I'm confused. I've been hearing around here that copyright infringement isn't theft or piracy, because the copyright owner doesn't lose access to their property. Now/. is saying that it is just like theft, because making copyrighted files available is just like leaving your door open.
No, a judge said making the files available is theft. Normal sane people without an ax to grind or a bottom line to meet already know better.
Only by completely ignoring the industry will they get desparate and be forced to relax the licenses they have legally chosen to apply to their property.
No, they'll have their paid Congresscritters pass some laws to make up the slack for what they claim they've lost in their industry due to boycotts. Remember the Savings & Loans bailouts? Same thing. The S&Ls overextended, got burned badly, and the Feds stepped in with briefcases of cash to reward the upper management. Talk about failing upwards...
copyright infringers get sued != BitTorrent is an illegal technology
Thing is, they got sued for having KaZaa installed on their computer. It showed what they had laying around, and even if downloads were turned off, RIAA is claiming that since they had the files, and had KaZaa installed, they were therefore evil thieving copyright violating pirates. The judge bought it.
Not surprising, considering the judge is from Arizona, about 500 miles due west of the 20th Century...
What? no, most of the time it kills you. You only get Hulkinization if the test subject is particularly moody and bottles up their emotions. These seemingly contradictory requirements are necessary conditions, though they may not be sufficient.
OK, so there will be no emo-Hulks. Good enough for me.
The purpose of the class-action lawsuit statutes is not to compensate millions of people for small losses, it's to make the cost to corporations high for making small but widespread violations of consumer rights, misleading marketing, etc. Making the cost to corporations higher will encourage them to fix problems rather than just see that it will cost less to stonewall than it would to do the right thing.
Maybe in theory, but every time I read about a class action lawsuit in the papers, it seems designed to generate millions in billable hours for the law firm filing the suit. It seems to be getting to the point where it's all about the billables and less about helping the consumer.
The problem is that not everyone wants to learn everything about every subject. In fact, a lot of people aren't capable of knowing everything about everything; or even everything about a single subject. At some point, we all have to rely on what someone else is telling us. How much we believe such 'experts' is based on many things, including the reputation of and previous behaviour of said person.
That's fine and dandy. But why must kids be forced to learn religion tarted up and presented as 'science' when it ain't no such animal? The only 'design' in Intelligent Design is to get it past the people who'd reject overt religious programming in favor of science.
Of course, most(?) 'religious' people don't just believe in the existence of God, but believe they actually *know* God (to some degree) and have a real relationship with Him. Futhermore, such people consider God to be the most reliable person in their life. If you understand that, then their reluctance to believe perfect strangers is perhaps more understandable.
Personally, I'm agnostic. I don't have a clue if there is a god, where it hangs out at, or what it wants. I also believe everybody else is in the same boat. People who tell me god sits on their shoulders and feed them the answers make me nervous. People who tell me god told them they're special and should be running things make me want to grab a gun and prepare to defend myself from what appears to me to be an extremely dangerous person capable of anything under the cover of god telling them to do it. "Sorry, god told me to kill the president" doesn't cut it as a defense in a courtroom. Why should it cut it on the street?
Yep, I expected this would provoke the inevitable attacks on religious people by that predictable band of/.ers who apparently never think about anything else.
I don't have a problem with religion. I don't even have a problem with teaching religion. Just do it down the hall in the Philosophy department with the rest of the Humanities subjects and leave it the hell out of the science labs.
And keep the more rabid Creationists OUT of the School Boards. That's MY tax money going to waste teaching religion as 'science'.
Thing is, the Creationists forgot to mention that peanut butter is sterilised and sealed to prevent 'new life' from growing in it. It's an evil plot by the Government called the 'Pure Food & Drug Act, not an act of (insert fave invisible personage here). Can you say 'straw man'? ('BOZO!!!') Very good, I KNEW you could!!!!!!!!!
