Comment Re:The Cowboy Neal Option (Score 1) 684
it made me vote for ficus! RECOUNT! RECOUNT!
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Stern Measures Keep NASA's Kepler Mission on Track 73
Hugh Pickens writes "NASA's new Space Science Division Director, Dr. S. Alan Stern, appears to be making headway in keeping in space projects like the Kepler Mission at their original budgeted costs. The New York Times reports that Stern's plan is to hold projects responsible for overruns, forcing mission leaders to trim parts of their projects, streamline procedures or find other sources of financing. 'The mission that makes the mess is responsible for cleaning it up,' Stern says. Because of management problems, technical issues and other difficulties on the Kepler Mission, the price tag for Kepler went up 20% to $550 million and the launch slipped from the original 2006 target date to 2008. When the Kepler team asked for another $42 million, Stern's team threatened to open the project to new bids so other researchers could take it over using the equipment that had already been built."
UK Moves to Outlaw 'Hacker Tools' 308
twitter writes "New guidance rules for the UK's controversial Computer Misuse Act do not allay fears of impracticality, or of the banning of legitimate IT software: 'The government has come through with guidelines that address some, but not all, of these concerns about dual-use tools. The guidelines establish that to successfully prosecute the author of a tool it needs to be shown that they intended it to be used to commit computer crime. But the Home Office, despite lobbying, refused to withdraw the distribution offense. This leaves the door open to prosecute people who distribute a tool, such as nmap, that's subsequently abused by hackers.'" Somewhat similar legislation recently became law in Germany.
Submission + - New Jersey Denies Internet from Sex Offenders (nytimes.com) 3
eldavojohn writes: "New Jersey just passed legislation making it illegal for sex offenders to use the internet. NJ congresswoman Linda D. Greenstein said, "When Megan's Law was enacted, few could envision a day when a sex offender hiding behind a fake screen name would be a mouse-click away from new and unwitting victims. Sex offenders cannot be given an opportunity to abuse the anonymity the Internet can provide as a means of opening a door to countless new potential victims." While they still can search for jobs, this is a major expansion over the prior legislation which barred them from social networking sites like facebook or myspace."
Feed Engadget: Jesus and fam outfitted with GPS in Florida nativity scene (engadget.com)
Filed under: GPS
Tired of prankster kids making off with baby Jesus year after year, Dina Cellini of Bal Harbour, Florida is having GPS installed in the doll, as well as the Joseph and Mary statues. "We may need to rely on technology to save our savior,'' said Cellini. Last year they tried bolting down the figures, to no avail, and this year they'll be augmenting the GPS with a Plexiglass screen. We're saving all our good wise man jokes for tomorrow's festivities, but feel free to toss your own into the comments.[Via The Inquirer]
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Feed Engadget: The 2007 Engadget Awards (engadget.com)
Filed under: Announcements, Misc. Gadgets
This year we've got 22 categories up for grabs, with 44 total awards to be decided. All finalists for Engadget Awards are reader-nominated, and the editors of Engadget will then select the best of those nominations (usually somewhere between 4-6 devices or technologies) as finalists.
There are two awards per category, Reader's Choice (voted on by you!), and Editors' Choice (selected by us). The vote will take place in January (as soon as CES and Macworld finish up), and winners will be announced later that month.
You've got until 11:59PM ET on Thursday, January 3rd, 2008 to get your entries in. Now, go nominate!
- Gadget of the Year
- Worst Gadget of the Year
- Most Anticipated Gadget of 2008
- Cellphone of the Year
- Smartphone of the Year
- Desktop of the Year
- Digital Camera of the Year
- Display of the Year
- Game Console of the Year
- Game Device of the Year
- GPS Device of the Year
- Handheld of the Year
- HDTV of the Year
- Home Entertainment Device of the Year
- Laptop of the Year
- Peripheral of the Year
- Portable Media Device of the Year
- Robot of the Year
- Storage Device or Technology of the Year
- Tablet PC of the Year
- Wearable Device of the Year
- Wireless Device or Technology of the Year
See also the 2004, 2005, and 2006 Engadget Awards winners.
