the digest(Page 184)

Latest in the digest

Facebook is not only failing to detect Al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups on its platform, it's algorithmically generating content for them.

Artificial Intelligence

Facebook Cheers on Charming Local Business Al-Qaeda’s “Great Year”

By Dan Robitzski

A driver says his Tesla saved his life during a crash, a claim that stands in stark contrast to those of a recently filed lawsuit against the carmaker.

Driver Says Tesla “Saved His Life” During a High-Speed Crash

By Kristin Houser

Astronomers are looking to get a much higher resolution shot of a black hole by sending two to three satellites into Earth orbit.

Explained: Why the Next Black Hole Image Will Be Incredible

By Victor Tangermann

The accused "Russian spy whale" might actually have once served as a "therapy whale," according to a man who thinks he's seen the animal before.

A Man Is Now Claiming He Recognizes the “Russian Spy Whale”

By Kristin Houser

A mounting body of evidence suggests that spacetime is created by the properties of quantum physics, not unlike a hologram projection.

Quantum Physics

Our Reality Could Be a “Hologram” Created by Quantum Physics

By Dan Robitzski

Scientists developed "zombie-like" cells that are technically no longer active human cells — but their walls can still bind to potentially useful compounds.

Health & Medicine

Newly-Invented “Zombie-Like Cells” Act Alive “Despite Being Dead”

By Victor Tangermann

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter to imply that Blue Origin CEO Jeff Bezos was building unwarranted hype for a plan that wasn't going anywhere.

Elon Musk Ridicules Jeff Bezos’ Moon Lander

By Kristin Houser

Dyson, the company famous for making vacuum cleaners, just filed patents for an upcoming off-road electric car, expected to hit the market in 2021.

Advanced Transport

Vacuum Maker Dyson Patents Off-Road Electric Car

By Dan Robitzski

Mexico's new president has a plan to decriminalize all illegal drugs — and he's hopeful the United States will follow his lead.

Mexico Wants the United States to Decriminalize All Drugs

By Kristin Houser

Jeff Bezos announced plans to build giant space habitats full of cities and parks. It sounds cool in theory, but many aren't convinced.

People Are Roasting Jeff Bezos’ Ridiculous Space Habitats

By Dan Robitzski

Congressman Brad Sherman (D-CA) urged his colleagues help outlaw cryptocurrency and the purchase thereof by Americans "so we can nip this in the bud."

This Congressman Wants to Make All Cryptocurrency Illegal

By Victor Tangermann

A new video demonstrates how a nonprofit plans to build a 3D-printed neighborhood for low-income families in Latin American this summer.

Watch a 3D-Printed Neighborhood Spring up From Nothing

By Kristin Houser

The Trump Administration wanted NASA to put an astronaut on the Moon by 2024 instead of 2028 as originally planned. So far, the new timeline isn't working.

Congress Is Furious That NASA Doesn’t Have a Moon Plan Yet

By Dan Robitzski

A team of researchers discovered the unusual way in which water cycles on Mars. It's a clue as to why Mars turned into a dry and desolate place.

Surprising Discovery: Mars Is Leaking Hydrogen from Water Vapor

By Victor Tangermann

Google is launching a series of gender-fluid emoji for its smartphones, the latest example of efforts to make the tiny symbols more inclusive.

Google Is Adding 53 Gender-Fluid Emoji to Its Smartphones

By Kristin Houser

The Florida Keys are about to use drones to find and kill mosquitos breeding in remote pools of standing water instead of sending expensive helicopters.

Florida Officials Are Using Drones to Kill Mosquitoes

By Dan Robitzski

Amazon Echo Dot Kids is illegally collecting data on minors, alleges a new FTC complaint filed by a group of privacy advocates.

Amazon Alexa: Illegally Recording Kids, Privacy Advocates Allege

By Kristin Houser

Last month, a SpaceX Crew Dragon shuttle crash-landed after its parachutes failed, but NASA says it's a learning experience.

NASA Admits SpaceX Ship Crashed During Failed Test Last Month

By Dan Robitzski

Google announced its creepy auto-calling assistant feature a year ago. Since then, many restaurants are choosing to hang up instead.

Restaurants Are Ignoring Calls From Google’s Smart Assistant

By Victor Tangermann

Lawmakers in the US have proposed a bill that would regulate in-game purchases for children's video games, signaling new efforts to protect gamers.

Virtual Reality

Lawmakers Want to Regulate Video Games Targeted at Children

By Natalie Coleman

A brain-computer interface can connect three people's brains, letting them transmit thoughts to each other to collaborate in a game of Tetris.

