Guillotine Watch: weighing the pros and cons of keeping your art collection on your super-yacht / Boing Boing
12.31.2018
Ordering up a little peace and quiet
Button offers instant gratification for those plagued by airplane noise - The Washington Post
Airnoise is the brainchild of Chris McCann, who repurposed the same plastic Dash Button that Amazon customers use to order toilet paper and detergent.
[TRIGGER ALERT: paywall]
12.30.2018
Immensely annoying, this little game
Here's an article in the Los Angeles Times about a cyberattack at said newspaper that quotes "several individuals with knowledge of the information" and a "company insider" who is "not authorized to comment publicly." WTF? The company insider is a person from their own company.
This whole little attribution game newspapers routinely play is clearly out of hand.
Foreign cyberattack hits newspapers: Here is what we know - Los Angeles Times
https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-cyberattack-times-newspaper-malware-20181229-story.html
12.29.2018
12.27.2018
It's strangely unsettling to realize…
…that if the world does come to an end I won't know because I have reached my 3-article limit. In the New York Times I seem to have reached my 3-article limit forever so I really won't know much of anything anymore.
Things were better in the long ago, when dinosaurs roamed the internet and newspapers were sold from racks at newsstands and occasionally from those boxes with glass fronts, because at least then I could read whatever was on the top half of the front page, which almost certainly would have included, if need be, WORLD ENDS.
Now, though, I am reduced to relying on Twitters, which is iffy at best.
Things were better in the long ago, when dinosaurs roamed the internet and newspapers were sold from racks at newsstands and occasionally from those boxes with glass fronts, because at least then I could read whatever was on the top half of the front page, which almost certainly would have included, if need be, WORLD ENDS.
Now, though, I am reduced to relying on Twitters, which is iffy at best.
This might be fun
Thousands of hot tubs can be HACKED and controlled remotely by smartphone | Daily Mail Online
12.25.2018
But nothing wrong with guessing
Mince pies from WWII found under hotel floorboard
"We can't say for sure why Able Seaman Davis never ate his mince pies," he added.
12.21.2018
2+2
We need a Secretary of Defense and The Donald likes hiring people from Fox News…
Lou Dobbs Says U.S. Should Go to War With China over Hacking: 'This Is no Different Than Pearl Harbor'
Have we found our new SecDef?
Lou Dobbs Says U.S. Should Go to War With China over Hacking: 'This Is no Different Than Pearl Harbor'
Thinks?
Missouri woman's tiny house was reported stolen, then found days later 30 miles away
Panu, of St. Louis, said in an Instagram post that she thinks the house was stolen between Friday night and Saturday morning.
Pro tip: Don't pick up riders wearing orange jumpsuits and handcuffs
(Unless you're a cop.)
Inmate hitches ride with officer, goes back to jail
Worthington says the person who stopped was a campus officer at Morehead State University who saw handcuffs hanging off one wrist.
12.20.2018
The End of Civilization, Part the Zillionth
Hershey's Kisses Scandalously Missing Tips
The issue was brought to public attention by a Facebook group called the Wedding Cookie Table Community, who were pissed at Hershey's for ruining their perfect Blossom cookies. No doubt this explains my grandmother's recent ranting and ravings about everything going to hell.http://www.grubstreet.com/2018/12/hersheys-kisses-are-broken.html
12.19.2018
"The total embodiment of the Spirit of Toledo"
A humble weed grew in a cracked city sidewalk. Now it's the Christmas Weed, a festive holiday destination. - The Washington Post
[TRIGGER WARNING: Paywall]
Facebook again (and again, and again…)
As Facebook Raised a Privacy Wall, It Carved an Opening for Tech Giants - The New York Times
[TRIGGER WARNING: Paywall]
12.15.2018
When the history of horrible ideas is written…
Amazon patent hints at using doorbell cameras to build a suspicious persons database – BGR
12.13.2018
Observing an oxymoron in the wild
Sen. James Inhofe Bought Defense Stock Days After Pushing for Record Pentagon Spending—Then Dumped It When Asked About It
But the Raytheon stock purchase still raised a flag for government ethicists…
12.12.2018
12.11.2018
Eco-friendly, but not
People Keep Throwing Electric Scooters Into Lakes and Rivers
Slate
Companies like Bird and Lime are expanding to more and more cities—but it's hard to do environmental remediation at scale. Read the full story
Shared from Apple News
Maybe it's just one more of those jobs Americans don't want to do
Trump admin paid $13.6 million to hire 2 border agents: watchdog - Business Insider
12.10.2018
12.09.2018
12.07.2018
Of course it is.
CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, 99th Edition: Amazon.com: Books
On Amazon. Where all books reside, apparently. $196.09 new (nice touch, that .09).
