Common Sense Junction
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Common Sense Junction
Index, Summaries From Technology Sites

  1. Beautiful transfer of a 1957 color home movie of Disneyland

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 3:18 pm MST

    This restored 1957 home movie of a Disneyland visit, from the Disney History Institute, is an absolute treat. I love the rare footage of the Frontierland pack-mules and the Jungle Cruise as it was before the jungle really grew in; I'm likewise captivated by the sight of the (by modern standards) harshly metallic and dangerous-looking [...]



  2. Petition to uncloak secret copyright treaty

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 3:12 pm MST

    A welcome White House petition for our American readers' consideration: a request to make the Trans-Pacific Partnership treaty negotiation more transparent. This bland-sounding treaty is, in fact, the successor to ACTA, negotiated in the strictest secrecy. A recent leak from the TPP smoke-filled rooms revealed that negotiators are considering regulating incidental copies made in buffers, [...]



  3. Gweek 038: Puzzlejuice Pigs

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 2:46 pm MST

    Gweek is a weekly podcast where the editors and friends of Boing Boing talk about comic books, science fiction and fantasy, video games, board games, tools, gadgets, apps, and other neat stuff. My hosts on episode 38 are Dean Putney, Boing Boing's coding and development wizard, Boing Boing alum Joel Johnson of Animal New York, [...]



  4. Stop-motion film about an entomologist's nightmare

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 2:29 pm MST

    Stop-motion film about an entomologist's nightmare MikeyP sez, "Filmmaker friends of mine have a lovely melancholy stop-motion film (about a tiny entymologist with a lightbulb for a head) they're hoping to get into the Australian short film festival Tropfest via the audience vote.If you have a second, and feel so inclined, pray click the link, [...]



  5. Groupon Buys eCommerce Data Targeting Startup Adku

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 2:27 pm MST

    Screen Shot 2012-02-06 at 1.22.09 PMI love the smell of acquisitions in the morning! We've just heard that Groupon has acquired Adku, a stealth startup that uses big data in order to personalize the online shopping experience for people visiting eCommerce sites like eBay, Amazon and Zappos. The company built their personalized targeting technology in three months, and have basically been in stealth since they launched at the Angelpad Demo day a year and a half ago. Adku is backed by Greylock Partners, Battery Ventures and True Ventures in addition to being an Angelpad startup.

  6. How Can We Make Chicago More Bike Friendly?

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 2:23 pm MST

    Experts and activists from the city and from the rest of the country met to share ideas on how to make Chicago a more bike-friendly city. Check out this great video of the event!

  7. Semprius Sets a New Concentrated Solar Efficiency Record with 33.9%!

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:53 pm MST

    For the first time, more than one-third of the sun's energy has been converted to electricity by a solar panel.

  8. Video: OK Go's "Needing/Getting"

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:42 pm MST

    Here is OK Go's excellent video for "Needing/Getting." And yes, it was done "in partnership" with the maker of that particular car. According to the video description, the car "was outfitted with retractable pneumatic arms designed to play the instruments, and the band recorded this version of Needing/Getting, singing as they played the instrument array [...]



  9. Join the Engadget HD Podcast live on Ustream at 5:30PM

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:42 pm MST

    It's Monday, and almost as regular an occurrence as the day itself, we're here to help by letting you listen into the recording booth when the Engadget HD podcast goes to mp3 at 5:30PM. Please be a part of it by reviewing the list of topics after the break, then participating in the live chat as you listen in.

    Continue reading Join the Engadget HD Podcast live on Ustream at 5:30PM

    Join the Engadget HD Podcast live on Ustream at 5:30PM originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  10. SuitSak Is A Garment Bag For Your Back

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:34 pm MST

    Last week I showed a new British design for a cycling backpack for suits; turns out that there is already one on the market, made in Vancouver.

  11. Plastic Pollution in the Oceans is Causing Problems for Whales, too.

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:28 pm MST

    Fish, turtles, and birds are well known, now, as species impacted by plastic pollution in the oceans but the swirling concentration of bags, caps, and bits is increasingly becoming a problem for whales as well.

  12. NVIDIA's 2012 Kepler lineup revealed (possibly)

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:26 pm MST

    As usual, it seems like whenever a big chip company wants to keep those key details under wraps, someone leaves a spreadsheet lying in a bar. Of course, the following information could be the product of a vengeful former employee mashing at a keyboard, so let's agree that these are rumored details until further notice. NVIDIA's whole range of Kepler-powered graphics cards will be PCI-E 3.0 compliant, with the GTX960 topping the group at $999 when it arrives in Q3 of this year, while the modestly-priced GTX640 will retail for $139 when it arrives in May. If you'd like to drill down into the specifics of all eight cards purportedly on offer for 2012, we've got all the details in a handy chart nestled just after the interval.

    Continue reading NVIDIA's 2012 Kepler lineup revealed (possibly)

    NVIDIA's 2012 Kepler lineup revealed (possibly) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:26:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink ITProPortal  |  sourceLenzfire  | Email this | Comments

  13. Lip Reading, 3D Desktops, And NUI: Microsoft Plans To Reinvent User Interaction

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:25 pm MST

    kinect_outDeep in the skunk works of its Research and Labs divisions, secreted around the Seattle area, Microsoft is working on totally reinventing the way people interact with their computers. Very little is out in the open or in more than a prototype form, but the work is unquestionably being done. Last week it transpired that Microsoft is working on building Kinect into the bezels of laptops, and after that, presumably, tablets and eventually mobile phones. But it's not just about building out the install base for Dance Central 3. It's enabling the next generation of awareness in our electronics. The iPhone ushered in an era where our devices know when we touch them. Microsoft is working on the next one, in which our devices will simply know us.

  14. How to Tap Birch Sap, and Why You'd Want To

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:20 pm MST

    Described as "nature's energy drink", birch sap contains important nutrients for the Spring time. It also makes some pretty incredible wine, apparently.

  15. Backplane To Hold Music Hackathon At SXSW, With Top Industry Managers As Judges

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:13 pm MST

    backplaneshotA few weeks ago we wrote about Backplane — a platform for creating interactive, highly visual communities — that counts Lady Gaga as one of its backers, along with plenty of the Valley's most well-known investors. Now the company is harnessing its star power to hold a unique (and potentially awesome) event at SXSW: the SXSW Managers Hack — a hackathon that will be judged by some of the most accomplished managers in the music industry, including: Scooter Braun, best known for facilitating Justin Bieber's rise to fame; Jay Brown, President of Jay-Z's Roc Nation; and Troy Carter, manager of Lady Gaga (Carter is also one of Backplane's cofounders).

