quick stuff

Online video is no longer just fun and games: You might actually
learn something.

The University of California at Berkeley said Tuesday that it is
using Google Video to deliver college courses, including lectures and
symposia, free of charge. It is the first university to have its own
featured page on Google Video, campus officials and Google said in a
statement.

Initially, the university has put up a library of more than 250 hours
of video for public viewing. Most of it previously was not available
online, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said.

Google Video, launched earlier this year, is an index of user-
generated and professional video content, both free and paid.

Visitors will find a half-dozen Berkeley courses in their entirety,
including "Physics for Future Presidents," "Integrative Biology," and
"Search Engines: Technology, Society and Business," featuring a
lecture by Google co-founder Sergey Brin.

Also available are a range of public events and academic symposia on
topics ranging from climate change to synthetic biology. The
university plans to add more material to the Google Video site in the
coming months.

"Coursecasting" is a growing trend in educational technology,
enabling students and the general public to download audio and video
recordings of class lectures to their computers and portable media
devices. Berkeley has been offering a limited set of material since
2001.

Story Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.

http://tinyurl.com/n879x

and the vid page:

http://tinyurl.com/n4zu4

I have always believed in diesel:

Honda touts gasoline-killing diesel system
Posted Sep 27th 2006 2:44AM by Donald Melanson
Filed under: Transportation
Lest you think Honda's devoting all its attention these days to
developing future instruments of destruction, you can take some
comfort in the fact that it is (for now) primarily a car company and,
as such, is still working on technology to help us humans while we're
stuck driving ourselves around. To that end, the company's just
unveiled a new diesel powertrain system that is says will run as
clean as a gasoline-powered car, not to mention provide better
mileage. Diesel-powered vehicles are already known as gas-sippers, of
course, but also have higher exhaust levels of nitrogen oxide. To cut
that down, Honda incorporated a rather dangerous-sounding two-layer
catalytic converter into the drivetrain, which converts the nitrogen
oxide into less environmentally-harmful nitrogen. The first cars
using the new diesel technology are set to hit the U.S. market in
2009, with Honda also open to the idea of licensing the technology to
other automakers. In related news, Honda also announced an updated
version of its Honda FCX fuel-cell vehicle, upping the maximum
driving range to 354 miles and the max speed to a respectable 100
miles per hour. It'll be available in limited numbers in Japan and
the United States in 2008, and we assume that when they say "limited"
they really mean it.
http://tinyurl.com/h4ozg

FOR 220 I CAN BUILD AN OLDER SHUTTLE BOX:
Yoggie's mini-computer offloads security duties
Posted Sep 26th 2006 11:00PM by Paul Miller
Filed under: Networking


If you just don't have the spare RAM, processor cycles or patience
anymore to run your daily allotment of security programs, you might
want to consider offloading the task to the new Yoggie Gatekeeper
mini-computer. The Linux-based device has a pair of Ethernet ports,
one for taking in the unwashed internets, and one for sending the
newly-scourged connection to your computer. In between, the Yoggie
can manage firewall, VPN, virus, spyware, spam and phishing
protection duties, along with all sorts of other security good stuff.
The device also works for enterprise deployments, allowing IT staff
to monitor workers in the field. Configurations include "Basic" and
"Pro" versions, with 416MHz and 624MHz processors respectively, along
with 64MB or 128MB of SDRAM and 64 or 128MB of flash memory,
expandable via SD. Along with the obvious security benefits of this
device, we're guessing good things can happen with that much
processor, RAM and Linux kernel in one place, especially with prices
at a mere $180 and $220 a pop.
http://tinyurl.com/ldmbc

The best inventions are ones that eliminate repetition, this
automatic book scanner does just that. Believe it or not it was
constructed using LEGO.

” After the invention of hyperpaper, I began to scan my books. Soon
I found out that what I expected was true — It was awesomely BOREING!
If this drudgery were to be automated!
Scanning a book involves picking up the book from the scanner
carefully so that you won’t change the current pages, and turning
pages precisely. These activities are as easy as breakfast for human
beings. However, our sophisticated biomachienery owe a lot to the
Evolution. Without its support, the activities are far too difficult
for robots.
How it works
* The Glider is wound up, The Shuttle is at the right position.
* The Shuttle moves to the left.
* The Glider winds down until it touches the book.
* The Shuttles moves to the right. The Glider, touching the book,
filps the page.
* The Glider winds up.
* The Balance is lift up. The computer detects the event and sends
message to the scanner.
* The machiene pauses for 35 seconds, while the scannaer is working.
* The Balance lifts down.
* Repeat.”

