Neuroscientists have discovered that long-term memories are not etched in a stable form, like a clay tablet
, as once thought. The process is much more dynamic, involving a miniature molecular machine that must run constantly to keep memories going. Jamming the machine briefly can erase long-term memories
It’s a battery that looks like a piece of paper and can be bent or twisted, trimmed with scissors or moulded into any shape needed. While the battery is now only a prototype, the researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute who developed it have high hopes for it in electronics and other fields that need smaller, lighter power sources. Unlike other batteries, Prof Linhardt explained, it is an integrated device, not a combination of pieces. The battery uses paper infused with an electrolyte and carbon nanotubes that are embedded in the paper. The carbon nanotubes form the electrodes, the paper is the separator and the electrolyte allows the current to flow
When implanted in the eye, mini-telescopes could help aging individuals with macular degeneration, a disorder of the retina affecting more than 1.75 million people in the United States alone. The implant was a huge help for two thirds of more than 200 patients who participated in a recent clinical trial. The developers of the technology, VisionCare Ophthalmic Technologies, hope that FDA approval for the mini-scope is imminent — via Boing Boing
Andy Brice, a UK-based software developer, packaged up a little text file full of the words This software does nothing
as an EXE and named it awardmestars
. So far his self-proclaiming useless program has garnered sixteen 5-star awards from download sites he submitted it to. Brice concludes that many of the download sites are just electronic dung heaps, using fake awards, dubious SEO and content misappropriated from PAD files in a pathetic attempt to make a few dollars from Google Adwords
— via Slashdot
Amnesty International has confirmed its controversial decision to back abortion in some circumstances, replacing its previous policy of neutrality. The human rights group will campaign for woman to have access to abortion in cases including rape and incest. The initial decision was taken in April, but Amnesty delegates meeting in Mexico gave it overwhelming support. Christian organisations, including the Roman Catholic Church, have threatened to withdraw support from the group
A paper published by UCF researchers claims that bad movie physics hurt students’ understanding of real world physics. Some people really do believe a bus traveling 70 mph can clear a 50-foot gap in a freeway, as depicted in the movie Speed. The professors published this paper out of fear that society will pay the price. One of the authors commented on advancements in the past years All the luxuries we have today, the modern conveniences, are a result of the science research that went on in the ’60s during the space race. It didn’t just happen. It took people doing hard science to do it
— via Slashdot
A Russian court has found the former boss of www.allofmp3.com not guilty of breaching copyright, in a case considered a crucial test of Russia’s commitment to fighting piracy. The allofmp3.com web site angered Western music companies by undercutting the price of downloads in deals they said breached copyright law. Denis Kvasov, head of MediaServices which owned the site, was put on trial after entertainment companies EMI Group, NBC Universal and Time Warner pressed for a prosecution
Canberra telco TransACT will be deploying fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) in the city from this month, with more FTTH tenders on the table. TransACT will switch on its fibre-to-the-home network on a test basis, with the service set to go live officially at the end of the month. The fibre network will be used in a new development in Forde, in the Gungahlin district of Canberra, and is expected to cover up to 1500 users within the next three years. As well as free-to-air TV and video on demand, residents of Forde will be offered a choice between two broadband packages using the fibre network — a 10Mbps/2Mbps, for mum and dad
users, and a 30Mbps/10Mbps, aimed at power users and businesspeople working from home
The future of iPlayer, the BBC’s new online on-demand system for delivering content, is continuing to look bleaker. With ISPs threatening to throttle the content delivered through the iPlayer, consumers petitioning the UK government and the BBC to drop the DRM and Microsoft-only technology, and threatened legal action from the OSC, the last thing the BBC wanted to see today was street protests at their office and at the BBC Media Complex accompanied by a report issued by DefectiveByDesign about their association with Microsoft — via Slashdot
Minuscule wind engines could help to take computing power to the next level. US researchers have developed a prototype device that creates a breeze
made up of charged particles, or ions, to cool computer chips. The ionic wind
, the scientists say, will help to manage the heat generated by increasingly powerful, yet ever-shrinking devices
