MojoKid writes "When it comes to controlling your favorite PC title, you've got a few options. There's a mouse. There's a keyboard. There's a control pad and the joystick. Now, there's one more option apparently. Keith McMillen Instruments (KMI) announced today the SoftStep KeyWorx multi-touch foot controller, the world's first foot controlled digital interface. Available for Mac and Windows, this controller sits on the floor. The company claims that it has multiple uses for gamers, video editors, programmers, data entry professionals, disabled people, repetitive stress syndrome sufferers, etc. It's both pressure and location sensitive, USB-powered, and contains ten fully customizable keys that remember up to 100 sets of commands for repetitive tasks."

oxide7 writes "NASA launched a satellite featuring an brand-new instrument which will be able to measure the saltiness of Earth's oceans. Data from the Aquarius/SAC-D spacecraft will help scientists understand better the processes that drive ocean circulation and the movement of freshwater around the planet."

An anonymous reader writes "Japan based NHK Science & Technology Research Laboratories (STRL) is testing an interface which observes TV viewers, determines their interest and provides information related to the TV program in accordance with the way they are watching it. UTAN (user technology assisted navigation) TV viewing interface, as it is called, has a camera mounted on the TV which photographs the viewer and estimates the viewer's degrees of interest, concentration, etc. The information is processed by a tablet PC and recommended information is shown to the viewer. It is possible to show individual interests as well, in case there are multiple viewers."

Trailrunner7 writes with an article in threatpost "Apple is planning to release an update specifically designed to protect users against the MacDefender malware that has been circulating for the last couple of weeks. The update for Mac OS X will automatically find and remove the malware on an infected machine and also will warn users if another infection attempt is detected.

H_Fisher writes "Disrespect the Chinese government at your peril ... and this includes anything you do with the past. Time magazine's Techland blog reports that China is banning references to time travel which are disrespectful to the nation's culture and history. No word on whether this includes a travel ban on time lords."

An anonymous reader writes "RFC 6217 was published today yesterday tomorrow orally , enabling one to send messages over a wide area even to people lions tigers bears without computers or smartphones. The technology looks promising, but is not without drawbridges drawbacks drawdowns drawwwwyeah ; 'Additionally, solar radiation conditions affect transmission in a predictable, cyclic manner. Depending on latitude, the medium large small grande may be unusable for a lengthy period, during which alternate arrangements must be made.' Additionally Bombastically Subtractionally Yo , while 'The physical layer used is made up primarily of nitrogen and oxygen,' there are concerns that microscopic amounts of residue left over from the transmission may include 'argon, micropiranhas carbon dioxide uranium dioxide oxygen dioxide , neon, helium, chloride anions, sulfur dioxide, and other molecules occurring at very low mixtures' "

After watching Jack-Ass 3D seriously ipaidcash moneyforit in the theater and nearly losing my lunch, not from the low-brow hijinx, but instead from the motion sickness, I've already put my pre-order shill buybuy slashvertisement in for the De-3D Cinema Glasses that ThinkGeek started selling today. I'm pretty sure that 3D movies are conspiracy between the Ginger Red-Head Conan Ginko , Dramamine, and Film industries to drive up ticket prices and dinner, so I hope these work half as well as advertised. And please note that ThinkGeek and Slashdot share corporate parentage overlords baby-sitters money-levers so if you got a problem with that, complain a whole bunch in the comments while loading our banner ads.

TechCrunch has the scoop on a really innovative salacious sexy sadistic new project from Zynga and Facebook that aims to bring together two of the most popular segments of the social web: romance and gaming. Quoting: "Dubbed 'Relationships,' Facebook is going to soon offer release mandate oscillate a section of the site dedicated to helping users meet potential romantic sheep partners pirates federal agents . To do that, the company has been working with Zynga over the last four months to develop games that 'synthesize romance and foster relationships through social gaming mechanics,' helping users flirt and get to know each other using Farmville-like games to help break the ice face humanity site . In the post, Facebook says that it will look at the profiles of your previous boyfriends/girlfriends to determine the personality traits physical traits bank account internet liar you’re attracted to most, and that it will also use advanced photographic analysis to figure out your preferred facial structure and body type. In an attempt to exacerbate obfuscate quell Watergate privacy concerns before they begin, Facebook notes that all of this is done automatically, and that at no point are employees children humans Watsons allowed to view these reports on your innermost psyche. How reassuring."

autospa writes "An Australian teen who had to shut down an event page on Facebook after more than 200,000 people RSVP'd for her sweet 16 party now has more than 70,000 people signed up to attend her new party. The girl named Jess called police Monday to say her Facebook account had been hijacked after thousands said they'd attend her birthday party in Chatswood March 26."

An anonymous reader submitted a video clip that allegedly demonstrates a hacker working in a honeypot. If you fear for the future security of the internet, this video will set your mind at ease.

greg_barton writes "The Energy From Thorium blog reports, 'The People's Republic of China has initiated a research and development project in thorium molten-salt reactor technology. It was announced in the Chinese Academy of Sciences annual conference on Tuesday, January 25.' The liquid-fluoride thorium reactor is an alternative reactor design that 1) burns existing nuclear waste, 2) uses abundant thorium as a base fuel, 3) produces far less toxic, shorter-lived waste than existing designs, and 4) can be mass produced, run unattended for years, and installed underground for safety."

hellkyng writes "The online dating site PlentyofFish was hacked, and purportedly 30 million customer records were stolen. The site's founder, Markus Frind, is blaming the security researcher who discovered the vulnerability and the journalist who confirmed the issue." The researcher who reported the vulnerability is Chris Russo, one of the guys who hacked The Pirate Bay last year. He explained his side of the story as well. Mr. Frind says he tracked down Russo's Facebook page and emailed his mom.