5 Beatles: Rock Band Tunes We’re Ready to Rock, 5 We’ll Miss

Patient Rock Band players’ long wait for songs by The Beatles ends Wednesday when the special version of the game hits store shelves. But some Fab Four fans are going to have to wait a little longer to play the tunes they love.

In solidarity with both camps, we’ve drafted lists celebrating the sonic strengths and weaknesses of The Beatles: Rock Band. We’ve named the top five tunes we simply can’t wait to perform as well as the top five we seriously wish made the cut for the game (or its post-release downloads, to be rolled out starting in October).

See also:

The Beatles Make the Leap to Rock Band

Hands-On: Beatles Rock Band’s Reward System, Drum Trainer

What’s the hold-up on the holdouts?

“We want to have all The Beatles’ music,” Harmonix spokesperson John Drake told Total Video Games in July, “and try to deliver it to you as best we can in these digestible chunks.”

Don’t worry, John, we can take bigger chunks. Chuck them all at us. You’ll still make millions.

Got your own favorites? Let us know which tracks you’re looking forward to rocking, and which you’re sorry aren’t around to be rocked, in the reddit widget or comments section below. Come together, over us.

The Beatles: Rock Band, out 9/9/9, features 45 memorable tunes plus more for download. But it's missing winners.
Image courtesy Apple Corps.

Strike Up the Band! Five We’ll Rock

“Helter Skelter” from The White Album
The loudest rock song The Beatles ever made, this finger-blister has been revised by Aerosmith, Siouxsie and Autolux (and has been utterly misunderstood by the ultimate frustrated amateur, Charles Manson). Originally designed by Paul McCartney to outdo the dirty rock of The Who, it has become legend to rock pros and pretenders worldwide. If you’re a Beatles nut for everything after Rubber Soul, chances are this is the first tune you’ll play when you unwrap the package.

“I Want You (She’s So Heavy)” from Abbey Road
While jagged imprecision rules “Helter Skelter,” hypnotic precision hammers this rock epic down the gravity well. An eight-minute blast of sexual yearning and head-bobbing chord progressions shot through with sinister groove, the power of “I Want You” is simply narcotic. “Helter Skelter” has volume, but this unusual entry weighs heavy like a black hole. It’s all in the title.

“Birthday” from The White Album
Crackling riffs, Ringo’s roughest drumming, and unrestrained vocals help this monstrous stomp stand out from the Beatles’ densely populated pack of winners. Singers won’t have to stress on the lyrics, of which there are few, but their throats will probably be sore when it’s over. It would have been a mind-wipe to watch the Fab Four perform this burner in the flesh — performing it with your pals is probably the next best thing.

“While My Guitar Gently Weeps” from The White Album
Eric Clapton laid down smoking guitar for George Harrison’s timeless track, including a solo that has given guitarists real and make-believe fits of ecstasy, whether on steel strings or in empty air. (Have any of you caught Prince’s rendition? Find the clip; it will melt your face.) “While My Guitar Gently Weeps” is one of the finest rock songs of all time, that rare convergence of sound and sentiment. Soak it up.

“Dig a Pony” from Let It Be
It’s one of The Beatles’ most maligned tunes. Even Lennon called it a piece of garbage, and he wrote it. But rediscovering the genius of tracks like “Dig a Pony” is what virtual immersions like Rock Band are for. From its angular guitar and nonsensical lyrics to its urgent vocals and insistent drums, this Let It Be throwaway is primed for a repurposing at the hands of those way too young to snicker about where it sits within Beatles canon.

Dude, Where’s My Rock? Five We’ll Miss

“Happiness Is a Warm Gun” from The White Album
One of the Fab Four’s most cynical, hilarious tunes, this blazing meter-shifter rocks the body and brain. Lennon once called this song the history of rock ‘n’ roll in microcosm, which is enough to warrant its admittance to Rock Band. Its unhinged doo-wop finale and cerebral lyrics would test wannabe vocalists to the max, and guitarists would have a field day with the sludgy riffs and ethereal arpeggios. Bang bang, shoot shoot!

“Strawberry Fields Forever” from Magical Mystery Tour
How could Harmonix not include this immortal track, one of the most beautiful Beatles tunes ever committed to wax? A simple acoustic lullabye hiding beneath polished psychedelia, “Strawberry Fields Forever” can be played in so many glorious ways. Especially by novices molesting plastic. Maybe songs from Magical Mystery Tour are being squirreled away for a future payday. Which sucks.

