China is waging a prolonged and stringent fight against the illegal use of additives in food.
151 materials forbidden or abusable in food and feed over the past nine years have been blacklisted by China, according to figures released by the food safety committee under the State Council, or China’s Cabinet.
Continue reading… “151 Materials in Food or Feed Have Been Blacklisted by China”
Religious beliefs have a high level of influence with voters.
Even though church attendance in western democracies has declined, a new University of Missouri study shows religious beliefs still influence people at the polls.
Continue reading… “Study: Religious Beliefs Still Influence Voter Decision”
On Friday, the FBI shut down three of the world’s most popular online poker sites, replacing their home pages with the message: “This domain name has been seized by the F.B.I. pursuant to an Arrest Warrant.” (as shown above)
Joe Menn at the Financial Times nails the story first and best, and describes it as “the largest crackdown since Congress banned electronic gambling transactions in 2006.”
Continue reading… “FBI Shuts Down Poker Sites in Online Gambling Crackdown”
Tajikistan’s Council of Ulema is set to issue a fatwa banning a so-called SMS-divorce, the state religious committee have announced. The move comes amid growing complaints that some Tajik men – working as migrant laborers in Russia – divorce their wives by sending a mobile-phone text message or just making a phone call.
Sunni Islamic traditions allow men to divorce their wives by merely saying “talaq,” an Islamic term for a declaration of divorce. Tajik religious leaders, however, insist that ending a marriage is not such a simple matter…
Continue reading… “Authorities In Tajikistan Plan Ban On Divorce By Text Message”
Do you use Gmail or other email cloud service? Then you’d be surprised to learn that according to the law, the government can get your email without a warrant if it’s older than 180 days. David Kravets of Wired’s Threat Level explains…
Continue reading… “Big Brother Needs No Warrant to Snoop at Your Cloud Emails”
A brief update on a story from a year ago: Bolivia is about to pass laws granting all of nature equal rights to human beings. The laws were first proposed after the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth and show the deep differences in zeitgeist between Bolivia and, well, pretty much every other nation-state on the planet…
Continue reading… “Mother Earth To Be Given Rights Equal to Humans In New Bolivian Law”
Imposter scams are now No. 6 on the FTC’s list of Top Ten Complaints for 2010.
Imagine getting an e-mail from the FBI. What would you do? Chances are you’d respond to find out what’s up. And bad guys who pretend to be FBI agents are counting on that.
Continue reading… “Government Impersonator Scams on the Rise”
The First Fuel Cell-Powered Black Cab
It may not look much different than your average black cab on the outside (decals aside), but it’s quite a different story under the hood of this taxi, which has just been deemed road legal in the UK. Developed by Intelligent Energy, the cab actually includes both a fuel cell with a 30 kW net output and a 14 kWh lithium polymer battery pack, which combined promise to provide enough juice for a full day of operation — along with a top speed of 81 MPH and acceleration from zero to sixty in fourteen seconds. Londoners won’t be seeing them everywhere just yet, however, as the company only expects the first fleet to be ready sometime next year in time for the 2012 Olympics.
Continue reading… “UK’s First Fuel Cell-Powered Black Cab Hits the Streets of London”
Almost every country in the EU last week approved the use of Meat Glue in food. Technically called thrombian, or transglutaminase (TG), it is an enzyme that food processors use to hold different kinds of meat together.
Imitation crab meat is one of the more common applications: it’s made from surimi, a “fish-based food product” made by pulverizing white fish like pollock or hake into a paste, which is then mixed with meat glue so that the shreds stick together and hold the shape wanted for it by its creator…
Continue reading… “Is Your Meat Made With Meat Glue?”
What cities played it late this year?
Thanks to the people over at TurboTax we have a list of the top late-filing cities. This year’s ranking of late-filing cities are…
Continue reading… “Top 10 Cities of Tax Procrastinators”
A rabbi is suing the US Army for refusing to let him serve unless he removes his beard. The US military, as well as many police forces across America, require recruits to be clean shaven. But what is wrong with sporting a beard in the line of duty?
Chin straps, goatees, stubble, soul patches, mutton chops or just the old-fashioned full version.
There are many ways to grow a beard, but if you’re serving in the US military, getting creative with your chin furniture is not an option.
The different branches of the US insist that recruits are clean shaven. Those later in their career are permitted to go as far as growing a moustache. But even that facial freedom comes with caveats…
Continue reading… “Should Men in Uniform be Forced to Shave?”
Bill McKibben has a fantastic column up today in which he details the numerous times that the US Chamber of Commerce has been wrong throughout American history — they opposed the New Deal, policies to support the Allies against Hitler in WWII, and on down the line to blocking action to prevent climate change. So why does anyone still listen?
By delving into the futuring techniques of Futurist Thomas Frey, you’ll embark on an enlightening journey.
Learn More about this exciting program.