BREAKING SURF
| The Birth of a Klingon Urban Legend |
| Airline Chat |
| The Road that Built the Nation |
| Netsurfer Recommendations |
| Six Monkeys, One Computer, No "Hamlet" |
| "The Stones of Summer" Lost |
| "The Stones of Summer" Found |
| Media and Pop Culture |
| Messy Closet Full of Science |
| Measuring Ecology from Space |
| Build Your Own Flying Saucer |
| Sneakernet Takes Off |
| Packs of Robot Dogs |
| Virtual Birder |
| Comp Sci Links |
| Technorati API Released |
| Most Popular Security Tools |
| BOOK REVIEWS |
| LETTERS TO THE EDITOR |
| Contact and Subscription Information |
| Credits |
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BREAKING SURF
It's easy to get cynical about the use of the word "revolutionary" these days. With Wi-Fi, though, the word is apt. Wired - ironically - exposes just about everything you need to know to embrace the wireless phenomenon without once provoking a cynical twinge, even though the piece begins, "We stand at the brink of a transformation." Those words set the tone for a whole issue devoted to a review of this liberating and transformative technology. The grass roots development has caught cell phone companies off guard, is changing how many businesses are run, and has triggered loud cries for dramatic changes in telecom regulation. First the home, then the office, and now the street have embraced the technology, although many still tread cautiously because of security concerns. Wired's article doesn't just stand around and gawk. It deals with practical matters like how to hook up, people and companies to watch, the fate of 3G, as well as equipment reviews and commentary. It also points to four current challenges in the revolution: making it work everywhere; unwiring the living room; using Wi-Fi to cross the last-mile barrier; and convergence with cell phones. There's even a peek at what lies beyond current wireless technology. Heady stuff.http://wired.com/wired/archive/11.05/unwired/
We reported on Salam Pax, the so-called Baghdad Blogger, a short while back in NSD 9.12. About the time the bombs started falling, he went offline, and many, even some of those who'd initially questioned his authenticity, expressed some concern. It now appears that he was still blogging away but just had no way to get it out. Wired has a story on the return to the online world of the popular blogger, and the Where's Raed blog itself describes some surreal, yet all-too-believable scenes from the war's aftermath. Think "Mad Max".
Where's Raed: http://dear_raed.blogspot.com/
NSD 9.12: http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/sub/v09/nsd.09.12.html#BS2
Wired: http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,58772,00.html
Isabella on the Run - Is It Real or Is It Fun?
She's clever, smart-assed, and sophisticated. Her name supposedly is Isabella and she claims she's a young heiress on the run from her family and an arranged marriage. She speaks of trust funds, false passports, and equestrian schools, and uses sophisticated techniques to hide her whereabouts. As her story has gradually unfolded in her blog, it has attracted the attention of other bloggers, who mostly conclude it's a hoax although no one is entirely sure. Our initial take is that Isabella is trying far too hard to be clever and entertaining for her story to be real. It simply doesn't have a ring of authenticity about it... or does it? Because Isabella is so good at what she's doing, you can't help wondering if she's trying to make us believe it's fiction. Why did she start the blog? Ominously, she says that it reminds her family that it's harder than it used to be to make her vanish into a reprogramming center. That had the hairs on the back of your neck stirring, didn't it? Wired has more.Isabella: http://shes.aflightrisk.org/
Wired: http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,58754,00.html
Canadian Publication Ban Arrest and Netsurfer Time Warp
Way back in 1994, one of the notable Internet-related stories was the Canadian judicial publication ban of the records of the notorious Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka kidnapping/rape/murder trial. In newsgroups and Net forums, the online crowd discussed the futility of such a ban due to the inevitable leak of information about the case onto the Net and BBSes. The nascent Netsurfer Digest covered the story, albeit somewhat obliquely, in only our fifth issue. This week, the Bernardo and Homolka case is back in the news for similar reasons. Ontario police arrested Stephen Williams, a Canadian reporter writing a book about the case, after he posted his research material online. Ontario hit Williams and his ISP with a flurry of injunctions for publishing banned records, but that may not be the real reason. Williams has in the past criticized the provincial authorities for the lenient deal they cut with Homolka. Wired has the current story, NSD 0.05 has our old coverage, the Crime Library has a gripping account of the sensational crimes, and we've even thrown in an old related Usenet post. This is a many-faceted story to say the least.Wired: http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,58779,00.html
NSD 0.05: http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/sub/v00/nsd.94.07.13.html#SS8
Crime Library: http://www.crimelibrary.com/serials/bernardo/bernmain.htm
Usenet: http://groups.google.com/groups?q=Homolka&selm=39k5lp%24cf5%40panix.com&rnum=3
The US government has just unveiled the new design for its $20 note. In recent decades, the design of American currency has subtly and continually changed as the Department of the Treasury's Bureau of Engraving and Printing has introduced new security features to make counterfeiting more difficult. The most notable feature of the latest design is the addition of washed-out non-green background colors. The new $20 bill will also feature small changes to the portrait of Andrew Jackson and accompanying symbols. It will begin circulating in the fall, to be followed by updated $50 and $100 notes in the next couple of years. Naturally, the old bills will remain legal tender as they slowly fall out of circulation through normal paper-currency attrition. A Bureau of Engraving and Printing Web site offers many more details about the changes to the $20 and other security features of US currency. The Interactive Learning Center and Resources links are also worth a quick click.
