographs of "attractive" sheep calms stressed animals, suggesting a simple way of reducing separation anxiety

Martian teardrop carved in crater
Dark ripples of volcanic ash form a solitary tear in a crater on Mars, reveal stunning images from Europe's Mars Express craft

Golf ball polymer 'heals' bullet holes
The polymer used to coat golf balls is able to instantly 'heal' bullet holes, giving hope of lighter fighter planes for the US navy

Cigarettes more polluting than diesel exhaust
The particulates puffed out by cigarettes are 10 times greater than modern diesel car emissions, a small study finds

Asteroid shaves past Earth's atmosphere
The closest ever observed asteroid to approach the Earth - skimming just 6500 kilometres above the ground, is reported by astronomers

AND FINALLY...
Ever wondered why it is that so many people now wear glasses or contact lenses compared with just 50 years ago? Find out more in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

MONSTERS OF THE UNIVERSE
Plasmas hotter than the sun, particles at the brink of light speed, hyper-lasers, mega-magnets and a cast of thousands. It could only be the nine biggest machines in physics on a quest to unlock the secrets of the universe

FALLING ON DEAF EARS
Research to cure deafness is proceeding apace, yet many deaf people regard this as an assault on their culture - even akin to genocide

DEATH DEFYING
We all know we will die one day, so how do we manage to act as though itÂs never going to happen? The answer could change your life

NEWS

Random numbers from cosmic rays
MotherÂs diet affects child cancer
Tastier strawberries on the way
Discovering the origins of space dust

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2004-08-19T05:01:00.000-07:00

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19 August 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals a new device to help paramedics assess head injuries faster in accident victims, that noisy ecotourists may actually help endangered bears and that a technique originally developed to analyse DNA sequences is the latest weapon in the war against spam...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Matt Walker, News Editor, Print Edition		Eye for danger
		A hand-held device that measures how an accident victimÂs pupils contract in response to bright light should help ensure they get the correct treatment. Observing the behaviour of the pupil can indicate whether a person may have serious head trauma. At the moment doctors and paramedics must manually examine a pupilÂs responsiveness, an extremely subjective technique often performed by "waving a torch at a victim on a wet dark road". The new "pupilometer" will make their job much easier and should allow them to identify changes that are too subtle to spot now... MORE

TOP STORIES

DNA technique protects against 'evil' emails
The latest weapon to weed out spam emails uses a technique originally designed to analyse DNA sequences

Weird links with words and colours in the mind
A strange condition which gives people weird sensory associations relies on the brain - meaning all humans may be able to experience it

Noisy ecotourists may boost bear numbers
Brown bears in the wild may benefit from tourist visits as mothers and cubs can feed freely without male harassment

Unique moon may partner Sedna
If the mystery planetoid has a moon - it may be the darkest object in the Solar System, suggest UK astronomers

Primate shortage could slow medical advances
A shortage of apes and monkeys coupled with poor reporting means that ground-breaking advances could slow

Smart tiles add reality to virtual worlds
Floor tiles that move beneath a personÂs feet allow them to walk through a simulated environment

Sewage waters a tenth of world's irrigated crops
Human waste can produce bumper crop yields where water is in short supply, reveals the first global survey of the hidden practice

Sexy males make bird mothers better
Being paired to an attractive male makes mums put in more parental effort, reveals a study in blue tits

Prize draw uses heat for random numbers
A new machine for the UK's Premium Bonds draw uses "thermal noise" to generate millions of random numbers

Pollen-blocking cream cuts hayfever
The nasal cream captures pollen particles before they trigger an allergic response, markedly reducing hayfever symptoms

Combat robots wow crowds
As well as entertaining, the Japanese contest which pits robot against robot reflects real technological advances, say experts

AND FINALLY...
Love beer? Ever wondered how long you would survive if your diet consisted of beer and nothing else? Find out more in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

DRINK ÂTIL YOU DROP
As binge-drinking spirals out of control, scientists admit theyÂve got the facts about alcohol wrong

THE NEXT BIG BANG
Ever wanted to witness the birth of a universe? Get ready, it could happen at any moment

THE DOOMSDAY WRECK
A cargo of bombs is lying at the bottom of the river Thames, and the threat of a massive explosion grows every day

TECHNOLOGY:

SNAKES IN SUITS
Psychopaths are not that rare. In fact, you could be sharing your office with one

