Bewarethewumpus

Read 4 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Before Chinese President Xi Jinping visits President Obama, he and Chinese executives have some business in Seattle: pressing U.S. tech companies, hungry for the Chinese market, to comply with the country’s new stringent and suppressive Internet policies.

The New York Times reported last week that Chinese authorities sent a letter to some U.S. tech firms seeking a promise they would not harm China’s national security.

That might require such things as forcing users to register with their real names, storing Chinese citizens’ data locally where the government can access it, and building government “back doors” into encrypted communication products for better surveillance. China’s new national security law calls for systems that are “secure and controllable,” which industry groups told the Times in July means companies will have to hand over encryption keys or even source code to their products.

Among the big names joining Xi at Wednesday’s U.S.-China Internet Industry Forum: Apple, Google, Facebook, IBM and Microsoft.

The meeting comes as U.S. law enforcement officials have been pressuring companies to give them a way to access encrypted communications. The technology community has responded by pointing out that any sort of hole for law enforcement weakens the entire system to attack from outside bad actors — such as China, which has been tied to many instances of state-sponsored hacking into U.S systems.

In fact, one argument privacy advocates have repeatedly made is that back doors for law enforcement would set a dangerous precedent when countries like China want the same kind of access to pursue their own domestic political goals.

But here, potentially, the situation has been reversed, with China using its massive economic leverage to demand that sort of access right now.

Human rights groups are urging U.S. companies not to give in.

“U.S. tech firms need to put people and principles before profit, and defend Internet freedom,” William Nee, a China researcher at Amnesty International, was quoted as saying in a statement Amnesty issued Tuesday night. “They must not turn a blind eye to China’s online repression in order to gain access to the lucrative Chinese market.”

Amnesty noted China’s already poor digital rights record, which includes the jailing of Chinese activists for voicing their opinions. Ilham Tohti, an academic who founded the website Uighur Online and criticized China’s treatment of the Muslim Uighur minority, was imprisoned exactly one year before Wednesday’s meeting for “separatism,” a charge Amnesty describes as “baseless.”

“Governments across the globe are increasingly using technology to crack down on freedom of expression, censor information on human rights violations and carry out indiscriminate mass surveillance in the name of security, often in collaboration with corporations,” the group wrote. “Internet companies have a responsibility to respect international human rights in their global operations. This entails putting proactive measures in place so that serious human rights abuses can be avoided.”

Marietje Schaake, a Dutch member of the European parliament who has written about the issue, told The Intercept that European and U.S. companies should reject “mandatory back doors or weakening of encryption standards.”

“In the short term it may seem tempting to enter the Chinese market on the government’s terms,” she wrote in an email, “but in the long run being a search engine that censors, or a social network that surveils, will scare away users.”

Adam Segal, a senior fellow focusing on China for the Council on Foreign Relations, said the companies “are likely to not sign any pledge voluntarily.”

When it comes to building back doors for the Chinese government, he told The Intercept, “They are going to hold off as long as possible. … Apple can’t give a speech and talk about its commitment to privacy and then give in to China. They can’t put up with the backlash that would hit them.”

When and if the Chinese are able to convince the companies to build weaker encryption, however, Segal said he thinks U.S. law enforcement will leap on that opportunity to get the same thing.

 

The post China Pressures U.S. Companies to Buckle on Strong Encryption and Surveillance appeared first on The Intercept.

The “monkey selfie” saga continues. More than a year after the U.S. Copyright Office made it pretty clear that a non-human animal can’t hold copyright, a new lawsuit argues the grinning macaque “has the right to own and benefit from the copyright… in the same manner and to the same extent as any other author.”

This is according to animal rights organization PETA, who aren’t just making a theoretical claim that a monkey deserves equal treatment under copyright law, but who have gone so far as to file a lawsuit [PDF] in federal court.

A brief refresher: In 2011, photographer David Slater was taking photos of macaque monkeys in Indonesia when one of them grabbed a camera and snapped several photos, including the one shown above.

The image became popular online and was eventually added to the Wikimedia Commons collection of 22 million images and videos that are free to use.

Slater made repeated attempts, with varying success, to have the photo pulled, claiming he was the rightful copyright holder. But in Aug. 2014, the Wikimedia Foundation explained that its understanding of U.S. copyright law is that the copyright belongs to the photographer, not the camera owner. And since the photographer in this case was a monkey, who can’t legally hold copyright, the image is in the public domain.

A U.S. Copyright Office document released weeks later bolstered this argument, citing other examples where non-humans could be said to have made art but could still not hold copyright, like a mural painted by an elephant.

But PETA claims that the monkey, who is apparently named Naruto, should be treated as if he were a human artist who had taken the same photo.

“The Monkey Selfies resulted from a series of purposeful and voluntary actions by Naruto, unaided by Slater,” reads the complaint, “resulting in original works of authorship not by Slater, but by Naruto.”

Even though the Copyright Office made its stance clear on the issue of non-humans, the lawsuit contends that the actual law isn’t as unforgiving toward monkeys and other non-human artists, arguing that the Copyright Act itself is “sufficiently broad so as to permit the protections of the law to extend to any original work, including those created by Naruto.”

PETA contends that monkeys are similar to humans in many ways and are just as interested in visual stimuli as we are.

“Naruto and all crested macaques are highly intelligent, capable of advanced reasoning and learning from experience,” reads the complaint. “Like other primates, including humans, Naruto and all crested macaques have stereoscopic color vision with depth perception and are vision dominant. As a result, visual images, including seeing their reflection in a motor bike mirror or camera lens, are intensely interesting experiences for them.”

The complaint doesn’t simply argue that Naruto should be granted copyright, but that Slater is violating the monkey photographer’s copyright by making money from the sale of a book that uses Naruto’s photo.

Even if the U.S. Copyright Office says a non-human can not register a copyright, Naruto’s legal eagles try to make the case that their client took the images in Indonesia, and thus no copyright registration in the U.S. is needed.

At the same time they allege that Slater’s continued use of the photo is a violation of Naruto’s copyright under U.S. law.

PETA is seeking to have Naruto declared the copyright holder, for the court to enjoin Slater and others from using the photos taken by Naruto, for Naruto to receive appropriate payment for the use of his photos in Slater’s book, and for unspecified damages.

While Slater has not given up his battle to be considered the copyright holder for the monkey selfit, PETA uses Slater’s own words against him in the complaint.

According to the suit, the photographer wrote in his book, “The recognition that animals have personality and should be granted rights to dignity and property would be a great thing.”

Read 2 remaining paragraphs | Comments

View

Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments

(603): Cheese, the small of a woman's back, the universe, mountains, vampiric demons, sleep, and dreams.

In one of the stronger defenses of Fourth Amendment rights in the digital age, a federal appellate court panel in August ruled 2 to 1 that law enforcement officials can’t request cell phone location records without a warrant.

The government is now asking the full Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals to overrule the panel’s earlier decision, arguing that by choosing to connect to a mobile network, users lose any reasonable expectation that their location is private.

Quoting the dissenting judge, the government wrote that the panel’s decision “flies in the face of the Supreme Court’s well-established third-party doctrine.”

The third-party doctrine is a legal theory that asserts that users voluntarily give up information like location data by subscribing to public services like communications providers, and thus have “no reasonable expectation of privacy” when it comes to that information.

The Fourth Circuit panel had ruled that the third-party doctrine was never intended to allow the government to track people’s entire digital lives over the course of lengthy periods of time, and sided with lawyers for Aaron Graham, a Baltimore man convicted of armed robbery based on details found in seven months of his call records obtained from Sprint without a warrant.

“People cannot be deemed to have volunteered to forfeit expectations of privacy by simply seeking active participation in society through use of their cell phones,” the panel wrote in August.

But the government argued that the Fourth Circuit decision flouted two previous 1970s Supreme Court decisions that had reaffirmed the third-party doctrine.

In United States v. Miller, the court ruled that the contents of original checks and deposit slips were “not confidential communications” and were freely given to a third party — the bank.

In Smith v. Maryland, the court ruled that installation of a pen register, a device that records the numbers of outgoing phone calls, does not constitute a search in violation of the Fourth Amendment because the numbers dialed were shared with the phone company.

What was different about the cell phone case, the Fourth Circuit panel ruled, was that people do not generally know which cell phone tower their phone is connecting to, and do not intentionally offer details about their whereabouts at all times to the cell phone company.

And while subscribers are aware that the provider needs to know which tower to use in order to connect the call, combining seven months of data paints a detailed picture of someone’s everyday life.

Nate Wessler, a staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, said the government “is struggling mightily against the tide.” He explained: “Courts are moving towards recognizing that in the digital age, we need to protect sensitive information. … As of now, in five states, they have to get warrants. … They’re trying to go back to when it was easier. But it will be hard to prevent it from happening.”

The post Government Argues: If Your Mobile Phone Provider Knows Where You Are, Why Shouldn’t We? appeared first on The Intercept.

It’s one of the most memorable scenes in Apocalypse Now. Martin Sheen’s Green Beret captain is being briefed on his mission to find Col. Walter Kurtz, played by Marlon Brando. “He’s out there operating without any decent restraint, totally beyond the pale of any acceptable human conduct,” a general tells the captain. A civilian spook then gives him a coded order: “Terminate with extreme prejudice.”

The line was no Hollywood creation but a euphemism that came to light in 1969, after a group of real Army Green Berets murdered a suspected Vietnamese double agent. The phrase, some of the soldiers said, was the CIA’s suggestion to them on dealing with the supposed turncoat.

Today, the preferred line for assassination is “targeted killing,” as in Greg Miller’s recent Washington Post exposé revealing that CIA and special operations forces have launched “a secret campaign to hunt terrorism suspects in Syria as part of a targeted killing program.”

How — or if — killing a human with a remote-controlled flying robot differs from, say, a Green Beret killing a rogue colonel, has been discussed and debated for years now. “If it’s premeditated assassination, why call it a ‘targeted killing?’” wrote Margaret Sullivan, the New York Times’ public editor, in 2013, channeling some of the complaints she received from readers.

Scott Shane, a Times national security reporter, had a ready answer: The Obama administration decreed it. He explained that since assassination is banned by executive order, using the term would indicate the administration is deliberately violating the ban. “This administration, like others, just doesn’t think the executive order applies,” he wrote to Sullivan. He crossed off the term “murder” for similar reasons. “This leaves ‘targeted killing,’ which I think is far from a euphemism,” Shane continued. “It denotes exactly what’s happening: American drone operators aim at people on the ground and fire missiles at them. I think it’s a pretty good term for what’s happening, if a bit clinical.”

