2008: Mar 7th Good News (Anthrax Biosensor Developed; Last Known US WWI survivor honored, more...)

Good morning readers,
Today I have a wide variety of articles. One article in particular I am fond of is the first one about the Anthrax, and small pox biosensor. This is great news to me because as a military member I feel that I may be safer soon, once the military acquires this technology for its use.

Also, today I have tried to incorporate pictures. If they work, yippee! I'll keep it up, if not, then I'll have to try something else.

Anyway, enjoy today's picks!



Today's Top 5:
1. Bio-Sensor Quickly Detects Anthrax, Smallpox And Other Pathogens (Science Daily)
2. Traffic Stop Leads to Discovery of 6,700 Pounds of Marijuana (Fox News)
3. Low-cost Reusable Material Could Capture Carbon Dioxide from Power Plants (Environmental News Network)
4. Bush Honors Last Known WWI Survivor (Seattle Times)
5. Mother Gives Birth to Healthy Baby Hours After Being Run Over by Her Own Car (Daily Mail)




Honorable Mentions:
1. Mass. Firefighters Save Woman From Choking (Firerescue1.com)
2. Rare White Killer Whale Spotted in Alaskan Waters From NOAA Ship (NOAA News)
3. Brazilian boy surprises lawyers by passing law school entrance test (CBC Canada)
4. In New Effort, U.S. Army Divers Help NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries Remove Marine Debris and Support Fish Research (NOAA News)
5. S.Koreans Can Drive to Mt. Kumgang Starting This Month (Chosun Ilbo)






Today's Top 5:

1. Bio-Sensor Quickly Detects Anthrax, Smallpox And Other Pathogens
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080304120746.htm
ScienceDaily (Mar. 7, 2008)

Researchers at MIT Lincoln Laboratory have developed a powerful sensor that can detect airborne pathogens such as anthrax and smallpox in less than three minutes.
The new device, called PANTHER (for PAthogen Notification for THreatening Environmental Releases), represents a "significant advance" over any other sensor, said James Harper of Lincoln Lab's Biosensor and Molecular Technologies Group. Current sensors take at least 20 minutes to detect harmful bacteria or viruses in the air, but the PANTHER sensors can do detection and identification in less than 3 minutes.
The technology has been licensed to Innovative Biosensors, Inc. (IBI) of Rockville, Md. In January, IBI began selling a product, BioFlash, that uses the PANTHER technology.
"There is a real need to detect a pathogen in less than three minutes, so you have time to take action before it is too late," said Harper, the lead scientist developing the sensor.
The PANTHER sensor uses a cell-based sensor technology known as CANARY (after the birds sent into mines to detect dangerous gases), and can pick up a positive reading with only a few dozen particles per liter of air.
The device could be used in buildings, subways and other public areas, and can currently detect 24 pathogens, including anthrax, plague, smallpox, tularemia and E. coli.
"There's really nothing out there that compares with this," said Todd Rider of Lincoln Lab's Biosensor and Molecular Technologies Group, who invented the CANARY sensor technology.
Rider started developing CANARY in 1997 when he realized that there were no sensors available that could rapidly detect pathogens. His idea was to take advantage of nature's own defense system--specifically the B cells that target pathogens in the human body. "B cells in the body are very fast and very sensitive," Rider said.
The CANARY concept uses an array of B cells, each specific to a particular bacterium or virus. The cells are engineered to emit photons of light when they detect their target pathogen. The device then displays a list of any pathogens found.
CANARY is the only sensor that makes use of immune cells. Other available sensors are based on immunoassays or PCR (polymerase chain reaction), which take much longer and/or are not as sensitive as CANARY.
Rider and colleagues first reported the success of CANARY (which stands for Cellular Analysis and Notification of Antigen Risks and Yields) in the journal Science in 2003. Since then, they have been working to incorporate the technology into a portable device that could be used in a variety of settings where environmental threats might exist.
The new device, PANTHER, takes the CANARY technology and combines it with an air sampler that brings pathogens into contact with the detector cells. The prototype sensor is about a cubic foot and weighs 37 pounds and is well suited to building-protection applications. With minor modifications it could also enhance biological detection capabilities for emergency responders.
CANARY has been tested in rural and coastal environments as well as urban ones. It could eventually be used on farms or in food-processing plants to test for contamination by E. coli, salmonella, or other food-borne pathogens.
Another potential application is in medical diagnostics, where the technology could be used to test patient samples, giving rapid results without having to send samples to a laboratory.
"Instead of going to the doctor's office and waiting a few days for your test results, with CANARY you could get the results in just a minute or so," said Rider.
The research on PANTHER was funded by the Defense Threat Reduction Agency.




