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Cellphones

Verizon Removes Search Choices For BlackBerrys 510

shrugger writes "I picked up my BlackBerry this morning to do a search and noticed Bing as my default search engine. I thought this was very strange, since I didn't pick this setting. I went to change it back to Google and, to my chagrin, Bing was my only option! Apparently Verizon has pushed an update that removes all search providers except Bing. Thanks a lot Verizon!" The Reg notes: "The move is part of the five-year search and advertising deal Verizon signed with Microsoft in January for a rumored $500m."
Image

PhD Candidate Talks About the Physics of Space Battles Screenshot-sm 361

darthvader100 writes "Gizmodo has run an article with some predictions on what future space battles will be like. The author brings up several theories on propulsion (and orbits), weapons (explosives, kinetic and laser), and design. Sounds like the ideal shape for spaceships will be spherical, like the one in the Hitchhiker's Guide movie."

Submission + - Russia confirms failed missile launch (barentsobserver.com)

Ch_Omega writes: According to this article over at BarentsObserver, the giant spiral seen on the sky over Norway wednesday morning local time, has been confirmed to be be the result of a failed Russian missile launch. Russia now confirms that "...the missile was launched from submerged position in the White Sea by the nuclear submarine "Dmitri Donskoy". Studies of the telemetric data from the launch show that the two first stages of the missile functioned as they should, and that a technical malfunctioning occured during the third stage.."

There is also and article on this over at The Daily Mail.

Earth

Submission + - SysAdmin: Climategate an Inside Job (climateaudit.org)

brian0918 writes: "Since this story broke, almost everyone in the media has claimed that the Climategate emails were hacked by Russians, maybe even ex-KGB types, maybe even working with oil companies in the United States. Now, a sysadmin has examined the structure and provenance of the files and concludes that "the only reasonable explanation for the archive being in this state is that the FOI Officer at the University was practising due diligence. The UEA was collecting data that couldn't be sheltered and they created FOIA2009.zip. It is most likely that the FOI Officer at the University put it on an anonymous ftp server or that it resided on a shared folder that many people had access to and some curious individual looked at it.""
Biotech

Intel Says Brain Implants Could Control Computers By 2020 314

Lucas123 writes "Scientists at Intel are working on developing sensors that would be implanted in a person's head in order to harness brain waves that could then be used to control computers, televisions, cell phones and other electronic equipment. Intel has already used Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (FMRI) machines to determine that blood flow changes in specific areas of the brain based on what word or image someone is thinking of. People tend to show the same brain patterns for similar thoughts. 'Eventually people may be willing to be more committed ... to brain implants. Imagine being able to surf the Web with the power of your thoughts.' said Intel research scientist Dean Pomerleau."

Comment Re:Obligatory (Score 2, Interesting) 359

Sufficient pressure and flow rate. I would suggest using some termites to construct a small riser above your ant hole, so you get some pressure build up. Don't forget to heat your aluminum to it pouring temperature (~1380 F) rather than it's melting temperature. The decreased viscosity increases flow rate (compare pouring molasses and water down funnels) and well as allowing the aluminum to travel further before solidifying.
The Courts

Madoff Sentenced To 150 Years 602

selven was one of several readers to send in the news that Bernie Madoff was sentenced to 150 years in prison. "Bernard Madoff's victims gasped and cheered when he was sentenced to 150 years in prison, but they walked away knowing little more about how he carried out the biggest robbery in Wall Street history. In one of the most dramatic courtroom conclusions to a corporate fraud case, the 71-year-old swindler was unemotional as he was berated by distraught investors during the 90-minute proceeding. Many former clients had hoped he would shed more light on his crime and explain why he victimized so many for so long. But he did not. Madoff called his crime 'an error of judgment' and his 'failure,' reiterating previous statements that he alone was responsible for the $65 billion investment fraud. His victims said they did not hear much new from Madoff in his five-minute statement. They also said they did not believe anything he said. As he handed down the maximum penalty allowed, US District Judge Denny Chin... [said], 'I simply do not get the sense that Mr. Madoff has done all that he could or told all that he knows.'"

Comment Re:Here it is for 5c (Score 1) 844

A condom is not 100% safe, it reduces the odds of getting STDs with 85% (only staying in your mom's basement with the doors locked from in- & outside is).

Would you mind mind pointing to where in that 49 page report the 85% number came up? The only numbers I could find were in the .4-2.3% failure range, which is quite different from the 15% you're quoting.

Comment Re:Capitalist flight (Score 1) 1142

And what do you suppose will happen if MS doesn't move? Foreign competition that isn't subject to a crushing corporate tax will then have an advantage over MS. You don't move your labor base because you want to, you do it because if you don't, your competition will. It has nothing to do with greed (a favorite word of the class warfare monger) and everything to do with how the world works in a global labor market.

What competition? There are no foreign OS publishers and no foreign office analogs. In terms of search engines, Microsoft is competing against Google, yahoo and maybe wolfram, all of which are based in the US. All of the browser alternatives are either free or based in the US. In fact, the only industry where Microsoft has foreign competition is in the video games market, where prices are essentially fixed (all games cost $60.00) and so labor costs only determine profit, not competitiveness.

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