Russians tried—and failed—to smear vaccines with weak Planet of the Apes memes
The network was linked to Fazze, a marketing firm run out of Russia. Enlarge / American actor Charlton Heston as stranded astronaut George Taylor in the 1968 film Planet of the Apes. (credit: Getty | Silver Screen Collection) Facebook has remo.....»»
Ancient viral genomes preserved in glaciers reveal climate history—and how viruses adapt to climate change
As humans alter the planet's climate and ecosystems, scientists are looking to Earth's history to help predict what may unfold from climate change. To this end, massive ice structures like glaciers serve as nature's freezers, archiving detailed recor.....»»
Webb discovers six new "rogue worlds" that provide clues to star formation
Rogue planets, or free-floating planetary-mass objects (FFPMOs), are planet-sized objects that either formed in interstellar space or were part of a planetary system before gravitational perturbations kicked them out......»»
Doughnut-shaped region found inside Earth"s core deepens understanding of planet"s magnetic field
A doughnut-shaped region thousands of kilometers beneath our feet within Earth's liquid core has been discovered by scientists from The Australian National University (ANU), providing new clues about the dynamics of our planet's magnetic field......»»
Report: Amazon’s new $5/month Alexa will use Anthropic’s tech, as in-house AI failed
Amazon is moving closer to its expected launch of a premium, $5-10/month new Alexa assistant. But according to a new report from Reuters, plans to use Amazon’s own in-house AI have failed, leading the company to turn to Anthropic’s Claude instead.....»»
A macro look at the most pressing cybersecurity risks
Forescout’s 2024H1 Threat Review is a new report that reviews the current state of vulnerabilities, threat actors, and ransomware attacks in the first half of 2024 and compares them to H1 2023. “Attackers are looking for any weak point to bre.....»»
Using atomic excitations to measure the rotation of spacetime
How would atoms behave near a supermassive object? We know how atoms behave in extremely weak gravity like that at the Earth's surface: They can be excited from a lower energy level to a higher one when an electron absorbs a photon or a nucleus absor.....»»
Scientists discover a long-sought global electric field on Earth
Using observations from a NASA suborbital rocket, an international team of scientists, for the first time, has successfully measured a planet-wide electric field thought to be as fundamental to Earth as its gravity and magnetic fields......»»
Astrobotic’s lander didn’t make it to the Moon because of a failed valve
Engineers are redesigning parts of the propulsion system on Astrobotic's next lunar lander. Enlarge / Astrobotic's Peregrine lander, with some of its propellants visible, before shipment from the company's headquarters in Pittsbu.....»»
From rhino horn snuff to pangolin livestock feed: A half-century of patents reveals the wildlife trade"s evolution
The bright blue blood of the horseshoe crab is used around the world to detect bacterial contamination in vaccines. Synonymous with luxury, sturgeon caviar has been patented as an antidote to impotency in China. Rhino horn is used in traditional Asia.....»»
The leading alternative to GDP is languishing over a technical disagreement—with potentially grave consequences
Many commentators believe that the world should move away from measuring economic success in terms of GDP growth. Yes, growth has brought prosperity and untold riches, but it has had significant negative side effects for the planet, including climate.....»»
AT&T 911 outage sees company fined $950k; yesterday’s outage now fixed
An AT&T 911 outage back in 2023 has seen the company fined almost a million dollars. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) says that the carrier not only failed to provide adequate backup coverage, but also didn’t let 911 centers know what h.....»»
AT&T failed to notify 911 call centers of outage, pays $950K to settle probe
Technician accidentally disabled a portion of AT&T network during testing. Enlarge / AT&T's stand at Mobile World Congress on February 27, 2023, in Barcelona, Spain. (credit: Getty Images | Joan Cros Garcia-Corbis) AT&T.....»»
Quentin Tarantino talks failed Star Trek movie and why he’ll never watch Toy Story 4
On a recent podcast appearance, Quentin Tarantino discussed the status of his Star Trek movie and why he'll never watch Toy Story 4......»»
On wildfires, experts say the West needs to rethink its response
Wildfires and the pain they cause to people, property and the planet are here to stay. And if Western management practices don't change to anticipate more and more record fire years, that pain may spread and worsen......»»
How do curve balls, cutters, sinkers and sweepers work?
It's a cliché that "baseball is a game of inches," but for hitters and pitchers, it's more a game of millimeters. If the bat hits the ball a fraction of an inch too low or too high, the result is a popup or weak ground ball instead of a solid hit. A.....»»
Professor proposes how a black hole in orbit around a planet could be a sign of an advanced civilization
In 1971, English mathematical physicist and Nobel-prize winner Roger Penrose proposed how energy could be extracted from a rotating black hole. He argued that this could be done by building a harness around the black hole's accretion disk, where infa.....»»
FDA Approves New Covid Vaccines Amid Summer Surge
The updated vaccines target the currently circulating KP.2 variant......»»
FDA green-lights fall COVID-19 boosters
Updated mRNA vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna are ready to roll. Enlarge (credit: Getty Images) As the COVID-19 case count continues to tick upward, the US Food and Drug Administration has approved an updated vaccine for.....»»
What the unique shape of the human heart tells us about our evolution
Mammals, from the mighty blue whale to the tiny shrew, inhabit nearly every corner of our planet. Their remarkable adaptability to different environments has long fascinated scientists, with each species developing unique traits to survive and thrive.....»»
The Covid-19 Summer Wave Is So Big, the FDA Might Release New Vaccines Early
The latest Covid-19 surge reportedly has officials considering approval of the new strain-matched vaccine as soon as this week......»»