In the 1970s, the Soviets managed to intercept top secret communications in the US embassy in Moscow and nobody could figure out how. While an antenna was eventually found hidden in the embassy's chimney, it took years to determine how what data was being collected for transmission and how. As a last resort, all equipment at the embassy was shipped back to the US for analysis. From IEEE Spectrum:

After tens of thousands of fruitless X-rays, a technician noticed a small coil of wire inside the on/off switch of an IBM Selectric typewriter. (NSA engineer Charles) Gandy believed that this coil was acting as a step-down transformer to supply lower-voltage power to something within the typewriter. Eventually he uncovered a series of modifications that had been concealed so expertly that they had previously defied detection.

A solid aluminum bar, part of the structural support of the typewriter, had been replaced with one that looked identical but was hollow. Inside the cavity was a circuit board and six magnetometers. The magnetometers sensed movements of tiny magnets that had been embedded in the transposers that moved the typing “golf ball” into position for striking a given letter.

Other components of the typewriters, such as springs and screws, had been repurposed to deliver power to the hidden circuits and to act as antennas. Keystroke information was stored and sent in encrypted burst transmissions that hopped across multiple frequencies.

For more on this fascinating story, check out former intelligence officer and technologist Eric Haseltine's new book: "The Spy in Moscow Station"

image: IBM Selectric by Oliver Kurmis (CC BY 2.5 Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/nyOg1UD60Qw/ingenious-cold-war-keylogger-t.html

(SPOILER ALERT)

On this episode of the Fatman Beyond podcast, Kevin Smith claims that Todd Phillips' Joker originally had a much darker ending written for it. From Hypebeast:

While the final release of the film ended with Arthur Fleck being locked up in a psychiatric hospital with a scene suggesting he killed his new therapist, Smith says around the 16:35 mark in the video above that a source close to the project revealed an alternative ending featuring a flashback at the hospital. The flashback would’ve taken the audience back to Thomas and Martha Wayne’s murder scene in the alley, and reveal that it was actually the Joker who killed them. Even more shocking is the fact that the Joker then also shoots Bruce Wayne, effectively killing Batman in that particular universe.

“Originally, the ending in the hospital was different,” Smith said. “He’s in the hospital and he laughs, chuckles, and he says, ‘I was just thinking of something funny.’ What was supposed to happen was you flashed back to the death of Thomas and Martha Wayne and it was him killing Thomas and Martha Wayne and the boy was screaming and crying and he turned to walk away and he turned back, shrugged, and shot the kid. Credits.”

Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/Rljx-jwc5NU/kevin-smith-reveals-jokers-m.html

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/4murSk4sf4M/why-you-should-almost-always-o.html

Granted anonymity somewhere along the line from shutter to public exposure, cadets in the Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation's basic training program offer the camera a Nazi salute in a photo that emerged earlier this month. Two academy trainers and one cadet have already lost their jobs; the state's governer says he wants the whole class fired. [ht Thom]

A third staff member who failed to report the contents of the photograph will also be fired, bringing the total number of staff terminations to three. Additionally, four academy instructors who are known to have seen the picture and failed to report it will also be suspended without pay.

In the image, nearly all members of the Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation Basic Training Class #18 — 31 cadets — are giving what appears to be a Nazi salute. The others are posing with a clenched fist in the air.

I count five closed fists among the Nazi saluters. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/QkYw5GKzi3o/west-virginia-corrections-cade.html

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/pyAP5_czIWk/tupid-jewelry-earring-card-e.html

So you've beefed up your media arsenal with mega-screen HDTVs, top-of-the-line laptops and gaming consoles galore. That's great, but don't forget that you need some internet infrastructure to keep it all humming.

If a better router is what you need, you could do a lot worse than this NetGear Nighthawk AC1900 - especially a model that's refurbished and available at a fraction of the original cost.

The 2-in-1 CableLabs DOCSIS® 3.0 Cable Modem and Wi-Fi Router can provide internet speeds of 1.9 Gbps and downloads at 960 Mbps. That's even while using multiple devices at peak hours, which can be a real help for busy households.

