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Reuters - AOL will distribute video
clips from Scripps Networks' HGTV, Food Network, DIY Network
and Fine Living Network, the companies said Wednesday.
"Christa Møllgaard-Hansen, owner of Christabella's in the town of Maribo on Lolland, routinely buys women's clothing and shoes from around the world to resell in Denmark. But a recent purchase of six dresses from Pakistan for $205 was considered by the American authorities to be money going to support terrorists.Link (Thanks, Carsten!)The US froze the funds four months ago and contacted Møllgaard-Hansen's bank, saying they wanted more information on the payment's recipient. Møllgaard-Hansen had put all the necessary information into the original netbank payment, but complied with her bank's request for the additional information."
A small amount of saline was used to float the opening of the fallopian tube, its fimbriae (the "fingers" that sweep the egg into the tube) and the ovary itself. This gives a more natural appearance than gas, says Gordts.LinkIn the video, the fimbriae can be seen sweeping in time with the patient's heartbeat. A mucus plug can be seen protruding from the ovary – this contains the egg.
"The ovum is not captured 'naked'," says Gordts. "There is no eruption like a volcano."
O'Brien: Mozilla's open-source model represents valley at its best San Jose Mercury News - By Chris O'Brien After the official demise of the Netscape browser back in 2003, it seemed as if Microsoft's Internet Explorer would dominate the browser market, well, forever. 'Geek girl' helps keep Mozilla safe in scary times Publisher's description of Firefox Portable |
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Verizon boosts Fios speeds CNET News - LAS VEGAS--Verizon Communications is boosting speeds for its Fios fiber-to-the-home service, the company plans to announce Wednesday. Verizon to boost FiOS Internet speeds Verizon Pushes Speed Factor In Expanding Faster Web Service |
Guess what - it can not be patched as far as I can tell ;) It also has a few software vulnerabilities.
Fun things you can do with a Jura coffee maker:
Link (via /.)
1. Change the preset coffee settings (make weak or strong coffee)
2. Change the amount of water per cup (say 300ml for a short black) and make a puddle
3. Break it by engineering settings that are not compatible (and making it require a service)
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 6:54 amCease And Desist: California Tries to Unravel 23andMe's Genetic ... - Washington Post
ChattahBox
Washington Post -3 hours ago
California's Department of Public Health has issued cease and desist letters to 13 genetic testing startups - most notably 23andMe, which Michael tried out earlier this year.
Genetic-testing startups asked to stop selling in CaliforniaCNET News
California Pushes Back on DNA TestingWired News Slashdot -The Associated Press -Los Angeles Times -Dallas Morning News all 109 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 18 Jun 2008 | 6:48 amRichard Silverstein: Israel's high-tech industry is robust, but its economy could be doing better
You remember that famous quote: "Everything for the best in this best of all possible worlds." Well, that defines Tom Friedman's perspective on Israel and his perspective on the ability of global trade...
Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 18 Jun 2008 | 6:39 amAll Your Coffee Are Belong To Us
Wolf nipple chips writes "Craig Wright discovered that the Jura F90 Coffee maker, with its honest-to-God Jura Internet Connection Kit, can be taken over by a remote attacker, who can cause the coffee to be weaker or stronger; change the amount of water per cup; or cause the machine to require service (call this one a DDoC). 'Best yet, the software allows a remote attacker to gain access to the Windows XP system it is running on at the level of the user.' An Internet-enabled, remote-controlled coffee-machine and XP backdoor — what more could a hacker ask for?"
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 18 Jun 2008 | 6:19 amUnited Starts Offering iPod, iPhone Connectivity - Techtree.com
TechShout!
Techtree.com -4 hours ago
The next time you're flying with United, you need not worry about getting bored during those flight hours. The airline has announced that it is the first US carrier to offer iPod- and iPhone- connectivity to its in-flight entertainment system, ...
United Airlines adds ipod/iphone connectivityTG Daily
United to offer iPod and iPhone hookups on some flightsArs Technica PC Magazine -NetworkWorld.com -Macworld -NewsFactor Network all 52 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 18 Jun 2008 | 6:09 amNvidia: Graphics is dead? Yeah right. - TG Daily
CNET News
TG Daily -4 hours ago
By Rob Enderle, Principal Analyst, Enderle Group Analyst Opinion - For the last several weeks, Nvidia has been at war with Intel over a statement of one of Intel’s engineers made at IDF suggesting that GPUs could soon be obsolete.
