I have similar questions that make we wonder about how these types of calculations are made. Like you indicate, are the theories considering all the energy of all wavelengths inside and emanating from a galaxy or a cluster when calculating its mass? We only "see" a tiny fraction of that energy. Are they calling the rest of it dark energy (which to me makes it sound unnecessarily mysterious) instead of just regular energy we can't observe? It should be possible to estimate this energy and how its mass compares to the estimate of matter for the same object. I also wonder when dealing with such huge scales if time issues are included in the calculations. If you are mapping matter in 3D across millions or billions of years the matter itself is moving, making the map less and less accurate and more distorted the father out is it from us.

I know who produced them and "campy" is his middle name. Well, ok I'll admit that that particular name is just an alias but I can't tell you his *real* name or he'd try to sell you copies of the promos on DVD.

The patent snippet you provide describes exactly the way that Windows 7 shutdown operates. You get a GUI listing all the programs currently still busy that are blocking shutdown with the option to force the shutdown anyway. Usually if you just wait things will finish their process and the shutdown proceeds. It's actually very poorly done as the pop-up of this window implies that something isn't working correctly. "These programs are preventing shutdown" makes them sound like they are hung. The wording and design could certainly have been improved to point out that things were *still in the process of closing* and not stuck.

Welcome to the future (without the need for RTSCs): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnetic_bearing

I noticed a number of errors on my Garmin which I confirmed were also in Google and reported them via the NAVTEQ Map reporter (http://mapreporter.navteq.com/) I thought at first that it was great that I could help, but after a few months of no action on my entries I sort of gave up on the site. Finally a year and a few month later I got replies from them for all of my submissions all at once. I don't know if they lack the field staff to verify entries or what but it was a bit odd given that I didn't submit them all at the same time. I even provided GIS maps and satellite photos but it still took over a year for corrections. It's a perfect crowd sourcing opportunity even for the commercial vendors.

You might also have issues with connecting to the wireless network. Some schools have web portals which require you to connect with a browser and provide credentials to get connectivity. That's not going to work to well for incoming calls. Other schools require certificate based authentication which might not work with certain devices.

I know we always want to bash Microsoft here at Slashdot, but did the submitter fail to notice Foxconn (Apple's supplier), Hewlett-Packard, Samsung, Acer, Logitech and Asus all use this same manufacturing house? How about:

"Photos of Chinese Sweatshop Used By US Tech Companies"

I guess that just doesn't have the same bite? At least it's more accurate.

I believe I could imagine them possibly using them to shoot people. Perhaps because it's a federal agency with a law enforcement arm. This is the biggest non-story ever.

You need to understand the trade offs between preservation and fidelity. I can put my film in a vault and without any additional work but to maintain the physical space, I can view my documents in a hundred years with nothing more than a candle and a magnifying glass. Can you say the same for digital? How much support equipment must you include? Do you have the proper power source? How many instructions on how to even operate it (in 50 years if someone found a perfectly preserved and operational mainframe with card input system and data on reel to reel tape, could they even use it?)? Candle and magnifying glass my friend. It's kind of like Blade Runner. You can have your high fidelity but at the cost of short lifespan. Anyway, my comment was just anecdotal until you choose to attack it as somehow not valid.

My first thought was along a similar line. Who is going to pay $123 for an ebook!? Especially if you can't sell it back for beer money when you realize you're failing the class.

It's not just the security aspect. When a company provides a cell phone it has tax consequences and there are specific reporting requirements where all personal calls must be identified and repaid to the company. Given the free and unlimited minutes, as well as the volume of calls someone would make, this is a major PITA to deal with. My employer requires that all calls on the work phone be work calls, period. Unfortunately, even though the IRS knows this is bad and wants to fix it, they have to ask Congress to do it, and hope that Congress does what they ask. Here's a good link with the related legislation: http://www.taxgirl.com/irs-reverses-course-on-cell-phone-tax-asks-congress-for-repeal/

Ten years ago my old company used to advocate that for individuals who wanted to convert paper to digital, they first put them on microfilm and then scan them. That way when their digital media got damaged or lost they could always recreate it. Film last for a long long time when stored correctly. Unfortunately that still seems the be the best advice, at least if you are starting from an analog original.