Wednesday, October 12, 2005

Attacking the internet. TRN Research News reports "a key finding from researchers who have teased out the structure of the Internet during the past half-dozen years has been that that, though the Internet is resistant to random failures, attacks targeting the largest hubs could fragment the network".The study "by researchers from the California Institute of Technology, the University of Adelaide in Australia, Internet2, The Institute of Physical and Chemical Research in Japan, and AT&T Labs, however, shows that research describing the scale-free nature of the Internet has not captured the whole picture.In light of the new findings, it looks like the Internet is fairly resilient to attacks. The study showed that the Internet's network of routers, which controls the flow of data between computers connected to the Internet, is different than the scale-free structure of Web sites and the connections between them. While scale-free networks have a few highly-connected sites, or hubs, in the center and many peripheral sites with far fewer connections, the physical router network that underpins the Internet has highly connected hubs at its periphery and less well-connected central hubs, making it resistant to targeted attacks". The Net: not so vulnerable [Smart Mobs] 8:53:11 PM    comment []

Wes: 320x240 is crap. Sorry Steve, but I'll stick with the darknet. And also: I like the cyclops, though. Ever since the Mac mini came out people have been calling it the ideal HTPC, and for as long I've been saying that the mini needs a remote and a ten-foot UI to be usable in that scenario. Looks like Apple agreed, although of course they chose to put the goodies in the iMac before letting them trickle down to the mini. Also, the iMac now has a newer chipset than the Power Mac. [Hack the Planet] 8:53:02 PM    comment []

The Better to See You With - The New iPod Hands On [unmediated] Apple Introduces iPod That Plays Videos. Apple Computer unveiled an iPod capable of playing videos and said music videos and TV shows will also now be sold on its iTunes Music Store. By VIKAS BAJAJ. [NYT > Technology] iPods, mobile phones and community [unmediated] The way it will be. To me, the most interesting aspect of the big announcement today is the $1.99 video downloads of TV shows. Significant. Blockbuster? Netflix? Gotta be hearing footsteps. Also, it may surprise you, but I'm not interested in watching video on a 2 inch screen so the new iPod doesn't even make it onto my "that would be nice to have" list. I've watched Spiderman II on a PSP so I know for certain I'm not a teeny screen video fan. [rexblog: Rex Hammock's Weblog] 6:04:41 PM    comment []

Recipe for success. Julie Powell was a depressed temp whose life changed forever after she embarked on a year-long Julia Child cook-a-thon. [Salon.com] 6:04:36 PM    comment []

Alumni catch up over coffee, poetry. Over cookies, coffee and a poetry reading Oct. 8, the 1970s classes met again to reminisce about Webster and The Journal caught up with three former students. [The Journal] 6:04:28 PM    comment []

October 12, 2005. “Custom development is that murky world where a customer tells you what to build, and you say, ‘are you sure?’ and they say yes, and you make an absolutely beautiful spec, and say, ‘is this what you want?’ and they say yes, and you make them sign the spec in indelible ink, nay, blood, and they do, and then you build that thing they signed off on, promptly, precisely and exactly, and they see it and they are horrified and shocked, and you spend the rest of the week reading up on whether your E&O insurance is going to cover the legal fees for the lawsuit you've gotten yourself into or merely the settlement cost. Or, if you're really lucky, the customer will smile wanly and put your code in a drawer and never use it again and never call you back.” Set Your Priorities [Joel on Software] 6:04:22 PM    comment []

Whole-House Music System Article Drafted. http://philip.greenspun.com/materialism/whole-house-music is my latest consumerism article.  Please comment! [Philip Greenspun Weblog] 6:00:02 PM    comment []

Students deserve openness from administration on budget numbers. Public universities are required by federal law to disclose their budgets. The national Freedom of Information Act and individual state's open records laws require government institutions to disclose their records, including their budgets, to inquiring citizens. [The Journal] 5:59:04 PM    comment []

Who will be indicted, and when?. As dread descends on the White House, all of Washington waits for the Valerie Plame endgame. [Salon.com] 5:58:59 PM    comment []

Theme Parks and Privacy. EPIC has information here, mostly on Walt Disney World. EDITED TO ADD: Disneyworld scans hand geometry, not fingerprints. [Schneier on Security] 7:28:29 AM    comment []

