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Nov 6, 2008 | 1
When the space shuttle Endeavour launches next Friday, its payload will include more than just servicing equipment for the International Space Station (ISS). The shuttle is also slated to carry a copy of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, an international analogue of the U.S. Bill of Rights, for permanent placement on board the ISS as the document nears its 60th birthday.
The Universal Declaration, adopted by the U.N. General Assembly on December 10, 1948, forms the basis of international human rights law, proclaiming in its first article that "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in a spirit of brotherhood." In a European Space Agency (ESA) statement, French astronaut Léopold Eyharts said that "in recognition of the fact that human beings are at times downtrodden, the Declaration can symbolically find its place 'above' all the peoples of the world."
Oct 29, 2008 | 4
Rivals Google, Microsoft and Yahoo! have joined forces with other companies and academics to stop governments (most notably China) from suppressing freedom of expression and ordering them to betray their customers' privacy. The three software giants today announced creation of the Global Network Initiative designed to persuade oppressive governments to allow their citizens to freely express opinions, via the Web in particular, without fear of retribution.
Oct 10, 2008 | 1
ScientificAmerican.com was up early again this morning checking the Nobel Prize Web site, waiting for the peace prize announcement. If you're wondering why, you'll recall that science and the environment have played a role in two of the last three Nobel Peace Prizes: Last year’s award to the U.N. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and Al Gore, and the 2005 prize to Mohamed ElBaradei and the International Atomic Energy Agency.
Although this year's winner's achievements are profound and inspiring, it’s hard to discern a connection to science. Martti Ahtisaari takes the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize "for his important efforts, on several continents and over more than three decades, to resolve international conflicts."
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