For College and High Schools students, this can be a stressful time of year, what with final exams, holiday shopping, final exams, family reunions, final exams and… oh… did we mention final exams?

Whatever the cause of your stress, we have the cure: BUBBLE WRAP.

There is nothing more satisfying than popping bubble wrap, but if you don’t have any on hand for emergency stressful situations, don’t despair!  You can pop bubble wrap online.  It’s not quite the same of course, but it still has the  same”pop” sound that somehow relieves tension.  Try it out here, and be sure to check out “manic mode”.  There’s also perpetual bubble wrap, if you don’t want the fun to ever end.

Christmas is just around the corner, and you can hardly wait.  You leap down the stairs and look beneath the tree and what do you find….ponies! Not quite, but one man was almost as lucky.

A homeowner’s grandson was reportedly caught receiving 110 pounds or approximately $400,000 worth of marijuana. The package was sent to the wrong address and the grandson ended up in handcuffs. A 29-year old self-employed musician came forward to authorities and confessed that the package was intended for him.

Have a creative idea or research plans?

· URA provides up to $1500 to undergraduate students to support their research or creative work with a UMBC faculty mentor

· Students of all years and disciplines may apply

· Start now: Proposal Deadline — March 3, 2011

ABSTRACT: The threat of bacterial pathogens, such as the anthrax-causing Bacillus anthracis, as biological weapons has made it more urgent to understand the mechanism and properties of bacterial endospores. In harsh conditions the bacterium transforms into endospores which can remain dormant for many years and then germinate in favorable conditions, such as a human host. A detailed understanding of certain spore characteristics can help improve the methodology and instruments used by first responders in a biohazard emergency to ensure rapid, accurate, and non-invasive detection. This study attempts to use the characteristic of intrinsic fluorescence to differentiate molecular species by their unique spectra. The effects of certain germinant nutrients and temperature on the growth and germination of the Bacillus spores were also characterized. A comparative analysis was done of the spectra of different strains of Bacillus thuringiensis and Bacillus cereus (both simulants for Bacillus anthracis) grown in three different growth media. After several calibration curves of Dipicolinic acid (DPA) and DPA complexes were created, the samples were scanned for these endogenous fluorescent molecules. Measurements of the concentration of the fluorescent DPA complexes were used to follow the germination of the spores.

To read a q&a with Neeti and to find out more information about her research, click on the website below!

Here’s an interesting new twist to the Wiki Leaks saga…

A letter is circulating the Web addressed to the Prime Minister of Australia. It asserts the Austrailian government should step in and protect its citizen, Wikileaks head, Julian Assange.

We ask you… Would you sign this letter?

Take the poll below (You must be viewing this post at USDemocrazy.com to vote)

Here’s the letter:

Dear Prime Minister,
We note with concern the increasingly violent rhetoric directed towards Julian Assange of WikiLeaks.
“We should treat Mr Assange the same way as other high-value terrorist targets: Kill him,” writes conservative columnist Jeffrey T Kuhner in the Washington Times.

William Kristol, former chief of staff to vice president Dan Quayle, asks, “Why can’t we use our various assets to harass, snatch or neutralize Julian Assange and his collaborators, wherever they are?”

“Why isn’t Julian Assange dead?” writes the prominent US pundit Jonah Goldberg.

“The CIA should have already killed Julian Assange,” says John Hawkins on the Right Wing News site.

Sarah Palin, a likely presidential candidate, compares Assange to an Al Qaeda leader; Rick Santorum, former Pennsylvania senator and potential presidential contender, accuses Assange of “terrorism”.

And so on and so forth.

Such calls cannot be dismissed as bluster. Over the last decade, we have seen the normalisation of extrajudicial measures once unthinkable, from ‘extraordinary rendition’ (kidnapping) to ‘enhanced interrogation’ (torture).

In that context, we now have grave concerns for Mr Assange’s wellbeing.

Irrespective of the political controversies surrounding WikiLeaks, Mr Assange remains entitled to conduct his affairs in safety, and to receive procedural fairness in any legal proceedings against him.

As is well known, Mr Assange is an Australian citizen.

We therefore call upon you to condemn, on behalf of the Australian Government, calls for physical harm to be inflicted upon Mr Assange, and to state publicly that you will ensure Mr Assange receives the rights and protections to which he is entitled, irrespective of whether the unlawful threats against him come from individuals or states.

We urge you to confirm publicly Australia’s commitment to freedom of political communication; to refrain from cancelling Mr Assange’s passport, in the absence of clear proof that such a step is warranted; to provide assistance and advocacy to Mr Assange; and do everything in your power to ensure that any legal proceedings taken against him comply fully with the principles of law and procedural fairness.

A statement by you to this effect should not be controversial – it is a simple commitment to democratic principles and the rule of law.

We believe this case represents something of a watershed, with implications that extend beyond Mr Assange and WikiLeaks. In many parts of the globe, death threats routinely silence those who would publish or disseminate controversial material. If these incitements to violence against Mr Assange, a recipient of Amnesty International’s Media Award, are allowed to stand, a disturbing new precedent will have been established in the English-speaking world.

In this crucial time, a strong statement by you and your Government can make an important difference.

We look forward to your response.

Dr Jeff Sparrow, author and editor
Lizzie O’Shea, Social Justice Lawyer, Maurice Blackburn
Professor Noam Chomsky, writer and academic
Antony Loewenstein, journalist and author

There are about two hundred more signatures to the letter. You can view the letter in full here.

So our question is this: Would you have signed this letter? Let us know why or why not in the comments.