Biden to meet Russian FM, Syrian opposition leader

WASHINGTON: US Vice President Joe Biden will discuss the carnage in Syria in meetings on Saturday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Syrian opposition chief Moaz al-Khatib, the White House said.Biden will hold the meetings, and also see UN-Arab League envoy to Syria Lakhdar Brahimi at the Munich Security Conference on a trip that will also include talks with leaders of Germany,...

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CES gives Dish Hopper with Sling 'Best of Show' award

The Consumer Electronics Association, a trade organization that represents 2,000 technology companies and runs the International Consumer Electronics Show, announced today that the Dish Hopper with Sling HD DVR is joining the Razer Edge gaming tablet as a co-winner of the 2013 Best of Show in the CES awards program. The CEA also designated the Dish Hopper a 2013 Design and Engineering Award Honoree...

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New Theory on How Homing Pigeons Find Home

Jane J. Lee Homing pigeons (Columba livia) have been prized for their navigational abilities for thousands of years. They've served as messengers during war, as a means of long-distance communication, and as prized athletes in international races.But there are places around the world that seem to confuse these birds—areas where they repeatedly vanish in the wrong direction or scatter on...

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Hagel, McCain Butt Heads at Confirmation Hearing

Facing a rocky confirmation process, Chuck Hagel today defended his record before his former Senate colleagues, including an openly impatient Sen. John McCain."I'm on the record on many issues, but no one individual vote, no one individual quote, no one individual statement defines me," Hagel said in his opening statement at his first confirmation hearing for secretary of defense."My...

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Today on New Scientist: 30 January 2013

Timbuktu's precious scientific texts must be saved Islamist militants in Mali have burned documents that attest to science in Africa before European colonisation - what remains must be protectedThink that massage feels good? Try adding drugs Nerve bundles that respond to stroking have been identified and chemically activated in miceHow Obama will deliver his climate promise The US is set to...

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Bill Gates says fame not goal in aid work

NEW YORK: Bill Gates, one of the world's richest men and highest profile aid donors, says he doesn't care if he's forgotten after his death -- as long as polio and other major diseases have been eradicated."I don't need to be remembered at all," the co-founder of Microsoft, 57, told AFP in New York.Gates has a fortune estimated by Forbes at US$66 billion, second only to Mexican telecoms...

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BackBlaze iPhone app gives access to online backups

Backblaze's iOS app gives access to an account holder's backed-up PC files.(Credit:Backblaze)Backblaze, an online backup start-up, announced plans to release an iPhone app in coming weeks to let customers tap into their files."Having restored 2.5 billion files for our customers, we found that 22 percent of recoveries contained a single file and realized customers were using Backblaze to access their...

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Water Demand for Energy to Double by 2035

Marianne Lavelle and Thomas K. Grose The amount of fresh water consumed for world energy production is on track to double within the next 25 years, the International Energy Agency (IEA) projects.And even though fracking—high-pressure hydraulic fracturing of underground rock formations for natural gas and oil—might grab headlines, IEA sees its future impact as relatively small.By far the...

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Giffords to Senate: 'Americans Are Counting on You'

Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, whose congressional career was ended by a bullet wound to her head, opened a Senate hearing on gun violence today by telling the panel, "Speaking is difficult, but I need to say something important."In a determined and forceful voice, she told the Senators to be "courageous" because "Americans are counting on you."Giffords sat alongside...

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Today on New Scientist: 29 January 2013

Creatures of the air caught in the mist Photographer Todd Forsgren uses mist nets to briefly ensnare a variety of tropical South American birds before releasing them, unharmedDrug reduces enlarged prostate with few side effects Shrinking enlarged prostates by blocking a potent growth factor could avoid problems - such as erectile dysfunction - that accompany current treatmentsClimate change blamed...

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