Every year, Microsoft does this thing called Build. It’s a wonderful nerd party where crowds erupt into applause over new debugging tools and coding software. It’s kind of the best. Read more…
Continue reading here:
Everything We Learned About Windows 10 Today
mpicpp sends this report from The Independent: The United States Department of Defense has carried out what it says is its most successful test yet of a bullet that can steer itself towards moving targets. Experienced testers have used the technology to hit targets that were actively evading the shot, and even novices that were using the system for the first time were able to hit moving targets. The project, which is known as Extreme Accuracy Tasked Ordnance weapon, or Exacto, is being made for the American government’s military research agency, DARPA. It is thought to use small fins that shoot out of the bullet and re-direct its path, but the U.S. has not disclosed how it works. Technology in the bullet allows it to compensate for weather and wind, as well as the movement of people it is being fired at, and curve itself in the air as it heads towards its target. Read more of this story at Slashdot.
See the original post:
US Successfully Tests Self-Steering Bullets
Google Now started pulling details from third-party Android apps back in January, but today the folks in Mountain View added support for a truckload more. As expected , in addition to the collection of nearly 40 integrations announced a few months back, Google displays info from 70 more inside the card-based repository. This means that you’ll be able to easily keep track of items like your Zipcar reservation return time and quickly snag directions back to the drop-off spot. We won’t run down the full list of new additions, but you can peruse the currently supported lineup right here — just know that Spotify, ABC News, RunKeeper, Jawbone and OpenTable all made the cut. To leverage the new functionality, make sure you’re device is properly equipped with the latest version of the Google app . Filed under: Internet , Software , Mobile Comments Source: Google (Inside Search Blog)
View article:
Google Now pulls info from 70 more Android apps
In winter, ice encroaches on Lake Michigan. In summer, sediment and algal blooms from runoff cloud the waters. But on a perfect day earlier this month, the ice had melted to reveal waters so clear, you could see decades-old shipwrecks lying at the bottom of the lake . Read more…
Visit site:
Old Shipwrecks Are Reappearing In Lake Michigan’s Unusually Clear Water
You can already get a retinal implant to restore some sight when you’re blind, but the quality is usually too poor to be useful for more than avoiding collisions. A better solution is close at hand, however: Pixium Vision has successfully tested an implant that should go beyond basic vision. The tiny chip sits just behind the retina and uses infrared light to both stimulate images in your brain and power the whole device. Tests in rats generate vision equivalent to 20/250. That’s still far from flawless, but it’d be superior to the 20/500 you can get now — good enough that you could read the largest letter on an eye doctor’s chart. The eventual system for humans, which will use goggles to send images, should manage 20/120 and put wearers above the US’ legal standard for blindness. Trial runs start in 2016, so you may not have to wait much longer if you’re eager to give the implant a try. Filed under: Wearables , Science Comments Via: IEEE Spectrum Source: Pixium Vision (PDF) , Nature
Read the article:
Infrared implant brings practical sight to the blind
For many people, Netflix, Amazon Prime and those pirates episodes of Game of Thrones have all but replaced TV. YouTube’s another big draw for “cord cutting millennials, ” but since its videos are all user-submitted, it’s almost powerless to stop its stars being poached by TV networks and movie studios. For instance, Fred: The Movie was a flop, but YouTube must have been terrified to see one of its biggest stars wander off so easily. That’s why the site is now setting up TV-style production deals with some of its most popular creators, as well as entering movie production partnership with AwesomenessTV . The idea is that YouTube will bankroll four original series that it’ll own outright — in a similar way to how Netflix wants to lessen its reliance on its production partners . There are two scripted comedy shows, one from The Fine Brothers, the other from Smosh as well as a prank show from Prank Vs. Prank . Rounding out the list is an oddly described “murder-mystery reality series, ” which makes us hope beyond hope that it’s an ersatz remake of Unsolved Mysteries . At the same time, YouTube is teaming up with Brian Robbins, head of terribly-named studio AwesomenessTV and the figure behind Fred: The Movie . The deal will see Robbins’ outfit create “several feature-length films” over the next two years, all starring YouTube stars and premiering on the Google-owned video site. Let’s just hope that they all build into a Marvel Cinematic Universe-type situation, where Mamrie Hart leads a team of YouTube stars to fight an alien invasion led by The Gabbie Show . Filed under: Internet , HD , Google Comments Via: Deadline Source: Google
Read this article:
YouTube’s making ‘TV’ series and movies with its most popular creators
An anonymous reader writes: The Electronic Frontier Foundation is warning against a new potential privacy threat: cameras that look inside cars and try to identify how many people are inside. This technology is a natural combination of simpler ones that have existed for years: basic object recognition software and road-side cameras (red light cameras, speeding cameras, license plate readers — you name it). Of course, we can extrapolate just a bit further, and point out that as soon as the cameras have high enough resolution, they can start running face recognition algorithms on the images, and determine the identities of a vehicle’s occupants. “The San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), a government umbrella group that develops transportation and public safety initiatives across the San Diego County region, estimates that 15% of drivers in High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes aren’t supposed to be there. After coming up short with earlier experimental projects, the agency is now testing a brand new technology to crack down on carpool-lane scofflaws on the I-15 freeway. … In short: the technology is looking at your image, the image of the people you’re with, your location, and your license plate. (SANDAG told CBS the systems will not be storing license plate data during the trial phase and the system will, at least for now, automatically redact images of drivers and passengers. Xerox’s software, however, allows police the option of using a weaker form of redaction that can be reversed on request.)” Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Read More:
New Privacy Threat: Automated Vehicle Occupancy Detection
citpyrc writes: TeslaCrypt, the latest-and-greatest ransomware branch off of the CryptoWall family, claims to the unwitting user that his/her documents are encrypted with “a unique public key generated for this computer”. This coudn’t be farther from truth. In actuality, the developers of this malware appear to have been lazy and implemented encryption using symmetric AES256 with a decryption key generated on the user’s machine. If any of your machines are afflicted, Talos has developed a tool that can be used to generate the user’s machine’s symmetric key and decrypt all of the ransomed files. Read more of this story at Slashdot.
See original article:
TeslaCrypt Isn’t All That Cryptic
Uber’s experiments with food delivery in California and Spain must’ve been a resounding success, as the ridesharing outfit is making that on-demand dining a permanent option. UberEats has officially launched in four cities, including the Barcelona and Los Angeles trial areas as well as two new burgs, Chicago and New York City. As before, the service really just substitutes pickups for meals — you choose from curated restaurant menus, and an Uber driver will show up with your selections in a matter of minutes. This will seem very familiar if you’ve tried a restaurant delivery service before, but it’ll undoubtedly be handy if you already use Uber and find yourself craving sandwiches or salads. Filed under: Transportation , Internet Comments Source: Uber Blog
Read the article:
Uber’s food delivery service launches in four cities
If you’re over the age of thirty, you’re a musical dinosaur. You probably don’t understand the garbage those “damn kids” are listening to and you don’t want to. You’re not cool. When did this happen? Spotify may have just figured it out. Read more…
Read the original:
Spotify Data Proves You’re Not As Cool As You Used To Be