Want to read Slashdot from your mobile device? Point it at m.slashdot.org and keep reading!

 



Forgot your password?
typodupeerror

Comment How possibly it was done (Score 1) 751

My take: Israel knew or pushed specific pager model to hesbolah. To make it quick and easy for middleman to modify pagers, they made battery with explosives (BBC reports of 10-20g high explosives, so the best place to hide is battery) and tampered with FW and SW, if pager architecture allows they wouldn't even need HW modifications. How it possibly works: pager gets specific message to devices that are suspected to be used by hesbolah (previous monitoring of paging activity), hacked software and firmware through third battery wire (usually for thermistor) sends specific length impulses to MCU in battery enclosure (3x2mm MCUs are off the shelf components), then MCU detonates explosive with few seconds delay. That would explain few details: hiding explosives in battery is hard to detect, since probably no hardware modifications are needed. Most injuries are to bottocks, heads and hands - those who didn't read message had their bottoms exploded, if they there fast enough to pull out pager and read - then hands and heads would take injuries. Israel had to rush this, because smaller battery means it would be suspicious and examined in long term, probably batteries could be started to be replaced due to short battery life. Also we don't know main objectives of this mission, but what it achieved: taken out thousands of combatants, seeded untrust within hesbolah due to laced devices, severed communication channels, reduced recruitment to obvious imminent danger to being in hesbolah, exposed lots of hesbolah agents. Moral things are dubious, but seems like very successful operation in the short time.

Comment Oh FFS (Score 2) 41

You think that factories making semiconductors on another side of the world is making them out of Virgin Marry tears? At least you can control companies a bit more here than in some autocratic hell run by communist entrepreneurs. Manufacture localy, keep standards and have import tax for poluting industries from abroad.

Comment Re:No⦠just no (Score 3, Insightful) 66

You talk like EUV is something that no one bothered to do. If anybody could do it, they would and save some pretty penny, but it is a colossal task. Also there is more than machines, pure chemical reagents and other stuff is important. We have to stop feeding the dragon and then it will eat itself in the long run.

Comment Well NZ constitution might have issues with that (Score 1) 241

All individuals are unique, but are equal under the eyes of God. Every individual is to be protected against unfair discrimination on the basis of age, gender, race, national origin, sexual orientation, religion or political beliefs. No person shall be denied the equal protection of the laws; nor shall any person be denied the enjoyment of his civil or political rights.

Comment Re:Making our life harder in 3.. 2.. 1.. (Score 3, Insightful) 29

If less pollution is the benefit, so it might be very well be worth it. Solution is simple and used in other areas with great success https://ancillary-proxy.atarimworker.io?url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2F... If you buy coffee in you can pay deposit that is returned after you return cup. This worked very well in Christmas fairs, where you pay like 2euro deposit when buying hot wine and upon returning cup you get your coin back. Hell even some business, like gas stations, would love this - they could tie in you with their brand cup system. You cant evade all single use containers, but you can heavily reduce amount of it. I'm from EU and I very much support this effort.

Comment Driving a car is hard (Score 1) 526

Luis Hamilton can confirm that driving is hard. He had to train from young age for that F1 races he is doing now. On the other hand my wife only find it a bit stressful, so there you have it... And coocking is easy - I can any time prepare mac'n'cheese in microwave in under five minutes. I still wonder why those Michelin star restaurant chefs are stressed and it takes hours for them \_ ()_/

Submission + - Brazil rejects Sputnik V vaccine, says it's tainted with replicating cold virus (arstechnica.com)

Artem S. Tashkinov writes: Health regulators in Brazil say that doses of Russia’s Sputnik V COVID-19 vaccine contain a cold-causing virus capable of replicating in human cells. The unintended presence of the virus in the vaccine can “lead to infections in humans and can cause damage and death, especially in people with low immunity and respiratory problems, among other health problems,” Brazil’s Health Regulatory Agency, Anvisa, said Wednesday in a translated statement. Russia has unequivocally denied the claim, lobbed legal threats at Anvisa, and accused the respected regulators of being politically motivated to reject the vaccine. Still, Brazil’s findings raise serious questions about the quality and safety of the vaccine, which is now being used in many countries. The findings also support concerns of Slovak regulators, who said earlier this month that batches of Sputnik V they received did not “have the same characteristics and properties” as the Sputnik V vaccine that was described in a peer-reviewed publication and found to be 91.6 percent effective.

Moreover, quality-control issues weren’t the end of Anvisa’s concerns. In an overall evaluation of the Russian vaccine, Brazil’s regulators found its safety and efficacy were based on insufficient, limited, and sometimes faulty data and analyses. “Flaws... were identified in all stages of clinical studies,” Anvisa said. The agency also reported that its inspectors who traveled to Russia to assess the vaccine’s production were barred from vaccine facilities at Gamaleya Institute, which developed Sputnik V.

Russia touts that “the safety and efficacy of Sputnik V has been confirmed by 61 regulators in countries where the vaccine has been authorized.” However, Brazil’s regulators said that of the 51 countries it contacted, only 14 were using the vaccine, and most of those countries did not have a tradition of vigilant drug-safety monitoring.

Slashdot Top Deals

How can you do 'New Math' problems with an 'Old Math' mind? -- Charles Schulz

Working...