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Two Black Hat Talks On Apple Security Cancelled - Slashdot
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 3 Aug 2008 | 12:06 pm Two Black Hat Talks On Apple Security CancelledAn anonymous reader writes "Two separate Apple security talks have been nixed at the last minute from next week's Black Hat security conference in Las Vegas. The Washington Post's Security Fix blog reports that Apple researcher Charles Edge was to present on flaws in Apple's FileVault encryption plan, but asked Black Hat to cancel the talk, citing confidentiality agreements with Apple. Then on Friday, Apple pulled its security engineering team out of a planned public discussion on the company's security practices — which would have been a first for Apple. 'Marketing got wind of it, and nobody at Apple is ever allowed to speak publicly about anything without marketing approval,' a Black Hat spokesman said."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 3 Aug 2008 | 12:04 pm Verizon Denies DSL Because of Subscriber's Namemikek2 writes "When retired Philadelphia-area doctor and Vietnam veteran Dr. Herman I. Libshitz went to upgrade his dial-up connection to Verizon DSL, he was informed they wouldn't complete the order because his last name contained an expletive. Repeated calls to several levels of management at Verizon failed to resolve the problem, with several managers suggesting he change his last name. It all worked out in the end, after the Philadelphia Enquirer intervened."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 3 Aug 2008 | 9:43 am Phoenix Lander Finds Ice, Gets To Stay "Alive" An Additional 30 Days - eFluxMedia
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 3 Aug 2008 | 9:38 am Elbit Systems to Equip Australia With Additional Skylark(R) I UAVsHAIFA, Israel, Aug. 3 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Elbit Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq: ESLT) announced today that it was awarded yet another contract to supply the Australian Army...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 9:05 am 3D fan-illustration for PrintcrimeGreg Elmensdorp was inspired by my story Printcrime (a short-short story I wrote for Nature Magazine) to created this blue-red 3D illustration. I think it's terrific and really captures the mood of the story.Printcrime in 3D (Thanks, Greg!) Source: Boing Boing | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:17 am Toyota future a Winglet and a prayer - Motoring
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:03 am Ars ScientificaBy Phillips, Anna Lena An art-science collaboration yields rich insights Joint efforts between historically distinct disciplines raise a lot of questions- and, sometimes, eyebrows.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Waste Not: The Facts About Indirect Potable ReuseBy Parkinson, Jonathan THE BOTTLED WATER I'm drinking tastes just like any other. It's colorless and crystal dear, just like Evian or Aquafina. The only difference is the source: this bottled water came from a toilet in Singapore.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Safety Standards Still Not in PlaceThey've been debating it for years, since 2002, when EPA scientists first suggested curbing perchlorate to 1 part per billion in potable water.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Use Rain Barrels to Wash Cars and Keep Plants Green? Seminar Tells HowBy Jennifer Gollan, South Florida Sun-Sentinel Aug. 3--DEERFIELD BEACH -- Armed with a 55-gallon drum, Julee Felinski intends to harness the power of Florida's heavy downpours.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am 'Pristine and so Beautiful': Site Near Edisto Beach, Rich in Wildlife and History, is Open to the PublicBy Joey Holleman, The State, Columbia, S.C. Aug. 3--With little fanfare, in 1977 South Carolina received one of the most beautiful gifts in its history.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Framing India's Hydraulic Crises: The Politics of the Modern Large DamBy D'Souza, Rohan For several decades following 1947, the modern large dam in India presented itself as a political conundrum, often voiced in strange, contradictory tones.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am A Drought of Water IdeasBy Thomas D. Elias Almost 20 years ago, the usually verdant Marin County, just north of the Golden Gate, suffered through a drought so severe that a ban on all new construction was considered, along with strict water rationing.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am DIY Tips for Salvaging Items After a FireBy Domingo Ramirez Jr., Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Texas Aug. 3--Hours after the July 13 fire at Bethel Baptist Church in Grapevine, the Rev.