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Censorship

China Emphasizes Laws As Google Defies Censorship 320

Posted by CmdrTaco from the going-to-war dept.
Lomegor writes "Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said on Thursday that all companies are welcome to operate in China but that they must do so under local laws. Although not explicitly, this is in some way a response to Google's threat to leave the country. China also stated that they have strict cyber laws and that they forbid any kind of 'hacking attack'; when asked if those laws apply to the government as well it was quickly avoided. 'It is still hard to say whether Google will quit China or not. Nobody knows,' the official in the State Council Information Office was quoted as saying." I sure would love to be a fly on the wall of these discussions. We certainly live in interesting times.
Education

US Colleges Say Hiring US Students a Bad Deal 490

Posted by CmdrTaco from the talking-to-you-cliff dept.
theodp writes "Many US colleges and universities have notices posted on their websites informing US companies that they're tax chumps if they hire students who are US citizens. 'In fact, a company may save money by hiring international students because the majority of them are exempt from Social Security (FICA) and Medicare tax requirements,' advises the taxpayer-supported University of Pittsburgh (pdf) as it makes the case against hiring its own US students. You'll find identical pitches made by the University of Delaware, the University of Cincinnati, Kansas State University, the University of Southern California, the University of Wisconsin, Iowa State University, and other public colleges and universities. The same message is also echoed by private schools, such as John Hopkins University, Brown University, Rollins College and Loyola University Chicago."

Comment Re:TV screens still have a long way to go (Score 1) 173

by jdmetz (#28960509) Attached to: Mind-Blowing Interfaces On Display At SIGGRAPH 2009
Could you explain why more than three primary colors are necessary to fill the whole human perceptual color space? Since our eyes only have receptors for three different wavelengths, it seems that we ought to be able to replicate any color with appropriate intensities at each of those three wavelengths. Is the problem with current displays that they don't have exactly the right wavelengths, or is it something else?
Windows

First Look At Windows 7 On an Entry-Level Netbook 435

Posted by kdawson from the could-be-worse dept.
davidmwilliams sends in his IT Wire review of how Windows 7RC1 performs on an Acer Aspire One netbook. Summing up: it runs, it won't win any speed competitions, you won't want to play Crysis on it, and it's pretty OK for light-duty, everyday tasks. In related news, several readers have noted that Windows 7 RC1 is now available; one anonymous reader notes "This time, Microsoft was smart not to limit the time that it's available or the number of keys. It will be up for download until July, so there's lots of time to grab a copy."
The Military

Seven Arrested After Protesting Army Video Game Recruiting Center 433

Posted by Soulskill from the you-mean-there's-more-to-the-army-than-halo? dept.
GamePolitics writes "Seven anti-war protesters were arrested in Philadelphia on Saturday during a protest rally and march which targeted the Army Experience Center, a high-tech recruitment center which uses PC and Xbox games and simulations to attract potential recruits. GamePolitics was on hand to cover the protest, and took video of the arrests. A local news station also reported on the rally, and the Peace Action Network released a statement saying, "In its desperate approach to meet recruiting numbers, the military is teaching the wrong values to teenagers. Sugarcoating combat experience with virtual war is a dishonor to those with real war experience."
Space

Telepresence — Our Best Bet For Exploring Space 309

Posted by Soulskill from the until-we-perfect-the-bussard-ramjet dept.
Seth Shostak of the SETI Institute recently wrote an opinion piece for the NY Times discussing the limitations of our space technology. He makes the harsh point that transporting human beings to other star systems isn't a reasonable goal even on a multi-generational time frame. However, advances in robotics and data gathering could instead bring the planets and stars to us, and do it far sooner. Quoting: "Sending humans to the stars is simply not in the offing. But this is how we could survey other worlds, around other suns. We fling data-collecting, robotic craft to the stars. These proxy explorers can be very small, and consequently can be shot spaceward at tremendous speed even with the types of rockets now available. Robot probes don't require life support systems, don't get sick or claustrophobic and don't insist on round-trip tickets. ... These microbots would supply the information that, fed to computers, would allow us to explore alien planets in the same way that we navigate the virtual spaces of video games or wander through online environments like Second Life. High-tech masks and data gloves, sartorial accessories considerably more comfortable than a spacesuit, would permit you to see the landscape, touch objects and even smell the air."
Government

British Spy Agency Searches For Real-Life 'Q' 79

Posted by Soulskill from the grow-up-double-oh-seven dept.
suraj.sun writes with this quote from the Associated Press:"Britain's domestic spy agency — MI5 — is hunting for its very own 'Q,' of sorts. MI6's sister organization, which carries out surveillance on terror suspects inside Britain and gives security advice to the government, is searching for someone to lead its scientific work. Projects could include everything from developing counterterrorism technology to tackling a biological or chemical attack. 'Looking for a chief scientific adviser to lead and coordinate the scientific work of the security service so that the service continues to be supported by excellent science and technology advice,' MI5's Web site ad reads. MI5 has long had a roster of scientific staff tasked with developing high-tech gadgets, but an official said the service now wants a high-profile figure to lead pioneering work in technology and science. The adviser's work will focus chiefly on creating sophisticated new tools to help security service officers carry out surveillance and analysis work, said a government security official, who requested anonymity to discuss the work of MI5."

Comment Re:Deja vu (Score 2, Informative) 334

by jdmetz (#26738075) Attached to: US Digital TV Switchover Delayed Until June

Even worse is that in some markets, a station will be switching its DTV broadcasts to a channel that is currently in use for analog broadcasts by another station.

For example, in Detroit, Fox uses 2 for analog broadcasts, 58 for pre-transition digital, and will use 7 for post-transition digital. But ABC uses 7 for analog. So Fox can't switch unless ABC does so first.

Comment Re:Solved? (Score 5, Interesting) 774

by jdmetz (#26699185) Attached to: New Paper Offers Additional Reasoning for Fermi's Paradox
The 1,000 years isn't time from broadcasting to die-off. It is time from broadcasting to narrowcasting (using lasers or some other communications method that directly targets the intended receiver). Once narrowcasting is in use, we wouldn't expect to hear them unless they know we are here and are specifically targetting us.

Comment Re:Nuts (Score 1) 296

by jdmetz (#26330297) Attached to: Protection From Online Eviction?
Definitely, and yet the GMail ToS clearly say:

4.3 As part of this continuing innovation, you acknowledge and agree that Google may stop (permanently or temporarily) providing the Services (or any features within the Services) to you or to users generally at Googles sole discretion, without prior notice to you. You may stop using the Services at any time. You do not need to specifically inform Google when you stop using the Services.

4.4 You acknowledge and agree that if Google disables access to your account, you may be prevented from accessing the Services, your account details or any files or other content which is contained in your account.

Comment Re:Great! More interference (Score 1) 138

by jdmetz (#25644333) Attached to: FCC Approves Unlicensed Use of White-Space Spectrum
Cell phones, wi-fi, and cordless phones all work because they are heavily regulated. They follow FCC regulations about broadcast power, interference, etc. If the radio spectrum were completely unregulated, Sprint could try to snatch AT&T's customers by setting up huge jamming stations in major cities. The broadcaster with the most power would win.

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