NASA's falling six tonne satellite, could land anywhere

NASA has been watching the six tonne satellite closely.  Officials yesterday moved up their prediction for its arrival to Friday, September 23, give or take a day.

Nasa scientists have calculated the satellite will break into 26 pieces as it gets closer to Earth.  The odds of it hitting someone anywhere on the planet are one in 3,200.

The heaviest piece to hit the ground will be about 159kgs (350 pounds) but no one has ever been hit by falling space junk in the past.

Nasa expects to give the public more detailed information early next week. For now, all continents except Antarctica could be hit by satellite debris.

[http://www.metro.co.uk/news/875770-six-tonne-satellite-falling-to-earth-could-land-anywhere]

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Baby born ten weeks after mother's death

Poor baby: In a rare surgery, a team of doctors at the Tawam Hospital managed to remove a child from his mother's womb, ten weeks after her clinical death.

The 28-week old child is under special medical supervision, an official at the hospital told.

The official said the mother was clinically dead but the medical team took the decision to keep her on a life support system as the foetus inside the womb was still alive.

"The medical team decided to keep the mother alive and pumped blood and oxygen to keep the foetus alive. The process is called artificial life," said the official.

The official said it was the first such case to have happened in the UAE. It also reflects the advancement of medical technologies that is being used at the hospital, he added.

The Emirati woman, who was around seven months pregnant, died of a brain haemorrhage. However, the medical team found that the foetus was alive and when it reached 28 weeks, they performed surgery to bring it out.

It is one of the rarest cases in the world, said the official. The baby is now kept in a special incubator under the supervision of a skilled medical team.

Gulf News tried to contact members of the family involved but none was available.  The mother of the baby was buried last week.

[Gulf News]

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Landscape Astrophotography Tutorial - First Night Out from Ben Canales

An awesome Landscape Astrophotography Tutorial - First Night Out from Ben Canales of how to shoot Starry Night Sky Photography. So learn it and happy learning :)

Landscape Astrophotography Tutorial - First Night Out from Ben Canales on Vimeo.

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Tattoos may give you cancer

Smoking, drinking, sunbathing and mobile phones have all been implicated in the surge in cancer diagnoses.

But now it seems another cause may soon be added to the ever-growing list: tattoos.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has launched an investigation after new research turned up troubling findings about toxic chemicals in tattoo ink.

Recently published studies have found that the inks can contain a host of dodgy substances, including some phthalates, metals, and hydrocarbons that are carcinogens and endocrine disruptors.

One chemical commonly used to make black tattoo ink called benzo(a)pyrene is known to be a potent carcinogen that causes skin cancer in animal tests.

Coloured inks often contain lead, cadmium, chromium, nickel, titanium and other heavy metals that could trigger allergies or diseases, scientists say.

Some pigments are industrial grade dyes 'suitable for printers' ink or automobile paint,' according to an FDA fact sheet.

Read more at Daily Mail

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An invisible cycle helmet wins design award

An invisible airbag for cyclists' head, shaped as a collar worn around the neck has won one of the world's largest monetary prize for design.

The winners of the 2011 Index design awards were presented at a gala in the Danish capital Copenhagen.

Index: Award, which is the world's largest monetary prize for design, focuses on "Design to Improve Life – designs that target and solve problems in the daily life.

The award is split into five categories – Body, Home, Work, Play and Community – with the winner of each category winning 100,000 euros.

In the play category, Swedish Hovding – an invisible airbag for cyclists' head, shaped as a collar worn around the neck – won the prize.

This year's winners in the Body category was the See Better to Learn Better free eyeglasses program for Mexican children designed by Yves Behar from Switzerland.

In the Home category, the winner was Elemental Monterrey – a new model for social housing, also in Mexico.

Read more at Telegraph

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