http://www.moneyfactory.com/newmoney/
Where Do You Put Your Balls When You Play Naked Tennis?
In the beginning was the naked, and the naked begat Naked News. This, however, was little more than a lifeless strip act done to news rather than music. Now comes a more refined idea, the Nudist Webcasting Network (NWN). These are serious folks, neither some doofus porn thing nor a stripcast. No, these are the real McCoys, dedicated nudists, serious about fun in the sun. NWN plans to webcast nudist tennis, volleyball, and other activities, all live from Lake Como Resort in nudist-friendly Florida. CNN reports that 20 naked tennis players will compete for a $2,000 prize before 100 spectators. Shortly after the competition, the tape will be edited to ensure that only those who consented to be featured on film will appear, then the video will be uploaded to the webcast site where avid tennis fans can view it for a small fee. Organizers seem convinced that they have a hit on their hands, and at the Tennis in the Buff site, some big-time sponsors seem to be betting on it as well.Naked News: http://www.nakednews.com/
NWN: http://www.nudistwebcastingnetwork.com/
CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2003/TECH/internet/05/09/offbeat.naked.tennis.reut/index.html
Tennis in the Buff: http://www.tennisnaked.com/
The BMW That Ate Suchart Jaovisidha
High-end BMWs come with the iDrive car computer, which is based on Windows CE. When we heard that an iDriven BMW had swallowed Suchart Jaovisidha, the Thai finance minister, we had delicious headlines running through our fevered imaginations. Alas, Windows was not at fault - the BMW that held Jaovisidha was not even equipped with iDrive - but the story is pretty funny anyway and teaches the same lessons Isaac Asimov taught us about relying solely on machines. A glitch shut down the BMW's electronics and stalled the car, and since the car was equipped with only electric locks (shut), windows (up), and air (off), Jaovisidha and his driver were trapped inside. Eventually, a security guard smashed the car's windows with a sledgehammer (more headline opportunities lost) to rescue the occupants. Remember the moral, kids: never travel anywhere without a sledgehammer-toting guard. The Bangkok Post and CNETAsia have more.Bangkok Post: http://www.bangkokpost.com/Business/13May2003_biz12.html
CNETAsia: http://asia.cnet.com/newstech/systems/0,39001153,39130270,00.htm
Never mind all the music biz's yammering about stolen billions and a pirate lurking in every downloader's heart - how much and what kind of music do music-downloaders buy? Nielsen/NetRatings did a survey to find out. The press release touting the results pretends that the music industry is devoted to finding a business model that works, which is a scream given that Apple seems to have found a way to beat the pants off anything the music moguls have come up with - but that's another story. The survey found that those who download the most music also tend to buy the most music, which kind of confounds the usual industry myths. Of the top ten genres the downloaders buy, rap's at the top and blues is at the bottom. In terms of location, Los Angeles surfers are the most active downloaders of the cities surveyed. There aren't a lot of details in the press release, just enough to suggest that the findings aren't good news to those devoted to the simple-minded rhetoric of intellectual property lawyers. Presumably the full report is available for a price.
