Thomas Dekker, aka John Connor, tells the world there have been talks to produce a Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles movie.
Monday, August 31, 2009
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Rose McGowan Confirms She’s Still ‘Red Sonja’
Back in June Executive Producer Joe Gatta announced that a new feature film based on the Marvel character Red Sonja was definitely going ahead sometime in 2010 (perhaps kicking off in February).
Rose McGowan (Charmed /Grindhouse / Planet Terror), who was cast an eternity ago in the lead role, has now confirmed that she’s still contracted to play the sword wielding flame-haired heroine.
From Rose ...
LHC to run at 3.5 TeV for early part of 2009-2010 run rising later
I love to report anything to do with CERN, I am a big supporter of the CERN project to learn and hopefully advance us more as a society. This is one of the best project that could ever be built and cannot wait for the LHC to go online.
Geneva, 6 August 2009. CERN's1 Large Hadron Collider will initially run at an energy of 3.5 TeV per beam when it starts up in November this year. This news comes after all tests on the machine's high-current electrical connections were completed last week, indicating that no further repairs are necessary for safe running.
"We've selected 3.5 TeV to start," said CERN's Director General, Rolf Heuer, "because it allows the LHC operators to gain experience of running the machine safely while opening up a new discovery region for the experiments."
Following the incident of 19 September 2008 that brought the LHC to a standstill, testing has focused on the 10,000 high-current superconducting electrical connections like the one that led to the fault. These consist of two parts: the superconductor itself, and a copper stabilizer that carries the current in case the superconductor warms up and stops superconducting, a so-called quench. In their normal superconducting state, there is negligible electrical resistance across these connections, but in a small number of cases abnormally high resistances have been found in the superconductor. These have been repaired. However, there remain a number of cases where the resistance in the copper stabilizer connections is higher than it should be for running at full energy.
The latest tests looked at the resistance of the copper stabilizer. Many copper connections showing anomalously high resistance have been repaired already, and the tests on the final two sectors, which concluded last week, have revealed no more outliers. This means that no more repairs are necessary for safe running this year and next.
"The LHC is a much better understood machine than it was a year ago," said Heuer. "We can look forward with confidence and excitement to a good run through the winter and into next year."
The procedure for the 2009 start-up will be to inject and capture beams in each direction, take collision data for a few shifts at the injection energy, and then commission the ramp to higher energy. The first high-energy data should be collected a few weeks after the first beam of 2009 is injected. The LHC will run at 3.5 TeV per beam until a significant data sample has been collected and the operations team has gained experience in running the machine. Thereafter, with the benefit of that experience, the energy will be taken towards 5 TeV per beam. At the end of 2010, the LHC will be run with lead ions for the first time. After that, the LHC will shut down and work will begin on moving the machine towards 7 TeV per beam.
CERN is publishing regular updates on the LHC in its internal Bulletin, available at cern.ch/bulletin, as well as via twitter and YouTube at twitter.com/cern andyoutube.com/cern
Kate Beckinsale Thinks ‘Underworld 4′ is a Rumor
First we heard Underworld 4 was in development, then we heard Underworld 4 would be the first in a new trilogy, then we heard Kate Beckinsale would be reprising her role as Selene for the new film.
Now, in press conference for ...
Friday, August 28, 2009
Brandon Routh Joins the Cast of ‘Chuck’
Brandon Routh, aka Superman in Superman Returns, has been cast in a multi-episode arc commencing from episode four of the upcoming third season of Chuck.
Routh will play Shaw, a spy who takes control as the new leader of Operation Bartwoski. His character will become a mentor to Chuck and a rival in his affections for Sarah.
I must admit I’ve never been able to get into Chuck. But I liked ...
Rob Zombie to Reinvent ‘The Blob’
Rob Zombie (Halloween / The Devil’s Rejects) will write, direct and produce another remake of The Blob.
The original 1958 film starred Steve McQueen and followed an alien that consumes everything in its path as it grows bigger and bigger. A remake was made in 1988 by The Scorpion King director Chuck Russell but performed badly at the box office earning back less than half of its $19M budget.
Zombie was apparently a fan of ...
Thursday, August 27, 2009
David Goyer Draws Parallel Between ‘Flash Forward’ and 9/11
ABC’s upcoming new series Flash Forward tells the story of many different characters from all over the world as they deal with witnessing a 2-minute and 17-second slice of the future.
David S. Goyer, whose writing is associated with Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, is one of the series creators. Recently he drew an interesting comparison between the premise of the new series and the impact of the tragic events of 9/11.
“I had this experience,” Goyer ...
Summer Glau Cast in ‘Dollhouse’
Summer Glau Cast in 'Dollhouse'
It’s been rumored for some time but now it’s official.
Summer Glau (Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles / Firefly) is on her way to join the cast of Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse.
Glau will appear in a multi-episode story arc set to unfold later in the upcoming second season.
She will play a character named Bennett who has a history with Eliza Dushku’s Echo and who has an apparent ...
I knew this was coming…
New study warns of cell phone dangers
I keep wondering if using headsets will reduce the EM radiation or not, I know I use headsets all the time.
Cell phone users are being advised to limit their calls and take other measures to limit their risk of cancer from mobile devices. According to the International EMF (Electromagnetic Field) Collaborative group of international scientists, children are especially at risk, noting that one recent Swedish study saw a 400% increased risk for teenage cell phone users.
