Today on New Scientist: 6 February 2013

Open Richard III DNA evidence for peer review

A good case has been made that a skeleton unearthed from a car park is that of the last Plantagenet king of England - it's time to share the data

Universal bug sensor takes guesswork out of diagnosis

A machine that can identify all bacteria, viruses and fungi known to cause disease in humans should speed up diagnosis and help to reduce antibiotic resistance

Choking China: The struggle to clear Beijing's air

As pollution levels return to normal in China's capital after a record-breaking month of smog, what can be done to banish the smog?

Genes mix across borders more easily than folk tales

Analysing variations in folk tales using genetic techniques shows that people swap genes more readily than stories, giving clues to how cultures evolve

Sleep and dreaming: Slumber at the flick of a switch

Wouldn't it be wonderful to pack a good night's sleep into fewer hours? Technology has the answer - and it could treat depression and even extend our lives too

Closest Earth-like planet may be 13 light years away

A habitable exoplanet should be near enough for future telescopes to probe its atmosphere for signs of life

Lifelogging captures a real picture of your health

How can lifelogging - wearing a camera round your neck to record your every move - reveal what's healthy and unhealthy in the way we live?

Musical brains smash audio algorithm limits

The mystery of how our brains perceive sound has deepened, now that musicians have broken a limit on sound perception imposed by the Fourier transform

Magnitude 8 earthquake strikes Solomon Islands

A major earthquake has caused a small tsunami in the Pacific Ocean, killing at least five people

Nuclear knock-backs on UK's new reactors and old waste

Plans to build new reactors in the UK are stalling as yet another company pulls out, and there is still nowhere to store nuclear waste permanently

Amateur astronomer helps Hubble snap galactic monster

An amateur astronomer combined his pictures with images from the Hubble archive to reveal the true nature of galactic oddball M106

Nightmare images show how lack of sleep kills

Fatigue has been blamed for some of worst human-made disasters of recent decades. Find out more in our image gallery

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Tunisia pledges new govt after opposition leader's killing

TUNIS: Tunisia's premier has pledged to form a government of technocrats ahead of new elections, after the murder of opposition leader Chokri Belaid sparked deadly protests and attacks on the ruling party's offices.

Furious demonstrators built barricades in central Tunis on Wednesday and clashed with police, and four opposition groups including Belaid's Popular Front bloc said they were pulling out of the national assembly.

One policeman was killed after being hit on the chest by rocks in Tunis, the interior ministry said, while an ambulance carrying Belaid's body to the city centre was accompanied by crowds who pressed against the vehicle to protect it.

Islamist Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali said in a televised address after Belaid was shot dead outside his home in Tunis on Wednesday that he would form a new, non-political administration ahead of fresh elections.

"I have decided to form a government of competent nationals without political affiliation, which will have a mandate limited to managing the affairs of the country until elections are held in the shortest possible time," he said.

Jebali did not specify that he was dissolving the existing government, nor did he set a date for the reshuffle which must be confirmed by the national assembly.

President Moncef Marzouki denounced the killing of Belaid, an outspoken critic of his government, as an "odious assassination".

The ruling Islamist Ennahda party, which Belaid's family accused of being behind the killing, rejected any involvement.

Ennahda chief Rached Ghannouchi said that the "cowardly" murder was the result of a settling of political scores. The killers "want a bloodbath but they won't succeed," he told AFP.

The four opposition groups blamed Interior Minister Ali Laraydeh from Ennahda for Belaid's murder and demanded his sacking "because he knew he was threatened and he did nothing," according to Nejib Chebbi, leader of one of the blocs.

Belaid's Popular Front and other opposition parties called for a general strike to protest against the assassination.

The United States led Western nations who reacted with dismay at the killing, while Human Rights Watch said the authorities should ensure those responsible were brought to justice.

"There is no justification for an outrageous and cowardly act of violence like this. There is no place in the new Tunisia for violence," US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle expressed his "horror" at the attack while French President Francois Hollande condemned a murder that "robs Tunisia of one of its most courageous and free voices."

