63066507
submission
walterbyrd writes:
As longtime researchers of the STEM workforce and immigration who have separately done in-depth analyses on these issues, and having no self-interest in the outcomes of the legislative debate, we feel compelled to report that none of us has been able to find any credible evidence to support the IT industry's assertions of labor shortages.
62962459
submission
walterbyrd writes:
Representative Michele Bachmann (R-MN) said this week that the gay community wants to repeal age of consent laws "so that adults would be able to freely prey on little children sexually," reports Brian Tashman of Right Wing Watch.
62808541
submission
walterbyrd writes:
There's some pointed language in the announcement, which includes a canned quote from Mike Bracken, executive director of the Government Digital Service to the effect that “Using an open standard will mean people won’t have costs imposed on them just to view or work with information from government.”
62550099
submission
walterbyrd writes:
We believe it borders on insanity to train intelligent and motivated people in our universities — often subsidizing their education — and then to deport them when they graduate. Many of these people, of course, want to return to their home country — and that’s fine. But for those who wish to stay and work in computer science or technology, fields badly in need of their services, let’s roll out the welcome mat.
62365211
submission
walterbyrd writes:
And unlike a lot of comics deaths, it looks like this one is going to stick, because the comic in which it's happening will be ending its run next month, publishing just one additional issue after Archie dies. (August's final issue will pick up one year after his death to examine how his friends and loved ones have moved on in the wake of his death.)
And he won't just die. He'll die because he took a bullet to protect his good friend, gay senator Kevin Keller, as part of a storyline that examines issues of gun control.
62148241
submission
walterbyrd writes:
According to a report first published in German on Tagesschau on July 3 and followed up by an English language report on DasErste, Linux users are an area of specific interest for surveillance. The report details rules in the XKeyscore source code that identify visitors to the Linux Journal Website, the Tor Onion Router site as well as the Tails Linux distribution site. NSA's interest in Tor has been previously documented in an October 2013 report.
61812909
submission
walterbyrd writes:
Food production is responsible for as much as 25 percent of the greenhouse-gas emissions that are heating up the planet. And meat tends to have a bigger footprint than fruits and vegetables do — partly because meat takes more overall energy to produce, but also because cows tend to burp up a lot of methane.
61561495
submission
walterbyrd writes:
SocialChorus, an "advocate marketing" firm working on behalf of Microsoft, has been offering to pay bloggers for promoting Internet Explorer. The campaign was exposed after popular blogger and Twitter designer Paul Stamatiou, who also contributes to TechCrunch as a guest writer, was approached by the company to write a paid piece.
61461835
submission
walterbyrd writes:
“Fast lane is how the internet is built today,” says Craig Labovitz, who, as the CEO of DeepField Networks, an outfit whose sole mission is to track how companies build internet infrastructure, probably knows more about the design of the modern internet than anyone else. And many other internet experts agree with him. “The net neutrality debate has got many facets to it, and most of the points of the debate are artificial, distracting, and based on an incorrect mental model on how the internet works,” says Dave Taht, a developer of open-source networking software.
61446641
submission
walterbyrd writes:
Most US airlines follow the same procedure for allowing non-first-class passengers to board a plane. They let people who are sitting in the back board first, then people in the next few rows, gradually working their way toward the front.
This procedure makes absolutely no sense.
The fastest ways to board a plane are Southwest's boarding method — where people choose their own seats — or a theoretical boarding method known as the "Steffen method" that's not currently in use
61244485
submission
walterbyrd writes:
It is now clear that Tom Wheeler is not a representative of the people, but corporations. Previously to taking his current position Wheeler was the former head of 2 different lobbying organizations, which represented companies like Verizon, Comcast, and At&t. His actions helped turn them into the monopolies that they are today.
61235487
submission
walterbyrd writes:
A list of hundreds of patents that Microsoft believes entitle it to royalties over Android phones, and perhaps smartphones in general, has been published on a Chinese language website.
The patents Microsoft plans to wield against Android describe a range of technologies. They include lots of technologies developed at Microsoft, as well as patents that Microsoft acquired by participating in the Rockstar Consortium, which spent $4.5 billion on patents that were auctioned off after the Nortel bankruptcy.
61102115
submission
walterbyrd writes:
Last week, it transpired that the big cable companies were bankrolling fake consumer groups like Broadband for America and The American Consumer Institute. These "independent consumer advocacy groups" are, in truth, nothing of the sort, and instead represent the interests of its benefactors, in the fight against net neutrality. If that wasn't bad enough, VICE is now reporting that several of the real community groups (oh, and an Ohio bed-and-breakfast) that were signed up as supporters of Broadband for America were either duped into joining, or were signed up to the cause without their consent or knowledge.
60575733
submission
walterbyrd writes:
Charts (I counted six) include:
- 2013 was a record year for patent lawsuits
- Almost half of all patent lawsuits were filed in East Texas or Delaware
- The 10 firms that filed the most patent lawsuits were all trolls
- Apple faced the most new patent lawsuits in 2013
- The courts are invalidating more patents based on subject matter
- How big of a problem is patent litigation?
60136685
submission
walterbyrd writes:
1. Freedom of the Press
2. Free and Fair Elections
3. Freedom of Association
4. Freedom to Start a Business
5. Freedom of Choice
