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Saturday, February 16, 2008

There were 5 games played in the National Hockey League on February 15, 2008.

Monday, November 29, 2004

HANOVER, Germany —Internet portal and mail-provider Lycos Europe has launched a program to increase spammers’ bills by having thousands of voluntary users’ computers repeatedly query websites from which spam originates. Such a tactic would increase the bandwidth costs for these websites. However, it also faces legal questions.

Spamming, the mass sending of unsolicited emails, is lucrative in part because each email can be sent for nearly insignificant costs. With such low costs, a commercial spammer needs only to have a very small number of recipients buy their product to make a profit. The goal of many anti-spam proposals has been to increase the cost of spammers sending messages. Lycos’ approach is to make it more expensive to maintain servers that send spam.

Volunteers may download the screensaver from the Lycos website for it. The program would run on a user’s computer in the background and request about three megabytes (3MBs) of data every day. The screensaver shows which spam server is being targeted by the user, where the server is located, and how many others are attacking it at that moment. Target email servers are selected from blacklists from anti-spam organizations, with Lycos’ own verification.

Legal issues arise over whether this can be interpreted as a denial of service attack. In such an attack, computers overwhelm a webserver with requests for data to the point where it does not have the resources to fulfill its normal function. Lycos, in explanatory material on the screensaver’s dedicated website ( http://makelovenotspam.com ), claims that its technology closely monitors the screensavers’ effects on targeted websites and prevents any of them from being completely shut down by information requests.

Lycos Europe operates in Germany where, according to Joerg Heidrich of Heise Zeitschriften Verlag, less than completely shutting down a server is not clearly illegal under the penal code. It may, however, be actionable under the civil code. But Lycos may be betting that no one will file a suit, as that would require those participating in illegal spamming to reveal their identity.

The website no longer allows downloads of the screensaver, and users of the screensaver cannot connect to spam sites, but are instead given the message ‘Stay Tuned’

Saturday, October 17, 2009

A 6-month-old child is alive, having only received minor injuries, after the stroller it was riding in was run over by a commuter train in Melbourne, Australia. The entire incident was recorded by security cameras at Ashburton railway station, where the incident occurred.

Security video footage shows the mother tending to her baby who was in a stroller. She then moves the stroller a safer distance from the tracks. After letting go of the stroller for a second, it rolled towards the tracks and fell off the platform, being struck and dragged nearly 30 meters by the arriving train. Police say the brakes on the stroller were not applied.

The baby only received a minor cut to the head, and had already been rescued before authorities arrived on scene. Mother and baby were taken to Royal Children’s Hospital and released shortly thereafter. At a press conference following the incident, Michael Ferweda, a police spokesperson called it a “miracle” that no one was injured and that the mother was not at fault. No charges are going to be filed. “It was a lucky escape and a chance for commuters to think about heeding warnings to be more careful around platforms,” he added. The name of the baby and mother have not been released.

Jon Wright, one of the responding paramedics who treated the baby said, “Fortunately the train was slowing as it pulled into the station. The baby received a bump to his head and was distressed when we arrived. Luckily he was strapped into his pram at the time, which probably saved his life.”

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Wednesday, January 12, 2005

The following stories made international headlines Wednesday:

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After 14 months, three missed deadlines, and a change of CEOs, Canada’s Nortel (ticker NT) finally reported their audited restatement of earnings for 2001, 2002, and 2003. Five board members are stepping down.

Source: BusinessWeek Online: Nortel: Beyond Closing the Books

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Police reported to the Sandiganbayan, the anti-graft court investigating the former Philippine president, and leaked to the press, that Estrada had hosted members of his former cabinet for dinner and stayed overnight away from the hospital in which he is supposed to be confined. He is in hospital to undergo knee replacement surgery.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer: Estrada wanders out in HK

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As new attacks kill at least 25 people, interim Prime Minister Allawi admitted not all Iraqis would be able to vote:

“There are some pockets that will not participate in the election but they are not large.”

