Grapevine: Is Congress getting dumber?

And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...

Birth Battle

Arizona's Secretary of State Ken Bennett says he's been asking for two months for Hawaiian officials to prove President Obama was born there.

Hawaiian officials won't budge until Bennett satisfies a number of requirements and both sides disagree about whether he's actually done it.

Bennett says he might remove President Obama from the ballot in Arizona if the proof doesn't arrive from Hawaii soon, a move Democratic critics say is politically calculated and aimed at capturing support from a fringe group of Republicans as Bennett weighs a run for governor.

Bennett says he's not quote -- "a birther" -- but wants to clear up the issue for concerned Arizonans.

Luxury Travel

A number of judiciary employees, including judges on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals are getting blasted for plans to attend a million-dollar conference in Hawaii in August.

Republican Senators Chuck Grassley and Jeff Sessions sent a letter stating the Hawaii meeting does not meet, or seem to be in line with the 9th Circuit's own opinion that the budget is tight.

Conference organizers note government funds won't be used for the recreational activities like snorkeling or tennis.

A Circuit and Court of Appeals spokeswoman promised a formal response.

How Sophomoric

Lawmakers talk like teenagers according to a study from the Sunlight Foundation. It analyzed every single word uttered on the floor in the Senate and House finding that the average lawmaker in Congress speaks at a tenth grade level.

That's down from an eleventh grade level in 2005. By comparison, the Constitution is written at a so-called "seventeenth" grade level.

Some see all of this as a dumbing down of language but others claim it's a matter of communicating more effectively.

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Grapevine: Elizabeth Warren's new comments about heritage

And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...

Indian Summer

Massachusetts Democratic Senate candidate Elizabeth Warren is acknowledging she told officials at Harvard and University of Pennsylvania she had Native American heritage.

Her campaign insists she gave that information to the schools after she was hired.

Up until now, Warren had said she learned that Harvard was promoting her as a Native American from reading a newspaper.

She has claimed to be 1/32 Cherokee though she has provided no evidence other than family lore.

Meanwhile, conservatives are jumping on another statement by Warren late last year that -- quote -- "I was the first nursing mother to take a bar exam in the state of New Jersey."

A Garden State bar exam administrator told the Herald there is no way to verify that claim.

The Big Ban

New York City wants to ban the sale of large sodas and other sugary drinks in an effort to curb obesity.

The ban would not apply to diet or juice beverages but would limit sugary non-alcoholic drinks over 16 ounces from being sold in restaurants, movie theaters and sports venues.

Critics call it yet another intervention by nanny state nutritionists.

The Face of Tourism?

Finally, you apparently don't have to be eligible to travel the world to be named a tourism ambassador by the United Nations.

Zimbabwean leader Robert Mugabe was appointed a new international envoy for tourism despite being banned from Europe because of human rights abuses in his own country.

Mugabe is accused of ethnic cleansing and rigging elections among other things.

Canada is now withdrawing from the tourism agency over the appointment saying it symbolizes what is wrong with the United Nations.

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Grapevine: MSNBC pulling back on Trayvon Martin coverage?

And now some fresh pickings from the Political Grapevine...

Change of Tune

MSNBC is being accused of backing off of its coverage of the Trayvon Martin case after new evidence favorable to George Zimmerman -- the man charged with second degree murder in the case -- came to light.

The network spent hours, even full shows, covering the shooting for days after it happened.

But, according to Mediaite, last week after the new evidence about Zimmerman emerged there was not a single mention of the case on MSNBC's prime time programming...not one.

Even Reverend Al Sharpton who had taken his show on the road to cover the Martin case didn't mention it.

Instead, the network's evening programs turned their focus to the possibility of an ad connecting President Obama to Reverend Jeremiah Wright from an alleged pro-Romney group.

Making the Grade

A public elementary school in Manhattan will be the first to require students to study Arabic.

All second through fifth graders will have Arabic lessons twice a week.

