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Tuesday, April 9, 2013

ScienceDaily: Top Technology News

ScienceDaily: Top Technology News


Remaining Martian atmosphere still dynamic

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 04:29 PM PDT

Mars has lost much of its original atmosphere, but what's left remains quite active, recent findings from NASA's Mars rover Curiosity indicate, scientists report. Evidence has strengthened that Mars lost much of its original atmosphere by a process of gas escaping from the top of the atmosphere.

'Artificial leaf' gains the ability to self-heal damage and produce energy from dirty water

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 03:58 PM PDT

Another innovative feature has been added to the world's first practical "artificial leaf," making the device even more suitable for providing people in developing countries and remote areas with electricity. It gives the leaf the ability to self-heal damage.

'Post-mortem' yields insight into Kepler's supernova

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 03:46 PM PDT

An exploding star observed in 1604 by the German astronomer Johannes Kepler held a greater fraction of heavy elements than the sun, according to an analysis of X-ray observations from the Japan-led Suzaku satellite. The findings will help astronomers better understand the diversity of type Ia supernovae, an important class of stellar explosion used in probing the distant universe.

How carbon moves within planet plays big role in planetary atmosphere formation

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 12:29 PM PDT

A new study suggests that the way carbon moves from within a planet to the surface plays a big role in the evolution of a planet's atmosphere. Mars, which likely released much of its carbon as methane, might have been warm enough to support liquid water.

Computer scientists develop video game that teaches how to program in Java

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 11:26 AM PDT

Computer scientists have developed an immersive, first-person player video game designed to teach students in elementary to high school how to program in Java, one of the most common programming languages in use today. The researchers tested the game on a group of girls who had never been exposed to programming before.

Why going green is good chemistry

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 09:33 AM PDT

Shaken, not stirred, is the essence of new research that's showing promise in creating the chemical reactions necessary for industries such as pharmaceutical companies, but eliminating the resulting waste from traditional methods.

Tortuous paths hamper ion transport

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 09:32 AM PDT

Researchers have used X-ray tomography to screen lithium ion battery electrodes and can reconstruct the microstructure in high resolution. This helps to understand the discharging and charging process better and develop optimized electrodes.

Tin nanocrystals for the battery of the future

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 09:32 AM PDT

More powerful batteries could help electric cars achieve a considerably larger range and thus a breakthrough on the market. A new nanomaterial for lithium ion batteries could come into play here.

New 'transient electronics' disappear when no longer needed

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 09:23 AM PDT

Scientists have described key advances toward practical uses of a new genre of tiny, biocompatible electronic devices that could be implanted into the body to relieve pain or battle infection for a specific period of time, and then dissolve harmlessly.

Sweet success: Catalyzing more sugars from biomass

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 07:33 AM PDT

Using an ultrahigh-precision microscopy technique, researchers have uncovered a way to improve the collective catalytic activity of enzyme cocktails on cellulosic biomass, boosting the yields of sugars for the production of advanced biofuels.

Technique finds software bugs in surgical robots and helps developers fix flaws, ensure safety

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 07:33 AM PDT

Surgical robots could make some types of surgery safer and more effective, but proving that the software controlling these machines works as intended is problematic. Researchers have demonstrated that methods for reliably detecting software bugs and ultimately verifying software safety can be applied successfully to this breed of robot.

Cry me a river of possibility: Scientists design new adaptive material inspired by tears

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 05:51 AM PDT

Imagine highly precise, self-adjusting contact lenses that also clean themselves. Scientists have just moved these enticing notions much closer to reality by designing a new kind of adaptive material with tunable transparency and wettability features.

Organic semi-conductors could revolutionize electronics

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 05:48 AM PDT

Organic semi-conductors could revolutionize electronics in various areas. Nowadays, components put out such high performances that they are used in small devices like mobile phones. With larger devices, however, the organic components heat up in such an uncontrollable manner that they break down or conduct electricity in an irregular way. Physicists and mathematicians have now analyzed the typical feedback effects and they describe them for organic semi-conductors.

TESS project will launch telescopes to perform full-sky search for transiting exoplanets

Posted: 08 Apr 2013 02:50 AM PDT

NASA has selected the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) project for a planned launch in 2017. The $200 million project will use an array of wide-field cameras to perform an all-sky survey to discover transiting exoplanets, ranging from Earth-sized planets to gas giants, in orbit around the brightest stars in the sun's neighborhood.

