South Korea Launches Space Rocket Carrying Satellite

South Korea says its third attempt at launching a rocket to put a satellite in space has been a success.

 

The Korea Space Launch Vehicle-1 (KSLV-1) blasted off from the Naro Space Center at 16:00 (07:00 GMT).
Science Minister Lee Ju-ho said the satellite, which will collect climate data, was in its correct orbit.
The launch comes weeks after North Korea used its own three-stage rocket to place a satellite into orbit, sparking international criticism.
South Korea's 140-tonne rocket, known as Naro, was built in partnership with Russia, which had agreed to work with Seoul for three launch attempts.
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If the North is determined to test, there is at best a slim possibility that it can be deterred”
Dr John Swenson-Wright Chatham House Analysis: What is driving North Korea's nuclear test plan? Previous launches in 2009 and 2010 failed, and this attempt had been postponed twice for technical reasons.
But officials said Wednesday's launch from the site 480km (298 miles) south of Seoul had gone as planned and that the rocket had reached its target altitude and deployed its satellite.
"After analysing various data, the Naro rocket successfully put the science satellite into designated orbit," Mr Lee told reporters. He said the satellite had detached 540 seconds after launch.
"We now have leapt up a step to become a space-power nation," he said, adding that South Korea would use this "overwhelming moment as a strong, dynamic force" to help drive an independent space programme.
North fears The satellite, called Science and Technology Satellite-2C, is designed to collect climate data. The Yonhap news said it was expected to make contact with its ground station at 05:00 on Thursday, at which point its operators will be able to make the final judgement on whether the launch achieved its goals.
South Korea does already have satellites in space, but they were launched from other countries.
Pressure is high on South Korea for the launch to be a success On its first attempt to carry out a launch on its own soil, in 2009, the satellite failed to detach from the rocket in orbit. In 2010, the rocket exploded seconds after take-off.
Pressure for success has increased since North Korea launched a rocket that placed a satellite in orbit on 12 December. It followed the launch by announcing plans for a "high-level nuclear test" and more long-range rocket launches.
The UN said the North Korean launch constituted a banned test of missile technology and voted to extend sanctions against Pyongyang. There have been international calls for Pyongyang not to carry out the nuclear test.

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HOW TO SEND UNLIMITED SMS FOR FREE

HOW TO SEND UNLIMITED SMS FOR FREE

Step one: Open this website (http://afreesms.com) on the top menu click on send free sms.

Step two: on the open page select your country Nigeria,

Input the number you want to send it to and make sure you don’t include the first Zero (0),

Type in the message in the big box and make sure you type in a lot of message as short messages will not be accepted.

Select ID: make sure u input the country code: e.g Nigeria, eg. +234######## ( the # can be your phone number or any number you want, but it must be ten (10) digits.

Verification Code: Type in the verification text which is displayed in a box and make sure it is in CAPITAL LETTERS.

 Send the text by clicking on the send button below the form.

Wait for it to load and to open another page which will tell you that your message has been sent, on that page you will see your message and a SENT under it.

Thanks for learning.

Follow me on twitter http://twitter.com/mr_jendor

Science and Technology : (PHOTOS) The World’s First Talking Robot Launched ...

Science and Technology : (PHOTOS) The World’s First Talking Robot Launched ...: Japan has launched the world's first talking robot into space to serve as companion to astronaut Kochi Wakata who will begin his miss...

(PHOTOS) The World’s First Talking Robot Launched Into Space

Japan has launched the world's first talking robot into space to serve as companion to astronaut Kochi Wakata who will begin his mission in November.

The android took off from the island of Tanegashima in an unmanned rocket also carrying supplies for crew onboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Measuring 34cm, Kirobo is due to arrive at the ISS on 9 August. It is part of a study to see how machines can lend emotional support to people isolated over long periods.
The launch of the H-2B rocket was broadcast online by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa).

The unmanned rocket is also carrying drinking water, food, clothing and work supplies to the six permanent crew members based at the ISS.
Kirobo with developer Tomotaka Takahashi Tomotaka Takahashi with his creation 'Giant leap' Kirobo's name derives from the Japanese words for "hope" and "robot".
The small android weighs about 1kg (2.2 pounds) and has a wide range of physical motion. Its design was inspired by the legendary animation character Astro Boy.

