Storm Chasers

Tectonic Plate movements break up supercontinents: Could signal the start of a new phase of the Wilson Cycle

Published by Perfect Storm on June 18, 2013

A new subduction zone forming off the coast of Portugal heralds the beginning of a cycle that will see the Atlantic Ocean close as continental Europe moves closer to America. Published in Geology, new research led by Monash University geologists has detected the first evidence that a passive margin in the Atlantic ocean is becoming active. Subduction zones, such as the… Read more →

The source behind the Guardian’s NSA files talks to Glenn Greenwald about his motives for the biggest intelligence leak in a generation.

(Bloomberg) — James Bamford, a bestselling author on U.S. intelligence agencies, discusses the need for data collection, but questions just how big the scope and reach needs to be in the fight against terrorism. He speaks on Bloomberg Television’s “Bloomberg Surveillance.”

US whistleblower ‘defending liberty’

Published by Perfect Storm on June 10, 2013

An ex-CIA employee has said he acted to “protect basic liberties for people around the world” in leaking details of US phone and internet surveillance. Edward Snowden, 29, was revealed as the source of the leaks at his own request by the UK’s Guardian newspaper. Mr Snowden, now believed to be in Hong Kong, said he had an “obligation to… Read more →

(CBS News) CORVALIS, Ore. – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has sent investigators to find out how genetically modified wheat ended up growing in Oregon. It is not approved for commercial use, and many countries won’t buy American wheat if there is a chance it’s been genetically modified.

CBS News has the full article

French health officials are screening dozens of people who have come into contact with two carriers of the SARS-like coronavirus.

(CNN) – A new SARS-like virus recently found in humans continues to spread — with the worldwide total now at 49, the World Health Organization said Wednesday.

Of the 49 known infections with the MERS-CoV virus, 27 have resulted in death, the organization said.

The latest deaths were reported in Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi health ministry said Wednesday that three people died from their infections in the country’s eastern region.

The virus is “a threat to the entire world,” the WHO’s general director said Monday.

CNN has the full article

In Venezuela 17 people have died and another 250 have been infected from an outbreak of H1N1 flu.

H7N9 bird flu found to spread through the air

Published by Perfect Storm on May 24, 2013

The H7N9 bird flu virus can be transmitted not only through close contact but by airborne exposure, a team at the University of Hong Kong found after extensive laboratory experiments. Though the virus appears to have been brought under control recently, the researchers urged the Hong Kong authorities to maintain strict surveillance, which should include not only poultry but humans… Read more →

Scientists create human stem cells through cloning

Published by Perfect Storm on May 15, 2013

(Photo: Reuters) – After more than 15 years of failures by scientists around the world and one outright fraud, biologists have finally created human stem cells by the same technique that produced Dolly the cloned sheep in 1996: They transplanted genetic material from an adult cell into an egg whose own DNA had been removed. The result is a harvest… Read more →