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User: aug24

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  1. Re:What's the role of the drone? on Researchers Hack Philips Hue Smart Bulbs Using a Drone (pcworld.com) · · Score: 1

    They sent new firmware to the bulb over the ZigBee network, using the symmetric key baked into every bulb (which they first had to obtain) to sign it. Obtaining the key is hard-ish, but they didn't say how they did it.

  2. Re:Cross site scripting on How To Block the NSA From Your Friends List · · Score: 2

    That would stop mashup services from working easily, for example embedded maps, which I work on: openspace

  3. Re:Hm, wasn't aware there was any controversy on No Black Hole Or Magnetic Monopole: Tunguska Really Was a Meteor · · Score: 1

    ISTR that blocks of stone have been located at the 3-4-5 distances of a right angle triangle to get a perfect right angle for the base of at least one pyramid.

  4. Re:Agents do have some latitude on TSA Log Shows Passengers Say the Darndest Things · · Score: 2

    If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the precipitate"

  5. Re:Cool story bro. on TSA Log Shows Passengers Say the Darndest Things · · Score: 1

    You are not being bayesian enough.

    You need the probability someone is telling the truth given the evidence of being dumb enough to say "I've got a bomb".

    If the Hypothesis is 'got a bomb' and the Evidence is 'said bomb', here are my estimates:

    p(E) = 10**-7 proportion of travellers who are dumb enough to say bomb (one in ten million)
    p(H) = 10**-13 proportion of travellers who have had a bomb so far (one in ten million million)
    p(E|H) = well, ZERO so far, but let's say 10**-3 bombers who mention the word bomb (one in a thousand)

    Then p(H|E) = proportion of people who say bomb who have a bomb = P(H) * P(E|H) / P(E) = 10**(-13-3+7) = 10**-9

    One in one billion people who mention the word bomb will have a bomb.

    So if we close the airport each time for two hours, our losses for an actual bomb need to exceed the damages for closing an airport for two billion hours before it is worth it. That's over 200,000 lifetimes of waiting in the departure lounge.

    Just.

    Any comments on my maths / approach happily received.

  6. Re:This is stupid. on NASA's Basement Nuclear Reactor · · Score: 1

    Actually pretty much every system has an optimum scale. Very few continue to improve indefinitely on scaling up. If your point was correct, there would be one very large power station somewhere in the world.

  7. Re:I'll take a shot... on Alcoholism Vaccine Makes Alcohol Intolerable To Drinkers · · Score: 1

    That theory (alcohol in the morning for 'withdrawal') is completely wrong. The chemistry is well known.

    Hangovers are partially caused by dehydrogenation of alcohols leading to poisonous chemicals. Ethyl alcohol turns to acetaldehyde, but we can deal with this one (thank you evolution).

    Methyl alcohol (wood alcohol impurities, present in most drinks to greater or lesser degree) turns to formaldehyde. This is very bad for you and makes you feel like hell. The process of creating formaldehyde is linear (because the total present must be limited due to toxicity), not power based, so there is never too much made unless the amount of methyl alcohol is even more toxic.

    However, the conversion process is negatively catalysed (slowed down) in the presence of ethyl alcohol. So, a little beer can reduce the amount present enough to effectively remove the hangover.

    Sorry about too many brackets (not really sorry).

    Just.

  8. Re:Sheila Bair's quote says it all on The Biggest Financial Fraud of All Time · · Score: 1

    Sexual attraction: no matter how much you offer in cash, most men can't oblige a truly ugly chick.

  9. Re:Why do you want to combine them? on Ask Slashdot: Linux Mountable Storage Pool For All the Cloud Systems? · · Score: 1

    I used to do this with a friend: peered ftp servers. Everything under /home and /etc was tarred, zipped, encrypted and ftp'd onto his server at midnight, while his did the same to mine. Can't remember where I put the decrypt key, probably on a floppy that is still in my bureau.

    Of course, data volumes were lower then, and the sun was warmer, and girls prettier.

    Just.

