It would appear as if Energizer has found themselves in between a rock and a hard place. The famous battery maker’s Duo charger software infects an end user’s computer with a Trojan Horse malware infection, granting hackers full access to your computer, according to the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT).

When the software is installed on a user’s computer, it creates a malevolent file called “arucer.dll,” which will actually listen for remote commands on TCP port 7777. The file is capable of downloading executable files, transmit pilfered information, or even modify your computer’s registry files.

via Energizer Duo Charger Software Packs a Trojan.

In a draft solicitation request, the Army said it plans to build the entire system on Microsoft Exchange 2010. Lt. Gen Jeffery Sorenson, the Army’s chief information officer who is spearheading the effort, said he’d like to see the entire Defense Department use the system.

It’s a massive undertaking for the Army which supports 950,000 accounts. When a soldier moves from one location to another, he or she currently has to get a new email address, and the old one has to be deleted. And these multiple accounts open many doors for cyber hackers.

via Army plans enterprise email system – FierceGovernmentIT.

Defense spending is the overwhelming majority of our nation’s federal budget. Even if we are in two gruesome wars, there must be efficiencies in the daily operations of our armed forces that can be found that may seem insignificant, but can save millions per year.

Hype for it. Don’t care what you say. Respect to illRoots.com. I would also be hype if this Tron was the subject of a feature length film.

On Wednesday, a female trainer at SeaWorld was killed when a 12,000-pound orca named Tilikum (“Tilly”) grabbed her by the ponytail, dragged her under water, and thrashed her about in his jaws. Twenty audience members, lingering after a production of “Dine With Shamu,” witnessed the act. It was the third human death Tilly has been involved in, and yet the park has no intention of euthanizing him, partly because his motives were unclear. Was his intent to kill, or was it an accident, the result of roughhousing with a mammal 1/100th his own size?

No one knows. But the stresses of captivity seem responsible. Captive orcas often decline to eat, and are force-fed until they do. And while there are no known cases of an orca killing a human in the wild, around two dozen cases exist of captive orcas attacking humans.

In response, SeaWorld, whose brand-image depends on friendly-looking killer whales, has found itself in a public-relations quandary akin to what Accenture experienced with its “Go on. Be a Tiger” ads.

via Making a whale into a killer – Pets. Animals. – Salon.com.

But didn’t she love this whale beyond reason?

Tilly was sold to Sea World from Sealand in British Columbia, CA after killing a trainer there in play. This sale was allegedly made with the understanding that Tilly wouldn’t be used in shows at Sea World, but that didn’t fit Sea World’s bottom line. The trainer used to say “Tilly” was like her family. Sorry, that sounds very off to me and it always will. Conservatories or refuges are different stories, but I am just not a fan of playing games with animals who have no extended history of domestication. Scientific study is one thing, but we just don’t need stupid pet tricks performed by the most violent natural killers in nature.

The House of Commons Science and Technology Committee (STC) has released a report, Evidence Check 2: Homeopathy, in which they recommend that the NHS stop funding homeopathy. The reports is rare commodity – a thoroughly science-based political document.

The committee went beyond simply stating that homeopathy does not work, and revealed impressive insight into the ethical, practical, and scientific problems caused by NHS support for an implausible and ineffective pseudoscience.

The STC formed in October of 2009, and this is their second report. The goals of the STC itself are significant step forward:

The purpose of Evidence Check is to examine how the Government uses evidence to formulate and review its policies.

We certainly can use more of that.

via Science-Based Medicine » Homeopathy Gets a Reality Check in the UK.

More, please.

Obama continues final push for health care reform.