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Re:UO offers warez to view carnivore by joelja · 2000-10-26 23:05 · Score: 1 · on Carnivore In Living Color

IPTV is not warez. It is distributed under cisco's revised iptv 3.0 client liscense. any customers of the UO (people who want to view the video via iptv) may download and install iptv 3.0. please refer and questions about iptv 3.0 from the UO to multicast@lists.uoregon.edu thanks joel jaeggli

No small moons within Roche Limit... by neopenguin · 2000-10-09 09:35 · Score: 1 · on Jupiter As From Cassini

More importantly, such a moon would be well within Jupiter's Roche Limit and would disintegrate under the strain of tidal forces. Consider that these forces are responsible for the thrermal activity in Io's core... No way a moon could survive deep in the atmosphere.

Re:Here's what will really blow your mind... by Sir+Tristam · 2000-10-04 22:35 · Score: 1 · on Electron Fission

But the wave function does have a reality. When you run the two-slit experiment, sending only one electron through the aparatus at a time, you still end up with an interference pattern. If the wave function had no reality, you would end up with a two-maxima distribution when you use one electron at a time. Unless you are actually looking for a particle, it is the particle that has no reality. Until you actually look for the electron, there is no physical electron to "actually split up".

You postulate that there might be some other effect creating the extra bubbles. That I could probably buy into. However, saying, "...the electron actually split up, only to recombine later" presents significantly more problems than it solves. Doesn't that mean that we could open just one of the bubbles, and look at a bare half-electron? I think that that would have been trumpeted very loudly in the quote above if it had been observed.

Or does the fact that we try to observe the half-electron make it instantaneously recombine with another half-electron? If it does, does it always grab its other original half? If it grabs its other original half, how do you distinguish that from the collapsing wave function that I talked about earlier? When it grabs its other half, does it leave the bubble that the other half had been in intact, or does the bubble dissolve without that half-electron still in it?

If the half-electron doesn't always grab its original other half, doesn't that mean that we would sometimes be able to open both bubbles and find an electron in each? Where do these two "new" half-electrons come from? Have we just performed an energy to matter conversion, or did some other electron outside a bubble just split? If an electron outside a bubble can split, and there is no reality to the wave function, then how come there have been no observed half-electrons in nature yet? After all, this isn't a high-energy event.

Applying Occam's Razor, I think that I'll stick with the collapsing wave function. Saying that we are dealing with two half-electrons conflicts vastly more with existing observations; dealing with the wave function falls right in line with them.

OT - the FTL patent may have a basis in fact by sherpajohn · 2000-09-20 02:45 · Score: 1 · on Cisco Patents NAT RFC?

Actually, despite the "science-fictioness" of the patent, the gentleman who submitted it appears to know what he is doing.
He even works at Cern on the largest particle accelerator/collider in the world on a project involving crashing electrons and positrons into each other at very high speed and seeing what happens. Cool stuff. Off topic, but cool nonetheless.
Still, the patent itself may be a joke.

Going on means going far

Re:Why trust anybody.... by jpowers · 2000-07-13 09:02 · Score: 3 · on Are Linux Reviews Fixed?

What if you don't know anyone else who uses the product(s) you are considering?
If this includes the people who work in your IS department, then you hire consultants. First question you ask them(before you sign anything): Which OS do you prefer? Favored response: Whichever is best for the situation.

What if you don't have time to fully evaluate every option?
Then you're not doing your job. Get an assistant to foist the lesser half of your work onto so you can concentrate on "fully evaluating every option."

In the real world many business decisions are made on the basis of incomplete information and against tight deadlines.
In the real world there's a difference between acting professional and being professional. Acting professional requires things like nice suits and witty meeting banter, see The Courtier for a more complete list. Being professional has only one requirement: pure fucking competence.

Therefore I would submit that Angry Badger's post is dead-on. If you're making IT decisions based on reading PC Magazine or whatever, there's a real problem. They should have no weight whatsoever in your decisions. If no one you work with knows about the different apps you're considering, you need to go with a third party, one who doesn't push a given package right up front.

