Thanks, now I'm having flashbacks of Chuck Norris jokes in the Barrens on Drak'thul.

Of course now that I want it, I can't find a reference for it . . .

On of the issues in doing a project like this for free, is that many customers equate the cost of an item or service with its value. In the case Anonymous Coward mentioned above the system/website has no cost so some will feel that is has no value. It can also extend to the persons time to develop/maintain the system. As the system grows, change requests are submitted that 'cost' the developer but, add no cost or value in the eyes of the customer.

Several companies that offered support for 'free' services discovered that customers from the free service were much more demanding and intolerant that those that paid even a nominal fee for the same or a similar service. A few companies even discontinued their 'free' offerings as the cost to maintain those services became too burdensome.

Scientific Community

Cheerios are by far the best in the cereal aisle at growing chemically productive fungi

Blue Press

Cheerios discovered to harbor a wide range of funguses

On one side you have Google as it was, everything it finds, indexed categorized and available to be found. The other end of the spectrum would be a world without search engines. A vast array of options exist between those two points. Yes, Google is judge, jury and executioner for now as it is their %$%$ search engine and they haven't been forced to do otherwise. Who would you have sit in judgement instead? Who should bear the cost? Honoring no requests is not an available option for Google any longer, it has been decided for them this can not be the case. In regard to honoring all requests, that's not a workable solution either. Would have have it so that I could request that all positive information about you be removed from search results? No, then someone has to arbitrate. Why foist rules upon a new system in the midst of its infancy? If you don't like the results of your request, you can appeal or avail yourself of the courts.

There is also a side-show like display where a persons hand is hidden behind a partition and a fake hand (placed where there hand 'should' be) is struck with a hammer causing the subject to flinch and act as their hand had been hurt. Brain Games mucked about with this one on of their shows. While this may just be triggering a fight of flight response, it interesting the note that the irrational portion of the brain seems to override the rational part (the one that 'knows' your hand is safe). After reading BringsApples post it struck me that these two cases may be opposite sides of the same coin.

Heard about this on NPR during the morning drive and how the "place cells" were found 30 years ago and how that researcher's students found "grid cells" recently to complete the picture. The most intriguing part of the story was the expectation of the impact that this discovery will have on the world of philosophy, as it now it know that our brains have a physical (mathematically based and similar to a computer) mechanism for knowing where we are in 3D space. They also discussed while no practical use or 'cures' are on the immediate horizon, this is apparently the first brain function to go with the onset of Alzheimer's and may lead to greater understanding.

Is it a question of worth watching or of worth watching in a stadium for $XXX? I'll never understand why someone pays that kind of money to sit in bad seats in the cold, wet etc. when they should be able to watch it from home. It's hard to fathom that ticket sales are worth more than TV rights any more. IMHO, all blackouts do is punish the fans who weren't going to buy a ticket anyway.

According to a story I heard recently on NPR, the only currently legal use of drones in the U.S. is in the film industry. The story added that the FAA is expected to take a few years to sort out the rules for commercial drone use. Pilot training programs, certifications and the like will need to be developed and put in place, don't recall any mention of autonomous drones. The air-ways should be truly interesting once Google brings it's ala Jetson car to the mix.

Okay, so apparently I'm the only one that was left confused after reading the headline, which gave me a Detective Thorn ala Soylent Green flashback, and the summary, after-which I had that look dogs get when they're confused...

I can't find a proper reference at the moment but, I have heard several comments about the funerary practices in some of the affected areas. Some cultures still practice ritual washing as part of the burial process. If this is in fact the case, it's a very bad news when pared with a bug like Ebola. While much of what I've read above seems to be hype or "fear of the white man" syndrome (full, disclosure, yes I'm white) the effects of Ebola are horrible bordering on the horrific and it has generated a lot of fear. Marry that with areas that aren't comfortable with modern (western) medicine and see that the treatment, which is mostly comfort measures and preventing the spread of the disease, doesn't cure anyone and, well let your imagination run a bit and you should be able to paint a pretty picture.

I'd startup a conversation with these folks www.botball.org. My son and several of his friends have participated and it was a great experience for them. While the kits are a pricey, the setup they use for competition isn't. Once you have the kits it shouldn't take that much effort to let the vets do their own thing or even organize botball-esque events within the VA.

CPL
U.S Army
1985-1990
Medical Hold
1989-1990

"This is, without a doubt, a really stupid thing to actually try. So don't."

Hmm, wow. Nope the really stupid idea is posting a story on the InterWeb about a really stupid idea and warning us that it's "a really stupid idea". Road & Track should be ashamed that many Slashdoters are now searching E-Bay, CarMax and the trades for an S-Class to try this out in or texting their friends (hopefully not while driving to see them) with S-Class' to try this out. Responsible media, right! Telling geeks about a hack, is like giving crack to a junkie. Tomorrow's lead, dozens die recreating S-Class hack.

Oh, yeah, please PM me your findings.

I heard the same interview with Tom Frieden, Head of the CSC, that xylo36 did. In the interview he stated that Ebola has not really changed since it was first discovered, they have been monitoring the viruses DNA. It's just a nasty little bugger.

Truly spoken like a user with no concern for someone operating a lab with little to no budget.