Alienware Gives Area-51 Desktops a Graphics BoostPC Magazine
NVIDIA launches new GPUs, ATI lies in waitBetaNews IGN -Techtree.com -TechNewsWorld -CNET News all 208 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 18 Jun 2008 | 6:09 amLas ultimas palabras de la Pequeña Hillary Clinton
"The final words of la Pequeña Hillary Clinton." Goddamn I'm gonna miss her. Not the American presidential candidate, but the impersonation by a diminutively statured YouTube star of the (very deep) south. How can we forget this campaign speech? Snip:
American don' whon gou the wold whre people wis floyerty Iraq brincous where no sacrificie ouf pipple.Or this unforgettable interview? She's the only politician whose words make any sense.Anyway, Video Link to her final message. She's actually part of a troupe of performers who appear in videos produced by a guy in Chile named Felipe Avello. (via Reverse Cowgirl)
Previously on BB:
La Pequeña Prohibida La Pequeña Hillary Clinton La Pequeña Amy Winehouse
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:51 amCharlie Stross in Second Life this Saturday
Wagner James Au sez, "Extropia, a large and prestigious futurist/transhumanist city in Second Life, will host Charles Stross at Sophrosyne's Special Salon, this Saturday, June 21, from 1-2:30 pm Pacific. Charlie will discuss the Singluarity in fiction, cutting-edge technologies, his Hugo-Award finalist novel Halting State, about virtual worlds and augmented reality, and his upcoming novel Saturn's Children. All event info at the link." Link (Thanks, James!)
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:50 amRecycled teacup lights
Domestic Construction's "Ted Lights" are made from recycled teacups -- you can get 'em in singles or clusters. Link (via Cribcandy)
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:50 amPhilly cops raids activists who circulated anti-CCTV petititon
Privacy activists in North Philadelphia who circulated a petition opposing the spy-cameras that were going up in their neighborhood were busted by cops on a warrantless raid. The police captain later gave a press interview where he called them a "hate group" and said he hoped to " drum up charges against them."He said he isn't a member of any political group, but he said he and others in the house recently circulated petitions that raised questions about the appearance of surveillance cameras in the neighborhood and about the beating of three suspects by police that was seen on a TV video.Link (via Futurismic)Moffat said police did not mention damage to any surveillance camera when they arrived Friday morning. He said Wilson had told him police had received a complaint that the residents of the house were living there illegally.
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:47 amSwedish journalists march on Parliament to oppose wiretapping bill
Danny sez,Sweden's parliament is about to vote on a law that would legalize a massive data-mining wiretap on all its cross-border traffic: scooping up millions of innocent communications and feeding them to a shady, military government agency, the FRA, that most Swedes had not heard of until this week.Link (Thanks, Danny!)Tech-savvy Swedes have been campaigning against this law for over a year, but it's only now that the general public have heard about its provisions. It will only take four MPs to vote down the bill, but Sweden's normally calm parliamentary procedure has been riven with strong-arm tactics from the leading parties (one rebel MPs was in tears as she was pressured to take a fake "compromise"). Now it looks like the law will pass.
The vote happens tomorrow (June 18th), the Swedish Federation of Journalists has called on all writers to march on parliament, and are asking the international media to cover this story before the "Swedish Spywall" is raised.
See also: Swedes take to the street to fight domestic spying
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:41 amSchool has child taken away because "psychic" claimed she was abused
The administration at Terry Fox Elementary in Barrie Ontario called Children's Aid on Colleen Leduc and accused her of allowing her autistic daughter to be sexually assaulted. They based the accusation on something a "psychic" told the special ed worker who worked with the kid."The teacher looked and me and said: 'We have to tell you something. The educational assistant who works with Victoria went to see a psychic last night, and the psychic asked the educational assistant at that particular time if she works with a little girl by the name of "V." And she said 'yes, I do.' And she said, 'well, you need to know that that child is being sexually abused by a man between the ages of 23 and 26.'"Link (Thanks, Bruce!)Victoria, who is non-verbal, had also been exhibiting sexualized behaviour in class, actions which are known to be typical of autistic behavior. (See other typical actions here) That lead authorities to suspect she had a bladder infection that may have somehow been related to the 'attack.'
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:38 amReuse and ingenuity in Nairobi's metalworking industry
Afrigadget reports from Gikomba, a metalworking district in Nairobi where ingenious reuse and improvisation are the order of the day:Link
I ran into a George Odhiambo, a bulk fabricator of everything from wheelbarrows to chisels. The chisels caught my eye, primarily because one of them looked a lot like a shaft straight out of a Land Rover. It turns out that they reuse multiple types of iron for their goods, including leftover pieces from old vehicles. Nothing goes to waste here.Even more interesting to me (probably because it moved and did stuff with fire), was the bicycle-turned-to-bellows that kept the fire going that would heat the metal rods. It’s a fairly simple, yet ingenious contraption that utilizes old materials with a little bit of engineering. The thing runs all day, every day too, so it’s made to last.
