BREAKING SURF
| The Digital Imprimatur |
| Plans for Blogging Clearinghouse Raise Skepticism |
| Downloading "Shaolin Soccer" |
| Uncommon Chicago |
| Lotusland Gardens and Estate |
| Hit the Web and Then the Waves |
| Fair Fairgrounds of the UK |
| The Art of Photo Retouching |
| Fire Escape Photos |
| Statistically-Derived Streaming Music |
| What Is That Called, Again? |
| Pictures and Words |
| Unidentified Flying Art |
| Netsurfer Recommendations |
| Red Herring Is Back, Kinda |
| Edward Curtis and his "The North American Indian" |
| Samba 3.0 Released |
| BOOK REVIEWS |
| LETTERS TO THE EDITOR |
| Contact and Subscription Information |
| Credits |
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BREAKING SURF
Diebold Electronic Voting System Scandal in the Making
This story continues from one we reported in early August, in which researchers who looked at leaked source code for Diebold's widely used electronic voting system found it to be riddled with insecurities. The initial findings led Maryland, Diebold's home, to hire a firm to formally review the code. The firm's report, available in redacted form, identifies many problems with Diebold's touch-screen voting system. Avi Rubin, one of the earlier critics, feels vindicated. Yet somehow, according to Wired, "election officials and representatives of the company that wrote the report said they now have confidence in the Diebold system." If you understand anything about computer security and read the report, this expression of confidence will leave you astounded. The story gets murkier - according to Salon, Diebold "is run by a die-hard GOP donor who vowed to deliver his state for Bush next year." We suspect it's more a case of Maryland protecting its taxpaying corporations than a political plot, but nonetheless, the only credible option is an open-source-code voting system such as EVM2003 backed up with verifiable physical ballot records.NSD 9.29: http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/sub/v09/nsd.09.29.html#BS8
Diebold: http://www.diebold.com/dieboldes/maryland.htm
Report: http://www.dbm.maryland.gov/dbm_search/technology/toc_voting_system_report/votingsystemreportfinal.pdf
Wired: http://wired.com/news/business/0,1367,60583,00.html
Salon: http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2003/09/23/bev_harris/index_np.html
EVM2003: http://evm2003.sourceforge.net/
VeriSign SiteFinder Saga Continues
VeriSign is doing nothing to disable its new Site Finder domain redirection despite calls for the company to voluntarily suspend it. Three important Internet governing bodies have weighed in on the issue, with ICANN, the ICANN Security and Stability Advisory Committee (ISSAC), and the Internet Architecture Board all calling for VeriSign to nix Site Finder until all sides can think through all the technical ramifications. VeriSign has basically given them the finger, but said that it would study the issue. Meanwhile, the makers of BIND (which runs about 80% of the Net's domain name servers, remember) have released a patch to circumvent Site Finder. Legal issues have appeared on the horizon - a patent for a service that looks an awful lot like Site Finder is held by a member of the ISSAC. ICANN Watch has further news, of Web bugs at Site Finder that presumably gather information on all who visit the page intentionally or not. As well, a number of inevitable lawsuits have cropped up.VeriSign: http://www.icann.org/correspondence/lewis-to-twomey-21sep03.htm
ICANN Watch: http://www.icannwatch.org/
Google has introduced yet another new wrinkle to its search engine. You can now get a list of search results that are close to a specified US address or ZIP Code. How does Google know where something is located? It analyzes the content of a page to extract hints that enable the search engine to assign a physical location to that page. It's a clever bit of data-mining that does not depend on anyone making geolocation information voluntarily available through some service or tag. Of course, this means you have yet one more thing to worry about when you put personal information on Web pages. Meanwhile try searching for "e-zine" and ZIP Code 94085 and marvel at the accurate map.
