US to help South Korea in Agent Orange inquiry - Hoa Kỳ sẽ trợ giúp Hàn Quốc trong cuộc điều tra chất độc da cam

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-13491916

US to help South Korea in Agent Orange inquiry	Hoa Kỳ sẽ trợ giúp Hàn Quốc trong cuộc điều tra chất độc da cam
South Korea and the US have agreed to hold a joint inquiry into allegations that American soldiers dumped large amounts of Agent Orange on Korean land.	Nam Hàn và Hoa Kỳ đã đồng ý tổ chức một cuộc điều tra phối hợp về cáo buộc rằng binh sĩ Mỹ thải bỏ một lượng lớn chất độc da cam trên đất Hàn Quốc.
Three US Army veterans said they buried about 250 barrels of the hazardous chemical at a US military base in Chilgok, south-east of Seoul, in 1978.	Ba cựu chiến binh quân đội Mỹ cho biết họ đã chôn khoảng 250 thùng hóa chất độc hại tại một căn cứ quân sự Hoa Kỳ tại Chilgok, phía đông nam Seoul, vào năm 1978.
Seoul said a joint inspection team would be sent to the camp.	Seoul cho biết một đoàn kiểm tra phối hợp sẽ được gửi đến căn cứ này.
The US used Agent Orange in the Vietnam War to clear jungle. Vietnam says it caused millions of birth defects.	Mỹ sử dụng chất độc da cam trong chiến tranh Việt Nam để phát quang rừng. Việt Nam cho biết việc này đã gây ra hàng triệu khuyết tật bẩm sinh.
Campaigners for US veterans of the Vietnam War also say exposure to the chemical defoliant is associated with higher instances of cancers and other diseases.	Những người vận động cho cựu chiến binh Mỹ trong chiến tranh Việt Nam cũng nói rằng việc tiếp xúc với các chất khai quang hóa học có liên quan tới các trường hợp bị ung thư và các bệnh khác cao hơn.
'We filled it full of barrels'	'Chúng tôi đã chôn nguyên các thùng'
American broadcaster KPHO first publicised the claims that US troops buried the barrels at Camp Carroll in Chilgok in a documentary that was broadcast last week.	Đài truyền hình Mỹ KPHO đầu tiên công khai tuyên bố rằng quân đội Mỹ chôn các thùng tại trại Carroll ở Chilgok trong một phim tài liệu đã được phát sóng vào tuần trước.
Three Vietnam War veterans told the channel that they had been involved in the operation. "We went and dug a big hole in the ground on the back side of the post, and then we filled it full of barrels," said Richard Cramer.	Ba cựu chiến binh Chiến tranh Việt Nam nói với kênh truyền hình này rằng họ đã tham gia vào hoạt động này. "Chúng tôi đã đi đào một hố lớn trên mặt đất ở phía sau trại lính, và sau đó chúng tôi lấp đầy hố với các thùng hóa chất", ông Richard Cramer cho biết.
Another veteran, Robert Travis, told KPHO: "On the barrels it said Chemical Type Agent Orange."	Một cựu chiến binh khác, Robert Travis, nói với KPHO: "Trên thùng có viết Loại hóa chất: Chất độc da cam."
The claims have been reported widely in South Korea, with analysts predicting an anti-US backlash if the story is substantiated.	Cáo buộc này đã được thông báo rộng rãi tại Hàn Quốc, và các nhà phân tích dự đoán một phản ứng chống Mỹ dữ dội nếu câu chuyện được minh chứng.
Senior government official Yook Dong-han said the US understood the "urgency and seriousness" of the situation and had agreed to share all information with Seoul.	Viên chức chính phủ cao cấp, ông Yook Dong-han nói rằng Hoa Kỳ hiểu được tính chất "cấp bách và mức độ nghiêm trọng" của tình hình và đã đồng ý chia sẻ thông tin với Seoul.
"The governments of South Korea and the US have agreed to swiftly proceed for a joint investigation into the alleged Agent Orange burial at the USFK [US Forces Korea] base of Camp Carroll," Mr Yook said.	"Chính phủ Hàn Quốc và Hoa Kỳ đã đồng ý nhanh chóng tiến hành một cuộc điều tra chung về bãi chôn lấp chất độc da cam bị cáo buộc tại căn cứ USFK [Lực lượng Mỹ tại Hàn Quốc] của Trại Carroll," ông Yook nói.
American forces used Agent Orange to strip foliage from Vietnam's jungles to expose Viet Cong soldiers.	Quân đội Mỹ đã sử dụng chất độc da cam để làm rụng rừng của Việt Nam để bộc lộ binh lính Việt Cộng.
But its use was halted in 1971 amid fears that US soldiers were being badly affected by inhaling the chemical.	Nhưng việc sử dụng chất độc này đã bị dừng lại vào năm 1971 vì có lo ngại rằng binh sĩ Mỹ đã bị ảnh hưởng do hít phải hóa chất này.
Studies have concluded that children are more likely to be born with defects such as cleft palates or extra fingers and toes in areas where Agent Orange was sprayed.	Các nghiên cứu đã kết luận rằng trẻ em có nhiều khả năng sinh ra với dị tật hở hàm ếch hoặc thừa ngón tay và ngón chân ở những khu vực bị rải chất độc da cam.
But Washington has argued that there is no internationally accepted scientific evidence linking Agent Orange to birth defects and other illnesses.	Nhưng Washington vẫn lập luận rằng không có bằng chứng khoa học quốc tế chấp nhận có mối liên hệ nào giữa chất độc da cam với khuyết tật bẩm sinh và các bệnh khác.
US Air Force planes spray Agent Orange over dense vegetation in South Vietnam, 1966. The US sprayed Vietnam's jungles to deprive the enemy of places to hide	Máy bay không quân Mỹ phun chất độc da cam trên thảm thực vật dày đặc ở miền Nam Việt Nam, 1966. Mỹ rải chất độc xuống rừng rậm Việt Nam để xua kẻ thù ra khỏi nơi trú ẩn
	Translated by nguyenquangy@gmail.com

