According to a recent report, the dreaded and perhaps the most notorious terrorist organizations of all time, Al Qaeda is now spreading its extremely violent propaganda through websites that are designed in English language and are speculated to be numbered to be 200. These websites spread Al Qaeda’s message by translating the writings and sermons in English and then publish them on the internet.

Extremist preachers such as Anwar al-Awlaki, who is also known to be an affiliate to Nidal Malik Hasan, a U.S army major, who gunned down 13 people at Fort Hood, Texas is also spreading his message of hatred through such websites. Major Hasan and al-Awlaki had infact exchanged numerous e-mails.

According to Evan Kohlmann (Senior Investigator, NEFA Foundation), “The point is you don’t have to be an official part of al-Qaida to spread hatred and sectarian views. If you look at the most influential documents in terms of homegrown terrorism cases, it’s not training manuals on building bombs. The most influential documents are the ones that are written by theological advisers, some of whom are not even official al-Qaida members.”

Even though many of the radical Islamic websites aren’t directly affiliated to Al-Qaeda, yet they prove to be extremely effective in brain washing and create a much more convenient tool for recruiters who are then able to stay in shadows and recruit willing youngsters for a dangerous cause. Al-Qaeda has been long trying to recruit as many western country members as possible by posting audio and video messages on the internet. However, these messages need to have subtitles for readers of different ethnicity to understand.

But with sermons and extremist teaching being translated into English, the reach of these texts has now exponentially increased and with it so have the chances of more and more misguided youths joining the terrorist organization.

Via Associated Press.

With only one aircraft carrier, INS Virat currently operational in the Indian Navy, India is fast looking for a replacement or another addition of an aircraft carrier to increase its naval capabilities. The INS Virat has already crossed its operational life span with 50 years and has been serving the Indian navy since its commissioning in the year 1987.

However, the Indian Navy is now on the fast track to acquire and commission a new aircraft carriers and its eyes are set on a yet to built vessel that is being built by Britain. The unconfirmed deal with the British manufacturers has come in the wake of a prolonged and and deadlocked deal with Russia for Admiral Gorshkov, an aircraft carrier that India is supposed to receive from Russia in the year 2012.

The proposed vessel being built by Britain is one of the two aircraft carriers that are on the drawing board and would cost $3.36 billion a piece and could be sold to India, under the cost cutting initiative undertaken by the U.K Ministry of Defense. According to the British aircraft carrier program, The Royal Navy of the United Kingdom is slated to receive the HMS Queen Elizabeth in the year 2016 and HMS Prince of Wales has already witnessed the beginning of the project and is expected to enter service in the year 2018.

The INS Virat was originally commissioned in the Royal Navy in the year 1959 as the HMS Hermes and was later acquired by the Indian Navy in the year 1987. The aircraft carrier, INS Virat completed its 50 glorious years of service with 1,500 crew on board. The completion of the 50 years of service was marked by a massive refit of the vessel at the Cochin Shipyard in India and the overhaul has extended the operational service duration of the vessel till the year 2015.

Via SpaceWar.

The age of laser offensive and defensive weaponry got a boost from one of the principal military contractors to the U.S Department of Defense, Boeing Company, that has reportedly tested an all new surface to air laser defense system and shot down six unmanned drones, paving the way for a possible successful implementation of laser based weapons into the front line military units of the U.S armed forces.

Laser weapons, especially in the role of land based air defense systems have long been visualized as the most optimum weapon systems, as they would significantly reduce the threat of the personnel manning the conventional surface to air missile batteries. However, such sophisticated and at times completely autonomous laser weapon systems had so far been a matter of science fiction.

The latest tests undertaken by Boeing involved elements of the U.S. Air Force, U.S. Army and Naval Air Warfare Center in China Lake, California, that took extensive part in testing the reliability and feasibility options for the new weapon system. The purpose of the test, according to Boeing was to establish the capability of such defensive laser weapons in detection and destruction of aerial threats.

The mobile laser weapon developed by Boeing is called, Mobile Active Targeting Resource for Integrated Experiments or MATRIX and was developed under the contract from the U.S Air Force Research Laboratory. The MATRIX is basically a trailer mounted laser defense system and employs a high powered targeted laser beam at the target, to to blow it out of the sky.