http://labs.google.com/location/
Microsoft to End MSN Chat in Most Countries
Microsoft says free MSN Chat has become a forum for spammers and sex predators. That's not news; just about every chat network is similarly afflicted. The MSN Chat shutdown will start Oct. 14 when free chat services in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and much of Latin America will be turned off. At that point, only moderated MSN chat rooms in New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Canada, and Japan will remain open. Eventually, MSN Chat in Canada and Japan will follow the US model of unmoderated but pay-subscription MSN Chat. The company says that while the chat rooms are going away, people can still talk to each other using MSN Messenger. CNET has the standard story, but Guy Kewney, in the Register, suspects a financial motive. Meanwhile, like us, Motley Fool could not find an official Microsoft press release, but its attempt is funnier than ours.CNET: http://news.com.com/2100-1025-5081203.html
Register: http://www.theregister.co.uk/content/6/33032.html
Motley Fool: http://www.fool.com/News/mft/2003/mft03092406.htm
Homes and Gardens Cracks Down on Post of 1938 Hitler Article
Adolf Hitler had a mountain home. No, this isn't the start of some odd limerick, it's simply the subject of a remarkable 1938 article from a British magazine, Homes and Gardens. Why should this matter today? Simon Waldman recently found the article, scanned it, and posted it on his site. He then contacted the editorial director of the still-extant magazine. The editorial director asked Waldman to remove the article, and he did - but other folks, including the notorious David Irving, have set up mirrors of the scans, which present much about the architectural wonder and its talented designer. If nothing else, the article makes clear the known fact that some British elites were rather fond of Hitler - note that this issue of the magazine came out the same month Kristallnacht raged. Read the Wired article and a New York Times article for more on the copyright issues. Is the parent company of Homes and Gardens acting out of copyright protection or embarrassment?Waldman: http://wow.blogs.com/
Wired: http://www.wired.com/news/culture/0,1284,60523,00.html
Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/21/weekinreview/21ZELL.html
Radiohead through Fifth-Grade Ears and Eyes
Radiohead is a band that has lots of fans and lots of detractors. So many people have an opinion of the band that Rob Harvilla of the East Bay Express, a weekly based east of San Francisco Bay, despaired of finding anything original to write in advance of the band's upcoming concert. To get a fresh, unbiased view of the music, Harvilla turned to local fifth-graders. He armed them with markers and blank paper and asked them to draw whatever came to mind as he played selections of Radiohead's music. The first selection just made the kids giggle. Their illustrations are more informative, and generally not particularly appreciative of the band's work. As 11-year-old Willie notes, "It's storming outside, your friend next door has disappeared, and Thom is muttering 'the raindrops the raindrops the raindrops' for 15 minutes straight." Count on kids to give it to you straight.http://www.eastbayexpress.com/issues/2003-09-17/music.html/1/index.html
Garret Hardin, Author of "The Tragedy of the Commons", RIP
Garret Hardin and wife Jane were found dead in their Santa Barbara, Calif. home a few days ago. Members of the Hemlock Society, these octogenarians seem to have committed suicide. You may remember Hardin for his 1968 paper in Science, "The Tragedy of the Commons", which continues to reverberate wherever issues of resource consumption - e.g. global warming, capitalism, or communism - are considered. Expanding upon a discussion of the arms race then underway, Hardin concluded that "this dilemma has no technical solution." The extreme but logical conclusion bodes ill for global overpopulation and associated resource management issues, although many continue to hope that technical solutions can be found, such as cold fusion or modified strains of crops. Hardin made a case against this approach over 30 years ago and, so far, the evidence is in his favor. The passings of Hardin and his wife are sad and notable events, yet very much in keeping with their philosophies. We present links to a notice of the deaths on MetaFilter and a link to Tragedy of the Commons, a page with further background, including a copy of the 1968 paper.MetaFilter: http://www.metafilter.com/mefi/28452
Tragedy of the Commons: http://members.aol.com/trajcom/private/trajcom.htm
Besides causing some destruction and a few deaths, Hurricane Isabel generated a great deal of graphical data. NASA has several MPEG animations that show the internal structure of Isabel. It also has a number of high-definition photos suitable for desktop wallpaper. The Weather Channel hosts some pictures of the devastation taken on the ground. As long as we're talking weather, the National Hurricane Center (NHC) has a page with links to a large number of current weather-satellite images in case you need to peek at what the atmosphere is doing right now.