You can trust me on this one, my stepfather wrote that magazine article shit when I was in high school, and he's a complete moron.

-jpowers

Re:We need to stop this "bit of fun" now by Tim+C · 2000-07-04 19:18 · Score: 2 · on Australian Scientists Produce Giant Mutant Mice

[Disclaimer: I am not religious]

After all, "God" being a (the) supreme being, then everything must be in accordance with this beings schedule, no? Including the scientists work on genetic engineering?

That's an argument I've used in the past, but it does have one fatal flaw - the concept of free will.

We have been granted free will to behave as we see fit - and that includes doing things that "God" would not approve of.

I know it's a work of fiction, but Paradise Lost discusses the concept, and "God's" reasons for giving us our free will. (And is a good read in itself, IMHO)

Cheers,

Tim

Finally... a story where this is *not* offtopic... by Anonymous Coward · 2000-05-19 20:38 · Score: 5 · on Oxford Yanks Student Page Over Spoof DeCSS

and I'm asleep at the keyboard. Doh!

Oh well... here it is.
Add your own, and spread this far and wide:

This announcement brought to you by the DeCSS Polar Bear.

Time for Slashdot to take a stand... by Anonymous Coward · 2000-04-05 03:12 · Score: 4 · on MPAA Files Another Injunction Against 2600

The following is a list of all the mirrors from the 2600 site.

Top Five Unforeseen Developments by Dust31 · 2000-03-17 18:42 · Score: 1 · on IBM's Nanotech Drive Research

Top Five Unforeseen Developments resulting from Nanotech Drives:

5. Problems related to Heisenberg U.P. allow you to know the drive is installed correctly, or know that the drive is turned on, but not both
4. Public schools ban nanotech drives because teachers can't see them and students use them for cheating
3. Cracker Jack includes a drive not just in every box but in every kernel of popcorn, puts Seagate and Western Digital out of business
2. Scanning electron microscope rental business booms because customers can't see if cables are inserted properly
1. In 2037, Trans-Nanotech Inc. (NYSE:2TNY) announces product to solve the problem of losing all those tiny drives: the floppy disk

Home page of the inventor.... by Devout+Capitalist · 2000-03-14 09:30 · Score: 1 · on Wormhole Generator (Kinda) Patented

David Strom is an experimental particle physicist with ties to CERN and University of Oregon's physics department.

This is more likely to be a serious attempt than a hack.

Due to Slashdot's odd rating method. You probably aren't reading this.

Home page of the inventor.... by Devout+Capitalist · 2000-03-14 09:30 · Score: 1 · on Wormhole Generator (Kinda) Patented

David Strom is an experimental particle physicist with ties to CERN and University of Oregon's physics department.

This is more likely to be a serious attempt than a hack.

Due to Slashdot's odd rating method. You probably aren't reading this.

Home page of the inventor.... by Devout+Capitalist · 2000-03-14 09:30 · Score: 1 · on Wormhole Generator (Kinda) Patented

David Strom is an experimental particle physicist with ties to CERN and University of Oregon's physics department.

This is more likely to be a serious attempt than a hack.

Due to Slashdot's odd rating method. You probably aren't reading this.

Re:Legal Recourse? by Chester+K · 2000-03-11 00:14 · Score: 1 · on The Breaking of Cyber Patrol 4

I wasn't suggesting that a lawsuit would be done on the grounds that the censorship is unconstitutional, where in a majority of cases when this type of software is used, it's not. A parent has every right to block what kinds of sites their children can see.

That's not the problem with censorware. There's a big push to have these censorware packages installed in public libraries and other public Internet access kiosks. Suppose I run an online business that's been incorrectly blocked by one of these packages (there are several examples listed in both the report listed in the story, and on Peacefire)... do I, as a business owner, have legal ground to sue to creators of the censorware, since their software is arbitrarily blocking my site (which has no reason to be blocked), and costing me business? I'm sure monetary damages could be determined by lowered advertising revenue, and revenue through purchases... can the creators of censorware be held liable for the lost revenue due to their packages blocking access to the sites under their misrepresented pretense that they're blocking "harmful" sites?

