The SETI@Home project was the first global project to show the feasibility of a wide-distributed parallel processing computer.  The Project uses idle computer processor time from thousands of computers to process signals from space looking for extra-terrestrial life.  The over 65 TeraFLOPS of calculations (A VERY large amount) would put the SETI system as the second largest supercomputer in the world.

The SETI project uses the idle time of a computer by running as a screensaver.  Now, Lycos has decided to do a similar wide-distributed project of their own.  This time, as a denial-of-service, errr, reduction-of-service attack against known and verified spammers.

When your computer running thier program switches into screensaver mode, the computer will start using it's idle bandwidth to start sucking information from the spammers machine, drying up the spammers bandwidth that it is trying to use to send out unsolicited emails to get you to buy Viagra.  This has the effect of slowing down the amount of spam that they can send out at a time.  The idea is that it will make sending spam less profitable by making the spammers increase the amount of bandwidth they have.  By using the distributed computer screensavers, it's a loosing battle.  The system would just send more requests to take up the extra bandwidth.  Lycos states that it will never take over 95% of the available bandwidth.

While the whole thing is a Push-me-Pull-you, it's a halarious use of idle bandwidth and computer time that your computer would just be spinning your name on the screen.  Lycos states that according to their lawyers the system is totally legal -- although I would rate it at least greyish.  It may be legal, but the spammers will undoubtedly sue Lycos to stop the system.  It would be impossible and equally unfeasible to try to sue the users of the program.  That would be like trying to rake the yard by shooting leaves off the tree with a BB gun.

CNN just posted an article on it, I'm sure the other news services will have it soon.  My computers rarely get any idle free time and when they do they are looking for aliens.  But I'll have to admit that I'll enjoy sitting back with my pom-poms cheering Lycos and seeing how this plays out.  Stay tuned.

Hypoallergenic Kittens!!

HAHA! HAA! LOL!

I can't stop laughing.  Ok.  I'll give you the marvelous use of genetic technologies in order to turn off the feline production of a protein that gets secreted by the cats skin.  The protein is the allergen that reacts with allergy sufferers.  It is so small that it can stay airborne for months.  The idea of turning off the protein production was brilliant.

Many people, including me, are allergic to the dander that floats around in the air from cats.  My eyes start itching, then running.  Rubbing them just makes it worse.  Then my nose starts running, and then the sneezing starts.  By the time I can't take it anymore and I go outside my eyes are puffy and I can't stop rubbing them.  So, ok.  Cat allergies are very disruptive to life.  There are times that you cannot excuse yourself from the house and go outside.  There are times that you are stuck there with the cat.

And the cat KNOWS this!  The person that is the most allergic.... or the person with the darkest pants... is the person that the cat is going to spend all evening rubbing up against.

It's definantly a major discomfort that many people cannot sympathize with.  They just have no idea.  The fact that scientists have decided to fix the problem at the source is fantastic.  Fix the problem, not the symptom.

But, "Hypo-Allergenic Kittens"  ROFL!!

Due out in 2007.  Put down a $250 deposit on a Hypo-Allergenic British Shorthair kitten.  Pay the rest of the $3500 total bill on pick up, I guess.  Maybe they have a layway program.  You can even make suggestions of what other breeds they are going to offer shortly after.

"Hypo-Allergenic Kittens"   ROFL!!

What a BOON for the pillow industry!!

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) announced a tiny, grain of rice-sized atomic clock.  For as little as $100 this clock can be put in just about any electronic device.  Specific plans for cell phones were mentioned.

Current GPS technology requires the GPS reciever to calculate the exact time and distance to the satellites in order to get a fix on it's planetary position.  If the GPS reciever had it's own atomic clock in it, far more accurate measurements could be made.  GPS receivers could go from an accuracy of a few feet, to inches or better.  Instead of being used for travel and emergencies, GPS may replace current methods of surveying.  Instead of hours of walking around with optics and several people, it would be come trival just to type in the corner mark and walk there.  It would just take one of these GPS receivers mounted on a pole.  With this kind of accuracy, you could even have 2 GPS units calculate horizontal levels and vertical plumb.

Now that is cool.

In something that looks akin to a spaceship egg, a New York City company is charging $14 for a 20 minute powernap.  Located on the 24th floor of the Empire State Building, you sit in this cool-looking chair with soothing music and white noise (static) to drown out the ambient sounds.  Twenty minutes later the chair will automatically wake you up with a slight vibration and lights.

They've always said that a nap during the day helps keep you at your best.  A nap longer than 20 minutes will actually leave you groggy, but a shorter one revitalizes your body and your mind.

MetroNaps is offering to install napping centers in corporate offices, and offer leasing programs on the chairs for those entrepreneurs that wish to install napping centers in airports or other places.  Wonder how much one would cost for my living room?