splendor heliport: February 2013

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Pearls across the Zooniverse: When Crowdsourcing Becomes Citizen Science

Recently, Adam Stevens looked at where crowdsourcing ends and citizen science begins and raised his doubt that the projects in the Zooniverse qualify as citizen science. According to Stevens, categorizing images (?data crunching, plain and simple?) is what happens before science really starts. When I run a race, it appears to start with the bang of a cap gun, but it really begins months earlier when I start training. A new era of space exploration didn?t start when Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Moon; it began with a lot of data crunching at mission control. Similarly, in citizen science, there are many ways to draw boundaries to parse these types of collaborative efforts, but I?m not sure what purpose is served by narrow ones.

Others have already responded to explain why the Zooniverse projects count as citizen science, such as here, here, and here. Citizen science broadly encompasses public involvement in science, and, until I saw Karen James?s response to Stevens, I didn?t realize people were discussing the nuances of what does or does not qualify as citizen science.

Stevens? view of clicking and tagging in the Zooniverse reminds me of the scientific hierarchy defined by William Whewell. He used the term ?subordinate laborers? to describe citizen science participants in his Great Tide Experiment of 1835. To paraphrase, Whewell wrote that lay people are capable of collecting information, like gathering pearls, while professional scientists have the ability to make meaning of the information, like stringing the pearls into a necklace. A stereotypical portrait of science focuses on a lone, unkempt individual working long hours to progress slowly and iteratively through the steps of the scientific method.

To understand Zooniverse-style citizen science, instead imagine science based on massively collaborative efforts where tasks are divvied up. Citizen science can look like a hobby, a game, a puzzle, brainstorming, or even like mind-numbing drudgery. Citizen science projects vary in how much they open the door for people to have access to creating knowledge. Sometimes a project has to entice people in, and in other cases people are banging down the door. If Stevens defines citizen science participation as narrowly as stringing pearls, that model is never going to open the doors of science very wide, let alone bring in hundreds of thousands of people like the Zooniverse has done.

So far the discussion has focused on defining citizen science based on the perspective of individual participants, their activities, and whether they truly experienced or learned about the scientific process, as though these features were the basis for determining what is and isn?t citizen science. The common denominator for all citizen science is collaborative research that includes members of the public in any one of a variety of ways; some projects have no explicit public education goals. I am in awe of the science learning and social outcomes of citizen science, BUT I don?t see the need to use the presence or quality of science learning and social outcomes as criteria for determining what qualifies as citizen science. Citizen science, like other types of science, happens when it produces reliable, new knowledge. Participants in the Zooniverse have done science because they?ve helped in the long process to produce reliable, new knowledge.

As I?ve said elsewhere, the word ?citizen? in relation to governance confers rights and responsibilities to a participating member of a country. In the context of citizen science, ?citizen? conveys the idea that anybody can assume rights and responsibilities to participate in the enterprise of science. In both cases, a citizen participates in a much bigger, collective process. Citizen science doesn?t mean participants necessarily become scientists and do everything. If the goal of a citizen science project was to have participants carry out all phases of science independently, well?.that?s the same goal of PhD programs.

Images: MASAYUKI KATO; Abraham Pisarek, and German Federal Archives.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=749f79afeb6a93dcab5f11cb2964220e

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Clearwire borrows $80 million from Sprint but still flirts with Dish

Who knew that the greatest love triangle of the decade would involve the mobile industry's own Bella Swan, Clearwire? The network provider has accepted an $80 million loan from nailed-on suitor and sparkly vampire, Sprint, but Clear is still pondering a buyout offer from Jacob, sorry, Dish Network. The scuttlebutt around ~~Forks~~ the industry is that Dish will withdraw its bid after spurned by Clearwire one too many times -- but you never can tell with true love, or multi-billion business deals.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, Sprint

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Source: Reuters, WSJ

Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/prIn9Mb1sww/

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Analysis - Emerging deadly virus demands swift sleuth work

LONDON (Reuters) - The emergence of a deadly virus previously unseen in humans that has already killed half those known to be infected requires speedy scientific detective work to figure out its potential.

Experts in virology and infectious diseases say that while they already have unprecedented detail about the genetics and capabilities of the novel coronavirus, or NCoV, what worries them more is what they don't know.

