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Submission + - NSA confirms it has been searching US citizens data without a warrent (theguardian.com)

Submitted by Charliemopps
Charliemopps writes:

There have been queries, using US person identifiers, of communications lawfully acquired to obtain foreign intelligence targeting non-US persons reasonably believed to be located outside the United States. These queries were performed pursuant to minimization procedures approved by the Fisa court and consistent with the statute and the fourth amendment.

Basically, if you communicated with someone that is "reasonably believed" to be a terrorist, you've lost constitutional protection against searches without a warrant according to the NSA. This directly contradicts what President Obama has said about the programs in the past.

Submission + - Morse code test requirement to be reinstated for Amateur Radio License 5

Submitted by H0ek
H0ek writes: One of the standards of excellence required to possess an Amateur Radio License was to pass a test of Morse Code sending and receiving capabilities. At the beginning of 1991 this requirement was removed for Technician Class licenses, and finally in 2007 this requirement was removed for General and Amateur Extra Classes. This will now be reversed and all new applicants will be required to submit to the Morse Code test again. Also, all previous no-code licensees will have a specific length of time to renew their license with the new code test requirements. This can either been seen as restoring a badge of honor to the venerable amateur radio license system, or the death knell for a crotchety old system fading away in a world of community-wide wifi and mobile communications.

Submission + - Apple buys iFixit, declares repairable devices "antiquated". (ifixit.com) 2

Submitted by ErichTheRed
ErichTheRed writes: Apparently, Apple is buying iFixit. iFixit is (was?) a website that posted teardown photos of gadgets and offered repair advice. According to the website: "Apple is working hard to make devices last long enough to be upgraded or irrelevant, making repairability an antiquated notion." It's all clear now — I can't replace the batteries, hard drives or RAM in new Macs because I'm expected to throw them in the landfill every 2 years!

It made it to CNN, so it has to be true, right?

Submission + - More Than 1 In 4 Car Crashes Involve Cellphone Use (cbslocal.com)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: Texting and driving is dangerous but a new survey finds talking on a cellphone while behind the wheel may be even worse.

As WCBS 880s Paul Murnane reported from Stamford, the National Safety Council's annual report found 26 percent of all crashes are tied to phone use, but noted just 5 percent involved texting.

Safety advocates are lobbying now for a total ban on driver phone use, pointing to studies that headsets do not reduce drive distraction.

Submission + - Interview: Ask John McAfee What You Will

Submitted by samzenpus
samzenpus writes: Founder of the computer anti-virus company McAfee Associates, John McAfee gained world-wide attention eluding Belizean authorities in the jungle. Since we last sat down with John, he's been working on a device that blocks the government's ability to spy on PCs and mobile devices, been asked by the GOP to fix Obamacare, and has seen his last name removed from his old company. The rebranding garnered this response from McAfee: 'I am now everlastingly grateful to Intel for freeing me from this terrible association with the worst software on the planet. These are not my words, but the words of millions of irate users. ... My elation at Intel's decision is beyond words." John has agreed to answer your questions. As usual, ask as many as you'd like, but please, one per post.

Submission + - SPAM: It was the worst industrial disaster in US history—and we learned nothing 1

Submitted by superboj
superboj writes: Forget Deepwater Horizon or Three Mile Island: The biggest industrial disaster in American history actually happened in 2008, when more than a billion gallons of coal sludge ran through the small town of Kingston Tennessee. This story details how, five years later, nothing has been done to stop it happening again, thanks to energy industry lobbying, federal inaction, and secrecy imposed on Congress.
Link to Original Source

Submission + - NSA MYSTIC Surveillance System Can Record an Entire Country's Phone Calls (ibtimes.co.uk)

Submitted by concertina226
concertina226 writes: The NSA has a voice interception system called Mystic that can record the phone calls of an entire country and store the calls for 30 days, according to sources and documents leaked by Edward Snowden to the Washington Post.

Mystic was first used in 2009 and two years later, an additional tool, "Retro", was introduced that had the ability to retrieve and replay voices from any call, a senior manager for the system said. The documents list at least seven target nations where the collection systems were still being used to record "every single" conversation.

Billions of audio files can be stored for 30 days, after which the oldest are deleted unless analysts decide to keep them. Although the analysts listen to less than 1% of all calls, millions of voice clippings are processed and sent to long-term storage every month.

Submission + - Church Committee Members Say New Group Needed to Watch NSA

Submitted by Trailrunner7
Trailrunner7 writes: In a letter sent to President Obama and members of Congress, former members and staff of the Church Committee on intelligence said that the revelations of the NSA activities have caused “a crisis of public confidence” and encouraged the formation of a new committee to undertake “significant and public reexamination of intelligence community practices”.

In the letter sent Monday to Obama and Congress, several former advisers to and members of the Church committee, including the former chief counsel, said that the current situation involving the NSA bears striking resemblances to the one in 1975 and that the scope of what the NSA is doing today is orders of magnitude larger than what was happening nearly 40 years ago.

