“Woman jailed after ‘killing’ virtual husband”

A 43-year-old Japanese player in a virtual game world became so angry about her sudden divorce from her online husband, she logged on with his password and killed his avatar.

She is now being held in a real-world prison on suspicion of illegally accessing a computer and manipulating electronic data.

While police have not yet formally charged the woman, she could face up to five years’ jail if found guilty.

Police said the piano teacher used her online husband’s ID and password to log onto the online game Maple Story to carry out the virtual murder.

They did not believe she had plotted any revenge in the real world.

In August, a woman was charged in the US state of Delaware with plotting the real-life abduction of a boyfriend she met through the virtual reality website Second Life.

“If looks could kill” is a common saying that is being taken seriously by researchers looking to create surveillance technology that notify the authorities of behavior that may be suspicious.

http://www.economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12465303

http://www.spectrum.ieee.org/jul08/6454

Read the article!

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Essex University has created a device that is worn like a hat and can control moving robots or objects on a computer by only using your mind. I love this! They are developing it to do even more tasks. I want to be able to write in as word proeccing software by only using my mind. That would save a lot of time and make typing obsolete. However, I am recalling an “Outer Limits” episode where people became so dependent on technology that when it taken from them they did not know hoe to read or write.

The House of Representatives defeated a bill that would have provided states with the funds to purchase backup paper ballots for the November election. Does anyone else think that this could be trouble?

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Okay, so they have created a robot to help out in the kitchen in Munich. This robot can check your inventory and let you know what your grocery list is. It can also set the table. They are working on letting it get online and learn new things and share what has learned with other robots. The online thing is kinda creepy. But a better question to ask is “Are we really too lazy to set the table?”

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Found this article in The Times of India:

Artificial DNA can power future comps
Announcing a major find that is expected to create ripples in fields as varied as genetic research and computer science, Japanese scientists claim that they have successfully created the world’s first DNA molecule made almost entirely of artificial parts.
The finding could lead to improvements in gene therapy, futuristic nano-sized computers, and other high-tech advances, the researchers say.

DNA, popularly illustrated as a double helix, holds the blueprints of life and controls what every living organism becomes and how it functions.

Scientists have tried for years to develop artificial versions of DNA in order to take advantage of its amazing information storage capabilities. Already, DNA has been harnessed to create simple electronic circuits.

DNA uses just four basic building blocks, known as bases, to code proteins used in cell functioning and development. Other researchers have crafted DNA molecules with a few artificial parts.

But Masahiko Inouye and colleagues at the University of Toyama stitched together four entirely new, artificial bases inside the sugar-based framework of a DNA molecule, creating unusually stable, double-stranded structures resembling natural DNA, they say.

Like natural DNA, the new ripoffs were right-handed and some easily formed triple-stranded structures. “The unique chemistry of these structures and their high stability offer unprecedented possibilities for developing new biotech materials and applications,” the researchers said.

The breakthrough will be detailed in the July 23 issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

“The artificial DNA might be applied to a future extracellular genetic system with information storage and amplifiable abilities,” the researchers write.

In another development, scientists from the University of California, Berkley, are exploring whether high-speed gene-reading machines – like those used to decode the human genome – will be able to find subtle genetic flaws that can harm health and can be cured by treatments as simple as vitamins.

Eventually, they hope, these scans will help nutritionists customize a course of vitamins to match the strengths and weaknesses of every individual.

The prosecutor of the International Criminal Court is seeking the arrest of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir on charges of genocide in a five-year campaign of violence in the country’s Darfur region.

Apparently, they were waiting for a magical kill count number.

The Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (F.I.S.A) was created in 1978 in order to protect our civil liberties. F.I.S.A had in its provisions a $100 fine per person per day that could be charged to telecommunication companies for unwarrented spytaps. Spytaps that the Bush administration has placed on the American people. Now, with promises from our current presidential candidates for an investigation into this matter, the Senate has passed an admenment that gives this telecommunication companies immunity from this penality. It is, also, immportant to note that Sen. Clinton voted against this admenment while Sen. Obama voted for it and Sen. McCain did not vote.

Read the following article in the Washington post to learn more: Article