Microsoft's partnership with ESPN to bring streaming sports to the Xbox 360 may be the tip of a streaming video iceberg. According to sources speaking to Reuters, the company is working on deals to launch a subscription service to stream video content to Windows PCs or devices such as the Xbox 360.Microsoft has proposed a few different ways that its service could work in its pitch to content providers. One would have Microsoft acting as a "virtual cable operator," streaming video in exchange for a monthly fee. Another would use the Xbox to enable existing cable subscribers to stream content with "enhanced interactivity." A third option would allow viewers to subscribe to channels separately—the "Ã la carte" option that most cable companies have fought against despite consumer demand and pressure from the FCC.
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Inexpensive HDMI cables are a right, not a privilege
Big-screen televisions have never been more affordable. There are many deals to be found on 360s and PlayStation 3s. While my extended family may not know the "Roku" name, many are asking for a "Netflix box" for Christmas. This is the time of year when people who don't know much about electronics, cabling, or displays spend a whole lot of money electronics, cabling, and displays.Here's a simple way to be a hero: buy a bunch of HDMI cables.
Retail displays of HDMI cables are going up, and the sales staff of electronics stores are trained to push them as add-ons. Why not? Stores sell them for $20 on up, and it's not rare to see "premium" HDMI cables go for $80 or more in the stores. Some manufacturers are getting better about including cables, but many are not, so you can save a ton of money by ordering a bunch of $5 or less cables online.
Every time I needed a cable I have ordered from monoprice.com. The prices are low, the shipping is solid, and the cables have always been good. I've never had a reason to go anyplace else. If you know of another good source of cheap cables online, share it in the comments.
Spending a few bucks on a couple of extra cables to keep in your car is an easy way to score points with your family. When they unwrap that new video game system, you're ready to get them hooked up without having to pay the incredible retail markup. If they already paid too much for the cable, give them one of yours and offer to return the other one. Inexpensive HDMI connections are a right, not a privilege, and this is a great way to spread some holiday cheer.
Educate your family and friends, and join us in the fight against overpriced cabling
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Increasing the speed and efficiency of racetrack memory
Racetrack memory has attracted attention in the last two years because it's a possible replacement for flash and conventional magnetic disks. Racetrack memory devices can potentially have storage densities hundreds of times greater than flash memories, but read/write speed and power consumption remain substantial technological hurdles. The problems arise from the physics of racetrack memory devices, so performance gains must come from an improved scientific understanding of the underlying processes rather than improved device fabrication.In a nutshell, racetrack memory works by cycling magnetic domains (bits of memory) along ferromagnetic nanowires using a spin polarized current. A transistor in the center of the wire reads and writes data as the bits are moved up and down the nanowirewire. For a full description of the technology, check out Matt Ford's previous coverage.
The key to increasing speed and efficiency in racetrack memory devices is understanding the interaction between spin polarized current and domain wall motion in the nanowires. A team from Texas A&M University recently solved the equations of motion for magnetic domain walls in nanowires under various current conditions. They found that both the efficiency and speed of domain wall motion could be dramatically increased using a series of current pulses rather than DC, AC, or a combination of the two. Most importantly, they show that the optimum pulse conditions can be calculated using basic electrical properties of the nanowire, which are relatively easy to measure.
There is a lot to like here, but one important aspect is the choice of model. Most work on domain wall motion relies on complex numerical codes that tend to hide the underlying physics of the process. This work uses much more basic magnetisation theory so that the physics and implications of the model are transparent and understandable. The conclusions provide clear, testable conditions that can be realized in the lab, and, if the predictions are accurate, demonstrable increases in device speed and efficiency.
Physical Review Letters, 2010. DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.105.217203 (About DOIs).
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Wikileaks: US sought DNA, passwords of world leaders
Another tsunami of United States government documents is up on Wikileaks. We're talking confidential cables between the US State Department and 274 embassies around the world. 15,652 of them are classified "secret," according to the site.The big story circulating around the globe is that Arab nations have been urging the US to bear down on Iran.
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Self-affirming essay boosts coeds' physics skills
For many years, there has been a persistent achievement gap between the performance of males and females in math and the sciences. It has become increasingly apparent, however, that the problem is cultural. The math gap seems to vanish in countries with higher degrees of gender equality, while females exposed to the stereotypical expectation that they'd do worse in a subject tended to live down to these low expectations. These findings, however, don't provide clear guidance as to how to address the problem: if females have already been exposed to these stereotypes, how do you get them to ignore them and perform up to their abilities? The answer, it appears, may be as simple as a short essay. A study in last week's Science describes a program at the University of Colorado, focused on helping to narrow the achievement gap in an introduction to physics class targeted to science majors. In past years, research had found that a strong background and preparation could account for over half the gender difference in test scores, but that still leaves other, substantial factors to explain the discrepancies.
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Make way for fiber! Australia splits its top telco in two
Fulfilling another promise of its ambitious national broadband program, Australia's Senate has passed a bill that will split the country's biggest telco into separate retail and wholesale operations. Telstra will also sunset a big chunk of its copper wire operation, making way for Australia's massive nation-wide fiber project. "Ever since Telstra was privatized Australians have suffered," Communications Minister Stephen Conroy declared shortly after the vote. "They have suffered with high prices, less competition and less innovative services. Today is about celebrating a significant win for Australian consumers."
