Sci-Tech news

• Will you be a victim of digital pickpockets? Hacker reveals how easy it is to steal credit card numbers from thin air in SECONDS

  10-02-2015 23:20 via
  
  David Bryan, a security specialist at Chicago's Trustwave, was able to steal credit and debit card details by standing just six inches (15cm) away while a transaction was being made.
  
  Read more

• 100 ancient 'sex cult' sites found in Israel with phallic carvings

  10-02-2015 23:19 via
  
  Researchers are baffled by the sites, contain stone circles with phallic carvings pointing to the centre and were found in the Eilat Mountains in the Negev Desert in Israel.
  
  Read more

• Hackers reveal tool to bypass WhatsApp privacy settings

  10-02-2015 21:23 via
  
  The software, created by Dutch developer Maikel Zweerink, exploits a ‘design flaw’ in the service’s optional status feature which lets other users know whether someone is online.
  
  Read more

• Microsoft patches 'China spy bug'

  10-02-2015 21:15 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Microsoft has released a patch to close a bug believed to exploited by hackers who targeted US military and government networks.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Quantum model predicts universe has NO beginning

  10-02-2015 19:49 via
  
  A new series of equations by scientists in Canada and India claims to show the Big Bang never took place by combining general relativity with quantum mechanics.
  
  Read more

• Always on Facebook? Then you're probably insecure: People concerned about rejection thrive on comments and likes, study claims

  10-02-2015 18:56 via
  
  A study by Union College in New York found anxious and insecure people spend more time 'feedback seeking' on Facebook (stock image shown). They are more check for likes and comments.
  
  Read more

• Is this the best photo of Earth's night sky EVER taken?

  10-02-2015 18:44 via
  
  The European Southern Observatory has revealed an amazing image (shown) taken above an observatory in Chile. The montage reveals an array of cosmic phenomena.
  
  Read more

• MacBook Air falls 1,000 feet and SURVIVES: Notebook is bent and scratched but still works despite being dropped from a plane

  10-02-2015 18:38 via
  
  The photos of the bent notebook (pictured) were uploaded to Reddit by the South African pilot, who posts under the username av80r.
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Forget Pay at the Pump, Shell customers will soon be able to buy petrol using an APP - but is it safe to use phones on forecourts?

  10-02-2015 18:37 via
  
  Later this year, customers at the majority of Shell’s 1,000 UK petrol stations will be able to use either their PayPal app or another dedicated app to pay for their fuel.
  
  Read more

• How we deal with online abuse

  10-02-2015 18:29 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Sixteen-year-olds Yaseen, Asha, Memunatu and Brayani talk to Radio 1 Newsbeat about "slips" - embarassing pics shared behind a person's back - and how to handle online bullying.
  
  Read more

• What a striking map! Thunderstorm animation reveals five lightning bolts hit the Earth every SECOND

  10-02-2015 18:17 via
  
  Researchers at Tel Aviv University in Israel have created a map (pictured) showing lightning strikes around the world. The map was creating using a global network of 70 lightning stations.
  
  Read more

• Mystery of the holey skull solved: Bone powder was harvested from martyr's skull to treat epilepsy in the 18th century

  10-02-2015 17:03 via
  
  Researchers at the University of Pisa, Italy, believe the circular marks are the only evidence that small drills were used to collect skull powder for medicinal purposes in the 18th century.
  
  Read more

• Apple's iPhone 6 Plus generates DOUBLE the amount of data than the iPhone 6 - and ten times as much as the 3GS

  10-02-2015 17:01 via
  
  The figures were taken from Florida-based Citrix’s latest Mobile Analytics Report that collected data usage from mobile network subscribers. The iPhone 6 Plus is pictured right and the iPhone 6 is shown left.
  
  Read more

• How did this little Neolithic child die? 4,000-year-old remains of a 10-year-old uncovered on a Scottish beach

  10-02-2015 16:28 via
  
  An almost complete skeleton of a 4,000-year-old child (pictured) has been found. The discovery was made by walker Carrie Brown in Orkney, Scotland.
  
  Read more

• Now that's fast food! £35 microwave pressure cooker makes meals TWENTY times faster

  10-02-2015 16:27 via
  
  Made from toughened plastic, Windermere-based Lakeland's pressure cooker is safe to use in the microwave, meaning home chefs can combine the speed of the two cooking methods.
  
