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AnonTechie writes:

Billions of kg of CO2 could be saved by scrapping DVDs, research suggests:

A new study has shown that streaming can be much better for the environment, requiring less energy and emitting less carbon dioxide (CO2), than some traditional methods of DVD renting, buying and viewing.

The researchers, who have published their study today, 29 May, in IOP Publishing's journal Environmental Research Letters, cite modern devices such as laptops and tablets as the reason for this improvement, as they are much more efficient than older, energy-sapping DVD players. Furthermore, the driving that is required to go and buy, or rent, DVDs makes this method much more energy- and carbon-intensive. A significant proportion of the energy consumption and carbon emissions for streaming comes from the transmission of data, which increases drastically when more complex, high-definition content is streamed.

In their study, the researchers, from Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory and Northwestern University, estimated that if all DVD viewing in the US was shifted to streaming services in 2011, around 2 billion kg of CO2 emissions could have been avoided and around 30 petajoules (PJ) of energy saved the equivalent of the amount of electricity needed to meet the demands of 200,000 US households.

They estimated that in 2011, 192 PJ of energy was used, and 10.4 billion kg of CO2 emitted, for all methods of DVD consumption and streaming in the US.

From this, they calculated that one hour of video streaming requires 7.9 megajoules (MJ) of energy, compared to as much as 12 MJ for traditional DVD viewing, and emits 0.4 kg of CO2, compared to as much as 0.71 kg of CO2 for DVD viewing.

The study can be found here.

Blackmoore and Somnanda wrote:

Many of us grew up watching Reading Rainbow with LeVar Burton, who, of course, also played Geordi La Forge on Star Trek.

Well, he's bringing a new version to the web with the help of Kickstarter. They surpassed their $1M goal in under 12 hours (currently over $2.4M with 33 days remaining). However, some are skeptical (cynical?).

Anonymous Coward writes:

According to a German researcher, Mattias Schlenker, we are to expect that the reason for TrueCrypt's recent shutdown is not a National Security Letter, but a serious security flaw in how TC container files are created on Windows.

He expects the flaw to become public within a week.

What gives this chap some credibility is that he's one of the developers of "desinfec't", a Knoppix-based live Linux that comes with several virus scanners and is distributed by well-renowned German computer magazine c't (whose mother company/publishing house, Heise, hosts the forum where he made his announcement).

Link to his original German posting: http://www.heise.de/security/news/foren/S-Re-Warum -TrueCrypt-nicht-in-Desinfec-t-enthalten-ist/forum -280432/msg-25289876/read/

See our earlier coverage: TrueCrypt Discontinued, Compromised.

Fluffeh writes:

In his first interview with a major US network news organization since leaking a treasure trove of documents related to the US national security apparatus, former US intelligence contractor and whistleblower Edward Snowden told NBC "Nightly News" anchor Brian Williams that he has been misrepresented by the mainstream media outlets and aimed to set the record straight.

During the interview, Snowden discussed his motivations for releasing the documents to journalists, explaining, "The intelligence capabilities themselves are unregulated, uncontrolled, and dangerous. People at NSA can actually watch internet communications and see our thoughts form as we type. What's more shocking is the dirtiness of the targeting. It's the lack of respect for the public and for the intrusiveness of surveillance."

Jaruzel writes with an original story:

As the world slowly moves towards a 100% digital existence, and increasingly consumes their information online, we run the risk of destroying our own legacy. Consider this hypothetical future narrative:

Historians are at a loss to explain the demise of the first pan-human civilisation, as although they agree that the populous dwindled and went almost extinct at around AD 3500, there seems to be no surviving written historical records that can be dated any later than circa AD 2000.

It can only be assumed that around this time, that there was a sudden uptake of illiteracy, maybe caused by a new religion or global-governmental policy. There are surviving references to an organization or group known as the Inter Nets. We can only guess at what this actually was, but the commonly accepted theory is that it was actually some type of wearable mesh harness that prevented humans of this era from actually writing anything down.

