Not Your Father's F-16: Take A Tour Of The F-16IN Super Viper Cockpit

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The video below takes you on a virtual mission in the F-16IN 'Super Viper' cockpit, showing how some of the jet's amazing avionics and automation work. The Viper has evolved from a basic light-weight fighter into a medium-weight strike-fighter over the last four decades and in the F-16IN configuration it would have been one smart and deadly snake.

This video was shot during Lockheed's bid for India's Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft competition. The F-16IN Super Viper variant evolved from both the F-16C/D Block 52+ and the F-16E/F Block 60 Desert Falcon. Included with this configuration were conformal fuel tanks, a 32,500lb class turbofan engine, an evolved cockpit with large flat panel displays, AESA radar (presumably the APG-80 at the time) capable of simultaneous air-to-air and air-to-ground operations, a new mission computer, digital radar warning receiver and electronic warfare suite, an advanced datalink, digital terrain avoidance system, along with other smaller modifications. An extendable midair refueling probe was also going to be designed into the jet's conformal fuel tank so that Indian Il-78 'Midas' tankers could refuel it.

Here is a general overview of the F-16's highly efficient cockpit for further reference:

In the end, the Indian Super Viper's single engine design, very mature nature of the F-16s development, lack of speed and super-agility saw it lose to the French-built Dassault Rafale.

Although Dassault won the MMRCA competition three years ago, the MMRCA saga is still not over and not one Rafale has been officially ordered. Almost never-ending haggling over the terms of the contract has hobbled the whole affair and although there appears to be some progress finally, some in the defense world think the MMRCA will never be fulfilled. Instead India will punt the whole program after learning a lot about many nations' top-of-the-line fighters and opt to buy a stealthier aircraft in large numbers, such as the Russian-Indian PAK-FA or even the F-35 Lightning.

As far as the now defunct F-16IN Super Viper goes, many of the improvements and subsystems featured in it have been adapted to the F-16V program, which is seen as a accompaniment to the F-35, not a competitor with it. The F-16V can be ordered as whole new aircraft or it can be ordered as an upgrade kit, with different elements omitted or included based on the user's needs and budget. You can compare the F-35's cockpit automation with that of the F-16 Super Viper here.

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Not Your Father's F-16: Take A Tour Of The F-16IN Super Viper Cockpit

8 News NOW's Living Green Super Recycling Day is Saturday

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Square Peg Industries will help destroy your old computer monitors (CRT's) and televisions for $20 and can be paid with cash, credit, or debit cardsonly. Checks will not be accepted.

Household batteries will be collected by Republic Services.

New and gently used books will be collected by Spread the Word Nevada. You will also be able to safely dispose of your Christmas tree.

Finally, up to four boxes, or bags, of documents can be shredded for free, courtesy of Shred-It.

To recap, all items below are free to be recycled or donated, unless otherwise noted:

Accepted free of charge:

Items accepted for electronic recycling ($20 fee per item)

Items not accepted for recycling

Many of the 8 News NOW anchors will be on hand to greet you and say hello, and 97.1 The Point will be broadcasting LIVE from the event.

PLUS RC Willey will be giving away a limited supply of $25 gift cards.

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8 News NOW's Living Green Super Recycling Day is Saturday

Stem Cell Therapy Fixes Post-Surgical Airway Abnormality

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By Steven Reinberg HealthDay Reporter

WEDNESDAY, Dec. 31, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- Using stem cells derived from a patient's own bone marrow, researchers have repaired a fistula -- a potentially fatal tissue abnormality -- in the man's lower airway.

"This is another interesting new therapeutic approach for stem cells," said lead researcher Dr. Francesco Petrella, deputy director of thoracic surgery at the European Institute of Oncology in Milan, Italy.

The patient, a 42-year-old firefighter, developed the fistula after surgeons removed a lung as part of treatment for mesothelioma cancer. A fistula is abnormal tissue connecting an organ, blood vessel or intestine to another structure. In this case, the fistula developed between the lower airway and the tissue that surrounds the lungs.

"Our clinical experience supports the idea that stem cells could be effectively used to close some tissue defects developing after very complex surgical procedures, thus restoring a functioning airway," Petrella said.

A fistula that develops after chest surgery is serious and even deadly, Petrella said. Current treatments involve removing ribs and taking medications for months or years, he explained.

