Archive for the 'Technology' Category
The Secret History of Silicon Valley
April 6th, 2010Via: Google Tech Talks / YouTube:
Unknown Budget, Unknown Purpose: U.S. Air Force Plans to Launch X-37B Orbital Test Vehicle
April 4th, 2010Blank Spots on the Map: And then there was Dan Vanderhorst, who “has been the lead pilot on seven classified aircraft to date.” In fact, according to his biography, “Vanderhorst has made his career in the cockpit of so many classified aircraft, there is not much that we can say about him, on the record,” […]
Meet the Sims… and Shoot Them: The Rise of Militainment
April 4th, 2010Via: Foreign Policy: The country of Ghanzia is embroiled in a civil war. As a soldier in America’s Army, your job is to do everything from protect U.S. military convoys against AK-47-wielding attackers to sneak up on a mountain observatory where arms dealers are hiding out. It is a tough and dangerous tour of duty […]
Mike McConnell and the American Corporate State
March 30th, 2010I’ve included just a few choice excerpts from this great article. If you only click through on one story today, make this the one. Via: Salon: In a political culture drowning in hidden conflicts of interests, exploitation of political office for profit, and a rapidly eroding wall separating the public and private spheres, Michael McConnell […]
Neuroscientists Don’t Believe in Souls—But That Doesn’t Mean They Can’t Sell Theirs (to the Pentagon)
March 28th, 2010Via: Scientific American: It is because I have such high hopes for neuroscience that I’m so upset by two trends in financing of the field. One involves neuroscience’s growing dependence on the Pentagon, which is seeking new ways to help our soldiers and harm our enemies. For a still-timely overview of neuroweapons research, check out […]
Beijing to Sweeten Stench of Rubbish Crisis with Giant Deodorant Guns
March 28th, 2010Via: Guardian: Beijing is to install 100 deodorant guns at a stinking landfill site on the edge of the city in a bid to dampen complaints about the capital’s rubbish crisis. The giant fragrance sprays will be put in place by May at the Asuwei dump site, one of several hundred tips that are the […]
Computer-Controlled Swarm of Bacteria Builds Tiny Pyramid
March 26th, 2010Via: IEEE: Researchers at the NanoRobotics Laboratory of the École Polytechnique de Montréal, in Canada, are putting swarms of bacteria to work, using them to perform micro-manipulations and even propel microrobots. Led by Professor Sylvain Martel, the researchers want to use flagellated bacteria to carry drugs into tumors, act as sensing agents for detecting pathogens, […]
Governments Using Forged SSL Certificates for Man in the Middle Attack on “Secure” Web Sessions
March 25th, 2010I don’t believe in web based email solutions that purport to provide strong encryption and/or anonymity. Who knows what their applets and servers are doing? Not me. And if they rely on SSL, well, that’s ok for buying a book online, but no tinfoiler in his right mind would bet his life on SSL. —The […]
Internet Connected Bottle Caps Remind People to Take Their Drugs, Send Emails, Make Phone Calls, Generate “Progress Reports” And More!
March 24th, 2010When it’s not watching TV, Homo Allopathicus can entertain itself by fielding calls and emails from its pill bottles! And analyzing drug consumption statistics is fun for the whole family. Yes, friends, keep eating the same toxic sludge that turned you into Homo Allopathicus, but kick it up a notch by leveraging cutting edge communication […]
Bomb Pulse: Radioactive Carbon from Nuclear Weapon Tests Used to Verify Authenticity of High End Wines
March 24th, 2010Via: Guardian: A trace of Bikini atoll could join hints of black cherry and complex citrus notes in the sommelier’s lexicon for describing fine wines, research has suggested. Harmless amounts of radioactive carbon have been found in wines made from grapes harvested since the last atmospheric atomic bomb tests were carried out in the 1960s. […]