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am The Oceanic Crisis: Capitalism and the Degradation of Marine EcosystemsBy Clark, Brett Clausen, Rebecca The world ocean covers approximately 70 percent of the earth. It has been an integral part of human history, providing food and ecological services.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Fuel Breaks Did the JobBy Stacia Glenn In the woods beside Lake Gregory, tree trunks tell a very important tale. The bark is blackened, scorched from flickering flames that moved through the forest in the fall of 2007. What is important to note, though, is what remains.Source: RedOrbit News - Science | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Videos, CDs Stop Summer Performance WithdrawsBy Mark Kanny, The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Aug. 3--Concert life evaporates almost completely in August in Western Pennsylvania, but there are plenty of alternatives for those who refuse to write off this month, or other dry periods for that matter.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Which Fits Best on Your Lap?By Bryan Redemske, Omaha World-Herald, Neb. Aug. 3--When my parents shipped me off to college in the fall of 1995, the sum of my possessions fit neatly in the trunk and back seat of my mom's car.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am BRIEF: Name CheckBy The Kansas City Star, Mo. Aug. 3----On Page 199 of Playing With Matches by Brian Katcher, a new teen novel about a boy's relationship with a girl whose face was disfigured in an accident years earlier. The story is set in a St. Louis suburb: Dan shook his head.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Conference CalendarBy Anonymous July 2008 July 9-12, 2008. Autism Society of America, National Conference and Exposition on Autism Spectrum Disorders. Orlando, FL. Contact: 800/328-8476 ext. 7; e-mail: conference@autism- society.org; Web site: http://www.autism-society.org. July 18-20, 2008.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am 'Virtual Job Fair' Caters to TeensBy Jenn Smith, The Berkshire Eagle, Pittsfield, Mass. Aug. 3--PITTSFIELD -- For a young person, the search for a summer job can be stymieing. First there are limitations of where and when one can work due to child labor laws.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Browser: Sony, Apple Do Well in Survey; Kodak Surprises in 1 CategoryBy Bryan Redemske, Omaha World-Herald, Neb. Aug. 3--Apple and Sony found their way to the top of a number of categories in PC Magazine's 21st annual readers' choice survey, which was released online last week.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am EDITORIAL: Sunday PopsBy The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Aug. 3--At a gathering of minority journalists in Chicago last week, Sen. Barack Obama simply couldn't resist stirring the pot.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am BRIEF: Verizon, Unions Negotiate into NightBy The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review Aug. 3--Negotiations continued late Saturday night over union contracts covering about 65,000 workers at Verizon Communications Inc., which were set to expire yesterday.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 8:00 am Toyota Announces the Winglet, Wannabe Segway KillerVarious gadget/toy venues are writing about the Toyota Winglet, a diminutive Segway-like personal transporter. (Toyota took over Sony's robot division a year back.) It comes in three sizes and offers about a third the speed and a quarter the range of the Segway; on the upside, it charges in an hour vs. Segway's 10 hours. Wired writes: "The Winglet is the first gadget to duplicate the celebrated, and often mocked, navigation system of the Segway Transporter."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 3 Aug 2008 | 7:21 am Bruised South Korean government takes on "infodemics" (Reuters)
Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 3 Aug 2008 | 7:16 am They're spinning their own WebNew media enthusiasts are busy creating low-budget Internet videos, with and without union contracts. THE SCREEN...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 7:00 am Malaysia's Proton develops new hybrid car: reportsMalaysia's state-owned carmaker Proton is developing a new, fuel-efficient hybrid car to beat rising costs and address environmental concerns, reports said Sunday. Prime...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 6:32 am Authorities Take Photos Of Elusive Large Cat - Washington Post
