Sony Just Launched a Ludicrously Fast Internet in Japan

Stan Schroeder2013-04-15 18:31:15 UTC

So-net Entertainment, a Sony-backed Japan ISP, has launched a fiber-based Internet service that reaches download speeds of 2 Gbps, making it the fastest home internet in the world.

The Nuro, as the service is called, is available to homes and small businesses in Tokyo and six surrounding prefectures, Computerworld reports. The upload speed is a little slower than download — 1 Gbps — but it's still faster than most of us get, even at work.

For comparison, the ultra-fast Google Fiber broadband Internet service offers a "mere" 1 Gbps download speed — and that's still some 100 times faster than today's average home internet connection.

Nuro costs 4,980 Yen or $51 on a two-year contract, plus a 52,500 ($535) installation fee.

What would you download first if you had a 2Gbps broadband at home? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Image via iStockphoto, JarekJoepera

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Controversy Over Planet-Naming Contest Heats Up

for Space.com 2013-04-15 16:10:40 UTC

The company behind an exoplanet-naming contest says it's fighting to restore its business and its reputation in the wake of some disapproving words from the International Astronomical Union.

Officials with the space-funding company Uwingu say a press release the IAU issued on Friday (April 12) misrepresents the nature of the contest — which aims to pick a "people's choice" name for Alpha Centauri Bb, the closest known exoplanet to Earth — and caused sales to fall by a factor of 100 over the weekend.

"They basically said we're conducting a scam, and nothing could be further from the truth," said Uwingu CEO Alan Stern, a former NASA science chief who also heads the agency's New Horizons mission to Pluto. "They basically put us out of business, and they've ruined our reputation."

The naming contest was slated to end April 15, but Uwingu has extended it until April 22 in an attempt to make up some of the lost revenues, Stern said.

In the press release Friday, the IAU stressed its authority as the sole arbiter of the exoplanet-naming process and reminded readers that it's not possible to buy an "official" name.

Though Uwingu is not mentioned by name, the release seems aimed at the company's Alpha Centauri Bb contest, which launched last month, as well as Uwingu's "Baby Planet Name Book." This broader project kicked off last fall to solicit names for the thousands of exoplanets and exoplanet candidates being discovered around the Milky Way galaxy.

Name nominations for the Alpha Centauri Bb competition cost $4.99 and votes cost $0.99, with the proceeds going to fund grants in space exploration, education and research, which is the company's stated chief purpose. Stern said he and a number of other Uwingu officials work on a strictly volunteer basis.

"Recently, an organization has invited the public to purchase both nomination proposals for exoplanets, and rights to vote for the suggested names," the IAU release reads. "In return, the purchaser receives a certificate commemorating the validity and credibility of the nomination. Such certificates are misleading, as these campaigns have no bearing on the official naming process — they will not lead to an officially recognized exoplanet name, despite the price paid or the number of votes accrued."

Stern said he takes issue with such statements. Uwingu has never maintained that the winning name will be anything other than a popular or common moniker, he says.

"To claim what they claimed — that we're somehow misrepresenting that these were IAU names — has just about put us out of business," Stern told SPACE.com. "It's unbelievable."

Stern also says the IAU is seriously overreaching in this case, since the organization's role is to coordinate nomenclature for astronomers.

"It's far beyond the IAU's purview to control what the public wants to call things," Stern said. "What we're doing, which is giving informal, people's-choice names for things, is what happens all the time."

"The name 'The Milky Way' is not IAU-sanctioned. 'The Whirlpool Galaxy' is not IAU-sanctioned," he added, also noting that Mars rover drivers and Apollo astronauts have named features on the Red Planet and the moon without asking for the IAU's permission.

"People can name things whatever they want. The IAU doesn't have to use it, and astronomers probably won't. But who cares?"

Stern described the IAU's position as ironic, since the organization does not currently name exoplanets. The IAU said it would devise an official naming process in 1995, the year the first alien planet was confirmed orbiting a sun-like star, but has yet to do so.

