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Submission + - IBM takes a (feline) step toward thinking machine (yahoo.com) 1

Submitted by bth
bth writes: A computer with the power of a human brain is not yet near. But this week researchers from IBM Corp. are reporting that they've simulated a cat's cerebral cortex, the thinking part of the brain, using a massive supercomputer. The computer has 147,456 processors (most modern PCs have just one or two processors) and 144 terabytes of main memory — 100,000 times as much as your computer has.
United States

U.S. To Certify Labs For Testing E-Voting Machines 75

Posted by Zonk from the who-certifies-the-certifiers dept.
InternetVoting writes "In a clear counter to the recent criticisms of secrecy involving Ciber labs the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has issued recommendations (pdf) to the Election Assistance Commission (EAC). NIST recommends the accreditation of two labs, iBeta Quality Assurance and SysTest Labs. The recommendation, emphasizing the need for transparency, includes on-site assessment reports, lab responses, and on-site reviews for each lab. These reports shed much needed light into the process of voting machine certification. Learn more from the Q&As About NIST Evaluation of Laboratories that Test Voting Systems."
Sci-Fi

Submission + - Slow Light = Fast Computing

Submitted by yohaas
yohaas writes: The Washington Post is reporting that scientists have been able to slow the speed of light while still maintaining its ability to transmit information. From the article:
Scientists said yesterday that they had achieved a long-sought goal of slowing waves of light to a relatively leisurely pace and using those harnessed pulses to store an image. Physicists said the new approach to taming light could hasten the arrival of a futuristic era in which computers and other devices will process information on optical beams instead of with electricity, which for all its spark is still cumbersome compared with light.
PC Games (Games)

Gamers Don't Need Vista or DX 10 Says Carmack 257

Posted by Zonk from the stick-with-what-works dept.
Freshly Exhumed writes "In an interview with Marcus Yam at Daily Tech legendary PC/Console game creator John Carmack holds forth on DirectX 10: 'Personally, I wouldn't jump at something like DX10 right now. I would let things settle out a little bit and wait until there's a really strong need for it.' and then zings Microsoft's marketers over DX10's mandatory use of the Vista OS: 'Carmack then said that he's quite satisfied with Windows XP, going as far to say that Microsoft is artificially forcing gamers to move to Windows Vista for DX10.' There are a few good tidbits on Xbox 360 vs. PS3 development, and a fairly clear disinterest in Wii as a platform for his company's products is shown."
Privacy

RFID Tattoo for Tracking Cattle and Humans 181

Posted by Zonk from the one-mammal-is-as-bad-as-the-rest-go-reptoids dept.
ack154 writes "The Register reports that a St Louis based company, Somark Innovations, has successfully tested RFID tattoos to be used for tracking cattle and other animals. Details are limited for the actual tattoo, but it's said to contain no metals and can be read up to about four feet away. Engadget has some more details on the matter. And yes, the article does mention RFID tattoos are possible for people, specifically the military. From the article: 'The system developed by Somark uses an array of needles to quickly inject a pattern of dots into each animal, with the pattern changing for each injection. This pattern can then be read from over a meter away using a proprietary reader operating at high frequency.'"
NASA

Pluto Probe Snaps Jupiter Pictures 133

Posted by CowboyNeal from the eye-in-the-sky dept.
sighted writes "The New Horizons probe, on its way to Pluto and beyond, is now speeding toward Jupiter. Today the team released some of the early data and pictures, which are the first close-range shots of the giant planet since the robotic Cassini spacecraft passed that way in 2001."
User Journal

Journal Journal: the problem with feminism

Journal by mbius
is that there are two kinds of men: those who don't hear Regina Spektor, and those she turns into a puddle.

Feed Teledildonics Takes a Step (wired.com)

From feed by wiredfeed
A Japanese company develops a way to encode tactile stimulus into video streams. It's good news for porn stars, and lovers, alike. Commentary by Regina Lynn.


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