NASA: http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/Isabels_Engine.html
NASA photos: http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/topstory/2003/0917isabel.html
Weather Channel: http://photo.weather.com/interact/photogallery/82/2219/index.html
NHC: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/satellite.shtml
The 21st Annual Forbes 400 Richest List
Those of you who were mildly diverted by the Forbes entree of the richest fictional characters (see NSD 9.34) can now dig into the main course: the 21st annual Forbes list of the 400 wealthiest people in the world. This is no simple, sortable compendium, but a site rich with articles, data, games, and more. The stuff here is good for a whole day's entertainment, easily. Last year, it took $550 million to make the list, but this year, a pass is $600 million. The top ten list looks much the same as last year's, except everyone's got more money - the aggregate net worth of the whole 400 jumped 10% last year. So, how are you doing? With seven years of data on tap, you can follow the rise and fall of particular subjects to your heart's content. It's great fun to discover who clawed their way onto the list and who fell screaming into the depths of penury.NSD 9.34: http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/sub/v09/nsd.09.34.html#SS3
Forbes: http://www.forbes.com/home/2003/09/17/rich400land.html
PDF Alternatives Better Adapted for Web Use
Adobe's PDF format has been around for a few years, and has become more or less a standard. For printing documents as they're meant to look, PDF works pretty well. Despite the growing reliance by lazy webmasters on PDFs for Web-based information transfer, PDFs don't work very well as Web pages. Autodesk and Macromedia have introduced competition for the revered PDF format, and the new products are looking good. Autodesk designed its DWF format with an eye toward the exchange of detailed engineering documents. The company claims its DWF engine handles fine detail more effectively than the PDF format. On another front, Macromedia has come up with FlashPaper, which converts documents into a Flash files. This allows you to display the document - or print it - in a standard browser window, versus another application like Adobe's Acrobat Reader. Macromedia says FlashPaper is prettier than standard HTML code and faster to load than PDF. Looks like there's a quiet format war going on. You'll need your helmet, and possibly a secret decoder ring. CNET has more.DWF: http://www.autodesk.com/dwf
FlashPaper: http://www.macromedia.com/software/contribute/productinfo/flashpaper/
CNET: http://news.com.com/2100-1012_3-5078712.html
DVRs Will Lead TV into the Future
Early this year, FCC chairman Michael Powell called TiVo "God's machine". Eight months later, you can divide the world into those who know what a digital video recorder (DVR) is and those who don't. Roughly 70% of consumers didn't as of 2002, but that is going to change. This Wired article makes clear just what a DVR does to television - much more than mere time shifting. DVRs can remake the television industry and put viewers in charge of content as well as advertising. Mind you, DVRs still have a long way to go, but read this article. You will want a Tivo. Resistance is futile.http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/11.10/tv.html
Are you about to name your child? Are you fighting over Madison and Jennifer, or Michael and Alan? Quick, read this article from Technology Review about using Google Images to understand what kind of name you are saddling your child with, at least until they can change it. And if you want to name your son Oscar, remember, most of the Oscars on Google image are dogs, as in canines.
http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/wo_brittan091903.asp
Last September, JetBlue Airways handed passenger records on some 5 million customers to the US Transportation Security Administration, which then gave the info to Torch Concepts, a private security contractor. Torch purchased additional information - earnings, job data, vehicle registration, Social Security numbers, etc. - elsewhere and produced a composite database full of sensitive personal information. Torch then used the compiled info to test a system of identifying the airline passengers whom security should screen more carefully than others or even deny permission to board. Subsequently, a conference paper about the program found its way online - and it contained the Social Security number, name, and phone number of an actual JetBlue customer. None of this should have happened and now everyone, including the Department of Homeland Security, is madly investigating, hiding, or denying. When the facts got out, JetBlue compounded its error by playing word games over the incident. Belatedly, JetBlue is issuing e-mail apologies and promises to never release data without a court order. This low-key apology doesn't sit well with Bill Scannell, a privacy activist who would prefer a more visible and convincing apology and has set up Don'tSpyOnUs as part of a potential class-action lawsuit. Wired has two stories about the fly, spy, and lie affair.
