For system admins needing open-source monitoring tools, look at monit – a tool for monitoring systems and repairing casual problems when configured to do so
Kinetica museum
UPDATE: 7-10-2007 – The Orbo demonstration failed due to excessive heat from the lighting used to improve visibility.
This British museum of kinetic art sounds like a pretty cool place to check out. I’ve never been there, but just looked at the website. In concept, I like what they say.
Set strikingly against the backdrop of the old Spitalfields Market in London’s East End, Kinetica Museum opened in October 2006.
Kinetica is the UK’s first museum of kinetic art. It will actively encourage the convergence of art and technology, providing an exhibition space in central London where the most important examples of kinetic, technological and electronic art, both past and present, can be properly stored and displayed.
The thing that makes me wonder about the place, though, is that they are the host site for the new unlimited energy (nee perpetual motion) machine Orbo from energy company Steorn. You might remember that I wrote about this last year. So why suspicion of this? Well, if you can’t see the problem based on the description, you might not understand or care what’s wrong with it, but just the description makes me doubt such a claim.
Orbo produces free, clean and constant energy – that is our claim. By free we mean that the energy produced is done so without recourse to external source. By clean we mean that during operation the technology produces no emissions. By constant we mean that with the exception of mechanical failure the technology will continue to operate indefinitely.
The sum of these claims for our Orbo technology is a violation of the principle of conservation of energy, perhaps the most fundamental of scientific principles. The principle of the conservation of energy states that energy can neither be created or destroyed, it can only change form.
Violates the principle of conservation of energy? Color me skeptical of a machine that produces more energy than it consumes.
[tags]Perpetual motion machine, Unlimited clean energy, Orbo, Steorn, Kinetica museum[/tags]
US court determines Presidents and NSA are not subject to US law
Sadly, I just don’t have time to do this story in the manner it deserves. I’m preparing for a trip, and won’t have time to completely cover this until returning from travel. But the story is too important to let wait until then.
Overturning a lower court decision that President Bush’s unlawful wiretap authorization after the 9/11 attacks, a U.S. appeals court has ordered the dismissal of a lawsuit against the NSA for wiretapping. The simple reason is the court stated that since none of the plaintiffs could prove their 4th amendment rights had been violated by the wiretaps.
The appeals court ruled that the plaintiffs didn’t prove they had been affected by the NSA’s Terrorist Surveillance Program, authorized by President Bush in 2002. The program allowed the NSA to monitor communications between U.S. residents and people in other countries with suspected ties to the terrorist group al-Qaeda.
The plaintiffs argued, among other things, that the program violated the U.S. Constitution’s Fourth Amendment, protecting U.S. citizens against unreasonable search and seizure. But none of the plaintiffs could prove their Fourth Amendment rights had been violated, wrote Appeals Court Judge Alice Batchelder.
“The plaintiffs cannot show they have been or will be subject to surveillance personally,” Batchelder wrote.
Well, here’s the kicker. Because the program and all information collected is classified, no one can EVER prove their 4th amendment rights have been violated. Quite literally, the court has ruled that any program initiated by a President and stated to be classified complete protects the government from all legal repercussions. Think about this carefully before you dismiss it. That means, for instance, that if Hillary were to win the election next year (please dear ${diety} no, but just suppose) and she determined she needed to eavesdrop on political opposition. If she were to start doing this and claim it was classified, no one could bring any legal weight against her.
If any President does anything in violation of current law but declares all information about it to be classified, no one can do anything about it if this ruling stands. This is an insanely dangerous ruling, and it sets America up for very bad executive branch programs in the future. It’s especially sad to me that the ACLU actually takes on a case that they should, and because they can only speak of the potential damage of the program, it gets thrown out. All the cases judges let the ACLU run through that they win, and one this important gets dismissed? Sad. A pathetic show of judicial ruling.
[tags]US court appears to hate America, Court declares President above the law[/tags]
What’s running?
Here’s a super cool way to see detailed “what is running on your system?” information and who is communicating with you
Alabama still stuck in 1954?
Andrew has this handy graphic to help understand the state of the state of Alabama:
Now why would he intimate this? Well, let’s just take the quote he used and see if it tempts you to read the full story.
With the state’s weather forecasters not delivering much-needed rain, Gov. Bob Riley on Thursday turned to a higher power. The governor issued a proclamation calling for a week of prayer for rain, beginning Saturday.
