shreshtha writes with this intriguing bit from The Daily Mail: “A tiny satellite thruster which can journey to the Moon on just a tenth of a litre of fuel could usher in a new low-cost space age, its creators hope. The mini-motor weights just a few hundred grams and runs on an ionic chemical compound, using electricity to expel ions and generate thrust. The tiny motor isn’t built to blast satellites into orbit — instead, it’s to help spacecraft manouevre once they’re in space, which previously required bulky, expensive engines.”

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New Engine Raises Possibility of Cheap Travel To the Moon

Malvineous writes “Don’t have $1500 to drop on a USRP? A Linux kernel developer has discovered that a Realtek digital TV tuner chip has an undocumented mode that turns it into a software-defined radio, with a frequency range of 64-1700MHz. The going rate for one of these USB devices can be as low as US$11. If you’re unfamiliar with software-defined radio and have 20 minutes to spare, Balint Seeber has a great video introduction.”

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Software-Defined Radio For $11

Not content with speeding up web browsing and hosting federal data, Amazon Web Services are now helping in the fight against disease. Bezos’ crew is donating a chunk of free cloud storage to the 1000 Genomes project, which aims to make it easier for scientists to search for genetic variations linked to diseases. These gene-hunters can also use Amazon’s Elastic Cloud Compute service to analyze data and discover patterns, although those functions won’t come gratis. The DNA sequences of 1,700 mostly anonymous Homo sapiens from around the world have already been logged, but the project needs another 1,000 samples before it meets statistical requirements. Perhaps a free USB gene sequencer and a Prime subscription might entice fresh volunteers?

Amazon stores 1,700 human genomes in the cloud originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 31 Mar 2012 09:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon stores 1,700 human genomes in the cloud

New submitter Ben_R_R writes “The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency has created a camera that can ‘see’ radioactive contamination by detecting gamma rays emitted by radioactive cesium and other substances. The camera has been tested in the disaster evacuation zone around Fukushima. The image captures levels of radiation in six different colors and overlays the result over an image captured with a wide angle lens.”

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JAXA Creates Camera That Can See Radiation

concealment writes with news that VISA and MasterCard have been warning banks of an incident at a U.S. card processor that may have compromised as many as 10 million credit card numbers. From the article:
“Neither VISA nor MasterCard have said which U.S.-based processor was the source of the breach. But affected banks are now starting to analyze transaction data on the compromised cards, in hopes of finding a common point of purchase. Sources at two different major financial institutions said the transactions that most of the cards they analyzed seem to have in common are that they were used in parking garages in and around the New York City area.”
According to the Wall Street Journal, the breached company is Global Payments Inc.

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VISA, MasterCard Warn of 'Massive' Breach At Credit Card Processor

Denmark has committed to generating 50 percent of its electricity from wind sources by the year 2020, by which time the country hopes to have reduced CO₂ emissions by 34 percent compared to 1990 levels. This renewed commitment to wind forms the central pillar in an energy bill that commits to obtaining 35 percent of the country’s energy from renewable sources by that time. And Denmark actively aims to lower energy consumption, with 2020 usage 12 percent lower than that of 2006.

“Denmark will once again be the global leader in the transition to green energy,” said Martin Lidegaard, Denmark’s Minister for Climate, Energy and Building. “This will prepare us for a future with increasing prices for oil and coal. Moreover, it will create some of the jobs that we need so desperately, now and in the coming years.”

The bill passed with a near-unanimous 171 votes out of the parliament’s 179 seats.

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Denmark’s 50 percent wind commitment and a path to fully renewable power

Ukrainian authorities have shut down a website for creators of viruses and other types of malware, in an effort to shut some of the windows to cybercrime available in the country. The forum, called VX Heavens, let creators of malicious software exchange tips and tricks, and offered tutorials and samples of malicious code for its readers.

VX Heavens posted a note regarding the takedown, saying that despite its many years of operation and “professional quality information on systems security and computer virology,” it could not continue to operate until the authorities close the case. Several sources including Naked Security and The Register say the site primarily catered to old-school hackers and had little to do with the kind of high-stakes financial fraud that Ukrainian authorities have yet to fully tackle. Still, the site supported people who worked on various types of malware (VX is shorthand for “Virus eXchange”), and Ukrainian criminal code forbids creating “malicious programs with an intent to sell or spread them.”

Cybersecurity experts and government entities have long seen Ukraine as a locus for Internet crime, and recent moves by authorities might show that the country is attempting to rectify that reputation. In 2009, the FBI stationed a temporary supervisory special agent to help the government deal with cybercrimes that have cost millions of dollars in damages, not least to US financial companies.

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Ukrainian police shut down forum for malware writers

Go figure — Microsoft’s Courier project lives again… as an exclusive app on Apple’s iPad. FiftyThree, a company that features folks who previously worked on the aforesaid Courier initiative, has just put forth a monumental effort dubbed Paper. The app, which is available for free in the App Store, is a sophisticated sketchbook with a highly unique user interface that’s seemingly designed with the budding artist in mind. Put simply, the company feels that this app is “where ideas begin,” enabling users to capture mental light bulbs as sketches, diagrams, illustrations, notes or drawings before sharing them across the web.

Of course, “free” only gets you in the door; in-app purchases ($2 per brush, for example) keeps the creators in business, but it’s unclear at this point if a paid edition will be offered for those who aren’t much on cherry-picking what they do and don’t want to pony up for. Not surprisingly, the app ships with native support for the new iPad’s Retina display, and while fingers are welcome, a capacitive stylus is recommended. Eager to see more? Peek the video just after the break, and get your download on in the source link.

Continue reading Paper: the iPad sketchbook app from the brains of Courier (video)

Paper: the iPad sketchbook app from the brains of Courier (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 30 Mar 2012 02:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Paper: the iPad sketchbook app from the brains of Courier (video)

Afraid of being locked out of the house? Most of us just carry a spare
key in our wallets, but not the members of TOOOL
(The Open Organization of Lockpickers). No sir, they’ve got this: The
Emergency Lock-Pick Card, a laser cut steel card in the size of a credit
card.

Make Magazine has the details: Link

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Emergency Lockpicks