The planet-naming status quo — in which alien worlds take the name of their parent star along with a lowercase letter, with the first planet discovered designated "b," the second "c" and so forth — is an informal convention.

"They've spent 18 years with no forward movement — ask planet hunter extraordinaire [and Uwingu adviser] Geoff Marcy," Stern said. "Then somebody else comes along and does something harmless, fun and engaging, and now they're slandering us."

There's another interesting layer to the IAU-Uwingu contretemps: Stern has been a vocal critic of the IAU's 2006 decision to redefine "planet," which demoted Pluto to its current dwarf planet status.

Image courtesy of ESO/L. Calçada

This article originally published at Space.com here

Topics: exoplanets, NASA, space, U.S., US & World, World Space.com is a Mashable publishing partner that is the world's No. 1 source for news of astronomy, skywatching, space exploration, commercial spaceflight and related technologies. This article is reprinted with the publisher's permission.

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iPad Easel Is for Tech Savvy Budding Artists

Andrea Smith2013-04-15 12:30:56 -0400

For all the worry about screen time and kids getting lost in video games while using an iPad, one new accessory actually encourages creativity and imagination.

The Kids Drawing Easel for iPad from CTA Digital is designed to work with apps for drawing and coloring. There's an attachable tray for storing the necessary art supplies — starting with the included crayon-style stylus.

One side of the easel has a tablet holder that uses a rotating lock to secure the iPad in place. That way your kids can't accidentally drop it, though they can turn it to landscape or portrait mode to suit their artistic needs.

The other side is a big dry-erase marker board for open-ended play — no technology needed. You can also move the art supply tray to either side, so you have the markers and erasers handy.

If the thought of an easel in your living room conjures up an image of a kid with a big plastic smock and a dripping paint brush, you can relax. With the iPad apps and dry-erase board there's not much need for clean up here, except maybe the aftermath of a pretend school day or a movie viewing party.

The iPad Easel is made by the same company that makes the iPotty for iPad. Clearly they're exploring ways to incorporate tech and tablets into kids' everyday lives. What would you like to see with a tablet component added? Or do you prefer to keep tech and play separate? Let us know in the comments.

Image courtesy of CTA Digital

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Reddit User Compiles All the News About Boston Marathon Explosions

Stan Schroeder2013-04-15 20:25:18 UTC

One of the largest online communities, Reddit, is often a great source of breaking news, and right now it's proving it with a story on the Boston marathon explosions.

In one of the top stories on Reddit at the moment, a redditor has started compiling all the news about the explosions that occurred at the marathon, leaving many runners and spectators injured and some dead.

With hundreds of comments, some apparently from people from Boston, and with Reddit's comment voting system pushing the most important info to the top, the story has quickly grown one of the best places to find info about the explosions.

"I'm here, present at Newbury Street. The initial panic has died down, but the volunteers are running wild and sirens are still going. I have seen ~10 ambulances drive by in the last few minutes," wrote one highly voted commenter.

"Another possible incendiary device at UMass Library. Get it out on social media that people should get away from the area as soon as possible," wrote another, apparently citing a police scanner.

The story is still developing, so you should take anything you see from unconfirmed sources with scrutiny. Still, Reddit has once again proved it can be a valuable source of info in times of crisis.

Image via John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images

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Simon & Schuster Brings E-Books to NYC Libraries

Lauren Indvik2013-04-15 15:18:14 UTC

Simon & Schuster, the only major publisher to continually refuse to make any of its e-books available to lending libraries, is shifting its stance. The publisher announced Monday that it is making its complete list of electronic titles available at the New York Public Library, the Brooklyn Public Library and the Queens Library as part of a one-year pilot program beginning April 30 (mid-May in Queens).

For the first time, patrons of those libraries will be able to borrow fiction classics including The Great Gatsby and Misty of Chincoteague, along with newer bestsellers including Walter Isaacson's biography on Steve Jobs, in e-book form.

