You put the cream in one shallow pan, and stick that in another one that's been filled with ice and water to make an icebath, fire up the smoker and let it sit for about 90 minutes. (more…)

The Intel Management Engine (ME) is a subsystem composed of a special 32-bit ARC microprocessor that's physically located inside the chipset. It is an extra general purpose computer running a firmware blob that is sold as a management system for big enterprise deployments.When you purchase your system with a mainboard and Intel x86 CPU, you are also buying this hardware add-on: an extra computer that controls the main CPU. This extra computer runs completely out-of-band with the main x86 CPU meaning that it can function totally independently even when your main CPU is in a low power state like S3 (suspend).On some chipsets, the firmware running on the ME implements a system called Intel's Active Management Technology (AMT).This is entirely transparent to the operating system, which means that this extra computer can do its job regardless of which operating system is installed and running on the main CPU.The purpose of AMT is to provide a way to manage computers remotely (this is similar to an older system called "Intelligent Platform Management Interface" or IPMI, but more powerful). To achieve this task, the ME iscapable of accessing any memory region without the main x86 CPU knowing about the existence of these accesses. It also runs a TCP/IP server on your network interface and packets entering and leaving your machine on certain ports bypass any firewall running on your system.While AMT can be a great value-add, it has several troublingdisadvantages. ME is classified by security researchers as "Ring -3". Rings of security can be defined as layers of security that affect particular parts of a system, with a smaller ring number corresponding to an area closer to the hardware. For example, Ring 3 threats are defined as security threats that manifest in “userspace” mode. Ring 0 threats occur in “kernel” level, Ring -1 threats occur in a “hypervisor” level, one level lower than the kernel, while Ring -2 threats occur in a special CPU mode called “SMM” mode.SMM stands for System-Management-Mode, a special mode that Intel CPUs can be put into that runs a separately defined chunk of code. If attackers can modify the SMM code and trigger the mode, they can get arbitrary execution of code on a CPU.Although the ME firmware is cryptographically protected with RSA 2048, researchershave been able to exploit weaknesses in the ME firmware and take partialcontrol of the ME on early models. This makes ME a huge securityloophole, and it has been called a very powerful rootkit mechanism. Once a system is compromised by a rootkit, attackers can gain administration access and undetectably attack the computer.(more…)

The U.S. Justice Department is charging a Chinese national with economic espionage charges, saying he stole source code from an American company with the intent of transferring it to the Chinese government. He is reported to have been an employee of IBM at the time of the alleged crime.(more…)

The Air Force Inspector General's Automated Case Tracking System (ACTS) is used to track FOIA requests, whistleblower tips, and fraud investigations. It is no more. (more…)

Apparently farting in Sloppy Joe's, a famed Key West bar, can quickly get out of control.Via the Miami Herald:

This week's Orlando aftermath commentary has ranged from the scorching to the touching to the offensive to the spectacularly stupid. (more…)

Smash TV's Megaplex feels like your entire 1980s life flashing before your eyes. Note: some of the 80+ films include 80s nudity. (more…)

Police in Marijampole, Lithuania released this dashcam video of a car chase where the suspect released a smokescreen and tossed caltrops (aka tire spikes) in an effort to escape. These action movie-esque efforts were to no avail though as the fuzz eventually pinned the perp's car against the road barrier. The police did not provide any background on the hot pursuit.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wfYbgdo8e-8CGP Grey explains that it might be better to think of your brain as two intelligences, with the mute right hemisphere forced to play sidekick to its conjoined twin.(more…)

With sarcastic undertones, President Obama reacted today to Trump's criticism of him for not using the phrase "radical Islam." (more…)

Boing Boing's favorite annual music event, the Treasure Island Music Festival, celebrates its 10th anniversary October 15-16, 2016 on the San Francisco Bay and they've just announced the stellar lineup!Sigur Rós and Ice Cube are headlining with more than two dozen other artists including James Blake, Purity Ring, Zhu, and Glass Animals.The full lineup is below this video for Sigur Rós's "Brennisteinn":https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc6zXSdYXm8photo at top: Josh Withers

If you like heights and Los Angeles and food and have a grand or so lying around, maybe Dinner in the Sky would be a fun July adventure. (more…)

University of Leicester students spent 7 years using math and physics principles to answer "Who’s the best-equipped superhero?" They've published a series of papers on the subject in the university's "Journal of Physics Special Topics" and "Journal of Interdisciplinary Science Topics." The answer? Superman, followed by Wolverine, Mystique and Thor. From the University of Leicester:

At the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles today, Nintendo revealed this beautiful trailer for "The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild." The game arrives next year for Wii U and NX.(more…)

Although Minneapolis man Hooman Nikizad arrived at the airport two hours early, as recommended, his hour-and-a-half wait in the security line made him miss his flight. He then had to buy a second ticket on another airline in order to get to his destination on time. Now he's suing the TSA for $506.85 to cover the cost.

