May 10, 2017 – Page 269 – Tech Today w/ Ken May

NIST’s Draft To Remove Periodic Password Change Requirements Gets Vendors’ Approval

An anonymous reader writes: A recently released draft of the National Institute of Standards and Technology’s digital identity guidelines has met with approval by vendors. The draft guidelines revise password security recommendations and altering many of the standards and best practices security professionals use when forming policies for their companies. The new framework recommends, among other things: “Remove periodic password change requirements.” There have been multiple studies that have shown requiring frequent password changes to actually be counterproductive to good password security, said Mike Wilson, founder of PasswordPing. NIST said this guideline was suggested because passwords should be changed when a user wants to change it or if there is indication of breach. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

This Synthetic Bone Implant Could Replace Painful Marrow Transplants

Thanks to advances in medicine, bone marrow transplants are no longer the last resorts they one were. Every year, thousands of marrow transplants are performed, a common treatment for ailments from bone marrow disease to leukemia. But because they first require a patient undergo radiation to kill off any existing bone… Read more…

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This Synthetic Bone Implant Could Replace Painful Marrow Transplants

Scientists stunned by new findings about salt’s effects on body

Conventional wisdom: If you eat a lot of salt, you will get thirsty to dilute the sodium level in your blood. The excess salt will be excreted in your urine. But a new study of Russian cosmonauts is challenging this long-held belief. When the cosmonauts ate more salt, the became less thirsty. And their appetite increased – they had to eat 25 percent more to maintain their weight. From the New York Times : The crew members were increasing production of glucocorticoid hormones, which influence both metabolism and immune function. To get further insight, [Dr. Jens Titze, now a kidney specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and the Interdisciplinary Center for Clinical Research in Erlangen, Germany] began a study of mice in the laboratory. Sure enough, the more salt he added to the animals’ diet, the less water they drank. And he saw why. The animals were getting water — but not by drinking it. The increased levels of glucocorticoid hormones broke down fat and muscle in their own bodies. This freed up water for the body to use. But that process requires energy, Dr. Titze also found, which is why the mice ate 25 percent more food on a high-salt diet. The hormones also may be a cause of the strange long-term fluctuations in urine volume. Scientists knew that a starving body will burn its own fat and muscle for sustenance. But the realization that something similar happens on a salty diet has come as a revelation. https://youtu.be/aJEzl31zL-I

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Scientists stunned by new findings about salt’s effects on body

Antarctica’s ‘Dragon Skin’ Ice Is Incredible

Dragon skin ice sounds like something you’d encounter beyond The Wall in the Game of Thrones fantasy realm. But good news nerds, you can find this magical-sounding stuff right here on Earth—though you’ve gotta be lucky, and willing to travel to some of the most hostile environments on the planet. Like the team of… Read more…

‘First Pirated Ultra HD Blu-Ray Disk’ Appears Online

Has AACS 2.0 encryption used to protect UHD Blu-ray discs been cracked? While the details are scarce, a cracked copy of a UHD Blu-ray disc surfaced on the HD-focused BitTorrent tracker UltraHDclub. TorrentFreak reports: The torrent in question is a copy of the Smurfs 2 film and is tagged “The Smurfs 2 (2013) 2160p UHD Blu-ray HEVC Atmos 7.1-THRONE.” This suggests that AACS 2.0 may have been “cracked” although there are no further technical details provided at this point. UltraHDclub is proud of the release, though, and boasts of having the “First Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc in the NET!” Those who want to get their hands on a copy of the file have to be patient though. Provided that they have access to the private tracker, it will take a while to download the entire 53.30 GB disk. TorrentFreak reached out to both the uploader of the torrent and an admin at the site hoping to find out more, but thus far we have yet to hear back. From the details provided, the copy appears to be the real deal although not everyone agrees. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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‘First Pirated Ultra HD Blu-Ray Disk’ Appears Online

Chess with wireless, glowing nixie tubes

Lasermad’s Nixie Chessboards take 8-10 weeks to hand build, during which time each of the chess pieces is painstakingly built around a vintage nixie tube scavenged from the world’s dwindling supply, and the board is prepared with the wireless induction coils that power the pieces when they’re set on the board, lighting them up. ( via Red Ferret ) (more…)

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Chess with wireless, glowing nixie tubes

