I am familiar with the SASOL process. It is one of many alternatives including oil sands etc. Canada has the largest world reserves of oil sands. Given current prices oil sand production is ramping up fairly rapidly in Canada, and now supplies a significant fraction of US demand. Canadian production of oil sands is actually exceeding the decline in production of oil in conventional Canadian reserves and is the reason Canada is now the leading petroleum exporter to the US. Canadian oil sands reserves exceed the total world reserves of conventional oil. Venezuela plus Canada equal 2x current world conventional oil reserves.
THERE IS NO REASON THE US NEEDS TO IMPORT OIL FROM OUTSIDE THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE GIVEN $100+ bbl pricing.
Also - the US is the Saudi Arabia of coal. It has the largest proven coal reserves in the world, enough for at least 300 years of consumption at current rates using conventional recovery methods, i.e. at current costs of recovery.
US coal reserves available using unconventional recovery methods (i.e. higher cost) are MUCH larger. potentially enough for at least 1000 years at current use rates. Maybe as much as 3000 years.
US nat gas reserves are not quite as large, however there are at least 20 years of reserves left using conventional recovery methods, and several decades more using higher cost recovery methods such as horizontal drilling. The CURRENT price of nat gas already makes horizontal drilling economical, and some companies are bringing production based on this technology online today. Price increases earlier this decade have already spurred increases in production and proven reserves of nat gas in the US when it was recently thought we would be having nat gas shortages before 2010.
Now that doesn't mean I like the idea of unconstrained release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. But it is important realize that it is not fossil fuels we are running out of. It is cheap oil we are running out of.
If we are going to develop alternative sources of energy the first thing we should be focusing on is understanding what forms those alternatives should take in order to maximize the economic gain from that investment.
My opinions on this are: (in order of priority)
1. Efficiency - especially in developing nations. China and India get very poor economic results per kw and their economies are starting to get very big. In 25 years I think China + India will equal the US. (I know others think it will happen faster, but I think long term estimates are more than a little over optimistic).
2. Conservation (imposed by tax policy if needed)
3. Replacements for gasoline. (NOT ethanol from corn that is STUPID!).
4. Non greenhouse gas producing fixed energy sources. Solar, tidal, geothermal, fusion, breeder whatever.
It is VERY unlikely that electricity production costs in the US will increase that rapidy in the next few years since coal and nat gas are the primary fuels. Reserves for both are quite large.
Cadmium is nasty stuff. The primary human exposure to cadmium is cigarette smoke. Not so much from industrial uses such as batteries, pigments etc.
There is some history of cadmium in run off water from mines causing cadmium poisoning in Japan. Cadmium poisoning is known and ouch-ouch disease. It is so painful that people don't die from it, they commit suicide first.
> Which sounds exactly the same as 640k DD track from the DVD because > the studio masters are so crappy. Yes, on a handful of properly- > mastered movies it makes a difference. You can count these discs on > the fingers of one or maybe two hands.
I don't know where you are getting your information from, but studio masters have been 24 bit 96 KHz since the mid-90's. That is far more than 10-20 movies. ALL of this material is fodder for DTS HD MA. Yes, the current catalog is small, but that is NOT the point here. The technology is CLEARLY superior, and is becoming more important as penetration of the new codecs into living rooms grows.
Once people hear the difference between DTS HD MA and the 12:1 compressed DD 5.1 NOBODY is going to want DD 5.1.
> Wrong, wrong, wrong. MOST DVDs and Blu-Rays are based on grainy > film stock or analog video.
MOST? I assure you that people buying into BluRay tech aren't going to care about SDV or old mass market films. They want to see good films done well.
Fact: 35 mm film has far higher resolution than HD. Even Cineon (early 1990's technology) processing results in immaculate 4K resolution from films as old as Snow White. What is available now is far superior. When applied to Blu Ray the results are obviously superior to DVD.
As far as Lord of The Rings? How can you even comment on a comparison between the DVD and Blu Ray versions? The Blu Ray version does not even exist.
I don't know what you have been watching of listening to, but the data quality on a Blu Ray is far superior to a DVD. DVDs generally have a DD 5.1 sound track which has a 640K bitrate. This is lossy compression maybe equivalent to a 192K mp3. A Blu Ray will generally have a lossless DTS HD MA track that is 24 bit uncompressed 5.1, EXACTLY the same as the studio master. There is a very real and quite significant difference between 24 bit uncompressed audio vs. legacy DD.