Kirobo has been programmed to communicate in Japanese and keep records of its conversations with Mr Wakata who will take over as commander of the ISS later this year.
In addition, it is expected to relay messages from the control room to the astronaut.
"Kirobo will remember Mr Wakata's face so it can recognise him when they reunite up in space," the robot's developer, Tomotaka Takahashi said.
"I wish for this robot to function as a mediator between a person and machine, or a person and the Internet, and sometimes even between people."
The biggest challenge was to make the android compatible with space, Mr Takahashi added.

Dozens of tests were carried out over nine months to ensure Kirobo's reliability.
Kirobo has a twin robot on Earth called Mirata, which will monitor any problems its electronic counterpart may experience in space.
"It's one small step for me, a giant leap for robots," Mirata said of the mission last month.
The endeavour is a joint project between Mr Takahashi, car producer Toyota and advertising company Dentsu.
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Science and Technology : Best Selling Smartphone Revealed

Science and Technology : Best Selling Smartphone Revealed: Smartphone sales exceeded feature phone sales for the first time in the April-to-June period, according to research firm Gartner. Worl...

Best Selling Smartphone Revealed

Smartphone sales exceeded feature phone sales for the first time in the April-to-June period, according to research firm Gartner.

Worldwide mobile phone sales totalled 435 million units. Smartphone sales accounted for 225 million units, up 46.5% from the previous year. Feature phones totalled 210 million units, down 21%.

The highest smartphone growth rates came from Africa, Asia, Latin America and Eastern Europe, the firm said.
A smartphone is commonly defined as a device that has built-in applications and can connect to the internet.
In contrast, feature phones tend to perform fewer functions and are priced more cheaply.
"Smartphones accounted for 51.8% of mobile phone sales in the second quarter of 2013, resulting in smartphone sales surpassing feature phone sales for the first time," said Anshul Gupta, principal research analyst at Gartner.
However, a competing firm, IDC, said this milestone had already been reached in the first three months of 2013.
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Doctors Prevent Blindness With Phone App

BREAKTHROUGH: Doctors Prevent Blindness With Phone App

Since January hundreds of Kenyans have undergone eye tests, not in a clinic with a doctor, but on their own doorstep, using a smart-phone application.

The app uses a camera to scan the lens of the eye for cataracts, and its developers say it could save millions of people from blindness.
Dr. Andrew Bastawrous from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine developed the new application along with a small team.
He is currently in Nakuru, Kenya, where he is testing the technology, and told VOA that it appears to be working.
“They are absolutely loving it. They are all asking to have a go and have their vision tested. So it is certainly very user friendly,” said Bastawrous.
So far about 2,000 Kenyans have been given eye tests. The developers estimate about 10 percent of those had cataracts and needed treatment.
Stewart Jordan is an independent application designer who helped develop the app called PEEK, or Portable Eye Examination Kit.
He says the kit includes a clip-on camera, which works with the app to check glasses prescription, diagnose cataracts or examine the back of the eye for diseases, from glaucoma to diabetes.
In just a few seconds, he said, you can take a clear image of the back of the eye.
“I can then take that image, capture it, e-mail it, and upload it to our back-end system. People at Moorfield’s Eye Hospital can review it and anyone can send me feedback," he explained.
"So if I was actually trying to diagnose a patient in the field, I could get remote assistance on exactly what conditions we were dealing with and advise on how to treat it.”
The team is testing PEEK on 5,000 Kenyans. Jordan said the team is paying for the treatment of every patient with cataracts, including the cost of a driver to deliver the patient to the hospital, overnight accommodation and food. '
“We are talking about $40 on a cataract operation. And that can literally take someone who cannot even tell if you are shining a torch in their eyes and give them 20/20 vision. It is remarkable,” he added.
Jordan and Bastawrous said they developed the application to reach the “poorest of the poor.”
An estimated 39 million people around the world are blind, with 90 percent living in low-income countries where there is little or no access to eye specialists.
SightSavers is an international charity that works to combat blindness in developing countries. Program Development Advisor Imran Khan said giving eye examinations in poor or isolated regions can be a major obstacle.
“If we look at the supply side of the equation, there are just not enough trained doctors or nurses to go out into these rural communities, find these patients and bring them back to the base hospital," Khan said.
"And if we look on the other side, the demand, a lot of the patients in these rural communities are not really aware of the benefits that these services can provide.”
But Khan said with new technology like PEEK, eye care should become much more accessible.
“By using means to go out into the communities and really use community health workers or people that we can train to go out and find these patients, it is a lot more effective," Khan said.
"So it becomes more affordable and we increase access to care.”
Dr. Andrew Bastawrous is using PEEK alongside conventional eye testing gear to compare results.
He says the PEEK app results appear to be keeping up with his hospital equipment valued at well over $100,000 and his team of 15 trained personnel.

