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Submission + - MIT Bitcoin Project To Create Cryptocurrency Ecosystem, Give $100 Per Student

Submitted by rjmarvin
rjmarvin writes: Two MIT students have raised $500 million to turn the campus into a cryptocurrency ecoystem http://sdt.bz/70138 , giving each MIT undergrad $100 in Bitcoin (or about 0.22 Bitcoins) starting next Fall. The MIT Bitcoin Project http://bitcoin.mit.edu/announc... will make MIT the first physical location worldwide with widespread access to the digital currency. As of yet, there are no regulations governing how the students can use it.

Submission + - Circuit board based on human brain simulates 1 million neurons in real time (ibtimes.co.uk)

Submitted by rofkool
rofkool writes: A circuit board modeled on the human brain that could potentially be implanted to control prosthetic limbs with the speed and complexity of our own actions has been developed by Stanford University bioengineers. The chip operates 4,000 times faster than standard PCs and operates with a power efficiency 100,000 times greater. Currently the size of an iPad, developers are working on cutting size and costs to make it clinically viable.

Submission + - Heartbleed Turned Against Cyber Criminals 1

Submitted by Rambo Tribble
Rambo Tribble writes: In a case of 'live by the sword, die by the sword', researchers have used the now-infamous Heartlbeed bug in OpenSSL to gain access to black-hat forums. French researcher, Steven K, is quoted as saying, 'The potential of this vulnerability affecting black-hat services is just enormous.' Reportedly, the criminal-minded sites Darkode and Damagelab have already been compromised.

Submission + - Firefox 29 Arrives With Customization Mode, New Design 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Mozilla today officially launched Firefox 29 for Windows, Mac, Linux, and Android. This is a massive release: Firefox Sync has been revamped and is now powered by Firefox Accounts, there’s a new customization mode, and the company’s major user interface overhaul Australis has finally arrived. Firefox 29 has been released over on Firefox.com and all existing users should be able to upgrade to it automatically. As always, the Android version is trickling out slowly on Google Play.

Submission + - 50 Years of BASIC, the Language That Made Computers Personal (time.com)

Submitted by harrymcc
harrymcc writes: On May 1, 1964 at 4 a.m. in a computer room at Dartmouth University, the first programs written in BASIC ran on the university's brand-new time-sharing system. With these two innovations, John Kemeny and Thomas Kurtz didn't just make it easier to learn how to program a computer: They offered Dartmouth students a form of interactive, personal computing years before the invention of the PC. Over at TIME.com, I chronicle BASIC's first 50 years with a feature with thoughts from Kurtz, Microsoft's Paul Allen and many others.

Submission + - New Zero-Day Flash Bug Affects Windows, OS X, and Linux Computers

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Researchers at the Kaspersky Lab have uncovered a zero-day Adobe Flash vulnerability that affects Windows, OS X, and Linux. 'While the exploit Kaspersky observed attacked only computers running Microsoft Windows, the underlying flaw, which is formally categorized as CVE-2014-1776 and resides in a Flash component known as the Pixel Bender, is present in the Adobe application built for OS X and Linux machines as well.' Adobe has reportedly patched the bug for all platforms.

Researchers first detected the bug from attacks performed on seven Syrian computers. The attacks seem to have been hosted on the Syrian Ministry of Justice website, which has led to speculation that these are state-sponsored vulnerability exploits. This speculation is further supported by evidence that one of the exploits was 'designed to target computers that have the Cisco Systems MeetingPlace Express Add-In version 5x0 installed. The app is used to view documents and images during Web conferences.'

Submission + - Texas Sheriffs crash $300k drone they're not supposed to be flying (montgomerycountypolicereporter.com)

Submitted by SpaceGhost
SpaceGhost writes: The Montgomery County (Texas) Police Reporter reveals that Friday morning a $300K drone was lost by the Sheriffs department in Lake Conroe (just north of Houston.) Divers were searching for the drone, which at 29 pounds is 4 pounds over a recent FAA limit, so shouldn't have been flying. The article goes on to discuss the recently passed Texas Legislature House Bill 912 which restricts the use of drones to observe private property, likely influenced by the January 2012 discovery of illegal pig blood runoff and subsequent indictment.

Submission + - Minesweepers robotic competition aims for a landmine-free world (robohub.org)

Submitted by Hallie Siegel
Hallie Siegel writes: Dr. Alaa Khamis writes: "Detection and removal of antipersonnel landmines is, at present, a serious problem of political, economical, environmental and humanitarian dimensions in many countries across the world. It is estimated that there are 110 million landmines in the ground right now; one for every 52 inhabitants on the planet. These mines kill or maim more than 5,000 people annually. If demining efforts remain about the same as they are now, and no new mines are laid, it will still take 1100 years to get rid of all the world’s active land mines because current conventional methods of removal are very slow, inefficient, dangerous and costly. Robotic systems can provide efficient, reliable, adaptive and cost effective solutions for the problem of landmines and unexploded ordnance (UXO) contamination."

Submission + - Male Scent May Be Compromising Biomedical Research (sciencemag.org)

Submitted by sciencehabit
sciencehabit writes: Scientists have found that mice feel 36% less pain when a male researcher is in the room, versus a female researcher. The rodents are also less stressed out. The effect appears to be due to scent molecules that male mammals (including humans, dogs, and cats) have been emitting for eons. The finding could help explain why some labs have trouble replicating the results of others, and it could cause a reevaluation of decades of animal experiments: everything from the effectiveness of experimental drugs to the ability of monkeys to do math. Male odor could even influence human clinical trials. If a male doctor injects you with a new kind of pain medication, do you feel better because of the drug—or because of his gender?

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