Quick Technological Updates...!!!

DID YOU KNOW??

• 160 billion emails are sent daily, 97% of which are spam.
• Spam generates 33bn KWt-hours of energy every year, enough to power 2.4 million homes, producing 17 million tons of CO2.
• 9 out of every 1,000 computers are infected with spam.
• Spammer get 1 response to every 12 million emails they send (yet it still makes them a small profit).
• A twillionaire is a twitterer with a million or more followers.
• There are some 1 billion computers in use.
• There are some 2 billion TV sets in use.
• There are more than 4 billion cell phones in use. About 3 million cell phones are sold every day.
• The first known cell phone virus, Cabir.A, appeared in 2004.
• Since 2008, video games have outsold movie DVDs.
• Amazon sells more e-books than printed books.
• Facebook has 500 million registered users.
• About 1.8 billion people connect to the Internet, 450 million of them speak English. See list of Internet languages.
• Google indexed it’s 1 trillionth unique URL on July 25, 2008. That is thought to be about 20% of all the pages on the Internet but a high percentage of the World Wide Web (the public Internet).
• One google search produces about 0.2g of CO2. But since you hardly get an answer from one search, a typical search session produces about the same amount of CO2 as does boiling a kettle.
• Google handles about 1 billion search queries per day, releasing some 200 tons of CO2 per day.
• The average US household uses 10.6 megawatt-hours (MWh) electricity per year.
• Google uses an estimated 15 billion kWh of electricity per year, more than most countries. However, google generates a lot of their own power with their solar panels.
• The first public cell phone call was made on April 3, 1973 by Martin Cooper.
• The Motorola DynaTAC 8000X was the first cell phone sold in the US; launched on April 11, 1984, it was designed by Rudy Krolopp and weighed 2 pounds.
• About 20% of the videos on YouTube are music related.
• 24 hours of video viewing is uploaded every minute on YouTube.
• People view 15 billion videos online every month.
• On average, US onliners view 100 videos per month each.
• Flickr hosts some 3 billion photographs, Facebook hosts more than 10 billion.

1 Bit = Binary Digit
8 Bits = 1 Byte
1000 Bytes = 1 Kilobyte
1000 Kilobytes = 1 Megabyte
1000 Megabytes = 1 Gigabyte
1000 Gigabytes = 1 Terabyte
1000 Terabytes = 1 Petabyte
1000 Petabytes = 1 Exabyte
1000 Exabytes = 1 Zettabyte
1000 Zettabytes = 1 Yottabyte
1000 Yottabytes = 1 Brontobyte
1000 Brontobytes = 1 Geopbyte
Technically speaking, the sum is 1024 bytes.

Brain Computer Interface (BCI)

Brain Computer Interface (BCI) is the next step in computer technology.  Electronic implants, once the subject of science fiction, have been around in one capacity or another since the 1970’s, but have made great strides recently.  By recent counts, around 100,000 people have cochlear implants allowing them to hear, macular degeneration in the eye is being combated by retinal implants, and of course prosthetic hands and arms can connect directly to the nervous system to allow for more articulated movement, but what about machines connecting to the brain itself?

A Brain Computer Interface system allows users to control machines by hooking up different parts of the brain to a computer, or by using a machine similar to an electroencephalogram (EEG) to interpret brain wave function into complex commands in a computer system, which can then do a number of things.  Recently, a test done on humans has attached an array of electrodes from the thalamus (the sensory input area of the brain) and sent signals through the computer, where the stimuli are interpreted.  The results were astonishing.  They were able to take what people were seeing, and transmit it into images, breaking the barrier between neural functioning and image projection.  Some day, this activity may be sent from the area of the brain that remembers things, and video cameras may become a thing of the past.  Imagine a world where dreams themselves could be projected onto a screen for all to see.

Animal testing has also yielded results for Rhesus monkeys who have the ability to control robotic arms as articulately as they control their own arms using no more than their own brain-waves.  A dragonfly’s brain, isolated, has been able to flutter a set of wings very similar to its own.  These tests have been done using everything from simple stocking hat-like apparatus which record brain activity through the skull all the way to far more invasive methods, which appear to be far more reliable.

