Sci-Tech news

• NASA discovers black hole here on Earth – in its software budget

  29-03-2016 23:56 via go.theregister.com
  
  Spaceport software over budget and behind schedule While NASA can do some amazing things in space, back on the planet's surface its coders are less than stellar.…
  
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• Amateur astronomers capture Jupiter get hit by an asteroid in image

  29-03-2016 23:26 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  On March 17, a Reddit user in Austria captured the moment Jupiter is slammed into by what appears to be an asteroid or comet. It was also observed by an amateur astronomer in Ireland.
  
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• Does King Tutankhamun's tomb hold Queen Nefertiti's remains?

  29-03-2016 22:51 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Lawrence Conyers, a professor of anthropology at the University of Denver says the strange geology of the Valley of the Kings, which has natural voids, may be fooling scientists.
  
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• Ability to tickle YOURSELF could be a sign of schizophrenic-like traits

  29-03-2016 22:49 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  University of Lille experts revealed people who are successful at self-tickling are more likely to self-report unusual perceptual experiences or feeling like they're under control of an outside force or power.
  
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• Prototype electric fork SHOCKS your tongue to stimulate the taste of salt

  29-03-2016 22:30 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The University of Tokyo designed an electric fork, which sends a shock to the taste buds that signal saltiness. As of right now, there are three levels of saltiness available and the device isn't waterproof.
  
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• Trees 'tolerant to EU olive threat'

  29-03-2016 20:46 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Laboratory tests show some varieties of olive trees appear to be resistant to an invasive pathogen that poses a serious risk to Europe's olive industry.
  
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• Pornhub launches interactive VR service that works with phones and headsets

  29-03-2016 20:40 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Pornhub is offering its members a virtual reality category that allows them to experience 360-degree adult content. Users will not only be 'in' the films, but will be able to interact with their favorite stars.
  
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• Experts warn enhancing one area of the brain could damage another

  29-03-2016 20:28 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Over the past few years, brain-stimulating devices have become increasingly available for consumers, claiming to improve mood and energy. But, researchers warn they may have negative effects.
  
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• Delivery drone will fly drinks and balls to golfers in minutes

  29-03-2016 20:24 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Rakuten will use drones todeliver drinks and goods on a golf course in Chiba Prefecture southeast of Tokyo, Japan in May. Golfers use an app to place their order and the quadcopter will bring it.
  
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• Photographer reveals how Apple founder Steve Jobs almost always got his way

  29-03-2016 20:13 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  In his book, 'Fearless Genius', New York-based photographer, Doug Menuez said that getting respect meant being confident, doing your research and finding people's blind spots.
  
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• Google CEO Sundar Pichai was paid over $100 MILLION on his first year in the job

  29-03-2016 20:08 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  On top of Sundar Pichai's $652,500 annual salary, Tuesday's public report shows he also received $99.8 million in restricted stock in 2015, which will be fully vested in 2017.
  
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• Sacred text found in Italy could unlock the secrets of the Etruscan religion

  29-03-2016 20:07 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Archaeologists in Florence have discovered what may be a rare sacred text in the Etruscan language that is likely to provide insight into the Etruscan worship of a god or goddess.
  
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• Nasa plans to test an expandable 'house' on the International Space Station

  29-03-2016 20:05 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The Bigelow Expandable Activity Module, or Beam, will be the first inflatable habitat to ever be attached to the ISS. It has been designed by Bigelow Aerospace, in Las Vegas.
  
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• Three electric car recalls in a month

  29-03-2016 19:55 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Volkswagen calls back its e-Golf cars because of a stalling problem - Nissan and Renault have also recently recalled electric cars.
  
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• Rare Roman pot with Christian markings found in London

  29-03-2016 19:54 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  A pottery fragment bearing Christian symbols from Roman Britain has been found among a number of forgotten fragments originally unearthed in the town of Brentford, near London.
  
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• Sad songs console you and help you deal with the loss of a loved one

  29-03-2016 19:30 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Researchers at De Montfort University in Leicester, looked at the listening habits of around 450 people going through a range of emotional circumstances. Adele is pictured.
  
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• Rare meteorite fragments discovered in Germany: Space rocks from recent fireball shine purple and blue under a microscope

  29-03-2016 19:25 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Experts from Munster said they are 'delighted' to recover fragments of the 'LL Chondritenklasse' class of meteorite. This image shows the meteorite under a polarising microscope.
  
