======================================================================
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laptop notebooks and Tablet PCs. Take a look at [SLASHDOT��S] mobility
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======================================================================
Slashdot Daily Newsletter
In this issue:
* The World Wide Computer, Monopolies and Control
* Industrial Robot Arm Becomes Giant Catapult
* Information Requested for NASA-Based MMORPG
* White House Tape Recycling Possibly Erased Emails
* The Impatience of the Google Generation
* Ray Tracing for Gaming Explored
* French Fine Amazon For Free Shipping
* Microsoft Says VBA Is Here To Stay
* Bobby Fischer Is Dead At 64
* Texas Creationist Museum Facing Extinction
* Tools For Understanding Code?
* State of US Science Report Shows Disturbing Trends
* Bizarre Self-Destructing Palm Tree Found
* What is an Open Source Company Really Worth?
* AOL Adopting Jabber (XMPP)
* Pentagon Working on "Human Fear" Weapons
* What Bugs Apple Fans About Apple
* MapReduce — a Major Step Backwards?
* Down Time At Work — What Do You Do?
* Geist's Fair Copyright for Canada Principles
* New Firmware Fixes Previously Bricked iPhones
* New Findings Confirm Darwin's Theory — Evolution Not Random
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| The World Wide Computer, Monopolies and Control |
| from the i-cant-do-that-dave dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Thursday January 17, @20:23 (The Internet)|
|
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/17/2355252
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Ian Lamont writes "Nick Carr has generated [1]a lot of discussion
following his recent comments about the [2]IT department fading away, but
there are several other points he is trying to make about the rise of
utility computing. He believes that [3]the Web has evolved into a
massive, programmable computer (the "World Wide Computer") that
essentially lets any person or organization customize it to meet their
needs. This relates to another trend he sees ��� a shift toward
centralization. Carr draws interesting parallels to the rise of
electricity suppliers during the Industrial Revolution. He says in a
[4]book excerpt printed on his blog that while decentralized technologies
��� the PC, Internet, etc. ��� can empower individuals, institutions have
proven to be quite skilled at reestablishing control. 'Even though the
Internet still has no center, technically speaking, control can now be
wielded, through software code, from anywhere. What's different, in
comparison to the physical world, is that acts of control become harder
to detect and those wielding control more difficult to discern.'"
Discuss this story at:
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/17/2355252
Links:
0. http://blogs.computerworld.com/lamont
1. http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/07/157221&tid=218
2. http://www.roughtype.com/archives/2008/01/its_alive.php
3. http://www.computerworld.com/action/article.do?command=printArticleBasic&articleId=9057379
4. http://www.roughtype.com/archives/2008/01/a_spiders_web.php
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Industrial Robot Arm Becomes Giant Catapult |
| from the excellent-gift-ideas dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Thursday January 17, @22:28 (Robotics) |
|
http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/0046228
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
wintersynth brings us a story about a group of enthusiasts who [0]made a
catapult out of a 2,800lb industrial robot arm. They used it to launch
bowling balls, [1]fireballs, and cans of beer [2]toward a stationary
target, and they controlled the catapult's aim with a graphical UI on a
laptop. "I wanted to be able to control the rotation of the robot so we
could aim the robot from the laptop, but I quickly realized that since
the desert is so flat, we could do some basic ranging on the target too.
I also wanted the targeting to be overlaid in 3d over a photograph of the
target area. The software needed to control the robot like an MMO or RTS
game. I suspect that video games, in general, have some of the most
optimal control interfaces. I wanted to try a control scheme similar to
the area effect spell targeting in World of Warcraft."
