erma-core team mailing list archive

[Matt O'Keefe <matthewokeefe@xxxxxxxxx>]

Also pretty cool to see the story in the daily digest...

--- On Fri, 6/27/08, slashdot@xxxxxxxxxxxx <slashdot@xxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
From: slashdot@xxxxxxxxxxxx <slashdot@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [Slashdot] Stories for 2008-06-28
To: matthewokeefe@xxxxxxxxx
Date: Friday, June 27, 2008, 11:35 PM

======================================================================
Facing IT shenanigans?
Watch: IBM Tivoli Survival Guide: When infrastructure attacks!
http://ad.doubleclick.net/clk;197301871;25844561;l
======================================================================

Slashdot Daily Newsletter

In this issue:
    * WTF? NC Offers to Replace 10,000 License Plates
    * Bell's Own Data Exposes P2P As a Red Herring
    * The Fight To End Aging Gains Legitimacy, Funding
    * NASA Tests Hypersonic Blackswift
    * Intentional GPS Jamming On the Increase
    * Senate Delays Telecom Immunity Vote Until After July Recess
    * Drug Reverses Retardation In Mice
    * Tiny Satellite Set To Hunt Asteroids
    * "Wisdom of Crowds" Works For Individuals Too
    * Telecom Immunity Flip-Floppers Got More Telecom Money
    * US Halts Applications For Solar Energy Projects
    * Firefox 3 Already Rules the Roost
    * Will Amazon Get a Visit From the Tax Man?
    * Scientists Create Synthesized DNA Bases
    * Harvard Study Questions "Long Tail" Theory
    * North Pole Ice On Track To Melt By September?
    * Grand OGL Wiki Seeks to Publish RPG Book Back-Stock
    * Gates' Last Day At Microsoft
    * Modders Get Nvidia's PhysX To Run On ATI Cards
    * Orbitz Open Sources Tools To Manage Large Distributed Applications
    * Alfresco-Adobe Pact Continues To Strengthen Open Source
    * MPAA Scores First P2P Jury Conviction
    * Where To Draw the Line With Embryo Selection?

+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| WTF? NC Offers to Replace 10,000 License Plates                    |
|   from the what-if-I'm-offended-by-prudery? dept.                  |
|   posted by timothy on Thursday June 26, @20:17 (It's funny.  Laugh|
|   http://idle.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/26/1730242         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

beadfulthings writes "In light of recent discussions about the Internet
habits of the older generation, it's comforting to know that in North
Carolina, up to 10,000 license plates containing the [0]potentially
offensive 3-letter WTF combination will be replaced by the Motor Vehicles
division at no cost — if the owner of the vehicle finds the plates
offensive. As reported on Winston-Salem's television station WXII, the
MVD was alerted to the problem by an irate 60-year-old technology teacher
who'd been clued in by her grandchildren. The article includes a helpful
slide show of twenty Internet acronyms every parent should know. The
article doesn't include any information on how you could actually apply
for a WTF license plate."

Discuss this story at:
    http://idle.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/26/1730242

Links:
    0. http://www.wxii12.com/news/16699280/detail.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Bell's Own Data Exposes P2P As a Red Herring                       |
|   from the just-wanted-to-say-canadian-throttling-front dept.      |
|   posted by timothy on Thursday June 26, @21:52 (Networking)       |
|   http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/007209           |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]dougplanet writes with news from the Canadian-throttling front: "As
[1]ordered by the CRTC, Bell has [2]released (some) of its data on how
torrents and P2P in general are affecting its network. Even though
there's not much data to go on, it's pretty clear that P2P isn't
the
crushing concern. Over the two-month period prior to their throttling,
they had congestion on a whopping 2.6 and 5.2 per cent of their network
links. They don't even explain whether this is a range of sustained
congestion, or peaks amongst valleys."

