6:02 PM
Top scientists immediately found holes in an article in an online journal that received great media attention over the weekend when it claimed that an examination of 3 meteorites were fossils of alien life. The online journal's editor openly says that they might have to shut down in June and they published the controversial paper to help them find a buyer. The journal paper lists the paper's author as having a "PhD", but the fact is that he never got a PhD:
http://www.rdmag.com/News/2011/03/Imaging-Technology-NASA-disavows-its-scientist-s-claim-of-alien-life/
UAE is buying Patriot missiles from the US at $5.9 mil for each missile...and some of the workers manufacturing parts for Patriot missiles are in federal prison and earn as little as 23 cents per hour. Wow, I guess they found a way to get labor costs in the US to be cheaper than costs in China. One thing to note is that inmates apparently learn practical work skills by manufacturing parts for Patriot missiles, F-16s, etc., and are reportedly 23% less likely to return to prison as other inmates:
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/03/prisoners-help-build-patriot-missiles/
EADS produced the "Airbike", the world's first bike using a revolutionary new technology that "grows" the material from high-strength nylon powder...no metal used, no maintenance or assembly, complete sections of the bike are "grown" as one piece...they actually "grow" the wheels, bearings, and axle all at the same time. They can adjust how things are grown, so the bike can be built to rider specification that requires no adjustment. This may actually transform manufacturing like they say it can:
http://www.eads.com/eads/france/fr/actualites/press.8d764849-d439-475b-93b3-3cc9a7d2ba20.f09e6a74-16d2-4525-a32e-1a8f65b76168.html
Scientists have warned that the steep decline in populations of many animal species has put Earth on the brink of a mass extinction that has occurred only 5 times before over the past 540 million years. In those previous Big Five occasions, 3/4 or more of all animal species became extinct:
http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/earths-sixth-mass-extinction-may-have-already-arrived
Florida study demonstrated extinction's ripple effect through the animal kingdom--for example, the extinction of large mammals 20,000 years ago led to the extinction of a species of cowbird. The loss of lions and elephants in parts of Africa and the decline of panthers in Florida have already resulted in a negative domino effect on other species:
http://news.ufl.edu/2011/03/07/extinction-effects/
Local police departments are increasingly using Facebook and Twitter to fight crime and forge relationships with their local community:
http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/police-turning-facebook-fight-crime
Developers are upset that Facebook's just-released list of acceptable ad providers excludes both Google's popular AdSense and Amazon.com. Developers are forced to choose between established companies with a very bad track record or unknown small startups:
http://www.infoworld.com/t/application-development/developers-rage-after-facebook-blocks-google-adsense-735
I had always thought that iOS developers were making a lot more money than Android developers by developing for the iphone/iPad, which is why there are so many more games for iOS than Android...but it looks like app developers are making a comparable amount on Android and in some cases the same game makes a lot more on Android than iOS (I'm guessing part of that might be the lesser choices on Android). Pocket Legends players on Android play 3x as much as those on iOS and spend about 40% more on app purchases on Android even though Android doesn't support in-app purchases yet while Apple makes it easy to buy things while playing the game. Android users click on the in-game ads 3x more than iOS users and make purchases 2x more:
http://blogs.computerworld.com/17941/android_ios_app_profit
Report states that Deutsche Telecom is in discussions with Sprint to sell T-Mobile to Sprint in exchange for a piece of the combined company. One problem not mentioned in this article: Sprint uses iDEN and CDMA while T-Mobile uses UMTS and HSPA+, with none of Sprint's networks compatible with any of T-Mobile's networks:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-08/deutsche-telekom-is-said-to-discuss-sale-of-t-mobile-usa-to-sprint-nextel.html
Nokia said that they picked Windows Phone 7 instead of Android because they didn't want for there to be just 2 dominant smartphone operating systems in the marketplace...but I am sure that the more than $1 bil that Microsoft agreed to pay Nokia to choose them over Android helped! Microsoft is also paying Nokia for the right to use its patent portfolio and will use Nokia's Navteq mapping software for geolocation services and selling local advertising and coupons based on a user's position, with Nokia getting some of that money also. Nokia will also split the revenue from search and advertising with Microsoft. It seems like Microsoft gave Nokia a great deal, and Nokia gets to reduce their costs by cutting almost all of their R&D staff since Nokia will now rely on Microsoft for their platform:
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-03-07/microsoft-is-said-to-pay-nokia-more-than-1-billion-in-deal.html
Tests conducted by PC Magazine appear to show that AT&T may be capping the data upload speeds of its newer HSPA+ ("4G") smartphones. Motorola Atrix 4G users have been complaining that their uplink speeds have been capped at 300 kbps, with PC Magazine's testing seeming to indicate the Atrix gets just 140kbps. The HTC Inspire and the Atrix are being sold by AT&T as "4G" devices, with their HSPA+ 14.4 modems supposed to be able to achieve much faster data rates than the iPhone 4's HSPA 7.2 modem...but the iPhone appears to get about 1 Mbps for uplink data while the Atrix gets 140 kbps and the Inspire is around 200 kbps. So, AT&T"s "4G" devices like the Atrix are crippled by AT&T to be 7x slower on uplink than their 3G devices?
