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Articles Posted by BenLurkin

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  • Missing Man’s Decomposing Body Found in Denver Elevator Weeks After He Called for Help Twice

    08/11/2017 11:49:19 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 19 replies
    KTLA ^ | 10:54AM, August 11, 2017
    Isaak Komisarchik, 82, was last seen alive on July 5. Nearly a month later, his decomposing body was found in an inoperable elevator at the Woodstream Village apartments in Denver after tenants complained to management about an awful smell coming from a parking garage area that was under renovation, CNN affiliate KMGH reported. Denver police are investigating what went wrong -- particularly after police determined Komisarchik tried to summon help by pressing the elevator's emergency button at least twice on morning of July 6, police spokesman Doug Schepman told CNN. ... Greystar Management Services is investigating, the company told CNN...
  • Star Ark: A Living, Self-Sustaining Spaceship [book review]

    08/11/2017 10:15:15 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 42 replies
    universetoday.com ^ | 11 Aug , 2017 | Mark Mortimer
    Yes, many people want to travel to other stars....Yet making preparations and doing judicious planning is the aim of this book. Wisely though, this book isn’t technical. It has no mention of specific impulse calculations or ion shields. Rather, this book takes a very liberal view of space travel and ponders deep questions such as whether the cosmos is an ecosystem. Does our species have an appropriate culture for space travel? What exactly is a human? These concerns get raised in some very thought provoking sections. And given that the editor is an architect and one who apparently considers the...
  • Sea Princess cruise passengers spend 10 days in blackout for fear of pirates

    08/11/2017 9:38:07 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 69 replies
    1,900 passengers aboard a 104 day cruise around the world got an unsettling surprise after they departed from Sydney, Australia toward Dubai. For ten days, the passengers had to endure a mandatory dusk-to-dawn blackout for fear of pirate attacks. “No deck parties, no movies under the stars, no late-night outdoor bar hopping or pool dipping” were just some of the bans included in the blackout ordered by Captain Gennaro Arma, recalls Carolyn Jasinski, a passenger on the ship. The ship essentially become a ghost – all curtains were drawn, all lights were dimmed or turned off. Arma wanted to remind...
  • Calling the Moon: Startup to Put Cellphone Tower on the Moon

    08/11/2017 9:10:59 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 31 replies
    Space.com ^ | August 10, 2017 03:25pm ET | Tereza Pultarova
    German company Part Time Scientists, which originally competed for the Google Lunar X Prize race to the moon, plans to send a lander with a rover in late 2018 to visit the landing site of Apollo 17. (Launched in 1972, this was NASA's final Apollo mission to the moon.) Instead of using a complex dedicated telecommunication system to relay data from the rover to the Earth, the company will rely on LTE technology — the same system used on Earth for mobile phone communications. "We are cooperating with Vodafone in order to provide LTE base stations on the moon," Karsten...
  • Malicious code written into DNA infects the computer that reads it

    08/10/2017 7:14:54 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 1 replies
    techcrunch.com ^ | Devin Coldewey
    The multidisciplinary team at the University of Washington isn’t out to make outlandish headlines, although it’s certainly done that. They were concerned that the security infrastructure around DNA transcription and analysis was inadequate, having found elementary vulnerabilities in open-source software used in labs around the world. Given the nature of the data usually being handled, this could be a serious problem going forward. Sure, they could demonstrate the weakness of the systems with the usual malware and remote access tools. That’s how any competent attacker would come at such a system. But the discriminating security professional prefers to stay ahead...
  • ‘Little legs are dangling out the bag’: Mom charged after her baby was rescued from the trash

    08/10/2017 11:24:50 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 28 replies
    Karen Seals thought the sounds coming from her neighbor’s garbage bag were from an animal trapped inside. Wary, she and her sister grabbed a stick and went to investigate. ... “I ran up and I see the little legs are dangling out the bag, so I said, ‘You guys, it’s a baby,’ and they’re looking at me like ‘It’s a baby?’ I said, ‘Yeah it’s a baby.’ So I ran up, I picked her up, I tore the bag that she was in.” She said the baby had been pushed headfirst into the bottom of the trash bag, which had...
  • Man Caught on Tape Allegedly Poisoning Couple's Water Jugs

    08/10/2017 10:42:46 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 26 replies
    Authorities in the San Diego area are looking for a man who allegedly poured liquid plant food onto an unopened water jug. The jugs, delivered by Sparkletts, were sitting on the couple's front porch when their home surveillance camera captured the trespasser, saving them from potential harm. ... Tina Gagne said the incident occurred just after midnight Tuesday. Gagne and her wife said they did not recognize the man and don't know why he would have targeted their home.
  • Solar eclipse ‘reveals exact date Nibiru will destroy Earth…and it’s NEXT MONTH’

