Sci-Tech news

• Silent Circle Wants To Be Your Go&To For Secure Android Phones - Fast Company

  28-09-2015 23:53 via
  Fast Company
  Silent Circle Wants To Be Your Go&To For Secure Android Phones
  Fast Company
  Enterprise privacy firm Silent Circle says its new Android phone can shield government officials and corporate users from hacks. By Neal Ungerleider. Silent Circle, a company that makes secure smartphones and communications products, just launched its ...
  Secure line: Blackphone 2 goes on saleCNBC
  The Blackphone 2 is now available in the USThe Verge
  Blackphone 2 Review: A Slick But Very Expensive P
  

• Volkswagen Scandal Highlights European Stalling on New Emissions Tests - New York Times

  28-09-2015 23:48 via
  New York Times
  Volkswagen Scandal Highlights European Stalling on New Emissions Tests
  New York Times
  BRUSSELS — European legislators got a jolt this month in their long-running effort to update auto-emissions standards when a German member of the European Parliament suddenly proposed exempting a whole class of vehicles. “This was a huge loophole, ...
  Volkswagen's diesel tax breaks could be a focus for US prosecutorsReuters
  Volkswagen Tries To Spin Diesel Lies In New Website, Pr
  

• NASA Confirms Signs of Water Flowing on Mars, Possible Niches for Life - New York Times

  28-09-2015 23:35 via nytimes.com
  New York Times
  NASA Confirms Signs of Water Flowing on Mars, Possible Niches for Life
  New York Times
  Scientists have for the first time confirmed liquid water flowing on the surface of present-day Mars, a finding that will add to speculation that life, if it ever arose there, could persist now. “This is tremendously exciting,” James L. Green, the ...
  Ridley Scott's 'The Martian' Is a 'Love Letter to Science'Variety
  Mars secret revealed: First "unambiguous" signs of waterCBS News
  Her
  
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• A VR Kit from Microsoft? May be budget-worthy contender

  28-09-2015 23:10
  
  It's interesting what a simple cardboard box with a pair of lenses can do in drawing interest from techie sites worldwide. But then again we are in a VR-conscious marketplace and have already seen the news over Google Cardboard.
  
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• Heat waves hit heat islands hardest

  28-09-2015 23:08
  
  Extreme summers like that of 2012—which saw record temperatures in cities across the U.S.—may be atypical, but experts say they will return, especially as the planet warms under climate change. And as they do, cities will be especially vulnerable.
  
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• Netflix Unveils Button To Prepare Home For Hours Of Binge-Watching - CBS Local

  28-09-2015 23:07 via
  CBS Local
  Netflix Unveils Button To Prepare Home For Hours Of Binge-Watching
  CBS Local
  LOS GATOS (CBS SF) — Netflix is unveiling a user-programmable button to set yourself up for a long night of binge watching, for those who take the “Netflix and chill” request literally. The Netflix Switch button can by built by the user and links to ...
  DIY 'Netflix and chill' button or order pizza with one press of Amazon Dash buttonComputerworld
  'Netflix And Chill' Just Got This Much Easie
  

• Despite pledges, climate action seen falling short

  28-09-2015 23:00
  
  The emissions pledges that countries have made ahead of a landmark conference in Paris have been a major boost to the slow-moving U.N. effort to fight climate change.
  
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• New approaches to teaching reverse course on high math failure rates

  28-09-2015 22:49
  
  Throughout higher education, math courses have some of the highest failure rates nationwide. Even though math is a skill nearly every person uses on a daily basis, it has become a significant impediment to degree completion.
  
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• Fossilized fur reveals color of 49-million-year-old bats - Reuters

  28-09-2015 22:49 via
  electronicsfeed.com
  Fossilized fur reveals color of 49-million-year-old bats
  Reuters
  WASHINGTON, Sept 28 Fossils can do a good job of revealing key aspects of an extinct creature: its bones, teeth, claws, even soft tissue like fur, skin, feathers, organs and sometimes remains of its last meal in the gut. Knowing its color has been a ...
  How a Fossil Can Reveal the Color of a DinosaurThe Atlantic
  Researchers ID pigment from fossils, revealing color of extinct animals(e) Science News (press relea
  