The violent scenes triggered by Belaid's murder were reminiscent of the uprising that ousted veteran dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali just over two years ago, with thousands protesting outside the interior ministry.

Belaid's brother, Abdelmajid, bluntly accused the Ennahda chief of the murder of the 48-year-old leftist leader, who headed the Party of Democratic Patriots, part of the Popular Front.

"I accuse Rached Ghannouchi of assassinating my brother," Abdelmajid told AFP.

The slain politician's wife said her husband had received daily death threats and was murdered before her eyes.

"I saw his blood flowing, I saw his little smile. I saw that they want to kill democracy," Basma Belaid told France's Europe 1 radio.

Belaid had last week accused Ennahda "mercenaries" of attacking his supporters and on Tuesday warned that militias were being created "to terrorise citizens and drag the country into a spiral of violence."

His supporters flooded the streets of Tunis and other cities, including Sidi Bouzeid, birthplace of the 2011 revolution, where tear gas was fired as about 200 people tried to storm the police headquarters.

Protesters torched the Ennahda office near Sidi Bouzeid, ransacked another in Gafsa and set fire to a party office in the northeastern town of Kef.

In Kasserine, on the border with Algeria, hundreds of people calling for "vengeance" took to the streets.

Marzouki deplored the killing in an impassioned speech at the European Parliament.

"This odious assassination of a political leader who I knew well and who was my friend... is a threat, it is a letter sent that will not be received," he said, insisting the murder would not plunge Tunisia into violence.

Belaid, whose funeral will be on Friday after the main weekly prayers, was a populist known for his iconic smile and black moustache.

A lawyer who spoke with the working class accent of northwestern Tunisia, he defended human rights, was jailed under Ben Ali, and was a member of executed Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's legal defence team.

- AFP/xq

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Shoes hurled at Iranian president during Egypt visit

From Adam Makary, for CNN

updated 7:06 PM EST, Wed February 6, 2013

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• This is the first visit to Egypt by an Iranian president in more than 30 years


• Prosecutor's office: Four men are out on bail after allegedly throwing the shoes


• Officials say the men are Salafis, who have accused Iran of financing Shiites

Cairo (CNN) -- During a historic trip to Egypt, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was greeted by a group of men who hurled shoes at him -- a major insult in the Muslim world.

A video posted by the Anadolu news agency shows a smiling Ahmadinejad shaking hands with a crowd of supporters in Cairo late Tuesday when at least one man threw a shoe toward him. Other men also threw shoes at Ahmadinejad, the Egyptian public prosecutor's office said.

"You killed our brothers!" one of the assailants shouted, according to Anadolu. The agency said the man's shoe struck a security guard.

The men behind the attack were four Salafis, the prosecutor's office said.

Salafis follow the Sunni Muslim doctrine and oppose the idea of Shiite Muslims engaging in any political activity in Egypt. They have accused Iran of financing Shiites to spread the Shia doctrine in Egypt, which has a Sunni majority.

The four men were released on bail for 500 Egyptian pounds ($75) each, the prosecutors' office said.

Ahmadinejad's visit to Egypt is the first by an Iranian president in more than 30 years.

He was in Cairo visiting the Grand Sheikh of Al Azhar, Ahmed el-Tayeb. The Al-Ahram news agency said Ahmadinejad also visited the historic Al-Hussein mosque.

The mosque was built in 1154 and it is named after the Prophet Mohammed's grandson, Hussein Ibn Ali. Shiites believe that the Fatimid, Egypt's Shiite rulers, buried his head there and built the mosque as a shrine for Hussein, the first Shiite martyr, who was killed and beheaded in the battle of Karbala in 680.

Why shoe throwing is 'incredibly offensive'

CNN's Saad Abedine contributed to this report.