Hey Jupiter, I hope you're ready for your close-up.Recently, I was granted the rare privilege of stepping inside one of the largest cleanrooms at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratories. I was there to learn about this year's blockbuster space mission, Juno, and chat with some super smart science and engineering people who worked on the project.(more…)

I have dinged the rails of every surfboard I've ever owned. Generally, I crack the rails when I make stupid mistakes in the parking lot, or my driveway, though I understand some folks actually bump into things in the water. For small bumps and bruises, I keep a tube of sun curing resin around.Repairs to your rails (the edges of the board that cut into the water) are not difficult at all! Simply clean up the cracked spot, sand it down a bit to give the resin something to adhere to, and quirt out a glob. Use some plastic wrap to mold the resin, and hold it in place, while the board cures in the sun.Of course you can also put a plastic bumper sticker over the crack and hope it holds. I've done that too.Be certain you know if your board is polyester or epoxy! Using the wrong resin will destroy your board, as the two do not react well. Most manufacturers will label the boards, so check the stickers and logo information under the glass.When chunks are missing from your board, or you really gouge into the foam, there are putties and other fillers you can use, which you then cover with the correct resin. Even more sanding is involved!I like these SolaRez kits as they come with some sand paper, which is never there when you need it.Solarez UV Cure Epoxy Ding Resin - SUP Paddleboard & Surfboard Repair Kit via AmazonSolarez UV Cure Polyester Ding Resin - Surfboard Repair Kit (2 Oz) via Amazon

The Federal District Appeals Court has upheld the FCC's jurisdiction to impose net neutrality rules on telcos, leaving intact last year's landmark FCC ruling prohibiting carriers from downgrading the connections to networked services that didn't pay for "premium carriage." (more…)

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Sling bullets, used by Roman soldiers in an attack on a fort in Scotland some 1800 years ago, appear designed to whistle in flight. A battery of them could be terrifying; or perhaps simply very loud and annoying.

"The truncated continent," Oceania is bisected if not plainly obliterated by most world maps, straddling the edges and hidden under captions and legends. Lightly populated as pacific islands are, when it comes to climate change, the omission is a cruel one. (more…)

Footage posted by S Shady shows two United jumbos landing in perfect sync on parallel runways at SFO. Are the pilots just having fun? Are the jets on autoland?P.S. wouldn't it be awesome if jumbo jets were fitted with cannons.

After receiving a flu shot, Desiree Jennings could only walk backwards and spoke with a funny accent. But the "rare disease" triggered by the sinister vaccine was, fortunately, transient. Inside Edition secretly taped her for weeks and "it looks like you made a complete recovery!" [via r/videos]A dubstep remix:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_B09NyZ2IQ

Follow @RubenBolling on Twitter and Facebook.All friends of Tom the Dancing Bug join its subscription club, the INNER HIVE, for early access to comics, and more.Buy Ruben Bolling’s new book series for kids, The EMU Club Adventures. Book One here. Book Two here.More Tom the Dancing Bug comics on Boing Boing! (more…)

Omar Mateen, perpetrator of America's deadliest civilian mass shooting, was a regular at the gay nightclub where he killed 49 people this weekend. His friends believe he is gay, his ex-wife told an interviewer much the same, and other people who frequent the club describe his drunken and often angry presence there. (more…)

One day after Omar Mateen opened fire in a gay-friendly Orlando nightclub, killing 49 people and injuring 53 more, reports are surfacing that suggest Mateen may have been attracted to and obsessed with gay men.(more…)

The shooter who killed 49 people at a gay-friendly bar in Orlando, Florida had been on the FBI's radar for three years. (more…)

Geraldo Rivera thinks the victims of the Orlando massacre made the wrong choice yesterday morning when they were attacked with an AR-15 assault rifle: “When you’re in that situation and you have no weapons, you have two choices. If you can’t hide and you can’t run, there are two choices. You stay and die, or you fight. For God’s sakes, fight back. Fight back.”

Tony Zentil, a mechanical engineer, has a fully funded Kickstarter for a variety of multitool belt-buckles aimed at skateboarders, snowboarders, and motorcyclists -- they're a significant advance on my old, beloved 686 belt-buckle stolen by the security staff of London Gatwick airport in 2011. (more…)

Michu Meszaros, the circus performer and actor who played Alf the extraterrestrial on the 1980s sitcom, has died at age 76. Maestros also appeared in “Looks Who’s Talking, "Big Top Pee-wee," and episodes of "Dear John” and “H.R. Pufnstuf."(more…)

Architect Ron Arad designed this lovely indoor/outdoor shelter, called the Armadillo Tea Pavilion. The shells are made from the likes of oiled plywood or PVDF-coated timber composite. The hardware is brass and bronze.

Hawk Jensen at Smock Productions made this quick short of artist Gus Harper working in his studio. It is a lot of fun watching Gus create, but you have to remember to ask him if you want a time lapse of your commission.Here is a time-lapse video of Gus working, and some photos our readers have told me ARE safe for work.

