October 18, 2011
On Asperger's, Extradition, and National Security
Gary McKinnon is a Briton whom the US is trying to extradite to face charges that he hacked into a number of US Government networks, mostly NASA and military, to search for evidence of extra-terrestrial life and leave threatening messages. His efforts took 2,000 Government computers out of service for three days. McKinnon admits guilt and wishes to be tried in the UK. His case has drawn international media attention on two fronts:
1. Should Asperger's be considered a mitigating circumstance in determining guilt, a la the insanity defense?
2. Is the UK-US extradition treated lopsided in favor of the US? A judge-led UK panel says no. [more inside]
Blue Jeans and Band T-Shirts
My Band T-Shirt is a new blog where people can send in photos and stories about their band shirts. The author recently talked about band shirt's importance in musical subcultures. But what are the rules of wearing a band shirt?
BlackBerry cuts made roads safer, police say
Too soon?
Generation X hasn't had a real voice since Axl got fat.
Chris Poole on self expression online
Google and Facebook would have you believe that you're a mirror, that there is one reflection that you have, this one idea of self. [They believe] that what you see in that mirror is what everybody else sees. But in fact we're more like diamonds, you can look at people from any angle and see something totally different. - Chris Poole, AKA Moot, founder of 4Chan and Canvas, from his speech at the Web 2.0 Summit on self-expression through social networking. [more inside]
Clinton Foundation: Celebrity Brainstorm
It is, in fact, something you would have to use Facebook to understand.
Take This Lollipop personalizes the classic trope of the cyberstalker via Facebook. “When you see your personal information in an environment where you normally wouldn’t, it creates a strong emotional response,” [TTL director Jason Zada] said. “It’s tied into the fears about privacy and personal info that we have now that we live online.” [more inside]
Where the night's so bright, I gotta wear shades.
The Midnight Sun is a natural phenomenon that occurs in the summer months near the Arctic and Antarctic Circles, where the sun remains visible at the local midnight. This short, time lapse film was shot in June 2011 over 17 days and incorporates 38,000 images. The photographer/videographer traveled over 2,900 miles throughout Iceland. Midnight Sun (SL-vimeo, via) [more inside]
Stuxnet II: Electric Duqu
A year after the infrastructure-attacking Stuxnet worm was discovered in Iran, a new piece of malware using some of the same techniques (but apparently with different goals) has been found infecting systems in Europe. The new malware, dubbed “Duqu” [dü-kyü], appears to have been written by someone with direct access to the Stuxnet source code.
Now that you are here
Arik Einstein is probably the greatest singer that Israel ever had. Since 1959, his voice & melodies embodied the best that Israel ever produced. His songs are nostalgic to the core, and listening to them always rekindles in most Israelis the sad, beautiful promises of their childhood.
Today he released a new song, called ‘Now that you are here’, to mark the release of soldier Gilad Shalit.
(Previously)
Angry Birds With FLIR
"We finally flew our first thermal camera flight yesterday afternoon. About 10 seconds after launch my co pilot looked at the screen and said something like, 'We now have our very own predator drone'" A rice farmer in Louisiana had a real problem, feral pigs were coming out of the woods at night, into the rice fields, tearing up his crops and causing thousands of dollars worth of damage. The only solution is to bring in hunters to shoot the pigs.
Hunting feral pigs in waist high rice plants, in the dead of night, is very difficult. You have to be within 10 feet of them to shoot them and it can take hours to stalk them down. So the farmer calls his brother, an Electronic Warfare engineer who flies RC airplanes as a hobby.
$5000 worth of electronics, including a $4500 infrared camera, are installed on a $80 model airplane, and the Dehogaflier is born!
Biting back at Malaria...
A new malaria vaccine has been shown effective in large-scale field trials. After decades of disappointment, researchers think they're finally on track to unleash the first practical vaccine against malaria, one of mankind's ancient scourges.
In the world's first large field trial of an experimental malaria vaccine, several thousand young children who got three doses had about 55 percent less risk of getting the disease over a year than those who got a control vaccine against rabies or meningitis. [more inside]
VICTORIAN SEX MYTHBUSTERS
We are the 98% ... of a theropod skeleton
The most well-preserved dinosaur fossil ever found in Europe was recently announced: a 98 percent intact juvenile theropod that will be on public display this month in Munich.
I eat roadkill
I eat roadkill. Meet Jonathan McGowan, who has spent 30 years eating only roadkill. The conservationist makes owl curries and rat stir fries because he doesn't like the way farmed animals are treated.
Put the needle on the record when the drum beats go like this...
I Was There When Acid House Hit London and This Is How It Felt by Charles Mudede
LMS
LIKE MAH STATUS: Miles Jai on an all-to-common social media annoyance.
Troubled Waters ahead - Bridge Out - 500FT
Thieves steal entire bridge in New Castle [PA]. Motivated by the high premuim for recycled metal, and perhaps an entrepreneurial spirit, brothers Alexander and Benjamin Jones were arrested on charges of deconstructing and selling an entire bridge in rural Pennsylvania for scrap. "This is a national problem," says Trooper Joseph Vascetti, an investigator with the Pennsylvania State Police. "Every police agency in the country is having a problem with it."
What happened to Evony?
VLA no more
Rename the VLA (Very Large Array)! The famous desert radio telescope, made of a bunch of independently movable giant satellite dishes, has just finished a ten-year upgrade and they're holding a contest to pick a new name in celebration. Deadline December 1. (via Phil Plait's Bad Astronomy, which mentions another naming contest, for schoolkids in the US to pick a name for the GRAIL satellites)
Real Housewives of South Boston
The Real Housewives of South Boston (NSF... well, anybody, really.)
Disconnect co-founder: 'People will pay for tools to protect privacy'
How Zombies and Superheroes Conquered Highbrow Fiction
This Recording compiles their favorite Pauline Kael actor descriptions
Postcards From All 50 States
The Great Tech War of 2012
The Great Tech War of 2012: Apple v. Google v. Amazon v. Facebook
“I found myself wishing more and more that I too could have been — could be — your patient.”
"Sybil Exposed": Memory, Lies and Therapy. Debbie Nathan's new book explains why "Sybil" probably did not have multiple personalities [nytimes link]. Did Dr. Cornelia Wilbur inadvertently create the condition she had intended to treat?
Top 40 Data
The Billboard Wayback Machine is an interactive that lets you explore the Billboard charts spanning from 1964 to 2011
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