  16. Nikon D800 slips out for an early bird preview, to be officially unveiled tomorrow?

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:05 pm MST

    We've seen Nikon's successor to the D700 slip out a few times this past winter, but this latest leak and its bevy of press images might just be the real deal. According to Brazilian site ZTOP, the company's set to officially debut its 36.3-megapixel D800 tomorrow. So, what's on the spec list? Well, it looks like those rumors were true, as this high-end DSLR apparently boasts that aforementioned CMOS sensor capable of 7360 x 4912 resolution and the ability to toggle ISO from 100 - 6,400. As you'd imagine, this high-end, digital light box also comes equipped with the ability for full 1080p30 HD video capture, recording content in either H.264 or MPEG-4 formats. Naturally, there's also a 3.2-inch LCD viewfinder onboard so you can sift through your sizeable gallery of stills. While we still caution you to take this news with a nigh invisible grain of salt, it's likely all will be revealed in one day's time. Check out the source below for additional shots.

    Nikon D800 slips out for an early bird preview, to be officially unveiled tomorrow? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:05:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink   |  sourceZTOP (Translated)  | Email this | Comments

  17. Tom Marcinkco's wonderful sf, free for Kindles

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 1:00 pm MST

    My friend and oft-times workshop mate Tom Marcinko, a very talented writer and critiquer, has just put seven of his previously published sf stories into the Kindle store for what he calls "the amazingly low price of absolutely nothing." He's getting back to work on new fiction after a long hiatus, and this is his [...]



  18. ‘Transparent Screen’ Android App Lets You Text And Walk Without Fear

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:55 pm MST

    transparentscreenI used to scowl when I saw people walking down the street with eyes locked on their phones, but necessity has gotten me in the habit of doing it too. Thanks to a new app called Transparent Screen though, now I can do it free from the fear of falling into an open manhole or into a large fountain. No, that’s not a hastily Photoshopped image you see here, that's more or less exactly what you’ll see when the app is running. I say “more or less” because while all of the Android UI goes translucent upon launch, you’re afforded with quite a bit of a control over how dramatic the effect is. It’s in your best interest to get familiar with the settings if you plan on using Transparent Screen for a while too, because you'll soon have some choices to make.

  19. Can Startups Learn Anything From Linux?

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:51 pm MST

    Image (1) tux.jpg for post 194399Linux is the world's largest collaborative software development project. People from all over the world have influenced the Linux kernel code, and it runs on everything from mainframe computers to wristwatches. Linux, and free software development in general, provides some tremendous insights into what makes a successful project. Can today's startups learn anything from the history of Linux? The history of Linux proves that collaborative development speeds true innovation. If Linus Torvalds were left to work on Linux alone, there's no way it would be the success it is today. A great many of the things that Linux does today are a direct result of people scratching their own itches, and then contributing their work back upstream to Linus. Many people focusing on their own little (and not-so-little) problems have made Linux the powerhouse that it is today.

  20. Appoxee Raises Funding, Helps Mobile App Developers Boost User Engagement

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:40 pm MST

    appoxeeIsraeli startup Appoxee has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from early-stage investment firm Cyhawk Ventures. The company offers a service that helps app developers and publishers increase user engagement through rich push notifications and helps them with things like audience segmentation, targeting, analytics and reporting. Read more over at TechCrunch Europe.

  21. Intel SSD 520 review roundup: Intel reliability, SandForce speeds starting at $149

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:39 pm MST

    There's plenty of SSD options out there, but Intel's NAND drives are among the most well thought of, simply because they're so reliable. But, with the top speed of competing SSDs spiraling higher, Intel's rock-solid reputation may not be enough for some enthusiasts. Enter the SSD 520, with a performance SandForce SF-2281 controller and custom firmware (codenamed Cherryville) on board to ensure the 520 meets Chipzilla's demanding standards for stability. It's the result of a year and a half long collaboration between Intel and SandForce, and is available in both 7mm and 9.5mm thin form factors to fit any machine -- Ultrabook or otherwise. Aside from the SandForce chip, the 520 packs Intel's finest 25nm NAND Flash, a SATA 6GB/s connection and its 550MB/s reads and 520MB/s writes can be had for $149 in 60GB garb and prices escalate up to a grand for 480GB. Naturally, as this is Intel's effort to snatch back the performance market, a raft of reviews have been written about the SSD 520.

    So, how does the 520 stack up? Well, Intel's so confident in the 520 that it's backed the SSD with a five-year warranty. Though its performance doesn't drastically outpace its competition, Storage Review found the drive to be on par with the current speed king, OCZ's Vertex 3 in its benchmarks -- and also found performance and stability to be quite good in both enterprise use and in RAID arrays. Meanwhile, AnandTech found that the 520's peak random write speeds quite similar to its sequential reads during testing, which shows how well the optimized firmware works with the NAND. Hot Hardware thought the 520 to be comparable to other SandForce-equipped SSDs, but in terms of power consumption, Tom's Hardware found Intel's latest to be a power hog. Generally, all the reviewers were in agreement: the 520 is a speedy SSD, but you pay a hefty premium for Intel's reputation for churning out reliable drives. Only time will tell if the 520 can deliver the reliability we want, but there's plenty of performance info to be had in the reviews listed below.

    Intel SSD 520 review roundup: Intel reliability, SandForce speeds starting at $149 originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:39:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink   |  sourceStorage Review (1), (2), (3), AnandTech, Tom's Hardware, Hot Hardware, Legit Reviews  | Email this | Comments

  22. Be a Book Giver on World Book Night

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:27 pm MST

    This is the first post from the fine folks of the American Library Association, which recently launched a member interest group called Library Boing Boing. They will be posting now and again as LibraryLab. On April 23, 2012, tens of thousands of people in the U.S., U.K., Ireland, and Germany will go out into their [...]



  23. Circuit Playground App Helps Makers Build Electronics

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:26 pm MST

    id492487671-1If you don't know a resistor from a Mister Mister, this is the app for you. Built by Adafruit, creators of DIY Arduino gear, Circuit Playground is a $2.99 app designed to help you identify and understand various electronic components. For example, the app includes a resistor identification system based on the colored bands painted on the casing as well as a field guide to many electrical components.

