My Writings. My Thoughts.

MRI’s successes put the brain on trial

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Tech News

A typical neuroscience paper (or a typical report on one) is a laundry list of structure:function relationships between brain regions and the mental tasks they perform. The amygdala deals with registering rewards, the hippocampus handles memory, and so on. These relationships have been the result of over a century of work, starting with rare cases of brain injury and building through modern medical imaging, which can detect ever-smaller lesions and associate neural activity with specific cognitive processes. Doctors routinely rely on the combination of brain imaging and structure:function relationships for diagnostic purposes, but is wider society willing to trust it in the courtroom, where it might make the difference between guilt and innocence? That question was handled in a rather unusual manner at the meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science: a mock trial. Most other panels consisted of a set of scientists who each gave a fairly standard presentation. This one was presided over by Louis Rodriguez, an Orange County Superior Court Judge, and featured a law school professor and a practicing attorney, each with a neuroscientist as an expert witness. Although the proceedings were heavily scripted, anyone who’s sat through a jury trial would recognize that they were a reasonable attempt to approximate a normal courtroom experience. Read the comments on this post

Facebook’s location feature expected to launch next month

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Tech News

Facebook is allegedly planning to roll out location sharing capabilities next month, once again playing catch-up to other services that have gained popularity thanks to location data. The rumor comes courtesy of anonymous sources who have been “briefed on the project” speaking to the New York Times , who said that Facebook will announce the feature at Facebook’s annual f8 conference in late April. The company’s plans for such a feature have not been entirely secret—Facebook hinted at location features when it updated its privacy policy in November. Like other postings made to Facebook, location information will only be made available to the people you decide to broadcast it to. “When you share your location with others or add a location to something you post, we treat that like any other content you post,” reads the policy . “If we offer a service that supports this type of location sharing we will present you with an opt-in choice of whether you want to participate.” The location features will come in the form of an API for third-party developers and from Facebook, according to the Times ‘ sources. The feature will undoubtedly be popular among many of Facebook’s 400 million users, as it has already proven itself with other services. For example, Twitter added geolocation to its API last year, not to mention that Foursquare , Brightkite , Google Latitude , and Loopt have all built their success solely upon the use of user location data. Needless to say, it’s not something that will be new to the Web, though it probably will be new to a sizable chunk of Facebook’s audience. Let’s just hope the company rolls it out the right way, as implied by its privacy policy, and doesn’t end up broadcasting everyone’s locations to the world by default. Read the comments on this post

Microsoft browser ballot gives Opera, Firefox a boost

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Tech News

The Microsoft browser ballot released this month to Windows users in the EU is already doing Microsoft’s rivals a favor. Two of the major competitors to Internet Explorer have seen an increase in downloads, while the other two are not willing to share data. We contacted the makers of Firefox, Chrome, Safari, and Opera; here’s what they had to say. Opera, the Norwegian browser maker that first filed a complaint with the European Union in December 2007 , accusing Microsoft of violating EU antitrust law by bundling IE with Windows, is pleased with the progress its browser is making. “Since the browser choice screen rollout, Opera downloads have more than tripled in major European countries, such as Belgium, France, Spain, Poland, and the UK,” an Opera spokesperson told Ars. The company said it currently did not have more detailed numbers but plans on sharing more as they become available. Mozilla, which has a particularly solid foothold in Europe , was slightly more specific in the progress it was seeing with its browser downloads. “Early data suggests 50,000 to 100,000 new users chose Firefox as a direct result of seeing the Ballot Choice screen,” a Mozilla spokesperson told Ars. “We expect these numbers will increase as the Ballot Choice rolls out in additional countries and will share updated metrics as they become available.” Apple did not respond at all, and while Google was happy to respond, the company wouldn’t get specific: “We generally don’t share download stats on that granular of a level,” a Google spokesperson told Ars. The company did not respond to a follow-up question if Chrome saw an increase in number of downloads period. While Apple and Google haven’t said much, we think it’s likely that both have also seen a bump in the number of downloads of their browsers. Hundreds of thousands of users who may not have known of a world outside of Internet Explorer are being confronted with the alternatives. The browser ballot will be presented on Windows computers across the EU for at least the next five years. Microsoft’s rivals are, however, already pushing to have it appear outside of Europe as well. Read the comments on this post

