January 2012 - nexa - server-nexa.polito.it

open source hardware: build your own polymerase chain reaction tool to check and copy any DNA sample
by Irene Cassarino Jan. 14, 2012

Jan. 14, 2012

http://openpcr.org/the-machine/ http://openpcr.org/use-it/ PCR is a relatively simple and inexpensive tool that you can use to focus in on a segment of DNA and copy it billions of times over. So, even with a small DNA sample, such as from spitting in a tube, or tearing off a piece of a leaf of lettuce, PCR allows to you make a bunch of copies of the DNA so you have enough to analyze. PCR is used every day to diagnose diseases, identify bacteria and viruses, match criminals to crime scenes, and in many other ways. Si può ordinare il kit di costruzione su Amazon!

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Repubblica (Simone): "Se a scuola Internet rende stupidi"
by J.C. DE MARTIN Jan. 14, 2012

Jan. 14, 2012

http://ricerca.repubblica.it/repubblica/archivio/repubblica/2012/01/12/se-s… L'articolo di Raffaele Simone soffre di due seri limiti, a mio avviso. Il primo è il titolo: non è colpa dell'autore, lo so, ma è veramente scandaloso (Repubblica, please take note). Il secondo limite è che la sua riflessione è pacata e ragionevole, ma totalmente unilaterale, ovvero non sembra aver alcun interesse a chiedersi davvero se le tecnologie digitali possano avere aspetti positivi per la formazione. Scrive " Risorsa formidabile in alcuni impieghi" ma non dici quali e non sviluppa la direzione, mentre invece sviluppa il tema dei rischi. Si concentra, insomma, solo sui potenziali aspetti negativi. E questo sì che è un limite che è giusto far presente all'autore, tanto più che è un accademico, invitandolo a espandere le sue letture oltre a Carr. La letteratura in materia è ormai molto ampia. Potrebbe per esempio seguire il filone "Wired Campus" del Chronicle of Higher Education: http://chronicle.com/blogs/wiredcampus/ per trovare miriadi di spunti. In conclusione, è chiaro che gli interessi commerciali in materia sono forti. Ed è altrettanto chiaro che una posizione tecno-entusiasta a priori è sciocca (lo è per definizione). Ma è a mio avviso altrettanto chiaro che è molto miope escludere a priori possibili benefici da un uso appropriato delle nuove tecnologie in ambito formativo. Ciò detto, commento che i proponenti di lavagne digitali, tablet, eccetera devono dare uno sforzo ben maggiore di quanto fatto finora (per quanto a mia consocenza) per inserire tali tecnologie in una visione più ampia dell'istruzione italiana. In questo Simone ha ragione: la mera introduzione nelle aule di parallelepipedi digitali - grandi (le lavagne) o piccoli (tablet) che siano - di per se' rischia di fare ben poco, ovvero, di essere principalmente un favore ai relativi produttori. juan carlos

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Via Le Corbusier dalle fotografie del web.
by Blengino Jan. 14, 2012

Jan. 14, 2012

Quì http://bit.ly/zOxFoK lavviso che GettyImages (Flickr, Jupiter, Photolibrary and iStock) ha inviato a seguito della sentenza francese (che non ho trovato). Et voilà

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New York City gets a Software Engineering Public High School
by Irene Cassarino Jan. 14, 2012

Jan. 14, 2012

(Dove i VCs fondano scuole pubbliche per gli hacker del futuro) http://www.joelonsoftware.com/items/2012/01/13.html This fall New York City will open The Academy for Software Engineering<http://www.businessinsider.com/the-academy-for-software-engineering-2012-1>, the city’s first public high school that will actually train kids to develop software. The project has been a long time dream of Mike Zamansky<http://cestlaz.blogspot.com/>, the highly-regarded CS teacher at New York’s elite Stuyvesant public high school. It was jump started when Fred Wilson <http://avc.com/>, a VC at Union Square Ventures, promised to get the tech community to help with knowledge, advice, and money.