The 37-page report, available on the EM Radiation Research Trust website, summarized what it said are the dangers of cell phone use, and attempted to blunt an upcoming study being developed by the wireless industry in 13 countries, mainly in western Europe.
"Some countries are already banning cell phones over health concerns, with France saying children in elementary schools can only use them for texting," said the report's author, Lloyd Morgan.
"Cell phones can be used appropriately and have a certain usefulness, but I fear we will see a tsunami of brain tumors, although it is too early to see that now since the tumors have a 30-year latency," he added. "I pray I m wrong, but brace yourself."
However, John Walls, vice president of public affairs for the CTIA, a group representing wireless carriers and handset makers in the US, issued a statement today saying "peer-reviewed scientific evidence has overwhelmingly indicated that wireless devices do not pose a public health risk." He noted that the American Cancer Society, the National Cancer Institute, the World Health Organization and the US Food and Drug Administration have all concurred that wireless devices are not a public health risk.
Morgan, a retired electronics engineer and a member of the Bioelectromagnetics Society, wrote the report, Cell phones and Brain Tumors: 15 Reasons for Concern , with the endorsement of 43 scientists and experts from the US, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Russia, Spain, Sweden and the U.K. Groups endorsing the findings include the EMR Policy Institute, the Peoples Initiative Foundation, ElectromagneticHealth.org, The Radiation Research Trust and Powerwatch.
‘Dark Matter’ Volume 2: What Happens When We Die?
Dark Matter is a new monthly DVD series that presents a collection of thought provoking and visionary short sci-fi films similar to what you might see in such series as Twilight Zone and The Outer Limits.
A teaser trailer has been released for the next DVD in the series. As you will see in the teaser, Dark Matter: Volume 2 contains short films that “take a ...
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Swanky Space Hotel Concept Revealed
Space tourism may face some challenges with the uncertainty over the next-generation rides into space. But that hasn't stopped Earth designers from envisioning future space hotels for paying thrill seekers.
A robot concierge, a redesigned showerhead and a full-sensory exercise wall are just part of the Space Hotel Project created by master's degree students in a program hosted by Imperial College London and the Royal College of Art in the UK. The concept could theoretically attach to the International Space Station, so long as the growing space outpost remains in orbit.
"From personal hygiene to sleeping in zero gravity, we encouraged the students to be completely creative with their solutions so that the living conditions in the world's most isolated hotel could be as comfortable as possible," said Daniele Bedini, a space architecture expert who has worked for NASA and the European Space Agency on moon and Mars base designs.
The new space hotel concept includes a rigid module similar to Europe's Columbus laboratory on the space station, as well as an inflatable sphere developed by Thales Alenia Space in Italy.
Rumor: Megan Fox Signed as Catwoman for ‘Batman 3′
Rumor: Megan Fox cast as Catwoman
In one of the most unprofessional news articles I’ve ever had the displeasure of reading, The Sun is claiming Megan Fox has signed on to play Catwoman in Batman 3.
They are also reporting the additional rumor that shooting will definitely start next year with a planned 2011 release date.
The first we heard that the third Batman film might, and that’s a BIG ...
Fujitsu plots world's fastest computer
Fujitsu is to develop the world's fastest computer. The Japanese company hopes to deliver the 10-petaflop supercomputer, 10 times more powerful than today's fastest system, by 2011.
Fujitsu is building the supercomputer for Japan's Institute of Physical and Chemical Research, known as RIKEN, said Takumi Maruyama, head of Fujitsu's processor development department.
The system will be based on Fujitsu's upcoming Sparc64 VIIIfx processor, which has eight processor cores and will be an update to the four-core Sparc64 VII chip that Fujitsu released two years ago, Maruyama said.
It remains to be seen if Fujitsu can achieve its goal, and it's likely that other system builders are plotting similarly powerful machines. IBM has said it will build a "petascale" supercomputer based on its upcoming Power7 processor for the National Center for Supercomputing Applications at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. That machine, dubbed Blue Waters, is also due in 2011.
Today's fastest machine is IBM's Roadrunner system at the US Department of Energy's Los Alamos National Laboratory, which was rated at 1.105 petaflops on June's Top500 list of supercomputers. A petaflop is equal to one thousand trillion calculations per second.
Ted Kennedy Dies At Age 77
Senator Edward "Ted" Kennedy, one of the most influential members in the United States Senate, has died at his home in Hyannis Port after a long battle with a brain tumor. He was 77 years old.
The Kennedy family issued a statement late Tuesday night on the legendary politician's passing:
"We've lost the irreplaceable center of our family and joyous light in our lives, but the inspiration of his faith, optimism, and perseverance will live on in our hearts forever. We thank everyone who gave him care and support over this last year, and everyone who stood with him for so many years in his tireless march for progress toward justice, fairness and opportunity for all. He loved this country and devoted his life to serving it. He always believed that our best days were still ahead, but it's hard to imagine any of them without him."
Tuesday, August 25, 2009
NASA Sets New Target Launch Date for Space Shuttle Discovery
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA has targeted the next launch attempt for space shuttle Discovery for no earlier than 12:22 a.m. EDT Friday, Aug. 28, from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Wednesday's launch attempt was postponed after an indication that a valve in the shuttle's main propulsion system failed to perform as expected during fueling of the shuttle's external fuel tank.
