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and reduce the chances of data reaching the wrong eyes. Examine
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======================================================================
Slashdot Daily Newsletter
In this issue:
* Developing World's Parasites, Diseases Enter US
* BrainPort Lets the Blind "See" With Their Tongues
* Mexico Decriminalizes Small-Scale Drug Possession
* Sunspots May Be Different During This Solar Minimum
* 3 of 4 Charges Against Terry Childs Dropped
* DOJ Gives Oracle Approval To Buy Sun
* Google Chrome For Linux Goes 64-bit
* Facebook App Exposes Abject Insecurity
* A History of the Shrinking Game Console
* Apple, Google, AT&T Respond To the FCC Over Google Voice
* NASA May Outsource
* First European Provider To Break Net Neutrality
* Real-Time Keyloggers
* "Gigantic Jets" Blast Electricity Into the Ionosphere
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Developing World's Parasites, Diseases Enter US |
| from the different-kind-of-worm dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Saturday August 22, @20:22 (Medicine) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/09/08/22/1910245/Developing-Worlds-Parasites-Diseases-En|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]reporter alerts us to a story up at the Wall Street Journal on the
[1]increasing prevalance in the US of formerly rare, 3rd-world diseases
such as toxocariasis, chagas, and cysticercosis. Health-care legislation
pending in the House calls for a full report to Congress about the threat
from this cluster of diseases, termed "neglected infections of poverty."
"Parasitic infections and other diseases usually associated with the
developing world are cropping up with alarming frequency among US poor,
especially in states along the US-Mexico border, the rural South, and in
Appalachia, according to researchers. Government and private researchers
are just beginning to assess the toll of the infections, which are a
significant cause of heart disease, seizures and congenital birth defects
among black and Hispanic populations. ... 'These are diseases that we
know are ten-fold more important than swine flu,' said [one] leading
researcher in this field. 'They're on no one's radar.' ... These diseases
share a common thread. 'People who live in the suburbs are at very low
risk,' Dr. Hotez said. But for the 37 million people in the US who live
below the poverty line, he said, 'There is real suffering.'" Update:
08/23 16:55 GMT by [2]KD : The submitter pointed out that the usual
"Related" link to the original submission was missing on this story. We
are testing a new version of the story editor and this was probably
caused by a bug; reported. [3]Here's the original.
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/22/1910245
Links:
0. http://wsj.com/article/SB124451552193396877.html
1. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125090339313750961.html
2. http://slashdot.org/~kdawson/
3. http://slashdot.org/submission/1059675/Developing-Worlds-Parasites-and-Disease-Enter-USA
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| BrainPort Lets the Blind "See" With Their Tongues |
| from the battery-testing dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Saturday August 22, @22:45 (Input Devices) |
| https://hardware.slashdot.org/story/09/08/22/2035256/BrainPort-Lets-the-Blind-See-With-Thei|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Hugh Pickens writes "Scientific American reports that a new device
called 'BrainPort' aims to restore the experience of vision for the blind
and visually impaired by relying on the [1]nerves on the tongue's surface
to send light signals to the brain. BrainPort collects visual data
through a small digital video camera and converts the signal into
electrical pulses sent to the tongue via a [2]'lollipop' that sits
directly on the tongue, where densely packed nerves receive the incoming
electrical signals. White pixels yield a strong electrical pulse and the
[3]electrodes spatially correlate with the pixels, so that if the camera
detects light fixtures in the middle of a dark hallway, electrical
stimulations will occur along the center of the tongue. Within 15 minutes
of using the device, blind people can begin interpreting spatial
information. 'At first, I was amazed at what the device could do,' says
research director William Seiple. 'One guy started to cry when he saw his
first letter.'" There is some indication that the signals from the tongue
are processed by the visual cortex. The company developing the BrainPort
will submit it to the FDA for approval later this month, and it could be
on sale (for around $10,000) by the end of the year.