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2381578,00.asp
Even though the iPad 2 isn't going on sale until 5pm on Friday, a Dallas-area Apple Store already has one person standing in line. That person has gotten media attention before for being the first in line for previous Apple products:
http://www.slashgear.com/lines-form-for-ipad2-in-texas-07138349/
Subway has passed McDonald's as the world's largest restaurant chain--at the end of 2010 there were 33.749 Subway restaurants worldwide and 32,737 McDonald's:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703386704576186432177464052.html?mod=e2tw
http://www.rdmag.com/News/2011/03/Imaging-Technology-NASA-disavows-its-scientist-s-claim-of-alien-life/
UAE is buying Patriot missiles from the US at $5.9 mil for each missile...and some of the workers manufacturing parts for Patriot missiles are in federal prison and earn as little as 23 cents per hour. Wow, I guess they found a way to get labor costs in the US to be cheaper than costs in China. One thing to note is that inmates apparently learn practical work skills by manufacturing parts for Patriot missiles, F-16s, etc., and are reportedly 23% less likely to return to prison as other inmates:
http://www.wired.com/dangerroom/2011/03/prisoners-help-build-patriot-missiles/
EADS produced the "Airbike", the world's first bike using a revolutionary new technology that "grows" the material from high-strength nylon powder...no metal used, no maintenance or assembly, complete sections of the bike are "grown" as one piece...they actually "grow" the wheels, bearings, and axle all at the same time. They can adjust how things are grown, so the bike can be built to rider specification that requires no adjustment. This may actually transform manufacturing like they say it can:
http://www.eads.com/eads/france/fr/actualites/press.8d764849-d439-475b-93b3-3cc9a7d2ba20.f09e6a74-16d2-4525-a32e-1a8f65b76168.html
Scientists have warned that the steep decline in populations of many animal species has put Earth on the brink of a mass extinction that has occurred only 5 times before over the past 540 million years. In those previous Big Five occasions, 3/4 or more of all animal species became extinct:
http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/earths-sixth-mass-extinction-may-have-already-arrived
Florida study demonstrated extinction's ripple effect through the animal kingdom--for example, the extinction of large mammals 20,000 years ago led to the extinction of a species of cowbird. The loss of lions and elephants in parts of Africa and the decline of panthers in Florida have already resulted in a negative domino effect on other species:
http://news.ufl.edu/2011/03/07/extinction-effects/
Local police departments are increasingly using Facebook and Twitter to fight crime and forge relationships with their local community:
http://homelandsecuritynewswire.com/police-turning-facebook-fight-crime
Developers are upset that Facebook's just-released list of acceptable ad providers excludes both Google's popular AdSense and Amazon.com. Developers are forced to choose between established companies with a very bad track record or unknown small startups:
http://www.infoworld.com/t/application-development/developers-rage-after-facebook-blocks-google-adsense-735
I had always thought that iOS developers were making a lot more money than Android developers by developing for the iphone/iPad, which is why there are so many more games for iOS than Android...but it looks like app developers are making a comparable amount on Android and in some cases the same game makes a lot more on Android than iOS (I'm guessing part of that might be the lesser choices on Android). Pocket Legends players on Android play 3x as much as those on iOS and spend about 40% more on app purchases on Android even though Android doesn't support in-app purchases yet while Apple makes it easy to buy things while playing the game. Android users click on the in-game ads 3x more than iOS users and make purchases 2x more:
http://blogs.computerworld.com/17941/android_ios_app_profit
Report states that Deutsche Telecom is in discussions with Sprint to sell T-Mobile to Sprint in exchange for a piece of the combined company. One problem not mentioned in this article: Sprint uses iDEN and CDMA while T-Mobile uses UMTS and HSPA+, with none of Sprint's networks compatible with any of T-Mobile's networks:
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-03-08/deutsche-telekom-is-said-to-discuss-sale-of-t-mobile-usa-to-sprint-nextel.html
Nokia said that they picked Windows Phone 7 instead of Android because they didn't want for there to be just 2 dominant smartphone operating systems in the marketplace...but I am sure that the more than $1 bil that Microsoft agreed to pay Nokia to choose them over Android helped! Microsoft is also paying Nokia for the right to use its patent portfolio and will use Nokia's Navteq mapping software for geolocation services and selling local advertising and coupons based on a user's position, with Nokia getting some of that money also. Nokia will also split the revenue from search and advertising with Microsoft. It seems like Microsoft gave Nokia a great deal, and Nokia gets to reduce their costs by cutting almost all of their R&D staff since Nokia will now rely on Microsoft for their platform:
http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-03-07/microsoft-is-said-to-pay-nokia-more-than-1-billion-in-deal.html
Tests conducted by PC Magazine appear to show that AT&T may be capping the data upload speeds of its newer HSPA+ ("4G") smartphones. Motorola Atrix 4G users have been complaining that their uplink speeds have been capped at 300 kbps, with PC Magazine's testing seeming to indicate the Atrix gets just 140kbps. The HTC Inspire and the Atrix are being sold by AT&T as "4G" devices, with their HSPA+ 14.4 modems supposed to be able to achieve much faster data rates than the iPhone 4's HSPA 7.2 modem...but the iPhone appears to get about 1 Mbps for uplink data while the Atrix gets 140 kbps and the Inspire is around 200 kbps. So, AT&T"s "4G" devices like the Atrix are crippled by AT&T to be 7x slower on uplink than their 3G devices?
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2381578,00.asp
Even though the iPad 2 isn't going on sale until 5pm on Friday, a Dallas-area Apple Store already has one person standing in line. That person has gotten media attention before for being the first in line for previous Apple products:
http://www.slashgear.com/lines-form-for-ipad2-in-texas-07138349/
Subway has passed McDonald's as the world's largest restaurant chain--at the end of 2010 there were 33.749 Subway restaurants worldwide and 32,737 McDonald's:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703386704576186432177464052.html?mod=e2tw