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Science and Technology : Iranian Inventor Claims To Have Created A Time Mac...

Science and Technology : Iranian Inventor Claims To Have Created A Time Mac...: An Iranian scientist has claimed to have created a working time machine, one that allows users to travel as far as eight years into the f...

Iranian Inventor Claims To Have Created A Time Machine

An Iranian scientist has claimed to have created a working time machine, one that allows users to travel as far as eight years into the future.

Ali Razeghi, a scientist from Tehran, has registered "The Aryayek Time Traveling Machine" with the state-run Center for Strategic Inventions.
According to Razeghi, 27, the device can predict the future and print out the results after taking a reading from the touch of a user.
Razaeghi says the device can "predict five to eight years of the future life of any individual, with 98 percent accuracy" thanks to a set of complex algorithms it runs on.
"I have been working on this project for the last 10 years," he said. "My invention easily fits into the size of a personal computer case and can predict details of the next 5-8 years of the life of its users. It will not take you into the future, it will bring the future to you."
Knowing about the future before it actually happens could be really great. What would you like to know? Stock prices? World events? Whether you will fall into a miserable marriage or not? The possibilities seem endless.
Razeghi says the Iranian government can use it to predict military clashes it will have with other countries in the next few years.
If this crystal ball shows the United States, the ramifications of this invention could prove to be deadly. This isn’t Razeghi’s first invention, however, as he has 179 other inventions credited to him.
"Naturally a government that can see five years into the future would be able to prepare itself for challenges that might destabilize it," he said.
"As such we expect to market this invention among states as well as individuals once we reach a mass production stage."
Many are critical of Razeghi for this invention, as it seems as though he’s "trying to play God."
"This project is not against our religious values at all. The Americans are trying to make this invention by spending millions of dollars on it where I have already achieved it by a fraction of the cost," he said.
"The reason that we are not launching our prototype at this stage is that the Chinese will steal the idea and produce it in millions overnight."
We’re skeptical, but intrigued.


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The Flying Car Makes First Public Flight

A flying car developed by Massachusetts-based aerospace manufacturer Chas G. Allen has made its first public flight, dazzling a Wisconsin crowd by soaring through the air for roughly 20 minutes.

 

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The vehicle, dubbed the Terrafugia Transition, is part sedan, part private jet and will go on sale as soon as 2015.
The driver/pilot, Phil Meteer, drove the car around the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh air show in July before spreading its wings and taking off for two 20-minute demonstrations.
The Terrafugia has two seats, four wheels and wings that fold upwards for driving mode.
It can carry two people, including the driver/pilot and runs on unleaded petrol. The vehicle’s top speeds are 70 mph on the road and 115 mph in the air.
Owners will have to have a pilot’s license, pass an additional test and complete 20 hours of flying time to be able to purchase the vehicle.

Since many have criticized the style of the creation for not looking like what we’ve seen in sci-fi movies, Terrafugia released design plans for a much more convenient, TF-X model.
Unlike the Transfusion, this model will be small enough to fit in a garage and won’t require a runway to take off due to motorized rotors in its wings.
Owners would be able to lift off straight from their driveways or when stuck in traffic, depending on how much space in diameter is available.

It will also be capable of seating four people. The TF-X is expected to be able to fly non-stop for 500 miles.
Terrafugia hopes to have the model for sale within eight to twelve years.
The Transfusion will most likely be the first flying car in history to be released to the public as the recent test flights have influenced the U.S. government to exempt the vehicle from certain regulations and restrictions that have previously prevented efficient flying cars from being made, such as the inclusion of electronic stability control and the manufacturing with only tires and glass that regular cars use.

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Satellite Technology Fetches Nigeria N116bn

Director-General of National Space Research and Development Agency, NASRDA, Prof. Seidu Onailo Mohammed says Communication Satellite is making a huge remittance to the economy by raking in about $90 billion in 2011 alone, comprising Satellite Television, Satellite radio and broadband.

In addition, he said that about $16 billion revenue also accrued to the industry in the same year.

