34535873
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camperdave writes:
Lonesome George, the last remaining tortoise of his kind and a conservation icon, died on Sunday of unknown causes, the Galapagos National Park said. He was thought to be about 100 years old.
17934324
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camperdave writes:
At 10:43 EST today, SpaceX launched a Falcon9 rocket topped with their Dragon capsule. The objectives of today's launch are: Launch and separate from Falcon 9, orbit Earth, transmit telemetry, receive commands, demonstrate orbital maneuvering and thermal control, re-enter atmosphere, and recover Dragon spacecraft. The launch was scheduled for earlier today, however telemetry problems forced a delay.
Dragon is a free-flying, reusable spacecraft being developed by SpaceX under NASA's Commercial Orbital Transportation Services (COTS) program. SpaceX plans on ferrying astronauts and supplies to the international space station later next year.
17755010
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camperdave writes:
I look forward to the first snowfall...
* with a childlike sense of wonder
* as a reminder to install snow tires
* meh
* with a sense of dread
* It doesn't snow around here
* because CowboyNeal shovels my driveway
17754676
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camperdave writes:
Leslie Nielsen, star of Forbidden Planet,The Poseidon Adventure and most famously for the Airplane! and Naked Gun comedies, has passed away at the age of 84. For the past twelve days he had been in hospital fighting a case of pneumonia. Nielsen has appeared in over 100 movies as well as numerous television shows, and is probably most remembered for his role as Lt. Frank Drebin in the Naked Gun films.
7139364
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camperdave writes:
I look forward to the first snowfall... - with a childlike sense of wonder
- as a reminder to install snow tires
- meh
- with a sense of dread
- It doesn't snow around here
- because CowboyNeal shovels my driveway
1202815
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camperdave writes:
When Analog TV Broadcasts end, I will:
- Not care. I don't own a TV.
- Keep watching via cable.
- Use a settop box.
- Break down and get a dish.
- Stop watching TV.
- Buy DVDs instead.
- Fire up a bunch of torrents.
- Be busy reading Slashdot.
821633
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camperdave writes:
I'll see Star Wars, The Clone Wars:
- The first day it comes out.
- When it gets to the cheap theatres.
- Once it hits DVD.
- When the torrent finishes.
- If my Significant Other drags me out to see it.
- When Hell itself freezes over.
- Not even if Hell freezes over.
- Only if CowboyNeal buys the popcorn.
257847
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camperdave writes:
Apparently, the astronauts won't have to fix the gouge in the heat shield tiles after all.
"After a week of intense scrutiny and a battery of tests, mission managers concluded that the small, but deep, divot in Endeavour's undercarriage will not require repair during a planned Saturday spacewalk, said John Shannon, chairman of NASA's STS-118 mission management team."
From what I understand, there is a structural support frame directly behind the gouge and the NASA folks seem to think this will conduct enough heat away from the shuttle's hull to prevent a melt through.
84544
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camperdave writes:
Natasha Stillwell, one of the hosts of Daily Planet, will be doing her last show tonight, Fri., Feb. 2 at 7 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT. She has been a fixture on the Discovery Channel's science magazine show since 2002, serving as a co-host alongside Jay Ingram.
It has been a difficult decision to leave Discovery Channel and Canada, but I'm excited about applying my experience to new broadcast opportunities in the U.K.," continues Stillwell. "In the last four years I've been lucky enough to travel the globe, bringing the wonderful world of science back to Canada. It's been a rollercoaster ride of once-in-a-lifetime experiences since the day I arrived; from tracking jaguars in the Argentine jungle, to conversing with robots in Japan and washing the windows of skyscrapers in downtown Toronto! I owe a massive thank you to Paul Lewis and Discovery Channel for the opportunity to work on Daily Planet and I'd like to thank the Canadian public for their warmth and generous support during my time in this magnificent country."
Natasha will be returning to the United Kingdom to pursue professional opportunities closer to her family.
More details here. No announcement has been made yet as to who will be Jay's new co-host.
36926
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camperdave writes:
I am in the process of building a system for a friend. She would like a video capture/TV tuner card of some sort. I have no experience with these devices, so I would like to get the opinion and advice of the Slashdot community. What are the advantages/disadvantages of using PCI based cards vs USB devices? Are there features to look for, such as mpeg encoding? Any caveats, thing to avoid?
