Wired's Threat Level has a piece on a Bank of America employee, Rodney Reed Caverly, who has been charged withinstalling malware on ATMs in North Carolina. Caverly, who worked on the bank's IT staff, allegedly withdrew cash untraceably from the ATMs over a period of 7 months last year."The charges were filed the same day that credit card company Visa warned the banking industry that Eastern European ATM malware recently showed up in America for the first time. That code, initially spotted last year on some 20 ATMs in Russia and Ukraine, was designed primarily to capture PINs and bank card magstripe data, but also allowed thieves to instruct the machine to eject whatever cash was still in it... At least 16 versions of the East European malware have been found so far and were designed to attack ATMs made by Diebold and NCR, according to the April 1 Visa alert. There is no information tying the malware found in Russia with the malware allegedly used by Caverly."
Friday, April 9, 2010
Netflix inks with Universal and Twentieth Century Fox: first TV streams, more films, and 28 day rental delay
By Thomas Ricker 
posted Apr 9th 2010 8:55AM
Everyone's streaming media darling, Netflix, has just reached terms with both Universal and Twentieth Century Fox. Both agreements beef up Netflix's streaming content while limiting Netflix to renting DVD and Blu-ray discs 28 days after the retail street date -- yup, just like with Warner Brothers. To put that into perspective, while Twentieth Century Fox's "Avatar" DVD/Blu-ray will hit shelves on April 22nd it won't be available for Netflix rental until the end of May. On the plus side we've got a first time, Netflix TV streaming agreement with TCF -- albeit, released in a window it decides. Content includes the complete prior seasons of shows like "24," "Bones," and "Lie to Me" in addition to older library titles like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." Can't say we didn't see this one coming.The Economist Weighs In For Shorter Copyright Terms
lxmota writes"The Economist says that long copyright terms are hindering creativity, and that shortening them is the way to go: 'Largely thanks to the entertainment industry's lawyers and lobbyists, copyright's scope and duration have vastly increased. In America, copyright holders get 95 years' protection as a result of an extension granted in 1998, derided by critics as the 'Mickey Mouse Protection Act'. They are now calling for even greater protection, and there have been efforts to introduce similar terms in Europe. Such arguments should be resisted: it is time to tip the balance back.'"
Possible New Hominid Species Discovered, Thanks To Google Earth
mindbrane writes"The BBC is reporting on fossil finds 'uncovered in cave deposits near Malapa in the Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site near Johannesburg.' The fossils of a mature female and juvenile male have '...small teeth, projecting nose, very advanced pelvis, and long legs ...' suggesting more modern forms. 'And yet its very long arms and small brain case might echo the much older Australopithecine group to which Professor Berger and colleagues have assigned it.' Aside from the debate as to classification, the find is noteworthy in that its discovery came about 'thanks to the "virtual globe" software Google Earth, which allowed the group to map and visualise the most promising fossil grounds in the World Heritage Site.' Further, the find in a cave bears the hallmarks of chance that often plays so large a part in fossilisation. 'Their bones were laid down with the remains of other dead animals, including a sabre-toothed cat, antelope, mice and rabbits. The fact that none of the bodies appear to have been scavenged indicates that all died suddenly and were entombed rapidly.'"
Thursday, April 8, 2010
Japanese Guts Are Made For Sushi
Posted by samzenpus on Thursday April 08, @02:11AM
from the weed-eaters dept.
from the weed-eaters dept.
cremeglace writes"Americans don't have the guts for sushi. At least that's the implication of a new study, which finds that Japanese people harbor enzymes in their intestinal bacteria that help them digest seaweed, enzymes that North Americans lack. What's more, Japanese may have first acquired these enzymes by eating bacteria that thrive on seaweed in the open ocean."
Wednesday, April 7, 2010
Unconscious Learning Uses Old Parts of the Brain
ScienceDaily (Apr. 7, 2010) — A new study from the Swedish medical university Karolinska Institutet provides evidence that basic human learning systems use areas of the brain that also exist in the most primitive vertebrates, such as certain fish, reptiles and amphibians. The study involved an investigation into the limbic striatum, one of the evolutionarily oldest parts of the brain, and the ability to learn movements, consciously and unconsciously, through repetition.
US Most Vulnerable To Cyberattack?
