Steffan - Slashdot User

Submission + - A light-powered toothbrush?

Submitted by

Roland Piquepaille

on Saturday November 24, 2007 @02:45PM

Roland Piquepaille writes: "Would you like to use a light-powered toothbrush which needs no toothpaste and no batteries? It's already available in Japan and North America and it costs about $30. Its rod contains titanium dioxide that generates a plaque-removing electrochemical reaction. This 'solar' toothbrush of the future 'works by releasing electrons that then react with the saliva in the mouth and help to breakdown plaque.' It just needs some light — so you'll be able to wash your teeth in your garden or on your balcony. And as it has no batteries, this is a very eco-friendly device. It is currently tested today by 120 students at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada, but it's already available online. But read more additional references and to see how the light-powered Soladey toothbrush works."

Submission + - Apple forcing 1.1.2 updates?

Submitted by

dbizzle

on Wednesday November 21, 2007 @01:07PM

dbizzle writes: "I never updated my iPhone from its original release (1.0.2) because i was afraid that it might brick my newest toy. That being said, naturally every time I'd sync with iTunes it'd ask me to update and I would just click no. Once Apple had released 1.1.2, I found my phone in "Recovery Mode" after just using it minutes before and over a month before that with not problem on its original firmware release. So, I'm curious if Apple or perhaps AT&T have somehow managed to identify the software levels of iPhones out there and are capable of putting the phone into recovery mode to force the firmware updates. Any other folks experiencing this?"

Submission + - Double your disk read performance with one command (itauth.com)

Submitted by achillean on Wednesday November 21, 2007 @02:20AM

achillean writes: Under the right conditions (that is, with certain hardware configurations I'll explain later) it is possible to literally double your sequential read performance from disk. That's right, I said double. All with a single command. What is this magic you ask? How can I know the voodoo you do? Read on.

Submission + - In Defense of Gen Y Workers (cio.com)

Submitted by

Chris Lindquist

on Wednesday November 21, 2007 @12:38AM

Chris Lindquist writes: "Entitled? Spoiled? Maybe. But Gen Y workers are the future, like them or not. CIO.com has a couple recent articles defending Generation Y from the attacks generally heaped upon the group these days. One is by a 21-year-old editorial assistant who concludes "I'm different, I'm better and I'm tired of hearing otherwise. Ignore me at your peril." The other is by a reader who posted a piece noting that his own 21-year-old daughter's discarded alarm clock led to his recognition that the world has changed dramatically for the next generation — and for him."

Submission + - Here come the thought police

Submitted by QuietLagoon on Tuesday November 20, 2007 @01:14PM

QuietLagoon writes: In a Baltimore Sun op-ed piece, Ralph E. Shaffer and R. William Robinson write, 'With overwhelming bipartisan support, Rep. Jane Harman's "Violent Radicalization and Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act" passed the House 404-6 late last month and now rests in Sen. Joe Lieberman's Homeland Security Committee. Swift Senate passage appears certain.

'Not since the "Patriot Act" of 2001 has any bill so threatened our constitutionally guaranteed rights.

'The historian Henry Steele Commager, denouncing President John Adams' suppression of free speech in the 1790s, argued that the Bill of Rights was not written to protect government from dissenters but to provide a legal means for citizens to oppose a government they didn't trust. Thomas Jefferson's Declaration of Independence not only proclaimed the right to dissent but declared it a people's duty, under certain conditions, to alter or abolish their government....

'Ms. Harman's proposal includes an absurd attack on the Internet, criticizing it for providing Americans with "access to broad and constant streams of terrorist-related propaganda," and legalizes an insidious infiltration of targeted organizations. The misnamed "Center of Excellence," which would function after the commission is disbanded in 18 months, gives the semblance of intellectual research to what is otherwise the suppression of dissent.'

Submission + - Sysinternal Tools going Bye Bye...? 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Monday November 19, 2007 @02:40PM

An anonymous reader writes: Recently I have tried to download the source codes for some Sysinternal tools, namely pskill.exe, to incorporate it into my program to help kill a spawned process when it is not behaving properly. Since Microsoft have purchased sysinternal.com, us administrators have have become worried that these cool tools, that are necessary for our day to day needs, might vanish into thin air. The Source codes have disappeared from the website during migration, and now all their download links no longer works. Is this the end of Sysinternal tools?

