] The boy described how he punched his attacker in the
] gills after learning how to do it from the television.
]
]
] "I was watching TV the day before and I saw that on the
] Discovery Channel," he said on Monday.

[ I *KNEW* Shark Week was educational! -k]

BBC NEWS | Americas | Shark victim 'saved by TV lesson'

] "Apple does rely on a cult of personality and the stock
] trades on some of that," said Bare.

[ In the wake of Jobs' cancer surgery and the inevitable fear response, there are a few articles which bring up this issue of how heavily Apple relies on Steve for it's past and future success. I have to say, I think he's literally the soul of that company. A perfectionist soul, prone to rage and ego at times, but nonetheless the most critical component. Unless the true visionaries are buried somewhere beneath his presence and shwomanship, I think Apple would be sunk without him. He ties it together somehow.
Thus the more relevant question in the long term is, what can be done to buttress the company against his eventual retirement (for whatever reason)? Seems like i'd be looking to institutionalize visionary thinking in other areas of the management. I don't know if that's being done, or if anything is being done. What's the answer? -k]

What's next for Apple? - Aug. 2, 2004

This is where the most recent terror alerts came from.

] The figure, Muhammad Naeem Noor Khan, was described by a
] Pakistani intelligence official as a 25-year-old computer
] engineer, arrested July 13, who had used and helped to
] operate a secret Qaeda communications system where
] information was transferred via coded messages.

Al Queda has a new job opening for a sysadmin with a bad attitude. You must also be able to use Photoshop and make banners.

] The Pakistani official said Mr. Khan told investigators that
] he had received 25 days of training at a militant camp in
] Afghanistan in June 1998. By the time Mr. Khan had risen
] to his current position, the official said, Qaeda figures had
] arranged his marriage and were paying him $170 a month
] for rent for his house in Lahore and $90 for expenses.

] Mr. Khan was in contact with the brother of the Indonesian
] Qaeda leader Hambali, who was studying in a religious
] school in Karachi, and who was deported in December
] 2003. Mr. Khan has told interrogators that his Qaeda
] handler was a Pakistani he knew as Adil or Imran, who
] assigned him tasks related to computer work, Web design
] and managing the handler's messages. His correspondents
] included a Saudi-based Yemeni, Egyptian and Palestinian
] nationals and Arabs in unknown locations, and someone
] described as the "in-charge" in the city of Khost in eastern Afghanistan.

The New York Times | Intelligence: Captured Qaeda Figure Led Way to Information Behind Warning

] Intel Executive Vice President Leslie Vadasz told the
] committee that Hollings' idea was a brain-dead approach
] that ignored Silicon Valley's concerns in favor of those
] raised by Hollywood lobbyists.
]
] Kerry's advice? "We might need to legislate," he said,
] ignoring Vadasz's objections.

I think I've mentioned before that Kerry's website sort of flirted with the copyright maximalists. Well, turns out he supported the Fritz Chip. He also seems to like Key Escrow. Now I do think tech issues are a side item in this election. I'm not voting on them. Nor do I think Bush's stances are any better. But if Kerry wins, don't expect any changes in this regard.

[ I definitely think that while removing Bush serves the greater good, we're still gonna have to keep a close eye on what kerry is up to, and be willing to address concerns with our reps on lots of things. I guess i'm sort of in baby-steps mode... one hurdle at a time, but it probably makes sense to start keeping a list of potential concerns with a K/E administration. -k]

John Kerry's real tech agenda | Perspectives | CNET News.com

] Eight-year-old Alexandra Scott, in a battle against
] malignant tumors, wants to raise $1 million for cancer
] research. And she just might do it, one lemonade stand at
] a time.
]
] Alex started selling lemonade four years ago with one
] stand and raised $2,000 in a single day. Each year
] brought more stands, manned by friends and volunteers.

[ This is an article from about a month ago... pretty remakable young girl. She died over the weekend, after 7 years of intensive treatment. -k]

CBS News | Taking A Stand Against Cancer | August 2, 2004 07:40:50

] Terra Networks (TN5.ETR) has agreed to sell its US
] Internet portal business, Lycos Inc, to Daum
] Communications Corporation for $95 million. The
] acquisition price is less than 1% of what Terra Networks
] had paid for this business during the period of Internet
] boom.

[ Nothing like losing 99% of your value. Ouch. -k]

Terra to sell Lycos for $95 mn to Daum | newratings_

[ "She needs the rock to rule."

Good message. Jesus. -k]

Wow.

] Beginning a two-day swing through four presidential battlegrounds,
] Bush planned to take a subtle slap at Democratic rival John Kerry.
] "When it comes to choosing a president, results matter," Bush said
] in excerpts of his new stump speech obtained by The Associated
] Press.

[ Lifted from DailyKos, but originally at SFgate... I think he's just right... results *do* matter. -k]

Truth!

] It's time for a solution to the P2P conflict that pays
] artists, not lawyers. S. 2560 isn't only a profound
] threat to innovation, it's yet another step in the wrong
] direction.

[ For the record, S.2560 (IICA) nee INDUCE Act, would make companies providing p2p software liable as inducers of copyright violation. In theory, it could also target manufacturers of VCR's, CD recorders, etc., though it's claimed that that isn't the intent.

This letter is EFF's appeal to congress to let the music industry find a market solution to this problem, rather than complicating the issue with more silly laws. Along the way, they push their favorite potential solution, the compulsory licencing scheme, which they pushed previously. For now, i'll refrain from commentary on that. -k]

EFF: EFF's Letter to United States Senators

] Now two Columbia University scientists have come up with
] a computer-based way to extract detailed information from
] the fleeting images of the world mirrored on the curved
] surface of the eye.
]
] Shree K. Nayar, a professor of computer science and
] co-director of the Columbia Vision and Graphics Center,
] took high-resolution photographs of people that include
] their eyes and, in particular, the transparent part of
] the eye called the cornea. Then, with a postdoctoral
] researcher, Ko Nishino, he devised computer algorithms
] that analyze the images reflected in these natural
] mirrors, revealing a wealth of information.

[ One step closer to looking right into your brain... awesome. There are some, uh, disturbing, privacy implications here. -k]

What's Next: Fleeting Experience, Mirrored in Your Eyes