I woke up this morning thinking of this book. Pretty perverse, right? My copy wasn't a new one, of course. I never figured out where they came from, the new ones. Nobody I knew could afford one. Mine was fourth or fifth-generation and I passed t on when I left school. Fortunately not much in the CRC Handbook changes from year to year (or ever). A cosine is a cosine, now and forever.
It's all also online now, as well, but you have to be a member of a "participating institution" to use it.
I don't know how you could use the website as a doorstop, though.
12.06.2018
Cool as in cool, not cool
The Cool List 2019 | National Geographic Traveller (UK)
Also, Pittsburgh? I don't see anything here about the Steelers.
12.05.2018
Here's a kid with a great future in the weapons industry
9-year-old asks town to repeal ordinance that bans snowball fights | GreeleyTribune.com
Dane Best, 9, already knows who he wants to hit with his first snowball when it becomes legal to throw one in Severance.
12.04.2018
If you insist on reading this, sit down first
Hide, deny, spin, threaten: How the school district tried to mask failures that led to Parkland shooting
How you talk, how you walk…
Risky Business
Trump's Extreme Vetting Initiative has called for software that can automatically "determine and evaluate an applicant's probability of becoming a positively contributing member of society" and predict "whether an applicant intends to commit criminal or terrorist acts after entering the United States," as The Intercept reported last summer.
One book to rule them all?
Michelle Obama's Becoming memoir becomes bestselling book of 2018 | EW.com
Fifteen days after its release, Michelle Obama's memoir is now the best-selling book of 2018.
12.03.2018
For a moment there I thought we had something
69-Year-Old Troll Loses Case to Make Himself 20 Years Younger
Gizmodo
Emile Ratelband, a 69-year-old man who has insisted he should be allowed to legally change his age to make himself 20-years younger, finally had his day in court. As of Monday, December 3, 2018, he is still legally 69 years old, and time will continue to have its way with him, just as it does for all of us. Read the full story
Shared from Apple News
Too much knowledge is a (very) dangerous thing
How to make your own scratch-and-sniff holiday cards | Popular Science
DOJ wants to keep its reasons you shouldn't have secrets…wait for it…
…secret.
DOJ made secret arguments to break crypto, now ACLU wants to make them public | Ars Technica
Peak irony.
12.01.2018
'Tis the season for "best of" lists…
…which we normally avoid, but…
Best Non-Fiction Books | Non-Fiction Best Sellers 2018
And how, pray tell, did we think they did?
Turns Out Mitochondria Don't Work Like We Thought They Did
11.29.2018
11.27.2018
Maybe we should ask England to take us back
In another exceptional move, parliament sent a serjeant at arms to his hotel with a final warning and a two-hour deadline to comply with its order.
Is it too late? I don't think it's too late. And just think how handy it would be to have a serjeant at arms of our very own.
11.26.2018
Panic!
There is no football on my TV schedule today. OK, Monday night football, but I don't get Monday night football and anyway who cares about Tennessee or Houston, right? Real football, I mean, which does not happen again until Thursday (I don't know who's playing but by then I won't care).
This is bad.
This is bad.
11.25.2018
I guess I'll never have to figure out how Bitcoin works
The Great Cryptocurrency Scam
Whatever else one can say that cryptocurrency has accomplished, it has been one of the greatest destroyers of wealth in the financial history of mankind.
11.21.2018
Works out fine
I had a nasty cold for the first 48 hours of the week but it broke at about three this morning so now I'm fine except massively sleepy. Which is fine. Luckily, tomorrow is a holiday.
It's difficult to take a holiday when you don't work to begin with. What are you going to do? Work? I think not. But sleeping is not working and it's not exactly day-to-day not working either and here I am counting watching football as sleeping also (a perfectly reasonable administrative decision} so that pretty much takes care of that. Go Bears.
There is only one thing left to consider, which is the turkey, but my sister is cooking it, which is a perfect example of why it's a very good idea to have one. A sister, I mean, not a turkey. Which is good too, I'm not saying it's not, so there's that.
It's difficult to take a holiday when you don't work to begin with. What are you going to do? Work? I think not. But sleeping is not working and it's not exactly day-to-day not working either and here I am counting watching football as sleeping also (a perfectly reasonable administrative decision} so that pretty much takes care of that. Go Bears.
There is only one thing left to consider, which is the turkey, but my sister is cooking it, which is a perfect example of why it's a very good idea to have one. A sister, I mean, not a turkey. Which is good too, I'm not saying it's not, so there's that.
11.20.2018
Here's a strangely disturbing story from the Washington Post
[Trigger warning: it's a paywalled site.]
'Nothing on this page is real': How lies become truth in online America - The Washington Post
File under Let's Not Blame the Russians for Everything.