Prof. Mohammed disclosed this at the weekend, during a lecture on Communication Satellite in Commemoration of the Launch of the first Communication Satellite in Nigeria organized by NASRDA in Abuja.

Prof. Mohammed said that Communication Satellite is a multi-billion dollars industry that gives high returns on investments, which must be tapped by both government and private sector to drive enhance their operations.

He said that the launch of Syncom” in July 26, 1963, symbolized the beginning of technological revolutions across the globe through the application of Space Science Technology.

‘‘As scientists, research organizations and Nigerians, this historic occasion is unique to us in several ways, following various landmark experiments carried out after its successful launch.

‘‘Ladies and gentlemen, it will interest you that it is exactly fifty years today, when the historic telephone conversation between the then American president John Kennedy and Nigerian Prime Minister, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa was recorded through Syncom2 Satellite,’’ he said.

For him, the conversation between the two leaders was more than a phone call, noting that it was the first two way call across the Atlantic between Heads of State via satellite in global history.

It was reported that the two leaders in their conversations, exchanged pleasantries, briefly mentioned the nuclear weapon’s test ban treaty which was signed that year and spoke on a boxing match in which Nigerian middle weight boxer, late Dick Tiger had retained his title against an American.

Apart from the successful experiment, the DG also noted that NASA further used the seventy eight pound Syncom2 Satellite launched on Delta rocket B booster from Cape Canaveral in the United States, to conduct a number of engineering tests to proof and practically demonstrate the numerous benefits of Communication Satellite to mankind.

According to him, there are approximately 1,107 Satellite providing civilians communication and another 792 supporting military communications, some seven hundred of them are in geosynchronous orbit.

He called on the private sector show commitment in using Communication Satellite, since the international telecommunications are increasingly competitive in the global markets with rapid changes to technological capacities.

‘‘it is note worthy that the Economic Intelligence Unit in the United States published that in 2012 alone, Nigeria lost in call drops that could have been avoided and remedied by modern communication Satellites.

‘‘Nigeria’s involvement in this experimental exercise was not a mere con-incidence or share luck in recognition of our unique and strategic positions as a people.

‘‘The Nigerian Space programme is not only in tandem with the dream and inspiration of our forefathers but it is also in fulfilment of the role expected of us as a nation as a key player in global affairs.

‘‘It is in recognition of this fact that, the National Space Research and Development Agency has continued to keep faith with destiny and recall with nostalgia the 1063 event and sees the unique experience as a challenge to transforming the Nigerian Space agenda into realities,’’ he stated.



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Oldest Gondwana Land Animal Found in South Africa

Dr Robert Gess, a postdoctoral fellow from the Evolutionary Studies Institute at Wits University has discovered a 350-million-year-old fossilized scorpion from rocks of the Devonian Witteberg Group near Grahamstown, in South Africa's Eastern Cape.



Gess unearthed the fossilized pincer and the tail segment and sting when breaking small slabs of shale from the site.
Both the fossils were found separately, and do not belong to the same individual. The small, predatory creatures were estimated to be the size of a modern-day pencil. "They are very delicate, and silvery-white in colour against the dark background of the rock," Gess said.
The scorpion, named as Gondwanascorpio emzantsiensis, is considered to be the oldest known land animal to have lived on Gondwana during a geological period called the Devonian.
During the Devonian period, between 420 and 360 million years ago, the world comprised of two supercontinents: Laurasia - North America, Europe and Asia; and the Gondwana - Africa, South America, Australia, Antarctica and India.



The two land mass were separated by a deep ocean. "Evidence on the earliest colonisation of land animals has up till now come only from the northern hemisphere continent of Laurasia, and there has been no evidence that Gondwana was inhabited by land living invertebrate animals at that time,"said Gess.
"There has been no evidence that Gondwana was inhabited by land living invertebrate animals at that time," said Gess. By the end of the Silurian period, about 416 million years ago, predatory invertebrates such as scorpions and spiders were feeding on primitive insects and millipedes.
Laurasia was also known to comprise of invertebrates by the late Silurian and during the Devonian period, when it separated from Gondwana.
"For the first time we know for certain that not just scorpions, but whatever they were preying on were already present in the Devonian.
We now know that by the end the Devonian period Gondwana also, like Laurasia, had a complex terrestrial ecosystem, comprising invertebrates and plants which had all the elements to sustain terrestrial vertebrate life that emerged around this time or slightly later," said Gess.
The discovery is published in the peer reviewed journal African Invertebrates. Apart from the scorpion fossils, Gess also discovered 20 types of fish and a range of different land plants.

