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Submission + - Has copyright trolling reached a new low? (arstechnica.com)

An anonymous reader writes: Prenda Law — one of the most notorious copyright trolls — has sued hundreds of thousands of John Doe defendants, often receiving settlements of thousands of dollars from each. Prenda Law principal John Steele has reportedly made a few million dollars suing BitTorrent file-sharers. Prenda Law has been accused in federal court of creating sham offshore corporations using the identity of his gardner. In other words, it is alleged that the law firm and their client are the same entity, and that Prenda law has committed identity theft and fraud. Now, a judge in California has granted a John Doe defendant's motion to further explore the connection between the offshore entity and the law firm. With lawyers and their clients allegedly one in the same, has copyright trolling reached a new low?
Facebook

Submission + - Facebook Paid 0.3% Taxes on $1.34 Billion Profits 2

theodp writes: Facebook is unlikely to make many new (non-investor) friends with reports that it paid Irish taxes of about $4.64 million on its entire non-US profits of $1.344 billion for 2011. 'Facebook operates a second subsidiary that is incorporated in Ireland but controlled in the Cayman Islands,' Kenneth Thomas explains. 'This subsidiary owns Facebook Ireland, but the setup allows the two companies to be considered as one for U.S. tax purposes, but separate for Irish tax purposes. The Caymans-operated subsidiary owns the rights to use Facebook's intellectual property outside the U.S., for which Facebook Ireland pays hefty royalties to use. This lets Facebook Ireland transfer the profits from low-tax Ireland to no-tax Cayman Islands.' In 2008, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg cited 'local world-class talent' as the motivation behind Facebook's choice of tax-haven Dublin for its international HQ. Similar tax moves by Google, Microsoft, and others who have sought the luck-of-the-Double-Irish present quite a dilemma for tax revenue-seeking governments. Invoking Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart's famous common sense definition of ethics ('Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have a right to do and what is right to do') is unlikely to sway corporations whose top execs send the message that tax avoidance is the right thing to do and something to be proud of.
Wikipedia

Submission + - Wikimedia Foundation Raises $25 Million in a 9-day Fund-raiser (paritynews.com)

hypnosec writes: The Wikimedia Foundation has announced at the conclusion of its ninth annual fund-raiser that it has managed to raise a whopping $25 million from 1.2 million donors in just over a week's time. Wikimedia ran this year’s fund raiser in English in the Australia, Canada, Great Britain, New Zealand and the US. Announcing the closure of this year's annual fund-raiser, Wikimedia foundation stated that the money collected will be used to improve the MediaWiki software as well as improve its server infrastructure. As compared to last year’s fund-raiser, which got completed in 46 days, this year’s was completed in just nine days.
NASA

Submission + - NASA's NEXT ion thruster clocks up continuous operation world record (gizmag.com)

cylonlover writes: NASA's Evolutionary Xenon Thruster (NEXT) ion engine has set a new world record by clocking up 43,000 hours of continuous operation at NASA’s Glenn Research Center’s Electric Propulsion Laboratory. The seven-kilowatt thruster is intended to propel future NASA deep space probes on missions where chemical rockets aren't a practical option. The NEXT ion thruster is one of NASA’s latest generation of engines. With a power output of seven kilowatts, it’s over twice as powerful as the ones used aboard the unmanned Dawn space probe. Yet it is simpler in design, lighter and more efficient, and is also designed for very high endurance.

Its current record of 43,000 hours is the equivalent of nearly five years of continuous operation while consuming only 770 kg (1697.5 lbs) of xenon propellant. The NEXT engine would provide 30 million-newton-seconds of total impulse to a spacecraft. What this means in simple terms is that the NEXT engine can make a spacecraft go (eventually) very far and very fast.

Comment Re:I don't get it. (Score 1) 391

That's a shame. I've had an HTC Radar for about a year, running Win Phone 7 Mango, and I can't recall a single spontaneous reboot. Compared to the other phones on the market, I find the UI to be more usable. I'm able to go three days on a single charge with light use, or a day and a half with normal to heavy use. I gave up my Android-based phone, which was running Cyanogen Mod, for this and I haven't looked back. My only gripe? Lack of apps, but it's getting better and everything I *need* is there.

