Author Archives: Michael Froomkin

Our Server Is Having a Bad Day

Posted on February 21, 2007 by Michael Froomkin

Apologies for any troubles you have viewing the site and especially commenting today. In addition to a ton of spam, it seems that one of the other sites on the shared server I happen to be on — a site with the enticing name of “moneychump” — has got 1062 diggs and counting for a posting entitled 52 money hacks – one for each week!. (Please don't click on it.) The flood of hits has driven server load up to a peak of over 105, and even with throttling of that site is hovering in the teens. My experience is that this blog is ok so long as the total server load is under five or so.

There are days when I think it would be nice to have my own managed server hosted somewhere. Then I look at the price tag…

Posted in Discourse.net | 6 Comments

Bar Camp Miami Tonight

Posted on February 21, 2007 by Michael Froomkin

The UM School of Communications will be hosting Bar Camp Miami tonight.

I'm looking forward to it.

Posted in U.Miami | 1 Comment

D.C. Circuit Upholds Jurisdiction-Stripping of Guantanamo Habeas Claims

Posted on February 20, 2007 by Michael Froomkin

This is the “Al Odah” case, although it may end up captioned differently (Boumediene v. Bush, 05-5062 (D.C. Cir., Feb. 20, 2007)). Text of the 2-1 decision by Judge Randolph for himself and Judge Sentelle. There's a long and persuasive dissent by Judge Rodgers, noting that the Supreme Court, at least in dicta, appears to hold a different view about key elements of the case.

If Sandra Day O’Connor were still on the Supreme Court, I'd predict reversal with some confidence. Now, I'm not as sure, but I still think there is a good chance that there are at least five votes left to overturn this. I suspect that there is, however, no real chance it would be overturned en banc in the D.C. Circuit. That court has become astoundingly right-wing as of late.

Posted in Guantanamo | 2 Comments

‘Internet Hunting’ Ban Gains Ground

Posted on February 20, 2007 by Michael Froomkin

As Miami's own Dave Barry says, I am not making this up.

More States Move To Ban Internet Hunting: A Texas businessman who wanted to allow computer users to hunt from the comfort of their homes has instead spawned dozens of state laws banning the practice. Texas lawmakers shut down San Antonio businessman John Lockwood's operation

in 2005 and two dozen other states have since banned Internet hunting. Connecticut lawmakers are now considering whether to follow suit and ban state residents from using a computer mouse to point, click, and kill penned animals herded before a Web-based camera.

On the one hand, this seems like a barbaric practice, and I'm perfectly happy to see it banned. On the other hand…is this our most pressing social problem?

Posted in Internet | 7 Comments

NOVA Behaving Badly

Posted on February 20, 2007 by Michael Froomkin

The University of Miami may not have behaved as well as one might wish in dealing with the demands of its striking janitors last year, and worse with students who supported the union, but at the end of the day the University stepped up to the plate and offered a decent contract.

The same cannot be said about Nova Southeastern University, which is engaged in a very unfortunate — I almost wrote something much worse — campaign to prevent a similar unionization of its workers. Their jobs are being handed off to new sub-contractors. Workers active in the union movement are not being rehired by these new contractors.

Coverage of NOVA behaving badly can be found in the article linked right above, and in Better wages, healthcare not enough, a column by Ana Menendez.

Posted in Miami | Comments Off on NOVA Behaving Badly

Cold Fusion Reaction Replicated

Posted on February 19, 2007 by Michael Froomkin

New Scientist, Table-top fusion, back with a pop:

Reports that the bubble had burst for a form of cheap, table-top nuclear fusion may have been premature. Rusi Taleyarkhan, the physicist at the centre of a furore surrounding so-called bubble fusion, was last week cleared of scientific misconduct.

In 2002, Taleyarkhan, then at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee and now at Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana, published a paper in Science claiming that bombarding a solvent with neutrons and sound waves produced tiny bubbles that triggered nuclear fusion reactions. Then in March 2006, Purdue began investigating allegations of misconduct against Taleyarkhan, amid accusations that the evidence of fusion he reported was actually caused by a radioactive isotope of californium.

However, on 7 February, Purdue absolved Taleyarkhan's group of any misconduct. The verdict follows independent verification of Taleyarkhan's results by Edward Forringer of LeTourneau University in Texas and his colleagues last November (Transactions of the American Nuclear Society, vol 95, p 736).

I want my “Mr. Fusion”!

Posted in Science/Medicine | 6 Comments