The 24x8 channel bonding feature is a particular boon for video, and you'll have less dead spots in any size house thanks to the NETGEAR Beamforming+ capability.The Nighthawk AC1900 is certified to work with most any ISP, and you can even separate secure logins for your kids or guests.

This NetGear Nighthawk AC1900 is refurbished with an "A" rating, and is now more than 60% off the original retail price. You can even take an extra 20% off that cost by using the coupon code 20SAVE20. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/87T4kC6glTA/this-top-tier-netgear-nighthaw.html

I've always understood Australia to be a nightmare hellscape full of crazy killer creatures. But that's only because I hadn't heard about the quokka. This teddy bear-sized marsupial lives on the islands off the mainland of Australia, and they're just — I mean — look at this thing!

Mother Nature made Australia into a horrifying natural death trap just to balance out the adorableness of the quokka pic.twitter.com/CBbHAZW9RX

 This Is Not A Thom Dunn T-Shirt (@thomdunn) December 22, 2019

It's basically a non-cannibalistic Ewok, and apparently they're known for being friendly as hell (also exceptionally horny), earning them the distinction of the "happiest animal in the world." Though it's illegal to touch one, they're allegedly super-down with selfies, too.

I would brave any Australian beast just to be best friends with one of these lil' fellas.

Image via Wikimedia Commons Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/KBH5SdkD0Y0/australia-is-only-a-horrifying.html

Dozens are likely dead in Australia, which is beset by uncontrolled wildfires. Experts believe a third of the koala population on the continent's east coast is already wiped out, and there's no end in sight. Residents are fleeing to the beaches to escape the flames. In the video embedded here from New South Wales Fire + Rescue, a crew sits in their truck, unable to do anything to fight the the blaze as it tears throught the forest toward them, then around them, then away from them.

Here's (NSFW) footage from Tyson Whelan, which he says he took at 10:30 a.m. in Mallacoota, Victoria:

How bad are the #AustralianFires? Absolutey fucked.

video;cubin’ on fb #mallacoota pic.twitter.com/cDKjjK2m7U

 rbm (@doc_ryan) December 31, 2019

Australia's government appears unmoved. Here's the Prime Minister, talking earlier in wildfire season, about why there would be no change in policy toward carbon emissions: “What we won’t do is engage in reckless and job-destroying and economy-crunching targets which are being sought."

Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/NcJoZTiaa9o/footage-of-australian-fire-cre.html

An anonymous police officer in Herington, Kansas, claimed he was given a coffee cup with "fucking pigs" written on it by staff at McDonalds. The story went viral, uncritically laundered by local media and spread by outraged conservatives on the internet. But it turned out he was lying. McDonalds had the receiptsvideo surveillance of the purchaseand forced the Herington P.D. to admit that it didn't happen. The cop "is no longer employed" by Herington Police Department, says Chief Brian Hornaday

"In (our) investigation we have found that McDonald's and its employees did not have anything whatsoever to do with this incident, this was completely and solely fabricated by a Herington police officer who is no longer employed with our agency," Herington Police Department Chief Brian Hornaday said in a news conference Monday.

The incident, the chief said, has been an "obvious violation of ... public trust."

"Our job is solely to do this job with the utmost integrity because if you can't trust the cops, who can you trust," he said.

It was Hornaday himself who first posted the photos to social media, which is why we don't know the name of the cop, because he is refusing to tell anyone. "If you can't trust the cops, who can you trust," he adds. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/uNvmMgc9EC8/cop-fired-after-fabricatin.html

Piet is an esoteric programming language where the programs are encoded as images and resemble abstract paintings. Spot-on Mondrians (pictures) are the hook, but a wide range of pixelated styles are possible; the logic of the program can be exposed in the image.

Prime Number Generator

Sylvain Tintillier provides a method of generating prime numbers using Piet. Figuring out how it works is easy, he says, "Just look at the bitmap!"

