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I have ~3ms round-trip-time to several major datacenters, including Google

Then you live near them.
Assuming you have your own private fiber from the datacenter to your home, you're less than 600 wire kilometers from the datacenter.
AT&T is currently showing real-world latency between Denver and Dallas as 19ms: https://ipnetwork.bgtmo.ip.att...

That's about 1,000km in 19ms, so using that as a guide, you're about 158km from a datacenter.

If you're on the East Coast of the USA, or in Europe, then it may seem reasonable to be that close to one.

For those in rural areas, it will be a long, long time before they're ever that close to them.

Here's a list of the different 'tiers of speed' from AT&T's own website.
https://www.att.net/speedtiers

The have the plan names under IPBB (UVerse) and Fiber. For instance

Internet 50 is 30-50 Mbps upstream and downstream for Fiber, but only 6-10 upstream for their IPBB (UVerse).

My area was recently upgraded with Fiber. I know because I talked to techs and they had been around for an entire week for that upgrade. AT&T's own website had been advocating people to sign up for Fiber also.

So called them up and the rep on the phone insisted that IPBB (Uverse) is Fiber, but when asked about the speed discrepancies, they couldn't answer, or was trained not to give a straight answer. This is even after I've given them the direct URL to THEIR OWN WEBSITE. I would have gladly payed a bit more for better up speed, but they just didn't give a fuck. Mind you, this was a sales department. Well done.

They then tried to sell me the highest tier "Internet 100", but they couldn't guarantee that I would get comparable up-speed close to down speed.

I can't find any page that discusses upload speeds, which are almost certainly crap.

Oops, I take it back. They're claiming up to 1Gb/sec upload speeds as well.

I have good news for you. I don't see anywhere AT&T's Terms of Service or Acceptable Use Policy where they forbid running a server from your home. While they aren't as explicit as Qwest in stating that you have the right to run servers they come pretty close:

The dynamic IP address is a single Internet address intended for use with a single Member Account and any associated Sub Accounts. The static IP address or multiple static IP address is intended for use with a single computer or a network of computer/servers. You may not use the Service in a manner that is inconsistent with these intended uses.

Furthermore, AT&T will configure reverse DNS for your residential home service (with a static IP), although they may require you to transfer your forward DNS to them to avoid confusion with a split record. They wouldn't do this if they forbid running servers.

I live in New Mexico, and I know what you mean about not having many options. The town where I grew up didn't have broadband until around 2002, and I think Comcast is still the only option. The town where I went to college, the only options were dial up or a wireless WAN where you pointed a directional dish toward the tower and lost connection when the wind picked up :) Most places here have both cable and DSL now though. Comcast and Time Warner are both pretty hostile to home servers, insisting you upgrade to their business package, but most DSL providers will work with you.

Exactly what I was thinking. How is yahoo still even ranked in the top 10?

SBC partnered with Yahoo! as the default portal for SBC ISP customers (at least residential) back before they bought AT&T and adopted AT&T's name for themselves; if I'm not mistaken, the install procedure for the software that comes with the combined DSL modem/wireless router you get with AT&T internet service also sets your homepage to the "ATT.NET" portal, which is not at http://att.net/ as its name my suggest, but instead is located at http://att.my.yahoo.com./

Never underestimate the power of defaults.

Iran=yes (F-14s, thank you Jimmy Carter), MiG 29

Nice try.

The F-14 was developed in 1970 and was approved to be sold the CIA backed Shah of Iran in November of 1973. That would be on Richard Nixon's watch, as Carter wouldn't take office for another three years.

For the record, Iran bought 80, but only 79 were delivered. Of these only about 50 still exist, and 30 of these are active.

Can anybody doubt that, even as we speak, some clever little bugger is writing software that will provide the "smart meter" with a generic family profile while the illegal stuff bleeds a bit of power off the grid and a lot from the Grey Cup".

Not writing (yet?), just contemplating...you'd have to introduce some random variation because a residential building with a perfectly on-schedule power consumption profile would seem like a big red flag. I've been looking into ways to block X10 signals:

http://jeffvolp.home.att.net/x10_info/x10_filters.htm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X10_(industry_standard)#Weak_points_and_limitations

X10 appliances should not be able to communicate with the outside world. A firewall-like device is needed. I don't know if these "load control units" use X10 (can't find any info on 'em), but it's an issue either way.

