Colonial Pipeline paid a $5 million ransom—and kept a vicious cycle turning
Stopping payments would go a long way to stopping ransomware. Enlarge (credit: Sean Rayford | Getty Images) Nearly a week after a ransomware attack led Colonial Pipeline to halt fuel distribution on the East Coast, reports emerged on Friday th.....»»
Youth social media: Why proposed legislation won"t fix harms related to data exploitation
Ontario school board lawsuits against social media giants including Meta, Snapchat and TikTok are seeking damages— money paid as a remedy—for the disruption of the educational system......»»
Heat hardiness: Scientists identify key phase for tomato heat tolerance
By studying tomato varieties that produce fruit in exceptionally hot growing seasons, biologists at Brown University identified the growth cycle phase when tomatoes are most vulnerable to extreme heat, as well as the molecular mechanisms that make th.....»»
Geologists rewrite textbooks with new insights from Cambrian rocks of Grand Canyon
Since soon after our planet formed, Earth's 4.6 billion-year-long history was dominated by single-celled life. Something dramatic happened about 500 million years ago called the Cambrian "explosion," during which an incredible diversity of life forms.....»»
The rise of color vision in animals: Study maps dramatic 100-million-year explosion in color signals
Colors are widely used in communication within and among animal species. For example, peacocks proudly display their vibrant tails, adorned with iridescent eyespots, to attract peahens for courtship. This is a classic example of sexual selection usin.....»»
MultiVersus is underperforming, but Warner Bros. is still focused on IP
Warner Bros. Discovery is tripling down on its IP for its gaming division despite MultiVersus underperforming to the tune of $100 million......»»
GeForce Now introduces a 100-hour monthly playtime cap
Although this cap will initially apply only to new GeForce Now members, all current paid subscribers will see their unlimited playtime end on January 1, 2026......»»
ChatGPT has a new vanity domain name, and it may have cost $15 million
Speculator swapped pricey domain for OpenAI shares instead of taking cash payment. On Wednesday, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman merely tweeted "chat.com," announcing that the company had a.....»»
What can sport fans do if their team, or league, is being sportswashed?
As sport and politics are ever more intertwined in 2024, so too are the number of nations and organizations turning to "sportswashing.".....»»
Nearly three years since launch, Webb is a hit among astronomers
Demand for observing time on Webb outpaces supply by a factor of nine. From its halo-like orbit nearly a million miles from Earth, the James Webb Space Telescope is seeing farther.....»»
Deals: First cash discounts on M4 Pro/Max MacBook Pro, Apple Watch Solo Loops from just $17, M2 iPad Air $150 off, more
After seeing the first cash deals on the all-new M4 Mac mini and M4 iMac this week, we are now turning our attention to the very first Amazon deals on the new M4 Pro and M4 Max MacBook Pro configurations. All of the details you need on these offers a.....»»
The high cost of complexity: New study explores energy needs of multicellular life
Between 1.8 billion and 800 million years ago, earthly life was in the doldrums. During this period, called the "boring billion," the complexity of life remained minimal, dominated by single-celled organisms with only sporadic ventures into multicell.....»»
Food security in Africa: Managing water will be vital in a rapidly growing region
Sub-Saharan Africa's population is growing at 2.7% per year and is expected to reach two billion by the year 2050. The region's urban population is growing even faster: it was at 533 million in 2023, a 3.85% increase from 2022......»»
GoZone ransomware accuses and threatens victims
A new ransomware dubbed GoZone is being leveraged by attackers that don’t seem to be very greedy: they are asking the victims to pay just $1,000 in Bitcoin if they want their files decrypted. The GoZone HTML ransom note (Source: SonicWall) The.....»»
Mapping the maze where the IRS could find billions in unpaid taxes
In 2021, the difference between what U.S. taxpayers owed the federal government and what they paid hit nearly $700 billion. This "tax gap" has been growing for years while the Internal Revenue Service's budget has shrunk, declining by 18% between 201.....»»
Apple offers Indonesia token investment to lift iPhone ban
Following Indonesia's ban of the iPhone 16 because Apple has not invested enough in the country, the company has reportedly offered $10 million.Jakarta - Image credit: Tom Fisk/PexelsThe threatened ban on the iPhone in Indonesia became real in late O.....»»
New Zemeckis film used AI to de-age Tom Hanks and Robin Wright
Time-hopping film Here used AI trained on every Tom Hanks movie to make him appear young again. On Friday, TriStar Pictures released Here, a $50 million Robert Zemeckis-directed f.....»»
Portal to the past: Geologist identifies metamorphic rock as a crucial feature of the ancient Earth"s carbon cycle
If Earth's history were a calendar year, humans would not appear until the last few minutes before midnight on Dec. 31. During the Proterozoic Eon—2.5 billion years to 543 million years ago—the sun was still a young star, much dimmer than today,.....»»
Did the world"s best-preserved dinosaurs really die in "Pompeii-type" events?
Between about 120 million and 130 million years ago, during the age of dinosaurs, temperate forests and lakes hosted a lively ecosystem in what is now northeast China. Diverse fossils from that time remained pretty much undisturbed until the 1980s, w.....»»
Exploring the extraordinary potential (and avoiding the pitfalls) of your local Buy Nothing group
You might have heard about your local Buy Nothing Project group on Facebook. If not, you probably know someone who's a member. We estimate at least one million Australians are involved as members or live in households with a member (probably their mu.....»»
New research estimates carbon emissions from 22 million stream reaches across the US
Using a sophisticated new modeling approach, researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have estimated carbon dioxide emissions from inland waters to 22 million U.S. lakes, rivers and reservoirs. It marks the first time this approach has.....»»