The government let go of Telstra in the late 1990s. But, over the coming eight years, Australia's taxpayers will fork over AUS$43 billion (US$38 billion) to build a "world-class broadband infrastructure." The project will deliver fiber-to-the-home to 93 percent of all households. We're talking open access and wholesale only. Every ISP will be able to tap into the system.
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The economic case for open access in academic publishing
As hyperbolic as it may sound, academic publishing is the curator and guardian of the accumulated scientific knowledge of the human race, 1600 to present. It is also a cornerstone of modern science, preferentially selecting well-executed research through the peer review process. However, academic libraries are facing decreasing budgets, and even highly ranked universities are having to cut back on journal subscriptions. Since these subscriptions account for up to 75 percent of publishers' revenues, the entire system is feeling the pressure of the economic crisis. But that's not the only source of strain. As content migrates to the Web and becomes increasingly difficult to control, the "walled garden" subscription business model used by the publishing industry is facing the same issues as other major content providers. This article examines the academic publishing industry and looks at the impacts of business models from both an academic and economic standpoint.
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Hands-on: a first look at Diaspora's private alpha test
The Diaspora project has launched a private alpha test of its open source social network. It is opening up its own hosted instance of Diaspora to a select group of testers, starting with people who contributed financial support when Diaspora was first getting off the ground. The initial group of participants can invite other people, and the developers will be opening up the service to more users each week.
Diaspora emerged as a response to the privacy concerns raised by mainstream social networking services. The aim of Diaspora is to create an open source social network alternative with decentralized architecture, giving end users more control over their private information and how it is shared with other people. The project was financed by individual contributions through the Kickstarter crowd-funding service.
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Sea level-ice sheet dynamics may help stabilize Antarctica's ice
To say that there is uncertainty in future sea level rise is an understatement. If you combine the contribution from Greenland, Antarctica, and mid-latitude glaciers with the expected thermal expansion of the ocean, estimates of total sea level rise by the year 2100 range from 0.2 to 2 meters. Two meters of sea level rise would put much of the Netherlands, New Orleans, Bangkok, and other heavily populated areas underwater. Even coastal areas that are not under water are likely to see coastal erosion and similar problems increase with a two-meter rise in sea level.
Clearly this is an important subject, but where does an order of magnitude of uncertainty come from? One of the least understood aspects is the role of glacial dynamics. Just how does an ice sheet move? Part of it is "simple" deformation of the ice itself. Here, you can think of the bottom of the ice sheet as being frozen to the bed, the next layer of ice up is sliding very slowly over that layer, and each successive layer slides a little faster than the layer below it. But there's that "frozen to the bed" thing. What if the ice isn't frozen to the bed?
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Weird Science finds "the remarkable squidworm," flying snakes
How can you not like a paper that starts with the phrase "the remarkable squidworm"?: That freaky-looking thing you're seeing is an annelid, but it's quite a bit different from the local earthworms that may inhabit your garden. If you exclude the appendages flailing off the front, the squidworm is (thankfully) only about 10cm long. The authors who described it did some basic DNA work to discover its closest relatives, but said that two of its most prominent features—the two rows of paddles and six pairs of tentacle-like arms—are unique to the creature. For squidworm afficionados, the tentacle-like things are apparently nuchal organs. Some snakes don't actually need a plane to fly: If the squidworm doesn't freak you out because you figure you'll safely avoid the deep ocean, we'll bring you some disturbing news from above the waves: flying snakes. Or at least some snakes that glide really, really well. There's no scientific paper there (although one's in the works), because watching that video should really tell you all you need to know about these reptiles. For those who choose not to watch, the snakes line themselves up to launch off a stick, make a slithering motion to improve their glide, and can actually twist themselves sufficiently to change direction in mid-air.
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Week in gaming: Kinect left open, Child's Play, WoW's Cataclysm
Did you enjoy your Thanksgiving? Did you drop some cash on great Black Friday deals and now you have stacks of games to play? Here's what I would do if I were you: donate some money to our Child's Play drive to try to win some very special prizes.We're already up to $5,000 donated, but it's a long way to go to beat last year's $17,000, and this year we're giving away some really amazing stuff. So dig deep, help some sick kids have some fun, and then dig into the biggest stories of the week. You'll feel good about it, I promise.
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Week in Apple: iOS 4.2 finally lands, we all find our iPhones
It's a holiday week here in the US, but that hasn't stopped Apple from releasing iOS 4.2, making Find My iPhone free to some users, and releasing an update for the Apple TV. There are also rumors about the next version of iOS and talk about Android stealing some of Apple's ad dollars. If you came for the weekly roundup, you're in the right place.Read the comments on this post
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Week in tech: TSA mania, worst tablet ever, gadget gifts
Adam Savage: TSA saw my junk, missed 12" razor blades: Full-body scanners? They may see you naked, but they aren't seeing large, scary razor blades. Adam Savage of Mythbusters explains. Worst gadget ever? Ars reviews a $99 Android tablet: The Maylong M-150 tablet beckons to consumers from the shelves at Walgreens: "Buy me! I'm only $99!" But what comes in the box isn't worth the headache that comes with it. Ars took one for the team so that you don't have to.
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Week in science: explosives, dark matter, GM salmon
New explosives get bigger bang for the buck with extra oxygen: Using a simple chemical reaction, chemists created a new class of explosives that could be an improvement over existing materials like TNT and RDX.Neutron stars may go completely strange thanks to dark matter: Collisions between up, down, and strange quarks can result in a form of matter that cannot decay to any other form. Physicists think that, in some circumstances, neutron stars may accrete dark matter that then seeds their transformation to strange matter stars.
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