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Freeman writes:

Amazon asked FCC to reject Starlink plan because it can’t compete, SpaceX says:

Amazon's attempt to block proposals for the next-generation Starlink system is a "delay tactic" and a continuation of Amazon's strategy of "hinder[ing] competitors to compensate for Amazon's failure to make progress of its own," SpaceX told the Federal Communications Commission yesterday.

"Amazon's track record amply demonstrates that as it falls behind competitors, it is more than willing to use regulatory and legal processes to create obstacles designed to delay those competitors from leaving Amazon even further behind," SpaceX told the FCC in its filing. Approving Amazon's request would hurt consumers by denying them "access to faster-moving competition," SpaceX said.

Amazon last week urged the FCC to reject an update to SpaceX's Starlink plan [...]

Previously:
Blue Origin Employees Are Jumping Ship
Judges Reject Viasat's Plea to Stop SpaceX's Starlink Satellite Launches

Original Submission

upstart writes:

Cloudflare says Intel is not inside its next-gen servers – Ice Lake melted its energy budget:

Cloudflare has revealed that it was unable to put Intel inside its new home-brew servers, because they just used too much energy.

A Tuesday post by platform operations engineer Chris Howells reveals that Cloudflare has been working on designs for an eleventh-generation server since mid-2020.

"We evaluated Intel's latest generation of 'Ice Lake' Xeon processors," Howells wrote. "Although Intel's chips were able to compete with AMD in terms of raw performance, the power consumption was several hundred watts higher per server – that's enormous."

Fatally enormous – Cloudflare's evaluation saw it adopt AMD's 64-core Epyc 7713 for the servers it deploys to over 200 edge locations around the world.

Power savings also influenced a decision to go from three disks to two in the new design. A pair of 1.92TB Samsung drives replaced the three of the Korean giant's 960GB units found in previous designs. The net gain was a terabyte of capacity, and six fewer watts of power consumption.

[...] "We investigated higher-speed Ethernet, but we do not currently see this as beneficial," Howells wrote. That's not a brickbat for fast Ethernet, but a decision made possible by Cloudflare's highly distributed architecture that removes the need for higher speeds and the higher cost of faster kit.

See also:

• https://hothardware.com/news/cloudflare-dumps-intel-amd-epyc-gen-x-servers
• https://www.techzine.eu/news/cloud/64718/cloudflare-chooses-amd-to-power-its-new-generation-of-servers/

Original Submission

LabRat writes:

From An Accidental Discovery Hints at a Hidden Population of Cosmic Objects:

Brown dwarfs aren't quite stars and aren't quite planets, and a new study suggests there might be more of them lurking in our galaxy than scientists previously thought.

A new study offers a tantalizing explanation for how a peculiar cosmic object called WISEA J153429.75-104303.3 – nicknamed "The Accident" – came to be. The Accident is a brown dwarf. Though they form like stars, these objects don't have enough mass to kickstart nuclear fusion, the process that causes stars to shine. And while brown dwarfs sometimes defy characterization, astronomers have a good grasp on their general characteristics.

Or they did, until they found this one.

The Accident got its name after being discovered by sheer luck. It slipped past normal searches because it doesn't resemble any of the just over 2,000 brown dwarfs that have been found in our galaxy so far.

As brown dwarfs age, they cool off, and their brightness in different wavelengths of light changes. It's not unlike how some metals, when heated, go from bright white to deep red as they cool. The Accident confused scientists because it was faint in some key wavelengths, suggesting it was very cold (and old), but bright in others, indicating a higher temperature.

Freeman writes:

Tesla must tell NHTSA how Autopilot sees emergency vehicles:

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation into Tesla's Autopilot driver assistance system continues apace. The Associated Press reports that on Tuesday, the NHTSA sent Tesla a letter requesting further information following 12 incidents of Autopilot-enabled Teslas crashing into emergency vehicles parked by the side of the road. In total, 17 people have been injured, and one has died.

[...] The investigation covers 765,000 Tesla Models S, X, 3, and Y built between 2014 and 2021.

Original Submission

AnonTechie writes:

https://www.theregister.com/2021/09/01/nsa_quantum_computing_faq/

America's National Security Agency has published an FAQ about quantum cryptography, saying it does not know "when or even if" a quantum computer will ever exist to "exploit" public-key cryptography.