235 apps attempt to secretly track users with ultrasonic audio

Ultrasonic beacons ( previously , previously ) let advertisers build an idea of when and where you use your devices: the sound plays in an ad on one device, and is heard by other devices. This way, they can associate two gadgets with a single user, precisely geolocate devices without aGPS, or even build graphs of real-world social networks. The threat was considered more academic than some, but more than 200 Android apps were found in the wild using the technique . In research sponsored by the German government [PDF], a team of researchers conducted extensive tests across the EU to better understand how widespread this practice is in the real world. Their results revealed Shopkick ultrasonic beacons at 4 of 35 stores in two European cities. The situation isn’t that worrisome, as users have to open an app with the Shopkick SDK for the beacon to be picked up. In the real world, this isn’t an issue, as store owners, advertisers, or product manufactures could incentivize users to open various apps as a way to get discounts. From the paper: While in April 2015 only six instances were known, we have been able to identify 39 further instances in a dataset of about 1,3 million applications in December 2015, and until now, a total of 234 samples containing SilverPush has been discovered. We conclude that even if the tracking through TV content is not actively used yet, the monitoring functionality is already deployed in mobile applications and might become a serious privacy threat in the near future Apparently it’s not very effective—consumer speakers and mics aren’t designed with ultrasonic use in mind and the authors say noise, audio compression and other factors “significantly affects the feasibility” of the technology—but the intent is clearly there on the part of advertisers and appmakers to make a stab at it. Annoyingly, there doesn’t seem to be a list of the apps that are doing this, but there is a reference to a McDonalds app. If an app asks for access to your device’s microphone, camera, etc., and you don’t know why, delete the app.

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235 apps attempt to secretly track users with ultrasonic audio

What Those Spray Paint Marks on the Street Actually Mean [Update]

Walking around your city, you might have noticed spray paint markings on the street and sidewalk. Clearly they’re there to mark something, but what? Turns out, construction workers aren’t just doodling for fun—those marks are there to protect you. Read more…

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What Those Spray Paint Marks on the Street Actually Mean [Update]

Workhorse W-15 revealed: PHEV pickup with 80-mile range

Not even a year after releasing renderings of its new range-extended electric truck , Workhorse has unveiled the real thing. As promised, the new Workhorse W-15 uses a pair of electric motors, one in the front and one in the back, for propulsion, along with a BMW gas engine and Panasonic batteries to supply power. Impressively, the truck is rated to go 80 miles on a full charge, and it will manage 32 mpg highway and 28 mpg city with the gas engine in use. While delivering these environmentally friendly numbers, the W-15 won’t be lacking in performance and usability. The dual motors produce 460 horsepower and deliver that power to all four wheels. As a result, Workhorse says it will go 0-60 mph in just 5.5 seconds. The W-15 can also carry up to 2, 200 pounds of cargo in its bed, and it has a 7.2kW, 30-amp power outlet on the side suitable for running power tools. The only weak point in the truck’s capability is towing, which is rated at 5, 000 pounds. For comparison, a base, V6-powered Chevrolet Silverado will tow 7, 600 pounds , and a Ford F-150 with the smallest EcoBoost V6 can tow up to 8, 500 pounds . Of course neither is as economical nor as powerful. The W-15’s performance isn’t let down by the exterior, either. The exterior is chiseled and chunky, with no shortage of flat planes and sharp angles. It screams tough commercial truck . The look is carried inside to the custom dashboard, too, with lots of tough plastic in gray, white, and orange. The interior is quite spartan, with hardly any controls except a simple dial for shifting in the center. Instruments and infotainment are displayed on two LCD screens, with the infotainment one controlled via touch. Even though the truck is fairly barebones, Workhorse has included dual airbags , automatic emergency braking, and lane-departure warning. The Workhorse W-15 is aimed primarily at the commercial market, and demand appears to be high. The company says it currently has 4, 650 pre-orders . Pricing hasn’t been announced, but Workhorse intends to deliver trucks next year. We think this truck could have some strong appeal to private consumers as well, however the company hasn’t announced plans for personal-use sales. Related Video: Source: Workhorse

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Workhorse W-15 revealed: PHEV pickup with 80-mile range

LAX’s New Private Luxury Terminal For The Rich Is The Most Obnoxiously LA Thing Ever

The one thing that helped me combat my irritation at being at an airport was the knowledge that airports are the great social equalizer: generally, it doesn’t matter who you are—rich, poor, famous, normal, whatever—you still have to check-in, go through security and get on the moving sidewalks to your gate. It sucks… Read more…

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LAX’s New Private Luxury Terminal For The Rich Is The Most Obnoxiously LA Thing Ever