The class teacher said it's important for children to learn Arabic because it will soon be a global language like Spanish or French.

So far, the parents association has been largely supportive of the measure. The school is a so-called "choice school" so no students are forced to attend.

Unwelcome Addition

There's quite a stir over a Harvard alumni directory updated ahead of the 50th class reunion.

Among the entries is "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski who is, of course, locked up at the federal supermax prison in Colorado for killing three people and injuring 23 others during a bombing spree,

Kaczynski lists his current occupation as "prisoner" and says his awards are "eight life sentences."

The Harvard Alumni Association regrets publishing the update and issued the following statement -- quote -- "While all members of the class who submit entries are included, we regret publishing Kaczynski's references to his convictions and apologize for any distress that it may have caused others."

A Harvard spokesman says the update was indeed submitted by Kaczynski, but wouldn't say how that was confirmed.

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The race for taxis, lifeboats and beyond in space

America is a giant leap closer to developing a new, made-in-the-USA spacecraft to launch astronauts into space once again.

The Dragon capsule from Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX) returned successfully from the first private cargo mission in Oct. 2012, making it a clear leader in the race to build a spacecraft suitable for humans. But oddsmakers are scrambling to revise the leaderboard: Lockheed Martin just announced it would join forces with Sierra Nevada to build the competition, the futuristic Dream Chaser.

The Dream Chaser is the only spacecraft with wings. It can carry as many as seven astronauts to space and is designed to land on a conventional runway.  Along with the CST-100 capsule from Boeing, these three shuttles are locked in a race to bring manned spaceflight back to the U.S.

Space dominance is essential to national security, experts agree.

'Lockheed Martin has joined our Dream Chaser team ... [now] how do we get this vehicle really fit to fly safely?'

- Mark Sirangelo, Sierra Nevada's executive vice president and chairman of its space systems division

Lockheed Martin’s history should help. The company has extensive experience building spacecraft and high-performance aircraft composite structures – the company will be building Dream Chaser’s vehicle composite structure.

In this competition, formally known as the Commercial Crew Program (CCP) initiative, NASA partners with the private sector to leverage the Agency’s five decades of human spaceflight experience against private sector experience and innovation.

Since the launch of this challenge at the close of the space shuttle program, American companies have been competing to restore human spaceflight capabilities to the U.S. with a safe, reliable and cost-effective means into and out of low-Earth orbit for government and commercial customers – in a way, a space taxi.

With the end of the Space Shuttle program, the U.S. lost its own transportation capabilities to the International Space Station. Once CCP is achieved, Americans will no longer have to rely on the expensive lift from Russia’s Soyuz rockets.

Space Taxi or Lifeboat
The teams are competing to create a system that will deliver equipment and a minimum of four astronauts to the space station and return them to Earth at least twice a year.

In the event of an emergency on the launch pad, during launch or ascent, the competing teams must have solutions to assure crew safety.

If there is an emergency while in space, the spacecraft must be able to serve as a 24-hour safe haven, sort of like a space lifeboat.  It also needs to be able to stay docked to the station for at least 210 days.

Of the three designs, NASA will ultimately choose its favorite for ferrying American astronauts to and from the International Space Station, but the end result could be more than one spacecraft to provide safe, reliable and less expensive space access.

Roadmap to Space
These three companies are now beginning the first phase of the certification efforts to confirm their commercial spacecraft is safe to carry crews to the station.

During Phase 1 -- which is expected to last about 15 months from Jan. 22, 2013, through May 30, 2014 -- NASA and the companies will establish that each spacecraft, launch vehicle, ground operations and mission control center meet flight safety and performance requirements.

Phase 2 next year will mark the start of final development, building, verifying and validating the systems are ready to fly astronauts by 2017.

Dream Chaser, for example, completed its helicopter drop test in late 2012 and has a suborbital test scheduled for this year and an orbital test in 2014. SpaceX is planning for a pad abort test and in-flight abort test, while Boeing will be verifying its spacecraft and launch vehicle compatibility.