As far as the video quality I can see arguing that without a 1080p TV at least 40" you aren't going to get value out of Blu-Ray video. But saying that the masters are the same is silly. Most DVDs and Blu Rays are based on film masters that have far higher resolution than either digital format. And with movies like Dark Night the fact is that is not changing.
There are some reasons to not buy Blu-Ray - you may not have the gear to go along with it, the software selection is not very good yet, you don't like the DRM, etc. But the capability of the format is not a reason. DVDs are 480i, BluRay is 1080p. There is an order of magnitude increase in the data making it to your ears and eyes.
BluRay players and discs are too much money, and the software selection is crap. When the great classics like Lord of The Rings are out, and players are cheep people will buy in.
Right now everyone is worried about their budgets because of the recession. People forget it took several years for DVD to catch on.
Your definition is much more restrictive than the vernacular:
From Barron's Law Dictionary.
Illegal
Against the law. Behavior that can result in either criminal sanctions, such as prison sentences or fines, or civil sanctions, such as liability or injunctions, is illegal.
The reason this may stand up is that in the drug case it is SELLING the drugs that is illegal. In copyright law it is making the copies that is illegal. So -
in the drug bust the cops observe the dealer selling drugs; i.e. the illegal act.
in the copyright case making available is not the illegal act. The party making the copies (i.e. downloading) is the only one committing the illegal act.
But in that case, you owned the video tapes. In the article, the librarian does not own the computers and hands them over without even talking to a higher up manager
How do you know this library director doesn't have the authorization to make a decision like this? He could easily have that level of authority. TFA states he is the Director of the Frederick County Public Libraries, which may make a decision like this well within his job parameters.
I am pretty negative towards organized religion. The harm it has done over the centuries has been staggering. Even today we have major religious leaders who have fought against the idea of the heliocentric solar system in their lifetimes, or try to twist the meaning of science to fit their belief in a biblical account of creation. And of course we know all too well how much conflict in the world today arises from religious extremism.
Science has its bad moments because it is an institution, industry and belief system too. But at the core, in the long run it is responsible for tremendous improvements in the condition of man. So it should be valued.
The other stuff - the politics of slashdot is pretty varied - yes there is a lot of liberal tilt to some opinions, but there is a lot of libertarianism and conservative ideas too. Not much of it is mainstream with in my opinion is very good because it shows independent thought.
As far as the commercial entities, yes these are reviled. Sometimes unfairly, but a lot has to do with the fact that these companies are working to reduce the personal freedoms of many of the people who use this site. The result is pushback.
I would be surprised if a MS on a lander would have the capability of structural determination of DNA. Amino acids, though should be possible - I would hazard a guess that they have detected amino acids on Mars.
1. The guy didn't merely 'poke around'. He deleted configuration files, installed remote access software and so forth. Th US complaint includes allegations that the systems were significantly disabled by these actions, affecting military operations during a very sensitive time frame. This is a pretty serious accusation.
2. The only person citing 'terrorism' is the guy's defense attorney. None of the indictments filed in the US refer to that, and the British courts have rejected the theory the idea that this would be in play more than once. As far as I can tell this is red herring.
3. Where do you get the idea 'life sentence'? The US indictments carry a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison.
4. Where is the US exactly riding roughshod over anyone's rights here? So far all of this process has been carried out in the UK, and is according to a UK laws (including a treaty agreed to by the UK government, presumably according to their laws). If there is a bone to pick with this process it should be with the British government. The US is acting perfectly within existing international agreements.
Your arguments apply to enforcement of ANY laws. The process for doing this is perhaps not perfect, but is tied directly to the invention of civilization. If you are going to discard it all you might as well throw away all of recorded history and the last 5000 years.
Note that I am a firm believer in the idea that civilization advances through the process of abstraction; making some operations easier is part of this process.
Outside of US jurisdiction. McKinnon accessed the US servers from the UK, from his home in London in fact. I remind everyone that though he was arrested in the UK, to date, no charges have ever been brought against him by the UK government. His own county does not consider his actions criminal, yet he is being extradited to the US for actions committed outside of its borders.
