Thursday, July 31, 2008

From the middle of July, Sony Corporation refreshed their senior laptop brand VAIO from “Video Audio Integrated Operation” to “Visual Audio Intelligent Organizer”. According to Sony Taiwan Limited, this refreshment is an attempt to relocate the laptop consuming market for business and entertainment factors.

In the “VAIO Experience 2008” press conference in Europe, Sony promoted their new product series for different populations including BZ for business, FW for home entertainment, Z for ultra-slim, and SR for complex applications.

Different with past series, Sony added “Clear Bright” screening technology for high-definition display, and “full-carbon production” features. BD-burning and Intel Centrino 2 processing technologies will be featured in all the new models. For security issue, Sony also embedded fingerprint system to prevent personal data to be stolen. Continued from TZ series, innovative designs including “Green Power Button”, “Situational Switch” are also added in newly-launched series.

“Due to consuming market differences, Sony only promoted BZ series in Europe and America but not included Asia. Although the TICA Show in Taipei will be different, functionality will be the greatest issue when a consumers choose a notebook [computer] before buying.” addressed by executives from Sony Taiwan Limited, during the “VAIO Experience 2008” press conference in Taiwan.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

Trusteer, a web security company, reports that a trojan horse virus called Zeus can steal online banking details from infected computers. The virus has infected one out of every 3,000 computers of the 5,500,000 million which the company monitors in the United States and the United Kingdom.

The trojan can infect users of Mozilla Firefox and Microsoft Internet Explorer on Microsoft Windows, and steals login information by recording keystrokes when the machine connects to certain websites, usually banks or other financial institutions. The stolen data is transmitted to a remote server and sold to cyber-criminals. “We expect this new version of Zeus to significantly increase fraud losses, since nearly 30% of Internet users bank online with Firefox and the infection is growing faster than we have ever seen before,” said Amit Klein, chief technology officer at Trusteer, to BBC.

The trojan has also affected Wikinews users, including Brian McNeil, who is the founder of Wikinewsie, a restricted-access wiki used to collaborate on sensitive news reports. McNeil reported on his userspace: “On Saturday [April] 17, a Windows-based PC in the house issued a cry for help, the Avira package running on the system had just detected a piece of malware; full scans indicated several known pieces of malware and numerous hidden files. Additional scans revealed that all but one of the USB memory sticks and portable hard drives in the house were infected with something. The Zeus botnet, as it turned out.” E-mail accounts for accredited reporters have also been affected.

Monday, July 20, 2009

On Saturday, the Taliban released a video showing Pfc. Bowe Bergdahl, the U.S. solider captured in Paktika, Afghanistan on June 30. In the film, Bergdahl, of Ketchum, Idaho, is shown eating a meal cross-legged on the floor. He appears clothed in a grey shalwar khameez, with a shaved head. In the presence of his jailers, he states, “I have a very, very good family that I love back home in America, and I miss them every day that I’m gone. I miss them and I’m afraid I might never see them again and that I’ll never be able to tell them I love them again.” He says he is frightened and asks that the United States, “Please, please bring us home so we can be back where we belong and not over here […]”; U.S. sources have argued that this statement was made under duress.

The events leading to Bergdahl’s abduction remain somewhat unclear. Taliban commander Mulvi Sangeen claimed that Bergdahl had gone to a military post on his own, became intoxicated, and was ambushed on the way back to his vehicle. The U.S. military has dismissed this; an anonymous source said, “The Taliban are known for lying and what they are claiming (is) not true.” In the video, Bergdahl himself says he had been taken after falling behind on patrol. Anonymous U.S. officials continue to state that he simply left his remote base unarmed on his own. U.S. sources believe that after being captured, Bergdahl was sold up the chain, eventually to a clan leader, Siraj Haqqani.

His family is praying for his, “safe return to his comrades and then to our family.” Meanwhile, Navy Lt. Robert Carr, a spokesman for the U.S. military in Afghanistan, says the U.S. is “continuing to do everything possible to recover the soldier and are using all available assets to get him back safely and unharmed.” Retired Army Maj. Gen. Bill Nash predicts that U.S. forces will act on several fronts, including intelligence-gathering and counter-insurgency operations. Already, U.S. forces have begun dropping two sets of pamphlets, one stating, “One of our American guests is missing. Return the guest to his home.” and the other, “If you do not release the U.S. soldier then […] you will be hunted.” The mayor of Ketchum has said that, “As the mayor, I can say this is a community situation. […] I trust the leadership of this country, the wisdom of the people who are serving and the decisions that led up to the situation.”

