Catch up on stories from the past week (and beyond) at the Slashdot story archive

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×
Space

Where Would Earth-Like Planets Find Water? 168

Posted by Soulskill from the at-the-water-store-duh dept.
astroengine writes "The term 'Earth-like worlds' is a vastly overused and hopelessly incorrect term that is popularly bandied about to explain some recent exoplanet discoveries. Although some of the distant small worlds being discovered by the Kepler space telescope may be of Earth-like size, orbiting their sun-like star in Earth-like orbits, calling those worlds 'Earth-like' gives the impression these alien planets are filled with liquid water. It turns out that we have only a vague idea as to where Earth got its water, and it will take a long time until we have any hint of this life-giving resource on worlds orbiting stars thousands of light-years away."
Verizon

Submission + - FCC to Investigate Verizon Over $2 'Convenience' C (foxnews.com)

Submitted by Velcroman1
Velcroman1 writes: The FCC plans to take a closer look at Verizon's plans to hit consumers who pay their bills online or over the phone with a $2 "convenience fee" — despite three separate data network problems that dogged the wireless carrier in December. Verizon said on Thursday that it planned to add the fee as soon as January 15 for one-time telephone and online bill payments. The FCC said not so fast. "On behalf of American consumers, we're concerned about Verizon's actions and are looking into the matter," an FCC official told FoxNews.com. Consumers faced with already steep wireless bills were up in arms that the wireless company would demand they pay before paying. Consumer blog Engadget said charging customers to pay was "downright ludicrous."
Businesses

Samoa and Tokelau Are Skipping December 30th 140

Posted by Soulskill from the custom-week-crafting dept.
ocean_soul writes "Starting January 1, 2012 Samoa and Tokelau will be in time zone +13 instead of -11. This means there will be no December 30, 2011 in these countries. The decision to switch time zone was based on the changing international business relations of Samoa. Samoa had adopted the -11 time zone to make business with the U.S. easier. However, currently Samoa's most important trading partners are Australia and New Zealand. By switching time zone the work-weeks and week-ends on Samoa and Tokelau will be synchronized with those in Australia and New Zealand."
Security

Malicious QR Code Use On the Rise 234

Posted by Soulskill from the time-to-incorporate-rorschach-verification-tech dept.
New submitter EliSowash writes "Malware developers are increasingly using QR Codes as an attack vector. 'The big problem is that the QR code to a human being is nothing more than "that little square with a bunch of strange blocks in it." There's no way to tell what is behind that QR code.' The advice we've always given to the computer user community is 'don't click a link in an email if you don't know who it's from or where it goes' — so how do we protect unsuspecting users from QR codes, where you can't see the destination at all?"
The Internet

New Group Paves Way For 2012 Online Primary 249

Posted by Soulskill from the not-sure-if-want dept.
DJRumpy sends this excerpt from CNN: "Americans Elect, which has raised $22 million so far, is harnessing the power of the Internet to conduct an unprecedented national online primary next spring. If all goes according to plan, the result will be a credible, nonpartisan ticket that pushes alternative centrist solutions to the growing problems America's current political leadership seems unwilling or unable to tackle. The theory: If you break the stranglehold that more ideologically extreme primary voters and established interests currently have over presidential nominations, you will push Washington to seriously address tough economic and other issues. Even if the group's ticket doesn't win, its impact will force Democrats and Republicans in the nation's capital to start bridging their cavernous ideological divide."

Comment Re:Needed to be done. (Score 1) 938

by poena.dare (#38360262) Attached to: NTSB Recommends Cell Phone Ban For Drivers

So on the way to and from work I count the number of people on cell phones talking or texting. It's really SCARY!

Today I saw this guy - while driving - pull out his iPad. One hand to hold the iPad, one hand to tap and pinch. He was driving with his elbow.

I quickly - but safely - changed lanes to get the hell away from him. I hope the person he will soon rear-end will be OK and is in need of a new car.

Comment Re:Trickle down? (Score 4, Interesting) 434

by poena.dare (#38335832) Attached to: Facebook Could Spawn Thousands of Milionaires

"As for FB, my bet is still that it goes the way of MySpace before too long."

I'm hoping for something more mature, but the internet has this way of recycling ideas...

"There was a kind of ghostly teenage DNA at work in the Sprawl,
something that carried the coded precepts of various short-lived
sub cults and replicated them at odd intervals."

Slashdot Top Deals

A morsel of genuine history is a thing so rare as to be always valuable. -- Thomas Jefferson

Close