Daily Archives: August 7, 2022

Physicist pranks with James Webb Space Telescope photo of a chorizo sausage – some people really have no sense of humor any more

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[…] On July 31st, Étienne Klein, the director of France’s Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission, shared an image he claimed the JWST captured of Proxima Centauri, the nearest-known star to the sun.

“It was taken by the James Webb Space Telescope,” Klein told his more than 91,000 Twitter followers. “This level of detail… A new world is unveiled every day.” Thousands of people took the post at face value and retweeted it without comment.

A few days later, Klein admitted that what he shared was actually a photo of a slice of chorizo against a black background. “In view of certain comments, I feel obliged to specify that this tweet showing an alleged picture of Proxima Centauri was a joke,” Klein said. “Let’s learn to be wary of the arguments from positions of authority as much as the spontaneous eloquence of certain images.”

Klein subsequently apologized for the prank and told French news outlet Le Point (via Vice) he posted the image to educate the public about the threat of fake news. “I also think that if I hadn’t said it was a James Webb photo, it wouldn’t have been so successful,” he noted. After everything was said and done, Klein shared the recent image the JWST captured of the Cartwheel galaxy. This time he was quick to assure his followers that the photo was authentic.

Source: Physicist trolls James Webb Space Telescope fans with a photo of a chorizo sausage | Engadget

Some people, including the writer of Engadget have gotten their panties in a twist about this. It’s a joke. Funny. A bit of a shame Klein needed to apologise for this and make up some BS nonsense justification around it.

Apple tells suppliers to use ‘Taiwan, China’ on labels

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Apple, which celebrates its self-professed commitment to free expression and human rights, has reportedly told its suppliers in Taiwan to label their components so they describe Taiwan as a province of the People’s Republic of China (PRC).

According to Japanese financial publication Nikkei, Apple on Friday warned its suppliers that China has ramped up enforcement of a long-standing import rule “that Taiwanese-made parts and components must be labeled as being made either in ‘Taiwan, China’ or ‘Chinese Taipei.'”

[…]

While China and the US have allowed the status of Taiwan to remain ambiguous to avoid open warfare, the uneasy peace frequently gets tested, as was the case this week when Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic Speaker of the House of Representatives, visited Taiwan after being warned away by the Chinese government.

Pelosi’s visit infuriated the CCP, which responded by holding threatening military exercises and announcing countermeasures, including the suspension of military, legal, and economic cooperative efforts between China and the US. CCP authorities also sanctioned Pelosi and her family. China’s decision to enforce its import labeling rules to designate Taiwan as its own province presumably follows from this fit of pique.

Apple has prospered by relying on Chinese companies as part of its supply chain. But its dependence upon China for sales and product assembly has left the corporation unwilling to challenge egregious abuses, though it argues otherwise.

In September, 2020, Apple issued a document [PDF] titled “Our Commitment to Human Rights.” It states, “At Apple and throughout our supply chain, we prohibit harassment, discrimination, violence, and retaliation of any kind—and we have zero tolerance for violations motivated by any form of prejudice or bigotry.”

Apple has shown a bit more tolerance for China’s mass detention of Muslim Uyghurs.

In December, 2020, the Tech Transparency Project reported that Apple’s suppliers depend upon forced labor. And in May 2021, a report by The Information accused seven of Apple’s suppliers of relying on forced labor in China’s Xinjiang region.

When US lawmakers proposed a law to hold companies accountable for allowing suppliers to use forced labor, Apple lobbied against the bill which was nonetheless signed into law by President Biden toward the end of last year. Apple also lobbied the SEC, unsuccessfully, to block a shareholder proposal to require the company to disclose more details about supply chain labor practices.

[…]

Ismail pointed to Apple’s censorship of Taiwan’s flag emoji on iOS devices sold in Hong Kong and Macao.

“During the Umbrella movement in Hong Kong, [Apple] removed an app used by protesters for safety purposes,” he said. “It gave very strict directives to its employees about their involvement in the movement, and abusively and heavily restricted their freedom of expression.”

[…]

Source: Apple tells suppliers to use ‘Taiwan, China’ on labels • The Register

‘Switchblade’ Flying car with foldable wings and a retractable tail gets FAA approval, fits in your garage

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  • A flying car called “Switchblade” can now be sold in the US market.
  • This three-wheeler can fly at a height of 16,000 feet (4.8 km)in the sky.
  • It runs on premium gasoline and has a maximum air speed of 200 mph (321 km/h)

A flying sports car named Switchblade recently passed the safety tests of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), and now it is ready for market launch. Its creators at the Oregon-based company Samson Sky claim it took 14 years to develop this innovative vehicle. Interestingly, Switchblade can be easily parked inside a residential garage, and it is suitable for both roadside driving and flying.

