Comment Espadon (Score 1) 47
Nice. I award you full marx for that one. :)
Submission + - F-22 Radar Used as High-Capacity Data Link? (theregister.co.uk)
Lord of Hyphens writes: "According to The Register, The USAF is looking at a new use for the F-22 Raptor's sophisticated electronics systems: control of grounded robotics.
"[A]n alliance of Northrop Grumman, Lockheed Martin, and L-3 Communications has duplicated the AESA ground tests in the air, using a Raptor radar mounted in a BAC 1-11 test plane to exchange data with a ground station at 274 Mbit/sec, "fully duplex". AESA radars are well able to handle two simultaneous information streams, apparently. All you need is an "off-the-shelf, L-3 programmable modem".
Submission + - Guido van Rossum: Python 3.0 alpha in August (artima.com)
grammar fascist writes: Guido van Rossum, BDFL (Benevolent Dictator for Life) of the Python programming language, has posted a comprehensive status report on the progress of Python's next incarnation, including a tentative release schedule. Python 3.0 alpha could be available as early as August this year, with the final release a year from then. This is probably the last chance Python has of any significant language overhaul — meaning a significant break in compatibility with earlier versions. (A fairly thorough conversion tool will be supplied.) Lists of regrets and wishes have been made into language enhancements, including Unicode strings (bytes objects will be used for binary data), class decorators, function argument annotations (no implicit type enforcement), dynamic specification of base classes, Abstract Base Classes (not strict and bondage-y as in Java), true multiple dispatch (called "generic functions"), exception reform, int/long unification, and much more. Whom to thank? Besides Guido and the core Python developers and designers, Google. They hired him to spend half his time on Python.
Submission + - Voting method visualizations (zesty.ca)
Snarfangel writes: Voting method debates are generally considered snooze-producers for all but a small group of aficionados, partly because they involve large, non-intuitive spreadsheets and tables. For something so important to democratically-elected governments, that is a shame.
Fortunately, it is possible to create visual representations of voting methods, revealing where methods agree, and where they fall into voting paradoxes. Ka-Ping Yee has created multicolored graphs covering Plurality, Approval, Borda, Condorcet, and IRV. While the flaws in Plurality are readily apparent, what is even more fascinating is the failure of IRV in certain elections.