  Read more

• Footage of Tomahawk missile punching a hole through a ship

  10-02-2015 16:20 via
  
  A test of a Tomahawk missile off San Nicolas Island in California showed it ploughing through a shipping container on a moving ship with such force that it punched a hole all the way through.
  
  Read more

• Anglo-Saxon carving is discovered in a back GARDEN in Leicester

  10-02-2015 16:06 via
  
  The stone was found in a garden in Leicester and was purchased by an archaeologist who believes the intricate pattern was probably carved in Anglo Saxon times, over 1,000 years ago.
  
  Read more

• Alien: Isolation leads Bafta games awards

  10-02-2015 15:48 via bbc.co.uk
  
  British-made title Alien: Isolation gets six nominations at this year's Bafta Games Awards.
  
  Read more

• Taking the robot dog for a walk

  10-02-2015 15:18 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Google unveils its latest robot - Spot
  
  Read more

• Canyon cut by short, savage floods

  10-02-2015 14:56 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Geologists find that a huge canyon in Iceland was created by a few short days of catastrophic flooding, separated by thousands of years.
  
  Read more

• Synthetic antibodies created that could one day treat cancer and even HIV

  10-02-2015 14:49 via
  
  Chemists at Yale University have created tiny molecules that mimic antibodies (pictured) in the immune system by binding prostate cancer cells and white blood cells.
  
  Read more

• Patent giant gets first court payout

  10-02-2015 14:44 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Controversial patent giant Intellectual Ventures defeats cybersecurity firm Symantec after convincing a jury that two of its inventions had been infringed.
  
  Read more

• How organs grow: Amazing timelapse reveals cells spreading out like tree branches in a KIDNEY

  10-02-2015 14:30 via
  
  University of Edinburgh scientists took time-lapse kidney growth images. An amazing video reveals structures called nephrons branching out like a tree (shown) as the kidney grows.
  
  Read more

• How governments try to censor Twitter revealed in map

  10-02-2015 14:06 via
  
  An interactive Twitter transparency map shows Turkey (pictured) filed 477 requests between July and December - an increase of more than 150% compared to the first six months of 2014.
  
  Read more

• Ball-shaped drone BOUNCES around buildings and disaster zones

  10-02-2015 14:03 via
  
  Scientists from Switzerland’s Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne hope their drone could be used in disaster relief efforts to find survivors in dangerous buildings.
  
  Read more

• Australia in 'extinction calamity'

  10-02-2015 13:58 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The introduction of the fox and cat from Europe is having a devastating impact on native mammals in Australia, say scientists.
  
  Read more

• Warnings over smart device privacy

  10-02-2015 13:53 via bbc.co.uk
  
  People who use smart devices that monitor what they do will have to get used to giving up some privacy, warns a top technologist.
  
  Read more

• Requests for Twitter user data surge

  10-02-2015 13:43 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Twitter's latest transparency report reveals a surge in government requests for data and the removal of certain posts.
  
  Read more

• Extraordinary footage of Tomahawk missile punching a hole through a ship

  10-02-2015 13:29 via
  
  A test of a Tomahawk missile off San Nicolas Island in California showed it ploughing through a shipping container on a moving ship with such force that it punched a hole all the way through.
  
  Read more

• Fungus containing LSD compound is found on a 100-million-year-old fossilised grass

  10-02-2015 13:15 via
  
  Palaeobiologists at Oregon State University found a fungus similar to ergot, which was used to make LSD, growing on a fossil of an early grass encased in amber from a mine in Myanmar.
  
  Read more

• Is Apple building a CAR that could give 'Tesla a run for its money'?

  10-02-2015 13:10 via
  
  A source claiming to be an employee at the Californian firm has hinted that the giant is developing a vehicle (mysterious Apple-owned car pictured) as part of a project that 'will change the landscape.'
  
  Read more

• When will people take their passwords seriously? Researcher leaks 10 million login details to highlight how people STILL make bad choices

  10-02-2015 12:43 via
  
  Mark Burnett, from Utah, claims his move to publish the data is for research purposes and he is worried that it may incur the wrath of the FBI.
  