“I’m Only Sleeping” from Revolver
Like “Tomorrow Never Knows,” which made the cut in the form of a medley with “Within You Without You,” this ambitious head-trip from 1966 was one of the first psychedelic tunes from The Beatles, or anyone for that matter. One wonders how The Beatles would have ever played it live. A studio jewel, it features two guitar solos from George Harrison played in reverse, which could keep adepts busy and tax the wrists of noobs. Speaking of the always underrated Harrison…

“Savoy Truffle” from The White Album
Harrison’s ode to Eric Clapton ’s chocolate addiction is chock-full of delicious rock. “Savoy Truffle” orbits around a ferocious guitar jam, with some tasty leads sprinkled in for good measure, and has been covered by artists as different as Ella Fitzgerald and They Might Be Giants. What, amateurs can’t give it a go? Turn it up loud the next time you spin The White Album. You’ll see what we mean.

“Rain” from Hey Jude
From its gorgeous pop bounce to its dense sonics and backward vocals, this 1966 B-side for “Paperback Writer” is a mesmerizing listen. It could be just as hypnotic in fake performance, rewarding all members of the band at hand. Better yet, it’s comparatively esoteric, meaning that even old Beatles fans might find a deep cut worth another several years of devotion (and Rock Band downloads).

NASA And ISRO Satellites Perform In Tandem To Search For Ice On The Moon

NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University - Image of the crater Erlanger (87 N, 28.6 E; 10 km diameter), the target crater for our Bi-Static observations. Mini-SAR images suggest unusual scattering properties of the crater interior compared with its exterior. LROC Narrow Angle Camera image.

WASHINGTON – On Aug. 20, 2009 NASA and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will attempt a novel joint experiment that could yield more information on whether ice exists in a permanently shadowed crater near the north pole of the moon. Currently the ISRO’s Chandrayaan-1 and NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) spacecraft are orbiting the moon. While LRO is in its commissioning phase the two spacecraft pass close enough to each other when they are over the lunar north pole to attempt a unique experiment. Both spacecraft are equipped with a NASA Miniature Radio Frequency (RF) instrument that functions as a Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), known as Mini-SAR on Chandrayaan-1 and Mini-RF on LRO. The experiment uses both radars to point at Erlanger Crater at the same time.

Normally the Mini-RF Instrument sends radio pulses to the moon and precisely records the radio echoes that bounce straight back from the surface, along with their timing and frequency. From these data scientists can build images of the moon that not only show areas they otherwise couldn’t see, such as the permanently-shadowed areas near the lunar poles, but also contain information on the physical nature of the surface.

For the Bi-Static experiment the Mini-SAR on Chandrayaan-1 performs its normal SAR imaging (transmitting and receiving) while the Mini-RF is set to receive only. The two instruments look at the same location from different angles. Comparing the signal that bounces straight back to Chandrayaan with the signal that bounces at a slight angle to LRO provides unique information about the surface.

Arecibo Radiotelescope Puerto Rico - Low resolution Earth-based radar image of the North Pole of the Moon, showing the position of the crater Erlanger (arrow). Radar image (70 cm wavelength).

Stewart Nozette, Mini-RF principal investigator from the Universities Space Research Association’s Lunar and Planetary Institute, said, “An extraordinary effort was made by the whole NASA team working with ISRO to make this happen”

While this coordination sounds easy, this experiment is extremely challenging because both spacecraft are traveling at about 1.6 km per second and will be looking at an area on the ground about 18 km across. Due to the extreme speeds and the small point of interest, NASA and ISRO need to obtain and share information about the location and pointing of both spacecraft. The Bi-Static experiment requires extensive tracking by ground stations of NASA’s Deep Space Network, the Applied Physics Laboratory, and ISRO.

Even with the considerable planning and coordination between the U.S. and India the two instrument beams may not overlap, or may miss the desired location. Even without hitting the exact location Scientists may still be able to use the Bi-Static information to further knowledge already received from both instruments.

“The international coordination and cooperation between the two agencies for this experiment is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate future cooperation between NASA and ISRO, “says Jason Crusan, program executive for the Mini-RF program, from NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C.

ISRO/NASA/JHUAPL/LPI - Mosaic of Mini-SAR image strips of the north polar area, showing the crater Erlanger, just south of the crater Peary. North Pole is in the direction of left top, out of frame. Mini-SAR radar image, Chandrayaan-1 mission.

“In the last few years we have seen a renaissance in international interest and cooperation in the study of the moon” says Gordon Johnson, program executive for the LRO, from NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, Washington, D.C. “As LRO completes its commissioning phase, we look forward to LRO’s contribution to this international effort.”