Libraries will be able to offer unlimited checkouts of individual e-books one year after purchase. E-books can only be checked out by one patron at a time. (HarperCollins, by contrast, allows e-books to be checked out only 26 times before libraries must purchase a new copy.)

Here's where it gets interesting: Should no copies be available, patrons will be prompted to purchase a copy of the e-book from the library catalog. Libraries will receive a 2% share of the proceeds from each e-book sold.

Libraries and publishers have struggled thus far to bring e-books to libraries, the latter worried that such a move would cut into retail sales of e-books. Random House, which has made its full catalog available to libraries without lending caps, charges libraries up to three times the standard retail price of an e-book. Others only make old titles or new titles available to libraries through pilot programs.

If the pilot proves successful, the program could be brought to other U.S. library systems, Simon & Schuster said in a statement [PDF]. Perhaps other publishers will adopt the model as well, creating a sustainable, long-term lending model that works for both libraries and publishers.

Image courtesy of Flickr, Vincent Desjardins

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YouTube Makes Videos Look Like VHS

Stan Schroeder2013-04-15 10:40:47 -0400

In a world where you can stream nearly any type of content from the cloud, the VHS tape is a relic of the past. Once upon a time, though, it was the most popular medium for watching and recording movies.

Now, YouTube is celebrating the 57th birthday of the video tape and offering everyone the chance to revive those times with a special "VHS mode" that appears on certain videos.

The "feature" is far from useful: it adds some artifacts over the video that used to appear on older or worn out video tapes. Also, trying to pause a video in VHS mode will result in a flickery mess, typical of video tapes, especially when combined with cheap VHS players.

It might be an unfamiliar sight to youngsters, but it will likely bring a tear of nostalgia to the eyes of video connoisseurs over 30.

Check out one video that has the VHS mode option enabled and let us know if this blast to the past made you all warm and fuzzy inside.

Image courtesy of Flickr/comedy_nose

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Bandwidth Issues Down Boston Cell Service, Not Police

Christina Warren2013-04-15 22:15:39 UTC

Cellphone service in the Boston area is currently experiencing disruptions, following the explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon.

Much of the service disruption seems to be due to increased usage. A Sprint representative described the situation to the Boston Globe, saying that "the network is blocking calls because the number of calls coming in exceeds the capacity.”

Verizon released a statement saying:

"Verizon Wireless has been enhancing network voice capacity to enable additional calling in the Copley Square area of Boston. Customers are advised to use text or email to free up voice capacity for public safety officials at the scene. There was no damage to the Verizon Wireless network, which is seeing elevated calling and data usage throughout the region since the explosions occurred."

AT&T tweeted:

Boston customers may have issues w/wireless voice & data service due to spike in network activity. Our Wi-Fi remains on at #BostonMarathon.

— AT&T (@ATT) April 15, 2013

Earlier reports also indicated that cellphone service in the immediate area may have been shut down by the police. This followed information from CNN anchor Chris Cuomo and others who reported authorities believe that the explosive devices were remotely detonated, possibly by a cellular phone.

Cellphones are frequently used to detonate improvised explosive devices (IEDs) in the Middle East. The trigger for a radio-controlled IED is controlled by a radio link and devices such as cellphones can be used to initiate the firing circuit.

To prevent further destruction, some countries take preventative measures to shut down or limit cellphone service in specific areas. In November, Reuters reported that Pakistan suspended cellular phone coverage in many parts of the country after a series of bomb attacks were triggered by mobile phones.

The Associated Press originally reported that service was deliberately interrupted in order to prevent the ignition of more explosives, but has since reversed its claim.

Mashable has been unable to confirm any deliberate cell phone jamming by the Boston Police or other authorities. Moreover, according to Chris Soghoian, a principal technologist and senior policy analyst for the ACLU, even if police did jam cellphone signals, that wouldn't necessarily stop an explosive from going off.