    08/09/2017 8:33:18 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 99 replies
    Meade previously talked about the astral alignment that pointed towards the “great sign” of Revelation – but has now revealed the connection to the eclipse. Eclipse enters through the 33rd state Eclipse exits at the 33rd latitude by Charleston Eclipse occurs 33 days out from the Great Sign of Revelation 12 He told Daily Star Online: “This is indeed an amazing omen and a frightful sign.” Terrifyingly, Mr Meade’s prediction matches up with a shocking number of other “End of Days” prophesies. Michael Parker, who runs the blog End of Time Prophecies, also told Daily Star Online the end of...
  • Hey neighbors! Nearest sun-like star hosts 4 Earth-sized planets

    08/09/2017 8:20:06 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 19 replies
    CNET ^ | Eric Mack
    Tau Ceti is the center of the nearest solar system that's similar to ours, an assumption made stronger by the discovery of four rocky super-Earths orbiting the star just 12 light years away. Two of the four planets are in the habitable zone around the star where temperatures could be just right for liquid water, and perhaps alien life, to be present. An international team of scientists devised a new, more accurate and sensitive method of detecting planets by looking for "wobbles" in the star's movement caused by the minute gravitational tug of orbiting planets, while also better ruling out...
  • 2 Felons Fatally Shot Fontana Man After He Confronted Them About Littering Outside His Home: Police

    08/09/2017 4:19:27 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 24 replies
    ktla ^ | , August 9, 2017, by | Melissa Pamer,
    The shooting occurred about 11:30 a.m. July 10 in the 8200 block of Tokay Avenue. Officers found Kofu Ofakitonga in his driveway, suffering from a gunshot wound to his lower extremities. He was taken to a hospital, where he died, Fontana police said at the time. He was 24, a police spokesman said. A vehicle that was seen driving away from Ofakitonga’s home was spotted by a Fontana police officer nearly three weeks later, police said in a news release. ... The two Fontana residents were driving in the area of Ofakitonga’s home when the victim confronted the men about...
  • Cleveland Clinic Top Cardiology/Heart-Surgery Hospital

    08/09/2017 9:16:31 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 26 replies
    medscape.com ^ | August 09, 2017 | Megan Brooks
    The top three US hospitals for cardiology and heart surgery are the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio (number 1), the Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN (number 2), and New York-Presbyterian Hospital in New York City (number 3), according to US News & World Report latest rankings. These three hospitals also took the top three spots—in the same order—in last year's rankings. The remainder of the top 10 hospitals for cardiology and heart surgery got shuffled around a bit this year, compared with last year. Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA holds the number 4 spot this year, up from number 10 last...
  • 18 Pittsburgh cops hospitalized after possible fentanyl exposure during ICE raids

    08/09/2017 8:39:33 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 22 replies
    triblive.com ^ | Wednesday, Aug. 9, 2017, 9:57 a.m. | Megan Guza and Matthew Santoni
    Eighteen Pittsburgh SWAT officers were sickened by suspected fentanyl while assisting federal officials on a series of raids in the West End of the city Wednesday morning, authorities said. Residents awoke to a large law enforcement presence as Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania State police assisted Immigrations and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security investigators and U.S. Postal Inspectors with serving search warrants and making arrests at three separate locations in Elliott, said U.S. Attorney's Office spokeswoman Margaret Philbin. ICE was the lead agency on the raids at two houses on Lakewood Street and one on Bond Street as part of an ongoing drug...
  • Rescuers find bodies after China quake kills 19, injures 247

    08/09/2017 8:09:01 AM PDT · by BenLurkin
    ABC ^ | Aug 9, 2017, 6:08 AM ET | louise watt,
    Most of the deaths and injuries were recorded in Zhangzha township, near to Jiuzhaigou or Jiuzhai Valley, a national park known for spectacular waterfalls and karst formations that attracts visitors from China and overseas. Yang Jie, who owns a hostel in Zhangzha, said she was at a hotpot restaurant with friends when the lights went out and everything started shaking at around 9:20 p.m. Tuesday. ... "On our way home, there were rocks falling down from the hills on both sides of the road....." ... On Wednesday, she said the building was still without power, stores were closed and "houses...
  • Model Who Says She Was Kidnapped In Italy Was Seen Shopping With Her Alleged Captor