Poppycock. This bloke's actions ARE a crime in England. The article even says so. It is OBVIOUSLY in the interest of nation's wishing to discourage such criminal activity to engage in reciprocity - if some guy in the US was similarly rampaging through sensitive UK computer systems I am sure the UK would wish that the person not be just given a stern talking-to.
The dispute is over ONE THING. Where the trial will take place.
Jumping bus queues is a cultural thing. The French do it all the time. Hmmmm... the argument for this being a capital crime is gathering momentum...
The post had two primary inspirations:
1. The infocom game ending where you do something stupid and receive the message "You have committed a crime against humanity" you have died.
and
2. Robert Heinlein's observation that in space you don't get a second chance to do something stupid, so why should you get a second chance on a planet?
makes it quite likely he could get convicted a terrorist even if he is just a "good old" computer criminal
You are just regurgitating unsustantiated claims from McKinnon's lawyers which were rejected multiple times by the British courts. There is no actual credible evidence that McKinnon would be treated as a terrorist, or that he faces prison time of 70 years. The actual indictment he is being extradited on carries a 5-year max sentence.
Here is some background:
British National Charged with Hacking Into N.J. Naval Weapons Station Computers, Disabling Network After Sept. 11; Indictment Also Filed in Virginia for Other Military Instructions
NEWARK - An indictment was unsealed today against an unemployed United Kingdom computer system administrator, who allegedly broke into the computer network at the Earle Naval Weapons Station, stealing computer passwords, and shutting down the network in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie announced. A second Indictment, also charging Gary McKinnon, 36, of the Hornsey section of London, was returned today in the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria, according to U.S. Attorney Paul J. McNulty. Announcement of the Indictments came today at a 2 p.m. news conference in Alexandria, Va., with U.S. Attorney McNulty and Ralph Marra, the First Assistant U.S. Attorney, representing U.S. Attorney Christie. Both jurisdictions will conduct separate prosecutions of McKinnon. In connection with McKinnon's conduct in New Jersey, McKinnon was charged in a one-count Indictment returned by a grand jury in Newark with intentional damage to a protected computer, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott S. Christie. The seven-count Virginia Indictment charges McKinnon for intrusions into 92 computer systems belonging to the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Department of Defense and NASA. As a result of the intrusions into the U.S. military networks, McKinnon rendered the network for the Military District of Washington inoperable. McKinnon is also charged in the Virginia indictment with intrusions into two computers located at the Pentagon. The Virginia Indictment also charges McKinnon for intrusions into six private companies' networks. McKinnon is charged in Virginia with causing approximately $900,000 in damages to computers located in 14 states. (News releases from both districts, as well as the Indictments, are available at the District of New Jersey Public Affairs website, www.njusao.org . For further comment in Virginia, call Sam Dibbley, 703 299-3822. Concerning the New Jersey charges, McKinnon's series of computer network intrusions had a profound effect on Naval Weapons Station Earle's (NWS Earle) ability to accomplish its mission in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, according to U.S. Attorney Christie. The entire network of 300 computers at NWS Earle, located in Colts Neck, N.J., was effectively shut down for an entire week, according to military officials at NWS Earle. For another three weeks afterward, military personnel and government civilian employees at NWSE were only able to send and receive internal e-mail. It was only approximately a month after McKinnon's last intrusion into the network that NWS Earle was able to automatically route Naval message traffic and access the Internet, according to military officials at NWS Earle. This was a grave intrusion into a vital military computer system at a time when we, as a nation, had to summon all of our defenses against further attack, Christie said. McKinnon faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Efforts are under way to extradite McKinnon from the United Kingdom to stand trial on the charge, said U.S. Attorney Christie. The NWS Earle is a command of the U.S. Navy responsible for replenishing munitions and supplies for the Atlantic fleet. To assist in carrying out its mission, NWS Earle maintains and operates a network of approximately 300 computers in Colts Neck for the use of its milita
Slashdot Mirror
I'm more worried about George Bush seeing this than the Pentagon.
I am familiar with the SASOL process. It is one of many alternatives including oil sands etc. Canada has the largest world reserves of oil sands. Given current prices oil sand production is ramping up fairly rapidly in Canada, and now supplies a significant fraction of US demand. Canadian production of oil sands is actually exceeding the decline in production of oil in conventional Canadian reserves and is the reason Canada is now the leading petroleum exporter to the US. Canadian oil sands reserves exceed the total world reserves of conventional oil. Venezuela plus Canada equal 2x current world conventional oil reserves.