11.19.2018
The best thing about you…
…is you can be sold again and again and again.
Ford's next revenue stream could come from consumer data
"Automakers will lose money on electric cars for years to come. None of them knows exactly how they're going to make money on autonomous cars," said John McElroy, a veteran industry observer and host of Autoline.tv. "But they could make a fortune monetizing data. They won't need engineers, factories or dealers to do it. It's almost pure profit."
11.18.2018
Steganography
 | Graham Cluley (@gcluley) |
"Spies have been known to work code messages into knitting, embroidery..." The Wartime Spies Who Used Knitting as an Espionage Tool atlasobscura.com/articles/knitt… pic.twitter.com/DWUfZV1r7D | |
Download the Twitter app
11.17.2018
Because you can't actually do it on Instagram
Why are young people having so little sex?
The Atlantic
Despite the easing of taboos and the rise of hookup apps, Americans are in the midst of a sex recession. Read the full story
Shared from Apple News
This could get pretty interesting pretty fast
Machine Learning Can Create Fake 'Master Key' Fingerprints | WIRED
The group has developed machine learning methods for generating fake fingerprints—called DeepMasterPrints—that not only dupe smartphone sensors, but can successfully masquerade as prints from numerous different people.
From our quiz page
Facebook's top execs 'make tobacco executives look like Mr. Rogers'
Recode
The company is under fire, again, this time for years of dirty tricks exposed by the New York Times.
"Can you think of any individuals who have made so much money doing so much damage? I mean, they make tobacco executives look like Mr. Rogers."
Shared from Apple News
So it's arrowed, really?
'Toxic' Is Oxford's Word of the Year. No, We're Not Gaslighting You.
The New York Times
The word, which is increasingly applied to nonphysical things, beat out others, including "gaslighting," "incel" and "techlash."
"Toxic" derives from the Greek "toxikon pharmakon," meaning "poison for arrows." (The part of the phrase meaning arrows, rather than poison, became the basis for the word.)
Shared from Apple News
There was a brief, magic moment Wednesday…
…when I thought the snow forecast for Thursday would be a mere flurry, melted off again by the end of the day. Fat chance.
We got six, maybe eight inches, and it's wet and dense and staying around, possibly, until July. Or at least for a while yet.
The only good news is the sidewalks are pretty clear, except where they aren't. There's a local ordinance that requires sidewalks to be shoveled but it seems not to apply to those who've fled, long-term, to warmer climes. And even if it did, would Florida extradite? Can Florida get anything right?
We got six, maybe eight inches, and it's wet and dense and staying around, possibly, until July. Or at least for a while yet.
The only good news is the sidewalks are pretty clear, except where they aren't. There's a local ordinance that requires sidewalks to be shoveled but it seems not to apply to those who've fled, long-term, to warmer climes. And even if it did, would Florida extradite? Can Florida get anything right?
11.15.2018
So you can sleep safe at night
System error: Japan cybersecurity minister admits he has never used a computer | World news | The Guardian
Buzzword alert (and more)
10 software selection factors to be ready for what's next in manufacturi | IFS
Exploiting the opportunities posed by servitization…
What this, servitization, means is that somewhere in the near future your refrigerator will no longer be an appliance, it'll be a service. It'll no longer be a product you buy, it'll be a service you subscribe to. Ditto your oven, your washing machine, your lawnmower, and, who knows, maybe your bed. Everything. Everything you, well, not exactly "own" anymore.
Hence, "opportunities."
11.14.2018
Eagle.walks.such…
…is the address of Chicago's Buckingham Fountain using the addressing convention developed by what3words.
Fun to play around with; avoids much work. (And yes, there's an app.)
Welcome to our first (maybe) installment of Work Avoidance Pro
Rainbow Jell-O being smashed through a tennis racket, captured in slo-mo / Boing Boing
O brave new world
Police: Woman remotely wipes phone in evidence after shooting | The Daily Gazette
She now faces evidence tampering and prosecution hindering counts
Apparently you can be prosecuted for trying to hinder your own prosecution. I can't wait for the movie.
11.13.2018
Couldn't we just take the rest of the month off?
They're still counting votes from the last election, aren't they?
Also, it's November 13 and some stores are already having Black Friday sales. What's wrong with this picture? It's not even National Spicy Guacoamole Day yet.
This kind of story…
 | Alexandra N. Wilson (@AlexandraNWil) |
Meet the #ForbesUnder30 Class of 2019: From creating milk without cows to trucks without drivers, these innovators are shaking up some of the world's stodgiest industries. @Forbes @ForbesUnder30 forbes.com/sites/alexandr… | |
…always reminds me about a piece I read in the New Yorker several decades ago, a short story about the last guy on Earth who remembered how to do long division. Fortunately, he was an American; he instantly became a top-secret military asset, the person who would save us if an enemy somehow managed to disable all our calculators.
