Feed Life decisions separate 'hawk' from 'dove' (pheedo.com)
The way animals decide how to live their lives, and when to reproduce, may control their "personalities", according to a new model
Submission + - IAMT, a Centrino backdoor?
An anonymous reader writes: Intel is heavily promoting what it calls "active management technology" (AMT) in the new chips as a major plus for system administrators and enterprise IT.
Understood to be a sub-operating system residing in the chip's firmware, AMT will allow administrators to both monitor or control individual machines independent of an operating system.
Additionally, AMT also features what Intel calls "IDE redirection" which will allow administrators to remotely enable, disable or format or configure individual drives and reload operating systems and software from remote locations, again independent of operating systems.
Both AMT and IDE control are enabled by a new network interface controller.
"We all know our [operating system] friends don't crash that often, but it does happen," Tucker said.
here's the link to the story
Understood to be a sub-operating system residing in the chip's firmware, AMT will allow administrators to both monitor or control individual machines independent of an operating system.
Additionally, AMT also features what Intel calls "IDE redirection" which will allow administrators to remotely enable, disable or format or configure individual drives and reload operating systems and software from remote locations, again independent of operating systems.
Both AMT and IDE control are enabled by a new network interface controller.
"We all know our [operating system] friends don't crash that often, but it does happen," Tucker said.
here's the link to the story
Submission + - A "finger length" test for Technophobia?
donak writes: "Linux World Australia has a story from PCWorld about a possible connection between testosterone and oestrogen in utero, and the ability of a person in either mathematics or language ... and also an indicator of possible technophobia
http://www.linuxworld.com.au/index.php?id=16464442 87&eid=-50
From the article:
"Testosterone has been linked to spatial skills and mathematical skills, [and] digit ratio has been linked to testosterone," said Brosnan, Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath. "So the question then was — does digit ratio relate to mathematical abilities?"
Scientists believe that high levels of exposure to the male hormone, testosterone, while a child develops in its mother's womb, promote the development of the areas of the brain which are often associated with spatial and mathematical skills.
Similarly, the female hormone oestrogen is thought to do the same in the areas of the brain which are often associated with verbal ability.
—
I always thought the "relationship of digits" _is_ mathematics ..."
http://www.linuxworld.com.au/index.php?id=1646444
From the article:
"Testosterone has been linked to spatial skills and mathematical skills, [and] digit ratio has been linked to testosterone," said Brosnan, Head of the Department of Psychology at the University of Bath. "So the question then was — does digit ratio relate to mathematical abilities?"
Scientists believe that high levels of exposure to the male hormone, testosterone, while a child develops in its mother's womb, promote the development of the areas of the brain which are often associated with spatial and mathematical skills.
Similarly, the female hormone oestrogen is thought to do the same in the areas of the brain which are often associated with verbal ability.
—
I always thought the "relationship of digits" _is_ mathematics
Submission + - Say no to traffic shaping
kash2000 writes: "UK based blog against Virgin Media and other ISP's who shape or throttle broadband downloads. broadband, virgin media, ISP, throttling, traffic management."
Submission + - The Straight Dope on Colony Collapse Disorder
friedo writes: "Slashdot has been covering the bizarre story of Colony Collapse Disorder — the mysterious disappearance of agricultural beehives all over North America. Now the Straight Dope has weighed in with the unsurprising conclusion that much of the panic is no more than simple media hype. "[T]there's no reason at this point to think European honey bees are going to be wiped out, now or ever. The die-offs so far appear to affect some beekeepers more than others, sometimes in the same area. That's one reason scientists are so puzzled, but it strongly suggests the losses may have something to do with how individual beekeepers are managing their bees. The "significant percentage" of failing hives is still a drop in the bucket when viewed against the global population of honey bees, and there are lots of beekeepers (even in the U.S., which appears hardest hit) who have not had, and may never have, significant losses of colonies. Plenty of honey bees remain to replace the ones that have died."
Feed ORNL's laser-based surveillance / monitoring system takes on RFID (engadget.com)
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets, Wireless
Amazingly, the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is actually not located in the UK, but we wouldn't doubt if the latest development to emerge from its confines somehow ends up across the pond. Nevertheless, scientists at the lab have developed a Laser-Based Item Monitoring System that "addresses surveillance requirements in places where video would be unacceptable because of the presence of proprietary information or other privacy concerns." Essentially, this optical monitoring system uses low-cost reflective tags placed on objects, and then maps the precise location of high-value items to sense tampering. The laser can purportedly detect minute changes (movements of less than a centimeter) by utilizing "a high-resolution two-axis laser scanner capable of looking at a 60-degree field of view in 0.0005-degree increments," meaning that it can divide its field of view into more than 10 billion individual pointing locations. The crew also noted that this system was generally superior to bar code and RFID alternatives as the LBIMS would not be susceptible to jamming or interception, but there's no word just yet on when the Department of Energy (or anyone else) will be putting this stuff to good use.[Via Smartmobs, photo courtesy of Primidi]
Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
Submission + - Too cool for school: Hybrid school buses
An anonymous reader writes: North Carolina launched 2 new plug-in diesel-electric hybrid school buses that should get 12.7MPG vs 6.8MPG for a "regular" diesel bus.
