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User: rcamans

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  1. Re:Scientific? on Neanderthals "Had Sex" With Modern Man · · Score: 5, Informative

    Actually science does not have any test that will indicate that two critters will or will not breed successfully, within the same genus. There have been successful matings between South American and other cats, for example. SA cats have 36 chromosomes, other cats all have 38. but mating does produce kittens, although most are sterile (with 37 chromosomes). So fairly large variations in chromosomes does not bar breeding. So if Humans and Neanderthals turn out to be the same genus and just different species, then they could conceivably have breed. In reality, the successful breeding is the only current test which exists which says two critters are of the same genus. It used to be that the definition of species was that two different species could not interbreed, but that is not true.

  2. Re:Scientific? on Neanderthals "Had Sex" With Modern Man · · Score: 2, Informative

    Actually the female passes on the mitochondria genetic material without change. The mitochondria do not do the split and mix that regular chromosomes do, so their structure is stable over long periods. Male Y chromosomes never do the split and mix thing either, only one Y chromosome is available in the egg-sperm meeting. So it is relatively stable, and very small.
    So they could get a lot of info from this stuff. If they look for it. sequencing the mitochondria chromosomes is separate from the main sequence.

  3. Re:humans on Neanderthals "Had Sex" With Modern Man · · Score: 2, Funny

    No, Actually it was ancient human geeks, finding Neanderthal cave women living underground, in caves (the ancient version of the modern mom's basement). Geeks, desperate to have sex with anything, mated with the females. As we all know, most geek breeding is non-productive (premature ejaculation), so almost no 'children" resulted. Can you imagine, kids that looked worse than geeks?

  4. Re:How about non Floating Point performance ? on Asus Releases Desktop-Sized Supercomputer · · Score: 1

    Actually, one of the best uses for this is simulation. Simulation is used in the design of computer motherboards and chipsets. Speeding up Moore's law"? Woo-hoo!!!
    Also, chip design has auto-routing, timing constraints, general layout, etc. Chip / processor design teams are large groups of engineers who use absolutely every bit of processing power available to them to get as much of their job done as possible before the chip is released. Running test patterns on the simulated chip is one such task which is never complete. So we get an occasional math error in the chip. Oops. Anything to make them more productive, and more successful, is definitely cool.
    Astronomy, physics, physical biochemistry (folding, etc), man oh man, there are a lot of disciplines which could really benefit from this sort of thing.
    Oh, yes, analysis of data from the big telescopes really needs a lot of these. ANd SETI could maybe succeed, too.

  5. Re:Bootloader? BitLocker? on Of Encrypted Hard Drives and "Evil Maids" · · Score: 3, Interesting

    A lot of designs do not have the tpm chip implemented. I know, because I am a designer, and most of the design requirements I fill do not include or want a tpm chp. This will only be in all systems when Intel makes it a part of their system chips (what used to be the north bridge / south bridge combination, and is now the PCH or silverthorne).

  6. Re:And that's the lesser evil on Of Encrypted Hard Drives and "Evil Maids" · · Score: 1

    Wait a minute. I like the sound of this. Where can I get me a whole bunch of evil bartenders? Please?

  7. Re:To add a little context... on Judge Rejects Sheriff's Suit Against Craigslist · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Notice Dart is not closing down cheap motels / hotels with rooms by the hour, who actually are facilitating prostitution. Nor is he closing down bars and liquor stores for facilitating drunk driving. Nor is he closing down sleazy bars (all of them) for facilitating drug dealers (all bars have drug dealers operating in them), or for facilitating prostitution. So he clearly is not into closing down facilitators, nor is he into hard work for publicity. He is attacking a single target for publicity. A cheap shot.

  8. Re:Two way street on Nokia Sues Apple For Patent Infringement In iPhone · · Score: 1

    Actually, every big corp which holds patents MUST sue to protect their patents, or they will lose the right to them. If they do not do due diligence in protecting their patents, then eventually someone can use the patents and say in court that the patent owners were not protecting their patents property rights, so the patents were in the public domain. Patents only mean that you can sue to protect them. If you don't sue, you lose them.
    IIMNAL

  9. Re:Intel? on NVIDIA To Exit Chipset Business · · Score: 1

    Um, I think Broadcom just folded Serverworks.
    But the question was not who made intel chipset, it was who made chipsets. Doesn't anyone make amd chipsets? And processors? And OEM is a legitimate, big market as well.
    And mobile does count as a big silicon processor field, so Arm, etc do count as competition.

  10. Re:Intel? on NVIDIA To Exit Chipset Business · · Score: 1

    What about AMD, VIA, SiS, ATI, and ALI?

  11. Re:Not a Big Problem. on Cosmic Ray Intensity Reaches Highest Levels In 50 years · · Score: 1

    So if a cosmic ray came along and threw off one bit in a calculation, and that one bit happened to be the msb in a course change, from close flyby to dead center crash, not to worry? SEU.

  12. Re:bad idea... on Porn Surfing Rampant At US Science Foundation · · Score: 1

    They are using company resources innaproriately, perhaps even illegally. There are plenty of ways to relax.