Is graphene a miracle material? Có phải graphene là vật liệu nhiệm màu?

Is graphene a miracle material? Có phải graphene là vật liệu nhiệm màu?

By Alex Hudson BBC News

Click to play

Click's Dan Simmons looks at graphene's chances for 1bn euros of funding

The material graphene was touted as "the next big thing" even before its pioneers were handed the Nobel Prize last year. Many believe it could spell the end for silicon and change the future of computers and other devices forever.

Graphene has been touted as the "miracle material" of the 21st Century.

Said to be the strongest material ever measured, an improvement upon and a replacement for silicon and the most conductive material known to man, its properties have sent the science world - and subsequently the media - into a spin.

WHAT IS GRAPHENE? Graphene is taken from graphite, which is made up of weakly bonded layers of carbon Graphene is composed of carbon atoms arranged in tightly bound hexagons just one atom thick Three million sheets of graphene on top of each other would be 1mm thick The band structure of graphite was first theorised and calculated by PR Wallace in 1947, though for it to exist in the real world was thought impossible Due to the timing of this discovery, some conspiracy theorists have linked it to materials at the Roswell "crash site" In 2004, teams including Dr Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov demonstrated that single layers could be isolated, resulting in the award of the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2010 It is a good thermal and electric conductor and can be used to develop semiconductor circuits and computer parts. Experiments have shown it to be incredibly strong

"Our research establishes graphene as the strongest material ever measured, some 200 times stronger than structural steel," mechanical engineering professor James Hone, of Columbia University, said in a statement.

"It would take an elephant, balanced on a pencil, to break through a sheet of graphene the thickness of Saran Wrap [cling film]."

And the way this material can be utilised is as surprising as its properties.

"Graphene does not just have one application," says Dr Andre Geim, the current co-holder of the Nobel Prize in physics for his work with the material.

"It is not even one material. It is a huge range of materials. A good comparison would be to how plastics are used."

Much has been made of graphene's potential. It can be used for anything from composite materials - like how carbon-fibre is used currently - to electronics.

Since its properties were uncovered, more and more scientists have been keen to work on projects. About 200 companies and start-ups are now involved in research around graphene. In 2010, it was the subject of about 3,000 research papers.

And the benefits to both businesses and to the consumer are obvious - faster and cheaper devices which are thinner and flexible.