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Bill Gates, the founder of computer software company Microsoft, tried to bring attention to malaria while speaking at the TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) conference on Wednesday February 4 in Long Beach, California. He did so by releasing a “swarm” of mosquitoes from a jar, into the crowd.

“Malaria is spread by mosquitoes. I brought some. Here I’ll let them roam around. There is no reason only poor people should be infected,” said Gates as he opened the jar. After waiting a minute, Gates then stated that the mosquitoes were not infected with the disease.

“There is more money put into baldness drugs than into malaria. Now, baldness is a terrible thing and rich men are afflicted. That is why that priority has been set,” said Gates jokingly.

The prank was first reported by Dave Morin, Facebook’s manager, on the social networking and micro-blogging site Twitter. Morin stated that “Gates just released mosquito[e]s into the audience at TED and said: ‘Not only poor people should experience this,'” followed by a smiley face.

Gates donated nearly US$170 million to the PATH Malaria Vaccine Initiative in September 2008 to fund research to fight malaria, and develop a vaccine.

The TED conference, held annually, features, among other things, the latest in technology, science, and politics. People who have previously spoken at the conference include former United States president Bill Clinton and former vice president Al Gore.

Sunday, April 1, 2007

A magnitude 8.1 undersea earthquake triggered a tsunami that has killed at least fifteen people, including six children, in the Solomon Islands. Tsunami warnings have been issued for parts of Australia as well.

According to the US Geological Survey, the magnitude 8.0 quake struck Sunday, April 1, 2007 at 20:39:56 (UTC) about 45 km (25 mi) south-southeast of Gizo, New Georgia Islands, Solomon Islands, at a depth of 10 km.

Friday, June 5, 2009

Data from the United States Labor Department says that the unemployment rate in the U.S. has reached its highest level in over 25 years, namely 9.4%.

The job loss rate, however, was only 345,000, which is the lowest monthly job loss rate since September of last year. Analysts had predicted that the loss could be as high as 525,000.

The news suggests that the US economy may be improving, as the job loss rate, which peaked at 741,000 jobs this January, has started to ease.

“Even as we see things start to stabilize and hopefully grow again, we do know that unemployment tends to lag, and so that the unemployment rate is going to be high and probably stay high for a while, precisely because that is sort of the normal pattern as we come out of recession,” said an economic adviser for the White House, Christina Romer.

Since the recession officially started in December 2007, the economy has shed over six million jobs, with 14.5 million residents now unemployed.

Sunday, May 13, 2018

How much gold is left in the world is the topic of discussion. In Bulgaria archolgists in 2016 worked at a dig site they found a gold bead 8th of an inch in diameter may be in the oldest piece of gold jewelery in the world dating back to 4600 B.C.

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Monday, August 27, 2012

Wikinews spoke to several residents of the US state of Texas finding varying opinions, and responses, to the threat from the West Nile virus; this, in contrast to the troubling media reports released recently. The state as a whole has seen more than 400 confirmed instances of the illness so-far this year.

A Longview woman, said, “[…] It’s terrifying. I’m so scared.” The woman was quick to point out a virus-related death occured in her city the same day. When asked about her daily routines, in light of the virus, she said, “I don’t go outside. I stay indoors. West Nile [virus] is bad.” The Director of Nursing for a large encampment located near Tyler said their operation had seen no cases of the illness, despite serving over 19,000 campers this summer. Her staff took no special precautions during August.

Although having some worries, Jimmy Philmont, 39, of Fairfield told Wikinews, “[…] I don’t let it keep me up at night. Overall, I’m not too scared.” Asked if he was aware of recent virus-related deaths in Texas, Philmont said, “Yeah, I am. That’s kind of scary. But, you have to live your life, you know? The world is hot now. You can’t go hide in a hole somewhere.” Earlier in the month, Tim Whitley, a city official in Malakoff, told Wikinews his city had began using a pesticide specialist to spray twice-weekly. Whitley explained two treatments per week is more often than usual for the city, “With the concerns in Dallas, we’re taking it seriously”, he said.