Apple on Tuesday unveiled two new iPhones

The business has become so large that this year we are going to replace the iPhone 5 and we are going to replace it with two new designs, Apple chief Tim Cook announced at the company’s Silicon Valley headquarters. The new iPhone 5C is displayed during an Apple product announcement at the Apple campus on September 10, 2013 in Cupertino, California.
The new iPhone 5C is displayed during an Apple product announcement at the Apple campus on September 10, 2013 in Cupertino, California. AFP Apple will begin taking orders on Friday, and on September 20 the two devices will go on sale in the United States, Australia, Britain, China, France, Germany, Japan and Singapore.
The iPhone 5C is part of Apple’s bid to counter the flood of low-cost smartphones from rivals, most of which use the Google Android operating system. Apple designer Jony Ive said that despite the low cost, the polycarbonate iPhone 5C with a steel frame “is beautiful.”
“We took the same fanatical care with how the iPhone 5C feels in your hand,” Ive said. The iPhone 5C with 16 gigabytes of memory will sell for as low as $99 with a US carrier contract — half the cost of earlier iPhone base models. Analysts were keenly focused on the promise of an iPhone 5C to win over buyers in China and other developing markets.
“The 5C a no-compromise device,” Gartner analyst Van Baker told AFP after trying out Apple’s new phones.

“It is just in a plastic case instead of a metal case, and they basically reduce the price by the cost of materials.” Baker estimated the price cut allowed by lower-cost materials at around $100. He noted that the “open question” was whether iPhone 5C would be priced attractively for emerging markets at what could turn out to be a $550 price tag without subsidies from telecom service providers.
The top-line iPhone 5S, which starts at $199 with a contract for US buyers, “is the most forward thinking phone we have ever created,” said Apple vice president Phil Schiller. “It is the gold standard in smartphones.”

Schiller said the 5S model includes a speedier chip which brings up the computing power from 32 to 64 bits. “It has over a billion transistors in it,” he said, adding that the device will be “about twice as fast in graphics and computing power and about 40 times faster than the original iPhone.”
The 5S will also have improved battery life, with some 10 hours of talk time, or 40 hours of music listening, Schiller added. Apple introduced a fingerprint sensor for the iPhone 5S, as a new security measure in place of passwords.

“You can just press the home button to unlock your phone,” Schiller said. “You can use it to authenticate iTunes purchases.” Schiller added: “We have so much of our personal data on these devices, and they are with us almost everyplace we go, so we have to protect them.”
Reticle Research principle analyst Ross Rubin described Touch ID as a “show stealer” that addresses “a necessary annoyance that many consumers have to deal with many times a day.” Apple also broadened its color palette, announcing the low-cost phone in blue, white, pink, yellow and green, and the top-line model in silver, gold and a new “space gray.”

Apple said its iOS 7 software will debut September 18. It includes a free iTunes Radio Service featuring more than 200 stations “and an incredible catalog of music from the iTunes Store,” Apple announced earlier this year. The two new handsets keep the four-inch screen of current iPhones, despite some speculation Apple would boost the size to compete with larger phones from rivals like Samsung.
The smartphone market is now dominated by Android devices, with roughly three-fourths of all handsets, but a forecast by research firm IDC suggested Apple will increase its share this year to 17.9 percent from 16.9 percent. IDC analyst Ramon Llamas said that by introducing a lower-priced handset, “Apple is staking out its space in the lower-cost smartphone category.”

Llamas said Apple is seeking to fend off challenges from lower-priced devices while “it enjoys bigger profit margins and still maintains the aura of being an aspirational brand.” The event was a disappointment to some who were looking for a fresh device from Apple, such as a smartwatch or TV service.
“I think there was an expectation for that ‘one more thing,’” said Roger Kay at Endpoint Technologies. “People were looking for some pizzazz and they didn’t get it.” Apple announced separately a deal with Japan’s biggest mobile phone carrier NTT DoCoMo to bring the two new iPhones to that country.
“We’ve enjoyed tremendous success with iPhone in Japan, in fact it’s the top selling smartphone in the country, and we look forward to delivering iPhone into even more customers’ hands through NTT DoCoMo,” Cook said.