Once the power co. is blocked off from direct access to devices in the home (by blocking X10 or hacking the load control units, or both), it's just a matter of using a big UPS-like device to control how much power comes off the grid, and how much comes from a battery (which could be recharged partly by solar/wind). That way the power company can only see how much power your house is using as a whole, and would not be able to do anything about it directly. If the hacked jumbo-UPS receives a signal to reduce power usage, it may oblige like a good little house, using more battery/renewable instead, and then charge up at night (which could be made to look like an (additional?) electric car or two, the charging start time and duration could even be adjusted based on traffic conditions and a simulated trip to help the power usage profile blend in).

But anyways, I'm personally not interested in setting up a grow op, but reducing costs and improving privacy and security. I'd set my power system to draw from the grid in a way to minimize costs - so I'd have my system discharge during the day and charge at night. Keeping the system updated with billing rates would allow it to fine-tune how much is used at what time. If I do end up writing software to do this I'd probably open source it, and I wouldn't care who used it - the cost-saving and privacy/security benefits would outweigh any negatives.

It's sad that this sort of thing may be necessary, the homeowner will end up paying more in the long run in any case...too bad they can't just upgrade the infrastructure instead of tacking on this stupid quick fix...

A comprehensive page on the selectron tube here, with LOTS of pictures and technical data:

http://home.att.net/~thercaselectron/index1.html

Run your mouse over the tube pins on the front page to see a simulation of the tube in operation.

I see what they did there, with a glider going down the bottom panel as you sweep from left to right. Life is good. :-)

It appears to be an early prototype of a "graphecon", "radechon", or some other type of scan converter tube. The dual electron guns and image plate rule it out as a selectron.

The selectron was a real neat piece of engineering, and must have been a beautiful sight to see in operation, with rows of blinking phosphor dots, one for each stored bit.

A comprehensive page on the selectron tube here, with LOTS of pictures and technical data:

http://home.att.net/~thercaselectron/index1.html

Run your mouse over the tube pins on the front page to see a simulation of the tube in operation.

And of course, there's plenty of shortsighted crap going on right now as well. For instance, the recent Obama administration ban on CFC-based inhaler delivery systems for drugs like Albuterol. There IS no proper replacement for these. As my friend said, "fuck you Obama, I need that to LIVE."

Oh my God! The loonies were right, Obamacare is going to kill us all! The "death panels" weren't just optional, free counseling for the elderly, they were panels of people thinking of ways to kill people!

Panel Member A: I know! Let's take away inhalers and watch them gasp to death!
Panel Member B: LOL! i no right? liek lrn2breathe fagz

Oh wait, there is a replacement: HFA inhalers. Right, doctors and patients across the nation are just going to sit by and say "oh well, guess the asthmatics got the shaft this time." Give me a break.

At the same time, the amount of CFC's emitted by humankind in a year is less than 1/100th that emitted by volcanic eruption

Your information is a couple decades out of date. Educate yourself.

and the amount emitted by medical inhalers so small as to be statistically irrelevant.

I actually agree with you here in one sense. Yeah it's so small that we really don't need to be worried about it for the foreseeable future. At the same time though, if we always just say "oh well, it's not that big of a deal. Maybe next term," when the fuck is anything going to be done? Someone has to step up and have the balls to say "sorry, shit is gonna change, deal with it." Don't expect any reasonable person to be shedding tears when some pharmaceutical company has a temporary 0.000001% drop in their profits (oh wait, no they just took the opportunity to say "lol guise new inhalers 4 u: +$50").

Early 20th century the US government tool ~3% of GDP. ... Government is threatening to take over 40+ to even 50+ % of GDP.

I'm curious as to your source for your facts.

Fact Sheets: Taxes History of the U.S. Tax System
1918 - Tax rates set at 25% of GDP
1920s - Tax rate reduced to 13% of GDP
1932 through 1936 - Tax rates increased, by 1940 tax rate at 6.8% of GDP
1941 - 7.6% of GDP
1944 - 20.9% of GDP
1945 - 20.4% of GDP
1950 - 14.4%
1952 - 19%
1960s through 1970s - 19.4% up to 20.8%
1986 - 17.5%
1990 - 18%
2000 - 20.8%

R Davis' receipts and outlays plots

1950 through 2008 - Tax rate varied from 14.5% to 20.8% of GDP

List of countries by tax revenue as percentage of GDP
United States - Tax rate at 28.2% of GDP

Total Tax Burden Is Rising to Highest Level in History
1965 through 2008 - Tax rate varied from 15.5% to 20.9% of GDP

Even the Heritage Foundation that continually makes mind numbingly brain dead conclusions that in some cases contradict the charts on their own web site don't show future receipts in the 40% to 50% range. Their end of the world predictions only go as high as 25.5%.

