September 30, 2002

More scary activity by our government.

SF Gate: Protesters and activists are being detained and delayed at U.S. airports based on a new federal "no fly list" that attempts to stop possible terrorists from getting onboard planes. This is scary stuff. Someone needs to decide on a test as to what defines a potential terrorist and what defines a peace activist.

Posted by Eli at 09:55 AM | Comments (1)

September 27, 2002

The mind's eye.

This is an amazing illusion! I had to put the image in Photoshop just to make sure that they were telling the truth. The squares marked A and B are really the same color.

Posted by Eli at 10:21 AM | Comments (1)

September 25, 2002

Is the hysteria over, or has it just begun?

NYTimes: Welcome to a new type of post-9/11 (non-)law enforcement: High-Altitude Rambos.

"One of the marshals pulled a gun and brandished it at the passengers. The marshals loudly demanded that all passengers remain in their seats, and remain still. They barked a series of orders. No one should stand for any reason. Arms and legs should not extend into the aisles. No one should try to visit the restroom. The message could not have been clearer: anyone who disobeyed the marshals was in danger of being shot."

Posted by Eli at 12:24 PM | Comments (0)

September 18, 2002

Counterpane Security Articles.

I just spent some time reading through new and old issues of Counterpane's Crypto-Gram, a monthly newletter about security. They have some really interesting non-technical articles that gave me a better understanding of security issues.

  • Terrorists and Steganography: Why hiding messages in other messages, such as terrorist plans in pornographic pictures posted on the web, is so effective.
  • Open Source and Security: Discusses why open security algorithms and protocols are more secure than privately developed closed source systems. Also gives examples of why just because an algorithm is secret, doesn't mean that it is secure or that it will be secret for long.
Posted by Eli at 12:37 PM | Comments (0)

September 15, 2002

Amazing Computer Generated Movie.

This might be one of the best computer generated movie shorts I've ever seen. This guy is good. Check it out: Lots of Robots, Version 2.

Posted by Eli at 01:45 PM | Comments (0)

Seinfeld Documentary.

Seinfeld was one of my favorite shows growing up. The subject matter for their "talks about nothing" reminds me of the things I usually notice about life. People always said that Jerry wasn't a very good actor, which I suppose he's not, but I always thought he was just himself on the show. Today I learned in this NY Times article that they've been making a documenary about him since the show stopped, and his quest for creating a new routine. I'll be sure to check it out.

Posted by Eli at 01:11 PM | Comments (0)

September 06, 2002

Declining job market in Silicon Valley.

This link graphs Java/C++ job openings in the last three years. Pretty bleak -- I hope the outlook in Portland is better. What's really interesting is to see how this correlates to the NASDAQ.

Posted by Eli at 05:41 PM | Comments (0)

September 05, 2002

Computer games declared illegal in Greece.

News.com: In Greece, use a Game Boy, go to jail. I'm guessing my roommate won't be visitting this fair european country anytime soon.

Posted by Eli at 02:49 PM | Comments (1)