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AT&T shrugs off FTTH, says it's satisfied with copper {Engadget}
Dec 6th 2006 12:32PM copper would be more that adequate if it were switched microwave coax (with each home having it's own link, unlike cable tv, where it's shared). It would even be alright if it were some quad-shielded cat-5e, which ought to be able to do a good ~300 mbps over reasonable distances and 1000 mbps over relatively short distances.
But 2-pair copper phone cable? Not so much.
BenQ uses WTC & 9/11 imagery to sell devices {Engadget}
Dec 1st 2006 10:30PM "Drbuzz: Why would china care about what happened in Japan? Or do you think that Hiroshima is in mainland china? I dont understand how that's "throwing one back at em""
My apologies: I was unaware of the nationality of BenQ. I apparently thought it was Japanese. I will have to come up with somwthing equally offensive for China.
And by the way.
"This was used in elections:" My response is this: Terrorist attacks are a relevant topic for political campaigns. Also, it was much more tasteful than this.
"GM used 9/11 in commercials" No, not exactly. They implied a sense of patriotism, which could be considered a reference to 9/11 and they may have invoked a sense of the economic consequences. However, it was not this kind of blatantly distasteful imagery.
"don't buy their products" I certainly won't. Actually, I can't imagine anything that would make me want a BenQ product after this. I really hope that everyone else takes this to heart.
Lets please stop with this "Typical American" or "Here's my chance to say how much I hate Bush."
This has nothing to do with Bush or Cheney or any of that. Those are entirely separate issues which IN NO WAY justify this advertisement which is so absolutely disgusting that it should shock and anger anyone who sees it.
BenQ uses WTC & 9/11 imagery to sell devices {Engadget}
Dec 1st 2006 8:59PM Okay here's one for you BenQ:
There's nothing hotter than a nice new MP3 Player! Not even the ball of nuclear plazma that seared the skin off of those in Hiroshime and Nagasaki can beat the brilliance of a new MP3 player!
Yes, you can rock on with your awesome MP3 player as you run from the gas in the Tokyo subway. The base is so clear that you will swear that you're hearing firebombs raining down from B-29's.
With this excellent MP3 player, you can enjoy your music ANYWHERE, even in remote caves under Iwo Jima, the sound will come through just as the Marines pump napalm into your hideout.
Seriously: Who ever has written this is really trying to make some enemies. While I value freedom of speech and all that, if the execs of this company were to meet with a very long and painful death, I wouldn't be upset at all.
Oh I know. "America is Evil" rigth? Because you don't like Bush and you think the Iraq war was not justified.
Look: There's no reason why the United States should take this one on the chin from a nation who we have major diplomatic relations with. If this is going to be pumped out by Japanese companies, then we have a right not to treat them as friends.
CNET's James Kim and family missing -- have you seen them? {Engadget}
Dec 1st 2006 2:59PM Wow. They've been missing for a week? I have to admit when I first saw this headline, I was expecting it to be something like "Our editor has gone missing and you need to find him! Check for clues on our website and specially marked boxes and you could win a new PS3."
Unfortionately, it seems this is all too real. One thing to note is that all the newer Saabs come standard with Onstar. (I know because my father has a 2004 Station Wagon). I would *think* that a techie guy like him would pay their nominal fee for the service.
Even if he has not paid for the subscription, I *think* that the system can be activated and pinged remotely, to get the return from the internal GPS as to where it is. Of course, this won't work if for some reason the car has lost power and the battery, or if it's so far in the boonies that it doesn't even have analog cellular service.
Just a thought. I don't know if they've looked into this before. They probably have.
Best wishes to find them all safe and sound!
DirecTV to unveil SAT-GO {Engadget}
Nov 28th 2006 10:27PM there's already a third party thing akin to this called the Satcom Passport. http://www.satcomweb.com/miniplus.htm. Actually it's been around for a while. This thing looks kinda clunky, especially considering you have to point it at the satellite (which means southern exposure). So if you don't have a clear view of the south where you want to watch it, no dice. Your couch points north, but you want to see directv? You're gona have to turn the couch. It looks like this is one-piece. It would be much better if you could detach the antenna on a few feet of cable, and thereby position it for a good signal, without having to reorient the whole unit.
Human WiFi sniffer is every geek's dream woman {Engadget}
Nov 28th 2006 11:09AM "For all of you arguing that the woman would feel bothered by Sunlight if she was being bothered by her WiFi network-- radiation acts differently when applied differently. If you sit in the Sun's microwaves for 10 minutes, you will be fine. If you sit in your microwave oven and turn it on for 10 minutes, you will die a horrible death. The Sun's microwaves are based on pulsed direct current (DC) and microwave ovens use alternating current (AC)-- different application= different result.
And about any health concerns, psychology is a huge health concern, if there are in fact no physical health concerns. If my sunglasses pose no physical health concern but have a feather sticking out of it that constantly tickles my eyelids, that is a serious psychological health concern, if I wear those glasses all day. Likewise, if the wireless networks are poking me everywhere I go, that would be a serious psychological health concern."
A. The sun does not run on DC. It does not run on pulsed DC. It does not run on electricity at all.
B. When you're in the sun, you are in visible light, as well as infrared and uv. The sun does produce microwaves, but on earth, they make up a very small portion of the absorbed energy.
C. If you are in a microwave, you will not die because it runs on AC current. You will die because you are one foot away from a 1kw+ magnetron who's energy is concentrated in a small metal box.