Source: Boing Boing | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:37 amEmerging markets to drive mobile broadband: Ericsson (Reuters)
Reuters - Telecom equipment maker Ericsson said on Wednesday mobile broadband Internet subscribers could rise to 2.2 billion in five years' time from 250 million, fuelled by exponential growth in emerging markets.
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 18 Jun 2008 | 5:16 amVerizon Communications Inc. speeds up FiOS Internet (AP)
AP - Verizon Communications Inc. is boosting the speed of its FiOS fiber-optic Internet service in 10 states.
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 18 Jun 2008 | 4:53 amBumper clutter may be a road rage warning - AutoWeek
Newsday
AutoWeek -5 hours ago
By DALE JEWETT The next time you feel the need, or have no choice but to cut someone off in traffic--take note of how many bumper stickers are on that car if you fear retaliation.
Bumper car alert!Los Angeles Times
Road Rage Behavior Linked To Number Of Car StickersAHN 9NEWS.com -Atlanta Journal Constitution -United Press International -Slashdot all 53 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 18 Jun 2008 | 4:48 amJune 18, 1178: English Monks Observe 'Lunar' Explosion
1178: Just after sunset, according to the English monk and chronicler Gervase of Canterbury, five monks watch the moon explode into flames.
Gervase said the observers were looking at a new crescent moon when the upper part "suddenly split in two. From the midpoint of this division a flaming torch sprang up, spewing out … fire, hot coals and sparks…. The body of the moon, which was below, writhed … throbbed like a wounded snake."
Since the timing appears to have been about right, what they may have seen -- according to at least one astronomer -- was the asteroid impact that led to the creation of the lunar crater Giordano Bruno. Others doubt this theory, because there is no historical record of the subsequent meteor shower that would have been visible following a collision of this kind.
What the monks may have actually seen, the current thinking goes, was the explosion of a meteor that, from their vantage point, was passing in front of the moon.
The crater, incidentally, was named for the Italian philosopher, priest and cosmologist Giordano Bruno, burned at the stake for heresy in 1600, during the Roman Inquisition. Bruno is considered an early martyr for science, perhaps the first. The crater named for him measures roughly 14 miles wide and is located on the far side of the moon.
Gervase -- who was ordained by Thomas à Becket, the archbishop of Canterbury from 1162 until his murder in 1170 -- is remembered mainly for his Chronica, an ecclesiastical history of Canterbury. Gervase died in 1205.
Source: Various
Source: Wired Top Stories | 18 Jun 2008 | 4:00 amAlt Text: Killjoy Cooking With the Dungeons & Dragons Crowd
Cookbooks are a lot like Dungeons & Dragons and other role-playing games. They contain seemingly rigid rules that, in practice, require a certain amount of adaptation for your own tastes.
So how come cooking gets its own TV channel and role-playing games don't even get a show on G4? Maybe the population at large doesn't want to pretend to be a half-elf. Maybe RPGs take more imagination than most people have.
However, it just might have something to do with the role-playing community. If geeks talked about cookbooks the way they talk about RPG books, the results would not be pretty:
Posted: 12:15 a.m. by LordOrcus I'm so mad that there's a new edition of The Better Joy Cookbook out. Thanks for making my old copy obsolete, you greedy hacks! For five years now, my friends have been coming over for my eggplant Parmesan, and now I'm never going to be able serve it again unless I shell out 35 bucks for the latest version.
Posted: 12:42 a.m. by Kathraxis Hey, I have a question! When you preheat the oven, can you start it before you measure out the ingredients, or do you have to do it afterward? Please answer quickly, my friends and I have been arguing about it for four hours and we're getting pretty hungry.
Posted: 12:48 a.m. by Goku1440 I found an awesome loophole! On page 242 it says "Add oregano to taste!" It doesn't say how much oregano, or what sort of taste! You can add as much oregano as you want! I'm going to make my friends eat infinite oregano and they'll have to do it because the recipe says so!
Posted: 1:02 a.m. by barrybarrybarry I can't believe I spent 35 dollars on a cookbook that doesn't have a recipe for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. When I buy a cookbook, I expect it to tell me how to cook. And don't tell me to just make a PBJ myself, I'm not some sort of hippy artist pretentious "freeform cook."
