Comment Re:Not Logically Complete (Score 1) 102
I meant you can do complete logic with just NOR.
Comment Re:Not Logically Complete (Score 1) 102
You forgot NOR.
Comment Re:U.S. needs to get rid of software patents (Score 1) 113
Because obtaining a patent is expensive and defending it is even more so.
Comment Re:Answer, in brief: (Score 1) 556
You can't use "for" and "per" interchangeably. "For" is multiplication, "per" is division. 1,000 Joules per second for 3,600 seconds is 3,600,000 (J/s) * s or 3,600,000 J.
https://www.google.com/search?q=1+kWh+in+J
https://www.google.com/search?q=1+kWh+in+J
Comment Re:Yet Another Reason... (Score 1) 214
I already answered that:
Some software is innovative and deserves patent protection...
I don't necessarily think that all software patents should be thrown out, but if the system can't be overhauled to correct this problem, then I think that would be better than what we have now.
Comment Re:Yet Another Reason... (Score 1) 214
He said the reason:
The problem is that because of the way software patents work, and the way software works, unlike in other industries you just can't make a significant product that doesn't infringe major companies' software patents. They have too many that are too broad, and even if you think you can win you certainly can't afford to litigate it as a small company.
Some software is innovative and deserves patent protection, but he's arguing against the extremely broad patents granted to some companies. These patents make it impossible for startups to create certain types of software, but a larger company could just cross-license the patents. Even when the smaller company is in the right, litigation would be extremely expensive, and likely drive them into bankruptcy.
Comment Re:Prior art? (Score 1) 45
No, it completely changed the size, rotation, etc. of the entire keyboard dynamically.
Comment Re:This seems stupid (Score 2) 45
You do realize that the entire point of this is so you don't have to look at the screen while typing, right? You just type normally and the keyboard adjusts to you automatically.
Comment Prior art? (Score 1) 45
I definitely remember seeing a YouTube video of an app that does this exact same thing.
Comment Abiogenesis (Score 1) 916
This always annoys me:
The theory of evolution only deals with how life evolved after it got here, not how it originated. That's abiogenesis. People seem to always get the two confused.
DIY FireHero Project 27
If you have a propane tank, an ultrasonic sensor, a copy of Guitar Hero and a touch of pyromania, this is the project for you. From the article: "For version 1 of FireHero, the player simply watches a video of the guitar hero chart and plays on the guitar accordingly. Version 2 of FireHero will have a much better system, with Autoplay functionality. I will be able to take a custom guitar hero chart, convert it into a MIDI file, and use Processing to analyze it and play FireHero to the track."
French Use Space Tech To Find Parking Spots 112
itwbennett writes "Using technology developed by French space agency CNES (Centre Nationale d'Etudes Spatiales) to explore the planet Venus, drivers in the city of Toulouse are discovering something much more down-to-earth: vacant parking spots. The system is based on 3,000 sensors buried just under the pavement that detect changes in the electromagnetic environment around them and communicate the results via coaxial cable to a server, which makes the information available in real time to drivers' smartphones."
Google Books Makes a Word Cloud of Human History 127
An anonymous reader writes
"From Ed Yong at the Not Exactly Rocket Science blog: 'Just as petrified fossils tell us about the evolution of life on earth, the words written in books narrate the history of humanity. The words tell a story, not just through the sentences they form, but in how often they occur. Uncovering those tales isn't easy — you'd need to convert books into a digital format so that their text can be analyzed and compared. And you'd need to do that for millions of books. Fortunately, that's exactly what Google have been doing since 2004.' Yong goes on to explain that the astounding record of human culture found in Google Books offers new research paths to social scientists, linguists, and humanities scholars. Some of the early findings (abstract), based on an analysis of 5 million books containing 500 billion words: English is still adding words at a breathtaking pace; grammar is evolving and often becoming more regular; we're forgetting our history more quickly; and celebrities are younger than they used to be. You can also play with the Google Books search tool yourself. For example, here's a neat comparison of how often the words Britannica and Wikipedia have appeared."
Smart Wallets React To Spending By Shrinking 98
fangmcgee writes "These high-tech wallets are digitally programmed to react to your bank account levels by shrinking in size, refusing to open, or vibrating whenever a transaction is processed. From the article: 'The Proverbial Wallets come in three attractive styles to fit your spending needs: The Mother Bear has a constricting hinge that makes it harder to open the closer you approach your monthly budget, while the Bumblebee buzzes every time a transaction is processed. The Peacock inflates and deflates with the amount of cash in your account, which puts your assets on “display” for potential mates, according to the designers.'"
Underwear Invention Protects Privacy At Airport 325
Thanks to Jeff Buske you don't have to be embarrassed while going through the full body scanners at the airport. Buske has invented radiation shielding underwear for the shy traveler. From the article: "Jeff Buske says his invention uses a powdered metal that protects people's privacy when undergoing medical or security screenings. Buske of Las Vegas, Nev.-Rocky Flats Gear says the underwear's inserts are thin and conform to the body's contours, making it difficult to hide anything beneath them. The mix of tungsten and other metals do not set off metal detectors."
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