Two years ago, a US judge ruled that a guy with an encrypted hard drive did not have to hand over his encryption key to the police, as it would be a violation of the 5th Amendment (the right not to self-incriminate). The argument there is that the encryption key is a form of “speech.” This is quite a reasonable ruling — but it appears that over in the UK they view encryption keys quite differently. Last year, we wrote about a UK court ruling interpreting the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA) to mean that people could be required to hand over encryption keys, since encryption keys were not “speech” but an object that could be demanded. Unfortunately, this has now resulted in a schizophrenic man being jailed for refusing to decrypt his files. As many are noting, this seems to be an abuse of law enforcement, as the purpose of the RIPA law was supposed to be about stopping organized crime and terrorism, not dumping the mentally ill in prison.

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The web seems to be converging on several companies, like Facebook and Google, which are becoming more powerful and increasingly unrivaled. Yet, even these companies can’t afford to close off everyone else and have a very healthy ecosystem of companies and services developed around them. Still, there are those that are more reluctant to sharing their data and Craigslist is again proving to be one of these companies. The site didn’t really like a project, called Flippity, which took listings and plotted them on a map, so it decided to block it along with everyone else who was using Yahoo Pipes to access the data.

Developer Romy Maxwell, one of the people behind Flippity, had several email exchanges with founder Craig Newmark, the Craig in Craigslist, to get his opinion on the way the project used and accessed the data. Initially, Newmark gave the project the thumbs up and it looked like everything was in the clear. He replied to one of the developer’s emails “as a rule of thumb, okay to use RSS feeds for noncommercial purposes,” which is what Flippity did.

A few days ago, the developer sent Newmark a link to the project which was at that moment in alpha stage. He didn’t receive any reply to that email, like he did for all the others, instead Craigslist essentially blocked the project f… (read more)

It’s been a horrible decade for the Dow Jones, the worst since the 1930’s.

Moreover, according to the chart below from Bespoke Investment Group. decade-timing seems to be pretty important, as most of the Dow’s returns have been concentrated, particularly during 1980 – 2000.

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• The Biggest Market Call of the Decade
• The Epic Decline Of Magazine Advertising Through The Decade
• Japan Preparing To Launch Quantitative Easing; What Are Three Lost Decades Among Hyperdeflationary Friends?

Societe Generale uses the following chart to support their uber-bullish case for gold. By their metrics, apparently gold has only been fairly valued in 2 out of the last 40 years. And that was during a short-lived spike.

Thus according to their valuation, markets have been completely wrong for 38 out of 40 years. Which makes one wonder what their definition of ‘wrong’ is. It seems pretty rich to expect markets to suddenly become sustainably ‘right’ should they historically have always been ‘wrong.’

Markets are frequently mis-priced, but if you find they always are then you need to re-check your assumptions.

(Via the Big Picture and an astute BP)

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• Richard Bernstein: Gold Prices Have Gotten Silly (GLD)
• Rosenberg: Gold Going To $2600 Thanks To China
• Gold Soars To Within An Inch Of $1200

We’re ending 2009 with a phenomenal monthly giveaway from The Refined Feline! One lucky reader is going to receive a Catemporary Cat Corner climbing tower and shelf! This combo will have kitty climbing in style.

To enter the monthly giveaway, make sure you’re signed-up to receive Moderncat updates via email. If you’re already getting the updates but you’d like an EXTRA chance to win this month, please leave a comment on this post. The drawing will take place on December 31. Complete details on the monthly giveaway here.

Watch this video to learn more about the Catemporary Cat Corner and Shelf from The Refined Feline (if you can’t see the video below in your email, click here to watch it on the site):

Facebook is still growing at a huge pace, not that it’s surprising anyone at this point. The company’s cofounder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote an open letter, or rather blog post, to Facebook users to talk about the privacy changes which are about to become a reality after being announced several months ago but also to make a quick note on the fact that Facebook is now at 350 million users.

The social network managed to add 50 million users in about two and a half months. That’s the size of a decent-sized social network in its own rights, further proof, if it was even necessary, that Facebook is in a league of its own. What’s even more interesting is that it went from 300 million to 350 million slower than it grew from 250 million to 300 million, perhaps a sign that it may finally be slowing down. It’s still got some ways to go though. When you add the fact that Facebook started out the year with 150 million users in total, it’s clear that it’s doing something right.

