Science and Technology Press

FBI May Shut Down Your Internet Access March 8th

2012-02-16T00:30:00.000-06:00

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FBI May Shut Down Your Internet Access March 8th

Mark This on Your Calendar and Bookmark Link Krebs on Security For Updates on This Situation

Tuesday, February 14, 2012

This March 8th, the FBI is planning to unplug DNS servers it set up to help eliminate malware from over half of Fortune 500 companies and government agencies still infected in early 2012.

The change could potentially leave a great number of Internet users without access to the Web.

InfoWorld reports:

...the feds replaced the criminals' servers with clean ones that would push along traffic to its intended destination. Without the surrogate servers in place, infected PCs would have continued trying to send requests to aim at the now-unplugged rogue servers, resulting in DNS errors.

The malware, called DNSChanger Trojan, is said to illegally redirect traffic and prevent users from accessing the updates necessary to remove it. Without access to these critical patches, these large companies, government agencies, and home users are said to be more susceptible to hackers.

This prompted InfoWorld to wonder:

This fact does raise the question of why so many Fortune 500 companies and government agencies have failed to notice they have a problem, as they presumably have IT security professionals on staff who should be monitoring such incidents.

Those computers still infected with the Trojan will not be able to access the Internet after the FBI shuts down their temporary servers.

The feds received a court order in November, 2011 to replace the "rogue" servers with surrogate servers to operate "just long enough for companies and home users to remove DNSChanger malware from their machines."

Rod Rasmussen, president of Internet security company Internet ID, told Krebs on Security that there are still millions of PCs infected with DNSChanger. "At this rate, a lot of users are going to see their Internet break on March 8."

A working group advising the FBI is said to be considering requesting an extension of the court order to give more time to users of infected machines to remove the malware.

Although this may indeed be a very real problem that Internet users must be vigilant to protect themselves from, depending on the government to provide servers when their own agencies are infected doesn't seem like a trustworthy solution. Additionally, a previous private-government working group put together in 2009 to combat the Conficker Worm has accomplished very little as 3 million computers are still said to be infected.

These viruses are called Trojans because they are disguised as something friendly, enter computers, and then install malicious software. Someone with a healthy distrust of the government may see the FBI's warning that millions will be cut off from the Internet as a Trojan Horse itself so that they may retain control over the new servers.

After all, if the FBI is controlling the "legitimate" servers, wouldn't they have access to all the traffic information of individual users and large corporations?

To ensure your computer is not infected please follow the instructions here. And follow Krebs on Security for news updates pertaining to this story.

To read other articles by Activist Post click here.

How does the Universe works - Dark Energy and Waves

2012-02-15T00:38:00.000-06:00

After watching this I learned about a 5th power in the Universe and about "chameleons". I also learned that light is BOTH a wave AND a particle. That part was not new. What is new was that the waves control the movements of these particles. Incredible Science explained well.

FDA Approves ‘Laser Dazzler’ for Use by Law Enforcement — So How Does It Work?

2012-02-14T14:03:00.000-06:00

Last month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a non-lethal weapon — once reserved only for the military — as a new tool for local law enforcement and the U.S. Coast Guard.

GLARE Enforcer laser dazzler. (Photo: B.E. Meyers)

New Scientist reports that at the SHOT show in January, a conference for professionals involved with sport shooting, hunting and law enforcement, the 200-milliwatt GLARE Enforcer was unveiled by B.E. Meyers Electro-Optics as the first laser dazzler available for domestic use.
Laser dazzlers work by temporarily blinding a subject using a green laser with no risk of killing the person, unlike the risk associated with tasers and guns outfitted with rubber bullets. But according to New Scientist, there is still risk involved that has some questioning if they should actually be used, even with FDA approval:

“We have had some injuries,” says a former researcher at the US army’sBrooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, Texas, who asked not to be named, “but for the most part they have been minor.” That is partly because, when faced with a bright light, people instinctively look away. Also, the pupil of the eye contracts in a tenth of a second, quickly reducing the amount of light reaching the retina.
Not all injuries are minor, however. The researcher recounted the story of a soldier he interviewed after an incident in Iraq a few years ago. While on duty, the soldier fumbled a dazzler he was trying to point at an oncoming vehicle a safe distance away. “He was in an awkward position and illuminated a rearview mirror in such a way that he got a beam directly back into the eye.” The beam had gone less than 6 metres when it hit the soldier in the centre of vision of his right eye, burning the retina and leaving his vision in that eye permanently damaged.
The Red Cross, New Scientist notes, is skeptical of use of the lasers and thinks more needs to be done to reduce the risk for permanent blindness.
At 40 meters, the laser can cause permanent damage. The GLARE Enforcer has safety measures, not found in military grade dazzlers, that can detect a person at what is deemed too close of a distance and reduces the power of the laser in this case.