NASA managers officially postponed Wednesday's launch attempt because of uncertainty about whether a valve that was commanded to be closed actually was closed. The valve is associated with the fill and drain plumbing of the main propulsion system within the shuttle's aft compartment.
The space shuttle mission management team will meet at noon on Thursday, Aug. 27, to discuss the troubleshooting results and decide whether to continue with a launch attempt. The tanking weather briefing will follow at 2:15 p.m.
Discovery's 13-day STS-128 flight to the International Space Station will deliver storage racks; materials and fluids science racks; a freezer to store research samples; a new sleeping compartment; an air purification system; and a treadmill named after comedian Stephen Colbert.
For information about the space station, visit:
NASA - NASA Sets New Target Launch Date for Space Shuttle Discovery
Jessica Biel named 'most dangerous celebrity'
Security technology company McAfee Inc. on Tuesday reported that searches for the 27-year-old actress are more likely to lead to online threats such as spyware and viruses than searches for any other celebrity. McAfee said fans searching for the actress have a one-in-five chance of ending up at a ...
Monday, August 24, 2009
Composer Michael Giacchino Spreads the Love
'Star Trek' Director J.J. Abrams and Composer Michael Giacchino
Recently Michael Giacchino was nominated for ‘Film Composer of the Year’ in the upcoming 2009 World Soundtrack Awards for his scores to Star Trek, Up, and Land of the Lost. But those aren’t the only scores he worked on throughout the year. He also composed the scores to three short ...
‘Blood: The Last Vampire’ DVD and Blu-Ray Release Details
Sony Pictures Home Entertainment has announced Blood: The Last Vampire will be released on DVD and Blu-ray October 20, 2009.
Blood: The Last Vampire stars Gianna Jun, Allison Miller, and Liam Cunningham and follows a half-human half-vampire samurai named Saya who is part of a covert government agency that hunts and destroys demons in a post-WWII Japan. Saya is inserted into an American military school to ...
Cisco Wireless LAN Vulnerability Could Open 'back Door' - PC World
Some wireless access points from Cisco Systems have a vulnerability that could allow a hacker to redirect traffic outside the enterprise or potentially gain access to an entire corporate network, a security company said.
At the root of the problem is the way that new Cisco APs are added to a network, according to AirMagnet, a wireless network security company that discovered the problem and planned to report its findings Tuesday.
Existing APs broadcast information about the nearby network controller they communicate with. That way, when an enterprise hangs a new AP, that AP listens to information broadcast by other APs and knows which controller to connect to.
Cisco Wireless LAN Vulnerability Could Open 'back Door' - PC World
Fox issues cease-and-desist letter over New Sensations' 'X-Files' porn parody
The truth is out there: I've recently reported here and here on the increasing trend of porn parodies of popular TV shows, past and present, and I'm not at all surprised by the news today, via XBIZ.com, that at least one company is stepping up to defend its trademark: New Sensations draws fire from 20th Century Fox over X-Files parody.
20th Century Fox is apparently more protective of its trademarks than NBC: New Sensations has recently released porn parodies of The Office, Scrubs, Seinfeld, Friends, and 30 Rock, seemingly without much fuss.
In a statement released today, Digital Sin/New Sensations responds that it “does not believe that its intended product infringes on the rights of Fox. However, in the spirit of cooperation, the company has decided to respond to Fox’s concerns by adapting the title to The Sex Files: A Dark XXX Parody.”
Fleshbot.com (NSFW) posted some preview photos from the parody last month. The film, which stars Kimberly Kane and Anthony Rosano filling in some of the blanks many X-Files fans had previously left to the imagination, is due out in September.
Fox issues cease-and-desist letter over New Sensations' 'X-Files' porn parody
Warehouse 13 breaks another Syfy audience record | SCI FI Wire
Warehouse 13 breaks another Syfy audience record
Warehouse 13, which last week broke viewing records when its fourth episode delivered the most females of any series telecast in Syfy's history, set yet another record with its fifth.
By adding nearly one million viewers from Live + 7 DVR playback (985,000), the August 4 episode, “"Elements,"” with guest star Joe Flanigan, became the most watched original series telecast in Syfy’'s 17-year history, delivering 4.3 million total viewers.
“"Elements,"” also scored series highs with 1.8 million Adults 18-49, while garnering 2.2 million Adults 25-54 (the series’ second highest performance in this demo) and posting a 3.0 Household rating.
Including the full DVR playback data, Warehouse 13 was the #1 cable program in prime on August 4 among Adults 18-49, Adults 25-54 and total viewers, beating TNT's new Hawthorne head-to-head in the 9PM (ET/PT) timeslot by +13% in Adults 18-49, +19% in Adults 25-54 and +3% in total viewers.
Among all cable telecasts for the week, Warehouse 13 delivered more total viewers than many notable scripted original series on cable including Saving Grace, Raising the Bar and Dark Blue on TNT, and Army Wives and Drop Dead Diva on Lifetime.
Including final DVR playback data, Warehouse 13 also delivered more total viewers than scripted series on the broadcast networks including Mental on Fox and Defying Gravity on ABC.
Four of the five episodes of Warehouse 13 have set a new series’ high levels in total viewers.