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 3 Aug 2008 | 6:17 am Leatherman's 25th anniversary, $40,000 Argentum multitool - Boing Boing GadgetsI've been in love with multitools ever since I had the good fortune to land the multitool beat at Wired, and manufacturers started to send me every single model, without my asking. I'd return 'em if they'd supply a FedEx number and if there was anything left after I destruction-tested them, but that still left me with a quite a beltfull of tools.I stopped carrying tools after the tenth or twelfth time I forgot about them and lost one to the TSA (I've just started carrying a tool again after about five years, only because the Leatherman Skeletool is so cute, functional, and cleverly designed. The other contender was Muji's sweet little no-frills feller). Over on Boing Boing Gadgets, our Rob has found Leatherman's 25th anniversary "Argentum" collection, a set of heavily decorated, engraved tools that run from $12,000-$40,000. Makes me wish I was still getting these things for free -- I don't know that I'd pay for one of these gaudy suckers even if I could afford it. Leatherman tools that cost lots of money, Discuss this on Boing Boing Gadgets Source: Boing Boing | 3 Aug 2008 | 6:14 am Leatherman's 25th anniversary, $40,000 Argentum multitool - Boing Boing GadgetsI've been in love with multitools ever since I had the good fortune to land the multitool beat at Wired, and manufacturers started to send me every single model, without my asking. I'd return 'em if they'd...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 6:14 am SpaceX Falcon 1 craft launch live online (as in, now) Update: the rocket was shut down just before it left the launching pad, because of low engine pressure. Here's a statement from Elon Musk. SpaceX, the space technology firm created by PayPal co-founder and Tesla Motors chairman Elon Musk, is webcasting the launch of its Falcon 1 as I type this blog post. The long run-up to the launch may be a bit boring to watch, but if you are having a lazy Saturday afternoon as I am, I do suggest this as more entertaining veg-out viewing than, say, Project Runway or The Girls Next Door. And, seriously: If they're successful, this will become the first privately developed liquid fuel vehicle to orbit our planet. So that's pretty neat. Snip from press release: Lift-off of the vehicle will occur from SpaceX’s Falcon 1 launch site at the Kwajalein Atoll, about 2500 miles southwest of Hawaii. Falcon 1 launch facilities are situated on Omelek Island, part of the Reagan Test Site (RTS) at United States Army Kwajalein Atoll (USAKA) in the Central Pacific.SpaceX Webcast. Source: Boing Boing | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:48 am SpaceX Falcon 1 craft launch live online (as in, now)Update: the rocket was shut down just before it left the launching pad, because of low engine pressure. Here's a statement from Elon Musk. SpaceX, the space technology firm created by PayPal co-founder...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:48 am NYT on trolls Mattathias Schwartz of GOOD Magazine has a much-linked-to feature in tomorrow's New York Times magazine about trollius dickwadius internetius maximus, a subhuman web-based species better known as the common internet troll. The piece is a really good read, but here's my one beef with it: "disemvowelling" is mentioned, without a hat tip to its inventor and most masterful practitioner, BB's own mod Teresa Nielsen Hayden (boo ya). She crafted the technique in 2002 when her light saber batteries died mid-battle. Snip from the NYT article's mention of this technique, which we use on BB:
I'd insert a comment here about how the NYT editors' failure to namecheck TNH's genius is akin to something Hitler might do, then maybe I'd insert a url in that that sneakily hijacks the browser for a full-screen technicolor goatse kitten-porn gotcha extravaganza -- but then TNH herself would disemvowel me, and I'd join the ranks of the article's subjects, and all would be moot. So anyway, here is my favorite part of the piece, spoken by arch-douche and "Craigslist griefer" Jason Fortuny: All that having been said, there are only two ways to deal with a troll: The Trolls Among Us (NYT. Thanks, Andrea James)
Source: Boing Boing | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:09 am NYT on trollsMattathias Schwartz of GOOD Magazine has a much-linked-to feature in tomorrow's New York Times magazine about trollius dickwadius internetius maximus, a subhuman web-based species better known as the...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:09 am Chinese Restaurant Suffers Large Translation Errorlinuxwrangler writes "Preparing for English-speaking visitors, a restaurant in China recently ran its name through an online translator, took the result, then purchased and mounted a large sign displaying the English version of their name: Translate Server Error." This one has been around for a couple of weeks but it's destined to become a classic.Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:03 am Negotiations Between Verizon and Unions ContinueNEW YORK, Aug. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- As of 12:30 a.m. negotiations continue between Verizon and the two labor unions representing 65,000 Verizon Telecom employees. The...