  24. Keen On… SOPA: Mob Rule or Direct Democracy? (TCTV)

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:15 pm MST

    Keen On…..SOPA_ Mob Rule or Direct Democracy? (TCTV) | TechCrunchMy own views about SOPA and the need to protect online intellectual property are well-known. But even I acknowledge that SOPA was a flawed bill that didn't represent a viable solution to policing the Internet against intellectual property theft. So is there life after SOPA? How can the technology and content communities carve out a compromise which will simultaneously protect innovation and the rights of the creative community? In the spirit of compromise, I invited Larry Downes, one of SOPA's most articulate critics, into our San Francisco studio to talk about what comes next.

  25. Honeywell Files Patent Lawsuit Against Nest for Smart Thermostat

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:02 pm MST

    Everyone is excited about the new Nest thermostat, which learns your habits to save energy -- well, everyone except Honeywell.

  26. Giant Thermostat Company Sues 'Nest' Creators

    → Wired: Gadgets | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:01 pm MST

    Honeywell, a company long known for its commercial and residential thermostats, filed a patent infringement lawsuit on Monday against Nest Labs, the outfit that launched the highly publicized Nest thermostat last October.




  27. Robot gaze: what are the aesthetics of computer vision systems?

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:00 pm MST

    Timo's video "Robot readable world" is made up of stitched-together found footage from computer vision systems, "exploring the aesthetics of the robot eye." It was inspired by Matt Jones's essay The Robot-Readable World, and it reminds me Laura Mulvey's idea of the Male Gaze. Robot readable world



  28. Sony Alpha NEX-7 mirrorless camera review

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 12:00 pm MST

    Remember the NEX-7? Ever since a days-long shooting session back in September, Sony's prized mirrorless cam has eluded us -- and the rest of the world. As you may recall, the flagship Alpha ILC was hit by the Thailand floods, resulting in delay after delay, eventually missing the holiday shopping season entirely before resurfacing late last month. Another week later and our beloved Sony Alpha NEX-7 has finally arrived, ready to take on the streets of New York City. So what exactly is the NEX-7, and why does it cost as much as a mid-range DSLR? First off, the-24.3 megapixel APS-C ILC captures, well, 24.3-megapixel images, offering the highest resolution of any mirrorless model on the market. Its APS-C sensor is identical to the one found in Sony's A77 DSLR, measuring larger than Micro Four Thirds and on par with most full-size digital SLRs.

    If having the ability to capture mural-size images ranks fairly low on your digicam wish list, you may take comfort in some of the NEX-7's other features, such as its gorgeous and durable magnesium alloy body, built-in XGA OLED electronic viewfinder, 3-inch, 921k-dot articulating LCD and unique tri-navi control interface that enables direct access to key settings adjustments, including both aperture and shutter speed in manual mode. There's also 1080/60p HD movie capture with full manual control and microphone input support, a 10 frames-per-second continuous shooting mode (with exposure and focus locked) and a BIONZ image processor that's capable of delivering low-noise images all the way through ISO 16,000. These features combine to make the NEX-7 one of the most powerful mirrorless cameras to date, but are they enough to justify the $1,200 body-only price tag? Join us past the break to find out.

    Continue reading Sony Alpha NEX-7 mirrorless camera review

    Sony Alpha NEX-7 mirrorless camera review originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 15:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  29. Mathematicians: You must have at least 17 clues to solve Sudoku

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 11:56 am MST

    A recent mathematics study showed that you have to have at least 17 clues on a Sudoku grid in order for the puzzle to be solvable. You could make the game easier, by adding more clues. But if there are fewer than 17 clues, then the game becomes impossible to solve. In this video, mathematician [...]



  30. Brands Scored 2X Facebook Likes By Posting About Super Bowl

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 11:50 am MST

    Facebook Super BowlWant to win some extra visibility for your brand on Facebook? Post about current events. Brands grabbed 99.7% higher engagement on their Page posts by talking about the Super Bowl yesterday, and 60% higher engagement over the past 6 weeks compared to the average post. The data from a Buddy Media study of 1,400 of the world's largest brands indicates they should make sure to post about holidays, sporting events, breaking news, and other trending topics. Here's how this strategy works:

  31. When Will The Post-PC Era Arrive? It Just Did.

    → TechCrunch | 6 Feb 2012 | 11:49 am MST

    Scrabble on the iPadThere has been much debate about what the post-PC era is, when it will arrive, or whether it's already here. But key pieces of new data, emerging last week, are making the case that we crossed the imaginary line from the "PC" era to the "post-PC" era at the end of 2011. According to analysts at Canalys, two major computing milestones were achieved at the end of this year: smartphone shipments outpaced PCs for the first time ever, and Apple became the world's largest PC maker, if you count iPads as PCs (as well you should). Combined, what these numbers tell us is that the post-PC era is happening now. Right now. And maybe we need to think about how we define "PC."

  32. Lenovo confirms ICS for ThinkPad Tablet, gives us more reason to look forward to spring

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 11:48 am MST

    Love your ThinkPad Tablet, but hate staring at its somewhat outdated operating system? Great news! Your stylus-friendly slate will be getting a heaping helping of Ice Cream Sandwich come spring, according to Lenovo. As part of the company's commitment to "future proofing" its devices, the update will begin hitting the tablet over-the-air in May. The Android upgrade will bring with it browser enhancements, voice input, face unlock and general frozen deliciousness.

    Lenovo confirms ICS for ThinkPad Tablet, gives us more reason to look forward to spring originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:48:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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  33. New life for old malls

    → Boing Boing | 6 Feb 2012 | 11:46 am MST

    There are too many malls in America, and too many vacancies in them. So city planners are looking for other ways to use all that square-footage. The New York Times has a neat story about some of the different ways derelict shopping malls are being repurposed: As deconstructed residential/retail centers catering to desires for a [...]



  34. Russian carrier gives $5,000 vacation to its most data hungry customer

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 11:37 am MST

    Use more data, win more prizes. It may sound counterintuitive, but that's exactly what Russian operator MegaFon is offering to its subscribers, as part of a curious 3G promotion. It all began back in November, when the provider announced a rather straightforward contest: customers who downloaded the most data with their 3G modems would be awarded prizes worth up to one million rubles (about $33,000), including a $5,000 vacation. According to Russian news site C News, MegaFon launched the campaign in order to showcase the expanse of its data network, which apparently covers more than 80 percent of northwestern Russia and offers speeds of up to 21Mbps. The promotion came to an official close on January 31st, with the coronation of a lucky winner who, over the course of a single week, managed to scarf down 419GB of data on the company's 3G network. MegaFon didn't offer usage statistics on the second and third place winners, nor did it say what they won for their efforts, if you wanna call them that.