Warehouse 13 follows two Secret Service agents who find themselves abruptly transferred to a massive, top-secret storage facility in windswept South Dakota which houses every strange artifact, mysterious relic, fantastical object and supernatural souvenir ever collected by the U.S. government. The Warehouse's caretaker Artie (Saul Rubinek) charges Pete (Eddie McClintock) and Myka (Joanne Kelly) with chasing down reports of supernatural and paranormal activity in search of new objects to cache at the Warehouse, as well as helping him to control the warehouse itself. Warehouse 13 airs Tuesdays @ 9pm ET/PT only on Syfy.
Warehouse 13 breaks another Syfy audience record | SCI FI Wire
‘Star Wars’: R2D2 Projector With Millennium Falcon Remote
Star Wars Coolness: R2D2 Projection System (click to check it out)
As far as Star Wars collectibles go, this one is awesome – an R2D2 1:2 scale replica mobile entertainment system.
He projects movies, has an integrated iPod dock, works with gaming consoles, plays CD’s and DVD’s, is fully motorized such that he can move in all directions, spin his head, arch forward ...
Sunday, August 23, 2009
Scarlett Johansson Hopes to Return as ‘Black Widow’
Scarlett Johansson plays Natasha Romanoff (aka Black Widow) in Jon Favreau’s upcoming Iron Man 2, but she hopes to take the character further.
“She has many different incarnations and different storylines,” Johansson says, “so I’m hoping she will be able to continue in that way. I’m hoping that if the fans like the character and support the character, we’ll see her again.”
In the comic world Black Widow does her time ...
Saturday, August 22, 2009
‘9′ TV Spot – The Count
The fourth TV Spot for Shane Acker’s 9 has been released.
Watch it after the jump.
9 is the first full length feature film from director Shane Acker and filmmakers Tim Burton (Batman / Edward Scissorhands) and Timur Bekmambetov (Wanted / Nightwatch).
It is based upon a short film of the same name that was made by Acker back in 2005 (click here to visit a page where you can watch ...
Child of migrant workers is heading into space
He toiled in the farm fields of California's Central Valley alongside his Mexican migrant worker parents and didn't learn English until he was 12. Now Jose Hernandez, NASA astronaut, is about to rocket into orbit.
Images
His parents will be in Florida next week for space shuttle Discovery's launch, as will his two older brothers and sister, who also worked the cucumber, sugar beet and tomato fields back in the 1960s and 1970s.
"A lot of kids loved summer vacation," Hernandez said in a recent interview. "We dreaded it because we knew what that meant. That meant we were going to be working seven days a week in the fields."
Hernandez, 47, vividly recalls being dusty, sweaty and tired in the back seat of the family's car after a hard day of labor. Before starting the engine, his father would look back at his children and tell them, "Remember this feeling because if you guys don't do well in school, this is your future."
Friday, August 21, 2009
First Image From Animated ‘Doctor Who’ Series ‘Dreamland’
First Image from the animated 'Doctor Who' -Dreamland
The BBC has released the first image of the Doctor as he will appear in the new animated Doctor Who story, Dreamland.
Written by Phil Ford (Doctor Who, Torchwood, The Sarah Jane Adventures) Dreamland will see the Doctor – played by David Tennant – arrive at Roswell where he stumbles upon a mysterious alien artifact that leads him on ...
View article...Poor Marketing Bursts the 'Avatar' Hype Bubble
On one hand I want to feel sorry for James Cameron. The famed director has produced what looks like a ground-breaking, amazing and spectacular masterpiece in his sci-fi epic Avatar and yet thanks to hype and poor marketing his masterpiece is now suffering from a cloud of negative buzz.
Cliff Simon on the Star Trek Channel at BTR
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
In Association with MBL Entertainment, LLC
And
NDB Media (NDB Radio),
On August 24, 2009 @ 7:00 P.M. PDT:
Cliff Simon, of South Africa, grew up in a turbulent time in South Africa, traveled to Great Britain to escape it all. Once there, he competed for and qualified for the 1984 Olympics in swimming - Cliff gave it up to return home and eventually would be led to Ba’al from Stargate: Atlantis & SG-1, Stargate: Continuum, 24, Operation Delta Force 5: Random Fire, Nash Bridges and Egoli, Place of Gold – joins the hosts of the Sunday Night Conversation on Blogtalkradio’s: the Star Trek channel!
For questions: radio@noriega.biz Show call-in #: 347-215-6508
Contact:
Roger D. Noriega
323-566-5925
Fax 323-357-3868
www.blogtalkradio.com/StarTrek
‘Battlestar Galactica’ Won’t be Bryan Singer’s Next Film
Bryan Singer eyeing the directors chair of 'X-Men: First Class'
Bryan Singer (Superman Returns / X-Men) will be directing a Battlestar Galactica feature film for Universal Pictures, but not yet.
It seems his next directing effort will most likely be a remake of Jack the Giant Killer for New Line and Legendary Pictures, a version of the Jack and the Beanstalk ...
‘The Wolfman’ Trailer and Images
Universal Pictures has released their first trailer and a batch of new images for its upcoming remake of the 1961 film The Wolfman.
Check them out after the jump.
Spoiler Warning – This is one film where the synopsis and the trailer really give away the whole film.
The Wolfman is directed by Joe Johnston (Jurassic Park 3 / Hidalgo) and stars Benicio Del Toro as Lawrence Talbot, a haunted nobleman who returns to his ...
Gillian Anderson Talks X-Files 3
Gillian Anderson made an appearance at the Sarajevo Film Festival where she spoke briefly about the "X-Files" and whether there is any potential of a third feature film.
