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Submission Summary: 0 pending, 267 declined, 186 accepted (453 total, 41.06% accepted)

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Submission + - Bad "Buss Duct" causes week-long closure of 5,000 employee Federal Complex (ajc.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: In Atlanta, an electrical problem in a "Buss Duct" has caused the Sam Nunn Atlanta Federal Center to be closed for at least a week (http://www.ajc.com/news/news/nunn-federal-building-expected-to-reopen-monday/ngnSZ/). 5,000 federal employees work at the center.

While many might view this as another example of The Infrastructure Crisis (http://www.asce.org/Content.aspx?id=25562) in the USA, it might actually be another example of mismanagement at the complex's landord, the General Service Administration (GSA). The GSA has had many scandals [http://www.federaltimes.com/article/20120416/DEPARTMENTS07/204160301/GSA-scandal-Heavy-fallout-expected] and has been the subject of several Congresssional Hearings, including an August 1, 2012 hearing titled "GSA: A Review of Agency Mismanagement and Wasteful Spending — Part 2" (http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CHRG-112hhrg75419/html/CHRG-112hhrg75419.htm). That hearing followed an $823,000 GSA employee conference in Las Vegas and a one-day-long $250,000 GSA employee conference in Crystal City, Virginia (http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2012/aug/1/gsa-scandal-widens-dozens-conferences-investigated/?page=all)

The closed Atlanta complex is named for Samuel Augustus "Sam" Nunn, Jr., who served for 24 years as a United States Senator from Georgia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Nunn). His daughter is the current Democratic Party nominee (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Nunn) for a Georgia Senate seat.

Submission + - India building Highest Railway Bridge in the World (businessinsider.com) 1

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: Up in the Mimalayas, Indian engineers have restarted work on the world's highest railway bridge. When completed in 2016, the arch-shaped steel structure will be 359 metres (1,177 feet) high — 35 metres (115 feet) taller than the Eiffel Tower!

The bridge is part of the Jammu Udhampur Srinagar Baramulla Railway Link
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kashmir_Railway), a railway line being built to connect the state of Jammu and Kashmir with the rest of the country. When completed, the route will shorten the travel time from Baramulla to Jammu to six-and-a-half hours, almost half the time it currently takes.

Submission + - Uber Driver flees taxi police with passengers aboard (washingtonpost.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: The Washington Post has the news that a Uber driver fled from police with passenger Ryan Simonetti aboard:

As they approached their Uber car, they spotted a D.C. taxi inspector talking to the driver.

Simonetti got into the front seat, and his colleagues got into the back seat. The inspector walked away. Thinking back, Simonetti suspects the inspector was going to check the documents the Uber driver had handed to him. Then, the Uber driver started driving down the street. The inspector turned his lights on and started to follow.

“That cop’s following you. What’s going on?” Simonetti said he asked the driver. He said the driver told him not to worry. “Oh no, he’s not a real cop,” the Uber driver replied. Simonetti said the driver then told them: “I’m sorry, we’re going to have to run this red light.”

The Uber driver then headed for the 9th Street tunnel, got on I-395 and proceeded to race down the highway going “well above the speed limit,” Simonetti said.

The taxi inspector followed.“It was like an episode of ‘Cops,’” Simonetti said.

A spokesman for Uber said the driver in question is no longer with the company.

Submission + - Senator Al Franken accuses AT+T of 'skirting' net neutrality rules (washingtonpost.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: In a letter to the U.S. Federal Communication Commission and the Department of Justice, Senator Al Franken warned that letting AT&T acquire Direct TV could turn AT&T into a gatekeeper to the mobile Internet. Franken also complained that AT&T took inappropriate steps to block Internet applications like Google Voice and Skype: "AT&T has a history of skirting the spirit, and perhaps the letter" of the government's rules on net neutrality, Franken wrote.

Submission + - Senator Al Franken accuses AT&T of 'skirting' net neutrality rules (washingtonpost.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: In a letter to the U.S. Federal Communication Commission and the Department of Justice, Senator Al Franken warned that letting AT&T acquire Direct TV could turn AT&T into a gatekeeper to the mobile Internet. Franken also complained that AT&T took inappropriate steps to block Internet applications like Google Voice and Skype: "AT&T has a history of skirting the spirit, and perhaps the letter" of the government's rules on net neutrality, Franken wrote.

