firehose

McGruber writes "During Wednesday's TechCrunch Disrupt conference, Marissa Meyer was asked what would happen if Yahoo simply declined to cooperate with the NSA. She replied 'Releasing classified information is treason. It generally lands you incarcerated.' Meyer also revealed that the 2007 lawsuit against the Patriot Act had been filed by Yahoo: 'I'm proud to be part of an organization that from the very beginning in 2007, with the NSA and FISA and PRISM, has been skeptical and has scrutinized those requests. In 2007 Yahoo filed a lawsuit against the new Patriot Act, parts of PRISM and FISA, we were the key plaintiff. A lot of people have wondered about that case and who it was. It was us ... we lost. The thing is, we lost and if you don't comply it's treason.'"

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Cache

"The theater is scheduled to reopen in mid- to late November," says OMSI's associate vice president of retail, Russ Repp. Following some rumors and vague statements about OMSI's currently closed dome theater, we've finally got some details.

OMSI's new movie screen will be flat rather than curved—with final dimensions, according to Repp, of between "60-65 feet wide and 33-36 feet high." That'll make OMSI's new screen quite a bit larger than most screens in the area. (For those keeping track, OMSI's new screen will be only a little smaller than the biggest screen in the greater Portland area—the fancy-pants Cinetopia Progress Ridge theater, deep in the Beaverton suburbs, has a screen that's 70 feet wide—and about the same size as the IMAX-branded screen at Regal's Lloyd Cinemas, which is 60 feet wide and 36 feet tall.)

As I've told many a lady, though, size isn't the only thing that matters. Here's some more info about what OMSI's theater will look like (and sound like) when it opens in a couple of months.

According to Repp, prices will remain "largely the same" at $8.50 for adults and $6.50 for kids and seniors. That's a lot cheaper than both Regal and Cinetopia—which is relevant since OMSI will be booking mainstream movies. "Educational programming will continue to account for upwards of 70 percent of our theater schedule," Repp wrote in an email. "OMSI's emphasis will remain on science and nature documentaries during regular museum hours. Hollywood features will be limited to evening hours and occasional daytime shows."

Meanwhile, according to OMSI's PR manager Amita Joshi, the renovated theater will feature a Dolby Atmos sound system (the only other place that's currently available locally is at the Cinetopia in the Vancouver Mall, where it costs extra). Other than that, expect 2D and 3D digital projection at the levels that most of Portland's theaters have already been forced to upgrade to, at 4K resolution.

It's perhaps worth nothing that the Mercury's recently heard some rumblings of strife at OMSI over the past year, resulting from both layoffs and developments such as the theater's renovation. We'll update if and when we know more on that front. But in the meantime—and purely from a film perspective—I have a hard time seeing how OMSI moving to what's likely to be a more profitable and engaging theater set-up, while also maintaining its current programming, can be a bad thing. That goes for both the museum and for Portland moviegoers.

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In the spring of 2012, the US Congress got together and passed a JOBS act. Not a jobs act. A JOBS act.

It didn’t create any jobs, but it has created a mass of hyperventilation surrounding Twitter’s secret public offering, announced today.

You’re forgiven for being confused. That’s half the point.

The Jumpstart Our Business Start-ups Act loosened rules put in place to protect investors from unscrupulous businesses. It laid the groundwork for crowd-funders of a company to gain equity and not just rewards, for hedge funds to put ads on billboards, and most importantly, for “emerging-growth companies” going public to keep their regulatory filings secret until just three weeks before their securities went on sale.

The idea behind calling it the “JOBS Act” was to win votes. After all, more investment and more IPOs would mean more capital for businesses, and that would mean more jobs—right? But while it’s true that businesses need capital to hire workers, the problem with US job creation in recent years hasn’t been a lack of capital. It’s been a lack of demand for the work the workers do.

And the JOBS act didn’t even raise the number of IPOs. Ultimately, it’s merely made it easier for companies that do go public to keep details of their operations secret for longer. The rate of jobs growth, meanwhile, has not meaningfully accelerated, unemployment remains high, and people are leaving the workforce in droves.