"They talked about maybe doing it in 2012," she said. "I think there were discussions about that. I don't know whether that's going to happen or not, but there isn't any reason not to do it. It was fun, it was hard work. I feel a certain commitment to that group of people that I worked with and we still enjoy doing it, when we do it. There is no reason why not to come together and do it again. If they can pull it off, we'll find some reason to make it."
The first "X-Files" film was released back in 1998 and earned almost $190 million in worldwide ticket sales. Last year's sequel barely made $68 million, but it still more than doubled its budget.
A Ton of Images From ‘Avatar’
If you’ve viewed the teaser trailer to James Cameron’s Avatar in anything less than 1080p quality, I highly recommend taking another look. After viewing it many more times, I am convinced anything less than the best quality doesn’t do it justice.
I also recommend suspending all expectations that the hype machine may have instilled in you before you watch or rewatch the trailer. Give it a chance on its own merits. My initial viewing was a ...
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Bruce Hopkins “Gamling in the Lord of the Rings” on NBD Radio
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
In Association with Marc B. Lee Enterprises
And
NDB Media (NDB Radio),
On August 23, 2009 @ 7:00 P.M. PDT:
Bruce Hopkins, Gamling in the Lord of the Rings, Jubilee, This is not a Love Story, Warm Gun, Hercules: The Legendary Journeys, Xena: The Warrior Princess, Young Hercules, The Westside Story, Peter Pan, Romeo & Juliet and much more – joins the hosts of the Sunday Night Conversation on Blogtalkradio’s: the Star Trek channel!
For questions: radio@noriega.biz Show call-in #: 347-215-6508
Contact:
Roger D. Noriega
323-566-5925
Fax 323-357-3868
www.blogtalkradio.com/StarTrek
Showing Off the 'Nanosuit 2' in 'Crysis 2'
Crytek have released an awesome new trailer (with superb music) for Crysis 2 that promotes their second generation Nanosuit, the ‘Nanosuit 2′. I apologise for over-use of the term “cool” in this article…
Players of Crysis and Crysis Warhead won’t need any introduction to the suit, but if you do, the short version is the Nanosuit is what provides the player the enhanced capabilities necessary to tackle the many obstacles of the game.
Watch the trailer after the jump.
Crytek have also launched a website that promotes the company that developed the suit – Crynet Systems. Visit it here where you can also download a pretty cool brochure and see other related goodies.
But wait, there’s more. Check out this incredible life sized version of the Nanosuit 2 that was on display at Gamescon. Can I say “cool” again?
According to Game trailers, Crysis 2 will be available on PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360. A release date hasn’t yet been given.
Report: Microsoft, Yahoo, Amazon to Fight Google Book Deal
Microsoft, Amazon.com and Yahoo plan to join a consortium to fight a proposed settlement Google has made with authors and publishers over its Google Book Search service, according to a report published in The New York Times.
The coalition, which is being formed by the Internet Archive and tentatively called the Open Book Alliance, will be announced in the next couple of weeks, according to the news report. It plans to oppose the agreement in briefs to the court and tell the U.S. Department of Justice that the deal is anticompetitive.
Some library associations and groups representing authors also plan to join the coalition, according to the report.
Report: Microsoft, Yahoo, Amazon to Fight Google Book Deal - PC World
Evidence life can exist elsewhere in universe
Thought I would post this again, this is great news, I hope we do find life on other worlds, galaxies one day….it would be neat to see if there is someone else out there…
SCIENTISTS have uncovered fresh evidence that life could exist beyond Earth, with research published this week showing that comet dust contained traces of a compound vital to human existence.
Researchers probing dust and gas collected from the Wild 2 comet by NASA's Stardust spacecraft in 2004 found traces of the amino acid glycine, lending credence to idea that there is life elsewhere in the universe.
"The discovery of glycine in a comet supports the idea that the fundamental building blocks of life are prevalent in space, and strengthens the argument that life in the universe may be common rather than rare," said Carl Pilcher, one of the space agency's top astrobiologists.
Jamie Elsila, lead author of the report, which was published in the journal Meteoritics and Planetary Science, said the findings also support the idea that the material elements of human life may have come from space.
"Our discovery supports the theory that some of life's ingredients formed in space and were delivered to Earth long ago by meteorite and comet impacts," she said.
The group's final findings confirm suspicions that the amino acid – which creates the proteins that form the building blocks of life – were not simply earth-sourced contamination.
"We discovered that the stardust-returned glycine has an extraterrestrial carbon isotope signature, indicating that it originated on the comet," said Elsila.
Twenty different amino acids are arranged to build the millions of different proteins that make up everything from hair to enzymes, NASA said.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
A Glimpse at Whiplash’s Armor From ‘Iron Man 2′?
(Left) Whiplash concept artwork from Marvel's four issue minisieries 'Iron Man vs Whiplash', (Right) Mickey Rourke as an early Whiplash in 'Iron Man 2'
This November Marvel will release a four issue miniseries from writers Brannon Bragga & Marc Guggenheim titled Iron Man vs Whiplash.
Today artwork related to the miniseries by artist Marko Djurdjevic was posted on
‘Smallville’: First Look at Brian Austin Green as Metallo
Brian Austin Green as Metallo in 'Smallville'
The above image is our first look at Brian Austin Green as the cyborg Metallo in the ninth season of Smallville.