• Facebook is hit with yet another outage - Washington Post

  28-09-2015 22:48 via
  NBCNews.com
  Facebook is hit with yet another outage
  Washington Post
  Facebook ground to a halt for the third time in a month on Monday afternoon, leaving many people to ask, "This? Again?" It's the third widespread outage that the site has suffered this September — the social network went down briefly on Sept. 17 and Sept.
  Facebook.com down for some usersReuters
  Facebook suffers second outage in less than a weekFox News
  Facebook Goes Down for Some Users for Second Time in a WeekNBCNews.com
  

• Mars has flowing liquid water, NASA confirms - Fox News

  28-09-2015 22:44 via
  Fox News
  Mars has flowing liquid water, NASA confirms
  Fox News
  NASA has confirmed the existence of flowing liquid salty water on Mars, fueling the possibility of life on the Red Planet. “Today, we're revolutionizing our understanding of the planet,” said Jim Green, director of planetary science at NASA ...
  Water flows on Mars, raising possibility that planet could support life ...Reuters
  NASA says liquid water is on Mars - so is there life?CNET
  NASA Says Signs of Water Flowing on Ma
  

• 'Too late' for world if no climate deal in Paris: France

  28-09-2015 22:40
  
  Reaching a successful climate deal in Paris at the end of the year is the last chance to save the planet, France warned the United Nations Monday.
  
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• How a Fossil Can Reveal the Color of a Dinosaur - The Atlantic

  28-09-2015 22:40 via theatlantic.com
  
  The Atlantic
  How a Fossil Can Reveal the Color of a Dinosaur
  The Atlantic
  There are a few steps between discovering an animal's fossil and sussing out what it actually looked like. Step one, as this Smithsonian guide explains, is to put the bones together, drawing on knowledge of other skeletons of the same species to fill ...
  Fossilized fur reveals color of 49-million-year-old batsReuters
  Researchers ID pigment from fossils, revealing color of extinct animalsEurekAlert (press release)
  Geologis
  
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• NASA satellites dissect Typhoon Dujuan affecting Taiwan

  28-09-2015 22:38
  
  NASA's Aqua and Terra satellites provided visible and infrared data on Typhoon Dujuan's clouds while NASA's RapidScat instrument analyzed the storm's powerful winds as it approached Taiwan.
  
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• Monsoon mission: A better way to predict Indian weather?

  28-09-2015 22:38
  
  To better understand global weather patterns and increase scientific collaboration between the U.S. and India, researchers supported by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) have completed a month-long cruise studying summer monsoon conditions in the Bay of Bengal.
  
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• RapidScat spots Tropical Storm Niala's waning winds

  28-09-2015 22:35
  
  The RapidScat instrument saw the strongest winds in the Central Pacific Ocean's Tropical Storm Niala were on the northwestern side, facing the Big Island of Hawaii while the rest of the storm was below tropical-storm strength.
  
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• SDO captures image of mid-class solar flare

  28-09-2015 22:34
  
  The sun emitted a mid-level solar flare, peaking at 10:58 a.m. EDT on Sept. 28, 2015. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory, which watches the sun constantly, captured an image of the event. Solar flares are powerful bursts of radiation. Harmful radiation from a flare cannot pass through Earth's atmosphere to physically affect humans on the ground, however—when intense enough—they can disturb the atmosphere in the layer where GPS and communications signals travel.
  
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• Next up from climate change: Shell-crushing crabs invading Antarctica - Washington Post

  28-09-2015 22:30 via
  Newsweek
  Next up from climate change: Shell-crushing crabs invading Antarctica
  Washington Post
  At first glance, it's hard to imagine anything capable of surviving in the frigid waters off the shore of Antarctica. But, in fact, the Antarctic coastline is home to a unique ecosystem that's been in place for millions of years, dominated by soft ...
  King Crabs Are Invading Antarctica, Thanks to Warming OceansNewsweek
  The Next Threat to Antarctica Is Coming From the DeepTakePart
  Climate Change: King
  

• Breakthroughs need in-depth knowledge, not just cross-collaboration, study shows

  28-09-2015 22:29
  
  Most high-impact innovation happens when knowledge and people from different fields are brought together to create something new, previous research has found.
  
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• Insect diversity: Team looks at effects of non-native plants on herbivores

  28-09-2015 22:28
  
  Not only do native plants do a better job of hosting and supporting local insect communities than their non-native counterparts, but a University of Delaware study shows that non-native plants are compounding the problem of declining species diversity by supporting fewer herbivores across landscapes.
  
