DIY: Keeping your mobile stuff safe

How to keep your mobile devices safe and secure, netsafe

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Don't know about you, but I kind of freak out when a game I'm installing asks for access to

• in-app purchases
• identity
• contacts/calendar
• photos/media/files
• wi-fi connection information
• device ID and call information.

Usually it's the free ones and usually I end up not installing them. I can understand the in-app purchases part, but is the app going to slurp up the email addresses of all my friends? Why does it need my calendar? And does wi-fi connection information include the password of my home hotspot?

According to this 2012 article in the New York Times blog section, Mobile Apps Take Data Without Permission, too. Wondering if this has changed, I managed to find a site called Practical Law that gives Data protection in United States. It was last updated in June. Not being a lawyer and being somewhat legalese-averse, I passed on reading it in entirety. Maybe you can.

A number of reputable sites give advice on how to secure your mobile devices, especially phone; their advice often includes recommending that apps be downloaded only from providers like Google, Windows, and Apple. Articles about how to keep things secure can be found at McAfee, Microsoft, and Google. Note the partners list at the bottom of the Google page--could be some useful info there. 

In Australia there's Stay Smart Online. And New Zealand has an outstanding site about mobile security called Netsafe. One really interesting feature is TheScamMachine. (Great graphics!) The opening page asks "Are you ready to scam someone?" And gives instructions for setting up a video to send to a friend:

Welcome, and thanks for using the scam machine from Netsafe. You are just a few moments away from creating a current affairs news video with someone you know, or even yourself at the very centre of it.

Most people have been the target of some kind of scam at one time or another. Sometimes, the intended victim has no idea until its all too late. The scam machine lets you put yourself or a friend in that position, with no risk of them actually coming to any harm.

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TheScamMachine

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-- Marge

Science: the black hole conundrum

A high resolution mid-infrared picture taken of the center of our Milky Way galaxy reveals details about dust swirling into the black hole that dominates the region. - Image Credit: Dr. Mark Morris (UCLA) Keck II, Mirlen instrument, keckobservatory.org

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A number of different astronomers have stated that each galaxy has a supermassive black hole at its center. Or at the least, most galaxies, ours included. How can this be? Modern culture would have us believe black holes suck in all surrounding matter once it crosses the event horizon. A page about black holes at NASA Chats - Ask an expert says:

Black holes are really just the evolutionary end points of massive stars. 

Even more intriguing, but somehow reassuring, too.  The end of life may generate a new beginning. Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness keeps coming to mind. An article at Cosmotography--A Singular Place--explores the relationship between a black hole and its surrounding galaxy.

Some interesting work observing the black hole called Sagittarius A*, at the center of our galaxy, the Milky Way, is being done. A relatively new device for observation is NASA's NuSTAR (video posted by Teknociencia).

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Sgr A* is a research topic for astronomer James Lyke at the Keck Observatory in Hawaii. Recently he's captured some good information about the black hole, using several complementary technologies. Note in the video below, posted by the Science Channel, what it takes in terms of manpower and mechanical positioning to capture such information.

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You can track current news about Keck Observatory at this dedicated site.

-- Marge

Cartoons: Obama, Republicans, China, and Ted Cruz

Again, today's cartoons are an assortment of what caught my eye. The last cartoon made me guffaw.

Obama's Plan to overhaul of the nation’s immigration enforcement system may allow millions of immigrants to stay and work in U.S. says the New York Times. The Republicans are not pleased.

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John Cole, The Week

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China and the United States agreed on Wednesday to new limits on carbon emissions starting in 2025, but there is little agreement on cybersecurity.

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Drew Sheneman, The Week

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Top Republicans slammed the carbon emissions agreement.

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Tom Toles, The Week

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If emissions aren't brought under control, this may happen.

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David Horsey, The Week

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Meanwhile, Ted Cruz will give us the recipe for net neutrality today in Austin at Capital Factory.

