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April 6, 2005

On April 4, the Federal Highway Administration released an interim report on leaks in the Central Artery Tunnel, part of Boston’s Big Dig. The press release about the report claims that the report “concludes that the project is structurally sound and remains safe for traffic.” However, the report does not reach those conclusions.

The report does not evaluate the current safety level of the tunnel; and on the subject of safety, it notes that ensuring the safety of the tunnel will require speedy implementation of a permanent repair of last September’s major leak. The safety claim is repeated and touted as a “rare bit of good news” about the Big Dig in an Associated Press story by Steve Leblanc.

The Central Artery Tunnel, which allows Interstate 93 to pass beneath downtown Boston, experienced a 300 gallon-per-minute leak of water into the tunnel in September of 2004, according to the recent report. Mac Daniel of the Boston Globe notes in a recent article that the September leak caused “a 10-mile traffic jam”.

In response to the leak, the Federal Highway Administration formed the Tunnel Leak Assessment Team to provide an independent assessment of the leaking in the tunnel and the efficacy of the repairs underway.

The report reaches three main conclusions:

• “Chronic low level leaks” continue, but sealing work is expected to seal them “in the summer of 2005”.
• A temporary repair of the major leak which occurred in mid-September, 2004, has been completed, and permanent repairs are “under review”.

  Regarding permanent repairs, it adds, “Whichever option is selected must be implemented quickly to ensure the safe and uninterrupted passage of the traveling public.”

• “Additional defects” have been discovered in the slurry wall panels where September’s major leak occurred.

  In response to these discoveries, the report recommends, “The Project is encouraged to quickly complete the inspection of all panels and develop a standardized inspection process and related documentation.”

According to the New York Times, Matthew Amorello, chairman of the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, praised the report, stating that, “This independent affirmation that the I-93 tunnels are safe and structurally sound will allow drivers to use them with confidence.”

Thursday, February 24, 2005

A paste containing synthetic tooth enamel can seal small cavities without drilling. Kazue Yamagishi and colleagues at the FAP Dental Institute in Tokyo say that the paste can repair small cavities in 15 minutes.

Currently, fillers don’t stick to such small cavities so dentists must drill bigger holes. Hydroxyapatite crystals, of which natural enamel is made, bond with teeth to repair tiny areas of damage.

Yamagishi and colleagues have tested their paste on a lower premolar tooth that showed early signs of decay. They found that the synthetic enamel merged with the natural enamel. The synthetic enamel also appears to make teeth stronger which will improve resistance to future decay. As with drilling, however, there is still the potential for pain: The paste is strongly acidic to encourage crystal growth and causes inflammation if it touches the gums.

The paste is reported in the journal Nature.

Thursday, March 30, 2017

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Thursday, May 24, 2012

Gabriel Amorth, the Roman Catholic Church’s leading exorcist, has suggested missing schoolgirl Emanuela Orlandi was kidnapped for sexual abuse at orgies attended by foreign diplomats and arranged by Vatican police. Orlandi was fifteen when she vanished in 1983.

Amorth, 85, who was appointed by the late Pope John Paul II, makes his remarks as Italian police try to determine if bones buried near the body of a mobster belong to Orlandi. Anonymous claims have suggested the tomb of Enrico “Renatino” De Pedis contains clues to her disappearance.

Investigators are examining bones removed from his burial site in the Basilica of Sant’Apollinare. Buried in a nearby crypt, the bones are thought to be centuries old but forensic tests are ongoing. One theory is Pedis kidnapped Orlandi to press Vatican officials over a financial dispute, with his onetime lover claiming her body was disposed of in a cement mixer.

Amorth refutes this explanation, and also an alleged “international dimension”; another theory is that the kidnapping was to try and secure freedom for Mehmet Ali Agca of Turkey, who shot at the pope in 1981. Orlandi’s vanishing “was a crime with a sexual motive” says Amorth. “Parties were organised, with a Vatican gendarme [policeman] acting as the ‘recruiter’ of the girls.”

He further told La Stampa “The network involved diplomatic personnel from a foreign embassy to the Holy See. I believe Emanuela ended up a victim of this circle”. “It has already previously been stated by [the late] monsignor Simeone Duca, an archivist at the Vatican, who was asked to recruit girls for parties with the help of the Vatican gendarmes.”