The virus, which belongs to the same family as viruses that cause the common cold and the one that caused Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), emerged in the Middle East last year and has so far killed seven of the 13 people it is known to have infected worldwide.

Of those, six have been in Saudi Arabia, two in Jordan, and others in Britain and Germany linked to travel in the Middle East or to family clusters.

"What we know really concerns me, but what we don't know really scares me," said Michael Osterholm, director of the U.S.-based Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy and a professor at the University of Minnesota.

Less than a week after identifying NCoV in September last year in a Qatari patient at a London hospital, scientists at Britain's Health Protection Agency had sequenced part of its genome and mapped out a so-called "phylogenetic tree" - a kind of family tree - of its links.

Swiftly conducted scientific studies by teams in Switzerland, Germany and elsewhere have found that NCoV is well adapted to infecting humans and may be treatable medicines similar to the ones used for SARS, which emerged in China in 2002 and killed a tenth of the 8,000 people it infected.

"Partly because of the way the field has developed post-SARS, we've been able to get onto this virus very early," said Mike Skinner, an expert on coronaviruses from Imperial College London. "We know what it looks like, we know what family it's from and we have its complete gene sequence."

Yet there are many unanswered questions.

SPOTLIGHT ON SAUDI ARABIA, JORDAN

"At the moment we just don't know whether the virus might actually be quite widespread and it's just a tiny proportion of people who get really sick, or whether it's a brand new virus carrying a much greater virulence potential," said Wendy Barclay, a flu virologist, also at Imperial College London.

To have any success in answering those questions, scientists and health officials in affected countries such as Saudi Arabia and Jordan need to conduct swift and robust epidemiological studies to find out whether the virus is circulating more widely in people but causing milder symptoms.

This would help establish whether the 13 cases seen so far are the most severe and represent "the tip the iceberg", said Volker Thiel of the Institute of Immunobiology at Kantonal Hospital in Switzerland, who published research this month showing NCoV grows efficiently in human cells.

Scientists and health officials in the Middle East and Arab Peninsular also need to collaborate with colleagues in Europe, where some NCoV cases have been treated and where samples have gone to specialist labs, to try to pin down the virus' source.

"ONE BIG VIROLOGICAL BLENDER"

Initial scientific analysis by laboratory scientists at Britain's Health Protection Agency (HPA) - which helped identify the virus in a Qatari patient in September last year - found that NCoV's closest relatives are most probably bat viruses.

It is not unusual for viruses to jump from animals to humans and mutate in the process - high profile examples include the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) that causes AIDS and the H1N1 swine flu which caused a pandemic in 2009 and 2010.

Yet further work by a research team at the Robert Koch Institute at Germany's University of Bonn now suggests it may have come through an intermediary - possibly goats.

In a detailed case study of a patient from Qatar who was infected with NCoV and treated in Germany, researchers said the man reported owning a camel and a goat farm on which several goats had been ill with fevers before he himself got sick.

Osterholm noted this, saying he would "feel more comfortable if we could trace back all the cases to an animal source".

If so, it would mean the infections are just occasional cross-overs from animals, he said - a little like the sporadic cases of bird flu that continue to pop up - and would suggest the virus has not yet established a reservoir in humans.

Yet recent evidence from a cluster of cases in a family in Britain strongly suggests NCoV can be passed from one person to another and may not always come from an animal source.

An infection in a British man who had recently travelled to Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, reported on February 11, was swiftly followed by two more British cases in the same family in people who had no recent travel history in the Middle East.

The World Health Organisation says the new cases show the virus is "persistent" and HPA scientists said the cluster provided "strong evidence" that NCoV, which like other coronaviruses probably spreads in airborne droplets, can pass from one human to another "in at least some circumstances".

Despite this, Ian Jones, a professor of virology at Britain's University of Reading, said he believes "the most likely outcome for the current infections is a dead end" - with the virus petering out and becoming extinct.

Others say they fear that is unlikely.

"There's nothing in the virology that tells us this thing is going to stop being transmitted," said Osterholm. "Today the world is one big virological blender. And if it's sustaining itself (in humans) in the Middle East then it will show up around the rest of the world. It's just a matter of time."