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Cameron Cardow, The Week

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-- Marge

DIY: Backdrops for your selfies (and other photos)

This being the age of the selfie, it seems to me that knowing a little about backdrops for your photos and a reminder to consider the light source are in order.  My favorite mistake is taking a picture too close to the window and having one side of the subject washed out, the other too dark (see the about me photo below).

While setting up a home-based photographer's studio may be a bit much, there are some simple things that will help. Autumn in her blog, it's always autumn, has some great tips, especially for photographing babies. Her about page is a delight.  Her article about "how to set up a DIY photo studio in your home" comes in 2 parts. Here's one of her photos.

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Baby in white blanket. its always autumn

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She also has a post compiling ideas for backdrops.

Buzzfeed has some great ideas in "32 Unbelievably Cheap And Beautiful DIY Photo Backdrops." Many of the ideas presented assume that you have a bare or light colored wall to shoot against. An alternative is hanging a light colored sheet or taping up plain paper that comes by the roll. Some of the instructions assume you have a photo booth.

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Confetti backdrop, Buzzfeed

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Building a photo booth may require a little more investment of time and money, maybe not. A photo booth can just be an area set aside to taking pictures. A tripod for the camera is probably a necessity. Take look at Photography Concentrate's "How to Create A Simple Photo Booth," for pointers on camera, lens, light, and trigger. You can find instructions for a collapsible photobooth that uses an old laptop, webcam, and photo printer at instructables.

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Collapsible photobooth, instructables

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An alternate route for a photo booth is LiveBooth for iPad. A demo is available on YouTube.

-- Marge

Tomorrow is Veterans Day

Veterans Day 2014, Running Network

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While we're all veterans of something, maybe just life itself, tomorrow honors the veterans of the armed services. Not to be confused with Memorial Day, Veterans Day is explained by AL.com:

Difference between Veterans Day and Memorial Day: Veterans Day is a federal holiday that is celebrated on Nov. 11 each year. It's often confused with Memorial Day, which is set aside to honor those who died serving their country. Veterans Day is for all those who have served in the armed forces. 

Armistice Day: The origins of the holiday date back to U.S. President Woodrow Wilson, who proclaimed Armistice Day on Nov. 11, 1919 to mark the end of World War I. The armistice between Germany and the Allied nations that ended WWI was signed on that day and a ceasefire went into effect on the 11th hour of Nov. 11, 1918. An interesting note on that day, however. The war didn't have its official end until seven months later, when, on June 28, 1919, the parties signed the Treaty of Versailles in the Palace of Versailles in France.

While looking at the topic of veterans, particularly veterans of Vietnam (a conflict that marked a tumultuous time in American history), I came across some enlightening information. One of the more outrageous reports from the period was the story of war protestors spitting on the returning veterans.  This article in Wikipedia says it's a myth and offers no image. An article at Cracked gives "5 Lies About the Vietnam War You Probably Believe."

Looking at more recent veterans, Joe Klein at Time Magazine's Swampland writes--

We hear a lot about the troops who come home suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder; we hear about the suicides and domestic violence. We hear about the unemployment and homelessness. All of which is sad and true But there’s another side to the story…

While you must have a subscription to read the Time cover story, "The New Greatest Generation" (2011), a number of sites have published articles about it. Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (IAVA). Being Chief. Forbes Magazine.

From the Forbes article, there's this:

Make no mistake about it, more young vet movers and shakers are in-bound to American communities across the nation. Investing in their future now is the best thing we as a country can do for our collective future, from their education to their health care to their employment.

BTW, ABC News offers a list of deals and freebies being offered veterans as thanks.

I offer my thanks, too.

-- Marge

Cartoons: the war continues but may turn a little foggy

Naturally, editorial cartoonists are having a field day with the election results. Some are looking at results not related to Republicans.

If Congressional action continues as it has recently, we have nothing to fear from a Republican one.

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Adam Zyglis, The Week

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New Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said as leader he hopes to work with President Obama and Democrats in the Senate, according to an interview with Time.

