Comment My tin-foil hat buisness... (Score 1) 149
Sweet! This may help me in soliciting investment capital for my tin-foil hat business.
Submission + - Microsoft Unlevels the Playing Field
morlock_man writes: "I'm a former content provider for Shared Media Licensing Inc. I have since cut my ties with this agency. Since the rollout of the Zune distribution model and the release of Vista, it has become obvious to a number of us (ICPs) that Microsoft is attempting to close down the Weedshare network in favor of it's own network. It was recently announced that Shared Media would be disabling its licensing system as of April 9th, 2007. This closure will mean the end of a fair and equal distribution system. Under this system independent artists need no longer deal directly with record labels to profit from their work and consumers were given the ability to trade media at a profit for themselves. This closure represents the end of the world's first digital media marketplace where everyone existed on a level playing field. Disabling this format is an attempt by Microsoft to gain a monopoly over the patent that allows this form of distribution to take place. An online petition is available for signers, and a more detailed information regarding what is taking place is available at the Digital Dark Age blog."
Submission + - OFFICIAL: Slashdot shit on April 1st.
An anonymous reader writes: Anonymous researchers in North Korea have conclusively demonstrated that internet users with inflated opinions of their "comedic genius", combined with low editorial standards, make the popular geek news site slashdot.org utterly pointless on April 1st.
According to the lead researcher "One or two gags are to be expected on the first day of April, but when you are in the situation where every single story is an unimaginitive and unbelievable 'prank' then you know things have gone too far!". One of his graduate students continued: "In North Korea our resources are limited, so we are forced to dedicate time and effort to the task of crafting a small number of believable ruses. In the west you squander your ill gotten capitalist riches to produce reams of unreadable dross."
Analysts generally back these conclusions, although they caution that unimaginative submitters are not sufficient to explain this phenomenon alone. Linus Torvalds was overheard to mutter: "The editors must have some pretty low standards for this crap to get through."
RMS was not available to comment.
Journal Journal: Greeen Acres is the place for me...
Are some people setting themselves up for a disaster, or what?
Submission + - Running Linux on palm 72s
Hucko writes: The blokes at Hackers and Developers (HanD) have done a great job getting many of the various palm incarnations running linux 2.6.17, gpe and opie.
January 17th, 2007 a hack of opie was released: release 0.5b
(There is a bug in the site; you will need to click through to page 29.)
Take time out to have a look at the hard work being done, and perhaps you can even assist with the Q&A.
P.S. What happened to this?
January 17th, 2007 a hack of opie was released: release 0.5b
(There is a bug in the site; you will need to click through to page 29.)
Take time out to have a look at the hard work being done, and perhaps you can even assist with the Q&A.
P.S. What happened to this?
Possible Large Impact Crater In Nevada 29
While participating in amateur rocket launches in Black Rock Desert (the site of Burning Man), Ian Kluft noticed rocks with some oddities. Through the Internet he learned the characteristics of impact craters, then found some clues in photographs and Google Maps. Examining the area, he collected samples of rock with impact patterns and other evidence. He found that previous geological puzzles in the region are well explained as impact structures. Volunteers are finding peculiarities in satellite imagery of the area. Kluft presents his evidence here — "Submitted for Study: Discovery of Possible Impact Crater at Nevada's Black Rock Desert." This is a preliminary, six-week effort intended to bring the site to the attention of geologists. Confirmation will take some time and more elaborate tools than his group has.
Journal Journal: An Implication of the Zeroth Law of Robotics
Most of us will be familiar with Isaac Asimov's Laws of Robotics, which, by simple virtue of their popularity, are bound to have an influence upon robot design.
In practice, however, human nature being what it is, we are bound to create war machines. Even if we do not, we should make ourselves aware of an implication of the zeroth law:
Submission + - Which field for Master's degree?
An anonymous reader writes: I was thinking of working on a Master's degree part-time, and I was wondering which fields would be more valuable in general. Are any in particular demand, and which ones would be most conducive to a career switch?
My bachelor's is in physics, and with varying degrees of preparation I could pursue any of the following master's degrees at a local university: physics, applied physics, math, applied math, statistics, materials science, computer science, computer science with telecom emphasis, computer science with software engineering emphasis, bioinformatics and computational biology, or business IT. Any others to consider?
My bachelor's is in physics, and with varying degrees of preparation I could pursue any of the following master's degrees at a local university: physics, applied physics, math, applied math, statistics, materials science, computer science, computer science with telecom emphasis, computer science with software engineering emphasis, bioinformatics and computational biology, or business IT. Any others to consider?