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:02 am Back-to-School Shopping Goes High-TechBy Bob Karlovits Back-to-school shopping has come a long way since the days when slide rules were a high-tech item. In case you don't remember them, they were the manually operated predecessor of some of the sophisticated calculators now on the market.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:00 am Good Time Rock and Roll Launches Great Park Summer Night Flight SeriesIRVINE, Calif., Aug. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- The Orange County Great Park came alive tonight with good time rock and roll and surf ballads sung by the popular 70s Orange County rock band HONK. More than 2,000 people got into the groove with HONK at the first ever Night Flight Saturday evening concert.Source: RedOrbit News - Technology | 3 Aug 2008 | 5:00 am SAfrica's ambitious climate change strategy may include carbon taxSouth Africa's government has set out an ambitious proposal to deal with climate change in the coming years, including slapping a possible carbon tax on carbon dioxide-spewing industries.Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:38 am Bill Gates Trash Talks Bill GatesBill Gates has so much money that pieces of his empire of investments are in conflict — over trash hauling. So like any emperor, hes mediating a hostile takeover battle in the form of an unwanted...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:37 am metered_access2We’ve talked before that metered access is a boneheaded idea that is bad for innovation, bad for Microsoft and Google, and ultimately bad for you. Until today, the idea seemed like an eventuality,...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:36 am Warning Sign: Metered Broadband Already a HassleWe’ve talked before that metered access is a boneheaded idea that is bad for innovation, bad for Microsoft and Google, and ultimately bad for you. Until today, the idea seemed like an eventuality,...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:36 am Deodorizing Eco Clothes - Aoki Farago Aircool Suit(TrendHunter.com) A Japanese formal men's wear company and chain store, Aoki, has come up with a deodorant suit, shirt and socks which promise to eliminate body odor during the hot dog days of summer...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:20 am Australia bans exotic cat breedAustralia has banned imports of an exotic breed of cat, calling it an extreme risk to the country's native wildlife, a minister said Sunday. So-called "Savannah" cats are a...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:06 am Floating Fence Graffiti - Cuprocking by Andy Uprock (VIDEO)(TrendHunter.com) Cuprocking is a new form of street art. Its creator, Andy Uprock, calls it a graffiti revolution. The Sydney, Australia-based artist was inspired as a child while playing soccer...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:00 am 14 Scentsational Aromatherapy Gadgets (SUPER GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) After being inspired by an article on scented earbuds by fellow Trend Hunter, Pearl, I thought I'd take a look back at all the neat innovations that integrate the sense of smell. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:00 am Most Dangerous Object in the Office This Month: Neodymium SupermagnetsThese magnets from United Nuclear Scientific Supplies are a little like gremlins — seemingly harmless, even cute, but capable of serious mayhem. Their combined pull force is 800 pounds, meaning they'll try to tunnel through pretty much any sorry thing that comes between them — furniture, walls, interns, designers. (United Nuclear refused to send us its most powerful pair, which has a total pull force of 4,000 pounds.) We have found, however, that just one of these magnets is all kinds of useful: When the managing editor threatens to cancel Rock Band practice, respond by waving the cylinder of rare earth metal 12 inches from his MacBook. One inch closer and his hard drive is toast! Source: Wired: Gadgets | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:00 am Most Dangerous Object in the Office This Month: Neodymium SupermagnetsThese magnets from United Nuclear Scientific Supplies are a little like gremlins — seemingly harmless, even cute, but capable of serious mayhem. Their combined pull force is 800 pounds, meaning they'll try to tunnel through pretty much any sorry thing that comes between them — furniture, walls, interns, designers. (United Nuclear refused to send us its most powerful pair, which has a total pull force of 4,000 pounds.) We have found, however, that just one of these magnets is all kinds of useful: When the managing editor threatens to cancel Rock Band practice, respond by waving the cylinder of rare earth metal 12 inches from his MacBook. One inch closer and his hard drive is toast! 
