DailyDirt: Nuclear Power Making Progress?

The problems with nuclear power via fission have obviously not been overcome by technology (or politics). European countries have started to back off nuclear power, and the US isn't expanding its nuclear power capacity in the near future. However, nuclear power isn't dead yet. Maybe some people think it should be, but what if someone figures out how to prevent meltdowns and burn nuclear waste as fuel?

• China is expected to have an operational Generation IV nuclear fission power plant within the next few years, not sometime in 2030 or 2040. High temperature pebble-bed reactors that use helium instead of water to transfer heat are designed to avoid meltdowns with passive systems. China is looking to sell their nuclear power plants to countries like Saudi Arabia, and it also has some molten-salt reactors using thorium on the way, too. [url]
• Bill Gates has invested in TerraPower, a company that is developing nuclear energy technology called a travelling wave reactor. This kind of reactor doesn't require enriched fuels, so it avoids proliferation problems and can even consume some depleted uranium waste as fuel. But these reactors aren't fully operational just yet. [url]
• Tens of thousands of metric tons of nuclear waste is currently in "temporary" storage, above ground in power plants across the US. A few geologically stable sites have been considered for nuclear waste storage, but shale deposits have only recently been investigated. A handful of European countries, as well as Canada and Japan, have already been looking into shale deposits to store radioactive waste, but the NIMBY factor for nuclear waste makes it tough to commit to any long-term storage plans. [url]

After you've finished checking out those links, take a look at our Daily Deals for cool gadgets and other awesome stuff.

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

Yes, The Backdoor That The FBI Is Requesting Can Work On Modern iPhones Too

So... over the past couple days, plenty of folks (including us) have reported that the backdoor demanded by the FBI (and currently granted by a magistrate judge) would likely work on the older iPhone model in question, the iPhone 5C, but that it would not work on modern iPhones that have Apple's "Secure Enclave" -- basically a separate chip that stores the key. Plenty of reports -- including the Robert Graham post that we linked to, and a story by Bruce Schneier -- suggested that an attempt to follow through with the FBI's request in the presence of the Secure Enclave would effectively eliminate the key and make decryption nearly impossible.

However, earlier this morning Apple started telling a bunch of people, including reporters, that this is not true. Effectively they're saying that, yes, the new software could update the Secure Enclave firmware and keep the key intact -- meaning that this backdoor absolutely can be used against modern iPhones. One of the guys who helped design the whole Secure Enclave setup in the first place, John Kelley, has basically said the same thing, admitting that updating the firmware will not delete the key:

@AriX Not true, if Apple can be forced to modify iOS, they can be forced to modify SEP firmware as well. @trailofbits has SEP details wrong

-- John Kelley (@JohnHedge) February 17, 2016

@AriX I have no clue where they got the idea that changing SPE firmware will destroy keys. SPE FW is just a signed blob on iOS System Part

-- John Kelley (@JohnHedge) February 17, 2016

A blog post by Dan Guido -- which originally asserted that the Secure Enclave would be wiped on update -- now admits that's not true and, yes, this backdoor likely works on modern iPhones as well:

Apple can update the SE firmware, it does not require the phone passcode, and it does not wipe user data on update. Apple can disable the passcode delay and disable auto erase with a firmware update to the SE. After all, Apple has updated the SE with increased delays between passcode attempts and no phones were wiped.

I've asked some security folks if it's possible that future iPhones could be designed to work the way people thought the Secure Enclave worked, and the basic answer appears to be "that's a fairly difficult problem." People have some ideas of how it might work, but all came back with reasons why it might not. I asked one security expert if there was a way for Apple to build a more secure version that was immune to such an FBI request, and the response was: "I don't know. I sure hope so."

Update: I should add that this backdoor still just makes it easier for the FBI to then try to brute force a user's PIN or passcode. If the user sets a significantly strong passcode, you have a better chance of protecting your data, but that's on the user (and, also, many users likely find it hellishly inconvenient to have a strong passcode on their phone).

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

DailyDirt: Making A Road Trip Across The US...

The Cannonball Run plot of racing across the US has inspired some drivers to set illegal records -- though the concept was started in 1933 by Edwin "Cannonball" Baker who drove from NYC to LA in 53 hours (and popularized in the 70s as a protest against highway speed limits). We've previously mentioned Alex Roy making the trip in about 32 hours, but more recently, Ed Bolian and a couple other drivers/passengers did it in just 28 hours and 50 minutes. If you've always wanted to drive across country in some insane way, check out some of the records that other people have set.

• Carl Reese rode a motorcycle across the US from LA to NYC in just under 39 hours straight. Sure, people in cars have done it faster, but not without a backup driver. Reese didn't do it totally alone, though. He had help from safety teams and people looking out for cops (because breaking the speed limit is a requirement for any "real" Cannonball Run record). [url]
• Delphi sent an autonomous car across the US, making the nearly 3,400 mile journey from SF to NYC in 9 days. The car did 99% of the driving, actually -- with human drivers needed to get on/off the highways and transition to city driving. Robots could obviously make the drive in less time, but no one trusts autonomous cars to break the legal speed limits on public roads just yet. [url]
• Carl Reese likes long trips across the country, apparently. He also drove a Tesla from LA to NYC in under 59 hours. That includes charging time, and maybe next time Reese will take it easy and let Autopilot do all of the driving. This probably won't be the last time an electric vehicle sets a record for a cross country trip since batteries and charging stations are improving all the time, and the next EV might not be a Tesla, either. [url]

After you've finished checking out those links, take a look at our Daily Deals for cool gadgets and other awesome stuff.

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story

Comments on: Blog

Know More. Risk Less.

DailyDirt: Who Doesn't Like Cheap Oil?

For a pretty good stretch, the price of a barrel of oil was about $90-$100, but now the price is around $35 or so. That's a good bargain for some consumers, but on the other hand, thousands of oil workers aren't working and plenty of companies that bet on oil prices staying high are going out of business. The simplified explanation is that the current oil supply exceeds the demand for it -- and it takes some time/politics for oil production to adapt. Oil prices might start to go back up significantly in 2017, but in the meantime, there are about 68 oil projects around the world worth about $380 billion that are on hold for a while.

• The price of oil has dropped dramatically over the last year or so, and for certain low-grade crude oil, the price can be as low as negative $0.50 per barrel. Take away this toxic waste that could also be turned into fuel, please.... [url]
• The Kashagan oil field has sucked in about $50 billion (and counting) from companies trying to tap into this enormous reservoir of oil (estimates say 16 billion barrels). However, some folks refer to it as "cash all gone" because after a couple decades of work, there have been a few major setbacks and engineering challenges -- and there's a chance that the oil might start pumping regularly in 2017. [url]
• The US spent about half a billion dollars in Afghanistan to develop oil, gas and minerals industries, but there's not much to show for it. Drilling and mining ain't easy, but it's even harder when armed militias are actively trying to destroy everything. Still, a hydrocarbon industry worth many billions (even with low oil prices) could potentially exist -- but there are just a few enormous problems to overcome first. [url]

After you've finished checking out those links, take a look at our Daily Deals for cool gadgets and other awesome stuff.

Permalink | Comments | Email This Story