The invasive tests rest within the gray matter of the brain, and show great promise in their ability to allow disabled individuals senses they would previously have lost for life.  Jens Naumann, struck blind after reaching adulthood, was one such patient who received an implant which enabled him better mapping of his vision.  Immediately upon receiving the device, he enjoyed improved vision.  Alternately, artificial hands and arms have been implemented in people allowing users to even touch and feel the objects they interact with in ways similar to how a real hand feels.  Use of this technology to interact with computer software has also been demonstrated effectively.  Patients have been allowed the ability to move mouse cursors, type, and even play computer games without moving a muscle.  Due to the fact that dangerous scar-tissue is known to develop when implants are placed directly on the brain, semi-invasive subtypes of BCI wetware are currently being studied, including a laser system which interfaces with neurons effectively without touching them.

The next natural step would be computer software specifically designed to enhance able-bodied and minded people for the purpose of enhancing their quality of life.  But a sort of bizarre vision of the future comes to light when we imagine the prices of these devices, and we take into account the natural human nature associated with expensive items.  Robberies and so-called ‘Chop Shops’ of the future may be quite a grisly place indeed.  And what about viruses and bionically enhanced soldiers?  One day the internet may connect entire brains into a collective.  Think-tanks may be quite literal in nature.  Of course looking at this technology with fear is an interesting concept, particularly to those who would be otherwise locked within their own bodies.

Mind Reading Computers :: Coming Soon

Imagine a world where you begin your day at work by sitting at a computer and looking at a screen.  As you begin, the windows move with perfect cohesion across the screen and suddenly you're typing as fast as you can imagine words.  Your thoughts organize entire strips of data and soon you've completed all of your tasks in a matter of minutes, only to move on to the next set at the speed of thought.  Sound like science fiction?  New technology is bringing it into reality quicker than you think.

Intel is currently working to develop a complex map of words and their relation to impulses in the brain.  By crossing this barrier between mental data and digital data, quickly your brain's processing speed will be your only limiting factor as you click buttons, type emails, check the web, and call up information to research simply by thinking about it.  Currently Intel's machines can detect several words and even have them appear on screen when subjects think about them.

But as the technology improves, the size of the device used shrinks and the applications grow.  Now it's words, but can we imagine a world where the same technology is brought into the work place the same as the keyboard and mouse were brought in as personal computers first saw use in the commercial sector?

Just as with any new piece of technology the innovations that can be used are virtually endless.  And with them there's an entire new world opened up of mind hacking.  Take for instance the scenario where someone says, "Think about the last thing you ate for lunch."  Before in the privacy of our minds we could give in to the reflex of thinking about our lunch and then a decision would take place between the thought in our minds and the movement of our mouths.  The subtleties in the time difference and those movements may betray us if we had reason to lie about it, but there would still be an opportunity to do so.  What if a bank robber were to walk to a banker and put on one of these mind reading head-sets and ask them to think about the combination?  Of course it would only be a reflexive action, and the banker would have every opportunity to freeze his thoughts, but this would largely depend on how much training he had controlling his thoughts.  And as the technology improves, it may prove more difficult to fool the machine with each passing generation.

And what will we discover if we leave such a machine on as we sleep?  Would we get a better grasp of the thoughts that run through our minds as we dream?  Perhaps this is yet another avenue to wonder about privacy invasion.

So are we in for a world where even our own deepest thoughts are not private?  With feeds such as twitter casually updating the world on our every movement, is it possible we could be opening a Pandora's box of honesty society is not at this juncture ready for?  The applications are as promising as they are terrifying.

PlayStation 3 'hacked' by hardware crackers

A group of hardware hackers claim they are about to release the first product to allow gamers to play homemade and pirated games on the PlayStation 3.

The PS3 is the only games console that has not been hacked, despite being on the market for more than three years.

Now a group called PSJailbreak says it will release a USB dongle containing software that allows users to save games to the console's hard drive.

Sony, the maker of the PS3, declined to comment.

However, a distributor for the dongle said that he had tested it and would start selling the device "in the next two weeks".

Mixed response

According to videos of the hack posted online by an Australian distributor, a user merely has to insert the USB stick into the console to make it work.

The videos show a person navigating to a "backup manager" on the PS3, which purports to show a list of games saved to the console's hard drive.

