Panda ant

Credit: DrSarahJensen/Flickr/Featured Creature

Panda ants are members of the family Mutillidae, a family of wasps, commonly known as velvet ants, in which the females are flightless & resemble large, hairy ants. Colour is most commonly bright scarlet or orange. Other colours include black, white, silver & gold, or as in the panda ant, black & white. Panda ants are native to Chile.



Velvet ants are also known as, “cow killer ants”, as anecdote has it that they are able to bring down a cow with relatively few stings.



http://www.ourbreathingplanet.com/panda-ant/

http://blogspot.obsessionbiology.com/2011/12/case-of-panda-ant.html

http://pandaant.org/

http://pandaant.org/panda-ant-facts/

http://featuredcreature.com/this-panda-ant-will-bamboozle-you-about-its-true-identity/ / Euspinolia militaris nicknamed panda ant markings species of wingless wasp Red Velvet Ant cow killer painful sting subdue a grown cow wasp handle bright color aposematic signal related Red Velvet Ant painful sting exhibit extreme sexual dimorphism sexes mating male larger female species mating Tiphiidae nearly extinct species lays approximately 2000 eggs predators eat young panda ants hatch bright colors insect wingless wasp fully grown up to 8 millimeters in length 2-3 millimeters in height feed stenothermic thermophilic /

How to disable your webcam (& why you should)

It’s not news that there are morally disabled people on the ‘Net prepared to invade your privacy, for a range of purposes, including fraud & vandalism. There are hacker tools available, some with a low skill level entry requirement, & forums where advice & other information is exchanged.

More newsworthy is the capacity of some tools to seize control of computer webcams, in some cases without activating the camera activity light. Such tools open up a new range of abuses including voyeuristic invasion of privacy & sharing of images & video.

Below is a screen-shot showing one of the available tools in use, with an image (suitably disguised) of a woman whose privacy has been invaded.


Credit: Ars Technica

How to disable your webcam
http://www.howtogeek.com/210921/how-to-disable-your-webcam-and-why-you-should/

Meet the men who spy on women through their webcams
http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/03/rat-breeders-meet-the-men-who-spy-on-women-through-their-webcams/ / slave slaves concern paranoia paranoid reports revelations spy on you through webcam disable cover webcam review handy products Script-kiddie hackers easily accessible tools phishing techniques hijack webcams unsuspecting people watch them through their camera store images videos people in compromising situations bedroom uploaded shady websites kids children implementing stop webcams on all the time webcam spying threat government agents hackers law-breaking voyeurs actively spy computer’s webcam ramblings paranoid conspiracy theorist hypervigilant hyper vigilant hyper-vigilant privacy advocate news stories over paranoia uncomfortable reality student sued his school school-provided laptop secretly photographing ensuing legal investigation revealed school collected 56,000 photographs students without their knowledge consent researchers demonstrated activate webcam MacBooks without indicator light turning on previously considered impossible former FBI agent confirmed possible doing it for years documents leaked by Edward Snowden NSA backdoor access cameras on iPhones Blackberries NSA tools remotely monitor users Gumfish malware tool remote video monitoring via webcam BlackShades remote access webcam access victim’s computers Back Orifice marginally skilled malicious users gain access your computer Ars Technica Meet The Men Who Spy On Women Through Their Webcams spying government agents low-tier hackers simple phishing tricks malicious websites simple tools catalog monitor allegations government spying intellectual majority of actual webcam spying creepy Peeping Toms Remote Access Tools RATs Trojans malware well documented examples only active snapping selfies Skyping trust indicator light camera can be active without the light webcam spying real threat spooks at the NSA kid next door access tools webcam against owner then threat legitimate disable or obscure computer webcam documented cases webcam spying insecure recording device permanently disable remove webcam obscure lens disable webcam antivirus anti-virus link running wrong executable whitelist trojan antivirus malware secure help unplug camera desktop users external webcams desktop machines external USB web cam webcam hacking hacker hacked plug an unplugged device workstation monitors USB cable hardware operating system OS BIOS option laptops integrated webcams disable webcam via BIOS reboot microphone camera microphone module same expansion board privacy mic microphone disable OS operating system solution secure foolproof disabling webcam cripple webcam disabling removing driver support Windows Device Manager Imaging Devices roster of devices remote administrative access install missing drivers enable device disable webcam Eyebloc Cover C-Slide tiny plastic slider Creative Cam Covers DIY electrical tape cover /

Lexus builds a functional hoverboard prototype (video)

Maybe.