Don'tSpyOnUs: http://www.dontspyon.us/jetbluescandal.html
Wired 1: http://www.wired.com/news/privacy/0,1848,60489,00.html
Wired 2: http://www.wired.com/news/politics/0,1283,60502,00.html
ONLINE CULTURE
The glorious commons of the Internet, the stuff of utopian dreams of infinite possibilities, is being fenced in. Or so John Walker concludes in a clear-eyed look at how a technology, combined with an excessive zeal to regulate, threatens to curb the openness of the Internet. Walker spent three years developing Speak Freely, a public-domain encrypted Internet telephone for Linux and Windows, but last month he abandoned it. The Internet and cheap computing power put content creation and information-sharing in the hands of the people. But various trends, Walker points out in an essay called "The Digital Imprimatur", have been leading that genie back to the bottle. Certificates, firewalls, trusted computing, and many more schemes all shackle the Net with chains of regulation, safety, and order. This is serious stuff, pages and pages of it, complete with appendices, glossary, and references. Walker points to the music industry and its grope for answers in lawsuits, the heavy hand of the USA PATRIOT Act, and the overreaching anti-technology zeal of the DMCA. Walker's worth reading for his expert insight into the various technologies and influences battering the ol' Net and trying to turn users back into consumers and subjects, even if you don't share his conclusions."The Digital Imprimatur": http://www.fourmilab.ch/documents/digital-imprimatur/
Speak Freely: http://www.fourmilab.ch/speakfree/eol/
Plans for Blogging Clearinghouse Raise Skepticism
Jason Calacanis is an East Coast dotcom-era celebrity known for running the Silicon Alley Reporter news site. These days, Calacanis wants to set up and make money with a syndicated blog clearinghouse. He wants to hire a stable of independent writers to create newsy blogs that he'd place under one brand umbrella. He'd share subscription and advertising revenue with the writers. The idea has brought skeptics out of the woodwork; they point out that, so far, blogs don't seem to make serious money. One popular blogger, Nick Denton, says that his popular blogs, Gawker and Gizmodo, each take in less than $2,000 a month in revenue. That's revenue, not profit. Calacanis is not daunted and wants to make a go of it. At the moment, his plans remain vaporous dotcom hype, but they do illustrate the continuing general interest in making blogging pay. Wired has the tale.Calcanis: http://www.calacanis.com/
Wired: http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,60552,00.html
If you've seen the "Shaolin Soccer" movie previews, you know what to expect: a totally over-the-top mix of Hong Kong-style Kung Fu grafted on top of a silly soccer movie. The premise is so goofy and the action so cool that the movie has achieved cult status in North America even before playing in a single theater. And that's exactly the problem. Miramax bought the North American distribution rights to the flick but has yet to release it. Meanwhile, the movie has become a huge hit in Hong Kong. So what do you think has happened? Exactly. Copies of the movie are all over the file-trading networks, much to the obvious displeasure of Miramax but proving yet again that you can't impose geographical and temporal barriers on modern content and expect to get away with it. Not only can you find the movie on Kazaa, but it's also easy to buy it on DVD from overseas vendors. If Miramax had been on the ball, all that revenue would already be going into its pocket. Wired has more.
Shaolin Soccer: http://miramax.com/shaolin_soccer/index.html
Wired: http://www.wired.com/news/digiwood/0,1412,60511,00.html
ONLINE TRAVEL
Chicago denizen Dawn Mikulich has a great photographic eye, and displays a slew of unusual images of Chicago at her site, Chicago Uncommon Photographs. If you're inspired and think you might snag a few images for some Midwest-themed wallpaper to jazz up your screen, well... - that's no problem, as Mikulich dishes up some nice imagery and even provides instructions on how to set them up on your desktop. Not that you'd need instructions; it's more like a little jog to the memory, eh? After all, you can't be expected to reset your wallpaper every day; you have work to do. If it's a living room you want to wallpaper, you can also buy prints. Ask, you might get a package deal.http://www.chicagouncommon.com/
Ganna Walska, a former Polish opera singer, purchased an estate in Santa Barbara, Calif. in 1941 and spent the rest of her life forming it into Lotusland, famous for its gardens. The gardens and estate, now held in trust, are available for visits by small groups - but you can visit them online and enjoy the variety of gardens on offer anytime. Taking advantage of the local weather, the gardens specialize in plants from warmer climes such as cacti, succulents, and aloes. There's also a haven for butterflies and even one area devoted to cycads, a group of cone-bearing plants that dinosaurs would recognize. With good illustrations throughout, this site should prove inspiring for any gardener dealing with similar conditions. The garden maintains strong links with the local community via an active volunteer program and regular tours aimed at fourth-grade schoolchildren.
