Tag: events

MuseScore 2.0 Released

rDouglass writes: MuseScore, the open source desktop application for music notation, has released version 2.0 for Linux, Mac OS X, and Windows. This release represents the culmination of four years of development, including technical contributions from over 400 people. In addition to a completely new UI, top features include linked parts (good for pieces with many instruments), guitar tablature, flexible chord symbols, and fret diagrams. The program integrates directly with the MuseScore.com online library of scores, and music written with the application can be displayed and played using the MuseScore mobile app. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Taken from:
MuseScore 2.0 Released

Cyanogen Grabs Another $80 Million In Funding

 Everyone’s favorite version of “open” Android is putting in its big business pants. The company just, which recently announced a partnership with Qualcomm has raised $80 million in funding from various providers, a hefty sum for a company that started out as a community driven mobile OS. Investors included Premji Invest, Twitter Ventures, Qualcomm Incorporated, Telefónica… Read More

Read More:
Cyanogen Grabs Another $80 Million In Funding

The First Billion-Pixel Mosaic of Mars

StartsWithABang writes In 2012, Mars Science Laboratory performed the first robotically-controlled soft landing of a vehicle of such incredible mass: nearly half a tonne. A few months later, the rover, Curiosity, took the first ever billion-pixel mosaic from the Red Planet’s surface, with breathtaking views of the terrain and alternate views of what the soils would look like were they here on Earth. Now in its third year on Mars, Curiosity is roving the low slopes of its ultimate destination: Mount Sharp. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

See more here:
The First Billion-Pixel Mosaic of Mars

Apple Patents A Light-Splitting iPhone Camera Sensor System

 Apple has secured a new patent (via AppleInsider) for a special three sensor camera designed for thin, wireless devices like the iPhone. The three sensors would each capture a separate color component, as divided by a special light-splitting cube that would divide up light entering the camera into red, green and blue (or other color set) wavelengths. Why? Better resolution and lower noise… Read More

Read More:
Apple Patents A Light-Splitting iPhone Camera Sensor System

Hack Air-Gapped Computers Using Heat

An anonymous reader writes Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) researchers have discovered a new method to breach air-gapped computer systems called “BitWhisper, ” which enables two-way communications between adjacent, unconnected PC computers using heat. BitWhisper bridges the air-gap between the two computers, approximately 15 inches apart that are infected with malware by using their heat emissions and built-in thermal sensors to communicate. It establishes a covert, bi-directional channel by emitting heat from one PC to the other in a controlled manner. Also at Wired. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Read more here:
Hack Air-Gapped Computers Using Heat

Costa Rica Goes 75 Days Powering Itself Using Only Renewable Energy

An anonymous reader writes with news about an impressive renewable energy accomplishment in Costa Rica. Costa Rica has achieved a clean energy milestone by using 100 per cent renewable energy for a record 75 days in a row. The feat was achieved thanks to heavy rainfall, which powered four hydroelectric plants in the first three months of the year, the state-run Costa Rican Electricity Institute said. No fossil fuels have been burnt to generate electricity since December 2014, in the state which is renowned for its clean energy policies.” Read more of this story at Slashdot.

View the original here:
Costa Rica Goes 75 Days Powering Itself Using Only Renewable Energy

DuckDuckGo Donates $100,000 Among Four FOSS Projects

jones_supa writes As is the search engine company’s annual habit, DuckDuckGo has chosen to advance four open source projects by donating to them. The primary focus this year was to support FOSS projects that bring privacy tools to anyone who needs them. $25, 000 goes to The Freedom of the Press Foundation to support SecureDrop, which is a whistleblower submission used to securely accept documents from anonymous sources. The Electronic Frontier Foundation was given $25, 000 to support PrivacyBadger, which is a browser add-on that stops advertisers and other third-party trackers from secretly tracking your surfing habits. Another $25, 000 arrives at GPGTools to support GPG Suite, which is a software package for OS X that encrypts files or messages. Finally, $25, 000 was donated to Riseup to support Tails, which is a live operating system that aims at preserving your privacy and anonymity. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Link:
DuckDuckGo Donates $100,000 Among Four FOSS Projects

LightEater Malware Attack Places Millions of Unpatched BIOSes At Risk

Mark Wilson writes Two minutes is all it takes to completely destroy a computer. In a presentation entitled ‘How many million BIOSes would you like to infect?’ at security conference CanSecWest, security researchers Corey Kallenberg and Xeno Kovah revealed that even an unskilled person could use an implant called LightEater to infect a vulnerable system in mere moments. The attack could be used to render a computer unusable, but it could also be used to steal passwords and intercept encrypted data. The problem affects motherboards from companies including Gigabyte, Acer, MSI, HP and Asus. It is exacerbated by manufactures reusing code across multiple UEFI BIOSes and places home users, businesses and governments at risk. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

See more here:
LightEater Malware Attack Places Millions of Unpatched BIOSes At Risk

OS X Users: 13 Characters of Assyrian Can Crash Your Chrome Tab

abhishekmdb writes No browsers are safe, as proved yesterday at Pwn2Own, but crashing one of them with just one line of special code is slightly different. A developer has discovered a hack in Google Chrome which can crash the Chrome tab on a Mac PC. The code is a 13-character special string which appears to be written in Assyrian script. Matt C has reported the bug to Google, who have marked the report as duplicate. This means that Google are aware of the problem and are reportedly working on it. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Continue reading here:
OS X Users: 13 Characters of Assyrian Can Crash Your Chrome Tab

Arkansas Is Now the First State To Require That High Schools Teach Coding

SternisheFan writes Arkansas will be implementing a new law that requires public high schools to offer classes in computer science starting in the 2015-16 school year. Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, who signed the bill, believes it will provide “a workforce that’s sure to attract businesses and jobs” to the state. $5 million of the governor’s proposed budget will go towards this new program. For the districts incapable of of administering these classes due to lack of space or qualified teachers, the law has provisions for online courses to be offered through Virtual Arkansas. Although students will not be required to take computer science classes, the governor’s goal is to give students the opportunity if they “want to take it.” Presently, only one in 10 schools nationwide offer computer science classes. Not only will Arkansas teach these classes in every public high school and charter school serving upper grades, the courses will count towards the state’s math graduation requirement as a further incentive for students. Training programs for teacher preparation will be available, but with the majority of the infrastructure already primed, the execution of this new law should hopefully be painless and seamless. Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Originally posted here:
Arkansas Is Now the First State To Require That High Schools Teach Coding