Month: September 2020

Official launch of ELLIS Units – 15th of September 2020! | European Lab for Learning & Intelligent Systems

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) is officially launching its 30 ELLIS research units on Tuesday, September 15. Since the first 17 units were announced in December 2019, the ELLIS initiative has gained significant momentum, adding another 13 units at top research institutions across Europe. To highlight this rapid progress toward securing Read more about Official launch of ELLIS Units – 15th of September 2020! | European Lab for Learning & Intelligent Systems[…]

Cory Doctorow Crowdfunds His New Audiobook to Protest Amazon/Audible DRM

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Science fiction writer Cory Doctorow (also a former EFF staffer and activist) explains why he’s crowdfunding his new audiobook online. Despite the large publishers for his print editions, “I can’t get anyone to do my audiobooks. Amazon and its subsidiary Audible, which controls 90% of the audiobook sales, won’t carry any of my audiobooks because Read more about Cory Doctorow Crowdfunds His New Audiobook to Protest Amazon/Audible DRM[…]

Swedish Company Unveils A Wind-Powered Car Carrier Ship That Uses Wings, Not Sails

Posted on by Robin Edgar

KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm and the maritime consultancy SSPA partnered with shipbuilders Wallenius Marine in Sweden to design a cargo ship capable of reducing the industry’s huge carbon footprint. Around three percent of today’s carbon dioxide emissions come from the shipping industry, a figure that accounts for the 90,000 ships responsible for Read more about Swedish Company Unveils A Wind-Powered Car Carrier Ship That Uses Wings, Not Sails[…]

Watchdog accuses Amazon of price gouging during the pandemic

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A new report by the consumer watchdog group Public Citizen accuses Amazon of price gouging during the pandemic. According to the group, Amazon increased the prices of essential items like masks, hand sanitizer, disinfectant spray, paper towels and toilet paper. According to the report, the cost of a 50-pack of disposable face masks jumped from Read more about Watchdog accuses Amazon of price gouging during the pandemic[…]

Three middle-aged Dutch hackers slipped into Donald Trump’s Twitter account days before 2016 US election

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Three “grumpy old hackers” in the Netherlands managed to access Donald Trump’s Twitter account in 2016 by extracting his password from the 2012 Linkedin hack. The pseudonymous, middle-aged chaps, named only as Edwin, Mattijs and Victor, told reporters they had lifted Trump’s particulars from a database that was being passed about hackers, and tried it Read more about Three middle-aged Dutch hackers slipped into Donald Trump’s Twitter account days before 2016 US election[…]

High-fidelity record of Earth’s climate history puts current changes in context of orbital variation

Posted on by Robin Edgar

For the first time, climate scientists have compiled a continuous, high-fidelity record of variations in Earth’s climate extending 66 million years into the past. The record reveals four distinctive climate states, which the researchers dubbed Hothouse, Warmhouse, Coolhouse, and Icehouse. These major climate states persisted for millions and sometimes tens of millions of years, and Read more about High-fidelity record of Earth’s climate history puts current changes in context of orbital variation[…]

TikTok reveals details of how its algorithm works

Posted on by Robin Edgar

TikTok Wednesday revealed some of the elusive workings of the prized algorithm that keeps hundreds of millions of users worldwide hooked on the viral video app. […] TikTok’s algorithm uses machine learning to determine what content a user is most likely to engage with and serve them more of it, by finding videos that are Read more about TikTok reveals details of how its algorithm works[…]

Who Emerges into Virtual Team Leadership Roles? Different people from face to face leadership

Posted on by Robin Edgar

It turns out that where in traditional face to face leadership, people prefer leaders who are vocal, charming, friendly (ascription qualities). In virtual leadership, people prefer leaders who facilitate, are organised and actually do stuff (achievement factors).  In two independent samples—a laboratory experiment involving 86 teams (n = 340; sample one) and a semester long project involving Read more about Who Emerges into Virtual Team Leadership Roles? Different people from face to face leadership[…]

BlindSide: Watch speculative memory probing bypass kernel defenses, give malware root control

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Boffins in America, the Netherlands, and Switzerland have devised a Spectre-style attack on modern processors that can defeat defenses that are supposed to stop malicious software from hijacking a computer’s operating system. The end result is exploit code able to bypass a crucial protection mechanism and take over a device to hand over root access. Read more about BlindSide: Watch speculative memory probing bypass kernel defenses, give malware root control[…]

Several Fish Can Secretly Walk on Land, Study Suggests

Posted on by Robin Edgar

A surprising number of hillstream loaches—a family of Asian fish—are capable of walking on land using all four limbs, according to a new study. It’s a discovery that could explain how some of the earliest animals managed to stroll on solid ground. South Asian hillstream loaches are a family of small fish that can often Read more about Several Fish Can Secretly Walk on Land, Study Suggests[…]

How Britain can help you get away with stealing millions: a five-step guide

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Step 1: Forget what you think you know If you want to commit significant financial crime, therefore, you need a bank account, because electronic cash weighs nothing, no matter how much of it there is. But that causes a new problem: the bank account will have your name on it, which will alert the authorities Read more about How Britain can help you get away with stealing millions: a five-step guide[…]

Researchers reveal a much richer picture of the past with new DNA recovery technique

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Researchers at McMaster University have developed a new technique to tease ancient DNA from soil, pulling the genomes of hundreds of animals and thousands of plants—many of them long extinct—from less than a gram of sediment. The DNA extraction method, outlined in the journal Quarternary Research, allows scientists to reconstruct the most advanced picture ever Read more about Researchers reveal a much richer picture of the past with new DNA recovery technique[…]

Apple sues Epic for destroying the App store and won’t let their users log in using Apple log in (whatever that is)

