Clipmarks | bmman89's clips

Music and Video Piracy could lead to you losing your house

Thu, 08 May 2008 20:13:51 GMT

clipped by: bmman89

Los Angeles Says Piracy 'Detrimental to the Public Health, Safety'

Local governments in California and the United States have long had the power to declare property a public nuisance when their owners allow their land to become denizens of drugs, gangs, prostitution and gambling.

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, following New York's lead, is adding a new category: music and video piracy.

In an ordinance just adopted, the five-member board is declaring that piracy "substantially interferes with the interest of the public in the quality of life and community peace, lawful commerce in the county, property values, and is detrimental to the public health, safety, and welfare of the county's citizens, its businesses and its visitors."

The regulation was crafted at the urging of the Motion Picture Association of America and the Recording Industry Association of America.

Tags: piracy, l.a., public safety

Now GPS Can Tell You Where the Cops Are

Wed, 07 May 2008 21:32:04 GMT

clipped by: bmman89

Clip Source: blog.wired.com

Flashing oncoming motorists with your high beams used to be an effective, if low-tech, way to warn them about speed traps up the road. But radar-gun wielding cops have increasingly given way to photo-enforcement cameras that nab drivers with a click of a shutter, and those can be hard to spot.

But now the wonders of Web 2.0 and portable navigation systems can use motorists' tips and Google maps to help keep you from appearing on your local police department's version of candid camera.

Shannon Atkinson launched Njection.com as a place for gearheads to shoot the breeze about anything and everything auto-related. It wasn't long before he sensed a theme in the posts. “One of the biggest topics on the site became speed traps and cameras,”

So Atkinson added Speedtrap, a feature that combines drivers' tips with Google Maps to identify speed traps

Now, the information can be downloaded directly to portable navigation devices from Garmin, Mio, TomTom and others via Njection.com

Tags: speed, cops, police, web2.0

Dell set to give Inspiron notebooks a Penryn kick

Tue, 06 May 2008 06:58:18 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: I was planning on getting a laptop within a couple of weeks so this is great! I have been dying to get my hands on one of these!!

Clip Source: www.computerworld.com

May 5, 2008 (Computerworld) Dell Inc. is getting ready to fit several of its Inspiron notebooks with Intel Corp.'s new 45-nanometer Penryn processors.

Dell spokeswoman Anne Camden said that consumers will be able to order Penryn-based Inspiron 1420, 1525 and 1720 systems in the next few weeks. She also noted that Dell also is adding Penryn to its XPS M1330 and plans to offer Penryn processors to more XPS laptop models this spring.

"The 45-nanometer technology delivers better performance, and it also brings in better battery performance."

Last November, Dell was the first PC vendor out of the gate to ship workstations with Intel's then brand new 45nm Penryn chips.

When the Penryn chips were released earlier in November, analysts were quick to note that they expected that the new microprocessors would give desktops and laptops a significant performance boost.

Dell also confirms that is cutting back online sales of AMD-based consumer systems

Villagers throw babies from temple roof

Thu, 01 May 2008 18:30:30 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: CNN.com has a video of this ritual.

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

(CNN) -- In a ritual that would terrify most mothers, Indian villagers have cheered as screaming babies were dropped from a 50-foot temple tower.

For 500 years, worshippers at a Muslim shrine in western India have continued the tradition -- a rite considered to bring good health and good luck to the children.

The infants land and bounce on a bed-sheet held taut by men 50 feet below, and are quickly passed through the crowd to their mothers.

Villagers say no babies have been injured during the ritual, which is practiced by Muslims and Hindus in Musti village in the district of Solapur, in the state of Maharashtra.

It also takes place elsewhere in the country, mostly in smaller villages, on special occasions.

But critics want the practice banned, with many saying it's unsafe.

"The state has to interfere," said Sanal Edamaruku, founder and president of Rationalist International and the Indian Rationalist Association.

SPORE CREATURE CREATOR AVAILABLE WORLDWIDE JUNE 17

Tue, 29 Apr 2008 19:03:30 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I can't wait!!!!!!!

Clip Source: www.spore.com

SPORE CREATURE CREATOR AVAILABLE WORLDWIDE JUNE 17

Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: ERTS) and Maxis today announced that a free downloadable demo, and complete retail version of the Spore™ Creature Creator will be available starting June 17, 2008.

All creatures designed with the Spore Creature Creator can be imported into the full retail version of Spore for PC and Mac when it launches on September 5, 2008 in Europe and September 7, 2008 in North America.

“We are thrilled to finally be putting the creative tools of Spore into the hands of players around the world,” said Will Wright, chief designer, Maxis. “The amazing creations players design this summer will help populate the game universe we all enter when Spore ships this September, so in a sense, the Spore Creature Creator is the birth of Spore.”

