Comment Re:But guys... (Score 4, Insightful) 257
I thought open source software was supposed to be better because everyone could see the code and spot problems.
It is, they can and do.
Comment Re:Too expensive (Score 2) 70
Nations with an actual space program should stop subsidizing these losers
So Russia should stop shuttling US astronauts to and from ISS?
Comment Re:Trolling much ? (Score 2) 163
What are you trying to do? Referring to?
On the assumption you're not trolling, I believe he was referring to these.
Comment Internet Of Things (Score 1) 1
Yes, all you idiots who want an Internet Of Things, go build your own internetwork and GTF off of ours. That should free up enough IPv4 addresses to keep us going a couple more decades.
Comment Re:UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh (Score 1) 357
I rather die then see the huge medical bills for this type of treatment
I think you would need to do things the other way around. Once you're dead, you would not then be able to see the medical bills.
Submission + - TurboTax sells access to your data (wordpress.com)
rcharbon writes: I had the apparently naive expectation that I’d retain some small scrap of privacy by using the TurboTax desktop app instead of the web version. However, their failure to keep a certificate revocation list up to date revealed that Intuit installs third-party cookies from Neustar, an ad service that “provides audience insights that increase online advertising relevancy through the power of verified offline consumer data.”
Comment Re:Why? (Score 1) 769
Downside : a normal coffee brew process generates 6-12 cups of Joe.
I guess we could all switch to a press
... but that's a bit messy and requires a stand alone heating method (I've not the space to keep a proper tea kettle on my office desk)
I've been using single cup coffee makers like this Black & Decker Brew 'n Go for years. No mess, no fuss, just pour a cup full of fresh water from your cup in to the reservoir, add a couple scoops of fresh ground coffee to the filter basket and hit the go button.
You get a fresh cup of coffee without the waste of those empty "pods," and no DRM to boot.
A Corporate War Against a Scientist, and How He Fought Back 253
AthanasiusKircher writes "Environmental and health concerns about atrazine — one of the most commonly used herbicides in the U.S. — have been voiced for years, leading to an EU ban and multiple investigations by the EPA. Tyrone Hayes, a Berkeley professor who has spearheaded research on the topic, began to display signs of apparent paranoia over a decade ago. He noticed strangers following him to conferences around the world, taking notes and asking questions aimed to make him look foolish. He worried that someone was reading his email, and attacks against his reputation seemed to be everywhere; search engines even displayed ad hits like 'Tyrone Hayes Not Credible' when his name was searched for. But he wasn't paranoid: documents released after a lawsuit from Midwestern towns against Syngenta, the manufacturer of atrazine, showed a coordinated smear campaign. Syngenta's public relations team had a list of ways to defend its product, topped by 'discredit Hayes.' Its internal list of methods: 'have his work audited by 3rd party,' 'ask journals to retract,' 'set trap to entice him to sue,' 'investigate funding,' 'investigate wife,' etc. A recent New Yorker article chronicles this war against Hayes, but also his decision to go on the offensive and strike back. He took on the role of activist against atrazine, giving over 50 public talks on the subject each year, and even taunting Syngenta with profanity-laced emails, often delivered in a rapping 'gangsta' style. The story brings up important questions for science and its public persona: How do scientists fight a PR war against corporations with unlimited pockets? How far should they go?"
Comment Re:Oh (Score 1) 474
Yeah, you're probably right about that.
Comment Re:Oh (Score 1) 474
With the general definition of the PC market being something you can install Windows/DOS on or WinTel compatible
Where did you get that idea? A personal computer is just that, a small, affordable computer that is operated directly by the end user. Neither Windows or an Intel processor are required.
Submission + - Sniffing and decoding NRF24L01+ and Bluetooth LE packets for under $30 (cyberexplorer.me)
An anonymous reader writes: I was able to decode NRF24L01+ and Bluetooth Low Energy protocols using RTL-SDR.
As far as I can see, this is the first time the NRF24L01+ is being decoded, especially considering the low entry price for the hardware. Given the extreme popularity of this transceiver, we are likely to see a wave of hackers attacking the security of many wireless gadgets, and they are likely to succeed as security is usually the last priority for hardware designers of such cheap gadgets.