Posted by CmdrTaco on Wednesday April 07, @11:46AM
from the also-most-vulnerable-to-american-idols dept.
from the also-most-vulnerable-to-american-idols dept.
alphadogg writes"Several nations, most prominently Russia, the People's Republic of China and North Korea, are already assembling cyber armies and attack weapons that could be used to attack other nations. Given that the United States is heavily dependent on technology for everything from computer-based banking to supply-chain tracking and air-traffic control, it's particularly vulnerable to the denial-of-service attacks, electronic jamming, data destruction and software-based disinformation tricks likely in a cyberattack. Here's what ex-presidential adviser Richard Clarke, who is releasing a new book called Cyber War, and others are saying needs to be done to keep cyberwars from escalating into full-scale combat."
Google Gives the US Government Access To Gmail
schliz writes"Google condemns the Chinese Government for censoring its results, and Australia for planning to do the same. Meanwhile, its lawyers and security experts have told employeesto "be intentionally vague about whether or not we've given access to end-user accounts," according to engineer James Tarquin, hinting that Google may be sharing its data with the US government. Perhaps Australia's most hated communications minister Steven Conroy could be right in his criticism of Google's privacy record after all."
Solar-Powered Plane Makes First Successful Flight
lilbridge writes"The Solar Impulse, a solar-powered plane covered in 12,000 solar cells, took its maiden flight today in Switzerland. The plane stayed aloft for 87 minutes, performing test maneuvers as well as completing a successful takeoff and landing. With the first test flight behind them, the developers can focus on gearing up for their around-the-world solar powered flight set for 2012."
Look At Sick People To Give Your Immune System a Boost
Posted by samzenpus on Tuesday April 06, @12:30PM
from the taskmaster-HMO dept.
from the taskmaster-HMO dept.
Scientists at the University of British Columbia have found that looking at someone who appears sick boosts your immune system. Subjects had blood taken before and after watching a 10-minute slide show that contained disturbing images including people who appeared sick. Results of the blood tests showed people who had seen the sick people had a stronger immune system. From the article: "In the study, young adults were asked to watch a 10-minute slide show containing a series of unpleasant photographs. Some pictures included people who looked obviously ill in some way. The subjects' blood samples were then tested for levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), a substance produced by the immune system that indicates your immune system is ramping up to more aggressively fight infection. As a control, pictures of people brandishing guns were also used on some participants—and they barely resulted in a significant increase in IL-6 production, signifying that IL-6 production is not simply a reaction to stress."
Net Neutrality Suffers Major Setback
RingDev writes"The US Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Comcast today, stating that the FCC lacks the authority to require broadband providers to give equal treatment to all Internet traffic flowing over their networks."
After 27 Years, a New High Score For Asteroids
blair1q writes"In a marathon 3-1/2 day session, John McAllister, of Portland, Oregon, has broken the 27-year-old high score for Asteroids, set in 1982 by Scott Safran. The attempt was broadcast via webcam."
Thursday, March 25, 2010
BC Prof Suggests Young Children Need Less Formal Math, Not More
DesScorp writes"Professor Peter Gray, a developmental psychologist and researcher at Boston College, recounts an experiment done in New Hampshire schools in 1929, where math was completely taken out of the curriculum of the poorest schools from the area until the sixth grade. The results were surprising; with just one year of math under their belts, the poor students did as well or better than students from better schools by the end of the sixth grade year, despite the fact that the better schools had math in their curriculum all throughout elementary school. Professor Gray thinks children are not mentally wired for the kind of formal math instruction that is taught in schools, and that we'd be better served by putting off the teaching of theory until the seventh grade. He scoffs at the notion that if children are failing with current levels of math instructions then we should double down and make them do more math in school."
Netflix Streaming Arrives For the Wii
Grant,thompson writes"As announced in January and mentioned here on Slashdot, Netflix is sending out discs today to enable streaming on the Nintendo Wii. 'Netflix has sent out emails to customers who pre-ordered the Wii's instant streaming disc, indicating that the disc will arrive in mailboxes tomorrow, and that the service will likely start within the next day.'"
Facebook Leads To Increase In STDs in Britain
Posted by samzenpus on Thursday March 25, @12:12PM
from the friends-and-really-good-friends dept.
from the friends-and-really-good-friends dept.
ectotherm writes"According to Professor Peter Kelly, a director of Public Health in Great Britain: 'There has been a four-fold increase in the number of syphilis cases detected, with more young women being affected.' Why the increase? People meeting up for casual sex through Facebook. According to the article 'Social networking sites are making it easier for people to meet up for casual sex. There is a rise in syphilis because people are having more sexual partners than 20 years ago and often do not use condoms.'