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• The feeling of rough surfaces boosts empathy and charitableness 

  29-03-2016 19:15 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Researchers at Drexel University in Philadelphia found that asking people to touch a rough surface, such as sandpaper, can make them more empathetic and more likely to donate money.
  
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• Could nanobots make your electronics last FOREVER?

  29-03-2016 19:04 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Nanoengineers at the University of California San Diego have developed tiny molecular robots (pictured) that could help to extend the life of delicate circuits and wearable technology.
  
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• Uncertainty can 'cause more stress' than pain

  29-03-2016 17:30
  The anticipation of pain can cause far more stress than knowing for certain that you're about to be given an electric shock, a UCL study has found. By: Emily Reynolds, Continue reading...
  
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• VIDEO: Is coral bleaching getting worse?

  29-03-2016 17:22 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Evidence that Australia's Great Barrier Reef is experiencing its worst coral bleaching on record has renewed calls for the UN to list it as "in-danger".
  
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• Were Neanderthals master tacticians?

  29-03-2016 16:38 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  EXCLUSIVE: Researchers at the University of Durham used forensic analysis of hunting sites used by Neanderthals to provide insights into the tactics used by the early humans to catch prey.
  
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• Large Hadron Collider casts doubt over the bizarre new 'tetraquark'

  29-03-2016 16:31 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Earlier this year, hints of a new particle were seen at Fermilab's Tevatron collider in Illinois. But researchers at the Large Hadron Collider (pictured) have so far been unable to find it.
  
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• Japanese satellite lost in space?

  29-03-2016 16:13 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Dozens of Japanese engineers and scientists are scrambling to save an X-ray satellite - and more than a quarter of a billion dollars of investment - tumbling out of control in space.
  
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• The secret to better shopping? Make a LIST

  29-03-2016 15:59 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The researchers from Catholic University of Portugal argue their, rather obvious, findings offer useful guidance beyond doing the weekly shopping and forgetting to buy a bunch of bananas.
  
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• Has iOS 9.3 broken YOUR iPhone? Software update is causing apps to crash

  29-03-2016 15:59 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Users have taken to social media to complain about annoying bugs in the Cupertino-based firm's iOS 9.3, such as their phones crashing after clicking on links in Mail and Safari (app icons shown).
  
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• Why gallium nitride is '6,000 times better' than silicon

  29-03-2016 15:39
  
  Gallium nitride can conduct thousands times more power than silicon and one day could be used to 'eliminate the power cord'By: Emma Bryce, Continue reading...
  
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• We reveal the science of sneezes

  29-03-2016 15:37 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  We do it almost daily, yetbecause of the infrequent nature of sneezing, we still know relatively little about it beyond the mechanics according to experts from University College London.
  
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• The eerie sound of bat calls slowed down 

  29-03-2016 15:24 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The calls of European bats (pictured is a common noctule bat) were recorded by a number of researchers across Europe and uploaded to the German-based site batcalls.com.
  
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• SoundCloud launches 'Go' subscription service

  29-03-2016 15:21
  
  Music website SoundCloud is launching its own music streaming service. By: Emily Reynolds, Continue reading...
  
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• Making yourself appear wider in photos improves your success rate on Tinder

  29-03-2016 14:40 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  A group of researchers University of California, Berkeley found people are rated more attractive in online profiles when they take a wide stance, compared to those who cross their arms and legs.
  
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• Seals are being fitted with 'smartphones' to help solve mystery of declining populations

  29-03-2016 14:39 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  A pod of harbour seals has been fitted with tags (pictured) containing similar technology to smartphones in a bid to solve the enigma of why their numbers are declining around Scotland.
  
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• Bonobos can remember past group members even if they've been separated for years

  29-03-2016 14:39 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Researchers from University of St Andrews made the discovery after recording the calls of individual bonobos (pictured) and playing them to those they had known years before.
  
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• Cracked iPhone: Should you be worried?

  29-03-2016 14:35 via bbc.co.uk
  
  What are the implications of the announcement that the FBI managed to get data off a password-protected iPhone without Apple's help?
  
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• Nintendo to launch Miitomo app in the UK on 31 March

  29-03-2016 14:26
  
  Nintendo has announced that its first smartphone game will launch in the UK on 31 March.By: Michael Rundle, Continue reading...
  
