Microsoft waits for death of Internet Explorer 6

With development of Microsoft's Internet Explorer 9 (IE9) browser almost complete, Microsoft announced on Friday that it is time for IE6 users to move away from the antiquated 10-year-old browser. Microsoft has replaced it with three newer versions. On a new website, "The Internet Explorer 6 Countdown", Microsoft has launched an aggressive campaign to persuade users to stop using IE6 and update to a newer IE. Its goal is to decrease IE6 users to less than one percent.

"[Ten] years ago, a browser was born. Its name was Internet Explorer 6. Now that we’re in 2011, in an era of modern web standards, it’s time to say goodbye," Microsoft says on "The Internet Explorer 6 Countdown".

Internet Explorer's market share is slipping. IE's various versions accounted for 70 percent of the market in 2009; this has dropped to approximately 56 percent today. Mozilla Firefox, its main rival, has been actively increasing its market share while the recently released Google Chrome is also quickly gaining users. PC World's recent analysis of its own web traffic statistics concluded, "Usually, Internet Explorer is the #2 browser after Firefox, but over the past 30 days it's been #3, a couple of points behind Safari-and nearly tied with Chrome. It might be a statistical blip. But if it isn't, and Chrome continues to surge, IE could fall to fourth place."

Web developers face big problems with IE6. As they design their web pages for the newer browsers with advanced web technology and geared to the newest web core markup language HTML 5, they are forced to accommodate older out-of-date technology to support IE6 users. Also, not mentioned on Microsoft's "The Internet Explorer 6 Countdown" site, are the numerous security vulnerabilities putting the browser at risk of being hacked. The Internet security firm Secunia.com, has said that as of March 4, 2011, IE6 has 277 vulnerabilities; 39 percent of these are rated "highly critical". Microsoft says that the latest versions of Internet Explorer provide the user with enhanced protection from these attacks and threats.

Microsoft's Internet Explorer 6 is one of the most successful software products ever as measured by its durability and the massive numbers of people who have used it. IE6 shipped with Windows XP, nearly a decade ago. But it has outlived its usefulness, and Microsoft no longer wants to support it.

Space Shuttle Discovery lands for final time

The Space Shuttle Discovery successfully landed Wednesday at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 11:57 AM EST (16:57 UTC) for what is scheduled to be the final time in its operational career.

Upon landing, the shuttle and its six-person crew wrapped up the STS-133Discovery's 39th and final flight into space. STS-133 launched on February 24, after several launch delays since last November due to numerous technical issues. During the twelve-day mission, the crew transported supplies and parts to the International Space Station (ISS) including Robonaut2, the first dexterous humanoid robot in space, the Permanent Multipurpose Module, and ExPRESS Logistics Carrier-4. mission, the

During the mission, two spacewalks were performed by astronauts Stephen Bowen and Alvin Drew to install parts and perform maintenance on the exterior of the orbiting laboratory.

Six astronauts and cosmonauts, members of the Expedition 26 crew, remain aboard the ISS to carry out a long-duration mission aboard the outpost.

STS-133 is Discovery's 39th and final mission into space, the 35th shuttle mission to the ISS, and the 133rd flight in the entire shuttle program. Discovery has docked with two different space stations, Mir and the ISS, and was the first shuttle to fly after both the Challenger and Columbia disasters. Discovery made its maiden flight on STS-41-D in 1984, having since become the most experienced and oldest surviving space shuttle, and delivering payloads to orbit such as the Hubble Space Telescope and becoming the first shuttle to fly a Russian cosmonaut into space.

Discovery, having completed its final flight, has been offered by NASA to the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., to display to the public. The museum, however, is in the process of determining how to obtain the funds necessary to transfer the shuttle. A decision regarding this possibility is expected to be made in April.

A NASA commentator describes Wednesday's landing as "the end of a historic journey. To a ship that has led the way, time and time again, we bid farewell to Discovery."

Two remaining shuttle flights are scheduled later this year, STS-134 and STS-135, before the retirement of the space shuttle fleet.

High school basketball star dies after making game-winning shot in overtime

Friday, Fennville, Michigan high school athlete Wes Leonard, 16 years old, suddenly collapsed on the basketball court after making the game-winning shot in overtime. His play had cinched a perfect season for his undefeated Fennville High School basketball team before an exuberant crowd.