THERE IS NO REASON THE US NEEDS TO IMPORT OIL FROM OUTSIDE THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE GIVEN $100+ bbl pricing.
Also - the US is the Saudi Arabia of coal. It has the largest proven coal reserves in the world, enough for at least 300 years of consumption at current rates using conventional recovery methods, i.e. at current costs of recovery.
US coal reserves available using unconventional recovery methods (i.e. higher cost) are MUCH larger. potentially enough for at least 1000 years at current use rates. Maybe as much as 3000 years.
US nat gas reserves are not quite as large, however there are at least 20 years of reserves left using conventional recovery methods, and several decades more using higher cost recovery methods such as horizontal drilling. The CURRENT price of nat gas already makes horizontal drilling economical, and some companies are bringing production based on this technology online today. Price increases earlier this decade have already spurred increases in production and proven reserves of nat gas in the US when it was recently thought we would be having nat gas shortages before 2010.
http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/energy_in_brief/natural_gas_production.cfm
Now that doesn't mean I like the idea of unconstrained release of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. But it is important realize that it is not fossil fuels we are running out of. It is cheap oil we are running out of.
If we are going to develop alternative sources of energy the first thing we should be focusing on is understanding what forms those alternatives should take in order to maximize the economic gain from that investment.
My opinions on this are: (in order of priority)
1. Efficiency - especially in developing nations. China and India get very poor economic results per kw and their economies are starting to get very big. In 25 years I think China + India will equal the US. (I know others think it will happen faster, but I think long term estimates are more than a little over optimistic).
2. Conservation (imposed by tax policy if needed)
3. Replacements for gasoline. (NOT ethanol from corn that is STUPID!).
4. Non greenhouse gas producing fixed energy sources. Solar, tidal, geothermal, fusion, breeder whatever.
Note that I put solar as priority 4.
It is VERY unlikely that electricity production costs in the US will increase that rapidy in the next few years since coal and nat gas are the primary fuels. Reserves for both are quite large.
The problem is oil its derivatives.
Cadmium is nasty stuff. The primary human exposure to cadmium is cigarette smoke. Not so much from industrial uses such as batteries, pigments etc.
There is some history of cadmium in run off water from mines causing cadmium poisoning in Japan. Cadmium poisoning is known and ouch-ouch disease. It is so painful that people don't die from it, they commit suicide first.
> Which sounds exactly the same as 640k DD track from the DVD because > the studio masters are so crappy. Yes, on a handful of properly-
> mastered movies it makes a difference. You can count these discs on > the fingers of one or maybe two hands.
I don't know where you are getting your information from, but studio masters have been 24 bit 96 KHz since the mid-90's. That is far more than 10-20 movies. ALL of this material is fodder for DTS HD MA. Yes, the current catalog is small, but that is NOT the point here. The technology is CLEARLY superior, and is becoming more important as penetration of the new codecs into living rooms grows.
Once people hear the difference between DTS HD MA and the 12:1 compressed DD 5.1 NOBODY is going to want DD 5.1.
> Wrong, wrong, wrong. MOST DVDs and Blu-Rays are based on grainy
> film stock or analog video.
MOST? I assure you that people buying into BluRay tech aren't going to care about SDV or old mass market films. They want to see good films done well.
Fact: 35 mm film has far higher resolution than HD. Even Cineon (early 1990's technology) processing results in immaculate 4K resolution from films as old as Snow White. What is available now is far superior. When applied to Blu Ray the results are obviously superior to DVD.
As far as Lord of The Rings? How can you even comment on a comparison between the DVD and Blu Ray versions? The Blu Ray version does not even exist.
Jan 20 2009 - the end of an error
I don't know what you have been watching of listening to, but the data quality on a Blu Ray is far superior to a DVD. DVDs generally have a DD 5.1 sound track which has a 640K bitrate. This is lossy compression maybe equivalent to a 192K mp3. A Blu Ray will generally have a lossless DTS HD MA track that is 24 bit uncompressed 5.1, EXACTLY the same as the studio master. There is a very real and quite significant difference between 24 bit uncompressed audio vs. legacy DD.
