Broadband goes electric

Fast net services in the UK could soon be available via electricity lines as an alternative way of reaching out to those communities cut off from broadband. Scottish Hydro-Electric is planning to extend broadband trials to a town in Scotland and one in southern England reports Computing magazine. Eventually the service could be available to all 3.5 million of its customers. The company has already run technical trials of the technology in the small Scottish towns of Campbeltown and Crief.

The trials were a big success, offering up to 2MB per second - much faster than most broadband services on offer in the UK - for the price of £25. Speed and price of any commercial service has yet to be decided but the firm says it will be competitive. And there is no reason why other power companies could not follow suit, said a spokesman for the power company. It could be a welcome alternative for people living outside of the reach of current broadband services. "Technically we can reach to a lot more remote spots than BT can offer but some very remote areas will still be difficult," said the spokesman.

Japan threatens force against N Korea

Japan has given a warning it would launch a pre-emptive military action against North Korea if it had firm evidence Pyongyang was planning a missile attack.

Defence Minister Shigeru Ishiba said it would be "a self-defence measure" if North Korea was going to "resort to arms against Japan".

Mr Ishiba said it would be too late if a North Korean missile was already on its way.

[Erik says: For those of you who are not aware, while Japan's post-war constitution bans the country from possessing offensive capabilities, its Self-Defense Force "outstrips Britain's in total spending and manpower" (according to this incredibly exhaustive analysis by GlobalSecurity.org) and has assisted in global Peace-Keeping missions since the late 90s. This is not idle threat, and it could have serious repercussions on the Asian military situation. Gulp.]

The Pretender's Administration Once Again Selectively Ignores the Facts to Make Its Case

U.S.: Washington Says Alleged Bin Laden Tape Proves Iraq, Al-Qaeda Connection

Washington is pointing to a new audiotape in which Osama bin Laden purportedly urges Muslims to defend Iraq against any U.S. attack as proof that Baghdad and Al-Qaeda are connected. But the tape, broadcast on an Arabic television news channel yesterday, also criticizes Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, making the American case to tie Al-Qaeda and Iraq more problematic.

Erik says: Colin Powell, to whom this declaration is attributed, is usually better about getting all of the facts together-- not just the ones that serve the agenda. Minus two points.

Justice Dept. Drafts Sweeping Expansion of Anti-Terrorism Act

"The Bush Administration is preparing a bold, comprehensive sequel to the USA Patriot Act passed in the wake of September 11, 2001, which will give the government broad, sweeping new powers to increase domestic intelligence-gathering, surveillance and law enforcement prerogatives, and simultaneously decrease judicial review and public access to information."


Read all about it at the link above.

Terahertz camera takes snapshot of the future

Using radiation somewhere between radio and the visible spectrum, scientists at StarTiger, a European Space Agency, have essentially developed a way of seeing through matter.

A rather telling quote from the article:

"As well as images of a hand taken through 15mm of paper, the project has also released pictures of the human body imaged through clothing."

Those naughty scientists.

Wilcannia Mob: Down River

What do you get when you take a microphone out to the boondocks of Australia and coax kids into writing lyrics about life? Damn good music, is what.

Unfortunately, it takes a little effort to track the track down. Click here to go to the Morganics site, launch the Flash page, click on the record labeled Tracks, and click on #2 to listen. It's worth the trouble. Requires the Flash 5 plug-in.