(Image: B.E. Meyers)

This video explains how the technology is used on the military level and details how it affects the human eye:
B.E. Meyers has more on its technology:

Specs for the GLARE Enforcer. (Image: B.E. Meyers)

The GLARE Enforcer’s innovative Eye Safe^®technology automatically adjusts the output power depending on the target distance, ensuring the delivery of maximum safe power at all times while maintaining the safety of all nearby personnel against accidental eye injury, even when the laser is operated in highly dynamic situations.
Additionally, the GLARE Enforcer’s high output power delivers the greatest stand-off distance of any non-lethal product. This enables the operator to warn and determine intent of targets at a distance beyond 2 km. Within 500m, it produces an overpowering visual effect that deters hostile action and dissuades further approach. The device produces a large target spot, making it easy to aim at moving objects and providing coverage of multiple individuals simultaneously.
Still New Scientists points out that the greatest threat to public health from dazzlers may not be from the local police department but the average citizen purchasing the equipment. Even more powerful devices than those used by the military can be found online for around $1,000.
Here you can see one of the military-issued GLARE dazzlers being used in Afghanistan to “prevent potential hazard vehicles from getting close to the convoy”:
All this to say, you could be seeing them soon. And in more than one way.

Bullet Elevator Unveiled for World's Tallest Building

2012-02-14T12:53:00.001-06:00

Future WTC in New York

It will be so fast it could be one of those gut-gripping, blackout-inducing rides at an amusement park. It is the latest in elevator technology and will used by thousands of people every day.

China is currently building the world's tallest skyscraper. The Shanghai Tower will stand 2,073 feet high, or 128 stories. To shuttle passengers to the sky, Mitsubishi has the contract to build 106 aerodynamic elevators unlike anything the world has ever seen.

Consider the fact that the elevators in the World Trade Center traveled at an ear-popping 1,600 feet per minute according to the engineer who installed them. The Mitsubishi elevators will travel at a rate of 3,281 feet per minute, more than twice as fast as those at the World Trade Center. And there will be no need to stop at a sky lobby to break up the trip that was necessary in the WTC.

The Mitsubishi design team is promising a comfortable non-stop ride from the bottom to the top.

Ultra-high-speed elevators require the latest technology in both mechanics and personal comfort. Mitsubishi released data on drive, controllability, super high-rise cable mechanics and safety along with such …. technicalities like "advanced plunger" and "exceptional shock absorption."

Mitsubishi's specs were designed to ensure that riders won't leave their lunch on the 50th floor or have their eardrums explode. Inside each car the air pressure will be controlled to avoid erupting earaches due to rapid changes in altitude. Each car's interior will be insulated to quell sound and suitably equipped to reduce vibration.

Mitsubishi isn't saying whether they will provide the handy little bags that come in the front pocket of your seat of an airplane, but it might be a good idea.

http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/abc-blogs/bullet-elevator-unveiled-worlds-tallest-building-142508105--abc-news.html;_ylc=X3oDMTEwYm9uc3J1BF9TAzIyMDM4Mjc1MjMEZW1haWxJZAMxMzI5MTg4NDUy

Apple Shares Close Above $500, Breaking More Records - NY Times

2012-02-13T19:38:00.001-06:00

From down and out, to top of the charts, Apple continues to break records with its sales, market valuation and stock price.

On Monday, the company did it again. Apple shares, by closing at $502.60, up $9.18, or 1.86 percent, set a new record for the company and passed the $500 share price for the first time.

The company's market value, which is $468.61 billion as of Monday, is also quickly approaching another new height: half a trillion dollars.

As the Economix blog noted last week, "with a market value of about $460 billion, Apple is worth more than Google, Goldman Sachs, General Motors, Ford, Starbucks and Boeing combined."

Last month, Apple announced other new records, saying that during the last quarter it made $13.06 billion in profit, a 118 percent rise from the period a year earlier. Apple said in a press release that $13.06 billion was the highest quarterly profit ever recorded for a technology company.