(Editing by Anna Willard)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/analysis-emerging-deadly-virus-demands-swift-sleuth-132307091.html

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Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Bernanke defends Fed's low-interest-rate policies

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Facing criticism from Republican lawmakers, Chairman Ben Bernanke stood behind the Federal Reserve's low-interest-rate policies Wednesday and sought to reassure members of Congress that the central bank has a handle on the risks.

In his second day of testimony on Capitol Hill, Bernanke told members of the House Financial Services Committee that the Fed's bond purchases are needed to boost a still-weak economy and that they have helped create jobs for average Americans.

The bond purchases are intended to lower long-term interest rates. That encourages more borrowing and spending, which generates growth.

Still, some Republicans warned that by continually pumping more money into the financial system, the bond purchases could eventually ignite inflation.

"We have gone too far in monetary policy and the monetary easing, and it is in this member's opinion time to pull back," said Rep. Gary Miller, R-Calif.

Bernanke said the Fed is weighing the costs and benefits of its bond purchases. He noted that the Fed has a dual mandate: to both maximize employment and maintain low inflation.

His remarks during his semiannual monetary report to Congress largely repeated comments he made a day earlier to a Senate panel.

The Fed chairman argued that the Fed's low-interest-rate policies are giving crucial support to an economy still burdened by high unemployment. He also acknowledged the risks of keeping rates low indefinitely. But he expressed confidence that such risks pose little threat now and gave no signal that the Fed might shift away from those policies.

The aggressive program to buy $85 billion a month in Treasurys and mortgage bonds had kept borrowing costs low, he said. And that, in turn, has helped strengthen sectors such as housing and autos, he said. Still, unemployment remains high at 7.9 percent.

Bernanke rejected a suggestion by Rep. John Campbell, R-Calif., that the Fed's policies were mainly helping the federal government with its borrowing needs and big banks and foreign governments.

"This is very much focused at the average American citizen," Bernanke said. "Our estimates are that we've helped create many private-sector jobs. ... People are able to buy houses at very low mortgage rates, refinancing at low mortgage rates. People are able to get car loans at low rates."

The low borrowing rates have boosted demand, Bernanke said, and that has helped to lift home prices, making home owners feel more financially secure.

"In a lot of dimensions, we have, I think, benefited Main Street and that's certainly our objective," Bernanke said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/bernanke-defends-feds-low-interest-rate-policies-180917807--finance.html

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Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Net providers begin warning of illegal downloads

Anne Flaherty , The Associated Press ? ? ? 7 hrs.

Internet users who illegally share music, movies or television shows online could soon receive warning notices from the nation's five major Internet service providers.

The Copyright Alert System, organized by the recording and film industry, is being activated this week to target consumers using peer-to-peer software.

Under the new system, complaints will prompt an Internet service provider ? such as Verizon or AT&T ? to notify a customer whose Internet address has been detected sharing files illegally. A person will be given up to six opportunities to stop before the Internet provider will take more drastic steps, such as temporarily slowing their connection, or redirecting Internet traffic until they acknowledge they received a notice or review educational materials about copyright law.

Consumers who maintain they have been wrongly accused would be forced to pay $35 to appeal the decision. The fee would be reimbursed if they prevail.

Proponents say the focus is on deterring the average consumer rather than chronic violators. The director of the organization behind the system, Jill Lesser of the Center for Copyright Infringement, said in a blog post Monday that the program is "meant to educate rather than punish, and direct (users) to legal alternatives."

Each Internet provider is expected to implement their own system. The other providers expected to participate are Cablevision, Time Warner Cable and Comcast. (NBC News is part of NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast, a provider of cable TV and broadband Internet access.)

The program gives each customer five or six "strikes" after a music or film company has detected illegal file-sharing and lodged a complaint. The first alerts are expected to be educational, while the third and fourth would require the customer to acknowledge that they have received the warnings and understand their behavior is illegal. The final warnings are expected to lead to "mitigation measures," such as slowing a person's Internet connection speeds.