It is also telling that the very worst of times seem to be preceded by tax cuts that resulted in some of the lowest tax rates versus GDP. Note the booming 1920s "The economy boomed during the 1920s and increasing revenues from the income tax followed. This allowed Congress to cut taxes five times,", the tax cuts reduced receipts and were followed with the great depression. Note the booming 1990s followed by the tax cuts during the Bush administration, the reduced receipts and, ta da, massive recession on the brink of depression.

Don't get me wrong, I'm all for reducing tax burdens but lets not jump to conclusions and assume simply cutting taxes will instil wealth and prosperity into the heartland. In fact to the contrary, the facts show that something else is occurring along with the tax cuts that results in a detrimental affect to the working class and their ability to make a living.

http://my.att.net/csbellsouth/s/s.dll?spage=cg/legal/att.htm&leg=tos A quick google search shows that it's in the updated TOS on their webpage already.

http://worldnet.att.net/general-info/terms-dsl-data.html#useserv

AT&T's DSL service agreement, section 10; be Fair subsction b.: You may not use your Service connection to host a DEDICATED INTERNET server site. (emphasis mine).

The AT&T iPhone agreement however states: "Examples of prohibited uses include, without limitation . . .downloading movies using P2P file sharing services, redirecting television signals for viewing on Personal Computers, web broadcasting, and/or for the OPERATION OF SERVERS, telemetry devices.... " (emphasis mine).

In the case of DSL, you CAN run a server, just not a dedicated internet server site. A Remote access server, personal FTP server, even a web or file server you run occasionally, even "most of the time" can not be considered a dedicated server. Knowing that, on Wifi, within your home, you could run a server on the iPhone, which by sheer definition can not be "dedicated" as any call, or the use of another app would cause the server to go down. You can use the iPhone as a server since it is behind your personal DSL service.

However, being a server you can not use it on AT&Ts open 3G network without violating the iPhone TOS. It will be interesting to see if this app will be enough of a drain on AT&T for them to target its use, or to see if they'll persue Apple to pull if from the store.

I usa a nifty program called Dicenomicon. One of it's features is to run a web server so you can program dice algorithms through your PC and upload new programs, images, and more to the phone's app. I noted it not only presents a WiFi IP address, but also a blueTooth and 3G address as well. I can not connect to the 3G address in any way I have tried. i don't know if this app also behaves the same.

- The Book Page - provides free on-line classic and not-so-well known books, articles and more. Antiquarian science texts and articles - complete with original wood-cuts and copper-plate Figures read "cover to cover", or use your Browsers search function to find and read specific sections. Choose from HTML, or pdf (eBook) or MS Reader format.
 
Not a list like you are looking for, but may help in tracking down things you would be interested in reading.

Bits per pixel in the file format is a poor way to measure a camera's dynamic range for a number of reasons. There is the range of the sensor itself, or course, and the processing its output goes through before being turned into an image. So many high end DSLRs go into action photography there is temptation to sacrifice some range to get the image out of the buffer and on to a disk faster.

I shoot a P60 sometimes and have measured its range at about 12 stops (call it EV if you want) with a 16bpp file format (shooting a graduated grey card). A friends D3x outpaces my Mark 3, about 9 stops to 8, with both cameras shooting at 14 bpp.

A good article on this is at http://doug.kerr.home.att.net/pumpkin/ISO_Dynamic_range.pdf

rust though, specifies iron.

And do you really think that just because it's done in a organism/cell that the reaction is any less energetic? Improperly stored grain/hay can get so hot that it ends up combusting from the heat of rotting.

At least according to Wikipedia, cellular respiration is a form of slow combustion.

The LED Museum seriously will enlighten you. What a classic.

The video was good, also.

Lame of me to pick a nit with such a cute joke. But:

Widely used? Yes. "Correct". Not at all. Check your dictionary. In the U.S. it's "pound sign," "number sign," or "sharp sign", depending on the context. In the U.K. it's "hash mark".

Here's the American Heritage dictionary entry for octothorpe:

Alteration (influenced by OCTO-) of earlier octalthorpe, the pound key, probably humorous blend of octal, an eight-point pin used in electronic connections (from the eight points of the symbol) and the name of James Edward OGLETHORPE.

Hmm, I've never heard of an octal connector. There actually is such a thing but it's obscure enough to make me dubious. And Oglethorpe is even more obscure (unless you're from Georgia). Here's a web page that casts doubt on the AH version.