Source: Hindustan Times: Nationwide Iraq polls impossible: Allawi

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Two people have been killed and 47 people have been injured as the result of a coach crash in Cornwall, England. The vehicle, which was carrying 48 passengers as well as the driver, were travelling back from a journey to the village of Mousehole to see Christmas lights. The accident occurred at 2215 GMT yesterday in the village of Townshend, not far from the town of Hayle. Road conditions at the time were icy, which may explain why the accident occurred. The first police car that arrived at the scene lost control on the icy road and crashed into the already overturned coach. The two officers in the car were uninjured, however the earlier crash had caused the deaths of two women. One of them died at the scene of the accident and the other was later killed as a result of the injuries suffered. 47 people were injured, five of them seriously.

The sequence of events that is believed to have happened, according to Devon and Cornwall Constabulary, is that the coach went off the road, collided with a tree, going through a hedge before finally overturning, causing the vehicle to end up on its side. 60-year-old Ann Ellis, who comes from the village of Illogan in Cornwall, was physically involved in the crash. Desribing her experience of this incident, she said: “All I can remember is a big bang and we just went over. I got trapped under somebody else and there was someone on top of me. It was difficult to breathe but two gentlemen dragged me out. I was shaken, really shaken. I think we all were. It was horrific.”

Derek Smith, lives near where the accident occurred. He said that “[w]e were just going to bed when we heard a knock on the kitchen door. She was covered in mud and had no shoes or socks on and was shaking as she stood there. I could hear this commotion going on.

She said to ring the police and ambulance as their coach had turned over and there were 50 people in it and some of them were injured. My wife rang 999 and the lady was in a real panic. We gave her some socks and boots straightaway because she was freezing as she had nothing on her feet.”

75-year-old Charles Parker, who is living in St. Agnes in the county, was also injured in the accident, suffering injuries to his leg and his head. “The roads were so icy,” he explained. “I heard a cracking noise and all of a sudden we had turned over. I remember later being helped out of the coach through a window. We were close to a house and they took most of the people in there. Then helicopters turned up. It was very frightening.”

Inspector Matthew Shaw, who comes from Devon and Cornwall Constabulary, explained “[i]t seems from initial investigations that the coach has slipped on ice. The road is covered in a sheet of ice, it’s treacherous, it’s difficult to even walk down there.” The amount of time taken to transport the injured passengers to a hospital was four hours.

Tuesday, May 2, 2006

California high school students’ consumption of alcohol, tobacco and illegal drugs is headed up, according to a nationwide study of teen substance abuse released in April.

The report, released by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, compared substance abuse statistics from their latest survey, in 2004, with statistics collected in 2002. It was based on interviews of more than 135,000 people.

Nationwide, the rate of underaged drinking remained basically unchanged, but in California, it rose from 15.28 percent of California children between 12 and 17-years-old who said they had consumed alcohol in the previous month in 2002, to 16.81 percent who said they had in 2004.

Binge drinking, defined as drinking five or more drinks on the same occasion (i.e., at the same time or within a couple of hours of each other) on at least one day in the past 30 days, was reported by 10.27 percent of kids in 2004, up from the 9.16 percent who said they binged in 2002.

The report found that, in 2004, 10.9 percent of the nation’s kids from the ages of 12 to 17 had used an illegal drug in the past month, down from 11.4 percent in 2002.

In California, the number of kids who said they had used an illicit drug in the past month rose, from 11.44 percent in 2002 to 12.05 percent in 2004.

Among California’s 12- to 17-year-olds, those who said they had used marijuana in the previous month rose from 7.66 percent in 2002 to 8.52 percent in 2004. Those who had used marijuana in the past year rose from 14.11 percent to 14.6 percent over the period.

Only cocaine use was down among the age group, from 1.7 percent who said they had used it in the past year to 1.61 percent.

The use of any illicit drug, other than marijuana, in the month preceding the interviews of the 12- to 17-year-olds rose from 5.79 percent to 5.97 percent, according to the report. Nearly 8 percent of the age group in California had used pain relievers for “non-medical” purposes, such as getting high, the survey reported, a topic not explored in the previous survey.

More than 9 percent of California kids from 12-17 said they were abusers of or dependent on alcohol or illicit drugs in the 2004 survey, up from just over 8 percent in 2002.

