BrainWave Technology Tidbits

Friday Squid Blogging: Colossal Squid was a Lethargic Blob

2008-09-05T22:36:05Z

Fierce deep-sea predator? Not so much: "We are looking at something verging on the incredibly bizarre. As she got older she got shorter and broader and was reduced to a giant gelatinous blob, carrying many thousands of eggs," he says. "Her shape was likely to have affected her behaviour and ability to hunt. I can't imagine her jetting herself around... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Contest: Cory Doctorow's Cipher Wheel Rings

2008-09-05T18:01:09Z

Cory Doctorow wanted a secret decoder wedding ring, and he asked me to help design it. I wanted something more than the standard secret decoder ring, so this is what I asked for: "I want each wheel to be the alphabet, with each letter having either a dot above, a dot below, or no dot at all. The first wheel... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Using Shredded Checks as Packaging Material

2008-09-05T12:44:52Z

This seems like a really dumb idea.... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Privacy Policies: Perception vs. Reality

2008-09-04T19:15:54Z

New paper: "What Californians Understand About Privacy Online," by Chris Jay Hoofnagle and Jennifer King. From the abstract: A gulf exists between California consumers' understanding of online rules and common business practices. For instance, Californians who shop online believe that privacy policies prohibit third-party information sharing. A majority of Californians believes that privacy policies Read More......(read more)

Movie Plot Threats in The Guardian

2008-09-04T11:56:57Z

We spend far more effort defending our countries against specific movie-plot threats, rather than the real, broad threats. In the US during the months after the 9/11 attacks, we feared terrorists with scuba gear, terrorists with crop dusters and terrorists contaminating our milk supply. Both the UK and the US fear terrorists with small bottles of liquid. Our imaginations run... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Diaries Written in Code

2008-09-03T19:15:30Z

Many throughout history.... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Can executives do real work?

2008-09-03T13:43:49Z

Dear Bob ...I liked this week's Keep the Joint Running ("A Labor Day dichotomy," 9/1/2008). It triggered a thought:Are the decision making and knowledge level of the lower employee any different then the level of decision making and knowledge level of those of the top executives?I'm sure if we put some Read More......(read more)

Sucking Data off of Cell Phones

2008-09-03T12:03:31Z

Don't give someone your phone unless you trust them: There is a new electronic capture device that has been developed primarily for law enforcement, surveillance, and intelligence operations that is also available to the public. It is called the Cellular Seizure Investigation Stick, or CSI Stick as a clever acronym. It is manufactured by a company called Paraben, and is... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Owner's capitalism vs manager's capitalism

2008-09-03T05:09:07Z

What you can predict about how a company is managed based on the existence of a shareholder's lawsuit ... and how not to interview there. READ MORE Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Software to Facilitate Retail Tax Fraud

2008-09-02T18:24:22Z

Interesting: Thanks to a software program called a zapper, even technologically illiterate restaurant and store owners can siphon cash from computer cash registers and cheat tax officials. [...] Zappers alter the electronic sales records in a cash register. To satisfy tax collectors, the tally of food orders, for example, must match the register's final cash total. To hide the removal... Share Post Read More......(read more)

Security ROI

2008-09-02T12:05:53Z

Return on investment, or ROI, is a big deal in business. Any business venture needs to demonstrate a positive return on investment, and a good one at that, in order to be viable. It's become a big deal in IT security, too. Many corporate customers are demanding ROI models to demonstrate that a particular security investment pays off. And in... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

My LA Times Op Ed on Photo ID Checks at Airport

2008-09-01T11:15:41Z

Opinion The TSA's useless photo ID rules No-fly lists and photo IDs are supposed to help protect the flying public from terrorists. Except that they don't work. By Bruce Schneier August 28, 2008 The TSA is tightening its photo ID rules at airport security. Previously, people with expired IDs or who claimed to have lost their IDs were subjected to... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Advice for marketing a start-up

2008-09-01T01:40:35Z

Advice for marketing a start-up (or any other tough situation): Give yourself the same advice you'd give anyone else. READ MORE Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Friday Squid Blogging: Translucent Squid

2008-08-29T22:41:45Z

Photos here.... Share Post: Read More......(read more)

Another Voting Machine Cartoon

2008-08-29T20:43:18Z

You know your industry has problems when mainstream comic strips make fun of you.... Share Post: Read More......(read more)