Source: Wired Top Stories | 3 Aug 2008 | 4:00 am Fictional Anatomy - Pac Man Skull, Bugs Bunny, Gummi Bears (GALLERY)(TrendHunter.com) To think the images of the real life Simpsons scared me! This Pac Man skull is way too freaky, I actually can't look at it. It is a piece from artist Le Gentil Garcon, who carefully...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNBlogTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 3:40 am Dell Tries To Trademark "Cloud Computing"Ian Lamont writes "The Industry Standard reports that Dell is trying to trademark the term cloud computing . The phrase entered the tech lexicon years ago, but Dell's application (serial number 77139082) was made in early 2007 to the US Patent and Trademark Office, apparently in connection with data center products and services that it was promoting around that time. A quick search of Google News indicates that Dell itself did not use the term in press releases or discussions with indexed English-language media sources from 1996 to 2006. Dell is not the first company to attempt to trademark this term: The Standard notes that NetCentric, a company that provided 'carrier-class Internet fax technology,' also gave it a shot in the late 1990s, but was rejected."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 3 Aug 2008 | 2:43 am HIV epidemic in U.S. worse than previously thought, CDC saysBased on new testing methods, the CDC says there are actually about 56,300 new infections a year -- not 40,000 -- and that rate has been fairly constant for a decade. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 3 Aug 2008 | 2:36 am What will be in Apple’s next laptops? - Macworld
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 3 Aug 2008 | 1:51 am "Mobile Plate Hunter" Cameras Raise QuestionsThe Washington Post has a story on "Minority Report"-style license-plate scanners that mount on police cars. They are the size of softballs, cost $25K, and can scan and run thousands of plates a day through the local Motor Vehicle Administration database. The easy mission creep these devices encourage is summarized in the article: "Initially purchased to find stolen cars, a handful of so-called tag readers are in use across the Washington region to catch not just car thieves, but also drivers who neglected or failed their emissions inspections or let their insurance policies lapse. The District and Prince George's County use them to enforce parking rules... 'I just think it makes us a lot more effective and a lot more efficient in how our time is being used,' [a senior detective] said." The article doesn't mention what happens to the data on legal plates. Suppose the DHS decides it wants a permanent archive of who was where, when?Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 3 Aug 2008 | 12:44 am Jeremy Langmead: Count me out of these Facebook invitationsDo you remember when your mum used to warn you about talking to strangers? Well, nobody seems to care any more who they talk to and some of them are paying the price, particularly those who like to organise...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:07 pm Giant kites to tap power of the high windA traditional childhood pastime could provide a breakthrough in renewable energy, after successful experiments in flying a giant kite at one of Europe's top research centres. Scientists from Delft University...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:07 pm Horribly good internet plot to kill off TVIn the case of Joss Whedon, it was boredom, not necessity, that proved the mother of invention. While he was on strike with fellow Hollywood screenwriters earlier this year, the creator of TV dramas such...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:05 pm New-style malaria vaccine could save millionsScientists have developed a revolutionary vaccine that provided complete protection when tested on animalsSource: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:04 pm Microsoft prove there are just six degrees of separation between usIn a world of 6.6 billion people, it does seem hard to believe. The theory of six degrees of separation contends that, because we are all linked by chains of acquaintance, you are just six introductions...