http://www.lotusland.org/general.html
Hit the Web and Then the Waves
Wetsand.com calls itself "a waterman's guide to the Internet." This is a bit misleading; the site is devoted mostly to surfing. As surfing sites go, it seems a touch of paradise, especially if you're in the market for goods or services the navigation makes it hard to miss. Jump into excellent photo galleries with a click on the home page's topmost photo. Check out spectacular waveforms such as "Deep Barrel" (in Branden Aroyan's gallery). The travel section is easy to reach, too. Here you'll find a gem of a gallery, Saunders Classic Surf Travels, whose big waves may chill the timid and excite the adventurous and foolhardy alike. Surf Reports covers California (of course!), the eastern US coast, and Costa Rica. You can get status reports from exotic locations, too. We found few articles but plenty of links to external sites. Want more? You can sign up for three newsletters that cover California and the East Coast. Go for it, dude!http://www.wetsand.com/
It's notoriously difficult to record the histories and daily lives of a peripatetic culture, but the UK's National Fairground Archive is trying to do just that for showmen and women. Unfortunately, most of the text on the site is exposition about the articles instead of the articles themselves. There are a few first-hand excerpts, plus 1,000 of the 80,000 photographs in the collection are accessible online, but, for the most part, you'll need to visit The University of Sheffield for the full experience.
http://www.shef.ac.uk/nfa/
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT
Greg Apodaca is a talented man. His online portfolio is a testament to that. Certainly one of the most stunning sections of his portfolio has to be Greg's Digital Retouching Portfolio. Using Photoshop 7 primarily, Apodaca transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary. Each picture in the portfolio allows visitors to roll their mouse over the image in order to view the original photograph. This lets us truly see the magic of digital retouching. Techniques include airbrushing models, color correction, and the melding of several photos into one. Apodaca has already gained notice by Internet surfers and digital artists alike, as is evident from the 50 e-mails he receives daily. After receiving so much feedback and so many questions, Apodaca created the A Note from Greg page to answer the most common questions. He also provides tips and tricks he uses to create his masterpieces.http://homepage.mac.com/gapodaca/digital/digital.html
Often considered blots on the cityscape, fire escapes find new purpose in this online homage to these skeletal elements of urban design. Hidden within alleys and back lots, fire escapes are hidden secrets in the architecture of a city. Escaperail seeks to bring the fire escape to the forefront with the camera, transforming it into a thing of beauty. On your visit, you can browse sets of visitor-submitted photos or submit your own snapshot. Each image in the easily navigated album captures a fire escape in a way most of us would have never thought of. Through the use of shadow and light, the fire escapes shake off their rattles and rust to become artistic marvels. After a visit to this site, you'll surely see these metal stairways to heaven in a new light.
http://www.escaperail.com/
Statistically-Derived Streaming Music
The MIT Media Lab has done it again - now if we only knew what it is. We know the name - it's called Eigenradio. We sort of know what it is: a computer-driven synthesis of live radio. Apparently, the bank of computers that drives Eigenradio receives live radio streams, analyzes the music statistically, and then synthesizes like music. For those who are into how it works, there's a really complicated diagram on the site. The output is surprisingly listenable, and you can tune in via links on the site. But remember to scroll horizontally on the site, or your visit will be surprisingly brief.http://eigenradio.media.mit.edu/
Ever find yourself at a loss for remembering a title? Do you ever say, "Well, last month I saw this really good movie where the main character was a cop," or "The book had an evil twin who was murdering townspeople, but I just can't remember the name..."? For those moments when plot is partway with you and the title is no longer just on the tip of your tongue comes AllWatchers.com, which can cure your frustration with a click of a mouse. It's a clever little system, although it assumes you might not always be right. For instance, doing a movie search for a male main character with a male nobleman adversary set in an Italian city got us "Gladiator", a few entries down the "most likely" list. Oddly, "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" is the next most likely candidate, and we haven't met anyone who's mistaken Angelina Jolie for male.
http://www.allwatchers.com/
We're all familiar with the concept that a picture is worth a thousand words. Here's a site willing to explore that idea. Each day, A Picture's Worth hosts a new entry. Each entry consists of a photo and up to 1,000 words from the photographer. The photographs usually have some personal significance for the writer, such as a sunrise shared with a young child, and the accompanying text explains the connection. They range from the intimate candid shots from home albums right through to arty black-and-white scenes and exotic landscapes. Browsing the site is like flipping through someone's favorite photo album as they sit beside you, explaining the emotions they felt as they snapped each picture. Anybody can submit images for consideration; the details are on the site. Anything goes as long as you can explain why it means so much to you. The site itself is clearly laid out with a simple yet elegant design - other Web designers take note.
