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Science

Submission + - Gravity explained as not a force. (google.nl)

Submitted by sciencewatcher
sciencewatcher writes: The Dutch theoretical physicist Erik Verlinde proposed a remarkable simple theory which explains gravity as a statistical phenomenon resulting from different concentrations of information in empty spaces between masses. If it holds the magnitude of this new theory is of the same order as Einstein's introduction of the relativity theory and would result in a rewrite of all secondary education physics books. 'Gravity is not a fundamental force. It emergences from a deeper microscopic reality' he stated in a newspaper article (Dutch, Google translated). Simple Newtonian laws like the law of motion (F=m*a) can be easily derived from the new theory. So far his colleagues have stated to be intrigued rather than sceptic. The implications for other theories such as the unification theory are enormous.
Google

Submission + - SPAM: Google releases experimental phone to employees

Submitted by alphadogg
alphadogg writes: Google has handed out a new mobile phone running its Android software to some employees, stirring another wave of speculation that the oft-rumored Google Phone is real. In a blog post [spam URL stripped] on Saturday morning, Google said the phones are being distributed so that workers can experiment with new mobile features. It did not say the device will be a Google-branded phone. Since even before Google unveiled Android, onlookers wondered if the search giant would release its own phone. Instead, it released an open source operating system that other hardware vendors can use to make phones.
Link to Original Source

Submission + - U.S. and Russia Open Talks on Limits to Cyberwar (nytimes.com)

Submitted by andy1307
andy1307 writes: According to the New York Times, "The United States has begun talks with Russia and a United Nations arms control committee about strengthening Internet security and limiting military use of cyberspace. American and Russian officials have different interpretations of the talks so far, but the mere fact that the United States is participating represents a significant policy shift after years of rejecting Russia’s overtures. Officials familiar with the talks said the Obama administration realized that more nations were developing cyberweapons and that a new approach was needed to blunt an international arms race. While the Russians have continued to focus on treaties that may restrict weapons development, the United States is hoping to use the talks to increase international cooperation in opposing Internet crime. Strengthening defenses against Internet criminals would also strengthen defenses against any military-directed cyberattacks, the United States maintains.
Hardware

Submission + - Open source hardware projects - 2009 (makezine.com)

Submitted by ptorrone
ptorrone writes: MAKE's yearly open source hardware guide is now online. There are over 125 projects in 19 categories. The creators of each one of these projects have decided to completely publish all the source, schematics, firmware, software, bill of materials, parts list, drawings and "board" files to recreate the hardware — they also allow any use, including commercial. In other words, you can make a business making and selling any of these. This is similar to open source software like Linux, but this hardware centric.
Mozilla

Mozilla Thunderbird 3 Released 272

Posted by kdawson from the hot-bits dept.
supersloshy writes Today Mozilla released Thunderbird 3. Many new features are available, including Tabs and enhanced search features, a message archive for emails you don't want to delete but still want to keep, Firefox 3's improved Add-ons Manager, Personas support, and many other improvements. Download here."
Yahoo!

Submission + - SPAM: Investor Carl Icahn Quits Yahoo Board

Submitted by itwbennett
itwbennett writes: In a letter to Yahoo's board of directors that was also released to reporters, Carl Icahn resigned from the company's board, saying he no longer sees a need for an activist investor at Yahoo. 'When I joined the board, the company was in a state of turmoil. In the period since then, we have all worked together to achieve much for the company, most notably bringing Carol on to be the CEO and then consummating the search deal with Microsoft,' Icahn wrote in the letter. As you undoubtedly recall, Icahn joined the board last year after threatening to launch a proxy fight to replace the entire board and remove Jerry Yang as CEO. For its part, Yahoo said that it was grateful for his 'active role shaping the future of Yahoo.'
Link to Original Source

Submission + - SPAM: Judge Throws Out Craigslist Lawsuit

Submitted by itwbennett
itwbennett writes: A judge in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois has dismissed a lawsuit charging Craigslist with facilitating prostitution. 'While we accept as true the plaintiff's allegation that users routinely flout Craigslist's guidelines it is not because Craigslist has caused them to do so,' the judge wrote in his dismissal of the case. 'Intermediaries are not culpable for 'aiding and abetting' their customers who misuse their services to commit unlawful acts.'
Link to Original Source

