Announcement: This Friday and Saturday at The Science Circle - "Climate Change and Risk Analysis"

 

"Climate Change and Risk Analysis"

Satutday February 20

10AM to 11AM SL time

Over the last 40 years, a wide scientific consensus predicted a global, annual average, temperature increase due to human emissions of carbon dioxide plus the feedback of the amount of water vapor that the atmosphere can contain as the atmospheric temperatures increased. The primary focus of scientific policy recommendations was mitigation of such global warming by shifting to carbon neutral energy production  Nonetheless, the atmospheric concentration of CO2 has continued to increase from a preindustrial value of 285 ppm (parts per million) to a concentration in 2000 of 370 ppm to about 418 ppm today, high than any prior time in human history.. This increase is sufficient that we can no longer focus only on global emissions reduction but must reckon with local adaptations to already existing economic and social system risks, where a risk is considered to be an undesirable event stemming from a changing climate.

This initiates a project, often at the level of cities and counties, of identifying potential risks, estimating various levels of likelihood, tying those levels to consequences for human lives, social systems, and economics, and then pursuing means of adapting to reduce the risks. 

Presentation by Dr. Keith Grant

For more information, Click Here.

http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/The%20Science%20Circle/67/129/32

InWorldz.com Now A Gambling Website

It's been over two years since the virtual world of InWorldz, once Second Life's strongest competitor, closed down. The website closed down soon after. It was recently revealed in Virtual Ability group chat that somebody had bought the website, and changed it into something that may be "click at your own risk."

Please be aware, everyone, that if you still have any saved links for InWorldz, that the domain name inworldz.com has been taken over by a Thai gambling and online-betting site.  Be careful as gambling sites are absolutely notorious for hidden malware.  (reposted from another group)

With this in mind, one should express caution to going to any InWolrdz links on websites.

Bixyl Shuftan

News and Commentary: Net Neutrality at Risk

The issue of "Net Neutrality," the idea that Internet Service Providers treat all data the same and not intentionally restrict it for the purpose of making money, came into the news recently when Chairman Ajit Pai of the Federal Communications Commission released a plan that calls for the dismantling of laws protecting it. Pai called current laws "heavy-handed Internet regulations." But the response has been a number of protests from ordinary Americans to columnists and more. Among them is Mark Fischback, better known as "Markiplier." Usually, he does gaming review videos. But he did one asking people to move to protect Net Neutrality.



It's difficult to see how the end of Net Neutrality would help anyone but the big telecom industries, who would then be able to choke people's Internet access in order to make more money to themselves. They could deliberately slow access to all but designated "fast lanes" that they would charge more for. They could deny access to certain platforms, such as Skype and Discord, in order to steer people to using their own. They could slow down, or even deny access to certain games and websites.

Looking back, there is evidence they would do just that. In 2011, MetroPCS moved to charge different rates for Internet access. In 2012, AT&T moved to block Apple's application Facetime from it's users who didn't pay for an expensive plan. In 2013, Verizon went to court to repeal Net Neutrality regulations at the time, saying they had the right to treat traffic unevenly.

This is more than just slowing down movie and video downloads and making some online first person shooters unplayable to certain users. The free flow of data that Internet Neutrality provides allows for small online businesses and entrepreneurs to start up easier while a "throttled" Internet could choke off these new companies before they start.

What to do? One can write their Congressman and/or Senator. There are also petitions one can sign, sign as the one at petitions.whitehouse.gov/, and change.org.

Hopefully, the proposed dismantling will itself be dismantled.

Sources: Popular Mechanics, Wikipedia, New York Times, The Verge, Gigaom, 9to5Mac, change.org, whitehouse.gov

Bixyl Shuftan