As Leonard lay motionless on his back, the audience became silent. A witness on the court said Leonard had ceased to breathe and his heart had stopped. Attempts to revive him failed and he was transported to a nearby hospital where he died a little over an hour later. An autopsy revealed that Leonard had an enlarged heart, causing the cardiac arrest that killed him.

It is unclear from media reports whether the school had an automated external defibrillator (AED) available for emergencies, or if the ambulance personnel had employed such equipment. Also unknown is how much time elapsed from the moment the player collapsed until the time a defibrillator was employed. 

Many schools have acquired defibrillators for such emergencies, according to Michigan High School Athletic Association spokesman John Johnson. He said the devices at schools are not mandated by law nor by the association's regulations. There is evidence that if, in the first 10 minutes of a cardiac arrest, an AED is used, up to 80% of the victims can survive. Emergency responders usually need at least seven minutes to arrive on the scene.

News media describes Leonard’s death as shocking the community. His coach described him as a healthy and disciplined athlete who was the top scorer on his basketball team as well as the quarterback of the school's football team which won its conference's championship this season.

Dr. Marc Lahiri, a specialist in disorders of heart rhythm for Detroit's Henry Ford Hospital, said that detecting underlying heart abnormalities is difficult and such defects may not become apparent until the occurrence of a sudden and perhaps fatal event. 

Lahiri said many doctors are encouraging schools to make extensive testing of the heart routine for physicals given to school athletes. Such testing is controversial, not only because of the cost but because of possible false-positives that may lead to the need for additional testing.

Magnitude 6.3 earthquake hits New Zealand's South Island; dozens dead

A magnitude 6.3 earthquake struck the South Island of New Zealand at 12:51 PM local time on Tuesday (Monday 23:51 UTC). At least 75 people have been killed by collapsing buildings in central Christchurch, with more feared. Mayor Bob Parker said 55 bodies had been identified and there were a further 20 unidentified bodies. The spire of the iconic Anglican ChristChurch Cathedral has fallen and rubble is strewn throughout the central business district. Roads and carparks have cracked and lifted, and two buses are reported to be crushed under the bus exchange. Pools of mud have erupted due to burst water mains and liquefaction. Boulders and falling cliff faces have destroyed buildings on hillside suburbs. Fears for the safety of nearby towns Lyttelton and Akaroa are exacerbated due to communication problems.

The earthquake was centred near Christchurch, at a depth of five kilometres, according to the United States Geological Survey. Unlike previous quakes in the region that caused no fatalities, Tuesday quake was shallower and closer to the central city and the damage was much worse. Condemned buildings, weakened by last year's widespread earthquakes, were destroyed. Some aftershocks have occurred in the area after the earthquake. The largest so far was a magnitude 5.6 which occurred at 7:04 p.m. February 21 EDT (1:04:18 p.m. local time, February 22).

Mayor Bob Parker has stated that as many as 25 major buildings in the city are destroyed. Urban Search and Rescue efforts are focussed on people trapped in the remains of Canterbury Television and Pyne Gould Corporation office buildings. The historic Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament in Christchurch has half collapsed, while the old Canterbury Provincial Chambers building, Piko Wholefoods, and a church on Durham Street have been destroyed.

The earthquake also caused an estimated 30 million tons of ice to break off of the Tasman Glacier forming icebergs in a lake near its foot. Tourists on boats at the time of the quake say waves of 3.5 meters swept the lake for at least 30 minutes following the event. The glacier sits on the country's west coast, approximately 120 miles (200km) from Christchurch. No injuries were reported.

Many people are trapped in damaged buildings or under rubble, but emergency services have been hampered by gridlock as motorists and pedestrians evacuated the CBD. The main hospital remains operational despite one damaged ward being closed, and three triage centres have been set up to provide medical aid. Several hundred delegates attending a medical conference in the city, the great majority from Australia, have been trapped in the city; some of these are assisting with tending to the injured.

