nbowman - Slashdot User

Submission + - Global Warming Swindle

Submitted by BinaryPower on Monday June 04, 2007 @09:22PM

BinaryPower writes: The big threat to the world is global warming. They contend that if mankind continues to pump out carbon dioxide, the world will suffer catastrophic flooding, severe droughts, rising sea levels, lasting hunger, and economic chaos. Some global warming alarmists actually predict the end of humanity within a couple of decades. In the British documentary "The Great Global Warming Swindle," Clark asserts, "You can't say that CO2 can drive climate, it certainly did not in the past. ... CO2 clearly cannot be causing temperature changes, it is a product of temperature; it's following temperature changes." I was curious what the Slashdot community thought about this documentary?

Submission + - DARPA Turns Moths into Borg / Cyber Spies

Submitted by ziani on Monday June 04, 2007 @09:05PM

ziani writes: At some point in the not-too-distant future, a moth may take flight in the hills of northern Pakistan, and flap towards a suspected terrorist training camp. But this will be no ordinary moth. Inside it will be a computer chip that was implanted when the creature was still a pupa, in the cocoon, meaning that the moth's entire nervous system can be controlled remotely. Get the story here.

Submission + - Fake Meat On The Way (reuters.com)

Submitted by

hankmt

on Monday June 04, 2007 @09:01PM

hankmt writes: "Dutch researchers are attempting to take the pig out of pork by growing the meat in laboratories. While this completely freaks me out, and it would be a nightmare to try and market, it could actually be a good thing. Not only would no animals have to be killed, but all of the waste and greenhouse gasses associated with livestock would be obviated. And, if they can do it cheaply enough, they might even be able to improve the diet of those in poverty."

Submission + - Google's YouTube-Orkut Blatant Privacy Issue! (avertlabs.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 04, 2007 @08:44PM

An anonymous reader writes: McAfee reports on a major privacy issue with Google's YouTube-Orkut. I just confirmed this issue myself, and its sick! I can see videos I watched last night show up as related videos for any content I upload. If you are a regular content-uploader, you are giving up a lot of info on your private browsing habits this way, and you probably don't even realize this yet! http://www.avertlabs.com/research/blog/index.php/2 007/05/29/on-youtube-data-mining-invasion-of-priva cy/ http://www.securitypronews.com/insiderreports/insi der/spn-49-20070530YouTubeFixesPrivacyIssue.html

Submission + - Game-based education...shoot and learn? (immersiveeducation.org)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 04, 2007 @08:29PM

An anonymous reader writes: The Immersive Education initiative (ImmersiveEducation.org) has issued an "open call to educators, students, and professionals who have experience using virtual learning environments or video game technologies (such as Second Life, Croquet, Extensible 3D [X3D], Panda3D, Quake, Unreal, Torque Game Engine, and so forth)." Individuals and organizations can contribute to best practices, and establish standards for virtual learning environments and game-based learning platforms. A related interview at Terra Nova appeared a few days ago as well. According to the call for participation Immersive Education "is an award-winning learning platform that combines interactive 3D graphics, commercial game and simulation technology, virtual reality, voice chat (Voice over IP/VoIP), Web cameras (webcams) and rich digital media with collaborative online course environments and classrooms... Unlike traditional computer-based learning systems, Immersive Education is designed to immerse and engage students in the same way that today's best video games grab and keep the attention of players.... Shorter mini-games and interactive lessons can be injected into larger bodies of course material to further heighten and enrich the Immersive Education experience." Quake in the classroom? Are you kidding me?