US Not Training Enough Cyber Security Experts
graychase writes"Homeland Security's cybersecurity director, Richard Marshall, warns that universities aren't turning out enough cybersecurity experts and urges greater scholarship funding. "Look at all the great football and basketball programs. They're all on scholarships. They're not playing for fun — they're playing for money,""
Anesthesia Increases Risk of Developing Alzheimer's Disease in Patients With Genetic Predisposition, Study Suggests
ScienceDaily (Mar. 25, 2010) — A new study confirms that anesthesia is safe for normal mice but potentially harmful for mice with genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's disease (AD). Over several months, investigations have focused on analyzing the effects of the anesthesia in normal mice and in mice with mutations that produce AD.
Iron Alloy Could Create Earthquake-Proof Buildings
Posted by samzenpus on Thursday March 25, @01:37AM
from the shake-all-you-want dept.
from the shake-all-you-want dept.
separsons writes"Researchers at Japan's Tohoku University designed a new shape memory metal alloy. The super elastic iron alloy can endure serious stretching and still return to its original shape. The scientists say that once optimized, the material could be used in everything from braces to medical stents to earthquake-proof buildings!"
First Anti-Cancer Nanoparticle Trial on Humans a Success
Posted by samzenpus on Wednesday March 24, @08:16PM
from the smallest-medicine dept.
from the smallest-medicine dept.
An anonymous reader writes"Nanoparticles have been able to disable cancerous cells in living human bodies for the first time. The results are perfect so far, killing tumors with no side effects whatsoever. Mark Davis,project leader at CalTech, says that 'it sneaks in, evades the immune system, delivers the siRNA, and the disassembled components exit out.' Truly amazing."
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
The $8500 Gaming Table You Want
Recently I stumbled upon The Sultan Gaming Table. With a price tag of over $8k, it would have to be awesome: but it has little compartments for the players and DM as well as a drop down playing surface. If you find the pricetag daunting then you are a sane person, and might instead want to look at the Emissary which starts at a "mere" $1500 and has many of the same features. Honestly I just love the idea of having my minis on a playing surface underneath the dinner table. I ought to be allowed to expense one of these. I also wish they had more pictures and fewer renderings on the site.
Mini Generators Make Energy from Random Ambient Vibrations
ScienceDaily (Mar. 24, 2010) — Tiny generators developed at the University of Michigan could produce enough electricity from random, ambient vibrations to power a wristwatch, pacemaker or wireless sensor.
Probing the Secrets of Sharp Memory in Old Age
ScienceDaily (Mar. 24, 2010) — A study of the brains of people who stayed mentally sharp into their 80s and beyond challenges the notion that brain changes linked to mental decline and Alzheimer's disease are a normal, inevitable part of aging.
Dell looking outside of China for 'safer environments,' according to Indian PM
By Vladislav Savov posted Mar 24th 2010 5:56AM
Michael Dell's outfit already has one manufacturing plant in India, and the man himself has been on a charm offensive in the country this week meeting and greeting local officials. It could well be, however, that Dell is just seeking to play China and India off one another to get itself the most favorable manufacturing deal, but it's still interesting to find such a high profile protestation against the supposedly enterprise-choking climate and uncertain legal system in China. It appears that Google's wrangle with the Middle Kingdom's leadership has forced consumer electronics execs to reevaluate their strong reliance on China, and the (very) long-term effects could indeed be a shifting, or at least diversification, of manufacturing away from Yao's homeland."This morning I met the chairman of Dell Corporation. He informed me that they are buying equipment and parts worth $25 billion from China. They would like to shift to safer environment with climate conducive to enterprise with security of legal system."
New Spintronics Material Could Help Usher in Next Generation of Microelectronics
ScienceDaily (Mar. 24, 2010) — As the electronics industry works toward developing smaller and more compact devices, the need to create new types of scaled-down semiconductors that are more efficient and use less power has become essential.
Another Perk of Painkillers? Decreased Hormone Levels May Reduce Cancer Risk
ScienceDaily (Mar. 24, 2010) — Postmenopausal women who regularly use aspirin and other analgesics (known as painkillers) have lower estrogen levels, which could contribute to a decreased risk of breast or ovarian cancer.
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