Andy Baio explains how he tracked down a trolling “anonymous” blogger who revealed his identity by using a Google Analytics ID that was incremented one up from his public blog. He uses this as a springboard for offering practical advice to people who want to blog “anonymously” (or, at least, as anonymously as possible). via Boing Boing

Continue reading

Read More → "How to be more anonymous in your anonymous blog"

This new Vehicle Traffic Monitoring Platform, part of the Libelium Smart Cities solution. The platform is capable of sensing the flow of Bluetooth devices in a given street, roadway or passageway differentiating hands-free car kits from pedestrian phones. Sensor data is then transferred by a multi-hop ZigBee radio, via an internet gateway, to a server. The traffic measurements can then be analysed to address congestion of either vehicle or pedestrian traffic.

Continue reading

< … Read More → "Vehicle traffic monitoring platform with bluetooth sensors"

The original Cray supercomputer

In the last decade supercomputers were dressed up versions of Intel’s x86 machines, but increasingly supercomputers are borrowing innovations (and silicon in the form of ARM-based chips or DSPs) from the mobile and big data realm to add speed without guzzling too much power.

Prior to this century many supercomputers really were a different animal entirely, sporting specialty … Read More → "How the cloud is reshaping supercomputers"

Every six months, a new list of the top 500 fastest supecomputers in the world comes out, and today was the day. The big news is that we’ve cracked 10 petaflops, but compared to six months ago, the list itself will probably surprise you. via Dvice

Read More → "Meet the 5 fastest computers on the planet"

The International Obfuscated C Code Contest is back. The stated goals of the IOCCC are to, “Write the most obscure C program, show the importance of programming style (by doing the opposite), stress the preprocessor to the breaking point, and illustrate some subtleties of the C language.” If you think you’re up to the task … Read More → "The International Obfuscated C Code Contest is back"

… Read More → "Innovative irrigation system conjures water out of thin air"

Not merely satisfied with having the the top research labs develop robotic dogs and cheetahs and humans, DARPA’s latest endeavor will see the military agency team up with MIT to develop FastRunner, arobotic ostrich capable of outrunning us all. via Gizmodo

Continue reading

… Read More → "DARPA and MIT Are making a robo-ostrich that runs faster than you"

“If popular culture has taught us anything, it is that someday mankind must face and destroy the growing robot menace.”

Author and robotic engineer Daniel H Wilson’s description of How to Survive a Robot Uprising seems like it is straight out of a robot disaster movie.

From Terminator and Blade Runner to Transformers and Star Trek, robots are coming and the impending apocalypse is almost upon us. via BBC

Read More → "Why are humans scared of robots?"

Kids know how to Google, just not how to tell which search results are crap.

We’re often told that young people tend to be the most tech-savvy among us. But just how savvy are they? A group of researchers led by College of Charleston business professor Bing Pan tried to find out. Specifically, Pan wanted to know how skillful young folks are at online search. His team gathered a group of college students and asked them to look up the answers to a handful of questions. Perhaps not surprisingly, … Read More → "Clive Thompson on why kids can’t search"