“The need for another thorough, independent, and public congressional investigation of intelligence activity practices that affect the rights of Americans is apparent. There is a crisis of public confidence. Misleading statements by agency officials to Congress, the courts, and the public have undermined public trust in the intelligence community and in the capacity for the branches of government to provide meaningful oversight,” the letter says.

Submission + - Obama transparency getting worse... (ap.org)

Submitted by schwit1
schwit1 writes: The government's own figures from 99 federal agencies covering six years show that halfway through its second term, the administration has made few meaningful improvements in the way it releases records. In category after category — except for reducing numbers of old requests and a slight increase in how often it waived copying fees — the government's efforts to be more open about its activities last year were their worst since President Barack Obama took office.

Submission + - Brief Pause Can Help You Make More Accurate Decisions (sciencemag.org)

Submitted by sciencehabit
sciencehabit writes: The next time you’re about to make an important decision, wait a second. Scientists have found that a brief pause can make the difference between the right choice and the wrong one. The work suggests that the first pulses of information our brains receive are misleading, because distractions confuse the decision-making process.

Submission + - Onagawa: The Japanese nuclear power plant that didn't melt down on 3/11 (thebulletin.org)

Submitted by Lasrick
Lasrick writes: This article really exposes TEPCO's sloppiness and, frankly, greed. Due to a completely different safety culture, the Onagawa nuclear power plant in Japan did not experience any of the problems that happened in Fukushima, and that is because the company that owns it, Tohoku Electric, had a completely different approach to safety: 'Most people believe that Fukushima Daiichi’s meltdowns were predominantly due to the earthquake and tsunami. The survival of Onagawa, however, suggests otherwise. Onagawa was only 123 kilometers away from the epicenter—60 kilometers closer than Fukushima Daiichi—and the difference in seismic intensity at the two plants was negligible. Furthermore, the tsunami was bigger at Onagawa, reaching a height of 14.3 meters, compared with 13.1 meters at Fukushima Daiichi. The difference in outcomes at the two plants reveals the root cause of Fukushima Daiichi’s failures: the utility’s corporate “safety culture.”'

Submission + - New Jersey Is Trying To Ban Tesla Stores

Submitted by cartechboy
cartechboy writes: It feels like this story is becoming repetitive: X state is trying to ban Tesla stores, or the ability for an automaker to sell directly to a consumer. Either way, it's all aimed at Tesla. Now it's New Jersey's turn as a hearing today could end up banning Tesla stores in the state. Naturally Tesla's displeased with this and is crying foul. A rule change that is expected to be approved today would require all new-car dealers to provide a franchise agreement in order to receive a license from the state. Obviously Tesla (the manufacturer) can't provide a franchise agreement to itself (the distributor). The proposd rule would also require dealers to maintain a 1,000 square foot facility, the ability to show two cars, and service customer cars on site. Tesla doesn't meet that last requirement at any of its galleries, and most of the Tesla stores are located in shopping malls which mean they are smaller than 1,000 square feet. Tesla's arguing the New Jersey Motor Vehicle Commission is overstepping its bounds. Will Tesla be able to defeat this new rule in New Jersey as it has overcome issues in many other states

Submission + - Ukraine May Have To Rearm With Nuclear Weapons Says Ukrainian MP (usatoday.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: USA Today reports, "Ukraine may have to arm itself with nuclear weapons if the United States and other world powers refuse to enforce a security pact that obligates them to reverse the Moscow-backed takeover of Crimea, a member of the Ukraine parliament told USA TODAY. The United States, Great Britain and Russia agreed in a pact "to assure Ukraine's territorial integrity" in return for Ukraine giving up a nuclear arsenal it inherited from the Soviet Union after declaring independence in 1991, said Pavlo Rizanenko, a member of the Ukrainian parliament. ... Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the commitments in the agreement are not relevant to Crimea because a "coup" in Kiev has created "a new state with which we have signed no binding agreements." The U.S. and U.K. have said that the agreement remains binding and that they expect it to be treated "with utmost seriousness, and expect Russia to, as well.""

Submission + - Oregon Withholding $25.6M from Oracle Over Health Website Woes (itworld.com)

Submitted by itwbennett
itwbennett writes: Oregon is holding back $25.6 million in payments from Oracle (out of some $69.5 million Oracle claims it is owed) over work the vendor did on the state's troubled health care exchange website. The site was supposed to go live on Oct. 1 but its launch has been marred by a slew of bugs and it is not yet fully functional. This week, Cover Oregon said it had reached an agreement with Oracle laying out 'an orderly transition of technology development services, and protects current and future Cover Oregon enrollees,' according to a statement. Oregon officials reached the deal with Oracle after the company reportedly threatened to pull all of its workers off the project and essentially walk away.

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