189769
submission
Jim Hall writes:
In the future, there will be robots! The US military is developing a robot with a teddy bear head to help carry injured soldiers out of combat. The "friendly appearance" of the robot is designed to put the wounded at ease. The 6ft tall Bear can cross bumpy ground without toppling thanks to a combination of gyroscopes and computer controlled motors to maintain balance. It is expected to be ready for testing within five years. Pretty cool.
61032
submission
Jim Hall writes:
The BBC writes that hundreds of episodes of BBC programmes will be made available on a file-sharing network (Azureus) for the first time. The agreement means that users of Azureus' Zudeo software in the US can download titles such as Dr Who, and Red Dwarf. Until now, most BBC programmes found on peer-to-peer file-sharing networks have been illegal copies. Maybe I can finally now watch 'Torchwood' that I've been hearing so much about.
623
submission
Jim Hall writes:
According to an article in the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Minnesota will switch to electronic voting for the '06 election. This fall, voters in 83 of Minnesota's 87 counties will use electronic machines made by Election Systems & Software of Omaha. Four counties — Ramsey, Anoka, Dakota and Washington — will use machines made by Ohio-based Diebold Inc. We used to use paper "bubble sheet"-style voting that had a nice paper trail. The new system may also provide a paper trail, requiring "safeguards that include the retention of original paper ballots and a mandatory hand recount in random precincts." But critics point out that election officials "don't really understand how the machines work and couldn't possibly catch a sophisticated attempt to hack the election results."