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Monday, April 8, 2013

Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless

April 8th, 2013Top Story

Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless

By Alan Henry

Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless Not every scanner is a great one if you're thinking about going paperless. You need a good one that'll handle all the documents, receipts, and oddly-shaped papers you need to digitize, and preferably one with great software support to help you keep all that stuff organized. Here's a look at five of the best, based on your nominations.

Earlier this week, we asked you which document scanners you thought were the best for the job. Not just any old scanner, or multi-function scanner/printer/copier—specifically which document scanners were best for helping you empty that filing cabinet and go paperless. We have a favorite of our own, but we've shown you how to go paperless with any scanner, and even cleared up some of your questions after the fact. After tallying up your nominations, here's a look at the top five.

Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless

Fujitsu ScanSnap S1500/Fujitsu ScanSnap iX500

The ScanSnap S1500 is technically no longer available, having been replaced by the newer ScanSnap iX500, but those of you who own them and nominated them noted that both models are exceptional at quickly scanning documents of different sizes and shapes, and even converting some text documents into searchable PDFs. While the S1500 was Windows only, the iX500 extends support to Mac users who want to organize their lives too. The S1500 sported 20ppm scanning, and the iX500 brought that up to 25, and both models have a document feeder that makes scanning multi-page documents as easy as loading the tray—no feeding each page one after the other. The iX500 also supports scanning to iOS and Android devices, can make PDFs with one button, and more. It'll set you back $500 retail ($430 at Amazon).


Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless

Doxie Go

The Doxie Go is a great scanner—so much so that our own Adam Dachis used it to go paperless in two days, and showed you how you can do it too. It's a tiny thing, portable enough to fit into a bag and go with you almost anywhere, is powered via USB, and great for scanning everything from photographs to multi-page documents to tiny receipts on thermal paper. Best of all, the Doxie comes with software that makes the most of its features and helps you organize the documents you scan with it. If you scan text, the companion app does OCR so you can search the text in those documents, and if you prefer to use another platform like Dropbox or Evernote to organize your files, it syncs with those services as well. Even if you don't use another web service for your documents, the Doxie's software can sync with all of your (iOS) mobile devices and computers on its own. The Doxie Go will set you back $199 ($187 at Amazon), but the other Doxie models are a bit cheaper.


Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless

Fujitsu ScanSnap S1300i

If you're looking for a more affordable ScanSnap document scanner than the previously mentioned iX500, the S1300i brings a smaller, space-saving form factor to your desk without sacrificing much of the power that makes the ScanSnap line a great one for digitizing documents. It does away with the large body in exchange for a smaller, more streamlined model like the Doxie Go or the NeatReceipts, but still includes a fold-out document tray for multiple pages and papers of odd sizes. You can keep the tray closed and feed photos or other documents yourself though, and the fact that it's tiny and USB-powered makes it portable enough to take with you if you travel. It even supports multi-sided documents, and it comes with the ScanSnap software for Windows and OS X to make getting your documents in a format you can use easy. The ScanSnap software can also sync with and scan to other web services, including Evernote, Dropbox, and Google Drive, if you prefer to use one of those services to organize your newly digitized documents. The S1300i will set you back $300 retail ($260 at Amazon).


Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless

Neat Scanner

Despite its appearances on infomercials and late night television, the Neat Scanner is actually a capable document scanner, and those of you who nominated it praised it for being speedy, portable, and able to handle documents of all sizes easily, from business cards to full-sized sheets of paper. The Neat comes in two varieties, the NeatDesk (shown here) and the NeatReceipts, a smaller, USB-powered version similar in size and shape to the Doxie Go. Both models include supporting software to make scanning and organizing your documents easy, and that also sync with the Neat mobile app for iOS and Android. Neat's angle is to get you hooked with the device, and then sell you additional services, like its Neat Cloud service, which is essentially a Dropbox clone with a monthly fee, or its NeatVerify service that puts a human eye on every document you scan to make sure it's been processed correctly. On its own though, the Neat scanner and software package make a powerful enough combination to keep your paper clutter to a minimum. The NeatDesk will set you back $400 ($380 at Amazon), and the NeatReceipts $179 ($140 at Amazon). Both models come with the desktop software.


