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======================================================================
Slashdot Daily Newsletter
In this issue:
* Tensions Rise Between Gamers and Game Companies Over DRM
* Apple Patents Tech To Record iPhone Thieves
* Germany To Grant Privacy At the Workplace
* Non-Profit Space Rocket Launching In a Week
* National Park Service Says Tech Is Enabling Stupidity
* Trojan Blamed For Spanish Air Crash
* Steam Not Coming To Linux
* Philly Requiring Bloggers To Pay $300
* Look For AI, Not Aliens
* Why the World Is Running Out of Helium
* China's Nine-Day Traffic Jam Tops 62 Miles
* The Doctor's Every Journey
* Bacteria From Beer Lasts 553 Days In Space
* Justice Department Seeks Ebonics Experts
* Authors Guild Silent Over iBooks Text-To-Speech
* OpenSolaris Governing Board Dissolves Itself
* Nmap Developers Release a Picture of the Web
* Skills Needed For a Future In IT
* Microsoft Claims 'We Love Open Source'
* Los Angeles Unveils $578 Million Public School
* Foursquare-Style Checking In For Couch Potatoes
* Court Rules Against Stem Cell Policy
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Tensions Rise Between Gamers and Game Companies Over DRM |
| from the opposing-interests dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Sunday August 22, @22:43 (Games) |
| https://games.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/0052236/Tensions-Rise-Between-Gamers-and-Game-Com|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Tootech recommends an article at the Technology Review about [0]the
intensifying struggle between gamers and publishers over intrusive DRM
methods, a topic brought once more to the forefront by Ubisoft's decision
not to use their [1]controversial always-connected DRM for upcoming RTS
RUSE, [2]opting instead for Steamworks. Quoting: "Ultimately, Schober
says, companies are moving toward a model where hackers wouldn't just
have to break through protections on a game, they'd also have to crack
company servers. The unfortunate consequence, he says, is that it's
getting more difficult for legitimate gamers to use and keep the products
they buy. But there are alternatives to DRM in the works as well. The
IEEE Standards Association, which develops industry standards for a
variety of technologies, is working to define 'digital personal
property.' The goal, says Paul Sweazey, who heads the organization's
working group, is to restore some of the qualities of physical property ���
making it possible to lend or resell digital property. Sweazey stresses
that the group just started meeting, but he explains that the idea is to
sell games and other pieces of software in two parts ��� an encrypted file
and a 'play key' that allows it to be used. The play key could be stored
in an online bank run by any organization, and could be accessed through
a URL. To share the product, the player would simply share the URL."
Discuss this story at:
http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/0052236
Links:
0. http://www.technologyreview.com/business/26092/
1. http://games.slashdot.org/story/10/02/18/0719256/Ubisofts-Constant-Net-Connection-DRM-Confirmed
2. http://www.wired.com/gamelife/2010/08/ubisoft-ruse-drm/
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Apple Patents Tech To Record iPhone Thieves |
| from the there's-a-patent-for-that dept. |
| posted by samzenpus on Sunday August 22, @22:43 (Patents) |
| https://apple.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/0016217/Apple-Patents-Tech-To-Record-iPhone-Thiev|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]angry tapir writes "[1]A new Apple patent proposes a mechanism to
catch iPhone thieves: it would [2]record the voice of the current user of
the phone, take photographs of the user, geotag the photograph and
activate the accelerometer to 'determine a current mode of transportation
of the electronic device.'"
Discuss this story at:
http://apple.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/0016217
Links:
0. http://www.goodgearguide.com.au/
1. http://www.freepatentsonline.com/20100207721.pdf
2. http://www.goodgearguide.com.au/article/357813/apple_envisions_tech_photograph_record_iphone_thieves/
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Germany To Grant Privacy At the Workplace |
| from the snooping-on-your-lunch-break dept. |
| posted by samzenpus on Monday August 23, @01:02 (Government) |
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/0316249/Germany-To-Grant-Privacy-At-the-Workplace |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader writes "The German government is proposing a bill
deciding [0]employees have an expectation of privacy at the workplace
(translated article). Among other provisions, the bill would ban
employers from surveilling their employees by cameras or logging and
reading their emails. Also, potential employers would not be allowed to
view an applicant's profile at Facebook or any other social network that
hasn't actually been made for this purpose."
