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Submission + - College Students Lack Scientific Literacy

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Most college students in the United States do not grasp the scientific basis of the carbon cycle – an essential skill in understanding the causes and consequences of climate change, according to research published in the January issue of BioScience. The study, whose authors include several current and former researchers from Michigan State University, calls for a new way of teaching – and, ultimately, comprehending – fundamental scientific principles such as the conservation of matter.
Security

Submission + - Firesheep author reflects on wild week (networkworld.com)

Submitted by alphadogg
alphadogg writes: Firesheep, the Mozilla Firefox add-on released about a week ago that lets you spot users on open networks visiting unsecured websites, has given creator Eric Butler more than his 15 minutes of fame.

More than 542,000 downloads later, Firesheep has thrown Butler into the middle of heated discussions regarding everything from the ethics of releasing the code to the legality of using it to the need for website vendors to clean up their security acts.

Butler, who describes himself as a freelance Web application and software developer, reflects on the past week's happenings in a new blog post http://codebutler.com/firesheep-a-week-later-ethics-and-legality that features lots of bold wording for emphasis and reads in part:

"I've received hundreds of messages from people who are extremely happy that the issue of website security is receiving attention. Some, however, have questioned if Firesheep is legal to use. I'd like to be clear about this: It is nobody's business telling you what software you can or cannot run on your own computer. Like any tool, Firesheep can be used for many things. In addition to raising awareness, it has already proven very useful for people who want to test their own security as well as the security of their (consenting) friends. A much more appropriate question is: ‘Is it legal to access someone else's accounts without their permission'."
Microsoft

Submission + - Windows 8 To Be Released In October 2012 (digitizor.com) 5

Submitted by dkd903
dkd903 writes: Microsoft has been very secretive about the next version of its Windows operating system. After the success of Windows 7, everyone is very interested in the next iteration – Windows 8. A few leaks have been the only source of news about Windows 8 till now. However, a slip up from Microsoft Netherlands have put the release date in October 2010.

Comment Re:The root of the problem is infinite credit (Score 1) 477

by frontwave (#33923678) Attached to: FCC Will Tackle Cell Phone 'Bill Shock'
A year ago, a council member of a Spanish city had a 35,000 EUR charge over three months because her daughter used her 3G USB data device, over the cellular network, to download "lost". The service was paid by the municipality, and they asked her for the money. The girl used her mother data card on her laptop since the Wi-Fi signal of the house did not reach her room.
Why the cellular company did not disconnect the service after some overuse?

http://www.formulatv.com/1,20090309,10634,2.html

Comment Go Prepaid!!! (Score 1) 477

by frontwave (#33888100) Attached to: FCC Will Tackle Cell Phone 'Bill Shock'
Actually, go prepaid.. I gave up my Verizon plan and went to PagePlus (pagepluscellular.com) keeping my phone and still using the Verizon network. Now I just add the minutes I need. 400 minutes for $25.. I don't need more and they are valid for 4 months.
There are other services such as Free Talk offering similar services. SEE: http://technorati.com/technology/article/is-your-cell-phone-bill-outrageous1/
Google

Sony HDTVs To Come With Google TV Interface 124

Posted by samzenpus from the TV-team-up dept.
adeelarshad82 writes "Even though Google recently announced its own Google TV, seems like their partnership with Sony is going to make it obsolete. Google has partnered up with Sony to launch four HDTVs loaded with the Google TV interface, as well as a Google TV Blu-ray player. The company's Google TV products will be called Sony Internet TV. With the Google TV, Sony aims to provide a clean and easy way to browse the Web, watch TV, and run applications all on your HDTV. Google TV uses the true Chrome Web browser with Flash 10.1. Unfortunately though, at the moment it only has a handful of apps available but Sony said the OS will be updated in early 2011 to include the Android Market app with more options."
Businesses

FCC Will Tackle Cell Phone 'Bill Shock' 477

Posted by samzenpus from the light-in-a-sea-of-darkness dept.
MexiCali59 writes "The FCC is expected to launch a proceeding at its Thursday meeting that could force wireless providers to change their billing practices. The agency wants to prevent consumers from unknowingly racking up oversized bills on their phones when they go over their minutes, a situation the agency calls 'bill shock.' The agency released a survey earlier this year that showed one in six American consumers had been surprised by a cell phone bill. The FCC's proposed rules would require carriers to send text or voice alerts before and when minutes are used up. Notifications would also have to accompany out-of-country charges, and carriers would be required to clearly disclose any tools they offer to simplify billing."

Comment Good idea, same with Credit Cards (Score 1) 4

by frontwave (#33877262) Attached to: Facebook introduces one-time passwords
Actually AMEX has been providing a similar service for online purchases for several years. You get a temporary CC number linked to your account, for one use only, and with the limit of your purchase. Some banks in Europe provide the same service. I like the temporary password idea. It should be adopted by more sites, such as Google Accounts and Gmail.

Comment Try the airport Lost&Found (Score 1) 1

by frontwave (#33865636) Attached to: How to find your lost cellphone?
Last year I left my laptop at the gate security at Amsterdam airport. They collect over 100 computers per day. I contacted the Lost&Found dept. and, after identifying my laptop, they arranger for UPS to collect it and delivered to my office in Denmark. What happened to you is very common on airports, I'm sure there is a similar facility in the one you forgot your phone.

Comment Re:what? (Score 1) 156

by frontwave (#33844678) Attached to: Google To Shut Down 411 Service
Actually Google was running TV ads just a few weeks ago. It is a great service, and connects the call for free, so if you don't have long distance and need to call a business outside your home calling area is great. About free services, Google Voice is great, if you live in the US or Canada, have a Gmail account and don't have a Google Voice number get one now! look at the features, it is great.
The Almighty Buck

UK Anti-Piracy Firm E-mails Reveal Cavalier Attitude Toward Legal Threats 200

Posted by timothy from the who-would-have-thought dept.
Khyber writes "A recent DDoS attack against a UK-based anti-pirating firm, ACS:Law, has resulted in a large backup archive of the server contents being made available for download, [and this archive] is now being hosted by the Pirate Bay. Within this archive are e-mails from Andrew Crossley basically admitting that he is running a scam job, sending out thousands of frivolous legal threats on the premise that a percentage pay up immediately to avoid legal hassles."

Submission + - Anti-Piracy firm e-mails reveal firm scam (torrentfreak.com) 4

Submitted by
Khyber
Khyber writes: "A recent DDoS attack against a UK-based anti-pirating firm, known as ACS:Law, has resulted in a large backup archive of the server contents being made available for download, which has been done and is now being hosted by the Pirate Bay. Within this archive are e-mails from Andrew Crossley basically admitting that he is running a scam job, sending out thousands of frivolous legal threats on the premise that a percentage pay up immediately to avoid legal hassles."
Google

YouTube Wins vs. Telecinco In Spain 68

Posted by kdawson from the uncommon-sense dept.
eldavojohn writes "A Spanish judge has dismissed a case brought against YouTube by Spanish television station Telecinco for violating Telecinco's intellectual property. The ruling reads in part: 'YouTube is not a supplier of content and therefore has no obligation to control ex-ante the illegality of those. Its only obligation is to cooperate with the holders of the rights in order to immediately withdraw the content once the infraction is identified.' Telecinco brought the case against YouTube when it found that episodes of its television programs were turning up on YouTube prior to their official air and release date on their television channel. Things are looking up for Google's video service as YouTube was granted safe harbor from Viacom earlier this year in the United States. You can find an official response from Google on their EU Policy Blog."

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