http://tinyurl.com/q5dpa

BAD IDEA:
The LoftCube – designed to be airlifted in to the free space on top
of buildings
(link to this article)

September 27, 2006 If there’s a vacant block without a building on
it, people notice – valuable real estate doesn’t stand vacant for
long. But there’s plenty of prime real estate sitting vacant out
there and the owners in most cases are completely unaware of it –
it’s called the free space on the roof of many city buildings and
there’s an industry fast growing up to cater for it. The Aisslinger-
designed and built Loftcube is a 39 (or 55) square metre penthouse
designed to be helicoptered to the location of your choice – as long
as it’s on a rooftop. Once it is airlifted into place, it can be
fully functional inside 2-4 days according to the architects.

http://tinyurl.com/eb589

Sharp Triple Directional Viewing LCD: Three Screens, No Waiting


Sharp has enhanced its solution-searching-for-a-problem with the
Triple Directional Viewing LCD, a flat panel that can show three
different video signals from three different angles at the same time.
Sharp showed us this impressive technology with two video sources a
couple of years ago at CES, and now it's raised the bar to three.

Sharp posits a scenario, where, say, three people are taking a drive,
and the driver uses a GPS navigation system while the passenger
checks out tourist sites and restaurants while the person in the back
seat watches a DVD. Three videos, one screen. Let's hope only one
person needs audio at a time, or maybe they'll all have Bluetooth
headsets with three audio sources.

The real use will probably be in advertising, where the display will
show three different ads at the same time. Just what we need. Cool
technology, nevertheless. Can any commenters think of anything else
to do with this thing? – CHARLIE WHITE

http://tinyurl.com/kcrvl

ONE OF MY COWORKERS IS THEIR WEBADMIN.... BOY IS HE SWEATING....
TOTALLY SLASHDOTTED:

Space Elevator vs Wildlife
Posted by CmdrTaco on Wednesday September 27, @08:29AM
from the check-and-mate dept.
An anonymous reader writes
"The longest test yet of the technology that might one day lead to
space elevators has revealed some unusual problems. From the article:
"There were several unexpected encounters with wildlife. More than a
dozen insect egg colonies had been laid on the tether and curious
bats flew around the balloons, apparently attracted by the sound made
by the tether's vibrations. Late in the test, swallows were also seen
swooping down on the balloons, possibly to sip the morning dew on
their surfaces." Maybe all the critters just want to go to space too."
http://tinyurl.com/g9tl4

Best Gaming Video Cards for the Money
Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Wednesday September 27, @03:44AM
from the he-wants-us-to-think-for-ourselves dept.
Tom's Hardware has decided to take a step back with their latest
video card review. Instead of wowing their audience with in-depth
benchmarks they head right for what someone reading a review really
wants, an opinion of the best bang for the buck. From the article:
"So if you don't have the time to research the benchmarks, or if you
don't feel confident enough in your ability to make the right
decision, fear not. We offer a simple list of the best gaming cards
on offer for the money."
http://tinyurl.com/gog2l

Untraceable Messaging Service Raises a Few Eyebrows
Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Tuesday September 26, @11:39PM
from the taking-the-pry-out-of-privacy dept.
netbuzz writes
"A messaging service called VaporStream announced today at DEMOfall
will allow any two parties to communicate electronically without
leaving any record of their interaction on any computer or server.
Messages cannot be forwarded, edited, printed or saved. After they're
read, they're gone."
http://tinyurl.com/kem4j

NSA Publication Indices Declassified
Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Tuesday September 26, @09:33PM
from the waiting-game dept.
Schneier is reporting that a 3 year old freedom of information act
request has finally come to fruition showing us indices from the NSA
Technical Journal, Cryptographic Quarterly, Crytologic Spectrum, and
Cryptologic Almanac. From the article:
"The request took more than three years for them to process and
declassify -- sadly, not atypical -- and during the process they
asked if he would accept the indexes in lieu of the tables of
contents pages: specifically, the cumulative indices that included
all the previous material in the earlier indices. He agreed, and got
them last month. Consider these bibliographic tools as stepping
stones. If you want an article, send a FOIA request for it. Send a
FOIA request for a dozen. There's a lot of stuff here that would help
elucidate the early history of the agency and some interesting
cryptographic topics."
http://tinyurl.com/rundz

UBICOMP 2006 : Bruce Sterling Keynote:
http://tinyurl.com/l3z9s