Comment I could've sworn... (Score 3, Insightful) 148
...that the odds were 4 in a million...
US FTC Sues Intel For Anti-Competitive Practices 230
Vigile writes "And here Intel was about to get out of 2009 with only a modestly embarrassing year. While Intel and AMD settled their own antitrust and patent lawsuits in November, the FTC didn't think that was good enough and has decided to sue Intel for anti-competitive practices. While the suits in Europe and in the US civil courts have hurt Intel's pocketbook and its reputation, the FTC lawsuit could very likely be the most damaging towards the company's ability to practice business as they see fit. The official hearing is set for September of 2010 but we will likely hear news filtering out about the evidence and charges well before that. One interesting charge that has already arisen: that Intel systematically changed its widely-used compiler to stunt the performance of competing processors."
Yellowstone Supervolcano Larger Than First Thought 451
drewtheman writes "New studies of the plumbing that feeds the Yellowstone supervolcano in Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park shows the plume and the magma chamber under the volcano are larger than first thought and contradicts claims that only shallow hot rock exists. University of Utah research professor of geophysics Robert Smith led four separate studies that verify a plume of hot and molten rock at least 410 miles deep that rises at an angle from the northwest."
Building a 32-Bit, One-Instruction Computer 269
Hugh Pickens writes "The advantages of RISC are well known — simplifying the CPU core by reducing the complexity of the instruction set allows faster speeds, more registers, and pipelining to provide the appearance of single-cycle execution. Al Williams writes in Dr Dobbs about taking RISC to its logical conclusion by designing a functional computer called One-Der with only a single simple instruction — a 32-bit Transfer Triggered Architecture (TTA) CPU that operates at roughly 10 MIPS. 'When I tell this story in person, people are usually squirming with the inevitable question: What's the one instruction?' writes Williams. 'It turns out there's several ways to construct a single instruction CPU, but the method I had stumbled on does everything via a move instruction (hence the name, "Transfer Triggered Architecture").' The CPU is implemented on a Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) device and the prototype works on a 'Spartan 3 Starter Board' with an XS3C1000 device available from Digilent that has the equivalent of about 1,000,000 logic gates, costing between $100 and $200. 'Applications that can benefit from custom instruction in hardware — things like digital signal processing, for example — are ideal for One-Der since you can implement parts of your algorithm in hardware and then easily integrate those parts with the CPU.'"
Comment Re:Wow. (Score 1) 174
If there's a reason to the music I like, I would like the computers to tell me. I like all sorts of music, from acoustic folk to pop to alternative rock to christian rock to screamo. I'll even listen to some country now and again. If a music recommender can understand that by my admission to enjoying 38th Parallel and Blindside, that I'd also enjoy something by Jack Johnson, I'd be amazed.
Submission + - Facebook user arrested for poking somebody (itpro.co.uk)
nk497 writes: A woman in the US has been arrested for poking someone over Facebook. Sharon Jackson had been banned by courts from "telephoning, contacting or otherwise communicating" the apparent victim, but just couldn't hold back from click the "poke" button. She now faces a sentence of up to a year in prison.
Submission + - Electron microscope that won't kill living cells (gizmag.com)
An anonymous reader writes: Electrical engineers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have developed a quantum mechanical measurement technique that allows electrons to sense objects remotely without ever hitting the imaged objects, thus avoiding damage.
Submission + - Should computer games adapt to the way you play? (newscientist.com) 1
jtogel writes: "Many games use "rubberbanding" to adapt to your skill level, making the game harder if you're a better player and vice versa. Just think of Mario Kart and the blatantly obvious ways it punishes you if you drive too well by giving the people who are hopelessly behind super-weapons to smack you with. It's also very common to just increase the skill of the NPCs as you get better — see e.g. Oblivion. In my research group, we are working on slightly more sophisticated ways to adapt the game to you, including generating new level elements based on your playing style.
Now, the question is: is this a good thing at all? Some people would claim that adapting the game to you just rewards mediocrity (you don't get rewarded for playing well). Others would say that it restricts the freedom of expression of the game designer. But still, game players have very different skill levels and skill sets when they come to a game, and we would like to cater to them all. And if you don't see playing skill as one-dimensional, maybe it's possible to do meaningful adaptation? What sort of game adaptation would you like to see? I'm very interested in your feedback here..."
Now, the question is: is this a good thing at all? Some people would claim that adapting the game to you just rewards mediocrity (you don't get rewarded for playing well). Others would say that it restricts the freedom of expression of the game designer. But still, game players have very different skill levels and skill sets when they come to a game, and we would like to cater to them all. And if you don't see playing skill as one-dimensional, maybe it's possible to do meaningful adaptation? What sort of game adaptation would you like to see? I'm very interested in your feedback here..."
Comment Re:Esoteric Naming System (Score 4, Informative) 255
I wonder if they were named in sequence (A, B, C ... ) as they were discovered, not as they lie from closest to farthest. I could understand as equipment got better, NASA was able to send spacecraft closer, etc., more rings would be identified.
Comment Leave it to Microsoft... (Score 0, Flamebait) 137
...to try and reinvent the wheel.
Comment Here's a demo of it (Score 1) 240
Done by a guy at TED this summer
http://www.ted.com/talks/eric_giler_demos_wireless_electricity.html
New "Drake Equation" Selects Between Alien Worlds 220
An anonymous reader writes 'A mathematical equation that counts habitats suitable for alien life could complement the Drake equation, which estimates the probability of finding intelligent alien beings elsewhere in the galaxy. That equation, developed in 1960 by US astronomer Frank Drake, estimates the probability of intelligent life existing elsewhere in our galaxy by considering the number of stars with planets that could support life. The new equation, under development by planetary scientists at the Open University in Milton Keynes, England, aims to develop a single index for habitability based on the presence of energy, solvents such as water, raw materials like carbon, and whether or not there are benign environmental conditions.'
Comment Re:Pickle Ball (Score 1) 950
I loved pickle ball at my school, then again it was because I schooled everyone at it...
Comment Bring back Mr. Wizard... (Score 1) 899
...and that Bill Nye guy, too.
Comment How about... (Score 4, Funny) 224
We create a huge solar array, big enough to cause a solar eclipse, and position it so it happens every other week or so. It would really freak India out...