A nurse at a senior activity center in Austin told media she’d taken time to educate their facility’s clients about the virus and proper precautions; Adding, “They feel less alarmed and we try to protect our folks here […]”. Mark Kitsmore, 54, of Tyler said, “Honestly, I’m not too worried about it.” He jokingly commented, “I’ve probably used a little more bug spray over the past few weeks, though.”

Twenty-six people have died so-far this year as result of having contracted the virus, approximately half occurring in Texas. The mayor and county judge in Dallas have declared a state of emergency in response to the virus.

Saturday, February 27, 2010

At 06:34 UTC today, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake hit Chile, triggering a tsunami in the Pacific Ocean. The tsunami has already hit the French Polynesia islands, with waves reaching two metres (six feet) high damaging to the coast. In Fiji Japanese officials expect waves 2.3 metres (7.5 feet high). Australia and New Zealand are expected to receive waves of one metre (three feet) which are expected to hit within 24 hours of the earthquake.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center reported that there may be “widespread damage” from the waves, saying that “authorities should take appropriate action in response to this threat.”

In a special report, Wikinews looks at how different parts of the world have been affected by the disaster.

Hawaii is expecting to receive waves reaching 2.5 meters (8 feet) high. A warning went into effect at 6AM local time – 5 hours before the expected arrival of the Tsunami; Hawaiian Governor Linda Lingle declared a state of emergency. At present, there are confirmed reports from the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center of waves hitting the islands’ eastern coasts.

Additionally, the western coast of the United States – extending from California to portions of Alaska – is under a tsunami advisory.

The civil defence spokesman for the Hawaiian island of Oahu, John Cummings, encouraged people to “get off the shoreline. We are closing all the beaches and telling people to drive out of the area.”

The tsunami hit the Gambier archipelago at approximately 6:30 am local time. The Marquesas islands were hit about an hour later. Reports from the islands indicate that there was no significant damage or casualties yet. The islands followed the tsunami alert plans put in place following the major 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami.

In a statement, the New Zealand Ministry of Civil Defence and Emergency Management commented, “[the] current assessment is for a non-destructive tsunami for New Zealand with wave heights at the shore of between 0.2 and one metre [three feet]. The first wave may arrive later and may not be the largest. Waves may continue for several hours.”

The centre, which also confirmed the initial Chile earthquake, also added that “sea-level readings confirm that a tsunami has been generated which could cause widespread damage. “Authorities should take appropriate action in response to this threat.”

The government noted that the waves were not predicted to have destructive force. According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, the first waves would not hit the country’s shores until fifteen hours after the initial quake.

“Stay away from the beaches. Don’t go out on the water and if you are already out on the water up anchor and head to deeper water at least half a mile off shore,” warned Coastguard Northern Region duty officer John Cowan.

Meanwhile, the Marsden Point oil refinery, the only refinery in New Zealand, put all of its operations on hold as they were waiting for further information about the strength of the expected tsunami, according to production controller Ted Rye.

“We’ve just had a report from a trader fishing boat out at the Hen and Chick islands, about 10 kilometres off the coast, and they have noticed quite a significant surge,” he remarked.

New Zealand Civil Defence Minister John Carter also appealed for residents to heed officials’ warnings and stay away from shorelines throughout the day.

The east coast of Australia was placed under a tsunami alert; the impact expected in Sydney from 8:45am local time, Sunday there, and along other parts of the New South Wales coast. Areas in Tasmania potentially affected by the quake would be under tsunami alert until 7:45am local time.

“Boats in harbors, estuaries or shallow coastal water should return to shore. Secure your boat and move away from the waterfront. Vessels already at sea should stay offshore in deep water until further advised,” read a warning by the Joint Australian Tsunami Warning Center. “[…] Tsunami waves are more powerful than the same size beach waves, with the first wave not always the largest.”

The centre noted that among the areas with a “potential tsunami threat” include New South Wales state, Queensland state, Lord Howe Island and Norfolk Island. However, it also added that the bays and harbours of Sydney would not likely be affected by waves.