Discuss this story at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/0316249
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Non-Profit Space Rocket Launching In a Week |
| from the diy-to-the-stars dept. |
| posted by samzenpus on Monday August 23, @04:09 (Space) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/0325225/Non-Profit-Space-Rocket-Launching-In-a-|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Plammox writes "A non-profit suborbital space endeavor lead by Kristian
von Bengtson and Peter Madsen is [0]trying to put a man in space. The
first test of the boosters and space craft in combination with the sea
launch platform will take place this week. The catch? All of this is a
non-profit project based on voluntary labor and sponsors. How will they
get the launch platform out in the middle of the Baltic sea to perform
the test? With the founder's home built submarine pushing it, of course."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/0325225
Links:
0. http://www.copenhagensuborbitals.com/index.php
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| National Park Service Says Tech Is Enabling Stupidity |
| from the you-got-yourself-into-this-mess-now-get-yourself-out dept. |
| posted by samzenpus on Monday August 23, @07:57 (Cellphones) |
| https://mobile.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/006235/National-Park-Service-Says-Tech-Is-Enabli|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
theodp writes "The [0]National Park Service is finding technology to be a
double-edged sword. While new technologies can and do save lives, the NPS
is also finding that [1]unseasoned hikers and campers are now boldly
going where they never would have gone before, counting on cellphones,
GPS, and SPOT devices to bail them out if they get into trouble. Last
fall, a group of hikers in the Grand Canyon called in rescue helicopters
three times by pressing the emergency button on their satellite location
device. When rangers arrived the second time, the hikers complained that
their water supply tasted salty. 'Because of having that electronic
device, people have an expectation that they can do something stupid and
be rescued,' said a spokeswoman for Grand Teton National Park. 'Every
once in a while we get a call from someone who has gone to the top of a
peak, the weather has turned and they are confused about how to get down
and they want someone to personally escort them. The answer is that you
are up there for the night.'"
Discuss this story at:
http://mobile.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/006235
Links:
0. http://www.nps.gov/index.htm
1. http://www.nytimes.com/glogin?URI=http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/22/science/earth/22parks.html&OQ=_rQ3D4Q26scpQ3D1Q26ampQ3BsqQ3DnationalQ2520parkQ2520serviceQ26ampQ3BstQ3Dcse&OP=14573280Q2FEnQ3AJEXgQ3E3Q3DggwWEWqQ2BqEqQ26EWWE3Q3ElQ3A@Q3EQ3AEQ3ApQ3DwtEWWQ5EpQ3DD3Ytw6R
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Trojan Blamed For Spanish Air Crash |
| from the i-thought-trojans-prevented-stuff dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 23, @08:50 (Security) |
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/121208/Trojan-Blamed-For-Spanish-Air-Crash |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
ChiefMonkeyGrinder writes "A plane crash that killed 154 people in 2008
might have been partly connected to the [0]infection of an important
ground safety system by malware, a Spanish newspaper has claimed."
Discuss this story at:
http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/121208
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Steam Not Coming To Linux |
| from the put-yer-pants-back-on dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 23, @08:56 (Games) |
| https://games.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1237200/Steam-Not-Coming-To-Linux |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
dkd903 writes "A rumor has been going around for about four months that
Valve was working on a Linux version of Steam and this had a lot of
people in the Linux community very excited. But, Valve has now
[0]officially killed the rumor. And it is not what people wants to hear ���
there is no Linux version of Steam in development. Doug Lombardi, the
Marketing VP of Valve Corporation, in an interview, has put an end to all
the rumors by saying that they are not working on Steam for Linux right
now."
