157289995
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
Apple's color-coding of SMS communications in green in iMessage plays a role alongside other feature in getting teenagers to switch from Android to iPhone, a report claims, with a pressure to fit in with their peers promoting moves to turn their messages blue. The use of green and blue to show whether a message to a user is made through iMessage or via other devices has become more than a simple convenience indicator for users. It's also a form of status indicator, showing the user not only owns an iPhone, but can also make use of features on the platform that others cannot. In a profile of the color-indication system by the Wall Street Journal, teenagers and students explain how not having an iPhone and seeing green messages are seemingly a negative to them.
New York masters student Jocelyn Maher said she was mocked by her friends and younger sister when dating, if the potential suitor used Android. "I was like, Oh my gosh, his texts are green,' and my sister literally went Ew, that's gross,'" said Maher.
Apple is apparently well aware that iMessage is a serious draw to its users, with it surfacing in the Epic-Apple trial as part of a series of claims it was used to lock users into its ecosystem. Epic pointed to statements by senior Apple management that the company had blocked the creation of an Android version of iMessage.
157139779
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
French President Emmanuel Macron has been accused of using divisive, vulgar language after he used a slang term to say he wanted to make life difficult for unvaccinated people. "I really want to piss them off, and we'll carry on doing this — to the end," he told Le Parisien newspaper.
MPs halted debate on a law barring the unvaccinated from much of public life. The session in the National Assembly was brought to a standstill for a second night running on Tuesday as opposition delegates complained about the president's language, with one leading figure describing it as "unworthy, irresponsible and premeditated". The legislation is expected to be approved in a vote this week, but it has angered vaccine opponents and several French MPs have said they have received death threats over the issue.
Mandatory vaccinations are being introduced in several European countries, with Austria leading the way for over-14s from next month and Germany planning a similar move for adults. Italy's government was on Wednesday considering a compulsory vaccine pass for at least anyone over 60.
In his interview with Le Parisien on Tuesday, Mr Macron used the vulgar term emmerder to say how he wanted to stir up the unvaccinated. He would not "vaccinate by force" the remaining five million who had not had a dose, but hoped to encourage people to get the vaccines by "limiting as much as possible their access to activities in social life". "I won't send [unvaccinated people] to prison," he said. "So we need to tell them, from 15 January, you will no longer be able to go to the restaurant. You will no longer be able to go for a coffee, you will no longer be able to go to the theatre. You will no longer be able to go to the cinema."
155756093
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
China's cyberspace regulator said on Tuesday it will tighten oversight over how celebrity information is disseminated online, such as the publishing of their personal details and the placements of their advertisements on internet sites.
The Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC) said this was aimed at creating a positive and healthy internet environment, describing the proliferation of gossip and star-chasing as impacting mainstream values.
It said it would create a "negative list" that would target online celebrity information that promoted bad values such as ostentatious wealth as well as any attempts to encourage fans to spend money to support celebrities.
154903149
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
Rolls-Royce has been backed by a consortium of private investors and the UK government to develop small nuclear reactors to generate cleaner energy. However, critics say the focus should be on renewable power, not new nuclear.
Rolls-Royce SMR said one of its power stations would occupy about one tenth of the size of a conventional nuclear plant — the equivalent footprint of two football pitches — and power approximately one million homes. The firm said a plant would have the capacity to generate 470MW of power, which it added would be the same produced by more than 150 onshore wind turbines. Warren East, Rolls-Royce chief executive, said the company's SMR technology offered a "clean energy solution" which help tackle climate change.
However, Paul Dorfman, chairman of the Nuclear Consulting Group think tank, told the BBC's Today programme there was danger that the money spent on nuclear power would hit funding for other power sources.
"If nuclear eats all the pies which it is looking to be doing we won't have enough money to do the kind of things we need to do which we know practically and technologically we can do now," he said.
