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Just Chat! / South Korea's new high tech product: cloned dogs
« on: 19/07/2008 18:19:35 »Quote
South Korea's new high tech product: cloned dogshttp://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20080717/tod-uk-korea-clones-dogs-life-b7e5c6f.html
SEOUL (Reuters) - Two South Korean labs are offering pet owners the chance to clone dogs, but for those looking to bring back a beloved beagle, be ready to wait in line and have plenty of cash on hand.
The Seoul-based labs -- one affiliated to RNL Bio Co and the other to Sooam Biotech Research Foundation -- are separated by about 30 km (20 miles) and bill themselves as the only places in the world where you can clone a cocker spaniel or retrieve a retriever, with costs running at about $50,000 (25,000 pounds) to $100,000.
But the labs are turning out far more copies of working dogs and endangered breeds than pets.
Customers such as South Korea's customs service have cloned a champion sniffer dog, seeing the option as a cost-effective way to produce candidates for expensive training programs.
The customs service estimates the cost at 60 million won (30,128 pounds) per clone. It costs about twice that to breed and train a normal sniffer dog, but only about 30 percent are good enough to make the grade, it said.
"This all came about from the question of how we could secure dogs with superior qualities at a low price," commissioner of the Korea Customs Service Hur Yong-suk said.
Not to ensure a consistent flavour then [].
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Just Chat! / LabRats (BBC TV comedy)
« on: 18/07/2008 17:18:51 »
Science themed comedy, mildly amusing,
only those of a certain age will get the musical references, e.g. Dr Bylirasyris, Dr Kyrtistyges, Dr Beenyman.
Lemon powered calculator
Defending the Lab from protesters http://www.bbc.co.uk/labrats/
only those of a certain age will get the musical references, e.g. Dr Bylirasyris, Dr Kyrtistyges, Dr Beenyman.
Lemon powered calculator
Defending the Lab from protesters http://www.bbc.co.uk/labrats/
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Just Chat! / Arsenic and Old Lace
« on: 17/07/2008 23:46:46 »Quote
Two elderly women befriended and then murdered homeless men in staged hit-and-run car crashes as part of a plot to collect millions of dollars in life insurance, a Los Angeles court heard yesterday.http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1582217/'Black-widows'-killed-men-for-insurance-money.html
[ You are not allowed to view attachments ]
Helen Golay, 77, and Olga Rutterschmidt, 75, have been dubbed "The Black Widows" for a scheme that allegedly involved taking out insurance policies on destitute men before drugging and killing them then masquerading as relatives to claim the money.
The women received nearly three million dollars in insurance pay-outs before their crimes were discovered, prosecutors said at the start of their trial.
"They made $2.8 million by murder - murder to collect life insurance benefits of two men who had nothing," Truc Do, the deputy district attorney, told the jury.
Plastic surgery is apparently very expensive in LA.
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Just Chat! / Is this the world's hottest curry?
« on: 14/07/2008 18:46:42 »Quote
A curry so hot it requires diners to sign a disclaimer before eating has been launched.
The Bombay Burner sees two of the world's hottest chillies, the Dorset Naga and the Scotch Bonnet, brought together for the lamb-based dish.
The Dorset Naga registers 1million on the Scoville Scale, which measures the spiciness of chillies – just one level down from the pepper spray used by US police.
http://www.metro.co.uk/news/article.html?in_article_id=211253&in_page_id=34&expand=true
Quote
FROM HOT TO NOT
Scoville Heat Units
Pure capsaicin: 15m to 16m
US Police-grade pepper spray: 5m
Dorset Naga: 923,000
Red Savina habanero: 577,000
Scotch bonnet: 100,000-325,000
Jamaican hot pepper: 100,000-200,000
Cayenne pepper: 30,000-50,000
Jalapeno pepper: 2,500-8,000
Tabasco sauce: 2,500
Pimento: 100 to 500
Bell pepper: 0
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/article700700.ece
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Just Chat! / R2-D2 type hologram (ish)
« on: 03/07/2008 20:01:59 »The spinning mirror will slice your veggies too []
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Just Chat! / Harnessing the untapped power of breast motion
« on: 27/06/2008 13:49:16 »Quote
Victoria's Circuit
Harnessing the untapped power of breast motion.
By Adrienne So
Posted Monday, June 23, 2008, at 4:10 PM ET
...Then one day recently I had an idea. As I rode public transportation to the office, my messenger bag slung uncomfortably across my chest, I thought, "Why not put the girls to work?" Human-powered devices are showing up everywhere, from Rotterdam's sustainable dance floor to human-powered gyms in Hong Kong. The time seemed perfect—perhaps even overdue!—for a bra that could harness the untapped power of breast motion...
Maybe it's not very sexy to see breasts as a pair of batteries, but oil prices are so high, people are jogging to work. It may be time for breasts to start pulling their own weight.
http://www.slate.com/id/2193827
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Just Chat! / and you thought lycra was just for cyclists ...
« on: 19/06/2008 19:14:51 »
BMW makes a lycra clad car ...
Video
Photo http://motoring.sky.com/news_features/galleries/bmw-gina-light-visionary-model--first-look.aspx#i=1
If you have an accident do you get it darned ? []
Where you put in the petrol, is that a zipper or a button fly []
Video
Photo http://motoring.sky.com/news_features/galleries/bmw-gina-light-visionary-model--first-look.aspx#i=1
If you have an accident do you get it darned ? []
Where you put in the petrol, is that a zipper or a button fly []
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Just Chat! / Quadruped Robot and "Protoype Version" ;-) (videos)
« on: 08/06/2008 07:15:06 »
Its creators call it "Big Dog" [I think "Headless Horse" would be more accurate] ...
