big brother
Hardware
1:40AM Mark Wilson | In Utah, the National Security Agency is building a $US2 billion storage facility that will house and analyse all forms of electronic communication…a potential yottabyte of everyone’s (formerly) personal data. So how big is a yottabyte? CrunchGear puts it well…+ More »
The NSA To Store A YOTTABYTE Of Your Personal Data
1:40AM Mark Wilson | In Utah, the National Security Agency is building a $US2 billion storage facility that will house and analyse all forms of electronic communication…a potential yottabyte of everyone’s (formerly) personal data. So how big is a yottabyte? CrunchGear puts it well…+ More » 
Phones
Pre Tracks Your Location And Tells Palm All About It
7:16AM Matt Buchanan | Palm Pre’s webOS, besides juggling your life or whatever that creepy girl says, sends information back to the mothership periodically, like what apps you’ve installed and how much you’ve used ‘em. And location data. Wait. What? More »
Random Stuff
Britain Putting CCTV Cameras In Homes To Make Sure Kids Do Their Homework
12:20AM Adam Frucci | Thousands of “the worst families in England” are being put in “sin bins,” or subsidised housing outfitted with closed-circuit cameras. The cameras will be used to ensure that children do their homework and go to bed on time. Holy shit. More »
Gadgets
Student Suing Amazon After They Deleted Homework From His Kindle
7:38AM Sean Fallon | Forget blaming it on the dog, thanks to Amazon students have a 21st century excuse for lost homework. When Amazon foolishly yanked 1984 from thousands of Kindles, Justin Gawronski’s electronic notes for a summer assignment became useless. More »
Software
Carnegie Mellon Demos the Power of Facial Recognition Using Star Trek: TOS
4:30AM Jack Loftus | Want to know how much screen time William Shatner commanded in Star Trek? Or how little Chekov received, for that matter? Carnegie Mellon has you covered, as it has “face mined” the entire series. More »
Vehicles
Chicago Street Lights May Scan for Car Insurance
2:10AM Mark Wilson | Ticketing red light runners is standard practice in many big cities, but Chicago is considering doing one better and scanning every car going by for up to date insurance. More »
Online
The Government is NOT Spying on You Through Your DTV Converter Box
11:20AM Adrian Covert | Last week, Spokane-based engineer Adam Chronister posted a Youtube video, where he cracked open a government-subsidised DTV converter box, only to find a hidden camera. Turns out, the whole thing was a hoax. More »
Gadgets
Japan Goes Big Brother with Vending Machines with CCTV Cameras
1:20AM Adam Frucci | Following in Britain’s footsteps, it looks like the Japanese government is looking to install CCTV cameras in every conceivable public place in order to keep an eye on the populous. But since it’s Japan, they’re doing it in a uniquely Japanese way: via their ubiquitous vending machines. More »
Design
Big Brother House Is More Like Peeping Tom House
11:00AM Matt Buchanan | The idea behind the Big Brother House, designed by Julien De Smedt Architects for the Ordos 100 Project in Inner Mongolia in China, is that it’s “a place where one can watch and be watched.” Essentially a Jenga-like configuration of window-walled blocks that surround an atrium, from which people can peer into any of the rooms—and or be gawked at themselves. Even the outer walls are windows, allowing passersby to see whatever disgusting things you’re up to. Here’s a few more shots to help you wrap your head around how it works: More »
Random Stuff