Matthew Hurley has put a lot of work into unidentified flying objects (UFOs), as this site and his upcoming book, "The Alien Chronicles", attest. Hurley's approach differs from most UFOlogists and similar crackpots, for he isn't strictly trying to establish that aliens walk among us. He focuses more on the use of UFOs in art, ancient and modern. He's assembled some interesting examples, and some of the images in the UFO Artwork B.C. gallery are particularly arresting. The site solves nothing for the visitor: either you're intrigued by the idea of aliens, or you aren't; either you believe in alien visitors, or you don't. There's nothing here that's going to change your mind. About half the site is devoted to peddling Hurley's book, but there are some cool photos to be found here, regardless of your position on extraterrestrial beings.
http://www.ufoartwork.com/
http://www.1000words.net/
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/ |
Quicksilver (The Baroque Cycle, Vol. 1)
Albertus Seba Cabinet of Natural Curiosities
Tour De France Soundtracks
Linux and the Unix Philosophyhttp://www.redherring.com/IndexArticle.aspx
Edward Curtis and his "The North American Indian"
In 1907, Edward Curtis began work on a collection of photographs and ethnographic depictions of the American natives to be published as "The North American Indian". Doubtless the most comprehensive such endeavor ever undertaken, his project was at first supported but subsequently derided - likely because results weren't immediately forthcoming. The demand for instant gratification isn't a recent development. Two dozen years and 20 volumes later, Curtis finished, but his comprehensive work faded from public memory. Selling the North American Indian is a Web site honoring Curtis and his opus. The site opened last year, and the creators have clearly devoted a great deal of time and craft to it. Curtis's effort to create a complete record of the North American natives is well documented here, with classic photos and historical background. Bookmark it; there's too much to assimilate in one pass.http://xroads.virginia.edu/~MA02/daniels/curtis/introduction.html
SURFING SCIENCE
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is complex stuff, which may be why it took so long to discover it. Science teachers will welcome DNA Interactive, where clicking helps make "the Rosetta Stone for unraveling the true secret of life" less intimidating. The educational site covers many bases (ha ha!). Each of its six sections contains multiple lessons divided into small applets, or slides, with text, graphics, and animations. Timeline, Code, and Chronicle provide historical background. (The latter deals with eugenics and the Third Reich.) Manipulation has neat rollovers that show how mice, zebrafish, and other model organisms are used in research. Genome is probably for advanced students; it "uses English and computer languages to introduce principles of DNA sequence analysis." The GeneBoy applet here is intriguing, if more complex than it may seem at first glance. Generalists will likely find the Applications section relevant to current news. It covers forensic analysis, medical research, and anthropology. The Human Origins subsection has mini-lectures and clickable maps for quick illustration. Many teachers will wonder how to cover all the facts and topics presented by this exceptional site. Assign it as homework, perhaps.http://www.dnai.org/index.html
Distributed Computing and Climate Change Modeling
Predictions from computer models can be sensitive to small changes in the approximations used to represent reality. Getting approximations right is critically important in developing credible models for accurately predicting climate. The only way to study how variables influence the outcome, however, is to run an endless series of models over and over, which normally isn't practical. Distributed computing projects, however, have shown that it is possible to harness the unused CPU time of the masses, which is exactly what Climateprediction.net has wanted to do for years (see NSD 5.34). Volunteers download a climate model to run in the background on Windows, which reports results back over the Net. A participant is able to see results from the model their computer is running and can compare notes with other participants. The organizers hope that a community of participants will develop and are working on ways for schools to get involved as well. Best of all, with distributed computing projects like this around, there's no reason for anyone's computer to be bored and have time on its processor.Climateprediction.net: http://www.climateprediction.net/index.php
NSD 5.34: http://www.netsurf.com/nsd/sub/v05/nsd.05.34.html#CS1
That headline, also the title of this site, just about says it all. The place features high-res tomographic data and a pile of other cool stuff relating to the planet's biota. Animations and really cool shots unobtainable elsewhere rule here. Want to take a course in computerized tomography? You can get details here. Most folks don't know the difference between an alligator and a crocodile - you can expand your knowledge here, and - why not - explore a Herrerasaurus skull as well, slice by digital slice. The site is packed with QuickTime movies of rotating and thin-sectioned body parts of everything from a platypus to tapirs to an elephant bird egg. Plan to spend some time here.
