The dream of the unbreakable code with quantum cryptography has been demonstrated in the lab and is expected to see commercial applications withing three years [The Register]. Of course, when the door is impenetrable, then you look for a window. 11:58:33 AM    comment []  

PeerEnabler is the new commercial P2P file sharing product on the market that will attempt to fill a similar niche as that being filled by BitTorrent.

Joltid, the Swedish peer-to-peer software company formed by KaZaA founder Niklas Zennstrom, has launched PeerEnabler, a secure content distribution technology that utilises users' own PCs to disseminate content for publishers [The Register].

The system will continually upload and download content that is popular on the network. However, it looks like the content owner will still be able to control the content in some ways that they are distributing on the P2P cloud.

The question I have is what motivation would anyone have for installing this software on their PC? These P2P systems are starting to proliferate, but what I really want to see is a single open standard for P2P file sharing that different people can implement against. If a vendor wants to add value in certain ways be adding DRM or other content controls, then that's fine. But why would a consumer want to give their disk, CPU and bandwidth resources away for free? 11:48:44 AM    comment []  

A study from New Zealand suggests that cellphones do not increase the risk of cancer [Gizmodo]. Well, of course they don't. I think it is absolutely clear that they don't. Years of experimentation with microwave radiation (the same radiation emitted by cellphones) has shown no correlation between exposure to microwaves and cancer. Some of the microwave studies, especially those done in China, have subjected test subjects to huge doses of radiation and the only side effect that I am aware of is a temporary increase in body temperature. Of course, enough exposure can cook you, but that is a much different effect than cancer. 11:37:10 AM    comment []