  Read more

• No-fly-zone service lets you ban drones over your own HOME

  10-02-2015 12:32 via
  
  The database was set up by Ben Marcus from California. It lets people place zones (pictured) above their homes. Each address is sent to drone makers and added to a list of restricted airspace.
  
  Read more

• Mysterious Anglo-Saxon carving is discovered in a back GARDEN - and it may contain a hidden message

  10-02-2015 12:30 via
  
  The stone was found in a garden in Leicester and was purchased by an archaeologist who believes the intricate pattern was probably carved in Anglo Saxon times, over 1,000 years ago.
  
  Read more

• Viral image apparently shows Chinese worker manipulating App Store rankings

  10-02-2015 12:08 via
  
  The photo shows a Chinese employee sitting in front of about 100 iPhones with the accompanying caption: 'Hardworking App Store ranking manipulation employee'.
  
  Read more

• Heart of Earth's inner core revealed

  10-02-2015 09:57 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Scientists gain new insights into what lies at the very centre of the Earth, with a US-Chinese team saying its inner core is made of two parts.
  
  Read more

• Incas were the first victims of greenhouse gases from silver production

  10-02-2015 09:20 via
  
  The earliest evidence of large-scale human-produced greenhouse gases in South America was found encased in ice in the Andes.
  
  Read more

• Google reveals smaller version of Boston Dynamics' robo-dog Spot

  10-02-2015 09:19 via
  
  The Google-owned Boston firm behind Spot says the four legged robo-pet can run, climb stairs, job next to its owner and even cope with being kicked.
  
  Read more

• Putting fitness trackers to the test

  10-02-2015 09:16 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Why activity trackers fail to match up
  
  Read more

• ISS video reveals moment aurora is eclipsed by a sunrise over Earth

  10-02-2015 09:15 via
  
  Nasa astronaut Barry 'Butch' Wilmore captured the amazing moment an aurora and a sunrise 'collide'.
  
  Read more

• Many 'children taking risks online'

  10-02-2015 09:13 via bbc.co.uk
  
  A poll suggests more than half of UK children have done something "risky" or anti-social online.
  
  Read more

• Pictures show how engineers in 1960s built top secret SR-71 Blackbird

  10-02-2015 08:12 via
  
  The once classified photos reveal how Lockheed built three varieties of the Blackbird - A, B and C, in top secret conditions in Burbank, California, under a 'black project' - a highly classified defence project.
  
  Read more

• Facebook has a new feature and you might not like it

  10-02-2015 07:53
  
  Facebook's latest technology can now recognise faces and tag pictures automatically
  
  Read more

• 'Wake-up call' to MPs on investment

  10-02-2015 06:07 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Government spending on research and innovation needs to be doubled to stop the UK falling behind other countries, say science leaders.
  
  Read more

• Qualcomm's $975m record China fine

  10-02-2015 01:54 via bbc.co.uk
  
  US chipmaker Qualcomm will pay $975m (£640m) to Chinese authorities to end a 14 month anti-trust investigation into its patent licensing practices.
  
  Read more

• Catching burglars by remote control

  10-02-2015 01:49 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The app that lets you stop burglars in their tracks remotely
  
  Read more

• When did Earth become Planet Oil?

  10-02-2015 01:45 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Prof Iain Stewart investigates our addiction to oil
  
  Read more

• Is the Oscar curse real? Award-winning men are THREE times more likely to divorce in first year of marriage

  10-02-2015 01:42 via
  
  The research, led by Michigan State University, found that the sudden shift in fortunes can have a damaging impact on relationship. Male nominees, they said, were twice as likely to divorce.
  
  Read more

• VIDEO: Samsung's Tizen TV range launches

  10-02-2015 01:17 via bbc.co.uk
  
  South Korea-based Samsung has just begun domestic sales of high-end televisions with a smart interface powered by its own Tizen operating system.
  
  Read more

• Incas were the first victims of greenhouse gases: 1,200-year-old ice reveals pollution from silver production 

  10-02-2015 01:14 via
  
  The earliest evidence of large-scale human-produced greenhouse gases in South America was found encased in ice in the Andes.
  
  Read more

Follow @scitech_UK on Twitter!