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• NASA views new Atlantic tropical depression in infrared

  28-09-2015 22:26
  
  The eleventh tropical depression of the Atlantic Ocean formed early on September 28 over 400 miles southwest of Bermuda as NASA's Aqua satellite passed overhead and looked at the storm in infrared light.The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder or AIRS instrument that flies aboard NASA's Aqua satellite gathers data in infrared light that provides information about temperatures.
  
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• Crunching numbers: Math equations help build optimal bird wing

  28-09-2015 22:26
  
  If you had to design a bird or dolphin drone from scratch, how would you build the wings?
  
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• Bacteria in ancient flea may be ancestor of the Black Death

  28-09-2015 22:23
  
  About 20 million years ago a single flea became entombed in amber with tiny bacteria attached to it, providing what researchers believe may be the oldest evidence on Earth of a dreaded and historic killer - an ancient strain of the bubonic plague.
  
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• iPhone 6S, 6S Plus sales surpass 13M through first weekend - Computerworld

  28-09-2015 22:17 via
  Computerworld
  iPhone 6S, 6S Plus sales surpass 13M through first weekend
  Computerworld
  Apple today said it sold more than 13 million iPhone 6S and 6S Plus handsets through the first weekend of retail sales, a 30% increase over last year's sales claim for the 4.7-in. iPhone 6 and 5.5-in. 6 Plus. The Cupertino, Calif., company touted the ...
  iPhone 6S and iPhone 6S Plus break three-day sales recordHerald Sun
  Getting started with 3D Touch on the iPhone 6S, 6S PlusCNET
  Apple reports record sales of
  

• Samsung Pay launches in US - CBS News

  28-09-2015 22:16 via
  CBS News
  Samsung Pay launches in US
  CBS News
  Samsung Pay, the handset maker's answer to Apple Pay, went live in the U.S. Monday. The mobile payment system differentiates itself as being useable in more places than its competitors, and early reports are pretty positive. What makes Samsung Pay ...
  Samsung promotion will pay your installment plan until 2016Engadget
  Samsung Pay goes live in the USCNET
  Samsung throws more incentives at iPhone usersComputerworld
  ZDNet -Motley Fool -BGR
  

• British archaeologist aims to pinpoint Nefertiti's tomb

  28-09-2015 22:07
  
  Standing before the majestic gold, ochre and white frescos of Tutankhamun's tomb, British archaeologist Nicholas Reeves on Monday passionately defended his daring theory that Nefertiti is buried in a secret chamber.
  
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• New Zuckerberg Initiative for Refugees Renews Debate Over Internet.org - Newsweek

  28-09-2015 21:58 via
  Newsweek
  New Zuckerberg Initiative for Refugees Renews Debate Over Internet.org
  Newsweek
  Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is seen onstage during a town hall with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at Facebook's headquarters in Menlo Park, California, on Sunday. Stephen Lam/Reuters. Filed Under: Tech & Science, Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg ...
  Facebook's Zuckerberg is far ahead of his peersUSA TODAY
  Facebook's Zuckerberg to UN: We'll Bring Internet to Refugee CampsNBCNews.com
  Zuckerberg to th
  

• Supermoon lunar eclipse 2015 live: Amazing pictures from the UK and around the ... - Telegraph.co.uk

  28-09-2015 21:54 via
  Telegraph.co.uk
  Supermoon lunar eclipse 2015 live: Amazing pictures from the UK and around the ...
  Telegraph.co.uk
  ... • Rare supermoon lunar eclipse began at 1:10am (BST) • Clear skies over much of the UK allowed fantastic views • The celestial event had not occurred since 1982 - and will not be repeated until 2033 • Blood moon in pictures: the eclipse as it was ...
  Super Blood Moon Photos: The Good and the BadNew York Times
  Your Best Pictures of the Super Blood Moon Total
  

• The Latest: Dutch VW Dealers Halt Sale of Diesel Cars - New York Times

  28-09-2015 21:41 via
  NBCNews.com
  The Latest: Dutch VW Dealers Halt Sale of Diesel Cars
  New York Times
  BERLIN — The latest developments on the Volkswagen emissions scandal. All times local. ___. 9:40 p.m.. Dutch Volkswagen dealers are halting the sale of diesel cars that may be affected by the German automaker's emissions-rigging scandal. Pon, the ...
  Volkswagen: German prosecutors launch investigation into former bossThe Guardian
  Volkswagen's New CEO Says Car Maker Must Change Its Corporate CultureWall S
  

