“Wars will be started very easily and with minimal costs” as automation increases, predicted Wendell Wallach, a scholar at the Yale Interdisciplinary Center for Bioethics and chairman of its technology and ethics study group.
Civilians will be at greater risk, people in Mr. Wallach’s camp argue, because of the challenges in distinguishing between fighters and innocent bystanders. That job is maddeningly difficult for human beings on the ground. It only becomes more difficult when a device is remotely operated.
This problem has already arisen with Predator aircraft, which find their targets with the aid of soldiers on the ground but are operated from the United States. Because civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan have died as a result of collateral damage or mistaken identities, Predators have generated international opposition and prompted accusations of war crimes.
*--article by John Markoff
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Saturday, November 27, 2010
People Are Looking up, up, up..
Cannot quite believe this... there is war in Afghanistan but climbing in Jordan. Spain helped them with a franchise:) So the questions remain: How can other developing countries work with people to get such fabulous facilities in those places, too? And congratulations to Jordan! Amazing step in maintaining the country as an exciting and dynamic place to be!
Amazing News
Over here at Northernwitch, we absolutely LOVE the idea of funding for grassroots sport. We hope to see much more of the same in the furure, and also wish that Canada would get on board. According to surfing sources, millions of dollars have been poured into surfing, and especially for programs specifically targeting aboriginal and white youth, and for an international headquarters of surfing sport. A perfect ten.
Sports benefit from new govt funding
Ian McCullough and Laine Clark
November 26, 2010
Ads by Google
Netball World Champs 2011
www.SportsnetHolidays.com/Netball
World Championship Netball 2011 Follow Diamonds & NZ Ferns.
AAP
Cricket, AFL, netball and gymnastics are among the big winners in the federal government's announcement of an $11 million increase in funding for sport participation.
Cricket, AFL and tennis will each receive $750,000 - the highest amount given to any individual sport.
And the success of world gymnastics champion Lauren Mitchell, has been reflected in a rise of almost $400,000 in funding with netball also benefitting to the tune of $700,000.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Gymnastics Australia chief executive Catherine Clark said the increased funding would allow a range of participation programs and new initiatives to be rolled out nationally.
"Gymnastics is much more than just the elite end and we have over 500 clubs who are ready to open their doors to increased participation opportunities across our Gymnastics for all program," Clark said.
"And importantly this will include strategies and resources to engage schools and school-aged participants."
Netball Australia CEO Kate Palmer also welcomed the announcement and said it would be a huge injection for a sport that relies so much on the help of volunteers around the country at grassroots level.
"This funding allows us to initiate programs that will pave the way for the continued growth and health of our game," Palmer said.
The funding changes are a result of the Crawford Report released earlier this year.
Federal Sports Minister Mark Arbib said sports participation was critical to the country's future and would help reduce obesity rates.
"Young people have so much to gain from regular exercise and playing in organised sport," Arbib said.
"This option is going to 29 national sporting organisations to assist them to get more parents playing sport, it's also going to improve their coaching, improve administration and supporting volunteers.
"The selection was done on a bid process through the Australian Sports Commission, the national sporting organisations put together some competitive bids."
Football ($700,000), hockey ($500,000), surfing ($500,000) and basketball ($500,000) have also benefitted.
Surfing Australia CEO Andrew Stark said the new significant funding increase would revolutionise the sport nationally.
"This new money is the single biggest opportunity surfing has ever had to really make a difference and progress the sport in the areas of grass roots participation development right through to high performance," Stark said.
"We look forward to now taking our sport to new heights Australia-wide through this new funding initiative."
However, there were some losers in the announcement with athletics handed a negligible increase of just $3,600, while boxing, rowing and canoeing were among a clutch of Olympic sports to receive no funding.
© 2010 AAP
Sports benefit from new govt funding
Ian McCullough and Laine Clark
November 26, 2010
Ads by Google
Netball World Champs 2011
www.SportsnetHolidays.com/Netball
World Championship Netball 2011 Follow Diamonds & NZ Ferns.
AAP
Cricket, AFL, netball and gymnastics are among the big winners in the federal government's announcement of an $11 million increase in funding for sport participation.
