PotatOS Kit Turns a Portal 2 Gag Into a Science Fair Project [Gaming]

It's not going to guarantee you an A+ like showing up with a working portal gun would. But you can still wow your teachers by building your own version of Portal 2's potato-powered AI, even though the kit's a fraud. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/LbnSXvD4XSs/potatos-kit-turns-a-portal-2-gag-into-a-science-fair-project

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Climate change drops off 'hot topic' list

Interest in climate change has dropped off, and resistance to sustainability surcharges is a consequence of recession

This year's British Social Attitudes (BSA) survey comes complete with gloomy headlines on public opinion about climate change. Compared with surveys in 1993 and 2000, concern about the seriousness of environmental threats has decreased, and the number of people saying they were willing to pay more for environmentally friendly services has dropped significantly.

Against a backdrop of economic woes, the finding that people are less keen to pay a sustainability surcharge should be no surprise. More intriguing is the explanation offered for the receding concern about the threat posed by climate change. The survey's authors suggest that the lingering effects of the 2009 Climategate affair ? the release by climate sceptics of private emails between climate researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) ? has knocked people's trust in climate science.

To those who observed the deafening silence that greeted the release of yet more of the hacked UEA emails last month, this is a curious explanation. It has become a media truism that the fallout from Climategate dented public confidence in climate science. But the few polls that have asked directly about it, which the BSA did not, have painted a more nuanced picture. A US study in 2010, found that Climategate primarily influenced those who were already sceptical.

Beyond the somewhat spurious Climategate angle, are the BSA findings really as worrying as they seem?

There are many years of polling about climate change to consider. Concern about the issue peaked around the middle of the last decade ? before the hugely hyped UN negotiations in Copenhagen in 2009, and after the worldwide release of Al Gore's doom-laden film An Inconvenient Truth. At one point, a study at Cardiff University found that 82 per cent of respondents were either "concerned" or "very concerned" about climate change ? a very high proportion.

A long haul

But how plausible was it that the public would stay that concerned for the half century or more that it will take to really get to grips with climate change? Unlike more immediate threats, climate change will not have a significant effect on the majority of the UK population for some time. So the BSA results may be less of a collapse in public opinion, and more of an understandable levelling off of interest.

In fact, the most recent polling from the US ? where scepticism about climate change has become a badge of honour for political conservatives ? suggests a small but detectable upward trend in the number of people who agree that human activity is causing climate change. And in UK polls more recent than the BSA results, which were collected in 2010, levels of concern are once again increasing.

It is true that there is a large gap between public doubts expressed about the reality of climate change and the weight of the scientific evidence. It is tempting to feed the BSA data into a narrative of increasing scepticism about climate change, but the truth is probably more prosaic: climate change remains a significant concern for most people, if not the "hot topic" it was five years ago.

Profile

Adam Corner is a research associate at the School of Psychology, Cardiff University, UK. His research interests include the communication of climate change.

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Robert Greenwald: Help NAACP End Voter Suppression

In 2012, we will work with NAACP to ensure every American has the ability to vote. Across the country, community activists are joining us in this effort. Please take a moment to read the blog below from Benjamin Todd Jealous, President & CEO of NAACP and watch the video.

We're Turning the Tide

Posted on December 14, 2011 by Benjamin Todd Jealous, President & CEO

Last week was a game changer. We issued our call for voting rights in the streets of New York, at the United Nations and across the nation through the media. The far right is now on the defensive about their attack on voting rights.

In collaboration with Brave New Foundation, the NAACP has put together a new video about the impact of the voting right attacks on communities of color. Please take a moment to watch and spread the message to everyone you know, then text STAND to 62227:

Our new video, We Will Stand, shows exactly how difficult obtaining ID can be for many people. In the rural South, many people of a certain age have no birth certificate because they were born to a midwife. For them, the barriers to getting a state issued ID without a birth certificate are tremendous. Others are dependent on the rides to the polls provided by church-organized Sunday voting drives, which have been shut down in some states.