Electricity, telephone services, and traffic lights suffered widespread outages. Orion and Telecom are attempting to assess the damage, and generators have been sent down from Auckland to replace the backup generators in the city. Civil Defence is mounting a response with all available national resources, and Cabinet is holding an emergency session. Speaking to Radio New Zealand, Mayor Bob Parker said he was "thrown quite a distance", that there were scenes of "great confusion" on the streets, and that the quake was "as violent as the one that happened on the 4th of September". The emergency telephone code, 111 was not working for the entire region of Southland, New Zealand but is apparently stable as of approx. 4 pm NZDT. Christchurch Airport is currently closed to all but emergency flights. Speaking after the earthquake, Bob Parker said at least 200 people are believed trapped under rubble, saying that New Zealand are "going to be presented with statistics that are going to be bleak".

Two students shot at Los Angeles school, suspect in custody

File photo of Gardena High School.

Two students were shot yesterday at Gardena High School when a student brought a gun on campus. The shooting was probably reported by the school, which is located at 1301 West 182nd Street in Los Angeles, California, at 1830 UTC (1030 PST).

A Los Angeles Unified School District official said that the shooting was accidental. The student had brought the gun in his backpack, when it fell out onto the ground and then discharged, hitting two victims, one of whom, a 15-year old female, is reported in critical condition at hospital. The other victim is also a 15-year old student, male, and reported in stable condition. The 15-year old female victim is reportedly undergoing surgery.

The student who brought the firearm is currently in the custody of the Gardena Police Department after running into another room in the school. Students at the high school were released at 2152 UTC (1352 PST).

Opposition Leader predicts 'people's revolt' in Australia over carbon tax

Leader of the Federal Opposition in Australia Tony Abbott has made claims Thursday during Question Time in parliament that a 'people's revolt' is looming based on the Prime Minister Julia Gillard's proposal for a 2012 carbon tax.

In what Mr. Abbott describes as a "betrayal of the Australian people", Ms. Gillard announced Thursday that a price for carbon will be put back on the national agenda, for several years, to be followed by the formation of an emissions trading scheme. In the lead up to the 2010 Federal Australian Election, Ms. Gillard claimed that while she might implement a green house gas reduction scheme, "[she would] rule out a carbon tax".

The price on carbon will be applied to industrial and transport emissions but will not, however, affect Australia's agriculture.

The Prime Minister's announcement resulted in a large portion of Question Time being devoted to the issue with a Member of the Opposition being expelled from the House for disorderly conduct. Mr. Abbot then moved to censure the Prime Minister and conclude Question Time claiming "Nothing is more fake than making a promise to the Australian people before the election and breaking it after the election ... I don't believe it's going to happen because I think there will be a people's revolt. They will see this as an assault on their standard of living, which is exactly what it is".

To which the Prime Minister responded "Increasingly Australians understand that the Liberal Party, under the Leader of the Opposition, is a party of the past with no real policies or plans for the nation's future ... You get judged ultimately in this Parliament by what you decide to do and what you deliver, and on this side of the Parliament we are determined that from July 1 (2012) we will price carbon."

The Opposition claims that the proposed carbon tax will cause petrol prices to rise by A$0.065 per litre while energy bills may increase by $300 per year.

Libya blocks access to Internet

The Libyan government has cut off Internet access in the country. The General Posts and Telecommunications Company, Libya's main provider of Internet access, has ceased to function. It was shut down following citizen protests against the country's leader, Muammar Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, who has been in power since 1969.

The government of Egypt took a similar measure last month, when it cut off Internet trying to quell public protests against the regime. Despite the government's efforts, Egyptians who took to the streets for two weeks were able to oust the nation's president, Hosni Mubarak, after 30 years in office.

Limited access to the Internet makes it difficult to get information from the country. Libya is a country with a smaller population than Egypt, and has fewer service providers, which has apparently made the task of disconnecting everything a little easier.

In Egypt, the military refused to attack people protesting. The situation is different in Libya, where the armed forces attacked hundreds of demonstrators in the square of the city of Benghazi, causing many deaths.

The increasing violence in Libya has prompted the 27 European Union ministers to issue a statement protesting Libyan governmental violence toward protesters, saying it "condemns the ongoing repression against demonstrators in Libya and deplores the violence and death of civilians." Two Libyan pilots have defected to Malta and asked for asylum, saying that they were ordered to fire on protesters, according to Maltese officials.

The violence has spread to Tripoli. Witnesses have reported that a "massacre" occurred today in suburbs of the Libyan capital with the indiscriminate shooting of women and children. According to Human Rights Watch, hundreds have died over the last four days.

