US Government security contractor Northrop Grumman has joined with three leading cybersecurity research universities to launch a research consortium focused on fixing the most vexing problems in information security. Northrop Grumman will distribute “millions” of dollars over more than five years to Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania, Purdue University in Indiana and the Massachusetts Institute [...]
Archive for December, 2009
Google reveals winners of Android Developer Challenge 2
Google named the winners of its second contest aimed at encouraging software developers to make applications for the Android mobile operating system. The Android Developer Challenge 2 (ADC2) was announced in May and attracted entries by offering winners cash awards. The overall winner of ADC2, SweetDreams, an app that helps users sleep at night by [...]
Department of Defense Buys 2,200 PS3s to Upgrade Supercomputer
Apparently the Department of Defense believes that PS3s are a better value when it comes to supercomputers than IBM products specifically designed for the purpose. Granted recent price drops probably didn’t hurt in justifying a 2,200 console order either. This isn’t the first time that the DoD is using PS3 consoles for supercomputing. In fact, [...]
Vendor rages after Aussie iPhone hacker given job
A security firm has expressed incredulity at the news that the Australian prank hacker who wrote a program targeting Apple iPhone users has been given a job by an application developer. The writer of the Ikee worm, Ashley Towns, sprang to prominence only two weeks ago after his creation was found to be changing the [...]
Ostendo 43-inch curved monitor: The ultimate gaming display?
If your existing display just isn’t cutting it any more, then it might be time to step up to Ostendo’s 43-inch curved monitor. This long-awaited display is now available to buy for just under $US6,500. The Ostendo CRVD is an LED-backlit display featuring a 32:10 aspect ratio. It was first spotted back in early 2008 [...]
Google aims for faster Web downloads with SPDY protocol
Google is hoping to make Web pages download up to twice as quickly using SPDY, a new application-layer protocol it’s experimenting with, the company said in a blog post. It wants to improve on the performance of using HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) by minimizing latency. For the protocol to work, the browser and the web [...]
IBM’s Cat-Brain Breakthrough
Big Blue has built a supercomputer that models the brain–and hopes to someday build a supercomputer that mimics one, too. The supercomputers being lauded this week at the SC09 high-performance computing conference in Portland, Ore., can perform tasks in hours that would take a powerful desktop computer thousands of years. But when it comes to [...]
First programmable quantum computer created
Using a few ultracold ions, intense lasers and some electrodes, researchers have built the first programmable quantum computer. The new system, described in a paper to be published in Nature Physics, flexed its versatility by performing 160 randomly chosen processing routines. Earlier versions of quantum computers have been largely restricted to a narrow window of [...]
Bing to use Wolfram Alpha results
Microsoft is rolling out some enhancements to its Bing search engine, including some that rely on computational information delivered by Wolfram Alpha. Wolfram Alpha has developed a technology platform designed to offer “computable knowledge” to applications. Through the relationship with Bing, that means that people will be able to search for some complicated information, and [...]
The New Google Latitude, More Useful And A Tad Creepy
Google has added new features to its Latitude location mapping and tracking service, allowing users to see where they have been and automatically be alerted (warned?) when friends are nearby. “One of the most popular ideas was for Latitude to keep track of location history, allowing you (but not your friends) to see where you’ve [...]