Discuss this story at:
    http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/007209

Links:
    0. http://www.dougplanet.com/
    1. http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/23/1356225&tid=95
    2. http://www.rgbfilter.com/?p=67


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| The Fight To End Aging Gains Legitimacy, Funding                   |
|   from the gentleman-scientist dept.                               |
|   posted by timothy on Thursday June 26, @23:56 (Biotech)          |
|   http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/0313211      |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]oddwick11 writes "[1]Aubrey de Grey and other [2]leading scientists
and thinkers in stem cell research and regenerative medicine will gather
in Los Angeles at UCLA for [3]Aging 2008 to explain how their work can
combat human aging, and the sociological implications of developing
rejuvenation therapies. From an article today in WIRED Magazine 'Now,
though, some scientists are beginning to view his approach — [4]looking
at aging as a disease and bringing in more disciplines into gerontology —
as worthwhile, even if they still look askance at his claims of permanent
reversible aging within a lifespan. The [5]Methuselah Foundation now has
an annual research funding budget of several million dollars, de Grey
says, and it's beginning to show lab results that he thinks will turn
scientists' heads.'" The conference is free, though
[6]registration is
required; L.A. area readers who can attend are encouraged to post their
thoughts. Update: 06/27 05:18 GMT by [7]T : Dr. de Grey notes that you
can also simply show up and register on-site. Look forward to a Slashdot
interview with de Grey in the near future.

Discuss this story at:
    http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/0313211

Links:
    0. http://www.vim-vigor.net/
    1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aubrey_de_Grey
    2. http://mfoundation.org/Aging2008/agenda/
    3. http://mfoundation.org/Aging2008/
    4. http://www.wired.com/medtech/health/news/2008/06/methuselah
    5. http://www.mfoundation.org/
    6. http://mfoundation.org/Aging2008/tickets/index.html
    7. http://www.monkey.org/~timothy/


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| NASA Tests Hypersonic Blackswift                                   |
|   from the for-a-romantic-honeymoon-cruise dept.                   |
|   posted by timothy on Friday June 27, @02:40 (Transportation)     |
|   http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/0248258      |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

dijkstra writes "Blackswift was previously rumored to be a super secret
hypersonic scramjet-based aircraft co-named HTV-3X, essentially a 21st
century version of the [0]SR-71. Today NASA has unveiled [1]the real
Blackswift (video link), which uses pulse detonation engines (PDEs). A
PDE is essentially a modern version of the old V-1 buzz bomb engine. This
engine requires significantly fewer moving parts and achieves much higher
efficiency than a turbofan, and is technically able to go hypersonic
without any kind of 'dual-stage' engine."

Discuss this story at:
    http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/0248258

Links:
    0. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sr-71
    1.
http://www.foxnews.com/video/index.html?playerId=videolandingpage&streamingFormat=FLASH&referralObject=1791927&referralPlaylistId=e059f7416cd3e6a978256d927c7bb152d9988581


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Intentional GPS Jamming On the Increase                            |
|   from the can-you-find-me-now-can-you-find-me-now dept.           |
|   posted by timothy on Friday June 27, @05:27 (Security)           |
|   http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/0426216         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]benst writes "Here's yet another way to measure the success of GPS:
by
the efforts to negate it. While unintentional jamming continues to rise,
intentional jamming by both foreign military forces and at-home
miscreants of various stripes has shown increased vigor in the past six
months. Related here are recent [1]instances of intentional jamming on
each side of the border, and (briefly outlined) one initiative mounted by
the National Geospatial Intelligence Agency (NGA) to counteract it. Also,
here are some ways to [2]detect and prevent jamming."