Part of complete coverage on

updated 10:26 AM EST, Wed February 6, 2013

Advocates say the exam includes unnecessarily invasive and irrelevant procedures -- like a so-called "two finger" test.

updated 7:09 PM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Supplies of food, clothing and fuel are running short in Damascus and people are going hungry as the civil war drags on.

updated 1:01 PM EST, Wed February 6, 2013

Supporters of Richard III want a reconstruction of his head to bring a human aspect to a leader portrayed as a murderous villain.

updated 10:48 AM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Robert Fowler spent 130 days held hostage by the same al Qaeda group that was behind the Algeria massacre. He shares his experience.

updated 12:07 AM EST, Wed February 6, 2013

As "We are the World" plays, a video shows what looks like a nuclear attack on the U.S. Jim Clancy reports on a bizarre video from North Korea.

The relationship is, once again, cold enough to make Obama's much-trumpeted "reset" in Russian-U.S. relations seem thoroughly off the rails.

Ten years on, what do you think the Iraq war has changed in you, and in your country? Send us your thoughts and experiences.

updated 7:15 AM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Musician Daniela Mercury has sold more than 12 million albums worldwide over a career span of nearly 30 years.

Photojournalist Alison Wright travelled the world to capture its many faces in her latest book, "Face to Face: Portraits of the Human Spirit."

updated 7:06 PM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Europol claims 380 soccer matches, including top level ones, were fixed - as the scandal widens, CNN's Dan Rivers looks at how it's done.

updated 7:37 AM EST, Wed February 6, 2013

That galaxy far, far away is apparently bigger than first thought. The "Star Wars" franchise will get two spinoff movies, Disney announced.

updated 4:32 AM EST, Wed February 6, 2013

It's an essential part of any trip, an activity we all take part in. Yet almost none of us are any good at it. Souvenir buying is too often an obligatory slog.

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Blizzard could dump 2 feet of snow in New England

CONCORD, N.H. A blizzard heading to New England could make travel nearly impossible and dump up to 2 feet of snow on a region that has seen mostly bare ground this winter.

The snow will start Friday morning, with the heaviest amounts dumped on the region that night and into Saturday as the storm moves through New England and upstate New York, the National Weather Service said.

CBS News weather consultant David Bernard said Wednesday that New York may possibly get snow in the six to 10-inch range. He added that it's a little bit early and that the storm is really going to crank as we go Friday into Friday night.

A blizzard watch for parts of Massachusetts and Rhode Island said travel may become nearly impossible because of high winds and blowing snow.

"This has the potential for being a dangerous storm, especially for Massachusetts into northeast Connecticut and up into Maine," said Louis Uccellini, director of the weather agency's National Centers for Environmental Prediction.

Uccellini, who has written two textbooks on northeastern snowstorms, said Wednesday it was too early to tell if the storm would be one for the record books. But he said it will be a rare and major storm, the type that means "you can't let your guard down."

The storm would hit just after the 35th anniversary of the historic blizzard of 1978, which paralyzed the region with more than 2 feet of snow and hurricane force winds from Feb. 5-7.

No one is wishing for a repeat, but skiers, snowmobilers and other outdoor enthusiasts were hoping for just enough snow to turn around a disappointing season.

The snowmobile season in northern New England started off strong, but after rain and warm temperatures last month, many trails in Maine turned essentially to thick sheets of ice, said Maine Snowmobile Association Executive Director Bob Meyers.

Play Video

Blizzard on the way

"People got a taste of it, and there's no question they want some more," he said.

Nearly all of Vermont's snowmobile trails opened after Christmas but riding lately has been limited to hard-to-reach mountain areas. Riders hope this week's storm will bring enough snow to cover bare and icy patches.

"I'd say maybe 75 percent of the trail system may be back up and running if we got a good 8-inch storm," said Matt Tetreault, trails administrator for the Vermont Association of Snow Travelers.

Thanks to the ability to make their own snow, the region's larger ski resorts aren't as dependent on natural snowfall, though every bit helps. At Mount Snow in Vermont, spokesman Dave Meeker said the true value of Friday's storm will be driving traffic from southern New England northward.