Who's going to save us when we forget how to milk a cow?
[Full disclosure: I never knew. So there's also that.]
Beer fight!
The end of Pabst Blue Ribbon? Beer giants pop a top on bitter court battle
11.10.2018
What's your number?
On Hold for 45 Minutes? It Might Be Your Secret Customer Score
The Wall Street Journal
Retailers, wireless carriers and others crunch data to determine what shoppers are worth for the long term. The score can determine the prices you pay, the products and ads you see and the perks you receive. "Not all customers deserve a company's best efforts." Read the full story
Shared from Apple News
11.09.2018
Election only three days ago and already we have a new crop of lawn signs
The notion…
…that all that money will not be used to produce better shows is pretty compelling. But still, hope is eternal. (And maybe even helps to sell newspapers. Wouldn't that be fine?)*
Those political ads you've been complaining about? They could soon gussy up your favorite TV show. - The Washington Post
The advertising-research firm Borrell Associates estimates as much as $8.9 billion was spent to promote candidates in Tuesday's races.
*(Our guess, though, is it doesn't.)
11.08.2018
Have you noticed how much flipping and flopping went on Tuesday last?
These are all the seats that Democrats flipped in the 2018 midterm elections - Houston Chronicle
I went fishing at a trout farm once and it was quieter than that.
Make American Cheese Great Again
Millennials Are "Killing" American Cheese, the Best Cheese
Millennials are not satisfied with killing cable television, mayonnaise and Hooters; they are now coming for the Kraft Single.
11.07.2018
Mitt's back!
Mitt Romney wins Utah Senate election | Boston Herald
Although tensions have thawed between Romney and the president, he kept Trump at arm's length throughout his campaign and often added a critical 2 cents.
It was probably the 2 cents that did It.
Whatever. It's nice to see YA used Massachusetts politician make good.
11.06.2018
Election night where I live…
…is pretty boring. The polls close on Eastern Standard Time and everybody votes the same anyway, so there's not much late-night suspense. Or even early-night suspense. Which is why I'll just read about it in the morning.
Imagine our surprise!
Are you setting your smart lock up for intrusion? - CNET
Overautomating your smart lock might be convenient, but it opens up your home (literally) to one pretty simple hack.
It's not that difficult (hey, I did it)
Vote today.
In the last mid-term election, 2014, only about 37% of eligible voters bothered. Ironically, people who don't vote are the most powerful voting bloc in the country.
Help change that. If you haven't voted already, go do it now.
11.03.2018
Get a grip
I'm watching the Nebraskas lose (but not by very much) a football game to the Ohio States this afternoon and thinking that's a lot of people in that stadium so I look it up in Wikipedia and yup, the Ohio State stadium holds about 105,000 people (and it's packed), and that's not even the biggest college football stadium in the U.S. (sorry, Buckeyes). The University of Michigan's stadium holds a couple thousand more.
That scary "caravan" of scary Central Americans marching scarily through Mexico, threatening to arrive at the U.S, southern border (OMG) in a month or so would not even fill the end zone seats. In one of them, let alone both, let alone the dozens of other university facilities filled with spectators this very Saturday afternoon.
And for this we're calling out the troops?
That scary "caravan" of scary Central Americans marching scarily through Mexico, threatening to arrive at the U.S, southern border (OMG) in a month or so would not even fill the end zone seats. In one of them, let alone both, let alone the dozens of other university facilities filled with spectators this very Saturday afternoon.
And for this we're calling out the troops?
11.02.2018
A few reading (and listening) notes
The eminently readable Rolling Stone journalist Matt Taibbi, at The Fairway, is self-publishing a new book on the press, AKA "the media," which can be read in serialized form for a monthly or annual ($40) subscription. Also also included in the fee is access to a previous book on the economics of the drug trade.
The excellent podcast, Serial, in its third season, is examining the workings of the U.S. justice system as exemplified by the workings of a courthouse in Cleveland, Ohio. It's available on iTunes and other podcast sources.
Also of podcasting note, among a pretty broad assortment of efforts in the field of cybersecurity, is an offering from the cyberwire called Hacking Humans. It's a commendably non-technical review of current phishing, vishing, smishing, and assorted other internet hustles and scams.
Eventually to appear on our reading list, the Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant, a work said to be much admired by Mark Twain (whose recommendation is good enough for me) is available free at Project Gutenberg.
And, if you're into reading about airplanes, a novel (entirely fictional) by Ken Follett entitled Night Over Water takes place on the (entirely real) Boeing B-314s flying boat flown in trans-Atlantic service by PanAm during the late 1930's and by the U.S. military during the early 1940's. Only twelve of them were ever built.