LRO was launched June 18, 2009. Its objectives are to scout for safe landing sites, locate potential resources, characterize the radiation environment, and demonstrate new technology. NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md. built and manages the mission for NASA’S Exploration Systems Mission Directorate in Washington. LRO is a NASA mission with international participation from the Institute for Space Research in Moscow. Russia provides the neutron detector aboard the spacecraft.

Instrument principal investigators Stewart Nozette (LRO) and Paul Spudis (Chandrayaan-1) are from the Universities Space Research Association’s Lunar and Planetary Institute. NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, manages the Mini-RF program. NASA’s Exploration Systems Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters, manages the LRO.

In addition to Mini-SAR the Chandryaan-1 spacecraft, which was launched in October 2008 from India’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre, also carries NASA’s Moon Mineralogy Mapper for assessing the moon’s mineral resources.

For more information on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/lro

Google Algorithm Predicts When Species Will Go 404, Not Found

• By Hadley Leggett
• September 4, 2009 |
• 3:28 pm |
• Categories: Animals

Biologists have figured out the most efficient way to destroy an ecosystem — and it’s based on the Google search algorithm.

Scientists have long known that the extinction of key species in a food web can cause collapse of the entire system, but the vast number of interactions between species makes it difficult to guess which animals and plants are the most important. Now, computational biologists have adapted the Google search algorithm, called PageRank, to the problem of predicting ecological collapse, and they’ve created a startlingly accurate model.

“While several previous studies have looked at the robustness of food webs to a variety of sequences of species loss, none of them have come up with a way to identify the most devastating sequence of extinctions,” said food web biologist Jennifer Dunne of the Santa Fe Institute, who was not involved in the research. Using a modified version of PageRank, Dunne said, the researchers were able to identify which species extinctions within a food web would lead to biggest chain-reaction of species death.

“If we can find the way of removing species so that the destruction of the ecosystem is the fastest, it means we’re ranking species by their importance,” said ecologist Stefano Allesina of the University of California, Santa Barbara, who co-authored the paper published Friday in PLoS Computational Biology.

Unlike previous solutions to the coextinction problem, the Google solution takes into account not only the number of connections between species, but also their relative importance. “In PageRank, you’re an important website if important websites point to you,” Allesina said. “We took that idea and reversed it: Species are important if they support important species.”

In other words, grass is important because it’s eaten by gazelles, and gazelles are important because they’re eaten by lions.

When the researchers tested the Google algorithm against existing models for predicting ecosystem collapse, they found that the new solution outperformed the old ones in each of the 12 food webs they looked at. “In every case that we tested, the algorithm returned either the best possible solution, out of the billions of possibilities, or very close to it,” Allesina said. In this case, the “best possible solution” is the one that predicts total ecosystem collapse using the fewest number of species extinctions.

To make the circular PageRank algorithm work for food webs, which are traditionally considered unidirectional, the researchers had to solve the problem of what to do with dead ends: Not much eats a lion, but that doesn’t necessarily mean lions aren’t critical to the food chain. The scientists solved this problem by adding what Allesina calls a “root node,” which is based on the idea that all living creatures contribute to the food chain through their excrement and eventual decay.

“What we found is that the importance of a species can be connected to the amount of matter that flows to it,” Allesina said. “If species eat a lot of things, and a lot of things eat them, they tend to be important.” Previous solutions to the problem tended to underestimate the importance of species that are lower on the food chain, Allesina said, and he hopes the new solution will encourage conservation biologists to take a broader view of species extinctions.

“What I hope is that people will pick up interest and start thinking about conservation in a more network-based way,” Allesina said. “Right now, most conservationists are focused on a single species, and they just study that species. But you really have to take into account that this species is not independent, it’s really tangled in a network of multi-species interactions.”

For ecosystems on the brink of collapse, such as marine environments taxed by overfishing, Allesina said a network-based approach to conservation could make all the difference.

Snow Leopard users suffer Flash back

Multimedia software firm Adobe advised all Mac OS X 10.6 users on Thursday to upgrade their Flash Player software, as installing the latest Apple OS reverts the ubiquitous Flash software to a vulnerable version.

In a post to its Product Security Incident Response Teams (PSIRT) blog, the Adobe security team warned that the Apple's Snow Leopard update, which shipped a week ago, would install a vulnerable version of the Flash Player software. Flash is commonly used on Web sites to add multimedia features and greater interactivity.