Submission + - WizKids Sues Wizards of the Coast over Game Patent (gamingreport.com)

Submitted by

Anonymous Coward

on Monday June 04, 2007 @08:03PM

Anonymous Coward writes: "WizKids Games (makers of HeroClix) is suing Wizards of the Coast (makers of Magic: the Gathering), seeking judgment that their Pirates game does not infringe on a recently granted patent. From the article:

[T]he suit claims that WOTC contacted WizKids via a letter in May 2004 concerning the filing of the patent, and that WOTC asserted that WizKids Pirates game fell squarely within many of the proposed claims of the pending patent application. WOTC warned that when the patent [was] issued, WOTC would have the right to sue WizKids for an injunction and damages. WOTC threatened that it would take legal action against WizKids if or when a patent was allowed if WizKids did not cease and desist selling its Pirates game. WizKids responded to the letter on June 4, 2004, denying that the Pirates game was within the scope of any of the then pending claims of WOTCs patent application.
The suit asks the judge to declare that the Pirates game does not infringe and seek to stop Wizards of the Coast from pursuing any legal action.

The patent in question is for a "Constructible Strategy Game," where players build models from punch-out cards sold in booster packs. The Pirates game seems to fit the patent description perfectly. A game designer that worked on the project that spurred the patent left Wizards of the Coast in mid-development to work for WizKids. The Pirates game was announced shortly thereafter."

Submission + - New Credit Card- Defends Against ID Theft (akacard.com)

Submitted by

techna

on Monday June 04, 2007 @01:08PM

techna writes: "There's a new credit card out that actually prevents ID theft by allowing you to make your own name and address up and attaching it to the credit card. The bank knows the false name and address so it's still connected to you but the connection is- literally- in the vault. The card can also be used in person so it's being called a "dual use" card. More info at akacard.com There's not much out there that actually prevents identity theft and these guys are going out on a limb to try and do so. It's a new start up company but the card is supplied by MasterCard so it's accepted probably anywhere Visa is."

Submission + - Cancer docs gets death threat over drug approval (psa-rising.com)

Submitted by

nbauman

on Monday June 04, 2007 @12:53PM

nbauman writes: "Two oncologists got death threats from angry prostate cancer patients because they voted, as members of the Food and Drug Administration's drug approval panel, to delay approval of a new cancer drug. http://psa-rising.com/blog/index.php/2007/06/03/pr ostate-cancer-doctor-receives-death-threat-over-pr ovenge#more-325 The issue is rigorous science vs. immediate access. Howard I. Scher and Maha Hussain said that the studies of Provenge, a prostate cancer vaccine, done by manufacturer, Dendreon Corp., didn't show improved survival. After the FDA studies were done, supporters of the drug went back and found ways of interpreting the data that did show an advantage, which sometimes came out to 4 1/2 months longer survival depending on how you look at it. Critics say they're data-dredging evidence selectively to make the drug look good. http://psa-rising.com/blog/index.php/2007/04/17/sc her-to-fda-about-provenge-hearing An ongoing 500-patient study will give the answer — in 2 years. Prostate cancer patients say they'll be dead by then, they have nothing to lose, and they have a right to use a new drug now. "We want Provenge to work; that's our raison d'etre," Scher said, but in order to know whether it works, they need to complete the study. Paul Goldberg, editor of The Cancer Letter, said that basing decisions on reliable evidence is also "patient advocacy. This is just another form of it through science." http://blogs.wsj.com/health/2007/05/10/cancer-vacc ine-activists-unhappy-but-unbowed/ Usually unmentioned is the question of who should pay for the treatment. The FDA would let Dendreon give the vaccine to cancer patients now as "compassionate use," but Dendreon says it would be too expensive. Cancer patients want it to be approved so Dendreon can sell it normally and insurance companies (and Medicare) will pay for it."

Submission + - 2008 Presidential Candidates and Tech Issues

Submitted by

Tokimasa

on Monday June 04, 2007 @11:18AM

Tokimasa writes: "Following last night's debate with the Democratic presidential hopefuls and tomorrow's debate with the Republican presidential candidates, I noticed that the questions addressed issues that affect the American people as a whole — education, health care, the "war on terror" and combating terrorism, Iraq, Iran, North Korea, China, jobs and the economy, gas prices, and energy.

