Sci-Tech news

• US trial of Silk Road 'owner' begins

  13-01-2015 23:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The trial of Ross Ulbricht, the alleged creator and operator of the Silk Road underground illegal market, has opened in New York.
  
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• Demise of the dinosaurs mapped: Fossils in Europe confirm that beasts were wiped out rapidly by an asteroid 66 million years ago

  13-01-2015 23:17 via
  
  By looking at the variety and ages of these fossils the University of Bucharest found that dinosaurs remained diverse in European ecosystems very late into the Cretaceous.
  
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• The sun's first notable flare of 2015 as 'mid-level' eruption takes place

  13-01-2015 23:10 via
  
  Nasa scientists in California detected a sizeable flare on the sun (shown). The event, captured by the Solar Dynamics Observatory, occurred this morning at 4:24am GMT.
  
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• VIDEO: Obama: Cyber threats 'urgent danger'

  13-01-2015 22:38 via bbc.co.uk
  
  US President Barack Obama says the US Centcomm hack shows how much more work there is to do on cybersecurity.
  
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• The secret behind Amazon's low prices

  13-01-2015 22:27 via
  
  Researchers have found that the Seattle-based company fools users into thinking they are getting a good deal by tweaking their prices a number of time each hour.
  
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• FriXion social network aims to link sex toys online so couples can play together 

  13-01-2015 22:16 via
  
  The Dutch firm behind the network hopes it will allow couples to stay in touch when they are apart.
  
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• Wave to your TV! Apple patents 'Minority Report' gesture controls for computers and televisions 

  13-01-2015 21:40 via
  
  Cupertino tech giant Apple has been granted a patent for 'Minority Report'-style 3D gesture controls that could be used in its upcoming TV.
  
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• Agency reveals concept designs for how animals might conquer space

  13-01-2015 21:33 via
  
  Created by the Maryland-based Working Group on Adaptive Systems, the drawings imagine a future in which manatees and chickens have recreated their own ecosystems inside of spaceships.
  
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• Tool-making sparked language 2.5m years ago, study claims

  13-01-2015 20:04 via
  
  The study, led by the University of California, Berkeley, suggests communication among our earliest ancestors in the African savannah may have been more complex than previously thought.
  
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• Nasa photographs 'happy face' on Mars

  13-01-2015 19:59 via
  
  Researchers in California have captured an image of a face on Mars (shown). Nasa’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter captured the image. The face was created by shifting carbon dioxide ice.
  
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• Study shows that parasites could become more common as temperature and sea levels rise

  13-01-2015 19:27 via
  
  Researchers at the University of Missouri studied fossilised clam shells from the Holocene where temperatures were warmer and sea levels were higher than they are today.
  
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• 'Sex toys' dating back 28,000 years made from stone and dried camel dung

  13-01-2015 17:54 via
  
  The Wellcome Collection in London currently has a number of ceremonial sculptures (6th century BC artefact pictured) as part of its Institute of Sexology exhibition.
  
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• Want to keep warm? Wear SILVER: Cotton coated with microscopic metal wires trap 80% of body heat - and can even be used like an electric blanket

  13-01-2015 17:51 via
  
  Scientists from Stanford University created the cloth, which reflects infrared radiation back to the body to keep people warm, by using silver nanowires (pictured).
  
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• Android security shift exposes users

  13-01-2015 17:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Millions of Android users could be at risk as Google changes the way it handles security updates for older versions of the smartphone operating system.
  
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• The 'sex toys' dating back 28,000 years: Ancient phalluses made from stone and dried camel dung started trend for sex aids

  13-01-2015 17:25 via
  
  The Wellcome Collection in London currently has a number of ceremonial sculptures (6th century BC artefact pictured) as part of its Institute of Sexology exhibition.
  
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• Grand Theft Auto V delayed for PC

  13-01-2015 17:21 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Rockstar confirms the open world hit game for PC will now be released in March.
  
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• Driving trucks into BOULDERS for science: Researchers study how big a rock must be to stop vehicles from hitting buildings

  13-01-2015 17:12 via
  
  Engineers at Penn State University smashed 7.5 ton trucks into a 25 ton and a five ton granite boulder at 30mph to help them build models to protect US embassies around the world.
  