Posted: 1:08 a.m. by jvmkanelly Where are the recipes for chatting with friends while cooking? Where are the recipes for conversation over the meal? When I throw a dinner party, I want it to be a PARTY. I guess the idiots who use the Better Joy Cookbook just cook and eat in stony silence, never saying a word or even looking each other in the eye.
Posted: 1:23 a.m. by LordOrcus Hey, guess what? They're coming out with The Better Joy Book of Hors D'oeuvres. It just goes to show that the publishers are a bunch of corporate greedheads who care more about money than they do about cooking. Is it too much to ask for a single cookbook that contains all possible recipes?
Posted: 1:48 a.m. by specsheet Hey, everyone. I can tell just by reading the recipe that if you prepare eggs benedict as written, the sauce will separate. My mom always said the other kids made fun of me because they were jealous of my intelligence, so I must be right. Everyone who's saying that they followed the recipe and it came out perfect is either lying, or loves greasy separated hollandaise sauce.
Posted: 1:52 a.m. by IAmEd As I have pointed out MANY TIMES, several of these recipes contain raisins, and I, like most people, am ALLERGIC to raisins! And before you tell me to substitute dried cranberries, I will reiterate that I am discussing the recipes AS WRITTEN. I do not appreciate your ATTACKING ME with helpful suggestions!
Posted: 2:12 a.m. by Herodotus I just have to laugh at the recipe for Beef Wellington. In Wellington's day, ovens didn't have temperature settings! And pate de foie gras certainly didn't come in cans. It's like the authors didn't even care about replicating authentic early 19th century cooking techniques!
Posted: 2:17 a.m. by LordOrcus I have read the new Better Joy Cookbook and I am devastated to my very core. Their macaroni and cheese recipe, the very macaroni and cheese I've been making since I was in college, has been ravaged and disfigured and left bleeding on the page. Where once it contained only cheddar cheese, now the recipe calls for a mix of cheddar and Colby. It may contain macaroni, and it may contain cheese, but it is not macaroni and cheese. This is a slap in the face and a knife in the gut. You have lost me, Better Joy Cookbook. I would bid you goodbye, but I wish you nothing but the pain and rage you have delivered unto me.
- - -
Born helpless, nude and unable to provide for himself, Lore Sjöberg eventually overcame these handicaps to go by the Secret Service code name "Infinite Oregano."
Source: Wired Top Stories | 18 Jun 2008 | 4:00 amHow to Fix Your Broken NES
That snarky Duck Hunt dog has nothing on you, if only your old Nintendo Entertainment System still worked. Wax nostalgic with Mario and Luigi by repairing your NES for only a few dollars.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 18 Jun 2008 | 4:00 amIndefinite Imprisonment For Web Site Content
Suriken writes "In an unprecedented move, the New Zealand Solicitor General is seeking an indefinite prison sentence against American businessman Vince Siemer for alleged breach of an interim gag order now more than three years old. Siemer was jailed for six weeks last year for refusing to take down a Web site accusing the chairman of an energy company of suspect business practices. Because he still refuses to take down the site, NZ Solicitor-General David Collins QC wants to lock up Siemer indefinitely, merely for asserting his own free speech. From the article: 'Siemer's [defense] claims the Solicitor General's action is barred by double jeopardy. He also maintains he had long ago proven in Court that the injunction was incorrect in fact and law but that the judge simply ignored the law and evidence. He says the gag order violates his freedom of expression guarantees in these circumstances.' Here's more coverage from an NZ television station."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 18 Jun 2008 | 3:10 amUpdated Firefox browser eyes world download record (AFP)
AFP - Mozilla on Tuesday released an improved version of its Firefox web browser that has gained popularity as a free alternative to Microsoft's ubiquitous Internet Explorer.
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 18 Jun 2008 | 2:53 amHands on: Flock 2 steps up the social browser game - Ars Technica
CXOToday.com
Ars Technica -8 hours ago
By David Chartier | Published: June 17, 2008 - 09:20PM CT Flock is an intriguing new "social web browser" that is designed not just as a portal to the web, but to your friends' lives and the online communities where we share many of today's experiences ...
Read all 'Flock 2.0' posts in The Daily DownloadCNET News
Social Web browser Flock out with new test versionThe Associated Press InformationWeek -Washington Times -U.S. News & World Report -Associated Content all 87 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 18 Jun 2008 | 2:24 amNew funding values LinkedIn at $1 billion (Reuters)
Reuters - LinkedIn, an online destination for professional networking, raised $53 million from investors in a fourth round of financing, giving the company an estimated valuation of just over $1 billion, LinkedIn Chief Executive Dan Nye said.
