SHAFAQNA

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) – Wireless signals are picked up by a receiver in the white of the man's eye and transmitted to an array of electrodes attached to the surface of his retina. The electrodes then stimulate nerve cells in order to relay the Braille patterns to the man's brain, exactly as if he were seeing them with his eyes. The study is the first to stream Braille directly into a patient's retina, and could offer hope to…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) – Orbiting at the frozen edges of our solar system, the mysterious dwarf planet Makemake is finally coming out of the shadows as astronomers get their best view yet of Pluto's little sibling. Discovered in 2005, Makemake—pronounced MAH-keh MAH-keh after a Polynesian creation god—is one of five Pluto-like objects that prompted a redefining of the term "planet" and the creation of a new group of dwarf planets in 2006. (Related: "Pluto Not a Planet, Astronomers…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) - A U.N. report on rising greenhouse gas emissions reminded world governments Wednesday that their efforts to fight climate change are far from enough to meet their stated goal of limiting global warming to 2 degrees Celsius (3.6 Fahrenheit). The report by the U.N. Environment Program, released just days ahead of a major climate conference, said the concentration of heat-trapping greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is up about 20 percent since 2000.…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) - The Harwell Dekatron, also known as the 'Witch', contains 10,000 moving parts and worked tirelessly in its heyday, sometimes clocking on for 80 hour weeks without a break. Now on display at The National Museum of Computing in Buckinghamshire, the Witch was restored to life by a team of volunteers led by museum trustee Kevin Murrell, and has outlasted the average home computer by at least five decades. The Witch's invention in 1951 meant…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) - Greenhouse gases reached a new record level in 2011, the World Meteorological Organization said Tuesday. The body, an agency of the United Nations, said in a statement that there had been a 30 percent increase in the warming effect on the climate between 1990 and 2011. It said the level of carbon dioxide – which accounts for about 80 percent of the warming effect – and other so-called greenhouse gases such as methane and…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) - On an island whose stock in trade is sun, and lots of it, Lawrence and Cindy Lee figured they'd be foolish not to join their neighbors and put a few solar panels on the roof. The Lees called one of the solar contractors racing around Hawaii these days, and put in their order. Eleven months later, in October — after endless consultations, emails and a $3,000 study required by Maui Electric Co. — they…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) – Imagine a future in which old electric-car batteries are deployed in neighborhoods as energy-storage systems that guard against power outages, while paving the way for wind and solar power—and more electric cars. The idea has moved one step closer with the demonstration of a boxy unit of used Chevy Volt batteries capable of providing enough electricity to power three to five average American homes for up to two hours. Developed by General Motors and…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) - Albert Einstein's brain was "unlike those of most people," according to a new study led by Florida State University evolutionary anthropologist Dean Falk. "Although the overall size and asymmetrical shape of Einstein's brain were normal. The prefrontal, somatosensory, primary motor, parietal, temporal and occipital cortices were extraordinary," Falk says. The study, "The Cerebral Cortex of Albert Einstein: A Description and Preliminary Analysis of Unpublished Photographs," will be published Friday in the journalBrain. "Einstein's brain…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) -  Astronomers have long theorized that there are many planets that have drifted away from their home stars, whether it's a too-loose gravitational pull during the planet's formation or a stellar tug-of-war. We've never had a reasonable chance of locating such a wanderer until today, however. The University of Montreal believes it has spotted CFBDSIR2149, an awkwardly-named gas giant four to seven times larger thanJupiter, floating by itself in the AB Doradus Moving Group of young stars. Scientists…

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) – How’s that Facebook Inc. stock working out for me? I suppose we should talk about that. You may recall that as Facebook approached its initial public offering in May, I set aside my previously expressed concerns about its valuation and my doubts about its ability to monetize its user base. The day of its debut, I bought in – literally – at $38.01 (U.S.) for each of 50 shares. In that late-May column, I…