Sound ridiculous? I'm not so sure. As information is continually and fully migrated from the printed page and on to the Internet we lose the permanency that a book or ancient scroll brings. Paper and parchment when stored correctly can survive for thousands of years, and if not, the information held within can be transcribed in to replacement volumes when required. If it wasn't for the (well documented) fire that destroyed the Library of Alexandria we'd still have knowledge of the information that was contained there today.

AnonTechie writes:

El Reg reports:

Swiss research finds, quite simply, that illuminating the camera of a device like the Nokia N9 can cause quantum effects that can be used to generate keys in effect making the smartphone a quantum random number generator (QRNG).

That's a lot cheaper than the QRNG kit currently on offer although it's more expensive than visiting the ANU's https://qrng.anu.edu.au/RainBin.php online QRNG site.

The attraction of using quantum effects is simple: quantum noise is truly random, and unlike pseudo-random number generators (PRNGs), they're not weakened by how the maths of PRNGs work. The trick is in the implementation how quantum noise is detected, isolated, and digitised as a number, which is why QRNGs are expensive.

The researchers calculated that the resulting extracted bitstream was random enough that "it would take around 10^118 trials" to notice a deviation from a perfectly random bit string.

Further reading on the research can be found here.

Angry Jesus writes:

In a carefully choreographed event that felt more like an pop music awards show or an Apple product launch than anything we're used to with space flight, SpaceX CEO Elon Musk tonight unveiled the newest edition of the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.

DragonV2 is designed to carry up to 7 astronauts to space. In the archived livestream of the unveiling event, below, Musk explains what's under the hood. Described by its chief designer as "a true 21st-century spacecraft," the DragonV2 flight could achieve its first unmanned flight as soon as late 2015, and its first crewed flight as soon as mid-2016.

Photos of the new spacecraft follow, provided by SpaceX.

AndyTheAbsurd writes:

A wireless system developed by Assistant Professor Ada Poon uses the same power as a cell phone to safely transmit energy to chips the size of a grain of rice. The technology paves the way for new "electroceutical" devices to treat illness or alleviate pain.

Yog-Yogguth writes:

The Kavli Prize is awarded every alternate year and the winners for 2014 have been announced. The prize was established in 2005 to honor, support, and recognize scientists for outstanding scientific work in the fields of astrophysics, nanoscience, and neuroscience. In each of the three categories the prize consists of gold medals, scrolls, and a shared cash award of a million US dollars.

Excerpts from the announcement with added links and introductory references:

The Kavli Prize in Astrophysics is shared between Alan H. Guth, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, Andrei D. Linde, Stanford University, USA, and Alexei A. Starobinsky, Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia. They receive the prize “for pioneering the theory of cosmic inflation”. The theory of cosmic inflation, proposed and developed by the three prize winners, has revolutionized our thinking about the Universe.

The Kavli Prize in Nanoscience is shared between Thomas W. Ebbesen, Université Louis Pasteur, Université de Strasbourg, France, Stefan W. Hell, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Germany, and Sir John B. Pendry, Imperial College London, UK. They receive the prize “for transformative contributions to the field of nano-optics [extraordinary optical transmission, the 4Pi microscope, the superlens/perfect lens and in general super-resolution microscopy] that have broken long-held beliefs about the limitations of the resolution limits of optical microscopy and imaging”.

The Kavli Prize in Neuroscience is shared between Brenda Milner, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Canada, John O’Keefe, University College London, UK, and Marcus E. Raichle, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, USA. They receive the prize “for the discovery of specialized brain networks for memory and cognition” [Such as place cells, episodic memory, procedural memory, and the default mode network].

Google implements EU privacy ruling

bradley13 writes:

Earlier this month, the European Court of Justice issued a ruling: individuals may demand that links be removed from search engines, if those links point to data that is "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant". Importantly: there is no requirement for the source material to be removed only that it become unsearchable.