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EGAIS - final event
by Norberto Patrignani Jan. 13, 2012

Jan. 13, 2012

Carissim* vi allego l'annuncio della conferenza finale del progetto EU Ethical Governance of Emerging Technologies Bruxelles, 23 Gennaio 2012 partecipazione libera ma bisogna registrarsi perche' e' all'interno del Parlamento EU Ciao, Norberto

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Islamic Republic of Iran: Computer Crimes Law
by fabio chiusi Jan. 13, 2012

Jan. 13, 2012

http://www.article19.org/resources.php/resource/2921/en/islamic-republic-of… f.

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Re: [nexa] R: Fwd: [IP] Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of more auctions
by Stefano Quintarelli Jan. 13, 2012

Jan. 13, 2012

si, difficile. imho dal punto di vista di linee guida io le seguenti cose le caldeggerei - ridurre le freq TV e darle agli MNO (il prezzo lo fa l'asta) - mettere scadenze brevi delle assegnazioni - aumentare lo spettro disponibile unlicensed nella parte alta - aumentare le potenze per tutti (il limite era stato fissato ad 1/3 degli USA come decisione di un funzionario "quanto fanno in USA ? noi facciamo meno della meta" (cosi' si vendevano piu' apparati , costava di piu' fare la rete...) - riservare una parte bassa per sperimentazioni e uso privato (per consentire sperimentazioni radio cognitive e beamforming) - assegnare una nuova categoria di licenze per stesse frequenze da MNO ma low power (SRD indoor) ciao, s. On 13/01/2012 09:49, Giorgio Ventre wrote: > Ammetto che la questione è davvero interessante ma mi riesce difficile > capire se esiste una soluzione al problema, in termini di linee guida per > definire una strategia politica sul tema Frequenze. > > I Telco si lamentano di essere lasciati fuori dalla fetta più interessante > del Mercato e di essere costretti a pagare somme enormi per lo spettro. > Somme che peraltro garantiscono loro una posizione forte nei confronti dei > service provider o comunque consente loro di avere revenue diretti. > > Dall’altro i service provider dicono che non vogliono essere più sottoposti > a questo “balzello” e chiedono spettro gratis (o quasi) giustificando questa > richiesta con la loro enorme capacità di innovazione sui servizi. > > Cosa peraltro vera, in fin dei conti. > > Se a questo aggiungiamo poi che in Europa non esiste nessun service provider > degno di nota, la questione da noi si complica ancora di più. > > > > Saluti > > > > Giorgio > > > > > > Da: nexa-bounces(a)server-nexa.polito.it > [mailto:nexa-bounces@server-nexa.polito.it] Per conto di J.C. DE MARTIN > Inviato: venerdì 13 gennaio 2012 2.44 > A: nexa(a)server-nexa.polito.it > Oggetto: [nexa] Fwd: [IP] Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead > of more auctions > > > > > > -------- Original Message -------- > > > Subject: > > [IP] Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of more auctions > > > Date: > > Thu, 12 Jan 2012 20:20:42 -0500 > > > From: > > Dave Farber<mailto:dave@farber.net> <dave(a)farber.net> > > > Reply-To: > > dave(a)farber.net > > > To: > > ip<mailto:ip@listbox.com> <ip(a)listbox.com> > > > > > > > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: Dewayne Hendricks<dewayne(a)warpspeed.com> > Date: Thu, Jan 12, 2012 at 8:01 PM > Subject: [Dewayne-Net] Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of > more auctions > To: Multiple recipients of Dewayne-Net<dewayne-net(a)warpspeed.com> > > > Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of more auctions > Cites inability to compete with big carriers in auctions > By Brad Reed, Network World > January 12, 2012 > <http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/011212-google-spectrum-254842.html> > > LAS VEGAS - Google would really, really like to see the Federal > Communications Commission open up a huge swath of unlicensed spectrum for > mobile broadband. > However, it doesn't look like the company will get its wish. During a panel > discussion at the Consumer Electronics Show yesterday, Google senior policy > counsel Rick Whitt outlined his company's case for making more unlicensed > spectrum available instead of simply auctioning off spectrum to the highest > bidders. In particular, Whitt cited Google's inability to compete with > Verizon when bidding on the so-called "C Block" of spectrum on the 700MHz > band that the FCC auctioned off in 2008 that now forms the backbone of > Verizon's nationwide LTE network. > > "We thought, 'What would it take for us to outbid Verizon?' And every one of > the game theorists we talked to across the spectrum said the same thing: > 'You'll never outbid Verizon,' " he said. "They are the incumbents and they > will do everything they can to foreclose your entry into the market." > > Whitt also cited concerns about the proposed spectrum auction legislation > that recently passed in the House of Representatives. In particular, Whitt > said that an all-licensed approach to spectrum wouldn't give carriers the > spectrum they need to build out common infrastructure. > > "The concern that many of us have ... is that [the proposed House > legislation] seems to say, 'Everything that's cleared must be auctioned and > everything that's auctioned must be licensed,' which in our mind would rule > out unlicensed," said Whitt. "If nothing else, if you are an advocate of > licensed usage there are things like guard bands or things like duplex gaps > that are going to be really necessary to have the next generation of LTE > networks built... This is beachfront spectrum. How about a couple public > beaches?" > > But Neil Fried, the chief telecommunications counsel for the House Energy > and Commerce Committee, said that the spectrum in question would be wasted > if it was used for short-field communications and said that it needed a > national telecom carrier to properly build out and manage a nationwide > mobile broadband network. > > "There is a need for unlicensed spectrum and that will remain," said Fried. > "The type of things we're talking about, the offloading? That's short haul, > that's not long haul. If we're talking about beach-front property, are we > talking about a place to go surfing or are we talking about a shipping lane? > ... What we've done is we've set the right balance. The 700MHz and below, > that's the prime stuff for the long-haul licensed wireless broadband use ... > creating an oasis for unlicensed use would be essentially preventing the use > for licensed." > > [snip] > > Dewayne-Net RSS Feed:<http://www.warpspeed.com/wordpress> > > > > > > > <https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/247/=now> Archives > <https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/247/14798382-eb93fc78> | > <https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=14798382&id_secret=14798382-58a8a > c4b> Modify Your Subscription | > <https://www.listbox.com/unsubscribe/?member_id=14798382&id_secret=14798382- > d392ffd3&post_id=20120112202047:D1040E7C-3D84-11E1-A979-F67A02A212EC> > Unsubscribe Now > > <http://www.listbox.com> > > > > > > > > _______________________________________________ > nexa mailing list > nexa(a)server-nexa.polito.it > https://server-nexa.polito.it/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/nexa -- blog.quintarelli.it www.ilsole24ore.com