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Feed Engadget: Christmas lights synced with Guitar Hero axe (engadget.com)
Filed under: Misc. Gadgets
While we already knew Sony's mysterious Rolly got down to holiday tunes, this installation managed to capture our attention just a wee bit more. Rivaled only by the famed TSO project from 2005, this guitar-controlled setup transforms a traditional office into a holiday funhouse by enabling rockers to control the light patterns within the building. Open source software, dubbed Frets on Fire, was modified to generate controls for dozens of light strings around the cubicles, with the corner plant being used to "keep the beat" and the trash can fittingly being lit only when someone missed a note. Click on through to catch this madness in action -- and yeah, it's pretty evident the boss left weeks ago to enjoy the rest of '07 from afar.Continue reading Christmas lights synced with Guitar Hero axe
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Feed Engadget: Indian villagers walk a dozen miles to charge cellphones (engadget.com)
Filed under: Cellphones
While we've even seen politicians in India text citizens pleading for votes come election day, some remote locales of the nation still don't have electricity -- but that doesn't mean those messages aren't being received. Reportedly, about 30 to 40 individuals living in a Dalit village some 50 miles from Sagar in Madhya Pradesh are trudging around 12 miles per day just to get their mobile phones juiced back up for the next 24 hours of yappin'. Unfortunately, there's no sign of electricity being piped out to this remote region in the not-too-distant future, but considering how handsets enable the aforementioned denizens to contact outsiders in case of emergency (or to pass along the latest gossip), it doesn't look like they'll be ditching the hike anytime soon.[Via OnlyGizmos, image courtesy of Temple]
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Feed Engadget: Get your PlayStation ROMs ready: psx4iphone now available (engadget.com)
Filed under: Cellphones, Gaming
ZodTTD has made good on a promise to release their psx4iphone app to the public just a handful of days after announcing the project, meaning that the iPhone could very well end up taking a slot beside the PSP as a premier destination for portable PlayStation gaming. We're still not entirely convinced that the transition from PlayStation controller to touchscreen is going to be an easy one, though we're pretty sure hardcore gamers have overcome even greater obstacles in the past in the name of emulation. The package is being billed as a 0.1 release, meaning that it may not be the most solid build in the world -- but then again, it's not like you're getting your PlayStation jollies from Sony Ericsson any time soon, right?[Via Mobilewhack]
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Feed Engadget: Knight Industries Three Thousand specs revealed (engadget.com)
Filed under: Transportation
While you may or may not agree with NBC's decision to make KITT a Ford Mustang in the new Knight Rider series, we're pretty sure that you're gonna tune in next February nonetheless if for no other reason then to see what modern technology can do to a talking, crime-fighting car. Well luckily Popular Mechanics has what is reportedly an exclusive spec sheet detailing all of the Knight Industries Three Thousand's many capabilities, including much of the in-vehicle biometric and genetic testing you'd expect, along with such military features as laser weapons, a missile defense system, and even a targeted electromagnetic pulse for frying an enemy's gadgets or pulling off the odd casino heist. One cutting-edge device that has been left out is a breathalyzer-based ignition system, which was allegedly scrapped at the last minute after designers learned that David Hasselhoff would not in fact be getting behind the wheel this time around.[Thanks, cant0r]
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Feed Engadget: All-electric dragster sets electric vehicle quarter mile record (engadget.com)
Filed under: Transportation
The last time we saw a vehicle powered by high-power lithium-ion batteries, it was the crazy-fast KillaCycle, and it was lodged neatly inside a minivan after being too much for its owner to handle. Well, it looks like the same battery tech is behind another ridiculously fast ride, only this time it's an actual drag racer driven by an actual race car driver, and it's setting NHRA electric vehicle quarter-mile records: the Current Eliminator V, driven by Dennis "Kilowatt" Berube, beat the old record on Saturday by posting a quarter-mile time of 8.10 seconds at 153.6MPH at the Speedworld Motorplex strip in Tuscon. That's somewhat behind the KillaCycle's record of 7.82 seconds at 168MPH, but given the added weight of the car's chassis and and problems we've seen othes have with high-torque all-electric transmissions, it's still pretty impressive.[Via TG Daily]
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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
Feed Engadget: Build a digital microscope from a webcam (engadget.com)
Filed under: Digital Cameras
Sure, it won't get you live 3D representations of living cells, but this little USB microscope mashup over at Instructables should nab you some sweet pics of up-close detail with a minimum of effort. You can pull it off with basically any simple webcam -- the one pictured here cost $5 -- and toy microscope, but you'll have to a little creative wiresplicing to get the white LED light source powered off USB as well. Still, it's a neat project if you've got the time -- now get to work!Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
Feed Engadget: Steering wheel-mounted Bluetooth handfree kit hits the FCC (engadget.com)
Filed under: Cellphones
We're not certain that your steering wheel is the best or safest place to attach a handsfree device, but those of you looking to up your Michael Knight factor might be interested in Seecode's new Wheel Bluetooth kit. Featuring a small screen and call-control buttons, the battery-operated unit allows you to chat away on speakerphone, send / end calls, and view your phonebook -- all while (hopefully) keeping your eyes on the road. No word on when these might be available, but check the read link for the usual riveting assortment of FCC docs.Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments
Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
Feed Engadget: Jibe Audio's Sound Machine iPhone dock -- designed by Apple alumni (engadget.com)
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Portable Audio
[Via Gizmos]
Read -- Brunner's iPhone Station
Read -- Jibe Audio
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Office Depot Featured Gadget: Xbox 360 Platinum System Packs the power to bring games to life!
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