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Comment likely MUCH more common (orders of magnitude) (Score 1) 274

This appears in the human population at a much higher rate than that, according to one study that found a significant number 13% of Alzheimer's patients were misdiagnosed Creuzfeld Jacob Disease patients. Note that this was a small study, and behind a paywall so the original material isn't easily available. I'll be looking for the original.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?Db=pubmed&Cmd=Retrieve&list_uids=2545230&dopt=abstractplus

Add to this that the disease takes a decade to produce symptoms in people, and it becomes apparent that our testing of cows isn't likely to find anything.

 

Comment Re:Licensed through ASCAP (Score 1) 452

There's no indication whether or not the song is paid for through the standard licensing. To assume it is, is as unjustified as to assume it isn't. Politicians tend to assume everything they do is fair use as in http://politics.slashdot.org/story/12/01/29/2015203/romney-invokes-fair-use-in-dispute-with-nbc-over-campaign-ad. Unfortunately, without that information, the article is pointless.

Artist with existing contract doesn't like what happened to his song, with no information about existing contract.

Comment Re:Password manager? (Score 1) 339

https://pip.verisignlabs.com/
Passwords can be stored encrypted and online with 2-factor for access with Symantec Personal Identity Portal. The 2-factor was the point at which I became willing to store the passwords online. Sorry if it's spammy, but it's a free product that works well for me. Online encrypted storage, second factor token software.

I don't necessarily trust Symantec, and half expect them to discontinue this in the most inconvenient way possible, but it works for me for now.

Iphone

Submission + - iOS App Acoustically Measures Distances Up To 25 m (wordpress.com)

n01 writes: A recently published app for the iOS platform uses the propagation of sound waves to measure distances of up to 25 meters in a dual device mode. The technique works through repeatedly sending a chirp signal from the master device to which the other ("reflector") device synchronizes itself and then replies in a similar fashion. A novel combination of techniques has been engineered to enhance the robustness in noisy environments, such as using an optimum-autocorrelation-signal and semi-automatic frequency calibration together with an averaging over multiple cycles. Disclaimer: I'm the developer and will be available to answer your questions.

Note: I'm resubmitting this, because the earlier version had the headline truncated. Please remove this last paragraph before publishing. Thank you!

Submission + - Happy System Administrator Appreciation Day! (sysadminday.com)

Cyrus writes: "Once again we celebrate System Administrator Appreciation Day (last Friday of July). On this special international day, give your System Administrator something that shows that you truly appreciate their hard work and dedication. Consider all the daunting tasks and long hours (weekends too.) Let's be honest, sometimes we don't know our System Administrators as well as they know us. Remember this is one day to recognize your System Administrator for their workplace contributions and to promote professional excellence. Thank them for all the things they do for you and your business. (brought to you by LOPSA, the League of Professional System Administrators."

Comment ADSI but little documentation (Score 1) 405

ADSI is Analog Display Services Interface, an interface standard for extending the interface on analog phones. So there are phones that support a standard interface as mentioned in the first point above, they're just hard to find. With an ADSI phone and an Asterisk server, you oould just conceivably do this by bringing in your landline to Asterisk and then back out to your analog sets with whatever additional info you chose. Manufacturers don't really talk about whether their phones are ADSI compliant, and there's very little documentation on ADSI. I personally gave up on this project because of the difficulty of finding a cheap ADSI phone, and the cost of going analog-VoIP-analog.

Announcements

Submission + - System Administrator Appreciation Day (sysadminday.com)

Anonymous Coward writes: "Friday, July 25th, 2008, is the 9th annual System Administrator Appreciation Day. On this special international day, give your System Administrator something that shows that you truly appreciate their hard work and dedication. Let's face it, System Administrators get no respect 364 days a year. This is the day that all fellow System Administrators across the globe, will be showered with expensive sports cars and large piles of cash in appreciation of their diligent work. But seriously, we are asking for a nice token gift and some public acknowledgment. It's the least you could do. Consider all the daunting tasks and long hours (weekends too.) Let's be honest, sometimes we don't know our System Administrators as well as they know us. Remember this is one day to recognize your System Administrator for their workplace contributions and to promote professional excellence. Thank them for all the things they do for you and your business."
Biotech

Submission + - Mice Cured of Autism

noahisaac writes: "My brother just sent me an article he posted for the Rett Syndrome Research Foundation about a cure for Rett Syndrome, a form of autism. According to the article, researchers successfully re-introduced a fully functional version of the MECP2 gene into mice that had been born with damaged MECP2 genes. Contrary to their expectations, the mice improved. From the article, "restoration of fully functional MECP2 over a four week period eradicated tremors and normalized breathing, mobility and gait in mice that had previously been fully symptomatic and, in some cases, only days away from death." The ramifications for people suffering from Rett Syndrome are obvious, but mutations of the MECP2 gene are also believed to be the cause of "classic" autism, and a number of other neurological disorders."
Biotech

Submission + - Synthetic proteins better than real ones?

Roland Piquepaille writes: "Researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) and Yale University have built proteins which don't exist in the natural world. They've constructed these proteins from beta-amino acids, which are distinct from the alpha-amino acids that compose natural proteins. Their synthetic proteins are as stable as natural ones, but provide a distinct advantage. As they will not be degraded by enzymes or targeted by the immune system as natural ones are, these beta-peptides could be used as the basis for future drugs that would be more effective than natural protein drugs. Still, a question remains: why don't these proteins exist naturally? In other words, will drugs based on these man-made proteins be more efficient or more dangerous? Time will tell. But read more for additional references and pictures showing these artificial proteins."

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