According to Gary Fitzmire (V.P, Boeing Missile Defense Systems’ Directed Energy Systems),

“The Air Force and Boeing achieved a directed-energy breakthrough with these tests. MATRIX’s performance is especially noteworthy because it demonstrated unprecedented, ultra-precise and lethal acquisition, pointing and tracking at long ranges using relatively low laser power.”

Via Space War.

In a recent breakthrough in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks, two suspects, who have been identified as Pakistani nationals have been apprehended by the Italian authorities in Brescia  province. The pair of father and son, reportedly had provided the terror elements of the Mumbai attacks with logistical support.

According to the initial reports, the duo had transferred money to successfully activate their internet phone accounts, that were later used by the terrorists involved in one of the most daring and heinous attack carried out on Indian soil. The money was transferred using a stolen identity that of a U.S based company in the amount of $229 and got them access to five online telephony lines, that have long been a thorn in the bush for the intelligence agencies, as such accounts are extremely difficult to trace.

Italian authorities had been tipped off about the fraudulent by the U.S Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Indian police department and the investigations were on since December last year. The 26/11 attacks were carried out by terrorists from Pakistan, who had hit two luxury hotels, a Jewish residential compound and several other sites, including a busy train station. The horrendous attacks claimed the lives of 166 people, that included one Italian citizen, among 19 foreign nationals who were killed in the three days siege.

The pair of Pakistani nationals who were apprehended have been identified as 60-year-old Mohammad Yaqub Janjua and 31-year-old Aamer Yaqub Janjua, who have now been accused of aiding and abetting international terrorism along with illegal financial activity.

Via Associated Press.

One of the state-run coal mines in the Xinxing mine in Heilongjiang province caved in after a massive blast tore through the mining area, killing 42 miners and trapping 66 other miners, with the rescue efforts at their peak to rescue the miners.

This latest tragedy has brought the spotlight to the highly dangerous mining industry of China, that has in the recent past been marred with a string of accidents and tragedies that have led to an immense loss of life. China is one of the biggest mining nations in the world and has numerous large scale state run mines that, the government has been constantly trying to inculcate safer standards to.

Out of the 528 people who were working in the Xinxing mine at the time of the explosion, 389 people escaped the cave in. The explosion occurred at around 0230 hours local time, that killed 42 miners and trapped 66 others. However, 31 of trapped miners have been rescued from at a depth of 500 meters underground. The explosion severed ventilation and communication links in the mine, that has led to hurdles for the rescue teams.

The Chinese government has long been trying to curb the explosion of unregulated new mines that are sprouting nowadays all across China. These unlawful mining entities amount to about 80% of the total number of mines in the country. As per government estimates, more than 303 people have died in various mining incidents in the last months and the primary reason of such accidents have been gas explosions.

Via Associated Press.

The scientists at CERN in Geneva are reportedly getting close to activate the world’s biggest particle accelerator known as the Large Hadron Collider to begin the experiment with which the scientists at the biggest physics laboratory expect to witness the environment and the situation at the time of the Big Bang. The time when the universe was created.

Large Hadron Collider was severely damages during an experiment that was carried out last year and the scientists as well the technicians at CERN are stunned at the pace with the LHC has become operational again. The restart of the particle accelerator means that the scientists will now be able to send protons circling in a 27 kilometer long tube almost at the speed of light.

At the time of the surprise restart, many of the scientists involved in the project had left for their homes and had to be immediately called called back to their offices for the resumption of the experiment. According to James Gillies (Spokesman, European Organization for Nuclear Research),

“The scientists basically had to tear up the first few pages of their PowerPoint presentation which had outlined the procedures that they were planning to follow. That was all wrapped up by midnight. They are going through the paces really very fast.”

The operational status for the LHC was expected to be around 0600 GMT on Saturday, but the sudden restart of the machine cut down seven hours off the time limit and scientists were able tp carry on with the experiment from yesterday evening itself. For the experiment, CERN is currently using about 2,000 superconducting magnets, that will allow the team to control the direction of the protons that are numbered in billions, so as to keep the sensitive equipment of the LHC away from harm’s way.

Via Associated Press.

The ever popular PopoPlug hard drive sharing device manufactured by Cloud Engines Inc. has finally been given a much needed upgrade and the all new PopoPlug now sports the support for upto four simultaneous USB hard drives, that can now be attached to the device and their contents can then be shared on the web.