Submission + - Train Derailment causes two 737s airplanes to crash into Clark Fork River (newstalkkgvo.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: Boeing builds its 737 airplane fuselages in a Wichita, Kansas factory. The fuselages are then shipped on top of railroad flatcars (as shown in this photograph: http://www.railpictures.net/vi... ) to Boeing's Renton, Washington plant where assembly is completed.

Unfortunately, a train carrying two fuselages to Renton derailed approximately 18 miles east of Superior, Montana. The 737s slid down a steep embankment and ended up in the Clark Fork River. (http://newstalkkgvo.com/montana-rail-link-train-derails-near-superior-three-cars-in-clark-fork-river-audio/)

That'll buff right out.

Submission + - "Evolution = Satan" part of Atlanta Public Schools' Biology Curriculum (thesoutherneronline.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: The young journalists at The Southerner (http://thesoutherneronline.com), the student newspaper at Grady High School in Atlanta, Georgia, recently broke the news that creationism and other Christian religious views are incorporated into the Biology curriculum used by the City of Atlanta Public Schools. As the newspaper put it (http://thesoutherneronline.com/frontpage/?p=29658):

A PowerPoint shown to a freshman biology class featured a cartoon depicting dueling castles, one labeled “Creation (Christ)” and the other labeled “Evolution (Satan).” Balloons attached to the evolution castle were labeled euthanasia, homosexuality, pornography, divorce, racism and abortion...... The PowerPoint, which has more than 50 slides largely consisting of material about evolution, was downloaded from SharePoint, an APS file-sharing database for teachers. It was uploaded by Mary E. King, a project manager at APS who has also uploaded more than 2,000 other documents. Phone calls and emails to King have not been returned. Tommy Molden, science coordinator for APS, also did not respond to requests for comment.

Students were offended by the cartoon:

“[I] have gay parents, and [the cartoon] said that evolution caused homosexuality and it implied that to be negative, so I was pretty offended by it,” [freshman Seraphina Cooley] said.

Cooley said that another student emailed the administration complaining about the PowerPoint.

Freshman Griffin Ricker, who is also in Jones’ class, said [Biology class teacher Anquinette Jones] got angry with the class when she found out students had notified the administration.

“She had a 10-minute rant,” Ricker said. “She yelled and said, ‘This is on the APS website, and it was certified.’”

In case of slashdotting, the student reporting is also posted on a local newspaper's blog (http://www.ajc.com/weblogs/get-schooled/2014/jul/03/evolution-vs-creationism-why-still-issue-grady-or-/).

Submission + - Baton Bob Strikes Back (against police that coerced Facebook post from him) (ajc.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: In June 2013, Atlanta police arrested (http://www.ajc.com/news/news/baton-bob-arrested-following-run-in-with-officer/nYWtd/) costumed street performer "Baton Bob" (wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/B...) during the middle of a street performance after Baton Bob was allegedly involved in a verbal altercation with mall security guards.

Now, a year later, Baton Bob has filed a federal lawsuit (http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional/baton-bob-strikes-back-at-atlanta-police/ngWps/) accusing Atlanta police of violating his constitutional rights, assault, discrimination, privacy violations and identify theft. The slashdot-worthy part of the story is that Atlanta Police allegedly forced Baton Bob to make a pro-police statement on his Facebook page before officers would allow Bob to be released on bond. According to the lawsuit:

At approximately 3:40 p.m., while Plaintiff sat handcuffed and without an attorney, he was told to dictate a public statement to Officer Davis, who then typed and posted the message to the Baton Bob Facebook account. The message read:

“First of all, the atl police officer that responded to the incident thru security has been very respectful and gracious to me even in handcuffs. So, the situation escalated from a complaint from a security officer in the area and for some reason she rolled up on me like she didn’t know who I was and like I had not been there before. For them to call police to come to intervene was not necessary. So, out of it, because of my fury, the Atlanta police officer did not understand the elements of the situation, so he was trying to do his job, respectfully and arrested my ass!!!!!!!!! I’ll be out tomorrow so look out for my show at 14th and Peachtree. So now I’m waiting to be transported so I can sign my own bond and get the hell out of here. I want to verify, that the Atlanta police was respectful to me considering the circumstances. See you when I see you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

“As promised, Plaintiff was then given a signature bond and released from jail.”