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/jFNjN_PxNH0/esoteric-programming-language.html

Here are six new lateral thinking puzzles to test your wits and stump your friends -- play along with us as we try to untangle some perplexing situations using yes-or-no questions.

Show notes

Please support us on Patreon! Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/aFctwoThEFY/six-lateral-thinking-puzzles-7.html

Speculative Identities is a site run by Roger Strunk that analyzes and examines the graphic design and UI details of science fictional companies. For example, the myriad corporations that comprise the worlds as seen in Blade Runner and Total Rekall, or looking into the ways that the divergent timelines from Back to the Future II impacted the logos for Pizza Hut and USA Today.

Even more recently, they've taken a branding approach to one of my favorite dystopian sci-fi corporations: Cyberdyne Industries from the Terminator films.

View this post on Instagram

A new research entry is set to land on the site tomorrow, so stay tuned. And be prepared for a long read.

A post shared by Speculative Identities (@speculativeidentities) on Dec 11, 2019 at 4:29pm PST

Strunk reverse-engineers from each and every iteration of the Cyberdyne logo as it appears across the movies in order to create the kind of standard branding standards sheet that any corporation would get from a graphic designer. These includes rules on things like fonts, color strategies, and permissible variations of the logo. And—because it's Cyberdyne—this extends beyond the instances of the logo as it appears on company badges and clothing, but also the variations that occur in divergent timelines.

It's an impressively comprehensive breakdown, approached with specificity and care of a professional graphic designer, as if they were actually hired to brand this multi-temporal company. Strunk even speculates into how this company's branding came about, both in-universe and in the real world. It's pretty fascinating stuff. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/-D4ybtJVQuo/a-deep-dive-into-the-visual-br.html

Jennifer Jenkins from the Duke Center for the Public Domain writes, "January 1, 2020 is Public Domain Day! Works published in 1924 are entering the US public domain. They include George Gershwin’s 'Rhapsody in Blue' and 'Fascinating Rhythm,' silent films by Buster Keaton and Harold Lloyd, and Thomas Mann’s 'The Magic Mountain,' E. M. Forster’s 'A Passage to India,' and A. A. Milne’s 'When We Were Very Young.' These works were supposed to go into the public domain in 2000, after being copyrighted for 75 years. But before this could happen, Congress hit a 20-year pause button and extended their copyright term to 95 years. See what will (finally) be open to all!"

Works from 1924 are finally entering the public domain, after a 95-year copyright term. However, under the laws that were in effect until 1978, thousands of works from 1963 would be entering the public domain this year. They range from the books The Fire Next Time and Where the Wild Things Are, to the film The Birds and the albums and The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan, and much more. Have a look at some of the others. In fact, since copyright used to come in renewable terms of 28 years, and 85% of authors did not renew, 85% of the works from 1991 might be entering the public domain! Imagine what the great libraries of the world—or just internet hobbyists—could do: digitizing those holdings, making them available for education and research, for pleasure and for creative reuse.

Public Domain Day 2020 [Center for the Study of the Public Domain/Duke University School of Law]

(Thanks, Jennifer! Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/xZsKfOYV7Pc/coulda-been-bob-dylan.html

So you didn't get all the gifts you wanted this year. Who does? The good news is, there's still time to take advantage of holiday discounts. Here are 10 of our favorite holdovers on holiday deals. Most are already on sale, but you can take an extra 20% off the final price by using the holiday coupon code 20SAVE20.

Playseat® Challenge Racing Video Game Chair

Get into the driver's seat with the ultimate accessory for racing games. It's compatible with current Xbox and Playstation systems as well as PC or Mac, and it even folds up for storage when not in use.

MSRP: $277

Sale Price: $249

Price after 20SAVE20 coupon code: $199.20

EZ-PET Smart Programmable Automatic Feeder

Does your pet need some TLC when you're away? This automatic feeder pairs with your smartphone, allowing you to remotely dole out exact portions of food from anywhere. You can even record your voice and have it call your pup or kitty to chow time.