2. Traffic Stop Leads to Discovery of 6,700 Pounds of Marijuana

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,335873,00.html
Friday, March 07, 2008

A policeman stands watch over bales of marijuana, each marked with its weight and stacked in the living room of an Indiana home.FORT WAYNE, Ind. — A man is being held without bond in the Allen County Lockup after police say they seized more than 6,000 pounds of marijuana from his rented home.
Sheriff Ken Fries says the drugs seized Thursday could have a street value of more than $6 million.
Twenty-nine-year-old Matthew McChesney was arrested after police stopped him for speeding Wednesday. Police say they found more than 10 pounds of marijuana and about $100,000 in cash in his car.
Police obtained a warrant and searched a home rented by McChesney in Harlan early Thursday morning. Harlan is 14 miles northeast of Fort Wayne.
Police say they found about 6,700 pounds of marijuana wrapped in large plastic bricks filling the basement.
McChesney faces preliminary charges of dealing marijuana and possession of marijuana. Police say McChesney likely also will face federal charges.




3. Low-cost Reusable Material Could Capture Carbon Dioxide from Power Plants
http://www.enn.com/sci-tech/article/32468March 7, 2008 09:15 amResearchers have developed a new, low-cost material for capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) from the smokestacks of coal-fired power plants and other generators of the greenhouse gas. Produced with a simple one-step chemical process, the new material has a high capacity for absorbing carbon dioxide — and can be reused many times.
Combined with improved heat management techniques, the new material could provide a cost-effective way to capture large quantities of carbon dioxide from coal-burning facilities. Existing CO2 capture techniques involve the use of solid materials that lack sufficient stability for repeated use — or liquid adsorbents that are expensive and require significant amounts of energy.
“This is something that you could imagine scaling up for commercial use,” said Christopher Jones, a professor in the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at the Georgia Institute of Technology. “Our material has the combination of high capacity, easy synthesis, low cost and a robust ability to be recycled — all the key criteria for an adsorbent that would be used on an industrial scale.”




4. Bush Honors Last Known WWI Survivor
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/entertainment/2004266186_eye07.html
Friday, March 7, 2008 - Page updated at 12:00 AM

Frank Woodruff Buckles, 107, was honored as the last known surviving American-born veteran of World War I.People
Calling it a high honor, President Bush on Thursday warmly greeted 107-year-old Frank Woodruff Buckles, described by the White House as the last known surviving American-born veteran of World War I.
"Mr. Buckles' mind is sharp, his memory is crisp, and he's been sharing with me some interesting anecdotes," Bush said in the Oval Office. Buckles, in a wheelchair to Bush's right, sat quietly with his hands clasped as the president spoke during a short photo opportunity.
Eager to get in the Army in 1917, Buckles, who was born in 1901, lied to a military recruiter about his age and enlisted at the start of the U.S. involvement in the war. He served in the U.S., Britain, Germany and France. By 1920, he was discharged with the rank of corporal.