Discuss this story at:
http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1237200
Links:
0. http://digitizor.com/2010/08/22/valve-puts-an-end-to-the-steam-on-linux-rumors/
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Philly Requiring Bloggers To Pay $300 |
| from the blood-from-blogger dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 23, @09:49 (Government) |
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1259223/Philly-Requiring-Bloggers-To-Pay-300 |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Kurofuneparry writes "Pennsylvania generally and Philadelphia
specifically have had a number of budget issues and some bloggers are
[0]seeing the results. From the article: '... yes, cash-strapped cities
can't very well ignore potential sources of income. But at the same time,
there must be some room for discretion and common sense.'"
Discuss this story at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1259223
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Look For AI, Not Aliens |
| from the i'd-rather-a-good-reuben dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 23, @10:35 (Space) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1346228/Look-For-AI-Not-Aliens |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
krou writes "Writing in Acta Astronautica, Seti astronomer Seth Shostak
argues that we should be [0]looking for 'sentient machines' rather than
biological life. In an interview with the BBC, he said, 'If you look at
the timescales for the development of technology, at some point you
invent radio and then you go on the air and then we have a chance of
finding you. But within a few hundred years of inventing radio ��� at least
if we're any example ��� you invent thinking machines; we're probably going
to do that in this century. So you've invented your successors and only
for a few hundred years are you... a "biological" intelligence.' As a
result, he says 'we could spend at least a few percent of our time...
looking in the directions that are maybe not the most attractive in terms
of biological intelligence but maybe where sentient machines are hanging
out.'"
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1346228
Links:
0. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11041449
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Why the World Is Running Out of Helium |
| from the i-blame-politics dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 23, @11:28 (Government) |
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1419233/Why-the-World-Is-Running-Out-of-Helium |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]jamie writes "The US National Helium Reserve stores a billion cubic
meters of helium, half the world supply, in an old natural gasfield. The
array of pipes and mines runs 200 miles from Texas to Kansas. In the name
of [1]deficit reduction, we're selling it all off for cheap. Physics
professor and Nobel laureate Robert Richardson says: 'In 1996, the US
Congress decided to sell off the strategic reserve and the consequence
was that the market was swelled with cheap helium because its price was
not determined by the market. The motivation was to sell it all by 2015.
The basic problem is that [2]helium is too cheap. The Earth is 4.7
billion years old and it has taken that long to accumulate our helium
reserves, which we will dissipate in about 100 years. One generation does
not have the right to determine availability forever.' Another view is
[3]The Impact of Selling the Federal Helium Reserve, the government study
from 10 years ago that suggested the government's price would end up
being over market value by 25% ��� but cautioned that this was based on the
[4]assumption that demand would grow slowly, and urged periodic reviews
of the state of the industry."
Discuss this story at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1419233
Links:
0. mailto:jamie@slashdot.org
1. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=52075
2. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=10668231
3. http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=9860&page=24
4. http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=9860&page=58
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| China's Nine-Day Traffic Jam Tops 62 Miles |
| from the living-on-the-road dept. |
| posted by samzenpus on Monday August 23, @12:08 (Transportation) |
| https://idle.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/156250/Chinas-Nine-Day-Traffic-Jam-Tops-62-Miles |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
A traffic jam on the Beijing-Tibet expressway has now [0]entered its
ninth day and has grown to over 62 miles in length. This mother-of-all
delays has even spawned its own micro-economy of local merchants selling
water and food at inflated prices to stranded drivers. Can you imagine
how infuriating it must be to see someone leave their blinker on for 9
days?
Discuss this story at:
http://idle.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/156250
Links:
0. http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j7mCeh43Lk-RIXgcK3jGiDODQt0A
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| The Doctor's Every Journey |
| from the amy-pond-is-on-my-list dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 23, @12:21 (Sci-Fi) |
| https://entertainment.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1532249/The-Doctors-Every-Journey |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
jc79 writes "David McCandless of InformationIsBeautiful.net has created
[0]a crowdsourced dataset of every time travel journey the Doctor made in
every episode of the series since 1963. Who wants to visualise it?"