As far as the video quality I can see arguing that without a 1080p TV at least 40" you aren't going to get value out of Blu-Ray video. But saying that the masters are the same is silly. Most DVDs and Blu Rays are based on film masters that have far higher resolution than either digital format. And with movies like Dark Night the fact is that is not changing.
There are some reasons to not buy Blu-Ray - you may not have the gear to go along with it, the software selection is not very good yet, you don't like the DRM, etc. But the capability of the format is not a reason. DVDs are 480i, BluRay is 1080p. There is an order of magnitude increase in the data making it to your ears and eyes.
BluRay players and discs are too much money, and the software selection is crap. When the great classics like Lord of The Rings are out, and players are cheep people will buy in.
Right now everyone is worried about their budgets because of the recession. People forget it took several years for DVD to catch on.
Visit answers.com. They have several definitions all boiling down to "against the law", which is the first sentence of the Barron's definition.
Your definition is much more restrictive than the vernacular:
From Barron's Law Dictionary.
Illegal
Against the law. Behavior that can result in either criminal sanctions, such as prison sentences or fines, or civil sanctions, such as liability or injunctions, is illegal.
The reason this may stand up is that in the drug case it is SELLING the drugs that is illegal. In copyright law it is making the copies that is illegal. So -
in the drug bust the cops observe the dealer selling drugs; i.e. the illegal act.
in the copyright case making available is not the illegal act. The party making the copies (i.e. downloading) is the only one committing the illegal act.
But in that case, you owned the video tapes. In the article, the librarian does not own the computers and hands them over without even talking to a higher up manager
How do you know this library director doesn't have the authorization to make a decision like this? He could easily have that level of authority. TFA states he is the Director of the Frederick County Public Libraries, which may make a decision like this well within his job parameters.
The caveat to organized religion and extremist religion is that its really politics and not religion.
The establishment of an organized religion has to be in place before it can be abused. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
And this still does not cover issues where religions interfere with humanistic progress.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_e2BC_kXis&feature=related
I am pretty negative towards organized religion. The harm it has done over the centuries has been staggering. Even today we have major religious leaders who have fought against the idea of the heliocentric solar system in their lifetimes, or try to twist the meaning of science to fit their belief in a biblical account of creation. And of course we know all too well how much conflict in the world today arises from religious extremism.
Science has its bad moments because it is an institution, industry and belief system too. But at the core, in the long run it is responsible for tremendous improvements in the condition of man. So it should be valued.
The other stuff - the politics of slashdot is pretty varied - yes there is a lot of liberal tilt to some opinions, but there is a lot of libertarianism and conservative ideas too. Not much of it is mainstream with in my opinion is very good because it shows independent thought.
As far as the commercial entities, yes these are reviled. Sometimes unfairly, but a lot has to do with the fact that these companies are working to reduce the personal freedoms of many of the people who use this site. The result is pushback.
Pretty much.
The found evidence of Martian Global Warming.
I would be surprised if a MS on a lander would have the capability of structural determination of DNA. Amino acids, though should be possible - I would hazard a guess that they have detected amino acids on Mars.
1. The guy didn't merely 'poke around'. He deleted configuration files, installed remote access software and so forth. Th US complaint includes allegations that the systems were significantly disabled by these actions, affecting military operations during a very sensitive time frame. This is a pretty serious accusation.
2. The only person citing 'terrorism' is the guy's defense attorney. None of the indictments filed in the US refer to that, and the British courts have rejected the theory the idea that this would be in play more than once. As far as I can tell this is red herring.
3. Where do you get the idea 'life sentence'? The US indictments carry a maximum penalty of 5 years in prison.
4. Where is the US exactly riding roughshod over anyone's rights here? So far all of this process has been carried out in the UK, and is according to a UK laws (including a treaty agreed to by the UK government, presumably according to their laws). If there is a bone to pick with this process it should be with the British government. The US is acting perfectly within existing international agreements.
Your arguments apply to enforcement of ANY laws. The process for doing this is perhaps not perfect, but is tied directly to the invention of civilization. If you are going to discard it all you might as well throw away all of recorded history and the last 5000 years.
Civilised behaviour or intelligence ?
How about wisdom.
Note that I am a firm believer in the idea that civilization advances through the process of abstraction; making some operations easier is part of this process.