In the document, titled Quantum Computing and Post-Quantum Cryptography FAQ, the NSA said it "has to produce requirements today for systems that will be used for many decades in the future." With that in mind, the agency came up with some predictions [PDF] for the near future of quantum computing and their impact on encryption.

Is the NSA worried about the threat posed by a "cryptographically relevant quantum computer" (CRQC)? Apparently not too much.

What the super-surveillance agency seems to be saying is that it's not a given that a CRQC capable of breaking today's public-key algorithms will ever emerge, though it wouldn't be a bad idea to consider coming up with new techniques that could defeat a future CRQC, should one be built.

It's almost like the NSA is dropping a not-so-subtle hint, though why it would is debatable. If it has a CRQC, or is on the path to one, it might want to warn allies, vendors, and citizens to think about using quantum-resistant technologies in case bad people develop a CRQC too. But why would the spies tip their hand, so? It's all very curious.

What do the experts here think... is this a red herring or is there some substance to this ?

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Parliamentary Committee to government: Ban VPN services in India

Terming Virtual Private Network (VPN) services as a threat to counter cyber threats and other nefarious activities, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs reportedly wants the Indian government to ban VPN services in the country. As per a report by MediaNama, the committee explained that the reason why VPN services should be banned in India is because VPN apps and tools are easily available online and these allow "criminals to remain anonymous online."

[...] According to the report by MediaNama, the committee recommended permanently blocking VPN services in the country with "the help of internet service providers" across India. "The Committee notes with anxiety the technological challenge posed by VPN services and Dark Web, that can bypass cyber security walls and allow criminals to remain anonymous online. As of date, VPN can easily be downloaded, as many websites are providing such facilities and advertising them. The Committee, therefore, recommends that the Ministry of Home Affairs should coordinate with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology to identify and permanently block such VPNs with the help of internet service providers."

Also at Notebookcheck.

Related: Messaging App Signal Not in Compliance With New Rules in India

Original Submission

DannyB writes:

Man can change his pupil size on command, once thought an impossible feat:

A 23-year-old student in Germany can shrink and enlarge his pupils on demand, according to a new case report — a feat that was previously thought to be impossible.

[....] It was previously known that some people can change their pupil size at will, but by using indirect methods.

For example, researchers already knew that just thinking about the sun could constrict the pupils and that thinking of a dark room or mentally calculating something could dilate them

[....] But no one thought it was possible to change pupil size by directly controlling it like a muscle — that is, until a student of psychology at Ulm University in Germany contacted Strauch after taking one of his courses.

[....] When he was about 15 or 16 years old, the young man — identified in the case report by his initials, D.W. — realized that he could change the size of his pupils. [...] But D.W. didn't notice that he had this ability until he played computer games for long periods of time.

Without using any indirect method, D.W. could dilate his pupils up to 0.09 inches (2.4 millimeters) in diameter and constrict them to 0.03 inches (0.88 mm) in diameter. What's more, even at the closest point an object can be for the eye to still see it in focus, in which the pupil is already "maximally" constricted (imagine holding up a pencil in front of the eyes and moving it closer to the face and stopping at the point before it becomes blurry), D.W. could voluntarily constrict his pupil even more. By doing this, D.W. improved his focus and could see objects clearly nearly two times closer to his face than he could if he wasn't controlling his pupil size.

Yet another amazing marketable skill developed by playing computer games.

Original Submission

takyon writes:

Hycean Planets Might Be Habitable Ocean Worlds

According to the researchers, Hycean worlds could greatly accelerate the search for life elsewhere. In some ways they are reminiscent of Earth, largely or even completely covered by oceans. Yet they are also uniquely alien: up to 2.6 times the diameter of Earth, with temperatures up to 200 degrees C (about 400 degrees F) and thick hydrogen atmospheres. This places them somewhere between Earth and giant planets like Neptune or Uranus.

[...] How, then, might Hycean planets be habitable? Having plentiful liquid water is of course a good start. These planets, unlike most mini-Neptunes, may have solid surfaces, like Earth. Many of the known Hycean candidates are larger and hotter than Earth, but still would be able to host large oceans, the researchers say. The conditions might be similar to some of the more extreme aquatic environments on our planet, but could theoretically still support at least microbial life.