Tobacco use, including chewing tobacco, increased in the age group from 9.22 percent to 10.88 percent. Cigarette smoking rose from 7.48 percent to 8.69 percent. Fewer smokers, however, reported being at great risk of smoking a pack or more a day.

The report, State Estimates of Substance Use from the 2003-2004 National Surveys on Drug Use and Health, issued April 6, estimates state rates of use of illegal drugs, binge and underage drinking, serious mental illness and tobacco use. SAMHSA combined two years of data from the annual National Survey on Drug Use and Health to enhance the precision of estimates for the less populous states.

The report shows that California increased from 24.7 percent of 12 to 20 year olds using alcohol in the past month to 26.3 percent, while Wisconsin increased from 34.7 percent to 38.3 percent. Michigan and South Carolina, however, showed decreases in underage drinking from 31.8 percent to 30.2 percent for Michigan and from 27.3 percent to 24.1 percent for South Carolina.

For illegal drug use, six states registered decreases in current use among youth ages 12-17, Illinois, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Dakota, Vermont and Virginia. There were no statistically significant increases in current drug use among youth in any state, and there were no increases in either the 18-to-25 year old age group or the 26- and -older age group.

“While we are making progress on drug and tobacco use among youth, underage drinking continues as a stubbornly persistent problem,” SAMHSA Administrator Charles Curie said. “It’s time to change attitudes toward teen drinking from acceptance to abstinence. It begins by recognizing the importance of parents talking to their children early and often about alcohol, especially before they’ve started drinking.”

The estimates show that past month use of any illicit drug in 2003-2004 ranged from a low of 5.8 percent in Mississippi to a high of 11.8 percent in Alaska for all persons aged 12 and older. Four jurisdictions showed decreases from 2002-2003 in current use of any illicit drug: the District of Columbia, Florida, Nevada and Washington.

“State-by-state data is a powerful tool for policymakers at the federal, state and local levels to identify needs and target prevention and treatment resources. It is clear from the findings that illicit drug, alcohol and tobacco use varies substantially among states and regions. That is why we continue to work though innovative programs like Access to Recovery to increase the flexibility of federal funding available to states and communities,” Curie said.

Mississippi and Utah had the lowest rate of past month marijuana use (4.2 percent) in 2003-2004 for population ages 12 and older, while Alaska had the highest rate (9.9 percent). Eight states were ranked in the top fifth nationally for past month marijuana use in all three age groups, 12 to 17, 18 to 25 and 26 and older. These states are Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island and Vermont.

Seven jurisdictions had decreases in past month use of marijuana between 2002-2003 and 2003-2004 for those ages 12 and older: Colorado, District of Columbia, Florida, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, and Washington.

Rhode Island had the highest percentage of persons aged 12 or older using cocaine in the past year, 3.5 percent. Ohio was the only state to show a decline in the use of cocaine in the past year, from 2.5 percent to 2.1 percent of persons aged 12 and older.

In the District of Columbia and Hawaii, approximately 3.1 percent of those 12 or older used narcotic pain relievers nonmedically, while 6.3 percent of those in Kentucky did. Washington and Kentucky were in the highest fifth for use of prescription pain relievers nonmedically in all three age groups. Arkansas and Maine had increases in the 12-17 age group, while California, Montana and New York had increases in nonmedical use of prescription pain medications among those ages 18 to 25. A decrease in nonmedical use of pain relievers was seen among those ages 12 and older in Hawaii (from 3.9 to 3.1 percent).

Eight states were in the top fifth for both underage use of alcohol and underage binge use of alcohol: Iowa, Massachusetts, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Rhode Island, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

Tobacco use in the past month by youth increased in California, but overall in California, tobacco use by those 12 and older fell from 22.5 percent to 20.7 percent due to a decrease among persons aged 26 and older. In Kansas, the percentage of persons aged 18-25 using tobacco in the past month increased from 45.7 percent to 49.9 percent.

The data show that West Virginia had the highest rate of serious psychological distress among persons aged 18 and older in the past year (12.7 percent) while Hawaii had the lowest rate (7.1 percent). Increases in serious psychological distress appeared in 10 states, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Texas, West Virginia and Wyoming, generally the result of increases among persons aged 26 and older.