Today is: Monday, 6th September 2010
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When Your Backhoe Cuts “Black” Fiber on Sunday May 31, @09:09PM
“The Washington Post describes what happens when a construction backhoe accidentally cuts buried fiber so secret that it doesn’t appear on public maps — and what happens when the Men in Black SUV’s appear out of nowhere. Apparently, the numerous secret fiber and utility lines used by government intelligence agencies are being dug up with increasing frequency with all the increased construction projects in the DC area. It’s amazing how quickly they get repaired!”
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When Your Backhoe Cuts “Black” Fiber on Sunday May 31, @09:09PM
31 May 09 | Credit Crunch Squeezing Data Center Space on Friday May 29, @06:38PM
“Many companies have saved money by leasing wholesale ‘plug and play’ data center space instead of building their own facilities. But the credit crunch has slowed the construction of new data centers, and analysts say this will create a shortage of data center space in 2010 in key markets like northern Virginia and Silicon Valley where demand exceeds supply. The situation is already becoming critical for companies with large space requirements, as indicated by a flurry of leasing recently in northern Virginia, where the remaining space may be quickly absorbed by government stimulus projects.”
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Credit Crunch Squeezing Data Center Space on Friday May 29, @06:38PM
Human Language Gene Changes How Mice Squeak on Saturday May 30, @02:10AM
“Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany have engineered a mouse whose FOXP2 gene has been swapped out for a different (human) version. This is interesting because the gene is implicated in human language, and this has changed how mice squeak. ‘In a region of the brain called the basal ganglia, known in people to be involved in language, the humanized mice grew nerve cells that had a more complex structure. Baby mice utter ultrasonic whistles when removed from their mothers. The humanized baby mice, when isolated, made whistles that had a slightly lower pitch, among other differences, Dr. Enard says. Dr. Enard argues that putting significant human genes into mice is the only feasible way of exploring the essential differences between people and chimps, our closest living relatives.’ The academic paper was published in Cell.”
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Human Language Gene Changes How Mice Squeak on Saturday May 30, @02:10AM
Microsoft Kills 3-App Limit For Windows 7 Starter Edition on Friday May 29, @10:12PM
“Heard the rumors that the much-maligned Windows 7 Starter Edition would be able to run more than three concurrent applications? Today, the Windows team made it official: ‘Based on the feedback we’ve received from partners and customers asking us to enable a richer small notebook PC experience with Windows 7 Starter, we’ve decided to enable Windows 7 Starter customers the ability to run as many applications simultaneously as they would like, instead of being constricted to the 3 application limit that the previous Starter editions included. We believe these changes will make Windows 7 Starter an even more attractive option for customers who want a small notebook PC for very basic tasks, like browsing the web, checking email and personal productivity.’ Small consolation, of course, if you want to watch a DVD natively, but I’m sure this won’t stop the Slashdot crowd from enabling it.”
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Microsoft Kills 3-App Limit For Windows 7 Starter Edition on Friday May 29, @10:12PM
Idle: Burglar Nabbed By Backup Program on Friday May 29, @12:21AM
“A Berkeley, California, burglar engineered his own arrest, and that of his girlfriend, when he stole a laptop and used it as his personal computer. He didn’t realize that the laptop had an automatic backup program, and that the photos he took were being copied to his victim’s backup repository. Berkeley police recognized him, and his location, from the photos.”
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Idle: Burglar Nabbed By Backup Program on Friday May 29, @12:21AM
An Argument For Leaving DNS Control In US Hands on Thursday May 28, @01:44PM
“Ariel Rabkin has a piece over at News Corp.’s Weekly Standard arguing that the US should maintain its control over the Internet. After reading his piece, I have a hard time arguing that it should be handed over to some international body.”
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An Argument For Leaving DNS Control In US Hands on Thursday May 28, @01:44PM
Science: Is Playing a DVD Harder Than Rocket Science? on Thursday May 28, @12:21AM
“After successfully repairing the Hubble Space Telescope, astronauts aboard the shuttle Atlantis found themselves with a free day due to thunderstorms which delayed their return. They attempted to pass the time by watching movies, only to find that their laptops did not have the proper software, and Houston was unable to help. No word, alas, on what software was involved, though we can assume that software/codec updates are a tad difficult when you’re orbiting the planet at 17,200MPH.”
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Science: Is Playing a DVD Harder Than Rocket Science? on Thursday May 28, @12:21AM
Using WiMAX To Replace a Phone? on Wednesday May 27, @04:19PM
“I’ve decided to explore the possibility of using a netbook/MID as a phone while eschewing the services of a cellphone provider. Now that Atlanta (where I live) has WiMAX from Clear, I ought to be connected to the Internet everywhere within the city (once I sign up). Theoretically, this should mean that I will be able to use my netbook as a cell phone. Of course, there are some very real issues to overcome and I am simply putting this experiment together to see if it is something that is realistically possible. This could possibly extend to uncapped 3G connections (if they exist any more) as well. Are there any obvious problems you would foresee? Is there anything I have missed or any other questions I should attempt to answer in this ‘experiment’ of mine? A major issue is, of course, the fact that my pseudo-netbook has to be carried everywhere and always left on.”
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Using WiMAX To Replace a Phone? on Wednesday May 27, @04:19PM
Fluorescent Monkeys Cast Light On Human Disease on Wednesday May 27, @08:56PM
“BBC reports that a team of Japanese scientists has integrated a new gene for green fluorescent protein into the common marmoset, causing them to glow green under ultraviolet light, creating second-generation, glow-in-the-dark monkeys in what could be a powerful new tool in human disease research. Though primates modified to generate a glowing protein have been created before, these are the first to keep the change in their bloodlines. If a fluorescent protein gene can be introduced into the monkey genome and passed onto future generations, other genes could be too opening up a world of possibilities for medical research, such as the generation of specific monkey colonies containing genetic defects that mirror human diseases aiding efforts to cure such diseases as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. However many people are likely to find the routine use of monkeys in medical research far less acceptable than that of rodents, drawing action from animal rights activists. “I’m worried that these steps are being taken without any overall public discussion about whether we want to go down that road. We may find ourselves gradually drifting towards the genetic engineering of human beings,” says Dr David King, from the group Human Genetics Alert. “‘Slippery slope’ is a quite inadequate description of the process, because it doesn’t happen passively. People push it forward.”"
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Fluorescent Monkeys Cast Light On Human Disease on Wednesday May 27, @08:56PM
Book Reviews: Beginning Python Visualization on Wednesday May 27, @02:02PM
“Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words. Beginning Python Visualization: Creating Visual Transformation Scripts, published in February 2009 by Apress, shows how Python and its related tools can be used to easily and effectively turn raw data into visual representations that communicate effectively. The author is Shai Vaingast, a professional engineer and engineering manager who needed to train scientists and engineers to do this kind of programming work. He was looking for a tutorial and reference work, and unable to find a suitable text, wound up writing his first book. He writes in the easy and clear style of someone comfortable and engaged with the subject matter.”
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Book Reviews: Beginning Python Visualization on Wednesday May 27, @02:02PM