The Oxford English Dictionary, which relies on actual research, has this:

Forms: 19- octothorp, 19- octothorpe. [Origin uncertain; perhaps < OCTO- comb. form + the surname Thorpe (compare THORP n.: see note below).
    The term was reportedly coined in the early 1960s by Don Macpherson, an employee of Bell Laboratories:
    1996 Telecom Heritage No. 28. 53 His thought process was as follows: There are eight points on the symbol so octo should be part of the name. We need a few more letters or another syllable to make a noun... (Don Macpherson..was active in a group that was trying to get Jim Thorpe's Olympic medals returned from Sweden). The phrase thorpe would be unique.
    For an alternative explanation see quot. 1996; in a variant of this explanation, the word is explained as arising from the use of the symbol in cartography to represent a village.
    For a different explanation from a former employee of Bell Laboratories, arguing that the word is a completely arbitrary formation (and that it originally had the form octatherp) see D. A. Kerr 'The ASCII Character Octatherp' in http://doug.kerr.home.att.net/ (2006).]

        The hash sign (#), as it appears on the buttons of touch-tone telephones and some other keypads.

1974 Telephony 25 Feb. 16/1 A few months ago, a story traveled through the Bell System that the familiar symbol '#'..at long last had a name: 'octothorp'. 1975 Vancouver Province 15 Nov. (Canad. Mag.) 32 Punch an octothorpe when you reach your desk every morning, and the accounting department automatically registers you in. 1987 Radio & Electronics World Feb. 47/1 As well as the numbers 1 to 9 and 0, you also have buttons marked with a star and square (also known as hash or octothorp). 1996 New Scientist 30 Mar. 54/3 The term 'octothorp(e)' (which MWCD10 dates 1971) was invented for '#', allegedly by Bell Labs engineers when touch-tone telephones were introduced in the mid-1960s. 'Octo-' means eight, and 'thorp' was an Old English word for village: apparently the sign was playfully construed as eight fields surrounding a village.

It is true that common shorthand characters given silly names are rarely interchangeable with genuine musical notation, although sometimes said musical notation is most easily represented by just using a similar shorthand character that is already found on the keyboard. If you had to write an example of a flat sign given only a keyboard, a lower-cased b would probably suit your purpose just fine.

Just got the email this morning... AT&T just revised their terms of service with their high speed internet services to include wording about throttling customers who use 'excessive' of bandwidth in their opinion, as well as only allowing redress by arbitration or small claims court.
Page is here
http://www.att.net/csbellsouth/s/s.dll?spage=cg/legal/att.htm&leg=ytosAug08

Terms changed are
" AT&T High Speed Internet Service Description

The Service is composed of narrowband or broadband access to the Internet provided by AT&T. The Site, provided by AT&T and Yahoo!, is composed of a broad selection of on-line resources including email, communication tools, forums, shopping services, search services and personalized content and branded programming. Broadband access is provided in speed tiers of: (1) 200 Kbps to 768 Kbps downstream (not available for AT&T U-verse High Speed Internet service), (2) 769 Kbps to 1.5 Mbps downstream; (3) 1.56 Mbps to 3.0 Mbps downstream; (4) 3.1 Mbps to 6.0 Mbps downstream; and (5) 6.1 Mbps to 10.0 Mbps (available only with AT&T U-verse High Speed Internet service) (collectively ?Service Capability Speeds?).

The speeds identified above are Service Capability Speeds, which are the downstream rates at which your line transfers Internet access data between the network interface device at your home, office or apartment building to the first piece of routing equipment in AT&T?s network. Service Capability Speeds should not be confused with Throughput Speed, which is the speed at which your modem receives and sends Internet access data (?Throughput Speed.?). These speeds may vary and are not guaranteed. Throughput speed depends upon many factors including customer location, destination and traffic on the Internet, interference with high frequency spectrum on your telephone line, wiring inside your home, office or apartment, the capacity or performance of your computer or modem, the server with which you are communicating, internal network factors, and the networks you and others are using when communicating. In order to provide a consistently high-quality video service, AT&T Uverse High Speed Internet throughput speeds may be temporarily reduced when a customer is using other U-verse services in a manner that requires high bandwidth. This could occur more often with higher speed Internet access products. It may be necessary, for some AT&T High Speed Internet users, for AT&T to set a maximum downstream speed on a customer line to enhance the reliability and consistency of performance. While this performance optimization process will prevent some customers from obtaining the maximum downstream speed capability, service capability speed will not be set lower than the service tier you have purchased. "

Which could bring your 6Mbps service down to 3.1 Mbps.
They do not say where the tripwire is.

