"The US economy grew at an annualised rate of 3.5% between July and September, indicating its recession has ended."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8331497.stm

>>	Junior Field Reporter 09/10/29(Thu)08:41 No.2580   File: 1256830867749.jpg -(25170 B, 921x606) Thumbnail displayed, click image for full size. The crack addict is feeling quite well after the latest rock, I see. H

"Gazopa, a search engine that uses features from an image to retrieve similar images, has been in private beta since it launched during TechCrunch50 last year. To recap, Gazopa lets users upload a picture, enter a URL of an image, create a drawing or right-click on an image anywhere on the web (via a plug-in) and retrieves similar images. A thumbnail of a video is enough to look for similar videos.

Results are mainly filtered through analyzing the color and shape of the object or person pictured. Upload a picture of a red car, for example, and Gazopa will find pictures of similar cars on the web ¿ without you having to type any keywords (search via keywords is also possible though)."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/27/AR2009102700492.html

>>

Sling!XD/uSlingU 09/10/28(Wed)07:37 No.2572   File: 1256740651687.jpg -(32231 B, 400x340) Thumbnail displayed, click image for full size. "While Gazopa looked useful and i tried a few searches which i had mixed results with, what REALLY caught my imagination was its ability to allow YOU to draw and look for similar results." http://weblivz.b l o g s p o t.com/2008_09_01_archive.html

"NASA's newest rocket successfully completed a brief test flight Wednesday, the first step in a back-to-the-moon program that could yet be shelved by the White House.

The 327-foot Ares I-X rocket resembled a giant white pencil as it shot into the sky, delayed a day by poor weather.

Nearly twice the height of the spaceship it's supposed to replace — the shuttle — the skinny experimental rocket carried no passengers or payload, only throwaway ballast and hundreds of sensors. The flight cost $445 million.

NASA said the flight was a tremendous success, based on early indications."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091028/ap_on_sc/us_sci_moon_rocket_test

http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/matthew-norman/matthew-norman-isnt-it-time-gordon-brown-was-put-out-of-his-misery-1810935.html

If somebody were to hand the noted primate hunter AA Gill a high-velocity rifle, and say to him "Adrian, you see that slightly simian figure over there, yes, the Prime Minister...", would anyone be horrified when the shot rang out and the creature slumped to the ground?

Well, I suppose it would be a blow to Sarah, and presumably the Metropolitan Police would have to show an interest. But for tens of millions of people the overwhelming emotion would be relief, as much on his behalf as their own. It is astonishing how often you hear this fantasy voiced. In the last two days I've heard it three times. "Someone ought to shoot him," one friend precisely echoed the other two yesterday, "and put him out of his misery. It just isn't right to let this go on."

There wasn't a scintilla of malice in this, but there seldom is when people talk about the mercy-killing of Gordon Brown. The loathing induced by Tony Blair is absent. With Gordon, there's a measure of perplexity, a dash of anger and a heavy twist of disdain, but the base of the cocktail is embarrassed pity.

"Google has promoted its "similar images" feature from the Labs onto its main search page.

Similar images allows users to easily remove the ambiguity that often crops up in image searches.

For example, typing in Jaguar brings up pictures of the car and the animal. Simply clicking the similar images link beneath the relevant picture will then return images that share characteristics - including shape and colours - with the original image."

http://www.pcpro.co.uk/news/352849/googles-similar-images-feature-hits-big-time

"Somali pirates exchanged fire with a French fishing vessel on Wednesday and after speeding away were later stopped and detained by Spanish and German naval units, said the European Union anti-piracy force."

"Somalia, which has not had an effective central government for 18 years, became the world's top piracy hotspot last year."

"Somali pirates are currently holding seven ships with around 150 crew members."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091028/ap_on_re_us/piracy

"Microsoft selling crapware-free PCs in its stores

The computers at Microsoft Stores don't have the crapware that Windows PCs typically come with, but they still have an assortment of Microsoft and Adobe software. Most controversially, they include Windows Live Essentials and Microsoft Security Essentials."

http://arstechnica.com/microsoft/news/2009/10/microsoft-selling-crapware-free-pcs-in-its-stores.ars

"EU taxpayers funded a custom-built 276,000 euros (£250,000) shower for French President Nicolas Sarkozy, auditors say - but he never used it.

The shower, in the Grand Palace in Paris, was for his sole use at a Union of the Mediterranean summit held during France's six-month EU presidency.

But the leader preferred to wash in the Elysee Palace 10 minutes away. The new shower has since been dismantled.

The French European Union presidency was one of the most costly in history."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/8329425.stm

"The US has been warned that its use of drones to target suspected terrorists in Afghanistan and Pakistan may violate international law.

UN human rights investigator Philip Alston said the US should explain the legal basis for attacking individuals with the remote-controlled aircraft.

He said the CIA had to show accountability to international laws which ban arbitrary executions.

Drones have killed about 600 people in north-west Pakistan since August 2008."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8329412.stm

"An extract found in the bright yellow curry spice turmeric can kill off cancer cells, scientists have shown.

The chemical - curcumin - has long been thought to have healing powers and is already being tested as a treatment for arthritis and even dementia.

Now tests by a team at the Cork Cancer Research Centre show it can destroy gullet cancer cells in the lab.

Cancer experts said the findings in the British Journal of Cancer could help doctors find new treatments.

Dr Sharon McKenna and her team found that curcumin started to kill cancer cells within 24 hours."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8328377.stm