http://www.netratings.com/pr/pr_030508.pdf
Confessions of a Former Spammer
It's relatively rare to hear someone dare admit to having been a professional spammer. Duncan Shiels, a former police officer and Hollywood stuntman, got into the business about a year ago. He did not go in unprepared, but spent considerable time scouring the Internet to learn how spammers operate and make their money. In due course, he shelled out about $10,000 for software, computers, and a list of 10 million e-mail addresses and started sending spam e-mail through mail proxies and open relays to hide his identity. Shiels made money from commissions paid by shadowy companies that sold Viagra and mortgage plans, earning him up to $1,000 per week. He did show some miniscule trace of a conscience by refusing to send porn spam and by trying to comply with various anti-spam laws - for example, he would not use misleading subject headers in his e-mail. Harrassment from irate spam recipients, several of whom threatened his life, forced Shiels to give up the business after six months. An Oregonian article has his story along with some numbers on the economics of spam.http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/105256787116000.xml
Proposal for New E-Mail Infrastructure
The spam problem is so great that many respected tech gurus are seriously discussing totally phasing out the current e-mail infrastructure and coming up with something better. The Tripoli Project is just such a call to arms. The project, led by Lauren Weinstein and Peter G. Neumann, calls on the open-source community to begin considering such new technology. The group has produced a white paper that details the features it feels should be incorporated into any new e-mail technology. The proposal relies mostly on encrypted connections: the origin of all e-mail is certified by some third party, essentially creating a web of e-mail trust. Such a scheme is not likely to be too palatable to a significant minority of Net users, who can point to the example of VeriSign and ICANN as third-party systems gone wrong. In any event, the paper is primarily meant as a point of departure for a serious discussion about the next generation of e-mail services.http://www.pfir.org/
Just what is social software and why are so many people talking about it? Social software is a computer application meant to promote real-life human interaction. If you want to learn more about this "new" concept, read this excellent article in the Guardian, which questions the novelty of social software. If you want to know even more, check out the links to blogs that discuss the subject, below. Tom Coates, one of the central figures in the field, has a succinct definition of social software at his site. The Many-to-Many blog offers a fine introduction to this new area of inquiry and development.
Guardian: http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/story/0,3605,950918,00.html
Coates: http://www.plasticbag.org/archives/2003/05/my_working_definition_of_social_software.shtml
Many-to-Many: http://www.corante.com/many/
Faster Calculation of Google PageRank
Researchers at Stanford University have discovered three ways to speed up the calculation of Web page relevance rankings of the sort used by Google, which calls it PageRank. These new algorithms can be used to speed the calculation of relevance rankings tailored to specific topics. The algorithms exploit some assumptions about the structure of Web links and sites to speed the calculation by up to fivefold. Such calculations are computationally intensive, in both time and memory usage, and any improvement will translate into lower costs and better user utility. The National Science Foundation (NSF) press release has a good overview of the findings, while the academic papers themselves have the fairly complex details.NSF: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2003-05/nsf-rdt051303.php
Paper 1: http://dbpubs.stanford.edu/pub/2003-16
Paper 2: http://dbpubs.stanford.edu/pub/2003-17
Paper 3: http://dbpubs.stanford.edu/pub/2003-26
Search Engines, Ads, and Technology
As you've probably noticed, websearching is as much art as science. Most people don't use a great deal of logic: they type in a few keywords, get back a few thousand hits, wade through a few pages, and then start over. How is a search engine going to make money on a process that's so inefficient? Increasingly, search engines are adopting keyword advertising and other targeted efforts, some with more success than others. Paid listings, paid inclusions, and so-called in-context promotions are three controversial ways to gain revenue that are currently employed by major engines such as Google and Overture. ContextWeb is now attempting to patent a technology that sifts Web-page content, reducing the content to a few keywords, then automatically links those keywords to content-targeted ads. What's so new? ContextWeb's technology would place an ad directly on the Web sites that come up in the search - not simply on the search engine's results pages. Security and privacy issues remain at least tangential to the technology, and then there's the issue, for the user, of winnowing independent analysis from plain old ads. That's getting harder all the time, as it is. CNET's story is worth the neural energy.http://news.com.com/2030-1032_3-1000366.html
For searchers intent on finding something authoritative and informative using Google (or any other search engine), blogs are a nuisance. Although blogs constitute only a tiny fraction of the Web, because of what the Register calls dense and incestuous linking, blogs skew search results towards themselves and can badly dilute the quality of general search results. That's OK if you're looking for opinionated natter, but not if you need an expert source. Google aims to fix this problem with a search tool that will focus exclusively on blogs and will probably remove blogs from its main search database. Once the dust settles, Google's decision will probably prove to be a boon both to bloggers, who will now have their own search space, and to conventional users, who will be able to concentrate on information rather than the chatter many blogs consist of. Of course, bloggers may be hurt to read that they are considered useless as sources of information.