In 2012, we will work tirelessly to ensure every American has the ability to vote. On Martin Luther King Day, we will launch an unprecedented voter registration drive and our first-ever voter identification drive. And throughout next year, we will wage voting rights battles in state houses and courts around the country.

Across the country, community activists are joining us in that effort. As our video shows, South Carolina doctor Brenda Williams has spent countless hours and thousands of dollars helping her patients clear the financial and legal hurdles associated with satisfying the state's new strict voter ID law.

Dr. Williams is a hero in her community - but she cannot do it alone. It is going to take the efforts of people like you to help strengthen our front line and ensure our right to vote in 2012 and beyond.

I urge you to take this opportunity to make this movement your own and stand on the right side of history. Watch our video, share it with your friends, then text the word STAND to 62227 using your mobile phone. We will use this list in the year ahead to make sure that you have the information that you need to fight back against voting rights attacks in your community.

Remember that right to vote empowers us to defend our other rights. Enemies of justice will target your voting rights to take away the rest of your rights, knowing that when they come for your right to vote, the whole house of cards we call democracy starts to fall.

Text STAND to 62227 and help us build a strong foundation.

Follow @RobertGreenwald on Twitter.

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Follow Robert Greenwald on Twitter: www.twitter.com/robertgreenwald

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-greenwald/help-naacp-end-voter-supp_b_1154815.html

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Twisting molecules by brute force: A top-down approach

ScienceDaily (Dec. 14, 2011) ? Molecules that are twisted are ubiquitous in nature, and have important consequences in biology, chemistry, physics and medicine. Some molecules have unique and technologically useful optical properties; the medicinal properties of drugs depend on the direction of the twist; and within us -- think of the double helix -- twisted DNA can interact with different proteins.

This twisting is called chirality and researchers at Case Western Reserve University have found they can use a macroscopic blunt force to impose and induce a twist in an otherwise non-chiral molecule.

Their new "top-down" approach is described in the Dec. 2 issue of Physical Review Letters.

"The key is that we used a macroscopic force to create chirality down to the molecular level," said Charles Rosenblatt, professor of physics at Case Western Reserve and the senior author on the paper. Rosenblatt started the research with no application in mind. He simply wanted to see if it could be done -- essentially scientific acrobatics.

But, he points out, since antiquity chirality has played a role in health, energy, technology and more -- but until now, chirality always has been a bottom-up phenomenon. This new top-down approach, if it can be scaled up, could lead to custom designed chirality -- and therefore desired properties -- in all kinds of things.

Rosenblatt worked with post-doctoral researcher Rajratan Basu, graduate student Joel S. Pendery, and professor Rolfe G. Petschek, of the physics department at Case Western Reserve, and Chemistry Professor Robert P. Lemieux of Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario.

Chirality isn't as simple as a twist in a material. More precisely, a chiral object can't be superimposed on its mirror image. In a "thought experiment," if one's hand can pass through a mirror (like Alice Through the Looking Glass), the hand cannot be rotated so that it matches its mirror image. Therefore one's hand is chiral.

Depending on the twist, scientists define chiral objects as left-handed and right-handed. Objects that can superimpose themselves on their mirror image, such as a wine goblet, are not chiral.

In optics, chiral molecules rotate the polarization of light -- the direction depends on whether the molecules are left-handed or right-handed. Liquid crystal computer and television screen manufacturers take advantage of this property to enable you to clearly see images from an angle.

In the drug industry, chirality is crucial. Two drugs with the identical chemical formula have different uses. Dextromethorphan, which is right-handed, is a cough syrup and levomethorphan, which is lefthanded, is a narcotic painkiller.

The reason for the different effects? The drugs interact differently with biomolecules inside us, depending on the biomolecules' chirality.

After meeting with Lemieux at a conference, the researchers invented a method to create chirality in a liquid crystal at the molecular level.