"It's great when we get snow, but it's a tremendous help when down-country gets snow," he said. "When they have snow in their backyards, they're inspired."

Assuming the snow clears out by the weekend with no major problems, ski areas in Massachusetts also were excited by the prospect of the first major snowstorm they've seen since October 2011.

"We'll be here with bells on," said Christopher Kitchin, inside operations manager at Nashoba Valley Ski Area in Westford, Mass. "People are getting excited. They want to get out in the snow and go snow-tubing, skiing and snowboarding."

Tom Meyers, marketing director for Wachusett Mountain Ski Area in Princeton, Mass., said that at an annual conference of the National Ski Areas Association in Vermont this week, many participants were "buzzing" about the storm. He said the snow will arrive at an especially opportune time — a week before many schools in Massachusetts have February vacation.

"It is perfect timing because it will just remind everybody that it is winter, it's real, and get out and enjoy it," Meyers said.

Still that may be too late for Michael Amarello, director of the Horse Hill 7K snowshoe race, which is scheduled for Saturday in Merrimack, N.H. He said Wednesday that he hadn't yet decided whether to postpone the race, but was leaning in that direction. Race organizers wouldn't have time to mark the course if it's snowing hard Friday afternoon, he said.

"We want snow, but we don't want snow Friday night — we want snow today or tomorrow!" he said.

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Armstrong May Testify Under Oath on Doping

Facing a federal criminal investigation and a deadline that originally was tonight to tell all under oath to anti-doping authorities or lose his last chance at reducing his lifetime sporting ban, Lance Armstrong now may cooperate.

His apparent 11th-hour about-face, according to the U.S. Anti Doping Agency (USADA), suggests he might testify under oath and give full details to USADA of how he cheated for so long.

"We have been in communication with Mr. Armstrong and his representatives and we understand that he does want to be part of the solution and assist in the effort to clean up the sport of cycling," USADA CEO Travis T. Tygart said in a written statement this evening. "We have agreed to his request for an additional two weeks to work on details to hopefully allow for this to happen."

Neither Armstrong nor his attorney responded to emails seeking comment on the USADA announcement.

The news of Armstrong's possible and unexpected cooperation came a day after ABC News reported he was in the crosshairs of federal criminal investigators. According to a high-level source, "agents are actively investigating Armstrong for obstruction, witness tampering and intimidation" for allegedly threatening people who dared tell the truth about his cheating.

Lance Armstrong Under Criminal Investigation Watch Video

Lance Armstrong Breaks Down: Question Pushes Cyclist to Brink Watch Video

Lance Armstrong Shows His Emotional Side With Oprah Winfrey Watch Video

The case was re-ignited by Armstrong's confession last month to Oprah Winfrey that he doped his way to all seven of his Tour de France titles, telling Winfrey he used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career and then lied about it. He made the confession after years of vehement denials that he cheated.

READ MORE: Armstrong Admits to Doping

READ MORE: Lance Armstrong May Have Lied to Winfrey: Investigators

WATCH: Armstrong's Many Denials Caught on Tape

If charges are ultimately filed, the consequences of "serious potential crimes" could be severe, ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams said -- including "possible sentences up to five, 10 years."

Investigators are not concerned with the drug use, but Armstrong's behavior in trying to maintain his secret by allegedly threatening and interfering with potential witnesses.

Armstrong was previously under a separate federal investigation that reportedly looked at drug distribution, conspiracy and fraud allegations -- but that case was dropped without explanation a year ago. Sources at the time said that agents had recommended an indictment and could not understand why the case was suddenly dropped.

"There were plenty of people, even within federal law enforcement, who felt like he was getting preferential treatment," said T.J. Quinn, an investigative reporter with ESPN.

The pressures against Armstrong today are immense and include civil claims that could cost him tens of millions of dollars.

Armstrong is currently serving a lifetime ban in sport handed down by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency, and today was the deadline he was given to cooperate under oath if he ever wanted the ban lifted.