The excellent podcast, Serial, in its third season, is examining the workings of the U.S. justice system as exemplified by the workings of a courthouse in Cleveland, Ohio. It's available on iTunes and other podcast sources.
Also of podcasting note, among a pretty broad assortment of efforts in the field of cybersecurity, is an offering from the cyberwire called Hacking Humans. It's a commendably non-technical review of current phishing, vishing, smishing, and assorted other internet hustles and scams.
Eventually to appear on our reading list, the Personal Memoirs of U.S. Grant, a work said to be much admired by Mark Twain (whose recommendation is good enough for me) is available free at Project Gutenberg.
And, if you're into reading about airplanes, a novel (entirely fictional) by Ken Follett entitled Night Over Water takes place on the (entirely real) Boeing B-314s flying boat flown in trans-Atlantic service by PanAm during the late 1930's and by the U.S. military during the early 1940's. Only twelve of them were ever built.
10.31.2018
Really, Facebook? Again?
We posed as 100 senators to run ads on Facebook. Facebook approved all of them. – VICE News
We're looking forward to a snowball fight in Congress
Forecasters in the private sector strongly favor a snowy winter in Washington - The Washington Post
An atom here, an atom there; pretty soon you're talking about real mass
Redefining the Kilogram - Scientific American
The official object that defines the mass of a kilogram is a tiny, 139-year-old cylinder of platinum and iridium that resides in a triple-locked vault near Paris.
File under No Free Lunch
Bitcoin's popularity has a downside: It's an energy glutton that could hurt Earth's climate, study finds - The Washington Post
10.30.2018
Are you yours?
Your Medical Data Might Become A Moneymaker. How Could You Profit? : Shots - Health News : NPR
It doesn't seem like much to give up your email address for access to a web site you're interested in—after all, they're not asking for money—or clicking on a "Like" button now and then, or participating in an online poll, or…well, you get the idea.
But it is. Much. Because there are companies—some of which with names you know and others you don't—who make, literally, billions of dollars "mining" the data you leave behind, sorting it and compiling it, until some of those companies, as Apple's Tim Cook put it the other day, know more about you than you know about yourself.
And what they know, they sell. For lots.
Now, some of what they know is public information and you could find it yourself if you had enough time and money to spend. But some is private, and some is very private, as in the NPR story above.
Are you getting enough in return for it? Not for me to say.
But what I do say is this growing concern for privacy on the network is real and justified. How much of who we are do we want to let go of?
Hospitals and health plans are increasingly using the huge amount of medical data they collect for research. It's a business worth billions of dollars, and sometimes those discoveries can be the foundation of new profit-making products and companies.
It doesn't seem like much to give up your email address for access to a web site you're interested in—after all, they're not asking for money—or clicking on a "Like" button now and then, or participating in an online poll, or…well, you get the idea.
But it is. Much. Because there are companies—some of which with names you know and others you don't—who make, literally, billions of dollars "mining" the data you leave behind, sorting it and compiling it, until some of those companies, as Apple's Tim Cook put it the other day, know more about you than you know about yourself.
And what they know, they sell. For lots.
Now, some of what they know is public information and you could find it yourself if you had enough time and money to spend. But some is private, and some is very private, as in the NPR story above.
Are you getting enough in return for it? Not for me to say.
But what I do say is this growing concern for privacy on the network is real and justified. How much of who we are do we want to let go of?
I had a terrible time getting out of bed this morning because…
A) It was nice and warm in there and
B) I was dreaming of cinnamon buns. The kind with lots of cinnamon and white frosting.
I'm kind of sorry I'm not still there.
B) I was dreaming of cinnamon buns. The kind with lots of cinnamon and white frosting.
I'm kind of sorry I'm not still there.
10.28.2018
The definition of bliss
My TeeVee service today has the Bears game, the Packers game, and the Vikings game sequentially. That's 3/4 of the North Division right there.
The forth team, the Lions, are playing one of those bird teams. We don't worry about Lions versus birds, do we?
PS. The Bears won and the other three teams lost. No outcome could be more perfect. The Bears, thereby, vaulted from last to first position in the tightest division in all the NFL.
The forth team, the Lions, are playing one of those bird teams. We don't worry about Lions versus birds, do we?
PS. The Bears won and the other three teams lost. No outcome could be more perfect. The Bears, thereby, vaulted from last to first position in the tightest division in all the NFL.
10.27.2018
A time-traveler from the past encounters a New Yorker cartoon
In the 'toon, a robot escorts a young woman out of a building. An elevator door is visible in the building's lobby. In the woman's arms is a cardboard box filled, one assumes, with personal possessions.
