Want to read Slashdot from your mobile device? Point it at m.slashdot.org and keep reading!

 


Forgot your password?
Close
typodupeerror
×
Data Storage

Seagate Plans 37.5TB HDD Within Matter of Years 395

Posted by Zonk from the lot-of-pr0n dept.
Ralph_19 writes "Wired visited Seagate's R&D labs and learned we can expect 3.5-inch 300-terabit hard drives within a matter of years. Currently Seagate is using perpendicular recording but in the next decade we can expect heat-assisted magnetic recording (HARM), which will boost storage densities to as much as 50 terabits per square inch. The technology allows a smaller number of grains to be used for each bit of data, taking advantage of high-stability magnetic compounds such as iron platinum." In the meantime, Hitachi is shipping a 1 TB HDD sometime this year. It is expected to retail for $399.
Math

Submission + - Simple solution to Minimal Enclosing Circle

Submitted by
An anonymous reader writes: Prof. Felix Friedman developed a simple and elegant solution for Minimal Enclosing Circle (finding the smallest circle enclosing a set of points.) Friedman's algorithm is O(n), can work 'on-line' (before all points are known,) and can be extended to higher dimensions. Because he teaches at a little-known state university in eastern Pennsylvania, he doesn't seem to be getting the recognition that comes with such a major advance in a problem well-studied for 150 years.
Biotech

Researchers Find Potential Cure for Cancer 324

Posted by Zonk from the proverbial-cure-for-cancer dept.
MECC writes "Researchers at Johns Hopkins University may have found a way to kill cancer cells without radiation or toxic chemicals. The group is taking the step of patenting the idea, as this new approach using sugars may hold real potential for the fight against cancer. This is not the first approach to use sugars, the article states, but is (by the researchers' estimation) the most successful. From the article: 'Sampathkumar and his colleagues built upon 20-year-old findings that a short-chain fatty acid called butyrate can slow the spread of cancer cells. In the 1980s, researchers discovered that butyrate, which is formed naturally at high levels in the digestive system by symbiotic bacteria that feed on fibre, can restore healthy cell functioning ... The researchers focused on a sugar called N-acetyl-D-mannosamine, or ManNAc, for short, and created a hybrid molecule by linking ManNAc with butyrate. The hybrid easily penetrates a cell's surface, then is split apart by enzymes inside the cell. Once inside the cell, ManNAc is processed into another sugar known as sialic acid that plays key roles in cancer biology, while butyrate orchestrates the expression of genes responsible for halting the uncontrolled growth of cancer cells.'"
United States

Submission + - US Militairy mIRC being replaced by dutch TITAAN

Submitted by
Joep Gommers
Joep Gommers writes: "In April of 2006, The Netherlands scouted the allied troops in Afghanistan to see how TITAAN could improve or replace current networks of communications. What they found was the CENTRIXS system, which stands for Combined Enterprise Regional Information Exchange System and is developed by the US. The applications integrated in the CENTRIXS system are MS Outlook, C2PC (out-dated GIS application), IWS (teleconferencing) and mIRC (a chat program to facilitate Command and Control). The dutch are lobbying to replace this outdated system with there state-of-the-art TITAAN communications concept, which is already in use at central command which is lead by Holland. http://joep.gommers.googlepages.com/"
Portables

Submission + - Portable Solar Power for $180

Submitted by
KarMax
KarMax writes: "This portable solar power can be done (and improved) by everyone, is really easy and you can buy all you need from eBay.
From the article:
For about $180, I brought together all the components needed to power a typical laptop for a couple hours solely on solar power. It's great for emergencies, or just knowing you are powering something real with a completely renewable resource.
This kit weighs about 2 lbs, costs $180, and will power my Macbook for 1.75 hours (1.83ghz, browsing the web and checking email via Airport Extreme, bluetooth off, screen brightness about 70%) with a little more than 5 hours of good sun.
"
Television

Submission + - The DIY Star Trek Home Theater

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Gary Reighn has boldly gone where no one has gone before — or perhaps where only a few have gone. This Philadelphia-area homeowner not only built a home theater based on the command bridge from Star Trek — others have done that — but he also did it all himself. He's responsible for everything from framing the walls to installing the equipment to crafting space view ports and simulated computer screens.
Privacy

