"Hand-Screened for Radioactivity" Is Going to Be the New "Grown Locally"

If you're willing to throw down $140 for the tasting menu at Le Bernardin—perhaps the greatest seafood-oriented restaurant in the country, with three Michelin stars and four from the NYT—you can nom on the fluke sashimi without worrying about radioactive contamination.

That's because in addition to no longer sourcing seafood from Japan, chef Eric Ripert's now hand-screening all of the fish coming into the restaurant for radioactive contamination. Will it make patrons feel better while simultaneously subtly inducing more panic? Yes.

Expect this kind of thing to become de rigueur at any place that professes to care about the provenance of its food—well-regarded Sushi Yasuda in NY is already following suit—even as a senior scientist at the FDA tells the NYT, "Is that one fish at the intervention level a public health concern? No, it is not." And another scientist, a professor of marine sciences at SUNY Stony Brook adds that, given the current levels of cesium 137 detected in Japanese fish, you can eat around 35 pounds of it a year and be fine.

But yes, if you're willing to pay for organic beef grown on a particular farm and fed only the finest non-additive grass and massaged daily for all-natural marbling, you can also procure hand-screened, non-radioactive fish. You're paying for it, after all. Me? I like pork better anyway. [NYT]

How Big Weapons Hit Tiny Targets from Incredible Distances

So, let's say our armed forces were in a conflict where they had to enforce a no-fly zone without deploying troops on the ground. How would they do that? Simple: GPS. Oh, and Lasers. And mechanized ordnance that is better at navigating than any meatbag with a map.
In a tense conflict like Libya, where nobody—including the American public—wants US troops stomping around, it might seem like military options are limited. They are: to a gang of super-smart, incredibly accurate missiles and bombs launched from the ocean and sky. In some cases, a missile's solo journey can originate from a submerged submarine hundreds of miles from its target. Which raises the question: Wait, how can it hit a target the size of a shipping container from, like, another country?

It all starts with a plan. Before, say, a $607,000 Tomahawk land attack missile ever leaves the launch tube, it's programmed with a set of instructions—called a pre-mission plan—that tells it where to land. The guide includes the latitude and longitude of the target as well as the coordinates for up to 15 other alternate endings.

Also loaded are stored images of the flight path, which come in handy later.

Getting from point A (say, a sub) to point B (say, a bunker) requires an intricate set of negotiations that the Tomahawk handles on the fly. After our 20-foot-long projectile protagonist pops out of the ocean, it levels low to the water in order to dodge enemy radar. Moving at up to 550mph, the missile is guided by a GPS system similar to the ones 747s use, and a system called Terrain Contour Matching. TERCOM takes note of the immediate landscape, but it's not about sight seeing. The Tomahawk instead compares real time data from its altimeter and radar with satellite imagery from a stored database to make sure it's precisely on course. It's kind of like looking at Google Street View while you walk through a neighborhood. If the missile finds that it has zigged off its route or desired altitude, it aligns itself with the right topography to get back on track.

But things change rapidly in conflict, so the 3,330 Tomahawk Block IV has built-in ability to react to situations like a last-minute change in targeting. In these cases, GPS location data gets updated via a two-way satellite link, and the missile takes an alternate route to another end point. Haven't determined the new target yet? "The missile can go into a loitering mode," explains a super secret Navy official whose name we can't use. "It's not as dramatic as a hover, but it will fly loops in the air, and it will await further tasking."

Remember that stored image of the route to the enemy destination included in the pre-mission plan? Well, if there aren't any changes mid-flight, the missile compares the picture of the route with what's on the ground. "It adjusts based on what it sees," says the Navy official. When everything matches up: Boom. No more shipping container.


Destruction doesn't only come from the sea, either. Other super accurate systems, like certain Guided Bomb Units (GBU) carried on F15E Strike Eagle planes, use lasers and fins for guidance. Before ever leaving the ground, the bombs are programmed to look for a certain laser signature—the same laser signature that the plane is programmed to "paint" on its enemies. See, the bombs are ravenous for these beam-illuminated spots, but their attraction needs to be very, very specific. The Air Force doesn't want Jet #1's bomb hitting Jet #2's target (or, like, a grocery store) by accident.

