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Earth

Submission + - Caltech Scientists Measure Dinosaur Body Temp (rdmag.com)

Submitted by
damn_registrars
damn_registrars writes: "Using rare isotope ratios, a geology team at CalTech has determined body temperatures of sauropod dinosaurs. Their work finds temperatures that are roughly in line with modern mammals for body temperature. However, as the authors point out, this does not on its own confirm dinosaurs to be entirely warm-blooded, as they may have kept these temperatures by sheer mass.

The peer-reviewed paper is available online in PNAS, as they are NIH-supported, you can also get the article free through pubmed."
Science

Submission + - Green Rust Could Help Clean Nuclear Waste (ibtimes.com)

Submitted by RedEaredSlider
RedEaredSlider writes: The nuclear disaster in Japan could leave many areas contaminated with radioactive heavy metals, and even after cleanup the contaminated material will have to be put somewhere. Wherever that is, there is the risk of groundwater contamination.

A Danish researcher says he may have found a way to solve that problem, using a form of rust to clean out groundwater. Bo C. Christiansen, a geochemist at the University of Copenhagen, says "green rust" can be used to trap atoms of heavy metals in magnetite crystals, and make it much easier to filter them out of water.

Green rust forms wherever there is iron, water, and little free oxygen. Ordinary rust takes on a red color and forms from the reaction of iron with oxygen. Green rust happens when the reactions aren't complete yet, so there are fewer electrons attached to the atoms of iron and oxygen. That makes it reactive, and it means that when it is exposed to heavy metals, such as those produced in fission reactions, it can trap the atoms of metals between the molecules of iron oxide, which precipitates out of solutions as magnetite.

Submission + - Blogger is changing. (blogspot.com)

Submitted by
karthikmns
karthikmns writes: "Blogger is changing and its a drastic change in the interface. Google in its blog post has announced the new features of blogger starting this year. For all the folks who attend the SXSW can have a sneak peak to the new blogger interface. Google has released the new interface pictures. We think the changes are cool and most wanted."
The Internet

Submission + - 4Chan is 'Misunderstood' says Christopher Poole

Submitted by
Hugh Pickens writes
Hugh Pickens writes writes: "The Guardian reports that 4Chan, the influential internet subculture which spawned Anonymous, Rickrolling and Rage Guy, is "misunderstood" as "the dark heart of the internet", says founder Christopher Poole. Outlining his case for online anonymity before a packed audience in the Austin Convention Center at SXSW 2011, Poole argued that 4Chan's chaotic messageboard is a fertile breeding ground for creativity. "It's riffing on a massive scale. 4Chan is misunderstood – people like to think that /b/ [4Chan's infamously random subforum] is the dark heart of the internet. It isn't just that," says Poole. "One of the things that 4Chan does that's really special is the way people come together to collaborate en masse. It's the process at which you arrive at the product that is fascinating." Poole took a swipe at Mark Zuckerberg who has described anonymous internet posting as showing a lack of integrity. "Zuckerberg's totally wrong on anonymity being total cowardice. Anonymity is authenticity. It allows you to share in a completely unvarnished, raw way.""
Encryption

Why Sony Cannot Stop PS3 Pirates 378

Posted by Soulskill from the of-pots-and-kettles dept.
Sam writes "A former Ubisoft exec believes that Sony will not be able to combat piracy on the PlayStation 3, which was recently hacked. Martin Walfisz, former CEO of Ubisoft subsidiary Ubisoft Massive, was a key player in developing Ubisoft's new DRM technologies. Since playing pirated games doesn't require a modchip, his argument is that Sony won't be able to easily detect hacked consoles. Sony's only possible solution is to revise the PS3 hardware itself, which would be a very costly process. Changing the hardware could possibly work for new console sales, though there would be the problem of backwards compatibility with the already-released games. Furthermore, current users would still be able to run pirated copies on current hardware." An anonymous reader adds commentary from PS3 hacker Mathieu Hervais about Sony's legal posturing.
Cellphones

John Carmack Not Enthused About Android Marketplace 163

Posted by Soulskill from the hit-with-a-fragmentation-grenade dept.
An anonymous reader writes "During an in-depth and informative interview, Doom creator and id Software co-founder John Carmack opines on iOS game development, the economics of mobile development vs. console development, why mobile games lend themselves to more risk-taking and greater creativity, and finally, why he's not too keen on the Android Marketplace as a money-making machine. '...I'm honestly still a little scared of the support burden and the effort that it's going to take for our products, which are very graphics-intensive.'"
Patents

8-Year-Old Receives Patent 142

Posted by samzenpus from the young-inventor-society dept.
Knile writes "While not the youngest patent recipient ever (that would be a four year old in Texas), Bryce Gunderman has received a patent at age 8 for a space-saver that combines an outlet cover plate with a shelf. From the article: '"I thought how I was going to make a lot of money," Bryce said about what raced through his brain when he received the patent.'"

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