Green will appear in a two-episode arc that begins with the season 9 opening episode, ‘Savior’. He plays John Corben, a new Daily Planet reporter who, in the aftermath of an accident, becomes the villain Metallo, a cyborg with a heart ...
‘Battle: Los Angeles’ Release Date Announced
Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, Michael Pena, Bridget Moynahan
Columbia Pictures has announced the release date for their Black Hawk Down meets 28 Days Later sci-fi alien invasion actioner Battle: Los Angeles: February 18, 2011.
The Jonathan Liebesman (Darkness Falls / The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning / The Killing Room) directed film stars Aaron ...
Monday, August 17, 2009
Woman Pregnant With 12 Babies
(MYFOX NATIONAL) - A Tunisian woman is pregnant with 12 fetuses and set to give birth to all 12 babies later this month, according to the Daily Mail .
The unnamed mother-to-be, who is a teacher, is apparently defying medical advice by vowing to give birth to all 12 babies -- six girls and six boys.
Her husband, who teaches at the same Tunisian school, has said the couple has been blessed by the pregnancy. They turned to fertility treatment after suffering two miscarriages in two years.
Fertility experts said that although it is possible for a woman to conceive 12 babies, it is very risky and there is a very good chance that none of the babies will survive.
Do more alien craft visit Earth when X-Files is on television?
It has long been debated whether UFO sightings are just a figment of the imagination or really happen.
But scrutiny of the latest X-files released by the Ministry of Defence suggests an association between what people think they might have seen and what they were actually seeing - on television or at the cinema.
From aliens with lemon-shaped heads to laser beams being shot to Earth, the MoD and The National Archives have released details of sightings from 1981 to 1996.
But many of the UFO reports in this tranche were filed in 1996, the year in which the television show The X-Files was growing in popularity and Hollywood blockbuster Independence Day was released.
Experts believe this goes some way to explaining a spike in UFO sightings - from 117 in 1995 to 609 in 1996, according to MoD statistics.
Dr David Clarke, a UFO expert and journalism lecturer at Sheffield Hallam University, said: "It's evident there is some connection between newspaper stories, TV programmes and films about alien visitors and the numbers of UFO sightings reported to the MoD.
"Aside from 1996, one of the busiest years for UFO sightings reported to the MoD over the past half century was 1978 - the year Close Encounters of the Third Kind was released.
"Obviously, films and TV programmes raise public awareness of UFOs and it's fascinating to see how that appears to lead more people to report what they see to the authorities."
However, the staggering number of reports released could leave even some sceptics wondering if we are not alone anymore.
UFO sightings have brought notoriety for the town of Bonnybridge near Falkirk.
The newly-released documents refer to numerous sightings over Scotland, and Bonnybridge became the UFO hotspot of the mid-90s.
But up and down the country there have been more notable encounters including that of two young boys in Staffordshire claiming one alien told them: "We want you, come with us," after appearing from under a hovering UFO.
The boys, faces glowing from the heat of the "spaceship", ran for their lives and reported the incident to police.
It is just one of countless mysterious reports released as part of a three-year project between the MoD and The National Archives, aimed at opening up the records to a worldwide audience.
This fourth instalment consists of 14 files of sightings, letters and parliamentary questions.
Bonnybridge's notoriety as a UFO hotspot started in 1992 when James Walker saw a sparkling star-shaped object hovering above the road.
The area, which is now dubbed The Falkirk Triangle, draws large numbers of alien spotters every year. Tourist officials claim Scotland has the highest concentration of reported sightings of UFOs of any country.
The Falkirk Triangle has an average of 300 sightings a year and of the 7000 residents of Bonnybridge, 2000 claim to have seen unexplained phenomena.
The records feature papers relating to the famous "Rendlesham Forest" sightings, often described as "Britain's Roswell".
Other highlights include:
IBM uses DNA to make next-gen microchips
San Francisco: International Business Machines Corp (IBM.N) is looking to the building blocks of our bodies -- DNA -- to be the structure of next-generation microchips. As chipmakers compete to develop ever-smaller chips at cheaper prices, designers are struggling to cut costs. Artificial DNA ...
Hmm I am thinking can cylons be for real, when I saw the title on this article I so read it, and it has some convincing arguments that this is the way of the future. I think one day a machine will be built for man to use at his disposable like in iRobot….
Writer Hired to Pen ‘Spider-Man 5′ and ‘Spider-Man 6′
Spider-Man 4 has yet to enter production but that hasn’t stopped Sony Pictures Entertainment from hiring screenwriter James Vanderbilt to pen Spider-Man 5 and Spider-Man 6.
Both Spider-Man 5 and Spider-Man 6 will have an interconnected storyline. Word is Vanderbilt’s original Spider-Man 4 script was also to be connected to Spider-Man 5, but the idea was scrapped due to the logistics of filming the fourth and fifth films back to back.
Patton Oswalt cast in 'Caprica'
Comedian Patton Oswalt has been cast in Syfy’s Battlestar Galactica prequel Caprica.
Oswalt, who briefly appeared in episode 7 of Dollhouse and who is well known for long stints on The King of Queens and more recently Reno 911!, will play a recurring character named Baxter Sarno, a popular Caprican comedian talk show host.
Caprica is currently in production in Vancouver and will premiere Friday, January 22nd ...