The all new PopoPlug device is available for $129 and entails no service fee and keeping in tune to the social networking revolution, it also has integrated Twitter and Facebook services. This new device sporting four USB hard drives enables users to share their media files on the PopoPlug website and can even broadcast their files on Apple iPhone.

PopoPlug hard drive sharing device has also been given a complete facelift, with a new vibrant pink colored casing and still operates on the traditional Ethernet mode of connectivity for internet access. The new upgraded model also features a newly introduced drag and drop feature, along with multimedia slide shows that, significantly enhance use experience, especially when it comes to multimedia files. The files on your computers can now directly be synchronized with the PopoPlug device via tools like iTunes, Windows Media Player, and iPhoto.

Here is an excerpt from the the press release for PopoPlug:

San Francisco, Calif. – November 20, 2009 – Cloud Engines, Inc. unveiled the second generation of the award winning Pogoplug multimedia sharing device today giving consumers more flexibility to store personal content safely in the home and access, manage, and share it from anywhere on the Internet. The new Pogoplug hardware sports a new design boasting multiple USB ports supporting up to 4 external drives for expanded data capacity. The new Pogoplug also gives users improved sharing capabilities, an easy drag-and-drop interface to create engaging multi-media slide shows, seamless media playback, and enhanced sharing with friends on Facebook, Twitter and MySpace.

Pogoplug acts like a gateway from your home or office through the Internet. It allows you to access, share and even stream your personal digital media directly to anybody, anywhere in the world. Your content always remains physically in your home or office, making it secure, convenient and available on your terms. Pogoplug is perfect for those individuals with increasingly mobile lifestyles and small businesses in need of simple, inexpensive mobile data access solutions.

“The reaction to the Pogoplug has been incredible. By listening to user feedback and following our own product roadmap, we are bringing a great second-generation product that gives our customers access to a host of new features that both improve the function of the Pogoplug, and add to the fun of using it as well.” said Daniel Putterman, CEO of Cloud Engines, Inc. “We are committed to giving our customers the best way to access their data from anywhere in the world, pushing the envelope with both product quality and design aesthetic. The result is what you see here today.”

NEW HARDWARE

The new Pogoplug design retains the simplicity and ease of use of the original while listening to consumer feedback and adding the ability to directly connect up to 4 external hard drives at once. The resulting product boasts an improved design with greatly improved functionality for users with multiple drives and an increasing need for easy synching and sharing of their digital libraries. This upgrade turns the Pogoplug into an even more prominent feature in the modern digital home or small business.

NEW FEATURES

Automatically Synchronize Photos, Videos, Music and Other Selected Content

Users can synchronize their Pogoplug with their PC or Mac to automatically import new content from popular applications such as iTunes, Windows Media Player, and iPhoto. This feature allows Pogoplug owners to “set it and forget it” and always have access to new photos, videos and music from anywhere on the Internet.

Drag-and-Drop Music and Photo Slideshows

Users can easily create and share fun and engaging slideshows using their stored photos, videos and music. Creating a slideshow with Pogoplug is as simple as drag and drop, and sharing these slideshows is just as easy as ever. Once a user’s link is shared and viewed, their slideshow will immediately begin with the photos, videos and music they selected, playing seamlessly in the viewer’s browser.

Easier Sharing with Pogoplug Address Book

Pogoplug Address Book greatly improves the speed and ease of use of sharing with a user’s friends and family. Pogoplug automatically remembers all email addresses entered in a user’s previous shares – even if that share no longer exists – and makes them available in an easy to use address book to make sharing truly one click away.

Global Search Across Multiple Drives and Pogoplugs

With support for multiple drives on a single Pogoplug (and multiple Pogoplugs on the same account) Pogoplug has added “global” search support across all of a user’s Pogoplugs and drives. Search filters are now a distinct feature, allowing users to view all of their photos, videos and music in a single organized view, or to search for a specific file across all Pogoplugs and drives.

Organize Your Music, Photos and Videos

Pogoplug automatically displays music by Album, Artist and Genre, and shows cover art for quick access to a user’s favorite music. Photos are now displayed by photo timeline and videos are only a click away, including the ability to watch a preview in the thumbnail itself.