154598735
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
NSO Group has been placed on a US blacklist by the Biden administration after it determined the Israeli spyware maker has acted “contrary to the foreign policy and national security interests of the US”.
The company’s signature spyware – known as Pegasus – is alleged to have been deployed by foreign governments against dissidents, journalists, diplomats and members of the clergy, with several alleged victims in the UK.
The new designation – which places NSO in the company of hackers from China and Russia – comes three months after a consortium of journalists working with the French non-profit group Forbidden Stories, revealed multiple cases of journalists and activists who were hacked by foreign governments using the spyware, including American citizens.
In effect, it means that NSO will be barred from buying parts and components from US companies without a special licence. It also puts a cloud over the sale of the company’s software globally, including in the US.
154117787
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
HT Aero, an affiliate of Chinese electric vehicle maker Xpeng Inc., launched a new flying car on Sunday that it says can also drive on roads. The company says it plans for a rollout in 2024.
HT Aero’s vehicle will have a lightweight design and a rotor that folds away, the company said. That will allow the car to drive on roads and then fly once the rotors are expanded. The vehicle will have a number of safety features including parachutes, the company said.
Flying cars — also called electric vertical take-off and landing vehicles — have garnered a lot of interest from automakers and start-ups. However, there are a number of challenges for these vehicles to become wide-scale including regulation and safety issues.
152638297
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
The COVID-19 vaccine has been scientifically proved to save lives, but for a select group of people in the religious realm, a more important matter is at stake – eternal salvation. As the delta variant of the coronavirus spreads, many Americans resist COVID-19 vaccines, some citing the uncertainty of long-term side effects, others lacking trust in the medical field. Some vaccine resisters have been galvanized by the idea that the shot is the "mark of the beast."
The "mark of the beast" in the New Testament's Book of Revelation signals an allegiance to Satan or those who reject God's memorial of creatorship. According to the Apostle John in the New International Version Bible, a pair of beasts will rule the Earth with cruelty. Their evil reach – which can be interpreted as hidden manipulation – will require all people who engage in commerce to wear the mark of the beast. The Apostle John did not identify what the mark looks like, although some theologians translate Scripture to associate the number "666" with it.
"Studies show that any conflicts between religion and science are not about facts, they are more about values and morals," said John Evans, a professor of sociology and religious studies at the University of California, San Diego.
Why do people call COVID-19 vaccine the 'mark of the beast?' Evans said that lack of trust in the government and medical field is a driving force behind the "mark of the beast" belief.
Peter Feaman, a top Republican National Committee official in Florida, said last month that vaccines are "the mark of the beast" and comparable to a "false god." In May, Feaman wrote on his blog of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer encouraging vaccines in Michigan: "Diabolical Michigan Governor Whiter wants her citizens to get the Mark of the Beast to participate in society."
Harvest Christian Fellowship Pastor Greg Laurie said COVID-19 vaccines are not "the mark of the beast," but many Christians may believe they are, thinking the world is in what the Bible calls "the last days." Laurie, who has been vaccinated, said the mark will be a pledge of loyalty to the Antichrist, and no one would take the mark unknowingly. "In Revelation 14, we learn that those who take the mark are doomed," he said. "God will not doom people for taking something unwittingly."Link to Original Source
152242615
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
Iran’s chief military nuclear scientist and the father of its weapons program, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh, was assassinated in November 2020 by the Mossad using a remote-controlled artificial intelligence operated sniper machine gun, The New York Times reported on Saturday. According to the report, “Iranian agents working for the Mossad had parked a blue Nissan Zamyad pickup truck on the side of the road connecting the town of Absard to the main highway. Hidden beneath tarpaulins and decoy construction material in the truck bed was a 7.62-mm sniper machine gun.”