This Machine Lets You Play “Tetris” With Your Brain

By Dan Robitzski

Bank of America analysts argue that it would be wise to invest in longevity companies that are working to extend the human lifespan and erase disease.

Health & Medicine

Major Bank: The Immortality Industry Is the Next Hot Investment

By Dan Robitzski

Denver became the first city in the US to decriminalize psilocybin, a compound with hallucinogenic properties that occurs in some "magic mushrooms."

Denver Becomes First U.S. City to Decriminalize “Magic Mushrooms”

By Jon Christian

Chinese food manufacturers have deployed taste-testing robots and artificial intelligence to make sure that the food is high-quality and authentic.

Taste-Testing Robots Are Optimizing Food in China

By Dan Robitzski

A team from Berkeley has found a way to make recycled plastic far more useful by breaking the bonds between chemicals in the material.

This New Plastic Can Be Recycled Repeatedly

By Kristin Houser

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo says melting sea ice in the Arctic is "opening new naval passageways and new opportunities for trade."

Tone-Deaf US Official: Melting Sea Ice Offers Trade Opportunities

By Kristin Houser

The ISS is about to test a new algae bioreactor that turns carbon dioxide to food and breathable oxygen. If it works, it could allow deep space missions.

International Space Station

The ISS Now Has an “Algae Bioreactor” Generating Oxygen and Food

By Dan Robitzski

S-money is a new type of virtual money that would enable ultra-fast, ultra-secure transfers of funds over essentially any distance.

New Type of “Quantum Money” Could Enable Galactic-Scale Commerce

By Kristin Houser

Cornell scientists discovered a bacterial gene that makes them resistant to last-resort antibiotics. They hope it will help doctors screen for superbugs.

Sneaky Bacteria Can Swap Genes, Making Them Immune to Antibiotics

By Dan Robitzski

A new report claims a group of Chinese hackers co-opted cyberweapons the NSA used against the nation to attack US allies.

China Stole NSA Cyberweapons and Used Them Against US Allies

By Kristin Houser

New research reveals that extended trips to space are causing astronauts' brains to fill with excess fluid and swell, potentially damaging their eyesight.

Bad News, NASA: Astronauts’ Brains Are Filling With Liquid

By Dan Robitzski

Researchers kept pig lungs alive outside the animals' bodies for 36 hours to demonstrate their ability to repair damaged donor organs.

Health & Medicine

Scientists Heal Pig Lungs Kept Alive Outside the Body for 36 Hours

By Kristin Houser

New research reveals that when Coca-Cola funds nutrition research, it retains the right to review and kill studies that would look bad for the company.

Health & Medicine

Coke Funded Nutrition Research — and Killed Anti-Sugar Results

By Dan Robitzski

Germany Installed Cables Over a Highway to Power Electric Trucks

Advanced Transport

Germany Installed Cables Over a Highway to Power Electric Trucks

By Victor Tangermann

At roughly the same time blockbuster battle royale shooter PUBG disappeared for Chinese gamers, a new government friendly version of the game was announced.

China Replaces PUBG With Bizarre, Propaganda-Filled Clone

By Victor Tangermann

Law enforcement agencies across the globe are working together to take down dark web marketplaces facilitating illegal activity.

There’s a Global Crackdown on the Dark Web Happening Right Now

By Kristin Houser

Research suggests that the edge of a tectonic plate off the coast of Portugal may be splitting in half, causing powerful underground earthquakes.

Science & Energy

This “Peeling” Tectonic Plate Could Cause Catastrophic Earthquakes

By Dan Robitzski

A new video shows how Tesla's Enhanced Summon allows a Model 3 to navigate a parking lot autonomously to pick up its owner at the curb.

See Tesla’s Enhanced Summon Pick up a Driver in a Parking Lot

By Kristin Houser

An analysis of 16 basic income projects concluded that giving people free money simply wouldn't be sustainable for any nation in the long term.

Universal Basic Income

Huge Analysis Finds “No Evidence” Basic Income Is Sustainable

By Kristin Houser

Google Ventures has pumped money into Verve Therapeutics, a startup that wants to use CRISPR to create a "one-and-done" therapy for heart disease.

Google Backs Plan to Use CRISPR to Cure Heart Disease

By Kristin Houser

Last month, the Air Force tested a new anti-missile laser weapon that it hopes to equip onto fighter jets by 2021. For now, it's still too big.

The Air Force Just Tested a Laser Weapon for Fighter Jets

By Dan Robitzski

European scientists recently tested an unfathomably powerful laser. Next year, they expect to use it to develop new cancer treatments and study supernovas.