Discuss this story at:
http://hardware.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/0046228
Links:
0. http://www.manapotions.com/robopult.html
1. http://www.manapotions.com/media/ManaFireball.jpg
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAtdsDTt__s
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Information Requested for NASA-Based MMORPG |
| from the no-games-are-developed-in-a-vacuum dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Friday January 18, @00:47 (NASA) |
|
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/0329252
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Teancum writes "By now, most people are aware of the U.S. Army's video
game, [1]America's Army. It turns out that NASA has submitted a Request
for Information for what would be a [2]NASA-themed MMORPG of its own. The
deadline for the proposals is February 15th. NASA's plans focus on
education. 'A NASA-based MMO built on a game engine that includes
powerful physics capabilities could support accurate in-game
experimentation and research. It should simulate real NASA engineering
and science missions in a medium that is comfortable and familiar to the
majority of students in the United States today.' This certainly doesn't
deserve to get thrown onto the traditional dust heap of educational
proposals for a half-baked game that nobody will actually play."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/0329252
Links:
0. mailto:robert_horning@@@netzero...net
1. http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=04/12/13/157212&tid=204
2. http://procurement.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/eps/synopsis.cgi?acqid=128415
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| White House Tape Recycling Possibly Erased Emails |
| from the gee-thats-a-shame dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Friday January 18, @02:27 (Communications)|
|
http://politics.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/0619252
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Pojut points us to a Washington Post story which details the White
House's admission that it [1]routinely recycled backup tapes from 2001 to
2003, possibly destroying e-mail records from that time period. While the
tapes are being analyzed to determine if any of the data can be
recovered, the White House also indicated that some e-mail through 2005
may not have been preserved. We discussed the [2]beginnings of this
investigation a few months ago. From the Post: "During the period in
question, the Bush presidency faced some of its biggest controversies,
including the Iraq war, the leak of former CIA officer Valerie Plame
Wilson's name and the CIA's destruction of interrogation videotapes.
White House spokesman Tony Fratto said he has no reason to believe any
e-mails were deliberately destroyed."
Discuss this story at:
http://politics.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/0619252
Links:
0. mailto:adamsemailis@hotmail.com
1. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/16/AR2008011602202.html?hpid=topnews
2. http://yro.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/13/134201&tid=158
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| The Impatience of the Google Generation |
| from the everything-i-need-to-know-i-learned-from-google dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Friday January 18, @05:27 (Education) |
|
http://ask.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/0420247
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
profBill writes "As a fifty-something professor who teaches introductory
computer science, I am very aware that the twenty-somethings in my class
are much more at ease with computers than any other generation. However,
does that mean they are more adept at using those computers? Apparently
not, according to the researchers at University College London. Their
research indicates that while more adept at conducting searches, younger
users also show '[0]impatience in search and navigation, and zero
tolerance for any delay in satisfying their information needs'. Moreover,
these traits 'are now becoming the norm for all age-groups, from younger
pupils and undergraduates through to professors'. The panel makes two
conclusions: That libraries (and I wonder what a library will become in
the future, anyway) will have to adapt, and that the information
processing skills of todays young people are lacking. Why are those
skills lacking and, if they are, what can be done about it?"
Discuss this story at:
http://ask.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/0420247
Links:
0. http://www.bl.uk/news/2008/pressrelease20080116.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Ray Tracing for Gaming Explored |
| from the pretty-pictures dept. |
| posted by Soulskill on Friday January 18, @08:01 (Graphics) |
|
http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/0927230
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Vigile brings us a follow-up to a [1]discussion we had recently about
efforts to make ray tracing a reality for video games. Daniel Pohl, a
research scientist at Intel, takes us through [2]the nuts and bolts of
how ray tracing works, and he talks about how games such as [3]Portal can
benefit from this technology. Pohl also touches on the difficulty in
mixing ray tracing with current methods of rendering. Quoting: "How will
ray tracing for games hit the market? Many people expect it to be a
smooth transition - raster only to raster plus ray tracing combined,
transitioning to completely ray traced eventually. They think that in the
early stages, most of the image would be still rasterized and ray tracing
would be used sparingly, only in some small areas such as on a reflecting
sphere. It is a nice thought and reflects what has happened so far in the
development of graphics cards. The only problem is: Technically it makes
no sense."
Discuss this story at:
http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/0927230
Links:
0. http://www.pcper.com/
1. http://hardware.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/09/21/1532205&tid=152
2. http://www.pcper.com/article.php?aid=506&type=expert&pid=1
3. http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/10/16/1526257&tid=206
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| French Fine Amazon For Free Shipping |
| from the that's-just-fine dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Friday January 18, @08:42 (Books) |
|
http://politics.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/0633210
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
strech writes "Ars Technica reports that France is [0]fining Amazon for
offering free shipping on some orders. A French high court ruled in
December that the practice violated a law preventing discounting the
price of a book more than 5% off of the publisher's recommended price.
