Deaths

Shocking Tech Headlines of 2008 — Groundbreaking, mind boggling and even catastrophic things happen every week (or day!) in the tech world, but there were a few standout stories that rose above the usual crash and burn this year. Here are the most shocking tech headlines of 2008, from a bankruptcy, a prematurely printed obit, and some extremely sad tech-related deaths. Start Slideshow... [Tags: bankruptcy, crash, deaths, groundbreaking, headlines]

Breakfast Links: Gladwell on Teachers, Whedon makes Moist’s comic & SeppuKuties — So Gladwell, I’m honestly not sure if I like his work or dislike it. At least, though, his work is always interesting his latest piece in the New Yorker doesn’t disappoint. In it he says that of all the factors involved in getting a good education having good teachers is pretty much the only worthwhile factor. The focus should be not on class size or whatever, but in hiring better teachers. Of course the trick there is that, well, it’s difficult to find good teachers. Still, it sounds like a damn good idea to me. Now if you’ve not had... [Tags: amp, comic, cute animals, deaths, flash game]

"Terrorism Is Rare" — Mumbai should not cause us - or India - to panic. How many Indians diedm in Mubai over those few days from traffic accidents or preventable disease? Schneier elaborates:If there's any lesson in these attacks, it's not to focus too much on the specifics of the attacks. Of course, that's not the way we're programmed to think. We respond to stories, not analysis. I don't mean to be unsympathetic; this tendency is human and these deaths are really tragic. But 18 armed people intent on killing lots of innocents will be able to do just that, and last-line-of-defense countermeasures won't... [Tags: aftermath, countermeasures, deaths, emergency response, few days]

Relative arrested in Hudson slayings — Police arrested the estranged brother-in-law of Jennifer Hudson on Monday in the deaths of the entertainer's mother, brother and young nephew, taking him from a prison where he had been held on a suspected parole violation.... [Tags: brother, deaths, hudson slayings, jennifer hudson, nephew]

Black Friday Sales Performance Key to American Economic Future? — Over drinks yesterday, my friend shared an insight. Thanks to my hangover, I’ll have to paraphrase everything: Him: “Would you know how well retailers did during Black Friday?” Me: “Not yet, I think it’s too early to tell. I’m sure a report will come out soon.” Him: “Well, all I’m saying is that if people don’t buy this year, even with the low prices, things must be really bad.” Me: “From what I’ve seen, things look good. Did you read about that Wal-Mart temp employee killed in a buyer stampede?” Him: “Oh yeah… so there were lots of buyers right?”... [Tags: black friday sales, carnage, deaths, drinks, hangover]

Cheap Gas: Good or Bad? — Once again, in America, gasoline is cheaper than bottled water. Is this good or bad? Let's start with the bad (5 reasons): 1) Thousands of more Americans will perish in car crashes. There is a direct, undisputed correlation between the price of gas and the number of deaths in car accidents each year. This last year, when record breaking gas prices greatly reduced nonessential driving while increasing more conservative driving habits, thousands of lives were saved. In fact, it was the first significant reduction in driving fatalities in decades. ...... [Tags: bottled water, car accidents, car crashes, cheap gas, correlation]

More Black Friday Bloodshed: 2 Dead After Shooting at Toys R Us [Breaking] — News sources report that in Palm Desert, California, two men were killed in a shooting inside a Toys R Us. A total of three have been reported as arrested, including one juvenile. One report, from ABC-affiliate KESQ, originally suggested that the shooting was the result of an altercation between two teenage girls shopping for Black Friday sales. Apparently, a boy, listed as a juvenile, was responsible for the shooting and was detained. Now that same source wiped out the story of the argument, but is saying that in addition to the boy, several arrests were made outside the store, including... [Tags: abc affiliate, altercation, black friday sales, bloodshed, breaking news]

Testing for cancer at home — TORONTO (Reuters) - It might not be pleasant, but it could save your life. A new Canadian campaign advocating home screening for colorectal cancer could reduce deaths from the disease by catching it early, when it is often asymptomatic but also highly curable.... [Tags: canadian campaign, cancer, colorectal, could save your life, deaths]

Simple New Method Detects Contaminants In Life-saving Drug — The blood-thinning drug heparin is highly effective when used to prevent and treat blood clots in veins, arteries and lungs, but earlier this year its reputation as a lifesaver was sullied when contaminated heparin products caused serious allergic reactions that led to a large number of deaths.... [Tags: allergic reactions, arteries, blood clots, contaminants, deaths]

