This is cool.
Some of the Enigma messages were never broken. Now, you can contribute some CPU cycles to attempting to crack the last ones.
Actually, I think I know one of them. I’ll bet it’s “DON’T FORGET TO DRINK YOUR OVALTINE.”
Not As Smart As The Gipper
Remember the shrink who claimed that Ronald Reagan had diminished mental capacity as early as 1980? Well, even at his worst, the former president never fell for a Nigerian email scam:
Guy Gottschalk is asking a judge to remove his father as administrator of the $8-million family partnership that was set up for tax purposes after the death of his mother in 1993. A hearing is set for March 14.
The suit alleges that Louis Gottschalk destroyed bank records to cover up the amount of his losses.
“While it seems unlikely, even ludicrous, that a highly educated doctor like [Gottschalk] would fall prey to such an obvious con, that is exactly what happened,” wrote Guy Gottschalk’s attorney in court papers.
Customer Feedback
Jesse Londin has a good overview of the public (mostly industry) comments to the FAA-AST NPRM on suborbital launch regulations. This is an issue that I’m a little concerned about:
Along with the comments filed by the Peronal Spaceflight Federation, Pat Hoar for Space Adventures, offered a few additional thoughts; and with regard to the FAA’s statement “The FAA does not expect orbital commercial human space flight to occur in the immediate future” Pat specified: “Space Adventures notes that it has sent three space flight participants to the International Space Station since 2001 with additional orbital space flight participants currently in training. Space Adventures assumes that the FAA intended to say ‘
Whither The Enlightenment?
Phil Bowermaster has a couple of interesting and related book reviews. The Angosphere Challenge
An Arab Lunar Mission?
I doubt if it will kick off a space race with Arabia, though. Mark Whittington will be disappointed again.
Chocolate, Veggies And Health
Some interesting research results:
Hollenberg’s follow-up work, reported in the PNAS paper, confirms that the islanders also have far larger exposures to cocoa flavanols. Tests showed that flavanol-residue concentrations in urine were six times as high in the islanders as in the mainlanders.
At the Cocoa Symposium, Hollenberg reported that dramatic long-term benefits may be attributable to the islanders’ cocoa habit: Their death rate from heart disease is less than 8 percent of that in Kuna mainlanders, and cancer kills only 16 percent as many islanders. The two populations were matched for age, weight, and a number of other factors that might affect heart and cancer risks.
Hollenberg concludes that the Kuna epidemiological data, although preliminary, “indicate that a flavanol-rich diet may provide an extraordinary benefit in the reduction of the two deadliest diseases in today’s world.”
Pretty impressive. Unfortunately, it turns out that, while dark chocolate is in theory good for your heart and helps fight cancer, the manufacturing process tends to destroy the particular flavonoids that confer the benefits. Hopefully, now that they know this, Hersheys et al can figure out how to make a healthier chocolate that still tastes good.
[Via Geek Press]
March Storm Warriors
OK, it looks like Thomas James was too hard on Dr. Hansen, because it does indeed look like the quotes were taken out of context, as several commenters pointed out. And as the latest escapades of Bruce Gagnon (as reported at Wired News) show, it’s truly unfair to lump the two together. When it comes to moonbattery, Bruce is simply in a class by himself, a virtual one-man belfry. But what’s really appalling about this article is the shoddy reporting. Jeff Foust shreds it. Clark Lindsay isn’t impressed, either.
Floating Down The Stream Of Consciousness
…of James Lileks:
And now, the usual relief: a mild and agreeable afternoon followed by choir practice, during which I
Space Roundup
The latest edition of NewSpaceNews is out, with a roundup of alt-space activities from around the web.
Space Moonbats
Thomas James (who reads this stuff so you don’t have to, though it’s entertaining even if you do) has the latest roundup, including a certain NASA scientist who’s been in the news recently.