technology

How Newegg crushed the “shopping cart” patent and saved online retail

"Soverain isn't in the e-commerce business; it's in the higher-margin business of filing patent lawsuits against e-commerce companies. And it has been quite successful until now. The company's plan to extract a patent tax of about one percent of revenue from a huge swath of online retailers was snuffed out last week by Newegg and its lawyers, who won an appeal ruling [PDF] that invalidates the three patents Soverain used to spark a vast patent war. The ruling effectively shuts down dozens of the lawsuits Soverain filed last year against Nordstrom's, Macy's, Home Depot, RadioShack, Kohl's, and many others." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHow Newegg crushed the “shopping cart” patent and saved online retail

Harper government kills controversial Canadian Internet surveillance bill

"Bill C-30 caused a furor when it was introduced a year ago this week. The legislation would have permitted police and other government officials to compel Internet service providers to disclose identifying information linked to clients’ ISP addresses without a warrant. Telecommunications companies would also have been required to collect and store data on clients’ digital activities. The law was fiercely opposed by federal and provincial privacy commissioners as a fundamental intrusion on privacy rights. Instead, the government has carved out a sliver of the bill to ensure warrantless wiretaps during emergencies remain legal." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHarper government kills controversial Canadian Internet surveillance bill

Unite With Namecheap Against CISPA

"As many of you are aware, Namecheap has taken a stance against SOPA and related legislation. In 2012 and 2013, we donated over $100,000 to the Electronic Frontier Foundation to help ensure that the fight stays alive. CISPA, which emerged in 2012, has been rebirthed this week as an even bigger threat to online freedom. If CISPA is passed, the US government gains the power to ask your ISP about any/all of your online activities and personal information. Advocated under the premise of anti-terrorism legislation, this legislation is so broad that it threatens to endanger the privacy of every individual and ordinary and law abiding citizens." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingUnite With Namecheap Against CISPA

Harvard Business Review: 3-D Printing Will Change the World

"To anyone who hasn’t seen it demonstrated, 3-D printing sounds futuristic—like the meals that materialized in the Jetsons’ oven at the touch of a keypad. But the technology is quite straightforward: It is a small evolutionary step from spraying toner on paper to putting down layers of something more substantial (such as plastic resin) until the layers add up to an object. And yet, by enabling a machine to produce objects of any shape, on the spot and as needed, 3-D printing really is ushering in a new era." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingHarvard Business Review: 3-D Printing Will Change the World

My 3 Cents On Cancer: Jack Andraka at TEDxSanJoseCAWomen

"Jack is a fifteen year old freshman in high school. He developed a paper sensor that could detect pancreatic, ovarian and lung cancer in five minutes for as little as 3 cents. He conducted his research at John Hopkins University. This research could change the face of cancer and promote early detection. He has been selected as the Intel 2012 ISEF winner and has won awards at multiple national and international math competitions. Jack is on the national junior whitewater kayaking team and enjoys playing with his dog and folding origami." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingMy 3 Cents On Cancer: Jack Andraka at TEDxSanJoseCAWomen

AI system diagnoses illnesses better than doctors

"Using a computerized decision making processes similar to IBM’s wiz computer 'Watson' that won the game show 'Jeopardy,' researchers plugged in big medical data sources and tasked it to simulate treatment outcomes for 500 patients, most of whom suffered from clinical depression and at least one other chronic condition, like high blood pressure or diabetes. Using data from actual patient-doctor treatment sessions, real-life outcomes were compared to simulated treatment regiments and the computer was nearly 42 percent better at diagnosing illnesses and prescribing effective treatments than human doctors." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingAI system diagnoses illnesses better than doctors

Save Silicon Valley — abolish patents now

"'Our preferred policy solution is to abolish patents entirely,' Michele Boldrin and David K. Levine wrote in a recently published paper. That statement, of course, flies in the face of the conventional wisdom that patents foster innovation and improve productivity. Both truisms, they say, are wrong. In fact, patents have a 'negative effect on innovation,' they say. Obviously, this is awfully radical, but it's worth noting that 18 months after the largest patent reform legislation in decades -- the America Invents Act -- was signed by President Barack Obama, patent litigation has continued to increase." Continue reading →

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German student creates electromagnetic harvester that gathers free electricity from thin air

"A German student has built an electromagnetic harvester that recharges an AA battery by soaking up ambient, environmental radiation. These harvesters can gather free electricity from just about anything, including overhead power lines, coffee machines, refrigerators, or even the emissions from your WiFi router or smartphone." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGerman student creates electromagnetic harvester that gathers free electricity from thin air

Welcome to the Future: Congress Takes on 3-D Printing

"This may be the first time 3-D printing is the subject of legislation, but it certainly won’t be the last. The technology allows for the production of objects by depositing thin layers of materials. The process is called additive manufacturing, which stands in opposition to subtractive manufacturing, the traditional process in which objects are produced at factories by making small parts out of larger pieces of material, like sheets of metal. By allowing for the on-demand production of single, customized items, the technology promises to end the system of large factories and long supply chains in the markets for many goods—and to transform the global economy." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWelcome to the Future: Congress Takes on 3-D Printing

Wendy McElroy: Print Me A Revolution

"Two men – one in Washington State and the other in South Africa – used open source software to design a series of mechanical hands for a boy whose family could not afford a commercial prosthetic. A group called Defense Distributed have already 'printed' a plastic high capacity ammunition magazine. President Obama is noticing. The Department of Defense has shelled out $30 million to promote 3D printing and the sum is being matched by a group that includes crony-capitalist corporations such as Boeing. Nothing could be more disastrous to the technology than being championed by government promoting the technology, especially in league with crony corporations." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWendy McElroy: Print Me A Revolution