    08/08/2017 5:21:33 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 17 replies
    buzzfeed ^ | August 8, 2017, at 4:26 p.m. | Michelle Broder Van Dyke
    ed kidnapping of British model Chloe Ayling in Italy has become more complicated after it was revealed that she was seen shopping with her alleged captor during the period she was supposedly being held hostage. Ayling's Italian attorney, Francesco Pesce, told reporters that the 20-year-old woman feared for her life and went on the shopping trip after deciding it would be better to cooperate with her captor. "She thought the best idea was to go along with it and be nice to her captor," Pesce told the BBC. "He told her he wanted to release her somehow and some time."...
  • Colon cancer deaths rise among younger adults, and no one knows why

    08/08/2017 5:02:40 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 127 replies
    CNN ^ | Jacqueline Howard,
    Adults in the United States are dying from colon and rectal cancers at an increasing rate about age 50, when they should just be beginning screenings, according to a new study from the American Cancer Society. Since routine screening is generally not recommended for most adults under 50, the cancers found in younger adults are often in advanced stages and more deadly, said Dr. James Church, a colorectal surgeon at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio. Church, who was not involved in the new study, said he has seen this trend in death rates up close. Last year, on separate occasions,...
  • Drinking Moscow Mules from copper mugs could cause food poisoning

    08/08/2017 4:44:47 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 25 replies
    Officials stated that using copper mugs to serve beverages with a pH balance of below 6.0 could cause copper to leach into the drink. The pH of a traditional Moscow Mule — which is made with vodka, ginger beer and lime juice — is well below 6.0, according to the bulletin. Other examples of beverages with a pH below 6.0 include fruit juice and wine. “When copper and copper alloy surfaces contact acidic foods, copper may be leached into the food,” health officials stated. “High concentrations of copper are poisonous and have caused foodborne illness.” Health officials said establishments in...
  • Family IDs 1 of 3 Marines Missing in Crash Off Australia as Ruben Velasco of SoCal

    08/07/2017 6:08:47 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 5 replies
    KTLA ^ | August 7, 2017 | Anthony Kurzweil and Simone Boyce
    Family members have identified one of the Marines missing following a U.S. military aircraft crash off the coast of Australia as Ruben Velasco of Southern California. Velasco’s parents said uniformed officers came to their home over the weekend to inform them the search for their son was being called off and was now considered a recovery. ... Velasco had celebrated his 19th birthday only a few days before the crash, according to the post. The wreckage of the MV-22 aircraft, which crashed off Australia’s east coast on Saturday, was located Monday, CNN reported. “The aircraft involved in the mishap had...
  • Indiana urges drivers to plan ahead for eclipse congestion

    08/07/2017 6:01:01 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 90 replies
    thehour.com ^ | Monday, August 7, 2017
    <p>INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The Indiana Department of Transportation is urging motorists to plan for traffic congestion in southern Indiana before and after the solar eclipse on Aug. 21.</p> <p>INDOT says Interstate 69, U.S. 41, and U.S. 231 are expected to experience higher southbound traffic with caravans of motorists headed for western Kentucky where the moon's full eclipse of the sun can be viewed within a 70-mile-wide swath. After the eclipse, heavy northbound traffic is expected on the same highways.</p>
  • Man Faces Arson Charges in Eight San Bernardino County Wildfires, Including One That Injured...

    08/07/2017 1:48:24 PM PDT · by BenLurkin · 3 replies
    Jarrod Anthony Samra, a 23-year-old man from Yucaipa and former member of the county's Fire Explorer program, was arrested last week in a wildfire in the hills above Mentone. His vehicle was found near the Bryant fire, which burned about 300 acres, according to authorities. A firefighter was injured in one of the fires, which began more than a month ago. Samra faces eight counts of arson for eight different fires in the county, District Attorney Mike Ramos said. He was charged with one count of arson causing great bodily injury. Samra faces eight counts of arson for eight different...
  • Millennials don’t know how credit cards work: survey

    08/07/2017 11:19:24 AM PDT · by BenLurkin · 57 replies
    New York Post ^ | August 5, 2017 | 10:48pm | Gregory Bresiger
    A few millennials...actually believe that missing a card payment would “improve” their credit rating, the survey said. “It was only 6 percent, but it actually shocked us,” said Mike Brown, a research analyst with LendEDU and the author of its Millennials & Credit Cards Survey. “They might think that by missing a payment they are gaming the system,” he added. Seventeen percent said missing a card payment would have no effect on their score. LendEDU, a Web site that provides information for student loan refinancing, also found that many millennials are spooked by credit cards, yet many use them in...