"Less invasive approaches like endoscopic glue injections have only poor results, so our proposed techniques could improve quality of life in these patients," Petrella said.

Sixty days after stem cell therapy, the firefighter's fistula was healed, the researchers said. The hole seen before stem cell therapy was no longer visible, having been replaced by new tissue created by the stem cell implant, they explained.

Some people are born with a fistula. Other causes of fistulas include complications from surgery, injury, infection and diseases, such as Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis.

Petrella believes that this same stem cell technique could be used to treat fistulas that develop elsewhere in the body.

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Stem Cell Therapy Fixes Post-Surgical Airway Abnormality

Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI) Stock Hits One-Year High Today

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NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- Shares of Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI) surged more than 75% to a 52-week high of $8.47 on Fridayahead of the biotech company's data release on Monday.

Brainstorm intends to release the final results from its Phase 2a trial of its stem cell therapy NurOwn. The company describes NurOwn as an "autologous, adult stem cell therapy technology" designed to treat ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

The company will host a conference call on Monday to discuss the results.

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Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI) Stock Hits One-Year High Today

Neuralstem (CUR) Stock Rises Today as Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics Soars

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NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Shares ofNeuralstem (CUR) continue to rise, up 6.25% to $2.89, in morning trading Friday in sympathy with peer company Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics (BCLI) , which touched a one-year high on Friday.

Brainstorm intends to release the final results from its Phase 2a trial of its stem cell therapy NurOwn on Monday. The company describes NurOwn as an "autologous, adult stem cell therapy technology" designed to treat ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

The company will host a conference call on Monday to discuss the results.

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Neuralstem (CUR) Stock Rises Today as Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics Soars

Springville Museum of Art hosts annual religious art show

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Diversity of belief and spirituality is reflected in the Springville Museum of Arts 29th Annual Spiritual and Religious Art of Utah exhibition. The show, juried and hung in mid November, features works from Utah artists exploring the spiritual life of varied faiths, peoples and denominations. The exhibit will remain up through January 18.

Julie Hall, lead museum educator for the exhibition, said the celebration of spiritual experiences represented in the exhibit finds commonalities amongst varying beliefs.

This show celebrates the diversity of perspectives, faiths, and religious traditions in Utah, but it also seeks to find common ground amid diversity, Hall said. Our educational focus is on the sacred spaces, shared stories, and simple symbols that our visitors can find and relate to whether the artist is Jewish, Muslim, Christian, etc.

The dozens of pieces in this years exhibit encompass artwork from a range of media and styles, including a floor-to-ceiling installation of the Salt Lake City Temple made out of glass Coke bottles and an intricate cast bronze sculpture of an angel. Also exhibited are more traditional pieces created using oil, charcoal and pastels, as well as photography.

We have some exquisite oil paintings of very traditional religious subjects, but we also have symbolic installations and abstract pieces that prompt contemplation and reflection, Hall said. The exhibition is full of profound and beautiful pieces that are inspiring and powerful.

The exhibition was juried last month, with three artists claiming top spots. Placing third amongst the winners was Michael Hall with his bronze, Heart of Sorrow. Glenda Gleave took second with her oil-on-linen piece, Vessels of the Lord, The Garden Farewell. And Sean Diediker claimed first with his oil painting, Medicine Man.

Diediker, a Spanish Fork artist, called on his familys history with the Navajo of New Mexico for the inspiration behind his painting. Medicine Man depicts a Native American in Western hat and traditional Native American robes. Diediker created the painting from numerous photos taken during the years his grandfathers operated a trading post at Star Lake, New Mexico.

The post had dirt floors, Diediker said. My grandfather basically started from scratch and traded rugs and textiles with the local Navajo. The Navajo took my moms family in as their own.

In a nod to his roots, Diediker had a traditional smudge blessing where cedar, sage, sweetgrass and tobacco were burned in an abalone shell and the smoke spread with eagle fathers over the painting and artist performed by Winston Mason, a Native American from the Mandan/Hidatsa Nation of North Dakota. Diediker believes he owes the success of Medicine Man to the traditional blessing.

He blessed it a week before the show and basically said that wherever this painting goes, whatever home or gallery it ends up in, it will be blessed," he said. "Obviously that blessing worked.