Moon and Beyond
Providing the CCP program is successful, NASA will then become a customer using the new spacecraft to transport American flight crew to the International Space Station to continue their critical science research.

While NASA is working with the private sector for low-Earth orbit International Space Station cargo re-supply and crew transportation, NASA has retained responsibility for travel beyond the moon.

As the lead in deep-space exploration, the agency is developing the Orion spacecraft crew capsule and the heavy lift rocket Space Launch System (SLS).

SLS and Orion will provide an entirely new capability for human exploration beyond low-Earth orbit and make new exploration missions of the solar system possible, the agency says.

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Massive, orbital laser blaster could defend against asteroid threats

Could a “Deathstar” someday defend Earth against incoming threats from space?

Last Friday, asteroid 2012 DA14 -- half a football field long and weighing about 190,000 tons -- missed plane Earth in a fly-by. Far smaller and therefore harder to detect was the 50 foot long asteroid that injured more than 1,000 Russians when it stuck a few hours earlier.

What can we do about these dangerous asteroid threats? Options on the table include detonating a nuclear weapon near the surface or below a threatening object, “Armageddon” style, or slamming a spacecraft into it to knock it off course.

'This system is not some far-out idea from Star Trek. All the components of this system pretty much exist today.'

- Gary Hughes of California Polytechnic State University

Two California scientists have a better idea for how to save the world: a Deathstar, straight out of "Star Wars."

Philip Lubin of the University of California Santa Barbara and Gary Hughes of California Polytechnic State University believe a directed-energy orbital defense system could eliminate a threat on the scale of 2012 DA14 in an hour. 

Designed to destroy or deflect an asteroid, DE-STAR, or Directed Energy Solar Targeting of Asteroids, harnesses power from the sun and converts it into a massive phased laser beam array.

The laser beams can destroy or evaporate asteroids that pose a threat to Earth. It can also be used to deflect them away from the Earth or into the sun.

Deflection may be preferred to save the asteroid for lucrative, rare-element mining. Deep Space Industries announced earlier this year it will be racing against Planetary Resources to send mining missions to asteroids.

The scientists say it is based on current technology and enabled by advances in efficient conversion of electrical power to light.

The DE-STAR system is apparently scalable, ranging from a desktop device to one as large as six miles long – the larger the system the greater its power.

According to the researchers, it even has the potential to destroy asteroids 10 times larger, the size of five football fields. It would take a year to vaporize one that giant but it would start evaporating it from as far away as the Sun.

For example, the DE-STAR 4 about 100 times the size of the International Space System could deliver 1.4 megatons of energy per day to its target.

The team says the same DE-STAR could also be used for deep space exploration.

The system would accelerate interplanetary travel speed, power deep space travel advanced ion drive systems and could “simultaneously evaporate an asteroid, determine the composition of another, and propel a spacecraft."

They believe their larger DE-STAR 6 could be a massive orbiting power source and could propel a 10-ton spacecraft at near the speed of light making interstellar possible.

Ballet dancer turned defense specialist Allison Barrie has traveled around the world covering the military, terrorism, weapons advancements and life on the front line. You can reach her at wargames@foxnews.com or follow her on Twitter @Allison_Barrie.

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What do you get when you cross a robot with an octopus?

Inspired by the way they grasp objects, the Army is developing self-sealing suction cups for robots -- just like those on an octopus.

The design, from the U.S. Army Research Laboratory, Edgewood Chemical Biological Center and University of Maryland scientists, features a self-sealing component and the capability to activate suction cups in reaction to the size and shape of the object the robot wants to pick up.

For more than five decades, researchers have been honing suction technology for robots. This team hopes that their approach goes beyond previous achievements that are often limited in terms of the specific size and shapes that are graspable.

Manipulating unknown objects is difficult for robots; self-sealing suction cups could make it an easier task -- and boost the deployment of robots into dangerous environments instead of human first responders.

