archive
index
gp originals
google i
google ii
celebrating porn
idiot voters
| Notice: GeekPress is back up and running, thanks to Paul! It's still a not-so-serious tech news blog, but the format is significantly looser. Diana, having given up programming for philosophy, has her own philosophical blog NoodleFood. More of her work can be found at DianaHsieh.com. |
| NYT Site Exposes CIA Agents |
| 12:04:02 am mdt / 24 June 2000 found by paul / filed in internet / source Wired 6 hits / 0 comments / 0 e-mails |
| The NY Times recently published a lengthy article on the history of the 1953 CIA-led coup in Iran, in which the Americans and British overthrew the elected prime minister of Iran and replaced him with the Shah. The article included a .pdf file with the names of some of CIA agents in Iran supposedly blacked out. However, due to a technical glitch, the names could still be read if viewers froze the download in progress before the obscuring black rectangles were added. Freedom of speech activist John Young noticed this and notified the NY Times who then asked him not to reveal the names of the agents, out of fear that the agents' families might still face retribution in Iran. Young initially agreed but when he learned from e-mail lists that this information was already being circulated on the internet he decided to post the unedited versions of the documents (part 1 and part 2), which discloses the agents' names, onto his Cryptome site (an excellent site devoted to issues in national security, intelligence, and cryptography). Young says his intention was not to endanger the agents or their families but instead to help them by publicizing the fact that the leak is out. The NY Times has apologized for its technical error and described their side of the story. John Young has in turn documented the extensive correspondence he has written and received on this matter here. |
| This is not the first time that John Young's Cryptome site has been involved in controversial release of previously classified information. Two months earlier, GeekPress reported on the episode in which Cryptome supposedly revealed the identities of British agents operating against the Libyan government and the subsequent journalistic reaction. (During this episode, GeekPress editor Diana was contacted by USA Today about the propriety of revealing the Cryptome URL on GeekPress when other news articles chose not to). Although some don't approve of John Young's methods, I am very glad that someone like him is out there, shining the light of day on these sorts of issues. The information he posts is already well-known to both friendly and hostile intelligence agencies -- it's only proper that the rest of us get to see it as well, so we can decide for ourselves if our government is doing the right thing. |
 |
| Dot-Com Teens In A Class By Themselves |
| 11:00:08 am mdt / 24 June 2000 found by paul / filed in business / source CBS News 20 hits / 0 comments / 0 e-mails |
| Four years ago, 15-year old Angelo Sotiro started dmusic.com as a hobby to help his girlfriend chat about music. The site has grown tremendously, and Angelo is now a 19-year old internet millionaire. One child psychologist in the article expressed concern that teenage internet millionaires are missing out on "normal" childhood experiences and that their early successes will lead to future depression. However, Angelo isn't worried about that -- he says that his main concern is the competition from up-and-coming 12-year old internet entrepreneurs! |
| I wonder what the child psychologist would prefer? That children not be too successful until they hit 21? |
|
| The next big thing is small |
| 12:18:25 pm mdt / 24 June 2000 found by paul / filed in inventions / source U.S. News 43 hits / 0 comments / 1 e-mail |
| An overview of current nanotechnology research. |
| There were no astoundingly new ideas here, but it was a well-written article for the mainstream popular press. |
|
| Crop circles mystisfy Russian farmers |
| 6:01:26 pm mdt / 24 June 2000 found by paul / filed in culture / source BBC News 14 hits / 0 comments / 0 e-mails |
| Mysterious crop circles appeared overnight in the fields of a Russian farmer in the village of Yuzhnoye. Some people in a neighboring village reported seeing a UFO landing at that site, and at least one government official says he believes them. |
| It goes to show that gullibility isn't limited to just the Americans and British! The classic expose on how the first English crop circles were created is here at circlemakers.org. |
|
| "Secure" digital files to address online music piracy |
| 6:10:34 pm mdt / 24 June 2000 found by paul / filed in digital media / source San Jose Mercury News 13 hits / 0 comments / 0 e-mails |
| There are now multiple file formats available to help address the problem of online music piracy. The problem is that these formats are mutually incompatible, they are not as easy to use as MP3's, and they require the users to give up a certain degree of privacy. |
| I don't think many Napster users will switch over unless they get extra value for their money besides just the music. Otherwise, the additional hassles won't be worth it. |
|
| Everyone's a critic |
| 10:05:57 pm mdt / 24 June 2000 found by diana / filed in business / source Salon 18 hits / 0 comments / 0 e-mails |
| A peek into the pricing models of product review sites, particularly Consumer Reports (subscription) versus Epinions and Deja (free). |
| Given the scramble to find viable methods of making money on the web, providing high-quality information sans banners for a moderate subscription might come back in vogue. But are people really willing to pay? |
|
| Hollywood hobbits upset Tolkien fans |
| 10:06:08 pm mdt / 24 June 2000 found by paul / filed in culture / source The Times 39 hits / 0 comments / 1 e-mail |
| Producers of the upcoming Lord of the Rings movie have reportedly made changes to the original plot that are upsetting fans and family of the late author J.R.R. Tolkien. These include replacing one of the hobbits in the fellowship with the character of Arwen (played by Liv Tyler) and having her lead one of the elf armies, which never occurred in the book. |
| I understand the need for a few minor changes. But if they've eliminated one of the members of the fellowship, then this has potentially serious implications for the rest of the plot. |
|