Meanwhile, Congress hasn’t done anything meaningful to create jobs since the stimulus bill in 2009. (It allowed unemployed Americans to claim unemployment insurance for longer, and just about prevented the country from falling off the fiscal cliff, but these don’t qualify as anything other than “first, do no harm.”) Since 2011, President Barack Obama and his party have been flogging various versions of the American Jobs Act—a passel of infrastructure investment, school modernization funding, small business loans, and training programs that offer a chance to actually, you know, create jobs—but this apparently has no chance of getting through Congress.

Apparently, a regular jobs act—unlike a JOBS act—doesn’t enjoy the same bipartisan support engendered by the interests of Wall Street and Silicon Valley.

mrhifibanjostrings:

Old Reliable Hell on Earth Brand.

Demanding another anchor to come and provide a younger, hipper balance to Matt Lauer, NBC has hired 40-year-old stripling Carson Daly, taking away his late-night Last Call hosting duties and rousting him out of bed for Today, at an hour when responsible adults get up and go to work for a living, as it’s high time Carson Daly learned a little responsibility. Daly will join Today on Sept. 16, where he will debut alongside the show’s new open floor plan, which is all the better for skateboarding and other young people things.

Among them: Social media-ing, which Daly will oversee as the host of Today’s new “Orange Room," which NBC describes in its press release as a “first-of-its-kind digital studio” that—despite sounding very intimidating and austere, what with the word “digital” in there—is really more of a “casual, lounge-like setting,” as all things are when ...

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Well, this is charming. Here's a film shot in 1971 on black-and-white 16mm film by Portland filmmaker Tim Smith when he was 15 years old. It's called This Is Portland, and aside from being a goofy spoof of a travelogue, it's an immaculate visual time capsule of the city more than 40 years ago.

Here's what Smith has to say about the video:

This Is Portland... [is] a direct spoof of a little known couple named Don and Bettina who were known for a series of travelogs. The two of them (I vaguely remember) produced fairly amateur films about travel—with crude sound and kitschy music. This short is in part dedicated to their memory. Note: this is Portland in 1971, when Portland was a dumpy little town with nothing in particular except offering a safe place to raise a family. My brother Duncan (now deceased) is featured as the character in the tuxedo along with his date in evening dress, Elinor Markgraf.

There's a lot to enjoy here—and check out Tim Smith's other films, shot in Portland decades ago, on his YouTube channel.

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Gold is best! Best, best, best!

In this clip from Conan, Apple reveals its inspiration for the recently announced iPhone 5s, the first iPhone available in gold alongside the traditional colors of silver and black (or “Space Gray”).

I'm quoted (also here) as using this analogy to explain how IT companies will be damaged by the news that they've been collaborating with the NSA:

"How would it be if your doctor put rat poison in your medicine? Highly damaging," said Bruce Schneier, a US computer security expert.

Not the most eloquent I've been recently. Clearly I need to relax.

The Heritage Foundation wants us to consider an analogy.

thetithingman:

Photo — Worst. Bus Map. Ever.

Well, crap.

(Source: Chester Beltowski/Flickr)

One of the challenges Steve Jobs handed to Hartmut Esslinger, who was head of design at Apple from 1982 to 1985, was to imagine products that Apple did not yet have the ability to build. The idea was that, as long as Esslinger was creating a consistent “design language,” or collection of colors, forms and other rules, for the entire Apple and Macintosh line, engineers and executives should be able to see how it would apply to products in the future—even the far future.

(Esslinger is about to release a new book on his time collaborating with Jobs, and these images are included.)

One result of these exercises were early prototypes for what would eventually become the iPad. Another was this, a prototype “Wrist & Ear Phone.” Hartmut has not provided details on this prototype, but it’s clear just from his original design that he and Jobs had thought about the challenges inherent in interacting with a device that is limited by the dimensions of the human wrist.

Their solution, a combination headset and wrist control, still feels relevant today, as designers at Samsung and other companies struggle not just with what wearables like a smart watch are for, but how they can work in a way that will justify their addition to the pantheon of wearable computers that we’ll never want to be without.

Meggs

This week, the Riddler surprises and another tale of "Astro City" dazzles you with the mundane while Lobo-In-Name-Only gets "Twilighted" & "Infinity: The Hunt" ignores Jimmy Woo's nationality.

