Dr. Augustine Fou's Online Scrapbook

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Facebook Just Made It Harder for Hackers to Jack Your Account [Security]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5952193/facebook-just-made-it-harder-for-hackers-to-jack-your-account

Facebook Just Made It Harder for Hackers to Jack Your Account Facebook just announced it's partnering with seven new anti-virus companies, in addition to the ones it already worked with. They'll be offering software in the Facebook AV Marketplace, which lets users download antivirus security software. But the real benefit might be in how they affect Facebook at large.

Here's an excerpt from the release:

Our new anti-virus partners bring with them both the latest software and comprehensive intelligence. As with our existing partners, these seven companies will help protect Facebook's community of over a billion users by improving our URL blacklist system. This system scans trillions of clicks per per day, and before each click, the system consults the databases of all our AV Marketplace partners to make sure the website you are about to visit is safe. This means that whenever you click a link on our site you are protected both by Facebook and 12 of the industry leaders in computer security. We will be cooperating with these partners more in the future, and look forward to announcing new tools soon.

You know what that's about. "You won't BELIEVE what Justin Beiber put in his mouth! With Video!" You've clicked on one or two of those, even if you're usually good about it. The URL blacklist helps make Facebook less spammy, and more partners putting more brainpower into getting it up to date faster means a less spammy, virusy, hacky Facebook for everyone. [Facebook]

IBM's Watson Supercomputer Is About to Start Helping Actual People With Their Medical Problems [Watson]

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5952276/ibms-supercomputer-now-goes-by-doctor-watson

Last year, Watson beat humans in a battle of wits. Starting this fall, IBM's insanely intelligent supercomputer will begin diagnosing patients at New York's Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center.

For the past six months, Watson has been working on a virtual residency of sorts, learning how to practice medicine through simulations carried out using an app IBM created. But sometime this fall, the robot will start seeing actual patients. Watson will essentially take data from a person's chart, crunch it through some algorithms, and come up with a couple of plans of action. For example, it might suggest two courses of chemotherapy, but it will also say that it has a 90 percent level of confidence in one and just 75 percent in the other. That's when an actual doctor would come in and make the final decision.

FastCo explains why the jump from digital prototype to human tests is such a big deal:

Watson could provide any doctor anywhere with the world's best second opinion. A physician in a community hospital in the Midwest, or at a remote medical center in China, could have instant access to everything that the medical field's best oncologists—people like Kris and his colleagues at Sloan-Kettering—have taught Watson. What is more, Watson will be able to excavate facts beyond the ken of Sloan-Kettering's current lineup of specialists. As Kris says, "We could ask Watson: What is the best treatment for this rare condition based on all of Sloan-Kettering's records?" It could then go through several years of cancer cases looking for the most successful outcomes. In time, it could even look at hospital records from around the world.

Watson was built to learn, so it will only become more intelligent the more it works around the hospital. And Wellpoint, a healthcare provider in Virginia, already uses the genius machine to manage very complex cases. However, Watson's job at Sloan-Kettering is even more impressive. It goes to show that the computer is more than just a novelty game show guest. [FastCo]

Red offers 'truckload' of one-time rental Scarlet-Xs for almost $5K off each

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/16/red-offers-truckload-scarlets-5k-off/

If you were thinking of getting a Red Scarlet-X 4K baby cinema cam for that pet film feature, but were on the fence because, well, $11,900 is a lot of cash -- there's good news. The company just announced they would be selling "a whole truckload of Scarlets" for $7,100 each instead, as they had been used on a rental for a "pretty special 3 second shot." As such, the camera body has less than a minute of recording time, and would come with an SSD module, Canon mount and full warranty for that sum -- along with the option to change out the MX sensor to Red's upcoming Dragon model, presumably. Bear in mind that you'd still lack the SSD drive, LCD, batteries or charger needed to shoot, but even with all that would still be under the regular basic price -- meaning you might be able to stop saving up and start shooting.

Filed under: Cameras

Red offers 'truckload' of one-time rental Scarlet-Xs for almost $5K off each originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Oct 2012 09:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sprint's Galaxy Note II to arrive October 25th, with LTE and $300 price tag

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/16/sprint-samsung-galaxy-note-ii/

Fancy being more than just a statistic on a Japanese balance sheet? Come October 25th, you can be a statistic and the proud owner of a stylus and an accompanying Note II to scrape it against. The Now Network just announced that it'll make the handset available to new customers and upgrade-eligible folk for $299.99 on a two-year contract, in either marble white or titanium gray. Expect to pay a significant monthly sum too, especially if you eventually want to exploit that Sprint-flavored LTE we keep hearing about.

Continue reading Sprint's Galaxy Note II to arrive October 25th, with LTE and $300 price tag

Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile

Sprint's Galaxy Note II to arrive October 25th, with LTE and $300 price tag originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 16 Oct 2012 09:28:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Beats By Dre launches Executive noise-cancelling headphones, keeps 'em dapper in aluminum for $300 (ears-on)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/10/16/beats-by-dre-executive-headphones-ears-on/

Aside from announcing its entrance into the portable Bluetooth speaker category today, Beats Electronics has also launched its first new set of headphones post-Monster. Aiming to cater to the jet-setting business crowd, the company is classing things up with its (finally released) $300 Executive noise-cancelling over-ears. The design of the headphones seems to be a blend of the Mixr and classic Studios, wrapped in brushed aluminum that's complimented by dark gray leather pads and the requisite "b" on each earcup. Requiring two AAA batteries for power, these active cans (read: they don't work passively) are rated to last up to a healthy 25 hours. The Active noise-cancellation functionality is aided along by two microphones inside the headphones that automatically adjust the effect depending on your surroundings. That said, we'd be remiss not to note that ANC is always enabled, as it's tethered to the power -- you know, to help avoid making your head ring from the likes of jet engines and subway cars. A detachable 3.5mm cable is included, featuring a 3-button in-line remote and mic and a right angle jack on its end. While we're fans of 90-degree jacks, we found that this one couldn't plug into our cased iPhone 5 fully, rendering the remote useless. Lastly, you'll notice from the photo above that the earcups on this pair thankfully fold flat, allowing for easier storage that its Solo and Studio siblings in a briefcase and the! like.

We only had a paltry few minutes to try out the cans, but we came away with good vibes about them. To get this out of the way, the voicing from its drivers is totally colored and seems to have that typical Beats S-curve with boosted sub-bass and treble -- a stark contrast from what you'd get with a passive set like the V-Moda M-100 cans. Compared to a similar active pair like like the Klipsch Mode M40, the sound is much more aggressive and lively. Although we listened in a quiet hotel room, the ANC circuitry did seem to dampen a significant chuck of the ambient noise around us -- however, it did have a very noticeable hiss (more apparent than similar cans) from it that we'd likely become annoyed by without music. The earpads are very supple and moderately deep, and the inside of each earcup has some padding over the driver which should help you to evade the dreaded cartilage cramps. The headphones feel extremely sturdy and miles more robust the plasticky Studios, all while still retaining a light feel free of excessive clamping force on this editors head -- very similar, actually, to what we enjoyed with the Parrot Zik cans. All in all, while these aren't the f! irst alu minum clad cans from the company, the Executive headphones really seem like they could stand to be a much better option than the Studios for overall value. Of course, we'll let you know either way when we come to our conclusion. For now, the Executive headphones are on sale today from the Beats Electronics and various retailers if you'd like to try 'em out for yourself.

Gallery: Beats by Dre Executive noise-cancelling headphones (hands-on)