SETI is the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence. They use massive radio-telescopes to search the sky for signs of intelligent life. But the sky is big. Where should we point the telescopes to improve our chances of detecting a signal? Rather than point at random stars, or promising looking constellations, I propose a more scientific approach: Find a planet where the length of the year is an integer multiple of the length of the day. This is based on the theory that it is easier for…
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Last month, I took myself on holiday with one aim - read as many books as possible. My wife and I tend to alternate our holidays - one relaxing break then one adventure break. Our previous trip was a 3 week road-trip through Australia, so this time I opted for an all-inclusive break in the Canaries at an adults-only hotel. I spent a week lying in the sunshine, eReader in hand, pausing only for the occasional cocktail. I thoroughly recommend this sort of holiday. If you have a "staycation",…
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The news has just broken that Google's Authenticator App can have its codes stolen by malware. I doubt Google will ever release a fix for this issue - their 2FA app hasn't been updated since September 2017. Update! 3 months after I published this post, Google updated their app For two-and-a-half years, Google hasn't touched their 2FA app's code. Perhaps it is perfect? Perhaps there are no more UI improvements or security enhancements that can be done? Or, more likely, it joins a long…
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(Another in a long list of posts which will turn out to be touchingly naïve!) When teaching people about safe sex, one topic bitterly divides people - whether abstinence is a suitable method. Simply refusing to engage in sexual activity will protect you from pregnancy, disease, and trauma. Abstinence is particularly promoted by religious zealots. Similarly, whenever social media is discussed, privacy zealots proclaim that the only safe option is to jUSt dELeTE FaCEBooK! The problem with …
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A series of grisly murders rocks London. At each location, only a jumble of bones remains of the deceased, along with a bizarre sphere covered in strange symbols. The son of the latest victim seeks the help of Sherlock Holmes and his former partner, Dr. John Watson. They discover the common thread tying together the murders. Bizarre geometries, based on ancient schematics, enable otherworldly creatures to enter our dimension, seeking to wreak havoc and destruction. The persons responsible…
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I've been ranting about Bitly for years! The ubiquitous link shortener had an interesting "feature" - add a + to the end of the URl and you could see all the statistics for the link. How many clicks, referers, location of users. Here's a blog post I wrote about it way back in 2011. I often used this feature to explore how popular companies and scammers were: Terence Eden is on Mastodon@edentThis is why we don't use bitly in our work.*Anyone* can add a + to the end of the URl and see where…
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Written in brief entries from ‘Ambition’ to ‘Zzzzz’ Salway's confident debut novel chronicles the existential ups and downs of British 20-something Verity Bell. The alphabetically arranged mini-chapters make for an inventive and episodic narrative, as Verity muses on her career. For some reason I purchased this in 2013 and left it 7 years before reading. I wish I'd left it 70. I don't usually read sappy romantic / emotionally manipulative novels. And this is why. It's a sad and pathetic st…
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For a domain based on Shakespeare - this blog doesn't talk about The Bard much. Sorry! I forced a bot to read 154 Shakespearean Sonnets. This is what it came up with... 47 Be where thou art, thou art the sea, Till all that belongs to it turn aside, And make another land into thy heart's plot. Let those elements that should guide thy march, Make thee thy ward against the sea's cruel gale! The deep shall not hold thee afloat, The deep shall…
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Karen Armstrong's concise yet compelling investigation into the history of myth takes us from the Palaeolithic period and the mythology of the hunters right up to the 'Great Western Transformation' of the last 500 years. She shows us that the history of myth is the history of humanity, and our stories and beliefs, our curiosity and attempts to understand the world, link us to our ancestors and each other. A crisp and meticulously referenced work. But, as the title suggests, all-too-brief.…
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My Chinese takeaway delivery was late. Very late. I flipped open the confirmation email sent by Just-Eat to double-check I had all the details correct. At the bottom was a "click to call" link. Hurrah! I clicked dial, and this is what filled my screen: An absurdly long phone number. Bemused, I went to inspect the link I'd clicked. This is what it showed: The tel: URl scheme is brilliant. You can write something like: <a href="tel:07700 900123">Call Me!</a> And …
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A young and naive English doctor, William Abbey, witnesses the lynching of a local boy by the white colonists. As the child dies, his mother curses William. William begins to understand what the curse means when the shadow of the dead boy starts following him across the world. It never stops, never rests. It can cross oceans and mountains. And if it catches him, the person he loves most in the world will die. I love Claire North's writing. This latest novel follows her regular template - a …
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Here's a brilliant idea I had. And it would work if humans weren't garbage. I was sat on a stationary train. It had stopped for some unfathomable reason. I say "unfathomable" - the driver made an announcement over the speaker system, but I didn't hear it because I had my Bluetooth headphones on. Imagine if important information could interrupt your audio. Here's a *hand-wavey* description. You could tell your headphones to pair with the train. When the driver has an urgent announcement,…
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