Previous efforts have resulted in this [1]amazing visualization of time
travel intersecting Bill & Ted, Back to the Future, Time Bandits, Buck
Rogers, Planet of the Apes and many more.
Discuss this story at:
http://entertainment.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1532249
Links:
0. http://www.guardian.co.uk/news/datablog/2010/aug/20/doctor-who-time-travel-information-is-beautiful
1. http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/timelines/
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Bacteria From Beer Lasts 553 Days In Space |
| from the i'll-drink-to-that dept. |
| posted by CmdrTaco on Monday August 23, @13:11 (Space) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1553232/Bacteria-From-Beer-Lasts-553-Days-In-Sp|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader writes "Some specific bacteria colonies from Beer
(the place, not the beverage) left for several days outside the ISS
[0]actually survived extreme temperatures, UV and other radiations, lack
of water and all the like. They were later brought back to Earth for
examination: such resistant bacteria may be the base of life support
systems or bio-mining on colonies off Earth, and of course for
[1]terraforming, eventually. No clue in the article about how dangerous
those bacteria might have become after the exposure or when they'll start
eating their examiners."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1553232
Links:
0. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-11039206
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terraforming
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Justice Department Seeks Ebonics Experts |
| from the my-mama-no-raise-no-dummies-I-dug-her-rap dept. |
| posted by samzenpus on Monday August 23, @13:37 (Crime) |
| https://yro.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1455244/Justice-Department-Seeks-Ebonics-Experts |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
In addition to helping decipher their Lil Wayne albums, the Justice
Department is seeking [0]Ebonics experts to help monitor, translate and
transcribe wire tapped conversations. The DEA wants to fill nine full
time positions. From the article: "A maximum of nine Ebonics experts will
work with the Drug Enforcement Administration���s Atlanta field division,
where the linguists, after obtaining a 'DEA Sensitive' security
clearance, will help investigators decipher the results of 'telephonic
monitoring of court ordered nonconsensual intercepts, consensual
listening devices, and other media.'���
Discuss this story at:
http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1455244
Links:
0. http://www.thesmokinggun.com/documents/bizarre/justice-department-seeks-ebonics-experts
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Authors Guild Silent Over iBooks Text-To-Speech |
| from the selective-interest dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @14:00 (Books) |
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1715240/Authors-Guild-Silent-Over-iBooks-Text-To-S|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Last year we discussed news that the Authors Guild took issue with the
Kindle's text-to-speech function, [0]claiming it was illegal for the
device to read their books aloud. Amazon disagreed, but said they were
willing to [1]disable the feature upon request from rightsholders. Now,
jamie notes a recent article by David Pogue at the NY Times in which he
points out that [2]Apple's free iBooks app does the same thing, yet the
Authors Guild has remained silent. Quoting: "... Now swipe down the page
with two fingers to make the iPhone start reading the book to you, out
loud, with a synthesized voice. It even turns the pages automatically and
keeps going until you tap with two fingers to stop it. Yes, this is
exactly the feature that debuted in the Amazon Kindle and was then
removed when publishers screamed bloody murder. But somehow, so far,
Apple has gotten away with it, maybe because nobody's even realized this
feature is in there." That said, the feature was certainly [3]noticed
during the launch of the iPad, so perhaps the Authors Guild has other
reasons for holding their peace.