    Russian carrier gives $5,000 vacation to its most data hungry customer originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink The Next Web  |  sourceC News (Translated)  | Email this | Comments

  35. Adafruit's Circuit Playground app deciphers resistor codes, helps you remember Ohm's Law

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 11:16 am MST

    Circuit Playground
    If the names Phillip Torrone, Limor Fried and Collin Cunningham don't ring a bell then you probably need to hand over your geek badge. If, on the other hand, those names immediately make you sit up and pay attention, you maybe excited to hear the trio have just released the first Adafruit-branded app for iOS. Circuit Playground is a reference app for makers, hackers and tinkerers that helps you decipher resistor and capacitor values; calculate resistance, current or voltage; convert decimal, hexadecimal and binary values; and store PDF data sheets for ICs. The app is $2.99, but it comes with a $3 credit at the Adafruit shop, so it's kinda-sorta free. It's available for iPad and iPhone only, but an Android version is in the works. If you're an impatient Google fan, they suggest you check out ElectroDroid which performs many of the same functions and we can confirm is awesome. Check out the video after the break and hit up the source link to get Circuit Playground now.

    Continue reading Adafruit's Circuit Playground app deciphers resistor codes, helps you remember Ohm's Law

    Adafruit's Circuit Playground app deciphers resistor codes, helps you remember Ohm's Law originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 14:16:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink   |  sourceCircuit Playground, Adafruit  | Email this | Comments

  36. Sprint shows you where and when it's disabling Nextel's iDEN legacy network

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 10:54 am MST

    Clue's in the title, really. If you head on over to Sprint's website, you'll find a page explaining the forthcoming changes to the service for legacy iDEN customers. Nextel users can enter in their zip code to find out which cellphone towers will be decommissioned and the due dates for each one. The program's beginning in New Orleans this month as the towers are thinned out to a reasonable number. Whilst it isn't (yet) the death-knell for the standard, given the network's push-to-talk service now works over CDMA and, you know, LTE, we'd start looking at replacement phones pretty soon.

    Sprint shows you where and when it's disabling Nextel's iDEN legacy network originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink Spruz  |  sourceSprint  | Email this | Comments

  37. Toyota Predicts Plug-in Prius Will Get 95 MPGe

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 10:53 am MST

    This is up from the previous estimate, which was 87 MPGe. But this being a plug-in, that number can be misleading, and there are a few things you need to know about it...

  38. Motorola wants 2.25 percent of Apple sales, in exchange for patent license

    → Engadget | 6 Feb 2012 | 10:33 am MST

    New details have emerged about the ongoing Apple-Motorola drama in Germany, courtesy of a court document uncovered by FOSS Patents. The two companies have been engaged in a patent battle of swelling proportion these past few months, with the most recent wrinkle unfolding on Friday, when Apple promptly removed (and returned) its 3G / UMTS-enabled iPads and iPhone 4s from its online German store, in response to a court ruling. At issue in this particular case is a Motorola patent that Apple wants to use under FRAND obligations, but Moto apparently isn't willing to license its technology for free. According to a court filing, the handset maker is asking for 2.25 percent of Apple sales in return for the license, though it remains unclear whether this pertains to sales of all products or, more likely, the 3G-enabled devices under consideration in court. Either way, though, Motorola would stand to see quite a bit of extra revenue, especially considering that Apple's iPhone sales have totaled about $93 billion since 2007. Under Motorola's request, the company would have made about $2.1 billion from these sales alone -- not to mention the payments it'd see from iPad sales, as well. Apple, meanwhile, has filed motions to access Motorola's licensing agreements with Nokia, HTC and other manufacturers, in the hopes of exposing a double standard.

    Motorola wants 2.25 percent of Apple sales, in exchange for patent license originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 06 Feb 2012 13:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink TUAW  |  sourceFOSS Patents  | Email this | Comments

  39. Local T-Shirts, Organic Cotton and Serious Renewable Energy: Q&A with Eric Henry of TS Designs

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 10:30 am MST

    From organic cotton to 100% local teeshirts, TS Designs has some of the most sustainable practices in the industry. Join us to discuss sustainability, peak oil and resilient business.

  40. Rio+20 Must Rethink 'Economic Growth Is Always Good' Paradigm

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 10:00 am MST

    Even as every politician continues to hold on to the idea that the solution to every social problem under the sun is more economic growth, there's thankfully an increasing amount of pushback on environmental grounds.

  41. Build a Solid Wood Safe Room In Your House with the HabiFrame Storm Shelter

    → Latest Items from TreeHugger | 6 Feb 2012 | 9:44 am MST

    Your house may blow away but you won't, if you are in this Laminated Strand Timber room.

  42. BLS Data: Unemployment Jumps To 11.5 Percent

    → Common Sense Junction | 6 Feb 2012 | 8:57 am MST

    Difference between Reported and Real Unemployment Rate…. Spread To Propaganda Number Surges To 30 Year High! ZeroHedge.com as of Feb. 4, 2012: Sick of the BLS [Bureau of Labor Statistics] propaganda? Then do the following calculation with us: using BLS data, the US civilian non-institutional population was 242,269 in January, an increase of 1.7 million [...]

  43. A Rose by Any Other Name Might Smell as Sweet, But it Would Probably Be Larger

    → Wired: Software | 6 Feb 2012 | 8:31 am MST

    The JS1K contest seeks the web's smallest, most impressive JavaScript experiments. This year's love-themed entries include a remarkable 3D rose rendered with less than 1k of code.




  44. Lawyers Skim 25% From 9.11 First Responder Settlements

    → Common Sense Junction | 6 Feb 2012 | 8:09 am MST

    NY Post: More than a year ago, 95 percent of 10,000 cops, firefighters, hard hats and other Ground Zero workers accepted the city’s $680 million offer. The sickest are now getting the final 60 percent of their payments. The WTC Captive Insurance Co., which manages the city’s 9/11 settlement funds, did not immediately comment. Adding [...]