The rest of the paragraph is

" a. IP Addresses. AT&T High Speed Internet and AT&T U-verse High Speed Internet Services are provided with either a dynamic Internet Protocol (?IP?) address, a static IP address, or multiple static IP address service (as applicable) at AT&T?s sole discretion. The dynamic IP address is a single Internet address intended for use with a single Member Account and any associated Sub Accounts. The static IP address or multiple static IP address is intended for use with a single computer or a network of computer/servers. You may not use the Service in a manner that is inconsistent with these intended uses. "

" * Termination of Voice Service. With AT&T High Speed Internet Direct service, we can deliver the benefits of broadband without a home phone connection. For customers who terminate their home phone service with AT&T ? but not their high speed Internet service ? we have added new language that will ultimately enable us to maintain a customer's broadband connection at the

For all Members:

* Arbitration Agreement. We have added language that requires customer disputes with AT&T regarding AT&T Internet Services to be submitted to binding arbitration or small claims court. Arbitration is less formal than a lawsuit in court and often faster. In addition, AT&T will pay for all costs of arbitration, no matter who wins, as long as your claim is not frivolous.

For AT&T High Speed Internet Members:

* AT&T High Speed Internet Service Description. We have added new language to the service description to more clearly describe how we provide your high speed Internet connection, and to explain what factors can affect the performance of your high speed Internet service.
* Termination of Voice Service. With AT&T High Speed Internet Direct service, we can deliver the benefits of broadband without a home phone connection. For customers who terminate their home phone service with AT&T -- but not their high speed Internet service -- we have added new language that will ultimately enable us to maintain a customer's broadband connection at the then current rates, terms, and conditions for AT&T High Speed Internet Direct service.

The email also included a link to this page, which says "From time to time, we may change this Agreement, the Site, or Service, including the rates and charges. We will provide you with thirty (30) days notice of material changes via either your Member Account e-mail address or U.S. mail. It is your responsibility to check your e-mail address for any such notices. Your continued subscription to the Service after receipt of such notice constitutes your acceptance of such changes.".
However, that link clearly says August 2008 and I just received it yesterday.

Correct,

http://www.espimetals.com/msds's/galliumnitride.pdf

lists "Carcinogenicity: None" for gallium nitride, the grist
of Cree "white" high-power LEDs, which are really blue LEDs
dusted with a yellowish phosphor.

On the other hand, the delicious red & yellow ones in those Xmas strings contain gallium arsenide.

http://ledmuseum.home.att.net/xmas1.htm

Until 1996 they both had an equal chance.

Battery fire. Yeah, they burn pretty good also. So, while Apple and Dell are busy fighting off efforts to force a recall, you takes your chances. With greater time and money spent trying to protect market interests, it's going to happen. Come to think of it, a working laptop could be set up as a pretty good weapon. I think I'm going to take a boat, or the train

When I was in the army (early 80's) we flew on an air force C-130 from Frankfurt to Crete. The 'seats' were just web straps. The 'facilities' was a small, rectangular urinal

C-130's haven't changed at all, of course. They're still the 1950's cracker boxes they've always been. I flew 14 hours on a C-141 to Saudi back in 1990 for Desert Storm. Sling seats, sitting with your knees interlocked with the person across from you... nightmare. In 2001 I got to make almost the same flight on a C-17... quite a difference. You can walk down the center! It has a real aircraft lavatory! The seats... well, the seats are still sling seats, but they're much better designed with a more sophisticated frame. Less like a cargo net and more like a beach chair.

Why on earth are people screaming "They are turning of Usenet!"?

Because they are: AT&T dropped alt.bin* and alt.bain* http://my.att.net/NewsGroup/s/s.dll?spage=cg/news/newsgroup004.htm&only=y&ck

Sure, the US is handing out a shitload of money to poor countries. Since US is heavily indebted, just who's money are they giving away?

Ummm... The US has proven that we can do ASAT, well before the Chinese did. We strap a missile to an F-15, fly up to about 80,000 feet, invert, and launch (then you hope that the pilot can recover the aircraft at high altitude and low airspeed). We successfully destroyed a satellite in 1985 using this technique, but Congress canceled the program in 1988 because they were afraid of the diplomatic implications (and it was getting expensive). Link and Link

So, ummm, what provokes a crocodile? Being in the same body of water with him, perhaps? http://home.att.net/~crinaustin/Croc.htm

rj

It's a common misconception that GSM phones can make analog (dial-up) modem calls directly, but they can't. GSM is digital, and analog modems will only work over analog (AMPS) cellular. The "modem" in a GSM phone actually makes a digital connection to an IWU (Inter Working Unit) located at a carrier's Mobile Switching Center (MSC). The IWU has an analog modem bank that makes the actual dial-up modem calls. If a carrier doesn't provide an IWU, then analog modem calls are not possible.

Dear AT&T Yahoo! Customer:

We noticed that you are accessing email using non-secure settings in your
email software.