Claudette makes landfall in Florida Panhandle
Meanwhile, Ana and Bill swirl across the Atlantic toward the Caribbean
PENSACOLA BEACH, Fla. - Claudette came ashore along the Florida coast early Monday, becoming the first tropical storm to strike the U.S. mainland this year after having already dumped heavy rain in some areas.
The storm was expected to weaken after hitting the eastern end of Santa Rosa Island at 1:10 a.m. ET, the National Hurricane Center said in a statement.
Claudette earlier had winds of at least 50 mph, but was not expected to cause significant flooding or wind damage. Lurking more ominously was Tropical Storm Bill, which was expected to turn into a hurricane Monday as it moves over warm waters in the open Atlantic.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Denton County deputies seize 76 starving horses from ranch
The horses ran across the bare, arid ground and up to the fence Friday morning when they saw people standing near their empty food buckets. They were Arabians, starving and emaciated. And they were being rescued by Denton County sheriff's deputies.
The 17 horses in stalls inside the barn looked even worse. Their feed buckets had long been empty, and no fresh water was in sight. With their ribs sticking out, they flinched at the bites of numerous flies, flicking their tangled manes and tails. They stood in 4 to 6 inches of their own waste, trying to avoid pools of their own urine.
Even so, they walked up to the barred windows when someone approached and put their muzzles up to the bars to be petted.
These were the horses of Renezans Arabians, a ranch southwest of Pilot Point.
Driver Fiddling With iPod Plows Into 2 Women, Killing 1
A 20-year-old motorist fiddling with her iPod as she drove in suburban Philadelphia struck two best friends coming out of a hospital, killing one of them.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Arrest Warrant Out For Bobby Brown
It’s kind of ironic that just as things are looking up for Whitney Houston with the Aug. 31 release of her comeback album, her ex-husband Bobby Brown finds himself with a warrant out for his arrest. The next time Brown is caught in Massachusetts he’ll find himself arrested, according to an order ...
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Microsoft Outlook on its way to Macs
Microsoft has released details of an application it is creating to let businesses equipped with Apple Macintosh computers use the software giant's Outlook email program. Outlook for Mac will next year replace Entourage software offered for Apple computers, says Microsoft's Macintosh business unit ...
wow what great news from Microsoft…
Controller in fatal midair crash placed on leave
FAA says the air traffic controller was inappropriately talking on the phone
WASHINGTON - The air traffic controller responsible for handling the airplane involved in Saturday's fatal midair collision with a helicopter over the Hudson River was put on administrative leave Thursday after investigators said he was involved in “apparently inappropriate conversations on the telephone at the time of the accident.”
The crash killed all nine people aboard both aircraft, including three people from a Pennsylvania family on the plane and five Italian tourists and a pilot on the helicopter. The collision, in broad daylight on a clear weekend afternoon, has led some officials to call for greater regulation of the busy airspace surrounding the Manhattan and New Jersey waterfronts.
The FAA said in a statement Thursday that disciplinary proceedings have begun against the controller and his supervisor, who was not present in the building as required.
Paris, TX Honors Fallen Marine
Paris, TX Honors Fallen Marine
The body of 24-year-old Marine Sgt. Jay Hoskins has returned to Paris, Texas. Hoskins died last week with two fellow Marines when a roadside bomb exploded in Farah province. See how his hometown is honoring him now, on myfoxdfw.com Watch Now
Dean Haglund possible The Lone Gunman return?
Yes that’s right I had the opportunity to be a host on NBD radio channel at BlogTalkRadio/StarTrek and what an interview it was. I want to say thank you for Dean giving us the opportunity to interview him and give us a little insight into his world, please listen to the podcast as he told us many cool things about his time in the x files, the lone gunman and many other projects he has done in the past as well as the future. He went on to say when asked the question about a possible Lone Gunmen in a movie, he said that it was; listen to podcast here: Dean Haglund
Check out a great new invention that Dean develop:
and podcast that Dean does once a week,
http://www.chillpakhollywood.com/
Dean is probably best known for his nine seasons playing Langly, one of the computer geeks known as "The Lone Gunmen" from the hit FOX TV series The X-Files. He also starred in the The X-Files spin-off series The Lone Gunmen. His character is so popular that Dean is a main attraction at X-File and Sci-Fi conventions all over North America. He appears on trading cards, T-Shirts and even has his own comic book ("The Lone Gunman" published by Dark Horse Comics). A long-time comedy improviser, Dean got his start with the likes of Ryan Stiles and Colin Mockerie (Whose Line is it Anyway?) in the internationally award winning Vancouver Theatre Sports League. He now regularly performs in Los Angeles with The Groundlings and Second City. Catch him nearly every Friday night at The Friar's club where he performs with Second City alumni such as Dan Castellaneta (Homer on The Simpsons). Dean performs his special blend of stand-up and improv, headlining at comedy clubs and colleges across North America. He has performed in and hosted at Montreal's world famous Just for Laughs festival. He is a favorite host of award shows (Entertainment Media Awards, California Independent Film Festival, Armenian Independent Film Festival) and writes and performs for corporations such as Coca Cola, Hewlett Packard, Apple Computers and Mitsubishi. His home comedy club is the world famous The Improv in Los Angeles, where he can be seen most weeks. Dean maintains a successful acting career in film and television. His television credits include roles in the series "VIP Pamela Anderson", "Home Improvement" "The Commish," "Sliders," "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids," the animated series "Robocop" and "The Big Guy." His feature film credits include "The X-Files: Fight the Future" "Radio Free Steve", "Design of Darkness", "Rice Girl" and the animated feature film "Tom Sawyer." Dean Haglund trained at Simon Fraser University, where he received a Bachelors in Fine and Performing Arts.
