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Comment Re:News for nerds (Score 4, Insightful) 114

by hcs_$reboot (#49550413) Attached to: 7.8 Earthquake Rocks Nepal, Hundreds Dead
This is /. so we can expect comments about 1) was Nepal ready to fight such a disaster, compared to, eg, Japan 2) what are the progresses in terms of EQ detection 3) what is the chance of such a strong EQ happening in that region 4) do we have more & more of such big disasters recently 5) is it linked to the Sun activity, linked to the human oil/gas digging 6) will China offers help to Nepal? ... All of this is rather interesting IMO, so wait and watch!

Comment Re:The Best Investment (Score 2) 45

by hcs_$reboot (#49544773) Attached to: Hubble Turns 25

seriously one of the best investment we have made up there.

This is one of the reasons funding doesn't always go where it would make science progress the better. Hubble outcome is visually attractive and nice (photos). Other fields, particle accelerators, neutrino research etc... that people hardly understand, may not gather the same amount of enthusiasm.

Submission + - Bees prefer nectar laced with Neonicotinoids (rsc.org)

Submitted by Taco Cowboy
Taco Cowboy writes: Neonicotinoids are a class of neuro-active insecticides chemically similar to nicotine

Neonicotinoids kill insect by overwhelming and short-circuting the insects' central nervous system (See http://lee.ifas.ufl.edu/Hort/V... )

Shell and Bayer started the development of Neonicotinoids back in the 1980's and 1990's

Since this new group of pesticide came to the market the bee population have been seriously devastated in regions where the pesticide are been widely used

In 2008 neonicotinoids came under increasing scrutiny over their environmental impacts starting in Germany

In 2012, studies have shown that neonicotinoid uses are linked to crash of bee population (See http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_new... )

New studies, however, have discovered that bees prefer nectars that are laced with neonicotinoids, over nectars that are free of any trace of neonicotinoids (See http://www.rsc.org/chemistrywo... )

According to researchers at Newcastle University the bees may "get a buzz" from the nicotine-like chemicals in the same way smokers crave cigarettes

BBC also covers this case (See http://www.bbc.com/news/scienc... )

Submission + - Ubuntu 15.04 Released, First Version to Feature SystemD (omgubuntu.co.uk)

Submitted by jones_supa
jones_supa writes: The final release of Ubuntu 15.04 is now available. Only modest set of improvements are rolling out with this spring's Ubuntu. While this means the OS can't rival the heavy changelogs of releases past, the adage "don’t fix what isn't broke" is clearly one that 15.04 plays to. The headline change is SystemD being featured first time in a stable Ubuntu release, which replaces the inhouse UpStart init system. The Unity desktop version 7.3 receives a handful of small refinements, most of which aim to either fix bugs or correct earlier missteps (for example, application menus can now be set to be always visible). The Linux version is 3.19.3 further patched by Canonical. As usual, the distro comes with fresh versions of various familiar applications.

Submission + - Groupon refuses to pay security expert who found serious XSS site bugs (betanews.com)

Submitted by Mark Wilson
Mark Wilson writes: Bounty programs benefit everyone. Companies like Microsoft get help from security experts, customers gain improved security, and those who discover and report vulnerabilities reap the rewards financially. Or at least that's how things are supposed to work.

Having reported a series of security problems to discount and deal site Groupon, security researcher Brute Logic from XSSposed.org was expecting a pay-out — but the site refuses to stump up the cash. In all, Brute Logic reported more than 30 security issues with Groupon's site, but the company cites its Responsible Disclosure policy as the reason for not handing over the cash.

Submission + - German Court Rules Adblock Plus Is Legal

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Following a four-month trial, a German court in Hamburg has ruled that the practice of blocking advertising is perfectly legitimate. Germany-based Eyeo, the company that owns Adblock Plus, has won a case against German publishers Zeit Online and Handelsblatt. These companies operate Zeit.de, Handelsblatt.com, and Wiwo.de. Their lawsuit, filed on December3, charged that Adblock Plus should not be allowed to block ads on their websites. While the decision is undoubtedly a big win for users today, it could also set a precedent for future lawsuits against Adblock Plus and any other tool that offers similar functions. The German court has essentially declared that users are legally allowed to control what happens on their screens and on their computers while they browse the Web.

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