August 15, 2012 Edition

The 6-wheeled Curiosity rover appears as a double dot in a new satellite image released by NASA. “We can clearly see Curiosity – it’ s like two bright spots that we see, and their shadows. And then it’s surrounded by the blast pattern from the descent stage – those little blue fans right next to it (false blue color),” Alfred McEwen, principal investigator on the High Resolution Image Science Experiment camera said. The image of Curiosity includes soil disturbance made on either side of the rover by a rocket-powered crane that lowered the rover into its landing site on the Red Planet, a deep depression called Gale Crater. Curiosity is supposed to go to the base of the big mountain at the center of Gale known as Mount Sharp. There it will examine rocks for proof of previous microbial life.

Read the full story on BBCnews. 

It all started with a tweet this week from Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates: “4 out of 10 people don’t have a safe way to poop – that’s 2.6 billion!” Calling for a “toilet revolution,” the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation called for  “new ideas to help reduce disease and find new ways to turn crap into valuable stuff, like fuel, fertilizer, and fresh water.” Gates decided to put his money into finding a new toilet design that are “hygienic and sustainable, discharge no pollutants, generate energy, recover nutrients and only need a tiny amount of water.” The foundation’s initiative attracted researchers from Britain, China, Canada, California, the Netherlands and Switzerland to the “Reinvent the Toilet Fair” in Seattle. Recipients of $400,000 grants from the Gates Foundation came together to report their progress on Tuesday, August 14.

Read the full story in The Huffington Post. 

Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa said on Tuesday, August 14, he hasn’t made up his mind on whether to offer Wikileaks founder Julian Assange asylum. “Rumors about asylum for Assange are false, Correa tweeted in Spanish, hours after the Guardian newspaper reported he had made a decision. Assange, who has been avoiding extradition to Sweden, where he is wanted for questioning on alleged sex-related crimes, has been holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London since June 19. Correa, who describes himself as an enemy of US “imperialism” and “corrupt” media, earlier this week said he hoped to make a decision by Wednesday, London time. Assange is in breach of his British bail conditions and is liable for arrest once he steps out of the Ecuadorian embassy.

Read the full story on NBCNews. 

The New York Times (NYT) named Mark Thompson, outgoing director general of the BBC, as its new president and chief executive, indicating a push toward a digital future. The 55-year-old Thompson was responsible for the BBC’s TV, radio and online services. He had announced he was leaving the BBC after the London Olympics. NYT chairman Arthur Sulzberger said in a statement, “Mark is a gifted executive with strong credentials whose leadership at the BBC helped it to extend its trusted brand identity into new digital products and services.” The NYT said it recruited Thompson for his ability to develop non-traditional news products. He had a reputation as an innovator who reshaped the BBC to meet the challenge of the digital age. Thompson is expected to steer the NYT further down the digital path.

Read the full story on Rappler. 

More details are available on BBCNews.

Read more in the Guardian. 

The London Olympics was the most watched event ever in US television history, broadcaster NBC said. The Olympics drew over 219.4 million American viewers on NBCUniversal networks, setting a new record that surpassed the 2008 Beijing Olympics that attracted 215 million viewers. After earning sole rights to broadcast in the US, NBC broadcast a total of 5,535 hours of the Olympic games across its channels, more than double the nearly 2,000 hours aired from Beijing. “The London Olympics was a wonderful 17 days for NBCUniversal, exceeding all our expectations in viewership, digital consumption and revenue,” Steve Burke said in a statement on Monday, August 13.

Read the full story on Rappler. 

A collective editorial published by various media organizations nationwide called on the Aquino administration to pass the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act which has remained stuck in Congress. “The Freedom of Information Act long promised by the Constitution to this day remains just a promise,” the joint media statement said. Despite its being naturally betrothed to pushing and passing the Act, the administration and its Liberal Party-led coalition in the House have yet to act on it. The right to information is “our protection against government abuse, at the same time that it is our power to make government accountable,” the statement said. It called on the President, Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile and Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr to exercise leadership in enacting the FOI into law.

Read the full story on Rappler. 

Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales has approved the filing of graft charges against whistle-blower Rodolfo “Jun” Lozada. The former president and chief executive officer of Philippine Forest Corp in 2007 and 2008, Lozada was slapped with two counts of graft before the Sandiganbayan stemming from decisions he made when he was with government. For one, he was accused of granting an illegal grant of leasehold rights to the Transforma Quinta Inc in which he and his wife were allegedly connected as representatives. A second case involved the awarding of leasehold rights over public land to his brother and co-accused. Lozada gained prominence when he blew the whistle in 2008 on Jose Miguel “Mike” Arroyo and former Comelec chair Benjamin Abalos, accusing them of taking bribes related to the NBN-ZTE transaction. His exposé dealt former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo a serious blow.

Read the full story on Rappler. 

Convicted killer Rolito Go, who was discovered missing from the New Bilibid Prison early Wednesday morning, August 15, is now in police custody, according to prison director Gaudencio Pangilinan Jr. He confirmed a report on ABS-CBN’s Wednesday evening that Go was with the Philippine National Police. A Bandila report, citing information from PNP chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome, said that Go was found with nephew Clemence Yu — who acts as his nurse. They were supposedly released by their “kidnappers” in Tanauan, Batangas. Go, convicted for the killing of a 25-year-old engineering student over a traffic altercation in 1991, was reported missing from the New Bilibid Prison on Wednesday, August 15. Kidnappers reportedly asked for a P1 million ranson. Go has colon cancer and needs medical attention. He was convicted in 1993 and sentenced to life imprisonment for shooting De La Salle student Eldon Maguan in the head while he was seated in his car. The two got entangled in an altercation after Go violated a one-way traffic rule on Wilson Street in San Juan. Go sought executive pardon under the Arroyo administration but the Maguan family opposed it.

Read the full story on Rappler. 

The Pentagon’s new technology could bring missiles or airplanes to the other side of the planet in minutes instead of hours. On Tuesday, August 14, the Pentagon tested an unmanned 25-foot-long vehicle that will try to fly at over 4,500 mph, fast enough to get to London from New York in less than an hour. It is part of testing possibilities of hypersonic flight, or speeds of Mach 5 (or about 3,400 mph) and above without leaving the atmosphere. If successful, the military could use the technology for reconnaissance aircraft, cruise missile-like weapons or vehicles that could transport people or cargo so quickly that enemies would have little time to react, military analysts said. The technology is significant to the Pentagon as other countries have advanced in thwarting stealth technologies that the US military has developed.

Read the full story on CNN. 

More details are available on BBCNews. 

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) identified the Philippines as among the countries most vulnerable to both coastal and inland flooding in Southeast Asia. In its 2012 Key Indicators for Asia and the Pacific report, the ADB said the Philippines ranks No. 4 in the region with close to 7 million vulnerable to coastal flooding and close to 4 million vulnerable to inland flooding. Its 2012 report points out that Quezon City is among the top 40 Asian cities vulnerable to inland flooding, with close to 3 million residents themselves likely to become victims. The ADB warns that by 2025, about 350 million may be at risk of inland flooding, while over 400 million may be at risk of coastal flooding.

Read the full story on Rappler.