Article is a dupe...articles covering E-Ink's advances can be found here, here, here, and here.
I'm as excited about electronic paper as the next geek, but this story has no information we haven't already covered in the last four electronic paper stories. 'News for nerds', indeed.
Yes, it is true, but without knowing the motives of the submitter in banning access to the U.S., it's as erroneous to dismiss the issue as it is to execute the standard Slashdot knee-jerk reaction to censorship.
Article is a dupe...original discussion can be found here, which amusingly enough, is itself a dupe of this discussion. Even more amusing is the fact that all of these submissions share the same editor.
Way to go, Cliff...a dupe hat trick. Zonk has nothing on you.
Not necessarily. There are plenty of "reasons" to go online that aren't work-related.
Slashdot, for example, comes to mind (although I've defended my surfing habits at work more than once by claiming Slashdot as a "tech resource"... ^_^).
"Reasons" may be as trivial as checking the weather page or looking up that actor whose name you forgot on IMDB, but they still qualify as "reasons".
Cane toads (Bufo marinus) were first brought in from Hawaii in 1935 to control the spread of beetles that were ravaging Australia's sugar cane crop.
Cane toads have been a problem in Australia for a very long time now....this is hardly news.
So why is this a news story? From the TITLE of TFA:
Toxic Toads Evolve Long Legs and Take Over Australia
And from TFA:
When the toads arrived, the researchers found that those in the vanguard of the invasion had legs that were up to 6 percent longer than average; shorter-legged stragglers followed. The study showed that newer populations of toads tended to have longer legs than those in long-established populations.
This is the actual 'news', not the summary's title. Given the FIRST sentence from TFA:
Toxic toads bound across the northern tropics of Australia faster than ever, thanks to the evolution of longer legs in the few short decades since humans introduced them to their own little paradise.
...it's bewildering how the submitter could have misinterpreted the article so badly, and mystifying how the editor failed completely to catch the misinterpretation.
It's a shame that such an interesting story is derailed like this before it even gets started...the editors really do need to start reading submissions.
What is love? Baby don't hurt me Don't hurt me, no more
Haddaway, What Is Love
Oh oh catch that buzz Love is the drug I'm thinking of Oh oh can't you see Love is the drug for me
Brian Ferry, Love Is The Drug
From TFA:
Romantic love is not only an emotion, it's a basic mating drive, and it's stronger than the sex drive.
Since the odds of survival for a human child with two parents is (or at least was) much higher than the odds of a single-parent child, it shouldn't be surprising that humans have a strong drive to forge lasting relationships. Natural selection in action, and all that.
To enable the computer-to-computer search function, a user specifies what information should be indexed and then agrees to allow Google to transfer the material to its own storage system. Google plans to encrypt all data transferred from users' hard drives and restrict access to just a handful of its employees.
Why exactly do any of Google's employees need access to this information? Why can't the content be encrypted by the user via an asymmetric key scheme (like PGP) and decrypted again once it's reached the target system?
I'm really not seeing the necessity for Google to have any access at all to users' information...am I missing something?
Outrage and disgust swept through the community today as the Council of Elders confirmed the rumours that one of the mechanized invaders from the sinister blue planet third from our star has defiled one of our holiest landmarks.
Recently declassified vision-waves from the elite team of warriors dispatched to track the invader's progress clearly shows the horrible automaton stretching out its spindly claw towards the Tracks Of The Founder, a most sacred site for G'loshnaks and Z'treems alike.
K'Breel, Speaker for the Council, stressed yet again that there was no cause for alarm:
"I assure you, this assault upon our holy sites will not go unpunished. For descrecrating the most holy Tracks Of The Founder, a site that no one is even permitted to look upon, the disgusting inhabitants of the Evil Blue Planet have forefited any possibility of mercy. The brave warriors who reported this outrage are even now ritualistically puncturing their gelsacs for inadvertently gazing upon the holy site, and their ichor will not spill in vain!"
When asked if citizens who viewed the sacrilige via the declassified vision-wave would also be required to satisfy the honor of the Founder by ritualistic gelsac puncture, K'breel replied,
"No, the Council of Elders has decreed that a light scourging will suffice. If you have witnessed this horrible act via the declassified vision-wave, please report to your nearest purification center immediately.
Rather, the most immediate application may come in the form of a battery-operated, portable neutron generator. Such a device could be used to detect explosives or to scan luggage at airports, and it could also be an important tool for a wide range of laboratory experiments.
I'm surprised that the article didn't go into more depth on the explosives detection angle, as a neutron generator is an excellent method for detecting fissionable material, and I'm sure the folks over at Homeland Security would like a better way to guard against nuclear devices being smuggled into our country.
