technology

Why Bitcoin is the banking industry’s newest, biggest threat

"Bitcoin’s big advantage is that it is essentially the cold, hard cash of the Internet. Instead of bills, Bitcoin’s software keeps a public ledger of every transaction among users. If a buyer and seller are running the software on their computers, they can directly exchange Bitcoins, anonymously and with no taxes or bank fees. Others can pay a company to process the payment. Bitcoin accounts are listed simply as a string of letters and numbers with no names attached, giving a level of anonymity impossible with debit and credit cards or even PayPal accounts." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhy Bitcoin is the banking industry’s newest, biggest threat

Company plans to mine asteroids with ‘FireFlies’ spacecraft

"A US company said Tuesday it plans to send a fleet of spacecraft into the solar system to mine asteroids for metals and other materials in the hopes of furthering exploration of the final frontier. In a first step, the company plans to send 'asteroid-prospecting spacecraft' into the solar system, with the first — 55-pound (25-kilogram) 'FireFlies' — to be launched in 2015 on journeys of two to six months." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCompany plans to mine asteroids with ‘FireFlies’ spacecraft

Dutch architect to build house with 3D printer

"A Dutch architect has designed a house 'with no beginning or end' to be built using the world’s largest 3D printer, harnessing technology that may one day be used to print houses on the moon. Janjaap Ruijssenaars, 39, of Universe Architecture in Amsterdam, wants to print a Mobius strip-shaped building with around 1,100 square metres (12,000 square feet) of floor space using the massive D-Shape printer. The printer, designed by Italian Enrico Dini, can print up to almost a six-metre-by-six-metre square (20-foot-by-20-foot), using a computer to add layers 5-10 mm (a quarter to half an inch) thick." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDutch architect to build house with 3D printer

British scientists announce breakthrough in turning DNA into data storage

"Scientists in Britain on Wednesday announced a breakthrough in the quest to turn DNA into a revolutionary form of data storage. A speck of man-made DNA can hold mountains of data that can be freeze-dried, shipped and stored, potentially for thousands of years, they said. The contents are 'read' by sequencing the DNA — as is routinely done today, in genetic fingerprinting and so on — and turning it back into computer code. To prove their concept, the team encoded an MP3 recording of Martin Luther King’s 'I Have A Dream' speech; a digital photo of their lab; a PDF; a file of all of Shakespeare’s sonnets; and a document that describes the data storage technique." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBritish scientists announce breakthrough in turning DNA into data storage

3-D Printing Revolution: Printing Human Hearts

"Creating a solid, three-dimensional object from a printer sounds like science fiction but it’s very real. 3-D printing has created prosthetic legs, racing-car parts, customized mobile phones and more. 'These were experimental technologies for decades and now they’re commercial,' says Josh Brown, vice president of Fusion Analytics. 'And the applications essentially cut across every vertical from health care to defense to aerospace to manufacturing to oil and gas. There is nothing that’s not going to benefit from some of these newly commercialized 3-D technologies.'" Continue reading →

Continue Reading3-D Printing Revolution: Printing Human Hearts

What’s An American To Do?

"The decision by Reed Exhibitions to ban modern sporting rifles, their documentation, any pictures or even brochures of these 'products that in the current climate may attract negative attention' has caused a maelstrom of outrage. A boycott of sponsors, vendors and the NRA has grown quickly, and now virtually no major gun manufacturers will be exhibiting or participating in this year’s show. A ‘Virtual Sports Show’ has been set up to allow companies choosing to opt out of the exhibition in support of our rights under the second amendment can still connect with customers wishing to support them and purchase their products and services." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingWhat’s An American To Do?

BitPay Surpasses 10,000 Bitcoin Merchant Transactions, Zero Cases of Payment Fraud

"The key benefit that companies are starting to realize with bitcoin is the fraud mitigation. With credit cards, one out of every 167 transactions turns out to be fraudulent for domestic orders, and for international orders the rate is one out of every 50 transactions (source: Cybersource 2012 Online Fraud Report). Every day, more companies are starting to see the value that bitcoin can bring to their business, whether it’s reducing risk, expanding international sales, or improving efficiency." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitPay Surpasses 10,000 Bitcoin Merchant Transactions, Zero Cases of Payment Fraud

Google reports ‘steady increase’ in gov’t requests for user data

"Google on Wednesday reported a 'steady increase' in government requests to hand over data from Internet users in the second half of 2012. The Web giant’s semiannual 'transparency report' showed the most requests came from the the United States, with 8,438 requests for information about 14,868 users. In releasing details of requests in the United States, Google said 68 percent of the requests it received from government entities were through subpoenas, which 'are the easiest to get because they typically don’t involve judges,' according to Salgado." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingGoogle reports ‘steady increase’ in gov’t requests for user data

Library of Congress to archive Americans’ tweets

"The Library of Congress, repository of the world’s largest collection of books, has set for itself the enormous task of archiving something less weighty and far more ephemeral — Americans’ billions of tweets. The venerable US institution is assembling all of the 400 million tweets sent by Americans each day, in the belief that each of the mini-messages reflect a small but important part of the national narrative." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingLibrary of Congress to archive Americans’ tweets

It might not get weirder than this: Sophie Schmidt in North Korea

"Ordinary North Koreans live in a near-total information bubble, without any true frame of reference. I can't think of any reaction to that except absolute sympathy. My understanding is that North Koreans are taught to believe they are lucky to be in North Korea, so why would they ever want to leave? They're hostages in their own country, without any real consciousness of it. And the opacity of the country's inner workings--down to the basics of its economy--further serves to reinforce the state's control. The best description we could come up with: it's like The Truman Show, at country scale." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingIt might not get weirder than this: Sophie Schmidt in North Korea