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 18 Jun 2008 | 2:19 amPimp My Datacenter
snydeq writes "InfoWorld has put together an in-depth, hands-on feature detailing the complete pimp-out makeover of Hawaii Institute of Geophysics' 1950s-era server room into a bona-fide 21st century datacenter equipped with 'some of the glitziest and most functional gear known to datacenter-building man.' The project — completed neither on time nor on budget — resulted in improved rack and cable management, more efficient cooling, higher security, and a wealth of remote management functionality to keep University of Hawaii IT staff from having to leave the beach to service glitches. Editorial coverage includes essential tips for completing a datacenter overhaul, video interviews, and deep-dive coverage of the technologies implemented, including state-of-the-art datacenter-planning software, power and cooling equipment, out-of-band management systems, physical security solutions, remote rebooting capabilities, and more."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 18 Jun 2008 | 1:32 amA Misconfigured Laptop, a Wrecked Life - PC World
Enews 2.0
PC World -9 hours ago
When the Commonwealth of Massachusetts issued Michael Fiola a Dell Latitude in November 2006, it set off a chain of events that would cost him his job, his friends and about a year of his life, as he fought criminal charges that he had downloaded child ...
Computer virus loaded state worker’s laptop with pornTG Daily
State worker cleared on child porn charges that were due to malwareCNET News TechNewsWorld -SC Magazine US -Register -SecurityFocus all 54 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 18 Jun 2008 | 1:27 amHigh hopes: VCs betting LinkedIn worth $1 billion (AP)
AP - Four venture capital firms are betting Internet startup LinkedIn Corp. is worth $1 billion, highlighting the lofty hopes riding on online services that connect people with their friends, family and business associates.
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 18 Jun 2008 | 1:11 amGallery: 10 Best Apocalyptic Vehicles
: Photo submitted by CruiseKiller
Global warming. Faltering economies. Dwindling resources. Mankind has finally set in motion environmental, political and social policies that will surely destroy the world as we know it.
Not everyone will fall. Those who survive will roam the scorched wasteland to fend for themselves against the predatory undead while scavenging what they can to survive. The end of days is at hand, and the only question is this: What will you drive when it all comes tumbling down?
Click through our reader submissions to see your best bet for survival.
Left:
Toyota FJ40
The FJ is Toyota's answer to the Jeep CJ, and flame wars between fanboys of the two vehicles will continue long after the apocalypse begins. The consensus is the Toyota will take more abuse -- a big plus when roaming the desolation -- but it's harder to fix when something goes sideways. Fortunately, it's a Toyota, so you'll break before it will.
: Photo submitted by Anonymous
Intimidating mass to frighten zombies? Check. Absurd ground clearance to crush your foes? Check. Room for several crates of black-market MREs and barrels of pilfered fuel? Check. When it comes to planning for the apocalypse, those Germans know their stuff. But this Benz-built beast gets a paltry 13 mpg, so you're going to spend a lot of time scavenging fuel.
: Photo submitted by Lance Miller
The Ural Patrol has two-wheel drive, it climbs like a goat and damn near everything on it can be repaired with a hammer, a screwdriver and duct tape. If it was good enough for the Russian armies, it's good enough for post-apocalyptic road warriors.
: Photo submitted by Rossum's Child
Roam the wastelands in style! The Concept T has a heads-up display to keep you focused on the zombie horde ahead, the ground clearance to handle those who don't get out of the way and a stop speed of 140 to escape the inevitable attack. The challenge will be getting one -- you'll have to break into the smoldering remains of VW's HQ to snag it.
: Photo submitted by Stefan
The Dingo will haul 3.5 tons of looted bounty; it's more heavily armored than a bank vault and it comes with your choice of a 7.62mm machine gun or a 40mm grenade launcher. As if that weren't sweet enough, it's got air conditioning! Global warming? What global warming?
: Photo submitted by Zip Lock
Go ahead and laugh. Unicycles aren't very fast and you can't carry much, but they're cheap, they're reliable and you won't have to scavenge fuel. What's more, with both hands free you'll have no trouble firing your rocket-propelled grenade.
: Photo submitted by Anonymous
Ubiquity is a desirable quality in an Apocalypsemobile, and Jeeps are everywhere. What's more, their questionable reliability means abandoned Chrysler dealerships will have tons of parts. The closest that most Jeep-owning poseurs come to off-roading is parking on the grass -- so let the zombies fight for the new ones while you hit the local frat house and score a gently used model that's probably never even seen dirt.