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• Why are so many animals dying? More mass death events occurring now than ever before, study claims

  13-01-2015 16:52 via
  
  Three US institutions say mass die-offs are now more common, increasing by one event per year for 70 years, and can kill 90% of a population. Shown are fish killed by toxicity from farm runoff in the US.
  
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• GTA 5 Online Heists launch just weeks away for Xbox One and PS4, Rockstar reveal

  13-01-2015 16:23
  
  ROCKSTAR have revealed GTA 5's new Online Heists missions will be launching in the coming weeks.
  
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• Climate needs low-energy urban areas

  13-01-2015 16:19 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A global study of 274 cities helps shed light on energy consumption in urban areas and what can be done to make future urbanisation more energy efficient.
  
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• Can the government ban encryption?

  13-01-2015 15:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Do we need new terror data laws?
  
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• Xbox One and PS4: Battlefield Hardline delay means new modes, vehicles, gadgets, weapons

  13-01-2015 15:36
  
  VISCERAL GAMES, the team behind Battlefield Hardline, have explained why the five-month delay was essential to creating 'a complete first person shooter '.
  
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• Not exactly winter sun! Feat of engineering lets you holiday UNDERGROUND in a medieval salt mine that boasta a fairground and even a boating lake

  13-01-2015 15:05 via
  
  Experts claim that microclimate of Romania's Turda salt mine complex offers health benefits for people with respiratory difficulties - as well as a range of leisure facilities in spectacular surroundings.
  
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• The best and worst places to live as our planet warms up

  13-01-2015 15:02 via
  
  London-based company The Eco Experts has revealed the countries best-equipped to cope with climate change on a map (shown), with places like Norway and the UK scoring highly.
  
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• Facebook restricts violent videos

  13-01-2015 15:00 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Facebook begins placing warnings over video clips of graphic violence and prevents under-18s from seeing distressing images.
  
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• Scientists decode calls of white-handed primates to develop ape dictionary

  13-01-2015 14:53 via
  
  Zoologists at Wisconsin University studied the calls of white-handed gibbons using a computer program that detected subtle changes in frequency and found the apes make 26 basic sounds.
  
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• Xbox One News: New exclusive announced, fresh Destiny DLC info, Elder Scrolls leaked

  13-01-2015 14:44
  
  The Express brings you the top Xbox One news from around the World Wide Web, including the new exclusive title announced nad the new leak of Destiny's next DLC.
  
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• Apple begins testing iOS 9

  13-01-2015 14:37 via
  
  Signs of iOS 9 (concept pictured) were first spotted by Roman Zavrel in the analytics for Czech site letemsvetemapplem.eu. Visits were shown originating from operating system version '9.0'.
  
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• Learn to speak 'GIBBONish': Scientists decode the calls of white-handed primates to develop an ape dictionary

  13-01-2015 14:29 via
  
  Zoologists at Wisconsin University studied the calls of white-handed gibbons using a computer program that detected subtle changes in frequency and found the apes make 26 basic sounds.
  
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• 'Sony-inspired' hack ends game work

  13-01-2015 13:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A hack attack "inspired" by the recent attack on Sony has led a developer to cancel creation of a game featuring Kim Jong-un.
  
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• Loft insulation 'aids bird decline'

  13-01-2015 13:49 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Homeowners insulating their lofts may be contributing to a decline in sparrows and house martins in the UK, according to the British Trust for Ornithology.
  
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• Hunga Ha'apai underwater volcano erupts to turn the sea blood red

  13-01-2015 13:40 via
  
  The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai underwater volcano is located about 40 miles (65km) north of capital Nuku'alofa. Its ash plume (pictured) has reached heights of 14,765ft (4,500 metres).
  
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• Fire in the South Pacific: Hunga Ha'apai underwater volcano erupts to turn the sea blood red and sky grey with ash

  13-01-2015 13:30 via
  
  The Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai underwater volcano is located about 40 miles (65km) north of capital Nuku'alofa. Its ash plume (pictured) has reached heights of 14,765ft (4,500 metres).
  