[...] So, how would astronomers look for evidence of life on any of these worlds? They will search for biosignatures, chemical fingerprints of biological processes in the planets' atmospheres. Some common ones are oxygen, ozone, methane and nitrous oxide, as well as methyl chloride and dimethyl sulphide. The last two are not common on Earth, but might be on hydrogen-rich planets.

[...] Madhusudhan and his team say that many of these biosignatures should be easily detectable on Hycean planets. In fact, the nature of the planets themselves – larger sizes, higher temperatures and hydrogen-rich atmospheres – means that the biosignatures would be even more easily detectable than on Earth-like planets.

Hycean planet.

Also at ScienceAlert and Syfy Wire.

Journal Reference:
Nikku Madhusudhan, Anjali A. A. Piette, Savvas Constantinou. Habitability and Biosignatures of Hycean Worlds - IOPscience, The Astrophysical Journal (DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/abfd9c, arXiv)

Original Submission

upstart writes:

State of Russia's ISS segment sparks safety concerns:

A Russian space official on Tuesday raised concerns about the deteriorating state of Russia's segment of the International Space Station due to out-of-date hardware, warning it could lead to "irreparable failures".

In recent years, the Russian segment of the ISS has experienced a string of problems, including air leaks caused by cracks, raising questions about the safety of the rotating crews onboard.

"Around 80 percent of the inflight systems on Russia's segment have reached the end of their service period," Vladimir Solovyov, chief engineer of the Energia rocket and space corporation, told the RIA Novosti news agency.

[...] "This means that literally a day after the systems are fully exhausted, irreparable failures may begin," Solovyov added.

[...] On Monday, Solovyov said that small cracks had been discovered on Russia's Zarya cargo module. Launched in 1998, it is one of the oldest modules of the ISS.

Also at the BBC.

Original Submission

JoeMerchant writes:

Is it possible to read a person's mind by analyzing the electric signals from the brain? The answer may be much more complex than most people think.

Purdue University researchers – working at the intersection of artificial intelligence and neuroscience – say a prominent dataset used to try to answer this question is confounded, and therefore many eye-popping findings that were based on this dataset and received high-profile recognition are false after all.

The Purdue team performed extensive tests over more than one year on the dataset, which looked at the brain activity of individuals taking part in a study where they looked at a series of images. Each individual wore a cap with dozens of electrodes while they viewed the images.

[...] "This measurement technique, known as electroencephalography or EEG, can provide information about brain activity that could, in principle, be used to read minds," said Jeffrey Mark Siskind, professor of electrical and computer engineering in Purdue's College of Engineering. "The problem is that they used EEG in a way that the dataset itself was contaminated. The study was conducted without randomizing the order of images, so the researchers were able to tell what image was being seen just by reading the timing and order information contained in EEG, instead of solving the real problem of decoding visual perception from the brain waves."

[...] "The question of whether someone can read another person's mind through electric brain activity is very valid," said Ronnie Wilbur, a professor with a joint appointment in Purdue's College of Health and Human Sciences and College of Liberal Arts. "Our research shows that a better approach is needed."

So, how long before AI learns to spot its own pitfalls?

Journal Reference:
Ren Li, Jared S. Johansen, Hamad Ahmed, et al. The Perils and Pitfalls of Block Design for EEG Classification Experiments, (DOI: 10.1109/TPAMI.2020.2973153)

Original Submission

upstart writes:

360-degree transparency for construction sites made simple:

MIT spinoff OpenSpace invented automated 360-degree video jobsite capture and mapping. "It's not exactly an amazing observation," says CEO Jeevan Kalanithi, "but a picture really is worth a thousand words."

In the world of real estate development, visual documentation of construction projects is critical. It aids in dispute resolution, prevents mistakes from being compounded, and allows for knowledge capture in case of change orders. Builders are often contractually obligated to document progress. Usually, this means hiring someone to walk the site and take photos of key areas once a month. These photos are then slapped in a binder or uploaded into a cloud storage service.

[...] Enter OpenSpace, a company that's propelling the construction of any built environment into the digital age. They've updated an essential idea by attaching an off-the-shelf 360-degree camera to a hard hat, and imbued it with cutting-edge computer vision, artificial intelligence, and data visualization software — not unlike the perception and navigation AI systems used in autonomous vehicles.

upstart writes:

Rejected internal applicants twice as likely to quit:

Internal job applicants who face rejection are nearly twice as likely to leave their organizations than those who were either hired for an internal job or had not applied for a new job at all.