Amazon has [1]decided to pay the fine, rather than drop free shipping.
The fine currently stands at ���1,000 per day but is automatically
reconsidered after 30 days, after which it could be raised dramatically."
Discuss this story at:
http://politics.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/0633210
1. http://www.iht.com/articles/2008/01/14/technology/amazon.php
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Microsoft Says VBA Is Here To Stay |
| from the thought-we'd-seen-the-back-of-it dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Friday January 18, @09:24 (Microsoft) |
|
http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/0640226
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
Angostura writes "Microsoft's team blog for Microsoft Excel and Excel
Services has [0]responded with a denial to the [1]earlier report that
Visual Basic for Applications will disappear from Windows Office in 2009.
The [2]Slashdot discussion on the report on Tuesday got pretty animated."
Discuss this story at:
http://it.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/0640226
Links:
0. http://blogs.msdn.com/excel/archive/2008/01/16/clarification-on-vba-support.aspx
1. http://www.regdeveloper.co.uk/2008/01/14/office_mac_08_vba
2. http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/15/197257&tid=164
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Bobby Fischer Is Dead At 64 |
| from the new-kind-of-chess dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Friday January 18, @10:08 (Classic Games (Ga|
|
http://games.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1359211
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
A number of readers wrote in to make sure we know that former world chess
champion [0]Bobby Fischer has died in Reykjavik, Iceland, where he had
lived since 2005. No cause of death was given.
Discuss this story at:
http://games.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1359211
Links:
0. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/18/obituaries/18cnd-fischer.html?_r=1&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=all
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Texas Creationist Museum Facing Extinction |
| from the going-the-way-of-the-dinosaurs dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Friday January 18, @10:52 (It's funny. Laug|
|
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1527258
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]gattaca writes "A small [1]Texas museum that teaches creationism is
counting on the auction of a prehistoric mastodon skull to [2]stave off
extinction. The founder and curator of the Mt. Blanco Fossil Museum,
which rejects evolution and claims that man and dinosaurs coexisted, said
it will close unless the Volkswagen-sized skull finds a generous bidder.
'If it sells, well, then we can come another day,' Joe Taylor said. 'This
is very important to our continuing.'" Meanwhile, the much larger
[3]Creation Museum in Kentucky that we [4]discussed and [5]toured when it
opened last year seems to be thriving.
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1527258
Links:
0. http://www.liquidmatrix.org/blog/
2. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5htlFS6c4po-hqinVoOyLenT776pQD8U7V0QG0
3. http://www.creationmuseum.org/
4. http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/05/26/1958240&tid=14
5. http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/06/08/1414244&tid=103
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Tools For Understanding Code? |
| from the getting-it dept. |
| posted by kdawson on Friday January 18, @11:35 (Software) |
|
http://ask.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1554257
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]ewhac writes "Having just recently taken a new job, I find myself
confronted with an enormous pile of existing, unfamiliar code written for
a (somewhat) unfamiliar platform ��� and an implicit expectation that I'll
grok it all Real Soon Now. Simply firing up an editor and reading through
it has proven unequal to the task. I'm familiar with [1]cscope, but it
doesn't really seem to analyze program structure; it's just a very fancy
'grep' package with a rudimentary understanding of C syntax. A new-ish
tool called [2]ncc looks promising, as it appears to be based on an
actual C/C++ parser, but the UI is clunky, and there doesn't appear to be
any facility for integrating/communicating with an editor. What sorts of
tools do you use for effectively analyzing and understanding a large code
base?"