F15Es have what's called a targeting pod that allows Weapons Systems Officers to look for targets using infrared and electro-optical imaging. You've seen this set up on TV; it's the screen with the crosshairs on it. Once they find the correct spot, the targeting pod computes the coordinates. Then, the jet's computer calculates where the pilot needs to fly and when the bomb needs to drop.

When the range is right, the pilot hits the "pickle button" (for serious—that's what it's called) and the laser guided bomb is dropped from something like 20,000 feet. From here, the on-bomb computer plays a game of find the laser. Bombs are equipped with a glassed-over seeker that kind of looks like an eye. When the seeker locates the laser-illuminated target below, the computer tells the bomb how to move its fins to navigate the free fall. "We can hit anything: buildings, cars, holes in the ground—really there's no limitation," says Major Ryan Ismirle, who flew F15Es in Afghanistan. "I've never seen one—especially in combat-that hasn't hit its target."

50 Fukushima Heroes Work On, as Radiation Levels Soar

Pausing for respite for a few hours, the "Fukushima 50," as they've become known, finally had a chance to catch their breath.

Following a radiation spike, the workers were moved from the reactor buildings earlier today for about one hour—initially, it was misreported that the workers left the plant grounds, due to a translation error. As of 11.30am Japanese-time today, the brave workers were back at work after temporarily leaving the reactors, and tending to the fire-ravaged No.4 reactor.

Edano also confirmed that temperatures in the water cooling the nuclear rods have actually increased. An ideal temperature is 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit), but they'd risen to 84 degrees Celsius (183 degrees Fahrenheit). With reactors 1, 2, 3 and 4 already hit by exposions and fires, the fifth and sixth reactors are now experiencing soaring temperatures too.

TEPCO, the Tokyo Electric Power Co., startedspraying seawater and boric acid onto the reactors from military helicopters, but it was abandoned shortly afterwards, after worries too much seawater would be dumped and turn into steam, which would counter their efforts by producing hydrogen and only increasing the pressure.

Current reactor status according to Kyodo News

Reactor 1. Cooling failure, partial melting of core, vapor vented, building damaged by hydrogen explosion, seawater being pumped in.

Reactor 2. Cooling failure, seawater being pumped in, fuel rods fully exposed temporarily, vapor vented, building damaged Monday by blast at Reactor No. 3, damage to containment vessel on Tuesday, potential meltdown feared.

Reactor 3. Cooling failure, partial melting of core feared, vapor vented, seawater being pumped in, building damaged Monday by hydrogen explosion, high-level radiation measured nearby on Tuesday, plume of smoke observed Wednesday, damage to containment vessel likely.

Reactor 4. Fire Tuesday possibly caused by hydrogen explosion at pool holding spent fuel rods, fire observed Wednesday at building housing reactor.

The radiation effects on the 50 workers, believed to be working in shifts, is still unknown. Radiation levels have swung up and down for days now, with the current levels in Fukushima City believed to be 100 times above normal, at around 20 micro-sieverts per hour.Supposedly that's comparable to one chest X-ray every two hours. Nausea, damage to the thyroid, and cancer are the varying stages of radiation poisoning. Around 15 workers are believed to have been injured in the plant's explosions, since Saturday.

Japan's Prime Minister Naoto Kan has warned TEPCO executives after failing to inform the government of yesterday's explosion, with Kanreportedly asking TEPCO "the TV reported an explosion, but nothing was said to the prime minister's office for more than an hour. What the hell is going on?" While obviously concerned about the workers' health, Kan has also urged TEPCO to ensure employees continue working on the plant until it is safe, otherwise "the [TEPCO] company will collapse." [The Guardian, Al Jazeera,AltJapan, @Matt_Alt and Joi]

UPDATE: The helicopter has been unable to drop any water on the reactor, owing to the high levels of radiation. Workers are now topping up the water from the ground.

Meanwhile, over in Germany, all seven of their pre-1980 nuclear plants will be shut down and checked over for safety. Across the European Union, further preventative measures will also be made, with 143 of the reactors being tested also.

The Arrogance of Authority

A DEA officer stopped at a ranch in Texas , and talked with an old rancher.


He told the rancher, "I need to inspect your ranch for illegally grown drugs."


The rancher said, "Okay , but don't go in that field over there.....", as he pointed out the location.

The DEA officer verbally exploded saying, " Mister, I have the authority of the Federal Government with me !"


Reaching into his rear pants pocket, he removed his badge and proudly displayed it to the rancher.


