Science and Technology: Biomaterial engineering association established in Turkey
12/01/2009
An association for the development and manufacture of synthetic biomaterials opens in Turkey. Also in the news: a Turkish court sentences a Ukrainian computer hacker, and Tirana will host a seminar on Persian cultural heritage in February.
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Turkish researchers established an association for the development and manufacture of biomaterials used in artificial organs, the Anadolu news agency reported on January 3rd. The Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering Association's founders are a group of scholars from the Middle East Technical University (METU) and several Turkish universities. The new organisation aims to develop biomaterial science, which is of strategic importance in the United States and other industrialised countries, said METU Professor Vasif Hasirci.
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A Turkish court sentenced a Ukrainian computer hacker to 30 years in prison on charges of cybercrime Thursday (January 8th). Police arrested Maksym Yastremskiy in Antalya province in 2007. He gained access to the computer systems of 12 Turkish banks to commit fraud.
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About 14,000 Romanian mobile phone users switched to a different provider in the past two months without changing their telephone numbers, the National Authority for Communications said on January 6th. The number portability service began operating in October. It allows users to keep their telephone numbers, fixed or mobile, even if they change service providers.
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Balkan scholars, intellectuals and governmental officials will participate in a February seminar on Persian cultural heritage in the region in Tirana, Press TV reported on January 2nd. Iran's Sa'adi Cultural Foundation in Albania organised the event, which international academic and cultural foundations are sponsoring.
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Cyprus is aiding the Egyptian government's efforts to develop scientific and technological research, the Cyprus Mail reported on January 2nd. Egyptian researchers recently visited the Nicosia-based Cyprus Institute of Science and Technology to study how their government could establish a similar institution.
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The Macedonian government announced plans to launch an online application system dubbed EXIM to facilitate foreign trade. Skopje will develop the system as part of the eGov Project, a USAID-funded initiative for the implementation of e-government services in the country. It will allow Macedonian companies trading abroad to apply and receive import, export and transit licences electronically, enhancing the speed and cost efficiency of cross-border transactions processing.
(Various sources – 05/01/09-12/01/09)
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