“If you jam the network, then it means that whoever is controlling the device doesn't get to choose when it goes off anymore," he said. "What you're doing is taking away their control; that might not necessarily mean that the device will stop working completely.”

We'll continue updating this story as it develops.

Image via Alex Trautwig/Getty Images

Topics: Boston, Boston Marathon, cellphones, ied, Mobile, U.S., US & World if(window.pageChanged) window.omni({"channel":"us-world","content_type":"article","top_channel":"us-world","content_source_type":"Internal","content_source_name":"Internal","author_name":"Christina Warren","age":"0","pub_day":15,"pub_month":4,"pub_year":2013,"pub_date":"04/15/2013","isPostView":true,"post_lead_type":"Default"}); metaData = {"link":[["canonical","http://mashable.com/2013/04/15/boston-cellphone-service-down/"],["image_src","http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzA0LzE1LzBiL2Jvc3Rvbm1hcmF0LmE2ZjA3LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTcyMHg3MjAjCmUJanBn/deed99b9/686/boston-marathon-cell-phones1.jpg"]],"meta_property":[["og:url","http://mashable.com/2013/04/15/boston-cellphone-service-down/"],["og:title","Bandwidth Issues Down Boston Cell Service, Not Police"],["og:type","article"],["og:site_name","Mashable"],["og:image","http://rack.0.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzA0LzE1LzBiL2Jvc3Rvbm1hcmF0LmE2ZjA3LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTcyMHg3MjAjCmUJanBn/deed99b9/686/boston-marathon-cell-phones1.jpg"],["og:article:published_time","2013-04-15T22:15:39Z"],["og:article:modified_time","2013-04-15T22:23:31Z"]],"meta_name":[["description","Cellphone service in Boston was disrupted in the wake of the bombings at the finish line of the Boston Marathon."],["keywords",["boston","cellphone","uncategorized","mobile","us-world","us","boston-marathon","ied"]],["twitter:title","Bandwidth Issues Down Boston Cell Service, Not Police"],["twitter:description","Cellphone service in the Boston area is currently experiencing disruptions, following the explosions at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. Much of the service disruption seems to be due to increa..."],["twitter:image","http://rack.2.mshcdn.com/media/ZgkyMDEzLzA0LzE1LzBiL2Jvc3Rvbm1hcmF0LmE2ZjA3LmpwZwpwCXRodW1iCTU2MHg3NTAKZQlqcGc/86518127/686/boston-marathon-cell-phones1.jpg"],["twitter:site","@mashable"],["twitter:url","http://mashable.com/2013/04/15/boston-cellphone-service-down/"],["twitter:creator","@mashable"],["twitter:card","photo"],["twitter:image:width","560"],["twitter:image:height","750"]],"short_url":[["short_url","http://on.mash.to/17CdV3d"]]};

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Samsung Galaxy Note 3 Might Have a Metal Chassis

Stan Schroeder2013-04-15 15:49:14 UTC

Samsung, whose flagship devices all sport a plastic chassis, is considering launching the Galaxy Note 3 "phablet" with a metal exterior, SamMobile reports citing its insiders.

The same source claims that a metal case was also in the works for the Samsung Galaxy S 4, but that design was dropped since Samsung could not mass-produce enough units fast enough.

Rumors say the Galaxy Note 3 will have a 6-inch display, an Exynos 5 octa-core CPU, a 13-megapixel camera, LTE and the latest version of Android.

Switching to a metal chassis could be a smart move for Samsung, since HTC One's aluminum case is, in our opinion, a winner compared to Galaxy S 4's plastic exterior. If a metal-case Galaxy Note 3 proves to be successful, it could pave the way for a similarly clad Galaxy S 5 in the future.

The Galaxy Note 3 has not been officially announced, but since the Galaxy Note II was introduced in August 2012, we'll probably find out if the "metal chassis" rumor was true soon enough.

Image by Mashable

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