The Internet of tomorrow: 100Gbps to your house by 2030

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Tech News

Google’s recent announcement of a 1Gbps fiber-to-the-home testbed has communities across the US salivating —but imagine what the Internet might be like if that connection to your home were even faster. Say… 100Gbps. In less than 20 years, such speeds will be possible, but only for companies who installed the right sort of fiber architecture. The UK telecoms regulator Ofcom commissioned a lengthy report on the future of fiber (PDF) (or “fibre,” in this case) from the firm Analysys Mason. In it, the company sketched out the future of fiber capacity with a pair of handy charts. Both are clear: between 2025 and 2030, shared fiber tech will be able to offer 10Gpbs to each user; individual fiber can offer a full 100Gbps. Whether ISPs will support it or not is a separate question. Read the comments on this post

FileMaker Pro goes to 11, admits people like spreadsheets

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Tech News

Apple subsidiary FileMaker has released version 11 of its flagship FileMaker Pro database. The updated software purports to make building and maintaining databases even easier, while acknowledging that many users are accustomed to using spreadsheets for database purposes by including pivot table-like reporting and Excel-like charting features. FileMaker Pro Server has also been updated, dropping the simultaneous client access limit for the Advanced version. FileMaker Pro already laid claim to being one of the easiest cross-platform database tools available, but the company added additional features designed to enhance that ease of use. The Quick Start screen has been improved, offering clear ways to begin a new database. You can start from scratch; import existing data in tab or comma-separated files, Excel spreadsheets, or Bento databases; or choose from a number of Starter Solution templates. A new invoicing template has been added in version 11 to make that common business task practically a plug-and-chug operation; customer data can later be linked for other purposes. Read the comments on this post

p2pnet World Headlines: March 9, 2010: 2

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

Facebook murder: ‘Lessons must be learned’ BBC Lessons must be learned from the “tragic” rape and murder of a 17-year-old girl, the home secretary has said. Alan Johnson said UK and US authorities were working on ways to flag up when a convicted sex offender goes online. Peter Chapman, 33, has been jailed for at least 35 years over the killing of Ashleigh Hall in Sedgefield. The known sex offender met her via Facebook. Google reluctant to release info in Viacom case CNet News Google, the search company that uncovers much of the world’s information for its customers, is embroiled in a fight to keep information about itself under wraps for at least a while longer. Viacom has documents that show David Eun, who oversaw Google’s content partnerships until leaving for AOL recently, was opposed to Google acquiring YouTube, sources said. The owner of YouTube, which is defending itself against a $1 billion copyright lawsuit filed by entertainment giant Viacom, has asked a federal court to keep documents filed in the case under seal for another three months. On Friday, Viacom and Google filed for summary judgment, claiming that there’s enough undisputed evidence for the judge to rule in each party’s favor. Supporting documents were also filed. U.S. District Judge Louis Stanton is expected to rule on when the documents are to be unsealed within the next few days. The Secret Origin of Windows Technologizer Few people understand Microsoft better than Tandy Trower, who worked at the company from 1981-2009. Trower was the product manager who ultimately shipped Windows 1.0, an endeavor that some advised him was a path toward a ruined career. Four product managers had already tried and failed to ship Windows before him, and he initially thought that he was being assigned an impossible task. In this follow-up to yesterday’s story on the future of Windows, Trower recounts the inside story of his experience in transforming Windows from vaporware into a product that has left an unmistakable imprint on the world, 25 years after it was first released. Computer games disguised as Excel and Word prove a hit with office workers Telegraph Computer games disguised as Excel and Word documents which allow office workers to waste time without attracting the attention of their bosses are taking off on the web. In one game, called Leadership, the player must direct a space ship between two lines of a graph. Another involves destroying blocks of the same colour before a wall of bar charts fills the screen, like the cult puzzle game Tetris. A third game Breakdown is derived from the Atari classic Breakout – but with the bricks replaced by dry corporate text. Words in bold and italics must be hit twice to disappear. The Flash games, which launch in plausibly bland pop-up windows, are available to play at the website CantYouSeeImBusy.com which was developed by four programmers in the Netherlands. A tongue-in-cheek counter on the website estimates that the addictive games have already cost the world economy more than €4.5m in lost man hours. Google incident does not break WTO rules China Daily Some NGOs are reportedly accusing the Chinese government of being in breach of its WTO obligations in regulating Google China’s search service and urged the Obama administration to take China to WTO to settle the dispute. Few details are available from news reports, but I would elaborate the case from the legal perspective and I believe that these accusations are groundless, as China’s regulations on Google are within the confines of its domestic laws and accords with its promises to the WTO. Google always enjoys market access and national treatment in China As an Internet search provider, the services Google provides fall into the categories of “online information and data processing” and “online information and data searching”, according to WTO rules and Chinese laws and regulations. China set clear restrictions on the above services in its promises when it was admitted into the WTO. To enjoy full national treatment, foreign companies must set up joint ventures in China and owns no more than 50 percent of the capital. Google China did exactly the same. Lip-reading phones: Sounds of silence CNet News Still getting used to all those people with Bluetooth headsets walking down the street appearing to talk to themselves? Get ready for the still stranger sight of people talking to themselves–without making any noise. Researchers from Germany’s Karlsruhe Institute of Technology are working on a system that converts mouth motions into synthesized speech, thus laying the groundwork for soundless cell phone calls (and ironically making us want to screech loudly in delight). - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi March, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorshiop in your area.