... or are there no checks to prevent censorware from arbitrarily blocking sites? Why would a site like The National Organization for Women be blocked? Or an article about breast cancer? Or the texts of The Odyssey and The Iliad??

Re:Legal Recourse? by Chester+K · 2000-03-11 00:14 · Score: 1 · on The Breaking of Cyber Patrol 4

I wasn't suggesting that a lawsuit would be done on the grounds that the censorship is unconstitutional, where in a majority of cases when this type of software is used, it's not. A parent has every right to block what kinds of sites their children can see.

That's not the problem with censorware. There's a big push to have these censorware packages installed in public libraries and other public Internet access kiosks. Suppose I run an online business that's been incorrectly blocked by one of these packages (there are several examples listed in both the report listed in the story, and on Peacefire)... do I, as a business owner, have legal ground to sue to creators of the censorware, since their software is arbitrarily blocking my site (which has no reason to be blocked), and costing me business? I'm sure monetary damages could be determined by lowered advertising revenue, and revenue through purchases... can the creators of censorware be held liable for the lost revenue due to their packages blocking access to the sites under their misrepresented pretense that they're blocking "harmful" sites?

... or are there no checks to prevent censorware from arbitrarily blocking sites? Why would a site like The National Organization for Women be blocked? Or an article about breast cancer? Or the texts of The Odyssey and The Iliad??

Re:Typo Alert by Anonymous Coward · 2000-01-14 04:46 · Score: 0 · on Red Hat Linux Available Free To UK Schools

BRW: Check out http://linuxdocumentary.uoregon.edu for interviews with all the top Linux guys, even Rob Malda.
I submitted this to /. but they rejected it. Why?!?!?

Probably because most of the interviews aren't done. Try submitting again when they finish the site.

been using the beta for months-- Exclnt software by CurtisLeeFulton · 2000-01-10 08:20 · Score: 3 · on Free Realtime Video Editing for Linux

This software is top notch. I'm using it to edit a documentary about Linux. Go to the site to download some clips and see what bcast2000 is capable of producing.

Eugene has lots, lots more... by Aighearach · 1999-12-30 05:15 · Score: 1 · on On Keeping Geeks in a Metropolitan Area

I am a resident of Eugene, and I would like to inform you that Symantec is certainly not the only option. For example, Eugene is also home to game maker Dynamix, embedded hardware manufacturer Versalogic, a large Hyundai DRAM fab plant, and lots of small software development companies.

Many smaller companies choose to locate here, because we have clean water, hydroelectric and wind power, abundant local pruduce, clean air, multiple DSL providers, and now cable internet access, too. We also have low crime, good schools, and clean streets. Eugene is, in fact, one of the fastest growing tech centers in the Northwest.

Eugene is also home to the University of Oregon which you may have seen mentioned in a recent article on new research into quantum computing. They also have LAN connections in all the dorm rooms.

Sure, if your concept of a good job is working for MS or some other large corporate slave driver that will keep you in a small cubicle and feed you the scraps, then Symantec might be your only option here. But there are also a lot of good employment opportunities available here, also.

About the principal investigator by Money__ · 1999-12-24 21:47 · Score: 0 · on UO Scientists Get Funding for Quantum Logic Gates

Michael Raymer is the principal investigator for this reaserch project and his many goals include One working quantum ligic gate in three years.

For those to lazy to click the link:

Physicists at the University of Oregon have secured a $1.5 million federal grant to lead a three-university effort aimed at developing an advanced micro-processing device called a "quantum logic gate." The quantum logic gate could allow for a number of dramatic technological advances, including efficient processing of encrypted information and the much heralded, but still speculative "quantum computer." "Our three-year goal is to build one working quantum logic gate," says UO physicist Michael Raymer, who is the principal investigator overseeing the project which includes collaboration with researchers at the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Arizona. "The funding will enable us to build up a new laboratory dedicated to this work." The quantum logic gate would put to use the peculiar qualities of quantum mechanics in the service of enhanced communications technologies. "Quantum mechanics is often portrayed as weird behavior not understandable to us, almost a defect in nature," Raymer says. "But this is a case where we turn this on its head and try to use these weird quantum properties to do something useful." Once a single logic gate is developed, it could be used to create quantum processing devices with capabilities that potentially could be used in practical applications. One application already conceived for quantum information processing is in the area of encryption--increasingly important with the explosion of e-commerce and growing concerns about on-line security. In this conception, each bit of information would be encrypted on a single photon of light. This is in contrast to current state-of-the-art fiber-optic communication techniques in which each bit is encoded in a pulse of light made up of millions or billions of photons. Then devices built of numerous quantum logic gates might be used to process such encrypted information. "Using this method, one can encrypt and decode messages so that there is no known way for eavesdroppers to break the encryption," Raymer says. "Quantum physics has surprisingly provided an answer to the problem of information security." A second, though more speculative, use of the quantum logic gate would be as the building block for a "quantum computer" in much the same way as a transistor is the basic building block of today's computer. Quantum computing has been recognized in the past five or so years as one of the most exciting areas of research, combining computer science theory and quantum physics. "There are some very hard questions that need to be considered about the ultimate feasibility of this concept," Raymer says. "A few years ago physicists were quite skeptical, but very recent theoretical proofs about the possibility for operating these computers robustly in spite of noise, or errors, have astounded people." Raymer notes that while the development of the quantum computer is still perhaps 20 years in the future, if one were ever built, it would be used "for certain special tasks and might operate thousands to millions of times faster than the largest parallel processor computer" available today. These promising developments have, in part, led to rapid growth in the federal government's interest in funding research in this area. The granting agencies for the UO's quantum logic gate project are the Army Research Office and the National Science Foundation, and Raymer notes that project results will be published openly in the scientific literature. Two other UO physicists, Peter Sercel and Hailin Wang, as well as student researchers will join Raymer in the project. The work will be carried out at the Oregon Center for Optics, a research center recently founded at the University of Oregon for the investigation of theoretical and experimental aspects of light, including lasers and other optical technology.
_________________________

Re:Alabama! by jaed · 1999-12-04 04:27 · Score: 1 · on Dumb Laws

It seems that's an urban legend. See the article on the Urban Legends site for an extended history of this idea, and an essay speculating on how this idea came to be "common knowledge". There's also an excerpt from Who Stole Feminism analyzing the political uses of this legend in activism against domestic violence.

This anti-domestic violence page repeats the legend uncritically and gives a date (1767) for this supposed law, but provides no further cite. This might be a reference to Blackstone's famous legal commentaries, which were published around that time; he does talk about the history of common-law rights for a husband to "correct" a wife, but he doesn't seem to mention thumbs.

lakoff by mistabobdobalina · 1999-04-21 04:27 · Score: 1 · on Review:How the Mind Works

i took a lakoff class at berkeley (intro to cogsci) and his position boils down to this: the mind is embodied i.e. abstract thought is based on image schemas that arise from our physical interaction with the world. these basic schemas (see mark johnson's book the body in the mind) are NON-MODULAR in that they need to be seen as a gestalt to be understood i.e. the containment schema only makes sense when there is a containing structure and a contained/noncontained structure. these schemas are extended up via metaphor to form abstract thought. the levels are physical, social, epistemic, then speech-action. programmers tend to operate in the epistemic realm. metaphor is not just something from shakespeare, but is how we extend ALL knowledge from one realm to another. a list of the common metaphors in the western world is found here . This stuff is interesting because it turns out that artificial intelligence is not possible. lakoff and crew are doing interesting work called the neural theory of language project (NTL) where they are building software models of thought this is the page. more metaphor stuff is found here . lakoff and mark johnson have a new book called philosophy in the flesh , the premise is that western philosophy is based on the false premise that the mind exists independently of the body, that there is a gods-eye view. this stuff is NOT post modern however, as social facts can impact life etc. okay i need to get back to work, this is internet after all

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