Naval Sonar Exercises Linked to Whale Strandings

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Whales are affected by Naval Sonar Exercises.

Scientists have long been aware of a link between naval sonar exercises and unusual mass strandings of beaked whales. Evidence of such a link triggered a series of lawsuits in which environmental groups sued the U.S. Navy to limit sonar exercises to reduce risk to whales. In 2008, this conflict rose to the level of the US Supreme Court which had to balance potential threat to whales from sonar against the military risk posed by naval forces inadequately trained to use sonar to detect enemy submarines. The court ruled that the Navy could continue training, but that it was essential for the Navy to develop better methods to protect the whales.

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Wealthiest Countries Are Also the Smartest Countries: Study

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The smartest 5 percent, made a big contribution to the strength of their economies.

It’s not just how free the market is. Some economists are looking at another factor that determines how much a country’s economy flourishes: how smart its people are. For a study published in an upcoming issue of Psychological Science, researchers analyzed test scores from 90 countries and found that the intelligence of the people, particularly the smartest 5 percent, made a big contribution to the strength of their economies.

 

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Youngest Y Combinator Founders Launch MinoMonsters, The Pokemon Of Social Games

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At age 15, most normal people are going to high school, learning to drive, not listening to their parents, and doing things that they’ll later tell their kids not to do. Josh Buckley is not a normal teenager. At 15, he was selling his first company for just over six figures.

Today, the 18-year-old entrepreneur and angel investor has partnered with 17-year-old engineer Tyler Diaz to co-found MinoMonsters, a social game in which players collect and battle pet monsters.

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40th Anniversary Of The Computer Virus

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A dreaded word to any computer user.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Creeper, the world’s first computer virus. From Creeper to Stuxnet, the last four decades saw the number of malware instances boom from 1,300 in 1990, to 50,000 in 2000, to over 200 million in 2010.

Besides sheer quantity, viruses, which were originally used as academic proof of concepts, quickly turned into geek pranks, then evolved into cybercriminal tools. By 2005, the virus scene had been monetized, and virtually all viruses were developed with the sole purpose of making money via more or less complex business models…

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Life Expectancy in the U.S. Sets New Record, Surpasses 78 Years

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Life expectancy at birth rose for babies born in 2009.

U.S. life expectancy has hit another all-time high, rising above 78 years. The estimate of 78 years and 2 months is for a baby born in 2009, and comes from a preliminary report released Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

 

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e-Books Could Lead to a “Reading Divide”

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“If reading becomes dependent on technology that must be purchased, then I think we may see the literacy divide persist and even widen.”

The rapid rise of e-books could lead to a “reading divide” as those unable to afford the new technology are left behind, even as U.S. reading and writing skills decline still further.

 

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Sanity Comes to Sexting Laws in New Jersey

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Where is the middle ground for sexting laws?

Salon’s Tracy Clark-Flory writes about a new bill in New Jersey that would prevent minors who engage in “sexting” (taking naked pictures of themselves and sharing them with boy- and girlfriends) from being prosecuted as child pornographers. As Clark-Flory explains, you don’t have to be in favor of kids sharing naked pictures of themselves to understand that child porn laws shouldn’t be used against them…

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Poor Countries Have More Piracy Because Media Costs Too Much — Report

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Media Piracy in Emerging Economies, an academic report on pricing and copyright infringement in poor countries, comes to the conclusion that high media prices (as measured against the average wage in poor countries) are responsible for piracy — that is, when you control for social attitudes towards copying, enforcement differences, and so on, the largest predictor of whether a country will have rampant copyright infringement is whether the media in that country is priced high relative to peoples’ earning power.

To make their point, the authors have released the report under a provocative “Consumer’s Dilemma license” that charges escalating rates depending on whether your IP address is in a rich or poor country.

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Absorbing Too Much Chlorinated Water Increases Risk of Cancer

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People who regularly swim in chlorinated pools or take lots of showers or baths are at an increased risk of cancer.

Swimming too much – or even taking too many baths or showers – could increase the risk of developing bladder cancer, warn environmental health experts.  Carcinogenic chemicals called trihalomethanes (THMs), created as a byproduct of chlorinating water, can be absorbed through the skin, they say.

One in Five Men Have Not Gone to a Doctor in the Last Year and 6% Would Not Go Even If They Have Chest Pains

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Visiting a doctor is not one of man’s priorities.

On the list of a man’s priorities, it seems that visiting the local doctor does not sit highly.  More than one in five men have not visited a GP or other healthcare professional in the last 12 months, according to a survey published March 15, 2011.

 

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Peer-to-Peer Healthcare Widespread in U.S: Report

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The internet gives patients and caregivers access not only to information, but also to each other.

Many Americans turn to friends and family for support and advice when they have a health problem. This report shows how people’s networks are expanding to include online peers, particularly in the crucible of rare disease. Health professionals remain the central source of information for most Americans, but “peer-to-peer healthcare” is a significant supplement.

 

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