D. It's not an issue of psychological vrs physical health concerns based on very low power microwave transmitters. It's an issue of whether or not they have any perceptible or appreciable effect on the body. They don't.
Human WiFi sniffer is every geek's dream woman {Engadget}
Nov 27th 2006 8:52PM Ionizing radiation can cause molecular damage. RF radiation: Completely different. It can cause heating of tissue and cellular fluid. Too much heating can cause problems. HOWEVER: there is NO significant tissue heating from such sources as wifi. This effect ONLY shows up in things like high power radar or microwave beams. And only at very close range.
There have been many many many studies. No well-controlled, reviewed study has ever found conclusive evidence of any health effects from low power microwave devices. EVER. Some poorly studies have shown some non-conclusive suspect stuff. But of all the studies done..NO real evidence..... EVER
Case closed. End of story. It's over. Stop beating the dead horse..it's starting to decompose. OVER
http://www.hps.org/publicinformation/ate/faqs/radiofrequencyqa.html
Excellent article:
http://www.newscientist.com/article/mg17924125.400-its-good-to-talk.html
Repost of full article:
http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/pgms/worknotify/heatSealerRF.html
Human WiFi sniffer is every geek's dream woman {Engadget}
Nov 27th 2006 8:36PM "Frankly, it simply hasn't existed long enough for us to know what the true ramifications are." Bull! Microwave transmitters have been around since world War II. They've been everywhere for a long time. You have no idea how the inverse square law works or about cumulative dose/tissue heating/ionization vrs. non-ionization/propigation...or a lot of other big words you would not understand.
"ok. I'm 19, when i was 8 or something, i started to hear weird noises... when i was at school,"
Yes...you did hear something. No it did not have anything to do with radio interference. What you heard was the beam resyncing on the TV. I can still hear it to this day with older TV's. IT's very high pitch and younger people are better at perceiving it. If you hear a sound coming from a wall block transformer or a piece of electronics with transistors in it, that could also be caused by the electronics. However, if the transformer whissles a real lot, then it might be time to get a new transformer.
And yes...certain lighting and stuff can make you feel sick....or depressed or something. It's due to the spectoral distribution and the pulsations of AC current...not because of some EM fields.
If this woman is really that sensitive, and unless she is notch-tuned to only certain wifi channels, then I would recommend she stay away from the following: cell towers, cell phones, radar guns, cordless phones, wireless video cameras, remote car alarms, garage door openers, airports, police cars, fire trucks, tv stations, video relays, wireless intercoms, stud finders, microwave ovens....and many many many other things.
Or...she could be faking it
ANd before you go and quote something like "studies show that electromagnetic radiation effects cells..." Go reading the freaking studies! There's a huge difference between owning a wifi router and putting a massive inductor on somebody's head and sending several kilowatts through it.
Detroit-area teen builds nuclear fusion reactor {Engadget}
Nov 23rd 2006 11:36PM What is the worst case:
Blows up like an h-bomb? No. Well, not in the sense of an H-bomb. It can't create nearly a large enough reaction to trigger large scale fusion.
Neutron Irradiation? If you sit next to it for a few years...then you might be able to get a bad dose. Actually...if it's a really big Fusor and it runs for a few hours, then maybe something noticeable....but I would doubt it.
X-ray Irridiation? Possible that it could produce x-rays if designed improperly, but so can a CRT projector. Not a major concern, but possible, so keep a geieger counter handy.
Create nasty radioactive stuff? No. Well...maybe in a few (hundred) years you could breed some tritium or something.
Blow up (little explosion)? Possible, because deuterium (hydrogen) is flammable. But unlikely unless you're real careless. In any case...no more dangerous than a gas grill. Probably much less so.
Electrocution: Possible, as it is with toasters, but probably more so given the high voltage and arcing potential.
Implosion: Possible, due to deep vacuum. A violent implosion could be followed by fragmentation and therefore dangerous. Of course...this is true with any vacuum system.
Conclusion: No threat to national security.
However...Kudos to the kid. We need tinkerers...they make cool stuff and whatnot
Detroit-area teen builds nuclear fusion reactor {Engadget}
Nov 23rd 2006 7:27PM *YAWN* AGAIN *YAWN* NO YOU CANT PAY YOUR ELECTRIC BILL WITH THIS. (sorry for shouting)
I built one of these a few years ago, and then took it apart later. Never got a major neutron count, but that's probably because I didn't use a good diffusion pump. Or because I made my own deuterium (from heavy water).
Hence...I am not one of the 18 listed... you gotta make some neutrons to qualify. It could also be that I didn't have a very good neutron detector. (an old eberline one).
I kinda regreat taking it apart now... especially considering I didn't rebuild a new one like I said I would...
Yes...it's an electrostatic confinement fusion reactor. The most common variation is called a "Farnsworth Fusor" Yes it works. It's easier to build than one might expect. It's not that easy...harder than a tesla coil, but a lot easier than a homebuilt aircraft. It's been around since the 1950's.
Oh also...It can't be used to power anything. No sorry...it's inherently not capable of producing a surplus of energy. If you can find a fusion reactor this simple that produces surplus energy....well then there's some guys in Oslo who have a prize for you.
Not to put the kid down though...it is a lot of fun to get involved in amateur science stuff, and it is beyond the capabilities of most people.
It actually does have a practicle use...that being as a neutron source. it doesn't produce much in the way of neutrons, but it's probably more practicle for certain situations than the alternative (an Am-Be or Cf-252 source).
Actually you should check out fusor.net