  45. Goldberg: Wishful Thinking Isn’t So Bad

    → Common Sense Junction | 6 Feb 2012 | 7:55 am MST

    Jonah Goldberg at NRO: Many conservatives argue that Romney’s stiffness is a superficial objection, and that he’s a solid conservative who can appeal to moderates and independents. Other conservatives think Romney’s lack of fluency is a real problem, not because it proves he’s faking his conservatism but because it would put him at a severe [...]

  46. Happy 101st Birthday President Reagan

    → Common Sense Junction | 6 Feb 2012 | 7:45 am MST

    Wow! What a contrast! Americans for Prosperity:

  47. Rdio's Android Player Gets a Much-Needed Update

    → Wired: Gadgets | 6 Feb 2012 | 7:21 am MST

    The subscription-based streaming music service has just released a completely redesigned Android app that fixes all of the little annoyances.




  48. Review: Phiaton PS 20 Bluetooth Wireless Earbuds

    → Wired: Gadgets | 6 Feb 2012 | 5:45 am MST




  49. Learn About Eighth Notes With GarageBand Music Theory

    → Wired: Gadgets | 6 Feb 2012 | 4:45 am MST




  50. Futurama Monopoly: Bite My Shiny Metal A@#

    → Wired: Gadgets | 6 Feb 2012 | 4:30 am MST




  51. Alt Text: 100-Word User Agreements for Google, Facebook and Friends

    → Wired: Software | 6 Feb 2012 | 4:30 am MST




  52. In Today’s News….

    → Common Sense Junction | 6 Feb 2012 | 2:00 am MST

    [Your Browser does not support frames or is currently configured not to display frames. However, you may use Site Map Pages to navigate this site.] ~~~~~~ • A Shrink Asks: What’s Wrong with Obama? • Robin of Berkeley: A Psychotherapist’s Analysis of Obama • Robin of Berkeley: “Brain-Dead in Berkeley”

  53. A Google-a-Day Puzzle for Feb. 6

    → Wired: Software | 5 Feb 2012 | 10:01 pm MST

    Google's daily brainteaser helps hone your search skills.




  54. A Google-a-Day Puzzle for Feb. 5

    → Wired: Software | 4 Feb 2012 | 10:01 pm MST

    Google's daily brainteaser helps hone your search skills.




  55. Here’s What They Said

    → Common Sense Junction | 4 Feb 2012 | 9:38 am MST

    This came in over the transom. If it’s yours and you want credit, let me know. | [Not responsible for misquotes, misattributions, omissions or other errors.] | The problem with political jokes is they get elected. ~Henry Cate, VII | | We hang the petty thieves and appoint the great ones to public office. ~Aesop [...]

  56. Woman Awarded $9,867 From Honda For ‘Bogus’ MPG Claim

    → Common Sense Junction | 4 Feb 2012 | 8:43 am MST

    ABC News: Now that Heather Peters has won $9,867 in small-claims court against Honda because her 2006 Civic Hybrid had failed to live up to the advertised mileage, others are tempted to file their own complaints in small claims courts. But experts are divided over whether that strategy makes sense for most people. Some note [...]

  57. A Google-a-Day Puzzle for Feb. 4

    → Wired: Software | 3 Feb 2012 | 10:01 pm MST

    Google's daily brainteaser helps hone your search skills.




  58. RIM Claws Back Against Apple and Google With Free Tablets

    → Wired: Gadgets | 3 Feb 2012 | 4:59 pm MST

    In an effort to claw its way back into the game, RIM has settled on a new strategy. Effective today until February 13, every Android developer who ports an Android application over to the BlackBerry ecosystem will receive a free PlayBook, according to a recent tweet sent by RIM VP of developer relations Alec Saunders.




  59. Motorola Tablet Snafu Exposes Some Users to Privacy Risks

    → Wired: Software | 3 Feb 2012 | 4:56 pm MST

    Today Motorola issued a fail alert of epic proportions: From October to December 2011, 100 out of 6,200 refurbished Xooms sold from Woot.com may contain the previous owner's personal data.




  60. Motorola Tablet Snafu Exposes Some Users to Privacy Risks

    → Wired: Gadgets | 3 Feb 2012 | 4:56 pm MST

    Today Motorola issued a fail alert of epic proportions: From October to December 2011, 100 out of 6,200 refurbished Xooms sold from Woot.com may contain the previous owner's personal data.




  61. Apple to Authors: Content You Make in iBook App is Yours, Not Ours

    → Wired: Gadgets | 3 Feb 2012 | 2:59 pm MST




  62. Romney: On Day One I Will Nullify ObamaCare

    → Common Sense Junction | 3 Feb 2012 | 1:22 pm MST

    Mitt Romney: If I am elected President, on day one of my administration I will issue an executive order directing my Secretary of Health and Human Services to issue a waiver from its requirements [ObamaCare] to all 50 states. And on day one I will eliminate the Obama administration rule that compels religious institutions to violate the tenets of their own faith. Such rules don't belong in the America that I believe in.

  63. PETA Gallops Headlong Into Reality

    → Common Sense Junction | 3 Feb 2012 | 7:27 am MST

    Fox News: “When slaughter of horses was ended in the United States, what that meant for horses was not an end to slaughter,” Kathy Guillermo with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals [PETA], said. “What that meant was that they were crammed into small trucks, that they were slipping and sliding in their own [...]

  64. American Women Kidnapped in Egypt (Update)

    → Common Sense Junction | 3 Feb 2012 | 7:23 am MST

    Why do I have no empathy for cretins like these? Update: They let ‘em go. Probably means the Islamist running the show want to ask Obama for American taxpayer money. ABC News: Two American women and their Egyptian guide were kidnapped this morning as they traveled south from Saint Catherine’s monastery on Mount Sinai to [...]

  65. Why Desktop Apps Would Be Bad News for Windows 8 Tablets

    → Wired: Gadgets | 3 Feb 2012 | 4:35 am MST

    How will ARM-based Windows 8 tablets mitigate the heavy payloads of traditional desktop apps? A new report suggests desktop application support will be limited but still present, contradicting an earlier statement by Windows lead Steven Sinofsky.




  66. Why Desktop Apps Would Be Bad News for Windows 8 Tablets

    → Wired: Software | 3 Feb 2012 | 4:35 am MST

    How will ARM-based Windows 8 tablets mitigate the heavy payloads of traditional desktop apps? A new report suggests desktop application support will be limited but still present, contradicting an earlier statement by Windows lead Steven Sinofsky.




