One of the types of scientists that is not there is a microbiologist.
They say that things only blow up when people are around. I wonder if things blow in the presence of people in air-tight suits, so their breath isn't reaching the combusting device. What if humans unknowingly provide a critical catalyst to the process? They should look for deposits of a microbe on the insulation.
We already know that microbes exist that eat plastic....
I don't know if it's been discussed on Slashdot, but I think it was about a year ago when the issue was in the headlines. The voice I remember from the fray was a moderate one. He did the math, and determined that the amount and spread of radiation that would return to Earth would actually be a fraction of that which occurs naturally.
Sorry I don't remember the source or context better...
I work in banking, too. Please note that you need only look as far as the savings and loan industry (12 years ago) to see what happens when the government is not sufficiently involved (and oh, yeah - ENRON and WorldCom). If you really think GLB is just about sending a privacy notice to your customers once a year, you should look here to see the other ways the government wants you to protect your customers' assets.
I personally have a lot of faith in the people around me, and in the people at the top of my institution. But even when good prople are working hard for safety and privacy, profit motive and merely the need to survive is a strong force in the opposite direction. The support of laws like GLB is appreciated by those in the intustry who want to be sure they do their jobs right.
Sure. Patch that code. Maybe a higher percentage of power companies will apply these patches than apply Microsoft patches. Next summer, another blackout will be caused by a different bug, 148,234 lines away and just as hidden.
The way to prevent a recurrence is to set up a system that moonitors the monitors. Every few seconds, it contacts each of the critical monitoring PCs, asking them to do a health-check. When one PC doesn't respond, a screen goes red (and maybe makes a sound). Additionally, this central monitor system puts the time of the last successful survey up in big letters on the screen. Power company personnel will find out within a few seconds that something is wrong.
Hey! G.E.! Are you listening?!
It doesn't matter what a researcher believes, as long as they test their hypothesis scientifically. Two things are required for success in the search for the truth: One - you can recognize the truth when you find it; and Two - someone else can verify it.
I skipped to here from the second posting down. Maybe we can get Lego to create Boson and Fermion Legos. If there was one to match each subatomic particle, would it help us understand how they all work together? And more important, what colors would they be?
I noticed that the article came from Houston. Thats Texas, right? Isn't that the state who's economy would go in the toilet if we convered Kansas with wind turbines and drove electric vehicles?
Slashdot Mirror
One of the types of scientists that is not there is a microbiologist.
They say that things only blow up when people are around. I wonder if things blow in the presence of people in air-tight suits, so their breath isn't reaching the combusting device. What if humans unknowingly provide a critical catalyst to the process? They should look for deposits of a microbe on the insulation.
We already know that microbes exist that eat plastic....
I don't know if it's been discussed on Slashdot, but I think it was about a year ago when the issue was in the headlines. The voice I remember from the fray was a moderate one. He did the math, and determined that the amount and spread of radiation that would return to Earth would actually be a fraction of that which occurs naturally.
Sorry I don't remember the source or context better...
I work in banking, too. Please note that you need only look as far as the savings and loan industry (12 years ago) to see what happens when the government is not sufficiently involved (and oh, yeah - ENRON and WorldCom). If you really think GLB is just about sending a privacy notice to your customers once a year, you should look here to see the other ways the government wants you to protect your customers' assets.
I personally have a lot of faith in the people around me, and in the people at the top of my institution. But even when good prople are working hard for safety and privacy, profit motive and merely the need to survive is a strong force in the opposite direction. The support of laws like GLB is appreciated by those in the intustry who want to be sure they do their jobs right.
"I believe that if Shakespeare were alive today, he'd be working in Hollywood..."
How do you know he's not?
It looks great, but for a PC technician, I hope they make one with a philips blade rather than scissors.
Oops, I hit submit when I should'a hit preview.
Mentally start new paragraphs at "The Way..." and "Hey...".
Also, note that I meant "monitors", not "moonitors", though moonitors could mean: "monitoring with attitude"...
Sure. Patch that code. Maybe a higher percentage of power companies will apply these patches than apply Microsoft patches. Next summer, another blackout will be caused by a different bug, 148,234 lines away and just as hidden. The way to prevent a recurrence is to set up a system that moonitors the monitors. Every few seconds, it contacts each of the critical monitoring PCs, asking them to do a health-check. When one PC doesn't respond, a screen goes red (and maybe makes a sound). Additionally, this central monitor system puts the time of the last successful survey up in big letters on the screen. Power company personnel will find out within a few seconds that something is wrong. Hey! G.E.! Are you listening?!
It doesn't matter what a researcher believes, as long as they test their hypothesis scientifically. Two things are required for success in the search for the truth: One - you can recognize the truth when you find it; and Two - someone else can verify it.
I skipped to here from the second posting down. Maybe we can get Lego to create Boson and Fermion Legos. If there was one to match each subatomic particle, would it help us understand how they all work together? And more important, what colors would they be?
I noticed that the article came from Houston. Thats Texas, right? Isn't that the state who's economy would go in the toilet if we convered Kansas with wind turbines and drove electric vehicles?
I had to say it, and I'm surprised no one said it already. I was warned to post this anonymously...
Subtle closing sentence. Keep it up.