A lot of work have been done to decode bluetooth using dedicated hardware and I am sure this software can be adapted to output the right format as input to the existing Bluetooth decoders such as Wireshark.
As far as I can see, this is also the first time BTLE can be decoded using a very cheap generic device.
As far as I can see, this is the first time the NRF24L01+ is being decoded, especially considering the low entry price for the hardware. Given the extreme popularity of this transceiver, we are likely to see a wave of hackers attacking the security of many wireless gadgets, and they are likely to succeed as security is usually the last priority for hardware designers of such cheap gadgets.
A lot of work have been done to decode bluetooth using dedicated hardware and I am sure this software can be adapted to output the right format as input to the existing Bluetooth decoders such as Wireshark.
As far as I can see, this is also the first time BTLE can be decoded using a very cheap generic device.
Submission + - Tweets And Threats: Gangs Find New Home On The Net (ap.org)
cold fjord writes: Associated Press reports, "Social media has exploded among street gangs ... They're turning to Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to flaunt guns and wads of cash, threaten rivals, intimidate informants ... sell weapons, drugs — even plot murder. "What's taking place online is what's taking place in the streets," says David Pyrooz, an assistant professor at Sam Houston State University ... "The Internet does more for a gang's brand or a gang member's identity than word-of-mouth could ever do. It really gives the gang a wide platform to promote their reputations. ... On the crime-fighting side ... this activity ... is transforming how police and prosecutors pursue gangs. Along with traditional investigative techniques, police monitor gangs online ... a Cincinnati police officer who trains other law enforcement about social media, says by the time gang members appear in court, authorities have a dossier of their words and videos online that challenge how they want to portray themselves. "If a guy goes in and says, `I'm a good person. I've never held a gun,' we can say, `Look at what he puts out about himself on social media. Here he is with a gun.' ..." ... police say monitoring social media is time-consuming and frustrating."
Submission + - How Chris Christie Could Use the NSA Playbook to Defend Himself over Bridgegate
Hugh Pickens DOT Com writes: Conor Friedersdorf has written a tongue-in-cheek article in The Atlantic advising New Jersey Governor Chris Christie how he can use the NSA playbook to successfully defend himself of the charges that a senior member of his staff was involved in shutting down George Washington Bridge traffic, a stunt meant to punish the mayor of an affected town for opposing his reelection. Christie's NSA-inspired explanation would include the following points: There are almost 9 million people in New Jersey, and only one was targeted for retribution, an impressively tiny error rate lower than .001 percent; The bridge closure was vital to national security because [redacted]; Since the George Washington Bridge is a potential terrorist target, everything that may or may not have happened near it is a state secret; Going after a political rival is wrong but it's important to put this event in context; Fort Lee Mayor Mark Sokolich was the only target of non-compliant behavior. No other Fort Lee resident was ever targeted for retribution, and any delays that any Fort Lee resident experienced were totally inadvertent and incidental; Finally a panel will be formed to figure out how to restore the public's faith in Chris Christie. "To some readers, these talking points may seem absurd or deliberately misleading," concludes Friedersdorf, "but there isn't any denying that so far they're working okay for the NSA."
Comment Re:And that is why.... (Score 1) 599
They will get your piece of shit ride of the road one day buddy.
Which is it: a piece of shit, or a piece of the road? Your comment makes no sense.
Submission + - New class of "hypervelocity stars" discovered escaping the galaxy (vanderbilt.edu)
Science_afficionado writes: Astronomers have discovered a surprising new class of “hypervelocity stars” that are moving at more than a million miles per hour, fast enough to escape the gravitational grasp of the Milky Way galaxy. The 20 hyper stars are about the same size as the sun and, other than their extreme speed, have the same composition as the stars in the galactic disk. The big surprise is that they don't seem to come from the galaxy's center. The generally accepted mechanism for producing hypervelocity stars relies on the extreme gravitational field of the supermassive black hole that resides in the galaxy's core. So the discovery means that astrophysicists must come up with an entirely new method for speeding stars to hypervelocities.