Multiple sclerosis is a serious, as-yet incurable neurological disease which causes blindness, paralysis and other serious symptoms. In a new development, a neuroimmunology researcher in Montreal has developed a therapeutic DNA vaccine. The cause of the disease is not fully understood, but it appears to be auto-immune
Google is shutting down a service that sold and rented online video, ending a 19-month experiment doomed by the proliferation of free clips on other web sites like Google’s own YouTube subsidiary. The decision, confirmed late on Friday, underscores Google’s intention to concentrate its financial muscle and brainpower on developing an advertising format to capitalise on the immense popularity of online video. YouTube, which Google bought last year for $US1.76 billion, is expected to be the focal point of the company’s expansion into video advertising. Google executives hope to settle on an effective advertising system for video ads by the end of this year
An online tool that claims to reveal the identity of organisations that edit Wikipedia pages has revealed that the CIA was involved in editing entries. Wikipedia Scanner allegedly shows that workers on the agency’s computers made edits to the page of Iran’s president. It also purportedly shows that the Vatican has edited entries about Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams. The tool trawls a list of 5.3m edits and matches them to the net address of the editor. Most of the edits detected by the scanner correct spelling mistakes or factual inaccuracies in profiles. However, others have been used to remove potentially damaging material or to deface sites
Much of Sydney’s CBD as it appears in the satellite images on Google Maps Australia has been fuzzed out, just weeks before the APEC summit. Google says the imagery was downgraded as a result of a commercial issue
with a supplier, but the move has aroused speculation it was done at the request of police in order to minimise the risk of a terrorist attack during the September summit, where Sydney will play host to 21 world leaders including Bush
A Japanese biker failed to notice his leg had been severed below the knee when he hit a safety barrier, and rode on for 2km, leaving a friend to pick up the limb. The 54-year-old office worker was out on his motorcycle with a group of friends in the city of Hamamatsu, west of Tokyo, yesterday, when he was unable to negotiate a curve in the road and bumped into the central barrier. He felt excruciating pain, but did not notice that his right leg was missing until he stopped at the next junction
Federal district judge Dale Kimball issued a ruling on Friday declaring that Novell owns the UNIX copyrights. Kimball’s ruling means that the end is near for SCO’s protracted litigation trainwreck, an epic assortment of lawsuits that have achieved infamy in the tech industry. Judge Kimball finds that Novell never transferred ownership of the UNIX copyrights to SCO during or after a 1995 agreement between the two companies
The NSA wants automatic surveillance capabilities in telephone switches. But once such capabilities are built in, others could use them to intercept communications. Within ten0 years this could render the US vulnerable to attacks from terrorist groups across the globe, as well as from the military establishments of other nations. Such threats are not theoretical: In April 2004, phones belonging to members of the Greek government, including the prime minister, were spied on with wiretapping software that was misused — via Slashdot
Toshiba is recalling potentially dangerous notebook batteries for the third month in a row due to concerns about potential overheating. The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said 1,400 of the lithium-ion batteries containing Sony-made cells sold with Toshiba laptops pose a fire hazard. There have been three reports of models with those batteries overheating in other countries, but none of the incidents caused injury, according to the CPSC. Models affected by the recall include Toshiba’s Satellite A100, Satellite A105 and Tecra A7. Customers whose notebook was made between January through June 2006 are eligible for a free replacement battery from the company by going to Toshiba’s battery replacement Web site
Forgent Networks, a patent troll, got the slap down by a TX jury in May when it invalidated a patent Forgent held regarding video teleconferencing over telephone lines, and today, its motion for a new trial against EchoStar was denied. In fact, the court awarded EchoStar $90k in costs. Forgent probably isn’t crying that much though, it already extorted $28m from other defendants. Forgent made a business out of cheating companies for jpeg use — ’til their patent was largely invalidated on that front as well — via Slashdot
Chronos Chromos Concrete is a system that is able to dynamically display patterns, numbers and text in concrete surfaces. Application could include anything from products for the home to large scale architectural installations
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