Swedish cops in ‘ollning’ probe

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view Crime:- Blogging as Farbror Blå (Uncle Blue), a self-professed Swedish cop in southern Sweden “revealed that he and his cop buddy ‘bell-ended’ the door handles, window buttons, gear stick, steering wheel, stereo buttons and the police radio buttons, as well as the receiver used to talk to the operations room” on a car driven by female co-workers, says The Local . Bell-ending, or “ollning”, involves a man touching an object with the end of his penis “and has established itself as a recurring form of practical joke in Sweden”, says the story, quoting the blogger as saying > > > When the girls had driven around for an hour or so in the bell-ended police car we had a chat with them and revealed our bell-ending exploits. Now we know what a facial expression of bleak anxiety looks like,” he wrote, ending his post with a smiley face. Uncle Blue “also wrote in lurid detail about a call-out to a student residence where a mentally unstable young woman allegedly made sexual advances towards both him and his partner”, says the story, adding: “Further blog posts included details of how he shook hands with a man who had just hanged himself, provoking guffaws from his colleagues. He also claimed it felt ‘damn good’ to punch somebody in the mouth. A Skåne county police internal investigations unit has launched a probe, says The Local. - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi The Local – Police probe cop blogger over furtive glans, March 9, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorshiop in your area.

Dutch Pirate Party on the election trail

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // p2p

p2pnet view P2P | Politics:- The Pirate Party is so far the only party of the World Wide Web with branches, complete with PP International , a collective for the Pirate Parties in different countries (see its list under this post). It’s early days for the net, the first and only true Voice of the People, and it’s equally early days for PP movement. But there’s no doubt it’ll become a major political power on- and offline, one with tremendous clout because of it grassroots base, and the fact the different parties have the potential to collectively formulate and implement common strategies, with all that implies. Now, “Following in the footsteps of the Swedes and Germans, the Dutch Pirate Party has decided to join the national elections being held this spring”, says TorrentFreak , going on” “2009 was a breakthrough year for the Pirate Party movement. With more than 7 percent of the vote, the Swedish Pirate Party secured two seats in the European Parliament. A few weeks later, the Pirates in Germany entered the local Parliament after a member of another party switched sides. “In 2010 the Pirate Parties hope to continue this hot streak, especially during the Swedish national elections later this year. However, Sweden is not the only country where a Pirate Party will end up at the ballot. In the UK the local Pirate Party hopes to compete as well and the Dutch party has now decided to do the same.” A financial hurdle the party will need to clear before the June 9 election is finding the 12,000 euros (about $16,732 Cdn) it needs as a deposit. Stay tuned. PP International list of countries a Pirate Party, or where one is starting up: Argentina Australia Austria Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Brazil Bulgaria Canada Chile China Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Guatemala Ireland Italy Kazakhstan Lithuania Luxembourg Mexico Netherlands New Zealand Norway Peru Poland Portugal Romania Russia Serbia Slovakia South Africa Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine United Kingdom United States Uruguay - … .. … and identi.ca More First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win ~ Mahatma Gandhi TorrentFreak – Dutch Pirate Party Joins Election Race, March 8, 2010 Use free p2pnet newsfeeds for your site. Subscribe to - | | rss feed: http://-/feed -? - Click here to learn what technologies might help you bypass censorshiop in your area.