For more info on neutron generators and their possible application in fissionable materials detection, please look here (PDF warning).
I also did a lot of work on the TRS-80 when I was in junior high (yikes...just dated myself there). I put in a lot of late days and managed to write a few cheesy games (press play on tape:P). But the first computer I actually owned was the Commodore 64 (in bold because it was awesome).
(BTW, don't try to chat on IRC with a 300 baud modem and a 40-character-wide screen. It causes brain damage.)
The title of TFA reads, "Professor Challenges Evolution", when in fact he is doing nothing of the sort.
From TFA:
Schwartz refuted Darwin's theory of gradual evolution in organisms with one that states that evolution occurs quickly and suddenly as the result of cell mutations.
While Schwartz is challenging a specific premise of evolutionary doctrine, he is by no means refuting the entire theory. Apparently, Nan Ama Sarfo felt the story would be read more if it appeared to jump on the anti-evolution ID bandwagon.
Interesting concept, but I was under the impression that Microsoft wouldn't be giving up these patent disputes without a fight...and the 800-lb gorilla that is Microsoft can manage to tie the case up in court for years, and effectively starve out a lot of litigants.
It Company A & B have enough clout to actually fight Microsoft, let alone seriously entertain notions of prevailing in said conflict, they'd probably do better to just cut out the intermediate steps and buy their island now.
Unless you're a patent holder or an attorney, chances are you're getting pretty sick of all the IP lawsuits lately. Given this, it's easy to applaud Microsoft for throwing their considerable weight behind device makers that run Windows, but we have to remember that Microsoft is a company, and companies simply do not engage in altruism for its own sake. Microsoft has a motive for this decision, and the following passage from TFA sums it up beautifully:
Microsoft's expanded indemnity for device makers also positions Windows more favorably in the market against Linux and other embedded operating systems, Kaefer [Microsoft's director of business development for IP and licensing] says.
So we'll get some relief from the patent nazis, but we'll pay for that relief with Linux being a reduced presence in the embedded OS market. It's a trade-off I'm not sure I'm entirely comfortable with.
If the FTC gathers evidence of a crime, it can - and does - launch prosecutions. Last month two companies were ordered to hand back more than $2m (£1.14m) garnered through selling fake anti-spyware products.
More information regarding those settlements can be found here.
Proponents of this initiative boast that other data mining systems, such as Starlight, have already proven their worth in the fight against terrorism. However, given the fact that the current administration knew full well that Osama bin Laden intended to use hijacked airliners as missiles in a terrorist strike, but chose not to act, and that the CIA managed to uncover this information without a wholesale violation of the privacy of American citizens, I really can't see the justification here.
Why exactly does the Bush administration need such vast amounts of information to conduct their 'war on terror'? And why were they unable to use the perfectly good intel they did possess to thwart the worst terrorist attack ever on American soil?
One thing's for sure...it doesn't really matter whether the people OK this initiative or not, as Dubya & Company have amply demonstrated a complete contempt for the law of the land.
Slashdot Mirror
Some of his other game idea posts include Oval Office, a president sim
I've already played that game.
It's very realistic...depressingly so.
Article is a dupe...articles covering E-Ink's advances can be found here, here, here, and here.
I'm as excited about electronic paper as the next geek, but this story has no information we haven't already covered in the last four electronic paper stories. 'News for nerds', indeed.
*RING*
Jobs: Hello?
Gates: BWAHAHAHAHA! PWNED!!!!
Jobs: Goddamnit, Bill, I told you to stop calling!
Yes, it is true, but without knowing the motives of the submitter in banning access to the U.S., it's as erroneous to dismiss the issue as it is to execute the standard Slashdot knee-jerk reaction to censorship.
What other war footage aren't Americans allowed to see, and what are the links to it?
There's only one other I'm aware of at this time, but I'm looking too.
For interested Americans, the 'big boom' video censored by Google may be viewed here.
Ahh...I can see it now...
Article is a dupe...original discussion can be found here, which amusingly enough, is itself a dupe of this discussion. Even more amusing is the fact that all of these submissions share the same editor.
Way to go, Cliff...a dupe hat trick. Zonk has nothing on you.
Not necessarily. There are plenty of "reasons" to go online that aren't work-related.
Slashdot, for example, comes to mind (although I've defended my surfing habits at work more than once by claiming Slashdot as a "tech resource"... ^_^).
"Reasons" may be as trivial as checking the weather page or looking up that actor whose name you forgot on IMDB, but they still qualify as "reasons".
From TFA: Cane toads have been a problem in Australia for a very long time now....this is hardly news.
So why is this a news story? From the TITLE of TFA: And from TFA: This is the actual 'news', not the summary's title. Given the FIRST sentence from TFA:
It's a shame that such an interesting story is derailed like this before it even gets started...the editors really do need to start reading submissions.
