News
Roku raises $60M from Hearst, News Corp, others
May 29, 2013 5:27 pm | by The Associated Press | CommentsRoku Inc., the streaming video device maker, said Wednesday that it has raised $60 million in its sixth round of funding. Media giant Hearst Corp. and an unnamed institutional investor joined existing backers such as News Corp. and its subsidiary British Sky Broadcasting in the round. Roku's...
Iran's approaching vote brings receding Web access
May 29, 2013 3:44 pm | by NASSER KARIMI and BRIAN MURPHY, Associated Press | CommentsFrom a computer keyboard in London, an Iranian emigre plays the role of counselor, social media guru and all-around adviser for Internet users back home seeking ways around the cyber-blocks set up by authorities in Tehran. These have been busy days. His Twitter account - which goes under the handle of Nariman Gharib - registers a steady stream of calls for help from Iran....
Ivory Coast techies elect new 'Web Mayor'
May 29, 2013 3:09 pm | by ROBBIE COREY-BOULET, Associated Press | CommentsA 22-year-old who lives with his parents is the new mayor of Ivory Coast's largest city, at least according to the West African nation's active community of self-described Internet geeks. Abidjan's budding network of bloggers, strategists, designers and Web entrepreneurs organized a separate vote for "Web Mayor," in late April days after Ivorians went to the polls for local elections.
An electrical switch for magnetism
May 29, 2013 11:42 am | by Massachusetts Institute of Technology | CommentsResearchers at MIT have developed a new way of controlling the motion of magnetic domains — the key technology in magnetic memory systems, such as a computer’s hard disk. The new approach requires little power to write and no power to maintain the stored information, and could lead to a new generation of extremely low-power data storage.The new approach controls magnetism by applying a voltage, rather than a magnetic field...
Asia stocks post muted gains on improving US data
May 29, 2013 10:59 am | by PAMELA SAMPSON, AP Business Writer | CommentsRising U.S. consumer confidence and home prices painted a picture of a rebounding economy, helping Asian stock markets to post muted gains Wednesday. Wall Street resumed its record-breaking rally on Tuesday after the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller survey found that U.S. home prices rose 10.9 percent in March, the most since April 2006.
US defense programs target of China cyber threat
May 29, 2013 10:58 am | by LOLITA C. BALDOR, Associated Press | CommentsNew revelations that China used cyberattacks to access data from nearly 40 U.S. weapons programs and almost 30 other defense technologies have increased pressure on American leaders to take more strident action against Beijing to stem the persistent breaches.
Australian lawmaker confirms China hacked spy base
May 29, 2013 10:53 am | by ROD McGUIRK, Associated Press | CommentsChinese hackers stole the blueprints of Australia's new spy agency headquarters years ago and the breach has been dealt with since then, an opposition lawmaker said Wednesday in the first confirmation of media reports. "These events did take place some time ago," senior opposition lawmaker George Brandis told Sky News television...
Ancient cousin of Triceratops highlights turnover among horned dinosaurs
May 29, 2013 10:52 am | by Yale UniversityYale University | CommentsThe earliest known cousin of Triceratops and Torosaurus — the best-known horned dinosaurs — has been identified based on fossils from north central Montana, further underscoring the diversity of large, plant-eating horned dinosaurs among the fauna of western North America 66 to 80 million years ago....
Tightest job market ever for China's college grads
May 29, 2013 10:47 am | by DIDI TANG, Associated Press | CommentsWhile the job market in China is still much better than in many other parts of the world, 2013 is being billed locally as the worst for young graduates. A record number of them — about 7 million — are leaving universities and graduate schools to seek their first employment at a time when companies are hiring fewer people.
How computers can learn better
May 29, 2013 12:00 am | by Massachusetts Institute of Technology | CommentsReinforcement learning is a technique, common in computer science, in which a computer system learns how best to solve some problem through trial-and-error. Classic applications of reinforcement learning involve problems as diverse as robot navigation, network administration and automated surveillance.
Airborne test directorate puts new parachute through its paces
May 29, 2013 12:00 am | by U.S. Army | CommentsThe Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate conducted a rigorous operational test recently on the new Military Free Fall Advanced Ram-Air Parachute System, a non-developmental item that is about to replace the nearly 20-year-old MC-4 parachute system for all service branches, according to the test officer....
Diving into nuclear policy
May 29, 2013 12:00 am | by Massachusetts Institute of Technology | CommentsIf you ask MIT students where they see themselves in a few years, you’ll get a wide range of answers — but almost all will be on dry land. MIT senior Cameron McCord feels a different calling: the ocean deep. A physics and nuclear science and engineering major from Springfield, Va., who is part of the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) at MIT, McCord will spend at least five years as an officer in the U.S. Navy....
Has Apple lost its cool? Its chief executive says no
May 28, 2013 10:35 pm | by By JENNA WORTHAM, Associated Press | CommentsIt has been a rough year for Apple. The company has battled fierce competitors like Samsung, come under scrutiny for tax avoidance and watched in dismay as its stock price took more dips and turns than a roller coaster. In a keynote interview Tuesday evening Apple’s chief executive, Timothy D. Cook, paused in thought...
Just how secure is quantum cryptography?
May 28, 2013 12:24 pm | by EurekAlert! | CommentsQuantum communication systems offer the promise of virtually unbreakable encryption. Unlike classical encryption, which is used to send secure data over networks today and whose security depends on the difficulty of solving mathematical problems like the factoring of large numbers, most quantum encryption schemes keep the encryption key separate...
Facial recognition technology proves its mettle
May 28, 2013 11:25 am | by Michigan State University | CommentsIn a study that evaluated some of the latest in automatic facial recognition technology, researchers at Michigan State University were able to quickly identify one of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects from law enforcement video, an experiment that demonstrated the value of such technology.
