Slashdot is powered by your submissions, so send in your scoop

 



Forgot your password?
typodupeerror
×
Space

Submission + - New Theoretical Clock Transcends Both Time and Space (sciencedaily.com) 1

SchrodingerZ writes: "Scientists at Berkeley Labsin California have theorized a new idea for a clock that can remain ticking even after the death of our universe. The idea is to create a four dimensional crystalline structure that is unaffected by third dimensional havoc. It would work by having the ‘electric field of [an] ion trap holds charged particles in place and Coulomb repulsion causes them to spontaneously form a spatial ring crystal. Under the application of a weak static magnetic field, this ring-shaped ion crystal will begin a rotation that will never stop,’ says Berkeley faculty Xiang Zhang. ‘The persistent rotation of trapped ions produces temporal order, leading to the formation of a space-time crystal at the lowest quantum energy state.’ It is considered to be 4-dimesional because ‘a spatial ring of trapped ions in persistent rotation will periodically reproduce itself in time, forming a temporal analog of an ordinary spatial crystal. With a periodic structure in both space and time, the result is a space-time crystal’. Because this space-time ‘crystal’ would already be at the lowest quantum state possible, theorists believe the structure could continue on after the rest of the universe fades and destroys itself ( thermodynamic equilibrium). Though the idea is mathematically sound (proven by nobel prize winner Frank Wilczek), constuction and manipulation is still only theoretical."
Iphone

Submission + - Why Apple intentionally sacrificed Maps quality in iOS 6 (networkworld.com)

colinneagle writes: Every time an iOS 6 user changes location, Apple will remind its loyal user of the inadequacy of iOS 6 Maps. This tradeoff between an excellent user experience and proprietary control of location was made because of the value of location data to advertisers. Apple wants to monetize this data for itself rather than give Google the opportunity.

Location data is valuable, especially if the user opts in to being tracked. Apple’s ad network iAd will know if a user passes certain stores, dines at specific restaurants and plays tennis. This type of data helps an advertiser increase the relevancy of the ads it serves, creating more value.

If the Google Maps for iOS 6 app does come to fruition, then this approach begs one question: how much user data could Apple gather if none of its users run its app?

Comment Re:Conspiracy or not (Score 1) 250

So most filers are a per dollar basis will be in the situation that $Gift $TaxSavings. There may be some corner cases where you are right on the cusp of a tax bracket and a large value for $Gift might push you down into the next lowest bracket. That might bring $Gift and $TaxSavings much closer together, it might even invert the relationship, but its still very unlikely to be significant source of savings.

Which just goes to show you why most Americans are fucking idiots. They donate to charity for the bragging rights and tax benefits.....while being too stupid to realize that the tax "benefits" are essentially worthless. And patting themselves on the back the whole while for being "smart" with their money. LOL

Or, you know, because they're charitable. Wait, no, you're right... no one would be stupid enough to help someone else without realizing a material benefit in exchange.

Comment Re:so you lot are promoting ip theft now ? (Score 1) 359

I don't have a big moral problem with free file sharing only because the people this harms (MAFIAA) are such immoral scam that they deserve the treatment way worse than this. They are greedy assholes who are going around harassing and suing single mothers for ridiculous amounts of damages. This waaaay overshadows everything file sharers do.

BTW, I know people who download content illegally on principle, just because they don't want to give any money to this scum.

If it was really a matter of principle, they should not download the content, either, since continuing distribution of the content helps entrench the status quo.

Comment Re:So what? (Score 1) 601

tl;dr - Why are folks in rural areas entitled to amenities of cities when they don't have the population density to support them?

Because the city slickers think they're entitled to the amenities of rural areas, like, say, food, and transportation across rural areas via roads.

The other part of the argument is unlike medical and museums, you don't have much of an internet without the monopoly granted easements across rural property for buried fiber...

So we'll make a deal... stop eating our food, rip up the roads between the cities, and rip out the buried optical fiber, and you can keep your internet access to yourselves.

We pay to have food grown. Heck, we pay to have food not grown...