The free demo version of the Spore Creature Creator will be available worldwide via download from www.spore.com.

Nature's Best Photo Awards 2007

Tue, 22 Apr 2008 20:33:01 GMT

clipped by: Sheroug

Clip Source: photowebs.blogspot.com

Nature's Best Photo Awards by National Geographic

Space Warfare

Wed, 09 Apr 2008 05:46:10 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: I had to look this up after I saw a commercial for the US Air Force. The commercial basically said that the air force now is responsible for defending our space interests. They said that a missile can knock out satellites in space. I guess because our military has proved that it can be done they feel that they have the right to scare people into thinking that every one can shoot a satellite out of the sky. Oh and by the way, the UN voted that space will only be used for peaceful purposes, the unoosa.org link explains that resolution in detail. 163 nations voted yes and three abstained, one being America. I love America but this is ridiculous, this shows just how arrogant our leaders (and a majority of Americans) are.

Clip Source: www.wired.com

All's Fair in Space War

The American military has begun planning for combat in space, an Air Force report reveals.

"Air Force Doctrine Document 2-2.1: Counterspace Operations" is an apparent first cut at detailing how U.S. forces might take out an enemy's space capabilities

First, the document declares that the U.S. Air Force is duty-bound to slap down other countries' space efforts

During the Iraq invasion, for example, commercial orbiters carried 80 percent of U.S. forces' satellite communications.

Clip Source: www.unoosa.org

Declaration of Legal Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space

Recognizing the common interest of all mankind in the progress of the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes,

Bigfoot Photos

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 05:46:32 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: Thank god for fox news, This is big news for them. You now ya gotta keep the interest there. These are pretty interesting photos, I couldn't clip them but just go to the site.

Clip Source: www.foxnews.com

Rick Jacobs said he took this photograph with a camera using an automatic trigger in the Allegheny National Forest, about 115 miles north of Pittsburgh, hoping to capture deer. But his image has only managed to spark further debate about the existence of bigfoot.

Click here to see photographs of the creature alongside photos of bear cubs.

"We couldn't figure out what they were," Jacobs said of the images captured on Sept. 16. "I've been hunting for years and I've never seen anything like this."

Tags: bigfoot

Exxon can appeal $2.5bn oil fine

Mon, 29 Oct 2007 18:53:54 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: Why the hell is shit like this allowed to happen? Why is the supreme court wasting it's time with this.... They can pay the 2.5 billion, that's nothing for them. GODDAMN!!!!!!

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

Exxon Mobil has won the right to appeal against a $2.5bn (£1.21bn) damages bill relating to a 1989 Alaskan oil spill.

The case has dragged on since 1994 with the US oil giant fighting to reduce the bill, which it has called excessive.

About 1,300 miles (2,080km) of coastline was contaminated as a result of the oil spill.

Exxon argues that it cannot be held responsible for the actions of Mr Hazelwood

The world's biggest listed oil firm, Exxon added that it had already paid $3.4bn in clean-up costs and other fines related to the oil disaster and damage to the natural environment.

In 2006, Exxon reported the highest ever net annual profit for a US business at $39.5bn.

Back in 1994 a jury in Alaska ordered US giant Exxon to pay $5bn in compensation, but the firm successfully appealed the size of the damages.

The appeal will be go before the Supreme Court next February or March with a ruling expected by the end of June.

Tags: exxon, oil

The reason Socrates was such a good philosopher

Wed, 24 Oct 2007 04:08:33 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks:

Clip Source: www.brainyquote.com

By all means marry. If you get a good wife, you'll be happy. If you get a bad one, you'll become a philosopher and that is a good thing for any man.

Socrates

Tags: marriage

Is Life finely tuned, or a cosmic accident

Mon, 22 Oct 2007 12:37:09 GMT

clipped by: pokkets
clipper's remarks: If there is 1/1Billion chance of there being the right properties in a 'Big Bang' to create life, then you just need 1 Billion 'Big Bangs' . One of the threads on theory regarding the presence of life in the Universe. Having such inadequate information to come to any conclusions there are a number of projections, but it seems the best education we are getting, is in the the development of more and more sophisticated instruments and measuring techniques. We may keep opening doors only to find more doors. Or someone may find a key, while they were looking for something else.

Clip Source: mail01.mail.com

Is Life Finely-Tuned or a Cosmic Accident?

Forget science fiction. If you want to hear some really crazy ideas about the universe, just listen to our leading theoretical physicists.

Wish you could travel back in time? You can, according to some interpretations of quantum mechanics. Could there be an infinite number of parallel worlds? Nobel Prize-winning physicist Steven Weinberg considers this a real possibility. Even the big bang, which for decades has been the standard explanation for how the universe started, is getting a second look.

