tsunami

It's possible that when you're worried about a tsunami wiping away you and everything you hold dear, you'll prefer a bucket of large extra crispy chunks as opposed to just a few crispy strips.

Equally, it's possible that the last thing on your mind would be, well, any kind of chicken at all.

KFC seems to have discovered the latter might be the case. As the Daily Mail reports it, some people were a little surprised in Thailand on Wednesday when, as they rushed home worried about a tsunami, KFC posted: "Let's hurry home … Read more

Our telephone support will therefore not be available today. Apologies for the inconvenience caused! 2/2

In view of the earthquake and tsunami warning, we're having to evacuate our office as a precautionary safety measure. 1/2

Huge earthquakes in the Indian Ocean and tsunami warnings caused at least one tech company with Indian offices to evacuate today.

Zoho, an online application developer based in Pleasanton, Calif., used Twitter to notify customers that it had evacuated its offices in India and that phone support would not be available. "… Read more

A panel set up to review the events of last year's nuclear disaster in Japan has released a withering criticism of the country's nuclear industry and the government's response to the crisis.

The investigation details mistakes made in the aftermath of the massive earthquake and tsunami one year ago which killed tens of thousands of people in Japan and caused the worst nuclear accident in decades. It was prepared by the Rebuild Japan Initiative Foundation (RJIF), a think tank created last year and funded by individuals and businesses.

The latest version of the report, published today on … Read more

Highly sophisticated robots are being used in a variety of ways: think tsunamis, earthquakes, and land mines, to name a few. In the case of wildfires, though, they wouldn't survive long in the heat of battle.

So a team of graduate and undergraduate students at the University of Cincinnati is testing a tiny new aerial system designed to fly above fires to calculate the scope of damage and the anticipated path the fire will take.

"What we are designing is a complete system," says Kelly Cohen, associate professor of aerospace engineering and engineering mechanics, in a news release. &… Read more

Another day, another Trojan. The malware bot called "Tsunami" that has been developed for Linux systems since around 2002 has been found on OS X.

The malware (OSX/Tsunami.A) is a minimal threat, and like other Trojans and backdoors for OS X requires you to manually install it. While it is almost irrelevant to most users, it is out there and has the potential to cause harm for some.

The malware is an IRC bot, which is a program that connects to Internet Relay Chat (IRC) network servers and channels, where it can be controlled as a … Read more

Japan is preparing to spend about 1.1 billion yen ($14 million) on a five-year project to develop rescue robots that can be used in disasters like the quake and tsunamis that slammed the country in March.

The machines will come in three types: exoskeleton suits to boost human strength, robots that can rescue people from rubble, and robots that can search for people in water, according to a Nikkei Business Daily article.

Although similar devices have been developed in Japan, such as Tmsuk's two-armed Enryu debris mover, few have made it past the prototype stage and to see real use outside of robot exhibitions. … Read more

If you have nowhere to run in a typhoon, flood, tsunami, or earthquake, break out the evacuation lemon.

The Noah personal evacuation shelter is an oblong sphere that can fit four adults. It will automatically right itself in water and stay afloat if carried off by a tsunami.

Made in Japan from tough fiberglass-reinforced plastic, it can take blows from a 220-pound iron block and survive a 33-foot drop into water.

The Noah weighs about 150 pounds, is about 5 feet across, and has an interior pole for support.

Cosmopower, a small environmental projects company in Kanagawa southwest of Tokyo, has received more than 500 orders for the shelter, the Asahi Shimbun reported. It will sell for roughly $3,950. … Read more

A NASA scientist and her colleagues have observed that the March 11 tsunami that devastated Japan broke off Manhattan-size icebergs from Antarctica, some 8,000 miles distant.

Kelly Brunt, a cryosphere specialist at Goddard Space Flight Center, and colleagues detailed the finding in the Journal of Glaciology. The event "marks the first direct observation of such a connection between tsunamis and icebergs," NASA said.

The icebergs began separating from the Sulzberger Ice Shelf about 18 hours after the 9.0 earthquake that caused the tsunamis, and floating off into the Ross Sea. The ice hadn't moved in … Read more

Japanese engineers have dispatched Paro the robot seal to comfort the victims of the March 3 earthquake and tsunamis in northern Japan.

Modeled on a baby harp seal, Paro is a therapeutic robot that responds to touch and voices. It's covered in tactile sensors and responds to petting by squealing. It's meant to soothe people who use it.

Developed by Takanori Shibata at Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), Paro has been used in nursing homes in Japan and overseas since 2003; eight generations have been produced. Studies have shown that Paro can lower stress levels in users and caregivers. It can also help dementia patients. … Read more