But is there, beyond the administration’s self-interested rationale, a good reason for the Times and other news outlets (including, on occasion, The Intercept) to dump a perfectly effective word like assassination for a more “clinical” phrase — especially when assassination has such a long history of use by the Times and other news organizations?

“Assassination” was first used in the Times in 1851 and saw its first major spike in 1865 (512 uses), the year President Lincoln was gunned down, before peaking in 1968 (1,087 uses). “Targeted killing” didn’t appear in the newspaper until a 1988 article that touches on violence by Central American regimes against leftist guerillas and their sympathizers. The phrase didn’t break double digits until its 12 uses in 2010, including an article concerning President Obama signing a “secret order authorizing the targeted killing” of U.S.-born cleric Anwar Al-Awlaki, and one titled “Semantic Minefields,” by the public editor at the time, Clark Hoyt, who mentioned the outcry over the phrase (Shane is quoted in that story, too). The phrase would be used 19 times in 2011, a number of the articles focused on the killing of Al-Awlaki; 33 times in 2012; peaking in 2013 with 78 uses; dipping down to 28 in 2014; with 17 so far this year.

About a month after Sullivan’s 2013 article, President Obama gave a speech on counterterrorism policy. “The United States has taken lethal, targeted action against al Qaeda and its associated forces, including with remotely piloted aircraft commonly referred to as drones,” he said. The president likened a suspected terrorist to “a sniper shooting down on an innocent crowd,” but didn’t explain how his use of a drone to shoot down someone never found guilty of any crime in a court of law was different.

I went to the government with the question of how “targeted killing” or “lethal, targeted action” differs from assassination. Ken McGraw, a spokesperson at U.S. Special Operations Command, which oversees one of the two agencies reportedly involved in the new effort in Syria, told me, “I don’t recall ever hearing those terms used in USSOCOM headquarters.” When I took the question to the White House’s National Security Council, spokesperson Peter Boogaard suggested I consult then-State Department Legal Adviser Harold Koh’s March 2010 speech on international law and counterterrorism operations.

In the speech, Koh noted that “some have argued that our targeting practices violate … the long-standing domestic ban on assassinations. But under domestic law, the use of lawful weapons systems — consistent with the applicable laws of war — for precision targeting of specific high-level belligerent leaders when acting in self-defense or during an armed conflict is not unlawful, and hence does not constitute ‘assassination.’”

It was an interesting point given what we now know about the use of so-called signature strikes in which the U.S. government does not know exactly who it is killing, only that the targets appear to be militants. Since these strikes were not “precision targeting of specific high-level belligerent leaders,” I suggested to Boogaard that, by Koh’s reasoning, they might be assassinations and, by similar logic, what Koh also termed “unlawful extrajudicial killing.”

“Will see if there is more we can discuss,” Boogaard replied via email. That was the last I heard from him despite repeated follow-ups.

Micah Zenko, a scholar at the Council on Foreign Relations who studies drone strikes, points out the government will develop legal justifications for any use of force the president decides upon. “I don’t particularly care how you describe it,” he says of targeted killing. “But I certainly understand why people have concerns about how it’s categorized. Words do matter.”

Should we criticize journalists, like those at the New York Times and Washington Post, for adopting euphemisms or watered-down language?

Zenko praised the work of investigative reporters and specifically mentioned Shane and Miller, noting that without them we would know little beyond the administration’s talking points. But with so much of the program shrouded in secrecy and strikes conducted in such distant locations, there are “a lot of points between you and reality,” as Zenko puts it. “When there’s a huge information gap, even really good national security and intelligence journalists become more reliant on sources within government. When you’re more reliant upon those sources, you might be more likely to adhere to — or at least make a case for why they use — the language and justifications that they do.”

The post When Is Assassination Not Assassination? When the Government Says So appeared first on The Intercept.

In a spectacular failure of a “back door” designed to give law enforcement exclusive access to private places, hackers have made the “master keys” for Transportation Security Administration-recognized luggage locks available to anyone with a 3D printer.

The TSA-recognized luggage locks were a much-vaunted solution to a post-9/11 conundrum: how to let people lock their luggage, on the one hand, but let the TSA inspect it without resorting to bolt cutters, on the other.

When the locks were first introduced in 2003, TSA official Ken Lauterstein described them as part of the agency’s efforts to develop “practical solutions that contribute toward our goal of providing world-class security and world-class customer service.”

Now that they’ve been hacked, however, TSA says it doesn’t really care one way or another.

“The reported ability to create keys for TSA-approved suitcase locks from a digital image does not create a threat to aviation security,” wrote TSA spokesperson Mike England in an email to The Intercept.

“These consumer products are ‘peace of mind’ devices, not part of TSA’s aviation security regime,” England wrote.

“Carried and checked bags are subject to the TSA’s electronic screening and manual inspection. In addition, the reported availability of keys to unauthorized persons causes no loss of physical security to bags while they are under TSA control. In fact, the vast majority of bags are not locked when checked in prior to flight.”

In other words: not our problem.

How the Keys Were Hacked

Last month, security enthusiasts and members of a lockpicking forum on Reddit began circulating a nearly year-old Washington Post story about “the secret life of baggage,” and how the TSA handles and inspects airport luggage.

What no one had previously noticed was that the article included close-up photos of the “master keys” to TSA-approved luggage locks — which it turns out, are really easy to copy, as long as you can see the pattern of the teeth and have access to a 3D printer.

The photos were removed from the Post’s website, but not before privacy devotees spread the images far and wide.

Then, according to his self-published timeline, Shahab Shawn Sheikhzadeh, a system administrator and lockpicker, obtained an official-looking document with even more detailed imagery. Sheikhzadeh told The Intercept that anonymous hackers inspired by the Washington Post photos found a 2008 “Guide to Travel Sentry Passkeys” posted on Travel Sentry’s website.

Travel Sentry is the organization responsible for generating and enforcing security guidelines for TSA-approved locks, working with both the government and private manufacturers to guarantee its standards are being met. It does not sell or manufacture locks itself.

Steven Knuchel, a hacker/security researcher who goes by Xylitol or Xyl2k, used the detailed images obtained from the Travel Sentry website to create the kind of files that 3D printers use to produce models.

Since the files were first published, several people have demonstrated that they work, using inexpensive 3D printing plastic called PLA.

The geniuses @TSA require us to use luggage locks for which they have master keys. Now we all have those keys. pic.twitter.com/cdT487Elxj

— J0hnny Xm4s (@J0hnnyXm4s) September 10, 2015

TSA’s Response

TSA’s nonchalant response to the proliferation of master keys is at odds with how the agency has historically advertised the approved locks.

“There’s a difference in how TSA talks about the locks to travelers and the statement they made,” said Chris Soghoian, chief technologist for the American Civil Liberties Union, after hearing the TSA’s statement to The Intercept.

Over the years, TSA has published various blog posts trumpeting the power of the locks to prevent all theft, writing, for instance, that the locks “will prevent anyone from removing items out of your … bags.”

Soghoian described that post as an example of TSA “lying to consumers” in a tweet. “There’s nothing in that blog post about ‘peace of mind’” being the reason for the locks, Soghoian told The Intercept.

Security experts, by comparison, have long recognized that TSA locks do not fully protect your belongings. University of Pennsylvania computer science professor Matt Blaze told Wired that he sometimes picks his own TSA-recognized lock to save time looking for the actual key, because it’s faster.

Chris McGoey, a security consultant specializing in travel safety, told the Intercept that “there are several ways of opening TSA locks short of having a 3D printer.” He explained that “TSA locks on luggage is only one step above having no lock at all especially on soft-sided luggage with zippers.”

The Problem With Backdoors

Although the actual impact remains unclear, the hacking of the master keys is a powerful example of the problem with creating government backdoors to bypass security, physically or digitally.

Most security experts and computer scientists believe backdoors for law enforcement inevitably make systems less secure, and easier for bad actors to break into.

Nicholas Weaver, a computer security researcher at Berkeley, wrote on the Lawfare blog about the TSA locks and how they are “similar in spirit to what [FBI] Director [James] Comey desires for encrypted phones.”

Comey has recently been trying to convince technology companies to design some sort of special way for his agents to access encrypted communications on digital devices. But companies including Apple and Google have resisted this pressure, insisting that developing backdoors will only weaken security that they have worked hard to improve for the sake of average customers around the world.

“In theory, only the Transportation Security Agency or other screeners should be able to open a TSA lock using one of their master keys,” Weaver wrote. “All others, notably baggage handlers and hotel staff, should be unable to surreptitiously open these locks. … Unfortunately for everyone, a TSA agent and the Washington Post revealed the secret. … The TSA backdoor has failed.”

Xylitol, the GitHub user who published the blueprint of the keys, said that was his point. “This is actually the perfect example for why we shouldn’t trust a government with secret backdoor keys (or any kind of other backdoors),” he wrote in an email to The Intercept. “Security with backdoor[s] is not security and inevitably exposes everyone.”

Soghoian tweeted a congratulations to the Post and TSA “for proving the stupidity of key escrow,” the arrangement in which keys needed to decrypt communications are held in escrow to be accessed by a third party if necessary. End-to-end encryption, which the FBI and the Justice Department have continually urged against, only allows for the sender and the recipient of a message to hold onto keys to decrypt the message.

Clarification: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported that hackers had broken into Travel Sentry’s internal website.

Caption: Master TSA keys for various TSA-approved locks.

The post TSA Doesn’t Care That Its Luggage Locks Have Been Hacked appeared first on The Intercept.

Let’s just open this one flap, and then take this letter out, and look a little deeper in. . .

These filmmakers struck out to the desert to make an staggering and beautiful to-scale model of the solar system, but what they found might be much deeper.

“This isn’t an article about the evils of free to play manipulation to get you to spend money. This is about how we can target you, because we (and our partners) know everything about you.” Some brutal reading at TouchArcade.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service - if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.

The nation’s top counterintelligence agency is ducking responsibility for failing to identify or help address the Office of Personnel Management’s poor cyberdefenses before the massive data breach ascribed to the Chinese government, saying that wasn’t its job.

In response to a letter from Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who asked what the National Counterintelligence and Security Center had done to help OPM secure its systems or root out counterintelligence vulnerabilities, director William Evanina wrote that existing laws governing his office “do not include either identifying information technology (IT) vulnerabilities to agencies or providing recommendations to them on how to secure their IT systems.”

On Wednesday, Wyden blasted the agency for its officious response: “The OPM breach had a huge counterintelligence impact and the only response by the nation’s top counterintelligence officials is to say that it wasn’t their job,” he wrote.