  13. Re:Correllation is Not Causation on A New Explanation For the Plight of Winter Babies · · Score: 1

    You are correct. Birth month does not CAUSE health and education risks. But birth month does indicate an increased probability of health and educational problems. Let's see. that means that you cannot apply the generalization to specific people. But let's try. I was born in November (of poor parents). I have health problems. I am also highly educated and upper middle class,as I work as a senior engineer. My wife was born in spring, of poor parents. A few minor health problems, educational problems. My son was born in fall (of well-off parents), extremely excellent health, small educational problems (fixed). My daughter was born in spring. Excellent health, no educational problems. So does the generalization work for e? Not only do I not see that, but working for me is a meaningless statement. All It means is that the medical people and insurance companies may spend more paperwork overall on fall kids, and the feds may get less taxes overall from fall kids.

    Correlation does not show cause and effect. It only shows that the two items are related (a causative link), and one may be a partial cause of the other, or there may be at least one common partial cause of both.

    What is not shown at all is the causes for either greater health issues or educational issues. Far more detailed work would be required to get to that point.

    Perhaps babies need the extra sunlight of the summer in their early months for better health and fewer educational problems later in life? Or just the vitamins that sunlight generates in them?

  14. Re:Today, do something out of the ordinary on Newly Declassified FBI Docs Reveal Predictive Data System · · Score: 1

    No, I am going to keep my head down and not get arrested. NEVER volunteer. Once they have you, yu can not be sure when, or even if, you are going to get out of it. ever.

  15. Re:Why deactivated? on Bank Goofs, and Judge Orders Gmail Account Nuked · · Score: 1

    You just do not get it. Banks do not do what they should. They do not do what they have to, or are legally obliged to do. They do not do what is moral, ethical, or right. What they do is make money. That is the business they are in. Individuals are not on their radar at all. Not even as numbers, unless that person is a very big number (as in depositor). Otherwise they do anything they want. not just anything they think they can get away with.
    An example of their misbehavior is a former girlfriend I had. She told me, in bed, that she had ripped off the bank she worked at as a drive-thru teller. she took a few thousand dollars of deposits, and went shopping. She told the bank she did not have the money, so the bank recovered nothing. The bank let her go without notifying the police. Her only job skill was bank teller, so she went to work at another bank. See, the bank did not want anyone to know that there was any criminal activity by their employees. That might cut into the bank's earnings. And, as I said above, the bank is ONLY in the business of making money. By the way, I immediately got out of bed and hid my wallet.
    In case you had no9t noticed, no bank people got prosecuted in the big crash. Banks are part of the government, just not exactly explicitly part. And the government does not ever clean up their act. Even if they tell you they are. an occasional fall guy is all that ever happens.
    Get over it.

  16. Re:Today, do something out of the ordinary on Newly Declassified FBI Docs Reveal Predictive Data System · · Score: 1

    Oh, Great. You want them to focus on me and arrest me, so they are not looking at you?

  17. Re:Give up? on Newly Declassified FBI Docs Reveal Predictive Data System · · Score: 1

    But wait - I thought they only had the one last suit they will ever wear?

  18. Re:Great idea on MIT's Hybrid Microchip To Overcome Silicon Size Barrier · · Score: 1, Funny

    heh heh heh. Hey, he said girlfriend! heh heh.

  19. Re:The safety measures are wholly inadequate. on Researcher Dies After Studying Plague Bacteria · · Score: 2, Interesting

    Actually, exterminating the rodents is not the cure. Sprinkle malathion or parathion on cotton balls and scatter them around where the kids and pets cannot get them. Rodents gather them up and use them in their nests. The stuff kills off all the riders the rodents have on them. and walaa, no more mites, lice, fleas, etc. This has been tried and is effective for wiping out the deer tick - mouse vector for lyme disease in whole counties for years. I do not understand why it is not used more commonly. I guess maybe some liberals objected to inhumane treatment of lice. Someone called Peta?

  20. Re:Facebook Status: on Burglar Logs Into Facebook On Victim's Computer · · Score: 1

    No, actually, I am pretty sure that John Parker shot John Bigbooty in a mid-air explosion of an interspacial craft of some sort, and then returned to his home planet. Anyways, doesn't he have diplomatic immunity, so they can't touch him if he did do it?

  21. Re:Seems like a cool idea... on Student Designs Cardboard Computer Case · · Score: 1

    Well, if you ever had a thought, your head could use a tin foil hat, but that is an extremely unlikely event.
    And considering your lack of brain cells, your computer could probably get away with no hat as well...
    You must have something to protect to need a tin foil hat, and most all of the tin foil hat advocates have nothing to protect.
    Actually we need them to wear tin foil hats to protect us from their crazy thoughts...

    Just joking, please

  22. Re:Well Then on In Britain, Better Not Call It Bogus Science · · Score: 1

    Wait a minute - What planet do you live on, certainly no earth...

  23. Re:What the Crap Oregon? on Professor Posts "Illegal Copy" of Guide To Oregon Public Record Laws · · Score: 1

    hey beavis - heh heh heh - he said dumbfuckery - heh heh heh

  24. Re:They call switchingMS OS an Upgrade? on Windows 7 Upgrade Can Take Nearly a Day · · Score: 1

    Jeese. I did not know they let old geezers at the old folks home on the internet! what will they think of next!

  25. They call switchingMS OS an Upgrade? on Windows 7 Upgrade Can Take Nearly a Day · · Score: 1

    I do not see how this is an upgrade. In my experience, as long as you are staying with MS, all you can do with them is downgrade...