http://digimorph.org/
Enemy Freeloaders on Our Bodies
Tapeworms. Lice. Leeches - for many of us, even the word "parasite" makes our skin crawl. To eliminate your enemy you must understand him. What better place to get acquainted with such lovely critters than Parasites and Parasitologic Resources? The Ohio State University College of Biological Sciences maintains this dry yet fascinating, plain but detailed, non-interactive but well-illustrated encyclopedia of sorts. Non-scientists will find the alphabetical list of invaders less intimidating than the taxonomic list. Right off the bat, you're sure to hit the names of popular pests such as American cockroaches, chiggers, and deer flies. Ah, familiarity! We've heard the argument many times that all species, even our bitterest enemies, are necessary in the grand scheme of things, but who wants to be lunch? There are some really nasty and disgusting buggers responsible for torment and death, even evil. Start here to stomp them out - or, if you prefer, to better co-exist with them. One thing is missing. If you suffer from one or more parasites, you'll have to go elsewhere - health sites, for example - to look up symptoms or find remedy or relief.http://www.biosci.ohio-state.edu/~parasite/home.html
DARPA's Grand Challenge for Autonomous Ground Vehicles
The folks who built the Internet are at it again. DARPA (ne ARPA) plans to run a challenge race of autonomous ground vehicles between Los Angeles and Las Vegas next March. The winner of the Grand Challenge for Autonomous Ground Vehicles gets a cool $1 million, not to mention ultimate geek bragging rights. We should emphasize the "not to mention" part, as your technology will likely be embraced, extended - and classified. DARPA wants to identify tech that can significantly contribute to the development of unmanned combat vehicles - independent military robots, if you will. These puppies need to be able to figure their way along a predetermined route, avoiding obstacles rather than simply breaking through them like any SF combat robot worth its salt would. DARPA will accept entries until Oct 14. Read the rules, then head to your local electronics shop. Don't forget your credit card.http://www.darpa.mil/grandchallenge/overview.htm
Participatory Archeological Experimentation
If you've ever wondered what life would have been like in the early Iron Age and you're passing through Denmark anytime soon, you can't miss putting the Lejre Experimental Centre (LEC) on your itinerary. Your kids will be particularly entertained. The LEC invites visitors to participate in historical recreations across a small variety of eras. You can try paddling your very own dug-out boat or make fire with a fire drill. You can visit families living in the reconstructed Iron Age village or watch Vikings in battle and in feast, and then enjoy the songs and dances in the dance labyrinth. Activities on offer this fall include wood chopping, torch-lit story-telling, and a chance to try out a bow and arrow. The LEC is about an hour's drive from Copenhagen and will take company groups on team-building adventures such as Viking trading, combat, and even prehistoric cookery. This could be your only chance to see Brian from accounts wield a double-headed axe against Muriel from catering.http://www.english.lejrecenter.dk/
If you're a fan of Egyptology, you'll appreciate a tour through Discovery Channel's online companion to the documentary, "Nefertiti Resurrected". Nefertiti, whose name means "the beautiful woman has come", was perhaps the most powerful woman in Ancient Egypt. She and her Pharaoh husband, Akhenaten, would as co-regents cause controversy and create many enemies during their reign. Joann Fletcher is leading a team of scientists and technicians in discovering more about the mysterious queen. Fletcher believes she has enough forensic evidence and historical documentation to identify the mummified body of Nefertiti. At this site, you can review the evidence, which includes facial reconstruction and video forensics. In addition, you can also read an historical speculation about Nefertiti's life. Finally, complete your visit by exploring the virtual tour of the Valley of the Kings, including what is thought to be the tomb of Nefertiti. Here you can access tidbits of historical information on each tomb and its inhabitant.
http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/nefertiti/nefertiti.html
SOFTWARE
Samba is a popular open-source package that provides file and print services, most notably between Windows and Unix clients. With Samba, you can host a file-server on a Linux box and have Windows clients seamlessly access the files through the usual Windows file-sharing mechanisms. This release contains a number of major changes and upgrades, most notably integration with Windows domains, Active Directory, and Windows security methods. The press release pretty much covers it all. This is important news for system administrators in mixed Windows/Unix networks, or for individuals who have both types of machine at home and want to share services between them.http://us1.samba.org/samba/samba/whatsnew/samba-3.0.0-pressrelease.html