“This is a bureaucratic response to a massive counterintelligence failure and unworthy of individuals who are being trusted to defend America. While the National Counterintelligence and Security Center shouldn’t need to advise agencies on how to improve their IT security, it must identify vulnerabilities so that the relevant agencies can take the necessary steps to secure their data.”

Wyden concluded his letter by repeating his stand against the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA), a bill in the Senate that would make it much easier for companies to share personal information on users with the government, with immunity from current surveillance laws. “The way to improve cybersecurity is to ensure that network owners take responsibility for plugging security holes, not encourage the sharing of personal information with agencies that can’t protect it adequately,” wrote Wyden.

 

The post Counterintelligence Agency Shrugs Off Responsibility for OPM Breach appeared first on The Intercept.

Track: Earthbound - Eight Melodies Orchestral Remix | Album: N/A | Artist: Pascal Michael Stiefel & Rob Platt

Kotaku Soundtrack is a selection of the stuff we’re listening to - and gaming to - at the moment.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service - if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.

Read 5 remaining paragraphs | Comments

Boing BoingBoing BoingAn amazing tale of interspecies friendshipRaccoon tries to wash cotton candy, but it dissolves instantlyWhich U.S. president would win in a massive knife fight?20 minute Uber ride cost $1,114.71 on New Year's EveThis man is drawing one butt each dayThe Art of Eating through the Zombie Apocolypse: a cookbook and culinary survival guideTwitter reinstates Politiwoops, account that tracked politicians' gaffesMy Maker Dad book is $1.99 on KindleYoung girl plays incredible organ arrangement of Star Wars ThemeThey don't have to tell you where meat comes from anymoreWhat is the most interesting scientific news? Very, VERY smart people respond.Watch Mark Hamill host the TV premiere of Star Wars (1984)Natalie Cole: beautiful 1975 performance of "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)"Armed domestic terrorists take over federal building, but it's OK, they're whitePaypal rolls out the welcome mat for hackersHong Kong's dissident publishing workers are disappearing, possibly kidnapped to mainlandBreaking the DRM on the 1982 Apple ][+ port of Burger TimeLast chance to get the world's smallest camera drone and a 2GB micro SD card for 30% offSpam-fighting mail-ruleHelp identify the science fiction legends in these thrift-scored pix of the 1956 WorldconCharlie Brooker's 2015 Wipe: the only roundup you need to watchFree Stanford course on surveillance law UPDATEDIndia's telcoms regulator says it will ignore Facebook's astroturf armyAnne Frank's diary is in the public domain; editors aren't co-authors

http://boingboing.netBrain candy for Happy Mutantsen-USMon, 04 Jan 2016 09:55:28 PSThttp://wordpress.org/?v=4.2.4hourly1http://boingboing.nethttp://boingboing.net/icons/bb144.jpgThis is an XML content feed. It is intended to be viewed in a newsreader or syndicated to another site.http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/EC88mUGSsJM/an-amazing-tale-of-interspecie.htmlPodcastPostfutility closetFutility ClosetMon, 04 Jan 2016 09:52:32 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441925

The lyrebirds of Australia were highly mysterious and rarely seen until one fell in love with an elderly widow in 1930. In this episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll trace the development of their surprising friendship and how it led to an explosion of knowledge about this extraordinary species.

We'll also learn how Seattle literally remade itself in the early 20th century and puzzle over why a prolific actress was never paid for her work.

Show notes

Please support us on Patreon!

(more…)]]> <p><img width="600" height="470" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/wilkinson.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="wilkinson" /></p> <p><iframe style="border: none" src="//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/4054146/height/100/width/500/theme/custom/autoplay/no/autonext/no/thumbnail/no/preload/no/no_addthis/no/direction/backward/no-cache/true/render-playlist/no/custom-color/000000/" height="100" width="500" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen></iframe></p><p>The lyrebirds of Australia were highly mysterious and rarely seen until one fell in love with an elderly widow in 1930. In this episode of the Futility Closet podcast we'll trace the development of their surprising friendship and how it led to an explosion of knowledge about this extraordinary species.</p><p>We'll also learn how Seattle literally remade itself in the early 20th century and puzzle over why a prolific actress was never paid for her work.</p><p><a href="http://www.futilitycloset.com/2016/01/04/podcast-episode-88-mrs-wilkinson-and-the-lyrebird/">Show notes</a></p><p><a href="http://www.patreon.com/futilitycloset">Please support us on Patreon!</a></p> <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/an-amazing-tale-of-interspecie.html#more-441925" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/an-amazing-tale-of-interspecie.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/an-amazing-tale-of-interspecie.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/LwA5UxMbXRc/raccoon-tries-to-wash-cotton-c.htmlVideocandyDelightful CreaturesraccoonsMark FrauenfelderMon, 04 Jan 2016 09:18:32 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441972

This raccoon found a chunk of cotton candy. When the animal dipped the cotton candy into a puddle to wet it, the chunk dissolved, and the raccoon was like, wtf?

Why do raccoons dip their food into water? It's not to clean it, and it is not to soften it. How Stuff Work says raccoons wet their food as a way to give them "a more vivid tactile experience and precise information about what they're about to eat."]]> <img src="http://i1.wp.com/media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/dissolve.jpg?w=600" class="attachment-medium wp-post-image" alt="dissolve" /> <p> <p>This raccoon found a chunk of cotton candy. When the animal dipped the cotton candy into a puddle to wet it, the chunk dissolved, and the raccoon was like, wtf? <p>Why do raccoons dip their food into water? It's not to clean it, and it is not to soften it. How Stuff Work says raccoons wet their food as a way to give them "<a href="http://animals.howstuffworks.com/mammals/raccoons-wash-food1.htm">a more vivid tactile experience and precise information about what they're about to eat</a>."http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/raccoon-tries-to-wash-cotton-c.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/raccoon-tries-to-wash-cotton-c.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/NftLvSUqWXI/which-u-s-president-would-win.htmlPostStabbingsRob BeschizzaMon, 04 Jan 2016 08:58:03 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441969

This is from way back in 2012, but Geoff Micks determined which U.S. president would win in a massive knife fight and it is essential reading.

The scenario had a few rules—the combatants are in the best health of their presidencies, they're in the Colosseum, each are issued with a standard Gerber Combat Knife, FDR is permitted a motorized wheelchair—but they are otherwise left to their stabby devices.

Each president's chances are individually discussed. [via JWZ]]]> <p><img width="998" height="623" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/obama-knife.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="obama-knife" /></p> <p>This is from way back in 2012, but Geoff Micks determined <a href="https://faceintheblue.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/in-a-mass-knife-fight-to-the-death-between-every-american-president-who-would-win-and-why/">which U.S. president would win in a massive knife fight</a> and it is essential reading. <p>The scenario had a few rules—the combatants are in the best health of their presidencies, they're in the Colosseum, each are issued with a standard Gerber Combat Knife, FDR is permitted a motorized wheelchair—but they are otherwise left to their stabby devices. <p>Each president's chances are individually discussed. [via <a href="https://www.jwz.org/blog/2016/01/in-a-mass-knife-fight-to-the-death-between-every-american-president-who-would-win-and-why/">JWZ</a>]http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/which-u-s-president-would-win.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/which-u-s-president-would-win.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/CMLFV5MBHfA/20-minute-uber-ride-cost-111.htmlPostfree marketprice gouginguberMark FrauenfelderMon, 04 Jan 2016 08:51:15 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441967

After Matt Lindsay celebrated New Year's Eve in Southwood Community Centre near Edmonton, he hailed an Uber to take him and his friends home. The driver who picked up Matt warned him that the "surge rate" was 8.9 times the regular fare. Lindsay accepted the surge and took the ride, which lasted 20 minutes. From CBC:

Lindsay said he was using his previous trips with Uber as a base understanding of what the trip would cost.

"Generally Uber is very affordable. I can get from northside to downtown for under $20."

He has taken a couple of rides at a surge rate of two times the regular amount, which he said tallied $77.

"With the amount of people in the vehicle and a similar distance, I figured it would be a similar fare."

Lindsay said people are vulnerable after they've been drinking and surge rates can be confusing.

Lindsay said Uber had offered to reduce his fare by half.

Image: Prathan Chorruangsak / Shutterstock.com]]> <p><img width="600" height="400" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/uber.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="uber" /></p><p>After Matt Lindsay celebrated New Year's Eve in Southwood Community Centre near Edmonton, he hailed an Uber to take him and his friends home. The driver who picked up Matt warned him that the "surge rate" was 8.9 times the regular fare. Lindsay accepted the surge and took the ride, which lasted 20 minutes. From <a href="http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/uber-cab-ride-on-new-year-s-eve-pinches-customer-for-1-114-71-1.3387808">CBC</a>: <blockquote> <p>Lindsay said he was using his previous trips with Uber as a base understanding of what the trip would cost. <p>"Generally Uber is very affordable. I can get from northside to downtown for under $20." <p>He has taken a couple of rides at a surge rate of two times the regular amount, which he said tallied $77. <p>"With the amount of people in the vehicle and a similar distance, I figured it would be a similar fare." <p>Lindsay said people are vulnerable after they've been drinking and surge rates can be confusing.</blockquote> <p>Lindsay said Uber had offered to reduce his fare by half. <p>Image: <a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/gallery-2535049p1.html?cr=00&pl=edit-00">Prathan Chorruangsak</a> / <a href="http://www.shutterstock.com/editorial?cr=00&pl=edit-00">Shutterstock.com</a>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/20-minute-uber-ride-cost-111.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/20-minute-uber-ride-cost-111.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/oZ6f0QVY7jY/this-man-is-drawing-one-butt-e.htmlPostbuttsRob BeschizzaMon, 04 Jan 2016 08:32:22 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441956

Charles Vestal has pledged to draw one butt a day throughout 2016. He's doing very well so far. The butts are archived at butts.lol.

https://twitter.com/charlesv/status/682792402952663045 ]]> <p><img width="1280" height="1280" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/tumblr_o0cvc32nyc1v2g4yuo1_1280.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="tumblr_o0cvc32nyc1v2g4yuo1_1280" /></p><p><a href="http://www.charlesvestal.com/">Charles Vestal</a> has pledged to draw one butt a day throughout 2016. He's doing <a href="https://twitter.com/butts_dot_lol">very well so far</a>. The butts are archived at <a href="http://butts.lol/">butts.lol</a>. <p> https://twitter.com/charlesv/status/682792402952663045http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/this-man-is-drawing-one-butt-e.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/this-man-is-drawing-one-butt-e.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/jOQWpqRgWwc/the-art-of-eating-through-the-2.htmlPostapocalypse cookbookcookbookszombiesWinkMon, 04 Jan 2016 08:31:35 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441942

See more sample pages from this book at Wink.

