Comment Re: sig (Score 1) 336
One fewer move:
1. f3 e4 2. g4 Qh4++ shit!
Comment Ob. (Score 1) 939
*grumblegrumble* Mac keyboard *grumblegrumble* insensitive clod *grumble*
Comment Re:Glycine isn't that complex (Score 1) 148
Well, I agree that one of my first thoughts was that glycine is the simplest amino acid and therefore not quite as exciting as finding one or more of the other amino acids. However, it's important to remember that the important characteristic of amino acids is their ability to polymerize via condensation reaction of the amino group of one with the carboxyl group of another. The only thing that distinguishes glycine from the other amino acids (except for proline) is that it "only" has a H for its R group. All it takes is substitution of a methyl group at that position and suddenly you have alanine, one of the most abundant amino acids found in proteins.
Comment Re:hypotheses (Score 2, Informative) 148
5) the gel got contaminated on earth. or the mass spec is not definitive about the molecule in question.
I lean towards 5, and then 3 as a close second.
I would have agreed with you before I RTFA. The authors acknowledged contamination as a confounding factor, and tested for it by isotopic analysis of the C13:C12 ratio, where glycine from space is expected to have a greater amount of C13. This is precisely what they found, allowing them to conclude that the glycine did, in fact, come from the comet.
Visualizing False Positives In Broad Screening 365
AlejoHausner writes "To find one terrorist in 3000 people, using a screen that works 90% of the time, you'll end up detaining 300 people, one of whom might be your target. A BBC article asks for an effective way to communicate this clearly. 'Screening for HIV with 99.9% accuracy? Switch it around. Think also about screening the millions of non-HIV people and being wrong about one person in every 1,000.' The problem is important in any area where a less-than-perfect screen is used to detect a rare event in a population. As a recent NYTimes story notes, widespread screening for cancers (except for maybe colon cancer) does more harm than good. How can this counter-intuitive fact be communicated effectively to people unschooled in statistics?"
Comment Re:How do you explain this (Score 1) 604
The mutated organism can still mate with his "normal" fellows and produce children. But how, at some point there appears a group of organisms so different that they can reproduce only within their own group? This is not a small change and I don't understand how it can happen to the whole group simultaneously.
That's just it, speciation occurs when a subset of the population is no longer able to mate with the remainder of the population. Four modes through which this can occur are nicely covered in the Wikipedia article on speciation.
Comment Re:Required reading (Score 1) 628
Well...fruit flies have been shown to be capable of learning by classical conditioning. Some may not consider this to be true pain, but they will avoid an odor that has been previously paired with an electric shock.
Comment Re:Ow ow ow. (Score 1) 530
This kind of language abuse makes my head literally explode!
Consumer 3D Television Moving Forward 127
TheSync writes "Hollywood Reporter claims that SMPTE (the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers) will 'establish an industry task force to define the parameters of a mastering standard for 3D content distributed via broadcast, cable, satellite, packaged media and the Internet, and played-out on televisions, computer screens and other tethered displays.' Already, Japanese Nippon BS viewers with Hyundai 3D LCD sets can watch an hour of 3D programming daily. Even your existing DLP TV set might be 3D capable today with the addition of LCD shutter glasses."
Reader DaMan1970 makes note of another developing television technology; telescopic pixel displays. "Each pixel consists of 2 opposing mirrors where the primary mirror can change shape under an applied voltage. When the pixel is off, the primary & secondary mirrors are parallel & reflect all of the incoming light back into the light source."
Feed The Register: AI egghead: Human-robot humping, marriage by 2050 (theregister.com)
No different from same-sex, or inter-racial nuptials
Among university roboticists, the scenario of humans having sex with robots is normally seen as inevitable. Further support for this (the assessment of robotics boffins' worldview, not the likelihood of mechanised jigjig going mainstream) appeared last week, as a PhD thesis on the subject was defended at Maastricht University.
Feed Science Daily: Quantum Analog Of Ulam's Conjecture Can Guide Molecules, Reactions (sciencedaily.com)
Like navigating spacecraft through the solar system by means of gravity and small propulsive bursts, researchers can guide atoms, molecules and chemical reactions by utilizing the forces that bind nuclei and electrons into molecules (analogous to gravity) and by using light for propulsion. But, knowing the minimal amount of light required, and how that amount changes with the complexity of the molecule, has been a problem. By creating a quantum mechanical analog of Ulam's conjecture, researchers have expanded the flexibility and controllability of quantum mechanical systems.
Feed Science Daily: RNA May Play Larger Role In Cell's Gene Activity, Researchers Find (sciencedaily.com)
Large, seemingly useless pieces of RNA -- a molecule originally considered only a lowly messenger for DNA -- play an important role in letting cells know where they are in the body and what they are supposed to become, researchers at Stanford University School of Medicine have discovered.
Ban On Price Floors Abandoned, Internet Prices May Rise 544
paro12 and i_like_spam informed us of a 5-4 decision by the US Supreme Court which abandons a 96-year-old ban on manufacturers and retailers setting price floors for products. The Slashdot community discussed the issue when the case was argued back in March. The ruling means that anti-competitive complaints based on price-fixing will have to be argued case-by-case and will be harder to prove. Discounts and discounters in all venues may be under pressure, with internet sales possibly the hardest hit. "Importantly, this case points a dagger at the heart of the most consumer-friendly aspects of the Internet. The Internet has shifted power to the consumer in two ways. First, it allows consumers to search for and gather information in a cost-effective, efficient manner. Second, it provides a low-cost means of retailing, making it easy for discounters to offer products to the public. This combination squeezes excess profits and inefficiencies out of product prices. Retail price maintenance seeks to short circuit this extremely consumer friendly process. By setting minimum prices, manufacturers can build in excess margins for themselves and for their favored retailers -- prices that consumers have no choice but to pay."
U.S. Service Personnel Data Stolen 343
BStrunk writes "I was reading the news this morning on Reuters, when I stumbled across this article:
U.S. Service Personnel Personal Data Stolen
In the article, an official violated policy by taking the detailed personal information of thousands of active and reserve troops to his personal home, storing it on a personal computer, that was later stolen. In an age where domestic phone calls are monitored, a government employee was allowed to walk out of a government installation with the data on thousands of American citizens to store on an insecure personal computer? Doesn't that seem strange to you? This is a real failure, in my opinion, in government protection of its citizens. Layers of encryption and protected access was successfully bypassed to make the theft of this information as simple as stealing a home pc.
Now, not only do service personnel currently serving have to worry about IEDs and being fired upon, but they are now subject to possible identity theft. A real failure. After this, how could one have faith enough to serve an inept institution?"
CyberTerrorism - Reality or FUD? 358
Random Utinni writes "The director of the U.S. Cyber Consequences Unit (part of Homeland Security) claims that terrorist hackers are poised to create total chaos. He predicts all sorts of scenarios, from changing the formulae for medications to causing cars to explode after a few weeks of driving. Is this guy fearmongering for an increased budget, or is he on to something here?"