Submission + - Tractor Beam to Prevent Aircraft Missile Attack
mattnyc99 writes: In the race against aircraft terrorism, Boeing's remote control system reported yesterday won't be the only solution. But Northrop Grumman has finally begun testing its laser-powered Guardian defense system in the fight against missiles targeting commercial jets, with nine FedEx cargo jets now carrying the infrared laser deflection system aboard their fuselages. The false heat signature operation is not that unlike Boeing's own airborne laser turret, but the Pentagon's new Global Strike system makes it clear that the U.S. may even have more of an upper hand on offense than defense when it comes to missile technology.
Submission + - Meat-eating cow
scottblascocomposer writes: "I'm surprised I haven't seen this anywhere on Slashdot yet. A village in India has found itself with a chicken-disappearance problem, but it's not dogs or any of the usual suspects to blame. No, a calf has been caught in the act of snatching chickens "with the precision of a jungle cat.""
Submission + - Joost to Announce Deal With JumpTV
TIME Magazine writes: "TIME Exclusive: Joost Plans to Announce Deal With JumpTV.
TIME has learned that Joost will announce "a deal with JumpTV, the world's largest distributor of international TV stations, to begin distributing programming from some of the 270 stations in 70 countries that JumpTV owns rights to." TIME's Jeremy Caplan calls Joost a "potentially huge revolution" that will move TV to the internet, with easy-to-use, dvd-quality features and the possibility of more than 50,000 channels. He writes, "Viacom, which recently yanked its programs from YouTube, has now signed a deal to supply Joost with movies from Paramount and programming from MTV , Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and other stations."
Complete story at http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1 595049,00.html
The March 12, 2007 issue of TIME goes on sale on Friday, March 2"
Submission + - Military nanotechnology - how worried should we be
Michael Berger writes: "All major powers are making efforts to research and develop nanotechnology- based materials and systems for military use. Asian and European countries, with the exception of Sweden (Swedish Defence Nanotechnology Programme), do not run dedicated programs for defense nanotechnology research. Rather, they integrate several nanotechnology-related projects within their traditional defense-research structures, e.g., as materials research, electronic devices research, or bio-chemical protection research. Not so the U.S. military. Stressing continued technological superiority as its main strategic advantage, it is determined to exploit nanotechnology for future military use and it certainly wants to be No. 1 in this area. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) is a major investor, spending well over 30% of all federal investment dollars in nanotechnology. Of the $352m spent on nanotech by the DoD in 2005, $1m, or roughly 0.25%, went into research dealing with potential health and environmental risks. In 2006, estimated DoD nanotechnology expenditures will be $436m — but the risk-related research stays at $1m. (full story at http://www.nanowerk.com/spotlight/spotid=1015.php) "
Maxwell's Demon Soon A Reality? 148
DMiax writes "Reuters reports that a group of scientists from University of Edimburgh may have realized a nanomolecular engine - a Maxwell's Demon. The device selects and traps other molecules based on their direction of motion. Physicist James Maxwell first imagined the nano-scale device in 1867, and the research team cites him as the basis for their understanding of how lights, heat, and molecules interact. The device is powered by light, and may spur advances in nano-scale technology to new heights in coming years."
Submission + - The State vs Jehovah's Witnesses
CohibaVancouver writes: "There's an interesting legal battle brewing in British Columbia. In January, a woman in Vancouver gave premature birth to sextuplets. That's news in itself, but what's really interesting is that the parents are Jehovah's witnesses. Typically, in order to survive, 'preemies' need blood transfusions, and the parents have refused to allow them for religous reasons.
As a result, the state has been seizing the babies and giving them the transfusions so they have a better chance of survival. Once the transfusions are complete the babies are 'given back' to their parents.
The relationship between the parents and doctors are reported as 'strained' and now there's a court battle brewing to prevent the further seizing of the babies by the state.
Fascinating stuff. You can read more here:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/20 07/02/01/sextuplet-transfusion-070201.html"
As a result, the state has been seizing the babies and giving them the transfusions so they have a better chance of survival. Once the transfusions are complete the babies are 'given back' to their parents.
The relationship between the parents and doctors are reported as 'strained' and now there's a court battle brewing to prevent the further seizing of the babies by the state.
Fascinating stuff. You can read more here:
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/british-columbia/story/2
Submission + - Google Image Search Goes Undercover
sgbett writes: "So google changed there image search results page recently to a slicker web 2.0 approach, and in doing do have hidden what could be considered to be one of the most vital pieces of image metadata behind a mouseover. Imagaine a world where search only returned page titles, with no clue as to content — Could it be that google have got the UI wrong for once?"
