Comment Re:Pfft... (Score 1) 394
Please don't give them ideas.
Comment /. affected? (Score 1) 189
Right when it started I had trouble loading /. even. It kept stalling while loading Google ads. However that seemed to only last for 10 minutes while my Gmail, iGoogle, etc. was slow for 1/2 an hour or so. Maybe they fixed the ads quickly...
Comment Not SG1? (Score 1) 107
I was very disappointed to see that this wasn't a story about Stargate.
Comment Wow. (Score 0, Redundant) 419
Looks like I'll never be buying electronics from Amazon again.
Comment 40% per year (Score 1) 479
From the article:
"Here at Time Warner Cable, consumption among our high-speed Internet subscribers is increasing by about 40 percent a year"
So basically they want to see their profits go up by 40% per year, since I'm sure the 10GB cap isn't going to become 14GB next year.
"Here at Time Warner Cable, consumption among our high-speed Internet subscribers is increasing by about 40 percent a year"
So basically they want to see their profits go up by 40% per year, since I'm sure the 10GB cap isn't going to become 14GB next year.
Comment Re:and in a manner that is completely transparent (Score 1) 332
I guess Microsoft must have already had the patent on automatically updating in a manner that was completely not transparent to the user.
Comment Re:North Korea (Score 1) 609
Since the NPT entered into force in 1970, three states that were not parties to the Treaty have conducted nuclear tests, namely India, Pakistan, and North Korea. (Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_with_nuclear_weapons )
Granted it says they probably have less than 10. But I'll bet they could do a lot of damage with 10 nukes.
Granted it says they probably have less than 10. But I'll bet they could do a lot of damage with 10 nukes.
Comment Finding Reception (Score 2, Interesting) 141
I'm definitely foreseeing a problem when you hold the phone out in front of you and move it around to try and find reception. That's a very similar position to the one you would use for picture taking.
Comment Is it hot in here? (Score 1) 603
This technology definitely has the potential to revolutionize the energy storage industry, between the high energy density, the quick charge time, the ultra-low self discharge rate, and the potentially unlimited cycle life.
I'm curious though...The patent mentions that a some of the electrical measurements were done at an ambient temperature of 85C (185F). Was this maybe done to simulate operation near a hot car engine? Is this the standard operating temperature of the device? Or were the results just much better when recorded in a warm environment?
Comment Is it hot in here? (Score 1) 603
The energy storage numbers that they claim are quite impressive. 55kWh for 285 lbs is absolutely remarkable. As someone else pointed out in another comment, a lead-acid battery with a comparable weight would only provide 4-5kWh. Lithium batteries generally have an energy density of about four times that of a lead-acid battery, so this technology still gives a 200-300 percent improvement over Lithium batteries in terms of power to weight ratios.
What's really impressive is the stated charge times and self-discharge rates. To be able to pump 55kWh of power into something and store it within 3-6 minutes without creating huge heating issues is an amazing feat. Their leakage current of 4.28 micro-Amps means that it will stay virtually fully charged for years.
One thing which I thought was kind of strange though was that many of their measurements were done at an ambient temperature of 85C (185F). Do you think this is to simulate operation near a hot car engine?
Shopping Center Creates Parking Spaces For Women 3
A Croatian shopping center is getting a lot of complaints over the wider, better lit parking spaces they made for women. The spaces, decorated with pink flowers, were meant to make parking easier for female customers, officials said. The spaces have not gone over well, as female motorists resent the implication that they need the extra wide spaces to park. One male customer said, "Why should women get special spaces? You can understand disabled spaces and parking bays for people with children but women should just learn how to drive properly." This statement ensures that no woman will do anything "properly" for him again.
Wood Density May Explain Stradivarius Secret 318
Whorhay writes "A Dutch doctor and a violin maker from Arkansas have compared five classical and eight modern violins in a computed tomography (CT) scanner. Apparently the 300-year-old violins are made of wood with a more consistent density than the modern violins. They aren't saying for sure that this is what gives the Stradivarius violins their unique sound, but it's the first scientific explanation I've heard for it that seems to have merit." Unfortunately science has yet to explain how how all three chords I know ROCK on my SG.
Researchers Modify T-Cells, Make Them HIV Resistant 171
DieNadel writes to share that naturally occurring proteins called "zinc fingers" are being used in a new approach to AIDS treatment. Using modified T-Cells with the zinc fingers, researchers at the Pennsylvania School of Medicine have shown a reduction in viral load in mice. "'By inducing mutations in the CCR5 gene using zinc finger proteins, we've reduced the expression of CCR5 surface proteins on T cells, which is necessary for the AIDS virus to enter these immune system cells,' explains first author Elena Perez, MD, PhD, Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Penn. 'This approach stops the AIDS virus from entering the T cells because it now has an introduced error into the CCR5 gene.'"
Intel Says to Prepare For "Thousands of Cores" 638
Impy the Impiuos Imp writes to tell us that in a recent statement Intel has revealed their plans for the future and it goes well beyond the traditional processor model. Suggesting developers start thinking about tens, hundreds, or even thousand or cores, it seems Intel is pushing for a massive evolution in the way processing is handled. "Now, however, Intel is increasingly 'discussing how to scale performance to core counts that we aren't yet shipping...Dozens, hundreds, and even thousands of cores are not unusual design points around which the conversations meander,' [Anwar Ghuloum, a principal engineer with Intel's Microprocessor Technology Lab] said. He says that the more radical programming path to tap into many processing cores 'presents the "opportunity" for a major refactoring of their code base, including changes in languages, libraries, and engineering methodologies and conventions they've adhered to for (often) most of the their software's existence.'"
Discovery of a "Flat" Atom Hailed as Quantum Computing Breakthrough 205
msw writes to tell us that nanoelectronics researchers have discovered a new molecule that could act as a state-manipulable atom due to its unique shape and properties. "Imagine a tiny arsenic atom embedded in a tiny strip of silicon atoms. An electric current is applied. Something strange arises on the surface -- an exotic molecule. On one end is the spherical submerged arsenic atom; on the other end is an 'artificial' flat atom, seemingly 2D, created as an artifact. The pair form an exotic molecule, which has a shared electron, which can be manipulated to be at either end, or in an intermediate quantum state."