A delightfully funny and punny read, The Art of Eating through the Zombie Apocalypse: A Cookbook & Culinary Survival Guide isn’t merely humor, it actually provides sound advice for the survivalist. The book begins with “entry level preparedness” and runs through the gamut of various apocalyptic survival scenarios, providing illustrated information, advice and recommendations for further reading in every section.

This book is one part apocalypse prepper, one part outdoor survival guide and one part apocalypse cookbook. No reason not to eat well, even in a zombie apocalypse, right? Humor is found in the flowing narrative that is sprinkled with puns, amusingly titled recipes as well as bloodstains and spatters that decorate the introduction of major sections of the book. The pages are a textured grey-green to simulate age and mold.

Humor aside, sandwiched between recipes with titles such as Going Ginko Nuts, Dead Easy Peas and Who’s Got Your Back Tuna Mac, are instructions on diverse projects including making SIPS (Self-Watering Planters) out of soda bottles or storage bins, and practical advice on various how-tos such as drying, curing, smoking, and brining. – Carolyn Koh

The Art of Eating through the Zombie Apocolypse: A Cookbook and Culinary Survival Guide
by Lauren Wilson and Kristian Bauthus
Smart Pop
2014, 320 pages, 6 x 8.2 x 1 inches (paperback)
$15 Buy a copy on Amazon

]]> <p><img width="1200" height="1200" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/tumblr_nzf9heHdrR1t3i99fo1_1280.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="tumblr_nzf9heHdrR1t3i99fo1_1280" /></p><p><a href="http://winkbooks.net/post/135704735523/the-art-of-eating-through-the-zombie-apocolypse-a">See more sample pages from this book at Wink.</a> <p>A delightfully funny and punny read, <em>The Art of Eating through the Zombie Apocalypse: A Cookbook &amp; Culinary Survival Guide</em> isn’t merely humor, it actually provides sound advice for the survivalist. The book begins with “entry level preparedness” and runs through the gamut of various apocalyptic survival scenarios, providing illustrated information, advice and recommendations for further reading in every section. </p><p>This book is one part apocalypse prepper, one part outdoor survival guide and one part apocalypse cookbook. No reason not to eat well, even in a zombie apocalypse, right? Humor is found in the flowing narrative that is sprinkled with puns, amusingly titled recipes as well as bloodstains and spatters that decorate the introduction of major sections of the book. The pages are a textured grey-green to simulate age and mold. </p><p>Humor aside, sandwiched between recipes with titles such as Going Ginko Nuts, Dead Easy Peas and Who’s Got Your Back Tuna Mac, are instructions on diverse projects including making SIPS (Self-Watering Planters) out of soda bottles or storage bins, and practical advice on various how-tos such as drying, curing, smoking, and brining. <em>– Carolyn Koh</em></p> <p><em>The Art of Eating through the Zombie Apocolypse: A Cookbook and Culinary Survival Guide</em> <br>by Lauren Wilson and Kristian Bauthus <br>Smart Pop <br>2014, 320 pages, 6 x 8.2 x 1 inches (paperback) <br>$15 <a class="amazon-button" href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/1940363365/thebooklab-20">Buy a copy on Amazon</a></p> <p><img src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/tumblr_nzf9heHdrR1t3i99fo7_12803.jpg"> <p><img src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/tumblr_nzf9heHdrR1t3i99fo3_12803.jpg">http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/the-art-of-eating-through-the-2.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/the-art-of-eating-through-the-2.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/KtqWScYUUio/twitter-reinstates-politiwoops.htmlPostbad tweetsRob BeschizzaMon, 04 Jan 2016 08:24:16 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441941

Twitter has reinstated Politiwoops' access to the site.

Politiwoops, which tracked tweets published and subsequently deleted by politicians, aimed to help keep government honest. But Twitter said that it was an invasion of politicans' privacy and cut its access to the Twitter API last year.

Such access enabled more reliable tracking of often fast-deleted but revealing statements uttered off-hand by politicans and their staff.

“Politwoops is an important tool for holding our public officials, including candidates and elected or appointed public officials, accountable for the statements they make, and we’re glad that we’ve been able to reach an agreement with Twitter to bring it back online both in the US and internationally.” said Jenn Topper, communications director for The Sunlight Foundation, in a press release issued by Twitter.

The restoration was expected after a shake-up at Twitter last fall, in which co-founder Jack Dorsey took the helm from longtime CEO Dick Costolo.

Previously.]]> <p><img width="800" height="534" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/ROA-twitter.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="ROA-twitter" /></p><p>Twitter <a href="https://blog.twitter.com/2015/holding-public-officials-accountable-with-twitter-and-politwoops">has reinstated Politiwoops' access to the site</a>. <p><a href="http://twitter.com/politiwoops">Politiwoops</a>, which tracked tweets published and subsequently deleted by politicians, aimed to help keep government honest. But Twitter said that it was an invasion of politicans' privacy and cut its access to the Twitter API last year. <p>Such access enabled more reliable tracking of often fast-deleted but revealing statements uttered off-hand by politicans and their staff. <p>“Politwoops is an important tool for holding our public officials, including candidates and elected or appointed public officials, accountable for the statements they make, and we’re glad that we’ve been able to reach an agreement with Twitter to bring it back online both in the US and internationally.” said Jenn Topper, communications director for The Sunlight Foundation, in a press release issued by Twitter. <p>The restoration was expected after a shake-up at Twitter last fall, in which co-founder Jack Dorsey took the helm from longtime CEO Dick Costolo. <p><a href="http://boingboing.net/2013/12/21/politwoops-which-us-politicia.html">Previously</a>.http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/twitter-reinstates-politiwoops.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/twitter-reinstates-politiwoops.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/Zb3Sy-BB0Js/my-maker-dad-book-is-on-sale-o.htmlPostactivitiesmakersMark FrauenfelderMon, 04 Jan 2016 08:14:33 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441550

My book, Maker Dad: Lunch Box Guitars, Antigravity Jars, and 22 Other Incredibly Cool Father-Daughter DIY Projects is on sale for $1.99 as part of Amazon's January Kindle Holiday Store Deal. I'm not sure how long the deal lasts.

As the editor in chief of MAKE magazine, Mark Frauenfelder has spent years combing through DIY books, but he’s never been able to find one with geeky projects he can share with his two daughters. Maker Dad is the first DIY book to use cutting-edge (and affordable) technology in appealing projects for fathers and daughters to do together. These crafts and gadgets are both rewarding to make and delightful to play with. What’s more, Maker Dad teaches girls lifelong skills—like computer programming, musicality, and how to use basic hand tools—as well as how to be creative problem solvers. The book’s twenty-four unique projects include:

• Drawbot, a lively contraption that draws abstract patterns all by itself
• Ice Cream Sandwich Necklace
• Friendstrument, an electronic musical instrument girls can play with friends
• Longboard skateboard
• Antigravity Jar
• Silkscreened T-Shirt
• Retro Arcade Video Game
• Host a Podcast
• Lunchbox Guitar
• Kite Video Camera

Innovative and groundbreaking, Maker Dad will inspire fathers to geek out with their daughters and help girls cultivate an early affinity for math, science, and technology.

]]> <p><img width="444" height="500" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/51bizVWsJSL1.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="51bizVWsJSL1" /></p><p>My book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00FL3YLHE/boingboing">Maker Dad: Lunch Box Guitars, Antigravity Jars, and 22 Other Incredibly Cool Father-Daughter DIY Projects</a> is on sale for $1.99 as part of Amazon's January Kindle Holiday Store Deal. I'm not sure how long the deal lasts. <blockquote><p>As the editor in chief of MAKE magazine, Mark Frauenfelder has spent years combing through DIY books, but he’s never been able to find one with geeky projects he can share with his two daughters. <em>Maker Dad</em> is the first DIY book to use cutting-edge (and affordable) technology in appealing projects for fathers and daughters to do together. These crafts and gadgets are both rewarding to make and delightful to play with. What’s more, <em>Maker Dad</em> teaches girls lifelong skills—like computer programming, musicality, and how to use basic hand tools—as well as how to be creative problem solvers. The book’s twenty-four unique projects include: <ul> <li>Drawbot, a lively contraption that draws abstract patterns all by itself</li> <li>Ice Cream Sandwich Necklace</li> <li>Friendstrument, an electronic musical instrument girls can play with friends</li> <li>Longboard skateboard</li> <li>Antigravity Jar</li> <li>Silkscreened T-Shirt</li> <li>Retro Arcade Video Game</li> <li>Host a Podcast</li> <li>Lunchbox Guitar</li> <li>Kite Video Camera</li> </ul> <p>Innovative and groundbreaking, <em>Maker Dad</em> will inspire fathers to geek out with their daughters and help girls cultivate an early affinity for math, science, and technology.</blockquote>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/my-maker-dad-book-is-on-sale-o.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/my-maker-dad-book-is-on-sale-o.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/jW205urcXkI/young-girl-plays-incredible-or.htmlPostVideoback to the futuremusicstar warsDavid PescovitzMon, 04 Jan 2016 08:00:31 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441878

If you're wondering, that's a Yamaha Electone electronic organ. Above, the Star Wars Theme. Below, from a few years back, Back To The Future. Many more performances: 826aska

https://youtu.be/NRBqsJNxMfk]]> <img src="http://i2.wp.com/media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/o2Q4Kk.gif?w=600" class="attachment-medium wp-post-image" alt="" /> <p> <P> If you're wondering, that's a <a href="http://asia.yamaha.com/en/products/musical-instruments/keyboards/electone/">Yamaha Electone</a> electronic organ. Above, the Star Wars Theme. Below, from a few years back, Back To The Future. Many more performances: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBvWfh5pkiCdApbtS0eaMIg">826aska</a> <P> https://youtu.be/NRBqsJNxMfkhttp://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/young-girl-plays-incredible-or.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/young-girl-plays-incredible-or.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/dD5aixjBPPU/they-dont-have-to-tell-you-w.htmlPostVideomystery meatRob BeschizzaMon, 04 Jan 2016 07:42:22 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441930

Responding to overwhelming consumer demand to be kept in the dark about where meat comes from, the government has relaxed the relevant labeling requirements.

After more than a decade of wrangling, Congress repealed a labeling law last month that required retailers to include the animal's country of origin on packages of red meat. It's a major victory for the meat industry, which had fought the law in Congress and the courts since the early 2000s.

… The bill was "a holiday gift to the meatpacking industry from Congress," complained the advocacy group Food and Water Watch. Meatpackers who buy Mexican cattle were some of the law's most aggressive opponents.

If they don't want you to know where the meat came from, maybe you don't want to know where the meat came from.

