From page 19 of the report:

What is the difference between a vendor and a partner vendor?

Partner vendors contribute financially to the test in return for a preview of the results, an opportunity to challenge results before publication and the right to use award logos in marketing material. Other participants first see the results on the day of publication and may not use award logos for any purpose.

Do you share samples with the vendors?

Partner vendors are able to download all samples from us after the test is complete. Other vendors may request a subset of the threats that compromised their products in order for them to verify our results. The same applies to client-side logs, including the network capture files. There is a small administration fee for the provision of this service.

It's 45 feet deep at this, the first section. It'll reach 200 feet below surface at the deepest point.

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Viaduct/About/FollowBertha

They will have to dig below the water line, which may be more expensive and dangerous with a trench. Besides having to move or work around tall buildings they would also have to remove more dirt. It would certainly be more disruptive to dig a trench. The more reasonable alternative would be to build an elevated highway rather than tunnel below the ground.

It can range from almost zero to very deep depending on the soil and the building. Heavy buildings require deeper foundations. Soft soils need to be deeper than solid rock.

I don't know how deep the foundations are in Seattle but I do know that the Columbia Center, which is the tallest building in WA state, has seven stories below ground. That's about 84 feet deep but the footings could be deeper. At it's deepest the tunnel will be about 200 feet below the surface. That should be deep enough to go under the Columbia Center if that's their route.

Right now the tunnel is in zone 1 of ten zones. It's hardly even started. That's probably good if they have to dig it out. But if it can't even get through this zone the project is in deep trouble.

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Viaduct/About/FollowBertha

They are concerned and not just about a cave-in. Vibration could cause lot's of damage. According to the WSDOT the machine is not actually stuck yet. They stopped it because they encountered resistance. The walls behind the machine are already built so there's not much risk of a cave-in. But there is a risk that nearby infrastructure could be damaged if they move forward. They can reinforce the infrastructure above but if they actually get stuck it could have enormous consequences. The machine would have to be dug out and replaced (at $80 million per borer). Add in the cost of reinforcements and digging a big hole, then consider that the $3.1 billion project is only bonded up to $500 million.

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/what-could-possibly-go-wrong/Content?oid=4399657

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/News/2013/12/10_SR99tunnelingstatement.htm

No can do. As the machine moves forward the tunnel walls are built behind it. TBM's have no reverse.

Actually the machine isn't stuck, yet. They stopped the machine because it encountered resistance. If it actually does get stuck the machine can't be dismantled underground and removed. They would have to dig it out from above, remove the TBM and install a new one. If it does get stuck let's just hope it's not under a skyscraper.

http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/News/2013/12/10_SR99tunnelingstatement.htm

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/what-could-possibly-go-wrong/Content?oid=4399657

The Washington Times article credits Fox News. It quotes but does not credit the Reading Eagle, which appears to have first reported on this incident:

http://readingeagle.com/article/20131218/NEWS/312189945/1052

The Reading Eagle quotes but does not credit CNN. CNN last reported on the issue in June when this happened in Alabama.

http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/19/us/drug-survey-roadblocks/index.html?iref=allsearch

As noted by others, USB 3 supports up to 100 watts. It's reasonable to expect lightweight devices to charge at less than 100 watts, especially if you're willing to charge longer.

http://www.usb.org/developers/powerdelivery/

Canonical sells a product that is mostly developed and supported by other people, often for free. Many of the people here have developed or supported the Linux projects that Canonical distributes as Ubuntu.

Do you suppose Apple would have used it under any other open license? Writing their own is pretty normal for Apple.

Better approach: Put a box of saltines where the Oreo's are supposed to be. Hold a bag of potatoes while standing on the weight sensor. Take stuff off the shelf, walk around the store and then put it back.

Bad data is worse than no data.

You make a valid point. In reviewing what I wrote I made a very broad statement that appears to reinforce anti-Israeli conspiracy theories. I actually regard the incident as a brilliant geopolitical manuever by the leaders of the young state of Israel. It's been many years since I studied the history of the cartel and my recollection of details isn't great. Without books on hand I'll do my best to recall what took place.

In the early days of modern Israel, many people had expertise in working with diamonds, and they'd built a cottage jewelry industry. Israel wanted to leverage their skills into industrial polishing. DeBeers wanted to maintain control over those functions and obstructed Israel's entry into the industry. So Israel built up a large cachet of diamonds and threatened to dump them on the market. In order to prevent devaluation, DeBeers conceded and assisted Israel in building their industry.

Absent specific details I probably should have omitted the story altogether. At the very least I should have noted DeBeers' role in WW2. What's certain is that during WW2 the US wanted to transfer diamonds to North America to supply their industry. DeBeers refused. Meanwhile, diamonds continued to flow into Nazi Germany, supplying their war industry. Some historians suggest that DeBeers actively cooperated with the Nazi's. Others claim that the Nazi's smuggled them out through third parties.

This isn't about naturally rare minerals, it's about the one mineral that's rare by design. This is the latest in a long history of disinformation campaigns intended to keep DeBeers' control of the diamond. In fact, diamonds are so common in nature that there are beaches in Africa where they wash up on shore. You could pick them up like seashells if it weren't for the armed guards ready and willing to shoot anyone who tries. If DeBeers ever lost control of the market the value of diamonds would plumet.

When General Electric developed the first artificial diamond DeBeers bought the company. When Israel threatened to dump their cache on the market, DeBeers practically bought the country. They spent billions buying artificial diamonds from the Soviets, just to keep them off the market. In the US, when DeBeers was investigated for antitrust violations they put every employee in their country on a plane and sent them back to Europe. In one night. The next day there was a new person in every US job, and not one of those people could testify about how DeBeers operates. If you ever want to have your life turned upside down, try buying and selling used diamonds. See just how long it takes for DeBeers to shut you down.

DeBeers modus operandi is to back whoever controls a country, as long as they are willing to do business. If not, DeBeers will back a coup. So, if you want to control an African country, step 1 is to gain control over the diamonds. If you want to get rich, step 1 is to take over a country. THAT is why there's so much violence in Africa. The regime that labels "conflict" minerals is just one of the tools DeBeers uses to maintain control. The "conflict" countries are places where more than one group operates. Whatever group is on the outside will smuggle diamonds out, undermining price controls.

The history of the DeBeers cartel is the most fascinating and disturbing story that's rarely told. If you haven't read it I strongly recommend a trip to the local library. Don't wait for Hollywood to tell the story. They're too busy writing a sequel to "Blood Diamonds". On contract of course. The sad truth is that EVERY diamond is a blood diamond.

The headline talks about a pile of code but the article is about assembling a project. They're not necessarily the same thing and I find great value in unfinished code. Yesterday I spent four hours trying to figure out why a simple mysql stored procedure had stopped working. This morning after reading slashdot I realized I was going about it backwards. The stored procedure was open-source. A quick google code search came up with four projects using the function. One of them had been updated. A quick read of the updated version and I understood what had changed. Copy, paste, done. The reference code was not documented or released, but it was open-source.

Towards the end of the article it says that this is the latest in a string of technology-related mishaps affecting exchanges and brokers as markets over the past two decades have migrated to electronic systems. That's an absurd statement considering two decades is a very long time. Besides, computers were first used in trading in the 1960's. What's happened in recent years that's made market systems more vulnerable?