An excellent question to end the decade on… albeit one that only us geeks would think to ask.
Archive of entries posted on December 2009
“Intercepting Predator Video”
Just prior to the Christmas Underwear Bomber, the big security scandal was how the Predator drones don’t use encryption on their video feeds, and militants were using cheap off-the-shelf software to intercept that data. But Bruce Schneier points out the reasons for that, and why encrypting this data is likely to cause more problems than [...]
“President Obama, It’s Time To Fire the TSA”
Although this article hits the nail right on the head, I don’t expect Obama or anyone else to make any changes — except, perhaps, banning more ridiculous things (as the TSA has already done — correction, the restrictions have apparently been eased now). Even if Obama wanted to (which he might), he’d face huge political [...]
“Passenger tackles suspected plane bomber”
I wonder what they’ll ban this time? Syringes? Pillows? Pants?
“From the Toilet to the Tap”
If the title alone didn’t cure you of the urge to finish off those Christmas-feast leftovers, read the full article. Cloacina was the ancient Roman goddess of sewers. Think about that for a minute. To the Romans, the ability to take vile, disgusting wastewater and just get it the heck out of Rome was such [...]
Merry Christmas
Bah. Humbug.
“Browser makers hope WebGL will remake 3D”
In the SF book Snow Crash, we’re introduced to the Metaverse, a 3D virtual world where the laws of physics are only casually enforced, and people from all over the world and all walks of life can meet up to discuss business or socialize, do research, or even have the occasional sword fight. Ever since [...]
“Why I’d rather be punched in the testicles than call customer service”
WARNING: If this doesn’t make you laugh out loud, no matter where you are or what time it is, then you’ve never tried to deal with a customer service line.
“‘Nerd’ and ‘Geek’ Should Be Banned, Professor Says”
I understand his argument (that the world needs more nerds and geeks, and the associations brought up by the labels are turning people away from them), but as a former nerd (socially inept loner) and current geek (an expert in a technical field), I rather like things the way they are. It would be nice [...]
“Stanford prof pops lid on paint-on battery tech”
Am I the only one who, on reading this article, could only imagine a plot for a mystery novel involving a painter electrocuting his victim?