Sprint axes Huawei, ZTE telecom bids due to security fears in Washington?
November 6, 2010 No Comment
Huawei might be making inroads into the US consumer smartphone market, but the Chinese telecom supplier’s attempts to break into big business have been stonewalled . Now, the Wall Street Journal reports that Sprint is excluding both Huawei and competitor ZTE from a multi-billion dollar contract — where they would have been the lowest bidders — primarily because of national security concerns. The US Secretary of Commerce reportedly called Sprint CEO Dan Hesse to voice concerns about letting firms with possible ties to the Chinese government supply local communications infrastructure, a perspective also penned by eight US senators back in August. “DoD is very concerned about China’s emerging cyber capabilities and any potential vulnerability within or threat to DoD networks,” the Department of Defense told the publication, without naming Huawei or ZTE directly. We’re not doctors, but it sounds like someone’s got a serious case of supercomputer envy . Sprint axes Huawei, ZTE telecom bids due to security fears in Washington? originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Nov 2010 15:33:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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With his proverbial political tail between his legs, President Barack Obama has articulated his clearest signal yet that he is open to a post-midterm compromise with newly empowered Republicans that would sustain some parts of the Bush-era tax cuts, which are set to expire at the end of 2010. —JCL Reuters: President Barack Obama gave his clearest signal yet on Saturday of a possible post-election compromise with resurgent Republicans that could prevent tax rates from rising for any American, even the wealthiest, come January. Obama, in his first weekly radio address since his Democrats suffered big losses in Tuesday’s congressional elections, reasserted that Bush-era tax cuts should be made permanent for the middle class before they expire at year-end. But while insisting tax cuts for wealthier Americans should not become permanent because of a $700 billion impact on the deficit over the next decade, he left the door open to a temporary extension for higher income levels—as long as it falls short of costing that much. Read more Related Entries November 5, 2010 Olbermann Suspended From MSNBC Over Campaign Contributions November 5, 2010 A Speaker Who Stood Out
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PARIS (Reuters) – French trade unions staged an eighth round of street protests across the country on Saturday to show their anger at a rise in the retirement age, even though parliament has already passed the reform. A Belgian railway worker with a flare walks beside French private and public sector workers demonstrating over pension reforms in Lille November 6, 2010. (REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol) Early government estimates suggested turnout, at 142,000 by early afternoon, was less than a third of participation at the height of the…
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A team of scientists “on a research cruise” (what?) have discovered severe damage to coral reefs near the location of the Deepwater Horizon’s blown-out wellhead. Coral, which is a barometer of the health of an ocean’s ecosystem, was found to be “sloughing off tissues and producing mucus.” Gross. —JCL Los Angeles Times: Scientists on a research cruise this week found a community of dead and dying deep-sea corals not far from the site of BP’s blown-out wellhead. “Within minutes of our arrival … it was evident to the biologists on board that this site was unlike any others that we have seen over the course of hundreds of hours of studying the deep corals in the Gulf of Mexico over the last decade,” Penn State University biology professor Charles Fisher and the cruise’s chief scientist said in a news release. A colony of hard coral at a depth of more than 4,000 feet was sloughing off tissue and producing mucus, while a nearby community of soft corals had extensive bare areas. A type of starfish associated with the coral was also in bad shape. Read more Related Entries November 5, 2010 Olbermann Suspended From MSNBC Over Campaign Contributions November 5, 2010 A Speaker Who Stood Out
Continue reading …Verizon trials unlimited text and data cellular plans for preferred customers, starting at $70 a month
November 6, 2010 No Comment
