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Comment There is no Higgs Boson (Score 0) 190

The models that we are using today to describe the universe are hopelessly inadequate. In my view there is no Higgs boson. A whole lot of stuff that we consider fundamental today in reality should be derived from underlying properties. Mass and gravity as most noticeable examples. There is no Higgs, but keep looking so that everyone else can be convinced it does not exist.

Comment Roundabouts in The Netherlands... (Score 1) 1173

Roundabouts replacing crossings in The Netherlands are claimed to have been the major contributing factor behind the reduction of traffic casualties, going from the lowest in the world to by far the lowest in the world, when measured against traffic volume. There are now about 800 fatal casualties per year on a population of 16 million people. The amount of fatal casualties is about 8 people per 1 billion kilometers. (= 12 people per billion miles)

Comment Japan, The Netherlands and Germany (Score 1) 334

Japan and The Netherlands also stick to building new reactors. They at least learned the right lesson, we need to build reactors that are more inherently safe. Only Germany doesn't stay the course. That is primarily the result of cultural fights in the eighties in Germany that defined some generations. When Three Miles Island went down, there was no significant release of radiation, but the public reaction was based on it's fears, rather than on the reports. That is a natural thing happening in other areas as well. When Chernobyl happened, that was much worse than a reactor melt down, the reactor was designed as an enormous dirty bomb. Fukushima is the first real nuclear full scale disaster. And look, hardly any casualties, just an enormous financial burden. Even if a Fukushima incident happens every year it would be roughly on par with coal burning power plants running steady.

Comment When drawn into a boycott... (Score 4, Interesting) 609

Since RMS consequently rejects any piece of software that restricts his rights or movements, the only right thing to do would be to reject the Arab invitation to visit the former British mandate of Palestine. Of course the Israeli invitees then should pick up the tab to pay for his travel expenses to Israel. The Israelis did not restrict RMS's whereabouts and should be lauded for their policy of sticking to freedom for all, including the Arabs.

Comment Re:Get ready to read another.... (Score 1) 377

Your grandfather did not. This claim has been made over and over again. This claim is only made by people who do not understand the basics of economics and people who have never introduced a product to the market or maintained a market presence against a competition. The reality is that a continuous stream of inventions and technological advancements hit the market and make engines more efficient. Some of that gain is used up by adding more luxury items to cars like air conditioning etc. Every car company that good get hold of a much improved engine will use it in new car models.

Comment Re:Awesome (Score 1) 53

There is no reason to assume a closer tie between English and Dutch than any of the other languages spoken in Western Europe. But the small country that has always thrived on international business has a strong orientation on foreign languages. Most high school students have to learn four modern languages (Dutch, English, German and French or Spanish) and optionally two ancient languages (Latin and Greek). With a foreign language you also get a deeper insight in other cultures, giving you a better perspective on business deals.

Comment The real problem (Score 1) 760

These 'leaks' are just the usual carefully crafted agitprop that we have come used to in the mainstream media. Anyone who wants to be informed about the details of the many power struggles in the Middle-East reads academic journals, follows the statements by the foreign ministries closely, and corresponds with the negotiators, which is surprisingly easy and informative. The fact that the mainstream media fails to inform the public well is caused by human inability to grasp the consequences of other societies (America, Europe, Middle-East) being different in structure. Both the inability of journalists as well as readers/watchers. The only real problem upholding an agreement between Israel and the Arab population in the former British mandate of Palestine are neighboring countries of which the leadership cannot tolerate a democratic flourishing Arab state, because it would undermine the stability of their own rule. We once had a semi democratic Arab state that did well, which was Lebanon. We all know how that was finished by rulers like al-Assad. Once the price of oil gets below $25 a barrel for a sustained period of time, countries like Iran will no longer be able to spend billions of dollars per year in destabilizing Gaza and the West Bank and other territories. It is horrible to see that the governments in Europe and the US fail to address their opponents in the Middle-East, while a few dictators find our weak spots consistently and exploit them to the fullest.
Botnet

Submission + - Bredolab botnet taken down (www.om.nl)

sciencewatcher writes: The High Tech Crime Team (THTC) of the Dutch Crime Squad today announced the takedown of a dangerous botnet. The botnet had infected at least 30 million computers worldwide. The botnet was part of the Bredolab network, used by cybercriminals to distribute malware to unsuspecting users’ computers. Users of computers with viruses from this network will receive a notice of at the time of next login with information on the degree of infection. They will receive helpful advice on removing the viruses from their system.

Comment Dutch companies were NOT attacked (Score 1) 141

The worm was found on pc's in The Netherlands like they were found elsewhere throughout the world. The worm did NOT attack the Siemens machines, and the worm was easily removed using standard AV programs. So far only militairy hardware in Iran has been attacked. The press release was written by non techies.
Bug

Submission + - Stuxnet worm claimed to be devastating in Iran. (debka.com)

sciencewatcher writes: At debka.com, a website associated with intelligence communities focusing on the Middle East, the claim is made that Tehran this week secretly appealed to a number of computer security experts in West and East Europe with offers of handsome fees for consultations on ways to exorcize the Stuxnet worm spreading havoc through the computer networks and administrative software of its most important industrial complexes and military command centers.

Comment Re:viral? (Score 1) 618

The Israeli intelligence community has stated it's viewpoint. http://www.debka.com/article/8742/ They don't want the Russians to sell this weapon on the market. Whatever your thoughts on the Israeli intelligence community, it is always good to read and understand their opinion. (And usually it's best to incorporate their opinion into your own, that is, if you enjoy your freedoms in the Western hemisphere.)

Comment Re:How I faced my death (Score 1) 692

I basically agree with what you're stating. But those few seconds impressed me at that moment and I never forgot it. Basically I made re-evaluations of previous thoughts. I can still remember the order in which I made the re-evalutations, or at least so I think. I can be a fast and unconventional thinker, but I never reprocessed so many different thoughts with such big new insights.

Comment Re:How I faced my death (Score 1) 692

I did notice that my conditions slowly deteriorated in those years. During those years I had a lung X-ray photo taken because of pneumonia. Even though all of my stomach was above my diaphragm the photo analyst had not given a notice. He just confirmed the pneumonia. I still have the MRI images that were taken later.

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