Cricket, AFL and tennis will each receive $750,000 - the highest amount given to any individual sport.
And the success of world gymnastics champion Lauren Mitchell, has been reflected in a rise of almost $400,000 in funding with netball also benefitting to the tune of $700,000.
Advertisement: Story continues below
Gymnastics Australia chief executive Catherine Clark said the increased funding would allow a range of participation programs and new initiatives to be rolled out nationally.
"Gymnastics is much more than just the elite end and we have over 500 clubs who are ready to open their doors to increased participation opportunities across our Gymnastics for all program," Clark said.
"And importantly this will include strategies and resources to engage schools and school-aged participants."
Netball Australia CEO Kate Palmer also welcomed the announcement and said it would be a huge injection for a sport that relies so much on the help of volunteers around the country at grassroots level.
"This funding allows us to initiate programs that will pave the way for the continued growth and health of our game," Palmer said.
The funding changes are a result of the Crawford Report released earlier this year.
Federal Sports Minister Mark Arbib said sports participation was critical to the country's future and would help reduce obesity rates.
"Young people have so much to gain from regular exercise and playing in organised sport," Arbib said.
"This option is going to 29 national sporting organisations to assist them to get more parents playing sport, it's also going to improve their coaching, improve administration and supporting volunteers.
"The selection was done on a bid process through the Australian Sports Commission, the national sporting organisations put together some competitive bids."
Football ($700,000), hockey ($500,000), surfing ($500,000) and basketball ($500,000) have also benefitted.
Surfing Australia CEO Andrew Stark said the new significant funding increase would revolutionise the sport nationally.
"This new money is the single biggest opportunity surfing has ever had to really make a difference and progress the sport in the areas of grass roots participation development right through to high performance," Stark said.
"We look forward to now taking our sport to new heights Australia-wide through this new funding initiative."
However, there were some losers in the announcement with athletics handed a negligible increase of just $3,600, while boxing, rowing and canoeing were among a clutch of Olympic sports to receive no funding.
© 2010 AAP
Monday, November 8, 2010
Traffiqued
Editor's note: CNN Heroes received more than 10,000 nominations from 100 countries, and a Blue Ribbon Panel selected the Top 10 CNN Heroes for the year. Voting for the CNN Hero of the Year continues through November 18 (6 a.m. ET) at CNNHeroes.com. The winner will be announced at "CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute," which airs Thanksgiving night, November 25, at 8 ET.
(CNN) -- Anuradha Koirala is fighting to prevent the trafficking and sexual exploitation of Nepal's women and girls. Since 1993, she and her group, Maiti Nepal, have helped rescue and rehabilitate more than 12,000 victims.
Below are her thoughts on being chosen as a Top 10 CNN Hero.
Q: Where were you when you got the call that you'd been selected as a Top 10 CNN Hero?
Anuradha Koirala: The day I found out that I'd been selected as a Top 10 CNN Hero, I was in Delhi, India. I'd had meetings with Indian and Nepalese government officials, police officers and [nongovernmental organizations] that are partnering with us regarding rescue and repatriation of Nepali girls. I also went to meet Nepali girls at a government remand home in Delhi.
We had four girls rescued last week, so I was talking to all the children. The police officers were very positive, but one lawyer was acting very "smart" [about not wanting the girls to return home to Nepal]. I said to him: "We are all working for the benefit of the children. So legal things are one part, but when there are girls, you have to send the girls back to their own country. That is all I want." So the whole morning and afternoon, I had been fighting.
I was very excited and thankful to get the news. I have a big family, about 2,000 children and girls. This was a moment for us to cry, hug and remember how we started, what we have gained and where we are today.
Q: What does it mean to you to have been selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel?
Koirala: It means they have given priority to this heinous crime against humanity. We have to fight against this crime and protect the children from this.
Q: What do you want people to know most about the importance of your work?
Koirala: I would like to urge all the human beings around the world: Please close your eyes and imagine these girls are your daughters, and you will feel the pain of being trafficked.
(CNN) -- Anuradha Koirala is fighting to prevent the trafficking and sexual exploitation of Nepal's women and girls. Since 1993, she and her group, Maiti Nepal, have helped rescue and rehabilitate more than 12,000 victims.