Although Switchblade is not the first flying car to get clearance from FAA (in February 2022, Terrafugia Transition became the first flying car to get FAA approval), it might become the first flying car available to the public in the US. Samson Sky has started taking online reservations for Switchblade, and over 1,600 people have already shown interest in buying the car. The estimated starting price for Switchblade would be $150,000.

The uncanny features of Switchblade

Flying car 'Switchblade' with foldable wings and a retractable tail gets FAA approval
Samson Sky Switchblade in flying mode

 

Switchblade is a three-wheeler sports car that comes with foldable wings and a retractable tail. Within three minutes, these flexible components can turn this roadside vehicle into a small aircraft capable of flying at 16,000 feet (4.8 km). The top speed of this two-seater flying machine ranges between 125 mph (201 km/h) (on-road) and 200 mph (321 km/h) (during flight).

The official website of Samson Sky mentions that the car comes equipped with a hybrid electric drive and fly system, a climate-controlled cabin, front and rear crumple zones, and a parachute that covers the whole vehicle to ensure complete comfort and safety of its users. It runs on 91 octane gasoline, one of the most common and readily available premium automobile fuels in the US.

When asked about the motivation behind Switchblade, CEO of Samson Sky, Sam Bousfield told The Hill, “The speed at which we do things is the biggest motivation for me. You start knocking down targets and really getting things done – it really fires up the team,” He further reveals that for him, “road + sky = endless possibilities”. He has always believed in this idea, and Flying cars have been his childhood dream, so this is another reason why he has been able to work on flying car technology for so long.

Can Switchblade become a mainstream vehicle?

Bousfield claims that only a few years are left before we see flying Switchblades in the sky, but like any flying car, Switchblade has its own challenges. For instance, the vehicle has been approved by the FAA, but that only means that Samson Sky can sell this vehicle. The buyers might still need to get permission from local authorities before they drive or fly Switchblade for the first time since it is not an ordinary vehicle.

Another complicated matter is insurance. Switchblade is a flying vehicle, and there is no company in the US that offers flying car insurance. However, the insurance laws in most American states require drivers to carry active vehicle insurance with them. While addressing this issue, Sam Bousfield anticipates that until companies come up with suitable insurance policies, Switchblade buyers might need to buy both car and aircraft insurance.

Flying cars have been a century-old dream and now it seems like we are very close to seeing the idea turn into a reality. The challenges discussed above are real, but hopefully, they will be resolved by the time Switchblade arrives on the market. What’s more interesting is that Switchblade isn’t the only flying car that is ready to launch. There are other players as well, and it would be fascinating to see which of them we see first on the road.

Source: Flying car ‘Switchblade’ with foldable wings and a retractable tail gets FAA approval

Cryptocurrency firm Nomad offers 10% bounty to hackers who stole $190 million

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Hackers recently stole $190 million from cryptocurrency cross-chain token platform Nomad, and now the company says it will pay a bounty to the thieves if they return those assets.

Nomad says it will pay the hackers an amount that is worth up to 10% of the stolen funds and call off its lawyers after the money is returned to an official “recovery wallet.” It will also consider the cyberthieves to be ethical — or “white hat” — hackers.

The initial theft happened earlier this week when Nomad’s routing systems were being upgraded, which allowed attackers to spoof messages and copy and paste transactions. Nomad’s bridge was zapped quickly in what one researcher called a ““frenzied free-for-all.”

​​The exploit is the seventh major incident to target a bridge in 2022, and it is the eighth largest cryptocurrency theft of all time, according to blockchain analysis firm Elliptic. Added together, over a dozen unique hacks have occurred in 2022, with more than $2 billion stolen from cross-chain bridges like Nomad.

Nomad’s willingness to work with the intruders

Elliptic said there were 40 hackers involved in the Nomad incident, and the company appears to want to make the return of its money as much of a win-win as possible.

For anyone to qualify for the bounty, the only caveats Nomad has is that the hackers have to return at least 90% of the total funds they hacked, use Ethereum as the currency, use Anchorage Digital (a nationally regulated custodian bank), and do it in a “timely” fashion. The company didn’t give a specific number of days or weeks as a deadline, but it said it will continue to work with its online community, blockchain analysis firms, and law enforcement to guarantee that all funds are returned.

[…]

Source: Cryptocurrency firm Nomad offers 10% bounty to hackers who stole $190 million