Now, many cosmologists speculate that we live in a "multiverse," with big bangs exploding all over the cosmos, each creating its own bubble universe with its own laws of physics. And lucky for us, our bubble turned out to be life-friendly.

But if you really want to start an argument, ask a room full of physicists this question: Are the laws of physics fine-tuned to support life?

Read the full story here...

Tags: life, cosmos, universe, physics

Quotes on War and Government

Sat, 22 Sep 2007 16:12:25 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: I tried to get quotes that I have never heard before, enjoy

Clip Source: quotes.prolix.nu

Join the army, meet interesting people, kill them

- Graffiti At Bromley

Instead of building newer and larger weapons of mass destruction, I think mankind should try to get more use out of the ones we have.

- Jack Handey

Our only hope today lies in our ability to recapture the revolutionary spirit and go into a sometimes hostile world declaring eternal hostility to poverty, racism, and militarism.

- Martin Luther King, Jr.

History teaches that war begins when governments believe the price of aggression is cheap.

- Ronald Reagan

Clip Source: quotes.prolix.nu

This I believe: that the free, exploring mind of the individual human is the most valuable thing in the world. And this I would fight for: the freedom of the mind to take any direction it wishes, undirected. And this I must fight against: any idea, religion, or government which limits or destroys the individual.

- John Steinbeck, In Curiosity

I don't make jokes. I just watch the government and report the facts.

- Will Rogers, In Humor

Tags: quotes

Allow the president to invade a nation

Sat, 22 Sep 2007 16:04:17 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: Be silent, I see it, if you don't.

Clip Source: quotes.prolix.nu

Allow the President to invade a neighboring nation, whenever he shall deem it necessary to repel an invasion, and you allow him to do so, whenever he may choose to say he deems it necessary for such a purpose -- and you allow him to make war at pleasure. If today, he should choose to say he thinks it necessary to invade Canada, to prevent the British from invading us, how could you stop him? You may say to him, 'I see no probability of the British invading us' but he will say to you, 'Be silent; I see it, if you don't.

- Abraham Lincoln

Tags: war

Failed suicide bomber turns on al Qaeda

Fri, 14 Sep 2007 18:39:54 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: This mother fucker joined Al Qaeda to KILL AMERICANS!!!!. Then he didn't die in the blast so now its not his fault.?!?!?! But the Iraqi officials just took him back home to Saudi Arabia where most of these freedom fighters are from to "re-educate him" that means teach him how to die the next time. They don't want to stop the violence. The Iraqis,Saudis (their Governments) or our great Commander in Chief DW

"I went to Iraq with Saudi men because jihad is a duty for every Muslim," he said. "I went to Iraq to fight the jihad and kill Americans."

He was hoping to take up arms against Americans, but said he never envisioned himself as a suicide bomber. After his truck bomb exploded, al Shayea was captured and paraded on Iraqi TV. Burned and bandaged, he was blamed for the death of 12 bystanders. He confessed.

Clip Source: www.cnn.com

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia -- Ahmad al Shayea is the rarest of truck bombers -- he survived his suicide mission in Iraq even though the blast from his bomb was strong enough to kill 12 bystanders.

Al Shayea, who was disfigured during the attack, claims al Qaeda tricked him into becoming a bomber by asking him to deliver a tanker truck, which they had rigged with a bomb.

"They told me to take it to an address in Baghdad. As soon as I got there the truck exploded," said the native of Saudi Arabia. He survived by jumping out of the truck.

Some Iraqi officials say more Saudis than any other nationality have responded to al Qaeda's call. Saudi officials and the U.S. military deny that claim. But Saudi sources do admit that more than 800 young Saudis have gone to Iraq to fight. That's far more than the Saudi government has acknowledged until now.

Since 9/11, when 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudis, the oil rich kingdom has been accused of spreading radicalism.

Tags: wtf

Dark matter clues in oldest stars

Fri, 14 Sep 2007 18:30:19 GMT

clipped by: bmman89
clipper's remarks: This is a great article about dark matter. It is amazing how much we don't know.

Clip Source: news.bbc.co.uk

A computer model of the early Universe indicates the first stars could have formed in spectacular, long filaments.

These structures, which may have been thousands of light-years across, would have been shaped by "dark matter".

Astronomers believe that more than three-quarters of the matter in our Universe may be "dark". It does not reflect or emit detectable light, and so cannot be seen directly - but it does gravitationally pull on normal matter (the gas, stars, and planets we see in space).

It is this interaction that allows scientists to predict its existence - even if they cannot say what it is.

Computer modelling suggests there is a link between the structures assumed by early stars and the temperature of the dark matter amongst them.

Some of the stars that formed within the filaments would have had a relatively low mass, which is of interest to astronomers as they have a long lifespan and could still survive today.

Simulation: With cold dark matter, structures become clumpy

Tags: universe, dark matter