- Tech NewsSploid
An Amazon Shipping Box Turned Into a Knife Will Give You the Worst Paper Cut Imaginable
How many times have you accidentally given yourself a papercut after excitedly tearing open a delivery from Amazon? As Japan’s most resourceful knife maker demonstrates, those papercuts could be a lot worse if you spend hours painstakingly turning those cardboard boxes into a razor-sharp chef’s knife. The process involves soaking the cardboard in water, repeatedly … Continued
- ScienceHealth
Smartphones and Tablets Might Be Hurting Kids’ Hearing, but No One Knows for Sure
Most of us know that spending too much time at loud rock concerts can be bad for our hearing later on. But a new study published Thursday in JAMA Otolaryngology–Head & Neck Surgery suggests that kids as young as nine can be at risk of hearing loss from an unexpected source: their smartphones and tablets. … Continued
By Ed Cara - Tech NewsMicrosoft
Microsoft Employees Up in Arms Over Cloud Contract With ICE
Tensions are high within Microsoft, as new scrutiny is given to a partnership between the company’s Azure Government cloud computing arm and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), according to several Microsoft employees who spoke to Gizmodo on the condition of anonymity. Two were considering leaving the company based on the response. The partnership was … Continued
By Avery Ellis - Tech NewsNews
Researchers Develop Tech That Lets Surveillance Cameras Text to Say Hello
Researchers at Purdue University have found a new way to get surveillance cameras to “talk” to the people they see. The system is called PHADE, which stands for “private human addressing,” and it enables cameras to send messages to people’s devices when they’ve entered a specific area without collecting their personal data. Instead of using … Continued
- io9
Elastigirl Deserves a Much Better Husband Than Mr. Incredible
Incredibles 2 is a wondrously-crafted rehashing of many of the same narrative beats and jokes that made the first movie so great. But there’s one very important part of the new film that highlights a painful truth that’s been a part of the Incredibles franchise all along: Helen needs to break up with Bob. Incredibles … Continued
- EartherExtreme Weather
The World’s Largest Sand Desert Is Covered in Lakes After Tropical Cyclone Mekunu
When Tropical Cyclone Mekunu rumbled over Oman in May, it dumped torrential rainfall on the city of Salalah. Now, a new satellite image reveals the extent of unloaded rainfall in the nearby desert of Rub’ al-Khali, the world’s largest sand desert and (normally) one of the driest places on Earth. The image, taken by NASA’s … Continued
- io9
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom Was Born Out of Several Moral and Ethical Dilemmas
Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom centers on questions of animal rights, genetic power, war mongering, responsibility, and more. So, if you’re in the universe of Jurassic Park and want to talk about things like that, really there’s only one person you call: Dr. Ian Malcolm, played by Jeff Goldblum. And that’s exactly what co-writer and producer … Continued
- Tech NewsArtificial Intelligence
Nvidia Is Using AI to Perfectly Fake Slo-Mo Videos
One of the hardest video effects to fake is slow motion. It requires software to stretch out a clip by creating hundreds of non-existent in-between frames, and the results are often stuttered and unconvincing. But taking advantage of the incredible image-processing potential of deep learning, Nvidia has come up with a way to fake flawless … Continued
- ScienceSpace
This Video Made From Real Mars Data Will Make You Feel Like You’re Flying Over the Red Planet
There are lots of incredible things you can do with data. Like make this incredible animation of the Martian surface, for example. This animation is the latest from visual artist Seán Doran, using real data taken by the HiRISE camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. (MRO) Of course, it’s not actual video footage, and required … Continued
- io9
Fans Made the Bumblebee Movie Happen and Optimus Prime Could Be Next
One of the biggest complaints fans had about the Michael Bay Transformers movies was they really weren’t about the Transformers. They were human stories with Transformers as supporting characters. Well, the producers heard those sentiments and they’re changing the franchise. “We’ve gotten a lot of feedback from the fans that they wanted us to do … Continued
