Daily Archives: 15. Februar 2014


15.02.2014 - 22:56 [ Der Standard ]

Eine heliozentrische Welt entsteht: Der erste Kopernikaner kam aus Vorarlberg

Unbeirrt kämpfte er weiterhin für die Anerkennung der Lehren Kopernikus‘, wonach sich die Erde um die Sonne dreht und nicht umgekehrt. Er starb 1574, von der damaligen Wissenschaft unbemerkt, in Kaschau, dem heutigen Kosice in der Slowakei. Posthum erschien 1596 sein mathematisches Tafelwerk „Opus Palatinum“, das seinen Ruf als führender Mathematiker seiner Zeit festigte. 77 Jahre später setzte ihm die Wissenschaft ein erstes Denkmal und gab einem Mondkrater den Namen „Rheticus“, in den 1990er-Jahren wurde ein Asteroid nach ihm benannt.

15.02.2014 - 22:50 [ Russia Today ]

Thousands of zoo animals killed in Europe every year

Every zoo which is a member of the European Association of Zoos and Aquaria (EAZA), kills approximately five animals per year, bringing the total among the 247 EAZA constituent members to 1,735, according to the estimates of the association’s spokesman David Williams Mitchell, cited by the Associated Press.

15.02.2014 - 20:56 [ New York Times ]

Spying by N.S.A. Ally Entangled U.S. Law Firm

Andrew M. Perlman, a Suffolk University law professor who specializes in legal ethics and technology issues, said the growth of surveillance was troubling for lawyers. He helped create the bar association’s ethics code revisions that require lawyers to try to avoid being overheard by eavesdroppers.

15.02.2014 - 20:47 [ Xinhuanet ]

New cabinet formed in Lebanon

PM Salam, born in 1945, is a centrist politician whose father was a long time prime minister, and he is considered close to former prime minister Saad Hariri.

15.02.2014 - 18:22 [ Radio Utopie ]

STAATSAFFÄRE: Die brisante Pressekonferenz der Staatsanwaltschaft Hannover

Fall Edathy +++ B.K.A. seit 2012 von Strafverfahren in Kanada informiert +++ Bereits vor oder im Oktober 2013 “Hunderte, Tausende Datensätze” über das Bundeskriminalamt “flächendeckend über Deutschland” versendet +++ Staatsanwaltschaft Hannover bekam erst am 5. November 2013 Verfahrensakte +++ Edathy-Anwalt Noll meldete sich bereits am 28. November bei Staatsanwaltschaft Hannover wegen Verfahren bezüglich Kinderpornografie, meldete sich schon vorher bei der Staatsanwaltschaft Berlin +++ Edathy-Anwalt Noll am 22. Januar 2014: Filme seines Mandanten seien keine Kinderpornografie, “sein Mandant besitze sie auch nicht mehr” +++ Zwei Tage nach Versendung der Anzeige der Staatsanwaltschaft zum Bundestagspräsidenten melden “Medien”, Edathy sei am Vortag zurückgetreten, Schriftstück trifft erst nach über fünf Tagen beim Bundestagspräsidenten ein +++

15.02.2014 - 18:03 [ Global Research ]

The Geopolitics of Water in the Nile River Basin

In Africa, access to water is one of the most critical aspects of human survival. Today, about one third of the total population lack access to water. Constituting 300 million people and about 313 million people lack proper sanitation. (World Water Council 2006). As result, many riparian countries surrounding the Nile river basin have expressed direct stake in the water resources hitherto seldom expressed in the past.

15.02.2014 - 17:13 [ Portal amerika21 ]

Kritiker von Kissinger-Professur diffamiert

„Wenn wir die Sache realistisch betrachten, dann sehen wir vor allem aber, dass zum ersten Mal in der Geschichte der Bundesrepublik ein Lehrstuhl hauptsächlich vom Verteidigungsministerium finanziert wird“, sagte dazu Charlotte Schwarzer-Geraedts von der Grünen Hochschulgruppe. „Im Sinne einer kritischen und unabhängigen Forschung und Lehre werden wir als Hochschulgruppe auch weiterhin dagegen protestieren“, fügte die Hochschulaktivistin an. Das Verteidigungsministerium überweist der Universität Bonn für die Professur eine viertel Million Euro.

15.02.2014 - 16:19 [ Chicago Tribune News ]

Merkel coalition under strain over conservative minister‘s ouster

The information derived from a prosecutor‘s investigation into an SPD lawmaker suspected of possessing child pornography. The lawmaker, Sebastian Edathy, has denied the accusations.

Merkel‘s governing „grand coalition“ is under serious strain and could even be in jeopardy if the scandal undermines the position of SPD chairman Sigmar Gabriel, who was tipped off about the investigation by then-interior Friedrich in October.

15.02.2014 - 16:18 [ Reuters ]

German minister resigns over Edathy issue

A senior German minister resigned on Friday amid accusations he leaked confidential information about a fellow lawmaker suspected of possessing child pornography, dealing a blow to Chancellor Angela Merkel and her two-month old government.

15.02.2014 - 16:06 [ Süddeutsche ]

Rücktritt von CSU-Minister: Nur der erste Dominostein

Die Staatsanwälte werden versuchen zu ermitteln, welcher Politiker wann welche Information weitergegeben hat. Schließlich scheint irgendeiner ja auch Edathy informiert zu haben. In den nächsten Wochen dürften also auch SPD-Politiker ins Visier geraten. Mitleid von der CSU können sie dabei nicht mehr erwarten.

