Archive for the 'Technology' Category
Hopefully, MtGox Is Finally Dead
February 25th, 2014MtGox has needed to die for years. I sincerely hope they they are down for the count this time. That thing was the bitcoin exchange from hell. Via: cNet: Embattled Bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox has largely vanished from the Internet amid accusations that the exchange is insolvent after a years-long theft that resulted in the […]
Comcast’s Deal with Netflix Makes Network Neutrality Obsolete
February 23rd, 2014Via: Washington Post: For the past two decades, the Internet has operated as an unregulated, competitive free market. Given the tendency of networked industries to lapse into monopoly—think of AT&T’s 70-year hold over telephone service, for example—that’s a minor miracle. But recent developments are putting the Internet’s decentralized architecture in danger. In recent months, the […]
At Newark Airport, the Lights Are On, and They’re Watching You
February 23rd, 2014Via: New York Times: Visitors to Terminal B at Newark Liberty International Airport may notice the bright, clean lighting that now blankets the cavernous interior, courtesy of 171 recently installed LED fixtures. But they probably will not realize that the light fixtures are the backbone of a system that is watching them. Using an array […]
This Man’s $600,000 Facebook Disaster Is a Warning for All Small Businesses
February 22nd, 2014I figured this out after blowing only $10 on Facebook advertising. It’s incredible that companies are wasting tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars on this breathtaking scam. Via: Business Insider: Recently, however, Brar has fallen out of love with Facebook. He discovered — as Business Insider reported recently — that his Facebook fanbase was […]
New Jet-Powered Drone Can Kill 1,800 Miles From Home Base
February 22nd, 2014Via: Wired: The Avenger (formerly Predator C), whose prototype flew its first flight in 2009, is operationally ready after a new round of tests completed last month, according to its maker, General Atomics. Based on the company’s more well-known MQ-9 Reaper drone, Avenger is designed to perform high-speed, long-endurance surveillance or strike missions, flying up […]
“Or, maybe nothing, and this is all a coincidence.”
February 22nd, 2014Via: Daring Fireball: According to slide 6 in the leaked PowerPoint deck on NSA’s PRISM program, Apple was “added” in October 2012. These three facts prove nothing; it’s purely circumstantial. But the shoe fits. Sure would be interesting to know who added that spurious line of code to the file. Conspiratorially, one could suppose the […]
Reporter Claims Computer Self Deleted Text While He Tried to Write Book About Snowden
February 22nd, 2014My first question would be: Was the system really offline? Was he using a computer with a wi-fi network adapter (pretty much any laptop made in the last decade)? If yes, then it’s probably safe to assume that he wasn’t actually offline. Whatever rootkit was running on the system could simply turn on the wi-fi […]
Tesla to Start Manufacturing Their Own Battery Packs
February 21st, 2014Via: MIT Technology Review: “[The Gigafactory] will allow us to achieve a major reduction in the cost of our battery packs and accelerate the pace of battery innovation. Working in partnership with our suppliers, we plan to integrate precursor material, cell, module and pack production into one facility. With this facility, we feel highly confident […]
Google’s Project Tango: Indoor 3D Mapping and Tracking
February 20th, 2014Because tracking you outside is so 1990s. It’s not enough for the Legion of Doom to be able to track your every move outside. It now wants to map your indoor world, in 3D, and where you are in it. NSA/NGA will love this. Coincidence: Tango: Tango (U.S.) NATO phonetic alphabet for the letter “T” […]
Inside DuckDuckGo, Google’s Tiniest, Fiercest Competitor
February 20th, 2014Via: Fast Company: “Every year, we’ve grown 200-500%,” Weinberg says. “The numbers keep getting bigger.” As of early February, DuckDuckGo was seeing more than 4 million search queries per day. One year ago, that number had just barely broken 1 million. Surprisingly, the sudden success didn’t send the site crashing down. Nor did it change […]