• Facebook goes down for the third time in 3 weeks - Mashable

  28-09-2015 21:35 via mashable.com
  
  Mashable
  Facebook goes down for the third time in 3 weeks
  Mashable
  Facebook's app and website appear to be slowly coming back online after both went down for many users Monday afternoon — the third outage for the social network in as many weeks. It's not clear how many of Facebook's users were affected by the ...
  Facebook.com back in service after second outageReuters
  Facebook crashes for third time in less than two weeksUPI.com
  Facebook Down Again, Third Time In One MonthValueWalk
  W
  
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• Despite pledges, climate action seen falling short - Washington Post

  28-09-2015 21:18 via
  euronews
  Despite pledges, climate action seen falling short
  Washington Post
  STOCKHOLM — The emissions pledges that countries have made ahead of a landmark conference in Paris have been a major boost to the slow-moving U.N. effort to fight climate change. Less so for the climate itself. With pledges to cut or curb greenhouse ...
  New climate pledges invigorate UN talks but deemed insufficient to halt ...Fox News
  The Time for Excuses on Climate Action is OverHuffington Postall 320 news
  

• Why does Rosetta's comet look like a rubber ducky? - CBS News

  28-09-2015 21:08 via
  CBS News
  Why does Rosetta's comet look like a rubber ducky?
  CBS News
  Ever since a Europe's Rosetta probe landed on the surface of a comet last year, scientists have been puzzled over its rubber duck shape. Either the strange shape was due to localized erosion on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko or possibly ...
  Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko was created by gentle collisionCBC.ca
  Rosetta's comet is actually a partnership that's lasted billions of years ...Los Angeles Times
  Why
  

• Team finds weather extremes harmful to grasslands

  28-09-2015 21:00
  
  Fluctuations in extreme weather events, such as heavy rains and droughts, are affecting ecosystems in unexpected ways—creating "winners and losers" among plant species that humans depend upon for food.
  
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• Researchers find pigment from fossils, revealing color of extinct animals

  28-09-2015 21:00
  
  Scientists from Virginia Tech and the University of Bristol have revealed how pigment can be detected in mammal fossils, a discovery that may end the guesswork in determining the colors of extinct species.
  
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• King crabs threaten Antarctic ecosystem due to warming ocean

  28-09-2015 21:00
  
  King crabs may soon become high-level predators in Antarctic marine ecosystems where they haven't played a role in tens of millions of years, according to a new study led by Florida Institute of Technology.
  
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• Flood risk on rise for New York City and New Jersey coast, study finds

  28-09-2015 21:00
  
  Flood risk for New York City and the New Jersey coast has increased significantly during the last 1,000 years due to hurricanes and accompanying storm surges, according to a study by Penn State University, Rutgers University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Princeton University and Tufts University.
  
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• NASA Says Signs of Water Flowing on Mars, Possible Niches for Life - New York Times

  28-09-2015 20:33 via
  New York Times
  NASA Says Signs of Water Flowing on Mars, Possible Niches for Life
  New York Times
  Despite its reputation as a forebodingly dusty, desolate and lifeless place, Mars seems to be a little bit wet even today. Scientists reported on Monday definitive signs of liquid water on the surface of present-day Mars, a finding that will fuel ...
  Evidence of water on Mars: Could it boost possibility of life?Christian Science Monitor
  Liquid water exists on Mars, boosting hopes for life there, NAS
  

• One Fish Stands Watch While Another Eats

  28-09-2015 20:17 via nytimes.com
  Rabbitfish help one another in a way that had previously had been observed only in mammals and highly social birds, according to a new study.
  