Discuss this story at:
    http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/0426216

Links:
    0. mailto:benwilgeenspam@xxxxxxxxx
    1.
http://sidt.gpsworld.com/gpssidt/Latest+News/National-Space-Symposium-Day-3-OCX-and-GPS-III/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/525875
    2.
http://sidt.gpsworld.com/gpssidt/Innovation/Innovation-Interference-Heads-Up/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/523633


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Senate Delays Telecom Immunity Vote Until After July Recess        |
|   from the after-all-why-ruin-the-4th dept.                        |
|   posted by timothy on Friday June 27, @07:50 (Privacy)            |
|   http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/055204           |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]ivantheshifty writes with news of a [1]delayed vote ([2]failed
filibuster attempt aside) on the [3]updated FISA bill which has been
discussed here recently, in particular because it would grant telecom
companies immunity (under certain conditions) from suits for wiretapping
conducted at government request. According to the Associated Press story
carried by the Washington Post, "Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and more
than a dozen other senators who oppose telecom immunity threw up
procedural delays that threatened to force the Senate into a midnight or
weekend session. The prospect of further delays was enough to cause
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., to postpone the vote until
after the weeklong July 4 vacation."

Discuss this story at:
    http://yro.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/055204

Links:
    0. mailto:ben.somers@xxxxxxxx
    1.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/26/AR2008062603317.html
    2. http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/06/25/congress.surveillance/
    3. http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/20/1448244&tid=158


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Drug Reverses Retardation In Mice                                  |
|   from the give-my-regards-to-algernon dept.                       |
|   posted by kdawson on Friday June 27, @08:33 (Medicine)           |
|   http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1210202      |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]snydeq writes "Rapamycin, a medication doctors prescribe to transplant
patients to prevent organ rejection, has been used to [1]reverse learning
disorders and mild retardation associated with TSC (tuberous sclerosis
complex) in mice. Because the condition is linked to autism, scientists
believe the drug may be used to treat learning disabilities and
short-term memory deficits in all kinds of autism as well. The scientists
chose rapamycin after they realized the drug regulates one of the same
proteins that the TSC gene does, just in different parts of the body.
'What was surprising is that we could give rapamycin to adult mice and
reverse their condition,' said neurobiologist Alcino Silva of the David
Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. 'We did not know... that this drug
would be equally effective for the learning disabilities as it is for
tissue rejection.' Rapamycin treatment leveled the playing field between
normal and TSC mice in as little as three days."

Discuss this story at:
    http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1210202

Links:
    0. http://www.infoworld.com/
    1. http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=existing-drug-reverses-a&sc=rss


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Tiny Satellite Set To Hunt Asteroids                               |
|   from the with-its-tiny-little-eye dept.                          |
|   posted by kdawson on Friday June 27, @09:17 (Space)              |
|   http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/135211       |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]coondoggie writes "Canadian scientists are developing a 143-lb
microsatellite to [1]detect and track near-earth asteroids and comets, as
well as satellites and space junk. The suitcase-sized Near Earth Object
Surveillance Satellite includes a 6-inch diameter telescope, smaller than
most amateur astronomers' scopes, that by being located 435 miles above
the Earth's atmosphere will be able to detect moving asteroids delivering
as few as 50 photons of light in a 100-second exposure. The NEOSSat will
twist and turn hundreds of times each day, orbiting from pole to pole
every 50 minutes almost always in sunlight. The telescope has a sunshade
that allows searching the sky to within 45 degrees of the Sun, in order
to detect near-Earth asteroids whose orbits are entirely inside
Earth's."
The probe was announced a few days before the 100th anniversary of the
Tunguska blast.

Discuss this story at:
    http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/135211

Links:
    0. mailto:mcooney@xxxxxxx
    1.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080627.wsatellite27/BNStory/Science/home


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| "Wisdom of Crowds" Works For Individuals Too                      
|
|   from the I-am-large-I-contain-multitudes dept.                   |
|   posted by kdawson on Friday June 27, @10:00 (Social Networks)    |
|   http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1338259      |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]ideonexus writes "Take a crowd of people and have them guess how many
jelly beans are in a jar, and the average of their answers will be
remarkably accurate. Now researchers have found the same goes for
[1]asking one person to guess about the same thing several times.
Accuracy improved when the individual was given longer periods of time
between guesses." The anonymous author of the Economist piece, not
quoting the researchers, says the finding bolsters the "generate and
test" model of creative thinking.

