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POPSNew quantum algorithm helpes solving big problems. “Large-scale linear systems of equations exist in many fields, such as weather prediction, engineering, and computer vision”, says Harrow. “Quantum computers could supply serious improvements for these and many other problems. For example, a trillion-variable problem would take a classical computer at least a hundred trillion steps to solve, but using the new algorithm, a quantum computer could solve the problem in just a few hundred steps”. The solution could also be applied to other complex processes such as image and video processing, genetic analyses and even Internet traffic control. Sounds pretty good to me!
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POPSTouch Screen Back in 1998/99, myself and a co-worker were brainstorming on computing ideas. We came up with an idea for a computer screen that would act like a kiosk of sorts, for the elderly. Realizing that there was a need to keep in touch and up to date with technology, it 'felt right' to bring something like touch screen for the elderly or those that could not type, into age (pun intended). Our idea was to set up these kiosk style monitors in senior assisted/non-assisted homes; on campus clubhouses, etc so anyone could send email and play a few games. Easy stuff that would not be intimidating or difficult to learn. Idea blown away when presented to our employer as not 'marketable enough.' About 3 weeks ago, I walked into Sam's Club; the computer section. A round table was set up with HP Touchscreen monitors. Curios, I walked over to inspect and could not get close enough except to watch. Persons much older than myself standing around the table, playing games by touching the scre
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POPSAny Way these Firms Can be Experts in Everything? What these government contractors are expert at is: 1. Placing job sites in states and districts of Congressional Members who serve on funding committee for Defense, IT, and Homeland Security. 2. Have Political Action Committees that donate money to candidates on same committees. 3. Having paid representatives at every meeting in Congress or government agency that could affect their funding.
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POPS Securing the Web (These types of security checks operate in the background: they don't require you, for instance, to reenter your user name and password.) Many web applications also "sanitize" data posted by their subscribers: if a friend posts something to your social-network page, the application probably won't show you the post without inspecting it for malicious code. "We've looked at a lot of these web applications, and there's literally hundreds of places where these checks happen," says Nickolai Zeldovich, an assistant professor in MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Lab. Indeed, Zeldovich and his colleagues identified one popular web application that sanitized data in more than 1,400 places (but still had about 60 security holes). They also, however, identified a feature that web application security checks usually had in common: "Namely," Zeldovich says, "it's that the same data is being handled in all these hundreds of places."
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POPSIs Israel Assassinating Iran Nuclear Scientists? "Disruption is designed to slow progress on the program, done in such a way that they don't realize what's happening. You are never going to stop it," a former CIA officer on Iran was quoted as saying. "The goal is delay, delay, delay until you can come up with some other solution or approach," he added. "We certainly don't want the current Iranian government to have those weapons. It's a good policy, short of taking them out militarily, which probably carries unacceptable risks."
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POPSWhere the Worst Germs Lurk I don't know how I survived to this ripe old age. I'm all for much hand washing, but I think we do our children no real favors by not allowing their immune systems to grow a little. Having said that, I know we live in a more crowded environment and people seem to have suspended common sense about proper hygiene. I always use those sanitizers for the grocery carts.
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POPSEU Funding 'Orwellian' Plan to Monitor Public for "Abnormal Behaviour" Profiling whole populations instead of monitoring individual suspects is a sinister step in any society. "It's dangerous enough at national level, but on a Europe-wide scale the idea becomes positively chilling." Open Europe believes intelligence gathered by Indect and other such systems could be used by a little-known body, the EU Joint Situation Centre (SitCen), which it claims is "effectively the beginning of an EU secret service". Critics have said it could develop into "Europe's CIA".
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POPSHow our brains are hardwired to love Google, Twitter, and texting. And why that's dangerous. "The system is also activated by particular types of cues that a reward is coming. In order to have the maximum effect, the cues should be small, discrete, specific—like the bell Pavlov rang for his dogs. Panksepp says a way to drive animals into a frenzy is to give them only tiny bits of food: This simultaneously stimulating and unsatisfying tease sends the seeking system into hyperactivity. Berridge says the "ding" announcing a new e-mail or the vibration that signals the arrival of a text message serves as a reward cue for us. And when we respond, we get a little piece of news, making us want more. These information nuggets may be as uniquely potent for humans as a Froot Loop to a rat. When you give a rat a minuscule dose of sugar, it engenders "a panting appetite," Berridge says—a powerful and not necessarily pleasant state."
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POPSHow to Talk to a Global Warming Skeptic (FAQ) More common questions and myths answered at the source, thoroughly cross-referenced and conveniently categorized and sub-categorized by type of argument: Stages of Denial Scientific Topics Types of Argument Levels of Sophistication A nice reference that's updated with fresh comments. Many "skeptics" often are unaware (by choice or by circumstance) that their common questions have already been addressed by scientists long ago.
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POPSCyber-Security Bill Permits President to "Seize Temporary Control of Private Sector Networks During A So-Called... Emergency The bill would allow the president to unilaterally declare "a cybersecurity emergency" for non-governmental computer networks in order to respond to a threat. Other sections of the bill go even further: they proscribe government-controlled certification programs that license computer security professionals. And it goes on to demand that certain, privately-owned computer systems and networks be managed only by those professionals who have achieved the federal certification. In all seriousness: if you were elected President and wanted to transform the U.S. into a third-world banana republic like Venezuela, how would your policies differ from those of Obama?
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POPS“Operation Get Rich or Die Tryin” Perp, Busted Again “We’re not seeing a huge array of hackers capable of doing this, but rather a more select group, demonstrates that there is a level of sophistication involved in these hacks,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Erez Liebermann of the Justice Department’s New Jersey district office. But these are just the latest in a string of high-profile breaches that have been connected to Gonzalez. He and 10 others were charged in May and August 2008 with network intrusions into TJX, OfficeMax, Dave & Busters restaurant chain and other companies. Jury selection is slated to begin Sept. 14 in one of those cases. With regard to the Heartland-Hannaford cases, Gonzalez and the two unnamed Russian hackers have been charged with one count of conspiracy to commit computer fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. They each face a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a possible maximum fine of $250,000 on the computer-fraud count and
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POPSMilitary Plans To Control Internet Revealed PLEASE go& READ the original BBC article that has exposed plans of the U.S military to "provide maximum control"of the Internet as detailed in a declassified secret Pentagon document signed by the U.S. Secretary of Defense for "electronic war",including the military forces planting information in the net-media!.didn't want to clip it,cause the whole aricle is precious!!couldn't believe in my eyes what i was reading,still can't!!in the BBC article,you can even read the original declassified secret Pentagon document for military project"Operation Roadmap"(pdf document).that is,IF you can read it,cause most of the contents are censored,filled with black lines covering almost the whole document!!!obviously the military forces are determined to invade&into the internet territories as well...
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