Sure, Verizon’s pushing tiered data plans in public, but it’s simultaneously expanding its unlimited offerings behind closed doors — yesterday, the wireless carrier launched a promotional plan with 450 minutes, unlimited text and unlimited data for $70 a month. Before you jump at the chance to lower your monthly bill, however, we should warn you that this is very much a limited trial: Verizon will check its computers to verify that you were sent a promotional email before letting you into the deal. Furthermore, the offer doesn’t ring up as a new plan in Verizon’s computer system, but rather an amalgam of the company’s existing $60 Talk and Text plan and its $30 unlimited data plan, with a $20 credit applied to your bill each and every month. The upside of that is that selected customers can basically add unlimited data to any Talk and Text plan they choose for an extra $10 monthly, but the downside is that it’s far too early to call the promotion a portent of things to come. See the full offer at our source link… or in your inbox, we suppose. [Thanks, Sam] Verizon trials unlimited text and data cellular plans for preferred customers, starting at $70 a month originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Nov 2010 14:13:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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A screenshot of the Building Dashboard for a residence hall at University of Missouri . Another conservation contest on college campuses is nothing new. How they’re showing off the results makes this one notable. About 40 colleges in the U.S. and Canada are competing for “biggest loser” status by cutting energy and water use in the Campus Conservation Nationals. The competitors are using an online app called Building Dashboard, which makes energy and water use visible in real time on the web. … Read the full story on TreeHugger
Continue reading …Indamixx 2 Atom-powered MeeGo tablet touts rockstar looks, $999 price tag
November 6, 2010 No Comment
Indamixx — get it?! — may be a relative dark horse in the race to tablet supremacy, but those looking for something a touch outlandish can’t possibly ignore the company’s latest. The self-titled Indamixx 2 slate has just recently broke cover, with a prototype boasting Intel’s single-core 1.66GHz Atom N450 (a dual-core chip is slated to hit the finalized version), 2GB of RAM, a trio of USB 2.0 ports, a VGA output, Ethernet socket and analog audio input / output jacks. There’s no exact word on the screen size or resolution, but the kicker is the software — this guy’s loaded with Transmission 5.0, a music-centric OS that’s actually built around MeeGo . The creators say that they chose MeeGo due to its fondness of multitouch inputs, and based on the videos we’ve seen of it running, it definitely looks like a wise choice. Moreover, those looking to use this for more traditional tasks will be thrilled to know that they still can, and considering that it’s Linux underneath, the limits are near-endless when it comes to tweaking options. For those in no position to wait for the final build, you can hit the source link in order to snag “beta hardware” for $999; we’re hoping that those who wait will be treated to far more sensible pricing, but there’s no question that we’re intrigued either way. Hop on past the break to see this bad boy get down. Continue reading Indamixx 2 Atom-powered MeeGo tablet touts rockstar looks, $999 price tag Indamixx 2 Atom-powered MeeGo tablet touts rockstar looks, $999 price tag originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 06 Nov 2010 12:20:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
Continue reading …America’s Only Openly Socialist Member of Congress Defends Keith Olbermann
November 6, 2010 No Comment
The same day an MSNBC host admitted to being a socialist on national television, America's only openly socialist member of Congress came out in defense of Keith Olbermann after the “Countdown” host was suspended indefinitely for violating NBC's campaign finance rules. If you needed any more proof of just how far to the left this so-called news network is, you should look no further than what Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) published at the Huffington Post Friday: read more
Continue reading …Architecture Meets Comics In Bureau Spectacular’s Mobile Briefcase House
November 6, 2010 No Comment
Photos: Bureau Spectacular Transformer spaces never cease to amaze with their ability to morph and adapt to the user’s needs of the moment. Jimenez Lai of Bureau Spectacular offers another take on the genre with this intriguing residential loft addition; though it’s not a true transformer space, it’s envisioned as a “briefcase house”, ie. a house within a house — which he explains dramatically with comics. … Read the full story on TreeHugger
Continue reading …In the Richest Area of Paris, a Subsidized Housing Development Is Under Fire
November 6, 2010 No Comment
The empty lot in the 16th arrondissement of Paris that is the proposed site for a subsidized housing development. Photo: Alex Davies In the 16th arrondissement of Paris, around the corner from the Villa Montmorency, the super-chic gated community home to both Carla Bruni and Céline Dion, stands an empty lot. 14,000 square meters large, the space, empty since 1985, is on of four proposed sites for subsidized housing apartment buildings. The problem? Many of the area’s residents have rallied against the plans of the Paris city council, armed with arguments ranging from rational to xenophobic, and some even ecological…. Read the full story on TreeHugger
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