The company is also stockpiling cash and securities that total nearly $100 billion, yet it is unclear what the company will use the money for.

Source

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Posted By bballn to Appleology

NASA Eyes Plan for Deep-Space Outpost Near the Moon

2012-02-13T02:44:00.000-06:00

NASA is pressing forward on assessing the value of a "human-tended waypoint" near the far side of the moon — one that would embrace international partnerships as well as commercial and academic participation, Full Story

Five planets to be visible in a single night this month

2012-02-12T11:26:00.001-06:00

sent by: Uche

Five planets to be visible in a single night this month

Sky watchers in the city are in for a celestial treat at the end of this month as they get an opportunity to see Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Mars, all in one night.

Found: Why plants never get sunburnt

2012-02-11T14:45:00.001-06:00

LONDON: Have you ever wondered why plants never get sunburnt? This is because plants make 'sunscreen' in their leaves, say researchers who claim to have finally solved the mystery after a 15-year research.

Ultra-violet rays can damage both humans and plants. But plants rarely show signs of sun damage, despite being out in the open all day with no access to sunscreen or protective clothing.

Now, a team at Glasgow University has found that plants have "evolved" a way of making their own chemical 'sunscreen' within their leaves , the Daily Mail reported.

A protein in their leaves, called UVR8, actually detects the presence of UV-B rays and starts off a chemical reaction that protects the leaves.

The researchers have revealed exactly how plants 'sense' UV-B light.

LINK

Google and Motorola

2012-02-10T21:49:00.001-06:00

Reuters cites sources "familiar with the matter" as saying that Google will soon receive approval from both the European Union and the United States for its proposed acquisiton of Motorola Mobility. (Reuters)

‘Electronic Flight Bags’: Air Force Wants iPads in the Cockpit Too

2012-02-10T04:06:00.001-06:00

With the first commercial airlines beginning to bring iPads into the cockpit to replace loads paperwork consisting maps and charts, the U.S. Air Force is seeking to cut down on bulky binders too.
Popular Science reports that the Air Force will be buying up to 18,000 iPad 2s, which is it calling "electronic flight bags":
"Moving from a paper-based to an electronically-based flight publication system will not only enhance operational effectiveness, it can also save the Department of Defense time and money," Maj. Gen. Rick Martin, the director of operations for the Air Mobility Command, said in a statement.
In Dec. 2011, American Airlines was approved as the first airline by the FAA to cut out carrying the 40 pounds of paper work by using the iPads. In doing so, it expects to save up to $1 million on fuel each year by reducing the weight. Popular Science reports that Air Force flight binders can weigh up to 70 pounds and time is often wasting updating charts every 28 days.
The military has been testing the tablet at Travis Air Force Base in California for use in C-5 Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster. Popular Science also notes that nearly 3,000 iPads will be used by Air Force Special Ops Command crews.

iPhone App Downloaded All Your Contacts Without Permission…Then Apologizes

2012-02-10T04:05:00.001-06:00

Earlier this week, it was revealed that Path — an iPhone app with 2 million users that provides a journal or "path" of "your life on the go" — downloaded the contact lists from phones to its servers without users' permission. The company quickly apologized as backlash over this violation spread, deleted all the contacts it had acquired and released a new app that asked permission before downloading contacts.
A Reuters report states that this a classic example that while even though people are becoming increasingly desensitized over the information they provide on the Internet and with apps on mobile devices, not asking permission is a deadly mistake.
Arun Thampi wrote on his blog earlier this week the discovery that his entire address book on his iPhone was being sent to Path. At the time he said:
I'm not insinuating that Path is doing something nefarious with my address book but I feel quite violated that my address book is being held remotely on a third-party service. I love Path as an iOS app and I think there are some brilliant people working on it, but this seems a little creepy. I wonder how many other iOS apps actually do the same…
Naked Security Sophos also pointed out that another blogger found a second iPhone app called Hipster was conducting similar activity.
Thampi was soon contacted by Path's co-founder and CEO Dave Morin, who thanked him for pointing this out and said that the company, which launched in 2010, "[uploads] the address book to our servers in order to help the user find and connect to their friends and family on Path quickly and effeciently as well as to notify them when friends and family join Path. Nothing more."
Within a day, Path issued a formal apology on its blog and released an updated version of the app, which asks permission from users before downloading the contact list. Morin wrote:
Through the feedback we've received from all of you, we now understand that the way we had designed our 'Add Friends' feature was wrong. We are deeply sorry if you were uncomfortable with how our application used your phone contacts.
[...]
We care deeply about your privacy and about creating a trusted place for you to share life with your close friends and family. As we continue to expand and grow we will make some mistakes along the way. We commit to you that we will continue to be transparent and always serve you, our users, first.
The company has been lauded for its response to user outcry, with some who said they were leaving app now returning. But others are still not so quick to forgive.
Several social media groups have come under fire for not asking for permission or user input before making changes. Google most recently has received criticism for updates it plans on making to its privacy policy and its new "Search, Plus Your Life" feature. Facebook has had several run-ins with users for not being transparent with changes. In fact, in November of last year, thecompany settled charges with the Federal Trade Commission over misleading users and has committed to 20 years of audits and requiring "opt-in" features instead of "opt-out" as it had previously used.
With this larger issue of app privacy ,Hipster, which also issued an apology for downloading information without permission, has called for a conference to discuss among varying groups.
Read more…