NEWS

UK cloners target diabetes cure
A new way of evolving
Heat meaningless at nanoscale

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2004-08-19T05:00:00.000-07:00

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19 August 2004

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Matt Walker, News Editor, Print Edition		Eye for danger
		A hand-held device that measures how an accident victimÂs pupils contract in response to bright light should help ensure they get the correct treatment. Observing the behaviour of the pupil can indicate whether a person may have serious head trauma. At the moment doctors and paramedics must manually examine a pupilÂs responsiveness, an extremely subjective technique often performed by "waving a torch at a victim on a wet dark road". The new "pupilometer" will make their job much easier and should allow them to identify changes that are too subtle to spot now... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

2004-08-12T10:33:00.000-07:00

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12 August 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals that steroids can boost athletic performance in just three weeks, that your name can influence your attractiveness and that IVF treatment can greatly increase the risk of children being born with a rare birth defect...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Michael Le Page, Deputy News Editor, Print Edition		Cheating is easy
		Even a low dose of testosterone can give athletes a big performance boost - and in a fraction of the time thought necessary, a study initiated by New Scientist has found. The received wisdom is that testosterone must be injected weekly for at least 10 weeks, yet the latest research showed that the biggest increase in performance came after just three weeks. This suggests it might be easier than thought for cheating athletes to dodge drug tests and will reinforce calls for drug-testing regimes to be radically stepped up... MORE

TOP STORIES

Pleasing names make faces sexier
Having the right kind of vowels in a name could make a person more alluring, reveals a new study

IVF raises risk of rare birth defect
A new study provides the strongest evidence yet that IVF children have a higher risk of a specific disorder

Well-connected dolphins keep pods together
Just a few genial individuals keep dolphin societies together - capturing them for marine parks could have unforeseen consequences

Cosmic ray link to global warming boosted
A correlation between cloud cover and sunspots supports the controversial idea - but other scientists dismiss the theory

Ancient Rome's fish pens confirm sea-level fears
It appears that nearly all the rise in sea level since Roman times has happened in the past 100 years

Adolescent T-rex had monster growth spurt
The flesh-eating dinosaur achieved its giant size in a dramatic surge of growth during adolescence, shows a study of discarded bones

Corals adapt to cope with global warming
The worldÂs coral reefs may not be doomed, as two new studies suggest corals are taking on new heat-tolerant algal partners

Smart phone game sends rogue texts
A parasitic program buried inside a pirated game sends out text messages to a premium rate number

Vaccine against rheumatic fever shows promise
The first vaccine tested in humans for 30 years against Streptococcus - which can cause rheumatic fever - gives hopeful results

First space test for solar sailing
The technique is successfully deployed in space - it could harness the Sun's rays to help spacecraft glide to distant targets

Hikers help spread sudden oak death
Researchers confirm suspicions that trail users speed the spread of the disease, which is devastating Californian forests

AND FINALLY...
Oxygen has a slightly greater density than nitrogen. So why don't these two main constituents of air separate out? Find out more in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

STALKER IN SPACE
When a rogue world began pursuing the young Earth, it was bound to attack sooner or later. And chunks of it are still out there

MAY THE HIGH-TECH WIN
Has modern athleticsÂ dependence on technology stolen the soul of sport?

CUT THE POWER
A new way to treat cancer - convince tumours theyÂre sitting through a black-out

WHAT FRIES BELOW
Hot rocks are old hat. Molten magma is the latest geothermal target - but just beware of blow-outs

NEWS

The wristwatch that never forgets
Leeches save skin transplants
Antimatter decays faster than matter

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2004-08-05T08:43:00.000-07:00

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5 August 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week features the stealth wallpaper that keeps company secrets safe, the robot guard that can smoke out villains and the controversy that has erupted over a hidden Antarctic lake...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Paul Marks, Technology News Editor, Print Edition		Stealth wallpaper
		Wallpaper that can prevent hackers accessing secure networks via Wi-Fi - without blocking mobile phone signals - has been developed by a British defence contractor. It is based on covert ÂstealthÂ technology that was originally designed to hide military radars. The secret is in the carefully etched copper crosses... MORE

TOP STORIES

Robot guard will smoke out villains
A security company is hoping that its new six-wheeled droid will soon be helping scare off, or help apprehend, intruders