Comment Re:And if a hurricane wipes out the GOP... (Score 1) 503

It's not just that there are subgroups that are hateful.

There's a guy who shot up a Unitarian church in Knoxville, TN, and he had a big selection of books by Ann Coulter with highlighted passages that seem to explain why he did it. There's another guy who shot Representitive Giffords (and a six year old to get to her), and again, had a bunch of material by Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Glen Beck, and others in his personal library. There's another guy who shot a guard at a Holocaust memorial center, again with a bunch of right wing connections, and many of the same books. (I'm not naming any of these scumbags. It's their victims that deserve to be remembered.) The amount of hate mail and death threats sent to the current president in his first month in office was at least 10x as large as anyone before him recieved in the same time. Just today in the news, there's a sitting judge in Texas who advocates raising taxes for one reason and one only - to fund training his local Sherrif's dept. into a force that can fight off the invading UN troops he expects momentarily.

So it's not a case of arguing that there are more in one group or another. There's no logical argument as to the actual facts.There are about 10 times as many in your group as the other, if you go by the hate letters, or an infinitely higher percentage if you go by the bodycounts. That's the point. ALL the murderers are on your side. Apologists for the right keep pointing to people such as reverend Wright, or some 'eco-group' that pours paint stripper on gas guzzlers, as though some jerk who never actually killed anyone cancels out at least one mass murderer, maybe all of them, however many you get. What's wrong with your party, the whole party, is that it is willing to equivocate so that when there is a nutbar fanatic actually killing in the name of your cause, they are willing to claim that is balanced by a person on the other side saying something mean spirited. You just stooped to that same tired argument, so I will label you, you personally and not you as part of any larger group, as the one who is the problem. Stop coddling killers! Stop helping a political party that coddles killers. Stop using this false equivalency, or stop being surprised when decent people start talking about you like you need tarred and feathered and run out of their town.

Speaking of mass murderers with political material in their libraries, I hear Stalin had some Leftist material...

Comment Re:Lies, damn lies, and statistics (Score 1) 464

I love MBA math. You can concoct any numbers you like to support your business case. I tried this in pre algebra, x*2=20; I answered x=pi. I failed. Why don't they?

Algebra rejects rounding, so the correct answer should actually be x=+- root 20. Making it a question so obvious it should not be in the paper.

Except that *!=^

Comment Re:Sounds Like a Shell Game (Score 1) 154

Sounds like some loophole method of getting out of your debts

Exactly. From TFA:

Unfortunately, neither OnLive, Inc. shares nor OnLive staff could transfer under this type of transaction, but almost half of OnLive’s staff were given employment offers by the new company at their current salaries immediately upon the transfer, and the non-hired staff will be given offers to do consulting in return for options in the new company.

So basically, "you're fired. Now, you can come back to work for us with no pay, just stock options that will be worth absolutely nothing when we do this again."

Like all shareholders, neither Steve [Perlman] nor any of his companies received any stock in the new company or compensation in this transaction at all. Steve is receiving no compensation whatsoever and most execs are receiving reduced compensation to allow the company to hire as many employees as possible within the current budget.

Right. Any time a CEO works for "no compensation whatsoever," it means they have an agreement in place for a ton of shares or options down the road. So, in effect, he makes it look like he got wiped out like everyone else, when in fact his compensation has just been swept under the rug/shell for safe keeping.

So, paying other people with options is bad because they're worthless, and paying himself with options is bad because he's enriching himself? Make up your mind, are they worth lots or little?

Comment Re:Victims of their own greed (Score 1) 272

We are the only carrier with a nationwide network that lets you use Wi-Fi to talk on your phone, at no additional charge.

At no additional charge? I guess they think people are stupid? Here, make calls using someone else's network for no extra charge!

Well, if it was Verizon they would probably charge you a $40/mo. Wi-Fi fee.

Slashdot Top Deals

The most exciting phrase to hear in science, the one that heralds new discoveries, is not "Eureka!" (I found it!) but "That's funny ..." -- Isaac Asimov

Working...