Submission + - Mayors of Atlanta & New Orleans: Uber will knock-out taxi industry (theatlantic.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed and New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu agree: there will a 15 round fight between Uber and the taxicab industry that currently enjoys regulatory capture, but in the end, Uber will win. Landrieu explaned:

It actually is going to be a 15 round fight. And it's going to take time to work out, hopefully sooner rather than later. But that debate will be held.....But it is a forceful fight, and our city council is full of people on Uber's side, people on the cabs' side, and it's a battle.

Mayor Reed of Atlanta also expressed how politically powerful the taxi cartels can be:

I tell you, Uber's worth more than Sony, but cab drivers can take you out. So you've got to [weigh that]. Get in a cab and they say, 'Well that mayor, he is sorry.' You come to visit Atlanta, they say, 'Well that Mayor Reed is as sorry as the day is long. Let me tell you how sorry he is while I drive you to your hotel. And I want you to know that crime is up.' This guy might knock you out.

I want you to know it can get really real. It's not as easy as it looks.


Submission + - Cracking Atlanta Subway's Poorly-Encrypted RFID Smart Cards Is a Breeze, PART II (ajc.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: In December 2013, Slashdot reported (http://yro.slashdot.org/story/13/12/29/1634239/cracking-atlanta-subways-poorly-encrypted-rfid-smart-cards-is-a-breeze) the arrest of seven metro Atlanta residents for allegedly selling counterfeit MARTA Breeze cards, stored-value smart cards that passengers use as part of an automated fare collection system on Atlanta's subway.

Now, six months later (June 2014), the seven suspects have finally been indicted (http://www.ajc.com/news/news/fraudulent-marta-breeze-card-ring-indicted/ngTdr/).
According to the indictment, the co-conspirators purchased legitimate Breeze cards for $1, then fraudulently placed unlimited or monthly rides on the cards. They then sold the fraudulent cards to MARTA riders for a discounted cash price. Distributors of the fraudulent cards were stationed at several subway stations.

The indictment claims that the ring called their organization the “Underground Railroad".

Submission + - Will ASU Online's Starbucks Baristas Outearn Their Professors? (Yes. Duh!)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: Following up on the recent slashdot story "Starbucks Offers Workers 2 Years of Free College" (http://news.slashdot.org/story/14/06/16/1927205/starbucks-offers -workers-2-years-of-free-college), Steve Foerster commented that "This is a major PR boost for ASU as well, and considering many adjuncts make less than the baristas they'll be teaching, I doubt ASU is losing money here." (http://chronicle.com/article/In-Deal-With-Starbucks/147181/#comment-1439171567)

Mr. Foerster's comment caused the Chronicle of Higher Education to ask "Is it possible that Starbucks baristas will be better paid than their instructors? (http://chronicle.com/article/Will-ASU-Online-s-Starbucks/147239/)" While the article is behind a paywall, the answer is obvious to anyone who knows how little adjunct professors are paid.

Submission + - Kansas City Science Store Resurrects AC Gilbert Chemistry Set, the best-ever toy (kickstarter.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: The A. C. Gilbert Company (Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A...) was once one of the largest toy companies in the world. It manufacturered Erector Sets (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erector_Set), American Flyer toy trains (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Flyer), and chemistry sets (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chemistry_set).

Chemist John Farrell Kuhns (https://www.kickstarter.com/profiles/1742632993/bio) received an AC Gilbert Chemistry set for Christmas 1959, while he was still in grade school. By the time Kuhns was twelve years old he had a home lab set up in my family's basement. Now, more than 50 years later, he still has a home lab.

As an adult, Mr. Kuhns wanted to share these experiences with his daughter, nephews and nieces, and their friends. But he soon discovered that real chemistry sets were no longer available. He wondered how, without real chemistry sets and opportunities for students to learn and explore, where would our future chemists come from?

