Gizmorama
May 24, 2010
------------------------------------------------------------
DVD Clearance Alert... New DVDs Added DAILY...
Save as much as 90% - See them all at:
http://pd.gophercentral.com/u/14481/c/186/a/474
------------------------------------------------------------
Good Morning,
Check out the last article for exciting details on the
first ever fully functional synthetic bacteria cell. The
scientists responsible have proven to the world that cells
can be created by computers!
Until Next Time,
Erin
Questions? Comments? Email me at: mailto:gizmo@gophercentral.com
Email your comments=
P.S. You can discuss this issue or any other topic in the new
Gizmorama forum. Check it out here...
http://gizmorama.gophercentral.com
------------------------------------------------------------
Greenland rising as ice melt goes on
MIAMI - U.S. scientists say they are surprised at how rapidly
the ice is melting in Greenland and how quickly the landmass
is rising in response. Greenland -- the world's largest
island -- is situated in the Atlantic Ocean to the northeast
of Canada. It has been known for its dense ice cap, up to 1.2
miles thick, covering much of the island. But now scientists
at the University of Miami say Greenland's ice is melting so
quickly the land underneath is rising at an accelerated pace.
Researchers said some coastal areas are rising by nearly 1
inch per year and, if current trends persist, that number
could accelerate to as much as 2 inches per year. "It's been
known for several years that climate change is contributing
to the melting of Greenland's ice sheet," Professor Tim
Dixon, who led the study, said. "What's surprising, and a
bit worrisome, is the ice is melting so fast that we can
actually see the land uplift in response. Even more sur-
prising, the rise seems to be accelerating, implying melting
is accelerating." A study co-author, Associate Professor
Shimon Wdowinski said the same process is also affecting the
islands of Iceland and Svalbard, a Norwegian archipelago in
the Arctic Ocean. Doctoral candidate Yan Jiang, another study
co-author, said if Greenland's acceleration of melting
continues, the island could soon become the world's largest
contributor to global sea level rise. The research is avai-
lable in the early online edition of the journal Nature
Geoscience.
------------------------------------------------------------
Neck Genie Elite
No pain... No expensive surgery...
Normal Price: $19.99
DEAL PRICE: $9.99
Get two for $15.98
The Neck Genie will give your face a lift resulting in tighter
and firmer skin. It eliminates sagging skin and can reduce a
double-chin or neck folds. It does for your neckline what
exercise does for your body, making you look and feel younger.
Take years off your appearance and gently firm the underlying
muscles of the neck and tighten the skin without expensive
plastic surgery.
Use just two minutes a day and the Neck Genie will help you
tighten and tone your neck, chin and face the quick, easy,
pain-free way. Redefine your profile and reduce facial
sagging. The secret is in its new and improved version that
has a built-in a-d-j-u-s-t-a-b-l-e tension mechanism that
gently firms the underlying muscles of the neck and tighten
skin at the same time for a dramatic lift. No pain - No
expensive surgery.
Get one for $9.99 or buddy up with a friend and get two for $15.98
=
http://pd.gophercentral.com/u/1072/c/120/a/474
------------------------------------------------------------
Mars rover sets longevity record
PASADENA, Calif. - NASA says its Mars rover Opportunity set
a record Thursday, surpassing the duration record set by
NASA's Viking 1 lander of 6 years and 116 days of operation.
Opportunity's twin rover, Spirit, began working on Mars three
weeks before Opportunity. However, NASA said Spirit has been
out of communication since March 22. If it awakens from
hibernation and resumes communication, that rover will
attain the Martian surface longevity record. Spirit's hiber-
nation was anticipated, based on energy forecasts, as the
amount of sunshine hitting the robot's solar panels declined
during autumn on Mars' southern hemisphere. The rovers'
fourth winter solstice, the day of the Martian year with the
least sunshine at their locations, was Wednesday, May 12,
NASA said. "Opportunity, and likely Spirit, surpassing the
Viking Lander 1 longevity record is truly remarkable,
considering these rovers were designed for only a 90-day
mission on the surface of Mars," said John Callas, Mars
Exploration Project Manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Labora-
tory. "Passing the solstice means we're over the hump for
the cold, dark, winter season." NASA said science discoveries
by the rovers have included Opportunity finding the first
mineralogical evidence that Mars had liquid water and Spirit
finding evidence for hot springs or steam vents and a past
environment of explosive volcanism.