Discuss this story at:
    http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1338259

Links:
    0. http://ideonexus.com/
    1. http://www.economist.com/science/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11614183


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Telecom Immunity Flip-Floppers Got More Telecom Money              |
|   from the stark-example dept.                                     |
|   posted by kdawson on Friday June 27, @10:44 (The Almighty Buck)  |
|   http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1410247         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

ya really notes a nice analysis by Maplight.org indicating that those
Democratic representatives who changed their vote on telecom immunity
between March and June received on average [0]40% more in contributions
from telecom interests than those Democrats who held firm. Maplight asks,
"Why did these ninety-four House members have a change of heart? Their
constituents deserve answers." Across both parties, representatives who
voted for immunity in June had received almost twice a much telecom money
as those who voted against. [1]Wired's coverage includes a quote from
Larry Lessig, who is on the Maplight board: "Money corrupts the process
of reasoning. [Lawmakers] get a sixth sense of how what they do might
affect how they raise money."

Discuss this story at:
    http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1410247

Links:
    0. http://www.maplight.org/FISA_June08
    1. http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/06/telecom-amnesty.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| US Halts Applications For Solar Energy Projects                    |
|   from the think-of-the-mojave-ground-squirrels dept.              |
|   posted by kdawson on Friday June 27, @11:29 (Power)              |
|   http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1437225     |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]Dekortage writes "The US Bureau of Land Management, overwhelmed by
applications for large-scale solar energy plants, has [1]declared a
two-year freeze on applications for new projects until it completes an
extensive [2]environmental impact study. The study will produce 'a single
set of environmental criteria to weigh future solar proposals, which will
ultimately speed the application process.' The freeze means that current
applications will continue to be processed — plants producing enough
electricity for 20 million average American homes — but no new
applications will be accepted until the study is complete. Solar power
companies are worried that this will harm the industry just as it is
poised for explosive growth. Some note that gas and oil projects are
booming in the southwestern states most favorable to solar development.
Another threat looming over the solar industry is that federal tax
credits must be renewed in Congress, else they will expire this year."

Discuss this story at:
    http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1437225

Links:
    0. http://www.arrowbay.net/
    1. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/27/us/27solar.html
    2. http://www.blm.gov/wo/st/en/info/newsroom/2008/may_08/NR_053008.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Firefox 3 Already Rules the Roost                                  |
|   from the good-press-will-do-that-for-you dept.                   |
|   posted by kdawson on Friday June 27, @12:15 (Mozilla)            |
|   http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1458227         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]Barence writes in with a data point on Firefox 3 adoption: it's been
available for 10 days, and already one site is seeing [1]55% of its
Firefox-using visitors on version 3. "Microsoft still has three out of
ten people running an old version of its browser more than 18 months
after Internet Explorer 7 launched, while Firefox has converted more than
half of its users to the latest version in just over a week. That should
set a few alarm bells ringing in Redmond."

Discuss this story at:
    http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1458227

Links:
    0. http://www.pcpro.co.uk/
    1.
http://www.pcpro.co.uk/blogs/2008/06/27/firefox-3-already-rules-the-roost/


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Will Amazon Get a Visit From the Tax Man?                          |
|   from the cat-and-mouse dept.                                     |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @13:03 (The Almighty B|
|   http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1544241         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]theodp writes to tell us that according to the Wall Street Journal,
Amazon.com has raised a few eyebrows with their strategy to [1]avoid
paying sales tax in eight states where they have warehouses or
distribution centers. "As an online retailer, Amazon can avoid collecting
sales tax in states where it has no presence, at least until Congress
changes the law. But in states where a company has actual facilities,
such as warehouses, states tax officials can require the company to
collect sales tax. Despite operating hundreds of thousands of square feet
of distribution facilities in the eight states, Amazon says it doesn't
have any presence in them. The company argues that it doesn't operate the
plants, its wholly owned subsidiaries do."

