Month: February 2019

spacedesk – extend or duplicate your desktop on a smartphone or tablet

Posted on by Robin Edgar

At least 2 machines are needed to operate spacedesk. These machines must be connected via a Local Area Network (e.g. Ethernet or Wireless) supporting TCP/IP network protocol. Each one of the two machines is running a different spacedesk software: 1. The Primary Machine is a Windows PC, laptop or Surface Pro tablet. It runs the spacedesk DRIVER Read more about spacedesk – extend or duplicate your desktop on a smartphone or tablet[…]

Some American Airlines In-Flight TVs Have Cameras In Them watching you, just like Singapore Airlines and Google Nest

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A viral photo showing a camera in a Singapore Airlines in-flight TV display recently caused an uproar online. The image was retweeted hundreds of times, with many people expressing concern about the privacy implications. As it turns out, some seat-back screens in American Airlines’ premium economy class have them, too. Sri Ray was aboard an Read more about Some American Airlines In-Flight TVs Have Cameras In Them watching you, just like Singapore Airlines and Google Nest[…]

Experts Find Serious Problems With Switzerland’s Online Voting System

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Switzerland made headlines this month for the transparency of its internet voting system when it launched a public penetration test and bug bounty program to test the resiliency of the system to attack. But after source code for the software and technical documentation describing its architecture were leaked online last week, critics are already expressing Read more about Experts Find Serious Problems With Switzerland’s Online Voting System[…]

In small groups, people follow high-performing leaders

Posted on by Robin Edgar

researchers at the NYU Tandon School of Engineering have cracked the code on how leaders arise from small groups of people over time. The work is detailed in a study, “Social information and Spontaneous Emergence of Leaders in Human Groups,” published in The Royal Society Interface. […] To conduct the research, the team convened several Read more about In small groups, people follow high-performing leaders[…]

Physicists get thousands of semiconductor nuclei to do ‘quantum dances’ in unison

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A team of Cambridge researchers have found a way to control the sea of nuclei in semiconductor quantum dots so they can operate as a quantum memory device. Quantum dots are crystals made up of thousands of atoms, and each of these atoms interacts magnetically with the trapped electron. If left alone to its own Read more about Physicists get thousands of semiconductor nuclei to do ‘quantum dances’ in unison[…]

Earth’s atmosphere extends much farther than previously thought

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Most people think that the Earth’s atmosphere stops a bit over 62 miles (100 km) from the surface, but a new study based on observations made over two decades ago by the joint US-European Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) satellite shows that it actually extends as far 391,000 miles (630,000 km) or 50 times the Read more about Earth’s atmosphere extends much farther than previously thought[…]

Squid could provide an eco-friendly alternative to plastics

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The remarkable properties of a recently-discovered squid protein could revolutionize materials in a way that would be unattainable with conventional plastic, finds a review published in Frontiers in Chemistry. Originating in the ringed teeth of a squid’s predatory arms, this protein can be processed into fibers and films with applications ranging from ‘smart’ clothes for Read more about Squid could provide an eco-friendly alternative to plastics[…]

why does Singapore Airlines have an embedded camera looking at you on the inflight entertainment system? Just like the Google Nest spy, they say it’s ummm all ok, nothing to see here.

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Given Singapore’s reputation for being an unabashed surveillance state, a passenger on a Singapore Airlines (SIA) flight could be forgiven for being a little paranoid. Vitaly Kamluk, an information security expert and a high-ranking executive of cybersecurity company Kaspersky Lab, went on Twitter with concerns about an embedded camera in SIA’s inflight entertainment systems. He Read more about why does Singapore Airlines have an embedded camera looking at you on the inflight entertainment system? Just like the Google Nest spy, they say it’s ummm all ok, nothing to see here.[…]