Is It Safe To Bank On Public Wi-Fi? How Not To Get Hacked!

2012-02-10T01:00:00.001-06:00

Upgrade Your Life - Online banking has grown in huge numbers, and mobile banking is on an even faster rise. But accessing your sensitive financial data via computer can be dangerous. One well known computer virus that steals banking logons and passwords is thought to have infected over 3 million computers in the US alone, siphoning at least $70 [...] Full Story

Online Privacy.... infographic

2012-02-09T12:21:00.003-06:00

Source: frugaldad.com

Skip the Waitress: Popular Wings Restaurant Could Soon Employ iPad Ordering

2012-02-09T00:37:00.000-06:00

Asian Zing, Spicy Garlic or Blazin'? No matter your spice preference at Buffalo Wild Wings, if you're a fan of the popular chicken wing chain, you know that running out of wings and finding a server for a refill your plate on wing Tuesday or boneless wing Thursday can be tough.
Don't you wish you could have some sort of virtual waitress at your booth to place an order the moment you think of it without flagging one down? Wish no more. The wing joint has a pilot program in the works that could put an iPad menu with instant ordering power into your hands sometime in the future.
Huboworks transforms iPads into an ordering platform. (Photo: Hubworks)
ComputerWorld reports that Buffalo Wild Wings has entered phase two of its test in Minneapolis – the first phase was completed in Toronto:
"Ultimately, we are trying to use the technology to enhance the customer experience," [Tim Murphy, director of international business for the chain] said in an interview. "People are familiar with iPads, iPhones and Android tablets, so this would enhance that."
The chain hasn't decided whether to combine purchasing from the device with purely entertainment uses, something it hopes to measure in its tests, Murphy said.
If the chain decides the device can be used for entertainment, it might sell advertising on the tablets, license popular games or even design custom-built games suited to its audience and brand, he said.
B-dubs, as it's often called by fans, is working with Hubworks, a company that turns iPads into ordering platforms, in this pilot program. According to its website, Hubworks lets guests not only order menu items and play games but they can also pay with a credit card when it's time to wrap up. The cost of each unit, including the iPad, is $750.
Here's an example of how it works:
Murphy said to ComputerWorld that they have a lot to work out before you will be using this method to order on wing night. But if it actually helps cut costs and improve restaurant efficiency, the odds favorable that you could see iPads at Buffalo Wild Wings at some point. Murphy also said that they are not intending to replace servers in general with this technology.
[H/T SlashGear]
Read more…

‘Where Do You Stop and the Machine Begin?’ British Report Alludes to Mind-Controlled Weapons

