Net neutrality debate rolls on in Europe

The European Union is considering rules in response allegations that ISPs are deliberately blocking certain services. But any action will effectively be net-neutrality lite: officials say they won’t block discrimination based on speed.

According to the EU, the strictest definition of net neutrality — that all legal traffic is treated equally — isn’t suitable for practical use. The EU’s leading official on digital issues, Neelie Kroes (pictured) gave the example of an ISP giving priority to a Voice Over Internet Protocol service instead of an e-mail (the theory being a few seconds delay to the former is far more harmful) as an acceptable form of traffic management.

Instead it appears the EU is mainly concerned with net neutrality violations that involve a specific target. For example, it noted the case of an unnamed British ISP that completely blocked access to Skype during the afternoon and evening. That type of activity may be barred under future rules, with a particular emphasis on those who target direct competitors. There’s also going to be further investigation into set-ups where mobile internet providers charge an additional fee for accessing VOIP services.

The main immediate action will be new rules taking effect on May 25 by which providers must make it clear to consumers exactly how they’ll be affected by throttling, traffic management or data use caps. It look as if officials hope this information will be enough to let competition do its work, with providers that impose excessive restrictions being driven out of business as consumers move elsewhere.

How those rules work in practice could be questionable: for example, will ISPs be allowed to reserve the right to change traffic management policies without affected customers being allowed to cancel a minimum-term contract?

Want to Remember Something? Read It in a New Font.

We all use bold and italics for emphasis, and I’m not innocent of bumping up the font size when I need something to carry a message of importance. But recent studies show that while font size and weight won’t help you remember information, an unfamiliar or difficult-to-read font will.

The Princeton University Department of Psychology recently released an article detailing two studies on disfluency (difficulty understanding or recalling information) related to the font in which information is presented. In the first study, 28 men and women were asked to read information about new alien species; each group received the same information written in different fonts (16pt Arial or 12pt Comic Sans/Bodoni MT). Later, they were all given an exam relating to the materials. The group reading in the less common fonts outscored those reading in Arial by roughly 13%.

In the second study, over 200 students in an Ohio school were given supplementary course materials in English, history and science printed in Monotype Corsiva. The remainder of students were given the same information in standard-issue format. Follow-up testing showed that all students receiving the script version of notes and guidelines scored better than those with Times New Roman, especially in Physics.

So, what does all of this mean? The implication is that a less familiar font requires more concentration to read, which improves learning in a rather predictable way: Reading materials are studied more closely, allowing the reader to fully understand and retain information better than another reader who can easily skim through the paragraphs.

Reprinting a textbook not really an option? That’s ok. Daniel M. Oppenheimer, a psychologist at Princeton and co-author of the studies, says you can just study harder and get the same effect… but we already knew that.

[source | source]



Soviet Space Program Propaganda, 1958-1963 [Pics]

The race to space was no joke for the former Soviet Union, and support from the populace–while not exactly necessary— was important. The propaganda posters from the late-fifties and early-sixties are nothing short of spectacular. From Russia Travel Blog, some examples:

“For the Peace.”

“Conquer Space!”

Alternately: “In Soviet Russia, space conquers you!”

“Gagarin, Titov, Nikolaev, Popovich – the mighty knights of our days”

For more of these (complete with traslations), check out this post.

[via]

Man Walks Again After 20 Years in a Wheelchair

Thanks to the ReWalk mobility solution, people with severe walking impairments can now walk, sit down, and even ascend/descent stairs again. These robotic legs have an autonomy of 8 hours and are currently priced at $150,000. They may be extremely pricey for now, but as with all new technologies, I’m sure their price will go down quickly enough.

[ReWalk]