The cartoon's title: "2046: Final human job replaced by robot."
A century before that date, in the late 1940's, when I was in junior high school and my deep sci-fi period, all the wonders of the future were reserved for the 21st Century. We would have flying cars and space travel and robots to wash the dishes, mow the lawn, and dust under the bed. I figured with a little luck I might live long enough to see it.
I did. I didn't find flying cars but semi-self driving and/or crashing cars; not space travel but intercontinental ballistic missiles; and robots. The robots are freaking everybody out.
Because if the robots do all the work, what about you? (This doesn't disturb me, of course.) If you don't work you don't have money; if you don't have money you don't have Netflix. Somehow, nobody thought of that.
Well, actually, somebody did, about the time I was in junior high school. Nobody cared.
Sooner or later somebody will have to.
10.26.2018
Time Traveler by Merriam-Webster: Search Words by First Known Use Date
"Super-duper" is a phrase that was first used in print the year I was born. Also "spymaster," "socko," and "soap opera," among the s's.
Have a look for yourself a this super-duper Merriam-Webster site.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler
Have a look for yourself a this super-duper Merriam-Webster site.
https://www.merriam-webster.com/time-traveler
10.25.2018
We need robocops
Here's what happens when police pull over a driverless car - The Washington Post
[Trigger warning: Paywalled site.]
Don't tell me this isn't just a little bit spooky
This Thermometer Tells Your Temperature, Then Tells Firms Where to Advertise - The New York Times
"Amazon has submitted a patent application, recently granted, outlining how the company could recommend chicken soup or cough drops to people who use its Echo device if it detects symptoms like coughing and sniffling when they speak to it, according to a report by CNET."
[Trigger warning: Link is to a paywalled site.]
If at first you don't succeed…
Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio are not included on the passenger list.
10.23.2018
Bear note
I went out to measure the height of the neighbors' bird feeder this morning and I'm thinking that bear that visited us last evening, standing on its hind legs, was about 6'5" to the tip of its nose.
So big enough to be, you know, biiiig.
So big enough to be, you know, biiiig.
Be honest: Does the idea of being "wooed" by the "White House" turn you on?
The White House is wooing tech workers to do tours of duty in government - The Washington Post
Also, I'm not sure having a parade of short-term high-nerd quotient Silicon Valleyites cycling through government agencies is a capital (or capitol) idea.
But maybe that's just me.
10.22.2018
Is discord vegan? (asking for a friend)
Russian Woman Charged With Interference In US Midterm Elections
Elena Khusyaynova, 44, was charged with conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors said she managed the finances of "Project Lakhta," a foreign influence operation they said was designed "to sow discord in the U.S. political system"…
They're sowing a lot of it these days if the newspapers are any indication and you've gotta believe, with a discord glut will come lower prices in the checkout line. Me, I'm planning to stock up.
I wonder if you can freeze it.
10.21.2018
How perfect is this?
I was reading the other day that Mark Twain thought U.S. Grant's memoir was better written even than Lincoln's, and was instrumental in getting it published. I seemed to remember having downloaded Grant's book once, possibly from the Gutenberg Project, but couldn't find it in any of the usual places in my computer. So I searched for it using Spotlight, Apple's system-wide search facility.
I typed "U.S. Grant" into the search box. Spotlight opened the Maps app and pointed to Grant's tomb.
OK. Answered that.
I typed "U.S. Grant" into the search box. Spotlight opened the Maps app and pointed to Grant's tomb.
OK. Answered that.
10.20.2018
Maybe plan to finally read Moby Dick?
 | Matt Taibbi (@mtaibbi) |
I expect the 2020 presidential race to be a monument to human ugliness - it will make 2016 seem like a church bake sale. twitter.com/russellhuegel/… | |
An all-Big Ten day
Michigan plays Michigan State in the early game and then both States descend on Indiana, Penn to play the Hoosiers and Ohio the Boilermakers, don't hardly seem fair.
Still, what am I going to do with all these potato chips if I don't watch?
Still, what am I going to do with all these potato chips if I don't watch?
This is the most fun thing I've read all day and it isn't even morning yet
What Is NPC, the Pro-Trump Internet's New Favorite Insult? - The New York Times
"Understanding how things can escape the internet's seedy underbelly and morph into actual tools of influence is part of understanding the mechanics of modern politics.'
[Trigger warning: Link to a paywalled site.]
Seedy underbelly! Gotta find me some of that.
10.19.2018
This is a very, very New York thing
I once lugged a full-length mirror from one end of 14th Street to the other on the Canarsie line without significant catastrophe—but a palm tree, now, that's class.