Security firm Sophos chided Apple for downgrading its users security.

"Mac users are not informed that Snow Leopard has downgraded their version of Flash without permission, and that they are now exposed to a raft of potential attacks and exploits which have been targeted on Adobe's software in recent months," Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant for the firm, said in a statement.

Apple's Snow Leopard update, which adds few obvious features but improves the Mac OS X's performance, has caused a few issues with security. Computers that have PGP's encryption and data-security software have to remove the program before installing the update, as there are conflicts between the programs.

Users of Snow Leopard, or any other operating system, that want to make sure they are running the latest version of Flash can go to Adobe's Web site.

source:securityfocus.com

Wired Science News for Your Neurons NASA’s Most Awesomely Weird Mission Patches

Perhaps the best thing about NASA’s military provenance is that the agency picked up the armed services’ habit of making patches.

We’ve long loved the Most Awesomely Bad Military Patches series that our sister blog, Danger Room, runs. Then, earlier this week, space collectors bid up the accidentally limited edition Stephen Colbert treadmill patch to more than $175 on eBay.

And with the Augustine Commission report on the future of human space exploration due next week — and bad news likely — we thought we’d do some old-fashioned space boosterism and assemble this gallery of Awesomely Awesome NASA Patches.

The patches above were drawn and worn by the wives of the astronauts on those respective missions. They are nearly identical to the actual patches, but the central figure is a woman instead of Leonardo Da Vinci’s Virtruvian Man.

The Stephen Colbert patch commemorating the treadmill that sort of bears his name on the International Space Station combines the new photorealistic style with the line drawings of older patches.

Apache investigates Web server attack

The Apache Foundation shut down its Web servers early Friday morning after detecting attack code running on the computers, the organization stated in an advisory.

The attack, which started late Thursday night, apparently came from an account used to backup the group's servers automatically to an external hosting service. Using the proper SSH key authentication for the host, the attackers accessed people.apache.org, which acts as a "seed host" for Apache.org's Web sites. The attackers placed script files on the host, which were then synchronized to the Web server, Apache's infrastructure team stated.

The team noticed the attack early Friday morning when it detected the rogue processes spawned by the scripts.

"To the best of our knowledge at this time, no end users were affected by this incident, and the attackers were not able to escalate their privileges on any machines," Apache's infrastructure team said in the statement. "While we have no evidence that downloads were affected, users are always advised to check digital signatures where provided."

Open-source software is a popular target for online attackers. In February, the group that maintains the open-source forum software phpBB acknowledged that an attacker was able to get access to their servers. In 2001, a hacker who used the name Fluffy Bunny compromised Apache's Web site.

Apache current powers approximately 47 percent of all Web sites, according to the latest Netcraft survey.

Federal agency warns of postal trojan

A federal agency warned on Tuesday that cybercriminals are going low tech.

The National Credit Union Administration told financial institutions to be on the lookout for a fake alert, supposedly send by the agency, that comes in the regular mail accompanied by two CDs carrying malicious programs. The fraudulent letter requests credit unions to review the "training materials" on the CDs, the NCUA stated in its online alert.

"Doing so could result in a possible security breach to your computer system or have other adverse consequences," the agency stated.

However, the attack that inspired the warning appears to have been part of an authorized pentest against an NCUA member institution, according to the SANS Institute's Internet Storm Center. Security assessment firm MicroSolved posted a statement on their site on Friday, confirming that they had been the firm conducting the penetration test.

"This was a controlled exercise in which the process worked," the company said in a blog post on Friday. "The social engineering attack itself was unsuccessful and drew the attention of the proper authorities. Had we been actual criminals and attempting fraud, we would have been busted by law enforcement."

The security of financial institutions have become a major issue over the past few years, as online thieves have had greater success breaching their systems. Last week, a federal grand jury charged three men with stealing more than 130 million credit- and debit-card accounts from retailers. In 2006, two online brokerages acknowledged losses of at least $22 million in a single financial quarter due to hackers.

Most attacks have happened online, but offline attacks have also become a problem. In 2006, a security consultancy showed that bank employees are all too willing to put USB memory sticks from an unknown source into a sensitive computer at work. Last year, security experts warned that a number of devices — such as digital picture frames — had become vectors for compromising consumer computers.

Financial institutions that receive copies of the CDs in the mail should notify the NCUA.

UPDATE: This article was updated with information from the SANS Institute that the attack was actually an authorized pentest. It was updated again following MicroSolved's post on the topic.

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