MSRP: $99.99

Sale Price: $79.99

Price after 20SAVE20 coupon code: $63.99

EndlessID® Smart Luggage & Backpack Tag

Say goodbye to lost luggage with this simple tag. It can give you the exact location of your bag through any smartphone or other NFC-enabled devices. You can also make use of it as a secure medical ID tag which will share crucial info with doctors or EMTs.

MSRP: $19.99

Sale Price: $16.99

Price after 20SAVE20 coupon code: $13.59

Insulated Touchscreen Gloves

If the weather outside is frightful, you should at the very least have your smartphone to keep you company. Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/sWpwfMkiWf0/take-an-extra-20-off-everythi.html

Looking for a reason to finally power down that annual orgy of future high-tech landfill poisons? Here ya go.

From Variety:

It’s official: Ivanka Trump, President Donald Trump’s daughter and adviser, will be on the CES 2020 keynote stage next month in Las Vegas.

Ivanka Trump will join a keynote discussion on jobs and the future of work with Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Technology Assn., which produces CES (originally known as the Consumer Electronics Show). The talk is scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 7, at 2 p.m. PT in the Venetian’s Palazzo Ballroom. Trump and Shapiro will discuss “employer-led strategies to reskill workers, create apprenticeships and develop K-12 STEM education programs,” according to the CTA.

Read the rest.

[Image: Screen capture of Ivanka's address to the RNC, 2016] Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/g5U-bxyFunI/ivanka-trump-to-provide-excuse.html

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/FieDm8QVvBw/syd-mead-1933-2019.html

In Mis`ere Tic-tac-toe, getting three-in-a-row means you lose. I can't wait to unleash this game on my kids at our next dinner out.

Here is a wonderfully-named app version: Notakto

Here is a scientific paper on the mathematics of the game: "The Secrets of Notakto: Winning at X-onlyTic-Tac-Toe" by Thane E. Plambeck, Greg Whitehead

And below is part 2 of the Numberphile video. Note from the video description:

Correction from Thane: The configuration with two X's, one in a corner and one in the middle, is a "b" and not a "b^2". It's at 5:24 in the video.

(via Cliff Pickover)

Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/Sr2VmZ3FF8Q/in-this-tic-tac-toe-variant-pl.html

Two big sea lions kicked back aboard a small, empty anchored boat in Eld Inlet at the southern end of Washington's Puget Sound. Josh Phillips of Spawn Fly Fish captured this delightful moment two weeks ago. “It looked a little off and we got closer and closer and realized there were two massive animals on board,” Phillips told The Olympian.

Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/lr1_e4oE6HY/massive-sea-lions-commandeer-s.html

Keep fucking that chicken! Read the rest

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/tMm5rhfY5PY/watch-the-best-tv-news-blooper.html

Finally, researchers are again exploring the therapeutic benefits of psychedelics to treat the likes of depression, addiction, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. To provide pharmaceutical-quality compounds for clinical trials, scientists are developing new ways to produce the psychedelics. Chemical engineers at Miami University in Ohio have now genetically engineered E. coli to crank put psilocybin, the psychoactive ingredient in magic mushrooms. From Scientific American:

The modified microbes generated up to 1.16 grams of psilocybin per liter of culture medium—the highest yield to date from any engineered organism and a 10-fold increase over the next best attempt. Scaled up, the new method could produce psilocybin for potential therapeutic use.

“The number-one advantage is it's simply cheaper” than—or at least cost-competitive with—other methods, says lead study author Alexandra Adams, an undergraduate student in chemical engineering at Miami University in Ohio...

Adams and her colleagues engineered E. coli that incorporated three genes from the Psilocybe cubensis mushroom, enabling the bacteria to synthesize psilocybin from the cheap and easily obtainable precursor molecule 4-hydroxyindole, and then they optimized the process to produce the drug on a larger scale.

http://feeds.boingboing.net/~r/boingboing/iBag/~3/OTTcQXIOpw4/scientists-genetically-enginee.html