Yeah, my techie friends ripped on me for going to Windows. Whatever. I wanted something that just worked, didn't have a lot of app crashes, and gave me great battery life. I found it.

Comment waste of money (Score 1) 252

I am a New York state resident, and I think it's ridiculous that taxpayer money (be it state or federal) was spent on this. If you're that concerned, check a state website before your kids go trick or treating - why do we need Facebook or an app for this? Now excuse me while I figure out exactly who paid for this and write a letter to the (ir)responsible party.

Comment Re:water is toxic too (Score 1) 1017

One doesn't drown from excess consumption of water; instead, their electrolytes (sodium, potassium, etc.) are diluted to the point where nerves no longer function properly. It's a condition known as hyponatremia. It is not the same thing as drowning.

Open Source

Submission + - UK govt gets really serious about open source (computerworlduk.com)

E5Rebel writes: "The move to Open Source is being driven both from the prime minsiter's office, and from the Chancellor of the Exchequer. You will hear the Prime Minister talking about Open Government quite a bit over the next few weeks. Open Government consciously includes Open Source as well as Open Standards and Open Data, and this is being driven directly from the top of the Coalition Government. Good news."

Submission + - Verizon drops 10,000 911 calls! (bloomberg.com)

mschaffer writes: Looks like Verizon got the FCC's attention:
"U.S. regulators said Verizon Communications Inc.’s networks may have dropped a “truly alarming” number of wireless emergency calls during a snow storm last month, and asked the carrier to investigate."
Makes you wander what's going to happen when all of those iPhones strain the network.

Google

Submission + - Google Launches New Zealand Earthquake Website (eweekeurope.co.uk)

jhernik writes: "Google has created a website to help people locate survivors of the Christchurch earthquake

With reports that up to 150 people are feared dead in the earthquake that hit Christchurch in New Zealand, search engine giant Google has set up a website to help people locate survivors.

As of Tuesday afternoon, 65 people are confirmed dead, but there it has been suggested that over 100 people are unaccounted for, with more than 200 people trapped in collapsed buildings.

The earthquake measured 6.3 on the Richter scale and has been described as the worst earthquake to hit New Zealand in 80 years. It struck in the middle of the day, where local time was 12.51pm Tuesday (23:51 GMT Monday in the UK)."

Television

Submission + - Amazon to Compete With Netflix (arstechnica.com)

olsmeister writes: Amazon today announced that it will allow streaming of movies and TV shows to Prime customers at no additional charge, in a move aimed squarely at competing with Netflix. Amazon's selection doesn't seem to stack up that well yet, but it has a cheaper yearly price and free shipping on purchases to boot. Let the competition begin.

Comment Re:Its not the speed that is the problem. (Score 2) 1026

I used Amtrak twice this past weekend in Upstate NY and had a great experience. I was able to work on the train (3G tether to laptop), and the trip was just _slightly_ longer than driving.

You were waiting for the right of way because Amtrak doesn't run on dedicated passenger tracks (with a few exceptions, like Albany to NYC.) It's likely that if high speed rail is to become reality in the US, a right of way dedicated to high speed passenger rail will be constructed. It will also be electrified, and the only diesel locomotives you'll see on the line will be maintenance of way or for rescue (e.g., electricity goes out).

High speed right of way is EXPENSIVE. High speed trains cannot cross roads at grade; flyovers must be constructed. The tracks must be kept clear of animals (deer, etc.). Electrification will be required.

I suspect the Northeast Corridor (Boston -> NY -> Philly -> DC) will be the first place to get high speed rail in the US. It's one place where it might succeed, due to the high population density cities being close to one another.

Power

Global Observer's First Hydrogen-Powered Flight 34

cylonlover writes "Following on from a successful maiden flight under battery power in 2010, AeroVironment's high altitude, long endurance (HALE) Global Observer unmanned aircraft has now taken to the skies using hydrogen-fueled propulsion. The aircraft reached an altitude of 5,000 feet during the four hour flight on January 11 at Edwards Air Force Base (EAFB) in California. Both the endurance and the altitude of the system will be expanded in further test flights in order to achieve the planned operational altitude of 55,000 to 65,000 feet."

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