Comment Re:This is the Phillips relation - known for 20 ye (Score 1) 33
And to add, this is why people often refer to Ia's as "Standardizable Candles". :)
Comment Re:Radio telescope - not exactly "skywatching" (Score 2) 201
I've recently observed with the SMT (remotely). It's a good telescope and you all do a great job running it!
DOJ Often Used Cell Tower Impersonating Devices Without Explicit Warrants 146
Via the EFF comes news that, during a case involving the use of a Stingray device, the DOJ revealed that it was standard practice to use the devices without explicitly requesting permission in warrants. "When Rigmaiden filed a motion to suppress the Stingray evidence as a warrantless search in violation of the Fourth Amendment, the government responded that this order was a search warrant that authorized the government to use the Stingray. Together with the ACLU of Northern California and the ACLU, we filed an amicus brief in support of Rigmaiden, noting that this 'order' wasn't a search warrant because it was directed towards Verizon, made no mention of an IMSI catcher or Stingray and didn't authorize the government — rather than Verizon — to do anything. Plus to the extent it captured loads of information from other people not suspected of criminal activity it was a 'general warrant,' the precise evil the Fourth Amendment was designed to prevent. ... The emails make clear that U.S. Attorneys in the Northern California were using Stingrays but not informing magistrates of what exactly they were doing. And once the judges got wind of what was actually going on, they were none too pleased:"
Uniloc Patent Case Against Rackspace Tossed for Bogus Patents 76
netbuzz writes "A federal judge in Texas, presiding over a district notorious for favoring patent trolls, has summarily dismissed all claims relating to a case brought by Uniloc USA against Rackspace for [Linux] allegedly infringing upon [Uniloc's] patents. Red Hat defended Rackspace in the matter and issued a press release saying: 'In dismissing the case, Chief Judge Leonard Davis found that Uniloc's claim was unpatentable under Supreme Court case law that prohibits the patenting of mathematical algorithms. This is the first reported instance in which the Eastern District of Texas has granted an early motion to dismiss finding a patent invalid because it claimed unpatentable subject matter.'"
You can't patent floating point math after all.
Comment gas stations (Score 3, Informative) 732
(it seems that gasoline station owners here in Massachusetts got a different memo, though)
Despite the fact that the outcome is similar, there's a legal difference between "surcharge for credit" and "discount for cash". The former is/was illegal, the latter is legal. Presumably gas stations in MA and elsewhere are doing the latter.
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