- Tech NewsNews
Amazon Shareholders Call for Jeff Bezos to Stop Selling Facial Recognition to Police
On Friday, 20 groups of Amazon shareholders sent CEO Jeff Bezos a letter pressuring him to stop selling the company’s face recognition software to law enforcement, CNN reports. Called Rekognition, the software came under greater scrutiny last month when the ACLU published revealing internal documents related to its use by police. Numerous civil rights organizations … Continued
- io9
Warner Bros. Is Starting to Crack Down on Harry Potter Fan Events
Without much in the way of officially-sanctioned Harry Potter conventions, fans of the wizarding world have spent years running their own cons celebrating J.K. Rowling’s beloved book and film series—but that’s starting to change, thanks to a new crackdown being enforced by Warner Bros. The news comes out of a report this weekend by the … Continued
- EartherEarth Science
Giant Clam Shells May Help Predict Future Tropical Storms
To understand how our warming oceans impact tropical cyclones, scientists need more information about storm patterns during the past. Unfortunately, a reliable historical record of these storms doesn’t extend all that far back—not even two centuries. Now a team of researchers thinks giant clam shells could help fill in some of the gaps. Tridacna maxima … Continued
By Jake Buehler - Tech NewsApple
One of macOS’ Most Useful Features May Be Making Your Files Less Secure
A bug in macOS’ Quick Look feature has seemingly been known to forensic experts for the better part of a decade, but security researcher Wojciech Regula shed new light on how the vulnerability actually works in a report published earlier this month. The issue apparently has to do with how Apple’s Quick Look feature takes … Continued
- io9
Voltron: Legendary Defender‘s Incredible New Season Has All the Answers You’ve Been Waiting For
For the past few truncated seasons, Netflix and Dreamworks’ Voltron: Legendary Defender has, for better or worse, danced around resolving some of the biggest questions the show has put forth. But its newly-released sixth season not only finally delivers some resolution, it does so while setting the stage for an explosive climax to the series … Continued
- Tech NewsArtificial Intelligence
Self-Taught AI Masters Rubik’s Cube in Just 44 Hours
Meet DeepCube, an artificially intelligent system that’s as good at playing the Rubik’s Cube as the best human master solvers. Incredibly, the system learned to dominate the classic 3D puzzle in just 44 hours and without any human intervention. “A generally intelligent agent must be able to teach itself how to solve problems in complex … Continued
- Tech NewsNews
California Lawmakers Combine Net Neutrality Bills to Better Fend Off ISP Greed
California’s two net neutrality bills are poised to become one, offering the state’s 40 million residents comprehensive protection against internet service provider trying to shakedown businesses and subscribers in the wake of the FCC repeal. Lawmakers hope to pass a watertight law by combing two bills that prevent ISPs such as AT&T and Comcast from … Continued
By Dell Cameron - Tech NewsNews
Australia Scraps Plans for National Biometric Crime Database
The Australian government is ending its plans for a national biometric database meant to help police departments track suspects and other persons of interest, the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission announced Friday. Surveillance and security company NEC was awarded the contract in 2016, but after a third-party audit found the project had nearly doubled its budget, ACIC … Continued
- io9
Incredibles 2 Just Had the Most Successful Opening Ever for an Animated Movie
There was no doubt that Incredibles 2 was going to be a box office hit, but it really can’t be understated just how wildly successful an opening weekend the movie just had. In just a single weekend, Incredibles 2 raked in an astonishing $180 million, a figure that makes it the most successful animated film … Continued
- EartherEnvironmental Justice
Navajo Coal Plant Drama Continues as Groups Sue to Clean Up Mine
When it comes to Arizona’s embattled Navajo Generating Station, groups on both sides can’t stop, won’t stop. The major coal power plant is set to shut down by the end of next year, but the Peabody Energy-owned mine supplying said coal isn’t. In fact, the Department of Interior’s Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement … Continued