European Parliament unites against 3 strikes, ACTA secrecy

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Tech News

The European Parliament is fed up with the secrecy surrounding the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA). Today, representatives from all the major parliamentary coalitions introduced a resolution demanding that the European Commission release all negotiating texts, inform Parliament about the negotiating process, and absolutely refuse to countenance any sort of “three strikes” Internet disconnection penalty for online copyright infringement. The measure comes up for a vote tomorrow and looks set to pass—it has the support of all the important groups in Parliament, including the EPP, S&D, ALDE, and the Greens/EFA. One notable supporter: Christian Engström, the Pirate Party’s lone MEP in Parliament, who aligns with the Greens/EFA group. Read the comments on this post

COD4 Frontlines NEWS

// March 9th, 2010 // No Comments » // Games

The new Fronltines is comming! With 40 gametypes, 12 weapons modes, paratroopers support, with the War Server with Random battlefields up to 3999 battles in the SAME war and LOTS more. You all already know that I’m working on a new version of Frontlines since the Modern WarFAIL 2 was revealed last year. Was many and many many hours of work specially because things that should be easy to do wasn’t at all because the limitation of the engine, which forced me to simply rewrite the main spine not only of my mod, but in a way to change the main spine of the game. First was the gametypes limit which made me rewrite all the map/gametypes behavior of the game, then was created the Frontlines Commands to overrun all this. Then now is the allocated memory of the game, there’s no more memory available for my code! The new version is so huge that seams they never expected a mod of this size ever, but I can’t be mad with IW for this because this kind of thing was never made before, and probably will be the last time too. To who didn’t understand what I mean with “out of allocated memory” is not the case to simply put more RAM on your machine. In resume when you are programming you need to reserve memory to later put your code there to run, so the original COD4 have his size already fixed (which is normal) and let some memory free to add the mod code, and that reserve memory is not enough from what I created. Well, I did what I can and the current version is working really fine and it’s VERY stable like never was, the only way to crash the server right now are because very bad coded or incomplete maps but even with all that kind of maps 99% of the crashes will be avoided. First because the Frontlines Spine implementation I can know the errors before reach the main spine, then I can simply change maps/gametypes avoiding the server to crash. Also was created a Bad Maps List to you set all maps which have problems. With that you can teach the Intelligent Server to what he can do, and what he can’t with which map/gametype on that list. Of course you can use the Bad Maps List also to avoid some gametypes to be played on each map, because simply is not fun, or the map don’t have heli support, or anything else like your taste. Then the Intelligent Server will think like you when select the maps/gametypes. Well, until now I was talking about coding which is not that interesting for regular players… so let’s talk about gameplay. First we have now 38 gametypes in Frontlines! Yeah! 10 were already added and working really well. Here the list of the new gametypes with a small resume of each one, the picture is from the AirFight gametype. . AirFight TDM with Choppers designed for the small rotation. . Airborne Paratroopers falls into enemy territory to retrieve 3 docs. . Capture The Flag Famous Quake gametype attending requests. . Evac Everything is colapsing, both teams must Evac his men out of that hell. . Invasion Carry your flag until the enemy spawn to conquest the territory. . Mission Several objectives to complete in a mini-war kind gametype with paratroopers and infantry at the same time. . Savage Like Black Hawk Down movie, retreat to call a pickup chopper to get out of angry civilians bare armed. . Strike Assault gametype with Paratroopers attacking. . Support A ground team have until 3 choppers as support to complete a objective. Few players are selected to be the Heli’s Gunners to support the ground team. . Swarm Hill gametype but the flag can be carried. The carrier must be in constant movement which force the team scout him accross the map. All are there working at War Server and with all addons as possible… and talking about War Server we have now a new feature called Battles Mode , different from the original War Server this time you didn’t set the battlefield, all is completely random, then you just set the number of battles needed to win the War , then who wins that number first wins the War . Now it’s possible to play Wars with battlefields up to 3999 battles (maps/territories). All the options of the War Server still available of course, setting number of soldiers, reinforcements, realistic level or even normal matches behavior. Aside that we have the instagib like Zillion Mode as one of the Weapons Modes , all weapons were balanced and fit to more realism aside give the option to change the rate of fire of the Assault Rifles from Automatic to Single Shot , also you can simply change the ammo of the Sniper’s rifles from the default ammo for a long range kind, specially designed for play the Sniper gametype, which is one of the new Virtual Gametypes of the Frontlines . Also were added several realistic war effects to the battles, which will really make you feel inside a real battlefield. There’s 4 kinds of support that you can call when got the Airstrike Support hardpoint. All really random and deadly, here the list: . Tactical Airstrike . Heavy Airstrike . Artillery Strike . Mortar Strike There’s several new stuff on the new version of Frontlines , which you can have a taste right now on the server below: Play NOW Frontlines 6 BETA | 200.162.238.228:28960 While you are tasting the new features I’m working on how to add more gametypes to the mod to finally release the Beta server to the public in few weeks. I believe it will be released until the end of march. More info @ www.mods.hajas.org Enjoy! :P

  

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