Discuss this story at:
http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1715240
Links:
0. http://yro.slashdot.org/story/09/02/11/147237/Authors-Guild-Says-Kindles-Text-To-Speech-Software-Illegal
1. http://news.slashdot.org/story/09/02/28/0127236/Amazon-Caves-On-Kindle-2-Text-To-Speech
2. http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/12/technology/personaltech/12pogue-email.html
3. http://www.csmonitor.com/Books/chapter-and-verse/2010/0323/The-iPad-raises-the-question-anew-Is-it-legal-for-e-books-to-go-audible
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| OpenSolaris Governing Board Dissolves Itself |
| from the never-should-have-given-them-that-acid dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @14:52 (Oracle) |
| https://developers.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1733208/OpenSolaris-Governing-Board-Dissolve|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
mysidia writes "Last month, it was mentioned that the OpenSolaris
governing board [0]issued an ultimatum to Oracle. It turns out that
Oracle continued to ignore requests to appoint a liaison after the
governing board's demands. This morning, the board unanimously [1]passed
a resolution to dissolve itself. Source code changes are [2]no longer
available, and it would appear that OpenSolaris and community involvement
in the development of Solaris [3]have been killed as rumored. We recently
discussed a '[4]Spork' of OpenSolaris called [5]Illumos. Perhaps now,
this will have a chance at becoming a true fork."
Discuss this story at:
http://developers.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1733208
Links:
0. http://developers.slashdot.org/story/10/07/14/1448209/OpenSolaris-Governing-Board-Closing-Shop?from=rss
1. http://mail.opensolaris.org/pipermail/ogb-discuss/2010-August/008012.html
2. http://sstallion.blogspot.com/2010/08/who-forgot-to-pay-water-bill.html
3. http://news.slashdot.org/story/10/08/13/1850232/The-Future-of-OpenSolaris-Revealed?from=rss
4. http://developers.slashdot.org/story/10/08/03/1911241/Illumos-Sporks-OpenSolaris
5. http://www.illumos.org/
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Nmap Developers Release a Picture of the Web |
| from the pretty-pictures dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @15:40 (The Internet) |
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1911247/Nmap-Developers-Release-a-Picture-of-the-W|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
iago-vL writes "The [0]Nmap Project recently posted an awesome
[1]visualization of the top million site icons (favicons) on the Web,
sized by relative popularity of sites. This project used the [2]Nmap
Scripting Engine, which is capable of performing discovery, vulnerability
detection, and anything else you can imagine with lightning speed. We saw
last month how an Nmap developer [3]downloaded 170 million Facebook names,
and this month it's a million favicons; I wonder what they'll do next?"
Discuss this story at:
http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1911247
Links:
0. http://nmap.org/
1. http://nmap.org/favicon/
2. http://nmap.org/nsedoc/
3. http://www.skullsecurity.org/blog/?p=898
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Skills Needed For a Future In IT |
| from the zeno's-arrow-points-to-the-help-desk dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @16:29 (Education) |
| https://it.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/1953234/Skills-Needed-For-a-Future-In-IT |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
Lucas123 writes "An increase in the pace of change in IT has created
[0]new dynamics for jobs involving the Web, mobile computing and
virtualization. For those looking to enter the marketplace in years to
come, 30-somethings hoping to upgrade their skills, or those who'll be
winding their careers down by 2020, skill sets are drastically changing.
For example, graphics chips are doubling in capacity every six months.
That translates into a thousandfold increase in capacity over a five-year
period ��� the average shelf life of most game platforms. 'We've never seen
anything like it in any industry.' Colleges are in continual catch-up
mode and have only recently added project management and soft skills
training to computer science programs. According to one expert, 'They're
about five years behind where they need to be.'"
Discuss this story at:
http://it.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/1953234
Links:
0. http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/350918/20_20_Vision?taxonomyId=56&pageNumber=1
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Microsoft Claims 'We Love Open Source' |
| from the admiral-ackbar-unavailable-for-comment dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @17:16 (Microsoft) |
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/2037225/Microsoft-Claims-We-Love-Open-Source |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
jbrodkin writes "Everyone in the Linux world remembers Microsoft CEO
Steve Ballmer's famous comment in 2001 that [0]Linux is a 'cancer' that
threatened Microsoft's intellectual property. While Microsoft hasn't
formally rescinded its declaration that Linux violates its patents, at
least one Microsoft executive [1]admits that the company's earlier battle
stance was a mistake. Microsoft wants the world to understand, whatever
its issues with Linux, it no longer has any gripe toward open source."
