at 4,268px × 5,690px it’s a huge starship guide featuring hundreds of spacecraft to scale.
Size Comparison – Science Fiction Spaceships by DirkLoechel on deviantART.
Science Fiction Spaceships Size Comparison poster
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Lockheed Martin Conducts Flight Tests Of Aircraft Laser Turret
Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT], in partnership with the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) and the University of Notre Dame, has demonstrated the airworthiness of a new beam control turret being developed for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and AFRL to give 360-degree coverage for high-energy laser weapons operating on military aircraft. A research aircraft equipped with the Aero-adaptive Aero-optic Beam Control (ABC) turret conducted eight flights in Michigan.
The big thing here is that they’ve mounted it on a small business jet instead of the previous incarnation, which was a Boeing 747. What isn’t mentioned though, is the power of the laser – can it knock out ICBMs and aircraft? Smaller missles? What is the recharge time between firings and how long can the laser fire? Are we at the point where dogfighting is truly becoming obsolete?
Open-Source Syringe Pump Library
A syringe pump was designed using freely available open-source computer aided design (CAD) software and manufactured using an open-source RepRap 3-D printer and readily available parts. The design, bill of materials and assembly instructions are globally available to anyone wishing to use them. Details are provided covering the use of the CAD software and the RepRap 3-D printer.
via PLOS ONE: Open-Source Syringe Pump Library.
These will save doctors loads of money over commercially available equipment.
OWASP Web app Testing Guide v4 released
This project’s goal is to create a "best practices" web application penetration testing framework which users can implement in their own organizations and a "low level" web application penetration testing guide that describes how to find certain issues.
via OWASP Testing Project – OWASP.
3D print your own Smartphone Microscope for $1,-
Using inexpensive glass beads traditionally used for reflective pavement markings at airports, the PNNL team has demonstrated 1000x magnification, which is necessary to see tiny anthrax spores and plague cells. They have also made a 350x version, which is adequate to identify parasites in blood samples or protozoa in drinking water. A 100x version enables children to investigate common items like salt grains and flower petals in much greater detail.
via PNNL Smartphone Microscope – Available Technologies – PNNL.
The 3d printer files and links to materials are at the bottom of the page.
De gereedschapskist van de hacker | Workshop Security en Privacy
Security is een ambacht, hackers zijn vaak hun hele leven al bezig om systemen en applicaties te testen, maar evenals bij een goede ICT beheerder is een kenmerk van een hacker dat men liever routineuze taken zal automatiseren (scripten).
In de begindagen van het web hadden hackers veelal hun eigen collecties van scripts en werden deze scripts vaak via bulletin boards of forums onderling uitgewisseld.
Echter al snel bleek het veel efficienter om deze scripts te bundelen en daaruit ontstonden heuse hacking frameworks, een van de bekendste daarvan zijn Metasploit en OpenVAS.
De gereedschapskist van de hacker | Workshop Security en Privacy.
Chivalry: Medieval Warfare
First person multiplayer sword fighting or…
Players have real-time control over their swings, allowing them to aim strikes and blocks with precision and become master swordsmen over time. Players exchange attacks and blocks in a fast-paced competitive multiplayer setting with truly satisfying combat including gruesome decapitation and advanced swordplay.
Chivalry: Medieval Warfare – Torn Banner Studios.
ads showing sexy women make male consumers less charitable
What happens when you use images of sexy women to attract men’s attention? According to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research, male consumers who are shown images of sexy women feel less connected to other people and are less likely to purchase products advertised as benefiting others or make charitable contributions.
via Do ads showing sexy women make male consumers less charitable?.
The Police Tool That Pervs Use to Steal Nude Pics From Apple’s iCloud
The software first brute forces an icloud username / password, then tricks icloud into thinking your device is the target device and finally performs a full restore to your device.
This software is supposed to be for law enforcement, but can be bought and downloaded by anyone. There are also illegal copies to be found.
The Police Tool That Pervs Use to Steal Nude Pics From Apple’s iCloud | Threat Level | WIRED.
DeepFlight Dragon: personal submarine
the DeepFlight Dragon will become the most compact, lightweight personal submarine on the market, and has been designed to be so intuitive to use that users will be able self-pilot the craft with minimal instruction. This new level of user-friendliness is expected to take DeepFlight’s underwater craft beyond the domain of the superyacht owner and into the resort and tourism industry for the first time.
via DeepFlight Dragon set to usher in the era of the personal submarine.
FAA Bans Planesharing Startups
Airpooler – an Uber for plane rides – fucked up private pilots in the US flying people to destinations for the price of fuel (and so to get their hours) by asking the FAA for clarification of a 1964 rule.
The FAA clarification not only extends to ride sharing services, but also to the old fashion word of mouth / paper board note that has been in use pretty universally.
The FAA states that this kind of flying is commercial and for that you need to spend huge amounts of money on a commercial pilots license.
FAA Bans Planesharing Startups | TechCrunch.
Researchers find security flaws in backscatter X-ray scanners
In laboratory tests, the team was able to successfully conceal firearms and plastic explosive simulants from the Rapiscan Secure 1000 scanner. The team was also able to modify the scanner operating software so it presents an “all-clear” image to the operator even when contraband was detected
via Researchers find security flaws in backscatter X-ray scanners – ScienceBlog.com.
This was demonstrated on German TV in 2009, but better late than never guys!