15.02.2014 - 15:56 [ Russia Today ]

First Pakistani to sue CIA over drones freed after kidnapping, torture

“The lesson learned through this experience is that we must always raises our voices,” he said. “We need to take this stand for each other and every person who disappears, it is the only way to force those in power to listen. That is why I am so thankful to all the local international activists who spoke out for Kareem.”

15.02.2014 - 12:33 [ Beppe Grillo ]

Saint Valentine’s Day

Now Napolitano will start the ritual of consultations that he would spare us if he had a shred of decency. In a magnificent way of taking the piss, the President for life will receive the parties and when they leave the Quirinale Palace they will make the usual statements peppered with that unbearable hypocrisy.

15.02.2014 - 12:23 [ Japan News ]

Abe, Obama to discuss TPP

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and U.S. President Barack Obama will exchange opinions over bilateral cooperative relations including security and negotiations for the multilateral Trans-Pacific Partnership economic and trade framework, as well as the North Korean situation and freedom of navigation at sea, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga has said.

15.02.2014 - 08:35 [ National Aeronautics and Space Administration ]

NASA‘s IBEX Helps Paint Picture of the Magnetic System Beyond the Solar Wind

Spacecraft data in the past five years from near Earth and cosmic ray observations have painted a better picture of the magnetic system that surrounds us, while at the same time raising new questions. Scientists are challenging our current understanding in a new study that combines observations of massively energetic cosmic ray particles streaming in from elsewhere in the Milky Way along with observations from NASA‘s Interstellar Boundary Explorer, or IBEX.

The data sets show a magnetic field that is nearly perpendicular to the motion of our solar system through the galaxy. In addition to shedding light on our cosmic neighborhood, the results offer an explanation for a decades-old mystery on why we measure more incoming high-energy cosmic rays on one side of the sun than on the other.

15.02.2014 - 08:29 [ Electronic Privacy Information Center ]

EPIC Accepts NSA‘s Settlement Offer, Receives Attorneys Fees

EPIC has accepted the NSA‘s offer to settle a Freedom of Information Act case EPIC v. NSA. EPIC sought both National Security Presidential Directive 54, a Presidential Directive setting out the scope of the NSA‘s authority over computer networks in the United States, as well as documents related to NSPD 54. EPIC received some of the documents as a result of the lawsuit, „substantially prevailing“ under the FOIA, and prompting the NSA to make a settlement offer to EPIC. As a consequence, EPIC will receive attorneys fees from the NSA.

15.02.2014 - 08:16 [ Keep Talking Greece ]

Recent cases of censorship create concern in democratic Greece

On Wednesday, journalist Popi Christodoulidou was taken to Greek Police Headquarters after she published an article on a website. The prosecutor investigates whether the article contained “sensitive military information”. The journalist had claimed that “coastguard divers are involved in guarding sensitive sites along with the police, despite the fact that the law does not provide for that.” Popi Christostoulidou had based her claims on a law published in the Official Government Gazette (FEK), which is a public document. Also here and here.

15.02.2014 - 08:13 [ Techdirt ]

Businessman Threatens To Sue Blogger For Defamation; Blogger Says ‚Bring It On‘

Another day, another blogger being sued for defamation. There are a couple of differences here, however. To begin with, this blogger (Billy Jones) is welcoming the lawsuit (albeit in the way a raccoon frozen in the headlights „welcomes“ an oncoming vehicle). His statement in response to the lawsuit threat, via Jim Romenesko, reads as follows:

15.02.2014 - 08:12 [ wired ]

How Obama Officials Cried ‘Terrorism’ to Cover Up a Paperwork Error

After seven years of litigation, two trips to a federal appeals court and $3.8 million worth of lawyer time, the public has finally learned why a wheelchair-bound Stanford University scholar was cuffed, detained and denied a flight from San Francisco to Hawaii: FBI human error.

FBI agent Kevin Kelley was investigating Muslims in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2004 when he checked the wrong box on a terrorism form, erroneously placing Rahinah Ibrahim on the no-fly list.

What happened next was the real shame.

15.02.2014 - 08:07 [ Keep Talking Greece ]

Lost in taxes: Greek FinMin to ask 55% tax in advance from employees & pensioners

A new tax blow awaits the usual taxpayer classes that pay their taxes anyway: the class of employees and pensioners. In a new attack of ‘tax paranoia’ the Greek Finance Ministry decided to squeeze the last drop of blood for one more time by introducing the measure of taxes in advance if the employees and pensioners have any additional income from renting a property or having an additional self-employed work.

15.02.2014 - 08:04 [ Techdirt ]

With Porn Filters Going Oh So Well, UK Roars Ahead In Expanding Them To Include ‚Extremist‘ Content

Just as child porn is used to justify broader porn filters, beheading videos appear to be the magic bullet into scaring people into accepting filters that move well beyond porn. According to the BBC, government-funded operations within the counter-terrorism referral unit will soon order UK broadband ISPs like TalkTalk, Virgin Media and BSkyB to expand filters to include websites declared to be promoting terrorism.