We would like to ensure that your AT&T Yahoo! Member ID, password, and
email messages are transmitted securely between your mail software (such
as Outlook or Outlook Express) and the AT&T Yahoo! Mail servers. In order
to meet this need, please enable [1]SSL via the [2]instructions that are
available on the Help site. Since multiple email notifications have
already been sent out about this, we request that you please make the
necessary changes immediately. Remember, you need to make these changes if
you want to continue to send/receive email using a mail client. Thank you
for your cooperation, AT&T Yahoo! Customer Support

References
      1. http://helpme.att.net/glossary.php#147
      2. http://helpme.att.net/article.php?item=10918
      3. http://privacy.yahoo.com/privacy/us/beacons/details.html
      4. http://att.yahoo.com/privacy

Dear AT&T Yahoo! Customer:

We noticed that you are accessing email using non-secure settings in your
email software.

We would like to ensure that your AT&T Yahoo! Member ID, password, and
email messages are transmitted securely between your mail software (such
as Outlook or Outlook Express) and the AT&T Yahoo! Mail servers. In order
to meet this need, please enable [1]SSL via the [2]instructions that are
available on the Help site. Since multiple email notifications have
already been sent out about this, we request that you please make the
necessary changes immediately. Remember, you need to make these changes if
you want to continue to send/receive email using a mail client. Thank you
for your cooperation, AT&T Yahoo! Customer Support

References
      1. http://helpme.att.net/glossary.php#147
      2. http://helpme.att.net/article.php?item=10918
      3. http://privacy.yahoo.com/privacy/us/beacons/details.html
      4. http://att.yahoo.com/privacy

Only someone who can hold a boiling flask of sulfuric acid without dropping it (because he knows what happens if he does) will succeed in a lab, and that not something you learn of the internet.

Knowing what happens is important. That info is also online. The MSDS for almost anything is online. The accidents from oversizing a reaction or under cooling to where it can no longer be controlled is online. Studying accidents is a way to learn the unexpected can and does happen. In the science room a small amount of Sodium in a beaker of water is impressive. Scaled up, it is outright dangerous. (Provided 2 links in grandparent). Other reactions that got out of control are online for your learning. For example, in the making of plastic, if someting downstream breaks and the chemicals are diverted to a reaction chamber, and the reaction is too big, people die.

http://home.att.net/~d.c.hendershot/papers/ccps10-02.htm
http://www.acusafe.com/Newsletter/Stories/0500News-Phillips.htm
http://archives.cnn.com/2000/US/03/27/plant.fire.03/index.html
http://shippai.jst.go.jp/en/Detail?fn=0&id=CC1000179&

Many of these events that were under reported in the 1960's is now online as well for study. The claim of dumbed down relates to cable tv science. Online the real data is out there if you care to find it.

Assuming that this is not a typo, I am tempted to call BS on this for several reasons.

Until the repeal of the 55/65 national speed limit, all freeways in the San Antonio area were 55 mph or less, and I-35 was 55 mph all the way to north of New Braunfels. Most freeways inside of Loop 410 have now gone to 60 mph. Outside of 410, speed limits are generally 65 on the Northside and 70 on the Southside. Speed limits jump up to 70 outside of Loop 1604 on the Northside. Loop 410 is 60 mph north of US 90, and 70 mph to the south. Loop 1604 is generally 70 mph on its freeway segments with some 65 and 55 stretches in Live Oak and Universal City. San Antonio Area Freeway System

This is Texas. Even a freeway can have a fan site.

Absolutely...spiritual successor my ass.

For those who want to play through SS2 again, check out SHTUP and Rebirth.

I agree with alien88 and so does the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ, FBI and other U.S. and British government agencies. This page has a nice summary of the studies including:

Preventing Crime: What Works, What Doesn't, What's Promising -- A Report to the U.S. Congress http://www.ncjrs.org/works/index.htm This lengthy report has several references to lighting and crime which indicate that lighting's effect on crime is inconclusive. See chapter seven. These statements are contained in its conclusions: "We can have very little confidence that improved lighting prevents crime, particularly since we do not know if offenders use lighting to their advantage. In the absence of better theories about when and where lighting can be effective, and rigorous evaluations of plausible lighting interventions, we cannot make any scientific assertions regarding the effectiveness of lighting. In short, the effectiveness of lighting is unknown."

Having been the victim of a couple of car break-ins because we didn't have the outside lights on While I'm on the topic of Post hoc ergo propter hoc reasoning, could it be also that less light pollution would lead to more people out at night enjoying the milky way (and other wonders) and therefore less crime? I force criminals in my back garden to either use a flashlight or risk tripping over all the junk I have back there. Why give them a convenience light?