: Photo submitted by Anonymous
"Last of the V8 Interceptors, eh?" Not everyone is lucky enough to be an Aussie ex-cop with access to a garage containing one of these, but if you're handy with the steel you might be able to smoke the guy who is. This down under Ford Falcon-based muscle car, complete with hood-popping blower, is not exactly easy on the fuel, but if you're rolling in the original Apocalypsemobile, you've probably got what it takes to score a few gallons from anyone in the wasteland.
: Photo submitted by Anonymous
Unfriendly survivors trying to keep you out of their water source? No problem: They're going to have to do a little better than that jerry-rigged wall of salvaged timber and corrugated steel if they want to keep you out. When you absolutely, positively need to kill everything between here and the horizon, it's tough to beat the Stryker. If you want one, you might start in Iraq. Most of these eight-wheelers are serving over there.
: Photo submitted by giantjoe
The VW Beetle is the Swiss Army knife and Timex watch of cars -- you can do anything with it and no amount of abuse will kill it. When Armageddon comes and the last man falls, the only thing left will be the cockroaches and the Beetles.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 18 Jun 2008 | 1:00 amLocal investors to run Philadelphia Wi-Fi network (AP)
AP - A group of local investors said Tuesday they have bought Philadelphia's wireless Internet network, a week after EarthLink Inc. gave up on the system because it failed to make a profit.
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 18 Jun 2008 | 12:43 amRIAA Defends Refiling Contested Piracy Case With New Judge
The Recording Industry Association of America says it is dropping a file-sharing case against a New York mother and is refiling the identical case to in a bid to learn the identity of the Kazaa user who shared copyrighted music on the mother's Verizon internet account. The RIAA dropped the initial case, refiled it with a different judge, as the original judge was weighing whether the case should be dropped.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 18 Jun 2008 | 12:30 amBMW Brings Back the M1 Supercar
The M1 was a seminal car that proved BMW could run with the likes of Ferrari and Porsche. Thirty years after it redefined the supercar, BMW's bringing it back.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 18 Jun 2008 | 12:10 amApple, others license Klausner voicemail pate - Reuters
Palluxo! - Mac Dose of All Things Apple
Reuters -10 hours ago
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Klausner Technologies Inc said on Monday that Apple Inc (AAPL.O: Quote, Profile, Research), eBay Inc (EBAY.
Apple Settles Visual Voicemail LawsuitPC World
Apple, AT&T settle lawsuit over iPhone featureThe Associated Press BetaNews -IntoMobile -CNET News -Apple Insider all 169 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 18 Jun 2008 | 12:02 amUnderstanding Privacy
privacyprof writes "Slashdot readers familiar with Professor Daniel J. Solove's essay, 'I've Got Nothing to Hide and Other Misunderstandings of Privacy,' might be interested in his new book, Understanding Privacy, which develops many of the ideas in that essay. As rapidly changing technology makes information increasingly available, there has been a great struggle to define privacy, with many conceding that the task is virtually impossible. The book argues there are multiple forms of privacy, related to one another by 'family resemblances'. It explains the framework for understanding privacy which was briefly discussed in the 'Nothing to Hide' essay. The book covers the framework in greater depth and explores how it applies to a wide array of privacy issues, such as data mining, surveillance, data security, and consumer privacy. Chapter 1 is available for free download."
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:40 pmFan Demand Resuscitates 'You Suck at Photoshop'
The world's most bitter photo-editing tutor will bring his bile-filled expertise back online.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:30 pmOne in Three Stars May Have "Super"-Earths - Scientific American
Xinhua
Scientific American -11 hours ago
By JR Minkel SUPER TRIO: This artist's conception depicts three super-Earths, or planets a few times Earth's mass, discovered orbiting the star HD 40307 in our galaxy.
A Bounty of Midsize Planets Is ReportedNew York Times
45 New "Super-Earth" Exoplanets DiscoveredWired News USA Today -TIME -The Planetary Society -The Associated Press all 270 news articles
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:28 pmApple, AT&T settle lawsuit over iPhone feature
Apple Inc. and AT&T Inc. have settled claims that the iPhone's "visual voicemail" technology infringed patents held by Klausner Technologies Inc., a New York-based patent holding company founded by...
Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:14 pmReview: A Week of Filming With the Flip Mino Reveals Some Flaws
We were initially a bit ga-ga over Flip's newer, slimmer pocket camcorder. But after a week's worth of testing, we've found some cracks in the facade.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:10 pmReview: A Week of Filming With the Flip Mino Reveals Some Flaws
We were initially a bit ga-ga over Flip's newer, slimmer pocket camcorder. But after a week's worth of testing, we've found some cracks in the facade.