It's really noisy: you might want to turn your volume down.
Here is the early prototype version of "Big Dog" [] ...
It's really noisy: you might want to turn your volume down.
Here is the early prototype version of "Big Dog" [] ...
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Physiology & Medicine / I'm trying to find a photo of P.V. Nikolsky's eponymous sign
« on: 22/11/2007 18:13:24 »
I'm trying to find a photograph of "Nikolsky's sign";
it's a kite-shaped skin marking, and any information on its cause,
(specifically why it has a rhomboid form).
it's a kite-shaped skin marking, and any information on its cause,
(specifically why it has a rhomboid form).
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Just Chat! / Beef hazardous to health
« on: 07/11/2007 17:12:22 »Quote
By Sky News SkyNews - Wednesday, November 7 01:58 pm
An American couple have survived unscathed after their minivan was crushed - by a falling cow.
Charles and Linda Everson were driving back to their hotel when Michelle, a 600lb rodeo cow, landed on their bonnet.
Amazingly, the beast had fallen 200ft from a cliff.
Chelan County fire chief Arnold Bake said the couple missed being killed by a matter of inches in the accident near Manson in Washington State.
The pair, who were visiting the area to celebrate their first wedding anniversary, were taken to hospital but later released.
Unfortunately, Michelle was not so lucky. She had to be put down.
Mr Everson, 49, said he was in shock as he watched the bovine bounce off his battered bonnet.
He told the Detroit Fee Press: "I'm just glad to be alive. It's raining cows out here, man!"
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/skynews/20071107/twl-bad-moos-couple-are-hit-by-falling-c-3fd0ae9.html
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Just Chat! / Burger King
« on: 30/10/2007 12:03:37 »Quote
Holy cow! 103 hamburgers in 8 minuteshttp://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071029/ap_on_fe_st/odd_burger_eating_championship
Sun Oct 28, 8:35 PM ET
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - A competitive eater who has already triumphed at a famous hot dog eating contest swallowed 103 small hamburgers in 8 minutes Sunday to take home $10,000.
Joey Chestnut, 23, of San Jose, Calif., surpassed the previous record of 97 Krystal burgers — 2 1/2 inches square — held by Japan's Takeru Kobayashi, set at last year's Krystal Square Off.
"We never thought we'd see someone anywhere near, let alone past, the century mark when we started the Krystal Square Off in 2004," said Brad Wahl, vice president of marketing for The Krystal Co.
Chestnut beat 12 other contestants. Kobayashi, who won all previous Krystal Hamburger Eating Championships, didn't compete this year because of lingering jaw pain from having a wisdom tooth extracted in June.
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Just Chat! / Visits to lap-dancers in the name of scientific research, (honest).
« on: 11/10/2007 16:37:04 »Quote
Lap dancers reveal fertility hints
Last Modified: 10 Oct 2007
Source: PA News
A study of lap dancers provides the best evidence yet that women send out hidden signals to let men know they are fertile.
Dancers who are "on heat" receive more tips from admiring men than those on the Pill or in the non-fertile periods of their menstrual cycle, researchers found.
The study, conducted by US scientists at the University of New Mexico, suggests that women somehow advertise their fertility during oestrus.
Experts suspect that pheromones - subtle scent signals that in animals play a key role in sexual attractiveness - may be involved. In other words, fertile women smell more appealing to men. Changes in behaviour and appearance may also be important.
The researchers, led by psychologist Dr Geoffrey Miller, compared the earnings of lap dancers who were menstruating naturally with others taking the contraceptive pill.
During the non-fertile periods of their menstrual cycle, dancers not on the Pill earned much the same as those using the contraceptive.
But when the naturally cycling dancers entered their fertile period, their tips became significantly more generous.
The evidence was the first to show that oestrus has a "real effect on women's earnings", Dr Miller told New Scientist magazine.
However, even on non-fertile days, lap dancers with natural menstrual cycles earned quite well, demonstrating that fertility was not all that the men in their audience were interested in.
"Previous research has shown that women's faces, scent and clothing become more attractive in oestrus," said Dr Miller.
http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/society/health/lap+dancers+reveal+fertility+hints/904547
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Just Chat! / Catpoochino
« on: 20/08/2007 16:05:52 »Quote
ITN - Monday, August 20 10:39 amhttp://uk.news.yahoo.com/itn/20070820/twl-cat-dropping-coffee-is-hit-41f21e0_1.html
Coffee claimed to be made from seeds found in cat droppings has become a delicacy in Indonesia.
Makers claim they gather undigested seeds from ripe coffee cherries, that have passed through the stomachs of civet cats and use them to make the drink.
It has been suggested enzymes in the animal's stomach break down the proteins in the seeds and give them a bitter taste that enhances the flavour.
The cats are not kept as domestic pets, so the makers claim they have to search for the droppings, making the resulting coffee rare and expensive.
However, the packaging and price of the product advertised online varies wildly, raising suspicions about the claims.
Some reports suggest only 500 kilograms of the coffee is produced every year and 450 grams costs up to £40.
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Physics, Astronomy & Cosmology / Is a "doughnut" soap-bubble possible ?
« on: 15/08/2007 15:55:39 »
Is it possible to create a soap bubble floating in air which is a toroidal vortex (doughnut shaped)?
[This question arose from this chat thread http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=9353.0]
[This question arose from this chat thread http://www.thenakedscientists.com/forum/index.php?topic=9353.0]