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Comment Alas, no useful information here. (Score 1) 939

by samuel4242 (#25029037) Attached to: Scott Adams's Political Survey of Economists
It's quite thorough and useful, but it reads as if the personal bias affected the results. This isn't surprising. I've found that my friends have a reaction to Sarah Palin that's 100% correlated with their politics. So I'm not surprised that the economists felt the same way. So I'm sticking with the independents who conclude that it's a toss up. The real problem here is that we're trying to guess "better" when the two paths are just different. Obama will certainly pour more money into infrastructure and rebuilding the industries that hire Americans to do things. McCain will probably pour more money into bolstering America's influence abroad, probably through military action. Is one better? It depends what you want. But we'll get one. That's for sure. I don't think the Libertarians are going to win.
Cellphones

Submission + - Phones get a stronger sense of place and movement

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Programmers are using accelerometers to give phones and computers a sense of place and a feeling for movement according to this article. While some of the applications are pure fun (e.g. turning a phone into a light saber), more and more are kind of useful. gBoarder from Austria lets your cellphone record the jumps you take on a trip down a ski slope. This video shows a haptic pen designed to let you feel a rough surface. The machines used to rely on us to tell them where they were. Not any more.
Education

Submission + - Cisco targets certification exam cheating (networkworld.com)

Submitted by
jbrodkin
jbrodkin writes: "Cisco is taking numerous measures to tackle the persistent problem of certification exam cheating, which is aided by rampant "braindump" sites, over 300 of which distribute replicas of Cisco (not to mention Microsoft) exams. Cisco tweaks the tests weekly to stay ahead of braindumps, but exact copies of tests can sometimes make it onto the Web within a mere 24 hours. In this article, Cisco officials discuss legal action taken against braindump sites as well as permanent suspensions handed down to individual cheaters."
Wireless Networking

Submission + - Ubiquitous computers are more ubiquitous 1

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Is there any end to this ubiquitous computing thing? Plants that send thank you notes, player pianos that follow the dancer's movements, and umbrellas that warn you of upcoming rain are just a few of the uses of embedded computers described in this article from the NY Times. Laptops seem so dull when it's easy to embed chips, install a Linux distro and sew them into your clothes . But do we really need to wear our computers? If they're cheap enough, why not? But why can't the world be happy with a good old desktop? It was good enough for the PC generation.
Editorial

Submission + - 10 more years to competitive solar power?

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Despite oil prices that hover around $100 a barrel, it'll take at least 10 or more years of intensive R&D to cut the cost of solar energy to levels competitive with petroleum. So says Harry Gray, founding director of the Beckman Institute at CalTech and principal investigator at the Caltech Center for Sustainable Energy Research (CCSER). He's delivering that grim assessment today at the national meeting of the American Chemical Society.
Security

Submission + - NSA's Museum is Bigger and Better

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: The NSA's once small National Cryptologic Museum is bigger and better, with new more immersive exhibits like a reconstruction of a listening post from the Vietnam war. (See a new story ) The place seems to be caught between the urge to keep your mouth shut and the pleasure of telling war stories. In time, though, the story notes that the need to tell stories wins out. Has anyone visited lately?
Linux Business

Submission + - Iceland goverenment approves Free and Open softwar

Submitted by
Synthesis
Synthesis writes: "Iceland's government has as of today adopted a new policy towards Open and Free software.
This was announced today by the Prime Ministers Office.
A few key points in the policy include:
1. It will be guaranteed that Free and Open source software will be given the same chances when software purchasing decisions are made.
2. Software that abides by Open Standards will be given a higher priority.
3. Public sector institutions should not be too dependent upon a single software manufacturer or a service provider. Usage of Free software is a step in that direction.
4. Students in all high-schools in the country will get an introduction to Free and Open Software."
Printer

Submission + - 3-D printing in the home -- the next big thing? (computerworld.com)

Submitted by
dratcw
dratcw writes: "Imagine 'printing' your own 3-D toys or models. That's the premise of this article that details the technology that could lead to layer-by-layer manufacturing of products with printer-like machines in the home. The article states this could change the current economic model, cutting out the middleman. As an example, an entrepreneur who prints figurines from the World of Warcraft game can't keep up with the tremendous demand."
Transportation

Submission + - Crashes Increased By Red-Light Cameras (medicalnewstoday.com)

Submitted by
lee1
lee1 writes: "What many have suspected is now borne out by a study at the University of South Florida College of Public Health: red-light cameras significantly increase crashes. 'The rigorous studies clearly show red-light cameras don't work,' according to the researchers. 'Instead, they increase crashes and injuries as drivers attempt to abruptly stop at camera intersections.' The automobile insurance industry supports the cameras, but the study explains why: insurance company revenues increase when they can charge higher premiums due to the crashes and additional citations."
Math

Submission + - Possible backdoor found in RNG standardizedby NSA (schneier.com) 1

Submitted by
kfz versicherung
kfz versicherung writes: "Defining algorithm for random numbers is one of the hardest fields in mathematics. We all know Microsoft failed miserably, even Linux (pdf) and SSL had their fair share of troubles. But now Bruce Schneier tells us the Strange Story of Dual_EC_DRBG, one of four random number generation algorithms standardized by the NSA (pdf). While on first look just slower than the other three, Dan Shumow and Niels Ferguson showed at Crypto 2007 that the algorithm contains a weakness that can only be described a backdoor. Their presentation showed that the constants used have a relationship with a second, secret set of numbers that can act as a kind of skeleton key. If you know the secret numbers, you can predict the output of the random-number generator after collecting just 32 bytes of its output."

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