Submission + - Best Buy

Submitted by

MJay

on Sunday November 18, 2007 @03:53PM

MJay writes: "On April 13, 2003 I ordered a plasma TV with a four year extended warranty from the Best Buy Store in North Olmsted, Ohio. I was on a six month travel order with the Department of Defense. I was assured that it would not be a problem when I received the unit as I was planning a renovation when I returned home to San Diego, CA. The clerk told me the dates did not matter. The TV was delivered September 13, 2003 and the Best Buy installers attached it to my wall hiding all the wires on Sept 17. The TV operated fine until Sept 4, 2007, suddenly the TV went out. Although I thought I still had a few more days left on the warranty, Best Buy informed me that the warranty had started 5 months before I received it. Best Buy prorated the extended warranty refunding me $41.62, which I did not cash. I found out from Samsung that the TV was manufactured in Korea 17 days after Best Buy said the warranty started. Samsung also showed that their 24 month warranty started from the date I received it, Sept 13, 2003 and that was also the date of purchase. I went to small claims court November 1, 2007. The judge ruled in my favor. The judge ruled that I am entitled to costs of Best Buy repair service visit of $100 and have the TV fixed or replaced. I am now waiting for the court papers. I can only imagine what Best Buy will do next. I would be happy to help in any way I can for others. There were a number of things they told me that were not true. There are too many to make it boring, but in one instance I have a witness, my brother a licensed plumber. During my renovation in 2003 their installer told me that I needed to replace my copper plumbing with plastic. I immediately called my brother who then spoke with their installer. It was decided that it was unnecessary. Their installer wanted to steal my copper. I find I cannot believe anything Best Buy tells me. I wish to help others in anyway I can because I feel Best Buy misrepresented the facts but got caught on a technicality. I was lucky but they said they can fix the TV four times before replacing it. I do not trust them and expect there will be more problems when I should be getting an apology."

Submission + - Extracing Oil and Gas From Everything (popsci.com) 2

Submitted by BlaineZilla on Sunday November 18, 2007 @12:13PM

BlaineZilla writes: Popular Science has an article about a new invention that extracts oil and gas from just about everything you place in it. Add an old tire, hit it with a few microwaves and couple seconds you have oil. It sounds too good to be true, but if it is I think this guy might make a couple bucks.

Submission + - Open Source Mathematical Software

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 17, 2007 @05:42PM

An anonymous reader writes: The American Mathematical society has an opinion piece about open source software vs propietary software used in mathematics. From the article : "Increasingly, proprietary software and the algorithms used are an essential part of mathematical proofs. To quote J. Neubüser, 'with this situation two of the most basic rules of conduct in mathematics are violated: In mathematics information is passed on free of charge and everything is laid open for checking.'"

Submission + - Secure Bluetooth connection by shaking!

Submitted by heilbron on Saturday November 17, 2007 @07:23AM

heilbron writes: The Austrian researcher Rene Mayrhofer of the British Lancaster university and his colleague Hans Gellersen developed a technology to simplify a secured wireless connection of mobile devices. With the so-called shake-to-connect technology an authenticated Bluetooth connection between two mobile phones is established by rhythmic shaking. Integrated oscillation sensors, contained in some mobile phone models, form the basis. The two researchers sketched out a prototype, which is intended for Nokia mobile phones. An example is documented in this YouTube video clip. If two mobile phones are shaked together, the software in both devices registers the same shaking frequency and authenticates the radio link. The principle is summed up in this four page PDF document.

Submission + - Menstrual cycle is a good source of stem cells. (110mb.com)

Submitted by

mayanks_098

on Saturday November 17, 2007 @05:47AM

mayanks_098 writes: "The "monthly curse" may be anything but: menstrual blood appears to be a rich and easily accessible source of adult stem cells, claim two competing research groups. Each month, after a woman's uterine lining is shed, it has to be rebuilt in preparation for a fertilised egg. This feat involves growing the billions of cells to make a 5ml layer"

Submission + - SPAM: Microbes churn out hydrogen at record rate 1

Submitted by

FiReaNGeL

on Tuesday November 13, 2007 @02:51PM

FiReaNGeL writes: "By adding a few modifications to their successful wastewater fuel cell, researchers have coaxed common bacteria to produce hydrogen in a new, efficient way. Using starter material that could theoretically be sourced from a salad bar, the researchers have coaxed microbes to generate hydrogen. "We achieved the highest hydrogen yields ever obtained with this approach from different sources of organic matter, such as yields of 91 percent using vinegar (acetic acid) and 68 percent using cellulose"."
Link to Original Source

Submission + - WSJ just wants to be free (nytimes.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday November 13, 2007 @01:11PM

An anonymous reader writes: Wall St. Journal to drop subscription model.

Submission + - Bill Seeks Criminalisation of "Extreme" Ad

Submitted by

Brian Ribbon

on Tuesday November 06, 2007 @12:33PM

Brian Ribbon writes: "During the Queen's speech, it was today announced that the "Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill" intends to criminalise the mere possession of "extreme" or "violent" adult pornography. Many flawed and deceitful arguments (often used to justify the criminalisation of the possession of child porn) have been used, including claims that the possessor will somehow "harm" the victim every time the image is viewed, and the unproven belief that the possessor will be "corrupted" by the images and will then act out his fantasies. The "evidence" (pdf) used to justify this aim of the bill came from a study solicited by the Ministry of Justice, conducted by feminist activists. Will the British government ever cease to use pseudo-science in order to invade the private lives of its citizens?"

Submission + - Java Developers Jumping the Apple Ship? 1

Submitted by dringess on Wednesday October 31, 2007 @02:34PM

dringess writes: There is an Apple hatefest going on in the Java developer community about Leopard not shipping with Java 6. As a MacBook Pro owner and a Java developer, I know I am definitely disenchanted.

Slashdot Top Deals