Submission + - U.S. Warrantless Wiretap Extends Into Mail

Submitted by
s31523
s31523 writes: "Several slashdot articles on the United States rulings on warrantless wiretaps have been the subject of much debate. Many people feel that if you aren't doing something wrong, then you should have nothing to worry about. Others feel the privacy violation is unacceptable and paves the path for other rights being "waived". The others might be right. Yahoo is reporting yet another presidential signing that has wording that can be construed as giving the government the right to open US mail without a warrant. FTA, "The executive branch shall construe subsection 404(c) of title 39, as enacted by subsection 1010(e) of the act, which provides for opening of an item of a class of mail otherwise sealed against inspection, in a manner consistent, to the maximum extent permissible, with the need to conduct searches in exigent circumstances, such as to protect human life and safety against hazardous materials, and the need for physical searches specifically authorized by law for foreign intelligence collection.""
Wireless Networking

Submission + - S'porean faces jail for tapping wireless network

Submitted by menlowiz
menlowiz writes: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/A/AS_TEC_SING APORE_ONLINE_BOMB_HOAX_ASOL-?SITE=ASIAONE&SECTION= SOUTHEAST&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2007-01-05-01-27- 23 SINGAPORE (AP) — A Singapore court charged a man for posting a bomb hoax online while illegally tapping into a wireless Internet network — both offenses which carry jail terms, court documents showed Friday. Lin Zhenghuang, 21, was charged Thursday with posting a message on a popular technology Web site on Jul. 22, 2005, saying there was a bomb at a local bus depot, according to charge sheets obtained from the subordinate courts. Lin, using the online moniker "krisurf," is accused of posting a message titled "Breaking news — Toa Payoh hit by bomb attacks" in the forum of the Web site hardwarezone.com, the documents showed. Toa Payoh is a district in central Singapore. Lin's alleged post, which was made just after the London subway and bus bombings earlier that month, had so alarmed other site users that they contacted the police, The Straits Times newspaper reported. The court granted Lin a week's adjournment to mourn a relative's death, the report said, adding Lin said he intended to plead guilty to the charges. Lin faces up to seven years' imprisonment and fines of up to 50,000 Singapore dollars (US$32,500; 24,900) for sending a false message about a bomb. Lin also faces 60 charges of tapping illegally into nine unsecured wireless Internet networks between July 2005 and February 2006, the court documents showed. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of three years in jail and a fine of up to S$10,000 (US$6,500; 5,000). Lin is the second person to be prosecuted in the city-state for illegal wireless Internet access under the Computer Misuse Act. A Singaporean teenager was charged in November 2005 for a similar act. Leaders of Singapore, a staunch U.S. ally, say the wealthy Southeast Asian island nation could be a prime target for terror attacks. In the wake of the July 7, 2005, London bomb blasts on three subway trains and a bus that killed 56 people, Singapore deployed a new armed police unit dedicated to securing the city-state's subways and stations against possible terror attacks.
KDE

A Sneak Preview of KDE 4 350

Posted by CowboyNeal from the pretty-gooey dept.
An anonymous reader writes "In recent times, a lot of discussion has been generated about the state of KDE version 4.0 and as Linux users we are ever inquisitive about what the final user experience is going to be. This article throws light on some of the features that we can look forward to when KDE 4.0 is finally released some time this year. The article indicates that the most exciting fact about KDE 4.0 is going to be that it is developed using the Qt 4.0 library. This is significant because Qt 4.0 is released under a GPL license even for non-Unix platforms. So this clears the ideological path for KDE 4.0 to be ported to Windows and other non-Unix/X11 platforms."
Media

Submission + - HD-DVD Content Protection already hacked?

Submitted by El Lobo
El Lobo writes: Ever since the next generation high definition movie formats were announced, consumers have been up in arms about the proposed content protection by Hollywood film studios known as Advanced Access Content System or AACS for short. One annoyed consumer, going by the name of "muslix64", bought an Xbox 360 HD-DVD player over the holidays along with some HD-DVD's and was annoyed to discover he couldn't watch his movies at 1080p because his hardware lacked HDCP support. In what would seem like an act of frustration, the consumer set out about finding a way to playback his HD-DVD movies on a system without any content protection available.

http://www.tweaktown.com/articles/1025/hd_dvd_cont ent_protection_already_hacked_muslix64_believes_so /index.html

muslix64 has a video of the hacking on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oZGYb92isE
Hardware Hacking

Submission + - Water Cooling Computers With A Swimming Pool

Submitted by
guzugi
guzugi writes: "This is a project I have been working for several months and been hypothesizing for much longer. The basic idea is to shortcut the need for an air conditioner when cooling multiple computers. Swimming pool water is pumped into the house and through several waterblocks to effectively cool these hot machines. This greatly reduces noise cooling requirements."

Slashdot Top Deals

"The four building blocks of the universe are fire, water, gravel and vinyl." -- Dave Barry

Close