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March 02, 2014

People take part in the demonstration today to show support for freedom of the press following the brutal attack on Kevin Lau, the former chief editor of the Ming Pao newspaper, on February 26, 2014. Reuters pic, March 2, 2014.Thousands of protesters rallied outside the Hong Kong's government headquarters today to condemn a knife attack on a former newspaper editor and to voice support for press freedom amid growing concern over Beijing's influence in the media.

Kevin Lau Chun-to, who until recently had been chief editor of Ming Pao, a Chinese-language newspaper known for its investigative reports, was stabbed in the back and legs several times by a man in a helmet on Wednesday.

The assailant rode off on a motorcycle with an accomplice. No one has been arrested in connection with the attack.

Dressed in black and wearing blue ribbons, symbolizing press freedom, protesters carried a large banner with the words "They can't kill us all". Other banners and placards read "Freedom from fear" and "Protect press freedom".

Police have not established a motive for Lau's stabbing although suspicions have spread that powerful individuals from mainland China or pro-Beijing allies opposed to the city's push for full democracy may have had a hand in the attack.

"We're not going to bow to the intimidation," said Shirley Yam, vice-chairwoman of the Hong Kong Journalists' Association, one of the organisers of the protest.

"That's the strong message we want to send whoever it is that the Hong Kong media is going to stand firm and do whatever that is best for press freedom and the right for our citizens to be informed."

Organisers put the number of demonstrators at 13,000, while police said there were 8,600 at the peak.

Lau left the intensive care unit of the hospital yesterday, although his wife said his recovery would take time.

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Icelandic Beaches Are Great for Ice Climbing, Less Great for Tanning | Mountain Hardwear – Video

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Icelandic Beaches Are Great for Ice Climbing, Less Great for Tanning | Mountain Hardwear
http://www.epictv.com/ Iceland has some of the most unique ice climbing in the world. With the mountains springing straight from the fjords, ice forms in inc...

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Icelandic Beaches Are Great for Ice Climbing, Less Great for Tanning | Mountain Hardwear - Video

Oil From the Exxon Valdez Spill Lingers on Alaska Beaches

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Jane J. Lee in Honolulu

The Exxon Valdez oil spill is not just an awful memory. Oil from one of the most devastating environmental disasters in U.S. history still clings to boulder-strewn beaches in the Gulf of Alaskaand could stick around for decades. Researchers presented evidence of a lingering, foamy, mousse-like emulsion this week at the Ocean Sciences meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Chemical analyses find that this 25-year-old oil is from the Exxon Valdez spill, when the tanker ran aground on Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound (map) in 1989. And to the surprise of the scientists, the oil still has most of the same chemical compounds as oil sampled 11 days after the initial spill. (See "Exxon Valdez Anniversary: 20 Years Later, Oil Remains.")

The oil's presence in areas that were cleaned right after the spill 25 years ago points to the need to monitor certain environments long after the visible effects disappear, the researchers say.

It's Like Mayonnaise

There are two main reasons why there's still oil on some of the beaches of the Kenai Fjords and Katmai National Parks and Preserves in the Gulf of Alaska, explains Gail Irvine, a marine ecologist with the U.S. Geological Survey and lead researcher on the study.

When the oil first spilled from the tanker, it mixed with the seawater and formed an emulsion that turned it into a goopy compound, she says.

"When oil forms into the foam, the outside is weathering, but the inside isn't," Irvine explains. It's like mayonnaise left out on the counter. The surface will crust over, but the inside of the clump still looks like mayonnaise, she explains.

When that foamy oil met the boulders and cobbles of beaches in the Gulf of Alaska, it plopped down between and under the rocks, and it's still there.

PHOTOGRAPH BY GAIL IRVINE, U.S. GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY

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Oil From the Exxon Valdez Spill Lingers on Alaska Beaches