10.16.2018
Sage advice
One of the best ways of avoiding necessary and even urgent tasks is to seem to be busily employed on things that are already done.
John Kenneth Galbraith,
economist
[H/T Shawn]
PS. Try not to be yourself the person who already did them.
10.15.2018
Maybe a good old-fashioned concussion is the better way to go
Everything parents need to know about esports - The Washington Post
The eight to 12 hours that many top esports athletes say they train per day has led to an increase in computer-related injuries, including carpal tunnel syndrome, repetitive strain injury and back pain. And after several competitors suffered collapsed lungs, players are being warned not to hold their breath during intense moments.
OK, this might seem like a silly question but, ahem…
…what happens when you install your internet-connected doorbells, air conditioners, thermostats, furnaces, built-in kitchen appliances, door locks, garage door openers, sprinkler systems, baby monitors, and who knows what not yet invented things (as in Internet of) and then sell your house? Are you going to go through all that stuff and delete any personal information they may have accumulated?
Or worse, what if you buy the house? I guess you'd have to at least change all the passwords on all that stuff, and verify that none of the software's been hacked.
Or even worse yet, what if you don't know?
Or worse, what if you buy the house? I guess you'd have to at least change all the passwords on all that stuff, and verify that none of the software's been hacked.
Or even worse yet, what if you don't know?
And you were thinking…
'Do Not Track,' the Privacy Tool Used by Millions of People, Doesn't Do Anything
Gizmodo
When you go into the privacy settings on your browser, there's a little option there to turn on the "Do Not Track" function… Read the full story
Shared from Apple News
Genius abides
Website charges 99 cents to see who paid 99 cents to see who paid 99 cents...
Boing Boing
I paid 99 cents so I could show you what the Who Paid 99 Cents? website looks like when you pay 99 cents. It reveals a list of people who paid 99 cents to see who else did. I'm the 334th person to pay 99 cents. Some enterprising people are entering ads instead of their... Read the full story
10.13.2018
Imagine a world…
…where word that 29 million Facebook users had their accounts hacked is considered good news.
We thought the number was much larger than that.
The best defense of Kanye's 000000 password I've run across so far…
…is that it's so bad no evil Russian hacker would even think of trying it.
My advice is, do not try this at home.
My advice is, do not try this at home.
We have a hurricane named Defiant Leslie now?
 | National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) |
Hurricane #Leslie Advisory 69: Defiant Leslie Still a Hurricane. go.usa.gov/W3H | |
I like it. This could make the stormy season much more fun.
10.12.2018
Not too shabby, this
I used the new AR measuring app on my phone to divine the length of my most recent CVS receipt and it exactly matched the result I got from my local yardstick: 29.5 inches. Good work, app.bl
Since the total amount of my purchase was $8.98, that's 3.285 inches of receipt per dollar spent, which seems like a gratifying return.
Since the total amount of my purchase was $8.98, that's 3.285 inches of receipt per dollar spent, which seems like a gratifying return.
000000
The Cybersecurity 202: Kanye West is going to make password security great again - The Washington Post
Cybersecurity pros have long cautioned that simple passwords such as "12345" or "password" — and yes, "000000" — make it even easier for malicious actors to snoop or steal personal information. But despite the continuous warnings about the dangers of easy-to-guess passwords, people still choose them.
10.10.2018
We have met the enemy and he is us
The Cybersecurity 202: The Pentagon's new weapons systems are vulnerable to cyberattacks, government watchdog finds - The Washington Post
And here's the real zinger: "Due to this lack of focus on weapon systems cybersecurity, DOD likely has an entire generation of systems that were designed and built without adequately considering cybersecurity."
It's the original IoT. Oy.
10.09.2018
What's the big deal?
You can get all the way from here to Chicago in this much time on plain old Amtrak. And anyway, who wants to go to Singapore? Or, for that matter, New Jersey?
World's Longest Nonstop Flight Starts Service From Singapore to New Jersey This Week
Total flight time? Just under 19 hours.
There's always an extra screw
Why? I'm wondering if all those socks that escape turn themselves into screws and leave themselves lying around projects you're working on. I get it—if somebody wears you around on their foot all day you might be in the mood for a little payback.
Like this morning, I replaced a light switch and wound up with two extra screws. At least they're a pair.
When I was a kid I took a watch apart. You should have seen all the extra parts I wound up with that time. Somebody's sock drawer must have been decimated.
Like this morning, I replaced a light switch and wound up with two extra screws. At least they're a pair.
When I was a kid I took a watch apart. You should have seen all the extra parts I wound up with that time. Somebody's sock drawer must have been decimated.
10.08.2018
Your Morning Chuckle (a never to be repeated daily feature)
This from the Washington Post:
Facebook unveils the Portal, a video chat camera for the people who still trust Facebook
(That's right, the Washington Post is owned by that Alexa guy.)