But what about issues that are important to the technical savvy Americans, including those in technical industries? Issues such as intellectual property reform (especially copyrights and patents), funding for research and development (both private and government led), DMCA, and other topics that might be of interest to engineers and scientists? Why are these topics not discussed (or even mentioned) during a campaign?

Is there any material out there that discusses how each candidate stands on issues that are of interest to certain groups (in my case, engineers and those working in highly technical fields)?"

Submission + - Poll proposal: mood disorders

Submitted by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 04, 2007 @11:09AM

An anonymous reader writes: Mood disorders poll
* Depression
* Bipolar
* ADD
* Other
* None

Submission + - what can a gamer do to resist Vista?

Submitted by

DragonTHC

on Sunday June 03, 2007 @01:06AM

DragonTHC writes: "I've been a gamer since 1985. I'm also a huge fan of Shadowrun as a pencil and paper RPG. Following the news that Shadowrun is going to be Vista only, and Pay for play, what can a gamer do to resist Vista? With the new "Games for Windows" program, which is just a way to force users to pay a subscription fee to play online, and since the game isn't even DX10, why should I upgrade to Vista so I can play it? Why should I pay for alky so I can play it on XP?"

Submission + - Saltwater Into Fuel (liveleak.com)

Submitted by ATT on Sunday June 03, 2007 @12:34AM

ATT writes: Saltwater Into Fuel http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=705_1180758696 check it out

Submission + - The Unravelling of the Global Warming Crisis

Submitted by on Sunday June 03, 2007 @12:00AM

An anonymous reader writes: The United Nation's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and hundreds of government agencies and environmental groups around the world claim that the science is settled and the time for debate is over. But the list of distinguished scientists who question the IPCC grows daily.

Submission + - Interview: how Google tweaks rank algorithm (nytimes.com)

Submitted by

nbauman

on Saturday June 02, 2007 @11:54PM

nbauman writes: "New York Times interview with Amit Singhal, who is in charge of Google's ranking algorithm. They use 200 "signals" and "classifiers," of which PageRank is only one. "Freshness" defines how many recently changed pages appear in a result. They assumed old pages were better, but when they first introduced Google Finance, the algorithm couldn't find it because it was too new. Some topics are "hot". "When there is a blackout in New York, the first articles appear in 15 minutes; we get queries in two seconds," said Singhal. Classifiers infer information about the type of search, whether it is a product to buy, a place, company or person. One classifier identifies people who aren't famous. Another identifies brand names. A final check encourages "diversity" in the results, for example, a manufacturer's page, a blog review, and a comparision shopping site. If the user has signed in to Google, they can tell whether a search for "dolphins" is by a football fan or marine biologist. Examples of problems that Google identified and tweaked the algorithm to avoid: a search for "french revolution" returned too many results about the French presidential elections. A search for "teak patio palo alto" didn't return a store called the Teak Patio. http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/03/business/yourmon ey/03google.html Inside the Black Box By SAUL HANSELL, June 3, 2007"

Submission + - Gates wasted $60 million Education '08 campaign (crosscut.com)

Submitted by

NewsCloud

on Saturday June 02, 2007 @11:23PM

NewsCloud writes: "NYT Columnist Timothy Egan suggests Bill Gates should apply his $60 million Education '08 campaign more directly (NYT subscribers) i.e. into the pockets of politicians. Excerpted here:

Following the life of Bill Gates himself, Egan notes, "has been like watching Pete Townshend go from smashing his guitar with The Who to the aging master who just wants world peace and a complex string arrangement of Tommy. He was the high-voiced bully boy of Microsoft, snarling at people with less intellectual bandwidth, a Napoleon Dynamite with money — idiots!" ... The campaign could use a little remedial schooling. Three of the Republican candidates don't even believe in evolution. Don't know much about history, don't know much biology. ... the world's richest man has little leverage in a wide-open presidential campaign. At the early debates, the Gates' group took out ads and held press conferences. But what did it get them? The candidates barely mentioned education.
For those keeping score at home, Gates' contribution to the campaign is less than half one thousandth of his net worth."

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