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User: aspelling

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Comments · 36

  1. Medicare won't pay for Wii because of dual purpose on Wii Balance Board Gives $18,000 Medical Device a Run For Its Money · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Medicare and many insurance companies won't pay for Wii because it is dual-purpose device
    NYTimes had a story when they refused to pay for iPhone-based speech synthesizer for a paralyzed patient but had no problems paying $5000 for a desktop based one because the desktop-based device was not able to do anything but synthesize voice
     

  2. Re:Just because the math works doesn't mean it's t on The End Of Gravity As a Fundamental Force · · Score: 1

    It sounds interesting at least.
    It connects information and gravity.
    It also connect the dots in the latest ideas that the space/time is a holographic projection. I will follow this theory

  3. Re:I predict a boom in Chinese research. on China Luring Scientists Back Home · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Chinese are willing to spend their money on fundamental research without immediate financial reward.
    This is against our culture of quarter-per-quarter results.
    Friend of mine who is in the top pack of string theorists was invited for a tenured position to teach/research in China. I always make fun of him working on something he couldn't even experimentally proof, but they were willing to pay for it.
    He hasn't accepted the offer because he got the same position in UK, which is much closer culturally to us.

  4. Re:Simple question...simple answer. on China Luring Scientists Back Home · · Score: 1

    Did you get a letter from him complaining about inability to teach or to do research?
    Wives always complain about their living be that a room in a dormitory or 4000ft2 house

  5. Re:just like in Italy? on Net Users In Belarus May Soon Have To Register · · Score: 1

    Silvio Berlusconi is not so much different: he is very power-hungry despot as Putin and Lukashenko

  6. Re:Belarus is a predictive signal for Russia. on Net Users In Belarus May Soon Have To Register · · Score: 1

    You are absolutely right. Both countries have both ex-Commies at power (they call themselves differently now but they are all tainted by the membership in that party).
    Both countries are corrupt inside out. Instead of telling people the truth about what's going on their government try to find enemies outside (Ukraine, Georgia, US) and within (democrats) the country.

  7. Re:Okay, I know this is off-topic... on Plasma Device Kills Bacteria On Skin In Seconds · · Score: 1

    Man, "orange haired Ukrainian chick" is a fiery element ;-) Inbed indeed

  8. Re:Chernobyl again? on NRC Relicensing Old "Zombie" Nuclear Plants · · Score: 1

    Don't also forget that Chernobyl has happened when Russia was in a steep decline economically and morally.

  9. Re:Maybe some truth there, but it's dubious on NRC Relicensing Old "Zombie" Nuclear Plants · · Score: 1

    It's is off topic but I would not drive my without warranty and 24/7 roadside assistance

  10. Re:The real problem isn't really a problem. on NRC Relicensing Old "Zombie" Nuclear Plants · · Score: 1

    Both Chernobyl and Hindenburg were learning points.
    Lesson learnt we became smarter.
    Don't also forget that Chernobyl has happened when Russia was in a steep decline economically and morally.

  11. Re:Not so on NRC Relicensing Old "Zombie" Nuclear Plants · · Score: 2, Informative

    There is a big difference between 99.4% of fuel wasted full of long-life waste and 0.4% short-living waste.
    On a bigger scale - try to store 9940 lbs of waste or 40 lbs of waste. 250 times less and less dangerous waste.
    40lbs can be even discarded into deep space.

  12. Re:New stations NOW on NRC Relicensing Old "Zombie" Nuclear Plants · · Score: 1

    On Shutles: Shuttle carries 40 tons into orbit and can be reused many times. Our next best option - Soyuz can carry up to 3 tons payload on the lowest orbit. NASA got scared with two crashes and cannot take risk anymore and instead of producing new Shuttles they gave up into old technology (Orion is an advanced Apollo)

    This is about how much risk people can handle. While it is completely sane to wear bicycle helmet on the road it is completely unnecessary to wear it in the park. Do you see the difference in risks between these two situations?

  13. New stations NOW on NRC Relicensing Old "Zombie" Nuclear Plants · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Greenes did huge damage to this country by instilling fear in nuclear power. While Greens mostly support good things to protect environment their opposition and fearmongering of nuclear plants caused us to build economy on oil.
    Besides that we canceled all large-scale development of next generation reactors (breeders, lead-cooled, etc.) capable of burning 99% of fuel and leaving almost no waste.