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Steve Sack, The Week

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Millennials Want Jobs, Not Vote Pandering. Unfortunately the Koch Brothers won.

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Chip Bok, The Week

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Now that marijuana is legal in more places, it's easier to tune it all out.

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Tom Toles, The Week

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While looking for an article that gives information on the topic of 'corporations as people', I found this: "Porn stars demand Google's help to combat piracy." Seems it's easy to forget that Google is a corporation, too.

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David Fitzsimmons, The Week

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-- Marge

Thank God the election is over

Nate Beeler, The Week

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Big deal, the Republicans won. It only cost both parties combined over $1 billion for both the national house and senate races (Federal Election Commission, 2014 House and Senate Campaign Finance).

It cost me peace of mind and maybe some privacy: flyers clogging my mailbox; endless emails not requesting, but demanding money two and three times a day; the same old ads repeated over and over on the internet, on YouTube...everywhere.  A friend of mine saved the flyers; she's going to send them back and ask why this money isn't being spent to feed hungry children here in America.

I think we should declare a national Thank God It's Over holiday and schedule it for the Wednesday after each national election.  We could make bonfires of the useless flyers and stage signing parties to amend the constitution, so that Super PACs can no longer influence the vote.

Move to Amend is working on a constitutional amendment to reverse the Supreme Court ruling that enabled Super PACs. The petition states:

We, the People of the United States of America, reject the U.S. Supreme Court's Citizens United ruling and other related cases, and move to amend our Constitution to firmly establish that money is not speech, and that human beings, not corporations, are persons entitled to constitutional rights.

Moving to amend the constitution is a fairly complex, but worthy, project. If citizens initiate the process, they must petition their state legislatures to assemble a "constitutional convention called for by two-thirds of the State legislatures." It has never been done before--maybe the time is now.

The 2016 election is approaching fast. It will be worse.

-- Marge

Science: Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works

Compact fusion reactor, photo by Eric Schulzinger for Lockheed Martin, Aviation Week

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The scientific community's reception of Lockheed Martin's announcement that they're "restarting the atomic age" has been cool, mostly because of the lack of supporting evidence.

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(What a lot of shiny stainless steel flanges!)

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Lockheed Martin plans to restart the atomic age with a compact fusion reactor, about which they say:

Building on more than 60 years of fusion research, the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works approach to compact fusion is a high beta concept. This concept uses a high fraction of the magnetic field pressure, or all of its potential, so we can make our devices 10 times smaller than previous concepts. That means we can replace a device that must be housed in a large building with one that can fit on the back of a truck.

Meanwhile, according to an article published in response to this announcement, Physics Today, (published by the American Institute of Physics, aka AIP):

So what are the technical facts? Within the abundant skepticism seen in the media coverage, a big component is the complaint that not enough facts have been made public. A Guardian article reports that despite all of the publicity, “experts point to the lack of details or results.” It ends by observing that Lockheed has “come up with an idea and they want someone to give them some money so they can develop it”—and by adding that although investment in fusion “is exciting and potentially world-changing,” the “real breakthroughs occur when experiments actually take place.”

The AIP article mentions that Aviation Week and Space Technology was granted 'special access' to the project.  The Aviation Week article, "Skunk Works Reveals Compact Fusion Reactor Details," closes thus:

Preliminary simulations and experimental results “have been very promising and positive,” McGuire [project leader] says. “The latest is a magnetized ion confinement experiment, and preliminary measurements show the behavior looks like it is working correctly. We are starting with the plasma confinement, and that’s where we are putting most of our effort. One of the reasons we are becoming more vocal with our project is that we are building up our team as we start to tackle the other big problems. We need help and we want other people involved. It’s a global enterprise, and we are happy to be leaders in it.” 

Lockheed Martin's Skunk Works presented on the high beta fusion reactor in 2013 at a Google Solve for X forum. For some background information, take a look at Popular Mechanics' "Why Don't We Have Fusion Power?"