Veteran actor Richard Hatch of Battlestar Galactica
NEWS RELEASE:
Los Angeles, California, August 12, 2009 -
Veteran actor Richard Hatch of Battlestar Galactica, The Streets of San Francisco and All My Children – just to name a few – will be live on NDB Radio on August 17, 2009 @ 7:00 P.M. Pacific Daylight Time!
The guest star of numerous television programs, such as: Dynasty, T.J. Hooker and MacGyver; along with his feature film credits: The Jungle, Party Line, Charlie Chan and the Curse of the Dragon Queen – will be live with the hosts of NDB Radio’s: science fiction program.
August 17, 2009 @ 7:00 P.M.
www.blogtalkradio.com/StarTrek
Contacts: Roger Noriega
323-566-5925
Fax 323-357-3868
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
TV Academy: All Emmys to be presented live
LOS ANGELES - The television academy is scrapping its "time-shifting" plans and will present all 28 Emmy Awards during the September telecast.
The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences announced last month that it would pre-tape eight awards presentations and acceptance speeches, including some in the writing category.
Members of the Writers Guild of America blasted the academy for the plan in a letter signed by some of the top TV show runners.
Satellites Unlock Secret to Northern India's Vanishing Water
WASHINGTON -- Using NASA satellite data, scientists have found that groundwater levels in northern India have been declining by as much as one foot per year over the past decade. Researchers concluded the loss is almost entirely due to human activity.
More than 26 cubic miles of groundwater disappeared from aquifers in areas of Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan and the nation's capitol territory of Delhi, between 2002 and 2008. This is enough water to fill Lake Mead, the largest manmade reservoir in the United States, three times.
A team of hydrologists led by Matt Rodell of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., found that northern India's underground water supply is being pumped and consumed by human activities, such as irrigating cropland, and is draining aquifers faster than natural processes can replenish them. The results of this research were published today in Nature.
The finding is based on data from NASA's Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), a pair of satellites that sense changes in Earth's gravity field and associated mass distribution, including water masses stored above or below Earth's surface. As the twin satellites orbit 300 miles above Earth's surface, their positions change relative to each other in response to variations in the pull of gravity.
Changes in underground water masses affect gravity enough to provide a signal that can be measured by the GRACE spacecraft. After accounting for other mass variations, such changes in gravity are translated into an equivalent change in water.
"Using GRACE satellite observations, we can observe and monitor water storage changes in critical areas of the world, from one month to the next, without leaving our desks," said study co-author Isabella Velicogna of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., and the University of California, Irvine.
Groundwater comes from the natural percolation of precipitation and other surface waters down through Earth’s soil and rock, accumulating in cavities and layers of porous rock, gravel, sand or clay. Groundwater levels respond slowly to changes in weather and can take months or years to replenish once pumped for irrigation or other uses.
Data provided by India's Ministry of Water Resources to the NASA-funded researchers suggested groundwater use across India was exceeding natural replenishment, but the regional rate of depletion was unknown. Rodell and colleagues analyzed six years of monthly GRACE data for northern India to produce a time series of water storage changes beneath the land surface.
"We don't know the absolute volume of water in the northern Indian aquifers, but GRACE provides strong evidence that current rates of water extraction are not sustainable," said Rodell. "The region has become dependent on irrigation to maximize agricultural productivity. If measures are not taken to ensure sustainable groundwater usage, the consequences for the 114 million residents of the region may include a collapse of agricultural output and severe shortages of potable water."
Researchers examined data and models of soil moisture, lake and reservoir storage, vegetation and glaciers in the nearby Himalayas in order to confirm that the apparent groundwater trend was real. The loss is particularly alarming because it occurred when there were no unusual trends in rainfall. In fact, rainfall was slightly above normal for the period. The only influence they couldn't rule out was human.
"For the first time, we can observe water use on land with no additional ground-based data collection," said co-author James Famiglietti of the University of California, Irvine. "This is critical because in many developing countries, where hydrological data are both sparse and hard to access, space-based methods provide perhaps the only opportunity to assess changes in fresh water availability across large regions."
GRACE is a partnership between NASA and the German Aerospace Center, DLR. The University of Texas Center for Space Research in Austin has overall GRACE mission responsibility. GRACE was launched in 2002.
For more information, please visit:
http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/india_water.html
For more information about NASA and agency programs, visit:
NASA Can't Keep Up With Killer Asteroids
WASHINGTON — NASA is charged with seeking out nearly all the asteroids that threaten Earth, but a new federal report says the space agency doesn't have the money to do the job.
Although Congress assigned the space agency this mission four years ago, the National Academy of Sciences says it never gave NASA money to build the necessary telescopes.
Even so, NASA says it's completed about one-third of its assignment with its current telescope system.
Click here for FOXNews.com's Space Center
Disaster movies like "Armageddon" and near misses in previous years may have scared people and alerted them to a serious issue. But when it comes to doing something about monitoring the threat, the academy concludes "there has been relatively little effort by the U.S. government."
And, according to the report, the U.S. government is practically the only government doing anything at all.
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