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:03 pm Warning over second wave of CJD casesScientists say that threat of brain illness returning will persist for decadesSource: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:02 pm China lifts ban on Tiananmen sitesWebsites on sensitive subjects such as the bloody crackdown on democracy protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989 were accessible in the Chinese capital yesterday as the authorities lifted more internet restrictions...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:01 pm Brian May, Rock Legend, Publishes His ThesisA year ago we took note when Brian May, guitarist for Queen for the last 30 years, submitted his thesis for a Ph.D. in astrophysics. The news now is that the thesis has been published. You, too, can read all about the population of tiny asteroids and space dust that cause the Zodiacal light. The completed thesis appears as the book "A Survey of Radial Velocities in the Zodiacal Dust Cloud" (Springer and Canopus Publishing Ltd., 2008), available at Amazon for $71.96. May was awarded his Ph.D. last summer and accepted a position as chancellor at a British university in November.Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 2 Aug 2008 | 10:45 pm Would You Pay $1,700 for a Digital Print of Dylan?Sony's Icon Collectibles line is indicative of an overall collapse in the music industry. In an earlier time, this venture would have been a peripheral bonus. But with CDs on their deathbed, and Sony still smarting from the Great Rootkit Fiasco of 2005, it feels like a desperation move.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 10:30 pm Olympic head: No deal on Internet censorship (CNET)CNET - Olympic officials on Saturday said there was "no deal" with the Chinese government to restrict Internet access for foreign journalists covering the Beijing Games.Source: Yahoo! News: Technology News | 2 Aug 2008 | 9:37 pm Toyota Announces Segway Killer: The Winglet Personal TransporterToyota is about to begin testing a vertical, mechanized scooter intended to help people move about in public areas. The Winglet is the first gadget to duplicate the celebrated, and often mocked, navigation system of the Segway Transporter.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 9:30 pm Toyota Announces Segway Killer: The Winglet Personal TransporterToyota is about to begin testing a vertical, mechanized scooter intended to help people move about in public areas. The Winglet is the first gadget to duplicate the celebrated, and often mocked, navigation system of the Segway Transporter.Source: Wired: Gadgets | 2 Aug 2008 | 9:30 pm U.S. AIDS epidemic much worse than once thought, scientists sayBased on new new testing, the CDC says there are actually about 56,300 new infections a year. Among other findings is that black gay men are at the greatest risk of infection in the U.S. ...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNPaperTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 9:18 pm Feds now arrest your laptops at border - Los Angeles Times
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 2 Aug 2008 | 9:17 pm Drew Friedman: Barack Obama portrait
Earlier this week, I posted artist Drew Friedman's terrific portrait of George W. Bush as The Joker. "Now, the flip side," he wrote me today.Drew Friedman's Obama portrait (Time) Previously on BB: • Drew Friedman: George Bush as The Joker • Get Illuminated! podcast: Drew Friedman, comic artist Source: Boing Boing | 2 Aug 2008 | 9:04 pm SpaceX Falcon 1 Rocket Is Set to Launch TonightSpaceX announces the third launch attempt of the Falcon 1 will be today from 7 p.m. - 12 a.m. EST. The launch will be webcast on their site, www.spacex.com, starting 30 minutes before the opening of the launch window.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 9:00 pm NVidia Reportedly Will Exit Chipset Businessxav_jones sends along a story from X bit Laboratories claiming that NVidia is ready to quit making chipsets. That story links one from DigiTimes, which reports that NVidia has denied that it's getting out of the business. "[NVidia] is about to quit chipset business, which automatically means that the company's much-hyped multi-GPU SLI technology is either in danger or re-considered. Moreover, several mainboard makers have already ceased making high-end NVidia-based mainboards. [NVidia has]... reportedly decided to quit core-logic business to concentrate on development of graphics processors and following failure to secure license to build and sell chipsets compatible with Intel Corp.'s microprocessors that use Quick-Path Interconnect bus."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 2 Aug 2008 | 8:48 pm Montauk Monster Becomes a Web Sensation - Switched
