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Submission + - Artificial Neurons Could Replace Some Real Ones In Your Brain (best-meg.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The neurons in your brain are exquisitely designed to transmit signals—as many as 1 trillion bits per second, according to some estimates. The cells use chemical neurotransmitters to pass the signal from one to the next. To treat neurological disorders, scientists have only been able to hack this signal with electric stimulation or imprecise chemical changes from medications. Now a team of Swedish researchers has developed a synthetic neuron that is able to communicate chemically with organic neurons, which could change the neural pathways and better treat neurological disorders, according to a study published in the journal Biosensors and Bioelectronics.

The artificial neurons work just like the neurons in your brain right now: they detect chemical signals, transmit them electrically from one end of the “cell” to another, then release chemical neurotransmitters in response. But the artificial neurons are the size of a fingertip and made of organic bioelectronic polymers. To test their device, the researchers put one end of the artificial neuron in a petri dish with chemicals that the device could detect, then used a machine to monitor the electrical changes that it generated, then determine from there how much of a chemical signal to produce on the other end.

The researchers hope that artificial neurons like these could help repair issues of neuron signal transmission in brains impaired by disease or trauma. The researchers hope to make the device smaller in the future so that it can be implanted and tested in a real brain.

Comment Re:How does that compare to desktops? (Score 1) 195

by drinkypoo (#50023571) Attached to: Study Suggests That HUD Tech May Actually Reduce Driving Safety

The joke is that cars have optimistic speedometers to make owners feel like they are faster, and they give up usability for "My speedometer goes up to 11".

I just like being snarky. I get the idea. I far prefer a big center-mounted analog tach with a digital speedo off to the left, as I've said elsewhere in this thread. Everything else can be sprinkled about as necessary. I did actually use the oil pressure gauge in the Mercedes today, though... I really need a new wastegate diaphragm.

Comment Re:Taxi licenses are crazy expensive (Score 1) 334

by drinkypoo (#50023427) Attached to: Uber France Leaders Arrested For Running Illegal Taxi Company

So you think criminals should be able to drive people around? Sorry many don't agree.

It doesn't matter what they agree with, I know two women who have been raped by licensed taxi drivers, taxi licenses don't prevent crime, stop repeating that idiocy.

Most taxi inspections are based on months between inspections. It is very easy to see a sticker and ensure that the taxi has been properly inspected. It is very difficult to do that based on mileage.

No, no it isn't. Put a date and a number of miles on the sticker.

Professional licenses have a higher standard than standard licenses. They also require the training to do a proper daily pre-trip inspection.

The amazingly shitty experiences I've had in amazingly shitty taxis disagree

Comment Re:If you can't keep your eyes on the ROAD (Score 1) 195

by drinkypoo (#50023417) Attached to: Study Suggests That HUD Tech May Actually Reduce Driving Safety

I rely on my night vision to spot animals and people at the side of the road. It doesn't matter how good my headlights are (as long as they are legal), they will not help me do that.

Of course they will. Headlights are meant to spread light to the sides. Any decent ones will do that. Even the Hella H4 sealed beam replacements have lenses that do that. Just make sure you get the right ones for which side you drive on...

Submission + - Could Prison be a Killer App for an Apple Watch?

Submitted by theodp
theodp writes: After seeing all the ways cops reportedly screwed up the manhunt for escaped killers David Sweat and (the late) Richard Matt, one wonders what could be done to prevent a recurrence of the need to have 1,200 police search 22 square miles for 1 man. If you've been to the movies lately, perhaps the tracking device for the Indominus Rex in Jurassic World comes to mind. Or could it be that a next-gen Apple Watch — with some combination of location tracking, cameras, and biometrics — is just what the doctor ordered for tracking incarcerated prisoners? In a world where Google is encouraging the use of technology to keep tabs on babies and pets, shouldn't prisoners be fair game for surveillance technology? Any ideas what that might look like?

Comment key based auth (Score 1) 23

by Johnny Mnemonic (#50022317) Attached to: White House Lures Mudge From Google To Launch Cyber UL

Why not use key based auth instead of password based?

