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Submission + - California Launches 1st Statewide Earthquake Early Warning System 1

Submitted by hcs_$reboot
hcs_$reboot writes: Everyone in California will now receive earthquake alerts on their phones seconds before the ground begins to shake, giving residents up to 20 seconds of warning before shaking begins. Developed by seismologists at the University of California, Berkeley, the MyShake application (residents will need to download the app to receive the alerts in areas without cell phone coverage) is designed to alert the public when a magnitude 4.5 earthquake or greater has been detected and has been shown to be faster than other alert delivery methods. The wireless emergency alerts will be sent in the event of a more significant quake, magnitude 5.0 or greater. The system does not predict earthquakes. Rather, it uses numerous seismic stations to detect the start of an earthquake and light-speed communications to send the data to computers that instantly calculate location, magnitude, intensity of shaking and create alerts to be distributed to areas that will be affected.

Comment Re:I support the guy (Score 1) 237

It's a binary case with no mitigating circumstances.

Go read the goddam code. The jury is instructed to consider one fact: "Did the defendant share confidential information with a journalist?"

The jury cannot consider cause.

Well, other than the fact that SCOTUS has acknowledged that jury nullification is legal... The big issue is whether or not a jury should be apprised of this fact.

Comment Re: I support the guy (Score 1) 237

The US does not allow a public interest defense for espionage charges.

How exactly is what he did espionage? If he had attempted to covertly transmit those documents to a foreign power it would be espionage. He gave documents to the press to release to the public. While that's technically a crime because he didn't whistleblow though the proper channels, it's not espionage.

Sorry, that is incorrect. IANAL, but in describing the crime of espionage 18 U.S.C. 798(a) specifically states "Whoever knowingly and willfully communicates, furnishes, transmits, or otherwise makes available to an unauthorized person... classified information...)

You may not like it, but the definition of the crime does not require release to a foreign government.

Submission + - A tectonic plate may have peeled apart—and that could shrink the Atlantic (nationalgeographic.com)

Submitted by pgmrdlm
pgmrdlm writes: For years, João Duarte has puzzled over a seemingly boring underwater expanse off the coast of Portugal. In 1969, this site spawned a massive earthquake that rattled the shore and sparked a tsunami. But you would never know why just from looking at the broad, featureless surface of the seabed. Duarte, a marine geologist from the Instituto Dom Luiz at the University of Lisbon, wanted to find out what was going on.

Now, 50 years after the event, he may finally have an answer: The bottom of the tectonic plate off Portugal's coast seems to be peeling away from its top. This action may be providing the necessary spark for one plate to start grinding beneath another in what's known as a subduction zone, according to computer simulations Duarte presented in April at the European Geosciences Union meeting.

If confirmed, the new work would be the first time an oceanic plate has been caught in the act of peeling—and it may mark one of the earliest stages of the Atlantic Ocean shrinking, sending Europe inching toward Canada as predicted by some models of tectonic activity. (Find out what scientists think will happen when Earth's tectonic plates grind to a halt.)

Submission + - China's Largest Stock Photo Provider Attracts Fire Over Use of Black Hole Image (techcrunch.com)

Submitted by hackingbear
hackingbear writes: As soon as the European Southern Observatory released the black hole photo, under Creative Commons license, on April 10, Visual China Group (VCG), China’s leading stock image provider that’s compared to Getty Images, made the image available for sale in its library without attribution to the Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration. “This is an editorial image. Please call 400-818-2525 or consult our customer service representative for commercial use,” said a note for the black hole image on VCG’s website. Internet users took to social media slamming VCG for monetizing a photo intended for free distribution among the human race. VCG swiftly revised the note to say the black hole photo should not be used for commercial purposes, but the incident sparked a plethora of comments on Weibo condemning VCG’s opportunist business practice. For example, the price tag of the national emblem image ranges from150 yuan ($22) to 1,500 yuan ($220.) “Copyrights protection should definitely be promoted. The question is, why is VCG allowed to price photos of the black hole and the likes out of the market? Why is it able to exploit loopholes?,” Du Yu, a Beijing-based freelance technology journalist, said to TechCrunch. China's the cyberspace watchdog of Tianjin ordered the photo site to end its illegal, rule-breaking practices. “We have taken down all non-compliant photos and closed down the site voluntarily for a revamp in accordance with related laws,” said VCG. Shares of VCG, whose executives are mainly American and Canadian citizens and filed 16 copyright lawsuits per day on average (in Chinese, Google translate), plummeted 10 percent Friday morning in Shanghai Stock Exchange.

Comment Abominable (Score 1) 381

I can't think of a single thing that I like about the site redesign. Content is further way in every sense of the word, and the wasted space/content ratio is through the roof. Summaries are gone, so I can't readily see if an article at least has a chance of being valuable until I've clicked through to it.

Dear heavens - I may have to try Bing News again.... :-(

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