Officials involved in the effort acknowledge it's unlikely to stop the biggest violators. There are ways to disguise an IP address or use a neighbor's connection that is unlocked. Public wireless connections, such as those offered at coffee shops, also won't be monitored.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/net-providers-begin-warning-illegal-downloads-1C8543845

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Police: Gaza militants fire rocket into Israel

A Palestinian man throws a stone towards Israeli soldiers after the funeral of Arafat Jaradat in the West Bank of Hebron, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. Thousands have attended the funeral procession of a 30-year-old Palestinian man who died under disputed circumstances in Israeli custody. Palestinian officials say autopsy results show Jaradat was tortured by Israeli interrogators, while Israeli officials say there's no conclusive cause of death yet and that more tests are needed.(AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)

Israeli security forces take positions during clashes after the funeral of Arafat Jaradat in the West Bank of Hebron, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. Thousands have attended the funeral procession of a 30-year-old Palestinian man who died under disputed circumstances in Israeli custody. Palestinian officials say autopsy results show Jaradat was tortured by Israeli interrogators, while Israeli officials say there's no conclusive cause of death yet and that more tests are needed.(AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)

Israeli border policemen fire tear gas during clashes after the funeral of Arafat Jaradat in the West Bank of Hebron, Monday, Feb. 25, 2013. Thousands have attended the funeral procession of a 30-year-old Palestinian man who died under disputed circumstances in Israeli custody. Palestinian officials say autopsy results show Jaradat was tortured by Israeli interrogators, while Israeli officials say there's no conclusive cause of death yet and that more tests are needed.(AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)

JERUSALEM (AP) ? A rocket fired from the Gaza Strip struck Israel on Tuesday as tensions are mounting in the region weeks ahead of President Barack Obama's visit.

Police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said remains of the rocket were found south of the city of Ashkelon, in southern Israel. The attack caused damage to a road but no injuries, he said. It was the first such projectile from the Palestinian territory to hit Israel since Israel-Gaza hostilities last November.

The rocket fire came one day after Israeli troops injured two Palestinian teenagers near a holy site close to Bethlehem, during one of the many demonstrations Palestinians in the West Bank have staged in recent days.

Initially, West Bank street protests broke out in support of Palestinians held in Israeli jails, particularly in support of four inmates on lengthy hunger strikes. Then, over the weekend, a Palestinian prisoner who was not on hunger strike died under disputed circumstances, prompting more demonstrations.

Israeli and Palestinian officials have traded barbs, each side saying the other is trying to exploit the latest unrest for political gains.

A statement from the Palestinian president's office said President Mahmoud Abbas instructed Palestinian security officials Monday night to preserve security and order in the West Bank, but placed the blame on Israel for "dragging the area into violence and chaos."

Adnan Damiri, the spokesman of the Palestinian security apparatus, said Palestinian officials were committed to prevent fighting, saying that his forces had recently detained members of the militant Hamas group who were planning "violent confrontations."

"The only one(s) seeking violence in West Bank is Netanyahu and Hamas, but we will not be dragged to that," said Damiri. "Our struggle will always be peaceful."

The clashes come weeks before Obama is scheduled to arrive in Israel and the West Bank, his first presidential visit to the region. U.S. State Department spokesman Patrick Ventrell said the U.S. has asked Israeli and Palestinian officials to exercise "maximum restraint" at this time of high tension in the West Bank.

"All parties should seriously consider the consequences of their actions, particularly at this very difficult moment," Ventrell said Monday.

An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military policy, said protestors gathered Monday and hurled "improvised hand grenades" towards a holy site in the Bethlehem area, endangering Israeli worshippers inside.

Soldiers responded by firing at the legs of a Palestinian throwing grenades, lightly wounding him. Later, soldiers fired rubber bullets at demonstrators, seriously injuring one Palestinian who was then rushed to an Israeli hospital, the official said.

Palestinian medical officials said two Palestinian youths, one 13 years old and one 16, were seriously wounded by live fire. Palestinian medic Abdelhaleem Jaarah said the 16-year-old, Odai Sarhan, was hit in the head and rushed to Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem.

Etti Dvir, spokeswoman for Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem, said doctors operated overnight on the boy and that he was in critical condition.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-02-26-ML-Israel-Palestinians/id-a85c2a3ce95142ae890e749507e63d11

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First Time Cruising: Cruise News and Deals: Carnival Triumph ...