New type of phylogenetic tree created
BLACKSBURG, Va. - U.S. scientists say they've created a new
type of phylogenetic "tree of life" for several scientific-
ally important bacteria using a new computerized approach.
The project, led by Virginia Bioinformatics Institute Assis-
tant Professor Allan Dickerman, focused on gamma-proteobac-
teria -- a large group of medically and scientifically
important bacteria that includes Escherichia coli, Salmonella
typhimurium, and other disease-causing organisms. The scien-
tists said a powerful phylogenetic tree allows researchers
to quickly identify similarities and differences between many
different organisms -- providing a way to visualize the evo-
lutionary relationships among different biological species
that have descended from a common ancestor. The gamma-
proteobacteria tree developed by VBI researchers was recon-
structed using powerful computers from as many as 30 million
data points of bacterial sequence information. "Ribosomal
RNA is one of the central components of the ribosome, the
protein manufacturing machinery of all living cells. In the
past, researchers have often depended on looking at a single
ribosomal RNA gene to construct evolutionary relationships
for their tree-building efforts," Kelly Williams, a VBI
researcher said. "The method we use to make our tree of life
uses hundreds of different genes and integrates much more
information than can be gleaned from the traditional single
gene approach. "We firmly believe the multi-gene or phylo-
genomics approach should become the standard for tree-
building when several genome sequences are available, which
is now the case for most bacterial groups." The research
appears in the Journal of Bacteriology.
------------------------------------------------------------
----- Amos 'N Andy Complete Collection -----
Get it for less than $1 per episode
Okay folks, if you are a lover of the classic Amos 'N Andy
television series, this is for YOU. Not only are all 71
episodes contained in this brilliant collection, but also
all of the radio shows, as well as the feature "Check and
Double Check".
Amos 'N Andy will never be run on television again due to
political correctness, but this is a piece of television
history and probably one of the funniest shows ever aired.
This collection was lovingly restored by archivists and now
can be yours for only $79.99... PLUS, you get 300+ radio
shows included. Making this waaaaaay Less than $1 per episode.
Order your DVD collection today, you will treasure it forever.
http://pd.gophercentral.com/u/2200/c/120/a/474
------------------------------------------------------------
First synthetic bacterial cell created
ROCKVILLE, Md. - U.S. scientists announced Thursday they
have constructed the world's first self-replicating, syn-
thetic bacterial cell. Researchers at the J. Craig Venter
Institute, a not-for-profit genomic research organization,
said they synthesized the 1.08 million base pair chromosome
of a modified Mycoplasma mycoides genome. The scientists
said their synthetic cell is the proof of principle that
genomes can be designed by computer, chemically made in a
laboratory and transplanted into a recipient cell to produce
a new self-replicating cell controlled only by the synthetic
genome. Writing in the opinion section of the journal Nature,
one leading synthetic biology scientist -- University of
Pennsylvania Professor of bioethics Arthur Caplan -- called
the accomplishment "one of the most important scientific
achievements in the history of mankind." But former Univer-
sity of Florida Professor Steven Benner, creator of the
Foundation for Applied Molecular Evolution, cautioned the
technique could resurrect long extinct ancestral bacteria.
"For nearly 15 years Ham Smith, Clyde Hutchison and the rest
of our team have been working toward this publication today
-- the successful completion of our work to construct a
bacterial cell that is fully controlled by a synthetic
genome," said J. Craig Venter, the institute's founder and
senior author on the research. "We have been consumed by
this research, but we have also been equally focused on
addressing the societal implications of what we believe will
be one of the most powerful technologies and industrial
drivers for societal good," he added. "We look forward to
continued review and dialogue about the important applica-
tions of this work to ensure that it is used for the bene-
fit of all." The historic research is reported in the online
journal Science Express and will appear in an upcoming print
issue of the journal Science.
------------------------------------------------------------
Check out Viral Videos on the Net at EVTV1.com
http://www.evtv1.com/
EVTV1.com