5. Mother Gives Birth to Healthy Baby Hours After Being Run Over by Her Own Car
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23450287-details/Mother+gives+birth+to+healthy+baby+hours+after+being+run+over+by+her+own+car/article.doLast updated at 14:37pm on 07.03.08

A woman gave birth to a healthy baby girl just hours after being run over by her own car when she jumped from the vehicle to escape a goods lorry.
Lucy Brake, 27, who was eight-and-a-half-months pregnant, was waiting in the car when the lorry careered into its side and began to drag it down the road.
Fearing for her life, and that of her unborn child, she tried to leap from the moving vehicle but was caught by the open door and pushed under its wheels.
Despite it going over her legs and pelvis, Mrs Brake escaped with a few bruises and gave birth to daughter Amelia by emergency caesarean later the same day.
The goods lorry had been trying to turn left into a side-street in Henley-on-Thames when it struck her Volkswagen Golf as she waited for her husband to finish the shopping.
It dragged the car some 20 metres down the street before Mrs Brake, from Henley, had a chance to act.
As it picked up speed and the car started to buckle, she decided the only thing for it was to jump and hope she and her baby survived.
She said "It all happened so quickly. After the collision I realised the car was being dragged by the lorry, and then I heard it buckling and breaking.
"I had to make a decision. I thought the lorry might pick up speed and I decided to get out."
Following the accident, witnesses, including a doctor, raced to her aid and two ambulances attended the scene.
Police cordoned off the road, which remained closed for several hours.
The new mother said that during the whole terrifying episode, the only thought she had was for the safety of her unborn child.
"I remember being terrified about my baby. I was screaming in the street, making sure people knew I was pregnant," she said.
She was rushed to the Royal Berkshire Hospital in Reading where they successful delivered the healthy 7lb 2oz baby.
A spokesperson for One Stop, owners of the lorry involved in the collision, said they would hold an investigation into the crash.





Honorable Mentions:

1. Mass. Firefighters Save Woman From Choking
http://www.firerescue1.com/fire-ems/articles/387884/
March 06, 2008
By Damien Fisher The Sentinel & Enterprise

FITCHBURG, Mass. — Firefighters saved a 70-year-old woman choking on her lunch, according to Acting Deputy Chief Brian Belliveau.
Firefighters Dante Suarez and P.J. Roy responded to the community room at the housing complex at 350 Water St., for a report of a woman choking, Belliveau said. Roy found the woman lying on the floor and unresponsive. "She was completely blue," Roy said.
The woman began choking on her chicken and rice lunch, and the janitor tried performing the Heimlich maneuver, but it did not stop her choking, Roy said.
Fitchburg Police Officer Keith Bourne was first to the scene after the 911 call and helped the janitor get the woman from her chair to the floor, Roy said.
Roy and Suarez then put the woman back in the chair so they could try the Heimlich again, Roy said.
"I did (the Heimlich) two times, and then (Suarez) cleared her throat," Roy said.
The woman began making a rapid recovery soon after the firefighters cleared her throat, Roy said. She regained consciousness and was speaking by the time she was placed in the ambulance, Roy said.
Roy refused to take sole credit for the rescue, saying he was helped by Suarez and Bourne.
"It was a team effort," Roy said.
Roy joined the Fitchburg Fire Department in 2006 after spending about six years as a firefighter in Shirley. This is the first time he has performed the Heimlich maneuver.
Most choking patients do not require the Heimlich, Belliveau said. "I know from experience, it is not common," Belliveau said.
"Choking patients often do not have their airways completely blocked, allowing rescue workers time to get them to the hospital," Belliveau said. "When the airway is completely blocked, firefighters and EMTs must work quickly," he said. "In this case, it had to be done."
"The woman's blue skin and the fact she was not responsive indicated her breathing system was failing because of the blockage," said Belliveau.
These situations are what firefighters and EMTs train for. "We were just doing our jobs," Roy said.





