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User: CubicleView

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Comments · 438

  1. Re:pebble? on Ask Slashdot: Wrist Watch For the Tech Minded · · Score: 1

    The cynic is me actually assumes that this "AskSlashdot" is just blatant fishing to drum up yet more interest in the pebble. I quite like the idea of the pebble though, so hopefully the cynic in me is wrong.

  2. Re:Not all Patents are the Same on Ask Slashdot: What If Intellectual Property Expired After Five Years? · · Score: 2

    I misread that and started wondering then why reduced patent length would lead to reduced patient life expectancy. Then I wondered why pharmaceutical companies would have patients at all. After re-reading it, I'm a little upset that I misread and got patients expire but bad patents came through ok. I guess I'm not used to reading about patents expiring :(

  3. Re:Adscend Media wasn't spamming on Facebook Spammers Make $20M, Get $100K Fine · · Score: 1
    Nice try, from a quick search online (I used your favourite search engine Google btw) it seems that Adscend was also accused of supplying the code and templates required for the scam to the "affiliates". Bit of a stretch to say that's the same as AdSense

    "Defendants create and provide their affiliates with technology that is designed to deceive Facebook users into visiting websites that pay defendants for the referral traffic. Defendants encourage and pay their affiliates to create Facebook pages that are titled and designed to 'bait' users into visiting other websites,"

  4. Re:And who were the attackers? on DHS Asked Gas Pipeline Firms To Let Attackers Lurk Inside Networks · · Score: 2
    Zero as far as I'm aware. The parent is definitely incorrect because of the requirement for the meteorite to hit you on the head.

    When you don't specify a time span, or the direct cause of death it gets more complicated. I've read a lot of conflicting numbers, but on a given day a person might easily be more at risk from terrorist attack, since there may be more data available to support that possibility. In the future the reverse could be true since we likely will have the means to know with certainty if there is risk from an asteroid in the near future. Over a hundred years and assuming no future ability to deflect asteroids, the risk is widely reported to be at least in excess of 1 in 200,000 for asteroid impact and 1/1300 for terrorist attack. I imagine the terrorist attack figure could be lowered or raised significantly using specific data on the person, place of work, place of birth etc.

  5. Re:Annuals on Electric Airplane Ready For Production · · Score: 1

    I'm not arguing about the reduced efficiency of the plane due the constant weight, I agree with what you’re saying. My point is that I don't think fatigue will be especially worse for, and hence a hidden cost of the hybrid design. It's a relatively small plane to begin with and the weight of the batteries must have been factored in by the designers.

  6. Re:Annuals on Electric Airplane Ready For Production · · Score: 1

    My guess would be that the increased fatigue would not be hugely significant as the plane would be specifically designed with that in mind. It's different to the situation with say a 747 that has to land with a full fuel tank. If I recall correctly they generally require an inspection of some sort after a hard landing like that because they're not supposed to be landing with all that extra weight. Though I'm basing this on comments I heard from an instructor more than 15 years ago...

  7. Re:Annuals on Electric Airplane Ready For Production · · Score: 2
    The plane travels at up to 150 mph, using very rough back of the envelope that's about $60 an hour for the gas figure or $15 for electricity. Assuming three 2 hour flights per month for no other reason than it seems a small amount, that’s 72 hours a year. This gives $4320 for gas versus $1080. for electricity

    It seems to me that fuel cost is a significant percent of the overall cost per year. However as others have mentioned if you can afford the half million for the plane, saving money on fuel isn’t likely your motivation. Plus I imagine this $20 for 200 miles figure doesn’t factor in battery replacement costs etc.

  8. Re:I've never sold a working harddrive in my life on Study Finds 1 in 10 Used Hard Drives Contains Old Personal Data · · Score: 1

    Interesting but not really necessary for me. The point of my joke/ completely truthful comment is that I've never owned an SSD and I've never sold a HDD. I have owned several 10 gig etc worthless (to me) harddrives which I've, without exception, torn to bits to get at the magical rare earth toys they contained. Oh and word to the wise, wear eye protection when unwrapping your magnets, those platters can shatter.

  9. Re:Vehicle Use? on MIT Researchers Invent 'Super Glass' · · Score: 1

    No idea if it's that easy, but when testing your windshield design, please take the time to consider if pedestrians and cyclists will just bounce right off as well.

  10. I've never sold a working harddrive in my life on Study Finds 1 in 10 Used Hard Drives Contains Old Personal Data · · Score: 2

    And won't until this worrying trend of not including magnets in hard drives catches up to me.

  11. Re:solar panels on MIT Researchers Invent 'Super Glass' · · Score: 2

    I think it's reasonable to assume that worldwide a number of window washers die on the job each year. I would hazard a guess that it would be a statistically significant amount considering the dangers inherent in swinging about on a rope several stories up with a bucket of sudsy water. But I really rather doubt it was much of a motivation for the scientists in MIT.

  12. Re:I can see it now... on MIT Researchers Invent 'Super Glass' · · Score: 5, Funny

    They might think they've made a breakthrough with this crystal clear non reflecting glass, but I just don't see it.

