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

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×
NASA

Submission + - Intelsat Signs Launch Contract with SpaceX (spacex.com)

Submitted by jamstar7
jamstar7 writes: Following the success of the Falcon9/Dragon resupply test to the ISS comes the following announcement:

Washington, DC / Hawthorne, CA May 29, 2012 — Today, Intelsat, the world's leading provider of satellite services, and Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX), the world's fastest growing space launch company, announced the first commercial contract for the Falcon Heavy rocket.

"SpaceX is very proud to have the confidence of Intelsat, a leader in the satellite communication services industry," said Elon Musk, SpaceX CEO and Chief Designer. "The Falcon Heavy has more than twice the power of the next largest rocket in the world. With this new vehicle, SpaceX launch systems now cover the entire spectrum of the launch needs for commercial, civil and national security customers."

As of yet, the Falcon Heavy hasn't flown, but all the parts have been tested. Essentially an upgunned Falcon 9 with strapon boosters, the Heavy has lift capability second only to the Saturn 5. Already scheduled for 4 Falcon Heavy launches for the US Air Force this year, the Intelsat contract represents the true dawn of the commercial space age.
NASA

Submission + - Nasa team finds a (possible) new test for osteoporosis (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The BBC has an article about scientists at NASA who believe that they have found a new test that can osteoporosis earlier than existing tests. Their test involved having healthy volunteers confined to bed rest for 30 days; "the technique was able to detect bone loss after as little as one week of bed rest". Bone loss is an issue for astronauts as well as people affected by osteoporosis. They expect this test will help detect bone loss as a symptom of osteoporosis, but have not yet done a trial to confirm this. Another point against anyone who claims NASA, and going to space in general, is a complete waste of money.
Security

Submission + - Researchers discover major cyber-weapon targeting Middle-East (techworld.com)

Submitted by concertina226
concertina226 writes: Experts know that there is undoubtedly more cyber-malware out there than has yet been found and now they have a new name to add to a small but infamous list, Worm.Win32.Flame, or plain ‘Flame’ (or 'Flamer' or SkyWiper) for short.

What is Flame and what does it do? Kaspersky describes it as an “attack toolkit”, which means that it has enough components to do anything and everything it wants to, from opening a backdoor, deploying Trojans with various purposes and then spreading like a worm.

“Once a system is infected, Flame begins a complex set of operations, including sniffing the network traffic, taking screenshots, recording audio conversations, intercepting the keyboard, and so on,” said Kaspersky Lab researcher, Alexander Gostev, underlining Flame’s apparent data-stealing design.
XBox (Games)

Submission + - Minecraftthe fastest selling arcader game ever. (xboxlivearcader.com)

Submitted by
xboxlivearcader
xboxlivearcader writes: "Minecraft has become some what of a phenomenon on the PC over the past few years, and has build up some what of a cult following. So it's no surprise that when Minecraft was released on Xbox 360 in May, it became the fastest selling Arcade game of all time. What makes Minecraft so good, I mean you are in a world of blocks and all you have to do is build stuff, there are no Levels no story, nothing. But Minecraft just is an awesome game, as long as you have an imagination you will play minecraft as the scale of what you can build is crazy. Minecraft the xbox 360 edition received rave reviews when it was launched back in may. Are you part of this cult following?"
Piracy

Submission + - Pirate Bay Ready For IP Address Whac-A-Mole

Submitted by jones_supa
jones_supa writes: Last week The Pirate Bay added a new IP address which allows users to circumvent the many court-ordered blockades against the site. While this proved to be quite effective, the Hollywood backed anti-piracy group BREIN has already been to court to demand a block against this new address. But that won't deter The Pirate Bay, who say they are fully prepared for an extended game of whac-a-mole using the hundreds of IP addresses they have available. Courts all around the world have ordered Internet providers to block subscriber access to the torrent site, and the end is still not in sight.
Space

Submission + - Massive black holes stop the creation of new stars (gizmag.com)

Submitted by cylonlover
cylonlover writes: Just months ago, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory discovered record 20 million mph (32 million km/h) winds nearby a supermassive black hole. Now astronomers working on ESA's Herschel Space Observatory are suggesting that such incredibly strong winds — whose speed depends on the size of the black hole — are preventing the gas and dust in galaxies from forming new stars, explaining the link between the size of a black hole and the rate at which new stars are formed.

Submission + - Miners Send Drones To Work (itnews.com.au)

Submitted by aesoteric
aesoteric writes: Australia's top miners have opened a new front in their march to automation, flying unmanned aerial vehicles in increasing numbers at remote sites across the country. They've been used to inspect a fire-damaged oil rig, perform aerial photography and stockpile surveys. There is also a trend towards non US-built UAVs, due to the lag in receiving export approvals for the aircraft and spare parts.
Music

Submission + - "Open Source Bach" project completed; score and recording now online (opengoldbergvariations.org) 1

Submitted by
rDouglass
rDouglass writes: "MuseScore, the open source music notation editor, and pianist Kimiko Ishizaka have released a new recording and digital edition of Bach's Goldberg Variations. The works are released under the Creative Commons Zero license to promote the broadest possible free use of the works. The score underwent two rounds of public peer review, drawing on processes normally applied to open source software. Furthermore, the demands of Bach's notational style drove significant advancements in the MuseScore open source project. The recording was made on a Bösendorfer 290 Imperial piano in the Teldex Studio of Berlin. Anne-Marie Sylvestre, a Canadian record producer, was inspired by the project and volunteered her time to edit and produce the recording. The project was funded by a successful Kickstarter campaign that was featured on Slashdot in March 2011."

Submission + - Landmark Calculation Clears the Way to Answering How Matter is Formed (scienceblog.com)

Submitted by
smazsyr
smazsyr writes: "An international collaboration of scientists is reporting in landmark detail the decay process of a subatomic particle called a kaon – information that may help answer fundamental questions about how the universe began. The calculation in the study required 54 million processor hours on the IBM BlueGene/P supercomputer at Argonne National Laboratory, the equivalent of 281 days of computing with 8,000 processors. “This calculation brings us closer to answering fundamental questions about how matter formed in the early universe and why we, and everything else we observe today, are made of matter and not anti-matter,” says a co-author of the paper."
Japan

Submission + - Japan readies robot for work at crippled nuclear reactor (cio.com.au)

Submitted by
angry tapir
angry tapir writes: "A Japanese robotics lab has developed a new emergency response prototype that will soon be put to work at the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant in northern Japan. The robot, called "Rosemary," is about the size of a lawn mower and has four extended treaded feet that swivel up and down to help it climb over obstacles."

Submission + - Shouryya Ray solves 300-year-old mathematical riddle posed by Isaac Newton (news.com.au) 1

Submitted by
johnsnails
johnsnails writes: "A GERMAN 16-year-old has become the first person to solve a mathematical problem posed by Sir Isaac Newton more than 300 years ago.
Shouryya Ray worked out how to calculate exactly the path of a projectile under gravity and subject to air resistance, The (London) Sunday Times reported.
The Indian-born teen said he solved the problem that had stumped mathematicians for centuries while working on a school project.

Read more: http://www.news.com.au/technology/german-teen-shouryya-ray-solves-300-year-old-mathematical-riddle-posed-by-sir-isaac-newton/story-e6frfro0-1226368490157#ixzz1w3LI5N1w"

Slashdot Top Deals

DEC diagnostics would run on a dead whale. -- Mel Ferentz

Close