13905528
submission
Kleiba writes
"After turning down the prestigious Field Medal in 2006 for his contributions to mathematics, the reclusive Russian mathematician Grigory Perelman announced yesterday that he is rejecting a $1 million Millennium Prize from the Clay Mathematics Institute for solving the Poincare conjecture."Link to Original Source
9092512
submission
Kleiba writes
"In an apparent attempt to become the ridicule of luggage thieves, terrorists and ordinary air passengers, German police men are considering the use of Segways at Duesseldorf Air Port. A test phase started last Friday with four vehicles — each of which comes at a price of $8000. Similar case studies have been tried before, e.g. at Baltimore-Washington International Airport. With a maximum speed of 12.5 mph though, it seems unlikely that potential criminals will have a hard time escaping the motorized airport cops — especially since the machines are automatically stopped in front of stairways."
8540096
submission
Kleiba writes
"Members and supporters of the German Pirate Party have pulled a publicity stunt at a number of German airports yesterday, where they spontaneously stripped down to their underwear in order to protest against plans to introduce terahertz full body scanners. Motto of the flashmobs: "No need to scan us — we're already naked!" (German site). The scanners "do not improve security, but pose a threat to the personal rights of the travelers", says Simon Lange, speaker of the Pirate Party. Full body scanners have re-entered the public discussion after the Christmas Day incident over Detroit — according to German magazine "Der Stern" (German site), 63% of the Germans are in favor of implementing mandatory full body scans for all air travelers."
3614397
submission
Kleiba writes
"The highest German Court (Bundesverfassungsgericht, Federal Constitutional Court) ruled that electronic voting machines like Nedap ESD1 and ESD2 are not permissible in Germany. Der Spiegel, a well-known German newspaper, is featuring an article (in German) on today's decision which was the result of a lawsuit by physicist Ulrich Wiesner and his father Joachim Wiesner, a professor emeritus of political science. The main argument against the voting machines in the eyes of the Court is that they conflict with the principle of transparency. 2009 is a major election year for Germany, with parliamentary elections in the fall."Link to Original Source