Come on! This is the same State Department and ITAR that banned exportation of strong encryption as being "dangerous to National Security". As a result, the US could not compete in the international marketing of effective encryption, while everybody else could.
Which is why I made it a point to download & compile the International version for my own personal use. I didn't care if the US government thought I was a criminal, I just wanted good strong encryption.
National security issues can put the kibosh on nearly anything. Just ask the amateur rocketry hobbyists about the hoops they have to jump through due to the PATRIOT Act. In a few more years you'll probably be lucky to be able to find chemistry sets with experiments more interesting than mixing vinegar and baking soda.
And when they do start putting out these chemistry sets, so much for the next generation of mad scientists.
I would say with a parts budget of $1K US, I could probably get a simple one (that could fly to a given waypoint) working within a few weeks/months. With $10K, you could make a very capable one -- probably with a range of several hundred km -- which could carry a small payload (a few grams of radioactives go a long way, ya know.)
Considering that a classic 'dirty bomb' (conventional explosives dispersing radioactives) only does surface contamination, they're relatively easy to clean up. http://blog.wired.com/biotech/2007/02/wash_that_di rty.html is one method being developed. From what I've read, they're pretty much a non-issue boogeyman designed to boost the funding of our heroes at Homeland Security.
A few grams of active biologicals, say, some reworked viri, would be a LOT more dangerous than a few grams of random radioactives. Course, they'd be a lot harder to brew up in the bathtub at this time...
I would have modded you up, but then I wouldnt've been able to comment. And I prefer to comment.
Technology is not inherently wrong/evil/whatever. Technology is just technology. And if an Iranian kid finds some peaceful apps for technology, good for him, hope he inspires the hell out of his friends to do the same.
Let's face it, you can use a baseball bat to play baseball. Or, you can use it to beat somebody to a pulp. Going to make baseball illegal cause somebody might pick up a bat and hit somebody? Same principle.
Think the law says once you put it in the garbage, its fair for the police to snoop. So I could see police testing waste water outside your house for drugs legal. Scary thought, as our police happy government would love to take your house.
Gotta love those police siezure sales, where the police's friends get big discounts on some really cool stuff and the sheriff's department gets serious funding to do more siezures. It's SO much easier than applying eminent domain
Well actually adults should be responsible for their decisions. So if they are foolish enough to take them, then the drugs should be provided cheaply and upon a non profit basis (beyond charging tax specifically for rehabilitation purposes for those who request it), subject to of course those people who are under the influence of their drug of choice do not presenting a significant threat of harm to the general public.
Nice in theory, but...
Arizona just passed a law in the last election that took force this January tacking another buck a pack in taxes on cigarettes. The money collected by law was to be earmarked for... Wait for it... Preschool & daycare services for children of illegal migrant workers. Not so much as a penny went toward programs to help smokers quit, munchkin education on the dangers of smoking, et. al. Goes to show, if you can come up with a reasonable-sounding social program you think must be funded, you'll find easier funding by taxing a minority, like they did in Cuyahoga County with the 'sin tax' of 5 cents a bottle on beer to build Jacobs Field and the Gund Arena in Cleveland. To the best of my knowledge, as of 2 years ago, that sin tax was still in effect, no sunsetting.
Another interesting application, if they check further upstream, could be identifying areas containing drug labs. Looking for high concentrations of drugs and various manufacturing by-products in the waste stream could identify neighbourhoods containing labs. I used to be vaguely acquainted with a police forensic chemist who told me that they regularly laughed at some of the amphetamine labs they busted - in some cases, 60%-80% of their yield was going down the drain.
Interesting. So if they're testing for the metabolites, and I happen to eat a pile of Sudafed for my sinuses during cottonwood season (I'm highly allergic to cottonwood pollen, and they grow like weed in this part of Arizona), they'll come knockin on my door with a warrant. Great. They'll come looking for a meth lab & bust me for illegal cigarettes that I buy off the internet cause nobody I know out here stocks my brand...