The escalating violence is causing turbulence in the world energy markets. The International Monetary Fund says that energy exports accounts for approximately 95% of Libya's export earning.

Kuwait stateless protest for rights

A thousand or more non-citizen residents of Kuwait demonstrated yesterday demanding rights given to Kuwaiti citizens. Police used water cannons in dispersing the protest. There were injuries among both protesters and police, and several protesters were detained.

Citizens of Kuwait receive substantial welfare benefits, including education and health care. There are estimated to be around 100,000 non-citizen residents, called "bidoons" (from bedoun jinsiyya, Arabic meaning without nationality). Many bidoons claim descent from desert nomads who did not apply for citizenship in 1959. Many bidoons live in economic hardship, and cannot get legal recognitions such as birth and death certificates, driver's licenses, and attested marriage contracts.

Interior Ministry spokesman Adil Al-Hashash said "security forces on the ground talked to the protestors in a nice and civilized way", telling them "they should go to the legal channels for their demands rather than protesting." The government says police acted in self-defense after protesters threw rocks.

Independent Kuwaiti Member of Parliament Daifallah Buramia said "[t]he protest of bidoons is legitimate and the government is responsible for this because it has failed to resolve the problem".

Release of 'Verizon iPhone' set for early February

 

The original iPhone 4

In a Tuesday media event, Verizon Wireless announced it had reached an agreement with Apple Inc. and would begin selling a CDMA version of the iPhone 4 beginning early February. The move means the end of rival company AT&T's status as the only official US carrier of the iPhone, a status it held since the first iPhone debuted in 2007.

The press conference, held in New York City, was hosted by Verizon's president, Lowell McAdam, Apple's chief operating officer, Tim Cook, and Verizon Wireless' chief executive officer, Dan Mead. Neither Verizon Communications CEO Ivan Seidenberg nor Apple CEO Steve Jobs attended the conference. During the event, McAdam said, "If the press writes something long enough and hard enough, it eventually comes true. We're bringing the fruit of our labor with a giant partner, and that's Apple." Such a partnership had been rumored for years, and the amount of speculation grew over the past few months.

iPhone 4 pre-orders for current Verizon users begin February 3, and a public release is scheduled for February 10. The "Verizon iPhone," as it has been dubbed for months, has been altered from the original iPhone 4 so it can utilize Verizon's 3G CDMA (code division multiple access) network. This means, however, that Verizon iPhone users will not be able to use the company's 4GLTE (long term evolution) network, and will thus be unable to make calls and access the Internet at the same time. Cook told the audience that the LTE hardware was not ready yet, saying, "The first generation LTE chip sets force some design compromises, some of which we would not make. Secondly—and most importantly—Verizon Wireless customers have told us they want the iPhone now." However, Verizon's iPhone 4 allows the user to create a personal Wi-Fi hotspot, which means up to five other wireless devices can connect to the Internet through the phone.

Pricing was announced as US$199 for a 16 GB version and US$299 for a 32 GB version, both requiring two-year contracts—the same cost for an AT&T iPhone 4. However, Verizon said it would not mention the cost of data plans at this time, with Mead saying, "We talked about the device pricing, but we're not going to talk about the pricing for the network for that connectivity."

Tobacco attracts predators with chemicals in response to caterpillars, a study finds

Tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta) on a bell pepper plant.

 

Ian Baldwin, of the Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology in Jena, Germany, and colleagues have discovered a multi-step protective mechanism of tobacco plants against Manduca sexta caterpillars. In response to a chemical in the caterpillars' larvae, the plants release an odorous substance into air to attract another species of insects, called "big-eyed bugs" (Geocoris). These carnivores come to the scene and attack the caterpillars. The response is triggered within 24 hours, which is a relatively short period of time. The discovery occurred as a result of field studies in a nature preserve in southwestern Utah.

The phenomenon starts with the recognition of the caterpillars by the plant. As a PhD student in the Department of Molecular Ecology Silke Allmann explained, "The plant cannot see its attacker, but plants can sense the digestive substances that attacking larvae have in their oral secretions when these substances come into contact with the leaves." To test that, the scientists coated some of caterpillars' eggs on two groups of tobacco plants and glued them. On one of the groups, the glue was mixed with caterpillars' split. The latter got more attention of the attackers, getting 25% of eggs destroyed against 8% for the other group.