Late last year, a hoverboard project was funded on Kickstarter. Some convincing video was produced, but it only hovered above a copper surface.

Now Lexus has made promises:



http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-06-24/lexus-builds-a-functional-hoverboard-prototype

http://arstechnica.com/cars/2015/06/lexus-has-built-a-working-hoverboard/ / Back to the Future floating skateboard Toyota back to the future automaker flying cars Lexus luxury brand built working model hover board hoverboard actual working hoverboard prototype liquid nitrogen-cooled nitrogen cooled superconductors magnets Lexus website technology zooming Toyota's magnetic-levitation magnetic levitation train Toyota experiment experimenting prototype cars confidential information studying flying car research and deveopment R&D area Hiroyoshi Yoshiki Toyota’s Technical Administration Group flying car friction resistance road Back to the Future movie released Marty McFly evade pursuers Lexus start testing prototype Barcelona films Lexus /

Owls may hold the key to quieter wind turbines & jet aircraft

Credit: Getty Images/Wired

Both wind turbines & jet aircraft have been targets of noise complaints.

Large owls, on the other hand are masters of silent flight. So what’s their secret? A team at the University of Cambridge has been investigating.

http://www.wired.com/2015/06/owls-may-hold-secret-quieter-wind-turbines-jets/ / owl owls secret quiet quieter wind turbines 21st century windmill tips blades 100 feet long move faster winds category five hurricane wind turbines renewable energy advocates target noise health complaints blades are intentionally slowed down less effective generating electricity researchers turned to nature find solution noise problem team University of Cambridge published research wings of large owls masters at silent swooping voles high speeds undetected team discovered birds’ flight feathers create lift downy covering flexible comb of bristles leading edge porous fringe trailing edge bird intricate wing structure Professor Nigel Peake of Cambridge’s Department Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics noise from wings fan blades occurs at the trailing edge air is the most turbulent owl’s wing smooths quiets the air birds to hunt more effectively Cambridge team Virginia Tech Lehigh Florida Atlantic Universities prototype material 3D-printed plastic mimic the owls’ natural feature fitted full-sized wind turbine blades tested in a wind tunnel reduced noise generation 10 decibels significant amount of noise measured logarithmically affecting aerodynamics figured out how owls fly replicate testing the coating functioning wind turbine researchers wind farm generate several additional megawatts of electricity without appreciable increase in noise researchers solution applied to airplanes noise serious issue in aviation authorities plane makers airports minimize unpleasant side effect vital industry jet of the future fly like an owl /

1PasswordAnywhere lets you access your 1Password vault on the Web

Credit: AgileBits/Life Hacker

1Password is a password manager which runs on Windows, OS X, iOS & Android. Apps are not available for other operating systems.

Fortunately, there is a read only, html version, which will run in a browser. This is not only useful for operating systems, such as Chrome OS & Linux, but for any computer other than those on which you have installed 1Password. E.g. a friend’s Mac.

http://lifehacker.com/1passwordanywhere-lets-you-access-your-1password-vault-1580683606 / operating systems OS OSs 1Password password manager synchronise sync your devices via Dropbox sync vault passwords 1Password access any device installing the app feature called 1PasswordAnywhere access your vault enable Dropbox syncing your Dropbox web browser open the 1Password folder open 1Password.agilekeychain folder inside folder 1Password.html file click file 1Password Master Password read-only access your vault access my passwords via Chromebook Agilebits native app platform 1PasswordAnywhere works well only need it occasionally alternate platform buy program Windows Mac iOS enable Dropbox syncing 1PassswordAnywhere /

