7.8M earthquake struck the Scotia Sea area (north of Antarctica , east of South America)

7.8M earthquake struck the Scotia Sea area (north of Antarctica , east of South America). No tsunami warning issued. 

This is the same area which received the brunt of the x-class flare when it intersected Earth. (already had a 7.2M / 6.8M yesterday), plus a swarm of mid 5.0M today.. 

now this 7.8M.7

Where to view ISON with Naked Eye

View larger. | EarthSky friend on G+, Scott MacNeill, captured this stunning photo of Comet ISON on the morning of November 15, 2013. Thank you, Scott!

In case you haven’t heard … Comet ISON has been in outburst the past several days. In other words, it has gotten brighter! Our friend Scott MacNeill posted this wonderful photo on EarthSky’s Google+ page.

Many are saying they are glimpsing Comet ISON with the eye alone as a fuzzy barely visible patch in dark skies. The Comet ISON Observing Campaign says:

For those with very dark skies, this now makes it a naked eye object, and even for those in urban environments it is readily visible as a fuzzy green blob about half an hour before sunrise in the southeastern skies.

The comet will be in a conspicuous place in the sky for the next several mornings, near the bright star Spica on the sky’s dome. The charts below might help you find it! Look southeast before dawn for Spica. Scan with binoculars near Spica for the comet.

On the mornings of November 17 and 18, Comet ISON and the bright star Spica will be in the same field of view in binoculars. Look southeast before dawn for Comet ISON. Click here to know Spica’s rising time in your sky.

Here is the view on November 18. Look southeast before dawn.

View larger. | Here’s the same part of the sky as on the chart above – as photographed on November 13, 2013 by Annie Lewis in Madrid, Spain. This photo looks east before dawn. It’s the part of the sky in which you’ll find Comet ISON.

Montreal cops’ $360,000 SWAT vehicle is designed to reduce use of force

MONTREAL – Montreal police have shown off the latest addition to their crime-fighting arsenal – a $360,000 armoured vehicle they say has been in development for the past 11 years.

Francois Houle, the commander of the Montreal force’s SWAT team, says the grey-coloured vehicle, similar to those that transport money, will be used primarily to protect officers against armed suspects, who may be involved in situations like hostage-takings.

Reporters were invited Wednesday to get a closer look at the imposing police wagon, which is designed to allow officers to use less force when negotiating with someone threatening to use weapons.

Houle says it could be used to protect an injured citizen or a police officer who is trying to get inside a perimeter where a person is using firearms.

He adds that the mobile barricade can take a pounding from projectiles, but he won’t provide any precise details about its capabilities.

The SWAT team boss notes that other major police forces in Canada have similar armoured vehicles, including the RCMP, Quebec provincial police, Ontario provincial police and municipal forces in Quebec City, Ottawa and Vancouver.

Former U.S. vice-president Al Gore predicts lawmakers will rein in surveillance

Former U.S. vice-president Al Gore predicts lawmakers will rein in surveillance

BY NELSON WYATT, THE CANADIAN PRESS NOVEMBER 7, 2013 5:00 AM

 MONTREAL - Former U.S. vice-president Al Gore predicted Tuesday that lawmakers in his country would rein in intelligence agencies in the wake of leaks by whistleblower Edward Snowden, who revealed massive secret government surveillance programs.

While Gore said he favoured surveillance to ensure security, he described the efforts made public by the former Central Intelligence Agency employee as "outrageous" and "completely unacceptable."
"I say that as someone who was a member of the National Security Council working in the White House and getting daily briefings from the CIA," he said.
Snowden, who is wanted by U.S. authorities, revealed a widespread intelligence gathering effort by the National Security Agency to the media, saying the NSA had eavesdropped on telephone calls and snooped through Internet records to discover terrorist plots.

The U.S. government has charged him with unauthorized communication of classified material and theft of government property under the Espionage Act although he has fled the United States and gained sanctuary in Russia.

Gore said the revelations are disturbing to say the least.
"He has revealed evidence of what appears to be crimes against the Constitution of the United States," he said.

Gore said governments throughout history have understandably conducted surveillance to protect their security but added that efforts have gone to "absurd" lengths and are counter-productive.
"When you are looking for a needle in a haystack, it's not always wise to pile more hay on the haystack," he said quoting a scholar on the CIA.

The former senator said while he appreciated the work of intelligence services, he doubted the excesses would be allowed to continue and noted some states are already passing laws or putting referendum questions to their constituents.

"I think they will have to pull this back," Gore told a brief question period at McGill University where he delivered the Beaverbrook Annual Lecture. "I think you will see a reining in."
He said he was not just concerned about overblown efforts in government surveillance but also by corporations who mine the Internet for information on users' viewing and buying habits so they can target advertising.

"We have a stalker economy," Gore said.
He added that there is already a backlash in foreign countries that is costing U.S. firms business. Gore said the other countries — he did not name them — have complained they fear the U.S. companies will turn over whatever data they acquire on consumers to the NSA.

Gore, who has embraced environmental activism with warnings about climate change since leaving the White House in 2000, drew on his new book "The Future Six Drivers of Social Change" for his talk.
He focused mainly on the impact of technological advances, comparing the communication revolution now underway with the Internet to the widening reach of the printing press when it was invented to spread information and knowledge.

Gore said that like the printing press, the Internet is easily accessible, participatory and has few if any gatekeepers.

He spoke about the creation of a "global mind" brought about through the development of worldwide digital communications, allowing people to connect easily with each other and intelligent machines.
Gore said that interconnectivity is driving new attitudes to capital, labour, consumer markets and government. Among the changes that need to take place are a re-evaluation of short-term goals and the definition of growth in capital to take a more long-term, bigger picture view.
He noted that many of the people embracing the changes are young and said that the future is in their hands.
"These times now call for young men and women such as you to shape the future and make it what it should be," he told the university crowd.