They almost banned labeling of genetically-modified food, too:

Still, there was some good news for food labeling advocates in the spending bill. Despite an aggressive push by the food industry, lawmakers decided not to add language that would have blocked mandatory labeling of genetically modified ingredients. Also, a provision by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, would require labeling of genetically modified salmon recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

The embedded music presentation above is titled Some sort of machine pooping out big blobs of meat. ]]> <img src="http://i0.wp.com/media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/meat-pixel-art.jpg?w=600" class="attachment-medium wp-post-image" alt="meat pixel art" /> <p> <p>Responding to overwhelming consumer demand to be kept in the dark about where meat comes from, the government has <a href="http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_CONGRESS_MEAT_LABELING?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2016-01-04-03-59-19">relaxed the relevant labeling requirements.</a> <blockquote><p>After more than a decade of wrangling, Congress repealed a labeling law last month that required retailers to include the animal's country of origin on packages of red meat. It's a major victory for the meat industry, which had fought the law in Congress and the courts since the early 2000s. <p>… The bill was "a holiday gift to the meatpacking industry from Congress," complained the advocacy group Food and Water Watch. Meatpackers who buy Mexican cattle were some of the law's most aggressive opponents. </blockquote> <p>If they don't want you to know where the meat came from, maybe you don't <em>want</em> to know where the meat came from. <p>They almost banned labeling of genetically-modified food, too: <blockquote>Still, there was some good news for food labeling advocates in the spending bill. Despite an aggressive push by the food industry, lawmakers decided not to add language that would have blocked mandatory labeling of genetically modified ingredients. Also, a provision by Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, would require labeling of genetically modified salmon recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration.</blockquote> <p>The embedded music presentation above is titled <em>Some sort of machine pooping out big blobs of meat</em>.http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/they-dont-have-to-tell-you-w.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/they-dont-have-to-tell-you-w.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/tNuk9SP7-fw/what-is-the-most-interesting-s.htmlPostedgemediaNewsScienceTechnologyDavid PescovitzMon, 04 Jan 2016 07:00:01 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441874

It is time once again for the Edge Annual Question, a mind-bending and boundary-busting online convening of scientists, technologists, and other big thinkers all responding to a single question at the intersection of science and culture. From physicists to artists, cognitive psychologists to journalists, evolutionary biologists to maverick anthropologists, these are people who Edge founder, famed literary agent, and BB pal John Brockman describes as the "third culture (consisting) of those scientists and other thinkers in the empirical world who, through their work and expository writing, are taking the place of the traditional intellectual in rendering visible the deeper meanings of our lives, redefining who and what we are."

This year, John asked: What do you consider the most interesting (scientific) news? What makes it important?" Nearly two hundred really smart people responded, including Steven Pinker, Nina Jablonski, Freeman Dyson, Stewart Brand, Marti Hearst, Philip Tetlock, Kevin Kelly, Lisa Feldman Barrett, Douglas Rushkoff, Lisa Randall, Alan Alda, Jared Diamond, Pamela McCorduck, and on and on.

"Science is the only news," writes Stewart Brand in the introduction. "When you scan through a newspaper or magazine, all the human interest stuff is the same old he-said-she-said, the politics and economics the same sorry cyclic dramas, the fashions a pathetic illusion of newness, and even the technology is predictable if you know the science. Human nature doesn't change much; science does, and the change accrues, altering the world irreversibly.' We now live in a world in which the rate of change is the biggest change." Science has thus become a big story, if not the big story: news that will stay news."

2016 : WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER THE MOST INTERESTING RECENT [SCIENTIFIC] NEWS? WHAT MAKES IT IMPORTANT?]]> <p><img width="450" height="253" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/TyP5EK9.gif" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" /></p><P> <P>It is time once again for the <a href="http://edge.org/contributors/what-do-you-consider-the-most-interesting-recent-scientific-news-what-makes-it">Edge Annual Question</a>, a mind-bending and boundary-busting online convening of scientists, technologists, and other big thinkers all responding to a single question at the intersection of science and culture. From physicists to artists, cognitive psychologists to journalists, evolutionary biologists to maverick anthropologists, these are people who Edge founder, famed literary agent, and BB pal John Brockman describes as the "third culture (consisting) of those scientists and other thinkers in the empirical world who, through their work and expository writing, are taking the place of the traditional intellectual in rendering visible the deeper meanings of our lives, redefining who and what we are." <P>This year, John asked: What do you consider the most interesting (scientific) news? What makes it important?" Nearly two hundred really smart people responded, including Steven Pinker, Nina Jablonski, Freeman Dyson, Stewart Brand, Marti Hearst, Philip Tetlock, Kevin Kelly, Lisa Feldman Barrett, Douglas Rushkoff, Lisa Randall, Alan Alda, Jared Diamond, Pamela McCorduck, and on and on. <P> "Science is the only news," writes Stewart Brand <a href="http://edge.org/contributors/what-do-you-consider-the-most-interesting-recent-scientific-news-what-makes-it">in the introduction</a>. "When you scan through a newspaper or magazine, all the human interest stuff is the same old he-said-she-said, the politics and economics the same sorry cyclic dramas, the fashions a pathetic illusion of newness, and even the technology is predictable if you know the science. Human nature doesn't change much; science does, and the change accrues, altering the world irreversibly.' We now live in a world in which the rate of change is the biggest change." Science has thus become a big story, if not the big story: news that will stay news." <P> <a href="http://edge.org/contributors/what-do-you-consider-the-most-interesting-recent-scientific-news-what-makes-it">2016 : WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER THE MOST INTERESTING RECENT [SCIENTIFIC] NEWS? WHAT MAKES IT IMPORTANT?</a>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/what-is-the-most-interesting-s.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/what-is-the-most-interesting-s.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/NuCW6lept3Y/watch-mark-hamill-host-the-tv.htmlVideostar warstelevisionDavid PescovitzMon, 04 Jan 2016 06:30:17 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441870

In 1984, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope made its television debut on CBS. Mark Hamill himself hosted the introduction to the film, sporting a sharp tuxedo. Classy. Most classy. (Thanks, UPSO!)

]]> <img src="http://i0.wp.com/media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/R6oGLq.gif?w=600" class="attachment-medium wp-post-image" alt="" /> <p> <P> In 1984, Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope made its television debut on CBS. Mark Hamill himself hosted the introduction to the film, sporting a sharp tuxedo. Classy. Most classy. <em>(Thanks, <a href="http://in.ternet.pro/fessional">UPSO</a>!)</em> <P> <img src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/R6oGLq.gif" alt="" width="480" height="270" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-441872" />http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/watch-mark-hamill-host-the-tv.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/watch-mark-hamill-host-the-tv.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/MmcuyNYFtqM/natalie-cole-beautiful-1975-p.htmlVideomusicDavid PescovitzMon, 04 Jan 2016 01:30:44 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441882

The late, great Natalie Cole, who passed away last week, bares her beautiful soul on The Midnight Special in 1975.

]]> <img src="http://i0.wp.com/media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/BBL07W.gif?w=600" class="attachment-medium wp-post-image" alt="" /> <p> <P> The late, great Natalie Cole, who <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/02/arts/music/natalie-cole-grammy-award-winning-singer-dies-at-65.html?_r=0">passed away</a> last week, bares her beautiful soul on The Midnight Special in 1975. <P> <img src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/BBL07W.gif" alt="" width="360" height="270" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-441884" />http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/natalie-cole-beautiful-1975-p.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/04/natalie-cole-beautiful-1975-p.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/ej7S_6BFNrw/armed-domestic-terrorists-take.htmlPost#blacklivesmattergwotoregonraceyallqaedaCory DoctorowSun, 03 Jan 2016 07:21:35 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441854

A group of white separatist domestic terrorists have occupied the Malheur National Widlife Refuge Building in Burns, Oregon, fronted by the racist terrorist leader Cliven Bundy, who organized supporters to point sniper rifles at federal officers without any consequence in Nevada last year. (more…)

]]> <p><img width="1280" height="853" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/1280px-MalheurNWRHeadquarters.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="1280px-MalheurNWRHeadquarters" /></p><p> A group of white separatist <a href="https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/2331">domestic terrorists</a> have occupied the Malheur National Widlife Refuge Building in Burns, Oregon, fronted by the racist terrorist leader <a href="http://boingboing.net/2014/04/24/defiant-rancher-in-nevada-belo.html">Cliven Bundy</a>, who organized supporters to point sniper rifles at federal officers without any consequence in Nevada last year. <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/armed-domestic-terrorists-take.html#more-441854" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/armed-domestic-terrorists-take.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/armed-domestic-terrorists-take.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/b6rCdj8uaoM/paypal-rolls-out-the-welcome-m.htmlPostBusinesscargo cult securitycrimeinfosecpaypalCory DoctorowSun, 03 Jan 2016 07:00:00 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441851

It's not bad enough that Paypal is prone to shutting down your account and seizing your dough if you have a particularly successful fundraiser -- they also have virtually no capacity to prevent hackers from changing the email address, password and phone numbers associated with your account, even if you're using their two-factor authentication fob. (more…)

]]> <p><img width="595" height="420" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/online_payment-2.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="online_payment (2)" /></p><p> It's not bad enough that Paypal is prone to shutting down your account and seizing your dough if you have a particularly successful fundraiser -- they also have virtually no capacity to prevent hackers from changing the email address, password and phone numbers associated with your account, even if you're using their two-factor authentication fob. <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/paypal-rolls-out-the-welcome-m.html#more-441851" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/paypal-rolls-out-the-welcome-m.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/paypal-rolls-out-the-welcome-m.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/A1v2fifqNZ8/hong-kongs-dissident-publish.htmlPostbookschinadangerous wordshong konghuman rightspublishingCory DoctorowSun, 03 Jan 2016 06:21:43 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441848

Five employees of the publisher Mighty Current and its retail arm, Causeway Bay Bookstore, have disappeared from Hong Kong, and pro-democracy leaders say that they were kidnapped to the mainland by PRC security forces in retaliation for publishing books critical of the Chinese government. (more…)

]]> <p><img width="666" height="405" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/056c026d-1c66-4d42-9fae-a8e96df290c5-1020x915.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="056c026d-1c66-4d42-9fae-a8e96df290c5-1020x915" /></p><p> Five employees of the publisher Mighty Current and its retail arm, Causeway Bay Bookstore, have disappeared from Hong Kong, and pro-democracy leaders say that they were kidnapped to the mainland by PRC security forces in retaliation for publishing books critical of the Chinese government. <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/hong-kongs-dissident-publish.html#more-441848" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/hong-kongs-dissident-publish.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/hong-kongs-dissident-publish.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/CUSDNUdcL3w/breaking-the-drm-on-the-1982-a.htmlPost1201apolloapplearchive.orgCopyfightdrmGamesOld schoolpaleocomputingwar on general purpose computingCory DoctorowSun, 03 Jan 2016 05:22:48 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441838