Discuss this story at:
http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/22/2035256
Links:
0. http://hughpickens.com/
1. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=device-lets-blind-see-with-tongues
2. http://vision.wicab.com/technology/
3. http://nihrecord.od.nih.gov/newsletters/2009/03_20_2009/story3.htm
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Mexico Decriminalizes Small-Scale Drug Possession |
| from the never-did-worry-much-about-the-little-things dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Sunday August 23, @01:12 (Government) |
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/09/08/22/1932212/Mexico-Decriminalizes-Small-Scale-Drug-Pos|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Professor_Quail notes an AP story that begins, "Mexico enacted a
controversial law Thursday [0]decriminalizing possession of small amounts
of marijuana, cocaine, heroin and other drugs while encouraging free
government treatment for drug dependency. The law sets out maximum
'personal use' amounts for drugs, also including LSD and methamphetamine.
People detained with those quantities will no longer face criminal
prosecution when the law goes into effect Friday." An official in the
attorney general's office said, "This is not legalization, this is
regulating the issue and giving citizens greater legal certainty... for a
practice that was already in place." In 2006, the US criticized a similar
bill that had no provisions for mandatory treatment, and the
then-president sent it back to Congress for reconsideration.
Discuss this story at:
http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/22/1932212
Links:
0. http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5iP1GlMCOzYSi8kbAUY1lLDdqc4vAD9A70MDO0
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Sunspots May Be Different During This Solar Minimum |
| from the too-much-clearasil dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Sunday August 23, @04:43 (Space) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/09/08/22/2340202/Sunspots-May-Be-Different-During-This-S|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]PhreakOfTime writes "According to Bill Livingston and Matt Penn of the
National Solar Observatory in Tucson, Arizona, sunspot magnetic fields
are waning. The two respected solar astronomers have been measuring solar
magnetism since 1992. Their technique is based on Zeeman splitting of
infrared spectral lines in radiation emitted by iron atoms in the
vicinity of sunspots. Extrapolating [1]their data (PDF) into [2]the
future suggests that sunspots could completely disappear within decades."
To motivate their interest the researchers mention the [3]Maunder Minimum,
which occurred beginning in 1645 and coincided with the coldest part of
the so-called "Little Ice Age." Sunspot counts during this period were as
low as 1/1,000 of the numbers seen in modern times.
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/22/2340202
Links:
0. http://www.demystify.info/
1. http://www.leif.org/EOS/2009EO300001.pdf
2. http://www.spaceweather.com/swpod2009/22aug09/penn1_strip.jpg
3. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maunder_Minimum
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| 3 of 4 Charges Against Terry Childs Dropped |
| from the childs-play dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Sunday August 23, @08:13 (Government) |
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/09/08/22/2249221/3-of-4-Charges-Against-Terry-Childs-Droppe|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
phantomfive writes "Terry Childs, who was arrested nearly a year ago for
refusing to turn over the passwords to San Francisco's FiberWAN network,
has been [0]cleared of three of the four charges against him. The dropped
charges referred to the attachment of modems to the network; the
remaining charge is for refusing to turn over the password. The
prosecutor has vowed to appeal, to have the charges reinstated. We have
[1]the original story, and the story where [2]Childs tells his side, for
those who want a refresher."
Discuss this story at:
http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/22/2249221
Links:
0. http://www.sfexaminer.com/local/Judge-drops-3-of-4-charges-against-accused-city-hacker-54013717.html
1. http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/07/15/120220&tid=76
2. http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/02/18/1351205&tid=498
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| DOJ Gives Oracle Approval To Buy Sun |
| from the nothin'-but-blue-skies dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Sunday August 23, @09:15 (Oracle) |
| https://developers.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/125211/DOJ-Gives-Oracle-Approval-To-Buy-Sun |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]k33l0r writes "The BBC is reporting that the [1]US Justice Department
has approved Oracle's takeover of Sun Microsystems. The acquisition gives
Oracle control over (or a leading role in), among other things, Java,
MySQL, (Open)Solaris, ZFS, OpenOffice, and the NetBeans IDE. 'The
European Commission has still to rule on the deal, a step that will be
required before it can close. That body has indicated it will issue an
initial opinion on Sept. 3, according to the Wall Street Journal. It may
OK the deal at that time or launch a four-month probe of it. ... The
Justice Department ruling [2]came earlier than expected, a possible
response to Sun's declining revenues and precarious business position in
a steep recession, as the required reviews proceeded.' We first discussed
the deal back [3]when it was announced in April."