Five Best Document Scanners for Going Paperless

Your Smartphone's Camera

Several of you said that your smartphone's camera and an accompanying organizational app would work just fine for you. It's free, not including the cost of an app you may use, and it only requires the equipment you already own. This is true, but this is a perfect case of getting what you pay for: it may be free and easy, but it's slow, especially compared to the other contenders in the top five, and scanning large, multi-page documents you may want to digitize will undoubtedly be an agonizing process with a smartphone's camera. If you want the document you photograph to be legible and useful, or even searchable once you save it and organize it, good luck. Still, enough of you nominated it that it's worth mentioning as an option. Photo by Mauricio Lima.


Now that you've seen the top five, it's time to vote for the all-out Lifehacker community favorite.


What's the Best Document Scanner for Going Paperless?

No real honorable mentions this week, since most of the nominees were variants on the above, or other ScanSnap models from Fujitsu, which says you guys really like them. Still, we're willing to bet that there are other models not represented that some of you prefer. Don't just complain that we "missed" them, let us know what your preferences are and why in the discussions below!

Have something to say about one of the contenders? Want to make the case for your personal favorite, even if it wasn't included in the list? Remember, the top five are based on your most popular nominations from the call for contenders thread from earlier in the week. Don't just complain about the top five, let us know what your preferred alternative is—and make your case for it—in the discussions below.

The Hive Five is based on reader nominations. As with most Hive Five posts, if your favorite was left out, it's not because we hate it—it's because it didn't get the nominations required in the call for contenders post to make the top five. We understand it's a bit of a popularity contest, but if you have a favorite, we want to hear about it. Have a suggestion for the Hive Five? Send us an email at tips+hivefive@lifehacker.com!

Title photo by yoppy.

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Redditor Confesses to Murder with Meme, Gets Doxed by Other Redditors, Deletes His Account and Disappears

April 8th, 2013Top Story

Redditor Confesses to Murder with Meme, Gets Doxed by Other Redditors, Deletes His Account and Disappears

By Neetzan Zimmerman

Redditor Confesses to Murder with Meme, Gets Doxed by Other Redditors, Deletes His Account and DisappearsThe image macro meme Confession Bear is mostly used to bare one's soul concerning trivial matters such as loving the smell of one's own balls.

But one Redditor who goes by — or, rather, went by — "Naratto" appears to have broken the mold when he used the "advice animal" to confess a murder.

"My sister had an abusive meth addict boyfriend," Naratto claimed in a Confession Bear posted Saturday night. "I killed him with his own drugs while he was unconscious and they ruled it as an overdose."

Redditor Confesses to Murder with Meme, Gets Doxed by Other Redditors, Deletes His Account and Disappears

The "confession" immediately rang familiar to many fans of the AMC show Breaking Bad, where the main character once dispatched of a drug-addicted secondary character in sort-of the same way.

But the distinct possibility that Naratto wasn't kidding around left many in the hivemind — particularly those who've already witnessed disturbing crime confessions on the site — wary of dismissing the claim offhand.

"He's probably just harvesting karma," wrote Redditor TotalBeefcake, referencing the site's mostly meaningless points system. "[B]ut the idea of someone getting away with murder and then having the nards to gloat about it on a popular website really boils my bottom."

Others concurred, and soon enough — within moments, according to The Daily Dot — all of Naratto's personal deets were laid bare.

"Everything from name, DOB, jobs, location, FB, Twitter, Myspace, the whole deal," per one Redditor who was around before the threads containing identifying data were ultimately deleted by the mods.

But not before someone supposedly forwarded all the information onto the FBI.

In a last-ditch effort to avoid getting "vanned," Naratto tried to put the memie back in the bottle by claiming the whole thing was a "joke."

He did, however, admit that there was "some truth behind it," but refused to say "what was true and what wasn't."

Realizing he was about to have "a bad time," Naratto deleted his account wholesale and returned to "the shadows of lurking."

Joke or not, some Redditors still found humor in the whole thing.

"The funny thing is that if he gets caught they'll use confession bear as evidence," wrote Redditor CaptainCheeseBurger.

It was certainly a busy week on the social news site, where, over on the Casual AMA subreddit, one user who claimed he was "going to kill myself in a few hours" invited Redditors to ask him anything.

[images via Quickmeme via Reddit]

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