They treated two glass slides so that cigar-shaped liquid crystal molecules would align along a particular direction. They then created a thin cell with the slides, but rotated the two alignment directions by approximately a 20 degree angle.

The 20-degree difference caused the molecules' orientation to undergo a right-handed helical rotation, like a standard screw, from one side to the other. This is the imposed chiral twist.

The twist, however, is like a tightened spring and costs energy to maintain. To reduce this cost, some of the naturally left-handed molecules in the crystal became right-handed. That's because, inherently, right-handed molecules give rise to a macroscopic right-handed twist, Rosenblatt explained. This shift of molecules from left-handed to right-handed is the induced chirality.

Although the law of entropy suggests there would be nearly identical numbers of left-handed and right-handed molecules, in order to keep total energy cost at a minimum, the right-handed molecules outnumbered the left, he said.

To test for chirality, the researchers applied an electrical field perpendicular to the molecules. If there were no chirality, there would be nothing to see. If there were chirality, the helical twist would rotate in proportion to the amount of right-handed excess.

They observed a modest rotation, which became larger when they increased the twist.

"The effect was occurring everywhere in the cell, but was strongest at the surface," Rosenblatt said.

Scientists have built chirality into optical materials, electrooptic devices, and more by starting at the molecular level. But the researchers are not aware of other techniques that use a macroscopic force to bring chiralty down to molecules.

The researchers are continuing to investigate ways this can be done.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Case Western Reserve University.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Rajratan Basu, Joel Pendery, Rolfe Petschek, Robert Lemieux, Charles Rosenblatt. Macroscopic Torsional Strain and Induced Molecular Conformational Deracemization. Physical Review Letters, 2011; 107 (23) DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.107.237804

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111214102852.htm

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Russian aid convoy stuck on Serbia-Kosovo border (AP)

JARINJE, Kosovo ? A stranded Russian aid convoy for Kosovo Serbs is at the center of an escalating dispute Wednesday between Moscow and international peacekeepers, with a top Western official casting doubt on the humanitarian goal of the aid mission.

The convoy of more than 20 Russian trucks was stopped Tuesday at a Kosovo border with Serbia guarded by U.S. soldiers, increasing tensions in the volatile region. It remained stranded Wednesday.

Moscow has become the champion of Serb defiance against Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence from Serbia. Local Serbs are frustrated by Belgrade's refusal to use force to save them from ethnic Albanian rule, and have turned to the Kremlin for help.

The minority Serbs, who reject Kosovo's statehood, have been blocking roads in the Serb-run north of the country to prevent Pristina authorities from taking control. The peacekeepers say the convoy's cargo consisting of canned food, blankets, tents and power generators appears like it is intended for those manning the roadblocks, and not for the general Kosovo Serb population.

"I don't know if the Russian aid is a propaganda trick or something else," the top Western official overseeing Kosovo's independence, Pieter Feith, told Serbian reporters. "Although not surprising, the (Russian aid) initiative is not practical."

"Poverty and misery exist in Kosovo, but the U.N. and the EU have not proclaimed the north of Kosovo as a zone of a humanitarian catastrophe," Feith said.

Russian officials escorting the convoy accused Kosovo's peacekeepers of blocking passage. EU officials in Kosovo said the Russians can pass if they allow an international police escort.

Russia's ambassador to Serbia, Aleksandr Konuzin, who is leading the convoy, refused an EU escort and accused the peacekeepers of "political blackmail."

Serbia's state Tanjug news agency said Konuzin asked for help from top Moscow officials.

Russia's envoy to NATO, Dmitry Rogozin, called the stoppage of the convoy "a humanitarian crime." He told Russian news channel Vesti-24 that such actions by Western countries "lead the Serbian minority in Kosovo to extinction."

The spokesman for the EU rule of law mission in Kosovo, Nicholas Hawton, said "there are two options for the convoy.