Read 6 remaining paragraphs | Comments

r33f3rmadness:

honestly found this cool as fuck.

Dear Bike Evangelist:
We get it. You are smarter and whiter than us, and you get to be that special person who tells others how to live.
I am bad for owning a home and a car. You have these things, but you also have a 4000k bike and fancy rain gear, so you get to be "Mr. Thang" at New Seasons or Whole Paycheck.
I thought you were out of my life, with only your sad little blog (where no one comments) to express yourself. Now you threaten to come back.
Whatever you do, make the world a better place by keeping a low profile. We are tired of your praying mantis demeanor, your sanctimonious approach to
your neighbors, your bowing to real estate developers. Fly away, fly away.

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Blur:

A simple image-blurring app for iOS, designed to create iOS 7-style wallpapers.

App Store

Huge molasses spill in Hawaii kills thousands of fish Fox News HONOLULU – Thousands of fish are expected to die in Honolulu waters after a leaky pipe caused 1,400 tons of molasses to ooze into the harbor and kill marine life, state officials said. Hundreds of fish have been collected so far, the state Department of ... and more »

From 2008: the Google logo on the Delta II Launch vehicle putting the GeoEye-1 earth observation satellite into orbit. Google has exclusive rights to use the satellite’s imagery in online mapping projects.

Even though the GeoEye-1 satellite sports a colorful Google sticker, its key customer is actually not Google but rather the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, a U.S. government agency that analyzes imagery in support of national security. The NGA is paying for half of the development of the $502 million satellite and has committed to purchasing imagery from it. Google is GeoEye’s second major partner.

"This is the opposite of a spy satellite," Brender [Geo-Eye CEO] said in a phone interview. "Spies don’t put info on the internet and sell imagery. We’re an Earth-imaging satellite, and we can sell our imagery to customers around the world who have a need to map and measure and monitor things on the ground."

Google’s Super Satellite - Wired Science

lakija:

Sophitia’s Outfit Reimagined! Repair Her Armor

Badass!

OnlyMrGodKnowsWhy

#floridaman

A Florida man is suing the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office over a violent arrest in December 2012 that the officer was not able to defend in court.

First Coast News reported on Monday that Bobby Wingate was cited by an officer for “walking down the wrong side of the road” during the stop, then punched in the face. When the officer pulled out his Tazer, Wingate called 911 to protect himself.

“He said do I really want to fight him?” Wingate can be heard telling the emergency dispatcher. “I haven’t done anything wrong.”

Wingate was arrested, charged with resisting arrest without violence and walking down the wrong side of the road and brought to trial. But in court, the officer testified he was not sure what side of the road Wingate was on, prompting the judge to dismiss the case. Wingate has since filed a civil suit against the department.

“The conduct that is outlined in the transcript and the 911 call is not only breathtaking, it’s outrageous, it’s disgraceful,” Wingate’s attorney, Andrew Bonderud, told FCN.

Watch First Coast News’ report on Wingate’s strange arrest, aired Monday, below.

Original Source

"It sprays like a fire hose," said Renner. "We recommend no more than 30 rounds on the belt, but one person could make it as big as they want."

Are you ready for some footbaaaaaaaall? That's what you'll get on the 3DS this week, thanks to the Virtual Console release of the nigh mythical Tecmo Bowl. The Wii U, meanwhile, picks up the often overlooked - but still great - The Legend of Zelda 2: The Adventure of Link. We also have a few sales going on: Toki Tori 2+ (Wii U) is $8.99 until 9am PT on September 19, Super Little Acorns 3D Turbo (3DS) is $3.99 until 9am PT on October 2, and Bike Rider DX is $2.99 until 9am PT on October 10.

Finally, next week sees the Wii U eShop release of The Wonderful 101 (which we rather enjoyed), while the 3DS will get a demo of Etrian Odyssey Untold: The Millennium Girl.

Continue reading New Nintendo eShop releases: Wonderful 101, Tecmo Bowl

New Nintendo eShop releases: Wonderful 101, Tecmo Bowl originally appeared on Joystiq on Thu, 12 Sep 2013 13:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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