http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/30621.html
Microsoft Groping for the Blog
Microsoft was slow to get in on this whole Internet thang, but its browser software now undeservedly swamps the user share. Mary Jo Foley tracks Microsoft, and she has collected tidbits that help reveal Microsoft's attitude toward the blog craze. Will Microsoft develop blogware? Will Microsoft take over the blogosphere? Not in the near future, if this article is correct, but wouldn't it be fun to watch Microsoft try to embrace and extend the Net's bloggers, who are by nature rambunctious and independent? The best bits on Foley's Microsoft Watch pages are the links to some pretty cool blogs, particularly those by Microsoft employees.http://www.microsoft-watch.com/article2/0,,1066196,00.asp
Yet another new blog-hosting service went live this week, and we tell you this because it is a good example of what might be called the second generation of blogging tools. Blog Studio has many features that by now have made their way into the sophisticated stand-alone blogging software like Movable Type. About half of Blog Studio's features are only available to paying customers, but even the free blog service is relatively sophisticated compared to existing free hosts like Blogger. Beyond free hosting, you also have a choice of payment plans, from $5 for one month to $30 per year. Bloggers will find this worth checking out.
http://www.blogstudio.com/
ONLINE CULTURE
The Birth of a Klingon Urban Legend
In an off-hand, slightly humorous piece in the Oregonian, reporter Steve Woodward wrote that Multnomah County, Ore. was looking for a Klingon interpreter in case the county admitted a Klingon-speaking mental health patient into its health-care system. Woodward clearly noted that the county added Klingon to a long list of legitimate languages that required interpreters as a minor joke. The story was picked up by various news outlets, without any of the humor. Somehow, it became transmuted into a tale of nonsensical bureaucratic requirement and circulated in major news outlets like the AP, CNN, and Newsday. Seth Finkelstein tracked down the history and wrote it up at Kuro5hin. It seems even the cool weird news is not all it seems in, as Finkelstein so eloquently puts it, the "media echo-chamber of stories-too-good-to-check".http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2003/5/11/7032/18347
ONLINE TRAVEL
At last, just when United Airlines is emerging from bankruptcy and American Airlines seems ready to go under, there's a community site for airline passengers able to make public gripes and warnings along with inside information of a kind to keep you buying tickets. Airwise Discussion Forum really lets you blow your stack! Got an issue? The Airline Issues section has seven forums, including Cheap Fares and Air Rage. The Airline Forums list most major airlines around the world. If you're OK with airlines but are bothered by airports, proceed to the Airport Forums, which cover 12 hub cities around the globe and an Other Airports forum for the missing. You can also read up on the industry in the Aviation section (your choice of Airbus or Boeing) and Jobs/Employment. You can pick up useful tips here. It's hard to imagine how any airline passenger worth his or her oversized scissors can resist threads such as "Airline Jokes" and "Markland Technologies Expands Cargo Inspection Capabilities With Automated Container".http://forum.airwise.com/forum/index.php
The Road that Built the Nation
It's an arguable point, but that's how the folks in the eastern US and particularly in Pennsylvania describe the National Road. The National Road started off as a manure-laden bison run through parts of the pre-revolutionary US. Microsoft could have adopted the embrace and extend ethos from early American national philosophy and this road played a part in its implementation. Take a virtual stroll down it.http://www.nationalroadpa.org/
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Web Take on "Day in the Life..." Series
Here is a site that makes clear the Web's power. You've probably heard of the "Day in the Life..." books, for which photographers travel to document life over 24 hours and cobble together a book with the results. The concept is simple, but the process is complex. If there were a way to use photographers in place already, and some sort of global information distribution network over which you could share photos, it would probably be done more often... - hey! the Mayday Project has done just that, with a few original twists. People contributing to the Mayday Project have posted digital photos that they took during one hour of May 10, 2003. What makes this site special is the very ordinary character of the recorded activities across so many different places. It's a reassuring sign of a common humanity.http://www.sh1ft.org/mayday/
"Duality" in the Star Wars Universe