READ MORE: 10 Scandalous Public Confessions

PHOTOS: Olympic Doping Scandals: Past and Present

PHOTOS: Tour de France 2012

ABC News' Michael S. James contributed to this report.

Read More..

Today on New Scientist: 5 February 2013

Engineering light: Pull an image from nowhere

A new generation of lenses could bring us better lighting, anti-forgery technology and novel movie projectors

Baby boomers' health worse than their parents

Americans who were born in the wake of the second world war have poorer health than the previous generation at the same age

New 17-million-digit monster is largest known prime

A distributed computing project called GIMPS has found a record-breaking prime number, the first for four years

Cellular signals used to make national rainfall map

The slight weakening of microwave signals caused by reflections off raindrops can be exploited to keep tabs on precipitation

NASA spy telescopes won't be looking at Earth

A Mars orbiter and an exoplanet photographer are among proposals being presented today for how to use two second-hand spy satellites that NASA's been given

China gets the blame for media hacking spree

The big US newspapers and Twitter all revealed last week that they were hacked - and many were quick to blame China. But where's the proof?

Nobel-winning US energy secretary steps down

Steven Chu laid the groundwork for government-backed renewable energy projects - his successor must make a better case for them

Sleep and dreaming: Where do our minds go at night?

We are beginning to understand how our brains shape our dreams, and why they contain such an eerie mixture of the familiar and the bizarre

Beating heart of a quantum time machine exposed

This super-accurate timekeeper is an optical atomic clock and its tick is governed by a single ion of the element strontium

A life spent fighting fair about the roots of violence

Despite the fierce conflicts experienced living among anthropologists, science steals the show in Napoleon Chagnon's autobiography Noble Savages

Challenge unscientific thinking, whatever its source

Science may lean to the left, but that's no reason to give progressives who reject it a "free pass"

Need an organ? Just print some stem cells in 3D

Printing blobs of human embryonic stem cells could allow us to grow organs without scaffolds

Ice-age art hints at birth of modern mind

An exhibition of ice-age art at London's British Museum shows astonishing and enigmatic creativity

Read More..

Walking School Bus to ensure safe, enjoyable route for kids

SINGAPORE: Some pre-school children will be walking to and from school, in what's called the Walking School Bus.

They'll take a safe and enjoyable route, accompanied by adults.

The walk can be an informal affair or a structured arrangement with meeting points, a timetable and a schedule.

Children from PCF Tanjong Pagar-Tiong Bahru in Kim Tian Road are the first to try out the Walking School Bus - a free service by the Health Promotion Board (HPB) to get children to be physically active for up to three hours a day.

Walking School Buses are also practised in the United Kingdom, Europe, North America, Australia and New Zealand.

Walking can also help to save money, especially for those who use public transport when the pre-school centre is one or two bus stops away.

Pre-schools can apply to HPB for funding to organise their own Walking School Bus and activities that promote good health.

Besides walking, a series of fun dance routines with pre-school themes will be developed.

The first routine is ready and will be available on DVD to all childcare centres and kindergartens as well as parents.

These fun dance routines can be integrated into curriculum time to improve music and movement skills, or into subjects such as mathematics or numeracy to make lesson time more lively.

Over the next two years, HPB and KK Women's and Children's Hospital will jointly develop more fun dance routines.

- CNA/ck

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Tsunami detected after quake strikes near Solomon Islands

By CNN Staff

updated 12:09 AM EST, Wed February 6, 2013

The center of the quake was located some 360 miles east-southeast of Honiara, capital of the Solomon Islands.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: Pacific Tsunami Warning Center cancels all tsunami alerts in the region


• No immediate reports of damage or injuries from the 8.0-magnitude quake


• Evacuations are ordered for some coastal residents of New Caledonia, Loyalty Islands

(CNN) -- An 8.0-magnitude earthquake struck off the Solomon Islands in the South Pacific on Wednesday, triggering a localized tsunami that didn't threaten the wider region.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center initially issued a tsunami warning for several countries in the area, including Papua New Guinea and Fiji. But the center later canceled the alert after reassessing the relevant data.