Probably for the same reasons that crypto email never worked out, but I wish it were an option on things like banking websites.

I'm now using a password manager, so I can use pretty hard passwords without having to try to remember them. But using signed certs would be much much stronger still.

Submission + - Business Insider: Iran's nuclear program has been an astronomical waste (businessinsider.com)

Submitted by Lasrick
Lasrick writes: Business Insider's Armin Rosen uses a fuel-cost calculator from the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists to show that Iran's nuclear program 'has been astronomically costly for the Islamic Republic.' Rosen uses calculations from this tool to hypothesize that what Iran 'interprets as the country's "rights" under the 1970 Non-Proliferation Treaty is a diplomatic victory that justifies the outrageous expense of the nuclear program.' Great data crunching.

Submission + - Apple Loses Ebook Price Fixing Appeal, Must Pay $450 Million (reuters.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: A federal appeals court ruled 2-1 today that Apple indeed conspired to with publishers to increase ebook prices. The ruling puts Apple on the hook for the $450 million settlement reached in 2014 with lawyers and attorneys general from 33 states. The Justice Dept. contended that the price-fixing conspiracy raised the price of some e-books from the $10 standard set by Amazon to $13-$15. The one dissenting judge argued that Apple's efforts weren't anti-competitive because Amazon held 90% of the market at the time. Apple is unhappy with the ruling, but they haven't announced plans to take the case further. They said, "While we want to put this behind us, the case is about principles and values. We know we did nothing wrong back in 2010 and are assessing next steps."

Submission + - Is Safari the new IE? (nolanlawson.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Software developer Nolan Lawson says Apple's Safari has taken the place of Microsoft's Internet Explorer as the major browser that lags behind all the others. This comes shortly after the Edge Conference, where major players in web technologies got together to discuss the state of the industry and what's ahead. Lawson says Mozilla, Google, Opera, and Microsoft were all in attendance and willing to talk — but not Apple. "It’s hard to get insight into why Apple is behaving this way. They never send anyone to web conferences, their Surfin’ Safari blog is a shadow of its former self, and nobody knows what the next version of Safari will contain until that year’s WWDC. In a sense, Apple is like Santa Claus, descending yearly to give us some much-anticipated presents, with no forewarning about which of our wishes he’ll grant this year. And frankly, the presents have been getting smaller and smaller lately." He argues, "At this point, we in the web community need to come to terms with the fact that Safari has become the new IE. Microsoft is repentant these days, Google is pushing the web as far as it can go, and Mozilla is still being Mozilla. Apple is really the one singer in that barbershop quartet hitting all the sour notes, and it’s time we start talking about it openly instead of tiptoeing around it like we’re going to hurt somebody’s feelings."

Comment Re:Refill (Score 2) 189

by afidel (#50020425) Attached to: Ask Slashdot: What To Do With Empty Toner Cartridges?

What in the printer is going to be damaged by stray toner? If stray toner was an issue then laser printers wouldn't exist because no fuser can possibly hope to keep every particle charged and then melted without any falling off. As to the carcinogenicity of carbon black I'll quote the EPA

RTECS posts a 90-day intermittent inhalation "lowest published toxic concentration" of 50mg/m3 for 6 hours/day (TOXID9, as cited in RTECS) for respiratory tract changes in the rat,

If you think that refilling a toner cart is going to result in anywhere near that concentration of carbon black in your house for that period of time I have a bridge or two I wish to sell you. You're as paranoid as the folks that rail against CFL's due to the tiny amount of inorganic mercury they contain.

Submission + - Quebec government to force ISPs to block gambling websites

Submitted by ottawanker
ottawanker writes: In order to drive more customers to their own online gambling website, the Quebec government and Loto-Quebec (the provincial organization in charge of gaming and lotteries) are thinking about forcing the province's ISPs to block all other online gambling websites. The list of websites to be blocked will be maintained by Loto-Quebec, and the government believes that the blocking will increase government revenue by up to $27 million (CAD) per year.

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