Free Republic

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Samples of rock dust retrieved from a comet called Wild 2 are forcing scientists to alter they way they think about these intriguing objects that streak through our solar system. A chemical analysis of the samples brought back to Earth by NASA's Stardust spacecraft showed that the comet is much more like an asteroid than scientists had expected. Comets are celestial bodies made of rock, dust and ice with characteristic tails of gas and dust streams that are formed in the solar system's distant, frigid reaches. A long-standing notion had been they were sort of a frozen...

MADISON, Wis. — Beer lovers of Wisconsin, rejoice! You're a step closer to getting a free half-can of suds. Both chambers of the Legislature unanimously gave key approval Tuesday to allow grocery and liquor stores to hand out beer samples up to 6 ounces to a person of legal drinking age. "It's a good bill. It's a Wisconsin bill. It's a beer bill," said Republican Rep. Scott Newcomer one of the measure's main sponsors.

Daniel posted awhile back on a bill, proposed by a Democrat (hey, I found some common ground!), that would allow grocery stores to provide 6 ounce samples of beer to their customers...it was just passed by the Wisconsin State Senate unanimously...

Free beer tastings may be on tap at California bars and restaurants thanks to a new law lifting a ban on suds samples. The law, one of several taking effect with the new year, was backed by St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch, which argued that it was unfair that the wine and distilled spirits industries were allowed to give out free samples of their wares. The beer company says it will conduct only small educational tastings about new beers. "It's an opportunity for us to get consumers to sample some of our new products," said Andrew Baldonado, western region vice president of...

11/27/05 First Samples of Prehistoric Flint Stones Discovered in Iran The first samples of flint stones in Iran belonging to 9000 years ago have been identified in Yeri City historical site. Tehran, 27 November 2005 (CHN) -- The third season of archaeological excavations in the historical site of Yeri City in Ardabil province resulted in the discovery of 9000-year-old flint stones. It is the first time that traces of flint stones from pre-historic periods of Iran have been discovered. During the Neolithic epoch, due to the increase of temperature, environmental circumstances provided human beings with greater food resources. Within this...

Scientists aboard the Scripps research vessel Roger Revelle have solved a 45-year-old geological mystery. In 1960, Scripps oceanographer Dale Krause reported the discovery of extraordinary deep-sea volcanic rocks in waters off Mexico, near Guadalupe Island, approximately 200 miles south of San Diego. When brought to the surface, the rocks spontaneously exploded "with a sharp snapping sound," according to Krause. Since then, only a few other sites, mostly along the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, have been reported with similar "popping rocks." An attempt by the late Scripps Professor Harmon Craig to locate the site in 1984 proved unsuccessful, largely because the location of...

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - California's ex-cons are not required to submit DNA samples under a sweeping anti-crime measure voters approved last year, as civil rights groups had feared, a federal judge ruled. U.S. District Judge Fern Smith's decision, released Wednesday in San Francisco, reinforces an opinion by the state attorney general's office that Proposition 69 does not apply to the thousands of convicts who served time for crimes and completed their post-incarceration supervision before voters passed it Nov. 2. The class-action was brought by the American Civil Liberties Union, which sought to clarify a statewide initiative approved by California voters...

A top Republican legislator called Monday for every suspect arrested on a felony charge in Minnesota to be subjected to a DNA test that would be analyzed and made part of a database to assist police in future investigations. "DNA is the fingerprint of the 21st century," House Majority Leader Erik Paulsen, R-Eden Prairie, said in a statement. "This legislation will help us solve and prevent crimes. It will put guilty criminals in jail, exonerate the innocent and seek more immediate justice for victims." Under current state law, which is scheduled to expire in June, defendants convicted of felony offenses...

State Police Seize Marijuana Plants, Take DNA Samples By Dina Kaplan (CAMPELLSBURG, Ky., July 28th, 2004, 11:30 a.m.) -- State police found more than $200,000 worth of marijuana Tuesday, thanks to an unusually large batch spotted from a police helicopter. But because troopers are so aggressive in finding marijuana, the growers are getting much better at hiding it. WAVE 3's Dina Kaplan reports. Besides a helicopter ride, finding weed in Kentucky involves offroading through an Old Country Farm, then a rough walk through the wilderness. That's because police say growers try to plant patches as far away from people as...

BUBONIC PLAGUE SAMPLES MISSING The FBI is investigating the disappearance of 35 vials - some containing bubonic plague - that have gone missing from a laboratory in Texas. Officials stressed the missing bacteria could not be used as a weapon of mass destruction but that it could kill an individual. The vials went missing from Texas Technical University in Lubbock last night. Police said President Bush had been briefed. The FBI said it was unclear whether the vials had actually been stolen. Some are thought to contain the bacteria that can cause bubonic plague, but stressed that was not confirmed....

Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. 2003 January 11 Apollo 17: Boulder in Stereo Credit: Apollo 17, NASA (Stereo Image by Patrick Vantuyne) Explanation: Humans left the Moon over thirty years ago, but donning red-blue glasses (red for the left eye) you can share this excellent stereo perspective view of their last stomping ground. Recorded by Eugene Cernan, the scene depicts his fellow astronaut and geologist Harrison Schmitt next to a large split boulder...

Dogs may sniff out some cancers Prostate cancer affects thousands of men each year A pioneering technique using dogs to detect prostate cancer is being developed in Cambridgeshire. Researchers at Cambridge University have applied for funding to test their theory that a dog's sense of smell could provide a better early warning system for some cancers than modern science. They hope to train dogs to react to cancer cells in urine samples, revolutionising the screening process for conditions like prostate cancer. If the university gets funding it will ask professsional dog trainer Charlie Clarricoates, of Soham, Cambridgeshire, to carry out...