Abuse of Email/Spamming

The Service(s) you have purchased from AT&T may include the ability to send and receive electronic mail ("Email").

Prohibited activities include, but are not limited to, the following:

* Mass electronic messages and "mail bombings" (sending mass Email or deliberately sending very large attachments to one recipient);
* Spamming, or sending unsolicited commercial Email (UCE), sending unsolicited Email soliciting charitable donations, or sending chain Email;
* Forging Email headers (transmission information);
* Using another computer, without authorization, to send multiple Email messages or to retransmit Email messages for the purpose of misleading recipients as to the origin;
* Use of electronic mail to harass or intimidate other users;
* Use of redirect links in unsolicited commercial Email (UCE) to advertise a website or service;
* Use of an AT&T-provided Email address, Service or website to spam advertise, or collect responses from unsolicited Email

(Emphasis added.) Not to mention this:

Network Security

It is your responsibility to ensure the security of your network and the machines that connect to the Service(s). You are responsible for ensuring that your customers and users use the Service(s) in an appropriate manner. You are required to take all necessary steps to manage the use of the Service(s) obtained from AT&T in such a way that network abuse is minimized. Violations of system or network security are prohibited, and may result in criminal and/or civil liability.

Examples of system or network security violations include, but are not limited to the following:

* Failing to secure your system against abuse. You are responsible for configuring and securing your services to prevent damage to the AT&T network and/or the disruption of Service(s) to other customers. You will be held liable if unknown third parties utilize your services at any time for the purpose of illegally distributing licensed software. It is your responsibility to ensure that your network and/or computer are configured in a secure manner, and to take corrective actions on vulnerable or exploited systems to prevent continued abuse. You may not, through action or inaction, allow others to use your network for illegal or inappropriate uses, and/or any other disruptive, provoking, or abusive behavior that is in violation of these guidelines or the agreement for the Service(s) you have purchased;
* With respect to Dial-up accounts, using any software or device designed to defeat system time-out limits or to allow your account to stay logged on while you are not actively using the AT&T Service(s) or using your account for the purpose of operating a server of any type;
* Uploading or distributing files that contain viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time bombs, cancel bots, corrupted files, or any other similar software or programs that may damage the operation of another's computer or property of another;

Plus, you can eat kudzu. Makes a tasty salad, from what I've heard.

(Just make damn sure that it wasn't sprayed with an herbicide first.)

I suppose you're now going to try and say that the programs aren't underpopulated but that the US still can't produce enough graduates.

You didn't read it carefully enough. "The US" hasn't been able to produce enough CS graduates, which is why it has been bringing in foreigners to fill its CS programs. So, CS programs are full, but only because 50% of its graduates are foreigners, foreigners that need H1B visas in order to work in the US computer industry when they graduate.

Note that even with foreign students, the number of CS graduates in the US is ridiculously small; the total number of grad students in CS is similar to each the total number in psychology or political science, fields which don't exactly have thriving commercial industries.

So, for the third time, according to whom?

Since you seem to be incapable of doing a Google search, here are the NSF numbers:

http://www.nsf.gov/statistics/infbrief/nsf06321/

In 2004, total new CS grad students are made up of 3651 US residents and 4243 foreigners. CS enrollment declined 6.3% that year alone, a trend that's been going on for several years, and I suspect the figures for 2005, 2006, and 2007 are worse.

Here's a nice graph:

http://www.nafsa.org/_/Image/_/presidents_graph.gi f

Here's a comparison with other nations:

http://mwhodges.home.att.net/science_undergrad_int l.gif

Here is undergraduate CS majors over time:

http://www.computer.org/portal/cms_docs_computer/c omputer/homepage/0306/r3dive01.jpg

There is no shortage of qualified native born American scientists and technology workers--no matter how much you might wish it to be so.

Well, that's an unsupported assertion by you that flies in the fact of facts.

But even if you were right, so what? What economic, social, or moral imperative do these companies have to hire you instead of someone in India or China?

If you had the right car you could (well, they used a proprietary record format..but still): Highway Hifi In car record player

Dunno about IQ (other than it being lower than firstborn's) but I recall a study showing that if you have an older and a younger brother you are more likely to be gay...

Such evidence does exist, but for different reasons. In the case of sexual orientation, the effect is because successive births change the hormonal environment of the womb. But for IQ it was social rank, not biological birth order. If someone had an elder brother who died young (making them biologically a secondborn but socially a firstborn), they looked like a firstborn.