4AM is a prolific computer historian whose practice involves cracking the copy protection on neglected Apple ][+ floppy disks, producing not just games, but voluminous logs that reveal the secret history of the cat-and-mouse between crackers and publishers. (more…)

]]> <p><img width="1097" height="786" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/056c026d-1c66-4d42-9fae-a8e96df290c5-1020x914.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="056c026d-1c66-4d42-9fae-a8e96df290c5-1020x914" /></p><p> <a href="https://twitter.com/a2_4am?lang=en">4AM</a> is a prolific computer historian whose practice involves cracking the copy protection on neglected Apple ][+ floppy disks, producing not just games, but voluminous logs that reveal the secret history of the cat-and-mouse between crackers and publishers. <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/breaking-the-drm-on-the-1982-a.html#more-441838" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/breaking-the-drm-on-the-1982-a.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/breaking-the-drm-on-the-1982-a.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/OqhEdr4FISo/last-chance-to-get-the-world.htmlPostshopBoing Boing's StoreSun, 03 Jan 2016 01:00:56 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441503

This tiny flyer is the smallest drone of its kind to carry its own camera for taking epic shots in the smallest places. Four fast blades make this new quadcopter omni-directional, which in layman’s terms means it can dip, dash, zip, spin, and flip anywhere you tell it to via remote control. Plus its decked out with LED lights so you can embark on night flights and document it all the while. Tote it anywhere you go and let it rip.

• Includes a 2GB camera memory card
• Captures crystal-clear video & photography (rare for a drone of this size!)
• Includes LED lights for night flying
• Provides 3 speed flight modes
• Delivers superior flying stability
• Takes less than 30 minutes to fully charge up
• Moves up, down, left or right
• Includes side flight, hover, flip & hand launch capabilities

This deal is expiring soon so don't miss out on the world's smallest camera drone in the Boing Boing store.

To purchase in orange, click here!

]]> <p><img width="630" height="473" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/a2d7aa81fef9a49f1c325017e62c960b05655484_main_hero_image1.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="" /></p><p><a href="https://store.boingboing.net/sales/cheerson-cx-10c-nano-drone-with-camera-2gb-microsd-card?utm_source=boingboing.net&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=cheerson-cx-10c-nano-drone-with-camera-2gb-microsd-card">This tiny flyer is the smallest drone</a> of its kind to carry its own camera for taking epic shots in the smallest places. Four fast blades make this new quadcopter omni-directional, which in layman’s terms means it can dip, dash, zip, spin, and flip anywhere you tell it to via remote control. Plus its decked out with <span class="caps">LED</span> lights so you can embark on night flights and document it all the while. Tote it anywhere you go and let it rip.</p><ul><li>Includes a 2GB camera memory card</li><li>Captures crystal-clear video &amp; photography (rare for a drone of this size!)</li><li>Includes <span class="caps">LED</span> lights for night flying</li><li>Provides 3 speed flight modes</li><li>Delivers superior flying stability </li><li>Takes less than 30 minutes to fully charge up</li><li>Moves up, down, left or right </li><li>Includes side flight, hover, flip &amp; hand launch capabilities</li></ul><p>This deal is expiring soon so don't miss out on the <a href="https://store.boingboing.net/sales/cheerson-cx-10c-nano-drone-with-camera-2gb-microsd-card?utm_source=boingboing.net&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=cheerson-cx-10c-nano-drone-with-camera-2gb-microsd-card">world's smallest camera drone</a> in the Boing Boing store.</p><p><i>To purchase in orange, click <a href="https://store.boingboing.net/sales/cheerson-cx-10c-nano-drone-with-camera-orange-2gb-microsd-card?quantity=1&amp;skipPrompt=true">here</a>!</i></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/last-chance-to-get-the-world.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/03/last-chance-to-get-the-world.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/fO9Rs7WrYWc/spam-fighting-mail-rule.htmlPostspamto unsubscribe just dieCory DoctorowSat, 02 Jan 2016 16:12:32 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441834

If body contains "unsubscribe" and From: is not any of my addressbooks, then move message to folder "Spam." You're welcome.]]> <p><img width="1063" height="1043" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Spam-Can.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="Spam-Can" /></p><p> If body contains "unsubscribe" and From: is not any of my addressbooks, then move message to folder "Spam." You're welcome.http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/spam-fighting-mail-rule.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/spam-fighting-mail-rule.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/vCEgV_Og0OE/help-identify-the-science-fict.htmlPostfan are slanfanacnycOld schoolphotosscience fictionCory DoctorowSat, 02 Jan 2016 15:23:49 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441823

Cate writes, "I came across a collection of snapshots at a thrift store and recognized the historic nature of the photos, which documented the 14th World Science Fiction Convention. I purchased the photos from a thrift store in Santa Barbara, California on December 31, 2015. I am looking for help to identify attendees featured in the photos." (more…)

]]> <p><img width="1024" height="745" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/23836518990_5a555a5ac8_b.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="23836518990_5a555a5ac8_b" /></p><p> Cate writes, "I came across a collection of snapshots at a thrift store and recognized the historic nature of the photos, which documented the 14th World Science Fiction Convention. I purchased the photos from a thrift store in Santa Barbara, California on December 31, 2015. I am looking for help to identify attendees featured in the photos." <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/help-identify-the-science-fict.html#more-441823" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/help-identify-the-science-fict.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/help-identify-the-science-fict.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/DCMf-AkJA8o/charlie-brookers-2015-wipe.htmlVideolaugh the pain awaymedia theoryvideosyoutubeCory DoctorowSat, 02 Jan 2016 06:18:25 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441817

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJHTZLTLPho

As always, Charlie "Screen Wipe/Nathan Barley/Black Mirror" Brooker manages to sum up every single terrible thing about the year that was with gut-busting hilarity. (more…)

]]> <img src="http://i2.wp.com/media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/animation-1.gif?w=600" class="attachment-medium wp-post-image" alt="animation (1)" /> <p> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJHTZLTLPho <p> As always, Charlie "<a href="http://boingboing.net/2007/12/04/charlie-brookers-scr.html">Screen Wipe</a>/<a href="http://boingboing.net/2015/02/11/nathan-barley-old-comedy-turn.html">Nathan Barley</a>/<a href="http://boingboing.net/2013/02/14/black-mirror-is-back-and-it.html">Black Mirror</a>" Brooker manages to sum up every single terrible thing about the year that was with gut-busting hilarity. <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/charlie-brookers-2015-wipe.html#more-441817" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/charlie-brookers-2015-wipe.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/charlie-brookers-2015-wipe.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/I5bX7PhBuyM/free-stanford-course-on-survei.htmlPostb-sidebsideeducationlawmoocnofrontdoornsaspookssurveillanceCory DoctorowSat, 02 Jan 2016 06:12:19 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441813

Aw, crap, this was last year

Stanford is offering a free online course by computer scientist/law professor Jonathan Mayer that surveys the baroque, interleaved world of US surveillance law through the Coursera MOOC platform.

(more…)]]> <p><img width="1452" height="884" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/056c026d-1c66-4d42-9fae-a8e96df290c5-1020x913.jpg" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="056c026d-1c66-4d42-9fae-a8e96df290c5-1020x913" /></p><p> <b>Aw, crap, this was last year</b> <s> <p> Stanford is offering a free online course by computer scientist/law professor Jonathan Mayer that surveys the baroque, interleaved world of US surveillance law through the Coursera MOOC platform.</p></s> <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/free-stanford-course-on-survei.html#more-441813" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/free-stanford-course-on-survei.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/free-stanford-course-on-survei.htmlhttp://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/7S12KzayCbM/indias-telcoms-regulator-say.htmlPostastroturfconsultations aren't opinion pollscorruptionfacebookindianet neutralitypetardpoor internet for poor peopletelcomsCory DoctorowSat, 02 Jan 2016 06:03:36 PSThttp://boingboing.net/?p=441809

Facebook's misleading, high budget astroturf campaign sent over 14 lakh (1.4m) comments to TRAI, the Indian telcoms regulator, almost none of which responded to the questions raised in the regulator's Net Neutrality consultation paper. (more…)

]]> <p><img width="640" height="360" src="http://media.boingboing.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/2582211-2582210-lazlo-1.png" class="attachment-post-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="2582211-2582210-lazlo (1)" /></p><p> Facebook's misleading, <a href="http://boingboing.net/2015/12/27/facebooks-fuddy-full-page-a.html">high budget</a> <a href="http://boingboing.net/2015/12/30/indian-net-neutrality-vs-faceb.html">astroturf campaign</a> sent over 14 lakh (1.4m) comments to TRAI, the Indian telcoms regulator, almost none of which responded to the questions raised in the regulator's Net Neutrality consultation paper. <a href="http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/indias-telcoms-regulator-say.html#more-441809" class="more-link">(more&hellip;)</a></p>http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/indias-telcoms-regulator-say.html/feed0http://boingboing.net/2016/01/02/indias-telcoms-regulator-say.htmlhttp://feed

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service - if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.

Using tilesets and the characters from Earthbound, CineFix made a short clip about John Hughes’ classic from the 80s.

So everything looks like Earthbound and the Mother series but it’s no longer about kids travelling around the world. It’s about the harsh reality of high school and the weirdest-looking Ferrari of all time.

Gotta love the pixelated Jeffrey Jones character as the principal though!

To contact the author of this post, write to: gergovas@kotaku.com

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service - if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.

No one gets a speeding ticket and rushes out to pay it with glee, at least, no one who likes holding onto their money. But even if it’s pretty rude to scrawl an obscene message when paying that ticket, it’s speech that’s protected by the First Amendment. That’s according to a judge who said a man’s civil rights were violated when he was arrested for writing a nasty note on a speeding ticket in New York in 2012.

The Connecticut man was driving in the town of Liberty, N.Y. when he received a speeding ticket for going 82 mph in a 65 mph zone, with a $175 fine attached. He sent back the payment form with a message written on it, “F**k your sh***y town, bitches,” and also crossed out the word “Liberty” and scrawled “Tyranny” in its place.

Local authorities ordered him to show up in court, where he was lectured by a judge, arrested and held for several hours on charges of aggravated harassment, reports the New York Times.

He sued the village, whose officers had arrested him, and last week a federal judge in White Plains ruled that the arrest had violated his First Amendment rights, and allowed his lawsuit to proceed.