"Duality" is a six-minute movie by Mark Thomas and Dave Macomber, amateurs with no real previous filmmaking or special effects experience. They shot and produced this short in a year's worth of spare time with store-bought hardware and software which they trained themselves to use. The result is a kick-ass little Star Wars-inspired lightsaber fight with wicked effects and a beautiful ending. You can download it in DivX or QuickTime format, but since the smallest file still tops 22 MB, broadband or extreme patience is a must. The movie is a testament to what the gifted amateur can achieve with some time, imagination, perseverance and, we have to say, not a little skill. Thomas and Macomber not only offer the movie, but also detailed notes on the filmmaking processes and links to where you can buy or download the software they used.http://www.crewoftwo.com/
Discover what happens when traditional art meets new media art. A virtual gallery of eccentricity waits to be explored. Experience the changing seasons captured through the lens of a camera, or explore software that generates an eternally mutating tube. Check out the newest form of artificial intelligence at the tickle salon, "a robotic installation based on the concept of automated fondling." This site is a smorgasbord of visual stimuli that is vividly designed and truly an experience all its own. Site owners and creators Erwin Driessens and Maria Verstappen are based in the Netherlands, which may account for the liberal tone of this site. Although we can't define this site, it borders on an exercise in artistic and digital experimentation.
http://www.xs4all.nl/~notnot/index.html
Masterpiece Theatre, now called ExxonMobil Masterpiece Theatre, has been a well regarded staple of public TV since its inception in 1971. The reason is obvious to its many admirers. As its stately companion site reminds us, "ExxonMobile Masterpiece Theatre remains dedicated to delivering what it promises: masterpieces of performance, masterpieces of literature, masterpieces of the art of dramatic storytelling." Why surf when you can watch? Enrichment. You can get background on various episodes (cast and credits, descriptions, and multimedia previews, for example). Check broadcast schedules. Read about the hosts. Check timelines. If you're a teacher, guidelines provide help for class discussions of 14 programs, including "The Merchant of Venice" and "Oliver Twist". The Feature Library is a great collection that can keep you busy for hours or days, especially if, like many a fan of the series, your heart beats faster at the thought of literary classics. Lovers of Shakespeare are likely to enjoy, and learn from, the Flash game Will's Words. This engaging and definitive site teems with riches to dispel the notion that you can't trust anyone over 30. It's masterful.
http://pbs.org/masterpiece/
According to Walt Disney, "animation can depict anything the mind of man can conceive." The process, or rather the end result of it, has been entertaining, educating and delighting us for over a hundred years now, from the early stop-frame strip animation cartoons of Emile Cohl to the high-tech 3-D extravaganzas of today. Drawn to be Wild is a feature section on animation on the British Film Institute Web site. Aimed primarily at children, it contains easily understood explanations of the techniques involved and some of the people and processes behind favorite characters in animation history. But the site is bound to contain something for the older surfer too - we showed our age by having a particularly delightful nostalgia trip browsing through the section on Thunderbirds creator Gerry Anderson.
http://www.bfi.org.uk/features/wild/
Musicbots Battle, or Battlebots Music, or Something
A Swedish punk band named Millencolin has created a draw to their site with a rockin' shockin' game. Some browsers may have issues with the code, but the game pits your sense of timing in putting together some hard-driving riffs from one of their albums against the clock. What's most impressive about this game is that it's old in Internet standards; the competition version of it has been out for more than a year now, making it practically ancient. We're surprised and glad it hasn't been taken down to make way for the newest thing.http://www.millencolin.com/onlinegames/
We won't lie to you. This site is trying to sell you something. But, much like the timeshare pitch, you don't have to put out any cash to reap the benefits, in this case a Roll Your Own Elvis Video game in Flash. You get to make the next Elvis MTV smash - or, well, the first Elvis MTV smash. The FAQ indicates that "ELV1S 30 #1 HITS will be released on September 24, 2002. The advertising and media campaign surrounding this record will be unprecedented." Unprecedented, probably not, but we do recall seeing the infomercial.
http://www.elvisnumberones.com/
BOOKS & E-ZINES
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Items our staff likes and you might too. Click on the image or title to order at a hefty discount from our affiliate Amazon.com, and send a few pennies our way as well.