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Fwd: [IP] Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of more auctions
by J.C. DE MARTIN Jan. 13, 2012

Jan. 13, 2012

-------- Original Message -------- Subject: [IP] Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of more auctions Date: Thu, 12 Jan 2012 20:20:42 -0500 From: Dave Farber <dave(a)farber.net> Reply-To: dave(a)farber.net To: ip <ip(a)listbox.com> ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: *Dewayne Hendricks* <dewayne(a)warpspeed.com <mailto:dewayne@warpspeed.com>> Date: Thu, Jan 12, 2012 at 8:01 PM Subject: [Dewayne-Net] Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of more auctions To: Multiple recipients of Dewayne-Net <dewayne-net(a)warpspeed.com <mailto:dewayne-net@warpspeed.com>> Google pleads for more unlicensed spectrum instead of more auctions Cites inability to compete with big carriers in auctions By Brad Reed, Network World January 12, 2012 <http://www.networkworld.com/news/2012/011212-google-spectrum-254842.html> LAS VEGAS - Google would really, really like to see the Federal Communications Commission open up a huge swath of unlicensed spectrum for mobile broadband. However, it doesn't look like the company will get its wish. During a panel discussion at the Consumer Electronics Show yesterday, Google senior policy counsel Rick Whitt outlined his company's case for making more unlicensed spectrum available instead of simply auctioning off spectrum to the highest bidders. In particular, Whitt cited Google's inability to compete with Verizon when bidding on the so-called "C Block" of spectrum on the 700MHz band that the FCC auctioned off in 2008 that now forms the backbone of Verizon's nationwide LTE network. "We thought, 'What would it take for us to outbid Verizon?' And every one of the game theorists we talked to across the spectrum said the same thing: 'You'll never outbid Verizon,' " he said. "They are the incumbents and they will do everything they can to foreclose your entry into the market." Whitt also cited concerns about the proposed spectrum auction legislation that recently passed in the House of Representatives. In particular, Whitt said that an all-licensed approach to spectrum wouldn't give carriers the spectrum they need to build out common infrastructure. "The concern that many of us have ... is that [the proposed House legislation] seems to say, 'Everything that's cleared must be auctioned and everything that's auctioned must be licensed,' which in our mind would rule out unlicensed," said Whitt. "If nothing else, if you are an advocate of licensed usage there are things like guard bands or things like duplex gaps that are going to be really necessary to have the next generation of LTE networks built... This is beachfront spectrum. How about a couple public beaches?" But Neil Fried, the chief telecommunications counsel for the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said that the spectrum in question would be wasted if it was used for short-field communications and said that it needed a national telecom carrier to properly build out and manage a nationwide mobile broadband network. "There is a need for unlicensed spectrum and that will remain," said Fried. "The type of things we're talking about, the offloading? That's short haul, that's not long haul. If we're talking about beach-front property, are we talking about a place to go surfing or are we talking about a shipping lane? ... What we've done is we've set the right balance. The 700MHz and below, that's the prime stuff for the long-haul licensed wireless broadband use ... creating an oasis for unlicensed use would be essentially preventing the use for licensed." [snip] Dewayne-Net RSS Feed: <http://www.warpspeed.com/wordpress> Archives <https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/247/=now> <https://www.listbox.com/member/archive/rss/247/14798382-eb93fc78> | Modify <https://www.listbox.com/member/?member_id=14798382&id_secret=14798382-58a8a…> Your Subscription | Unsubscribe Now <https://www.listbox.com/unsubscribe/?member_id=14798382&id_secret=14798382-…> [Powered by Listbox] <http://www.listbox.com>