Transparent Samsung Safety Truck

Just one lane in each direction, big, slow truck, in front. Can’t see what’s ahead — unless it’s transparent — or a Samsung Safety Truck.



http://www.theverge.com/2015/6/21/8820059/samsung-road-safety-truck-prototype

http://www.extremetech.com/extreme/208717-transparent-samsung-truck-could-make-driving-much-safer

http://www.gizmag.com/samsung-safety-truck-cameras-screens/38122/ / 2009 Russian design house Art Lebedev Transparentius concept improving road safety camera front large slow moving trucks connect video displays back informing trailing drivers whether safe overtake big rig exact same idea Samsung new prototype truck outdoor displays Korean company video wall four displays rear of the truck transmits video captured wireless camera at the front Samsung regulatory approval deployment of its so-called Safety Truck economically practical camera cheap simple install four displays per truck major investment transport company direct financial benefit Samsung overcome the technical challenges solar glare improving information while driving Vehicle-to-Vehicle Communication V2V systems networked intelligence your car transmits data position direction speed receives about cars around it issue alerts unsafe driving by others notify of any collisions ahead other drivers time to react V2V vision Samsung's Safety Truck making big trucks transparent application of technology /

For your browsing safety — HTTPS

HTTPS is a protocol that provides secure Internet transactions between web browsers & web sites. Recently, a few major sites adopted it:

Netflix will soon use HTTPS to secure video streams

http://arstechnica.com/security/2015/04/it-wasnt-easy-but-netflix-will-soon-use-https-to-secure-video-streams/

reddit goes all-HTTPS

http://arstechnica.com/security/2015/06/reddit-goes-all-https-joining-wikipedia-netflix-and-even-the-feds/

Wikipedia to go all HTTPS, all the time

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/06/14/wikipedia_to_go_all_https_all_the_time/

Google gives sites secured with HTTPS a slight boost in their rankings:

http://searchengineland.com/google-starts-giving-ranking-boost-secure-httpsssl-sites-199446

HTTPS Everywhere is an extension for Firefox, Chrome, & Opera which ensures that HTTPS is always used if a website makes it available:

http://lifehacker.com/https-everywhere-updates-to-keep-you-secure-on-thousand-1695541941

https://www.eff.org/https-everywhere

Some of the issues around HTTPS

https://www.tbray.org/ongoing/When/201x/2012/12/02/HTTPS / Data Privacy Day 2012 EFF Electronic Frontier Foundation website websites protect online privacy enabling HTTPS implement HTTPS website data privacy Jolynn Dellinger site page protocol provides secure Internet transactions between web browsers web sites check web page visiting uses HTTPS URL top of your browser HTTPS HTTP "S" stands for secure browsers indicate using secure connection displaying a closed lock corner browser HTTPS protects users Internet surveillance encrypting your connection HTTPS prevents eavesdroppers seeing contents your communication website sensitive data contents email chats login credentials search terms credit card numbers sites support HTTPS turn it on by default failed to implement HTTPS at all open wireless networks coffee shops libraries users sharing network connections strangers tools Firesheep Wireshark trivial matter individuals minimal technical knowledge eavesdrop users reading writing online safeguard privacy reading habits Internet encrypt the web websites enabling HTTPS secure version of a website EFF HTTPS Everywhere browser extension extention Chrome Firefox website visit supports HTTPS included in the HTTPS Everywhere database submit a new rule track analyze implementation HTTPS Web HTTPS-enabled report EFF Access Now test a site's support for HTTPS report it to the community HTTPS is not an anonymity tool eavesdroppers where you are connecting from sites you are connecting to sites track and record your activity Tor anonymity Website administrators site admin protect users' privacy enabling HTTPS on your site /