Discuss this story at:
    http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1544241

Links:
    0. mailto:theodp@xxxxxxx
    1.
http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/news/business.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-06-25-0184.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Scientists Create Synthesized DNA Bases                            |
|   from the and-mother-nature-is-pissed dept.                       |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @13:48 (Biotech)      |
|   http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1557232      |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]Iddo Genuth writes to tell us that researchers at the Scripps Research
Institute in San Diego have [1]created two artificial DNA bases in an
effort to "expand biology's potential." "In the future,
[chemist Floyd]
Romesberg envisions manipulating the genetic code of bacteria in order to
assemble better drugs or even man-made proteins. Until now, the bases
only work in bacteria, so human augmentation is currently not possible.
Another option is to use alpha and beta to help construct nanomachines to
be used for drug delivery. 'This is like jumping from the Stone Age to
the Bronze Age,' Romesberg says. 'It takes time to figure out how best
to
use metal.'" Update 18:10 GMT by SM: Roger writes to share the
NewScientist link with a [2]bit more information. There is also the
[3]original release text for consideration.

Discuss this story at:
    http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1557232

Links:
    0. http://www.tfot.info/
    1.
http://thefutureofthings.com/news/1212/scientists-create-synthesized-dna.html
    2.
http://technology.newscientist.com/article/dn13252-artificial-letters-added-to-lifes-alphabet.html
    3. http://www.scripps.edu/newsandviews/e_20050321/dna.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Harvard Study Questions "Long Tail" Theory                        
|
|   from the definition-is-everything dept.                          |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @14:30 (The Internet) |
|   http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1625206         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]mjasay writes "Remember 'the long tail?' That was the idea that
there
was gobs of money to be made in the more obscure tastes of any given
market, enabled by the web. In recent research highlighted in the Harvard
Business Review, however, the [1]long tail theory comes under withering
criticism. Not only is a hits-based business more profitable for vendors
according to the new research, but the research suggests that consumers
also derive more enjoyment from the hits, rather than the tail. In short,
the researchers find that 'the tail is long and flat, and therefore that
content providers will find it hard to profit much from it.'" Long
Tail
advocate [2]Chris Anderson defends his theory, and it seems that most of
the debate centers around how you define "head" and "tail."

Discuss this story at:
    http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1625206

Links:
    0. http://cnet.com/openroad
    1.
http://harvardbusinessonline.hbsp.harvard.edu/hbsp/hbr/articles/article.jsp?OPERATION_TYPE=CHECK_COOKIE&referer=/hbsp/hbr/articles/article.jsp&productId=R0807H&TRUE=TRUE&reason=freeContent&FALSE=FALSE&ml_subscriber=true&_requestid=13055&ml_action=get-article&ml_issueid=BR0807&articleID=R0807H&pageNumber=1
    2. http://www.longtail.com/the_long_tail/2008/06/excellent-hbr-p.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| North Pole Ice On Track To Melt By September?                      |
|   from the new-swimming-holes dept.                                |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @15:12 (Earth)        |
|   http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1650207         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

phobos13013 writes "Recently released evidence is showing the [0]North
Pole ice is melting at the highest rate ever recorded. As a result,
[1]the Pole may be completely ice-free at the surface and composed of
nothing but open water by September. As reported in September of last
year, [2]the Northwest Passage was ice-free for the first time known to
man. [3]The implications of this, as well as [4]the causes, are still
being debated. Are global warming experts just short-sighted alarmists?
Are we heading for a global ice age? Or is the increase in global mean
temperature having an effect on our planet?"