"You could theoretically roll up your iPhone and stick it behind your ear like a pencil," Professor James Tour, of Rice University, told the Technology Review.

We feel that it's rather difficult to imagine graphene as a replacement to silicon Dr Phaedon Avouris, IBM

If graphene can be compared to the way plastic is used today, everything from crisp packets to clothing could be digitised once the technology is established. The future could see credit cards contain as much processing power as your current smartphone.

"It can open completely new applications in transparent electronics, in flexible electronics and electronics that are much faster than today," says Jari Kinaret, professor of technology at Chalmers University in Sweden.

And beyond its digital applications, just one example of its use would be graphene powder added to tyres to make them stronger.

Unlimited speed

Samsung has been one of the biggest investors in research, in collaboration with South Korean Sungkyunkwan University. It has already demonstrated a 25-inch flexible touchscreen using graphene.

"[Samsung has its] own roadmap where they believe there will be a dozen products [on the commercial market] using graphene in the next five years," says Dr Geim.

According to the Nobel prize committee, a hypothetical one-metre-square hammock of perfect graphene could support a four-kilogram cat - the hammock would weigh 0.77 milligrams, less than a cat's whisker, and would be virtually invisible Richard Van Noorden, Nature Magazine Read the full article

But companies like IBM and Nokia have also been involved in research. IBM has created a 150 gigahertz (Ghz) transistor - the quickest comparable silicon device runs at about 40 Ghz.

"In terms of the speed of the transistor, we currently see no intrinsic limits into how fast it can go," says Dr Yu-ming Lin, of IBM.

"We've already found a number of [problems] that have to be resolved but I don't think it's limited by the intrinsic properties of graphene."

In Europe, research about the material is a frontrunner to receive a 1bn euro investment from the European Commission over the next 10 years.

'Switching off'

Despite this frenzy of progress, investment and press attention, many researchers are cautious. Some are certain that graphene will not do everything that has been thought up for the material.

What has been reported as "potential" seems to be - at the moment - just that, with few real-world examples of it working to replace other materials.

"We feel that it's rather difficult to imagine graphene as a replacement to silicon," says Dr Phaedon Avouris, of IBM.

"The material itself does not have a band gap, an essential property [meaning that graphene cannot stop conducting and be 'switched off', making it unusable in this way]. The applications of graphene and the application of silicon are in different domains."

And even the most revered academics think that a replacement to silicon is a long way off.

"It is a dream," says Dr Geim. "The prospect is so far beyond the horizon that we cannot even assess it properly."

The problem that scientists face is that these "miracle" properties have only ever been demonstrated on a tiny scale.

"The kind of strengths that people quote may not even apply to microscopic samples," says Dr Lin.

"So, while it may be true that on a local level it has this strength much stronger than steel, we have to be careful about these claims.

"We recognise the limitations of graphene and are trying to do things that do not bend the rules of physics.

"We are not setting out to replace silicon as the goal but we are trying to find unique applications that can take advantage of its properties."

With the seemingly unstoppable march of progress in this field, especially as it is less than 10 years old, swift advances could be just around the corner.

Yet with all this money and market demand, scientists are cautious about how quickly all this potential can be turned into reality.

"We would be the happiest people in the world if we could replace silicon," says Dr Avouris.

"But the main thing is to be truthful and not exaggerate because we actually have to deliver."

When nature gets naughty - Khi thiên nhiên ngỗ nghịch

When nature gets naughty - Khi thiên nhiên ngỗ nghịch

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London based design and animation team Yum Yum have created some simple yet awesome characters. Here is a selection of a few of them.

Nhóm họa sĩ hoạt hình Yum Yum có cơ sở tại Luân đôn đã sáng tạo một số nhân vật hoạt hình đơn giản nhưng hay ra phết. Đây chỉ tuyển chọn một ít thôi.

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Tranh minh họa của Nicoletta Ceccoli tràn đầy tưởng tượng. Các bức vẽ của bà là kết hợp của thế giới hoang đường với nền bóng tối bên dưới. Nổi tiếng về minh họa sách, Nicoletta Ceccoli đã giành vô số giải thưởng cho các sáng tác của bà, và thật dễ dàng để giải thích tại sao thế!