Discuss this story at:
http://developers.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/125211
Links:
0. http://proliferationoflinux.org/
1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8213425.stm
2. http://www.informationweek.com/news/government/policy/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=219400953
3. http://developers.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/04/20/128246&tid=463
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Google Chrome For Linux Goes 64-bit |
| from the you-really-only-need-three dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Sunday August 23, @10:59 (Google) |
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/1451237/Google-Chrome-For-Linux-Goes-64-bit |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Noam.of.Doom writes "The Google Chrome developers announced on August
19th the immediate availability of a new version of the Google Chrome web
browser for Linux, Windows and Macintosh operating systems. Google Chrome
4.0.202.2 is here to fix a lot of annoying bugs (see below for details)
and it also adds a couple of features only for the Mac platform. However,
the good news is that Dean McNamee, one of the Google Chrome engineers,
announced yesterday on their mailing list that a working port of [0]the
Chrome browser for 64-bit platforms is now available: 'The v8 team did
some amazing work this quarter building a working 64-bit port. After a
handful of changes on the Chromium side, I've had Chromium Linux
[1]building on 64-bit for the last few weeks. I believe mmoss or tony is
going to get a buildbot running, and working on packaging.' Until today,
Google Chrome was available on both 32- and 64-bit architectures, but it
appears that the latter was running based on the 32-bit libraries.
Therefore, starting with Google Chrome 4.0.202.2, 64-bit users can enjoy
a true x64 version!"
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/1451237
Links:
0. http://blog.internetnews.com/skerner/2009/08/google-chrome-gets-64-bit-vers.html
1. http://code.google.com/p/chromium/wiki/LinuxChromium64
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Facebook App Exposes Abject Insecurity |
| from the pay-no-attention-to-the-hole-in-my-pants dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Sunday August 23, @11:47 (Social Networks) |
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/1458246/Facebook-App-Exposes-Abject-Insecurity |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]ewhac writes "Back in June, the [1]American Civil Liberties Union
published an article describing [2]Facebook's complete lack of meaningful
security on your and your friends' information. The article went
virtually unnoticed. Now, a developer has written a [3]Facebook 'Quiz'
based on the original article that graphically illustrates all the
information a Facebook app can get its grubby little hands on by
recursively sweeping through your friends list, pulling all their info
and posts, and showing it to you. What's more, apps can get at your
information even if you never run the app yourself. Facebook apps run
with the access privileges of the user running it, so anything your
friend can see, the app they're running can see, too. It is unclear
whether the developer of the Facebook app did so 'officially' for the
ACLU."
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/1458246
Links:
0. http://ewhac.org/
1. http://www.aclu.org/
2. http://blog.aclu.org/2009/06/11/quiz-what-do-facebook-quizzes-know-about-you/
3. http://www.facebook.com/apps/application.php?id=114232425072
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| A History of the Shrinking Game Console |
| from the wonder-when-the-wee-wii-is-coming-out dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Sunday August 23, @12:48 (PlayStation (Games)) |
| https://games.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/1539202/A-History-of-the-Shrinking-Game-Console |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
After Sony's [0]announcement of the PS3 Slim earlier this week, CNet took
[1]a look back at size-reducing hardware revisions over the past couple
decades in console design, noting that they're gradually arriving sooner
and sooner after the initial release. "Does that mean it'll creep even
lower, into two-year or even yearly cycles between major revisions? Quite
possibly, yes. It's worked very well with handheld gaming devices, and
even some consumer electronics devices like iPods. Apple has turned out
slimmer, more powerful versions of the iPod every year since 2001, and
yearly events like E3 put continued pressure on console makers to show
off something big. In the case of the PS3 Slim though, it could just be
that the PS3 had to be pushed out to meet its launch window, and that the
Slim is what Sony was going for in the first place. Advances in the
PlayStation 3's core technology, like the cell processor, also underwent
changes since the console launched, including changes to fabrication that
have taken the chip down from 90 nanometers to 65, then 45 ��� the size
that can be found inside the Slim. These changes meant less power
consumption, smaller components, and easier cooling."