This leads to an important point. All of the discussion has been about birth order, but the scientific importance of this study is broader than that. What's really exciting about this study (IMHO) is that it provides compelling evidence that family social environment affects intelligence. This flies in the face of recent arguments by Judith Rich Harris (who has been enthusiastically received by Steven Pinker, the Freakonomics guys, and others), claiming that parents don't matter.

He believes that the fetus/baby is an individual, too, with the same rights as any other individual. In the case of partial birth abortion, I don't know how anyone can disagree.

Ever heard of a thing called inflation? That is from not being on the gold standard
"No, it wasn't. We haven't been on the gold standard for decades and inflation has been very low. Besides, there is a much, much better, more plentiful standard: oil, which is traded in dollars."

http://www.gold-eagle.com/editorials_05/waltzek122 405.html

We have never had inflation from fiat currency?? From 1913, when the Federal Reserve was created, $.04 (4 cents) has become today's $1. Secondly, we've been off the gold standard since 1913; that just ended totally in the '70s, and inflation had already started due to not being completely on the gold standard.

http://inflationdata.com/inflation/Inflation_Rat e/HistoricalInflation.aspx?dsInflation_currentPage =2

According to that link, we've had 95% inflation since 1982. (Keep in mind that inflation compounds, just like interest.)

http://mwhodges.home.att.net/inflation.htm

"a dollar in 1950 will buy only 12 cents worth of goods today, 88% less than before"

If you want to read some further ramblings from another "nitwit", here is Alan Greenspan's essay on why the US should remain on the gold standard. As chairman of the Fed, he said that he still believed in what he'd written even though his job did the opposite. Man, that Greenspan guy, he sure was a nitwit if there ever was one. He wasn't a highly respected academic or intellectual or the best Fed chairman ever, nope, he was just a nitwit. In fact, since for years he was considered the leading economic authority in America, America is just full of these "economic nitwits"!

http://www.usagold.com/gildedopinion/greenspan.htm l

About that oil thing, oil is a diminishing resource and OPEC has made serious threats to sell it in euros.

No, this is an active jamming device, and as the other readers indicate, may only work at a particular frequency or communications protocol. However Smart Tools offers an RFID Shield - a passive device that prevents your RFID card from being detected or communicating, and is independent of frequency or protocol. There's info and a picture at: http://smarttools.home.att.net/rfshield.htm

Isn't Vinyl just Physical Rights Management?

Maybe for some.

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A feisty shareholder revolt at Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. this week offed nearly as many executives as virtual characters in the video game company's violent titles.

Financial analysts and child advocates said only a thorough purging at the top would reverse the accounting and ethical lapses at the publisher of the popular, murder-your-way-to-victory video game "Grand Theft Auto." With a new CEO and several new board members now leading the company, that's what they got.

"If you look at the content of what these guys have distributed, it's so offensive and inappropriate. It's not surprising to learn they had committed massive acts of fraud at the board and CEO level," said James Steyer, CEO and founder of San Francisco-based multimedia ratings group Common Sense Media Inc., a nonprofit that rates video games and other content for violence and other factors. "The chickens have come home to roost for this company _ and I say good riddance to these guys."

...snip...

Financial analysts have criticized Take-Two for relying too heavily on relatively uncreative sequels, sports games and bloodthirsty "first-person shooters." While so-called hardcore games remain popular with teens and young men, new online genres _ trivia quizzes, word games and multiplayer role-playing games _ are catching on with women, older players and millions of mobile phone users.

Child advocacy groups and legislators are Take-Two's biggest foes, complaining that the company produces the industry's most violent, mean-spirited games.

In "Grand Theft Auto," players shoot pedestrians and police with reckless abandon. Another hit is "Bully," about a slingshot-wielding 15-year-old at Bullworth Academy boarding school, whose motto is "Canis Canem Edit," Latin for "dog eat dog."

Take-Two is best known for a version of "Grand Theft Auto" that included a hidden, lewd scene that sparked a 2005 congressional uproar. -- Investors Laud Video Game Co.'s Upheaval

Prediction, when Grand Theft Auto 4 comes out, expect these same "child advocacy" censorship groups to be saying, "Looks like Take Two didn't learn their lesson."

I forget, what video games did Enron make?

It would have 12 buttons, and make phone calls... and would be waterproof, have a huge freakin battery, and survive a fall from a low flying airplane. Why are no companies making the kind of cell phone I want? No MP3 player, no alarm clock, no text messaging, but broadcast a signal strong enough to stop your grandpa's pace maker, and heavy enough to be used as a meelee weapon in a bar fight!

I want the civilian version of this:
http://home.att.net/~wd0giv/Phones/ta838.jpg