Discuss this story at:
http://ask.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1554257
Links:
0. http://ewhac.best.vwh.net/
1. http://cscope.sourceforge.net/
2. http://students.ceid.upatras.gr/~sxanth/ncc/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| State of US Science Report Shows Disturbing Trends |
| from the from-a-head-start-to-no-child-left-behind-in-the-blink-o|
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @12:17 (United Stat|
|
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1636232
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]coondoggie writes to mention that the National Science Board is
concerned about [1]certain indicators in the science and engineering
fields for the United States. "For example, US schools continue to lag
behind internationally in science and math education. On the other hand,
the US is the largest, single, R&D-performing nation in the world pumping
some $340 billion into future-related technologies. The US also leads the
world in patent development."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1636232
Links:
0. mailto:mcooney@nww.com
1. http://www.networkworld.com/community/node/24070
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Bizarre Self-Destructing Palm Tree Found |
| from the this-message-will-self-destruct-in-100-years dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @13:01 (Science) |
|
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1644209
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]Smivs writes "A [1]giant self-destructing palm tree has been
discovered in Madagascar. The palm is 20m (60ft) high with leaves 5m
(16ft) long, the tallest tree of its type in the country, but for most of
its life ��� around 100 years ��� it appears fairly unremarkable apart from
its size. However, when it flowers, it puts so much energy into an
impressive flower-spike, that it eventually collapses and dies. Dr John
Dransfield, who announced the tree in the Botanical Journal of the
Linnean Society, is baffled as to how it came to be in the country. It
bears a resemblance to a species of palm found in regions of Asia;
6,000km away. It is thought that the palm has gone through a remarkable
evolution since Madagascar split with India some 80m years ago."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1644209
Links:
0. mailto:smivs@msdriving.co.uk
1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7193161.stm
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| What is an Open Source Company Really Worth? |
| from the sleeping-with-dollar-signs-in-your-eyes dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @13:44 (Software) |
|
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1654202
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
CNet has an interesting profile of MySQL, JBoss, and Zimbra, exploring
what an open source company is [0]actually worth. "Given how slowly
revenue accumulates in an open-source company--assuming it is recognizing
subscriptions over 12 months--bookings is probably the valuation metric
being used or at least strongly considered. It surely is the metric by
which the start-up wishes to be measured. So while Savio suggests we
open-source entrepreneurs may be "sleeping with dollar signs in (our)
eyes," there's clearly a lot of work to do before most open-source
companies are worth selling. It's not worth selling out for $100 million.
Not for the venture-backed companies, anyway."
Discuss this story at:
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1654202
Links:
0. http://blogs.cnet.com/8301-13505_1-9853461-16.html?tag=nefd.only
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| AOL Adopting Jabber (XMPP) |
| from the sharing-your-toys dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @14:27 (Communicati|
|
http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1748218
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]sander writes to tell us that AOL seems to have decided to make their
AIM and ICQ services [1]compatible with XMPP. A test server is up at
xmpp.oscar.aol.com, and while it's still buggy most major Jabber clients
seem to work.
Discuss this story at:
http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1748218
Links:
0. http://coccinella.im/sander
1. http://florianjensen.com/2008/01/17/aol-adopting-xmpp-aka-jabber/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Pentagon Working on "Human Fear" Weapons |
| from the smells-like-... dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @15:11 (The Militar|
|
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/180213
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader writes "Animals use pheromones to attract each other
for sex, and warn each other of danger. Now, Wired reports, military
researchers are working to harness the '[0]human fear' pheromone to
create a [1]scent of terror. The pheromone could lead to smell-based
terrorist sensors, and new weapons that rely on 'contagious' stress."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/180213
Links:
0. http://stinet.dtic.mil/oai/oai?verb=getRecord&metadataPrefix=html&identifier=ADA458261
1. http://blog.wired.com/defense/2008/01/pentagon-resear.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| What Bugs Apple Fans About Apple |
| from the stock-complaints-falling-of-deaf-ears dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @15:37 (Technology |
|
http://apple.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1821224
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader writes "Forbes.com went to MacWorld to ask Apple fans
[0]what bugs them about the computer and gadget maker. Turns out the lack
of replaceable batteries, need to buy Vista separately, and most of all
the stock price bugs people."