Orlandi has not been seen since she set off from the family apartment in the Vatican City, heading for a Rome music lesson. Orlandi’s father worked for the Holy See. Amorth is a controversial priest who lays claim to thousands of exorcisms and has criticised activities such as yoga and children reading Harry Potter books as spiritually harmful.

Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Former Salt Lake City mayor and human rights activist Rocky Anderson took some time to discuss his 2012 U.S. presidential campaign and the newly-created Justice Party with Wikinews reporter William S. Saturn.

Anderson served as mayor of Salt Lake City for eight years (2000–2008) as a member of the Democratic Party. During his tenure, he enacted proposals to reduce the city’s carbon emissions, reformed its criminal justice system, and positioned it as a leading sanctuary for refugees. After leaving office, Anderson grew critical of the Democratic Party’s failure to push for impeachment against President George W. Bush, and for not reversing policies on torture, taxes, and defense spending. He left the party earlier this year and announced that he would form a Third party.

Anderson officially established the Justice Party last week during a press conference in Washington D.C.. He proclaimed “We the people are powerful enough to end the perverse government-to-the-highest-bidder system sustained by the two dominant parties…We are here today for the sake of justice — social justice, environmental justice and economic justice.” The party promotes campaign finance reform and is attempting to appeal to the Occupy Wall Street movement. It is currently working on ballot access efforts, and will hold a Founding Convention in February 2012 in Salt Lake City.

Among other issues, Anderson discussed climate change, health care, education, and civil liberties. He detailed his successes as mayor of Salt Lake City, stressed the importance of executive experience, and expressed his views on President Barack Obama and some of the Republican Party presidential candidates. He spoke in depth about former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney, with whom he worked during the 2002 Winter Olympics, and fellow Utahan, former governor and U.S. ambassador to China Jon Huntsman, Jr..

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Following a new report into the loss of a Nimrod jet belonging to the UK’s Royal Air Force over Afghanistan the family of one of the victims is seeking a criminal prosecution. Sergeant Ben Knight, aged 25, was among the fourteen killed when Nimrod XV230 crashed in 2006.

Knight’s parents have applied via their lawyers Smithfield Partners to the Crown Prosecution Service to consider evidence contained in a report by Charles Haddon-Cave QC, who is due to appear before the House of Commons next month. The Loss Of RAF Nimrod XV230, A Failure Of Leadership, Culture And Priorities stated that the accident was preventable and that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) made spending cuts a priority over safety. A 2005 review into Nimrod safety was “riddled with errors,” the report found.

Smithfield Partners have also written to the Health and Safety Executive, asking for the MoD to be investigated for breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. The letter was addressed directly to deputy chief executive Kevin Myres.

XV230 had shortly completed air-to-air refueling on September 2, 2006, when it was destroyed by an explosion. “We had a 25-year-old healthy son, who used to play squash and, to put it bluntly, he ended up as a plastic bag full of bits,” said Graham Knight. “That is something which is very hard to cope with.”

The Knights met Armed Forces Minister Bill Rammell in London yesterday. Rammell said he was unable to comment on possible legal action against individuals, but promised to provide answers to other questions posed by the Knights and other families. The Crown Prosecution Service has promised consider the matter, and the Health and Safety Executive said it could not comment this early on in developments. The latest report names five people in the MoD, three with BAE Systems and two with defence company QinetiQ, as responsible.

Tuesday, March 29, 2005 The local chapter of the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity at California State University, Chico was suspended after members were linked to a pornographic DVD apparently filmed in the club’s fraternity house. According to reports, the DVD shows students engaged in various sexual activities with female porn actresses.

The Chico fraternity also has been suspended by the national Phi Kappa Tau organization and Chico State’s Interfraternity Council, the student governing body for all fraternities. In addition, the national Interfraternity Council issued a press statement saying it was embarrassed by the Chico group’s actions.

The company responsible for making the porno film is Van Nuys, California-based Shane’s World. A spokesman for Shane’s World said the Chico fraternity contacted it months ago with the idea of making a sex film in its “College Invasion” series.

The company says it requires all students who participate in its sex films to show proof that they are 18 or older and sign release forms. Shane’s World has made five other DVDs at other U.S. universities since 2000.

University officials suspended the local fraternity from being able to participate in school sponsored activities at the rural northern California campus. The school also is investigating whether any illegal activities happened during the porn shoot including underage drinking.