  13. Random unlikely stuff that springs to mind on NASA Looking For Ideas To Explore Mars · · Score: 0
    Probably nothing at all to do with what NASA wants but my list is as follows

    1. Smash a large asteroid into Mars (mostly just for the hell of it). I've read lots of articles on how to deflect them away from earth, it should be doable to find one to push into Mars. They could have something in orbit to look at the dust cloud and then drop a rover as close as possible to ground zero.

    2. Expensive to be sure, but if they put about 2 or so small satalites in geo orbit around mars (simples) and a third or more in an eliptical orbit, some sort of crude intermitant localised positioning system could be realised . Maybe the low orbit one is redundant and 2 in GEO would be enough to aproimate a position, I dunno.

    3. A single satalite in geo orbit could be used to light up a path using overlapping radio signals. Signals would be divided into bands, signal 1hits everthing in line of sight of the satalite, signal 2 has a tighter focus etc etc. detecting signals over time could be used to approximate position. (probably with a practical accuracy of somewhere on MARS)

    4. Harry potter can just transport stuff from Mars back to a vacuum chamber here on Earth.

  14. Re:Step by step. on NASA Looking For Ideas To Explore Mars · · Score: 1

    I'm surprised no one thought to invent "modular automated sytems" that can build stuff. Might be a bit tricky to build the first one but you'd be set after that. I'd say they'd even have uses outside of the space industry. Slightly off topic but does anyone know how to type a rolling eyes emoticon?

  15. Re:What happens when a car stands still on them? on Using Non-Newtonian Fluids To Fill Potholes · · Score: 1
  16. Re:Mouse != Human on Drug Turns Immune System Against All Tumor Types · · Score: 5, Funny

    I have a theory that with enough research we’ll eventually be able cure any disease that mice are afflicted with.

  17. Re:Warm LEDs [Re:It only took a century] on ESL — a CRT-Based Replacement For CFL Lights Without the Mercury · · Score: 1

    Different != funky. Without any particular detailed knowledge of all this, the warm light from an incandescent is still warm after it scatters of whatever I'm looking at. The LED light that I've seen seems fake and reflects much colder colors which IMO look "funky", presumably the light is made up of fewer frequencies. I'm not aware if there are any new LEDs that solove this problem, It's most cheap ass ones I see in use.

  18. Re:Easy fix? on TSA 'Warning' Media About Reporting On Body Scanner Failures? · · Score: 1
    A friend of mine sent a large swiss army knift though the x-ray scanner, I myself have more than once sent a 2 inch leather man squirt through an x-ray scanner. I think we lucked out maybe because both objects were folded up and not 100% an obvious knife shape. I could be wrong but I would imagine a short thin knife blade on its edge, like a hacksaw blade with no handle would probably pass through an x-ray scanner just fine. My theory is that it would just be a thin line on the scanner. If I rememebr correctly Jamie from Mythbusters apparently got through a metal detector and maybe a pat down with hacksaw blades in a side pocket.

    Can't imagine how you got away with all that other stuff though, or why you would have them in your carry on...but that's your own business I guess.

  19. Re:Easy fix? on TSA 'Warning' Media About Reporting On Body Scanner Failures? · · Score: 1

    I guess you could get people to stand at a 45 degree offset to the normal. with the legs spread in a bit of a lunge pose...and actually build a metal detector into the thing as well...and randomly select weather they're to face 45 degrees to the right or left...or just scrap the damned thing.

  20. Re:I don't see the problem. on What To Do About an Asteroid That Has a 1 In 625 Chance of Hitting Us In 2040? · · Score: 1

    Well most people would only see the estimted 50 metre wave, I think the people close enough to see the 1000 metre wave wouldn't have time to go insane. (f**k me though, just thinking about what it would be like to be in a boat a "safe" distance from impact...) Oh and the 1000 metre bit is just an esitimate (on wiki of course) and is based only on the island collapsing into the water, not the island collapsing because of a huge meteorite impact. I would expect the estimate to be revised upwards in this unlikely senario.

  21. Re:I don't see the problem. on What To Do About an Asteroid That Has a 1 In 625 Chance of Hitting Us In 2040? · · Score: 1

    Or it could land harmlessly on some island somewhere I suppose http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Megatsunami#Canary_Islands

  22. Re:Apparently these guys never watched any Star Tr on Warp Drives May Come With a Killer Downside · · Score: 1

    My guess would be that the fictional deflector array would deflect all the photons and radiation and such along the way, never allowing them to build up in the first place. It's main function would still be to protect the crew, the side effect would be to protect the destination.

  23. Re:Sane choice on Khan Academy Chooses JavaScript As Intro Language · · Score: 1

    I grok the hell out of those multi-threaded issues... we're talking about /.'s layout yeah?

  24. Re:Wind, solar on The Specter of Gasoline At $5 a Gallon · · Score: 1

    I don’t think it’s really an either or situation, oil prices will rise eventually regardless of the efficiency of the products. If it was an either or situation, then politically, the former is guaranteed to “succeed” for various definitions of success, the later is not.

  25. Re:Counterpoint on Obayashi To Build Space Elevator By 2050 · · Score: 1

    Yup that does make a lot more sense. I don't know if it's practical but I still like the idea of lowering the cable in strands from the station. I guess you'd have to raise the counterweight in stages as more strands were added to the cable.