Play movies directly from my.pogoplug.com, or even to the iPhone

Pogoplug now supports the playback of videos directly from a Pogoplug, with support for the most popular cameras, video cameras and mobile phones. Movies can be shared and viewed directly from the Pogoplug website – or even from an iPhone!

Pricing and Availability

We are currently taking Pre-Orders for Pogoplug at www.pogoplug.com Units will ship before the end of the year – just in time for the Holiday Season. The Pogoplug has a suggested retail price of $129, with no additional service fees.

Via Crunch Gear & PopoPlug.

For a long time now, Yahoo! Inc has been experiencing a significant slump as far as the usage of its search engine, Yahoo! Search is concerned. Users worldwide have become more inclined towards Google and Microsoft’s Bing search engines and reduced the usage of Yahoo! drastically.

In an effort to revive the importance of its search engine, Yahoo! has reportedly gotten into a deal with the micro blogging sensation in which, Yahoo! will now be fetching important tweets and information from the micro blogging website and incorporate them into Yahoo! Search. Even though Microsoft’ and Google have already made sub deals with Twitter, Yahoo will be the very first service to show tweets into the search engine.

Yahoo! plans to show tweets from Twitter that revolve around important information and events. Whenever a search string is keyed in Yahoo! search regarding a specific topic or a news event, Yahoo! will display fur unique tabs for the query, each one will be dedicated towards links to news sites, one tab for images, one tab for video and the last tab will specifically display tweets from Twitter.

The Twitter tab in Yahoo! search will display the information from Twitter pages of some of the most respected media outlets, such as, CNN and Associated Press and will also the users tweets that might be directing towards an interesting or breaking news. The deal between Yahoo! and Twitter has reportedly been devoid of any financial compensations and Yahoo! will be employing the free tools at its disposal to include Twitter in its search results.

Via Digital Trends.

The music hardware giant, Sony Corporation has announced that, it will be launching an all new online music store, called Sony Online Service, that will be one stop store for music, videos and other multimedia entertainment files. The Sony Online Service is being viewed as a stark competitor to the Apple iTunes, that has so far led the domain of online music stores.

The all new service from Sony was announced at Sony’s management strategy meeting in Tokyo, Japan and the service is expected to have some similarities to iTunes, that has been taken as the platform on which Sony Online Service has been designed.

Sony plans to the integrate its on PlayStation network, a services that provides the PlayStation gamers with an online environment where they can play the multi player modes of their favorite titles. The PlayStation network is currently comprised of more than 33 million users world wide.

According to a report published by Sony Corporation,

“Sony will try to differentiate its service from iTunes. One example: Users will be able to upload videos shot on camcorders, save photos taken with digital cameras, and post other digital content to their personal online accounts. That’s how Google’s suite of Net-based services (such as YouTube video-sharing and Picasso photo site) works. At some point down the road, Sony would consider letting independent software developers create applications for the service, much the way Apple does for its iPhone.”

Sony has long been facing financial crunch especially in its two most prominent divisions, TVs and video games. Due to the global economic downturn and the high prices of Sony electronic appliances, the company has witnessing a substantial loss in its revenue and profits. The all new online strategy developed by Sony management is the only shot that, the company can pin its hopes on for a recovery.

Via Electric Pig.

The much awaited and highly anticipated Google Chrome OS, that has the online community jumping with excitement, has finally made its way to the users’ machines in the form of a virtual boot. The test version has been released in the form of a VMware image of Google Chrome OS, that can be tested on the systems in the form of a virtual environment. The peer to peer torrent file for the Google Chrome  virtual boot is available at the Pirate Bay.

The all new Google Chrome OS boasts a much fast boost timing than that of the current operating systems. The Google OS is now known to be completely web oriented, as the applications that will entail the Chrome OS will be more different than the conventional applications found on today’s operating systems, as these new apps will consist of URLs and online functioning.

The entire settings and applications in Google Chrome are known to be completely online and have very limited offline capabilities. Features such as GMail, Google Docs and other Google tools and even the notepad in Google Chrome OS will all be internet dependent. Google Chrome OS is expected to make it debut next year, but as per inside sources, the operating system will be built with specific reference hardware and will be provided with especially with original equipment manufacturers.

Via Life Hacker & The Pirate Bay.