-- Marge

Cartoons: sour drops for Halloween

For today, here are some cartoons playing on the Halloween theme and some that caught my attention.

The GOP base may be alive, but is it aware?

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John Cole, The Week

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According to the Wikipedia article on low information voters:

Some low-information voters' views are more moderate than those of high-information voters, they are less likely to vote, and are looking for a candidate they find personally appealing. They tend to be swing voters, and they tend to vote split-ticket more than well-informed voters do, researchers say because they lack a coherent ideology.

Seems to me this Wikipedia article sounds biased. Voting a split-ticket may be a good thing; it might help to break up some of the partisanship in Washington.

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David Fitzsimmons, The Week

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A hazmat suit is a costume, too, just a hopefully well-functioning one.

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RJ Matson, The Week

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Creationists aren't going to like this one.

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Chan Lowe, The Week

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This cartoon depicts its environment beautifully well. But it begs the question: does anyone have faith in the reality television genre?

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Rick McKee, The Week

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--Marge

Science: Grasping reality through illusion

Think Second Life, OpenSimulator, and even World of Warcraft.

Grasping reality through illusion: Interactive graphics serving science is the catchy title of a paper written by Frederick P. Brooks, Jr. in 1988.  The link given here points to a marked-up PDF found at http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/, "Provider of DoD Technical Information to Support the Warfighter." A similar paper, Task-Oriented Collaboration with Embodied Agents in Virtual Worlds, by Jeff Rickel and W. Lewis Johnson is an excerpt from an book published by MIT (Embodied Conversational Agents, 2000).

These publications were likely precursors to applications such as DI-Guy (now a part of VT MÄK) for team-building and ECOSim for modelling community ecology. Below is an introductory video showing how simulations work in DI-Guy.

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Another video shows how crowd scenarios can be set up in the software.

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Another function of virtual world training applies to medical teams. This abstract from the paper, Simulation for team training and assessment: case studies of online training with virtual worlds, explains:

Individuals in clinical training programs concerned with critical medical care must learn to manage clinical cases effectively as a member of a team. However, practice on live patients is often unpredictable and frequently repetitive. The widely substituted alternative for real patients-high-fidelity, manikin-based simulators (human patient simulator)-are expensive and require trainees to be in the same place at the same time, whereas online computer-based simulations, or virtual worlds, allow simultaneous participation from different locations. Here we present three virtual world studies for team training and assessment in acute-care medicine: (1) training emergency department (ED) teams to manage individual trauma cases; (2) prehospital and in-hospital disaster preparedness training; (3) training ED and hospital staff to manage mass casualties after chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or explosive incidents. The research team created realistic virtual victims of trauma (6 cases), nerve toxin exposure (10 cases), and blast trauma (10 cases); the latter two groups were supported by rules-based, pathophysiologic models of asphyxia and hypovolemia. Evaluation of these virtual world simulation exercises shows that trainees find them to be adequately realistic to "suspend disbelief," and they quickly learn to use Internet voice communication and user interface to navigate their online character/avatar to work effectively in a critical care team. Our findings demonstrate that these virtual ED environments fulfill their promise of providing repeated practice opportunities in dispersed locations with uncommon, life-threatening trauma cases in a safe, reproducible, flexible setting.

Here are two samples of training videos posted on YouTube by Designing Digitally.

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While the video samples above are not real-time, live interactions, they do give an idea of how virtual worlds can be used in real world applications.

-- Marge

Cartoons: Operation inherent reluctance

Today's cartoons are ones that struck my fancy. I especially like the phrase "operation inherent reluctance"--it seems to capture the moment. While the half-measures being taken to control ISIS are better than 'boots on the ground', these half-measures could be a measure or two more effective, IMHO.

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Nate Beeler, The Week

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When you vote on November 4th, remember that a Republican Senate could vote in a ladder.