Discuss this story at:
http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/1539202
Links:
0. http://slashdot.org/story/09/08/18/187216/Sony-Announces-PS3-Slim-Price-Cut-Improvements-To-Home
1. http://news.cnet.com/8301-27076_3-10313741-248.html
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Apple, Google, AT&T Respond To the FCC Over Google Voice |
| from the honest-guys-we-cool-we-cool dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Sunday August 23, @13:49 (Google) |
| https://apple.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/164236/Apple-Google-ATampT-Respond-To-the-FCC-Ove|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
We've recently been following the [0]FCC's inquiry into Apple's rejection
of the Google Voice app. Apple, Google, and AT&T have all officially
responded to the FCC's questions: Apple says they [1]haven't actually
rejected the app, they're just continuing to "study it," and that it may
"alter the iPhone's distinctive user experience by replacing the iPhone's
core mobile telephone functionality and Apple user interface with its own
user interface for telephone calls, text messaging, and voicemail." The
interesting bits of [2]Google's response seem to have been redacted, but
they talk a little about the approval process for the Android platform.
AT&T [3]claims it had "no role" in the app's rejection and notes that
there are no contractual provisions between the two companies for the
consideration of individual apps. Reader ZuchinniOne points out a report
in The Consumerist [4]analyzing some of the statements made in these
filings, as well as TechCrunch's look into [5]the veracity of their
claims.
Discuss this story at:
http://apple.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/164236
Links:
0. http://news.slashdot.org/story/09/08/01/0239247/FCC-Probing-Apple-ATT-Rejection-of-Google-Voice?from=rss
1. http://www.apple.com/hotnews/apple-answers-fcc-questions/
2. http://www.scribd.com/doc/18983640/Google-response-to-FCC
3. http://scribd.com/doc/18983512/ATT-Response-to-FCC-iPhone-Letter-082109-as-Filed
4. http://consumerist.com/5343391/apple-google-and-att-respond-to-fccs-google-voice-questions
5. http://www.techcrunch.com/2009/08/21/the-simple-truth-whats-really-going-on-with-apple-google-att-and-the-fcc/
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| NASA May Outsource |
| from the let-a-thousand-rockets-bloom dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Sunday August 23, @14:57 (NASA) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/180257/NASA-May-Outsource |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
The Wall Street Journal is running a piece about the growing momentum
behind the idea of [0]NASA outsourcing to private companies everything
from transporting astronauts to ferrying cargo into orbit. Quoting:
"Proposals gaining momentum in Washington call for contractors to build
and run competing systems under commercial contracts, according to
federal officials, aerospace-industry officials and others familiar with
the discussions. While the Obama administration is still mulling options
and hasn't made any final decisions, such a move would represent a major
policy shift away from decades of government-run rocket and
astronaut-transportation programs such as the current space-shuttle
fleet. ... In the face of severe federal budget constraints and a
burgeoning commercial-space industry eager to play a larger role in
exploring the solar system and perhaps beyond, ...a consensus for the new
approach seems to be building inside the White House as well as [NASA].
... Under this scenario, a new breed of contractors would take over many
of NASA's current responsibilities, freeing the agency to pursue
longer-term, more ambitious goals such as new rocket-propulsion
technology and manned missions to Mars. ...[T]hese contractors would take
the lead in servicing the International Space Station from the shuttle's
planned retirement around 2011 through at least the end of that decade."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/180257
Links:
0. http://online.wsj.com/article/SB125089632848150593.html
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| First European Provider To Break Net Neutrality |
| from the deliver-what-was-paid-for dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Sunday August 23, @16:08 (The Internet) |
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/1921206/First-European-Provider-To-Break-Net-Neutra|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Rik van der Kroon writes "Major Dutch cable provider UPC has
introduced a new network management system which, from noon to midnight,
for certain services and providers, [1]caps users' bandwidth at 1/3rd of
their nominal bandwidth (Google translation; [2]Dutch original here).