Story: http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=triangle &id=5315050
Advanced Energy hybrid bus site:
http://www.advancedenergy.org/corporate/initiative s/hybrid_electric_bus.html
Story: http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=triangl
Advanced Energy hybrid bus site:
http://www.advancedenergy.org/corporate/initiativ
Submission + - IT worker shortage? Recruit more women
coondoggie writes: "Recruiters wanting to hire women for information technology positions have to go beyond the typical sales pitch emphasizing job promotion and security in order to get results, according to a Penn State research study of 92 female IT practitioners released today.While women represent almost 60% of the workforce, they account for only a little more than 32% of the IT workforce. Human-resources personnel need to recognize that women have diverse values and motivations throughout their careers and tailor hiring and retention practices to fit those needs. Recruiters and human resource departments need to look at other factors that become important to women over time, she said, such as job flexibility and accepting less money for increased time off, researchers said in a statement.
http://www.networkworld.com/community/?q=node/1564 3"
Submission + - Google launches Street Level Views for Maps
geekfactory writes: "This morning at Where 2.0 in San Jose, Google announced Street Level maps utilizing a 360 degree view of local streets (so you can "fly from satellite to street level") using immersive 360 degree video from Immersive Media. I'm imagining getting directions, then stopping halfway through to zoom down and look at a 360 degree view of the street to find a restaurant, or a mall, or a gas station.
Immersive Media has some cool demos of what they're doing for Google here: http://demos.immersivemedia.com/onlinecities/"
Submission + - Flowers For Algernon
Baldrson writes: "Drug Researcher reports that Algernon lives:
''...[R]esearchers ... have conditionally knocked out a specific gene to prevent an enzyme called cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) from being produced, but only in the brain. This led to the mice becoming more adept at learning and also able to more quickly decipher environmental changes...."It's pretty rare that you make mice 'smarter,' so there are a lot of cognitive implications," said Dr Bibb. "Everything is more meaningful to these mice," he said. "The increase in sensitivity to their surroundings seems to have made them smarter." ''
The mice did have a more difficult adolescence than the "normal" mice, who bit them and pushed them off the wheel when the researcher wasn't looking."
The mice did have a more difficult adolescence than the "normal" mice, who bit them and pushed them off the wheel when the researcher wasn't looking."
Submission + - World's smallest hardware firewall?
An anonymous reader writes: An Israeli startup has squeezed a complete hardware firewall into a USB key. The "Yoggie Pico" from Yoggie Systems runs Linux 2.6 along with 13 security applications on a 520MHz PXA270, a powerful Intel processor typically used in high-end smartphones. The Pico works in conjunction with Windows XP or Vista drivers that hijack traffic at network layers 2-3, below the TCP/IP stack, and route it to USB, where the Yoggie analyzes and filters traffic at close-to-100Mbps wireline speeds. The device will hit big-box retailers in the U.S. this month.
Submission + - Volkswagon develops car that gets 282 MPG
maddmike writes: Engineers at Volkswagen have developed a car that can get only use 1 litre/100km or 282mpg. The new car has Cameras and LCD screens instead of mirrors to reduce drag, a magnesium frame and a carbon fiber body.
So why can't US car makers build cars that can get 50 mpg?
Submission + - How much sleep do you need?
phorm writes: "I was recently having a discussion with a friend wherein we noticed that, although we had been lacking in sleep lately, we were — in general — feeling somewhat less tired. More specifically for myself, I generally end up feeling more alert in the morning, sometimes with a more steep drop-off towards night.
This had led to research over the concept of how much sleep is optimal, and how much is enough. Interestingly, it seems that many who are into heavy fitness schedules (bodybuilders etc) require lesser sleep amounts to maintain an alert state. This would seem to fit with my own observations, in that if I have exercised heavily, I tend to fall into a deeper sleep, within a shorted period of time. However, if I have exercised in a way that has over-strained my body, sometimes extra rest can be required, most likely so that it can "fix" itself.
I have many memories of college wherein intellectual stimulation would also have the same result. Coding would run into the early AM hours, and at some point when my brain was reduced to gelatin I would return home for about 3-6 hours of sleep, and still manage to feel active and refreshed the next day. Coding where I went to bed before my brain gelified might result in tossing-and-turning.
Stimulants, of course, affect either of these situations, but as I'm not much of a caffeine drinker (particularly later in the day), I believe that can be ruled out.
So, how much sleep does a normal slashdotter need before being able to achieve uncaffeinated alertness? What tips and tricks can you recommend to pull a few extra hours out of the day (much like many fitness fanatics do) without sacrificing your health or alertness? How do you trick your body into achieving the almighty "power-nap" or "super-sleep" for quick revitalization?"
This had led to research over the concept of how much sleep is optimal, and how much is enough. Interestingly, it seems that many who are into heavy fitness schedules (bodybuilders etc) require lesser sleep amounts to maintain an alert state. This would seem to fit with my own observations, in that if I have exercised heavily, I tend to fall into a deeper sleep, within a shorted period of time. However, if I have exercised in a way that has over-strained my body, sometimes extra rest can be required, most likely so that it can "fix" itself.
I have many memories of college wherein intellectual stimulation would also have the same result. Coding would run into the early AM hours, and at some point when my brain was reduced to gelatin I would return home for about 3-6 hours of sleep, and still manage to feel active and refreshed the next day. Coding where I went to bed before my brain gelified might result in tossing-and-turning.
Stimulants, of course, affect either of these situations, but as I'm not much of a caffeine drinker (particularly later in the day), I believe that can be ruled out.
So, how much sleep does a normal slashdotter need before being able to achieve uncaffeinated alertness? What tips and tricks can you recommend to pull a few extra hours out of the day (much like many fitness fanatics do) without sacrificing your health or alertness? How do you trick your body into achieving the almighty "power-nap" or "super-sleep" for quick revitalization?"