Below are her thoughts on being chosen as a Top 10 CNN Hero.
Q: Where were you when you got the call that you'd been selected as a Top 10 CNN Hero?
Anuradha Koirala: The day I found out that I'd been selected as a Top 10 CNN Hero, I was in Delhi, India. I'd had meetings with Indian and Nepalese government officials, police officers and [nongovernmental organizations] that are partnering with us regarding rescue and repatriation of Nepali girls. I also went to meet Nepali girls at a government remand home in Delhi.
We had four girls rescued last week, so I was talking to all the children. The police officers were very positive, but one lawyer was acting very "smart" [about not wanting the girls to return home to Nepal]. I said to him: "We are all working for the benefit of the children. So legal things are one part, but when there are girls, you have to send the girls back to their own country. That is all I want." So the whole morning and afternoon, I had been fighting.
I was very excited and thankful to get the news. I have a big family, about 2,000 children and girls. This was a moment for us to cry, hug and remember how we started, what we have gained and where we are today.
Q: What does it mean to you to have been selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel?
Koirala: It means they have given priority to this heinous crime against humanity. We have to fight against this crime and protect the children from this.
Q: What do you want people to know most about the importance of your work?
Koirala: I would like to urge all the human beings around the world: Please close your eyes and imagine these girls are your daughters, and you will feel the pain of being trafficked.
The Art of Recovery art classes, sponsored by Northern Lakes Community mental health. I wish more communities offered programs like this, with less reliance on psychotropic drugs :)
PETA says Canada is no friend to animals
Spokesperson Alka Chanda points finger at vivisection and lab experiments
By Simona Giacobbi
Alka Chanda with Sally, who was adopted by a colleague at PETA.
What happens in laboratories where animal testing goes on? What are the rules that regulate the treatment of experimental lab animals?
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is the most outspoken organization in launching heavy accusations against Canada. There is no federal law in our country, according to the well-known animal rights organization, regulating the treatment of animals in labs. The responsibility falls on individual provinces with the exception of British Columbia, Alberta, and Quebec which PETA charges with inhumane testing and unspeakable cruelty to animals.
So begins a Corriere Canadese/Tandem inquest on basic animal rights, not so much to raise public awareness – there are numerous animal rights organizations for this, like PETA, the best-known and loudest-spoken organization, founded in 1980 – but to analyze and clarify that fine line between useful animal testing in the field and cruel exploitation and useless suffering inflicted on experimental lab animals.
The PETA philosophy is clear. It appears on the Internet site between an anti-McDonald’s blurb denouncing the manner in which chickens are tortured, killed, and turned into nuggets and chicken sandwiches, and a blurb against IAMS – a company that manufactures animal food after restricting dogs and cats to crammed cages in tropical-like temperatures. The 10-month long investigation was done between 2002 and 2003 at the Sinclair Research Center in the U.S.
PETA’s investigative department is always ready to do battle. Alka Chanda of PETA’s Laboratory Investigation Department in Virginia, U.S., was contacted by phone. She openly discusses the organization’s investigations.
“Volunteers who clean out cages, armed with tiny cameras, or researchers who successfully got onto the medical teams that perform the experiments.”
It was not very difficult for them to discover what happens in the three Canadian provinces lacking controls – the animals are treated cruelly and savagely – whether they are mice, monkeys, cats, or dogs.
“We simply read some documents that are public domain,” explains Chanda, “published by some lab techs from these universities. In particular, in the ‘Methods & Materials’ section, we found details on which species of animals are used and on the nature of testing, such as the type of operation. Then there’s always a note on which institutional commission revised and approved the experiments, the Animal Care Committee, and where they are held. If an animal dies during an operation, that isn’t necessarily reported in these documents, but is registered in veterinarians’ files. Those initial documents however, give us an idea of the experiments that are effectuated in research centres.”
The treatments reserved for some Canadian experimental animals have been defined by PETA as “cruel, useless, and totally superfluous.”
The photos sent to Corriere Canadese/Tandem speak for themselves. Powerful images. Images that show how, in British Columbia, monkey skulls are drilled and in which toxics are injected that damage the brain. Or of injuries caused by electro-convulsive shock. And kittens raised in the dark for eyesight experiments. Chanda then describes what happens in Alberta. Scientists inflict cerebral-spinal damage to cats which are then forced to walk on conveyor belts to study their movements and if they’re able to avoid and sidestep obstacles with their back legs.