After the consumer front for cable providers in The Netherlands received
many complaints about network problems and slow speeds, UPC decided to
take this as an excuse to introduce their new 'network management'
protocol which slows down a large amount of traffic. All protocols but
HTTP are capped to 1/3 speed, and within the HTTP realm some Web sites
and services that use lots of upstream bandwidth are capped as well. So
far UPC is hiding behind the usual excuse: 'We are protecting all the
users against the 1% of the user base who abuse our network.'"
Discuss this story at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/1921206
Links:
0. mailto:astute.spam@gmail.com
1. http://translate.google.com/translate?prev=hp&hl=en&js=y&u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.coax.nl%2Fnews%2Freageer%2Findex.php%3FNewsID%3D2218&sl=nl&tl=en&history_state0=
2. http://www.coax.nl/news/reageer/index.php?NewsID=2218
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Real-Time Keyloggers |
| from the taking-a-leaf-from-twitter dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Sunday August 23, @17:18 (Security) |
| https://it.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/2015208/Real-Time-Keyloggers |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
The NY Times has a story and a blog backgrounder focusing on a weapon now
being wielded by bad guys (most likely in Eastern Europe, according to
the Times): [0]Trojan horse keyloggers that report back in real-time. The
capability came to light in a [1]court filing (PDF) by Project Honey Pot
against "John Doe" thieves. The case was filed in order to compel the
banks ��� which are almost as secretive as the cyber-crooks ��� to [2]reveal
information such as IP addresses that could lead back to the miscreants.
Or at least allow victims to be notified. Real-time keyloggers were
[3]first discovered in the wild last year, but the court filing and the
Times article should bring new attention to the threat. The technique
menaces the 2-factor authentication that some banks have instituted: "By
going real time, hackers now can get around some of the roadblocks that
companies have put in their way. Most significantly, they are now
undeterred by systems that create temporary passwords, such as RSA's
SecurID system, which involves a small gadget that displays a six-digit
number that changes every minute based on a complex formula. If [your]
computer is infected, the Trojan zaps your temporary password back to the
waiting hacker who immediately uses it to log onto your account.
Sometimes, the hacker logs on from his own computer, probably using
tricks to hide its location. Other times, the Trojan allows the hacker to
control your computer, opening a browser session that you can't see."
Discuss this story at:
http://it.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/2015208
Links:
0. http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/20/how-hackers-snatch-real-time-security-id-numbers/
1. http://graphics8.nytimes.com/packages/pdf/technology/onlinebanking.pdf
2. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/20/technology/20hacker.html
3. http://www.computerweekly.com/Articles/2008/01/31/229191/two-factor-banking-security-systems-threatened-by-trojan.htm
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| "Gigantic Jets" Blast Electricity Into the Ionosphere |
| from the more-things-in-heaven-and-earth dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Sunday August 23, @18:26 (Earth) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/09/08/23/2041206/Gigantic-Jets-Blast-Electricity-Into-th|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
New Scientist has an update on the so-called "gigantic jets" first
discovered in 2003 ��� these are lightning bolts that reach from cloud tops
upward into the ionosphere, as high as 90 kilometers. (There's a video at
the link.) What's new is that researchers from Duke University have
managed to [0]measure the electrical discharge from a gigantic jet and
confirm that they carry as much energy skyward as ordinary lightning
strikes carry to the ground. According to the article, "Gigantic jets are
one of a host of new atmospheric phenomena discovered in recent years.
Other examples are [1]sprites and [2]blue jets."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=09/08/23/2041206
Links:
0. http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn17664-gigantic-jets-blast-electricity-into-upper-atmosphere.html?DCMP=OTC-rss&nsref=online-news
1. http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn14581-atmospheric-homes-of-elves-and-sprites-revealed.html
2. http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg14719914.500-bolts-from-the-blue.html
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