IBM Brings Watson AI To The Private Cloud And Rival Public Cloud Platforms

Posted on by Robin Edgar

IBM Watson Anywhere is built on top of Kubernetes, the open source orchestration engine that can be deployed in diverse environments. Since the Watson Anywhere platform is built as a set of microservices designed to run on Kubernetes, it is flexible and portable. […] According to IBM, the microservices-based Watson Anywhere delivers two solutions – Read more about IBM Brings Watson AI To The Private Cloud And Rival Public Cloud Platforms[…]

How’s this for sci-fi: A cosmic river of 4,000 stars dazzles lifeforms as it flows through a galaxy. And that galaxy is the Milky Way

Posted on by Robin Edgar

If you’re living in Earth’s southern hemisphere, chances are you may be able to see some of the stars in a newly identified cosmic river that’s flowed through the Milky Way for hundreds of millions of years. Astronomers say the freshly discovered gigantic cluster of stars is passing relatively close to our Solar System. The Read more about How’s this for sci-fi: A cosmic river of 4,000 stars dazzles lifeforms as it flows through a galaxy. And that galaxy is the Milky Way[…]

New experimental drug rapidly repairs age-related memory loss and improves mood

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A team of Canadian scientists has developed a fascinating new experimental drug that is purported to result in rapid improvements to both mood and memory following extensive animal testing. It’s hoped the drug will move to human trials within the next two years. Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is a key neurotransmitter, and when altered it can Read more about New experimental drug rapidly repairs age-related memory loss and improves mood[…]

This Person Does Not Exist Is the Best One-Off Website of 2019

Posted on by Robin Edgar

At a glance, the images featured on the website This Person Does Not Exist might seem like random high school portraits or vaguely inadvisable LinkedIn headshots. But every single photo on the site has been created by using a special kind of artificial intelligence algorithm called generative adversarial networks (GANs). Every time the site is Read more about This Person Does Not Exist Is the Best One-Off Website of 2019[…]

Use an 8-char Windows NTLM password? Don’t. Every single one can be cracked in under 2.5hrs

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In a Twitter post on Wednesday, those behind the software project said a hand-tuned build of the version 6.0.0 HashCat beta, utilizing eight Nvidia GTX 2080Ti GPUs in an offline attack, exceeded the NTLM cracking speed benchmark of 100GH/s (gigahashes per second). “Current password cracking benchmarks show that the minimum eight character password, no matter Read more about Use an 8-char Windows NTLM password? Don’t. Every single one can be cracked in under 2.5hrs[…]

The EU Just Finalized Copyright Legislation That breaks the Web, despite EU country opposition

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The last time the EU tweaked its copyright laws was in 2001, so the idea of updating regulations in the information age made a lot of sense. But critics became alarmed by two sections of the bill: Article 11 (aka the “link tax”) and Article 13 (aka the “upload filters”). In 2018, critics like Tim Read more about The EU Just Finalized Copyright Legislation That breaks the Web, despite EU country opposition[…]

Finland basic income trial left people ‘happier but jobless’

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Giving jobless people in Finland a basic income for two years did not lead them to find work, researchers said. From January 2017 until December 2018, 2,000 unemployed Finns got a monthly flat payment of €560 (£490; $634). The aim was to see if a guaranteed safety net would help people find jobs, and support Read more about Finland basic income trial left people ‘happier but jobless’[…]

Researchers Developed a Technique to Turn Nearly a Quarter of Our Plastic Waste into Fuel

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A team of chemists at Purdue may have found a partial solution to our plastic woes. As detailed in a paper published this week in Sustainable Chemistry and Engineering, the chemists discovered a way to convert polypropylene—a type of plastic commonly used in toys, medical devices, and product packaging like potato chip bags—into gasoline and Read more about Researchers Developed a Technique to Turn Nearly a Quarter of Our Plastic Waste into Fuel[…]

QNAP NAS user? You’d better check your hosts file for mystery anti-antivirus entries