Discuss this story at:
    http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1650207

Links:
    0.
http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/climate-change/exclusive-no-ice-at-the-north-pole-855406.html
    1. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/06/080620-north-pole.html
    2. http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/09/15/2023212&tid=14
    3. http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/03/28/ice.explained/index.html
    4. http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/news/topstory/2003/1023esuice.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Grand OGL Wiki Seeks to Publish RPG Book Back-Stock                |
|   from the C&D-letters-at-the-ready-so-post-carefully dept.        |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @16:01 (Role Playing (|
|   http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/185217         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

Zonk pointed out an interesting story over at The Gamer Dome that details
a new wiki project partnering with Mongoose Publishing to [0]share the
publishing company's back-stock for free. Titled "[1]The Grand OGL
Wiki,"
the new project seeks to create a repository for many out of print books
that would otherwise be lost to the sands of time. "'If a volunteer
(or
volunteers - you might have to be some sort of maniac to go through all
this material solo!) were to come forward and create a suitable web site,
we would happily supply electronic versions of our D20 lines for
translation of OGC to such a web site. We would be very free with the
material permissible, allowing you to effectively cut and paste large
chunks of 'fluff' text alongside the OGC. This would include all the
Quintessentials, Slayer's Guides, Encyclopedias, Ultimates - potentially,
even some Babylon 5 material, if someone is prepared to remove all the
licensed text (no Conan though, as that is still current!).'"

Discuss this story at:
    http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/185217

Links:
    0. http://thegamerdome.com/free-rpg-day-x100/
    1. http://grandwiki.wikidot.com/


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Gates' Last Day At Microsoft                                       |
|   from the keep-it-clean dept.                                     |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @16:13 (Microsoft)    |
|   http://news.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1936211         |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]mrogers writes "Today is [1]Bill Gates' last day as a full-time
employee of Microsoft. After [2]33 years at the company, the one-time
richest man in the world will be retiring at 52 to spend more time
guiding the charitable Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. What would you
buy him as a retirement gift?"

Discuss this story at:
    http://news.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1936211

Links:
    0. http://www.cs.ucl.ac.uk/staff/mrogers/
    1. http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/06/26/business/soft.php
    2. http://www.newsweek.com/id/142636


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Modders Get Nvidia's PhysX To Run On ATI Cards                     |
|   from the working-as-intended dept.                               |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @16:44 (Hardware Hacki|
|   http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1821252     |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]stress_life writes "Following [1]controversial allegations that Nvidia
is cheating in 3DMark Vantage and Unreal Tournament 3 benchmarks,
executives from Futuremark and Epic [2]moved forward to clean any
confusion. However, the game was not over — enthusiasts from Israel
[3]ported PhysX middleware to run on ATI Radeon cards, achieving
remarkable performance. Owners of ATI Radeon cards will be able to play
PhysX games as well, such as Ghost Recon 2 and already mentioned Unreal
Tournament 3."

Discuss this story at:
    http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1821252

Links:
    0. mailto:stresslife@xxxxxxxx
    1.
http://www.theinquirer.net/gb/inquirer/news/2008/06/23/nvidia-cheats-3dmark-177
    2. http://www.tomshardware.com/news/nvidia-drivers-physics,5758.html
    3. http://www.tgdaily.com/content/view/38137/135/


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Orbitz Open Sources Tools To Manage Large Distributed Applications |
|   from the playing-nice dept.                                      |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @17:27 (Software)     |
|   http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/190232          |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]mjasay writes "CNET is reporting that on Monday Orbitz will announce
the [1]creation and release of two open-source projects, [2]Extremely
Reusable Monitoring API (ERMA) and [3]Graphite, both 'part of a Complex
Event Processing system designed to monitor large distributed
applications, analyze the data that is gathered and display that data in
real-time graphs.' Though there were [4]hints of these projects at
JavaOne earlier this year, Monday's announcement adds significant context
to the work Orbitz has done to create two highly compelling open-source
projects, whose applicability extends far beyond the travel industry. In
particular, it highlights [5]Red Hat CEO Jim Whitehurst's vision that
enterprise IT needs to open up and collaborate. However, as Orbitz's
development team notes, it's easier said than done to participate in open
source, especially when creating projects rather than simply contributing
to existing projects."