The case that sparked this related to a Spanish businessman whose home was sold at auction to pay his debts. This happened in 1998 and was reported in the local newspaper. Today, people searching for information about him still saw those links in Google. He considered this unjust.

This brief summary brings us to the most recent article: As of today, Google has implemented the ruling. They now offer an online form to give any individual in Europe a way to request removal of links that they dislike.

Does this show that the court has no clue how the Internet works? Or is it more frightening perhaps the court knows exactly what this means. The Internet contains so much information that reliable search engines are essential. Now any individual can force information down the memory hole. If millions of people censor links out of existence, imagine what it will mean for the Internet at large.

Google offers "right to be forgotten" in Europe

TightByte writes:

BBC news reports that Google will now offer the right to be forgotten, following an EU ruling regarding European Data Protection Law. A recent ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union found that certain users can ask search engines to remove results for queries that include their name where those results are "inadequate, irrelevant or no longer relevant, or excessive in relation to the purposes for which they were processed."

On Friday, Google said that EU citizens who want their private details removed from the search engine will be able to do so by filling out an online form. However, they will need to provide links to the material they want removed, their country of origin, and a reason for their request. Individuals will also have to attach a valid photo identity.

AndyTheAbsurd writes:

Some soylentils have an interest in the Soylent food product, which claims to be complete, scientifically-based nutrition. Now Farhad Manjoo at the New York Times has spent a week and a half living off of it, and found it disappointing:

I just spent more than a week experiencing Soylent, the most joyless new technology to hit the world since we first laid eyes on MS-DOS.

Read the rest at the NYT: The Soylent Revolution Will Not Be Pleasurable.

AnonTechie writes:

Software used by law enforcement organizations to intercept the communications of suspected criminals contains a litany of critical weaknesses, including an undocumented backdoor secured with a hardcoded password, security researchers said today. In a scathing advisory published Wednesday, the researchers recommended people stop using the Nice Recording eXpress voice-recording package. It is one of several software offerings provided by Ra'anana, Israel-based Nice Systems, a company that markets itself as providing "mission-critical lawful interception solutions to support the fight against organized crime, drug trafficking and terrorist activities." The advisory warned that critical weaknesses in the software expose users to attacks that compromise investigations and the security of the agency networks.

Angry Jesus writes:

Estonia is the world leader in using online voting for its national elections. Its government has done a great deal to improve the security of the system, which is now used by up to 25% of voters. The country's "I-voting system" is touted by proponents of online voting in the U.S. to claim that secure Internet voting is possible.

It isn't. Early in May an international team of independent security experts accredited by the Estonian government reported severe security vulnerabilities in that country's "I-voting system." Elections, the researchers found, "could be stolen, disrupted, or cast into disrepute." These results have serious implications for the push to internet voting in other countries, particularly in the U.S.

AnonTechie writes:

Researcher Jose Carmena has worked for years training macaque monkeys to move computer cursors and robotic limbs with their minds. He does so by implanting electrodes into their brains to monitor neural activity. Now, as part of a sweeping $70 million program funded by the U.S. military, Carmena has a new goal: to use brain implants to read, and then control, the emotions of mentally ill people. This week the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, awarded two large contracts to Massachusetts General Hospital and the University of California, San Francisco, to create electrical brain implants capable of treating seven psychiatric conditions, including addiction, depression, and borderline personality disorder.

Angry Jesus writes:

Stop the Cap! reports that TDS Telecom has started their roll-out of gigabit broadband in New Hampshire. The first town to receive the service is Hollis, with Andover, Boscawen, New London, Salisbury, Springfield, Sutton, and Wilmot on the list. Even though Hollis has a population of just 7,600, this is still more coverage than AT&T's "fiber to the press release" roll out in Austin, TX.

The report states 1,000/400Mbps would be available for only $99.95/month with a $20/month discount if you bundle TV service.