The report details how the sniper who took out Fakhrizadeh did so remotely from Israel, over 1,600 kilometers away, since the hit squad had long ago left Iran. The gun which was used was a special model of a Belgian-made FN MAG machine gun attached to an advanced robotic apparatus. It was smuggled into the country in small pieces over several months because, taken together, all of its components would have weighed around a full ton.Link to Original Source
151608361
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
Over two decades, the United States and its allies spent hundreds of millions of dollars building databases for the Afghan people. The nobly stated goal: Promote law and order and government accountability and modernize a war-ravaged land. But in the Taliban’s lightning seizure of power, most of that digital apparatus — including biometrics for verifying identities — apparently fell into Taliban hands. Built with few data-protection safeguards, it risks becoming the high-tech jackboots of a surveillance state. As the Taliban get their governing feet, there are worries it will be used for social control and to punish perceived foes.
“It is a terrible irony,” said Frank Pasquale, Brooklyn Law School scholar of surveillance technologies. “It’s a real object lesson in ‘The road to hell is paved with good intentions.’”
Ali Karimi, a University of Pennsylvania scholar, is among Afghans unready to trust the Taliban. He worries the databases will give rigid fundamentalist theocrats, known during their insurgency for ruthlessly killing enemy collaborators, “the same capability as an average U.S. government agency when it comes to surveillance and interception.”Link to Original Source
151315905
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
Docker will restrict use of the free version of its Docker Desktop utility to individuals or small businesses, and has introduced a new more expensive subscription, as it searches for a sustainable business model. The company has renamed its Free plan to "Personal" and now requires that businesses with 250 or more employees, or higher than $10m in annual revenue, must use a paid subscription if they require Docker Desktop. There are no changes to the command-line Docker Engine. The $5/month Pro and $7/month Teams subscriptions continue as before, but a new $21/month Business subscription adds features including centralized management, single sign-on, and enhanced security. Much of Docker (but not Desktop) is open source under the Apache v2 licence.
What is the rationale for the changes? Docker has become a corporate standard, CEO Scott Johnston told us, but there are security challenges with the software supply chain which the company wants to address. Further, and perhaps most importantly, the company needs a viable business model.
Most Docker users use it for free, Johnston confirmed, though he hopes that paid subscriptions will increase as a result of the changes. "We estimate that there's double the number of subscribers today that are likely to find it compelling to sign up to a subscription, but that is still less than 10 per cent of overall usage of Docker," he said.
Is there a risk that some users will simply decide to avoid using Docker Desktop, and continue with the free command-line tools? "There is always a non-zero risk, but we've tried to draw lines such that it's those organizations that are already getting a lot of value from Docker Desktop, that will see $5 a seat as modest," said Johnston.Link to Original Source
150338181
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
David Mikkelson, the co-founder of the fact-checking website Snopes, has long presented himself as the arbiter of truth online, a bulwark in the fight against rumors and fake news. But he has been lying to the site's tens of millions of readers: A BuzzFeed News investigation has found that between 2015 and 2019, Mikkelson wrote and published dozens of articles containing material plagiarized from news outlets such as the Guardian and the LA Times. After inquiries from BuzzFeed News, Snopes conducted an internal review and confirmed that under a pseudonym, the Snopes byline, and his own name, Mikkelson wrote and published 54 articles with plagiarized material. Snopes VP of Editorial and Managing Editor Doreen Marchionni suspended Mikkelson from editorial duties pending “a comprehensive internal investigation.” He remains an officer and a 50% shareholder of the company.
Said Mikkelson, “There is no excuse for my serious lapses in judgement. I’m sorry.”
148552896
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk said on Tuesday that his Starlink satellite internet venture was growing quickly as he forecast total investment costs in the business at between $20 billion and $30 billion. Without disclosing details, he also said Starlink has "two quite significant partnerships with major country telcos" that could help the SpaceX division plug gaps in fifth-generation mobile and cellular networks.
