Friday, January 25, 2008
Cell Phone Radiation Detectors Proposed to Protect Against Nukes
Posted by Soulskill on Friday January 25, @05:09AM
from the distributed-homeland-security dept.
from the distributed-homeland-security dept.
crosshatch brings us news out of Purdue University, where researchers are developing a radiation detection system that would rely on sensors within cell phones to locate and track potentially hazardous material. From the Purdue news service: "Such a system could blanket the nation with millions of cell phones equipped with radiation sensors able to detect even light residues of radioactive material. Because cell phones already contain global positioning locators, the network of phones would serve as a tracking system, said physics professor Ephraim Fischbach. 'The sensors don't really perform the detection task individually,' Fischbach said. 'The collective action of the sensors, combined with the software analysis, detects the source. Say a car is transporting radioactive material for a bomb, and that car is driving down Meridian Street in Indianapolis or Fifth Avenue in New York. As the car passes people, their cell phones individually would send signals to a command center, allowing authorities to track the source.'"
Engineered Mosquitoes Could Wipe Out Dengue Fever
Posted by Soulskill on Thursday January 24, @09:02PM
from the working-out-the-bugs dept.
from the working-out-the-bugs dept.
Christina Valencia points us to a Wired story about scientists who plan to use genetically modified mosquitoes to reduce the population of Dengue-carrying insects. The altered genes cause newly born mosquitoes to die before they are able to breed if they are not supplied with a crucial antibiotic. This is a more aggressive approach than the anti-Malaria work we discussed last year. From Wired: "Mosquitoes pass dengue fever to up to 100 million people each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Up to 5 million die. If the scientists can replicate their results in real field conditions, their technology could kill half of the next generation of dengue mosquitoes, which scientists say would significantly reduce the spread of the disease. If all goes well the company envisions releasing the insects in Malaysia on a large scale in three years."
Scientists Build Possibly The First Man-Made Genome
Posted by Zonk on Thursday January 24, @04:40PM
from the quite-a-crafting-combine dept.
from the quite-a-crafting-combine dept.
hackingbear writes "Wired is reporting that researchers have created the longest synthetic genome to date by threading together four long strands of DNA. 'Leading synthetic biologists said with the new work, published Thursday in the journal Science, the first synthetic life could be just months away — if it hasn't been created already. [...] The ability to synthesize longer DNA strands for less money parallels the history of genetic sequencing, where the price of sequencing a human genome has dropped from hundreds of millions of dollars to about $10,000. Just a few years ago, synthesizing a piece of DNA with 5,000 rungs in its helix, known as base-pairs, was impossible. Venter's new synthetic genome is 582,000 base-pairs.' As a programmer, I'm most excited by the possibility of a new platform and the programming jobs that will be created by it."
Green Tax Guide: Buy a Hybrid Car or AFV and Save Taxes
If you bought a hybrid car in 2007 or plan to buy one before 2010, you may be able to save a huge chunk on your tax bill. Hybrids purchased or placed into service after December 31, 2005 may be eligible for a federal income tax credit of up to $3,400. In addition to hybrid vehicles, alternative fuel vehicles (AFV) also may be eligible for a federal tax credit of $4,000. Right now only Honda's compressed natural gas car has qualifed for the AFV tax credit.
A tax credit is a direct reduction in your tax bill, which makes them a lot better for your pocketbook than a tax deduction. While a tax deduction is subtracted from your income, and then you must still calculate taxes based on your current tax rate, a tax credit is subtracted directly from the taxes you've already calculated.
Credit amounts begin to phase out for any manufacturer that has sold over 60,000 eligible hybrid vehicles. There's a complex formula the government uses to figure out the tax credit on each model. The IRS will announce when a manufacturer exceeds the 60,000 sales figure. Right now only Honda and Toyota models are facing a phase-out of their tax credits.
You must meet the following requirements to claim the credit:
- You must be the one who first started using the vehicle.
- You must either buy or lease the vehicle for yourself and not for resale.
- You must use the vehicle mostly in the U.S.
- You must place the vehicle in service before December 31, 2010.
To claim your tax credit, file Form 8910 - "Alternative Motor Vehicle Credit" - with your tax return.
In this series, I focus on tax credits available for Fords, GMs, Hondas, Nissans and Toyotas.
