The New Meaning to "Electric" Guitar

Just see the video

Electronic Ink

If you haven't seen it, the Esquire 75th Anniversary Magazine (2008) utilized some amazing technology. The face of the magazine actually lights up. Parts for this issue were shipped and assembled in China, Texas, Mexico and finally Kentucky.

This blog explains the various parts that were utilized:

programming header, 5-pin ISP
Microchip PIC 12f629 which is flash programmable, 8 pin
6 lithium coin cell CR2016s, 3 volts each
2 e-ink screens with flex connections
Half thickness, 2 layer board (FR4)

Here's a video of the magazine.

Computer Cracks Code Thomas Jefferson Could Not

In 1801 Thomas Jefferson received an encrypted message but its message remained a mystery ... until March 2009. In the letter, math professor Robert Patterson wrote that he had devised the perfect cipher: simple, yet impossible to break without the key. Patterson claimed that his message would stump humanity “to the end of time.”

Challenging Patterson's challenge, Lawren Smithline wrote a computer program which unveiled various pairs of letters. Pairs like “qu” and “nt” offered promise, while impossible pairs like “vj” and “dx” were rejected. After a week, Smithline exposed the message - words Jefferson would have easily recognized: the Preamble to the Declaration of Independence.

Not So Secret

This is embarrassing ... and dangerous - the Wall Street Journal reports that Iraqi militants cracked the software for Predator drone surveillance planes which send information unencrypted to military operators - with $26 software.

The lack of encryption means the data is less secure than most home wireless internet networks. Considering each plane costs ~$4 million, this is really bad news.

Studying Nature to Improve Anti-Virus Software

Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have developed a much more aggressive form of anti-virus software which mimic's ants!

The new software, unlike traditional software, traverses computer networks looking for threats. When detected, an army of ants swarm the threat and draw human's attention. The concept, called “swarm intelligence,” will transform cyber security because it adapts readily to changing threats, just like ants do.

“Our idea is to deploy 3,000 different types of digital ants, each looking for evidence of a threat ... As they move about the network, they leave digital trails modeled after the scent trails ants in nature use to guide other ants. Each time a digital ant identifies some evidence, it is programmed to leave behind a stronger scent. Stronger scent trails attract more ants, producing the swarm that marks a potential computer infection.”