Predictions from March 2002

Eternity is very long, especially toward the end.
- Woody Allen

[YOUR FUTURE - INVENTIONS THAT WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE]
Ready for Smart Appliances? A unit that makes sure dinner's ready when you walk through the door and a fridge that's linked to the Web.

American researchers have created tiny 'smart' carbon nanotubes that can assemble themselves into microscopic scaffolding, the first step to tiny machines.

[HOT TRENDS]
A recent study found that medical errors kill up to 98,00 people a year.


[ASTRONOMICAL EVENTS]
Asteroid Near Miss Went Undetected - Abuilding-size asteroid passed earth at a distance of 279,000 miles on March 8 but was not detected in any way by astronomers until March 12. This object, now designated 2002 EM7, was between 250 and 350 feet in diameter, somewhat larger than the object that struck Tunguska in Siberia in 1908. Had the object struck earth, it would not have caused a total life-ending catastrophe, but major disruptions and loss of life would have been possible. The asteroid came out of a 'blind spot' area of sky where the position of the sun makes it hard for astronomers to see things, especially small, dark objects like 2002 EM7. The existence of the object was also previously unknown. Only one of the 10 closest objects ever seen passing the earth was larger. This was 1996 JA1, which passed only slightly closer to the Earth on 19 May 1996. A direct hit could have vaporized a city, or an ocean strike could have caused massive tidal waves.
The asteroid passed at slightly more than the distance from the Earth to the Moon. Such "close" flybys are not uncommon. Rocks the size of 2002 EM7 come by nearly 100 times a year. Slightly larger objects, the size of the Tunguska impactor, pass within the distance that 2002 EM7 did about 25 times every year.

[BIOLOGY PREDICTIONS]
A government analysis shows the nation's waterways are awash in traces of chemicals used in beauty aids, medications, cleaners and foods. Among the substances: caffeine, contraceptives, painkillers, insect repellent, perfumes and nicotine. Scientists say that the problem is that these substances largely escape regulation and defy municipal wastewater treatment. And the long-term effects of exposure are unclear.

Researchers study the potential for brain implants to control PCs and artificial limbs.

In a finding that adds to the growing list of health problems affecting cloned animals, researchers report that cloned mice are prone to obesity in adulthood. Though cloned mice were obese, they did not pass on this trait to the next generation of mice. When cloned mice were mated with each other, their offspring were not obese. Still, the success rate of cloned animals is abysmal, with most animals dying before birth or soon afterwards. Cloned animals are often larger than normal, and there have been reports of shortened life spans in cloned animals. And the researchers that cloned Dolly recently reported that the sheep has developed arthritis at an early age, suggesting that she might have a genetic defect.

[HEALTH PREDICTIONS]
Accumulating evidence implies that the days of sex-specific pain killers - perhaps pink and blue pills - may not be too far off. Research shows that men and women also respond differently to pain medications and an increasing number of studies suggest that the fundamental biology of pain and pain relief differs between the sexes.

[LONG-TERM CLIMATE PREDICTIONS]
Ireland is shrinking because of global warming and poor coastal management. Global warming will likely also lead to more frequent and more powerful storms along Ireland's northern and western coasts.

[POLITICAL PREDICTIONS]
The Bush administration plans to launch to a new color-coded system for rating the seriousness of the terrorism alerts it passes on to law enforcement agencies and the American public.

[SEASONAL WEATHER PREDICTIONS]