The narrator flicks through the list before loading one of the games.

Sceptics have suggested the videos are a hoax or that they show the hack running on a so-called "debug PS3" or "dev unit", used by developers to test code for the machine.

A spokesperson for Console Pro, another distributor based in the Netherlands, told the "dongle converts a retail unit into a dev unit".

"Dev mode means it will run any - even unsigned - code. Using a simple backup maker or player software, you can play backed-up [saved] games without the actual disc being in the PS3."

The spokesperson for Fox-Chip said the hack was a "good thing" as it would give gamers more functionality, including the ability to run their own games, called homebrews.

"There was previously no homebrew, because it was impossible to execute [on the console] - now some people can do it," he said.

He denied that the product would just be used to pirate games and said, in the long run, its release would be good for Sony.

"Sony should sell a lot of consoles because of this," he said.

But Rik Ferguson of security firm Trend Micro warned that the hack could cause problems.

"It does disable some key security features built into the PS3 - like the running of unsigned code - and we've seen with the iPhone that this makes your device less secure."

The iPhone has been cracked several times and allows owners to run non-Apple approved applications.

Gamers have met the news of PSJailbreak with a mixed response, with some welcoming the possibility of developing their own games for the popular console.

However, many posting on PS3 forums said that the product would promote piracy and could undermine the games industry.

Pre-emptive strike

The legality of products such as this - commonly called modchips - differs by country.

The Fox-chip spokesperson said that distributing them was legal in France.

However, in other countries, console manufactures have successfully taken distributors to court.

A recent High Court ruling in the UK said that "game copiers" were illegal to import, advertise and sell.

The case had been brought by Nintendo, maker of the Wii and DS handheld console.

The defendants had argued that they allow gamers to play home-made games.

PSJailbreak is not the first time that there have been claims that the popular PS3, which has sold almost 40 million units, has been hacked.

Earlier this year, a US hacker who gained notoriety for unlocking Apple's iPhone as a teenager, George Hotz, claimed to have cracked the console.

Following his initial announcement, Sony released an update for the console disabling a function that allowed gamers to install a version of Linux on their machines, thought to have been exploited by Mr Hotz.

Many saw it as a pre-emptive strike to guard against games piracy.

Mr Hotz has never released the exploit and has said publicly that he has given up his work on the console.

The spokesperson for Console Pro said he expected a similarly swift response to the latest exploit:

"They will come with a firmware update in some days blocking the use of the dongle," he said.

Ice Cold at Center of the Sun an Atmospheric Research

The sun is a searing 9,941 degrees Fahrenheit on the surface. And yet one scientist says what lies beneath may not be so hot at all, as dark matter works to cool it at the center. Royal Holloway's Dr. Stephen West has a theory that the mysterious substance, which comprises an astonishing 80 percent of the universe, and whose very existence has been a subject of hot debate recently, actually has a lasting effect on the sun to chill it out.

Everyone is told that staring at the sun too long will cause you to go blind. And yet Dr. West, though studying the sun for years has only been endowed with brilliant insight. The unexpected find has Dr. West and his colleagues excited as they propose a study on the Sun to discover the mysterious energy. Dark matter is a substance that has never been created in a lab or even directly observed, though its effects can be seen every night with a high powered telescope as stars exhibit unexplained gravitational perturbations with which scientists can speculate more gravity (and therefore mass) must somehow invisibly exist.


And yet if this matter is affected by gravity, then Dr. West says, it can get caught up in other passing celestial bodies. One prime candidate would be the sun, which has been traveling through the galaxy for several million years with matter collecting within it. The sun must therefore have not only a small amount, but a great deal of dark matter built up within it. This collection would then be absorbed and travel to the center of the sun where it would collect in a massive pool at the center, cooling the sun as it takes in massive amounts of the mysterious energy. And if this were the case, then this Dark Matter would still exist in our very own dark matter collector, locked away behind two billion billion billion tons of helium and fire.


By creating and then studying several simulations on the effect this buildup could have, Dr. West has theorized that the heat from the core could be absorbed by dark matter and then repelled outward while the center cools. As a result, those comparing heat to the center of the sun may actually be wrong. According to this theory, the center of the sun could actually be freezing.