From TFA:Since the odds of survival for a human child with two parents is (or at least was) much higher than the odds of a single-parent child, it shouldn't be surprising that humans have a strong drive to forge lasting relationships. Natural selection in action, and all that.
From TFA: Why exactly do any of Google's employees need access to this information? Why can't the content be encrypted by the user via an asymmetric key scheme (like PGP) and decrypted again once it's reached the target system?
I'm really not seeing the necessity for Google to have any access at all to users' information...am I missing something?
Gatta start watchin Intel's sucker punches.
You mean you're only beginning to watch now?
This is just the latest round in Intel's ongoing anti-competetive war against AMD.
Outrage and disgust swept through the community today as the Council of Elders confirmed the rumours that one of the mechanized invaders from the sinister blue planet third from our star has defiled one of our holiest landmarks.
Recently declassified vision-waves from the elite team of warriors dispatched to track the invader's progress clearly shows the horrible automaton stretching out its spindly claw towards the Tracks Of The Founder, a most sacred site for G'loshnaks and Z'treems alike.
K'Breel, Speaker for the Council, stressed yet again that there was no cause for alarm:When asked if citizens who viewed the sacrilige via the declassified vision-wave would also be required to satisfy the honor of the Founder by ritualistic gelsac puncture, K'breel replied,
From TFA: I'm surprised that the article didn't go into more depth on the explosives detection angle, as a neutron generator is an excellent method for detecting fissionable material, and I'm sure the folks over at Homeland Security would like a better way to guard against nuclear devices being smuggled into our country.
For more info on neutron generators and their possible application in fissionable materials detection, please look here (PDF warning).
I'm with you there...that game was incredible, but I never managed to finish it.
BTW, here's a little something for nostalgia's sake.
My absolute fav game, however, was Paradroid. Completely fscking brilliant.I highly recommend the port available on Sourceforge...extremely well done.
I also did a lot of work on the TRS-80 when I was in junior high (yikes...just dated myself there). I put in a lot of late days and managed to write a few cheesy games (press play on tape
(BTW, don't try to chat on IRC with a 300 baud modem and a 40-character-wide screen. It causes brain damage.)
Sadly, Slashdot readers have known this for years.
Kids, this is why it's so important to properly use your <sarcasm> tags and your emoticons!
The title of TFA reads, "Professor Challenges Evolution", when in fact he is doing nothing of the sort.
From TFA:While Schwartz is challenging a specific premise of evolutionary doctrine, he is by no means refuting the entire theory. Apparently, Nan Ama Sarfo felt the story would be read more if it appeared to jump on the anti-evolution ID bandwagon.
Shame on you, Nan.
Interesting concept, but I was under the impression that Microsoft wouldn't be giving up these patent disputes without a fight...and the 800-lb gorilla that is Microsoft can manage to tie the case up in court for years, and effectively starve out a lot of litigants.
It Company A & B have enough clout to actually fight Microsoft, let alone seriously entertain notions of prevailing in said conflict, they'd probably do better to just cut out the intermediate steps and buy their island now.
Unless you're a patent holder or an attorney, chances are you're getting pretty sick of all the IP lawsuits lately. Given this, it's easy to applaud Microsoft for throwing their considerable weight behind device makers that run Windows, but we have to remember that Microsoft is a company, and companies simply do not engage in altruism for its own sake. Microsoft has a motive for this decision, and the following passage from TFA sums it up beautifully:So we'll get some relief from the patent nazis, but we'll pay for that relief with Linux being a reduced presence in the embedded OS market. It's a trade-off I'm not sure I'm entirely comfortable with.
Some information on Dirac can be found here and here (PDF warning).
From TFA: More information regarding those settlements can be found here.
Proponents of this initiative boast that other data mining systems, such as Starlight, have already proven their worth in the fight against terrorism. However, given the fact that the current administration knew full well that Osama bin Laden intended to use hijacked airliners as missiles in a terrorist strike, but chose not to act, and that the CIA managed to uncover this information without a wholesale violation of the privacy of American citizens, I really can't see the justification here.
Why exactly does the Bush administration need such vast amounts of information to conduct their 'war on terror'? And why were they unable to use the perfectly good intel they did possess to thwart the worst terrorist attack ever on American soil?
One thing's for sure...it doesn't really matter whether the people OK this initiative or not, as Dubya & Company have amply demonstrated a complete contempt for the law of the land.
The increasing availability and ease of access of information is making it increasingly difficult to get away with lying.
Good news for the people, bad news for governments.
On a related note, that same increasing availability is starting to render traditional news outlets obselete. No wonder they're so upset.