Mark Zuckerberg’s Absurd ‘Social VR’ Demo Was Brutal

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg showed off the company’s experiments with social virtual reality experiences that allow you to chat with your friends using avatars in headsets like Oculus’s Rift. It was really weird. The demo app allows you to chat with avatars of your friends, travel to places like Mars or Facebook’s Headquarters, and take virtual reality selfies to share to Facebook. Read more…

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Mark Zuckerberg’s Absurd ‘Social VR’ Demo Was Brutal

Rimac’s electric bike can go 150 miles on a single charge

Rimac has revealed a new electric bicycle that is just as impressive as its LaFerrari-killing , million-dollar Concept One supercar, in its own way. With a massive 3kWh battery, the Greyp G12H can go up to 240 km (150 miles) on a single charge, making it the longest-range e-bicycle out there. If you have a 10 mile round trip to work, each would cost 2.3 cents, making it one of the cheapest powered transportation options, too. “Cheap” is strictly related to energy consumption, however. The Greyp G12S, the company’s current model that has a shorter 75 mile range but is faster at 70 km/h (44 mph) costs €8, 380, or around $9, 400. That’s Lionel Messi money (he bought a custom version), and the new model isn’t likely to be cheaper, as the battery is double the size. That said, other long-endurance models like those from Optibike are in that ballpark too. The G12H and faster G12S both look more like motocross bikes than electric bicycles, and Greyp markets the latter as such (see the video, above). Given the 107 pound weight of the G12S model, in fact, the pedals are mostly for show, and the G12H should weigh at least that much. Other features include “Supernova” lights, a custom rack, and biometric sensor to activate the e-bike. There’s no word yet on availability or cost, but Greyp says the price tag and range will depend on the battery option you choose.

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Rimac’s electric bike can go 150 miles on a single charge

Surgeons complete first uterus transplants from live donors in US

A team of surgeons at Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas have achieved something that hadn’t previously been done in the US. With the help of a Swedish surgical team, doctors performed the first uterus transplants from living donors . The experimental procedures took place between September 14th and 22nd with four total transplants. While the first three were unsuccessful, the fourth patient is showing positive results based on follow-up tests. The transplanted uteri were removed from those first three patients and they’re expected to resume normal activity soon. For the fourth patient, tests indicate good blood flow to the uterus with no signs of rejection or infection. “We are cautiously optimistic that she could ultimately become the first uterine transplant recipient in the US to make it to the milestone of uterine functionality, ” a statement from Baylor University Medical Center explained. 16 uterine transplants have been performed around the world thus far. In fact, the Swedish team that assisted doctors at Baylor are considered experts on the procedure. There have been five births following procedures they’ve completed. Following these most recent transplants, both surgical teams say they’ve gained valuable knowledge from the three unsuccessful cases that will prove beneficial to future operations. Changes will include updates to protocols and post-op management with special attention to the thickness of the uterine veins. Back in February, the Cleveland Clinic performed the first uterus transplant in the US. In that case, the 26-year-old recipient would have needed to have the organ removed after one or two pregnancies due to medications that kept her body from rejecting it. Due to compromised blood flow caused by an infection in the weeks that followed, the transplanted uterus was removed in March. Via: CNN Source: Baylor University Medical Center (1) , (2)

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Surgeons complete first uterus transplants from live donors in US

Spotify ads briefly served malware to your PC

Some Spotify listeners got more than just free music with their ad-supported software. Multiple users report that the streaming service was serving malware-laden ads that would pop up your default web browser in a bid to compromise your system. Reportedly, some of these didn’t even require your input to do damage. And they weren’t specific to any one platform, either — Linux, Mac and Windows users all saw the same behavior, although it’s not clear that the hostile code could damage all three platforms. In response, Spotify tells us that this was the result of an “isolated issue” with an ad, and that it has since “shut it down.” Only a “small number of users” ran into the malware, it says. You can read the full statement below. With that said, it’s bound to be slightly embarrassing when the company ran into a similar issue in 2011. It’s also a reminder of one of the smaller perks of paying for a subscription service: when you don’t get ads in the first place, you’re not at risk of receiving rogue ads. “A small number of users have experienced a problem with questionable website pop ups in their default browsers as a result of an isolated issue with an ad on our free tier. We have now identified the source of the problem and have shut it down. We will continue to monitor the situation.” PSA: uninstall Spotify free, their ads are plagued with malware right now. pic.twitter.com/DUOqDrnDUZ — Volp (@VolpRS) October 5, 2016 Via: The Next Web , 9to5Mac Source: Spotify Community , Volp (Twitter)

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Spotify ads briefly served malware to your PC

Nokia makes a play for 5G with purchase of US startup

Nokia has signalled fresh commitment towards 5G infrastructure with the acquisition of Eta Devices—a small US-based startup that specialises in improving power efficiency at base stations. The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based outfit has around 20 staff, some of whom work at its research and development site in Stockholm, Sweden. Nokia said it hoped the buyout, financial details of which weren’t disclosed, allow it “to enhance base station energy efficiency, an increasingly important area for operators on the path to 4.9G and 5G.” Read 4 remaining paragraphs | Comments

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Nokia makes a play for 5G with purchase of US startup

Android 7.1 Brings Night Light, Seamless Updates, Fingerprint Gestures, and Daydream VR

If you watched the “Made by Google” event yesterday—or read our roundup —you’d be forgiven if you missed that there was a brand new version of Android. Google itself hardly seemed to notice . Here’s what we know about it. Read more…

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Android 7.1 Brings Night Light, Seamless Updates, Fingerprint Gestures, and Daydream VR

Roku makes it easy to launch a streaming TV channel

Roku just showed off its latest players upgraded with features like 4K and HDR, and now it’s working on getting more stuff for owners to watch. That will come via its new Roku Direct Publisher tool , which lets the people who have videos make a channel for the box, without having to do any coding. Of course, you will need somewhere to host the content for your streaming channel, but if you already have that then getting content in front of Roku’s 10 million or so active accounts (those that have actively streamed in the last 30 days) is as easy as writing this blog post. To show off what it’s capable of, a number of new partners are delivering channels built with the tool, including names like Rolling Stone, Us Weekly and Cracked. Also, using the Direct Publisher setup also means content is included in Roku’s universal search , which it recently announced covers over 100 channels. While other set-top box entries like the Apple TV, Fire TV, Chromecast and Android TV get a lot of attention, the company points out survey results earlier this year from Comscore showing it has a 49 percent share of the market. All of that means being in front of more eyeballs, which can mean more money, especially with access to Roku’s ad sales platform. Channels built this way don’t support subscription or video on-demand fees (yet), so if you’re looking to profit immediately that’s the option available. Of course, as a viewer, this just means that the next time you turn on your (relatively modern) Roku box / TV / stick you can expect to see even more options. If the channels are easy to make, update and discover, then there are even more reasons to push content on the platform (if you ever choose to watch something other than just Netflix).

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Roku makes it easy to launch a streaming TV channel

Hacking Group Hits Buzzfeed: ‘We Have Your Database’ 

OurMine , the hacking group that has previously taken credit for hacking into the social media accounts for Mark Zuckerberg and Jack Dorsey , has apparently gained access to BuzzFeed’s systems and published on its website. Read more…

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Hacking Group Hits Buzzfeed: ‘We Have Your Database’