According to new research from JR Keller, assistant professor of human resource studies at the ILR School, firms can systematically reduce the likelihood that rejected candidates will exit by being strategic when considering which employees are interviewed.

[...] "A key insight from our work is that employees do not only apply for jobs they want right now; they also apply to learn about what jobs are more or less likely to be available to them in the future," Keller said. "Even if they are rejected today, an employee is more likely to stick around when they feel they have a decent shot at advancing to a new job tomorrow."

Journal Reference:
Kathryn Dlugos, JR Keller. Turned Down and Taking Off? Rejection and Turnover in Internal Talent Markets, Academy of Management Journal (DOI: 10.5465/amj.2018.1015)

Original Submission

Microsoft Azure Cloud Vulnerability is the 'Worst You Can Imagine'

upstart writes:

Microsoft Azure cloud vulnerability is the 'worst you can imagine':

A flaw in Microsoft's Azure Cosmos DB database product left more than 3,300 Azure customers open to complete unrestricted access to hackers since 2019 when Microsoft added a data visualization feature called Jupyter Notebook to Cosmos DB. The feature was turned on by default for all Cosmos DBs in February 2021.

The Microsoft Database Hack Shows That Data Stored in the Cloud Must Always be Encrypted End-to-End.

upstart writes:

The Microsoft database hack shows that data stored in the cloud must always be encrypted end-to-end.:

IT security specialist Ami Luttwak from Wiz discovered the vulnerability in the Azure Cosmos DB Jupyter Notebook Feature on Aug. 9 and reported it to Microsoft three days later. Microsoft published this statement saying it immediately fixed the issue. Microsoft thanked the security researchers for their work as part of the coordinated disclosure of the vulnerability. Microsoft also told Wiz via email that it planned to pay out $40,000 for reporting the vulnerability.

upstart writes:

Here's how much electricity it takes to mine Bitcoin and why people are worried:

Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dogecoin and other popular cryptos reached record highs this year, raising concerns about the amount of energy needed to mine the coins. Warehouses of Bitcoin mining rigs run 24 hours a day, consuming more power than the whole of Argentina. As the energy bill for crypto mining rises, so does the amount of carbon and waste, adding to the growing climate crisis.

[...] When Bitcoins are traded, computers across the globe race to complete a computation that creates a 64-digit hexadecimal number, or hash, for that Bitcoin. This hash goes into a public ledger so anyone can confirm the transaction for that particular Bitcoin happened. The computer that solves the computation first gets a reward of 6.2 bitcoins, or about $225,000 at current prices.

[...] The Digiconomist's Bitcoin Energy Consumption Index estimated that one Bitcoin transaction takes 1,544 kWh to complete, or the equivalent of approximately 53 days of power for the average US household.

To put that into money terms, the average cost per kWh in the US is 13 cents. That means a Bitcoin transaction would generate more than $200 in energy bills.

Bitcoin mining used more energy than Argentina, according to an analysis from Cambridge University in February. At 121.36 terawatt-hours, crypto mining would be in the top 30 of countries based on energy consumption.

upstart writes:

PPPL physicist helps confirm a major advance in stellarator performance for fusion energy:

Stellarators, twisty magnetic devices that aim to harness on Earth the fusion energy that powers the sun and stars, have long played second fiddle to more widely used doughnut-shaped facilities known as tokamaks. The complex twisted stellarator magnets have been difficult to design and have previously allowed greater leakage of the superhigh heat from fusion reactions.

Now scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP), working in collaboration with researchers that include the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), have shown that the Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X) device in Greifswald, Germany, the largest and most advanced stellarator in the world, is capable of confining heat that reaches temperatures twice as great as the core of the sun.

[...] A diagnostic instrument called the XICS, chiefly designed, built and operated by PPPL physicist Novimir Pablant in collaboration with IPP physicist Andreas Langenberg, is a key indicator of a sharp reduction of a type of heat loss called "neoclassical transport" that has historically been greater in classical stellarators than in tokamaks. Causing the troublesome transport are frequent collisions that knock heated particles out of their orbits as they swirl around the magnetic field lines that confine them. Contributing to the transport are drifts in the particle orbits.