  67. A Google-a-Day Puzzle for Feb. 3

    → Wired: Software | 2 Feb 2012 | 10:01 pm MST

    Google's daily brainteaser helps hone your search skills.




  68. Apple Now the World's Third Largest Cellphone Maker, IDC Says

    → Wired: Gadgets | 2 Feb 2012 | 5:48 pm MST

    Apple has moved past LG in the worldwide rankings of mobile-phone unit sales. According to IDC, Apple is now the world's third largest mobile-phone manufacturer, behind Nokia and Samsung.




  69. Google Beefs Up Android Market Security

    → Wired: Software | 2 Feb 2012 | 2:09 pm MST

    Google unveiled a new security service for the Android Market today that aims to auto-scan uploaded Android applications to detect potentially malicious apps more quickly, ideally before users download them.




  70. A Google-a-Day Puzzle for Feb. 2

    → Wired: Software | 1 Feb 2012 | 10:01 pm MST

    Google's daily brainteaser helps hone your search skills.




  71. Wikipedia losing contributors, to streamline editing

    → Webware.com | 4 Aug 2011 | 2:15 pm MDT

    Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales says the user-generated encyclopedia is losing volunteer contributors, and must simplify its editing procedures.

    Originally posted at News - Digital Media



  72. See what's new in Thunderbird

    → Webware.com | 4 Aug 2011 | 1:07 pm MDT

    As Thunderbird joins Mozilla's rapid-release program, the e-mail client reorients itself for a new road map. But where's it going? See what the Outlook alternative offers in this new First Look video.

    Originally posted at The Download Blog



  73. Twitter revamping mobile site for iPad users

    → Webware.com | 4 Aug 2011 | 7:48 am MDT

    The company is tweaking its mobile twitter.com site using HTML5 to make it more user-friendly for iPad users.

    Originally posted at News - Digital Media



  74. How to tweet like a man

    → Webware.com | 3 Aug 2011 | 1:33 pm MDT

    Sociolinguistics gives us the keys to more masculine or feminine tweeting. Hint, guys: Google my jeep my ni$$@, http it up, bro. 4 sale. need $.

    Originally posted at Crave



  75. Gmail voice calling offering lower international rates

    → Webware.com | 3 Aug 2011 | 8:13 am MDT

    Accessible through Gmail, Google's phone call feature is being rolled out in 38 new languages with cheaper rates across more than 150 countries.

    Originally posted at News - Digital Media



  76. Yahoo Mail suffers outage; users react

    → Webware.com | 3 Aug 2011 | 7:51 am MDT

    Mail service was down for many, and affected users took to Twitter to complain. Yahoo now says all's well again, after acknowledging problems for "some users in certain locations."

    Originally posted at The Digital Home



  77. Google+ speeds to 25 million users in first month

    → Webware.com | 3 Aug 2011 | 6:41 am MDT

    Growing at around 1 million members per day, Google+ captured 25 million visitors as of July 24, becoming the fastest site to reach that level, according to ComScore.

    Originally posted at News - Digital Media



  78. Twitter ready to close the door on old site

    → Webware.com | 2 Aug 2011 | 6:30 pm MDT

    Popular microblogging site says it will migrate users still on old home page interface to the redesigned home page this week.

    Originally posted at News - Digital Media



  79. Start-up ZocDoc announces $50 million funding round

    → Webware.com | 2 Aug 2011 | 6:02 pm MDT

    The medical appointment booking service plans to use the DST Global investment to expand its presence to more cities nationwide.


  80. The major players in mobile payments

    → Webware.com | 2 Aug 2011 | 3:21 pm MDT

    A who's who of the most recent partnerships for the hot, and rapidly growing, mobile payments sector.


  81. AAAS 2011: Climate change poses challenge to food safety

    → Climate Feedback | 22 Feb 2011 | 7:57 am MST

    Sid Perkins

    WASHINGTON, DC – Climate change will pose a number of challenges to food safety in the coming decades, from boosting the rates of food- and water-borne illnesses to enabling the spread of pathogens, researchers reported Monday at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

    Depending on the greenhouse gas emissions scenario, global average temperature is expected to rise between 1.1° and 6.8° Celsius by the end of the century. And warmer temperatures are known to increase rates of some diseases: According to a recent study of salmonellosis in Europe, frequency of the ailment rises about 12 percent for every 1°C that air temperature increases beyond a baseline of 6°C, said Cristina Tirado, an environmental scientist at the University of California, Los Angeles. The precise cause for this trend isn’t clear, said Ewen Todd, a bacteriologist at Michigan State University in East Lansing. It’s possible that warmer temperatures cause bacteria to grow more quickly, or people may prepare food differently in warmer weather (grilling outdoors vis-à-vis cooking in a kitchen, for example).

    Climate change can increase disease risks in several ways, Tirado added. The concentration of methyl mercury in fish increases about 3.5 percent for every 1°C rise in water temperature. Warmer sea-surface temperatures can boost the frequency of harmful algal blooms, leading to an increased incidence of paralytic shellfish poisoning. Higher water temperatures also enable the spread of pathogens to higher latitudes: An outbreak of vibriosis on an Alaskan cruise ship in 2005, later linked to oysters that had been harvested near one of the ship’s ports of call, represents the spread of the disease-causing Vibrio parahaemolyticus to a locale more than 1,000 kilometers north of its previous known range. Dust storms, which are expected to increase in some regions due to climate change, could wreak their own havoc, because iron-rich mineral dust can drive a 10- to 1,000-fold increase in the growth rate of Vibrio bacteria.



  82. AAAS 2011: Beyond the “California condor” approach to adaptation

    → Climate Feedback | 22 Feb 2011 | 7:21 am MST

    Sid Perkins

    WASHINGTON, DC – Although no one knows the ultimate effects of climate change on marine ecosystems, scientists know enough about the oceans to proceed with adaptation, researchers reported Saturday at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. And while many previous studies have focused on minimizing detriments to single species of economic importance, future efforts should shift to preserving ecosystems and their capacity to adapt, they suggest.