The world's most famous haunted house, 108 Ocean Avenue (formerly 112 Ocean Avenue), in Amityville, New York is on the market again. This is the Dutch Colonial home where in 1974 Ronald DeFeo, Jr. killed six family members and, four years later, George and Kathy Lutz and their children reported that they were terrorized by evil demons. Their story became the basis for the Jay Anson's 1977 book The Amityville Horror, director Stuart Rosenberg's 1979 film adaptation, and a slew of crappy sequels that followed.Listed at $850,000, the five bedroom, 3.5 bath home on the Amityville River includes a large boat house and slip.According to the realtors, "There've been four owners since the murders, and none of them ran out of the house screaming, and there were no strange experiences [such as murder.]"If I bought it, the first thing I'd do is reinstall the demonic pig'e eye windows.(via Curbed)

We had a girl scout picnic over at our place yesterday, and we spread out the Mui Color foldable picnic blanket ($27 on Amazon). It folds out to folds out to 60" x 78", and folds up to a 12.5" x 10.6" rectangle complete with handle. The bottom is made of some kind of tough waterproof material. It's padded, and the top surface feels nice and has a pretty leaf pattern.After the picnic, it was easy to fold up.

The sixth season of HBO's Game of Thrones nears its conclusion, as characters depart and return in their owns ways. Each week following the show, Boars, Gore, and Swords recaps everything that goes down in the world of Westeros. For this week's "No One," Ivan and Red discuss Terminator chases, Sandor Clegane's murder negotiations, and the most offscreen of any offscreen death in television history.

A giant 22-pound hunk of bog butter made 2,000 years ago was just unearthed in Ireland, and although it might not be as tasty as it was in the last millennium or two, you can still eat it. So what the heck is "bog butter?" According to Atlas Obscura:

This string sculpture probably works like Kenneth Snelson's "tensegrity towers." Snelson, born in 1927, says his former professor Buckminster Fuller "took credit for Snelson's discovery of the concept that Fuller named tensegrity. Fuller gave the idea its name, combining 'tension' and 'structural integrity.'"[via]

Perhaps the ultimate father's day gift is a Star Trek bathrobe. These robes are available in the three primary colors of Star Trek: Red, Blue and Command Mustard-Yellow, and are a must have for every old school Trekkie or Trekker.Star Trek Adult Captain Kirk Fleece Costume Bath Robe (Yellow, One Size) via AmazonStar Trek Adult Spock Fleece Costume Bath Robe via AmazonStar Trek Adult Scotty Fleece Costume Bath Robe via Amazon

Boing Bong contributor Ethan Gilsdorf -- author of Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks: An Epic Quest For Reality Among Role Players, Online Gamers, And Other Dwellers Of Imaginary Realms -- posted this geekily nostalgic Super 8 film he shot in 1981, at age 15, of his buddies playing Dungeons & Dragons. "Look for the classic Mountain Dew can at 1:53," Ethan writes.(via r/ObscureMedia, thanks UPSO!)

Todd McLellan's book Things Come Apart, features photos of disassembled appliances with the parts neatly arranged into rectangles, as well as in jumbled heaps. See a photo gallery.

Video director Paul Richardson created this beautiful showreel of his favorite time-lapse clips to date.

The all-cash deal is expected to close by the end of the calendar year, and will be one of the largest acquisitions in tech business history. (more…)

Last night Lin-Manuel Miranda won the Tony for Best Original Score for the astounding Hamilton, and his acceptance speech beautifully honored the dead in the Orlando gay nightclub shooting. (more…)

AMC claims that spoilers (and even predictions) of its show, The Walking Dead, infringe copyright. As spoilers are other people's descriptions of something they've seen, in their own words, this would put all unauthorized reviews and commentary in the same boat. But that hasn't stopped it issuing legal threats to fans.

This summer, NYC's Pennsylvania Hotel will once again fill with joyous hackers as 2600 Magazine celebrates the 11th Hackers on Planet Earth conference (HOPE): I'm giving a keynote, and if you're a student or young journalist, you can win admission to the conference by writing an article about subjects of interest to the event. (more…)

https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/742034549232766976?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwWhatever you are doing, feeling or thinking today, stop: he wants toughness and vigilance.Previously: Gunman kills 50 in Florida gay nightclub

In America, it's common practice to make severance pay for laid-off workers contingent on signing a "nondisparagement clause" that prohibits workers from ever speaking ill of their former employers -- some contracts I've seen even prohibit revealing the existence of these clauses, combining silence with secrecy. A winning combination if you're a rapacious corporation engaged in legally questionable labor practices. (more…)

This 2:47 showreel from Method Studios was produced for the Association of Independent Commercial Producers Awards, as an exuberant celebration of the many possibilities of motion-capture: simply combine talented dancers, pingpong balls, and computer graphics artists, shake and strain, and voila, the impossible is real. (via Kottke)

Former federal prosecutor and frequent plain-language law explainer Ken "Popehat" White has done the (American) Internet the immense service of producing a master(ful) post about the First Amendment, explaining why the American constitutional basis for free speech includes abridgments on speech by some private actors and why it can be invoked in civil cases. (more…)