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• EU changes rules on GM crop-growing

  13-01-2015 13:20 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The EU gives states more decision-making powers on genetically modified (GM) crops, which are highly restricted in Europe.
  
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• Alleged Silk Road owner put on trial

  13-01-2015 13:12 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The trial of Ross Ulbricht, the alleged creator and operator of the Silk Road underground market, begins today.
  
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• Could these antlers discovered on a Cumbrian beach be 20k years old?

  13-01-2015 13:05 via
  
  Rod Scarr and his daughter and Carol found the prehistoric bones poking out of the muddy shore on Walney island, off the coast at Barrow, Cumbria.
  
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• Elon Musk set to reveal how he plans to transport humans to Mars

  13-01-2015 12:41 via
  
  The SpaceX founder (left) made the comments during an Ask Me Anything session on Massachusetts-based Reddit. Mr Musk wants to help establish a colony of up to 80,000 people on the planet.
  
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• VIDEO: Detroit Motor Show: Go big or green?

  13-01-2015 12:34 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The lowering cost of fuel means that large trucks and SUVs have become more popular despite the abundance of green cars now available, as Samira Hussain reports.
  
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• Meet Sepios, the CYBER CUTTLEFISh

  13-01-2015 12:30 via
  
  Engineering students at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich who were inspired by nature, believe their silent, undulating robot (pictured) will be ideal for underwater photography.
  
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• Swedish monster-spotter finds shape in the waters of Loch Ness

  13-01-2015 12:21 via
  
  Bjarne Sjöstrand, 52, from Stockholm, Sweden, spotted a long, thin object in the water on Google Earth, 800 miles away. The picture shows a large, eel-like creature in the waters of Loch Ness.
  
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• Scientists produce interactive 'guide' to help unravel secrets of the Milky Way

  13-01-2015 12:11 via
  
  The strange matter that exists in the space between the stars has been baffling scientists for 90 years, but now a new map has revealed patterns in where these molecules can be found.
  
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• Elon Musk set to reveal how he plans to transport humans to Mars - and what astronauts will wear on the red planet

  13-01-2015 12:10 via
  
  The SpaceX founder (left) made the comments during an Ask Me Anything session on Massachusetts-based Reddit. Mr Musk wants to help establish a colony of up to 80,000 people on the planet.
  
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• Meet Sepios, the CYBER CUTTLEFISH: Marine robot mimics creature's undulating swimming to explore the ocean

  13-01-2015 12:06 via
  
  Engineering students at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zürich who were inspired by nature, believe their silent, undulating robot (pictured) will be ideal for underwater photography.
  
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• 'Junk' virus genes in our DNA may have helped our brain cells evolve

  13-01-2015 11:46 via
  
  Research from Lund University indicates that, over the course of evolution, retroviruses took an increasingly firm hold on cellular control. During which time, they made brain cells more active.
  
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• Milky Way's mystery matter mapped: Scientists produce interactive 'guide' to help unravel secrets of strange interstellar molecules

  13-01-2015 11:43 via
  
  The strange matter that exists in the space between the stars has been baffling scientists for 90 years, but now a new map has revealed patterns in where these molecules can be found.
  
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• Researchers find 'dramatic misconceptions' of teenager's behaviour

  13-01-2015 11:21 via
  
  Stanford researchers have found that adolescents have  major misconceptions of what their friends are doing when it comes to sex, drugs and studying.
  
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• VIDEO: What future for virtual reality?

  13-01-2015 10:45 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Virtual Reality (VR) was one of the big talking points at this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas.
  
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• VIDEO: Marine conservation zones on the rise

  13-01-2015 10:19 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The BBC's Danny Savage reports on plans to protect more offshore seabeds in England, which would see new areas given the status of 'marine conservation zone'.
  
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• Centcom - a PR disaster, not cyberwar

  13-01-2015 09:58 via bbc.co.uk
  
  US tech breach - embarrassing but hardly cyber-war
  
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• GE scanner in Florida reveals high-definition images of the human body

  13-01-2015 09:28 via
  
  The GE scanners, used by doctors in Florida, are currently involved in their first clinical trial aimed at making the process of medical scanning cheaper, easier and more accurate.
  
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