Mubarak Denies Corruption Allegations
Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak announced in a speech that all accusations of corruption against him and his family are unfounded. The speech was Mubarak's first public statement since resigning from office two months ago.
Protestors have been pushing for an investigation into the assets of the Mubarak family. Anti-corruption campaigners have said the family may have between $1 billion and $70 billion hidden in overseas bank accounts. Mubarak has stated his willingness to participate in any investigation.
The Mubarak family has been banned from leaving the country and their assets in Egypt have been frozen.
Mubarak says that the campaigns against him are trying to discredit his integrity and ruin his family's good name.
Protestors are upset that the new regime is not pursuing the Mubarak corruption charges quickly enough. Some believe that the former president is being protected by the military figures overseeing Egypt's political transition.
NYC at Risk if Sea Levels Rise
In 2007, a study was conducted that predicted that sea levels would rise at least a foot by the year 2100. Now a Dutch team of researchers has found that different regions may be more or less susceptible to the changes in water level.
The researchers from the University of Utrecht in the Netherlands found that several variables may play a significant role in the regional differences. Ocean currents, temperature changes, and salinity could result in 20 percent higher levels than originally predicted.
The team is presenting their regional projections at the European Geosciences Union in Vienna. The findings will be part of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change assessment due out in 2013.
Of the 13 regions where the researchers made specific projections, New York City sees the biggest potential increase. The Icelandic capital of Reykjavik may get less than half of the projected global increase in sea level.
The melting ice sheets in Greenland and Antarctica are a major factor in the study. The team found that the more ice melts, the less gravitational pull the ice sheets have. This may cause some regions to actually witness decreased sea levels while other areas will be significantly affected.
Second Camera Installed to View Falcons
The installation of a second falcon-cam will allow bird watchers to better see the peregrine falcon chicks once they hatch.
The peregrine falcons are currently nested in the top of the Mackay Heating Plant Tower on South Campus. The live video of the falcons is watched by roughly 500 people at any given time on the UB falcon-cam website.
Last year after the chicks hatched, bird watchers became concerned when the young falcons were not seen on camera. People thought the chicks had fallen or were abandoned by their parents.
The second camera was installed before this year's breeding season and will allow viewers to get a glimpse of the perch that extends from the nest.
The adult peregrine falcons will still be at the university for another decade but each year's chicks leave the nest by late fall.
The new installation was made possible by the efforts of staff in University Facilities and Enterprise Infrastructure Services. There was also collaboration between these UB services and a local company, Digital Surveillance Solutions Inc., that donated equipment for UB's falcon-cam.