For more selections, check out: Netsurfer Books: http://www.netsurf.com/nsb/ Netsurfer Library: http://www.netsurf.com/nsl/ |
A Round-Heeled Woman: My Late-Life Adventures in Sex and Romance
A Mathematician Plays the Stock Market
The Main Enemy: The Inside Story of the CIA's Final Showdown With the KGB
The Snow QueenSix Monkeys, One Computer, No "Hamlet"
The theory goes that if an infinite number of monkeys use an infinite number of typewriters for an infinite amount of time, at some point one will produce the works of Shakespeare. The theory is sound, as ably answered by Dr. Benway at Math Forum (no, not the Dr. Benway from "Naked Lunch", but pause for a moment to consider the idea). But what about a practical test of the theory? Researchers at Plymouth University ran the experiment, providing a computer to six Sulawesi crested macaques named Elmo, Gum, Heather, Holly, Mistletoe, and Rowan. The monkeys, alas, did not produce any lines of Shakespeare, but did manage five pages of text, entitled (by the researchers one presumes) "Notes Towards the Complete Works of Shakespeare". The Notes are available as a PDF file online, and have been translated into French, German, and Spanish. Wired has quotes from the researchers, although not the authors.Math Forum: http://mathforum.org/library/drmath/view/55871.html
"Notes...": http://www.vivaria.net/experiments/notes/publication/
Background: http://wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,58790,00.html
"Naked Lunch": http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0802132952
In 1972, a New York Times book review described "The Stones of Summer" by Dow Mossman as a first novel not of promise but of fulfillment. The review commented that such an achievement can be a dangerous thing, "as the author may remain forever awed by the force and witness of his first production." This was the last the literary world was to hear of Dow Mossman, and today his only novel is out of print and virtually impossible to find. But stories beget stories, and filmmaker Mark Moskowitz set out to solve the mystery of the novelist's apparent disappearance with the book as his compass. His award-winning documentary is about more than a forgotten book and a vanished author, it is about the abandonment of talent, the course of American literature in the last 30 years, and the bonds books create among their readers. Moskovitz also sets out to examine the demise of books in the digital age, and so, with a sense of irony we haven't yet fully fathomed, we present the link to the Web site about a film about a book.
http://www.stonereader.net/
Mark Moskowitz's documentary, "Stone Reader", piqued interest in "The Stones of Summer", so much so that libraries had long waiting lists of prospective borrowers. Barnes and Noble CEO Steve Riggio bought a copy on eBay for $1,775. It so impressed him that Barnes and Noble will publish a second edition next September. The author, Dow Mossman, made $7,000 on the book the first time around. This time, he will pocket $100,000. The Philadelphia Inquirer has the story of the re-issue and Barnes and Noble has an interview with Mossman.
Inquirer: http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/entertainment/5827960.htm
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/writers/writer.asp?cid=960883
If you're interested in a little intellectual stimulation related to reality TV or pop music today, you should turn to M/C Journal, an e-zine dedicated to media and culture. A new M/C Journal only comes out once every other month, and the speed of pop culture makes the other half of the site, user-generated M/C Reviews, more lively. If you're interested in some intelligent ponderings on the latest theatrical release that goes past the direction of the thumb with respect to the Earth, M/C Reviews is where you can find it. Don't expect to find all movies here, though, or even many, but the chosen few are inspected with a critical eye, one focused on the meaning behind the meaning.
http://www.media-culture.org.au/
SURFING SCIENCE
Science Hobbyist has been on the Web since Sept. 1994. Although it may show signs of age, it's a Webby Award nominee for 2003. As some have noted, on the Web, content rules. It sure rules here. Organization sure doesn't. Try the Good Stuff link for a wild assortment of articles with catchy titles such as "Evil genius hi-tech practical joke ideas", "Make tornadoes", and "Screwy Ideas". This is the stuff of geek slapstick. It's also everyday science that fascinates kids. Take "Capacitor-Bank Discharge Experiments" How can you beat a disclaimer like the following: "the experiments described below are fantastically dangerous, and they are described without reference to the many precautions needed to guarantee the experimenter's safety. Accidentally discharging these capacitor banks through your body can not only kill, but can explode flesh and bone." Great stuff! The site crawls with off-the-wall inventions like the Disgustoscope and must-have resources such as the Meteorite Exchange. Although a considerable number of links are broken, Science Hobbyist can surprise you, like some intelligent digital dinosaur that won't go gentle into that good night.http://amasci.com/
NASA is tracking the Earth's "metabolism" from space with satellites. The idea is to determine the rates at which plants are sucking carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. These latest maps indicate that tropical forest areas are most productive, due to the longer growth cycle, but net primary productivity (i.e. how much new plant plants make) shifts to the temperate climates in their respective summers. Nonetheless, the main work falls to the tropical forests; emphasizing the need to keep them healthy. What might surprise you is the amount of carbon-fixing activity in the oceans. While we know that the oceans influence climate, due to temperature effects, they are also at least as important in the overall carbon balance as the more widely discussed forest issues. A lot of phytoplankton goes a long way.