Posted on by Robin Edgar

So, Apple is trying to frame it’s strong arming of companies into paying 30% protection money… uh… app store fees – well… unless you have an agreement to pay less, but only one or two have that… as being in the interest of the people who’s arms they are ripping out. Because we believe the Read more about Apple sues Epic for destroying the App store and won’t let their users log in using Apple log in (whatever that is)[…]

Hacked Windows 10 Themes Can Swipe Your Microsoft Login

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Windows 10 users can customize their desktops with unique themes, and are able to create and share those themes with others. Hackers can also use them to steal your credentials. A flaw in Windows 10’s theme-creation feature lets hackers modify custom themes that, once installed, trick users into passing over their Microsoft account name and Read more about Hacked Windows 10 Themes Can Swipe Your Microsoft Login[…]

TCL’s new paper-like display can also play videos

Posted on by Robin Edgar

NXTPAPER today — a new type of display that’s meant to offer better eye protection by reducing flicker, blue light and light output. The company said the effect is similar to E Ink, calling it a “combination of screen and paper.” TCL also said it has received eye protection certifications from the German Rhine laboratory, Read more about TCL’s new paper-like display can also play videos[…]

Rocket Lab secretly launched its own satellite that may one day go to the Moon

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Rocket Lab recently made a successful return to flight and launched a client satellite from its Electron Rocket, but that’s not all that happened on the mission. The company also secretly launched its own satellite, called Photon, that could one day fly ambitious deep space missions. Photon is based on Rocket Lab’s “Kick Stage,” which Read more about Rocket Lab secretly launched its own satellite that may one day go to the Moon[…]

Harvard created a wool-like 3D-printable material that can shape shift

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The team, from the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), created a 3D-printable material that can be “pre-programmed with reversible shape memory.” The wool-like material can remember old forms and morph back into those, or transform into different shapes when a certain stimulus is applied. It’s made using keratin extracted from Read more about Harvard created a wool-like 3D-printable material that can shape shift[…]

Italy is investigating Apple, Google and Dropbox cloud storage services

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Italy’s competition watchdog is investing Apple, Google and Dropbox, TechCrunch reports. In a press release, the AGCM announced that it opened six investigations into the companies’ cloud storage services: Google Drive, iCloud and Dropbox. The authority is concerned that the services fail to adequately explain how user data will be collected and used for commercial Read more about Italy is investigating Apple, Google and Dropbox cloud storage services[…]

China Just Launched and Landed a Secret Reusable Spacecraft

Posted on by Robin Edgar

In recent days, China has quietly launched a secret reusable spacecraft, left it in orbit for two days and safely landed it back on Earth. And although the spacecraft is top secret—we’re not even privy to its design—there are some things that China apparently wants the world to know about it. According to Xinhua, China’s Read more about China Just Launched and Landed a Secret Reusable Spacecraft[…]

India flies Mach 6 scramjet for 20 seconds

Posted on by Robin Edgar

India claims it flew a perfect scramjet test at Mach 6 on Monday. A government announcement says the vehicle hitched a ride on a rocket that ascended to an altitude of 30km before launching the “Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle “The cruise vehicle separated from the launch vehicle and the air intake opened as planned. The Read more about India flies Mach 6 scramjet for 20 seconds[…]

No, Kubernetes doesn’t make applications portable, say analysts. Good luck avoiding lock-in, too

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Do not make application portability your primary driver for adopting Kubernetes, say Gartner analysts Marco Meinardi, Richard Watson and Alan Waite, because while the tool theoretically improves portability in practice it also locks you in while potentially denying you access to the best bits of the cloud. The three advance that theory in a recent Read more about No, Kubernetes doesn’t make applications portable, say analysts. Good luck avoiding lock-in, too[…]

Australia starts second fight with Google and Apple, this time over whether app stores leak data, gouge devs, steal ideas and warp markets

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Australia, already embroiled in a nasty fight with Google and Facebook over its plan to make them pay for news links, has opened an inquiry into whether Apple and Google’s app stores offer transparent pricing and see consumers’ data used in worrying ways. The issues paper [PDF] outlining the scope of the inquiry names only Read more about Australia starts second fight with Google and Apple, this time over whether app stores leak data, gouge devs, steal ideas and warp markets[…]

Angry 123-Reg customers in the UK wake up to another day where hosted mail doesn’t get through to users on Microsoft email accounts

Posted on by Robin Edgar

Users of UK web hosting firm 123-Reg’s email service told The Reg this morning that 96 hours after clocking the issue, they are still having trouble sending emails to users with Microsoft’s Live, Outlook or Hotmail accounts. For its part, 123-Reg has confirmed “delays in delivering emails to Hotmail/Outlook/Live email addresses,” but provided no ETA Read more about Angry 123-Reg customers in the UK wake up to another day where hosted mail doesn’t get through to users on Microsoft email accounts[…]

Security Risks Revolving the 2020 US Presidential Elections | Techwarn.com

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The coronavirus pandemic has forced people around the globe to temporarily modify the ways they go about activities. Activities like these include political elections and campaigning. Since the virus hit in an election year, it’s highly likely new measures will be taken to prevent mass gatherings during voting. Infection rates aren’t likely to drop any Read more about Security Risks Revolving the 2020 US Presidential Elections | Techwarn.com[…]

Dutch minister of Justice holds coronaparty, changes law to escape consequences, appears to DMCA to delete from internet, better than Cummings!

Posted on by Robin Edgar

The man who told all of the Netherlands to keep to 1.5m distance and to stay away from older people (Grapperhaus) was photographed hugging his mother in law and repeatedly breaking the distance at his wedding. This is the man who fines people EUR 400,- for this and then gives them a permanent record. He Read more about Dutch minister of Justice holds coronaparty, changes law to escape consequences, appears to DMCA to delete from internet, better than Cummings![…]