Tag: NETHERLANDS

Libyans may not be able to rely on their own national networks to access the Internet, but they can still get online the old-fashioned way, thanks to a small Dutch ISP called XS4ALL. Users with modems can log into XS4ALL by dialing +31205350535, and entering xs4all as both the user name and password. The downside is that accessing the ISP will require Libyan users to pay international calling ...

A teenager in the Netherlands has been arrested after he confessed to participating in the recent pro-WikiLeaks cyberattacks on Visa and MasterCard. According to a press release from the Dutch National Office, the 16-year-old boy is part of the recently notorious online group called Anonymous, which has been orchestrating distributed denial of service (DDOS) attacks on all companies that have ...

The Internet may be moving us ever closer to a paperless existence, but, according to a newly released study, it's still not that great for trees. As Mac World reports, the study was commissioned five years ago by the Dutch city of Alphen aan den Rijn, after officials noticed that many trees in the area were exhibiting inexplicable abnormalities, including bleeding and fissures in their bark. Such ...

Police in Rotterdam have begun installing new, high-tech security systems in stores across the Dutch city, in an effort to help local businesses combat theft in particularly crime-plagued neighborhoods. Unlike most security systems, though, Rotterdam's new device doesn't feature any high-pitched alarms or flashing lights. All it does is spray synthetic DNA. As the New York Times explains, the ...

Thomas Voor 't Hekke has placed birds with surveillance cameras for heads all over the city of Utrecht, Netherlands. The 'panoptICONS', as he calls them, are clear in their meaning, and reflect his distrust of government supervision in broad strokes. But, like a Banksy stencil come to life, their menacing visual contrast startles passersby, reminding them of the eye in the sky. ...

The global fascination with sports thrusts professional competitors into an inescapable communal spotlight, a lesson learned long ago by the first tweeting athletes. Players and owners from both the NBA and NFL continue to draw the ire of league officials for sexual, bigoted and inopportune Twitter updates. While patronizing and condescending European "football" clubs may dismiss U.S. soccer, the ...

Augmented reality technology is really fantastic. Really! But, like anything else, it has potential for abuse, misuse, and simple wrongheadedness. In both Amsterdam and Rotterdam, the Dutch government has installed AR billboards intended to combat an apparently pervasive problem; public workers, in the course of their regular duties, are routinely faced with violence and aggression from ...

In the Netherlands, the sale of marijuana is legal, albeit restricted, but the nation is still engaged in a cannabis drug war. According to Dvice, 90-percent of the marijuana grown on local Dutch farms is sold illegally through smugglers and foreign drug traffickers. To help combat the unsanctioned reefer madness, Dutch police have added a new unmanned helicopter, dubbed the 'Canna Chopper,' ...

You know those insect-like micro air vehicles (MAV) we've been seeing? Well, the ExoFly aerobot is based on that camera-equipped DelFly design, only this time it's gearing up for a trip to Mars -- maybe even Titan or Venus. Turns out flapping-wing flight is perfect for the low-density viscous Martian atmosphere. The current prototype -- weighing 17g with a wingspan of 350mm and flight time of ...

The Dutch town of Hengelo looks to be taking a rather unique approach to cleaning the air, with it now testing out a new type of "air-purifying concrete" developed by the University of Twente that promises to soak up the nitrogen oxide particles emitted by car exhausts. That's done with the aid of a titanium dioxide-based additive which, with the help of some sunlight, binds with the nitrogen ...