Google Is Working on a New Programming Language Called Dart, but Will It Be a Javascript Killer? [Google]

By Adrian Covert Oct 10, 2011 10:08 AM 7,287 23

Google apparently thinks parts of Javascript kinda suck because they're now working on a new web programming language called Dart that's meant to remedy and simplify the more problematic aspects of the coding process.

Dart is being designed as a programming language that's easy enough for any programmer to pick up and run with, but powerful enough to scale up to massive projects. Currently in an early preview mode, the language runs one of two ways: in a virtual machine, or as an app that's been compiled and translated to Javascript. Cnet says that they plan to directly incorporate the language into Chrome as well.

While Google isn't directly saying that this is a Javascript competitor, the fact that they're calling this a new programming language and not a supplement to Javascript, seems to indicates that they'd like for Dart to someday compete directly against the standard. [Dart via Google Code via Cnet]

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First Images of the Oslo Killer In Action [Terrorism]

These are the first images of the mass murderer Anders Breivik in action, placing the van with explosive materials in Oslo, Norway.

Breivik, a 32-year-old Norwegian ultra-right wing terrorist, placed his 2,100-pound bomb on Oslo's government district on July 22. He then went to the island of Utoya, were he started to shot people in a summer camp. In total, he killed 77 people that day.

The deranged bastard is wearing what looks like a paramilitary or police uniform and a helmet. The images were captured by CCTV cameras around the building. Apparently, nobody thought that a guy dressed in such a way parking a white van and walking away was worth a bit of investigation. But then again, I doubt anyone watches these cameras until something bad happens. [ABC Nyheter]

Hate galleries? See all the photos in one page here.

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Wayward New Zealand Penguin Might've Been Chomped by a Killer Whale [Penguins]

Of course the little infidel is lost again. Just a week after being shoved out a boat and forced to swim all the way back to Antartica, Happy Feet the penguin's gone off the reservation, and his satellite tracker's dead.

The transmitter stopped sending signals on Friday, and there are only really two possibilities here: Either the device fell off or the little Lilliputian interloper found his way into the belly of a sea predator.

While experts think it's unlikely that he'd run into an orca or a leopard seal, they'd also be surprised if the device fell off since it was attached to his feathers with... wait, super glue? Apparently it's commonly used in tracking penguins, and it shouldn't have fallen off until he molted in a few months, but it's been known to happen.

Look, I'm with you: I love when adorable, globally-beloved animals get eaten by large creatures of the sea. But super glue won't even keep my bedroom shelves together, and they wanted it to hold this transmitter in place on a swim to Antartica? Nothing to see here, folks; the little jerk's probably sipping frozen herring cocktails in the Bahamas by now. [Stuff via Daily What]

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This Is the Highest Resolution Image Ever of a Killer Cell In Action [Video]

That white blob on the left is one of the ninjas living inside your body, a Natural Killer blood cell. This photograph shows it attacking a cancerous cell (on the right) in unprecedented detail.

The image was captured in 3D by an Imperial College London research team lead by Professor Daniel Davis. They used a completely new technique developed with the help of physicists and the college's Photonics Group: optical laser tweezers combined with a super-resolution microscope.

Before this technique, microscopes captured multiple bi-dimensional slices and scientists stacked them up to create a 3D image. The process was slow, limiting the speed of the action. Furthermore, the resulting detail and resolution was poor. Physics professor Paul French says that their new optical laser tweezers technique solves these problems:

Using laser tweezers to manipulate the interface between live cells into a horizontal orienta tion means our microscope can take many images of the cell contact interface in rapid succession. This has provided an unprecedented means to directly see dynamic molecular processes that go on between live cells.

According to Professor Davis, this new and unique perspective allows them to clearly watch how white blood cells detect and attack their prey. This will make scientists understand the attack process in a much better way than before. The implications of this understanding could affect our understanding of many diseases, like cancer, and the design of future medical treatments:

NK cells are important in our immune response to viruses and rogue tissues like tumors. They may also play a role in the outcome of bone marrow transplants by determining whether a recipient's body rejects or accepts the donated tissue (...) In the future, drugs that influence where and when NK cells kill could be included in medical treatments, such as the targeted killing of tumors. They may also prove useful in preventing the unwanted destruction by NK cells that may occur in transplant rejection or some auto-immune diseases.

I'm happy we are becoming such advanced peeping toms, but kind of disappointed to see that there are no actual little pilots in a cockpit flying those bloody attack fighters. [Imperial College]

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