http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Newsroom/NPP/npp.html
Flying saucers have always held a certain fascination, whether or not you believe aliens walk among us. Don't object, don't try to lie. We know it. Because of that, we're going to show you a place that will help you build one. Yup. You, too can build a completely silent lifter. It has no moving parts, flies with no noise, and can lift a small payload - not quite enough to conduct an abduction, unfortunately. You're hooked, and you can deny it all you want.
http://jnaudin.free.fr/lifters/main.htm
In the old days, using the Sneakernet meant that you copied data onto a floppy disk then delivered the disk to your office-mates on foot. Of course, modern networking has largely eliminated the need for such crude approaches, but there are times when nothing but crude concepts in combination with modern technology really works. Enter the interoffice helium blimp. With the right equipment, you can use it to deliver at least a Post-It note to a colleague. This technology could give IT managers fits for weeks.
http://www.hpl.hp.com/shl/projects/blimp/
Like a '70s B movie, the Feral Robotics site posits that our toy robot dogs are waiting patiently to take over the world - well, with a little help from their owners. Full-scale tuturials are available to tweak your toy and make it nearly autonomous, operating with sentience within the presence of other enhanced dogs. It's all just a bit creepy. The Washington Post takes a friendlier look at the concept, covering the RoboCup American Open soccer championships. Go, dogs, go.
Feral Robotics: http://xdesign.eng.yale.edu/feralrobots/
Post: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A47265-2003May12.html
Visit the Virtual Birder for an up-close look at North America's native birds. The OnLocation section features hot spots of bird activity brought online in virtual tours (you get more if you pay). Browse throughout the rest of the site for bird photographs and descriptions. If you've conquered your agoraphobia well enough to head out into the real world to do some eyes-on bird-watching, be sure to check out the Real Birds section, which lets you find other birding enthusiasts by location and read birding blogs. Still getting your feet wet as an expert on these winged animals? Stop by the Media and Store pages for a peek at some products for the avid bird-lover.
http://www.virtualbirder.com/
Ah, the academic life. Some snowbound soul at University at Albany Libraries must have looked out windows on a dreary winter day in northern New York and thought they could imitate nature on the Web. Talk about accumulation! This is a text-based directory any geek with an ounce of architecture in his or her blood could take pride in. It's vast, robust, and almost chilling in scope and ambition. Get over your intimidation. No human being could possibly retain an eighth of the information accessible here unless enhanced by artificial intelligence and loads of memory. This is what you pay taxes for, unless you live outside New York, in which case you can thank the state for its generosity. What this massive collection lacks in pizzazz it more than makes up for in global reach. Google it ain't, but what is? We give it an A for effort and an A+ for functionality and retro look and feel.
http://library.albany.edu/subject/csci.htm
SOFTWARE
Technorati is one of several popular sites that provide a weblog index and search engine. Its new application programming interface (API) lets you write your own programs, which can use its database of blog data and metadata. Apparently, Technorati received many requests for this "from people who wanted to be able to use the Technorati database for a variety of purposes - everything from social network research to mini-applications that would send them a page or an IM whenever someone posted a link to their website." It's still beta-quality software but, if you want to play with raw weblog data, worth checking out.http://www.sifry.com/alerts/archives/000288.html
Earlier this month, Insecure.org, the home of the popular Nmap port scanner, surveyed its users for their favorite security tools. The response was quite good, with 1,854 people responding with up to eight of their favorite choices. The summary of responses is now available on the Web site, with 75 of the top choices listed. This list is an extremely useful resource for anybody who has to deal with computer security, from securing your home network to setting up and testing serious enterprise class security infrastructure. Well worth browsing and bookmarking.
http://www.insecure.org/tools.html