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Springville Museum of Art hosts annual religious art show

Cookbook combines woman's passion for hunting, spirituality

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ROANOKE, Va. (AP) - Jennifer Hoyt Lalli defies pigeonholing.

Lalli, a scientist with a doctorate in polymer chemistry, is president of NanoSonic, a regional company focused on nanotechnology. She relies at work on the predictability of the laws of science but is a believer also in the power of transcendent forces.

A self-described carnivore at heart, Lalli touts the healing power of whole grains. She is an avid hunter who has killed deer with bow, rifle and muzzleloader.

Born into a Catholic family, she is a baptized member now of Auburn Baptist Church in Riner. Lalli says the meditative time she spent in nature while deer hunting helped her find God. And peace.

She is also the 40-year-old mother of a 6-month-old son, whose presence in Lallis life and the life of her husband she attributes, like other blessings, to prayer, faith and sound nutrition.

Her new book cannot be pigeonholed, either.

Lalli self-published Hunt & Gather: The Healing Powers of Whole Grains, Lean Meat, and Prayer.

At its core, the 287-page hardbound book is a cookbook. But its original recipes include the ingredients that have helped change the lives of both the author and her husband, Chris, also 40.

The couples pastor at Auburn Baptist Church, Stanley Shake Smith, wrote the preface for Hunt & Gather, observing that it offers nourishment that is both physical and spiritual. His preface captures also what seems to be a key Jennifer Lalli trait: a full-bore commitment to the tasks she has embraced.

Smith wrote that Lalli poured heart and soul into the book.

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Cookbook combines woman's passion for hunting, spirituality

Faith Matters: Spirituality & Adults

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LITTLE ROCK, AR - Are you looking for a way to connect with your spouse?

Research shows prayer makes a difference.

A Florida State study found couples who prayed for each other were more committed to the relationship.

The more spiritual intimacy couples shared, the better they handled their main topics of conflict. The study shows it affects all couples with no differences in the impact regardless of social or economic class.

And additional research shows the positive effects of strong spiritual beliefs begin young.

A new study published by the American Psychological Association finds teenagers being raised in harsh living environments were less likely to abuse drugs and alcohol when they had access to churches and pastors.

A separate study of more than 5,700 kids and teens found attending church helped them feel connected to their parents and communities.

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Faith Matters: Spirituality & Adults

You have to go on a journey: How one man traveled to the end of the Earth in search of spirituality

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Each year, millions of people embark on spiritual pilgrimages or journeys that will take them across the globe in search of answers to lifes biggest questions. Bruce Feiler, a renowned expert on religion in modern life, took this feat to the next level, becoming the first person ever (he thinks) to complete six pilgrimages in one calendar year.

Feilers six-part PBS series, Sacred Journeys With Bruce Feiler, tells the story of his encounters with American pilgrims who traveled to Lourdes, Shikoku, Jerusalem, the Hajj, the Kumbh Mela and Osun Osogbo. Salon spoke with Feiler to learn about his groundbreaking, trying adventure and to learn about humanitys common quest for spirituality and meaning.

This interview has been lightly edited.

Ive been for most of the last 20 years going on religious adventure trips like this, Walking the Bible, Abraham, Where God Was Born. Walking the Bible became a three-hour series on PBS in 2006. WGBH, which is the public television station in Boston, came to me five years ago and said they wanted to do a show on pilgrimage, was I interested in partnering with them. And I said no. I said I didnt want to make a show that was a series of Wikipedia entries about strange people going on strange journeys in strange places. But what I said and what I felt then and what I feel now is: What is the thing you hear most often in religious circles these days? That is, Im not religious, Im spiritual. Im on a journey of some kind. And I really wanted to make a series in which whatever journey youre on you could find that reflected in what you were seeing on the screen.

So we got together. It took us five years. It was a year to plan it, a year to raise the money, a year to find the pilgrims, a year to shoot itI did all of these journeys in the course of one year. Im assuming or guessing Im the only person who has ever done it. It hasnt been logistically possible in the past. The pilgrim part was very important because in Walking the Bible, the TV show, I was in every scene basically and I was the one going through the intellectual and emotional transformation. But I obviously couldnt be expected to go through the emotional transformation in all these different places, so getting the pilgrims was really important because without the emotional component youve got those Wikipedia entries I wanted to avoid.

