Marston blog

Broncos linebacker stripped of captaincy after arrest

DENVER, Colorado (AFP) – Denver Broncos linebacker D.J. Williams was stripped of his captaincy for the remainder of the season by the club on Saturday after his arrest on suspicion of drunk driving.

The Broncos, 2-6, also announced that Williams, the team's leading tackler, will not start in Sunday's National Football League game against Kansas City, a 5-3 squad with the league's top rushing attack.

Williams was fined an undisclosed amount by the Broncos for missing practice and a team meeting on Friday while he was in a detoxification facility after an early-morning arrest.

"The Denver Broncos are extremely disappointed in D.J. Williams' careless and irresponsible actions on Friday morning," the team said in a statement.

"This type of behavior is taken very seriously by the organization.

"The Broncos have levied the heaviest fines possible to him for conduct detrimental to the club under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement due to the disruption and resulting impact on the team."

Williams, a seven-year veteran for the Broncos, has a December 13 court hearing on the matter but also risks punishment from the league.

The NFL determines fines and suspensions on alcohol-related incidents but Williams would face a multi-game suspension as a repeat offender following an incident in 2005.

No. 10 Syracuse beats Canisius 86-67

SYRACUSE, N.Y. – Rick Jackson had 17 points and a career-high 13 rebounds, Brandon Triche added 16 points and No. 10 Syracuse beat Canisius 86-67 on Sunday.

It was the 831st career victory for Orange coach Jim Boeheim, moving him past Jim Phelan of Mount St. Mary's into fifth place all-time in Division I victories.

Syracuse (2-0) has beaten Canisius 20 straight times. The Golden Griffins (1-1) are 1-15 against Syracuse when it is ranked, the lone win coming Feb. 25, 1967, in Buffalo.

Scoop Jardine had 13 points and eight assists, C.J. Fair had 11 points, and Kris Joseph 10 for the Orange.

Greg Logins led Canisius with 17 points and Syracuse native Elton Frazier had 16 points and 12 rebounds.

Syracuse, which struggled again early, broke open a close game with a 7-0 spurt to start the second half as Jackson fed Fab Melo for a layup. Triche followed with a layup off the glass and a 3-pointer from the left wing to give the Orange a 39-29 lead.

Canisius rallied behind consecutive 3s by Alshwan Hymes and Logins, but the Orange took command with a 12-4 spurt midway through the half.

After a 3 by Robert Goldsberry and a free throw by Logins moved the Griffs within 54-45, Jackson, who had a tough first half, hit a 10-foot jumper to start the Syracuse surge. Triche then swished a 3 from the left corner and Jardine assisted on consecutive fast-break baskets by Triche and Fair to give the Orange a 66-49 lead with 8:34 to go.

The Orange had their share of troubles early trying to penetrate as the athletic Griffs blocked six shots in the first half. Jackson, a career 59 percent shooter, the fourth-best mark in Syracuse history, was 3 of 10 in the first half but was active defensively with four blocks.

Jardine, who missed all seven shots he took and did not score in the opener against Northern Iowa, had 10 points and four assists to help keep the Orange close.

Syracuse trailed 25-21 after Goldsberry rattled in a 3-pointer at 8:14, but a follow by Joseph tied it at 25-all and his three-point play helped Syracuse to a 32-29 halftime lead.

The Orange shot just 30.8 percent in the first half. They rebounded by hitting 52.5 percent in the second while holding Canisius to 34.3 percent shooting for the game. The Griffs were 9 of 35 from beyond the arc.

Melo and the 6-foot-10 Keita each played 18 minutes and fouled out of the Orange's 68-46 season-opening win over Northern Iowa on Friday night. Melo, the Orange's 7-foot starter, mans the heart of the zone and was free of any fouls with 4 minutes left in the first half on Sunday, then was hit with three in a 35-second span and headed to the bench. He fouled out with 3:56 left after scoring that lone basket and grabbing four rebounds.

Keita had 11 rebounds in the second half as Syracuse finished with a 58-43 edge on the boards after outrebounding the Griffs by just one in the opening half.