Yes, there seems to be an attempt to solve a lack of rain through prayer. Now go see what Andrew has to say about it.
[tags]Alabama stuck in 1954?, Kantor highlights excellence in governance[/tags]
Disaster averted – for now
Thanks to the quick thinking of one man, we have one less vampire to threaten the world now.
A peacock that roamed into a fast-food restaurant parking lot was attacked by man who vilified the bird as a vampire, animal-control authorities said.
Beaten so fiercely that most of his tail feathers fell out, the bird was euthanized, said Richard Gentles, a spokesman for the city’s Center for Animal Care and Control.
Please don’t think I actually condone beating animals. I hate to think how many crazy people are out and about, hidden in plain sight. And here, I don’t mean “suffering from minor or major mental disabilities” crazy, but rather “potentially and likely dangerous but not recognized as such” crazy. It’s not hard (for me) to think that someone who would beat a peacock because they believe it to be a vampire as falling into both categories. I’m all for helping treat those in the first category and trying to help them function in the world as it is. I’m pretty much not so much in favor of helping the second category group back into society at large without major improvements at recognizing whether or not they actually still fall into the second category.
[tags]He started it!, The peacock was a vampire, Protecting the world from vampiric fowl[/tags]
Big brother of the year is bad-ass 5-year-old
Man, this is the kid I want as my big brother when I’m going through life on the next pass-through.
A 5-year-old boy grabbed a rabid fox by the neck and pinned it to the ground during a family cookout, protecting six other children before his stepfather could step in.
“I wanted to protect my little brother,” said Rayshun McDowell, who battled the animal in the front yard of his home Sunday in Kingstown, a town about 50 miles west of Charlotte.
Soooooo, 5-year-old. Rabid fox. Little brother to protect? Much canine ass-whooping occurred. Well done, sir Rayshun. Well done, indeed.
[tags]Bad-ass of the year in under 10 category, Big brother of the year, He opened a can on the fox[/tags]
Five people fail to be worth anything
Here’s a post of five worthless people doing nothing to justify their existence.
As stabbing victim LaShanda Calloway lay dying on the floor of a convenience store, five shoppers, including one who stopped to take a picture of her with a cell phone, stepped over the woman, police said.
So what reason is there for even having those five people around any more? And for the record, Ms. Calloway died later at the hospital.
[tags]Worthless people, LaShanda Calloway[/tags]
Home inspection nightmares part 4
In case you thought I’d forget, here is part 4 of the scary home inspection photo gallery
Today in History – Hello, Dolly
Well, probably not the “Hello, Dolly” you are thinking of, but on this day in history the first successful mammal clone, Dolly the sheep, was born.
Originally code-named “6LL3,” the cloned lamb was named after the buxom singer and actress Dolly Parton. The name was reportedly suggested by one of the stockmen who assisted with her birth, after he learned that the animal was cloned from a mammary cell. The cells had been taken from the udder of a six-year-old ewe and cultured in a lab using microscopic needles, in a method first used in human fertility treatments in the 1970s. After producing a number of normal eggs, scientists implanted them into surrogate ewes; 148 days later one of them gave birth to Dolly.
Also of note today in history is the 1946 introduction of the bikini, the first American fatality in the Korean war in 1950, and the 1921 accusation for throwing the 1919 World Series of several Chicago White Sox members. This and more at The History Channel’s This Day in History for July 5th.
[tags]Today in History, Hello Dolly, Mammalian cloning, Dolly the clone born, The real clone wars[/tags]
Happy July 4th
I realize this is late in the day to post, but happy July 4th holiday everyone. I’m stuck at work, but I got to spend time with my kids this morning and have lunch (Mmmmmm, burgers) with my wife, mother-in-law, and kids before heading to work this afternoon. I just wish we’d gotten to a pool or parade somewhere in there.
[tags]Happy July 4th, Independence day[/tags]
Electrocute your hot dogs for wholesome good taste
What’s the best way to enjoy food? Deep fried, of course. But as a fallback, what would be fun to do to your food? You could, you sadistic freak (and we like that about you), instead electrocute your hot dogs, treating them like the condemned criminals they really are.
[tags]Electrocution for yummy hot dogs, Can’t fry? Electrocute instead, Presto hot dog cooker[/tags]