Controversy erupts over 'sterile' Antarctic lake
Russian plans to drill into unexplored Lake Vostok could be a mistake - potentially contaminating an exotic ecosystem, say US scientists

Bush-meat trade breeds new HIV
New strains of an HIV-like virus are circulating in wild animals and infecting people who eat them, warn experts

Trial of treatments for vCJD to launch
Progress in finding a cure for the human form of BSE has been slow, but after years of wrangling a treatment trial is finally launching in the UK

Flying dinosaur needed a bird's brain
Flight was built into the brain as well as the body of Archaeopteryx, a new CAT scanning study reveals

Solar system may be exception not rule
Evidence of planets in alien solar systems suggest our own system did not form in the same way and could be rather rare, argue astronomers

Women who believe in long life bear sons
Mothers who think they will live to a ripe old age are more likely to have sons, suggests a UK study

US Army orders weapons supercomputer
The machine will be one of the fastest in the world, capable of 10 trillion mathematical calculations per second

Gene therapy in advance curbs heart damage
Giving high-risk patients an extra copy of a gene could prevent permanent damage if they have a heart attack or stroke

War games reveal hormone to combat stress
High levels of a particular stress hormone may help counter its negative effects, suggests a study of soldiers in 'prisoner of war camp' tests

AND FINALLY...
Ever wondered what the function of your eyebrows is? ThereÂs a lot more to them than meets the eye. Find out more in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

THE CENTRE OF THE EARTH
Our planet might have a surprise at its core. ThereÂs only one way to find out

SEQUENCE FROM THE STARS
Why would ET get in touch by radio? ThereÂs a much better way to do it, says physicist Paul Davies

BSE CRISIS SPECIAL REPORT

AMERICAN NIGHTMARE
One mad cow in the US means there must be others. But where?

OUT OF SIGHT, OUT OF MIND?
The US may have already missed an outbreak of the human form of BSE

WHEN PROTEINS ATTACK
When BSE jumped species from cattle to humans, biologists thought it was a one-off. Now theyÂre not so sure

NEWS

Trout with a salmon father
Making light of mousework
Big surprise in our chromosomes

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2004-07-29T07:19:00.000-07:00

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29 July 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals the new implant for failing hearts that leaves patients with no pulse, why athletes' fatigue is all in the mind and why black rhinos often die prematurely in captivity...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Rachel Nowak, Australasian Editor		Racing heart
		Breakdowns and the risk of blood clots have bedevilled artificial human hearts since their invention. But they could be a thing of the past, thanks to a new type of mechanical heart pump. It has only one moving part, which drives a continuous stream of blood. This also results in a very curious side-effect - people implanted with the VentraAssist have no pulse... MORE

TOP STORIES

Brain not body makes athletes feel tired
The exhaustion athletes feel is not caused by over-worked muscles but by a molecule in the mind, reveals a new study

Early fish hit land to be better predators
Primitive fish may have hauled themselves on to land to soak up energy from the Sun and become better hunters

Acupuncture points to post-op comfort
Stimulating the correct acupuncture point cuts sickness and nausea by almost a third in people who have just had an operation

Why some athletes are injury-prone
Some sportspeople are prone to injury because of the way they move, suggests a model tested on cricketers

Captive rhinos killed by overdose of iron
Black rhinos often die prematurely in captivity - now a study suggests too much iron in their zoo diets may to blame

Ground squirrels ultrasonic squeals revealed
Researchers were alerted after seeing the animals open their mouths only to producing a faint whisper of rushing air

P2P network connects phones globally
A new service mimics the method used by file sharing networks and could challenge traditional telecommunications

Theory links dark energy and neutrinos
Unlike other theories of dark energy, researchers say, this one relates it to known particles that can be detected in experiments

3D audio system developed by MP3 pioneer
The technology uses a principle known as 'wave field synthesis' to create complex audio illusions for everyone in a room

Strange movements may signal autism
A mild form of autism could be spotted early by watching kids for abnormal body movements, suggest researchers

Stray star may have jolted Sedna
A passing star may have kicked the planetoid into its strange orbit, which takes it to the Solar System's edges

AND FINALLY...
We know that ice-cream was popular in the summer of 1809 when the poet Byron visited Venice and ate it in the cafés. But how was it made and kept when there were no refrigerators? Find out more in this week's Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