Source: Wired: Gadgets | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:10 pmFind points to high status of castle
Norman equivalent of Buckingham Palace balcony discovered in Dorset
Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:07 pmJohnny Dee on Nintendo's talking electronic Cooking Guide
Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:05 pmEntertainment and advertising move east in a mobile world
The global entertainment and media market is expected to expand by more than a third over the next five years, as more people in emerging markets move online and the global love affair with the mobile...
Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:02 pmAlan Pickup: Spacewatch
Alan Pickup: Dwarf planets beyond Neptune to be classed as plutoids
Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:01 pmLetter: The enduring power of urban legends
I am curious that Viv Groskop thinks that bogus emails are "targeting" women (Beware of the hoax, G2, June 11). This type of folklore has a long history and cannot by its nature be selective about its...
Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 17 Jun 2008 | 11:00 pmThe Impact of Low Salaries At Apple
orenh writes "Recent data indicate that Apple engineers have significantly lower salaries than their Silicon Valley peers: $89,000 at Apple, versus $105,000 at Yahoo and $112,000 at Google. Paying lower salaries had a major impact on Apple's bottom line when it was struggling in the market up until 2004. But now that Apple is highly profitable, these lower salaries are no longer a factor in Apple's success. Will Apple have to raise salaries to match the market rate, or face defections?"
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Source: Slashdot | 17 Jun 2008 | 10:52 pmIts Back Against the Wall, Airline Industry Looks to Come Clean
These are tough times for any industry that burns a lot of fossil fuel or emits a lot of carbon dioxide, and the air travel business does both. The airlines never gave it much thought before, but with sky-high oil prices and mounting concern about global warming threatening not just their bottom line, but their existence, they're getting serious about reducing the industry's carbon footprint.
"They’re definitely in bad shape," says John Scholle, an economist with Global Insight. "And going forward, things look bleak."
It is against this backdrop that executives from the U.S. commercial aviation industry gather later this week in Washington D.C. to plot a new course.
The Air Transport World Eco-Aviation conference marks the first time the industry has come together on such a large scale to talk about the environment. The conference underscores the severity of the issues facing commercial aviation and the need to begin addressing them collectively and quickly.
With airline passenger growth rates and aircraft emissions expected to double by 2020 and 2030, respectively, time is of the essence.
Rising fuel prices have airlines around the world hemorrhaging money, and losses could hit $6.1 billion this year. Governments on both sides of the Atlantic are threatening to crack down on emissions. And environmentalists are lining up against an industry that, like the automakers before it, has long considered environmental responsibility an afterthought.
Commercial aviation has seen tough times before, experts say, but never before has the challenge been so great and the prospects so grim.
Topping the conference agenda is determining how big a role government should play in regulating aviation-related emissions. This is an issue of mounting importance now that the European Union says airlines must join its carbon trading program and with environmentalists petitioning the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate aircraft emissions. It is, they say, the only way to get the airlines to clean up their act.
"Market mechanisms for cutting pollution won't work," says Danielle Fugere of Friends of the Earth, the group that filed the petition.
The airline industry disagrees, of course, and says it has cut fuel consumption by 110 percent since 1978. It also claims to have reduced emissions 4 percent between 2000 and 2006, despite a 12 percent increase in passengers and a 22 percent climb in cargo. "Airlines are already motivated to reduce fuel burn and the resulting greenhouse gases as much as possible," says Nancy Young, vice president of environmental affairs for the Air Transport Association.
Much of that progress has come by replacing outdated planes with more fuel-efficient models. The industry has long counted on technology to reduce fuel consumption and says advancements in engine designs, composite materials and airframe construction will make tomorrow's airliners leaner and greener. "Less weight equals less power," says Ernest Arvi, CEO of aviation consultancy The Arvi Group. “Less power equals less fuel, and less fuel equals less pollution.”
Perhaps the biggest example of the trend is Boeing's much-delayed 787 Dreamliner, which uses composite construction to produce an aircraft the company says is 20 percent more fuel efficient and produces 20 percent fewer emissions than similarly sized aircraft. Pratt & Whitney promises similar performance improvements from its geared turbofan jet engine.
But even the most fuel-efficient airplane relies on fossil fuel, an increasingly expensive commodity. Jet fuel recently topped $150 a barrel, a price for which no airline has a business plan. That's got them pushing hard to develop biofuels. Virgin Atlantic recently made a test flight of a Boeing 747 fueled by a mixture of kerosene and biofuel derived from coconut and babassu oil. But the emphasis is on algae, led by Boeing's recent commitment to the alt fuel and efforts by JetBlue and KLM Royal Dutch Airlines to turn pond scum into fuel.