New NFL Technology Brings Fans Closer to the Action

The National Football League is often hailed as one of the most technologically savvysports operations in the world. To keep up with the demands of those involved in the game and those watching at home, the league will be testing a myriad of new technologies this season, from a new type of game clock that keeps the refs in the loop to its first3-D broadcast.

The league's tech goals this year, as in other years, are clear: boosting the fans' experience by getting them deeper inside the game.

"The closer you can get to the game, the more you feel a part of it,"said John Chambers, chairman and chief executiveof Cisco, during a recent webcast press conference. "There are many game changers on the horizon."

NFL embraces 3-D

The NFL often gives technologies a test run during the preseason; forinstance, referees' use of TV instant replay to review calls debuted during a preseason game in the 1990s. During this preseason, theThursday, Sept. 2, when the New York Giants hostthe New England Patriots in the Giants'new stadium in East Rutherford, N.J.

Although this won't be the first 3-D telecast by a professional league - Major League Baseball and the FIFA World Cup already have tested the three-dimensional waters - it marks the start of a long experiment by the NFL involving several stadiums.

The 3-D game is being carried subscribers ofVerizon FiOS TV in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. Viewers need a , 3-D glasses and a high-definition set-top box to see the special effect.

Working with a company called 3ality Digital to power the telecast, Verizon is using two cameras attached to one rig - one camera for the left eye and one camera for the right eye - to create feeds that are beamed to a truck stationed outside the stadium and are combined to forma 3-D signal.

Ivan Seidenberg, Verizon's chief executive officer, said the New Meadowlands Stadium, which the Giants share with the New York Jets, willbe among the NFL stadiums experimenting with 3-D technology in the nextfew years.

"You will see a lot of 3-D at the New Meadowlands Stadium over the next two to three years - and then you will start to see it pop up more elsewhere," Seidenberg said during a press conference.

What happens at the stadium, he said, "will impact the football viewing experience in the future."

New game clock

The effect of new technologies will also be felt on the field. The NFL has had its eye on the Precision Time System currently used by the National Basketball Association, which allows on-field officials to control the pace of a game with the touch of a button.

Four officials - wearing packs attached to their belts - will be able to activate or stop the clock system. They will work in concert with the game clock operator in the football stadium's booth.

The NFL started testing out a new Precision Time System game clock during four preseason games to increase accuracy and cut back on downtime between plays.

"If we have the potential to time our games with more precision, thenwe will pursue all avenues, including experimenting with alternate methods to accomplish that goal," Carl Johnson, the NFL's vice presidentof officiating, told USA Today.

The NFL could roll this out league-wide in the near future, once a full evaluation of the test has been completed.

In-game video

Also debuting this season is a handheld device called FanVision that will allow fans in the stadium to watch the game as if they were back home on the couch. FanVision offers 10 video channels, including multiple camera views, out-of-market games, fan-controlled instant replays, game highlights, comprehensive game statistics, and real-time scores from around the league.

It can be used in the parking lot and inside the stadium only.

The devices -part of a venture owned by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen ss -are currently available for 12 teams, including the Dolphins and Jets. Fans will be charged $200 for the devices.

"This is of great interest because it gives fans access to information they wouldn't necessarily have while at a stadium," Thad Sheely, executive vice president of finance and stadium development for the Jets, told TechNewsDaily. "It enhances the game that much more for them."

Team tech

The Jets also are trying out new technology in the skybox this season. Team owner Woody Johnson will be testing a touchscreen device tokeep track of various game-day operations, such as which concessions and merchandise are selling fast, ticketing information and if there's ajam in the Meadowlands parking lot.

The touchscreen "command center" - built by design agency Roundarch -is a first for an NFL team.

"Woody loves technology and wanted access to the entire stadium's data flow in real time to oversee everything that's happening," Sheely said. "If each game is three hours and there's only ten games, that gives us only 30 hours of action to get it right for our fans. We don't want to have any lost opportunities, so having the device at our fingertips is key."

Johnson said the new technology has the potential to revolutionize how NFL teams manage in-game operations in the future.

"The application that Roundarch is developing for us will help us to understand, analyze and then improve the experience each and every time fans come to the stadium and interact with our team," he told TechNewsDaily.