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/2037225
Links:
0. http://slashdot.org/story/01/06/01/1658258/Ballmer-Calls-Linux-A-Cancer
1. http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/082310-microsoft-open-source.html?hpg1=bn
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Los Angeles Unveils $578 Million Public School |
| from the passing-out-hundreds-in-the-lunch-line dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @18:06 (Education) |
| https://news.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/2046207/Los-Angeles-Unveils-578-Million-Public-Sch|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader writes with this excerpt from an Associated Press
report on next month's opening of the Robert F. Kennedy Community Schools
in Los Angeles: "With an eye-popping price tag of $578 million, it will
mark the inauguration of [0]the nation's most expensive public school
ever. The K-12 complex to house 4,200 students has raised eyebrows across
the country as the creme de la creme of 'Taj Mahal' schools, $100
million-plus campuses boasting both architectural panache and deluxe
amenities. ... At RFK, the features include fine art murals and a marble
memorial depicting the complex's namesake, a manicured public park, and a
state-of-the-art swimming pool. 'There's no more of the old, windowless
cinderblock schools of the '70s where kids felt, "Oh, back to jail,"'
said Joe Agron, editor-in-chief of American School & University, a school
construction journal. 'Districts want a showpiece for the community, a
really impressive environment for learning.' ... Critics note that nearly
3,000 teachers have been laid off over the past two years, the academic
year and programs have been slashed, the district faces a $640 million
shortfall and some schools persistently rank among the nation's lowest
performing."
Discuss this story at:
http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/2046207
Links:
0. http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100822/ap_on_re_us/us_taj_mahal_schools
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Foursquare-Style Checking In For Couch Potatoes |
| from the real-life-achievements-are-getting-out-of-hand dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @18:59 (Social Networks) |
| https://tech.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/2149250/Foursquare-Style-Checking-In-For-Couch-Pot|
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
This CNN article discusses a new breed of [0]mobile "check-in" apps for
people who aren't particularly mobile. The news apps were borne from the
popularity of Foursquare, Gowalla, and Facebook Places, but instead of
focusing on locations you've been, they spotlight movies and TV shows you
watch, as well as books you read and video games you play. "These apps
let users earn virtual rewards and meet fans with similar interests.
Users also can push their check-ins to other sites, such as Facebook and
Twitter, to keep the conversation going. They each have their own
benefits on top of that, from giving users recommendations based on the
things they already like to letting them unlock videos and other extras
when they've become 'super fans' of a show. ... While people in the
United States may all have different hobbies and engage in different
activities away from home, 'we know most people do three things ��� they
eat, they sleep and they watch TV,' [Miso's CEO, Somrat Niyogi said.] 'We
think the market is massive. We think this is going to be a much bigger
market' than location-based apps, he added."
Discuss this story at:
http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/2149250
Links:
0. http://www.cnn.com/2010/TECH/social.media/08/23/entertainment.checkins/
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Court Rules Against Stem Cell Policy |
| from the two-steps-forward,-two-steps-back dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Monday August 23, @19:55 (Biotech) |
| https://science.slashdot.org/story/10/08/23/2240243/Court-Rules-Against-Stem-Cell-Policy |
+----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader sends this quote from Reuters: "A US district court
issued a preliminary injunction Monday [0]stopping federal funding of
human embryonic stem cell research, in a slap to the Obama
administration's new guidelines on the sensitive issue. The court ruled
in favor of a suit filed in June by researchers who said human embryonic
stem cell research involves the destruction of human embryos. Judge Royce
Lamberth [1]granted the injunction after finding that the lawsuit would
likely succeed because the guidelines violated law banning the use of
federal funds to destroy human embryos. '(Embryonic stem cell) research
is clearly research in which an embryo is destroyed,' Lamberth wrote in a
15-page ruling."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=10/08/23/2240243
Links:
0. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/38820323/ns/health-cloning_and_stem_cells
1. http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-08-23/u-s-funded-embryonic-stem-cell-research-temporarily-halted-by-judge.html
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