STRINGS WITH A TWIST
Hidden extra dimensions certainly have an exotic appeal, but the universe makes perfect sense without them says Roger Penrose

POWER TOWER
It will be the world's tallest building, a kilometre-high tower in the outback

MIND-READING SPECIAL REPORT
WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO
Predicting people's choices is creepily easy if you know what to look for

THEY KNOW WHAT YOU WANT
For neuromarketers, the way to your wallet is through your head

YOUR THOUGHTS MADE PUBLIC
Be very afraid. Brain scans can reveal your darkest secrets and prejudices

NEWS

Beating antibiotic resistance
Sunburnt to extinction
Memory cube breaks record

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2004-07-22T08:01:00.001-07:00

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22 July 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals that urine may be used to hydrate a new type of food ration, that if aliens exist we should know about them in 20 years and that the hand you favour as a 10-week old fetus is the hand you will always prefer...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Paul Marks, Technology News Editor		Just add urine
		Chicken cooked in urine Sir? Food scientists have developed a dried food ration that military troops can rehydrate by adding the filthiest of muddy swamp water, or even by peeing in it. The idea is to reduce the amount of water soldiers trekking for miles have to carry. Developed by the same organisation that created the "indestructible sandwich", the new rations can lessen a soldier's load by 3.1 kilograms... MORE

TOP STORIES

ET first contact 'within 20 years'
If aliens exist, humans will know about them within 20 years, based on our advancing technology predicts a senior astronomer

Handedness develops in the womb
The hand humans favour as a ten-week-old fetus is the hand they favour for the rest of their lives, suggests a new study

Warning of bigger burn for sunbathers
Higher levels of harmful ultraviolet rays hit people outdoors than previously thought, reveals a new study

Family words came first for early humans
A trawl of a thousand languages suggests that common family words may have come from the Neanderthals

Doctors may have killed Napoleon
The emperor may not have been murdered, but killed by overenthusiastic doctors, suggests a new theory

Tsunamis of gas hot up galaxy clusters
The centres of galaxy clusters might be stormy places - with turbulent gases heating them up, suggests a new study

Yawning is catching in chimps
Chimps show "contagious yawning" like humans - bolstering the notion they can empathise with others

Speaker system lets flowers sing
A device vibrates flowers at high frequency to generate sound, but some experts are sceptical about audio quality

Handheld PC virus holds ominous promise
The first handheld PC virus is relatively harmless but could be a harbinger of more serious threats to come

Extremists scupper another UK animal lab
Animal rights extremists have intimidated a building company into stopping work, say scientists, jeopardising medical research

Good mothers stop monkeys going bad
Proper parenting can abolish the effects of a "bad" gene for aggression and stop young monkeys going off the rails, suggests a new study

Mars rover finds that water persisted
Surface water on Mars could have flowed for eons, allowing enough time for life to evolve, suggests new data

AND FINALLY...
Rumour has it that big gelatinous lumps you may have come across while out walking are the remains of shooting stars. Find out the truth behind this so called "star spawn" in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

QUANTUM REBEL
One manÂs simple experiment could unravel our most cherished notions of reality

PLUMBING VENICEÂS DEPTHS
Flood barriers may not be enough. A more radical idea is in the pipeline to save the pearl of the Adriatic

THE PARKINSONÂS FIX
Implanting electrodes in the brain can work wonders for many patients, but for a few there may be devastating side effects

HARBINGERS OF DOOM
Clouds are emerging as the wild cards of global warming. Add them to climate models and the possibilities are frightening

NEWS

Thought can come before language
Monstrous raindrops
Studying music boosts IQ

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2004-07-22T08:01:00.000-07:00

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22 July 2004

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Paul Marks, Technology News Editor		Just add urine
		Chicken cooked in urine Sir? Food scientists have developed a dried food ration that military troops can rehydrate by adding the filthiest of muddy swamp water, or even by peeing in it. The idea is to reduce the amount of water soldiers trekking for miles have to carry. Developed by the same organisation that created the "indestructible sandwich", the new rations can lessen a soldier's load by 3.1 kilograms... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

2004-07-17T08:14:00.000-07:00

From bularaq Sabiq Mubutu.plot 1015 mobutu seseseko cresent Kinshasa-
Zaire

Dear

I am bularaq Sabiq Mobutu the son of late president Mobutu Sese-Seko of Zaire, who died in
exile here in Morocco.
I am making this contact to you in good faith and with hope that it will transpire into a
more mutual relationship in future.