How did you find the featured pilgrims?

It was challenging because we needed to find people who were going, we needed to find people who were willing to share their story, but I think the power of the series at the end of the day is in their stories. Take Lourdes [France], for example: we traveled, as you know, with 40 wounded warriors. People have their legs blown off, they were blinded, an African-American sniper from Kansas who literally had a grenade go off in his mouth. They make this journey, and to me, the juxtaposition of these grizzled war veterans who have seen some of the worst of human nature and this 14-year-old peasant girl who sees the Virgin Mary 150 years ago, that tension between the purity of that story and the intensity of the veterans is remarkable. And where the emotion of the show comes from.

It then took us a year to get permission from the Pentagon because this had never been put on film before. So were not just getting permission from the pilgrims, it was getting permission from all the people around them. So thats an amazing, remarkable story that Im thrilled people are going to get a chance to see.

What is the difference between spirituality and religion? How is American religion evolving in relation to that difference?

Well, I think that organized religion is more threatened than ever before. Attendance is down, membership is down, but its not down that much. Heres what I think is going on. The idea that you would go to a building at the time of the buildings choosing and sit in a pew while someone stands up on a high platform like a mountain and tells you what to think and believe from a text that has been closed for hundreds or thousands of yearsevery part of that is completely anathema to how we live today.

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You have to go on a journey: How one man traveled to the end of the Earth in search of spirituality

Don't follow any religious leader blindly: Dalai Lama

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NASHIK: Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama today underlined the need to develop an "investigative" bend of mind and appealed to people not to follow any religious leader "blindly".

Addressing the international conference on 'Secular Ethics' here, Dalai said religious differences are borne by "retarded thoughts" and also stressed the need to develop a "holistic, six-dimensional" approach to understand reality.

The gathering was organised by 'Indo-Tibet Mangal Maitry Sangh'.

"It is very important to develop an investigative bend of mind. Do not follow any religious leader blindly. Buddha said question and investigate a thought thoroughly, study qualifications of a guru or a leader, meet them, observe, till you develop a conviction that what the leader says can be followed. This is the Nalanda tradition and time has come that we follow it," he said.

He said many problems in society arise due to short-sightedness or by looking at a view through only one angle.

"Acceptance of humanity should lie in the head and the mind. The reality however is much complex. It is necessary that we look through 6 dimensions or else we may fail to see the reality," he added.

Dalai observed that enlightenment to Tibet comes from India and her inhabitants are "gurus" of Tibetans.

"Tibet remains dark till light from India reaches it. Historically, Indians are our gurus and we are chellas (disciples)," he said while taking questions from the audience on various issues.

When asked about fundamentalism, Dalai said it would be ridiculous to assume that a particular religion teaches only conflict.

"No religion is negative. Any religion that teaches people to live happily cannot be bad. There could be mischievous people in any of the religions but saying that their behaviour reflects the whole of religion will not be correct," he said while observing that faith is important though religions can differ.

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Don't follow any religious leader blindly: Dalai Lama

Don't follow any religious leader blindly, says Dalai Lama

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Nashik: Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama today underlined the need to develop an "investigative" bend of mind and appealed to people not to follow any religious leader "blindly".

Addressing the international conference on 'Secular Ethics' here, Dalai said religious differences are borne by "retarded thoughts" and also stressed the need to develop a "holistic, six-dimensional" approach to understand reality.

The gathering was organised by 'Indo-Tibet Mangal Maitry Sangh'.

"It is very important to develop an investigative bend of mind. Do not follow any religious leader blindly. Buddha said question and investigate a thought thoroughly, study qualifications of a guru or a leader, meet them, observe, till you develop a conviction that what the leader says can be followed. This is the Nalanda tradition and time has come that we follow it," he said.

He said many problems in society arise due to short-sightedness or by looking at a view through only one angle.

"Acceptance of humanity should lie in the head and the mind. The reality however is much complex. It is necessary that we look through 6 dimensions or else we may fail to see the reality," he added.

Dalai observed that enlightenment to Tibet comes from India and her inhabitants are "gurus" of Tibetans.

"Tibet remains dark till light from India reaches it. Historically, Indians are our gurus and we are chellas (disciples)," he said while taking questions from the audience on various issues.

