Archive | Geekiness RSS for this section
April 6, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . Invention

I don’t know about you, but I have a socket set out in my toolbox that’s missing about 2/3s of the sockets, and the wrench itself only about half works, and the sockets I have left are the super huge ones and super tiny ones for which there are no bolts made by man. As a result, it’s more or less useless to me, but you don’t want to throw it away because OMG WHAT IF I NEED TO TIGHTEN A TINY BOLT!

In any event, there’s a fix for that solidly planted in the future. But at least we’re a little closer today. The geniuses over at MIT have made some pretty significant strides in creating what I like to callSmart Sand, but they call it “self-sculpting” sand.

The idea is pretty simple: tiny individual grains can be given a command to switch their magnets on or off to combine together to make –on demand– nearly anything. A hammer, a perfectly sized wrench, socket, screwdriver. A jack, a lug wrench, a – well, you get the idea.

Combine this with the glasses technology from my last post, and you’ve got a virtual bottomless toolbox anywhere you need it. The glasses can transmit information to the toolbox about the task at hand, automatically measuring bolts and screws, so you can reach in and pull out the right tool every time, easier than “Accio Screwdriver.”

Imagine having one in your car. You never have to worry about whether you’ve got a jack, or the tools to change your tires. Have them for astronauts so they can always have the tool or the part they need without the need for large and heavy sets of tools.

This is just another step forward, and while the researchers at MIT are a long ways from having small enough component pieces to actually form many useful objects, the fact remains that they’ve made great strides, and it’s just a matter of time before the technology gets small enough to make their dream a reality.

I’ve always been one to look forward to the future, often to a fault, but it’s exciting what’s out there. What we can do. What we have already done to reach such feats of technical and scientific skill and prowess. Often people look to nature to find the beautiful and the wondrous, and I don’t mean to say that we are wrong, but it is not arrogant, it is not prideful to also look at the works of man and stand in awe of our ingenuity, our creativity, and our penchant for solving problems. The natural world has its many marvels, and I revel in those as well, but from time to time, I feel we ought to pat ourselves on the back. We’ve come a long way in an exceedingly short amount of time, whether you want to count time on an evolutionary or creationist scale.

Over the course of a few thousand years, we’ve gone from caves, to farms, to written tablets, to bronze, to iron, and so on to today, the silicon age. It’s mighty satisfying to know we beat continent-wide epidemic, 2 world-wars, the thread of nuclear annihilation, and we’re still going strong inventing, dreaming, and making those dreams reality. Helps me feel good on days when I feel like I’m just spinning my wheels anyhow. How about you?

April 5, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . Google Glass

So, if you don’t know what Google Glass is, check out this NYT article.

If you’re too lazy for that, maybe watch this video:

Now, please don’t misunderstand me. I fully realize the video is a dramatization, and a window into what this technology will one day become (hopefully). That said, I am as giddy as a Panam district citizen at an all-you-can-eat buffet. I’m a technology nut anyway, but augmented reality is probably the most exciting terrestrial development I can think of. It’s the closest I’ll probably ever get to real cybernetics and neural enhancements. An always-present, non-invasive means of instant research and information about whatever you happen to be doing. HUD based turn-by-turn directions, instant stats on $trivia, enhanced “mental notes” with pictures attached. And these are just the trivial things.

Consider medical reference books for similar light-weight non-intrusive tech for surgeons, complete with patient data and history, quick first-person pictures for reference, the ability to teleconference with another surgeon on a particularly delicate or crucial surgery. This tech could be used in similar law-enforcement situations. It could be used be cooks, by salespeople, by attorneys. The possibilities are endless, and this is just the beginning.

Maybe I’m just a sucker, but I’ll be purchasing these despite their inevitable limitations. I want to see where it starts, where it’s going. I mean, who wouldn’t want to watch the world change?

What upcoming tech gets you excited? What can’t you wait for?

April 4, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . Customer Service

I’m not one to shill. In fact, I have never been paid to show off any piece of media, software, company, etc. That’s not to say I haven’t ever sold anything — I have, but not here. This is my space, and you will never see ads here. Because they’re annoying, and they make you infertile. There I said it. I know everyone always skirts around the issue, but it’s true. Real life scientists have proven it.

That said, when I feel like a company has done something right, and has continued to do things right for the last 7 years I have been a customer, I feel like I ought to let you know. In this case, I’m talking about my hosting company, Dreamhost. They’re not only a very fun, entertaining company to work with (You should see the newsletters they send out. Hilarious every time.), they provide a pretty top-quality service. Granted, they have not been entirely without their issues in the last 7 years I’ve been a customer with them, but the amount of time I have had to deal with problems is negligible at best. They’re pretty great.

Every now and then, when I’m mucking about behind the scenes, I have been known to mess things up, and I have to go to their support staff for help. They have always responded promptly, with well-worded, precise, and real help. I have never gotten a form letter back, it’s always been a real person giving me real advise on how to get back up and running in a timely manner.