Discuss this story at:
http://apple.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1821224
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| MapReduce — a Major Step Backwards? |
| from the weapons-of-map-reduction dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @15:53 (Databases) |
|
http://it.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1813248
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
The Database Column has an interesting, if negative, [0]look at MapReduce
and what it means for the database community. MapReduce is a software
framework developed by Google to handle parallel computations over large
data sets on cheap or unreliable clusters of computers. "As both
educators and researchers, we are amazed at the hype that the MapReduce
proponents have spread about how it represents a paradigm shift in the
development of scalable, data-intensive applications. MapReduce may be a
good idea for writing certain types of general-purpose computations, but
to the database community, it is: a giant step backward in the
programming paradigm for large-scale data intensive applications; a
sub-optimal implementation, in that it uses brute force instead of
indexing; not novel at all -- it represents a specific implementation of
well known techniques developed nearly 25 years ago; missing most of the
features that are routinely included in current DBMS; incompatible with
all of the tools DBMS users have come to depend on."
Discuss this story at:
http://it.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1813248
Links:
0. http://www.databasecolumn.com/2008/01/mapreduce-a-major-step-back.html
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Down Time At Work — What Do You Do? |
| from the read-more-slashdot dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @16:03 (Businesses)|
|
http://ask.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1827227
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader writes "I work in IT and find fairly often that I
have 'down time.' I'll usually browse the web (Slashdot) or try to find
something informative or educating to read. Sometimes, I even get caught
up working on my personal webpage or other project that isn't exactly
work related. What does everyone else do during these times, and how much
time do they spend on non-work related things while at work?"
Discuss this story at:
http://ask.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1827227
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| Geist's Fair Copyright for Canada Principles |
| from the canada-leads-the-way dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @16:36 (The Interne|
|
http://politics.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1840248
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
An anonymous reader writes "Canadian law prof Michael Geist has been
leading the charge against a Canadian DMCA including the creation of a
Fair Copyright for Canada Facebook group that now has more than 38,000
members. Having delayed the legislation, he now outlines what
[0]Canadians should be fighting for ��� more flexible fair dealing, a
balanced implementation of the WIPO Internet treaties, an ISP safe
harbor, and a modernized backup copy provision."
Discuss this story at:
http://politics.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1840248
Links:
0. http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/2572/125/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| New Firmware Fixes Previously Bricked iPhones |
| from the house-that-iphone-built-comes-crumbling-down dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @17:20 (Hardware Ha|
|
http://apple.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1933219
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
[0]drcagn writes "Ars Technica reports that Apple's new 1.1.3 firmware
update [1]unbricks iPhones damaged from unlocking and updating the
firmware months ago. In September, users who hacked their iPhone's
firmware to unlock it found their iPhone bricked when they updated to new
firmware, creating a massive upset and internet furor. Although Apple
claimed this was not an intended effect of the update, it held the stance
that it is not their responsibility to ensure that updates work with
users' warranty-voiding hacks, and many cried foul. This update, which
provides new features Jobs showed off at Macworld, while not officially
unbricking the iPhone, has restored iPhones from [2]Gizmodo and a reader
of [3]the Unofficial Apple Weblog."
Discuss this story at:
http://apple.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1933219
Links:
0. http://dcemulation.com/
2. http://gizmodo.com/346239/confirmed-bricked-iphones-rise-from-the-grave-with-firmware-113
3. http://www.tuaw.com/2008/01/17/happy-1-1-3-firmware-ending-for-tuaw-reader/
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
| New Findings Confirm Darwin's Theory — Evolution Not Random |
| from the water-also-wet dept. |
| posted by ScuttleMonkey on Friday January 18, @18:08 (Science) |
|
http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=08/01/18/1943255
|
+--------------------------------------------------------------------+
ScienceDaily is reporting a team of biologists has demonstrated that
[0]evolution is a deterministic process, rather than a random selection
as some competing theories suggested. "When the researchers measured
changes in 40 defined characteristics of the nematodes' sexual organs
(including cell division patterns and the formation of specific cells),
they found that most were uniform in direction, with the main mechanism
for the development favoring a natural selection of successful traits,
the researchers said."
Discuss this story at:
http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=08/01/18/1943255
Links:
0. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080118134531.htm
Copyright 1997-2006 OSTG. All rights reserved.
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