Rein in your application permissions

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2013/08/application-permissions/ / you’ve given lots of applications access services used more than one Twitter client Facebook app Instagram plug-in plug in enormous number attach themselves our accounts varying degrees permission good idea to go through periodically clean out Google Twitter Facebook Dropbox lots of other services support OAuth enables third party third-party apps use account APIs application program interface account login information seems harmless offer malicious application individual access to your account no longer using these services using them rarely reason allow app continue to have access links clear off the cruft Google Facebook Twitter Instagram Dropbox Gravitar Plaxo Cliqset zap anything haven’t used more than a month have access revokeds grant service access again later afer authorized connection list of authorized services within mobile applications Twitter app settings smart mobile cell feature phone check out third party third-party apps services you’ve authorized authorised Twitter share data with envision how many of those you can live without /

BlackBerry Messenger for iOS & Android — to be released soon

Credit: BlackBerry/ Boy Genius Report

Before the end of (northern) summer.

http://bgr.com/2013/08/01/blackberry-messenger-android-ios-photo-release/ / BlackBerry Messenger coming iOS Android later this year first photo will look like picture login screen Samsung Galaxy S III 3 can’t show more due to identifying marks isn’t bad release released publicly announced BlackBerry Messenger for iOS Android release released before end of summer /

Why cane toads give us a small hope for climate change

How much ugly you want?
Credit: The Conversation

Studies of invasive cane toad populations in Australia show that at the advancing front of the invasion, the individuals move much faster than in stable populations: as much as one kilometer in a night. This is not just a behavioral change, the animals on the advancing front have longer, stronger legs which allow them to jump further at a single jump & continue jumping longer.

What this tells us is that, at the advancing front, there are different selective pressures, producing these more athletic pioneering individuals.

Once the advancing front has passed, the selective pressures change to those which produce the cane toads typical of a stable population. Result: the population evolves back to its static, less athletic form.

What does any of this tell us about climate change?

As climate change progresses, environments gradually change. There comes a point where the native flora & fauna reach the limit of their tolerance & must migrate or perish. A concern is that if a population can't move quickly enough, it will be destroyed by an incompatible environment. Cane toad studies give some hope that species may be able to migrate faster than previously thought.

http://theconversation.com/why-cane-toads-give-us-small-hope-for-climate-change-16455 / cane toads toad Bufo marinus Australia’s Australia most serious invasive species feral introduced species pest killing predators goannas quolls crocodiles tropical north toads advancing Queensland Kimberley new research shows toads evolve spread faster new environments good news animals move because climate change toads climate hopping ecological theory assumption population animals stable space individuals their offspring live same general area year after year reality messier many populations are not stable invasive species expand range spread long term long-term study University of Sydney Sydney-based Team Bufo Greg Brown radio track tracking tracker tracked radio-tracked invasive cane toads first arrived at an area near Darwin continued track newly arriving arrive arrival newly-arriving toads next several years Tom Lindstrom’s Lindstrom mathematical analysis radio-tracking results revealed dramatic shift published today in the journal PNAS first toads arrived near Darwin incredibly mobile often moving more than one kilometer kilometre within a single night but within a couple of years that rate had more than halved super-speediness seen at the invasion front probably driven by evolutionary forces that come into play only at an expanding range edge, and are not seen in stable populations earlier studies toad front had revealed these mechanisms current work shows just how spectacular the acceleration can be rapid decrease mobility after the invasion front passes through normal cane toads animals from long-established long established populations would underestimate potential rate movement want predict how quickly species can expand its range we need look right expanding range edge unfortunately logistically difficult most data animal dispersal rates come from long established long-established stable populations population result may be underestimating potential rates of population spread adapting adaptation adapt changing world problem doesn’t just relate invasive species Many species shift ranges range other reasons climate change rendering many areas unsuitable animal plant animals plants that currently live there becoming too hot or too dry creating those conditions somewhere nearby area that previously may have been too cold too wet species caught in this situation survive individuals either must rapidly adapt new conditions move area offers suitable conditions fast pace climate change makes both options very tough to achieve but not impossible species where individuals generally do not move about very much very far process expanding their range into new newly suitable newly-suitable area create evolutionary pressure faster dispersal end result many species will manage shift their distributions distribution more quickly from the movement rates measure existing stable populations provides glimmer of hope /

Dell's computer-on-a-stick

Credit: Dell/ Boy Genius Report

Currently shipping to testers, scheduled for a northern hemisphere fall release

http://bgr.com/2013/07/29/dell-project-ophelia-release-date/ / Dell working new device code name code-named code named code-name Project Ophelia report reports Android-powered Android powered computer on a USB stick struggling PC vendor apparently use Ophelia help reinvent company founder Michael Dell efforts take Dell private computer on a stick one step closer to launching recent report from IDG News Service Dell’s Project Ophelia turn any screen display HDMI port into PC gaming machine streaming media player now shipping beta testers public release scheduled this fall device will be priced around $100 IDG claims /

