I resolved to never make another resolution. I can say with certainty that I'll never break that resolution.

FOX also makes sure to point out any 'controversy' in science stories.

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2010/12/fox_news_bureau_chief_told_staff_to_cast_doubt_on_climate_change.php?ref=fpb

This is just the result of their policies. They probably designed it this way to make people want to watch/read more FOX news. If you are unsure about something going on today you try to learn more, and you learn what's going on in the world by watching the news, right?

With the proflieration of computers into everyday life, and the never ending advancement of realism in computer animation, it was bound to happen that special effects are taken for granted. The other night, my wife had asked me if I thought the cliff they were driving next to in the last Indiana Jones movie was real or removed by computer. You almost couldn't tell. We are at the point where we expect special effects to give us the movie we want. We expect them to be so seamless that you aren't sure they are computer effects or not.

20 years ago, we clamored for the special effect that 'looked so real' in Terminator 2, but now if we saw a movie with those effects we would be unimpressed because so many people think someone with a camcorder and a computer could whip that up at home. While it may or may not be possible is another matter, but the perception is there and that drives expectations. I think the special effects in Inception were top notch exactly becasue I didn't notice any 'edge' of where the effect starts and where it stops. If I see a movie where I can spot the special effect, I refer to it as 'second rate.' But that's because I know they can do better.

That's just while driving, at which time it would be covered by the radio. Now they can alert you to a tornado, or tsunami, or other horrible event while you are shopping, or at the beach, or anywhere else where you don't have a radio/TV. Sounds like a great idea to me.

Not likely. This project has been around for several years now. Here's a story where they hope to get DARPA to pay for it. And it's was already around for years before that. The problem with it? Real time control. The plane would have to be able to direct it's own flight and research with minimal input from Earth becasue of the time lag in commands. Controlling a Global Hawk or Predator from half way around the world isn't tough. Flying a UAV on another planet? That's tough. Look what happened to poor Spirit.

So, you suggest we just use random numbers? That's what the poll suggested. Except for Exponential, nothing else stood out as a 'preferred' scale.

Well, Celebrity numbers (i, e, pi, etc.) did, but I don't think we measure the time we spend on the phone with values like that. I know Verizon doesn't.

Its a car that primarily electric driven and uses the gas engine when the batteries/motor can't cut it. Is it really that important what it's called? It's a car designed to be 'green' and that's what it's being sold as. The only thing that GM should be criticized for is the over estimation of the range you can expect. What we call is it pretty moot.

Planes do more than just carry people around. FedEX, UPS, DHL, and a host of other smaller carriers are proof of that. And don't forget search and rescue, border protection, fire fighting, police surveillance (helicopters), wildlife surverys, oceananic and atmospheric research, etc. And you are right, this is all about saving money. Only it's not for passenger airplanes.

Honestly, that's highly unlikely. First of all, you have to get past the feeling that we need a person up front to make sure everything works right. After all, what if the plane has a malfunction, the computer can't correct it right, a human knows how to solve it, but the communication link is down? All those events have happened, but not necessiarly together, and admittedly the chance of that happening is so slim you may have a better chance of winning the lottery. But you know what? People still win the lottery, and that situation will eventually happen. Would you be willing to risk 200 people just to save a little money? The airlines may try it, but Ford was accused of something a little similar and it didn't go well.

Second, you already have a plane full of people. You'd save very little weight by taking one person off a plane. Also, you still give people that warm fuzzy that someone is up front minding the shop even if all he does is press "go" and "stop."

If we eventually get AI to the point that people accept them as capable as a human, then you might get the pilot off the plane, but even then I doubt it.

Now cargo planes... That's another story. I see FedEx and UPS going pilotless in the not to distant future.

I can tell you the answer to that. They are facing stresses that a normal soldier isn't facing. A Predator pilot in Las Vegas has to fight a war for 10 hours a day and deal with all the stress that comes with that, AND THEN go home and deal with all the stress of family life. When deployed you 'turn off' after you fly and recover. Flying from home means you have to constantly deal with much more stress than normal. And you have to separate your military life from your family life even more. You can't talk about the problems you deal with at work with your wife because missions are classified. And you can't talk about your kid failing a math test because you are busy tracking a high priority target. No down time means no recovery. And add all to that this problems mentioned in the article above. Then to top it all off, good luck getting out of an unmanned plane. Without enough training, assignments are lasting much longer than normal. Pilots are getting called back from manned planes to fly drones. It's a no win situation for those who need a break.I did it for a while, and life is rough,

I was a Predator pilot in the AF for 5 years, and I can tell you it's not a pretty picture.

Why would yo fold it? Put it in your filing cabinet and maybe put a copy in a firesafe. Plus, one fold isn't going to tear a paper. I've got lots of papers that are folded that aren't torn. Sure some copies will tear, but some passwords get forgotten too. It's not a perfect solution, but it is another option for those who want a fairly high level of security.

I think almost anyone with a lick of sense would realize that. Iran must have seen the problems with hacking into gmail from the recent problems with China and thought "Let's just elminiate the middle man and have a native e-mail service that we can dictate that back doors be included for 'security.'" Of course, 'security' is for the security of the ruling parties, just like every other opressive regime.

Of course, the only people that this will truly affect are those that don't have much to lose because they don't have anything to hide. Everyone else is probably already smart enough to use a proxy and can get through any block that the government is trying to set up. In the end, it will jsut foster more resentment from the common folk and bolster support those seeking to overthrow their opressors.

You also need all the small bits to go with it. Playing a board game on the computer is nothing like the real thing. Moving pieces, holding cards, rolling dice. The tactile part of playing a board game is a huge part of the game. Using all those things is also part of the strategy. Want them to know your loaded? Show your cash/resources. Want to look like you are down and out? Hide or minimize your stash.

Playing on a computer works fine when I play by myself, but when I play with friends, I want to crack open a box, set up the game, talk a little trash and flaunt my moves to make it more fun.

Windows takes me about 45 minutes to setup. Whether it be XP of Vista (haven't done 7 yet). Getting all the other programs (like flash, java, etc.) take a few more hours, but I know where they are. I could never get my wireless card working in Ubuntu even after reading everything I could find and a couple reinstalls after I realized that I screwed it up. And then I needed to hunt around for other programs that might be like what I've used on Windows only to find out it doesn't have all the features I use.

I'm sorry all the FOSS people hate my comments about Linux not working for me. I've really tried from time to time, but it's just not doing what I need it to do.

I download a distro every few years, but I still haven't found one that will replace everything I can do in Windows. I really want it to work, but I don't want to spend a week learning how to set it all up and getting it running smoothly. Hopefully it will be better next time around.