However, its size is becoming a problem in certain areas and Facebook has to make some changes to features that can’t really scale to a service with hundreds of millions of users. “Facebook’s current privacy model revolves around “networks” — communities for your school, your company or your… (read more)

Uh oh. Another reverse indicator for China.

This article reminds us of past recommendations for the U.S. to study Japanese culture in order to succeed, right before the Japan bubble came crashing down.

Surely China has many admirable qualities, and the U.S. clearly needs improvement right now, but when the media starts feeding us generic Chinese cultural recommendations such as ‘Look over the horizon’, alarm bells should start ringing.

America’s China insecurity complex could be getting out of control.

You be the judge.

TIME Magazine’s ‘Five Things the U.S. Can Learn from China’ >>>

Join the conversation about this story »

See Also:

• China Executes Two Men For Selling Tainted Infant Milk
• China Entering Winter With A Severe Natural Gas Shortage (UNG)
• How China’s Bank Regulator Could Slam The Markets

Telegraph columnist Nina Montagu-Smith has called for the scrapping of Members of Parliament’s final salary pension scheme, which allows them to build up a pension of £8,000 pa after just 5 years in office. This equates the income an ordinary citizen could expect from a personal pension pot of around £250,000

Five years as an MP buys you five-fortieths of final salary (£64,000) in retirement. Their pension package is also inflation-proofed and includes a widows’ pension.

The Tories have promised to scrap defined benefit pensions for MPs if they win the next election but any such proposal will still have to be voted in by a majority of MPs because they get to set their own pay. They voted to improve the accrual of benefits from one-fiftieth to one-fortieth of final salary per year in office so it is difficult to imagine they will do away with their scheme altogether.

Public outrage over MPs’ expenses makes it likely we will see more than 200 new MPs take office next year, each entitled to immediate membership of the pension scheme; existing members will not be affected by any subsequent closure.

Average British citizens have no access to final salary-style pensions – 96 of the UK’s 100 largest listed companies have already closed such schemes to new employees – and have probably seen big losses in the pensions they have bothered to save for themselves, now they suffer the injustice of being asked to stump up for MPs as well.

Although many MPs will tell you that last year they approved a “cap” on Treasury contributions to the scheme, this cap only comes into effect if the scheme is fully funded – something most public sector pensions are not. And anyway, if the scheme was fully funded, what need would there be for a cap?

In conclusion, Nina Montagu-Smith asked, “when will we get more than just smoke and mirrors from those who claim to be representing our interests?”

Daily Telegraph

A subsidiary of Larox Flowsys Group, JFD Pumps Rotors Oy has opened an office in the city of Oulu in Northern Finland. This new estate will enable JFD to better serve its customers all over Finland and in Scandinavia.

Located in Eastern Finland JFD is known for its high quality multi brand spare parts and service for PC and centrifugal pumps. The CEO of JFD Mr. Matti Riihimäki is very pleased for the expansion and says that this is only the beginning of the growth. “In the future we want to offer our customers even more”, Mr. Riihimäki says. “Services, such as maintenance, part rebuilds, storing and repairs have been done at JFD for years, but from now one we want to develop these services more systematically and also expand our service network to the rest of the Europe and to other industries, such as chemical, food & beverage and environmental industry”, he continues.

From April 2009 the company has been able to offer its domestic customers centrifugal pump services and spare parts in addition to the pc pump services. Recently JFD launched the centrifugal pump spare part business also to its export customers. “Now we are able to offer comprehensive pc and centrifugal pump services and prompt multi brand spare part deliveries all around Europe”, says Mr. Riihimäki.

JFD multi brand spare parts are a smart selection, as they enable the customer to obtain the full potential of their pc and centrifugal pumps’ performance. JFD is specialized in providing its customers with a wide range of single parts, spare part sets, plug-in and bearing units and multi brand spare part’s management according to end-use application. The spare parts are manufactured according to highest quality standards. Thanks to own manufacturing department, where 95 % of the spare parts used in maintenance are manufactured, the needed part is always available when required.

Bergquist has extended its family of S-class low-modulus gap pad materials optimised for high thermal performance by introducing Gap Pad 1500S30, which achieves thermal conductivity 1.3W/m-K and bulk-hardness rating 30 (Shore 00). The new formulation increases choice for designers seeking efficient heat removal from fragile components in cost-sensitive applications.

The low-pressure conformability and wet-out characteristic of Gap Pad 1500S30 excludes interfacial air even when surfaces have high roughness or uneven topography. In addition the outstanding conformability also reduces stress on component leads and prevents bowing of circuit boards, as well as providing low-stress vibration damping and shock absorption.