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Tom Toles, The Week

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Even Democrats are avoiding Obama now. Julian Zelizer, writing for CNN Opinion, poses the question, "Obama: One very successful president?"

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David Fitzsimmons, The Week

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While the next cartoon is pretty funny, again IMHO, it addresses a serious situation--the recall of faulty airbags.

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Dana Summers, The Week

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-- Marge

DIY: Synth

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To be up front, music is not my forte (pun intended). And synth, aka synthesizer, is a complex topic with a number of different approaches. The approach I'm taking today is using your computer to synthesize digital music, not necessarily for performing it. To see some of the options for music synthesis, take a look at Wikipedia's Comparison of audio synthesis environments.

My original idea was to find a way to generate music for use as background in videos and games.  I may have bitten off more than I can chew. But I did finally find what I was looking for--Wikipedia calls it a software Digital Audio Workstation.

The reason for producing music locally, that is on my computer, is the difficulty in knowing what can be used legally from the music sites found online, such as SoundCloud, Jamendo, and ccMixter. There are more such sites listed at Hongkiat. While these sites offer music with specified fair use rights, sometimes it's unclear whether a specific piece is open for use or not. For more info on fair use, here's a link to the FAQ at Creative Commons.

Using the right term--software DAW--for the task at hand, I found this article, "The 19 best DAW software apps in the world today." If you have a Mac, Apple's GarageBand would fill the bill; Apple says it's built into every Mac. Mutools' MuLab looks good. The others are well worth checking out as well.

I downloaded and installed a demo of Renoise, which is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux and in 32- and 64-bit versions. The full version is EUR 65, USD 89.

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screenshot of Renoise desktop, Renoise

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The application  is impressive, to say the least, and well-documented. There are a number of sample songs and tutorials. And it appears that I'll be able to open and play with files generated in other file formats. Think mixing. Exploring this app will take some time.

Also found today was Tonematrix, an Audiotool online.

Which brings us back to the original question--what to do about using pre-recorded music from music sites online? The results are still out, but now I have more options.

-- Marge
   

Science: combing the universe for planets

David A Aguilar (CfA), hypothetical world with 2 moons, UniverseToday

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That's right, literally combing with an astro-comb to find planets outside our solar system. Currently scientists are just looking for Venus to test the technology and make sure it works (Gizmag: Astronomers use astro-comb to seek Earth-like exoplanets).

The Walsworth Group reports:

We have developed a new technique using laser frequency combs to improve the accuracy and stability of wavelength calibration of astrophysical spectrographs by up to two orders of magnitude. This "astro-comb" will provide a key advance in the resolution of changes in astrophysical Doppler shifts and redshifts, and thus may allow the discovery of Earth-like planets and new measurements of astrophysical dynamics relevant to cosmology.

Both of the leading techniques to find exoplanets rely on the planet's very small effect on its star. The radial velocity technique measures the star's "wobble" (and hence Doppler shift) due to the planet's gravitational pull as it circles; while the transit technique measures the dimming of a star's light as a planet passes in front of it. With current technology, both of these techniques can identify relatively large planets that have a noticeable effect on their star. Detection of the very small Doppler shifts (<10 cm/s) induced by smaller, rocky planets, like Earth and Mars, will require improved wavelength calibration that can only be provided by astro-combs.

For Physics.org's report on the topic, take a look at this article.

Another group, Telescopio Nazionale Galileo (TNG), has published images of their setup and reports on the TNG+Harps-N system.

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astro-comb laser setup, TNG

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-- Marge

Cartoons: Deals and tradeoffs

Because the news is full of public outcry and fear about Ebola, here's my one cartoon about it. (BTW, WHO declared the Ebola Outbreak In Senegal Over.)

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David Horsey, The Week

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Meanwhile, cartoonist Walt Hanelsman talks about Louisiana's lucrative prison work-release deals with an insider.

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Walt Handelsman, The Week

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Did you notice that the stock market went a little crazy on Wednesday? Curiously, so did my day.