I believe you are aware through the international press how the Swiss government froze my
fatherÂs assets and bank accounts.
Recently the French government confiscated my fatherÂschateaux in southern France.

In view of the above, my family and I have decided not carry out any more investment in our
name, My request is for you to be our Financial manager,Source of fund.
Before my father's death, he deposited the sum of usd$46 million in the vault of an Security firm in ASIA for
safekeeping, He deposited it as Mobutu family's fund, I want you to invest part of this
funds for us in your country by engaging in any lucrative investment such as
buying of shares/stocks in multinational companies, real estate and other non-speculative
investment.
I will not want my name or that of my family mentioned in any of the investments.
ItÂs our wish to carry out all the investments in your name and under trusteeship.

Upon your response, I will be willing to arrange a face-to-face meeting
between you and my lawyer, In the meeting we shall sign a working agreement and also
discuss on your remuneration. Please forward to me your
private telephone numbers to enable me discuss with you more confidentially.
please get back to me through this mail address;(bularaq@ourwest.com)

Best regards

BULARAQ .S. MOBUTU

_________________________________________________

2004-07-15T05:13:00.000-07:00

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15 July 2004

Dear wei, welcome to the New Scientist newsletter, which this week reveals how Stephen Hawking may have solved the black hole information paradox, why people prefer polite computers and how exploding eggs could pinpoint space junk...

EDITOR'S CHOICE

Will Knight, Online News Reporter		Paradox lost
		After nearly 30 years of arguing that a black hole destroys everything that falls into it, Stephen Hawking now says he was wrong. The about-turn might solve one of the long-standing puzzles in modern physics, known as the black hole information paradox - and cost the physicist an encyclopaedia... MORE

TOP STORIES

Polite computers win users' hearts and minds
Computer glitches are less annoying if PCs are programmed to acknowledge errors gracefully, finds a researcher

Exploding eggshells could reduce space junk risk
This improbable link is based on the idea that eggshells and discarded space rockets will break up in a similar way

Babies babble in sign language too
The finding, even in hearing babies, supports the idea that human infants have an innate sensitivity to the rhythm of language

Cold waters leave whales washed up
Whale strandings are no longer quite such a mystery - on the beaches of south-east Australia at least

Plutonium cancer risk may be higher than thought
The danger is highlighted in a report written by radiation experts for the UK government, which has been leaked to New Scientist

MRI used to detect lone electron
The technique could one day reveal the 3-D shape of molecules and atomic-scale features inside transistors

Gulf war veterans have fertility problems
The effect is small but significant - however claims that there is no unique Gulf War Syndrome continue

Astronauts could save Hubble, says panel
NASA must not rule out a shuttle mission to repair the telescope, says a top-level panel - a robotic mission would be "experimental"

Dust worms hold the key to planet formation
A six-minute experiment aboard an unmanned rocket suggests that dust orbiting a young star coalesces to form tiny elongated "worms"

New world computer chess champ crowned
The winner is an aggressive and daring software program called Junior, which is also prone to the odd human-like error

World falling short on condom provision
Condoms, the main scientifically proven way of preventing HIV transmission, are in woefully short supply in key regions

AND FINALLY...
If your home is plagued by ants, could you usefully employ an anteater to gobble them all up? Or is there a more effective way to get rid of them without using environmentally unfriendly ant powder? Find out more in this weekÂs Last Word section... MORE

THIS WEEK'S PRINT EDITION

FEATURES

TAMING THE FOURTH DIMENSION
After 100 years, PoincareÂs conjecture on the properties of space might just have been proved

PRIONS SHAPE UP
Shape-changing proteins like the ones that cause CJD could set our body clocks and aid memory

CLEVER, BUT NOT SMART
If intelligence is such a great idea, how come so many so many animals are stupid?

TECHNOLOGY:

HUNTING THE HIGGS
The Higgs particle is thought to be what gives everything mass. But does it really exist, and is so, where is it?

NEWS

Migrating birds donÂt sleep
Neurons use geometry
Double quick disaster prediction

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We liked this headline from the Xinhua news agency about the discovery of Homo floriensis: "Scientists find new species of hobbits" MORE

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