Discuss this story at:
    http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/190232

Links:
    0. http://cnet.com/openroad
    1. http://news.cnet.com/8301-13505_3-9979041-16.html
    2. http://erma.wikidot.com/
    3. http://graphite.wikidot.com/
    4.
http://developers.sun.com/learning/javaoneonline/j1sessn.jsp?sessn=TS-6048&yr=2008&track=coolstuff
    5.
http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=viewArticleBasic&taxonomyName=development&articleId=9103678&taxonomyId=11&intsrc=kc_top


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Alfresco-Adobe Pact Continues To Strengthen Open Source            |
|   from the long-time-coming dept.                                  |
|   posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday June 27, @18:11 (Linux Business|
|   http://linux.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/1942200        |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]rsmiller510 writes "Last week Adobe surprised a few people with the
announcement that it was [1]including Alfresco content management
services as part of its LiveCycle Enterprise Suite Update 1 package. The
surprise was two-fold, that Adobe felt it was necessary to add content
management services at all, and that it chose open source vendor Alfresco
as its content management partner. I spoke to Alfresco CEO John Powell to
get his perspective on the pact and how it can help push open source into
the enterprise mainstream. Powell is understandably excited by this
arrangement, and one of the main reasons, he says, is because the Adobe
partnership gives his company credibility with companies that might
otherwise not even sniff at an open source vendor."

Discuss this story at:
    http://linux.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/1942200

Links:
    0. http://byronmiller.typepad.com/
    1. http://www.daniweb.com/blogs/entry2681.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| MPAA Scores First P2P Jury Conviction                              |
|   from the connection-reset-by-jury-of-peers dept.                 |
|   posted by Soulskill on Friday June 27, @18:59 (The Internet)     |
|   http://tech.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/227210          |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

An anonymous reader writes "The MPAA must be celebrating. According to
the BitTorrent news site Slyck.com, the Department of Justice is
proclaiming their [0]first P2P criminal copyright conviction against an
[1]Elite Torrents administrator. The [2]press release notes, 'The jury
was presented with evidence that Dove was an administrator of a small
group of Elite Torrents members known as "Uploaders," who were
responsible for supplying pirated content to the group. At sentencing,
which is scheduled for Sept. 9, 2008, Dove faces a maximum sentence of 10
years in prison.'"

Discuss this story at:
    http://tech.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/227210

Links:
    0.
http://www.slyck.com/story1697_Jury_FInds_EliteTorrent_Administrator_Guity
    1. http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=05/05/25/226228&tid=95
    2. http://www.usdoj.gov/opa/pr/2008/June/08-crm-574.html


+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Where To Draw the Line With Embryo Selection?                      |
|   from the godwin-bonanza dept.                                    |
|   posted by Soulskill on Friday June 27, @19:56 (Biotech)          |
|   http://ask.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/06/27/230200           |
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+

[0]Tjeerd writes "There is currently a discussion going on in the
Netherlands about embryo selection. The process means that when using in
vitro fertilization, you can check what kind of genetic defects will
definitely become activated during life. When embryos with those defects
are identified, they can be avoided or destroyed. The next step the
government is considering is to make it possible to select against
genetic defects which might become active in life, such as breast and
colon cancer. Of course, this is a very difficult discussion; where do
you start, and where do you end? People are worrying that there is no
real limit, and that you could potentially check for every genetic
defect. I think if you're in a situation where you or your family have
genetic defects, you surely want to check whether your children would
have them too. What does the Slashdot community think about this?"

Discuss this story at:
    http://ask.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/06/27/230200

Links:
    0. http://www.tjeerd.net/



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