Like other S-class materials, Gap Pad 1500S30 also has inherent tack on both sides, which saves applying adhesive and promotes easy handling during assembly. The silicone-based material also includes fibreglass reinforcing for high resistance to puncture, tearing or shearing.

Gap Pad 1500S30 is available in sheet form or as die-cut parts from 0.508mm to 3.175mm thick. The continuous operating temperature range of –60°C to 200°C allows use in applications such as heat-pipe assemblies, hard disk drives, power supplies, memory modules. Gap Pad materials such as 1500S30 can be inserted between a heatsink and any type of heat-generating semiconductor such as a memory IC, power transistor, module, or signal-path components.

Gap Pad 1500S30 adds to Bergquist’s S-class range including Gap Pad 2000S40, 2500S20, 3000S30 and 5000S35, which have thermal conductivity 2.0W/m-K, 2.4W/m-K, 3.0W/m-K and 5.0W/m-K and bulk hardness 40, 20, 30 and 35 respectively.

Pocketnow have published this 10 minute review of the Samsung Omnia 2. The smartphone seems to be full of nice touches like stereo speakers optimised for landscape mode and of course deep finger-friendly skinning.

Read more at Pocketnow here.

Finding dairy-free and egg-free desserts can be a challenge sometimes so when I find something that is absolutely delish, I have to rave about it from rooftops.

Behold these, Mini Cafe Cinnamon Twists from Trader Joe’s. These sweeties are dairy-free, butter-free, egg-free, yeast-free, low in sodium AND only 30 calories per twisty. See why I’m in dessert heaven!

Amazingly, these twists are made with only 6 ingredients: wheat flour, soybean oil, palm oil, beet sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

I <3 these TJ’s Twists!

Daily Random Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 leek stalks, sliced
• 1/2 head broccoli, sliced
• Packet of mushrooms, sliced
• Curry powder
• Couple T dark miso
• Splash of vinegar
• 1/2 L / 1 pint vegetable juice (bought in the store, made from different kinds of vegetables)
• 3 dl / 300 ml / 10 fl oz water
• 4 dl / 400 ml / 13.5 fl oz bulgur

METHOD:
I sliced the leek stalks, broccoli and a packet of a kind of
mushrooms, then I fried it with some curry, the dark
miso and just a little splash of vinegar. Having done that I added half the
vegetable juice (bought in the store, made from different kinds of vegetables),
water and bulgur (half as much bulgur as liquid) and let it simmer for 10 minutes or so.

NOTES:
This is not really a recipe, as much as a trick I just found
out which turned out so good that I thought I’d tell you about it.
I normally don’t make an improvised dish twice, but the basic idea
works great here. Bear with me – you know I like to preface these
things with a story ;0)

It seems that my mode of cooking comes and goes in fads and now
what I’m doing a lot is frying up some veggies with some sort of spice
or something, then add a sort of liquid and either rice or bulgur and
let it simmer until the rice or bulgur is done… fair and good, but today
I tried something interesting which was really good.

It may not sound like much, but it was actually very good, thought I’ll
try adding more curry next time, but the vegetable juice really gave
the bulgur something extra.

Just felt like sharing, in case someone finds the idea useful :0)

Daily Random Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups flour, sifted
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon nutmeg
• Egg replacer, equivalent to 1 egg
• 3/4 cup soy milk
• 3 tablespoons oil
• Powdered sugar (optional)

METHOD:
Sift together dry ingredients. Add egg replacer, soy milk and oil. Stir with fork until smooth.

Heat 2.5 centimeter / 1 inch deep oil to 180C/350F. Drop dough by teaspoonfuls into hot oil. Turn after a few seconds until browned on both sides, turning once more. Drain on paper towel.

NOTES:
You can either eat them plain or coat them with powdered sugar. They’re really good like that. If you don’t know the temperature of your oil, make sure it’s not too hot, or the donut hole will still be raw inside and brown on the outside. Make sure you use the nutmeg, because it gives it a nice flavor.

Daily Random Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups basmati rice
• 1/2 ounces / 14 grams dried morels (10-12 mushrooms)
• 3 tablespoons margarine or oil
• 1 small onion, cut into fine half-rounds
• 1 teaspoon salt

METHOD:
Pick over rice and wash it in several changes of water. Drain. Put in a bowl. Add 6 cups fresh water and leave to soak for half an hour. Drain.