Source: http://first-time-cruising.blogspot.com/2013/02/cruise-news-and-deals-carnival-triumph.html

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CRUISE TRAVEL NEWS

Update on Carnival Triumph - Lawsuits Filed, One First-Timer Weighs In
It was inevitable. The first lawsuits have been filed after the Carnival Triumph situation. But will they succeed or not? Separately, one first-time cruise guest weighs in about his experience onboard the ill-fated cruise, and two agents discuss their post-incident Carnival bookings.

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This Week in Cruise - New Faces at Royal Caribbean, Avalon and All Leisure Group
Kristin Chenoweth chosen as godmother of Royal Caribbean's Quantum of the seas, while Deborah Hutton was chosen to be the godmother of the Avalon Illumination and Steve Tucker was appointed president of All Leisure Group, North America.

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Voyages to Antiquity Launches Winter Cruise Program for 2013 / 2014
New for the sophomore season is an exploration of the region's key historical and cultural attractions, as well as booking incentives for itineraries and Grand Voyages. Early booking incentives are available for guests who book prior to April 30, 2013.

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Nobu Matsuhisa to Sail Aboard Crystal Symphony July 13
The sushi maestro, and mastermind behind the line's exclusive Silk Road and The Sushi Bar restaurants, will join Crystal Symphony's 12-day Rome-Istanbul Black Sea voyage beginning July 13.

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Trade Voices - Agency Groups and Agents Sound Off About Carnival Triumph
Carnival Triumph's passengers are now home safely, but what, if any, impact is the incident now having on Wave Season sales, consumer confidence or an agency's perspective about Carnival as a supplier? Eight travel group leaders, agency owners or front-line agents provide their opinions. What's yours?

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Alaskan Dream Cruises Launches Family Cruises Aboard Baranof Dream
Activities range from cultural classes teaching traditional arts and crafts to geocaching expeditions in the rain forest to nature hikes that teach kids to indentify indigenous plants and animals.

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Royal Caribbean Adds Automatic Gratuities Effective March 1
Royal Caribbean International has posted a new gratuity policy on its website. Starting March 1, automatic gratuities of $12 per person daily or, alternatively, $14,25 per suite guest daily, will be added to each guest's onboard account.

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? Bimini or Bust! New High Speed Ferry Service Beckons Travelers? ? ? ?

TODAY'S LINKS

Cruise-booking website cancels cruise, passengers left fighting for refund of deposits
It's hard to forget the ordeal thousands lived through when the Carnival Triumph passengers had to endure unlivable conditions for days after an engine fire crippled the ship. Now, another cruise traveler's is living a nightmare, and it happened before the ship even left port.

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Carnival Triumph Fallout: What Are Cruise Passengers' Rights?
After five days adrift in the Gulf of Mexico with no working toilets, sewage oozing down walls and no air conditioning in their cabins, passengers on the Carnival Triumph cruise ship were offered a full refund, reimbursed on-board expenses, a free flight home, a free future cruise and a check for $500.

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Internet access on cruise ships
Every time we cruise we fall for the cruise line?s extortionate charging for what is normally an unreliable and very slow internet service. Is there any prospect of an improvement of the speeds and a reduction of the cost?

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CRUISE FEATURED DEAL

Azamara Club Cruises Details its AzAmazing Evenings Offerings
Azamara Club Cruises? soon-to-premiere exclusive and custom-made night-touring events, AzAmazing Evenings, is launching with each Azamara ship?s Europe season.

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Royal Caribbean Offers Wow Sale From Feb. 25-27
Royal Caribbean International announced its first WOW Sale of the year. From Feb. 25-27, 2013, vacationers can book a summer vacation and enjoy up to a $200 onboard credit and 50 percent reduced deposits for sailings departing on or after May 1, 2013.

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Celebrity Cruises Launches Summer Sizzle Sale Through March 10
Celebrity Cruises launched ?Summer Sizzle,? a series of special offers on Celebrity?s modern luxury vacations in Alaska, Bermuda and Europe, suited for families and friends, with an exclusive bonus for Celebrity?s loyal Captain?s Club members.

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CRUISE TRAVEL DEALS

Regent Seven Seas Cruises To Offer New Guest Documentation Holder
Guests will receive the new documentation holder with February 2013 voyages and beyond.

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