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Network attached storage maker QNAP’s customers have reported being hit by a mystery issue that disables software updates by hijacking entries in host machines’ hosts file. The full effects are, as yet, unknown – but users have reported that the most visible symptom is that some 700 entries are added to the /etc/hosts file that Read more about QNAP NAS user? You’d better check your hosts file for mystery anti-antivirus entries[…]

Android phones can be hacked remotely by viewing malicious PNG image

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Your Android could be pwned by simply viewing an innocent-looking image – be it from browsing the internet or an image received via text – according to the Android Security Bulletin issued this month. While this certainly doesn’t apply to all images, Google discovered that a maliciously crafted PNG image could be used to hijack Read more about Android phones can be hacked remotely by viewing malicious PNG image[…]

Tencent-backed AI firm aims to free up parents and teachers from checking children’s maths homework – and analyses most common mistakes countrywide

Posted on by Robin Edgar

a Beijing-based online education start-up has developed an artificial intelligence-powered maths app that can check children’s arithmetic problems through the simple snap of a photo. Based on the image and its internal database, the app automatically checks whether the answers are right or wrong. Known as Xiaoyuan Kousuan, the free app launched by the Tencent Read more about Tencent-backed AI firm aims to free up parents and teachers from checking children’s maths homework – and analyses most common mistakes countrywide[…]

Ubisoft And Mozilla Announce A.I. Coding Assistant Clever-Commit

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Video game publisher Ubisoft is working with Mozilla to develop an artificial intelligence coding assistant called Clever-Commit, head of Ubisoft La Forge Yves Jacquier announced during DICE Summit 2019 on Tuesday. Clever-Commit reportedly helps programmers evaluate whether or not a code change will introduce a new bug by learning from past bugs and fixes. The Read more about Ubisoft And Mozilla Announce A.I. Coding Assistant Clever-Commit[…]

One click and you’re out: UK makes it an offence to view terrorist propaganda even once

Posted on by Robin Edgar

It will be an offence to view terrorist material online just once – and could incur a prison sentence of up to 15 years – under new UK laws. The Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Bill was granted Royal Assent yesterday, updating a previous Act and bringing new powers to law enforcement to tackle terrorism. But Read more about One click and you’re out: UK makes it an offence to view terrorist propaganda even once[…]

Refillable’ technology could provide enough energy to drive an electric car up to 3,000 miles

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A new type of electric vehicle power using “refillable” technology has taken another giant leap in advancing alternative energy with testing that shows it could provide enough energy to run a car for about 3,000 miles. The technology employs a novel type of “flow” battery that is being successfully tested in golf carts and industrial Read more about Refillable’ technology could provide enough energy to drive an electric car up to 3,000 miles[…]

Decision making in space – different than on earth

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Dr. Elisa Ferre, senior lecturer in psychology, and Maria Gallagher, lead author and Ph.D. student, both from Royal Holloway, investigated how alterations in gravity changed decision making. Astronauts are primarily trained in physical fitness and given the right equipment, but are rarely proficient in how their brain functions will work millions of miles away from Read more about Decision making in space – different than on earth[…]

AI technology addresses parts accuracy, a major manufacturing challenge in 3-D printing

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Imagine using machine learning to ensure that the pieces of an aircraft fit together more precisely, and can be assembled with less testing and time. That is one of the uses behind new technology being developed by researchers at Purdue University and the University of Southern California. “We’re really taking a giant leap and working Read more about AI technology addresses parts accuracy, a major manufacturing challenge in 3-D printing[…]

Scientists develop first fabric to automatically cool or insulate depending on conditions

Posted on by Robin Edgar

University of Maryland researchers have created a fabric that can automatically regulate the amount of heat that passes through it. When conditions are warm and moist, such as those near a sweating body, the fabric allows infrared radiation (heat) to pass through. When conditions become cooler and drier, the fabric reduces the heat that escapes. Read more about Scientists develop first fabric to automatically cool or insulate depending on conditions[…]