High Blood Pressure In The Doctor's Office May Not Predict Heart Risks — Continuously measuring blood pressure may help predict heart disease and related deaths among individuals with treatment-resistant hypertension, while blood pressure readings taken in a medical office do not appear to predict future heart risks, according to a report in Nov. 24 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.... [Tags: archives of internal medicine, blood pressure readings, deaths, heart disease, heart risks]

Obituaries on hold — Shel Holtz lists all the techs whose reported deaths are still exaggerated. Hat tip to Zane Safrit.... [Tags: deaths, hat tip, obituaries, zane]

Microcapsules Act As 'Roach Motel' To Kill Harmful Bacteria — Scientists have created tiny microscopic spheres that trap and kill harmful bacteria in a manner the scientists liken to "roach motels" snaring and killing cockroaches. The research could lead to new coatings that will disinfect common surfaces, combat bioterrorism or sterilize medical devices, reducing the devices' responsibility for an estimated 1.4 million infection-related deaths each year.... [Tags: bioterrorism, cockroaches, deaths, harmful bacteria, medical devices]

Using the "Flash" from Lightning To Predict Deadly Floods — Flash floods are the most common natural disaster in the United States, and a leading cause of all weather-related deaths. Over here in the Middle East, with much of the land desert, flash floods kill people every winter season when the rains start. See Relief Web's report on Yemen, and OneWorld blog here on the Yemen flash flood which recently displaced more than 20,000 people. Flash floods are unpredictable,... [Tags: deadly floods, deaths, desert flash, flash flood, flash floods]

Why A Little Melamine-Tainted Food Is Good For Us — Melamine (The New York Times) More deaths due to China's melamine-tainted milk were reported last week, just as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration opened an office in Beijing and shut down imports of milk from China. But a year after the ominous tainted pet food story emerged and we wondered if we were next, an op-ed in the New York Times reminds us that melamine has already been here for a while. The take-away? Instead of blustery anti-made-in-China rhetoric we migh...... [Tags: beijing, china, deaths, food and drug, food and drug administration]

Can China's Future Earthquakes Be Predicted? — On May 12, 2008, at 2:28 p.m., China's Szechwan province changed forever. In the space of 90 seconds, an earthquake equivalent to 1,200 H-bombs pulverized the earth's crust for more than 280 kilometers. Entire cities disappeared and eight million homes were swallowed up. This resulted in 70,000 deaths and 20,000 missing. According to one researcher, this tragedy could have been avoided. "There hasn't been one earthquake in Szechwan province for 300 years. Chinese authorities thought the fault was dead," he says.... [Tags: china, chinese authorities, deaths, earth, earthquake]

VIDEO: Landslide Devours Home — In dramatic video shown on Colombian television, a landslide swallows a home near the town of Mesitas. Weeks of heavy rain have caused a reported 22 deaths in the country.... [Tags: deaths, heavy rain, landslide, swallows, television]

U.K. may ban 'happy hour' at pubs — Britain is considering a ban on "happy hour" discounts at bars and restaurants to curb drinking, a spokesman said Saturday, as health advocates warned that a rise in liver-related deaths among young people may signal a future epidemic.... [Tags: deaths, epidemic, happy hour, health advocates, liver]

Private Contractors In Iraq Could Face Charges For Earlier Incidents Under New Security Pact — Private security contractors operating in Iraq could face Iraqi prosecution for acts committed when they supposedly had immunity from Iraqi law, U.S. officials said Thursday. A new U.S.-Iraq security agreement doesn't specifically prevent Iraqi officials from bringing criminal charges retroactively in cases such as the September 2007 shooting deaths of 17 Iraqi civilians by contractors protecting a State Department convoy, officials told security company officials during meetings in Washington Thursday.... [Tags: acts, company officials, convoy, criminal charges, deaths]

Horribly Painful Death = Happily Ever After.... [Tags: deaths, disney, painful death]

Pros And Cons Of Gastric Bypass Surgery For Severe Obesity — Severely obese patients who underwent two different gastric bypass techniques had lost up to 31 per cent of their Body Mass Index (BMI) after four years, with no deaths reported among the 50 study subjects, according to an article in the British Journal of Surgery.... [Tags: body mass index, body mass index bmi, british journal of surgery, deaths, journal of surgery]