"Either they have a EULEX police escort to the destination following customs control, or proceed to Merdare," he said referring to Kosovo's eastern border crossing with Serbia that is manned by ethnic Albanian customs officials.

"It is a normal EU standard for a convoy of this size to have a police escort," Hawton said.

Konuzin has refused the alternative border crossing, saying the controls there are done by Pristina authorities, which are not recognized by Russia and Serbia.

Russia is considered a traditional Serb ally because of common Slavic roots and the Christian Orthodox religion.

___

Dusan Stojanovic in Belgrade and Nebi Qena in Pristina contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/russia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111214/ap_on_re_eu/eu_kosovo_russian_aid

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Novelist Michael Peterson gets new trial (AP)

DURHAM, N.C. ? Novelist Michael Peterson will get a new trial in the death of his wife because a key prosecution witness misled jurors about the strength of bloodstain evidence, a judge ruled Wednesday.

Peterson, 68, was convicted of first-degree murder in the 2001 death of Kathleen Peterson, who was found at the bottom of a bloody staircase in the couple's mansion. Peterson has maintained his wife died in an accidental fall after drinking alcohol and taking Valium.

Four of Peterson's children were in the front row of the courtroom when the judge announced his decision. He blew them a kiss as several members of the family sobbed with joy.

Peterson's attorney, David Rudolf, said it will likely be Thursday before his client can be released on the $300,000 bond set by the judge.

"I think it's a very sad thing when an expert called by the state of North Carolina, who's supposed to be impartial and present technical information to help the jury, becomes an advocate who misrepresents facts and conclusions," said Rudolf, who also represented Peterson in his 2003 trial.

Judge Orlando Hudson ruled that former State Bureau of Investigation agent Duane Deaver misled jurors at Peterson's trial when he testified that his analysis of blood spatter showed beyond any doubt that Kathleen Peterson died after being struck by her husband three times with a blunt object.

The state agency fired Deaver in January after an independent audit found problems in 34 cases where he either misreported test results, withheld results that could have helped the defendant or overstated the strength of the evidence to help prosecutors. In one of those cases, a man spent more than 17 years in prison before being released after a state innocence panel exonerated him.

Deaver was a crucial witness at Peterson's trial, which was carried live on cable television and became a documentary film and a made-for-TV movie.

Over the last week, Rudolf presented witnesses to cast doubt on Deaver's credibility, including three of the agent's former colleagues. Nationally recognized experts in bloodstain pattern analysis also testified that Deaver used antiquated techniques and gave opinions before the jury that could not justified through a scientific examination of the evidence.

The defense also showed that Deaver greatly exaggerated his level of expertise when he was certified to provide expert testimony and was untruthful about working prior crime scenes where someone died in a suspected fall.

"You have a right not to be tried with fabricated evidence," he told the judge. "There is no way to sugarcoat it. Deaver lied to this court and this jury multiple times."

Durham District Attorney Tracey Cline conceded that Deaver's methods were flawed. However, she insisted the discredited analyst had still reached the correct conclusions.

"He's guilty as hell," she said of Peterson, citing autopsy results and other evidence in the case.

Cline said she Peterson will be tried again. However, she said she has no intention of handling the case.

If the case does go to a second trial, the prosecution will not be able to use much of the evidence that helped win a conviction because an appeals court ruled a search warrant issued during the investigation was improper. Police also never found the blunt object.

Hudson, the judge at the 2003 trial, openly questioned whether Cline's office could still win a conviction.

"You've got no witnesses," he said. "You've got no confession."

"I don't think a circumstantial case is a bad case," she said.

Peterson enlisted in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. His novels include the 1990 "A Time of War," an in-the-trenches look at the war, and a 1995 sequel, "A Bitter Peace." Peterson was also a regular columnist for the Durham Herald-Sun and mounted an unsuccessful campaign to be the city's mayor.

Once released, Peterson will have to wear electronic monitoring while awaiting his new trial. He will live at a friend's home in Durham.