It also called off a tsunami watch it had sent out for a larger number of countries in the region such as New Zealand, Australia and Indonesia.

A wave about 1-meter high was observed near the Solomon Islands, said Brian Shiro, a geophysicist at the tsunami warning center.

But there were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.

The center of the quake was located near a remote, eastern part of the Solomon Islands, known as the Santa Cruz Islands, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) said. It was initially reported to be 3.6 miles deep, but that was later revised to a depth of 17.8 miles.

Augustine Bilve, one of the directors at a hospital in Lata, the main town in the Santa Cruz Islands, said that some patients were being relocated, but that the hospital was intact.

Authorities elsewhere in the region took preemptive measures following news of the quake.

The New Caledonia High Commission in the capital of Noumea ordered the immediate evacuation of coastal residents on the eastern coast of New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands.

The main quake was preceded by a 6.3-magnitude quake in the region and was followed by several others, the largest of which had a magnitude of 6.6, the USGS said.

CNN's Dave Alsup and Sarita Harilela contributed to this report.

Part of complete coverage on

updated 6:00 AM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Discovering his grave is a new chance to make a case for 'Good King Richard,' supporters say.

updated 5:30 PM EST, Mon February 4, 2013

In the wake of Richard III's remains being discovered, take a look at some of the thespians who have brought the historical character to life.

updated 7:53 AM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Look out for Asteroid 2012 DA14. It's going to be the closest shave in known history, NASA expert says.

updated 10:40 AM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

In January 2013 CNN Photojournalist Joe Duran traveled to Bab al-Salama refugee camp in Syria.

updated 7:27 PM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

North Korea's plans for a new nuclear test, like most things that happen inside the reclusive state, are shrouded in mystery.

Some are beginning to question whether the Arab Spring was such a good idea after all.

updated 1:51 AM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Philippines island Mindanao was hit hard by Typhoon Bopha. Two months on, 6,000 people remain homeless, living in evacuation centers.

updated 6:28 PM EST, Mon February 4, 2013

An all-girl rock band from Kashmir sparks anger among some Muslims. CNN's Ram Ramgopal reports.

updated 12:56 PM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Barely a couple of weeks into his second term, Obama is releasing photos to silence irrational critics, says Granderson.

updated 5:14 PM EST, Mon February 4, 2013

When a relationship ends badly, every racy photo or text you shared with your ex becomes a potential security problem.

updated 4:28 PM EST, Tue February 5, 2013

Emily Bauer wound up in ICU after her family says she smoked synthetic marijuana.

updated 8:16 AM EST, Mon February 4, 2013

Despite Japanese deflation, a weaker yen and rising prices throughout the world, Tokyo has resumed its position as the world's most expensive city.

A Catalan artist recreates the amazing "fabric sculptures" of historic European courts.

Ten years on, what do you think the Iraq war has changed in you, and in your country? Send us your thoughts and experiences.

Read More..

Sandy storm victims react to proposed home buyout

(CBS News) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - One hundred days ago, the Northeast was hit by a left hook from superstorm Sandy.

This week, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo proposed spending $400 million to buy up and demolish thousands of those homes, so the property can be turned back into wetlands.

Homeowners have mixed feelings about the proposal.

For 11 years, Joe Monte worked two jobs and spent weekends renovating his Staten Island home. Weeks after he finished last fall, superstorm Sandy swept eight feet of water inside.

"I came into the house with paper towels and some Fantastic, and I stood in the middle of the room and called my wife and I told my wife, 'There's nothing to clean here, there's nothing to do. It's done,'" Monte said.

A picture of a house heavily damaged by superstorm Sandy on Staten Island, 100 days after the storm hit.

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CBS News

Monte welcomes Cuomo's proposal to buy up properties like his in flood-prone areas.

