Apache declares war on Oracle over Java

Posted on 10th November 2010 in Software

Charging that Oracle has willfully disregarded the licensing terms for its own Java technology, the Apache Software Foundation has called upon other members of the Java Community Process (JCP) to vote against the next proposed version of the language, should Oracle continue to impose restrictions on open-source Java use.

The nonprofit organization has also indicated that it could end its involvement in the JCP if the licensing restrictions stay in place.

“Why would we want to be in an organization where the rules of law don’t matter? Our being on the [JCP Executive Committee] would be a sham. It would show that the community doesn’t matter, that we’d basically cave into Oracle pushing stuff through, whether or not it would be in the best interest of the community,” said Jim Jagielski, president and cofounder of the Apache Software Foundation (ASF), in an interview with the IDG News Service.
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Three-Dimensional Maps of Brain Wiring

Posted on 3rd November 2010 in Biology, Science

A team of researchers at the Eindhoven University of Technology has developed a software tool that physicians can use to easily study the wiring of the brains of their patients. The tool converts MRI scans using special techniques to three-dimensional images. This now makes it possible to view a total picture of the winding roads and their contacts without having to operate. Researcher Vesna Prčkovska defended her PhD thesis on this subject last week.
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Scientists May Have Discovered a Cure for the Common Cold (and Lots of Other Viruses)

Posted on 3rd November 2010 in Biology

Any immunology textbook will tell you that once a virus enters a cell, the only way to knock that virus out is to kill the entire cell. But a new study from the Laboratory of Molecular Biology at Cambridge has shown a way to kill a virus from within the cell, leaving the virus defeated and the cell victorious and intact. This could be huge–not just a cure for the common cold, but for all kinds of other viruses as well.

The study, which will be published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, tackles a fundamental of immunology. It has long been assumed that the body’s last chance to eliminate a virus is before it enters a cell–once it’s inside, it’s game over. You can kill the cell, but doing that too often is harmful to the body’s health. But this new study shows that the body actually has its own in-cell defense mechanism that can attack viruses once they’ve entered a cell–and they’re hopeful that this defense mechanism can be enhanced through external means, making the cells even stronger.
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After a Short Delay, Shuttle Discovery’s Final Mission is Go for Launch

Posted on 3rd November 2010 in Space

After a two-day delay and a good deal of much-deserved sentiment, the Space Shuttle Discovery – NASA’s oldest active shuttle – is at the launch pad and go for launch for its final mission, with liftoff slated for 3:52 p.m. EST tomorrow. Technicians are spending the day making the final inspections of the external liquid oxygen feedlines, and onboard ground communications will be activated this afternoon. It will be Discovery’s 39th flight in 26 years.

For its final performance, Discovery will ferry a crew of six to the International Space Station, though you could call it a crew of seven if you count Robonaut 2, a humanoid ‘bot that will spend the next decade aboard the ISS helping astronauts aboard the station conduct experiments, keep the station up to spec, and possibly even help perform repairs to the outside of the station during spacewalks.
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First official HTML5 tests topped by…Microsoft

Posted on 3rd November 2010 in Software

The Worldwide Web Consortium has released the results of its first HTML5 conformance tests, and according to this initial rundown, the browser that most closely adheres to the latest set of web standards is…Microsoft Internet Explorer 9.

Yes, the HTML5 spec has yet to be finalised. And yes, these tests cover only a portion of the spec. But we can still marvel at just how much Microsoft’s browser philosophy has changed in recent months.
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Leaf Veins Inspire a New Model for Distribution Networks

Posted on 2nd November 2010 in Software

A straight line may be the shortest path from A to B, but it’s not always the most reliable or efficient way to go. In fact, depending on what’s traveling where, the best route may run in circles, according to a new model that bucks decades of theorizing on the subject. A team of biophysicists at Rockefeller University developed a mathematical model showing that complex sets of interconnecting loops — like the netted veins that transport water in a leaf — provide the best distribution network for supplying fluctuating loads to varying parts of the system. It also shows that such a network can best handle damage.
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Electrons on the Brink: Fractal Patterns May Be Key to Semiconductor Magnetism

Posted on 2nd November 2010 in Hardware, Science

Just as the heartbeats of today’s electronic devices depend on the ability to switch the flow of electricity in semiconductors on and off with lightning speed, the viability of the “spintronic” devices of the future — technologies that manipulate both the flow and magnetic “spin” of electrons — will require similarly precise control over semiconductor magnetism.
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Single Electron Reader Opens Path for Quantum Computing

Posted on 2nd November 2010 in Hardware, Science

A team led by engineers and physicists at the University of New South Wales (UNSW) in Sydney, Australia, have developed one of the key building blocks needed to make a quantum computer using silicon: a “single electron reader.”
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Cassini Sees Saturn Rings Oscillate Like Mini-Galaxy

Posted on 2nd November 2010 in Science

Scientists believe they finally understand why one of the most dynamic regions in Saturn’s rings has such an irregular and varying shape, thanks to images captured by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft. And the answer, published online in The Astronomical Journal, is this: The rings are behaving like a miniature version of our own Milky Way galaxy.
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