Ancient Space | The Game
Ancient Space is a story driven single player real time strategy game where you take command of a fleet embarking on a scientific mission to chart undiscovered reaches of space called ‘The Black Zone’. Overcome overwhelming odds and fight for your life and the survival of your ship and its crew.
Ancient Space features real time strategic starship battles that encourages tactical maneuvering. In time honored RTS tradition, you build and upgrade your fleet as you complete mission objectives and gather resources which allow you to progress further into the game. Chart your approach – from defense to offense and everything in between such as escort and stealth missions.
Embark and explore the darkest recesses of space in this tale of strategic resource management and engrossing interstellar warfare.
UPS: We’ve Been Hacked – Credit Card data compromised since January
The United Parcel Service announced Wednesday that customers’ credit and debit card information at 51 franchises in 24 states may have been compromised. There are 4,470 franchised center locations throughout the U.S., according to UPS.
via UPS: We’ve Been Hacked – TIME.
So you don’t know when UPS found out about the hack, but if it’s been fighting the fight since January 20, it’s been a bit long in handing over customer data to the hackers.
Internet provider Ziggo promises unlimited acces to internet with all devices. Limits access.
Ziggo claims: “Unlimited access to WifiSpots” (WifiSpot is a wifi sharing service whereby you can access wifi from all Ziggo subscribers). Also claims: “Internet on multiple devices silmutaneously” and “The whole famile online easily at the same time. Via computer, tablet and mobile”.
Unfortunately they only allow access to two devices on Wifispots at the same time.
Advertising commission rules: “please change your advertising”
Stichting reclame code : uitspraken zoeken.
Banking apps: Handy, can grab all your money… and RIDDLED with coding flaws
Turns out that huge amounts of them are apt to input validation and SSL hacks.
This is caused by poor programming practices, which the government does better at avoiding than private companies.
Banking apps: Handy, can grab all your money… and RIDDLED with coding flaws • The Register.
It’s very easy to hack traffic lights
The lights use a wireless radio at 900MHz or 5.8GHz to transmit data to each other. They are all on the same subnet. Entering the network doesn’t require a password and the data is unencrypted. The controller for a network has a debug port opened by default. It’s thus easy to get into the controller and send your own commands. Then you can change lights and control cameras!
Researchers find it’s terrifyingly easy to hack traffic lights | Ars Technica.
Another way to see stealth aircraft
Aside from using a mobile network, you can use low frequency radar to detect stealth aircraft.
Chinese and Russian Radars On Track To See Through U.S. Stealth | USNI News.
Propeller 1: Open Source CPU
The Parallax Propellor 1 microcontroller has been completely open sourced.
Propeller 1 Open Source | Parallax Inc.
Use a video of a crisps bag to hear what is said in the room
Researchers at MIT, Microsoft, and Adobe have developed an algorithm that can reconstruct an audio signal by analyzing minute vibrations of objects depicted in video. In one set of experiments, they were able to recover intelligible speech from the vibrations of a potato-chip bag photographed from 15 feet away through soundproof glass.
via Extracting audio from visual information | MIT News Office.
Cisco’s need upgrading – routing tables are up for grabs!
Multiple Cisco products are affected by a vulnerability involving the Open Shortest Path First (OSPF) Routing Protocol Link State Advertisement (LSA) database. This vulnerability could allow an unauthenticated attacker to take full control of the OSPF Autonomous System (AS) domain routing table, blackhole traffic, and intercept traffic.
via Cisco Security Advisory: OSPF LSA Manipulation Vulnerability in Multiple Cisco Products.
US Terrorist-Tracking System tracks many many non-terrorists
Nearly half of the people on the U.S. government’s widely shared database of terrorist suspects are not connected to any known terrorist group, according to classified government documents obtained by The Intercept.
Of the 680,000 people caught up in the government’s Terrorist Screening Database—a watchlist of “known or suspected terrorists” that is shared with local law enforcement agencies, private contractors, and foreign governments—more than 40 percent are described by the government as having “no recognized terrorist group affiliation.” That category—280,000 people—dwarfs the number of watchlisted people suspected of ties to al Qaeda, Hamas, and Hezbollah combined.
via Barack Obama's Secret Terrorist-Tracking System, by the Numbers – The InterceptThe Intercept.
Monkey selfie at heart of copyright controversy
A photographer who set up a load of cameras in the wild can’t get pictures of a monkey removed from Wikipedia, as the monkey pressed the shutter. Wikipedia argues that this means that nobody owns the copyright. I wonder what the BBC series Earth has to say about this?
Wikipedia refuses to delete photo as 'monkey owns it' – Telegraph.
Child porn used to justify reading of cloud data by Google, MicroSoft
With privacy concerns being raised more and more about the use of cloud storage, tech giants are turning to the age old scare tactic of using child porn as an excuse to burrow through users data.
Microsoft tip leads to child porn arrest in Pennsylvania.
Twitch TV shows why copyright is ridiculous as it shuts down music in videos
Twitch TV – a gaming TV channel with billions of watchers – will attempt to detect music playing in the background. If a 10 second spell seems to be copyrighted, they will remove the sound for half an hour.
I suppose the rationale is that the music companies and the RIAA think this is a potentially lost sale or something? It’s not surprising the users are up in arms about this.
Twitch Cracks Down On Music In Videos, Users Freak Out.