Guitar Tribute: George Harrison. From the New Sounds Live concerts, a tribute to former Beatle and songwriter George Harrison. Hear Harrisons songs in unexpected arrangements by the wildly colorful ensemble Sex Mob, among others. [WNYC New York Public Radio] 7:25:02 AM    comment []

He Doesn't Make Coffee, but He Controls 'Starbucks' in Russia. Sergei A. Zuykov, a lawyer and a trademark squatter, is trying to sell the Starbucks name back to the better-known company from Seattle. By ANDREW KRAMER. [NYT > Business] 7:24:56 AM    comment []

The NYT promises full disclosure on the Judy Miller saga. New York Times executive editor Bill Keller tells his staff that the paper will investigate its reporter's role in the Plame case. [Salon.com] 7:24:49 AM    comment []

TiVo-ish LG Phone [unmediated] 7:24:38 AM    comment []

Study Says Software Makers Supply Tools to Censor Web. A new report raises questions about the use of filtering technologies by autocratic governments bent on controlling what their citizens see on the Web. By TOM ZELLER Jr.. [NYT > Business] 7:22:12 AM    comment []

Machine Makes Dishes on Demand. Researchers at MIT develop a device that presses out durable plates, cups and bowls at the touch of a button -- then consumes them again after the meal. By Kim Zetter. [Wired News] 7:19:17 AM    comment []

Einstein's Big Idea Satisfies. Thinking is a hard act to portray with dramatic flair, but this novel, two-hour PBS exploration of the genesis of the general theory of relativity does a game job of it, with some help from wigs and the ghost of Lavoisier. By Jason Silverman. [Wired News] 7:19:02 AM    comment []

Two from BNA last week: CARD FRAUD MOVES TO RUSSIA Trafficking in stolen credit cards has largely shifted to Russian-language Web sites after an international crackdown in October 2004 sparked disarray among English-speaking scam artists. Much of the activity has shifted to Russian-language Web sites that are wary of outsiders, posing additional challenges to online investigators who must cope with language and legal barriers [Australian IT] MAN PLEADS GUILTY IN INTERNET COPYRIGHT STING A 23-year-old man has pleaded guilty to charges he illegally uploaded computer games, software and movies to a Web server set up as part of a federal sting to combat Internet copyright violations. The man entered the plea on one county of copyright infringement as part of an agreement with the US Attorney's Office that required him to surrender his laptop, a computer tower, and several CD's and DVD's. 6:52:30 AM    comment []

Citizens’ Initiative Effort Launched to Protect Stem Cell Research and Cures In Missouri: Statewide Ballot Measure is the First in U.S. Designed to Protect Patients’ Rights to Receive Stem Cell Therapies and Cures (press release - PDF) A coalition of patient advocacy groups, medical organizations and concerned citizens today launched an effort to seek voter approval of a state constitutional amendment designed to ensure that any stem cell research, therapies and cures permitted by federal law will continue to be allowed in Missouri. The amendment, called the Missouri Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative, is the first state measure in the nation that would clearly protect the right of patients to have their diseases and injuries treated with any stem cell cures allowed by federal law. The citizens’ initiative is a direct response to recent attempts by some Missouri politicians to pass legislation that would have made Missouri patients guilty of a felony crime for having their diseases and injuries treated with stem cells produced with a promising new technique called Somatic Cell Nuclear Transfer (SCNT). SCNT provides a way to use a patient’s own cell and a donated, unfertilized egg to produce stem cells that can turn into and regenerate any type of cell in the human body. Because these stem cells match the patient’s genetic makeup, the problem of immune system rejection and the need for finding a genetically matching donor are avoided. Voter approval of the Missouri Stem Cell Research and Cures Initiative – by a simple majority vote – will prevent state-level bans of any type of stem cell research and cures allowed under federal law, including those involving adult stem cells and early, or embryonic, stem cells (ES cells) from the SCNT process and from leftover fertility clinic embryos that would otherwise be discarded. The measure will ensure that Missouri patients have access to any stem cell therapies and cures allowed in the U.S. and ensure that Missouri medical institutions can provide and help find those cures. It also creates ethical and safety guidelines for ES cell research conducted in Missouri. And, it resolves concerns about human cloning by strictly banning human reproductive cloning to create babies. 6:52:25 AM    comment []