Christopher Surgenor, editor of GreenAirOnline, says algal fuel is the most promising alternative because "It has the right properties for a jet fuel and can be produced in comparatively large quantities." But others say it's too early in the game to pick a winner, and Arvi warns that narrowing the research to one field "is self-defeating. It stifles innovation."
For all the advancements in engines and airframes, the system we use for moving all those planes around is stuck in the 1940s. Airlines say replacing the radar-based air traffic control infrastructure with a satellite system would reduce fuel consumption and cut emissions by 10 to 15 percent while making the business of getting planes in and out of airports more efficient. Adopting a more efficient means of approaching airports -- called "continuous descent approach" -- would further cut fuel consumption and emissions while also reducing noise.
As promising as these ideas appear, don't look for them at your local airport anytime soon. "Next generation aircraft will begin to arrive in two to three years, but modernized air traffic control is at least a decade away," says Scholle, the analyst from Global Insight. He's even less optimistic about alt fuels. The economics needed to make it work just aren't there. "We’re at least five years away from alt-fuels being anything but a publicity stunt," he says.
And that is exactly what critics call the commercial aviation industry's push to clean up its act -- a publicity stunt. "The only reason they’re having this thing is so it looks like they care. The industry is positioning itself to look like it's addressing environmental issues, so the government doesn’t do it for them," aviation consultant Mike Boyd says of the upcoming conference. Critics said the same thing when Richard Branson, CEO of Virgin Atlantic, hailed his company's experiments with biofuels.
But the industry and its defenders say there's more than green washing going on here, and to suggest otherwise is both cynical and shortsighted. "Those of us working in aviation are no different than anyone else," Arvi says. "We care about the environment and we want a clean planet. We just don't want the industry to get ruined in the process."
Source: Wired Top Stories | 17 Jun 2008 | 10:45 pmPhiladelphia's Wi-Fi Back Online, Privately
muellerr1 writes "A group of local Philadelphia investors is picking up where Earthlink left off last week. Earthlink abandoned their effort to provide municipal Wi-Fi access because they couldn't lure enough paying customers. The project won't use any additional taxpayer dollars, and the new investors are thinking of using advertisements and fees for business use to support free access for ordinary citizens." The private group won't estimate when the network might be completed (it's at 80%), saying it will take months to assess where the project is and what it needs.
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Source: Slashdot | 17 Jun 2008 | 9:57 pmFirefox Demand Exceeds Supply as Mozilla's Servers Melt Down
Mozilla's servers reach a two-hour-long tipping point as demand for the new Firefox 3 web browser exceeds supply.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 17 Jun 2008 | 9:00 pmMass Effect DRM Still Causing Issues
An anonymous reader writes "There was some discussion last month about the proposed DRM for Mass Effect and Spore that required the game to phone home every ten days. They backed down from that, but have left in that a user is only allowed 3 activations per license key. A license key is burned up when the O/S is reinstalled, when certain hardware is upgraded (EA refuses to disclose specifics of what), and possibly when a new user is set up in Windows. Only in its first month, some users are already locked out of their games from trying troubleshooting techniques to get the game running."
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Source: Slashdot | 17 Jun 2008 | 8:56 pmCalifornia Cracks Down On Genetic Testing
genie-out-of-the-bottle writes "California's Department of Public Health has sent cease-and-desist notices to 13 companies that market genetic testing directly to consumers. (We discussed these services when they launched.) Allegedly, under state law, California residents must submit a doctor's order to have a genetic test run. It will be interesting to see if the government will actually succeed in putting the genetic genie back in the bottle, given that all you need for testing is a few drops of saliva. The effort closely resembles US government attempts to block export of strong encryption product back in 90s." A Wired editor has up an opinion piece arguing that his DNA is his business and none of the government's.
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Source: Slashdot | 17 Jun 2008 | 8:43 pmPhD Research On Software Design Principles?
cconnell writes "I am working on a PhD in software engineering at Tufts University. My interest are the general principles of good software design, and I am looking for links/references on this topic. The question is: What design/architecture qualities are shared by all good software? Good software means lacking in bugs, maintainable, modifiable, scalable, etc... Please don't tell me 'use object oriented methods' or 'try extreme programming.' These answers are too narrow, since there is good software written in COBOL, and by 1000-person teams for DoD projects. I am looking for general design principles. If it helps, I am trying to build on the ideas in this article from some years back."
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Source: Slashdot | 17 Jun 2008 | 8:09 pm
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