444076
submission
solitas writes:
"Experts are trying to identify a huge metal container that has been washed up on a beach in the Western Isles."
The tank, which is 27m tall standing upright, has no markings and is thought to have fallen from a ship before being washed up on the west of Benbecula.
Considering the wide range of experiences and occupations of Slashdotters, maybe someone here has an idea?
351225
submission
solitas writes:
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP) — Apple Inc. (AAPL) no longer accepts cash for iPhone purchases and now limits sales of the cell phone to two per person in a move to stop people from reselling them.
The new policy started Thursday, said Apple spokeswoman Natalie Kerris. Before then, there was no cash restriction and the purchase limit was five per person.
"We're requiring a credit or debit card for payment to discourage unauthorized resellers."
I can see a purchase limit, but whatever happened to "this note is legal tender for all debts, public and private"?
219867
submission
solitas writes:
BATAVIA, Ohio (AdAge.com) — The Energizer bunny is looking for its place in the iPod industry with an external battery that could extend the life of millions of Apple's portable media players, which use rechargeable batteries that are notoriously difficult and expensive to replace.
For $29.99, Energizer's Energi to Go external iPod battery will provide up to 46 hours of playing time with two AA Lithium e2 batteries.
188495
submission
solitas writes:
Full article title: "DHS Wants Cell Phones to Detect Chemical, Radioactive Material"
Apparently Homeland Security now is thinking about "distributed detection", of a sort, and exploring the idea of cellphones that have chemical/biological/radiation detectors built-into them (as GPS units are now).
They figure they could monitor the widely distributed network, weed-out the statistical noise over many sensors, and be able to pinpoint possible trouble areas (i.e. bio-bombs, rad-bombs, etc.) more efficiently.
...and THEN they'll quietly have alcohol/smoking detectors installed to monitor you.
182291
submission
solitas writes:
Two Russian cosmonauts climbed out of the international space station Wednesday to install protective panels designed to shield the orbiting outpost from dangerous space debris... [while] The station's third occupant, U.S. astronaut Sunita Williams, remained inside.
An independent safety task force in February said that there was a 9 percent risk that the space station, once completed in 2010, could be hit with space debris severe enough to cause the loss of the outpost or crew members. That risk estimate was reduced to 5 percent if protective panels were installed on Russian portions of the space station.
Sections of the space station built by NASA and the Japanese and European space agencies were protected sufficiently against space debris, the task force said.
—
It's been 40-odd frickin' years since Star Trek and we still don't have forcefields. Apalling.
172917
submission
solitas writes:
A Breitbart news story interviews certain StarWars alumni about what the trilogy has done for them.
They were part of one of the biggest movies in history but almost without exception the cast of "Star Wars" faded from view after lighting up cinemas during the 1970-80s.
While George Lucas' intergalactic fairytale proved to be a launch pad for the career of Harrison Ford, other prominent members of the blockbuster franchise have not come close to enjoying Ford's iconic status.
..."Without naming names, you meet some stars and afterwards you go 'Gee, I wish I hadn't met him,'"... Oh yeah? Do: tell.
161681
submission
149315
submission
solitas writes:
The St.Louis post-Dispatch says that geologists have discovered the remains of one of the world's oldest tropical rainforests, preserved in the ceiling of a coal mine 250 feet below the surface.
The four-square-mile fossil forest — the largest find ever — is just south of Danville in Vermilion County, Ill., in the 300-million-year-old Herrin coal bed, a 6-foot-thick strip mined by a subsidiary of St. Louis-based Peabody Coal.
No photos; but a graphic about how they believe it happened.