In 2004, Kuhns and his wife opened their science store, H.M.S. Beagle (http://www.hms-beagle.com/) and last year used Kickstarter to launch a new Heirloom Chemistry set. (https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1742632993/heirloom-chemistry-set). Kuhns uses a CNC router to cut out his wood cases, which are then hand assembled and finished with the shiny brass hardware and exotic wood inlays. Kuhns also synthesizes, purifies and/or formulates and packages all of the chemicals.

Gary Hanington, professor of physical science at Great Basin College, was another child who was lucky enough to own a Gilbert chemistry set. Hanington wrote about his set in this article (http://elkodaily.com/lifestyles/speaking-of-science-a-c-gilbert-chemistry-sets/article_30dc31c8-c258-11e1-9dfd-001a4bcf887a.html).

Sadly, not everyone sees the educational value of real chemistry sets. The AC Gilbert chemistry sets are #3 on Cracked's "The 8 Most Wildly Irresponsible Toys" (http://www.cracked.com/article_19481_the-8-most-wildly-irresponsible-vintage-toys_p2.html) and #8 on Complex.com's "The 25 Worst Must-Have Christmas Toys Ever (http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2012/12/25-worst-must-have-christmas-toys-ever/gilbert-chemistry-set)

Submission + - Study: Half of US jobs to be replaced by computers, robots & autonomous cars (ox.ac.uk)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: The answer to the "Ask Slashdot: Does Your Job Need To Exist?" (http://ask.slashdot.org/story/14/05/10/1953227/ask-slashdot-does-your-job-need-to-exist) is a big "NO!", according to a study from the Oxford Martin Programme on the Impacts of Future Technology. They found that half of US jobs could be susceptible to computerisation over the next two decades. (http://www.futuretech.ox.ac.uk/news-release-oxford-martin-school-study-shows-nearly-half-us-jobs-could-be-risk-computerisation).

‘The Future of Employment: How susceptible are jobs to computerisation?’ report measured the vulnerability of 702 occupations in terms of their likelihood to be replaced by various forms of computerisation, including within robotics, sophisticated data-scanning software or autonomous vehicles. Yhe study found that jobs in transportation, logistics, as well as office and administrative support, are at “high risk” of automation. More surprisingly, occupations within the service industry are also highly susceptible, despite recent job growth in this sector.

“We identified several key bottlenecks currently preventing occupations being automated,” says co-author Dr Michael A. Osborne. “As big data helps to overcome these obstacles, a great number of jobs will be put at risk.”

The full report is available here: http://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac....

Submission + - Missing Malaysian 767:Experts unable to replicate satelite company's analysis (theatlantic.com) 1

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: The lynchpin of the investigation of the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has been the pings from the plane to one of Inmarsat’s satellites. The pings are the sole evidence of what happened to the plane after it slipped out of radar contact. Without them, investigators knew only that the plane had enough fuel to travel anywhere within 3,300 miles of the last radar contact—a seventh of the entire globe.

Inmarsat concluded that the flight ended in the southern Indian Ocean, and its analysis has become the canonical text of the Flight 370 search. It’s the bit of data from which all other judgments flow—from the conclusive announcement by Malaysia’s prime minister that the plane has been lost with no survivors, to the black-box search area, to the high confidence in the acoustic signals, to the dismissal by Australian authorities of a survey company’s new claim to have detected plane wreckage.

But scientists and engineers outside of the investigation have been working to verify Inmarsat's analysis and many say that it just doesn’t hold up.

Submission + - Absent-minded IT Specialist inadvertently drives onto White House grounds (washingtonpost.com)

Submitted by McGruber
McGruber writes: IT Specialist Mathew Goldstein’ was driving his gray Honda Civic along 17th Street NW in Washington, DC when he made a wrong turn and inadvertently followed the motorcade carrying President Obama’s daughters into the secure perimeter for the presidential compound.

Goldstein’s mistaken left turn raised serious questions about how an unauthorized vehicle was able to travel within five feet of the Obama girls’ motorcade and get through two rows of metal security bollards at the checkpoint at 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue.

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And it should be the law: If you use the word `paradigm' without knowing what the dictionary says it means, you go to jail. No exceptions. -- David Jones

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