Allmann supposed that "The simplest assumption is that the larval oral secretions contain a special enzyme, probably an isomerase, which rearranges the Z:E ratio of the aldehyde in favor of (E)-2-hexenal." The researchers heated the oral secretion to destroy the enzyme, and applied it to wounded leaves. No plant response related to the studied process was observed, confirming the hypothesis.

(E)-2-hexenal is a strong antibiotic agent. The food consumed by a caterpillar typically includes hundreds of microorganisms together with leaf tissue, which are mostly unneeded and killed by the above-mentioned substance quickly. Because of this important role of this substance, the caterpillars can't change their metabolism easily enough to prevent the subsequent events from happening.

To find out what happens after a caterpillar's presence is noted by the plant, Silke Allmann, a graduate student in Baldwin's group, examined the green leafy volatiles (GLVs), the substances responsible for the smell of fresh-cut plant parts. These substances are released into air if a plant is damaged. As the study released, the tobacco plant GLVs typically have a major share of Z isomers with very small amount of E isomers present. But the shares are distributed equally during a caterpillar attack. In a study with varying amount of different isomers present, E isomers turned out to be the ones attracting the predators to come to the scene and to attack the caterpillars.

What is surprising, Silke Allmann found that the caterpillars are the direct stimulus of this change: caterpillar saliva converts the Z-isomers of the GLV molecules to E-isomers. Prof. Ian Baldwin commented, "That's where it got really weird. Why would a caterpillar do this to itself?" He suggested that the E-GLVs could have anti-biotic effect in the caterpillar's digestive system.

The speed of the triggered reaction is relatively fast, it taking about one hour for the GLV isomers ratio change, and about 24 hours for the predators to be attracted by the substance released into the air. As Prof. Ian Baldwin, who was leading the research, said, "Other indirect defense mechanisms of plants require the activation of new metabolic pathways for the release of odorant signals, and these responses are much slower."

The multi-step intricate approach involved is attracting the attention of scientists, who are looking forward to its application in agriculture. Baldwin noted that "in effect, the caterpillar calls the police on itself", and suggested to genetically modify crops to release similar signals to defend themselves against pests.

NCAA Football: USC banned from bowl games for two seasons, wins vacated

 

The Los Angeles Coliseum, home stadium for the USC football team.

 

The University of Southern California's football team was heavily penalized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) yesterday due to several major rules violations involving former player and Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush. The team was banned from participating in all NCAA bowl games for the 2010 and 2011 seasons, as well as was vacated of all wins during the 2004 and 2005 seasons. The team will likely also be stripped of their national title from the 2004 season and will lose ten football scholarships per year for the 2010, 2011, and 2012 seasons.

The NCAA also criticized the university for ineffective monitoring of its student-athletes. "The general campus environment surrounding the violations troubled the committee. At least at the time of the football violations, there was relatively little effective monitoring of, among others, football locker rooms and sidelines, and there existed a general post-game locker room environment that made compliance efforts difficult," said part of the NCAA's report.

The rules violations, which were investigated by the NCAA over a four-year period, involved the team's alleged "improper benefits," given to Bush, as well as Bush's contact with an agent, which is illegal under NCAA rules until a player has left the sports program. It is also possible that this will result in the loss of Bush's Heisman Trophy. The NCAA report ordered USC to not be in contact with Bush for the current time.

"We acknowledge that violations occurred and we take full responsibility for them. However, we sharply disagree with many of the findings in the NCAA Committee on Infractions Report. Further, we feel the penalties imposed are too severe for the violations identified in the report," stated Todd Dickey, the senior vice president of administration at USC.

Meanwhile, Reggie Bush (who now plays for the NFL's New Orleans Saints) also released a statement. "I am disappointed by the decision and disagree with the NCAA's findings. If the University decides to appeal, I will continue to cooperate with the NCAA and USC, as I did during the investigation. In the meantime, I will continue to focus on making a positive impact for the University and for the community where I live," said Bush. Bush denies all of the allegations brought against him and the university by the NCAA.

The report also included punishments for the men's basketball team, which was accused of violating the NCAA's recruiting policy on former player O.J. Mayo. The women's tennis team was also fined for allowing an unidentified student to use a university-owned credit card to place $7,000 in unauthorized phone calls.