XXI century news
May. 12th, 2005 01:52 pmSenate passes bill creating electronic ID card
The Real ID Act has been criticized by privacy groups and the ACLU
"The legislation, which President George W. Bush is expected to sign, requires states to issue federally approved electronic ID cards, including driver's licenses. Anyone without such a card would not be able to board an airplane, an Amtrak train, open a bank account or enter a federal building."
"Called the Real ID Act, the bill mandates that driver's licenses and other ID cards include a digital photo, features designed to thwart counterfeiting and a "common machine-readable technology" that could include a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag. The technology must meet requirements set out by the Department of Homeland Security."
And, if you heard about the idea of inserting RFID into US passports... yes, everywhere around the world an American tourist could be scanned and identified remotely, by all the terrorists and scam artists in the world...
U.S. scientists create self-replicating robot
"Each robot consists of several 4-in. cubes that have identical machinery, electromagnets to attach and detach to each other and a computer program for replication. The robots can bend and pick up and stack the cubes."
"The machines duplicate themselves by bending over and putting their top cube on the table. Then they bend again, pick up another cube, put it on top of the first and repeat the entire process. As the new robot begins to take shape, it helps to build itself."
The Real ID Act has been criticized by privacy groups and the ACLU
"The legislation, which President George W. Bush is expected to sign, requires states to issue federally approved electronic ID cards, including driver's licenses. Anyone without such a card would not be able to board an airplane, an Amtrak train, open a bank account or enter a federal building."
"Called the Real ID Act, the bill mandates that driver's licenses and other ID cards include a digital photo, features designed to thwart counterfeiting and a "common machine-readable technology" that could include a radio frequency identification (RFID) tag. The technology must meet requirements set out by the Department of Homeland Security."
And, if you heard about the idea of inserting RFID into US passports... yes, everywhere around the world an American tourist could be scanned and identified remotely, by all the terrorists and scam artists in the world...
U.S. scientists create self-replicating robot
"Each robot consists of several 4-in. cubes that have identical machinery, electromagnets to attach and detach to each other and a computer program for replication. The robots can bend and pick up and stack the cubes."
"The machines duplicate themselves by bending over and putting their top cube on the table. Then they bend again, pick up another cube, put it on top of the first and repeat the entire process. As the new robot begins to take shape, it helps to build itself."