Some analysts question whether satellite internet can be a viable business model because it mainly targets remote areas, where there may not be enough people able to pay the high tariffs needed to recoup the investment costs. Starlink would need a few million subscribers paying about $99 a month each to recoup a $5 billion investment in a year's time, said analyst Tim Farrar, president of TMF Associates. A $30 billion investment over a decade would not require a dramatic rise in subscribers, but to achieve Musk's 2020 projection of roughly $30 billion revenue a year would require tens of millions of subscribers, he said.
Musk said he was talking to possible partners as a number of countries require operators to provide rural coverage as conditions of their 5G licences. He also said if telecom operators have cellular stations in remote regions, they can use Starlink to allow them to connect to core networks.
148516878
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
A weight-loss tool that uses magnets to stop people from opening their mouths wide enough to eat solid food has been developed by scientists in order to tackle obesity. The device, developed by medical professionals from the University of Otago in New Zealand and scientists from Leeds in the UK, can be fitted by dentists and uses magnetic components with locking bolts. It has been criticised online, however, with people likening it to a medieval torture device. The University of Otago tweeted that it was “a world-first” weight-loss device “to help fight the global obesity epidemic: an intra-oral device that restricts a person to a liquid diet.”
Initially, it was trialled on seven otherwise healthy obese women from Dunedin in New Zealand for two weeks, who were given a low-calorie liquid diet. But participants complained that the device was hard to use, causing discomfort with their speech. They said they felt tense and that “life in general was less satisfying”. One participant did not follow the rules and instead consumed foods they were not supposed to, such as chocolate, by melting them. The DentalSlim Diet Control has received criticism online, with people on Twitter saying: “You don’t need this torture device to go on a liquid diet.”
147683540
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
A dose of laughing gas may just help some people with hard-to-treat depression, suggests a new, small clinical trial published Wednesday. The study found that people who inhaled nitrous oxide reported improvements in their depression symptoms afterward. It also found that people felt similar improvements with a smaller dose as they did with a larger one, but experienced substantially fewer side effects.
Nitrous oxide (NO) is a colorless, non-flammable gas at room temperature that’s long been used as an anesthetic and sometimes as a recreational drug, due to the euphoria and dissociative hallucinations it can cause upon inhalation. But several years ago, Peter Nagele, a researcher and trauma anesthesiologist at the University of Chicago, and his colleagues began looking into nitrous oxide as a potential treatment for depression.
The small trial recruited 28 participants in a crossover design, which is when all the volunteers go through each of the trial’s conditions and their responses are compared to one another (as opposed to two or more distinct groups that either take the drug or placebo). The team found that these volunteers on average experienced a greater improvement in depression symptoms when they took the nitrous oxide at either dose than they did after taking the placebo (based on the primary survey they completed)—an improvement that lasted for up to two weeks.
Some doctors and patients had been using generic ketamine, taken through IV, as an experimental depression treatment for years. But Johnson & Johnson didn’t fund expensive clinical trials to secure an approval for ketamine as a depression treatment; it instead developed a patentable form taken as a nasal spray, called esketamine. That sort of commercialization isn’t something that’s possible with nitrous oxide, according to Nagale.
147575240
submission
PolygamousRanchKid writes:
More than 800 suspected criminals have been arrested worldwide after being tricked into using an FBI-run encrypted messaging app, officials say. The operation, jointly conceived by Australia and the FBI, saw devices with the ANOM app secretly distributed among criminals, allowing police to monitor their chats about drug smuggling, money laundering and even murder plots. Europol described Operation Trojan Shield/Greenlight as the "biggest ever law enforcement operation against encrypted communication".
The FBI began operating its own encrypted device company called ANOM, and covertly distributed devices with the chat app among the criminal underworld via informants. The devices were initially used by alleged senior crime figures, giving other criminals the confidence to use the platform. In total, some 12,000 encrypted devices were used by around 300 criminal syndicates in more than 100 countries. Officers were able to read millions of messages in "real time" describing murder plots, mass drug import plans and other schemes.