Submission + - 3 Years Prison in CA For Covering Laptop (ca.gov) 7

Submitted by mrcaseyj
mrcaseyj writes: California penal code section 537e makes it a felony punishable by up to 3 years in prison to be in possession of an integrated computer panel where the serial number or any other distinguishing number or identification mark has been covered. It's also a crime punishable by 6 months or a year to cover or obliterate the serial number or identification mark of just about any other personal property, from tools to CDs and much more. While a district attorney might have a hard time prosecuting you for such a crime, it appears a police officer could still take you to jail without having to worry about getting in trouble, because covering is apparently illegal by the letter of the law.
The Internet

Submission + - 7 Ways You’re Breaking the Law Online (kiwicommons.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Some of these violations are all too common – a simple oversight of trifling proportions or an infraction with no ill intent whatsoever. While some could land you just a wallet-thinning fine, others could earn you jail time and a criminal record. Is it worth it?
Security

Submission + - Ants vs. Worms: Computer Security Mimics Nature (net-security.org)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: In the never-ending battle to protect computer networks from intruders, security experts are deploying a new defense modeled after one of nature's hardiest creatures — the ant. Unlike traditional security devices, which are static, these "digital ants" wander through computer networks looking for threats, such as "computer worms" — self-replicating programs designed to steal information or facilitate unauthorized use of machines. When a digital ant detects a threat, it doesn't take long for an army of ants to converge at that location, drawing the attention of human operators who step in to investigate.
Apple

Submission + - MMS is Live on the Iphone! (associatedcontent.com)

Submitted by
Calindae
Calindae writes: "It's finally here! The day we have all waited for (or at least iPhone owners have waited for)! You can now multi-media message with your Apple iPhone. Wow, was that a loooong "late summer"!"

Submission + - Sexism: Open Source Software's Dirty Little Secret (earthweb.com)

Submitted by
Drahgkar
Drahgkar writes: "On September 19th, the GNOME Foundation and the Free Software Foundation supposedly hosted a mini-summit on how to increase women's participation in the free and open source software (FOSS) communities. The summit was speculated as an effort to repair relationships between the two foundations after Richard Stallman was pilloried for sexism after his keynote in Gran Canaria a couple of months ago.

The article seems to have opened a can of worms with some people wondering if the FOSS community is more prone to this or if this is the case for IT in general. Results and minutes from the summit can be found here and here."
Space

Submission + - Andromeda absorbs its neighbour. We're next. (popsci.com.au) 2

Submitted by
Scientific Ninja
Scientific Ninja writes: "Astronomers in the University of Sydney have captured pictures of a 'union' between our closest neighbouring galaxy, Andromeda, and its smaller neighbour, the Triangulum Galaxy. Published in the journal Nature on 3 September 2009, the research shows how large galaxies grow by incorporating stars from surrounding smaller galaxies. This popular model of galaxy evolution, called the 'hierarchical model', predicts that large galaxies such as Andromeda, which can be seen with the naked eye from the northern hemisphere, should be surrounded by relics of smaller galaxies it has connected with."
Windows

Submission + - Beyond Trust Warns that UAC is Still Broken. (reuters.com) 2

Submitted by
twitter
twitter writes: "Enterprise users looking for a reason to upgrade from XP will be disappointed with Windows 7 security issues. BeyondTrust, a Least Privilege Management provider for Windows, warns that UAC changes are ineffective and not up to Federal regulations.

Despite growing CSO and CISO recognition of the need to deploy end-users as standard users, and requirements by the Federal Government for the removal of administrator rights under the Federal Desktop Core Configuration (FDCC) mandate, Windows 7 includes no significant changes to UAC for standard users.

"For enterprises, there is little benefit to the changes to User Account Control in Windows," said John Moyer, CEO of BeyondTrust. "Windows 7 introduces cosmetic changes to reduce the prompts that plagued Vista, but it does nothing to fix the underlying productivity and usability problems for standard users... Windows 7`s UAC slider puts end-users in charge of the security decision of what to run with administrative privileges, which is essentially an invitation for malicious users, hackers and malware."

It is amazing that Microsoft can not do what Unix and every gnu/linux distribution has done for decades, provide real user privilege separation. Where these are provided, it is easy to add GUI front ends like kdesu, so that authentication is simple and painless for the few times it is needed."

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