In the event of a Fukushima-type disaster, for example, robots could reduce risk to humans by operating in contaminated areas or dangerous areas but to be useful these robots need to be able to grasp like a human to perform essential activities like closing a valve, recovering an object, operating a tool or opening a door.

One challenge the team tackled was how small they could make the suction cups while still ensuring they are functional.

Currently the self-sealing suction cup ranges from the size of a hand palm to a fingertip with four fingertip-sized cups strong enough to pick up a full mug.

Their approach has modified the technology to maximize the suction strength so a robot could grasp a large range of items.

Like an octopus, their suction cup has potential to work even better underwater.

The extra pressure from the water depth adds force, enhancing the efficacy of the tech. An underwater version would most likely use different materials that could withstand salt water.

Above-water prototypes were created using a 3D printer and rigid materials like nylon and elastomeric materials like liquid photo polymer that solidifies into plastic when exposed to ultraviolet light.

3D printing allows the production of working suction cups right off of the machine and the team reported that ECBC could produce twenty prototypes of varying sizes and shapes within twenty minutes.

Next steps would include developing a robot hand or tentacle equipped with their octopus suction cups.

Ballet dancer turned defense specialist Allison Barrie has traveled around the world covering the military, terrorism, weapons advancements and life on the front line. You can reach her at wargames@foxnews.com or follow her on Twitter @Allison_Barrie.

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Protection from chemical warfare -- and coffee stains

A new substance can stop any surface from getting wet, meaning it could revolutionize chemical and biological warfare protection for the military -- and lead to clothing impervious to coffee stains.

This very same nanoscale coating -- a recent discovery funded by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research -- could purify fuel and control oil and fuel leaks.

In the current Journal of the American Chemical Society, a team from the Air Force and University of Michigan has published their chemical shield discovery -- something that they claim protects “against virtually all liquids."

Imagine raincoats that rain will never wet, work outfits impervious to ink, smartphones water cannot damage ...

The innovative nanoscale coating is about 95 percent air, and when applied to a surface, the coating repels liquids and causes them to bounce off. It's applied with an electric charge that creates fine solid particles from a liquid solution, a process called “electrospinning.”

The Air Force’s liquid resistant nano-cubes made from carbon, fluorine, silicon and oxygen are incorporated into the super coating.

Beyond what it does, the coating’s texture is also important: When a liquid comes in contact with it, the liquid barely touches the surface thanks to the texture. The coating creates an air pocket web within the pores of the underlying surface.

When liquid hits the coating, droplets keep their shape, staying intact. The droplets won’t spread because the coating eliminates the contact between the surface and the liquid.

In testing, the coating worked against gasoline and various alcohols as well as chemicals that burn skin such as toxic hydrochloric and sulfuric acids. When the team tested more than 100 liquids against the special coating only two were able to beat it and penetrate it. Both of these chemicals are used in refrigerators and air conditioners.

Testing revealed it also works for repelling coffee, soy sauce and vegetable oil -- so this advance holds potential not just for defense, but for the average household as well.

Even blood, printer ink, custard and paint, “non-Newtonian” liquids whose viscosity changes depending on the force applied, could not defeat the nano-coating.

Imagine raincoats that rain will never wet, work outfits impervious to coffee or printer ink splashes, children’s clothes that will resist staining from knee scrapes to juice spills, smartphones water cannot damage.

The sheer range of potential applications in defense is also exciting. For example, the technology could be useful for self-cleaning vehicle surfaces or for chemical and biological warfare protect preventing the threats from penetrating military clothing.

The Navy could also use it, for example, to create waterproof paints to reduce drag and increase speed on ships.

For the Air Force, it could prove very useful for fuel purification and the control of oil and fuel leakages in rockets and airplanes.

Ballet dancer turned defense specialist Allison Barrie has traveled around the world covering the military, terrorism, weapons advancements and life on the front line. You can reach her at wargames@foxnews.com or follow her on Twitter @Allison_Barrie.

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