Self-driving cars may crank out data at 1GB per second

Credit: Google/ TechHive

Plus reduce accidents by using vehicle to vehicle communication & available to the general public in 5 years?

http://www.techhive.com/article/2045390/self-driving-cars-may-crank-out-data-at-1gb-per-second.html / self driving cars experts have predicted readily available within five years multiple myriad of sensors creating machine-to-machine machine to machine data rate of 1GB per second strategist Mark van Rijmenam big data strategist founder BigData-Startups.com sensors self-driving cars provide opportunity opportunities spot mechanical problems before they happen schedule repairs Google CEO Sergey Brin self-driving cars reality ordinary people" in less than five years California's California governor signed into law bill allowing vehicles on its roads tests Britain United Kingdom England UK General Motors GM plans an introduce semi-automated Cadillac driving system 2015 cars worldwide surpass one billion almost unimaginable how much data created Google's self-driving car common Google company working Rijmenam wrote 2020 autonomous vehicle functionality buy reasonable price point Thilo Koslowski analyst Gartner predict prediction predicts car manufacturers are working on self-driving cars Mobileye Dutch company specializes in inexpensive cameras assist self-driving cars true data creator data know where drive how fast to drive even detect new cigarette butt thrown ground knows person might appear behind a corner or car 2 petabytes of data a year Koslowski large amounts data between internal components automated car stored shared surpass surpassing surpassed today's smart cars autonomous car technology infrared sensors inexpensive video cameras laser based laser-based radar detect objects around them talk to each othe detect detecting velocity nearby vehicles react turn brake suddenly computer algorithms predictive models predict where other vehicles protecting drivers from others bad moves skill skills analyse analysis analyze autonomous cars sensors identify mechanical problems real time real-time proactively address them driver notified pending mechanical issue before problem develops develop development car would be able to schedule a maintenance appointment without driver assistance event data recorders 95 percent new cars already track behavior driver performance car future data collected help car companies quickly pinpoint areas upgrade upgrading adjust car appropriately time to market for new cars shortened /

Free Software Foundation drives fundraising effort for "fully free" Replicant Android fork

http://www.engadget.com/2013/07/27/free-software-foundation-replicant-fundraising/ / Android variant variants various guises some liberating entirely free any kind of licensing issues Replicant example project 2010 new fundraising initiative Free Software Foundation vital boost key difference many other Android spin offs spin-offs doesn't rely on proprietary software play nice vendor hardware most of Android is free hardware interface level more complex FSF driving investment towards Replicant more hardware supported turn opening the OS up to even more users user source support /

What the media hype is not reporting: 3D printers are bad for human health

Ventilation would be a big help.

http://www.core77.com/blog/digital_fabrication/what_the_media_hype_is_not_reporting_3d_printers_are_bad_for_human_health--but_so_is_cooking_with_an_electric_frying_pan_25275.asp / research paper Illinois Institute of Technology little-examined little examined side 3D printing dangerous to human health Assistant Professor Brent Stephens heads up Built Environment Research Group Department of Civil Architectural and Environmental Engineering team grad students ultrafine particles UFP UFPs given off plastic melted extruded through commercially available desktop 3D printers brand names provided media outlets feverishly picking up story comparing 3D printing cigarette smoking health effects researchers found 3D printing gives off UFPs significant enough significant-enough amounts printers characterized high emitters offending particles particularly relevant health perspective they deposit efficiently pulmonary alveolar regions lung dead head airways deposition head airways lead translocation brain via olfactory nerve high surface areas associated UFPs also lead to high concentrations adsorbed condensed compounds epidemiological studies elevated UFP number concentrations associated adverse health effects cardio-respiratory mortality hospital admissions for stroke asthma symptoms certainly sounds disturbing research paper recent studies reported size resolved size-resolved total UFP emission rates other consumer devices appliances activities laser printers candles cigarettes irons radiators cooking on gas and electric stoves previous study reported total UFP emission rates same size range measured during various cooking activities comparison estimate total UFP emission rate single PLA based PLA-based 3D printer similar reported during cooking electric frying pan 3D printer utilizing higher temperature ABS feedstock emission rate estimate similar reported during grilling food gas electric stove stoves low power approximately order of magnitude lower than gas electric stoves operating high power Regardless, the desktop 3D printers measured classified high emitters study revealed emission rates UFPs approximately order of magnitude higher 3D printers utilizing ABS thermoplastic feedstock relative PLA feedstock higher temperatures required to extrude ABS chemical composition material itself that makes worse PLA given a choice between materials study reveal potential dangers to human health 3D printing surprising dangers cooking with conventional utensils shares of 3D printers research paper publicity commercially available commercially-available 3D printers exhaust ventilation filtration accessories inadequately ventilated unfiltered indoor environments controlled experiments particle emissions desktop 3D printers /