2012-02-09T00:29:00.001-06:00

(Photo: Senior Master Sgt. David H. Lipp/US Air Force)
A new report produced yesterday by the U.K.'s Royal Society states that the progression of neuroscience will not only improve treatment in the medical field in the near future but will also have more of an application in a military setting. So much so, that the report suggests soldiers brains could be, in effect, "plugged in" to the weapons they operate.
(Related: Are 'mind-reading drones' next in the military's arsenal?)
With the quickly advancing technology, the group calls for government to look further down the line and prepare for the legal and ethical implications of the use of this technology.
The report states:
Neuroscience is a rapidly advancing field encompassing a range of applications and technologies that are likely to provide significant benefits to society, particularly in the treatment of neurological impairment, disease, and psychiatric illness. However, this new knowledge also suggests a number of potential military and law enforcement applications.
These applications tend to serve one of two main goals. Performance enhancing applications seek to improve the efficiency of one's own forces – for example by optimising recruitment, training and operational performance or improving treatments for rehabilitation. Performance degrading applications seek to diminish the performance of one's enemy – for example through the development of weapons such as incapacitating chemicals.
Wired notes that authors seem to be concerned about Britain's recent interpretation of the Chemical Weapons Convention's protocol for use of incapacitating chemicals as weapons by law enforcement. The authors state that it "suggests that the use of incapacitating chemical agents for law enforcement purposes would be in compliance with the CWC as long as they were in types and quantities consistent with that permitted purpose". With the review of the CWC coming up in 2013, report authors call for officials to consider the definition of "incapacitating chemicals" at that time.
Another interesting facet within the report, The Guardian writes, is that the authors also place an emphasis on technology using a brain-machine interface. The brain can control a weapon much faster than a finger poised on a trigger, which waits for the signal from the brain before pulling. There is some concern over where to draw the line should use of this technology in a military capacity come to fruition:
[Rod] Flower, a professor of pharmacology at the William Harvey Research Institute at Barts and the London hospital, said: "If you are controlling a drone and you shoot the wrong target or bomb a wedding party, who is responsible for that action? Is it you or the BMI?
"There's a blurring of the line between individual responsibility and the functioning of the machine. Where do you stop and the machine begin?"
Research is already being conducted to use similar technology to help disabled patients. For example, scientists have translated the thoughts of paralyzed people into words through analysis of their brain scans.
Another form of technology mentioned in the report includes sending a weak electrical shock through the skull to enhance performance, which studies have already found to be effective.
(Related: Creepy: this robot can now control you with electricity)
Red Orbit reports that brain imaging expert Irene Tracey of Oxford University said in a press conference while some of the ideas in the report may seem too futuristic, the rate at which technology is improving is "alarmingly quick". Therefore, the reality of these outlandish ideas is not too far off.
The report also calls for scientists to consider the dual-use of improving neural technology — how it can be used both to harm and benefit humanity.
[H/T Popular Science]
Read more…

Why Is Earth Getting 50,000 Tonnes Lighter Each Year?

2012-02-07T01:36:00.001-06:00

This post by Jesus Diaz originally appeared on Gizmodo.
Earth is getting 50,000 tonnes lighter every year, even while 40,000 tonnes of space dust fall on our planet's surface during the same period. So, why are we losing so much weight? You will be surprised.
At least, I never considered this and I was surprised to hear the reasoning in More or Less, a BBC Radio 4 program about statistics and numbers. According to Dr Chris Smith and Cambridge University physicist Dave Ansel's calculations, despite those 40,000 tonnes of space dust that become part of our planet every year, Earth loses 50,000 tonnes of mass. Is it because we keep launching rockets? No. These are their back-of-the-napkin calculations:
Adding weight
• Earth gains about 40,000 tonnes of dust every year, the remnants of the formation of the solar system, which are attracted by our gravity and become part of the matter in our planet. Our planet is actually made from all that starstuff.
• NASA says that Earth gains about 160 tonnes of matter a year because the global temperature is going up: "If we are adding energy to the system, the mass must go up." Oh, those crazy thermodynamics.
No effect
• Of course, having more people or building stuff doesn't add any mass to the planet. Humans and things are made with the matter that is already in the planet. It's just being transformed.
• Most of the rockets and satellites that we launch to Earth orbit eventually fall down back to Earth, so no real effect here.
Losing weight
(Image: Jason Reed/Photodisc/Alamy via National Geographic)
• Earth's core loses energy over time. It's like a giant nuclear reactor that burns fuel. Less energy means less mass. 16 tonnes of that are gone every year. Not much.
• And here's the big mass loss: about 95,000 tonnes of hydrogen and 1,600 tones of helium escape Earth every year. They are too light for gravity to keep them around, so they get lost. Gone into space.
The result: the rough estimate is -50,000 tonnes every year. Which is about 0.000000000000001 percent less mass every year.
Should we be worried about Earth disappearing into thin air? No, you shouldn't. And you shouldn't worry about losing hydrogen. There's plenty and it will take trillions of years to deplete it.
Helium, on the other hand, is a different matter. It represents 0.00052 percent of the volume in our atmosphere, but it's mainly harvested from natural gas using a process called fractional distillation. Helium is becoming scarce in our planet. In fact, Cornell University physicist and Nobel Prize-winner Robert Richardson once said that each floating party balloon should have a $100 price tag, who campaigned against the U.S. Government decision to sell the country's helium stockpile by 2015 to keep prices down.
He's probably right, considering that it is crucial for devices like MRI scanners, where it is used for cooling superconducting magnets and growing silicon and germanium crystals as well as the production of titanium and zirconium. [Download the program here (5MB)]
Read more…