Also from the Washington Post (yes, same one):
California's new Internet of Things law only protects against a small portion of cyberthreats
[Or do better, please. -Ed.]
Facebook unveils the Portal, a video chat camera for the people who still trust Facebook
(That's right, the Washington Post is owned by that Alexa guy.)
Also from the Washington Post (yes, same one):
California's new Internet of Things law only protects against a small portion of cyberthreats
Starting in 2020, all Internet of Things devices made or sold in California…must come equipped with unique passwords, or a feature that requires the user to set their own unique password.You got it, from now on you may have to put in your own Pa55w0rd.
[Or do better, please. -Ed.]
10.05.2018
Sucks to be the Facebook PR guy
Recode Daily: Facebook employees are outraged by a top exec's public show of support for Brett Kavanaugh - Recode
Not that I disagree with these guys, but it seems a little, ahem, inconvenient coming at a time when Facebook and other online elephants are trying to claim in Washington they are not biased against conservatives.
Some wag once said reality has a liberal bias so maybe that's just the way it is.
And in other wildlife news…
The Glory of Otis, Fattest of the Fat Bears | Outside Online
Otis, also known by his ID number, 480, is a brown bear who lives in Alaska's Katmai National Park. Otis is fat. So fat that he's been king of the park's Fat Bear Week two of the past three years
National Parks Service ranger: "Drunk birds are totally a thing"
Tipsy birds flying into windows, cars in northern Minnesota
The police department says there's no need to panic, the birds will eventually sober up.
10.04.2018
10.03.2018
So these guys are doing pretty much the same things the Russians were only without the Russia, of course.
Kavanaugh confirmation battle further mystifies 'dark money' spending
Hardly anybody remembers text-based computer games any more…
…since they went out of style shortly after somebody invented pictures. I've played a few of them; probably not you. So here's a quick primer on how to do it.
You type something onto a line (sort of like typing something into the search box on Google), and the computer types something back. That's it.
Oh, and since, back in the day, almost all computer games were designed by teenaged boys, almost all of them involved some kind of fighting.
I don't know if that's still true. But if you're interested…
Google is hiding a secret game in plain sight
Bonus fact: Text-based computer games are excellent ways to avoid work.
Right. This.
With a push of a button, FEMA's 'Presidential Alert' to be tested Wednesday
People cannot opt out of the new alert, which is scheduled for its first test at 2:18 p.m. ET.
10.02.2018
The other (other other other) problem Facebook had last week
OK, you've heard some 50 million Facebook accounts were breached and maybe you've also heard that breach affects not only Facebook but possibly lots of other sites as well, sites that people have used their Facebook credentials to sign in to. But what you might not have heard about because, I'm just saying here, it seems to be beyond the reach of all but a handful of tech journalists, is their security failure and substantial breach of confidence involving 2FA.
You Gave Facebook Your Number For Security. They Used It For Ads.
2FA stands for Two Factor Authentication, a salutary security protocol that requires a special, one-time PIN number in addition to your password when you log into your account on certain web sites. Not every site on the web offers this service but many of the big ones, including Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, Twitter, Google, and, yes, Facebook do.
In order to use your one-time PIN you need to acquire it somehow and one of the favored ways to accomplish this is for the web site in question to txt the PIN, as required, to your phone. Which requires your phone number, of course. Which Facebook was providing to its customers for use in targeted advertising.
Let that sink in. If you gave your phone number to Facebook for security purposes, you were essentially publishing it to the world. Oh yes.
This is naughty, naughty stuff.
Notice, however, as explained in the first of the articles cited above, it's not 2FA that's broken, it's Facebook. 2FA is still a beneficial protocol and you would be wise to enable it on any services you use that offer it.
Also notice this, October, is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month. What luck.
That's right, Bunky…
…if the planet dissolves into a fiery thermonuclear cloud I can read about it on Twitter, just like everything else.
Suit seeks to block Trump from sending 'presidential alerts' to phones - POLITICO
9.30.2018
Because two heads are smarter than one?
Agency says two-headed snake may go to educational facility
WAYNESBORO, Va. (AP) — A wildlife and conservation research hospital says a two-headed snake recently found near the nation's capital may be sent to an educational facility.
9.29.2018
50 puts you on the ash heap of advertising (but what about all those pills?)
When ratings don't define success, more TV series are staying on the air longer - The Washington Post
"Ratings, tabulated by Nielsen to include DVR views on the same day, can be evaluated in various ways. But shows whose episodes regularly draw under 5 million viewers are often seen as struggling, especially if they're not disproportionately strong in the 18-to-49 demographic that advertisers care about."
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