technology

Google wants blimps to bring wifi access to sub-Saharan Africa

"Google is planning to develop high-speed wireless networks in sub-Saharan Africa with the help of high-altitude balloons that can transmit signals across hundreds of square miles. The internet search giant wants to connect one billion more people to the internet in emerging markets such as Africa and south-east Asia, and is ready to team up with telecoms firms and equipment providers to build networks that will improve speeds in cities and bring the internet to rural areas. Google is considering a mix of technologies, broadcasting signals from masts, satellites and even remote-controlled balloons known as blimps." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoogle wants blimps to bring wifi access to sub-Saharan Africa

Cuba plans to expand public Internet access

"Cuba will expand limited public access to the Internet next month by opening up another 118 places where people on this communist-run island can surf the Web for a fee, authorities said Tuesday. Set to start June 4, the extension takes advantage of an undersea fiber-optic cable from Venezuela and will gradually be rolled out further — but not to homes, according to a Communications Ministry resolution published in the Official Gazette and local media. There are now more than 200 public Internet rooms in hotels on the island that sell connection cards that cost between $7 and $10. Post offices also provide access to email." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCuba plans to expand public Internet access

Google no longer able to pay Android developers in Argentina, pulling apps on July 27th

"Developers in Argentina have begun receiving letters from Google informing them that 'Google Play will no longer be able to accept payments on behalf of developers registered in Argentina starting June 27, 2013.' The change applies to both paid apps and apps that use in-app purchases. The move appears to be related to new, restrictive regulations the Argentine government has imposed on currency exchanges, which The Telegraph detailed this past September. Twitter has quite a few developers complaining about the changes, but it's not clear how many people will be affected." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoogle no longer able to pay Android developers in Argentina, pulling apps on July 27th

Linden Lab Changes ToS Around Second Life Currency to Comply With US Treasury?

"Linden Lab has updated Second Life's Terms of Service regarding Linden Dollars, the world's official currency, in a way that will impact third party sites which exchange L$ for real money or other virtual currency, including Bitcoin. In the new Terms of Service, however: '[T]o better protect Second Life users against fraud, the updated Terms of Service make it clear that trading of Linden dollars (L$) on exchanges other than the LindeX, Second Life’s official L$ exchange, is not authorized or allowed.' The given reason seems strange on its face, because Second Life users have been able to exchange Linden Dollars for real currency on third party sites since 2004." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLinden Lab Changes ToS Around Second Life Currency to Comply With US Treasury?

U.S. Government Seizes LibertyReserve.com, Arrests Founder

"The news comes four days after libertyreserve.com inexplicably went offline and newspapers in Costa Rica began reporting the arrest of the company’s founder Author Bodovsky, 39-year-old Ukrainian native who moved to Costa Rica to start the business. As noted by the BBC, many users — principally those outside the United States — simply viewed the currency as cheaper, more secure and flexible alternative to PayPal. But according to the Justice Department, Liberty Reserve enabled the use of its services for criminal activity by offering a shopping cart interface that merchant Web sites could use to accept Liberty Reserve as a form of payment." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingU.S. Government Seizes LibertyReserve.com, Arrests Founder

Local hero? Man tweets DUI checkpoint locations

"Increasingly, social media has allowed real human beings to contact other real human beings in order to avoid being randomly stopped and having their breath searched. Sennett Devermont has turned checkpoint alerts into what he believes is a public service. Devermont, a co-founder of the dating site site DateUp (later sold to IAC) and various other ventures, has created the superhero name Mr. Checkpoint, and his site works hard to ensure that his followers receive text alerts as soon as the information comes to him. His Twitter feed now has more than 43,000 followers, who hang on his every revelation." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLocal hero? Man tweets DUI checkpoint locations

3D printing saves a life

"For the first three months of his life, Kaiba Gionfriddo’s airway collapsed repeatedly, occasionally causing his heart to stop and leaving many doctors at a loss for how to help him. Then, in the first procedure of its kind, doctors in Michigan used a 3D printing method to create an artificial splint to help Kaiba breathe without the assistance of a breathing machine for the first time, according to the Associated Press. Since the operation, which was performed in February 2012, the now 19-month-old Ohio boy has been able to breathe on his own without a single breathing crisis. Doctors will soon remove his breathing tube, the AP reports." Continue reading →

Continue Reading3D printing saves a life

Next Generation 3-D Printed Gun Fires Nine Shots, Costs $25

"One evening late last week, a Wisconsin engineer who calls himself 'Joe' test-fired a new version of that handgun printed on a $1,725 Lulzbot A0-101 consumer-grade 3D printer, far cheaper than the one used by Defense Distributed. Joe, who asked that I not reveal his full name, loaded the weapon with .380 caliber rounds and fired it nine times, using a string to pull its trigger for safety. The weapon survived all nine shots over the course of an evening, as you can see in the YouTube video below." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingNext Generation 3-D Printed Gun Fires Nine Shots, Costs $25

Cops Being Trained That Cell Phones Could Be Guns

"As a result of the numerous legal cases that have proven recording police officers is not a crime, authorities are getting more creative in attempting to stop abuse by law enforcement offices ending up as a viral video on YouTube. In the clip above, Detective Shannon Todd of the Newark Police Gang Unit approaches a man who is recording a police stop on his cell phone, ordering him to, 'put your phone down, put it in your pocket.' Despite acknowledging that the device is a phone, when the man refuses to follow the unlawful order, Todd remarks, 'I need to hold on to it,' before stating, 'May I look at it and inspect it to ensure it’s not a firearm.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCops Being Trained That Cell Phones Could Be Guns

Cops Being Trained That Cell Phones Could Be Guns

"As a result of the numerous legal cases that have proven recording police officers is not a crime, authorities are getting more creative in attempting to stop abuse by law enforcement offices ending up as a viral video on YouTube. In the clip above, Detective Shannon Todd of the Newark Police Gang Unit approaches a man who is recording a police stop on his cell phone, ordering him to, 'put your phone down, put it in your pocket.' Despite acknowledging that the device is a phone, when the man refuses to follow the unlawful order, Todd remarks, 'I need to hold on to it,' before stating, 'May I look at it and inspect it to ensure it’s not a firearm.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCops Being Trained That Cell Phones Could Be Guns