• Blogs and Social Media Forum, 17 May 2006

    [www.softworld.co.uk] Understanding the Impact of Blogs, Wikis and RSS Wednesday 17 May 2006, Hilton London Metropole The new Blogs & Social Media Forum is breaking away from the traditional conference format to help maximise interaction and networking. Conferences need to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and experience ” and the interaction with peers makes this

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  • Pluto Has Two More Moons, Hubble Confirms

    [news.nationalgeographic.com] A Hubble Space Telescope image released yesterday confirms what a fuzzy shot taken last May only hinted at: Two more moons have been found orbiting Pluto, making a total of three. The new picture, captured on February 15, shows S/2005 P 1 and S/2005 P 2-catchier names will come later-faintly glowing in the starlike

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  • Exclusive locks in Bourne shell scripts

    Chris writes: Been writing some stuff in shell that needs to be able to ensure it doesn’t start itself twice, so a bit of Googling for exclusive locks in shell scripts brought me to this page on “advanced shell scripting” which had something that looked good. Problem is that when you put it into a

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  • Cute. Ugly, but cute.

    When wildcat meets flatiron, you get Pallas’ Cats: [community.livejournal.com] [www.csew.com] Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww…

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  • Australia mulls car smoking ban

    [news.bbc.co.uk] Authorities in Australia’s most populous state, New South Wales, are to consider banning smoking in cars. A parliamentary inquiry will look at the effects of passive smoking on passengers, particularly children. Supporters of the proposal have admitted, however, that enforcing such a ban would be difficult. Smokers in Australia have already been squeezed out

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  • Why and how do cats purr?

    [www.loc.gov] No one knows for sure why a domestic cat purrs, but many people interpret the sound as one of contentment. Our understanding of how a domestic cat purrs is becoming more complete; most scientists agree that the larynx (voice box), laryngeal muscles, and a neural oscillator are involved. … Continues at [www.loc.gov] with cute

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  • Word for Today: Snottites

    As heard mentioned on Radio 4: Snottites (SNOT-ites) Snottites or snotties are colonies of single-celled extremophilic bacteria that hang from the walls and ceilings of caves (similar to small stalactites, but with the consistency of “snot”, or mucous). They digest sulfur compounds in warm water in the cave, and slowly drip down from above. Because

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  • Nutella is in *so* much trouble: Plaisir Miel

    This stuff rocks: Plaisir Miel – what Nutella does to chocolate-nut-butter this does for honey, and is wonderfully goopey, sweet, rich stuff without dilution by vegetable oils. I just got a small jar tonight from Waitrose. It’s worth it. Now I just need someone with whom to share it. 😎

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  • (Cellphone) Mobile tracking devices on trial

    [news.bbc.co.uk] Your mobile phone is a beacon – a radio transmitter in a box. Therefore it is possible to trace the signal and work out where it is. There are now several web companies which will track your friends’ and family’s phones for you, so you always know where they are. But just how safe

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  • Cruise ship cheaper than Care for the Elderley?

    It’s a little bit old (2004) but the basic concept sounds ok. Maybe the Government should outsource part of their care-in-the-community work (and budget) to P&O? “Ok y’all, I have done some shopping and this is what I am going to do. There will be no nursing home in my future. When I get old

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  • Bikers roll to military funerals to oppose anti-gay protests

    [www.cnn.com] (via) Bikers roll to military funerals to oppose anti-gay protests FORT CAMPBELL, Kentucky (AP) — Wearing vests covered in military patches, a band of motorcyclists rolls around the country from one soldier’s funeral to another, cheering respectfully to overshadow jeers from church protesters. They call themselves the Patriot Guard Riders, and they are more

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  • Welcome To The Police State. Get Used To It.

    Via Bart: [film.guardian.co.uk] Four actors who play al-Qaida suspects in a British movie that won a prestigious prize were detained by the police at Luton airport as they returned from the Berlin Film Festival and questioned under anti-terror laws, alongside two of the former terrorism suspects they play on screen. In a statement, Rizwan Ahmed

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