“People use language like this all the time,” his lawyer told the Times. “They send letters like this to customer service at Verizon, the I.R.S. When people are unhappy, they vent on forms like that,” he added. “You shouldn’t have to get arrested for it.”

Judge Cathy Seibel ruled that what the man wrote, “though crude and offensive to some, did not convey an imminent threat and was made in the context of complaining about government activity,” and therefore it didn’t violate N.Y.’s aggrvated harassment statute.

“The words here are not inherently likely to provoke violent reaction, they were not directed at anyone in particular, and could not be interpreted as threatening any particular action,” Seibel ruled, according to the Huffington Post.

The case will ultimately be decided by jurors, with Liberty to stand trial for failing to train its police officers regarding the country’s First Amendment, and an assistant district attorney liable for damages, though Seibel dismissed the suit’s claims against the two arresting officers.

U.S. Judge Upholds Right to Scrawl Nasty Note on Speeding Ticket Payment [New York Times]
Scrawling ‘F**k Your S**tty Town Bitches’ On Speeding Ticket Is Free Speech, Judge Finds [Huffington Post]

There are sprawling industries and self-proclaimed career “terrorism experts” in the U.S. that profit greatly by deliberately exaggerating the threat of Terrorism and keeping Americans in a state of abject fear of “radical Islam.” There are all sorts of polemicists who build their public platforms by demonizing Muslims and scoffing at concerns over “Islamophobia,” with the most toxic ones insisting that such a thing does not even exist, even as the mere presence of mosques is opposed across the country, or even as they are physically attacked.

The U.S. government just formally renewed the “State of Emergency” it declared in the aftermath of 9/11 for the 14th time since that attack occurred, ensuring that the country remains in a state of permanent, endless war, subjected to powers that are still classified as “extraordinary” even though they have become entirely normalized. As a result of all of this, a minority group of close to 3 million people is routinely targeted with bigotry and legal persecution in the Home of the Free, while fear and hysteria reign supreme in the Land of the Brave.

What happened in Irving, Texas, yesterday to a 14-year-old Muslim high school freshman is far from the worst instance, but it is highly illustrative of the rotted fruit of this sustained climate of cultivated fear and demonization. The Dallas Morning News reports that “Ahmed Mohamed — who makes his own radios and repairs his own go-kart — hoped to impress his teachers when he brought a homemade clock to MacArthur High,” but “instead, the school phoned police.”

Despite insisting that he made the clock to impress his engineering teacher, consistent with his long-time interest in “inventing stuff,” Ahmed was arrested by the police and led out of school with his hands cuffed behind him. When he was brought into the room to be questioned by the four police officers who had been dispatched to the school, one of them — who had never previously seen him — said: “Yup. That’s who I thought it was.” As a result, he “felt suddenly conscious of his brown skin and his name — one of the most common in the Muslim religion.”

On Twitter, Anil Dash published a photo, provided by the boy’s family, taken as he was led out in cuffs. Note that he’s wearing a NASA shirt:

There’s absolutely no evidence that this was anything more than a clock, nor any indication of any kind that the talented and inventive freshman built it as anything other than a school project. But even now, “police say they may yet charge him with making a hoax bomb — though they acknowledge he told everyone who would listen that it’s a clock.” According to the BBC, “police spokesman James McLellan said that, throughout the interview, Ahmed had maintained that he built only a clock, but said the boy was unable to give a ‘broader explanation’ as to what it would be used for.”

The Dallas Morning News let Ahmed speak for himself by posting a video of him recounting what happened. Behold the Terrorist Mastermind:

The behavior here is nothing short of demented. And it’s easy to mock, which in turn has the effect of belittling it and casting it as some sort of bizarre aberration. But it’s not that. It’s the opposite of aberrational. It’s the natural, inevitable byproduct of the culture of fear and demonization that has festered and been continuously inflamed for many years. The circumstances that led to this are systemic and cultural, not aberrational.

The mayor of Irving, Beth Van Duyne, became a beloved national hero to America’s anti-Muslim fanatics when, last February, she seized on a fraudulent online chain letter, which claimed that area imams had created a special court based on sharia law. In response, Mayor Van Duyne posted a Facebook rant in which she vowed to “fight with every fiber of my being” the nonexistent “sharia court.” One anti-Muslim website gushed that Irving “is being called ‘ground zero’ in the battle to prevent Islamic law from gaining a foothold, no matter how small, in the U.S. legal system” and hailed her as “the mayor who stood up to the Muslim Brotherhood.”

That led to support for a bill introduced in the Texas State Legislature banning the use of foreign law, which its sponsor made clear was targeted at least in part at these “sharia courts.” The Irving City Council went out of its way to enact a resolution supporting the state bill. It was enacted in June. One of the City Council members who opposed the bill — William “Bill” Mahoney, who “denounced the vote and urged Irving to ’embrace the Muslims'” — then lost his seat in the city election “by a wide margin.” I’ve spoken to Muslim groups in Irving and there is a small but thriving community there, which in turn has produced intense anti-Muslim animus.

Just like Ahmed’s arrest, Irving is representative of the U.S. broadly, not aberrational. The U.S. just a few years ago went into a shameful fit of mass hysteria over a proposed Islamic community center near Ground Zero — as though Muslims generally were guilty of that attack — but since then, in obscurity, ordinary mosques have faced all sorts of opposition from their mere existence, or once they do exist, physical menacing and violence. A 2014 Pew Poll found that Americans feel more negatively toward Muslims than any other religious group in the country.

There are all sorts of obvious, extreme harms that come from being a nation at permanent war. Your country ends up killing huge numbers of innocent people all over the world. Vast resources are drained away from individuals and programs of social good into the pockets of weapons manufacturers. Core freedoms are inexorably and inevitably eroded — seized — in its name. The groups being targeted are marginalized and demonized in order to maximize fear levels and tolerance for violence.

But perhaps the worst of all harms is how endless war degrades the culture and populace of the country that perpetrates it. You can’t have a government that has spent decades waging various forms of war against predominantly Muslim countries — bombing seven of them in the last six years alone — and then act surprised when a Muslim 14-year-old triggers vindictive fear and persecution because he makes a clock for school. That’s no more surprising than watching carrots sprout after you plant carrot seeds in fertile ground and then carefully water them. It’s natural and inevitable, not surprising or at all difficult to understand.

 

The post Arrest of 14-Year-Old Student for Making a Clock: the Fruits of Sustained Fearmongering and Anti-Muslim Animus appeared first on The Intercept.

Hovertext: I'm just saying, whenever we go to Mars, I'm not going on the first boat.

New comic!
Today's News:

The Trump Show is on tonight! Here’s a little sneak preview.

SPX is this weekend! Every year, SPX is one of my favorite shows. If you’re in the DC area I highly recommend it. Will I see you there?

Want more SFAM? Classic SFAM strips will be running over at GoComics every weekday, along with your favorite syndicated comics! Sign up for an account today and follow all your favorite comics all on one page.

 

The post Opening Salvo appeared first on Scenes From A Multiverse.

Five years. That’s how long the Nevada State Athletic Commission decided UFC fighter/enigma Nick Diaz won’t be allowed to fight. That’s more than most steroid users. All over goddamn marijuana.

If you have friends (or enemies) who are super into MMA, they probably haven’t shut up about Nick Diaz in the past 24 hours. That is, in part, because he got popped for weed by way of a pre-fight drug test (while pot does not, by any stretch of imagination, enhance a fighter’s in-cage performance, it is still against the rules) and, yesterday, was slapped with an unprecedented five year competition ban.

But people are especially upset because of who Nick Diaz is. These days, he might not be quite as big of a name as Ronda Rousey or Conor McGregor, but he’s one of the most unique (and downright bizarre) individuals in the history of the sport. People want to see him in the cage or on the mic, not polishing a ball-and-chain on the sidelines.

Nick... who?

OK, let’s back up a bit. Despite his relatively young age of 32, Nick Diaz has been fighting in MMA’s major leagues for more than a decade.

He made his UFC debut in 2003, but he didn’t make his mark as a truly elite fighter until he fought for (now defunct) Japanese mega-organization Pride back in 2007. In that fight, he managed to beat the man widely considered the best lightweight in the world, Takanori “The Fireball Kid” Gomi. Diaz didn’t just defeat Gomi; he smacked the spirit out of him. Gomi was known for his ferociously powerful striking. Diaz outboxed Gomi with pure volume—unrelenting barrages of precision punches—and left him stumbling and sucking air at the end of the first round.

Then, in the second, Diaz added insult to injury by catching Gomi in a submission that practically nobody ever uses in MMA: the gogoplata. It’s a choke that involves the shin bone and is considered, by most, to be pretty impractical compared to more meat ‘n’ potatoes stuff like the arm bar, triangle choke, or the rear-naked choke. Diaz pulled it off, and he made it look easy:

Previously, Diaz’s skillsets had never quite clicked. His jiu-jitsu was excellent, his striking was decent, and his cardio was godly (he often competes in triathlons for the hell of it), but he’d suffered major setbacks against truly high-level competition. Against Gomi, Diaz looked like he’d finally found his rhythm, and what a unique, thrilling rhythm it was. Killer boxing and a willingness to eat one monster punch to flurry back with hundreds of stinging jabs? That is the good kind of crazy. That’s the kind of crazy that turns fights into fucking gold.

Shortly after the Gomi fight, Diaz got popped for marijuana, and his victory was overturned to a no-contest. This would become a running theme throughout his career.

But Diaz’s in-cage accomplishments (and his proclivity for, er, undoing them) are only half the story.

Wolf tickets

Nick Diaz is truly one of a kind. And by that, I mean he’s a weird fucking dude. Hailing from Stockton, California, he’s cultivated a sort of give-no-fucks “thug” persona. He mean mugs everybody. He trash talks his opponents while he’s fighting them, whether he’s winning or losing. He #420smokesweedeveryday, heedless of the rules. He’s been part of multiple non-sanctioned brawls at major MMA events. He seems to despise The Establishment in all its forms, even when it’s his employer. Once upon a time, the UFC took a title shot away from Diaz because he no-showed on so many mandatory press and promotional events.

If you ask Nick or his younger brother, Nate, they’ll tell you that’s just who they are; that’s who they had to be growing up in bad parts of Stockton, in order to avoid (or, worst case scenario, deal with) trouble. They fell into martial arts naturally, when they were young. When life gives you street fights on a near-daily basis, you make fight-ade. Or something. And apparently you become kind of a dick.