Recently, as I’m sure you’re aware, a number of wordpress blogs all over the internet were infected due to a security flaw found in a great many of them. Mine was one such blog, and while I was, yet again, letting mine waste away, I failed to notice. When I did happen to notice, I took the site down, dreading the workload ahead of me to clean it off, and get things back up and running. In fact, I had this exchange with Rachelskirts about my displeasure with the ordeal:

Sure enough, I got a friendly email from Elizabeth L in Dreamhost support, with a wonderfully complete email full of possible vulnerabilities, a list of files they were able to clean and a list of files they removed for me, etc. I was given a full set of instructions and tips on how to avoid such problems again in the future. It took me a little over half an hour to follow the instructions and get everything locked down.

So, that brings us to the part where I tell you to go sign up for them and surreptitiously use a referral link that will net me some money. Well, I could do that. Or, I could just tell you that I believe you should be using Dreamhost so strongly that I’ll give my entire referral bonus (a generous $97) entirely to you, so you can get a yeaar’s worth of hosting for about $22. Go sign up with a new account, and use the promo code “GO97.” If you don’t get the option to, just email support and let them know you’d like to use the GO97 promo code, and you’ll get $97 off your first year.

So, Thanks Dreamhost! I’m glad to have my site back.

January 21, 2012 

Let’s Talk About . . . More Privacy Problems

I use my name in my URL. I use my name as the author of these posts. I am not afraid of being found on the internet, nor should anyone who uses Facebook, twitter, etc. Especially if you have ever (even accidentally) left the GPS information in a picture you posted, or a tweet you made. Let’s face it: in this day of unending connectivity, we are more identifiable than ever.

That said, the Internet lends itself to a great sense of anonymity if you choose. Domains can be registered under any name (for now), you can post to websites under any number of pseudonyms, and you can tell anyone anything you like, because, you don’t have to connect your real life to the internet. This has its positives and negatives, to be sure.

On the positive side, it allows people in oppressive countries to voice their concerns and complaints in a forum everyone can see, and not become a prisoner of the state in the process. On the negative, it allows people to get away with any number of heinous acts of abuse and depravity against people, children, etc. I don’t think anyone can say that it wouldn’t be good if we could do something to stop these acts, particularly those involving children.

Rep. Lamar Smith (R-TX), the very same representative who introduced SOPA, has introduced a new bill right on the heels of the suspension of PIPA and SOPA. It’s called H.R. 1981 or the “Protecting Children from Internet Pornographers Act of 2011.” The bill would be more aptly named “H.R. 1984,” but I suppose the PR fallout would be a bit much.

I linked the bill there, but The Atlantic explains it well enough.

In short, the bill would require your ISP to keep records of everything you’ve done on the internet, attached to your IP address and YOUR NAME, along with financial information and any other personal identification. These records would be kept FOR 18 MONTHS. So, now, your ISP has a big database of your personal information tied to everything that’s been done through your internet connection.

There are a number of perfectly legal activities one could engage in online that one would rather not be remembered. While perhaps offensive to the moral sensitivities of some, the fact remains that pornography or adultery or what have you are perfectly legal. These should, in no way, be able to be used by your government against you in any way. But under this new legislation, they could be. Suspicious spouse? File a divorce, and get a subpoena during discovery, and your entire browsing history is suddenly public record.

As it stands, the reasons for which a person’s data could be subpoenas are extremely lax, leading to a government by fear, which in fact, is a tactic the Atlantic points out was used quite effectively by Russia’s communist leadership. But the lax position on subpoenas is really a minor problem. The problem is in the requirement for a database to begin with.

Let’s put aside for a moment the absurdly heavy-handed approach to catching a very small number of criminals, and focus on the track record of companies keeping our data safe: Sony is hacked for months before they notice, Bioware was hacked, exposing EA data, Zappos, Sony again, and . . . well, do you get my point? Intrusions happen. And they are happening a lot. Perhaps they’re just getting more press, but the fact remains: data is NOT secure, no matter how hard they try.

So, when someone hacks your ISP and gains the data in this master database of you, it’s just a matter of contacting you (using all that fun information they have about you), and blackmailing you for whatever they want, really, or they’ll tell the world you have a latex fetish. Or you meet up with people from Craigslist. While maybe not wholesome, these actions are not not illegal, and they’re certainly no one’s business but your own. Certainly not the hacker’s, and certainly not your government’s.

Don’t get me wrong: child pornography is a dastardly, disgusting thing, and it really should be stopped. However, as I said with SOPA, the loss of liberty of an entire country for the capture of a few is NOT justice. It is, in fact, the opposite, and I don’t believe for a second that these congressmen believe this (and any other similar) bill is for the greater good. This bill is hiding behind abused and defiled children, in the interest of increased government surveillance. Shame on Rep. Smith, and shame on our government for trying.

Lamar Smith has shown a clear disregard for the safety and protection of any of his constituents, and it is a symptom of a government who assumes it no longer has bounds, or a commitment to its people. It’s a symptom of a government, of a leadership, so used to getting exactly what they want, they will do what best serves themselves, not the people they represent. It’s a disgusting glut, and as we enter election time again, we must keep that in mind.

SOPA and PIPA may be dead, but the fight for the safety of the internet and privacy from our government is far from over. Stay vigilant, and don’t let up.

So let’s talk about what we can do. About what steps we can take, who must we contact, and where do we go from here?

Older Entries »