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Doctorow: "Lockdown: The coming war on general-purpose computing"
by J.C. DE MARTIN Jan. 13, 2012

Jan. 13, 2012

Notevole discorso di Cory Doctorow. juan carlos Lockdown The coming war on general-purpose computing By Cory Doctorow - /This article is based on a keynote speech to the Chaos Computer Congress <http://boingboing.net/2011/12/27/the-coming-war-on-general-purp.html> in Berlin, Dec. 2011. / General-purpose computers are astounding. They're so astounding that our society still struggles to come to grips with them, what they're for, how to accommodate them, and how to cope with them. This brings us back to something you might be sick of reading about: /copyright/. But bear with me, because this is about something more important. The shape of the copyright wars clues us into an upcoming fight over the destiny of the general-purpose computer itself. [...] Continua qui: http://boingboing.net/2012/01/10/lockdown.html

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Amnesty "Is Internet Access A Human Right?"
by J.C. DE MARTIN Jan. 12, 2012

Jan. 12, 2012

Is Internet Access A Human Right? Posted by: Scott Edwards <http://blog.amnestyusa.org/author/scott-edwards/>, January 10, 2012 at 3:20 PM *http://blog.amnestyusa.org/business/is-internet-access-a-human-right/* A curious op ed appeared in /The New York Times/ recently, titled "Internet Access is Not a Human Right." <http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/05/opinion/internet-access-is-not-a-human-ri…> In this piece---which I read as I do most news and media, via my computer---Vinton Cerf <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vint_Cerf>, a "father" of the Internet, makes an argument that despite the critical role of Information Communication Technologies (the internet) in the uprisings in the Middle East and North Africa <http://blog.amnestyusa.org/tag/yearofrebellion/>, access to the Internet is not a human right. I should note that his right to express himself so is enshrined in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights <http://www.amnestyusa.org/research/human-rights-basics/universal-declaratio…> (UDHR): Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to... seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. The curious bit of his piece though, isn't the claim that Internet Access is not a human right, but rather*the exceptionally narrow portrayal of human rights from a legal and philosophical perspective. * *[...] * The simplified answer is: We have them because the original guarantees as elaborated weren't enough. We have them because our evolving understanding of the rights enshrined in the UDHR required new instruments to guarantee those rights. We have them because someone, somewhere, refused to make the necessary changes to policy or practice to guarantee some segment of the human family the rights they were already guaranteed in the UDHR. Because someone, somewhere said "that's not a human right." **

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