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Wikipedia

Submission + - Let The Campaign Edit Wars Begin

Submitted by
Hugh Pickens writes
Hugh Pickens writes writes: "Megan Garber writes that in high school, Paul Ryan's classmates voted him as his class's "biggest brown noser," a juicy tidbit that is a source of delight for his political opponents but considered an irrelevant piece of youthful trivia to his supporters. "But it's also a tension that will play out, repeatedly, in the most comprehensive narrative we have about Paul Ryan as a person and a politician and a policy-maker: his Wikipedia page," writes Garber. Late last night, just as news of the Ryan choice leaked in the political press — the first substantial edit to that page removed the "brown noser" mention which had been on the page since June 16. The Wikipedia deletion has given rise to a whole discussion of whether the mention is a partisan attack, whether "brown noser" is a pejorative, and whether an old high school opinion survey is notable or relevant. As of this writing, "brown noser" stands as does a maybe-mitigating piece of Ryan-as-high-schooler trivia: that he was also voted prom king. But that equilibrium could change, again, in an instant. "Today is the glory day for the Paul Ryan Wikipedia page," writes Garber. "Yesterday, it saw just 10 [edits]. Today, however — early on a Saturday morning, East Coast time — it's already received hundreds of revisions. And the official news of the Ryan selection, of course, is just over an hour old." Now Ryan's page is ready to host debates about biographical details and their epistemological relevance. "Like so many before it, will be a place of debate and dissent and derision. But it will also be a place where people can come together to discuss information and policy and the intersection between the two — a town square for the digital age.""
Spam

Submission + - CAPTCHA: Why it's terrible and some potential user-friendly alternatives (roarc.co.uk) 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: I was Ironically foiled by the very subject matter of this article by Slashdot's submission form. CAPTCHA puzzles are a necessary evil to prevent us all from an inbox full of viagra. However, they're inconvenient, inaccessible (for visually impaired users) and machines are getting better at solving them too. How can CAPTCHA puzzles be made more relevant, user-friendly and future-proof? Will they even matter any more in the future? I'm an Undergrad Artificial Intelligence Student and these are my thoughts.
Security

Submission + - LIfe and death reasons to protect digital data (cjr.org)

Submitted by mrheckman
mrheckman writes: Sure, those in the information security trade are concerned with complying with various regulatory requirements, etc., but here's how a journalist's failure to protect his data led to the arrest (and probable torture and death) of activists he interviewed: http://www.cjr.org/feature/the_spy_who_came_in_from_the_c.php?page=1

The article links to an EFF site on the basics of how to protect data. How many of us and our organizations do even these things? https://ssd.eff.org/your-computer/protect

Shouldn't basic encryption of data on smartphones, for example, be the default? Why are things like that even a question at this point in time?

Submission + - Techradar users details stolen including hashed passwords

Submitted by 6031769
6031769 writes: The latest in an increasingly long line of sites which should know better, techradar have informed users of a hashed password leak. Among the details they believe have been stolen include the birthdates of some users. I hope you all claimed to be older/younger than you really are.
AI

Submission + - Google Develops Cat-liking AI (nytimes.com)

Submitted by bannable
bannable writes: Inside Google’s secretive X laboratory, known for inventing self-driving cars and augmented reality glasses, a small group of researchers began working several years ago on a simulation of the human brain.

Andrew Y. Ng, a Stanford computer scientist, is cautiously optimistic about neural networks.
There Google scientists created one of the largest neural networks for machine learning by connecting 16,000 computer processors, which they turned loose on the Internet to learn on its own.

Presented with 10 million digital images found in YouTube videos, what did Google’s brain do? What millions of humans do with YouTube: looked for cats.
Security

Submission + - Researchers Break RSA SecurID Token in 13 Minutes (net-security.org)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: An international team of scientists that goes by the name of "Team Prosecco" claims to have devised attacks that manage to extract the secret cryptographic key from RSA's SecurID 800 token, as well as many other similar commercial solutions. According to the paper they are scheduled to present this August at the CRYPTO 2012 conference, what makes these exploits extremely usable is the time it takes them to extract the needed information: 13 minutes. As they pointed out, the attacks are efficient enough to be practical.
Data Storage

Submission + - Recommendations for a cross-platform zero-footprint USB 3 hardware-encrypted HD

Submitted by quad4b
quad4b writes: I'm looking for a hard disk with hardware encryption (probably AES 128 or 256) and a USB 3 interface that will work across platforms without the need to install software. As a consultant I often have to carry my and other companies' data with me to on-site client locations. I often use locked-down PC's managed by IT groups that don't allow users to install software. Yes, not even encryption software for a hard disk that would make their data safer! Also, I run OS X, so cross-platform has to include it as well as various flavors of Windows, Linux and UNIX.

Does anyone have experience with one of these drives using a fingerprint scanner, token or some other authentication mechanism? I want something reliable, proven secure and fast if possible — preferably build by a reputable firm.
Piracy

Submission + - UK's 'Three Strikes' Piracy Measures Published (techweekeurope.co.uk)

Submitted by
judgecorp
judgecorp writes: "The UK regulator Ofcom, has published details of plans to disconnect illegal file-sharers. It is the "three strikes" policy which ISPs unsuccessfully appealed against, and requires ISPs to keep a list of persistent copyright infringers (identified as usual by their IP address...). ISPs will have to send monthly warning letters to those who infringe above a certain threshold. If a user gets three letters within a single year, the ISP must hand anonymised details to the copyright owner, who can apply for a court order to obtain the infringer's identity (or at least, an identity associated with that IP address)."

Submission + - UK Government - "Pay a £20 fee to acquit yourself of file-sharing (maybe)" (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by Dr_Barnowl
Dr_Barnowl writes: The BBC reports that the UK government plans to introduce a £20 fee if you wish to appeal against an allegation of copyright infringement, within 20 days of your accusation. Note that this doesn't guarantee acquittal, as only "excuses" covered in the Digital Economy Act will be valid even for consideration. This scheme could be in place as early as 2014, so John Smith, General Secretary of the Musicians' Union says "We urge ISPs to begin building their systems now and to work constructively with rights holders, Ofcom and government to get notice-sending up and running as soon as possible,". What are the thoughts of Slashdot?
Piracy

Submission + - Suspected internet pirates will have 20 working days to appeal (bbc.co.uk)

Submitted by Dupple
Dupple writes: Suspected internet pirates will have 20 working days to appeal against allegations of copyright infringement and must pay £20 to do so, according to revised plans to enforce the UK's Digital Economy Act.

The details are contained in secondary legislation presented to Parliament and a draft code published by Ofcom.
Science

Submission + - Sexy Female Scientist Video Draws Fire (sciencemag.org)

Submitted by sciencehabit
sciencehabit writes: A new video released by the The European Commission--ostensibly aimed at getting girls interested in science--is drawing widespred condemnation from around the web for its depiction of female scientists as sexy models strutting into the frame in high heels and short skirts. A male scientist watching them from behind his microscope doesn't seem to mind that none of them are wearing safe lab attire—he just pops his glasses on for a better look. The rest of the video is a mish-mash of heels, nail polish, lipstick, and sexily smoldering Erlenmeyer flasks, arbitrarily punctuated by girly giggles.
 

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