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 2 Aug 2008 | 8:24 pm EFF Releases Tool For Testing ISP InterferencePlacid notes that the EFF has announced Switzerland, a tool for testing if your ISP is interfering with your Net connection (e.g. by resetting BitTorrent transfers). It's command-line only at this point. Of course the tool is FOSS, and you can contribute to it via its SourceForge project. From the announcement: "Developed by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Switzerland is an open source software tool for testing the integrity of data communications over networks, ISPs, and firewalls. It will spot IP packets which are forged or modified between clients, inform you, and give you copies of the modified packets."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:49 pm Tutorial: Turn Your iPhone Into a Wireless ModemA few of us at Wired.com are turning our iPhones into wireless modems with the $10 NetShare application. But none of us could get it to work at first. With a little help from NetShare's maker, Nullriver, our connections are now up and running. Here is a step-by-step tutorial in case you're stuck, too.Source: Wired: Gadgets | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:30 pm Tutorial: Turn Your iPhone Into a Wireless ModemA few of us at Wired.com are turning our iPhones into wireless modems with the $10 NetShare application. But none of us could get it to work at first. With a little help from NetShare's maker, Nullriver, our connections are now up and running. Here is a step-by-step tutorial in case you're stuck, too.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:30 pm Once Common on Skin, Anthrax in Lungs Is FatalThe spores that cause anthrax, Bacillus anthracis, occur widely in soil, and the skin form of the infection used to be common. When the spored are inhaled, as in the mail attacks seven years ago, they settle in the lungs, causing infection that is almost impossible to cure once symptoms start.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:30 pm Diamonds in the Rough: documentary on Uganda's politicized hiphop sceneDiamonds in the Rough is a fantastic documentary about the role that hip-hop is playing in organizing the anti-war/anti-poverty movement in Uganda. Narrated by Michael Franti, it tells an gripping story of the way that Ugandan rappers risk political reprisals by creating anthemic rhymes that tell the stories of the victims of the bloody civil war and the long, increasingly corrupt reign of Musoveni. The movie's on the festival circuit now. Diamonds in the Rough on YouTube, Diamonds in the Rough Source: Boing Boing | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:29 pm Dave McKean's Keanoshow, surreal gorgeous short videos on DVD
Science fiction illustrator Dave McKean's new DVD, Keanoshow, is everything you'd want from a DVD of short films made by the best and weirdest illustrator working in the field today. McKean may just be my favorite genre artist (certainly the cover he did for my novel Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town is my all-time favorite in a field full of strong contenders), and the short films here really bring McKean's distinctive aesthetic to life through a series of lucious non-verbal sequences acted out by masked characters and backed by Django Reinhardt jazz. Imagine Mirrormask with the drama removed, leaving nothing behind but pure, awesome weirdness. I can't find any video clips on the web, but if you find some, put 'em in the comments below, 'kay?
Dave Mckean's Keanoshow, The Art of Dave McKean
Source: Boing Boing | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:15 pm Wonderland Expedition Kit: greatest gift ever? The Lucky Girl sez, "My incredible boyfriend Absinthetic made me a Wonderland Expedition kit, from back in 1867 when a biology professor was sent to investigate the tragic fire and curious occurrences surrounding the Liddell house fire. It's full of samples and documentation from the final known trip down the rabbit hole, and is also completely awesome. "
Now, this is true love. Have I mentioned that Alice in Wonderland is my favorite book? And the first book I ever read to myself? And that I'm married to an Alice?