"This isn't my dream, the poison that's in this home, the destruction that took this neighborhood. How could you even stay here?" he said. "How could you even live in this neighborhood?"

100 days post-Sandy, N.Y. Gov. Cuomo wants some areas emptied
Romney camp wrote big check to Red Cross
Watch: Senate passes $50 billion Sandy relief aid bill

But about 30 miles away in Long Beach, N.Y., Fran Adelson plans to stay and rebuild. She, too, lost almost everything in the storm.

"We live here. This is where our homes are, this is where our children were raised, this is where our families are, this is where the businesses that we go to are," she said.

Fran Adelson

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CBS News

She believes the governor should be looking at ways to help people stay in their communities.

"We would rather see Cuomo spend the money on helping us rebuild than offering to buy people's property," Adelson said.

But Joe Monte says he's had enough. He's walking away.

"I hate that I lost neighbors in my neighborhood," he said. "Three people died in this neighborhood. I hate everything about it. I could never come back here ever again."

Gov. Cuomo's buyout proposal still has to be approved by the federal government. If it is approved, the governor's office says they won't force people to sell their property -- but those who do decide to stay would be offered grants to rebuild their homes.

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Lance Armstrong Under Criminal Investigation

Federal investigators are in the midst of an active criminal investigation of disgraced former Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong, ABC News has learned.

The revelation comes in stark contrast to statements made by the U.S. Attorney for Southern California, Andre Birotte, who addressed his own criminal inquiry of Armstrong for the first time publicly on Tuesday. Birotte's office spent nearly two years investigating Armstrong for crimes reportedly including drug distribution, fraud and conspiracy -- only to suddenly drop the case on the Friday before the Super Bowl last year.

Sources at the time said that agents had recommended an indictment and could not understand why the case was suddenly dropped.

Today, a high level source told ABC News, "Birotte does not speak for the federal government as a whole."

According to the source, who agreed to speak on the condition that his name and position were not used because of the sensitivity of the matter, "Agents are actively investigating Armstrong for obstruction, witness tampering and intimidation."

An email to an attorney for Armstrong was not immediately returned.

READ MORE: Lance Armstrong May Have Lied to Winfrey: Investigators

AP Photo/Bas Czerwinski, File

Lance Armstrong Shows His Emotional Side With Oprah Winfrey Watch Video

Cyclist Lance Armstrong: Bombshell Confession Watch Video

Lance Armstrong-Winfrey Interview: Doping Confession Watch Video

Earlier Tuesday, during a Department of Justice news conference on another matter, Birotte was confronted with the Armstrong question unexpectedly. The following is a transcript of that exchange:

Q: Mr. Birotte, given the confession of Lance Armstrong to all the things --

Birotte: (Off mic.)

Q: -- to all thethings that you, in the end, decided you couldn't bring a case about, can you give us your thoughts on that case now and whether you might take another look at it?

Birotte: We made a decision on that case, I believe, a little over a year ago. Obviously we've been well-aware of the statements that have been made by Mr. Armstrong and other media reports. That has not changed my view at this time. Obviously, we'll consider, we'll continue to look at the situation, but that hasn't changed our view as I stand here today.

The source said that Birotte is not in the loop on the current criminal inquiry, which is being run out of another office.

Armstrong confessed to lying and using performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career in an interview with Oprah Winfrey.

READ MORE: Armstrong Admits to Doping

WATCH: Armstrong's Many Denials Caught on Tape

READ MORE: 10 Scandalous Public Confessions

Investigators are not concerned with the drug use, but Armstrong's behavior in trying to maintain his secret by allegedly threatening and interfering with potential witnesses.

Armstrong is currently serving a lifetime ban in sport handed down by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. He has been given a Feb. 6 deadline to tell all under oath to investigators or lose his last chance at a possible break on the lifetime ban.

PHOTOS: Olympic Doping Scandals: Past and Present

PHOTOS: Tour de France 2012

Read More..