Gawker: valleywag, we're all doomed

Iran has Photoshop now, but so do we

Paul Boutin — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 20:40:25 EDT

On Wednesday, the world saw a spine-tingling photo of an Iranian multiple-missile launch. On Thursday, we learned the image had been altered, apparently by Iran's Sepah News agency, to add another missile and make it scarier. Today, Wired rounds up the free world's response.

How Valley tech makes it into Iran

Paul Boutin — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 17:20:00 EDT

Americans used to covertly sell weapons and technology through Israel to Iranian moderates — sometimes with Ronald Reagan's approval. Today, Iran gets American military technology from companies in the United Arab Emirates and Singapore. Wired military tech writer Noah Shachtman writes: "The U.S. is the biggest arms-dealer in the world; soaring oil prices given Iran the cash to go get those weapons. It's nearly impossible to stop countries from reselling their U.S. weaponry to Iran." He links to a longer Mother Jones report on "transshipment." Got any info on specific made-in-Sunnyvale technologies that have leaked to the other team? Send 'em in. (Photo by Wikimedia)

Earth's elements in danger of being used up

Paul Boutin — Mon, 07 Jul 2008 15:00:00 EDT

It's one thing to use up the world's supply of a complex substance like oil. It's another to extract and deplete Earth's entire stock of a chemical element. We'll be out of gallium in less than a decade, warns science fiction author Robert Silverberg, thanks to its use in flat-panel TV and computer displays. Not far behind is zinc, with an estimated 30 years to depletion. Copper, too. There's only one proper capitalist response to the situation: Clear those three spots on the periodic table, and replace them with ads.