Outside of US jurisdiction. McKinnon accessed the US servers from the UK, from his home in London in fact. I remind everyone that though he was arrested in the UK, to date, no charges have ever been brought against him by the UK government. His own county does not consider his actions criminal, yet he is being extradited to the US for actions committed outside of its borders.
Poppycock. This bloke's actions ARE a crime in England. The article even says so. It is OBVIOUSLY in the interest of nation's wishing to discourage such criminal activity to engage in reciprocity - if some guy in the US was similarly rampaging through sensitive UK computer systems I am sure the UK would wish that the person not be just given a stern talking-to.
The dispute is over ONE THING. Where the trial will take place.
Your ignorance of the law is staggering.
Jumping bus queues is a cultural thing. The French do it all the time. Hmmmm... the argument for this being a capital crime is gathering momentum...
The post had two primary inspirations:
1. The infocom game ending where you do something stupid and receive the message "You have committed a crime against humanity" you have died.
and
2. Robert Heinlein's observation that in space you don't get a second chance to do something stupid, so why should you get a second chance on a planet?
makes it quite likely he could get convicted a terrorist even if he is just a "good old" computer criminal
You are just regurgitating unsustantiated claims from McKinnon's lawyers which were rejected multiple times by the British courts. There is no actual credible evidence that McKinnon would be treated as a terrorist, or that he faces prison time of 70 years. The actual indictment he is being extradited on carries a 5-year max sentence.
Here is some background:
British National Charged with Hacking Into N.J. Naval Weapons Station Computers, Disabling Network After Sept. 11; Indictment Also Filed in Virginia for Other Military Instructions
NEWARK - An indictment was unsealed today against an unemployed United Kingdom computer system administrator, who allegedly broke into the computer network at the Earle Naval Weapons Station, stealing computer passwords, and shutting down the network in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Christie announced. A second Indictment, also charging Gary McKinnon, 36, of the Hornsey section of London, was returned today in the Eastern District of Virginia in Alexandria, according to U.S. Attorney Paul J. McNulty. Announcement of the Indictments came today at a 2 p.m. news conference in Alexandria, Va., with U.S. Attorney McNulty and Ralph Marra, the First Assistant U.S. Attorney, representing U.S. Attorney Christie. Both jurisdictions will conduct separate prosecutions of McKinnon. In connection with McKinnon's conduct in New Jersey, McKinnon was charged in a one-count Indictment returned by a grand jury in Newark with intentional damage to a protected computer, according to Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott S. Christie. The seven-count Virginia Indictment charges McKinnon for intrusions into 92 computer systems belonging to the U.S. Army, Navy, Air Force, Department of Defense and NASA. As a result of the intrusions into the U.S. military networks, McKinnon rendered the network for the Military District of Washington inoperable. McKinnon is also charged in the Virginia indictment with intrusions into two computers located at the Pentagon. The Virginia Indictment also charges McKinnon for intrusions into six private companies' networks. McKinnon is charged in Virginia with causing approximately $900,000 in damages to computers located in 14 states. (News releases from both districts, as well as the Indictments, are available at the District of New Jersey Public Affairs website, www.njusao.org . For further comment in Virginia, call Sam Dibbley, 703 299-3822. Concerning the New Jersey charges, McKinnon's series of computer network intrusions had a profound effect on Naval Weapons Station Earle's (NWS Earle) ability to accomplish its mission in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, according to U.S. Attorney Christie. The entire network of 300 computers at NWS Earle, located in Colts Neck, N.J., was effectively shut down for an entire week, according to military officials at NWS Earle. For another three weeks afterward, military personnel and government civilian employees at NWSE were only able to send and receive internal e-mail. It was only approximately a month after McKinnon's last intrusion into the network that NWS Earle was able to automatically route Naval message traffic and access the Internet, according to military officials at NWS Earle. This was a grave intrusion into a vital military computer system at a time when we, as a nation, had to summon all of our defenses against further attack, Christie said. McKinnon faces a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Efforts are under way to extradite McKinnon from the United Kingdom to stand trial on the charge, said U.S. Attorney Christie. The NWS Earle is a command of the U.S. Navy responsible for replenishing munitions and supplies for the Atlantic fleet. To assist in carrying out its mission, NWS Earle maintains and operates a network of approximately 300 computers in Colts Neck for the use of its milita