DoS Attacks on Estonia Were Launched by Student
Posted by Soulskill on Thursday January 24, @11:04PM
from the modern-techniques-for-making-people-hate-each-other dept.
from the modern-techniques-for-making-people-hate-each-other dept.
As_I_Please alerts us to the fact that a 20-year-old Estonian student has been fined for participating in DoS attacks against various Estonian political and governmental websites last May. The situation was notable because it escalated tensions between Estonia and Russia when the latter was accused of initiating the 'cyber-attack'. Quoting: "The fact that a single student was able to trigger such events is particularly ominous when you consider just how many potential flashpoints exist between various countries all over the world. The DoS attack against Estonia is an excellent example of how a cyberattack carried out by a 20-year-old student in response to real-life events further exacerbated an existing problem between two nations."
Thursday, January 24, 2008
MIT Student Plans to Take on RIAA
Posted by Zonk on Wednesday January 23, @05:04PM
from the go-fightin'-nerds dept.
from the go-fightin'-nerds dept.
NewYorkCountryLawyer writes "MIT's online newspaper, The Tech, reports that a student named as a John Doe by the RIAA is planning to fight back against their questionable legal tactics. The anonymous student told The Tech that he is 'the victim of a fishing expedition by the RIAA,' and is 'disappointed that MIT isn't going to step up ... Other schools like Boston University and the University of Oregon have resisted RIAA subpoenas of student records more actively than MIT has, he said'. Maybe his attorneys will be able to get some assistance from some of the Harvard Law School students in Professor Nesson's 'Evidence' class, who have been assigned — as part of their coursework — the drafting of a motion to quash an RIAA subpoena."
Wait, so global warming reduces hurricanes?
One of the many reasons you sometimes hear scientists freaking out about global warming is that, in theory, warmer ocean temperatures make for stronger, more destructive hurricanes. Seems like a good reason to freak out to me. But today there's a new federal study that says just the opposite. According to the new research, warming waters lead to increased vertical windshear, which basically means it's now more difficult for hurricanes to sustain themselves, get stronger, or even form in the first place.
So...are we doomed, or not?
It's hard to know who to believe. This new research certainly sounds logical, but critics have rejected the study on the grounds that it's based on bad data -- and in fact, a Nobel Prize-winning panel on climate change rejected the research on those grounds. The problem, apparently, is that this windshear study is based on observations of hurricanes that made landfall in the US, which represent a very small percentage of the storms around the world.
Regardless, I think we can reasonably assume that at least two facts still hold true: hurricanes and global warming, if nothing else, are bad.
Gallery: Global Warming in Pictures
Tuesday, January 22, 2008
"The hybrid solar house"
Biodiversivist (Russ Finley) on grist puts forth the idea of the "hybrid solar home," starting out with the idea that American homes are just too large to be heated effectively with solar, which has caused a push to lower the cost of solar panels.But how about creating a hybrid solar home, a cross of an expensive solar heating and cooling system with an optimally sized home? Finley proposes a well-designed, energy-efficient 10 by 40 foot park model trailer, facing south.
Finley states that smaller houses can be just as desirable as larger ones, IF properly designed. If these hybrid solar homes took off, having a larger house could even become a liability, according to Finley.
Sounds awesome, although 10 by 40 (roughly 400 square feet) sounds a bit on the small side, especially if you have kids. Although I do agree that a well-designed small home can outmatch a poorly-designed large home any day.
X-rays get boost from "dark field" technology
While it may not give you quite the graphic glimpse as some of the recent CT scanners we've seen, a group of researchers at the Niels Bohr Institute in Copenhagen, Denmark think their new and improved x-ray system still won't have any trouble catching on, and the results are certainly hard to argue with. The key to those sharper pics, it seems, is so-called "dark field microscopy," a technique that, as NewScientist points out, is normally used by biologists. As you might expect, however, there's some upsides and downsides to this particular technique. On the plus side, all that's needed is a simple set of four silicon filters in addition to some standard x-ray equipment. Unfortunately, those four filters mean you also have to take four separate images to get one clear image, giving the patient quite the extra dose of radiation. Even so, the researchers say there are some circumstances where that would be justified, including using the technology to give airport screeners a better peek at potential explosives.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)