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by Jean-Philippe Lacour Agence France-Presse FRANKFURT AM MAIN, Germany (AFP) – German car makers are showing off their self-driving cars at the IAA international auto show in Frankfurt, but most people in the car-mad country have yet to be convinced by the technology. Curious visitors to the biennial trade fair, which lasts until September 24, can entrust their lives to a computer on a specially created car at a test track overlooked by Daimler and Volkswagen’s giant stands. […]
DUBAI, UAE (Reuters) — The Dubai Land Department has showed off a driverless car developed with Volkswagen at the much visited Cityscape Global exhibition. Dubai has already stated its intention to become one of the world’s smartest and most sustainable cities and the VW prototype car could help its ambitions. Although still just a concept, the driverless car, named ‘Sedric’ (self-driving car) by VW, will be sustainable and safe, convenient and easy to use, using […]
by Yanan Wang Agence France Presse HARBIN, China (AFP) — It was a hot summer afternoon in Harbin and tourists strolled cobblestone streets with the Chinese city’s famous milk popsicles in hand. But indoors, it was perfect weather for skiing. At the city’s new Ice and Snow Park, chilly winds blew snowflakes around skiers zipping down the manmade slopes of the world’s largest indoor ski park, a potent symbol of China’s ambitions to turn itself […]
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — A giant starfish-eating snail could be unleashed to help save the Great Barrier Reef, officials said Monday, with a trial underway to breed thousands of the rare species. Predatory crown-of-thorns starfish, which munch coral, are naturally-occurring but have proliferated due to pollution and run-off at the struggling World Heritage-listed ecosystem. Their impact has been profound with a major study of the 2,300-kilometer (1,400-mile) long reef’s health in 2012 showing coral cover halved […]
TEXAS, United States (Reuters) — The Canadarm2 robotic arm on the International Space Station (ISS) was used to release the SpaceX Dragon capsule, after it had been detached from earth on Sunday (September 17). Thrusts on the Dragon were then fired up as the capsule started its journey back to earth, where it is expected to splash down in the Pacific Ocean at 1014EDT (1414GMT) on Sunday. Recovery forces will be awaiting the splash landing […]
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — McDonalds says it will start globally rolling back use of antibiotics in its chicken products from 2018 as part of efforts to curb microbial resistance to drugs and the rise of superbugs. The decision follows a similar move undertaken in the US market in 2016. It applies to drugs that are also used in human medicine, called Highest Priority Critically Important Antimicrobials (HPCIA) by the World Health Organization (WHO). […]
by Marlowe Hood Agence France Presse PARIS, France — Fewer children are dying before their fifth birthday and although humans are living longer than ever before, one in five deaths last year were linked to poor diet, researchers said Friday. More than 1.6 million people in poor countries died in 2016 from diarrhea caused by contaminated water and food, while another 2.4 million succumbed to lung infections that mostly could have been prevented or treated. Another […]
https://youtu.be/RR1g5dYAd98 (Reuters) — U.S. researchers have identified a genetic difference between dogs and their wild cousins, wolves, that could explain why dogs are so friendly. The study used both behavioral and genetic data. The behavioral side was led by Oregon State University animal behaviorist Monique Udell who showed that pet domestic dogs are more sociable and less afraid of strangers than wolves, even when those wolves were raised by humans. The genetic component came from […]
LONDON, United Kingdom (Reuters) — While scientists and campaigners worry about the westernization of robots, the defense industry is showing off the latest autonomous weapons systems at a major arms fair in London. Among the offerings is an unmanned ground vehicle from German defense manufacturers Rheinmetall, that can operate autonomously and be fitted with its own weapons system. And while unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, are now commonplace in military arsenals, the unmanned ground vehicle, […]
by Jean-Louis Santini Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) – The National Aeronautics Space Administration’s Cassini probe is counting its final hours before one last plunge into Saturn on Friday that will cap a fruitful 13-year mission that greatly expanded knowledge about the gas giant. While orbiting Saturn nearly 300 times, Cassini made major discoveries, such as the liquid methane seas of the planet’s giant moon Titan and the sprawling subsurface ocean of Enceladus, a […]
PARIS, France (AFP) — French Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer has touched off a public debate about banning phones in schools as he seeks to implement a campaign pledge by President Emmanuel Macron. In an interview with Express magazine, the minister suggested that pupils might be asked to deposit their phones in secure boxes when arriving at school or for classes. “At our cabinet meetings, we drop our phones in lockers before sitting down together. It […]
LONDON, England (Reuters) — Twin brothers Steve and Nick Tidball have created a solar-powered glow-in-the-dark, waterproof jacket that they hope will allow late-night runners and cyclists to safely exercise for up to twelve hours in the pitch black. The pair’s start-up Vollebak has already enjoyed success with previous innovative tech clothing, including the 100 Year Hoodie made from Kevlar. The Solar Charged Jacket contains an ultra-thin layer of a phosphorescent compound which absorbs and […]
