Google is set to make changes to its search ranking algorithm to combat the spate of links leading to malicious web pages appearing at the top of Google’s search results, according to an inside source. Over the past few months, cybercriminals have been using blackhat SEO techniques to manipulate search rankings. When it first began, they were marginally successful at following Google Trends to find buzzy search queries and elevating a newly created targeted webpage. But after a short period of time, these same gangs appear to have become disturbingly effective. Last week, when researching a news story, I found the top...
MoreNEW YORK - Wells Fargo and Morgan Stanley said Thursday they'll try to raise billions in fresh capital, becoming the first major banks to scramble for money after the government said 10 large financial institutions need $75 billion in new funds. Meanwhile, American Express Co. became the first major financial institution to formally request permission to return federal bailout money provided under the Troubled Asset Relief Program, or TARP. Wells Fargo & Co. said it's seeking to raise $6 billion by offering common stock to investors. The San Francisco-based bank announced the plans after the government's stress test results showed that Wells...
MoreFirst, let me please wish Emily and family all the best on the birth of her second child, the most precious gift imaginable. And thank you to all at The Planetary Society for the opportunity to guest blog from the Kennedy Space Center press center and launch facilities on the imminent and exciting shuttle flight to Hubble. Previously it was my privilege to report to you all on the successful blast off of the Dawn Asteroid Orbiter in September 2007 and which recently flew past Mars, my favorite planet, for a gravity assisted boost towards Vesta. The final Space Shuttle flight...
MoreWhen a scientific principle is common knowledge even in grammar schools, you know it's long since crossed the line from theory to established fact. That's the case with dinosaur extinction. Some 65 million years ago — as we've all come to know — an asteroid struck the Earth, sending up a cloud that blocked the sun and cooled the planet. That, in turn, wiped out the dinosaurs and made way for the rise of the mammals. The suddenness with which so many species vanished after the 65-million-year mark always suggested a single cataclysmic event, and the 1978 discovery of a...
MoreMEXICO CITY – The swine flu epidemic crossed new borders Tuesday with the first cases confirmed in the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific region, as the number of deaths in Mexico blamed on the virus surpassed 150. With the swine flu having already spread to at least six other countries besides Mexico, authorities around the globe are like firefighters battling a blaze without knowing how far it extends. "At this time, containment is not a feasible option," said Keiji Fukuda, assistant director-general of the World Health Organization, which raised its alert level on Monday. New Zealand reported Tuesday that 11 people who recently...
MoreLots of stuff going on leaving little time to blog, so this will need to be brief... Google Labs released a couple neat new tools yesterday. (Another report here.) One is "Similar Images" which uses the colors and shapes of one image to become the basis for a subsequent search on similar images. For example, I searched for "Jerusalem" and two clicks later on pictures that are closest to the view I want, and I have about 600 pics simply of the Temple Mount viewed from the Mount of Olives. The other new release is Google News Timeline. It is mainly intended...
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