    While many people recognize the warming effects of climate change on Earth’s atmosphere, the oceans are sucking up heat too. Only 4 percent of the excess energy absorbed by the planet in the past 40 years has gone into heating the atmosphere, but 84 percent has gone into the oceans, a larger and much more effective reservoir of heat, said Chad English, director of science policy outreach at the Communication Partnership for Science and the Sea (COMPASS) in Silver Spring, Maryland. (The rest of that energy imbalance has gone into warming Earth’s landmasses and melting ice, he notes.) Meanwhile, oceans are acidifying (by the end of this century, they’ll reach a pH lower than any experienced in the last 20 million years), sea levels are rising, and waves are getting bigger, driven by faster winds. The changes seen so far are just a preview of coming attractions, he suggests: “We’ve only seen [Earth’s] transient response to warming, and we don’t yet know at what point ecosystems will break down.”

    Indeed, a wide variety of holes exist in scientists’ knowledge about when —and how — ecosystems will respond to climate change. While many studies have assessed the individual effects of warmer waters, increasing levels of ocean acidity, and lower levels of dissolved oxygen on various marine species, the combined effects of multiple stressors are largely unknown, said James Barry of the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute in Moss Landing, California.

    Looking to save ecosystems by preserving a single species of importance probably won’t work, said Nancy Knowlton, a marine biologist at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington, D.C. Such a “California condor” approach – a massive effort dedicated to preserving just one, usually charismatic species – ignores the fact that ecosystems are finely-tuned biological networks composed of numerous interacting species. In the case of coral reefs, Knowlton’s specialty, those ecosystems are home to more than 1,000 species of corals and between 1 million and 9 million species of fish and other organisms.



  83. AAAS 2011: Ill effects of climate on ocean fisheries

    → Climate Feedback | 18 Feb 2011 | 11:07 am MST

    Sid Perkins

    WASHINGTON, DC – Climate change will dramatically alter marine ecosystems, wreaking havoc on many fisheries and exacting a huge economic toll, researchers reported today at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

    Despite being overexploited, the world’s fisheries are still profitable: In 2003, they generated more than $24 billion in wages for fishermen, profits for companies and payments to resource owners, says Rashid Sumaila, an economist at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. Yet those profits – and in some cases the fisheries themselves – are threatened by a variety of ill effects brought about by climate change, he notes. Warming seas and rising atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide will cause oceans to acidify, the habitable ranges of many species to shift substantially, and the size of adult fish to decline, to name just a few.

    Climate models suggest that by the year 2100, sea-surface temperatures will be between 1.9° and 2.8° Celsius higher than they were in the 1890s, says Jorge Sarmiento, a marine biogeochemist at Princeton University in Princeton, New Jersey. As a result, changes in the patterns and rates of upwelling that bring nutrients to the surface, among other factors, will cause primary productivity – the amount of biomass generated by the ocean’s food chain – to decline between 2 and 16 percent by the end of the century. While some areas, such as the Southern Ocean surrounding Antarctica, will see slight increases in biological productivity, many areas, including much of the tropical and temperate seas, will see substantial decreases, the models suggest. For example, he notes, in 2090 the combined productivity of North Atlantic fisheries will be about half what it was in 1860.



  84. Our pick of the recent literature

    → Climate Feedback | 7 Feb 2011 | 12:02 pm MST

    Each week on Nature Climate Change, we select three papers published within the last month that we find noteworthy for their novelty and wide interest. Our latest picks are:

    Policy: Global cooperation game
    International cooperation on technological development might be a crucial part of the much-needed breakthrough in tackling climate change.
    Original paper: Golombek, R. & Hoel, M. International cooperation on climate-friendly technologies. Environ. Res. Econ. doi:10.1007/s10640-010-9442-x (2010).

    Ecology: Downhill drive
    Climate change can cause vegetation to move up- or down-slope depending on water availability.
    Original paper: Crimmins, S. M., Dobrowski, S. Z., Greenburg, J. A., Abatzoglou, J. T. & Mynsberge, A. R. Changes in climatic water balance drive downhill shifts in plant species' optimum elevations. Science doi:10.1126/science.1199040 (2011).

    Atmospheric science: Sun's energy output
    Accurately estimating the Sun's energy output is vital for attributing climate change correctly. Improved measurements have now been obtained from a space-based instrument.
    Original paper: Kopp, G. & Lean, J. L. A new, lower value of total solar irradiance: Evidence and climate significance. Geophys. Res. Lett. 38, L01706 (2011).



  85. Corals show complex response to climate change

    → Climate Feedback | 20 Jan 2011 | 11:45 am MST

    Sid Perkins

    In the coming decades, the world’s coral reefs will suffer a variety of indignities, from global threats such as warming seas and ocean acidification to local and regional problems such as overfishing and nutrient-rich runoff. If carbon dioxide emissions remain high until the end of the century, reef coverage may drop by 50 percent or more even if local threats are addressed aggressively, a new study suggests. Despite this bad news, another study provides a glimmer of hope for long-suffering reefs: In some cases, the coral ecosystems that rise to replace ones blighted by climate change may actually be more resistant to disease.climate_2009_98-i1.jpg

    In a paper to be published in Global Change Biology, Kenneth Anthony, a marine ecologist at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia and his colleagues modeled how reefs of branching corals of the genus Acropora would fare under various levels of climate change and fishing. In the team’s model simulations, ocean acidification and warming impair the growth and boost the mortality of corals, elevated nutrients in runoff fuels the growth of coral-stifling Lobophora seaweed, and more intense fishing drives down the numbers of herbivores that help to keep the seaweed under control.

    Unsurprisingly, under the most extreme climate scenario — the IPCC’s A1FI scenario, in which atmospheric concentrations of carbon dioxide rise to exceed 900 parts per billion by 2100, compared to around 390 ppb today — reefs suffer the most. By the end of the century, even if fish graze about 60 percent of the seaweed each year and the nutrient content of runoff remains relatively low, the area covered by Acropora corals could drop to half today’s amount. If increased fishing drives the grazing rate below 40 percent, however, coral coverage plummets to near zero and the area occupied by seaweed rises to 40 percent or higher. A rise in nutrient-rich runoff would boost the growth of seaweed even higher, Anthony says.

    The new analysis doesn’t include effects of non-nutrient pollution and coral disease, and it doesn’t account for any synergetic effects among global and local threats that would amplify known detriments from individual threats, says Anthony. “In that sense, our figures may quite possibly paint an overly optimistic picture.” Nevertheless, he adds, “coral reefs can survive climate change if they’re treated well at the local scale, but many people would consider a nearly 50 percent drop in coral coverage a significant deterioration.”