Google India Removes Websites Deemed Offensive By the Gov’t

2012-02-07T01:29:00.001-06:00

NEW DELHI (The Blaze/AP) — With Google stating just last week that it would block content on its blog platform in certain countries while keeping it viewable in others others — Twitter also announced a similar protocol – Google India has reportedly removed web pages deemed offensive to Indian political and religious leaders.
This action is to comply with a court case that has raised censorship fears in the world's largest democracy and follows weeks of intense government pressure for 22 Internet giants to remove photographs, videos or text considered "anti-religious" or "anti-social."
A New Delhi court Monday gave Facebook, Google, YouTube and Blogspot and the other sites two weeks to present further plans for policing their networks, according to the Press Trust of India.
For India's more than 100 million Internet users, the government says, U.S. Internet standards are not acceptable.
The case highlights the difficulty India faces in balancing conservative religious and political sentiments with its hope that freewheeling Internet discourse and technology will help spur the economy and boost living standards for its 1.2 billion people.
Google India did not say Monday which sites were removed but had said it would be willing to go after anything that violated local law or its own standards.
Indian officials have been incensed by material insulting to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, ruling Congress party leader Sonia Gandhi and religious groups, including illustrations showing Singh and Gandhi in compromising positions and pigs running through Mecca, Islam's holiest city.
"There is no question of any censorship," Communications Minister Sachin Pilot said in Bangalore. "They all have to operate within the laws of the country. … There must be responsible behavior on both sides."
Anyone hurt by online content should be able to seek legal redress, he said. The government has warned it has evidence to prosecute 21 sites for offenses of "promoting enmity between classes and causing prejudice to national integration."
The government has asked the sites to set a voluntary framework to keep offensive material off the Internet.
Facebook India submitted a compliance report to the court Monday, but it also joined Yahoo and Microsoft in questioning its inclusion in the case, saying no specific complaints had been presented against them, PTI reported. The sites did not immediately comment after the hearing.
Prosecutors, who sued on behalf of a Muslim religious leader who accused companies of hosting pages that disparage Islam, said they would provide the companies with all relevant documents. The court gave the companies 15 more days to report back.
India is Facebook's third-fastest growing market, after the U.S. and Indonesia. The California-based company, with $3.7 billion in revenues last year, has seen its hoped-for launch in China held back by rules requiring censorship of material seen by the Chinese government as objectionable or obscene.
The issue of country-specific censorship sparked global outcry in recent weeks, after Twitter said it would allow tweets to be deleted in countries where the content breaks local law.
Twitter insisted the new policy would help freedom of expression and transparency by preventing the entire site from being blocked. But dissidents and activists who have embraced Twitter in their campaigns accused the site of betraying free speech.
Similarly, Google said last week that censoring content on its blog platform will "allow us to continue promoting free expression and responsible publishing while providing greater flexibility in complying with valid removal requests pursuant to local law."
Read more…

Why Did The NFL Make YouTube Take Down Chrysler’s Clint Eastwood Super Bowl Ad?

2012-02-07T01:26:00.001-06:00

You may have noticed that at one point this morning the video in our story on Clint Eastwood's well-received Chrysler ad during halftime of the Super Bowl cut out. We weren't the only ones.
Chrysler had uploaded the video of the ad on their YouTube account around the time of its airing Sunday night, but then this morning the video was removed due to a "copyright claim by NFL Properties LLC."
Huh? Chrysler's commercial, Chrysler's Youtube channel, no football footage, and the NFL doesn't own YouTube (yet). What gives?
Chrysler was equally confused, with reps telling Jalopnik that they were trying to get to the bottom of the removal and have uploaded the video elsewhere.
"In fact, we're just surprised it even happened. In fact, riding the wave of positive Detroit stories is a good thing — we like it," General Motors' Marketing Chief Joel Ewanick told Jalopnik readers this morning.
The video was mysteriously back up around 11:00 a.m.
Jalopnik reports that Chrysler still doesn't know exactly why their ad was pulled off Youtube in the first place.
Read more…

Did the Woman Ordered to Decrypt Her Computer Really Forget Her Password?

