Comment antitrust (Score 1) 90
The problem here isn't a trust between Comcast and Time Warner. Rather, the problem is a trust between Comcast/Time Warner and the local government.
Comment Re:Space travel (Score 1) 357
Hmm. We would probably send robots ahead of us to prepare the colony for when we arrived. An all AI crew could travel substantially faster than any human crew could, and would have plenty of time to get things started. But, just imagine...
By the time the humans arrive, the robots could have developed a vast interstellar empire. They may or may not welcome the human colonists, who are beyond primitive by comparison.
It could maybe make an interesting short.
Comment Re:That's a kite? No. THIS is a kite! (Score 1) 143
Big things cost more. There's probably an optimal size.
Synthetic Chromosomes Successfully Integrated Into Brewer's Yeast 107
New submitter dunnomattic writes: "Researchers at New York University School of Medicine have achieved a milestone in synthetic biology. A fully synthetic yeast chromosome, dubbed 'synIII,' has successfully replaced chromosome 3 of multiple living yeast cells. The researchers pieced together over 250,000 nucleotide bases to accomplish this feat. Dr. Jef Boeke, the lead author of the study, says, 'not only can we make designer changes on a computer, but we can make hundreds of changes through a chromosome and we can put that chromosome into yeast and have a yeast that looks, smells and behaves like a regular yeast, but this yeast is endowed with special properties that normal yeasts don't have.' Work is underway (abstract) to synthesize the remaining 15 chromosomes."
Comment Re:jailtime! (Score 1) 367
Hacking a password = jailtime
Forcing a password out of someone = give that guy a job as a cop
Comment Re:School admin reach into off-campus life (Score 1) 367
The parent can opt to home school the kid.
Comment Re:School admin reach into off-campus life (Score 1) 367
Depending on your time management skills, work ethic, and class load you can do your homework at school.
Class load varies so much with school. Some schools are massive babysitting institutions. Others grind you to tears.
Comment Re:Don't raise wages. Demand lower prices. (Score 1) 870
Price has to do with power which is a function of supply and demand and other factors.
Comment Re:One thing's for sure... (Score 1) 870
It's not quite that simple. The robot will have fairly consistent quality and will never go on strike, but might break down for some reason, requiring expensive service. The human might slack or complain, but is easily replaced if ze breaks down.
Comment terrafoam might not be so bad (Score 1, Insightful) 870
A terrafoam house is probably nicer than what most poor people have today.
Comment telemarketers (Score 1) 870
The telemarketers question needs to be rephrased: likeliness of robots not being replaced by humans in the next 20 years.
Comment Re:Wikipedia is not a science journal (Score 1) 517
to play the devil's advocate..
Who would pay for scientific surveys of alternative medicines? It costs like 5 G$ to develop a drug. I imagine the actual trial stage costs much less, but probably still millions. You can't exactly patent an herb.
Comment Re:Personal Audio (Score 2) 126
If this was the address of an abortion doctor or an animal researcher, this free speech would be deemed terrorism.
Jimmy Carter: Snowden Disclosures Are 'Good For Americans To Know' 289
McGruber writes: "Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter defended the disclosures by fugitive NSA contractor Edward Snowden on Monday, saying revelations that U.S. intelligence agencies were collecting meta-data of Americans' phone calls and e-mails have been 'probably constructive in the long run.' 'I think it's wrong,' President Carter said of the NSA program. 'I think it's an intrusion on one of the basic human rights of Americans, is to have some degree of privacy if we don't want other people to read what we communicate.'"
It's important to note that Carter doesn't believe Snowden should necessarily get a pass for his actions. Carter said, "I think it's inevitable that he should be prosecuted and I think he would be prosecuted, [if he comes back to the U.S.] But I don't think he ought to be executed as a traitor or any kind of extreme punishment like that." Nevertheless, Carter thinks NSA surveillance has gotten out of control. "We've gone a long way down the road of violating Americans' basic civil rights, as far as privacy is concerned." He added, "For the last two or three years, when I want to write a highly personal letter to a foreign leader, or even some American leaders, I hand-write it and mail it, because I feel that my telephone calls and my email are being monitored, and there are some things I just don’t want anybody to know except me and my wife."
Comment Re:Why? I do not want dick sucking men in my games (Score 1) 704
Because people like you are scaring away sales from women, various ethnic groups, and gay people.
If people like you would stay away from the chat rooms it wouldn't be a problem.
