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TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan cleared the way for a law allowing non-aggressive military use of space on Friday, overturning a decades-old policy of limiting space development to peaceful uses.

AP - Since they first walked the planet, humans have either buried or burned their dead. Now a new option is generating interest ? dissolving bodies in lye and flushing the brownish, syrupy residue down the drain.

[The following is an exact transcript of this podcast.]Would America be a better place if more people with science training held elective office? One organization that thinks so is Scientists and Engineers for America, or SEA. On May 10th, they’re holding a day-long workshop in Washington, D.C., to teach researchers the nuts and bolts of running for office. More than 70 attendees have signed up. [More]

THE fight against AIDS in Africa is founded on ineffective strategies and should focus on male circumcision and reducing promiscuity.

Scientists in Hobart are starting small in their bid to discover the answers to one of the world's biggest problems: they are researching krill in the hope of finding out what impact climate change may be having in the Southern Ocean.

An account of bullets fired by New York Police Department firearms in the past decade was published yesterday. It's a record, says retired NYPD deputy inspector John C. Cerar, that demonstrates overall progress — but less so in some neighborhoods and communities.

IBM has designed a supercomputer that is water-cooled. It's the first one in the United States, and it is destined for scientists working on models of how climate is likely to change regional weather patterns — one of the most demanding problems in the climate science world.

The University of Leicester is leading on a national study to calculate the number of adults with autism, it has been announced today.

Although the range of uses has broadened, Internet remains primarily an information and communication resource: 88 percent use e-mail while 82 percent access the web to search for information. Entertainment use is likewise on the increase, as evidenced by the number of users who download music (53 percent) or films and videos (44 percent)

Swimmers wearing space age suit break world records