Wonderland expedition kit
(Thanks, That Lucky Girl!) Source: Boing Boing | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:00 pm Web Sites Using SiteMeter Are Crashing With Internet ExplorerA number of websites that use SiteMeter tracking code to monitor the number of visitors to their site are reporting that the code is causing Internet Explorer browsers to crash when users visit their sites.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:00 pm The Digg Science Review, Volume 2Wired Science contributors, Brandon Keim and Alexis Madrigal, help you parse the headlines for the top 20 science stories on Digg in this weekly series.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 7:00 pm China Does U-Turn, Lifts Ban On Websiteskrou sends in a Guardian (UK) article reporting that overnight talks with the International Olympic Committee have resulted in the Chinese government lifting a ban on websites such as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the BBC Chinese language service "in Beijing, Shanghai and possibly further afield." Websites with information on the Falun Gong, Chinese dissidents, the Tibetan government in exile, and the 1989 military crackdown on the Tiananmen Square protests are still inaccessible. (We've been discussing Chinese Olympic censorship right along.) Quoting: "A spokesman for Amnesty International said: 'It's good news that our site has been unblocked in Olympic venues and perhaps elsewhere in Beijing, but it is still a long way from the "complete media freedom" promised. It seems public outrage has succeeded where the IOC's "quiet diplomacy" had failed.' Chinese engineers quoted in an article in the Atlantic Monthly said they had been told to prepare to unblock access for a list of specific internet protocol addresses to used by foreign visitors. But Andrew Lih, a new media author in Beijing, said it seemed the authorities might have simply decided it was easier to lift blocks for everyone. 'It's possible [to block individual locations] but would be very complicated,' he said."Read more of this story at Slashdot. Source: Slashdot | 2 Aug 2008 | 6:49 pm Apple, AT&T Extend Monogamous RelationshipNon-AT&T subscribers who want iPhones: Stop waiting for Apple to open the phone to your network, because it's not happening anytime soon. AT&T and Apple are extending their monogamous relationship through 2009.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 6:30 pm Stockholders Vote to Keep Yahoo Execs on BoardDespite some stockholders' sour comments at Yahoo's 2008 annual stockholder meeting, the majority of stockholders vote to re-elect each member of the executive board.
Source: Wired Top Stories | 2 Aug 2008 | 6:30 pm The FCC on Comcast: Confusion in spades - CNET News
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 2 Aug 2008 | 5:55 pm SpaceX Sets August 2 for Falcon 1 launch - MarketWatch
Source: Google News - Sci/Tech | 2 Aug 2008 | 5:39 pm Ancestor of T-Rex dinosaur unearthed in PolandWARSAW (Reuters) - Paleontologists digging in a brickyard in southern Poland have discovered the remains of a dinosaur they say is a previously unknown ancestor of the Tyrannosaurus Rex.Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 4:27 pm Large scale papercraft pieces Papercraft maestro Peter Callesen's "Large Scale Installations" are especially mindblowing, though all of his work is really dynamite. I love the elaborated, hairily detailed bits and pieces that fill the insides of this piece. Click through to see all the details. Large Scale Papercut Installations (via Beyond the Beyond) Source: Boing Boing | 2 Aug 2008 | 3:47 pm Hollywood's Elite Joins T-Mobile, Tony Hawk and Stone Temple Pilots at the Summer's Hottest Action Sports ExtravaganzaEmile Hirsch, Christina Milian, Audrina Patridge and More Celebrate the Launch of the T-Mobile Sidekick LX(TM) Tony Hawk Edition HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Aug. 2 /PRNewswire/...Source: Infocious RSS raw feed - channel BNewsTech | 2 Aug 2008 | 12:55 pm Video game quilts from Carolina Patchworks Etsy seller CarolinaPatchworks makes beautiful 8-bit video game quilts. I'm still partial to Punzie's works in this genre, but why choose when you can have both, I always say. Be sure to see the Carolina Patchworks Quilt blog for a really lovely selection of non-game-related quilts, too. Carolina Patchworks Quilts on Etsy, Carolina Patchworks blog (via Wonderland)
See also: Zelda, Invaders and Resident Evil quilts
Source: Boing Boing | 2 Aug 2008 | 11:08 am
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