Windows 10 has just arrived and there’s a new Privacy Policy and Service Agreement from Microsoft coming swiftly in its wake. Take a close look at them…
Source: Windows 10? Here are privacy issues you should consider
Microsoft releases critical security update for all versions of Windows
If you’re on Windows, it’s time for an update. There’s an out-of-band update for all currently supported versions of Windows that patches a flaw allowing r
Source: Microsoft releases critical security update for all versions of Windows
Windows 10 Automatic Updates Start Causing Problems – Forbes
Microsoft’s controversial update policy has its first victims.
Source: Windows 10 Automatic Updates Start Causing Problems – Forbes
Oregon Is About To Become Second State To Offer Free Community College
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown (D) signed into law Friday a bill that would allow students to go to community college for free immediately after they graduate high school. The legislation sets aside $10 million
Source: Oregon Is About To Become Second State To Offer Free Community College
Device That Helps Blind People See With Their Tongues Just Won FDA Approval | Popular Science
Will more sensory substitution devices hit the market soon?
Source: Device That Helps Blind People See With Their Tongues Just Won FDA Approval | Popular Science
With $13 Million From Maveron, Eargo Is The Hearing Aid Of The Future | TechCrunch
After five years of research and $13 million in venture funding, Eargo has created a hearing device that people actually want to wear. Launching out of beta today, Eargo’s invisible, rechargeable…
Source: With $13 Million From Maveron, Eargo Is The Hearing Aid Of The Future | TechCrunch
I Illustrate The Difficulties I Face As An Introvert | Bored Panda
I try to find a little humor in the difficulties introverts and INFJs face while navigating life, so making these cartoons is also a kind of therapy for me.
Source: I Illustrate The Difficulties I Face As An Introvert | Bored Panda
Watchdog group says Soylent’s cadmium and lead levels violate CA law
Late last week, non-profit environmental watchdog group As You Sow issued a press release indicating its intention to file suit against the makers of Soylent, the meal replacement product engineered by Silicon Valley entrepreneur Rob Rhinehart. As You Sow states that two separately tested samples of Soylent’s latest 1.5 formula contained “12 to 25 times” the amount of lead allowed under the “safe harbor for reproductive health” provisions of the state of California’s Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (commonly called “Proposition 65“). As You Sow also says it found cadmium levels at least four times higher than the safe harbor for reproductive health levels.
Soylent already displays a Proposition 65 notice on its web site—according to the information there, consuming a full day’s worth of Soylent 1.5 would indeed exceed both the Maximum Allowable Dose Levels (MADLs) and No Significant Risk Levels (NSRLs) for lead and cadmium.
California’s Proposition 65 guidelines for heavy metals are more strict than those used internationally by the World Health Organization. The MADL and NSRL numbers for lead and cadmium aren’t indicators of immediate harm; rather, they are limits below which no harm has been observed.
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How BitTorrent could let lone DDoS attackers bring down big sites
Some of the most widely used BitTorrent applications, including uTorrent, Mainline, and Vuze are also the most vulnerable to a newly discovered form of denial of service attack that makes it easy for a single person to bring down large sites.
The distributed reflective DoS (DRDoS) attacks exploit weaknesses found in the open BitTorrent protocol, which millions of people rely on to exchange files over the Internet. But it turns out that features found uTorrent, Mainline, and Vuze make them especially suitable for the technique. DRDoS allows a single BitTorrent user with only modest amounts of bandwidth to send malformed requests to other BitTorrent users.
The BitTorrent applications receiving the request, in turn, flood a third-party target with data that’s 50 to 120 times bigger than the original request. Key to making the attack possible is BitTorrent’s use of the user datagram protocol, which provides no mechanism to prevent the falsifying of IP addresses. By replacing the attacker’s IP address in the malicious request with the spoofed address of the target, the attacker causes the data flood to hit victim’s computer.
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The new, underground sport of first-person drone racing
If you hadn’t noticed, drones and quadcopters are rather popular right now. Hardly a day goes by without some kind of automated or remotely piloted aircraft somehow causing a ruckus, or providing a new way for militaries and cinematographers alike to get the shot they need. What you might not have noticed, however, is that there is an underground movement to turn drone flying into a sport.
Known as FPV (first-person view) drone racing, or sometimes FPV quadcopter racing, the sport involves building and modifying quadcopters for speed and manoeuvrability, adding a virtual reality-style headset with a live video feed from the drone, and then finding safe and legal places to fly. Racers compete in heats or time trials, speeding around courses at anything up to 60mph (100km/h)—and having a load of fun in the process. This sport, which seems to appeal to aspiring pilots, makers, and computer game fans alike, has all the adrenaline of flight, while also providing enough crashes, smashes, and collisions to keep even the most ardent sports fans happy.
For the past three months, I’ve been photographing the fledgling sport at various locations throughout the UK. I’ve found that there is much more to it than a bunch of geeks comparing voltage signals or PID settings in the woods on a Sunday.
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