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Steve Kelley, The Week

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Admittedly I know little about sports, but I do know greed when I see it. And the NCAA fills the bill. Recently it's been the NCAA vs. Todd Gurley.

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Mike Luckovich, The Week

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One has to admire the umbrella revolution in Hong Kong (photo essay). Unfortunately, the democracy being sought may not materialize.

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Daryl Cagle, The Week

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-- Marge

DIY: learning English

Phil Selby, the rut, English

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Earlier this week I stumbled across NPR's Goats and Soda, a blog with the byline "stories of life in a changing world." In the New Stuff section there are titles like "Help Wanted: Unlikely Geniuses To Solve Public Health Problems," "A $1 Microscope Folds From Paper With A Drop Of Glue," and "Don't Pop That Bubble Wrap! Scientists Turn Trash Into Test Tubes." All of them are about innovation and well worth reading.

But the one that really caught my attention was one about learning English: Take A New Test Aimed At The World's English-Language Learners. In an increasingly global world communication is more and more important, and English, in many cases, is becoming the default language.

Why English, you may ask. This excerpt from Wikipedia's article on world language touches on the reason why English is so widely spoken and approximates how many people speak it:

A world language is a language spoken internationally and which is learned by many people as a second language. A world language is not only characterized by the number of speakers (native or second language speakers), but also by its geographical distribution, international organizations and in diplomatic relations. In this respect, major world languages are dominated by languages of European origin. The historical reason for this is the period of expansionist European imperialism and colonialism.

The world's most widely used language is English which has over 1.8 billion users world wide...

The test NPR writes about is sponsored by Education First. You can access the test is at EF Standard English Test. It's free, can be taken over and over to assess your progress, is standardized, gives you an official score on the EF scale, and you can "post your EFSET results on your online profile as proof of your English skills to school admission officers, employers and friends." There are two types of EF tests: the quick one that take about an hour and the comprehensive one that takes about 2 hours. Both are free.


-- Marge

So what's so special about a blue LED?

Steve Woodward, Child studying by solar light, ABC.net.au

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One of this year's Nobel prizes was awarded to the Japanese inventors of the blue light-emitting diode (LED). NobelPrize.org explains that

by using blue LEDs, white light can be created in a new way. With the advent of LED lamps we now have more long-lasting and more efficient alternatives to older light sources.

Popular Science asked the same question I did--"Why A Blue LED Is Worth A Nobel Prize"--and went on to say:

LEDs are basically semiconductors that have been built so they emit light when they're activated. Different chemicals give different LEDs their colors. Engineers made the first LEDs in the 1950s and 60s. Early iterations included laser-emitting devices that worked only when bathed in liquid nitrogen. At the time, scientists developed LEDs that emitted everything from infrared light to green light… but they couldn't quite get to blue. That required chemicals, including carefully-created crystals, that they weren't yet able to make in the lab.

Once they did figure it out, however, the results were remarkable. A modern white LED lightblub converts more than 50 percent of the electricity it uses into light. Compare that to the 4 percent conversion rate for incandescent bulbs, and you have one efficient bulb. Besides saving money and electricity for all users, white LEDs' efficiency makes them appealing for getting lighting to folks living in regions without electricity supply. A solar installation can charge an LED lamp to last a long time, allowing kids to do homework at night and small businesses to continue working after dark.

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LEDs! 

PiccoloNamek on Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

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This NPR blog, Goats and Soda, calls LED lights a 'transformative technology' in the developing world, replacing kerosene with solar power. Lighting Global supports a burgeoning market for off-grid lighting.

Problem solved...mostly.

But what about the times and places when and where the sun doesn't shine so much? Researchers are working on it: "Artificial Photosynthesis: Saving Solar Energy for a Rainy Day." If you're interested in the topic of photovoltaics, you can sign up at The Optical Society (OSA) to get current and reliable information.

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Artificial photosynthesis graphic, OSA

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-- Marge