When asked about fundamentalism, Dalai said it would be ridiculous to assume that a particular religion teaches only conflict.

"No religion is negative. Any religion that teaches people to live happily cannot be bad. There could be mischievous people in any of the religions but saying that their behaviour reflects the whole of religion will not be correct," he said while observing that faith is important though religions can differ.

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Don't follow any religious leader blindly, says Dalai Lama

Earth From Space – January 2nd-3rd 2015 – Live Views From the International Space Station – Video

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Earth From Space - January 2nd-3rd 2015 - Live Views From the International Space Station
Earth From Space - January 2nd-3rd 2015 - Live Views From the International Space Station.

By: Amazing Space - Astounding Images and Videos

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Earth From Space - January 2nd-3rd 2015 - Live Views From the International Space Station - Video

Good Morning, Space Station A Dragon Soars Soon!

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Commander Barry Butch Wilmore on the International Space Station shared this beautiful image of #sunrise earlier today, 1/3/15. Credit: NASA/Barry Butch Wilmore

Good Morning, Space Station!

Its sunrise from space one of 16 that occur daily as the massive lab complex orbits the Earth about every 90 minutes while traveling swiftly at about 17,500 mph from an altitude of about 250 miles (400 kilometers).

Just stare in amazement at this gorgeous sunrise view of Our Beautiful Earth taken earlier today, Jan. 3, 2015, aboard the International Space Station (ISS) by crewmate and NASA astronaut Barry Butch Wilmore.

And smack dab in the middle is the Canadian-built robotic arm that will soon snatch a soaring Dragon!

Wilmore is the commander of the ISS Expedition 42 crew of six astronauts and cosmonauts hailing from three nations; America, Russia and Italy.

He is accompanied by astronauts Terry Virts from NASA and Samantha Cristoforetti from the European Space Agency (ESA) as well as by cosmonauts Aleksandr Samokutyayev, Yelena Serova, and Anton Shkaplerov from Russia.

All told the crew of four men and two women see 16 sunrises and 16 sunsets each day. During the daylight periods, temperatures reach 200 C, while temperatures plunge drastically during the night periods to -200 C.

Heres another beautiful ISS sunset view captured on Christmas by Terry Virts:

Astronaut Terry Virts on the International Space Station shared this beautiful sunrise image on Twitter saying Sunrise on Christmas morning better than any present I could ask for!!!! Credit: NASA/Terry Virts

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Good Morning, Space Station A Dragon Soars Soon!

Scalpel. Check. Robot. Check. NASA bots, one day, may operate in space

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NASA wants a humanoid robot that can perform CPR, draw blood and operate on astronauts aboard the International Space Station or en route to Mars.

A doctor at the Houston Methodist Research Institute is working to make that happen.

The humanoid robot, Robonaut, developed by NASA, is in training at the Houston Methodist Research Institute to perform medical procedures in space -- someday. (Photo: NASA)

"We're trying to get the best care for our astronauts, who are risking their lives to push the boundaries in space," said Dr. Zsolt Garami, an instructor at the Houston Methodist Research Institute, an arm of Houston Methodist Hospital. "Our motivation was really when we saw astronauts perform ultrasounds on each other or on themselves. They just could use an extra hand.... Why not have a robot help? There's already a robot up in the space station, and he's already shown that he can switch buttons reliably. Why not make him a nurse or a physician?"

Garami is working with NASA to teach robots how to perform medical procedures. He said the robots are quick learners -- much quicker than his human students.

Robonaut, the robot Garami is working with, learned in two hours what humans take a week to learn. That hasn't been a popular observation with his colleagues.

"Robonaut is learning extremely fast," he told Computerworld. "His motions, without shaky hands, are very precise and gentle. There were no sudden motions."

The humanoid robot that Garami is working with is a twin to Robonaut 2, or R2, which was brought to the space station early in 2011.

It took about 11 years to build the 300-lb. robot, which runs on 38 PowerPC processors, including 36 embedded chips that control its joints. Each of the embedded processors communicates with the main chip in the robot.

Garami said he hasn't yet worked with Robonaut 2 on the space station, but he is confident that the space-dwelling robot won't have any trouble. His work with Robonaut on the ground has gone extremely well.

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Scalpel. Check. Robot. Check. NASA bots, one day, may operate in space