So if I binge on 20 litres of Coca-Cola one weekend, my house is going to go off the scale on Coca leaf residue and I'm going to get raided?
Dunno the recipe, but Coca-Cola used to claim they didn't make it outta coca leaves anymore. I'm wondering if they had the same kinda backlash as they did when they tried bringing out 'New Coke' some years back...
Or, some of these objects could be formed as a result of collisions. Just Googled Vesta, for instance, and at 525 km, it's pretty big for a projectile thrown clear from an impact:
Vesta is the most geologically diverse of the large asteroids and the only known one with distinctive light and dark areas -- much like the face of our Moon. Hubble images have revealed a diverse world with ancient lava flows and a gigantic impact basin that is so deep, it exposes the asteroid's subsurface, or mantle. Vesta's surface shows a geology similar to that of terrestrial worlds such as Earth and Mars. Ground-based spectroscopy of Vesta indicates regions that are basaltic, which means lava flows once occurred on its surface. This is surprising evidence that the asteroid once had a molten interior, like Earth does. This contradicts conventional ideas that asteroids are essentially cold, rocky fragments left behind from the early days of planetary formation.
Seems to me that if some of these basalt asteroids are chunks left over from a collision, the target of the collision would likely be in bad shape. Could the remainder of the Main Belt asteroids be the pieces of the target? Sign me up to go check 'em out...
...Vanderbilt University reported a work-related injury to the OSHA wherein an employee who is as yet unidentified was seriously injured in his groin. Confidential sources say there was a lot of blood and a violently ripped off body part involved. We await further news on this development.
I bet his thesis advisor now regrets telling him to 'get a grip'...
FTFA, it seems to be more like a high power fuel cell:
Goldfarb's power source is about the size of a pencil and contains a special catalyst that causes hydrogen peroxide to burn produce pure steam which is used to open and close a series of valves.
The valves are connected to the spring-loaded joints by belts made of a special monofilament used in appliance handles and aircraft parts and a small sealed canister of hydrogen peroxide that easily fits in the upper arm can provide enough energy to power the device for 18 hours of normal activity.
Slashdot Mirror
No, a judge said making the files available is theft. Normal sane people without an ax to grind or a bottom line to meet already know better.
No, they'll have their paid Congresscritters pass some laws to make up the slack for what they claim they've lost in their industry due to boycotts. Remember the Savings & Loans bailouts? Same thing. The S&Ls overextended, got burned badly, and the Feds stepped in with briefcases of cash to reward the upper management. Talk about failing upwards...
Thing is, they got sued for having KaZaa installed on their computer. It showed what they had laying around, and even if downloads were turned off, RIAA is claiming that since they had the files, and had KaZaa installed, they were therefore evil thieving copyright violating pirates. The judge bought it.
Not surprising, considering the judge is from Arizona, about 500 miles due west of the 20th Century...
OK, so there will be no emo-Hulks. Good enough for me.
Maybe in theory, but every time I read about a class action lawsuit in the papers, it seems designed to generate millions in billable hours for the law firm filing the suit. It seems to be getting to the point where it's all about the billables and less about helping the consumer.
We seem to come from different universes. Mine's discovered soap & toothpaste, and a life outside the basement...
That's fine and dandy. But why must kids be forced to learn religion tarted up and presented as 'science' when it ain't no such animal? The only 'design' in Intelligent Design is to get it past the people who'd reject overt religious programming in favor of science.
Personally, I'm agnostic. I don't have a clue if there is a god, where it hangs out at, or what it wants. I also believe everybody else is in the same boat. People who tell me god sits on their shoulders and feed them the answers make me nervous. People who tell me god told them they're special and should be running things make me want to grab a gun and prepare to defend myself from what appears to me to be an extremely dangerous person capable of anything under the cover of god telling them to do it. "Sorry, god told me to kill the president" doesn't cut it as a defense in a courtroom. Why should it cut it on the street?