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• Oculus Rift begins shipping: Customers who booked early are now starting to receive their $599 virtual reality headsets

  29-03-2016 14:12 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Oculus founder Palmer Luckey hand-delivered the first Rift (pictured) to software developer Ross Martin in Anchorage, Alaska, on Saturday.
  
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• Ancient 'unicorn' rhino may have lived alongside humans

  29-03-2016 14:00
  
  'Unicorns' may have existed at the same time as humans, says new research -- but not as the glorious-maned horses of fairytales. Rather, they may have more closely resembled a "fuzzy rhinoceros". 
   By: Emily Reynolds, Continue reading...
  
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• Arctic winter's sluggish sea-ice growth

  29-03-2016 13:40 via bbc.co.uk
  
  Although winter Arctic sea-ice extent has been the smallest on record this year, it is unclear yet whether its volume will also mark a new low.
  
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• Dark Souls 3 director: it's about 'accomplishment by overcoming tremendous odds'

  29-03-2016 13:38
  
  Bandai Namco's grim fantasy Dark Souls returns for a third entry this April, offering players of a masochistic persuasion another challenging gothic action-RPG to battle through. Set in the ruined kingdom of Lothric, players will face some of the most terrifying enemies the series has ever seen, while navigating the biggest world developer From Software has ever created.
  Following our hands on with the game, WIRED speaks with director Hidetaka Miyazaki on the serie
  
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• Mystery of Enceladus' erupting 'tiger stripes' is solved

  29-03-2016 13:27 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Scientists at the University of Chicago and Princeton University have pinpointed a mechanism by which tidal stresses from Saturn can drive Enceladus' long-lived 'tiger stripe' (pictured) eruptions.
  
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• Inside the secret collections of the US National Museum of Natural History

  29-03-2016 12:56 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The National Museum of Natural History in Washington has provided a rare glimpse at its vast and spectacular backroom collections, which never make public displays.
  
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• Facebook users may soon be able to have 'secret conversations' in Messenger 

  29-03-2016 12:38 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The California-based social network is rumoured to be rolling out two new features in Messenger (logo pictured inset), including 'secret conversations' which may be encrypted messages.
  
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• Warning over 'nasty' ransomware strain

  29-03-2016 12:33 via bbc.co.uk
  
  The FBI is seeking help from US firms that might be vulnerable to a nasty strain of ransomware, Reuters reports.
  
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• Frozen lake spotted on Pluto: Nasa image reveals details of body of nitrogen on planet

  29-03-2016 12:32 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Washington-based scientists at Nasa have released images of a potential frozen lake on Pluto's surface (pictured) suggesting its atmosphere may once have supported bodies of liquid nitrogen.
  
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• Could PHONES spell the end for passports?

  29-03-2016 12:25 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Basingstoke-based De La Rue, the company that prints the British passport and banknotes, has announced it is developing new paperless passports for when travelling.
  
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• The 'Not Face' is a universal marker of negative emotion

  29-03-2016 12:09
  
  The pictured facial expression may look like the human personification of the disappointed emoji. But, according to new research from Ohio State University, the face is actually a universal marker of negative feeling.By: Emily Reynolds, Continue reading...
  
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• Memory 'gene' could explain how stress is inherited

  29-03-2016 11:25
  
  A team at Tel Aviv University claims to have pinpointed the "precise mechanism that turns the inheritance of environmental influences on and off". By: Emily Reynolds, Continue reading...
  
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• Is it sayonara for Japan's 'Hitomi' satellite?

  29-03-2016 11:17 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  The ultra-high-tech 'Hitomi' - or eye - satellite was supposed to have been communicating from orbit by now, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa) said, but no-one can say where it is.
  
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• Fear of the unknown makes us MORE stressed than if we know for definite

  29-03-2016 11:12 via dailymail.co.uk
  
  Researchers from University College London tracked participants' uncertainty, and studied stress levels by taking measurements of the participants' pupil dilation.Stock image.
  
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• 'PlayStation 4K' could delight (or alienate) Sony fans this Christmas

  29-03-2016 11:04
  
  Rumours surrounding Sony releasing an upgraded PlayStation 4 model are gathering steam, with reports emerging that the supposed 'PS4K' could be released before Christmas.By: Matt Kamen, Continue reading...
  
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