"See this badge?! This badge means I am allowed to go wherever I wish.... On any land !!


No questions asked or answers given!! Have I made myself clear......do you understand ?!!"

The rancher nodded politely, apologised, and went about his chores.

A short time later, the old rancher heard loud screams, looked up, and saw the DEA officer running for his life, being chased by the rancher's big Santa Gertrudis bull......

With every step the bull was gaining ground on the officer, and it seemed likely that he'd sure enough get gored before he reached safety. The officer was clearly terrified.

"

The rancher threw down his tools, ran to the fence and yelled at the top of his lungs.....

(This is the best part....)




"Your badge, show him your BADGE........ ! !

How a Captain Got Sucked Out Of a Blown-Up Cockpit Window and Everyone Survived

There are times in which an airplane decompression may not be dangerous. But when your captain literally has half of his body out of one of the cockpit window, his face "banging against the window [from the outside] with blood coming out of his nose and the side of his head", all while the plane—with 81 passengers en route to sunny Málaga, Spain from Birmingham, England—is " spiralling down at 80 feet per second with no autopilot and no radio"... well, maybe then it is time to panic.

That's exactly what happened to Tim Lancaster on flight BA5390, when he was piloting a 43-tonne British Airways BAC 1-11 airliner at 17,000 feet, on June 10, 1990.

Fortunately, Nigel Ogden—a flight attendant who was getting out of the cockpit when the windshield blew away—didn't lose his cool. As the explosive decompression "made the whole cabin mist up like fog for a second" and the "plane started to plummet", Nigel thought it was a bomb. Later, it was discovered that the cause for the explosive decompression was an improperly installed window pane, which has been replaced 27 hours before the flight. When Nigel turned around, the scene was terrifying:

I whipped round and saw the front windscreen had disappeared and Tim, the pilot, was going out through it. He had been sucked out of his seatbelt and all I could see were his legs. I jumped over the control column and grabbed him round his waist to avoid him going out completely. His shirt had been pulled off his back and his body was bent upwards, doubled over round the top of the aircraft. His legs were jammed forward, disconnecting the autopilot, and the flight door was resting on the controls, sending the plane hurtling down at nearly 650kmh through some of the most congested skies in the world.

Everything was being sucked out of the aircraft: even an oxygen bottle that had been bolted down went flying and nearly knocked my head off. I was holding on for grim death but I could feel myself being sucked out, too. John rushed in behind me and saw me disappearing, so he grabbed my trouser belt to stop me slipping further, then wrapped the captain's shoulder strap around me. Luckily, Alastair, the co-pilot, was still wearing his safety harness from take-off, otherwise he would have gone, too

.

Soon, the pressure equalized, but Tim was still out of the plane and the wind start getting in the cabin at about 630km/h (391mph) and -17ºC (1.4ºF). The co-pilot struggled to gain control of the plane and he did it, taking down to 11,000 feet in two minutes—where there was more oxygen. But Nigel was still holding Tim and the situation was still critical. The plane may have been stabilized, but the captain was still hanging out of it.

I was still holding Tim, but my arms were getting weaker, and then he slipped. I thought I was going to lose him, but he ended up bent in a U-shape around the windows. His face was banging against the window with blood coming out of his nose and the side of his head, his arms were flailing and seemed about 6 feet [1.8 metres] long. Most terrifyingly, his eyes were wide open. I'll never forget that sight as long as I live.

Amazingly, with the help of another flight attendant, they were able to pull him back. And even more amazing: Tim as more or less ok, frostbitten and with some bones fractured, but alive. In fact, back in 2005 he was still in active, flying for EasyJet. The BA plane landed without any other problem—even while they feared that a catastrophe could happen if there was more damage. It was 07:55. Only 18 minutes had passed from the explosive decompression till the planed landed on Runway 02 at Southampton Airport. To everyone in that cockpit, it felt like hours.

