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Comment Re:60% more bitrate for same quality (Score 2, Informative) 325

by devinoni (#28428367) Attached to: Concrete Comparisons of Theora Vs. Mpeg-4

I had to use the direct links, but noticed that the ogg version was 10% taller but the same contents. A skewing like this could easily explain bad perceived quality, did anybody else notice this or it is just my Firefox 3.5 beta on linux that's messed up?

10% taller visually? I think that's because that both videos were encoded at 704x576. That gives us an 11:9 aspect ratio for both, however the H.264 version has a 4:3 display aspect ratio set, so that it looks correct. It would be better if they had used square pixels for their raw source, so we don't need to compare anamorphic displaying of the videos as well.

Comment Re:Sipping From a Firehose (Score 1) 214

by TheClassic (#27654161) Attached to: How to Charge Your Cellphone Using Wasted Heat

Additionally, such waste heat might not actually be "free" - depending on some of the implementation details.

The engine works by generating heat and then converting it to mechanical motion while dissipating that heat to a cold sink. If you don't "waste" that heat by sending it to a cold sink then the engine operates less efficiently.

Again, it depends on the details - the energy might be "free," or it might just rob the engine of power just as an alternator does. You can't get around the laws of thermodynamics, though...

I'm pretty sure BMW places these in the exhaust manifod (or elsewhere in the exhaust system) where all the heat comes from gases that are indeed waste. Indeed if this were placed within the combustion chamber or conducted heat from it than it would have a negativ impact on the efficiency of the engine. You can use novel methods to convert one form of energy to another without breaking the laws of thermodynamics.

Comment Re:What? (Score 1) 291

by TheClassic (#24220127) Attached to: NASA Needs Urine

"It's difficult to come up with a faux urine, explained NASA's Jim Lewis, the systems manager overseeing development of Orion's potty. 'That's why we depend on collections.'" They can tell my sex, blood type, color of my eyes and hair, my favorite brand of cigarettes and my probability of being obese from a drop of my blood but they can't synthesize urine? Where there heck did things go so wrong?

Actually I'm quite sure they could synthesize it. However, why build a cow when you can get the milk for free? They could spent a ton of money developing synthetic urine, but even then there is no guarantee its going to behave exactly the same. Why not just use the real thing?

Comment Relationships (Score 1) 209

by devinoni (#22732220) Attached to: The Children of Hurin

"Hurin wedded Morwen, the daught of Baradund son of Gregolas of the House of Beor, and she was thus of close kin to Beren One-hand. Morwen was dark-haired and tall, and for the light of her glance and the beauty of her face men called her Eledhwen, the elfen-fair; but she was somewhat stern of mood and proud. The sorrows of the house of Beor saddened her heart; for she came as an exile to Dorlomin from Dorthonion after the ruin of the Bragollach."

First it should be Bregolas of the House of Beor, and not Gregolas. Morwen is the granddaughter of Bregolas, a Lord of the House of Beor. Beren is Bregolas' nephew, thus making Morwen and Beren first-cousins once-removed. Because of her beauty she is also called Edhelwen.

Dor-lómin is the land that she was exiled to. She was originally from Dorthonion, a region that overrun by Morgoth during the Dagor Bragollach (Battle of the Southern Flame).

Interestingly her relationship with Beren makes her Elrond's second cousins twice removed and also first cousin three times removed.
Power

Saving Power in your Home Office 285

Posted by CmdrTaco from the something-to-think-about dept.
cweditor writes "Rob Mitchell shows how he measured energy use of all his home office equipment, and then targeted the energy pigs for replacement. With better equipment choices, he'd save $90/year. If you've got more than a couple of computers and printers at home (and if you're a Slashdot reader, you probably do), the savings would be a lot higher. Includes detailed formulas as well as a spreadsheet on monitor energy usage."
Television

Submission + - Senator to FCC: no broadcast flag for you!

Submitted by Flag waver
Flag waver writes: Senator John Sununu (R-NH) will introduce legislation that will prevent the FCC from creating technology mandates for the consumer electronics industry. As a result, the FCC would be hamstrung in its efforts to revive the broadcast flag. '"The FCC seems to be under the belief that it should occasionally impose technology mandates," Sununu said in a statement. "These misguided requirements distort the marketplace by forcing industry to adopt agency-blessed solutions rather than allow innovative and competitive approaches to develop."' Sen. Sununu previously tried without success to remove the broadcast flag provisions from the massive telecommunications bill that died before reaching the Senate floor during the last Congress.
Microsoft

Submission + - Schools told not to deploy Vista

Submitted by ukhackster
ukhackster writes: Microsoft's hopes of making a big splash with Vista in the UK have suffered a blow. Becta, the agency which tells British schools which technology they should buy, has recommended avoiding the operating system for at least another year. According to Becta, there's no compelling reason for schools to move to Vista, or Office 2007 either. Becta was criticised late last year for hampering open source deployment in UK schools, but by cautioning against Vista it may now give Linux a boost.
Biotech

Submission + - Sense of smell may be tied to quantum physics

Submitted by
SpaceAdmiral
SpaceAdmiral writes: "A controversial theory that says our sense of smell is based not on the shape of the molecules that enter our nose but on their vibrations was given a boost recently when researchers at University College London determined that the quantum physics involved makes sense. The theory, which suggests electron tunneling initiates the smell signal being sent to the brain, could explain why very similarly shaped molecules have very different smells."

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