Comment Re:Advertised speeds, not useful (Score 1) 163
Advertised speed != purchased speed either. You can click the "engage" link to either confirm information or provide additional information.
Comment Re:Not accurate results (Score 1) 163
It doesn't say that Verizon offers broadband service at your address.
The list below contains broadband providers that have reported offering service to all or part of the area that is shaded on the map to the right...
It says that Verizon advertizes the ability to provide broadband service for the area that your address falls in. It might only be in a single office building in your area. This might not be any help to you, but it doesn't necessarily mean the information in inaccurate.
Submission + - General Motor's NASA Robot on tour (freep.com)
diGitalRchitect writes: Robonaut 2, a.k.a. R2, described by its creator, General Motors, as the strongest, fastest, most dexterous and most technologically advanced humanoid robot visited GM’s Warren Technical Center this morning in anticipation of its “twin” heading off to the International Space Station later this month.
First Self-Replicating Creature Spawned In Conway's Game of Life 241
Calopteryx writes "New Scientist has a story on a self-replicating entity which inhabits the mathematical universe known as the Game of Life. 'Dubbed Gemini, [Andrew Wade's] creature is made of two sets of identical structures, which sit at either end of the instruction tape. Each is a fraction of the size of the tape's length but, made up of two constructor arms and one "destructor," play a key role. Gemini's initial state contains three of these structures, plus a fourth that is incomplete. As the simulation progresses the incomplete structure begins to grow, while the structure at the start of the tape is demolished. The original Gemini continues to disassemble as the new one emerges, until after nearly 34 million generations, new life is born.'"
Comment Russion newspaper story (Score 1) 336
After nearly three decades the source of an annoying buzz emanating form the center of Russia has been determined. Radio operators at a secret military base have been broadcasting the buzz of their fluorescent lighting for nearly 30 years.. "We couldn't stand the blasted environment that they kept us working in." says an unnamed soldier. "We've been here since the friggin' Cold War listening to this crap, while the whole country changed around us. To protest we simply switched on the radio and let her go." As part of a cost saving effort by the Russian military, all military buildings are being converted to high efficiency lighting, replacing the original noisy ballasts with compact fluorescent canisters. "The lighting quality is still crap, but at least the noise is gone."
How the Internet Didn't Fail As Predicted 259
Lord Byron Eee PC writes "Newsweek is carrying a navel-gazing piece on how wrong they were when in 1995 they published a story about how the Internet would fail. The original article states, 'Nicholas Negroponte, director of the MIT Media Lab, predicts that we'll soon buy books and newspapers straight over the Intenet. Uh, sure.' The article continues to say that online shopping will never happen, that airline tickets won't be purchased over the web, and that newspapers have nothing to fear. It's an interesting look back at a time when the Internet was still a novelty and not yet a necessity."
A Hyper-Velocity Impact In the Asteroid Belt? 114
astroengine writes "Astronomers have spotted something rather odd in the asteroid belt. It looks like a comet, but it's got a circular orbit, similar to an asteroid. Whether it's an asteroid or a comet, it has a long, comet-like tail, suggesting something is being vented into space. Some experts think it could be a very rare comet/asteroid hybrid being heated by the sun, but there's an even more exciting possibility: It could be the first ever observation of two asteroids colliding in the asteroid belt."
Tower Switch-Off Embarrasses Electrosensitives 292
Sockatume writes "Residents in Craigavon, South Africa complained of '[h]eadaches, nausea, tinnitus, dry burning itchy skins, gastric imbalances and totally disrupted sleep patterns' after an iBurst communications tower was put up in a local park. Symptoms subsided when the residents left the area, often to stay with family and thus evade their suffering. At a public meeting with the afflicted locals, the tower's owners pledged to switch off the mast immediately to assess whether it was responsible for their ailments. One problem: the mast had already been switched off for six weeks. Lawyers representing the locals say their case against iBurst will continue on other grounds."
Yellowstone Supervolcano Larger Than First Thought 451
drewtheman writes "New studies of the plumbing that feeds the Yellowstone supervolcano in Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park shows the plume and the magma chamber under the volcano are larger than first thought and contradicts claims that only shallow hot rock exists. University of Utah research professor of geophysics Robert Smith led four separate studies that verify a plume of hot and molten rock at least 410 miles deep that rises at an angle from the northwest."
Zombie Pigs First, Hibernating Soldiers Next 193
ColdWetDog writes "Wired is running a story on DARPA's effort to stave off battlefield casualties by turning injured soldiers into zombies by injecting them with a cocktail of one chemical or another (details to be announced). From the article, 'Dr. Fossum predicts that each soldier will carry a syringe into combat zones or remote areas, and medic teams will be equipped with several. A single injection will minimize metabolic needs, de-animating injured troops by shutting down brain and heart function. Once treatment can be carried out, they'll be "re-animated" and — hopefully — as good as new.' If it doesn't pan out we can at least get zombie bacon and spam."
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