2012-02-07T01:12:00.001-06:00

In January, we reported about the Colorado woman who was ordered by a district court judge to comply with prosecutors' wishes and decrypt her laptop, a ruling that defense lawyers say violates her Fifth Amendment rights. Now, Wired reports Ramona Fricosu might have conveniently forgotten her password.
Wired writes:
The authorities seized the Toshiba laptop from defendant Ramona Fricosu in 2010 with a court warrant while investigating alleged mortgage fraud. Ruling that the woman's Fifth Amendment rights against compelled self-incrimination would not be breached, U.S. District Judge Robert Blackburn ordered the woman in January to decrypt the laptop.
"It's very possible to forget passwords," the woman's attorney, Philip Dubois, said in a telephone interview. "It's not clear to me she was the one who set up the encryption on this drive. I don't know if she will be able to decrypt it."
But prosecutor Patricia Davies says that Fricosu has never said that she may have forgotten her password in legal documents.
Wired points out that cases where defendants have been ordered to decrypt computers are rare, but the shift with this case is that prosecutors only believe the laptop to contain evidence. In a case of child pornography where the judge ordered a computer to be decrypted, prosecutors had actually seen the evidence on the computer before. Wired reports that prosecutors believe the laptop contains evidence due to a conversation between Fricosu and another defendant while in jail.
Fricosu was given until Feb. 21 to unlock her computer. If she does not open the laptop, the judge will have to determine if Fricosu has actually forgotten her password or if she should be held in contempt:
"The government will probably say you need to put her in jail until she breaks down and does what she is ordered to do," Dubois said. "That will create a question of fact for the judge to resolve. If she's unable to decrypt the disc, the court cannot hold her in contempt."
Many civil-liberties groups across the country are opposed to the prosecution's call for decryption and the judge's ruling saying it test of rights against self-incrimination in a digital world.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Read more…

3-D Printer Gives 83-Year-Old Woman a New Jaw

2012-02-07T01:08:00.001-06:00

We've seen how a 3-D printer can make everything from Stephen Colbert's head on the body of a T-Rex to "scaffolding" to help repair broken bones. Here's another first in the 3-D printing world that also highlights its growing use in the medical field: doctors at the University of Hasselt in Belgium have created and put into use a jaw implant made with a 3-D printer.
The grey jaw was made using a 3-D printer. (Photo: University of Hasselt)
According to the press release from the university, an 83-year-old woman's lower jaw was so infected that it merited removal. This would of course inhibit essential functions such as eating and breathing. A custom implant was made within a few hours using a 3-D printing technique, whereas traditionally made custom implants would take several days.
Here's more on the implant's creation:
The company LayerWise NV Leuven (Dr Peter Mercelis, Ir Reuben Wauthle) manufactured from titanium implant by additive Laser Melting technology, a specific form of 3D printing. Both the designing, processing and making of the implant was done digitally. "Computer technology will cause a revolution in the medical world. We just need to learn to deal with, "adds Prof. Jules Poukens added," The doctor and engineer together to design computer and the operating table: that's really innovative. "
The implant weighs about 107 grams. This is slightly heavier than a "natural" lower jaw, but not annoying. With other methods it can take two days for an implant is fully ready. With 3-D printing the job was done in a few hours. The company Cam bioceramics BV in Leiden (NL) foresaw an innovative artificial bone implant coating. This contributes to a good integration of the implant. The slots for the passage of the facial nerves, and the jaw cups were polished. The implant was also provided with openings in order to in a later phase artificial tooth roots, and an adequate level of false teeth to be able to affixing.
Medical professionals show how the lower jaw attaches to the upper at a press conference last week. (Photo: University of Hasselt)
Amazingly, near normal speech and swallowing was seen in the patient within a day of the implant surgery. The surgery was performed in June 2011, but the announcement of this custom-implant first came last week.
[H/T Gizmodo]
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Skydiver Seeks New Records With ‘Edge of Space’ Fall Reaching 690 MPH

