NASA 's Spitzer Space Telescope has picked up light  from objects more than 13 billion light years away.

Stephen Hawking has been touting colonization of other planets to ensure the survival of the human species, a theme that has existed in Science Fiction since the term was coined.  And while the idea may seem a bit eccentric and far fetched, it is doable, assuming a few obstacles can be overcome. 

Where would we go?
We need to find an extrasolar planet that exists in the "Goldilocks Orbit", the planet with the ideal orbit of not too hot and not too cold.  So far, most of the planets we've discovered have been "Hot Jupiter's", but there could be billions still to discover.  Assuming we don't want to make the same mistakes we made with Native Americans, the Aborigines, and other "re-located" cultures, we also need to make sure that the planet isn't currently inhabited or let our ignorance get in the way of what actually constitutes life.  Terraforming, the process of turning a barren rock planet into a habitable place to live is probably our best option.

How long would it take?
Here's a nifty little Relativistic Spaceship Calculator you can use to see how long it would take.  After about 5 years of spaceship time at a constant 1G acceleration, the spaceship would have traveled about 12 light years distance.  At almost 10 years of traveling this speed, the spaceship would have traveled a whopping 150 light years.  Even that long of a voyage, it should be generational voyage with planned offspring along the way.  What this isn't taking into account is any time necessary for deceleration.  Our body's don't take too kindly to sudden stops, seems our organs are a bit wishy washy and like to keep moving when the bones stop.  

What would we take?
Imagine packing for a vacation where you're never going to return.  You also have to take along all the gas because there are no gas stations along the way.  Now throw in your oxygen supply, your food, etc.  If you plan on returning, double it.  Having to carry everything with you is our biggest road block to putting a human on Mars.  For the long journey, relativistically speaking, you don't have to carry 150 years of supplies, just 10 years worth, plus any incidentals once you get there to stay alive.  You either have to assume non-replenishing consumables or find some way of acquiring what you need along the way.  A self contained bio environment can handle some of the replenishment,  but that requires a level of stability we haven't even been able to control here on Earth.  Another possibility is building systems that can create CHON food.    For fuel, we would have to take a lot of it, discover a really efficient fuel source such as Hawking's suggestion of an Anti-Matter/Matter engine, or be able to scoop up those floating hydrogen atoms along the way using a Bussard Ram Jet.

Conclusion
There are a bunch of issues that we can't even begin to imagine yet.   There have been issues of cataracts in astronauts and other effects on the human physiology.  We just  don't know until we at least try.  After a 100,000 years or more, the seeds of humanity would be so different from us because of genetic isolation that we probably wouldn't even be able to recognize them.  Not all the seeds would thrive, but some would.  Should we reach out to the stars?  Absolutely!  Should we dedicate an enormous amount of resources to it?  Probably not an exorbitant amount, just dedicate enough and perhaps a wee bit more.

The Times Online in the UK is reporting that stem cell researchers have applied to create a genetic hybrid of a cow's egg and a human cell nucleus, stating that the result would be 99.9 percent human.  Maybe Douglas Adams wasn't too far off with the Ameglian Major Cow .

I have relatives that wear those medical alert bracelets, the ones that tell a doctor or EMT that the patient may be diabetic, have a heart condition or have an allergy.  The only problem with jewelry being used for this type of notification is that it can fall off or the wearer forgets to put it on. 

While the implications of personal privacy and RFID are many, I do think it makes sense for a voluntary program for people with chronic conditions.  Imagine if you will a sub-dermal chip placed in the neck with a small and unobtrusive medical tattoo, indicating that the person has a medical alert implant and that it can be read with a hand scanner.    Immediate conditions could be designated with an additional standardized glyph system that identifies specific conditions to address those times when a hand scanner isn't available.  The Glyph system would have an additional benefit of crossing language barriers if the standard was accepted world wide as well as being able to keep the tattoo to a reasonable size.

Verichip already has an RFID system for patients, external as well as sub-dermal.  Insurers are already studying the use of RFID's in patients.  Other than overcoming religious taboo, I think it makes sense.

Scientists are shocked at the rate that Greenland's Ice Sheet is melting, up by 250 percent during a period spanning May 2004 to April 2006.  If the sheet were to completely melt, the sea would rise about 23 feet (7 meters). Take a look at this flood map, which means that all those billions the U.S. spent on the Katrina recovery is wasted, not to mention the enormous losses that would occur in other areas.

Me, I'm currently of the belief that we've already reached the runaway stage and there's nothing we can really do to stop it in a short enough time span to stem such a loss other than some very extreme measures which would completely collapse the global economy.  

I also doubt that if such a melt were to occur that the insurance companies would stay afloat (excuse the pun) as they would go bankrupt trying to fill all the claims.

I'm not sure I'd want to own any property marked as being in the flood zone in the coming years.

TechNews reported on "High-Resolution Touch Sensor", which will provide a resolution close to the capabilities of human touch.   The touch sensor is built out of nanoparticles of gold and cadmium sulfide, and according to Ravi F. Saraf, the device self assembles at room temperature....  hmmm... metal particles that self assemble. Think I'll go watch Terminator II again.

New Scientist (by way of Slashdot) is reporting on a new patent by Apple where the camera is part of the screen, by embedding the  image sensors between the pixels.  I find this particularly exciting.  My suspension of disbelief when watching Sci-Fi and the like has always wavered a bit whenever one character talks directly to another character on a screen with direct eye contact.

Dr. Seuss a futurist?  Almost Green Eggs and Ham, they just started with the pig first.  BBC News is reporting that Taiwan has created transgenic glowing green pigs.  If they create transgenic chickens, we'll be set.

Now if they could only give the pigs wings , maybe we could actually get pigs to fly and someday, by using genes from the Silk Moth, we could finally make a silk purse from a sows ear.

The Washington Post reported today that the variety in the world's oceans have dropped by as much as 50% in the past 50 years.  While I could certainly lament on this subject, I defer to Garrett Hardin (1915 - 2003), who in 1968, published "The Tragedy of the Commons".  It's a good read and I'd suggest it to anyone. 

The Public Policy Institute of California released a study on Wednesday stating that California's water consumption requirements will jump by 40% by the year 2030.  The PPIC used population growth and demographic projections based on current  current water consumption rates.  I wonder if they considered any environmental issues in regards to future water usage.  Oh I think they'll get their water, it's just that it will probably be a bit salty.

Back in 1990, I was part of a volunteer group at Apple that worked on a HyperCard global warming information stack.  Back then, there was (and still is) a significant amount of skepticism regarding global warming.  Well, it's been 15 years since  I helped with the application and it's beginning to look like more signs are supporting the global warming theory.

There are some indications that we are starting to experience a runaway greenhouse effect. The average level of C02 gases for the past few decades have been increasing around 1.5 ppm per year.  This figure has jumped to an increase of over 2 ppm per year in just the last two years (World Press).  

 Thermal expansion has already caused the seas to rise 4 to 8 inches (10 to 20 centimeters).  Evidence points out that during the last interglacial, the sea levels were up to 6 meters higher than today.  Check out this image and animation.  This could happen again if the west Atlantic ice sheet were to melt.  Check out the information on the Jakobshavn glacier, which has speeded up and nearly doubled it's iceflow to a whopping speed of 12,600 meters (7.83 miles) per year (spring of 2003). The glacier is also thinning by as much as 15 meters (49 feet).  The glacier accounts for 4% of the sea level yearly rise measurements.