  10. Re:Gee... on Amazon and Google Barred From UK Government Cloud · · Score: 1

    Don't count your chickens... they've still got the option of MS Azure =:-/

  11. Re:no on Study Claims Human Intelligence Peaked Two To Six Millennia Ago · · Score: 1

    The Kalahari bushman's survival is therefore a function of the effectiveness of the safety net present in the system, not his innate abilities. There is a decent chance he'd steal, get the cops called on him and get shot when waving a fucking big knife around to try to scare the cops away, because that's the 'primitive' (ie effective in that situation) approach.

    (There is no safety net for rk in the Kalahari. He's plain dead from not knowing how or what to eat. Or he got predated upon)

  12. Re:the lion and the lamb elect on Study Claims Human Intelligence Peaked Two To Six Millennia Ago · · Score: 1

    Marvellous line. Yours?

  13. Re:What is CO2 doing up there? on Global Warming Felt By Space Junk and Satellites · · Score: 5, Informative

    Even if it is heavier stochastic processes will push a proportion of it up. Increase the total proportion and the proportion at high altitudes will increase.

  14. Re:Consistency in action on The UK's New Minister For Magic · · Score: 1

    Want to start a new political party: "The Evidence Based Party"?

  15. Re:The placebo effect works on The UK's New Minister For Magic · · Score: 1

    Except homeopathy isn't cheap. Six bucks and upwards for a small bottle.

    Cost of a bottle of mint solution? Bulk purchased through the NHS? Probably under a buck.

  16. Re:Hold still on The UK's New Minister For Magic · · Score: 1

    Firstly, those almost certainly weren't homeopathic, just placebo. Mint pills are cheap; homeopathic 'medicine' isn't.

    Secondly, (IIRC according to Dr Phil Hammond, on HIGNFY some years ago), new rules prevent GPs from dispensing mint pills and liquids as placebos, which is a terrible shame.

    Just.

  17. Re:comparison and life purpose on How Stephen Hawking Has Defied the Odds For 50 Years · · Score: 1

    I'm pretty sure I've seen this analysis (actually "fighting" a disease vs not, but it's close) and the correlation was nil.

  18. Re:Awesome, but.. on Instead of a Wheel Chair, How About an Exoskeleton? · · Score: 1
  19. Re:Awesome, but.. on Instead of a Wheel Chair, How About an Exoskeleton? · · Score: 1

    Race conditions, temperature variations causing differences in io block times? If you can create two actually identical machines, you're a better engineer than... anyone.

  20. Re:Great. But a couple of thoughts on Troops In Afghanistan Supplied By Robot Helicopter · · Score: 1

    Two much simpler things first...

    One, medevac capability. Excellent.

    Two, abandon a few of these with what appears to be nice stuff (small arms, slightly damaged; steaks etc), wait till the people you want to kill get used to nicking the kit, then send in stuff with hidden GPS transmitters (don't tell me there's no GSM - just transmit to a drone). Nice.

  21. Re:Just a matter of time... on MIT Algorithm Predicts Red Light Runners · · Score: 1

    I'm afraid you're mistaken.
    Just (Winchester, UK).

  22. May I suggest... on Android Dev Demonstrates CarrierIQ Phone Logging Software On Video · · Score: 4, Interesting

    ...someone with skillz makes a freely installable CIQ clone that sends them back fake, randomly generated results.

  23. Re:The problems with the kindle on Amazon Denies Reports That Airport Scanners Ruin Kindle's e-Ink · · Score: 1

    qv the Bill Hicks routine where the waitress asked him "Whut yew readin' for?". Took him a moment to realise she hadn't asked what was he reading, but what was he reading for...

  24. Re:This is why I bought a Nokia N900 on CarrierIQ: Most Phones Ship With "Rootkit" · · Score: 1

    I don't think you've understood the principle of a rom-based rootkit.

  25. Re:Does it have chance on Grooved Disk Spinner Cleans Up: $1M For Winner of Oil Recovery Challenge · · Score: 1

    According to the back of this envelope:
    660000 oil barrels spilt = 104931615 litres
    At 17500 l/m = 5996 minutes.
    At 24 * 60 min/day = 4.16 days.

    So just one of these collectors could have hoovered up the entire spill in well under a week in perfect conditions. Even 10% of efficiency is still only six weeks. Even 10% efficiency and only working in daylight is still only three months.