Clayton Peterson, one of Peterson's sons, said his family is looking forward to a second trial. He offered up his house to help secure his father's bond.

"We are confident he will be found innocent," Clayton Peterson said.

___

Follow AP writer Michael Biesecker at twitter.com/mbieseck

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/crime/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111214/ap_en_ot/us_writer_wife_s_death

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Community outraged over stolen baby Jesus

December 15, 2011 - 12:15 am

A manhunt is underway in Fredericksburg for the people responsible for the theft of a baby Jesus from a nativity scene.

The baby Jesus was part of a display on Carl Silver Parkway. Every Christmas the nativity scene adorns the edge of the busy thoroughfare.

"I think it's kind of weird that only the baby Jesus is missing," said Patrick Fladung, Fredericksburg resident. "It must be someone who doesn't believe in Christ. It's the war on Christmas."

But it's not the first time the theft has occurred. Back in 2005, baby Jesus was stolen, but thieves returned him a few hours later.

The prior incident prompted the people who put up the manger to take precautions, loading the baby Jesus with about 80 pounds of concrete.

Thus, the thief or thieves made a determined effort to remove the tiny statue.

"Maybe it's some teenager going around thinking 'let's be cool and steal the baby Jesus and have everyone wonder what's going on.' I Think it's just plain-out stupid and immature."

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Source: http://www.wjla.com/articles/2011/12/community-outraged-over-stolen-baby-jesus-70335.html

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"Witcher 2" pub threatens pirates while eschewing DRM

By Kyle Orland

In the never-ending battle between software pirates and PC game makers, Polish "The Witcher 2" publisher CD Projekt Red has come down firmly against the kind of invasive digital rights management (DRM) protections favored by many game makers.

But that doesn't mean the publisher is willing to simply allow illegal copies of its games to flourish online. The company recently confirmed it has been contacting thousands of alleged German pirates demanding penalties of over $1185?for their ill-gotten games.

"As you know, we aren't huge fans of any sort of DRM here at CD Projekt Red," the company told industry site Eurogamer. "DRM itself is a pain for legal gamers ??the same group of honest people who decided that our game was worth its price, and went and bought it. We don't want to make their lives more difficult by introducing annoying copy protection systems."

"However, that shouldn't be confused with us giving a green light to piracy," the company continued. "We will never approve of it, since it doesn't only affect us but has a negative impact on the whole game industry.

Piracy has become a major problem for PC game publishers, and "The Witcher 2" hasn't been immune from the trend. CD Projekt Red CEO and Co-founder?Marcin?Iwinski recently estimated the game saw at least 4.5 million illegal downloads via BitTorrent, compared to?roughly a million legitimate sales.

Despite those figures, Iwinski said at the time he still doesn't think technical DRM solutions to stop piracy are worthwhile. Such solutions always end up either too light, and therefore easy for pirates to circumvent, or else so invasive they get in the way of enjoyment by legitimate customers, Iwinski said.

It's a valid concern?? publishers including EA and Ubisoft have faced vocal customer backlash for piracy-prevention schemes that require a persistent internet connection during play or that install harmful, hard-to-remove rootkits on players' systems.

But where technical measures fail, CD Projekt Red seems more than willing to try out legal measures instead, even though its fully aware such efforts may hurt the company's image.?"We've seen some of the concern online about our efforts to thwart piracy, and we can assure you that we only take legal actions against users who we are 100 per cent sure have downloaded our game illegally," the company told Eurogamer.

It's an interesting piracy-fighting balancing act, and one that game-makers of all stripes are going to have to address if they want to take part in the PC game market.

Related stories:

Kyle Orland has written hundreds of thousands of words about gaming since he started a Mario fan site at the age of 14. You can follow him on?Twitter?or at his personal website,?KyleOrland.com.

Source: http://ingame.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/15/9473369-witcher-2-pub-threatens-pirates-while-eschewing-drm

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