The World’s Strongest Laser is About to Simulate a Supernova

By Dan Robitzski

The new Microsoft Ideas feature for Word uses artificial intelligence to ensure your writing doesn't feature non-inclusive language.

Artificial Intelligence

Microsoft Word’s New “AI Editor” Scolds You for Gendered Language

By Kristin Houser

Despite advertising "no lines" and "no checkout" on its walls, Amazon's latest cashierless store features an employee, who can accept cash at a counter.

Amazon’s Newest Cashierless Store… Has a Cashier

By Victor Tangermann

Yusaku Maezawa, the man expected to be SpaceX's first Moon passenger, says he "has no money" and is now selling art from his personal collection.

The Guy Who Bought a SpaceX Ticket to the Moon Is Broke

By Kristin Houser

Teslas Can Now Detect Broken Parts and Pre-Order Replacements

Teslas Can Now Detect Broken Parts and Pre-Order Replacements

By Victor Tangermann

A team of researchers in Japan invented a space fire extinguisher that sucks up the flame and its source like a vacuum cleaner.

This Space Extinguisher Can Vacuum Up Flames

By Victor Tangermann

To improve mosque security, the Keep Mosques Safe initiative is financing the installation of an AI-powered security system in mosques worldwide.

Artificial Intelligence

Security Company to Install Gun-Detecting AI in Mosques Worldwide

By Kristin Houser

In order to fight the spread of anti-vaxxer misinformation, Instagram is developing a pop-up that will appear next to dangerous medical claims.

Health & Medicine

Instagram May Combat Anti-Vaxxer Misinformation With Pop-up Ads

By Dan Robitzski

Drones’ Batteries Could Last Longer if They Could Perch Like Birds

Drones’ Batteries Could Last Longer if They Could Perch Like Birds

By Victor Tangermann

As deepfakes and AI-generated "photos" become more common, we all need tools to discern fact from fiction. A new website came up with tips and a test.

Artificial Intelligence

This Site Tests Whether You Can Spot AI-Generated Faces

By Dan Robitzski

"Millions of Facebook Inc photos, status updates and other content posted since 2014" have been combed over by hundreds of outsourced workers in Hyderabad.

Outsourced Workers Are Training AIs With Your Private FB Posts

By Victor Tangermann

Scientists figured out how to 3D print a functional "lung" made of inflatable air sacs that can oxygenate blood just like a real lung.

New Video Shows 3D Printed Lung “Breathing”

By Dan Robitzski

A massive new report by the United Nations concludes that a million species are under threat of extinction — and humans are to blame.

Science & Energy

United Nations: One Million Species Are Poised to Go Extinct

By Kristin Houser

In IHMC Robotics' new video, its humanoid robot Atlas autonomously traverses suspended wooden planks and wobbly cinder blocks.

Watch This Hulking Robot Play “The Floor Is Lava”

By Kristin Houser

Gaia, an ESA satellite charged with plotting the course of the stars, just discovered three new asteroids orbiting the Sun at a peculiar angle.

ESA Satellite Accidentally Discovered Three New Asteroids

By Dan Robitzski

An artificial intelligence-powered pun generator created by Stanford Researchers attempts to prove that a neural network can have a sense of humor, too.

Artificial Intelligence

This AI Is Spitting Out Coherent, Almost-Funny Dad Puns

By Victor Tangermann

Boston-based startup ClimaCell pulls data from cell phones, street cameras, connected vehicles, and drones to forecast weather conditions.

Science & Energy

This Startup Uses Cell Phone Signals to Forecast Weather

By Kristin Houser

In a medical first, doctors saved a stabbing victim's life by performing open-heart surgery in the street because he wouldn't have survived to the hospital.

Medical First: Doctor Performs Open Heart Surgery in the Street

By Dan Robitzski

Hubble scientists just assembled a dizzying composite image made of 16 years of Hubble Space Telescope observations that includes 265,000 galaxies.

Tiny Specks Zoom Into Beautiful Galaxies In Amazing Hubble Image

By Dan Robitzski

Produce grown by startup Iron Ox's robot farm is now available for purchase, a futuristic example of how technology is transforming agriculture.

Futuristic Robot Farm Begins Selling Its First Produce

By Kristin Houser

Watch This “Police Robot” Pull a Car Over

Watch This “Police Robot” Pull a Car Over

By Victor Tangermann

Researchers discover that antiretroviral therapy (ART) completely eliminates gay men's risk of HIV transmission through sex.

Study Finds “Zero Risk” of HIV Transmission During Drug Treatment

By Kristin Houser

InfoWars came back online not even a day after Facebook announced the ban with a page titled "Infowars is back."

InfoWars Made a New Facebook Page One Hour After Ban

By Victor Tangermann