I’ve been known to cheerlead for fabbing (or ‘rapid prototyping’) here on occasion, but it’s important to realise that such technologies are a double-edged sword – literally. DefenseTech considers the risk of weapons proliferation that hi-tech CNC set-ups could produce in the wrong hands; extrapolate this a few decades to the nanofactory era, and there’s a serious potential for nastiness.

Ever wondered why it takes a novel so long to get from the writer’s desk to the bookstores? Sit down, get comfy, and let Charlie Stross explain it all.

According to the Hindustan Times, India will put a man on the moon by 2020. [slashdot]

OK, so I’m being deliberately provocative. I can’t help it, there’s just something too shiny and happy about the coverage of Gannett’s decision to restructure its newsroom to take advantage of “crowdsourcing” (which is another way of saying, to get better tips). I’m actually happy that a big publisher is beginning to embrace participatory journalism.

Australia’s Federal Tourism Minister has floated the idea of covering portions of the Great Barrier Reef with a shade cloth. Portions of the reef naturally shadowed are healthier than those exposed to direct sunlight, probably an effect of higher water temperatures. More evidence that in the world of 2050 there will be no such thing as nature: nature will be another human-managed resource.