    If there’s any positive aspect to be seen in the ecological havoc wrought by climate change, it’s this: The coral ecosystems that replace old-growth reefs could, in some instances, be more resistant to disease outbreaks, according to a study published online on January 17 in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. In that paper, Laith Yakob and Peter Mumby of the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia propose a model in which climate change affects disease resistance in corals in two contradictory ways.



  86. Our pick of the recent literature

    → Climate Feedback | 18 Jan 2011 | 6:30 am MST

    Each week on Nature Climate Change, we select three papers published within the last month that we find noteworthy for their novelty and wide interest. Our latest picks are:

    Media: Reporters get it right
    Accurate reporting of sea-level rise is a welcome success story at the sometimes fraught interface of climate science and mass media.
    Original paper: Rick, U. K. et al. Effective media reporting of sea level rise projections: 1989–2009. Environ. Res. Lett. (in the press).

    Ecology: Pikas' pain
    Rising temperatures may be to blame for the disappearance of a mountain-dwelling mammal.
    Original paper: Beever, E. A. et al. Contemporary climate change alters the pace and drivers of extinction. Glob. Change Biol. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2486.2010.02389.x (2010).

    Energy: A carbon-free future?
    Large-scale deployment of wind, water and solar power could decarbonize our energy system by 2050, academics say.
    Original papers: Jacobson, M. Z. & Delucchi, M. A. Providing all global energy with wind, water, and solar power, Part I: Technologies, energy resources, quantities and areas of infrastructure, and materials. Energy Policy. doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2010.11.040 (2010).
    Delucchi, M. A. & Jacobson, M. Z. Providing all global energy with wind, water, and solar power, Part II: Reliability, system and transmission costs, and policies. Energy Policy. doi:10.1016/j.enpol.2010.11.045 (2010).

    Read these highlights in full on our homepage.



  87. Our pick of the recent literature

    → Climate Feedback | 14 Jan 2011 | 2:25 pm MST

    Each week on Nature Climate Change, we select three papers published within the last month that we find noteworthy for their novelty and wide interest. Our latest picks are:

    Built environment: Cities to suffer
    The world's most populated port cities will be three times more likely to suffer from an extreme weather event by 2070, a study suggests.
    Original paper: Hanson, S. et al. A global ranking of port cities with high exposure to climate extremes. Climatic Change doi:10.1007/s10584-010-9977-4 (2010

    Agriculture: Insights on adaptation
    A historical look at grain growth in North America shows that past generations of farmers have coped with significant climate changes.
    Original paper: Olmstead, A. L. & Rhode, P. W. Adapting North American wheat production to climatic challenges, 1839-2009. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA doi:10.1073/pnas.1008279108 (2010).

    Ecology: Climate relief
    Plant leaf growth is boosted by carbon dioxide, but can, in turn, slow global warming, shows research.
    Original paper: Bounoua, L. et al. Quantifying the negative feedback of vegetation to greenhouse warming: A modeling approach. Geophys. Res. Lett. 37, L23701 (2010

    Read these highlights in full on our homepage.



  88. Penguins feel the pain

    → Climate Feedback | 14 Jan 2011 | 2:17 pm MST

    Sid Perkins

    A well-designed scientific experiment shouldn’t affect the behavior of its subjects or cause them harm. Yet that’s exactly the result of using flipper bands to identify individual penguins during field studies, one team of researchers now contends.

    In recent years, scientists have increasingly looked to penguins as a source of data about climate change. The new evidence comes from a long-term field experiment conducted on a remote island in the southern Indian Ocean that was designed to do just that. From 1998 through 2008, a team led by Yvon Le Maho, an ecophysiologist at the University of Strasbourg in France, monitored 100 king penguins on Possession Island, a 150-square-kilometer landmass in the windswept Crozet archipelago. Le Maho and his colleagues implanted the penguins with transponder tags — similar to those implanted in pet dogs and cats — that allowed researchers to track the comings and goings of the majestic birds in the breeding colony there. But 50 of the birds in this experiment were also tagged with a metallic band around one flipper, the standard technique scientists have used to monitor penguins for decades.

    Over the course of the team’s 10-year study, unbanded penguins fared much better than their banded brethren. Birds tagged with flipper bands had a lower long-term survival rate — dropping by 16 percentage points, or about 44 percent overall (note this was incorrectly reported in the original paper, a point picked up by AP journalist Seth Borenstein). Banded birds also had about 40 percent fewer chicks than unbanded birds did, the researchers report in the January 13 issue of Nature.



  89. A call to contribute

    → Climate Feedback | 2 Nov 2010 | 3:52 am MDT

    Olive Heffernan

    Next spring will bring a much-awaited and exciting new addition to the family of Nature journals. The newest of Nature's research journals, Nature Climate Change will dedicate its coverage to one of the greatest challenges for science and society.

    By and large, society now accepts that climate change is happening. But the science of global climate change is far from settled — large uncertainties remain regarding the rate of change and the scale and distribution of impacts. Less certain still is how we will respond as individuals and collectively to the problem. Although ample cause for concern, such uncertainty also brings the opportunity for new discovery.

    Nature Climate Change, which becomes available in print from April 2011, aims to be the world's leading research journal for documenting new scientific discoveries about how we will experience and respond to the challenges of a changing climate. With our online submission system now open, we are calling for original research articles from the natural and social science communities, in subject areas from atmospheric physics to psychology and policy. Central to the journal's mission, and to addressing climate change, is reaching beyond traditional academic boundaries, and bringing together diverse expertise and perspectives. As such, Nature Climate Change especially encourages the submission of interdisciplinary climate research. Further details can be found in our Guide to Authors.



  90. Nature Climate Change website - coming soon

    → Climate Feedback | 9 Sep 2010 | 11:30 am MDT

    Our regular readers will have noticed that Climate Feedback has been on hiatus over the summer - apologies for the silence. The good news is that taking a break from blogging has allowed us to do all of the ‘behind the scenes' work on getting Nature Climate Change, our forthcoming journal, underway.

    The blog will be back up and running regularly once the journal launches, and in the meantime, our website will go live in October. Once we are live, we will open our doors for submissions from the research community, and will be accepting original research papers, both in article and letter format, on climate change across the natural and social sciences. Until then, readers can find out more about the journal here.

    From October right up until the first print issue of Nature Climate Change in April 2011, we will be highlighting the latest developments in climate research on a weekly basis online. We will also be commenting on climate change, its impacts and implications on Twitter, on Facebook, and here.






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