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• Will Russian hackers be first to play with a Google Cardboard lookalike from ... - PCWorld

  28-09-2015 20:14 via
  PCWorld
  Will Russian hackers be first to play with a Google Cardboard lookalike from ...
  PCWorld
  Microsoft's Hololens isn't ready yet, but the company is already encouraging developers -- in Russia at least -- to use its toolchain to create virtual reality apps for PCs and phones running Windows. Or rather, it was, until excitement about an image ...
  Microsoft Has its Own Cardboard VR HeadsetWIRED
  Google rolls out virtual reality field tripsUSA TODAY
  Microsoft expands virtual reality ambitions
  

• Samsung Pay goes live in the US - CNET

  28-09-2015 20:08 via
  CNET
  Samsung Pay goes live in the US
  CNET
  iPhone 6S vs. iPhone 6S Plus vs. iPhone 6: How $100 gets you a bigger screen, more storage, or last year's model · CNET · Mobile; Samsung Pay goes live in the US. Samsung Pay goes live in the US. Samsung's mobile payments service works with older ...
  Samsung throws more incentives at iPhone usersComputerworld
  Samsung Offers to Pay Lease Charges on New Galaxy Phones Through 2015eWeek
  Samsung Pay Launches In The U.S.TechCrunch
  Android H
  

• B12 Identified as a Key Part of Photoreceptor Proteins

  28-09-2015 18:56 via scitechdaily.com
  
  A team of scientists has discovered and mapped a light-sensing protein that uses vitamin B12 to perform key functions, including gene regulation. The result, derived from studying proteins from the bacterium Thermus thermophilus, involves at least two findings of broad interest. First, it expands our knowledge of the biological role of vitamin B12, which was […]
  The post B12 Identified as a Key Part of Photoreceptor Proteins appeared first on SciTech Daily.
  
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• A new single-molecule tool to observe enzymes at work

  28-09-2015 18:43
  
  A team of scientists at the University of Washington and the biotechnology company Illumina have created an innovative tool to directly detect the delicate, single-molecule interactions between DNA and enzymatic proteins. Their approach provides a new platform to view and record these nanoscale interactions in real time. As they report Sept. 28 in Nature Biotechnology, this tool should provide fast and reliable characterization of the different mechanisms cellular proteins use to bind to DNA str
  
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• NASA's RapidScat sees the end of Tropical Storm Ida

  28-09-2015 18:42
  
  The RapidScat instrument saw former Tropical Storm Ida's waning winds when the International Space Station passed over the remnant low pressure area on September 25, 2015.
  
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• NASA sees Tropical Storm Marty along west coast of Mexico

  28-09-2015 18:42
  
  NASA's RapidScat instrument provided a look at the tropical-storm force winds within Tropical Storm Marty as it continued to hug the coast of western Mexico.
  
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• Increased internet access led to a rise in racial hate crimes in the early 2000s

  28-09-2015 18:40
  
  New research from Carlson School of Management Professor Jason Chan and NYU Stern Professors Anindya Ghose and Robert Seamans finds that broadband availability increased the incidence of racial hate crimes committed by lone-wolf perpetrators in the United States during the period 2001-2008. The addition of a single broadband provider led to as much as a 20 percent rise in racial hate crimes in areas where racial tensions were especially high.
  
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• Goods manufactured in China not good for the environment, study finds

  28-09-2015 18:39
  
  In a study published today in the journal Nature Climate Change, scientists from three universities show that products made in China are associated with significantly higher carbon dioxide emissions than the same products made elsewhere.
  
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• Scientists identify and map the protein behind a light-sensing mechanism

  28-09-2015 18:38
  
  MIT scientists, working with colleagues in Spain, have discovered and mapped a light-sensing protein that uses vitamin B12 to perform key functions, including gene regulation.
  
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• Black hole is 30 times bigger than expected

  28-09-2015 18:27 via rss.cnn.com
  
  This shouldn't be possible. Researchers say they've detected a supermassive black hole at the center of a newly found galaxy that's far bigger than current theories allow.
  
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• Beautiful, rare 'super blood moon' eclipse - the photos are in

  28-09-2015 18:26 via rss.cnn.com
  
  The sun, the Earth and the moon lined up in a row to put on a light show in Sunday's night sky, and people around the world looked up to watch the lunar eclipse.
  
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• NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Confirms Evidence That Liquid Water Flows on Mars

  28-09-2015 18:14 via scitechdaily.com
  
  New research using NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter reveals the strongest evidence yet that liquid water flows intermittently on present-day Mars. Using an imaging spectrometer on MRO, researchers detected signatures of hydrated minerals on slopes where mysterious streaks are seen on the Red Planet. These darkish streaks appear to ebb and flow over time. They darken […]
  The post NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Confirms Evidence That Liquid Water Flows on Mars appeared fir
  
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