Despite a general air of douchiness, there’s something distinctly likable about Diaz. Whether you believe he’s in the right for, frankly, acting kind of childish all the time, it’s hard to doubt his sincerity. He’s a no-bullshit dude. When coaxed out of his nigh-impenetrable shell, he speaks his mind, and he doesn’t give a goddamn who hears. He’s said stuff that would’ve probably gotten other fighters fired. And while he sometimes comes off as a total crazy person (or a rampant, do-nothing complainer when people beat him with wrestling), he has a habit of ending his drug-addled ramblings at something vaguely resembling profound truth... if you squint at it.

Most infamously, there was the “wolf ticket” incident back in 2013. As part of the build-up for a welterweight title fight between then-champ (and transcendentally popular goody two-shoes) Georges St. Pierre and Diaz, the UFC released a bunch of marketing materials that painted Diaz as a truly unforgivable villain. Countless clips featured St. Pierre talking about how he was gonna dig deep, bring out his “darker side” to punish Diaz for being a malcontent with no redeeming qualities, for pushing St. Pierre to the brink with his antics and trash talk. There were no grays here; St. Pierre was good, Diaz was evil.

During a press conference that he actually attended, Diaz called them on it. And a million other issues he had with MMA and the UFC.

“They like to make me look like the bad guy. Georges likes to say I remind of a bully that picked on him growing up. How many times have you had a gun to your head, Georges? How many of your best friends have been shot through the chest with a 45 or how many of your best friends have been stomped, put to sleep in a coma? How many people put gum in your hair growing up going back that far?”

“I hate everyone pulling the bully card. Everyone hates bullies. If it wasn’t for what I went through, who knows if I would have made it in life. Who knows if I’d be here today. I don’t go and point the finger and decide that people are the bully who tortured me as a child. I don’t want to see anybody hurt. I don’t believe anyone out here working towards greatness deserves to be beat down, smashed in. The fans out like violence. People like violence. It’s the funniest thing but I like to think I’m not a violent person. I’m a martial artist.”

Then came the notorious “wolf tickets” line, wherein Diaz insinuated that the UFC and St. Pierre were feeding audiences bullshit and not intending to even back it up with a decent fight.

“You [St. Pierre] told the fans that I deserve to get beat down, that I chased you around. I got the fight, right? I’m working towards something, everybody knows that. Sorry I had to [say you were scared] to get the fight. They’re selling you [fans and media] all wolf tickets people, you’re eating them right up. Georges here is selling wolf tickets. Dana White here is selling wolf tickets. The UFC is selling wolf tickets. You guys are eating them right up.”

Rambling verging on incoherent, but spiced with a bit of truth. Diaz isn’t as bad of a dude as he’s sometimes portrayed, and the UFC did kinda sell people “wolf tickets.” St. Pierre did not, in fact, go all dark side on Diaz. He largely played it safe, wrestled a bunch, and gave fans a fight that wasn’t super exciting. But that’s the fight game for you. For better or worse, Diaz has never meshed well with the “game” part of it.

Nick Diaz vs the world

Back in the present, Nick Diaz is in a rough spot. Unless his legal team bats a thousand while appealing the Nevada State Athletic Commission’s decision in court, he’s on the bench until 2020. By then, he will officially be Old by MMA standards. In the meantime, he’ll no longer be able to make money as a pro fighter, the only career he’s ever really known (aside from running a gym, which will hopefully keep him afloat, at least). His career is, in all likelihood, over. True to form, Diaz pulled no punches with his statement on the matter. He explained why he dropped out of school to fight, recounting the tale of his troubled youth and, eventually, a girlfriend who killed herself:

“She was gonna go to college. She was an avid student and and was doing everything I couldn’t while living in a trailer park where everyone was doing dope. Meanwhile, I focused my whole high school years worried about what her and her friends would think if I lost a fight to her ex-boyfriend and football friends. I could never make attendance, hung out with the wrong people to hold my ground as a fighter and someone who I would fight for was important to me.”

“There was no way I was gonna go to school. I had no money, no car. I would have driven there and stopped her. After that, I was grown up. It was all over. I wasn’t a kid anymore. I won my first fight in the first round with a choke and all I could think about was her, just like when I was in school.”

“I would run seven miles and back to her grave just to promise her I would make it as a fighter like she knew and had told me she knew and was proud of me.”

“So this sport and this commission have done everything to stop me from being in the position that I belong. That’s the only reason why I haven’t stayed in that position and come off as the fighter and person that I know I am and can be.”

Admittedly, Diaz is not entirely innocent here. He’s been suspended for marijuana twice before. According to the official rules for a third infraction, he was looking at a three year suspension, at the very least. And more generally, Diaz is a guy who has a habit of getting himself in trouble and, at least some of the time, blaming other people for it. His record is far from spotless.

But the NSAC, a professional body, made it personal. Keeping with past trends, they reacted with anger and incredulity when Diaz’s team tried to fight Diaz’s impending punishment—ask legitimate questions of testing methods that suggested Diaz had more than the legal limit of marijuana metabolites in his system on fight night—instead of rolling over and apologizing. At first, one member of the NSAC suggested that Diaz should receive a lifetime ban from competing. Other members reined in that egregiously over-the-top suggestion, but it set the tone for the remainder of the proceedings.

It should be noted that middleweight legend Anderson Silva, Diaz’s opponent in the fight in which he most recently got popped for marijuana, also tested positive for drugs—namely, steroids. He got suspended for one year, retroactive to the time of the fight. He’ll be able to hop back in the octagon again in January. In short, the guy who did performance-enhancing drugs—potentially put his opponent in real danger—got a slap on the wrist compared to the guy who, at worst, impaired himself slightly. That sends a baaaaad message to fighters. It’s also pretty unfair, not to mention largely arbitrary. Diaz dug his own grave by doing marijuana close to fight time (again), but he didn’t dig it that deep.

If Diaz is indeed out of the fight game for the next five years (possibly forever, if he decides he’s gotten too old to be competitive), that’s a damn shame. Nick Diaz is uniquely entertaining—sometimes a laugh, other times an almost literal riot. I’ve said it in the past, and I’ll say it again: fight sports live and die on their characters, and the UFC needs more of them. Whether you love him or you hate him, you can’t deny that Diaz is a character. He’s truly one of a kind, and he will be missed.

Image credit: Getty.

To contact the author of this post, write to nathan.grayson@kotaku.com or find him on Twitter @vahn16.

This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service - if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read the FAQ at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php#publishers.

Nature has never been more frightening than the moment the world learned that crocodiles could propel themselves straight upwards out of the water, essentially walking on water on their own tails. Watch out, humans.

A federal district court judge in New York has fully lifted an 11-year-old gag order that the FBI imposed on Nicholas Merrill, the founder of a small Internet service provider, to prevent him from speaking about a national security letter served on him in 2004.

It marked the first time such a gag order has been fully lifted since the USA Patriot Act in 2001 expanded the FBI’s authority to unilaterally demand that certain businesses turn over records simply by writing a letter saying the information is needed for national security purposes.

Like other NSL recipients, Merrill was also instructed that he could not mention the order to anyone.

Merrill said the court ruling allowing him to discuss the details of the sealed request in full will allow him to ignite a debate among Americans about the unchecked surveillance powers of the U.S. government.

“For more than a decade, the FBI has fought tooth and nail in order to prevent me from speaking freely about the NSL I received,” Merrill said in a press release published by the Calyx Institute, where he serves as director.

U.S. District Court Judge Victor Marrero’s decision “vindicates the public’s right to know how the FBI uses warrantless surveillance to peer into our digital lives,” Merrill said. “I hope today’s victory will finally allow Americans to engage in an informed debate about the proper scope of the government’s warrantless surveillance powers.”

Merrill and the American Civil Liberties Union launched what turned out to be a long legal battle against the FBI in 2004 in the case Doe v. Ashcroft. Merrill finally won the right to reveal his own identity in 2010.

The FBI withdrew its national security letter request after Merrill continually refused to comply, but Merrill decided to keep fighting the gag order. Law students and attorneys of the Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic at Yale Law School represented him in his 2015 case against the Justice Department and the FBI seeking to overturn the gag order.

In his ruling, the judge found no “good reason” to continue to silence Merrill about his experience with the FBI. If Merrill were only allowed to disclose details about the request “in a world in which no threat of terrorism exists,” or in the case that the FBI disclosed the records itself — two extremely unlikely possibilities — it would effectively prevent “accountability of the government to the people,” the judge wrote.

Merrill is not free to talk quite yet, however — he will remain under gag order for 90 days, giving the government time to appeal.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation estimates that over 300,000 national security letters have been issued since 2001. The Justice Department concluded in 2008 that the FBI had abused its power, often gathering information on large numbers of U.S. citizens, infringing on their First Amendment rights, and leaving hardly any paper trail, until changes were adopted in 2006.

The Office of the Director of National Intelligence announced earlier this year that the FBI would start presumptively terminating national security letter nondisclosure orders either three years after the opening of a fully predicated investigation or at the investigation’s close, whichever came earlier. But that change was not retroactive.

The post Federal Court Lifts National Security Letter Gag Order; First Time in 14 Years appeared first on The Intercept.

The implacable march of technology has, in many ways, made parents’ lives easier. But in other areas, it’s added a whole new layer of complication. Like the fact that video-enabled baby monitors, designed to let parents have peace of mind while their kids are sleeping in another room, almost universally have completely crap security that any random stranger on the internet can tap into.

Fusion spoke with a security researcher who tested out nine of the most popular, widely-available brands of video baby monitor, and what he found isn’t pretty.

The monitor brands researcher Mark Stanislav tested included popular models from Philips, Summer Infant, TRENDnet, iBaby, Lens Laboratory, and Gynoii. He gave eight of the nine an “F” for security. Just one passed, barely, with a D-.

In this sense, baby monitors are just like every other poorly-secured, wifi-enabled camera. If your device ships with a default password that you don’t change, basically anyone anywhere can have access to it.

But what makes the baby monitor situation even worse, the research found, is that in many cases, the scary settings are ones that parents don’t have access to. Stanislav told Fusion that of the nine brands his company tested, “Every camera had one hidden account that a consumer can’t change because it’s hard coded or not easily accessible. Whether intended for admin or support, it gives an outsider backdoor access to the camera.”

In other words, even a tech-savvy, security-minded consumer can’t fix this problem on their own.

Unlike some other recent hacking research, the baby monitor situation isn’t just academic or theoretical. It’s a known problem out in the wild, with proven harms. There have been many incidents in the past several years of parents reporting hearing intruders on their baby monitor lines, including one disturbing incident just this week when a hacker tapped into one family’s baby monitor and played “Every Breath You Take” while making, as the family told local media, “sexual noises.”

Watch out, new parents — internet-connected baby monitors are trivial to hack [Fusion]