“The author of this document,” explains Chanda – who sent Corriere Canadese/Tandem extracts from these publications – had already written another similar piece explaining the same procedures on cats in labs at the University of British Columbia (UBC). We became interested in this university when some of the province’s students and activists contacted us to launch a campaign to stop these atrocities.”
Researchers at McGill University in Quebec have also recently been subject to numerous criticism and condemnation by animalists for tests on mice, which are injected with noxious chemical substances in their abdomens, legs, and paws. They are then placed on hot slabs and operated on without painkillers being administered.
Spokesperson Alka Chanda points finger at vivisection and lab experiments
By Simona Giacobbi
Alka Chanda with Sally, who was adopted by a colleague at PETA.
What happens in laboratories where animal testing goes on? What are the rules that regulate the treatment of experimental lab animals?
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is the most outspoken organization in launching heavy accusations against Canada. There is no federal law in our country, according to the well-known animal rights organization, regulating the treatment of animals in labs. The responsibility falls on individual provinces with the exception of British Columbia, Alberta, and Quebec which PETA charges with inhumane testing and unspeakable cruelty to animals.
So begins a Corriere Canadese/Tandem inquest on basic animal rights, not so much to raise public awareness – there are numerous animal rights organizations for this, like PETA, the best-known and loudest-spoken organization, founded in 1980 – but to analyze and clarify that fine line between useful animal testing in the field and cruel exploitation and useless suffering inflicted on experimental lab animals.
The PETA philosophy is clear. It appears on the Internet site between an anti-McDonald’s blurb denouncing the manner in which chickens are tortured, killed, and turned into nuggets and chicken sandwiches, and a blurb against IAMS – a company that manufactures animal food after restricting dogs and cats to crammed cages in tropical-like temperatures. The 10-month long investigation was done between 2002 and 2003 at the Sinclair Research Center in the U.S.
PETA’s investigative department is always ready to do battle. Alka Chanda of PETA’s Laboratory Investigation Department in Virginia, U.S., was contacted by phone. She openly discusses the organization’s investigations.
“Volunteers who clean out cages, armed with tiny cameras, or researchers who successfully got onto the medical teams that perform the experiments.”
It was not very difficult for them to discover what happens in the three Canadian provinces lacking controls – the animals are treated cruelly and savagely – whether they are mice, monkeys, cats, or dogs.
“We simply read some documents that are public domain,” explains Chanda, “published by some lab techs from these universities. In particular, in the ‘Methods & Materials’ section, we found details on which species of animals are used and on the nature of testing, such as the type of operation. Then there’s always a note on which institutional commission revised and approved the experiments, the Animal Care Committee, and where they are held. If an animal dies during an operation, that isn’t necessarily reported in these documents, but is registered in veterinarians’ files. Those initial documents however, give us an idea of the experiments that are effectuated in research centres.”
The treatments reserved for some Canadian experimental animals have been defined by PETA as “cruel, useless, and totally superfluous.”
The photos sent to Corriere Canadese/Tandem speak for themselves. Powerful images. Images that show how, in British Columbia, monkey skulls are drilled and in which toxics are injected that damage the brain. Or of injuries caused by electro-convulsive shock. And kittens raised in the dark for eyesight experiments. Chanda then describes what happens in Alberta. Scientists inflict cerebral-spinal damage to cats which are then forced to walk on conveyor belts to study their movements and if they’re able to avoid and sidestep obstacles with their back legs.
“The author of this document,” explains Chanda – who sent Corriere Canadese/Tandem extracts from these publications – had already written another similar piece explaining the same procedures on cats in labs at the University of British Columbia (UBC). We became interested in this university when some of the province’s students and activists contacted us to launch a campaign to stop these atrocities.”
Researchers at McGill University in Quebec have also recently been subject to numerous criticism and condemnation by animalists for tests on mice, which are injected with noxious chemical substances in their abdomens, legs, and paws. They are then placed on hot slabs and operated on without painkillers being administered.
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