2. Rare White Killer Whale Spotted in Alaskan Waters From NOAA Ship
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080306_whiteorca.htmlOscar Dyson March 6, 2008
Scientists aboard the NOAA research vessel Oscar Dyson in the North Pacific have sighted a creature of great rarity and even myth: a white whale.
The white killer whale was spotted with its pod about two miles off Kanaga Volcano, part of Alaska’s Aleutian Islands, on February 23. At the time, Kodiak-based Oscar Dyson was on a research expedition for NOAA’s Alaska Fisheries Science Center, assessing pollock fish stocks near Steller sea lion haulout sites.
The white whale is a fish-eating type of killer whale, as were all the killer whales photographed on the expedition. Fish-eating killer whales are the most frequently seen whales around the Aleutian Islands during the summer. The winter sightings represent important evidence that they may be common year-round.
Holly Fearnbach, a research biologist at NOAA’s National Marine Mammal Laboratory in Seattle, was able to photograph the whale’s white fin and back. “With hundreds of killer whales documented around the Aleutian Islands, this was equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack,” she said.
“Despite the typical stormy weather that makes research operations very difficult in the winter, the scientific team on Oscar Dyson has been pulling in a huge amount of planned research data,” said Alaska Fisheries Science Center director Doug DeMaster. “Extraordinary sightings like this white whale are icing on the cake.”
Few white killer whales have ever been seen, according to Fearnbach, much less scientifically documented.
This whale is likely not a true albino because it still has signs of darker pigmented areas on its body. However, because of its prominent coloring, the white whale serves as an indicator for movements of killer whales in the North Pacific.
White killer whales have been sighted previously in the Aleutian Islands as well as in the Bering Sea and off the Russian coast. Scientists are working to confirm whether or not the whale sighted Feb. 23 is the same animal as any of those previous seen.
Besides fish and marine mammal researchers from the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, Oscar Dyson also carried a bird observer from the US Fish and Wildlife Service. All added to scientific knowledge about the marine ecosystem of the Aleutian Islands in winter.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.



3. Brazilian boy surprises lawyers by passing law school entrance test
http://www.cbc.ca/cp/Oddities/080306/K03069AU.html
Published: Thursday, March 6, 2008 8:05 PM ET
Canadian Press: Tales Azzoni, THE ASSOCIATED PRESSSAO PAULO, Brazil -

An eight-year-old boy with dreams of becoming a judge has passed a law school entrance exam, shocking Brazil's legal profession and prompting a federal investigation.
The Universidade Paulista, a multi-campus private university, issued a statement acknowledging that Joao Victor Portellinha de Oliveira had passed the entrance exam and that it initially enrolled him. But he was turned away from classes when he showed up on Thursday with his father.
The school said that the fifth grader has to graduate from high school before he can enter the university.
The university said one of its employees erred in accepting Oliveira's enrolment and said it would return his fees to the family.
"I think they should have been more considerate," the boy's mother, Maristela, told the UOL news website. "At least they should've allowed him to visit the college's facilities."
The Brazilian Bar Association said the boy's achievement should be a warning about the low standards of some of the country's law schools.
Continue Article
Education Minister Fernando Haddad expressed concern and said he had ordered an investigation.
Oliveira is two grade levels ahead of normal for his age, but his mother says he's not a cloistered genius.
"He is a regular boy," she told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper. "He is very dedicated, likes to read and study, but he has fun and makes friends."
The school earlier said the "student's performance, considering his age and level of education, was good, especially in the essay test, which revealed his good capacity to express himself and handle the language."
"My dream is to be a federal judge," the boy said, according to Globo TV's website. "So I decided to take the test to see how I would do ... It was easy. I studied a week before the test."
Brazil requires every student to take an entrance exam before being admitted to college. Each university administers its own test, and the exams from private institutions are usually considered to be easier than those of public universities, which are free and attract more candidates.
University officials said they could not release figures on the number of people who pass and fail the law school entrance exam.