I don't have a problem with religion. I don't even have a problem with teaching religion. Just do it down the hall in the Philosophy department with the rest of the Humanities subjects and leave it the hell out of the science labs.
And keep the more rabid Creationists OUT of the School Boards. That's MY tax money going to waste teaching religion as 'science'.
Thing is, the Creationists forgot to mention that peanut butter is sterilised and sealed to prevent 'new life' from growing in it. It's an evil plot by the Government called the 'Pure Food & Drug Act, not an act of (insert fave invisible personage here). Can you say 'straw man'? ('BOZO!!!') Very good, I KNEW you could!!!!!!!!!
Actually, no he wouldn't. McLuhan talked about the uses of technology. He'd be looking at how people would use this technology.
Do they offer an optional shark DNA upgrade option for that pony?
Which is why I made it a point to download & compile the International version for my own personal use. I didn't care if the US government thought I was a criminal, I just wanted good strong encryption.
And when they do start putting out these chemistry sets, so much for the next generation of mad scientists.
I could care less about baseball. Doesn't bother me in the least if they wanna do 'better ballplay through chemistry'.
Considering that a classic 'dirty bomb' (conventional explosives dispersing radioactives) only does surface contamination, they're relatively easy to clean up. http://blog.wired.com/biotech/2007/02/wash_that_di rty.html is one method being developed. From what I've read, they're pretty much a non-issue boogeyman designed to boost the funding of our heroes at Homeland Security.
A few grams of active biologicals, say, some reworked viri, would be a LOT more dangerous than a few grams of random radioactives. Course, they'd be a lot harder to brew up in the bathtub at this time...
Technology is not inherently wrong/evil/whatever. Technology is just technology. And if an Iranian kid finds some peaceful apps for technology, good for him, hope he inspires the hell out of his friends to do the same.
Let's face it, you can use a baseball bat to play baseball. Or, you can use it to beat somebody to a pulp. Going to make baseball illegal cause somebody might pick up a bat and hit somebody? Same principle.
Get off my lawn!!!!!!!!! Damned kids....
Gotta love those police siezure sales, where the police's friends get big discounts on some really cool stuff and the sheriff's department gets serious funding to do more siezures. It's SO much easier than applying eminent domain
Dude, think it through. That leaves more for US
Nice in theory, but...
Arizona just passed a law in the last election that took force this January tacking another buck a pack in taxes on cigarettes. The money collected by law was to be earmarked for... Wait for it... Preschool & daycare services for children of illegal migrant workers. Not so much as a penny went toward programs to help smokers quit, munchkin education on the dangers of smoking, et. al. Goes to show, if you can come up with a reasonable-sounding social program you think must be funded, you'll find easier funding by taxing a minority, like they did in Cuyahoga County with the 'sin tax' of 5 cents a bottle on beer to build Jacobs Field and the Gund Arena in Cleveland. To the best of my knowledge, as of 2 years ago, that sin tax was still in effect, no sunsetting.
Interesting. So if they're testing for the metabolites, and I happen to eat a pile of Sudafed for my sinuses during cottonwood season (I'm highly allergic to cottonwood pollen, and they grow like weed in this part of Arizona), they'll come knockin on my door with a warrant. Great. They'll come looking for a meth lab & bust me for illegal cigarettes that I buy off the internet cause nobody I know out here stocks my brand...
Dunno the recipe, but Coca-Cola used to claim they didn't make it outta coca leaves anymore. I'm wondering if they had the same kinda backlash as they did when they tried bringing out 'New Coke' some years back...
Seems to me that if some of these basalt asteroids are chunks left over from a collision, the target of the collision would likely be in bad shape. Could the remainder of the Main Belt asteroids be the pieces of the target? Sign me up to go check 'em out...
I bet his thesis advisor now regrets telling him to 'get a grip'...
Sounds like a super fuel cell to me...