Burma, US Piss, Multiverse

Burma frees dissidents in amnesty

Those freed include veterans of the 1988 student protest movement, monks involved in the 2007 demonstrations and ethnic-minority activities. Burma has faced pleas from the international community to free more dissidents. This could be the most significant breakthrough yet in Burma's move towards reform. NLD party of democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi said the move was a "positive sign". During July 1962, there were sporadic protests against military rule and these were oftentimes violently suppressed. Other protests include the 2007 Burmese anti-government protest, where an increase in the price of diesel and petrol led to a series of anti-government protests that were also dealt harshly. The protests then became a campaign of civil resistance led by Buddhist monks. The government finally violently cracked down on them on 26 September 2007, with reports of barricades on the Shwedagon Pagoda and monks were killed.

US Marines identify Afghanistan 'urination' troops

A video that has been posted on YouTube purports to show the Marines standing over the bodies of several Taliban fighters, at least one of whom is covered in blood. US officials and Afghan officials have condemned the video. The Taliban has also condemned the video, but said it would not affect the political process. US media reported that the unit belonged to the 3rd Battalion, 2nd Regiment. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton expressed her "total dismay" at the video. Mrs Clinton said she shared the views of US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta whom has vowed in a statement that a full investigation would be carried out by the Marines and the Kabul-based International Security Assistance Force. The US has about 20,000 Marines deployed in Afghanistan, based mostly in Kandahar and Helmand provinces. Although different spokespeople of the Taliban has shown different views on how the impact of the video would affect political relations, Arsala Rahmani, a senior member of the Afghan government's High Peace Council, told Reuters the video would "leave a very, very bad impact on peace efforts."

Planck mission begins to warm

One of Europe's great astronomical ventures is coming to a close. The Planck telescope, put in space to map the oldest light in the Universe, has run out of the helium coolant that keeps it in full working order. Nonetheless, Planck has gathered more than enough data since its launch in 2009 to complete its misson goals. Planck's quest has been to survey the Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) : The "first light" to sweep out across space once a post-Big-Bang Universe had cooled sufficiently to permit the formation of hydrogen atoms. The Planck is expected to lose the use of the observatory's High Frequency Instrument over the weekend. Planck still has use of its Low Frequency Instrument which will continue gathering data for six to nine months which will be used to further refine the CMB maps, the first of which should be made public in January 2013. CMB, the faint glow left from our Universe's formation, suggests that several of "bubble universes" (The idea that other universes, lie within "bubbles" of space and time) A theory called "eternal inflation", holds that universes are popping into and out of existence, AKA Multiverses.