Rinse off the morels and soak them in 1 1/2 cups of boiling water for 15-20 minutes or until they are soft. Remove the mushrooms from their soaking liquid (reserve this liquid!) And rinse them again. Now cut each mushroom in half lengthwise.

Strain the soaking liquid and add enough water to it to make 2 2/3 cups.

Heat the margarine/oil in a heavy 2 liter / 2 quart pot over a medium flame. When hot, add the onion and saute until it turns translucent. Add the morels and saute them for 1 minute. Add the rice and salt and saute the rice for a couple of minutes. Lower the heat a little a bit if the rice starts to stick. Now add the morel soaking liquid and bring to the boil. Cover tightly, turn the heat to very, very low and cook undisturbed for 25 minutes.

Daily Random Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen sweet corn kernels
• 1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 tablespoon roasted (Asian) sesame oil
• 2 medium ripe tomatoes – about 12 ounces, diced
• 2 green onions, chopped
• 1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped, pitted kalamata olives
• 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• freshly-ground black pepper to taste
• 3/4 pound cooked Breast of Tofu slices , browned as for “crispy slices”

METHOD:
To make the salsa: Mix the corn on a cookie sheet with the two oils. Place about 3-4 inches under the broiler of your oven and broil until they start to brown. Toss with a spatula and add the tomatoes. Broil until the tomato begins to look a little charred in places. Scoop into a bowl and mix with the other salsa ingredients.

Divide the crisp, browned Breast of Tofu between 4 warmed plates and top evenly with the salsa. Serve immediately.

NOTES:
Serves 4.

Recipe provided by Bryanna Clark Grogan

Daily Random Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• Vegan chocolate chips
• Nuts
• Chow mein noodles
• Raisins
• Coconut

METHOD:
Melt the chocolate chips in a double boiler. Add any nuts, chow mein noodles, raisins, coconut, etc. Stir until completely covered, then spoon in drops on wax paper and chill.

NOTES:

Daily Random Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• Sushi rice (short-grain brown rice is suggested, with vinegar/sugar/salt mixture)
• Umeboshi (salted and pickled plum)
• Nori
• Pickled ginger

  
  Suggested Fillings
  

• Vegetables (eg. spring onions, carrots, cucumber, greens, lettuce, bell peppers, jicama, daikon, beetroot, taro)
• Fruit (eg. avocado, apple, mango, peach)
• Mushrooms
• Scrambled tofu
  

METHOD:
I use short-grain brown rice for my sushi. It sticks together and adds
that slight nutty flavor (not to mention it’s healthier). I usually add
a thin layer of umeboshi (salted and pickled plum) paste over that, then
add my veggies and roll it.

All vegetables are fair game. The best are the most obvious, but odd
ones are interesting, too: green (spring) onion, carrots, cucumber,
greens and lettuces of all kinds, bell pepper (roasted or raw, whatever
colors are available), jicama, daikon or other radish, beetroot, taro,
or whatever you have lying about. Just make sure the veggies are thinly
julienned.

I’ve also made fruit sushi, which I have been told is taboo. Not sure
why that is since avocado is a fruit and is used in many rolls. It may
take most palates a bit of getting used to vinegared rice and seaweed
with fruit, but apples, mango, and peaches are my favorites.

All edible varieties of mushrooms are good additions. They, too, should
be thinly sliced; the exception is enoki which is too thin to cut.

One other traditional ingredient deserves mentioning. Rather than
rolling a scrambled egg in with my food, I use scrambled tofu.

NOTES:
Kake posted a recipe for vegetarian sushi. I happen to be addicted to
sushi, and have learned to roll just about everything vegan and healthy
into lovely little rice-nori wheels of joy. I also pickle my own ginger.

Daily Random Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 small bananas
• 250 ml / 8.5 fl oz carton (1 cup) soya cream
• Squirt of soya milk
• Maple syrup and date syrup to taste
• A little vanilla essence
  

METHOD:
Liquidize everything, then pour into an ice cream maker.

If you don’t have an ice cream maker, chop the banana into small chunks and freeze beforehand. When blending everything, do it really thoroughly to get lots of air in, then pour into a suitable container and freeze for about 2 hours.

Texture won’t be quite as good, but taste will be the same.

NOTES:
So sweet and creamy that it is hard to believe there is no dairy or refined sugar in it!

I’ve tried all sorts of flavours in me ice cream maker, but this is the best so far.