Dr. West goes on, as Science Daily reports, to speculate on the possibility that not only could dark matter be there as a chance occurrence of its travel through the stars, but could actually play an important role in solar physics. Although, before this possibility is confirmed, further study is warranted, including further study of Dark Matter such as the experiments scheduled at CERN the Large Hadron Collider and Fermilab.


Though we may not ritually revere the sun as much as the Aztecs did, there is certainly a great deal of attention being given to our Solar friend even today. And with this incredible attention a sense of awe and wonder soon follows making it certain that we will be asking questions and studying for many years to come.

'Memory' how to fight Flu

In short order every few years a new flu strain evolves that many say threatens to disrupt civilization as we know it.  With super bug fears rising every year, some say the next superbug could be the one that finally mimics the Spanish flu and kills millions.  Of course these diseases are often seen as nothing more than an inconvenience.  But fear them or merely dislike them, a new vaccine may soon be available that removes the flu from our lives forever.

The logic of the vaccine is as follows: there are two largely recognizable parts of a flu virus, the head and the stem.  In using an analogy comparing the flu virus to an ice-cream cone we can discover how the vaccine works.  The head of the virus is similar to the ice cream contained in the cone.  The flavors or genetic variations of the virus change from one generation to the next, making it difficult to predict what will be coming next.  Meanwhile, despite the flavors of virus being different the cone is always the same, and rarely changes.  This new vaccine will target the thing that makes all flu viruses similar by making the body produce antibodies that fight specifically against it.

Scientists for years have had difficulty combating the rapidly mutating flus partially because of how different they can be from year to year and even from month to month.  When H1N1 first hit the US, 24 hour news coverage soon decreed that it could be a disaster of national proportions.  In retrospect, many have come forward saying these reports were hasty while others contend that H1N1 was never more than a few mutations away from becoming a serious problem.  And a mere five years earlier the Bird flu H5N1 was seen as a potential killer that could mutate into something quite deadly and cause the same level of devastation.  If every five years a flu is going to come around that threatens civilization as we know it, then a universal flu vaccine is certainly a worthy endeavor.

And that vaccine may soon be developed thanks to the efforts of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and its director, Anthony S. Fauci.  Fauci has found a way to create antibodies in animals that neutralize several different strains of the disease and provide protection that could last for ten years.  Given that somewhere around 36,000 people in the US die annually of the common flu, this would be a milestone achievement.  A single vaccine is expected to last for ten years, meaning up to 360,000 lives could be saved right away.  And that's only taking into account deaths in the United States.  Globally the disease claims up to 500,000 lives annually, meaning up to five million could be saved over one ten year period if the vaccine works.  And this is just taking into consideration the standard flu.  A super flu that could cause widespread devastation in a pandemic scenario could soon become a thing of the past.

Design unveiled for world's fastest car

Farnborough:

A British team aiming to smash the current land speed record has unveiled the design of a pencil-shaped car that it hopes will travel at more than 1,000 miles (1,609 kms) an hour.

After three years of aerodynamic research, construction is about to begin on the Bloodhound Supersonic Car which will be powered by a jet engine and a rocket with the record attempt slated for 2012 in South Africa.

"We have fixed the shape," said Andy Green, the Royal Air Force fighter pilot who will drive the Bloodhound as it attempts to speed into the record books.

"Because of the modelling we have done, we know this shape will go to 1,000 miles an hour. Now we are actually going to get on and build it."

The same team, led by Briton Richard Noble, hold the current record of 763 mph set in 1997. At that stage Green became the first man to travel at supersonic speed on land, breaking the sound barrier.

Powered by a combination of a Typhoon fighter's jet engine and a Falcon rocket, the car unveiled at the Farnborough International Air Show will develop 135,000 horse power or 180 times the power of a Formula 1 car.

The record attempt, on a dry lake bed, will see it accelerate from stationary to 1,000 mph (1,609 kmph) in 4.5 miles (7.25 km) in 45 seconds.

But the team say their mission is not just to break the land speed record - they want to inspire the next generation of engineers and technologists.

Since the project was announced in October 2008 at the Science Museum in London, more than 1.5 million British school children have become involved in the Bloodhound Education programme.