ACLU, EFF challenging US ‘secret’ court orders seeking Twitter data

Thursday, April 7, 2011 Late last month, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) filed objections to the United States Government’s ‘secret’ attempts to obtain Twitter account information relating to WikiLeaks. The ACLU and EFF cite First and Fourth amendment issues as overriding reasons to overturn government attempts to keep their investigation secret; and, that with Birgitta Jonsdottir being an Icelandic Parliamentarian, the issue has serious international implications. The case, titled “In the Matter of the 2703(d) Order Relating to Twitter Accounts: Wikileaks, Rop_G, IOERROR; and…

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‘Mobile phone dermatitis’ linked to nickel deposits

Friday, October 17, 2008 The British Association of Dermatologists (BAD) has released a report saying that an illness they named ‘mobile phone dermatitis’, in which individuals owning a cell phone have developed a rash on the side of their face, is likely linked to nickel deposits in the metal of some cellular phones. Nickel has been known to cause rashes on those who have a sensitivity to, or are allergic to the metal. Nickel is also mixed with other metals to make jewelry. The Association says that the condition is…

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Indonesian anti-corruption chief convicted of murder

Friday, February 12, 2010 An Indonesian court has convicted the former head of the country’s anti-corruption agency of murder. The prosecution of Antasari Azhar and three others has been controversial, with some fearing the so-called “Judicial Mafia” played a role. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) already saw a proven plot to discredit it and frame its senior members. Shortly after Azhar’s arrest in May last year police came to take away Bibit Rianto and Chandra Hamzah, two deputy commissioners, to face trial for corruption. The trial, instead, unveiled a plot…

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DiCaprio finally wins Oscar for Best Actor

Monday, February 29, 2016 Yesterday Leonardo DiCaprio won his first Oscar, for Best Actor, at the 88th Academy Awards. The award ended DiCaprio’s long wait for an Academy Award — he was first nominated in 1993 and won on his sixth nomination, for his role in The Revenant, which also won Best Cinematography and Best Director. I thank you all for this amazing award tonight. Let us not take this planet for granted. I do not take tonight for granted. Thank you so very much. In his acceptance speech, DiCaprio…

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Europe hit by storms, 45 deaths reported

Sunday, January 21, 2007 Europe has been hit by fierce wind and storms, with gusts over 150 kilometers per hour reported from the UK to Southern Germany. Most major motorways are blocked/shut due to lorries being overturned by the wind. Most European Airports, Train and Motorways have been affected. Amsterdam has been cut off, with planes grounded, and the train system from Amsterdam city halted. Contents 1 Casualties and fatalities 1.1 Western Europe 1.1.1 United Kingdom 1.1.2 Germany 1.1.3 The Netherlands 1.1.4 France 1.1.5 Belgium 1.2 Central and Eastern Europe…

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Bomb hits northwestern Pakistan; at least 30 killed

Wednesday, November 11, 2009 A suicide car bomb attack in northwestern Pakistan has killed at least 30 people, including some children. Investigators say the bomb exploded Tuesday on a busy street near a market in the city of Charsadda, 40 kilometers north of Peshawar. The blast wounded dozens of people and destroyed several buildings. “The death toll has gone up to 32 and more than 100 people have been wounded in this suicide attack,” said Bashir Bilour, the Senior Minister of North West Frontier Province. Hazrat Ali, a shopkeeper, was…

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Gastric bypass surgery performed by remote control

Sunday, August 21, 2005 A robotic system at Stanford Medical Center was used to perform a laparoscopic gastric bypass surgery successfully with a theoretically similar rate of complications to that seen in standard operations. However, as there were only 10 people in the experimental group (and another 10 in the control group), this is not a statistically significant sample. If this surgical procedure is as successful in large-scale studies, it may lead the way for the use of robotic surgery in even more delicate procedures, such as heart surgery. Note…

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Cambodian lawmaker calls for ASEAN website to be blocked over missing land

Saturday, June 2, 2007 Thirty-five square kilometers, or 13.5135755 square miles, or 3,500 hectares or 8,648.68835 acres. However you figure it, it’s a sizeable chunk of land. And it’s missing from Cambodia on the website for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, a 10-member regional body of which Cambodia is a member. The apparent rounding down of Cambodia’s territory, 181,035 square kilometers, on the ASEAN website, has some Cambodian lawmakers up in arms. Parliamentarian Keo Remy, a member of the opposition Sam Rainsy Party, is calling for the…

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Hotel development proposal could displace Buffalo, NY business owners

Buffalo, N.Y. Hotel Proposal Controversy Recent Developments “120 year-old documents threaten development on site of Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal” — Wikinews, November 21, 2006 “Proposal for Buffalo, N.Y. hotel reportedly dead: parcels for sale “by owner”” — Wikinews, November 16, 2006 “Contract to buy properties on site of Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal extended” — Wikinews, October 2, 2006 “Court date “as needed” for lawsuit against Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal” — Wikinews, August 14, 2006 “Preliminary hearing for lawsuit against Buffalo, N.Y. hotel proposal rescheduled” — Wikinews, July 26, 2006 “Elmwood…

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