Internet viewing access

To cater to the needs of on-the-go game viewers nationwide, DirecTV is offering its NFL Sunday Ticket package to the online world, giving non-subscribers the chance to watch out-of-market games. Those who want to watch football via a computer orcan pay $350 for access to streaming video of the games and the Red Zone channel.

"In this widget-app-driven world, mobility is the name of the game,"Robert Mercer, a spokesman for DirecTV, said in a telephone interview. "Consumers are demanding more access to entertainment and information wherever they are. As broadband and mobile services continueto increase in popularity, and now with the introduction of new deviceslike the iPad that provide an even better mobile viewing experience, weexpect that trend to continue."

The move follows a year-long test of the service in the New York market.

"We'll see how we do with this national launch and use that as a strategic guide for ," Mercer said.

Original Story: chronicles the daily advances and innovations made in science and technology. We take on the misconceptions that often pop up around scientific discoveries and deliver short, provocative explanations with a certain wit and style. Check out our science ,and .to debate hot-button issues like stem cells, climate change and evolution. You can also sign up for free , register forand get cool gadgets at the .

Investigators Find Famous DJ's Credit Card Details for Sale

Armin Van Buuren is one of the world's most well-known trance music DJs. He also apparently has had his credit card details stolen.

Investigators with Ultrascan, a company that investigates credit card fraud and , were doing research on forums and systems used to sell credit card numbers, said Frank Engelsman of .

Catalog of Stolen Data

One analyst was using the ICQ instant messaging system where cybercriminals had set up an automated account to sell credit card numbers.Their ICQ user name was run by a bot, which automatically responds to certain commands.

A potential buyer for stolen credit card details sees a greeting: "Hello welcome to ICQ bot. Press '1' for Russian. Press '2' for English." After pressing "2," users get three selections: "1. Buy CVV, 2. Checker 3. Account," according to a screen shot supplied by Ultrascan.

When CVV is selected, the buyer sees how many credit card details are available, sorted by country. From the screen shot, it was possible to see that some 19,046 U.S. card numbers are for sale, 7,843 from the U.K. and more from other countries such as France, Italy and the Netherlands.

After picking the Netherlands, the bot offered up the truncated details for four cards and the names of those cardholders, one of which was named "Armin Van Buuren."

The Ultrascan researchers immediate recognized Van Buuren's name. They bought his card details, and the bot returned the DJs full credit card number, the three-digit security code on the back of the card and the name of his bank.

Ultrascan contacted Van Buuren's management agency in the Netherlands. An official at the management agency on Friday confirmed they had been contacted.

Saved from Scam

It's not known if his credit card details were ever used, but Engelsman said cybercriminals typically do not "double sell" details. The details cost US$6, Engelsman said. UItrascan does not normally buy stolen credit card details but did in that case to prevent Van Buuren's from being used, he said.

From the format of the data, it appears that a database of credit card numbers was hacked, Engelsman said. Credit card companies, retailers and other data processors have taken steps in recent years to shore up the security of their processing systems to prevent such attacks, but data breaches still occur.

Englesman said Van Buuren's credit card company called Ultrascan on the DJ's instruction, and Ultrascan informed the company of the problem. (See also "")

Van Buuren's situation is hardly unique. Computer security analyst for years have warned how cybercrime has turned into an underground economy, with hackers stealing credit card numbers and offering them for sale in forums where other fraudsters that specialize in abusing financial details.

"Everybody can be a victim," Engelsman said. "It doesn't matter who you are."

Send news tips and comments to jeremy_kirk@idg.com

French minister pledges to help save Iranian woman

PARIS – French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner says he is willing to "do anything" to save an Iranian woman sentenced to death on an adultery conviction and has offered to travel to the Iranian capital to plead her case.

Bernard Kouchner calls Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtiani's sentence to death by stoning "the height of barbarism" and says her case has become a "personal cause" for him

Kouchner told reporters Monday after meeting with one of the woman's lawyer's in Paris that "I'm ready to do anything to save her. If I must go to Tehran to save her, I'll go to Tehran."

Iran lifted the stoning sentence for the 43-year-old mother of two after an international outcry. She could still be hanged.