4. In New Effort, U.S. Army Divers Help NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries Remove Marine Debris and Support Fish Research
http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories2008/20080306_divers.html
March 6, 2008

NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and the U.S. Army Dive Company are joining forces this month to repair buoy moorings, remove trash from dive sites, and install listening devices to track fish in national marine sanctuaries off Florida and Georgia.
Supported by 130 Army divers, the three week pilot project is currently underway in Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, and will begin in mid-March in Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary off the Georgia coast.
“This pilot program will be extremely helpful by applying military capabilities to support ongoing civilian efforts in preserving and protecting valuable marine resources found in the sanctuaries,” said Daniel J. Basta, director of NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries.
"We hope that this is the beginning of a long-standing relationship with NOAA. We can provide NOAA with needed engineer diving support and they provide us with real world missions to keep the U.S. Army Dive Company trained and ready for deployment around the world in support of the Global War on Terror,” said Capt. Charles Denike, commander, U.S. Army Dive Company.
In the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, NOAA and Army divers will assist the Sanctuary Mooring Buoy Program, which is responsible for managing a system of more than 700 buoys throughout the Florida Keys Sanctuary. Tasks for this dive team will include inspecting, maintaining, repairing, and installing mooring buoys located around the area of Key West.
In addition, the dive team will conduct several dives to remove marine debris from two popular Florida Keys shipwreck dive sites, the Adolphus Busch and the Cayman Salvager, off Key West.
In the Gray's Reef Sanctuary, divers will focus on four projects installing acoustic receivers and field testing acoustic transmitters that will support sanctuary fish behavior research and monitoring. They will also install permanent marine debris monitoring transects and conduct surveys along them. The acoustic receivers will enable Gray’s Reef scientists to track the movements of specially tagged fish, such as grouper and snapper, among the diverse habitats within the sanctuary.
During this effort the U.S. Army Dive Company, based in Ft. Eustis, Va., will apply their dive time towards annual training and proficiency dive requirements. If the Army’s work in the sanctuaries proves successful this year, plans may expand to assist other sanctuaries in the future.
Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary protects 2,896 square nautical miles of critical marine habitat, including coral reef, hard bottom, sea grass meadows, mangrove communities and sand flats. NOAA and the state of Florida manage the sanctuary.
Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary is one of the largest near-shore live-bottom reefs off the southeastern United States, encompassing approximately 17 square miles off the Georgia coast. The sanctuary consists of a series of sandstone outcroppings and ledges up to eight feet in height, in a predominantly sandy, flat-bottomed sea floor. The live bottom and ledge habitat supports an abundant reef fish and invertebrate community.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, an agency of the U.S. Commerce Department, is dedicated to enhancing economic security and national safety through the prediction and research of weather and climate-related events and information service delivery for transportation, and by providing environmental stewardship of our nation's coastal and marine resources. Through the emerging Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS), NOAA is working with its federal partners, more than 70 countries and the European Commission to develop a global monitoring network that is as integrated as the planet it observes, predicts and protects.



5. S.Koreans Can Drive to Mt. Kumgang Starting This Month
http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200803/200803070024.html
Updated Mar. 7, 2008 0959 KST

South Koreans will be able to visit Mt. Kumgang in their own cars starting March 17. Hyundai Asan, which operates package tours to the scenic resort, has reached agreement with North Korea to allow South Korean tourists to cross the Demarcation Line and visit in their own cars. The company is currently taking reservations. Hyundai Asan decided to sell the private-car tours after customers complained about limitations they faced in group tours using a chartered bus. South Koreans will have to gather in Goseong by 11:30 a.m. to go to Mt. Kumgang in their own cars. They will cross the Demarcation Line through the South Korean Customs, Immigration and Quarantine Office at 1:30 p.m. and undergo inspection at North Korea’s CIQ office at 2:10 p.m. They arrive at a hotel in Mt. Kumgang at 3:30 p.m. However, due to the lack of parking facilities and driveways in Mt. Kumgang, cars will have to be left at the hotel. The three-day private-car tour product costs W340,000 (US $357.89) a head. Weekend tours are already booked until late May.