Linking ideas with the world
Two-thirds of millionaires left Britain to avoid 50p tax rate – Telegraph. This has cost the UK GBP7 billion. They have repealed the laws, but the millionaires are not coming back much.
It will be a crime not to. Dutch gov't: suspects must decrypt computers.
This article has links to how the US uses simulators and what their capabilities are. They talk about training for UAV’s, the network centric way in which they’re trying to link up simulators globally, how they’re used to train for large force employments, using them to practice 4 ship formations and of course, the limitations Read more about How far can simulations go versus live flying?[…]
Spanish scientists design a revolutionary data storage device.
Exogenous variation comes from the unexpected shutdown of the popular file hosting platform Megaupload.com on January 19, 2012. The estimation strategy is based on a quasi difference-in-differences approach. We compare box office revenues before and after the shutdown to a matched control group of movies unaffected by the shutdown. We find that the shutdown had Read more about Piracy and Movie Revenues: Box office sales went down after they closed MegaUpload[…]
Evidence has emerged showing the Department of Homeland Security served a search warrant on Mr Dotcom’s file-sharing company Megaupload in 2010 which he claims forced it to preserve pirated movies found in an unrelated piracy investigation. The 39 files were identified during an investigation into the NinjaVideo website, which had used Megaupload’s cloud storage to Read more about Megaupload framed by FBI claims Kim Dotcom[…]
And all the experts were saying it would be years before they could do anything with it when it was delivered to the Navy on September 25th. It looks like the Chinese are serious about putting it in operation as soon as they possibly can. China Lands First Jet on Its Aircraft Carrier | Military.com.
Deckard Sorenson has found a way to coat a surface with hydrophilic and hydrophobic coatings, and then uses a fan to pass air over the surface. The water condenses on the surface and, eventually, Sorenson has created a self-filling water bottle. Scientist takes inspiration from natural world to create self-filling water bottle | PRI.ORG.
One of the problems DTN fixes is queueing transmissions, as transmitting to mars at the speed of light incurs an 8 second delay. NASA fires-up experimental space Internet for robot control.
A customer trying to set up his Razer Naga 2012 mouse couldn’t because he had to register with Razer before he could change the settings. The Razer servers were down because of hurricane Sandy. Why on earth would he need to connect to Razer at all to set up his mouse?! “Why the hell does Read more about Razer mice need the internet to work?![…]
Incredibly the US has managed to let Apple patent this shape. The prior art is allready there for tablets, but couldn’t someone have just shown the patent examiners a table top? Apple is granted a patent on the rectangle. No, really • The Register.
The CIA is not in the habit of discussing its clandestine operations, but the agency’s purpose is clear enough. As then-chief James Woolsey said in a 1994 speech to former intelligence operatives: “What we really exist for is stealing secrets.” Indeed, the agency declined to comment for this article, but over the course of more Read more about An insight into CIA burglary[…]
Homomorphic encryption is where one party (Alice) encrypts data and passes it to another (Bob) with an encrypted key. This means that Bob can’t read the data, but can perform computations on it, and pass the encrypted results (which Bob can’t read) to Alice, so that she can decrypt it with her key. This is Read more about A good explanation of homomorphic encryption[…]
IFA or IDFA stands for “identifier for advertisers.” It’s a random, anonymous number that is assigned to a user and their device. It is temporary and can be blocked, like a cookie. When you look at an app, or browse the web, your presence generates a call for an ad. The publisher’s site that you’re Read more about Apple’s iPhone Tracking you again In iOS 6[…]
Chris Roberts is coming out with a whole universe – EVE Online, but FPS / in cockpit. It’s called Star Citizen. There’s a game within a game: Squadron 42. That’s where you enroll in the military and fly around in space. Awesome gameplay videos in the links. Here’s an Extended Cut of That Dazzling Squadron Read more about Chris Roberts: Star Citizen / Squadron 42[…]
University of Adelaide applied mathematicians have extended Einstein’s theory of special relativity to work beyond the speed of light. Einstein’s theory holds that nothing could move faster than the speed of light, but Professor Jim Hill and Dr Barry Cox in the University’s School of Mathematical Sciences have developed new formulas that allow for travel Read more about Beyond light speed – possible in theory using special relativity[…]
By comparing the specimens’ ages and degrees of DNA degradation, the researchers calculated that DNA has a half-life of 521 years. That means that after 521 years, half of the bonds between nucleotides in the backbone of a sample would have broken; after another 521 years half of the remaining bonds would have gone; and Read more about DNA has a 521-year half-life – so no cloning dinosaurs[…]
In Technology Wars, Using the Patent as a Sword – NYTimes.com.
the metal-tolerant bacteria Cupriavidus metallidurans can grow on massive concentrations of gold chloride — or liquid gold, a toxic chemical compound found in nature. Brown and Kashefi fed the bacteria unprecedented amounts of gold chloride, mimicking the process they believe happens in nature. In about a week, the bacteria transformed the toxins and produced a Read more about Alchemy! Superman-strength bacteria produce 24-karat gold[…]
The researchers realized that apparently identical graphics processors are actually different in subtle, unforgeable ways. A piece of software developed by the researchers is capable of discerning these fine differences. The order of magnitude of these differences is so minute, in fact, that manufacturing equipment is incapable of manipulating or replicating them. Thus, the fine-grained Read more about Authentication Implications in Uniquely Identifiable Graphics Cards | threatpost[…]
This allows you to share (a part of) your computer screen easily and without an account or installing any software. Free Screen Sharing and Online Meeting Software | Screenleap.
Yes, wearing a helmet will protect you some if you fall at certain speeds, but those accidents are very rare. If you feel that strongly about it, you should wear one when climbing a ladder and whilst taking a bath. But because people wear helmets on bikes, it makes it look like biking is a Read more about To Encourage Biking, Lose the Helmets[…]
A group of aeromedical specialists saw problems with the oxygenation of pilots in the F-22 and came up with a package of fixes for it. The fix per aircraft would have been $100,000 but the costs were deemed too high and the group was disbanded in 2007. Air Force Insiders Foresaw F-22 Woes | Military.com.
They’ve put him on the same status as Al Quaida, so who knows, will they try to assassinate him? And if US personell try to talk to Wikileaks employees, they’re spies and will be shot (I guess). US calls Assange 'enemy of state'.
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