Model Poonam Pandey to go nude if India wins Cup

Some fans pour milk on cut-outs of their favourite cricketers, some hold chain prayer meetings for divine intervention during the Indo-Pak epic semifinal clash on Wednesday at Mohali, while there are still others who vow to shed all their clothes if India lifts the World Cup trophy.
Model and cricket fan Poonam Pandey has promised to strip naked in the view of thousands if India wins the Mohali semifinal against Pakistan and eventually lifts the Cup, though she is also open to a players' dressing room peep show if the Indian cricket board permits it, reports said.
The Kingfisher Calender girl's intention to bare all is bound to pile on additional pressure on the Indian cricket team already coping with mounting crowd expectations at home, not having won the Cup since 1983.
Poonam recently started a fan page on Facebook to cheer the Indian team. She follows in the footsteps of Paraguay's Larissa Riquelme and Argentinian Luciane Salazar who promised to strip if their football teams won the FIFA World Cup.

Devi Shetty targets medical tourism in Cayman Isles

GEORGE TOWN, Cayman Islands: A renowned Indian heart surgeon has struck a deal to build a 2,000-bed healthcare city in the Cayman Islands to target American patients and insurers searching for deeply discounted medical care.

The British Caribbean territory agreed to the deal with Dr. Devi Shetty , a low-cost healthcare pioneer renowned as Mother Teresa's heart surgeon. The Caymans fulfilled its part of the bargain last week by passing legislation that caps medical negligence claims at U.S.$600,000.

The tiny, affluent territory west of Jamaica has 55,000 residents and is under pressure from Britain to diversify its economy and move away from its tax haven image.

The healthcare city will cost about $2 billion and encompass a hospital, medical university and assisted-living facility and target American patients and insurance providers seeking deep cost reductions.

Construction is set to begin this year on the initial $100 million phase, with a 200 to 300-bed facility expected to be complete in about 18 months.

The project has attracted significant interest. Templeton emerging markets expert Mark Mobius, who oversees some $50 billion in assets, recently said the project could be very attractive to outside investors.

Shetty would not discuss specific investors, although JP Morgan Chase & Co, American International Group Inc and the chairwoman of Biocon Ltd , a large Indian biotechnology firm, already own more than 25 percent of the Shetty family's Bangalore-based hospital group, Narayana Hrudayalaya Private Ltd.

Its 1,000-bed flagship hospital performs more than twice as many cardiac bypass surgeries and pediatric surgeries in a year than similarly sized U.S. hospitals.

Citing his high-volume, low-cost hospitals in India as his model, Shetty estimates the Cayman facility will draw 50 percent of its patients from the United States.

U.S. insurers and employers are under pressure to reduce costs for high-tech procedures for heart, cancer, orthopedics, nuclear medicine and organ transplants, Shetty said.

"It will be much easier for insurance companies to buy an air ticket and ask them to go to the Cayman Islands and get a heart bypass done and have a two-week beach holiday and come back at perhaps less than 50 percent of the cost," he said.

The Cayman Islands are politically stable, English-speaking and close to Miami, which makes the modern large-scale facility an attractive medical tourist destination for Americans, Shetty said.

The Caymans' incentive package for the new hospital includes duty waivers on $800 million of medical equipment, recognition of Indian medical credentials and a discount of up to 30 percent on work permit fees for the influx of foreign workers expected to staff the hospital.

The average cost for a heart bypass is $144,000 in the United States, five times higher than neighboring Mexico at $27,000. Costa Rica charges $25,000 and Colombia $14,800 for the same procedure, the Medical Tourist Association said.

Even with the higher cost of doing business in the Cayman Islands, Shetty estimates a heart bypass will cost less than $10,000.

Medical tourism is still considered a niche market. But an estimated 1.3 million Americans will seek medical care outside of the United States in 2011 with 35 percent annual growth, according to a Deloitte report.

President Barack Obama's year-old healthcare overhaul faces significant challenges in court. But as it is implemented, millions of Americans will be brought into the insurance market in 2014, escalating costs well into the double digits, said industry expert Irving Stackpole.

"That will push medical tourism across the chasm from being a sector filled with early adopters to a mainstream solution for healthcare consumers," Stackpole said.

As Americans travel abroad for medical care, competition will increase in Latin America and the Caribbean to get a piece of the lucrative market, said Dr. Steve Tomlinson, head of the private Chrissie Tomlinson Memorial hospital in the Caymans.

Last month, a 4-year-old Cayman girl was flown to Shetty's hospital in Bangalore for successful surgery to repair two holes in her heart. Surgeons in Jamaica said the operation was too complex and the child's medical insurance was insufficient to cover the $800,000 cost of the surgery the United States.

"We could do it virtually free. It is all because of volume," Shetty said.