2012-02-07T01:07:00.001-06:00

Felix Baumgartner (Photo: Red Bull)
A 42-year-old extreme skydiver is setting out to break four records — one of which has been in place for 50 years — with a jump from 23 miles up. To put this into perspective, the line between the edge of Earth's atmosphere and space is technically at about 62 miles high.
Felix Baumgartner of Austria, who holds several records for skydiving already, is planning to dive out of a weather balloon because commercial planes won't reach the 121,440-foot altitude on the "edge of space" that he seeks. The Daily Mail reports that Baugartner's descent will take 10 minutes with a top speed of 690 miles per hour.
(Photo: Felix Baumgartner)
Here are the records he hopes to break:
Highest altitude for a freefall — currently set in 1960 by U.S. Air Force Colonel Joe Kittinger at 102,800 feet
Highest manned balloon flight
Longest distance traveled in freefall — Baumgartner will deploy his parachute at less than 5,000 feet
Fastest freefall
Details of Baumgartner's skydive. (Image: Daily Mail)
The Daily Mail reports that Baumgartner, whose endeavor is sponsored by Red Bull, already holds records for lowest parachute jump at 95 feet off Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro; highest jump from a building at 1,479 feet off Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur; and first to skydive across the English Channel.
Watch Baumgartner take the plunge off Christ the Redeemer:
Here Baumgartner skydives across the English Channel:
To prepare for the jump, according to the Daily Mail, Baumgartner will have two practice jumps at 60,000 feet and 90,000 feet wearing a special suit designed to help him withstand up to -70 degrees Celsius.
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Hackers outwit online banking

2012-02-07T00:45:00.001-06:00

Criminal hackers have found a way round the latest generation of online banking security devices given out by banks, the BBC has learned.

After logging in to the bank's real site, account holders are being tricked by the offer of training in a new "upgraded security system". Money is then moved out of the account but this is hidden from the user. Experts say customers should follow banks' official advice, use up-to-date anti-virus software and be vigilant. Devices like PINSentry from Barclays and SecureKey from HSBC - which look a lot like calculators - ask users to insert a card or a code to create a unique key at each login, valid for around 30 seconds, that cannot be used again. This brought a new level of online banking security against password theft. The additional line of defence provided security even if a user's computer along with any password information was hacked, and they still offer the best level of protection available against online banking fraud. While these chip and pin devices make the hackers' job more difficult, the hackers themselves have raised their game. -----BBC

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Posted By UK Newsdesk to The World News Media

Bald Chicken "Needs no Plucking"

2012-02-06T10:02:00.001-06:00

via Robert Ryles

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sci/tech/2000003.stm

BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Bald chicken 'needs no plucking'

news.bbc.co.uk

Scientists have bred a controversial featherless chicken which they say is faster growing.

Corning looks to the future, mainly right through it (video)

2012-02-06T08:56:00.000-06:00

By James Trew posted Feb 5th 2012 1:22PM

Need to take the edge off those winter blues? Perhaps Corning's, somewhat saccharine, vision of our technological future will be just the soporific tonic. Unsurprisingly, the Gorilla Glass maker sees a future where pretty much everything is a transparent touchscreen. While many of these ideas clearly appeal to our tech sensibilities, others are still very much high, high, up in the cloudy mists of concept land. Sure, a few of these ideas are starting to materialize back here in the present day, like large multi-touch panels,smart windows and of course communication displays, but for much of the rest, we'll just have to sit and wait. Or not.

Android Community

Corning

Snowboarder Saved During Avalanche Thanks to Airbag

2012-02-05T14:49:00.001-06:00

For snowboarders and skiers, avalanches on infrequently traveled slopes can happen without warning. But, there is technology that can help save their lives in the event of an avalanche: an airbag system.
Meesh Hytner in the avalanche.
Gizmodo reports that Meesh Hytner, a professional snowboarder, was caught in a Class 3 avalanche during a backcountry competition in Colorado on what it describes as "virgin slopes". The Avalanche Center describes a Class 3 avalanche as having the ability to "bury a car, destroy a small building, or break trees." Fortunately, she was wearing a Backcountry Access Float 30 backpack.
Backcountry Access Float 30 (Photo: Backcountry Access)
Watch the footage and see the airbag as it's deployed:
The Backcountry Access Float 30 pack Hytner was wearing reduces the depth the wearer could get buried in during an avalanche. According to its website, will keep the wearer "at or near the surface, minimizing excavation time."
Hytner described wearing the pack during the avalanche as "riding down the stairs on a mattress." She credits the airbag system with saving her life.
Hytner was picked up by a snowmobile after the avalanche. Here you can see the airbag clearly.
Here's another video of the airbag in action:
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