    On the bigger picture in the last twenty-thirty years people became more comfortable and lazy and unwilling to take any risks. This affected everything in the society - cancellation of Space Shuttle program, public safety even kids wearing helmets on the bicycles. If there is no risk there is no reward but it seems we kind of forgot about it.
     

  14. We were burnt as well on Man Pleads Guilty To Selling Fake Chips To US Navy · · Score: 5, Interesting

    In 2006-2007 it was a problem to get many parts in the reasonable quality - flash, op-amps, multiplexors.
    So we bought a few reels from the second-hand distributor.
    As a result flash marked as 32Mb was 2Mb inside, op-amps weren't up to the specs (manufacturer confirm that they were made of written-off dyes), multiplexors were sold as a particular brand with advanced features while indeed were jelly beans for $0.10 a piece.
    Thankfully we were able to rework boards before products hit the consumer market.
    That was a good lesson for us to never use Chinese distributors for parts

  15. Re:Someone please explain on UN Officials Remove Poster Mentioning Chinese Firewall · · Score: 1

    When (Chinese) money talks...

  16. Re:Spread the word! on Vatican Debates Possibility of Alien Life · · Score: 1

    As a Jew I don't even have a problem to laugh at these "debates"

  17. How to insert SOC flag to block Fox News and SHN? on MPAA Asks Again For Control Of TV Analog Ports · · Score: 1

    How to insert this SOC flag to block out Fox News and Shop-at-Home?

    On the other note - why do you guys obsessed about MPAA trying to prevent somebody to copy THEIR content without getting paid?
    If you don't want to pay - don't watch. I haven't watched a movie on TV for a while just because there is almost nothing to watch except Bruno.

  18. Lexus has issues as well on Toyotas Suddenly Accelerate; Owners Up In Arms · · Score: 1

    My wife co-worker's Lexus accelerated unexpectedly unfortunately she had automatic tranny which refused to go into neutral.
    Two things has happened as a result -
    Bad: she got injured
    Good: her Lexus was a total loss so she could get rid of it

  19. Re:Carmakers lie on Toyotas Suddenly Accelerate; Owners Up In Arms · · Score: 1

    BMW electronics (I have 335i) is BUGGY.
    Sometimes to close the car I have to get back into it start and stop engine and try to re-lock it again.
    Sometimes only one side of the car shuts the lights off (this has happened at low temperatures).
    Radio display is unreadable when hot
    Otherwise, it is really ultimate driving machine and nothing but Mazda comes close to it in term of handling

  20. Add OOAD, UML and Agile into the pile on IT Snake Oil — Six Tech Cure-Alls That Went Bunk · · Score: 1

    Please add OOAD, UML and Agile into the pile.
    While all of these approaches worked somehow none of them has delivered a panacea methodology for programming

  21. 25-cent a song is what it takes on Would You Pay 5 Cents For a Song? · · Score: 1

    25-cent a song is what it takes to stop piracy completely. Songs are 4 times overpriced

  22. WON'T MISS HER A BIT on HP CEO Carly Fiorina to Step Down · · Score: 1

    Thanks G-d Agilent is now a separate company. At least something good is coming out of HP

  23. Re:China and India are adding up on UK Releases Global Warming Report · · Score: 1

    Agree. I added population of other countries in that region

  24. China and India are adding up on UK Releases Global Warming Report · · Score: 3, Informative

    Guess what will happens if we add up HUGE (3.6 billion people) growing 10% a year economies of CHINA and INDIA. Offshore outsourcing and following knowledge transfer are the reasons for this exponential grows. Just imagine of the future impact of these economies when 3.6B people will start driving cars and use A/C. Don't forget that these nations don't really have environmental regulations.

  25. The major difference on The Full Outsourcing Discussion · · Score: 1

    The major different between outsourcing of 80-90s and now is that we outsource KNOWLEDGE. We outsource KNOW-HOW in financial, architectura, back office, etc. The Internet made REDISTRIBUTION of KNOWLEDGE around the world very chip when CREATION is long and costly process. It's very good for a mankind as a whole, but bad for us in States, at least now. No new inventions, no new technology, no re-education help because these skills and knowledge can be wired to everybody too. Including our enemies.