Category: Historical Perspectives

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Big Problems, Breakthrough Thinking, Business, Globalism, Green Friendly, Health & Fitness, Historical Perspectives, Hot Issues

Google Recruits Scientists to Use New Media to Tackle Climate Skeptics

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In an effort to help improve communication regarding global warming issues and to counter the rampant ‘noise’ made by fossil fuel industry-funded climate skepticism, Google’s philanthropy arm has launched a new program focused on bringing together scientists, communications experts, and the world of social media. Google has tapped 21 top climate researchers to be fellows on the project, and they plan on mapping out a way to get accurate, scientifically sound information on climate to the masses.

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Analysis, Animals, Big Problems, Globalism, government, Health & Fitness, Historical Perspectives, Hot Issues, Latest News, New Discoveries

Naval Sonar Exercises Linked to Whale Strandings

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Whales are affected by Naval Sonar Exercises.

Scientists have long been aware of a link between naval sonar exercises and unusual mass strandings of beaked whales. Evidence of such a link triggered a series of lawsuits in which environmental groups sued the U.S. Navy to limit sonar exercises to reduce risk to whales. In 2008, this conflict rose to the level of the US Supreme Court which had to balance potential threat to whales from sonar against the military risk posed by naval forces inadequately trained to use sonar to detect enemy submarines. The court ruled that the Navy could continue training, but that it was essential for the Navy to develop better methods to protect the whales.

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Crazy Stuff, Culture, Economy, Historical Perspectives, Hot Issues

Children’s Playground Replaced With Brick Wall

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Just another brick in the wall?

When an ageing playground was dismantled by workmen, people living nearby expected new swings, slides and climbing frames. What they ended up with was . . . a brick wall. The old play equipment in Audenshaw’s Shepley Wood Park was taken away two years ago. Town hall chiefs promised to replace it with brand-new facilities.

But when the plug was pulled on government funding last year, the council was forced to think again. Now it has now replaced the equipment – with a wall for kids to kick a ball against. Eileen Pritchard, whose house overlooks the park, said: “We can’t believe what we’re seeing…

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Alternative Transportation, Breakthrough Thinking, Crazy Stuff, Historical Perspectives, Latest News, New Viewpoints

Large Hadron Collider Could Be World’s First Time Machine

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The latest concept at what could product time travel.

If the latest theory of Tom Weiler and Chui Man Ho is right, the Large Hadron Collider — the world’s largest atom smasher that started regular operation last year — could be the first machine capable of causing matter to travel backwards in time.

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Analysis, Historical Perspectives, Hot Issues, Internet, Latest News, New Viewpoints

40th Anniversary Of The Computer Virus

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A dreaded word to any computer user.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Creeper, the world’s first computer virus. From Creeper to Stuxnet, the last four decades saw the number of malware instances boom from 1,300 in 1990, to 50,000 in 2000, to over 200 million in 2010.

Besides sheer quantity, viruses, which were originally used as academic proof of concepts, quickly turned into geek pranks, then evolved into cybercriminal tools. By 2005, the virus scene had been monetized, and virtually all viruses were developed with the sole purpose of making money via more or less complex business models…

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Breakthrough Thinking, Globalism, government, Historical Perspectives, Hot Issues, Latest News, Latest Trend

U.S. Military Developing False Online Personalities to Counter “Enemy Propaganda”

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The US Central Command (Centcom) has purchased software that creates false online personalities for what it calls “information operations.”

Using the software, one member of the U.S. Military can control up to ten different fake accounts that appear to belong to civilians living in other countries. The government purchased the software from California-based Ntrepid for $2.76 million.

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Analysis, Big Problems, Business, Culture, Current Events, Economy, Entertainment, Historical Perspectives, Hot Issues, Human Behavior, Internet, Music

Poor Countries Have More Piracy Because Media Costs Too Much — Report

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Media Piracy in Emerging Economies, an academic report on pricing and copyright infringement in poor countries, comes to the conclusion that high media prices (as measured against the average wage in poor countries) are responsible for piracy — that is, when you control for social attitudes towards copying, enforcement differences, and so on, the largest predictor of whether a country will have rampant copyright infringement is whether the media in that country is priced high relative to peoples’ earning power.

To make their point, the authors have released the report under a provocative “Consumer’s Dilemma license” that charges escalating rates depending on whether your IP address is in a rich or poor country.

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Analysis, Breakthrough Thinking, Historical Perspectives, Human Behavior, Internet, Latest News, Twitter

Is Twitter Dividing the Happy From the Unhappy?

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Anyone who thought that social media was going to usher in a utopian era of communication without borders is going to have their faith badly shaken by a new study from Cornell University. On Twitter, it seems, there are already at least two walled-off nations: happy people and unhappy people.

And never the twain shall tweet.

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