Technology news

Users across Twitter are absenting themselves from Twitter today following the social media site’s banning of actress/director Rose McGowan. McGowan has been vocal on Twitter during the Harvey Weinstein rape scandal currently rocking the entertainment industry. She’s tweeted the names of several people who knew — or should have known — about Weinstein’s alleged attacks on women, as revealed by a recent New Yorker exposé. Hey @mattdamon what’s

Matthew McDermott of Sonoma, California discovered an odd scene while driving in Schellville, California on Monday. A tree had caught fire thanks to the wildfires ripping through the state, and the tree was burning from the inside out. 
"That is the craziest fucking thing I've ever seen," McDermott could be heard saying in the clip. "It's hollowed out the tree." 
The outside of the tree seems mostly intact, and the fire burning inside can be seen through a series of holes in its trunk

If you find yourself hungry, really craving a peanut butter sandwich, why not take three and a half hours to make one just like Bev from Food Network did?
SEE ALSO: These edible wrappers could help keep plastic out of the ocean
Meet Bev, the sandwich maker expert.She's here to teach us how to make peanut butter slices and she's very excited about it.First, you need peanut butter and some parchment paper. And three hours of you damn time. Did we mention that? Once you have those three items, spr

PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds has a big cheater problem. Luckily, PUBG uses an anti-cheat service that catches an insane amount of them every day.
SEE ALSO: Survival shooter 'PUBG' adds ability to honk car horns, chaos ensues
PUBG's anti-cheat service BattlEye took to Twitter today to give an update on its efforts to make sure PUBG is cheater-free, revealing that the service has been banning anywhere from 6,000 to 13,000 players per day.We are currently banning at a rate of 6K-13K per day, nearl

Microsoft today released a new Windows 10 preview for PCs with Cortana Collections and some settings being consolidated. The Fall Creators Update, which ships next week, is now finalized, so all new builds are part of the next update (internally called RS4).
Windows 10 is a service, meaning it was built in a very different way from its predecessors so it can be regularly updated with not just fixes, but new features, too. Microsoft has released four major updates so far: November Update, Anniver

President Donald Trump has a way with words, as you may know. 
Trump was speaking at Values Voter Summit on Friday when once again, he embarrassed himself with his choice of words. 
SEE ALSO: How Trump’s four hours in Puerto Rico revealed his Achilles' heel
While speaking on the natural disasters that have struck the United States in the last few months, Trump accidentally said he met with the president of the Virgins Islands. The problem? Trump is literally the president of the

Sexual assault allegations — apparently from multiple individuals — have been made against a prominent security researcher, prompting his resignation from several public interest organizations he was affiliated with. Morgan Marquis-Boire was an employee of First Look Media until this past September. He was also a technical advisor to organizations such as the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the Freedom of the Press Foundation, and the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab.
As par

The Shinmoedake volcano hadn’t erupted in six years. That changed this week. Luckily for all of us, storm chaser and drone pilot James Reynolds was there to capture the footage. Reynolds, using a DJI Mavic Pro shot the eruption from a safe distance, about 2.5km (1.5 miles) from the crater. The smoke plume rose 2,000 meters (5,600 feet) above the crater, covering the ground in ash and soot. The drone footage captures the surreal, post-apocalyptic landscape. As news junkies panic over new e

The internet's scientific prayers have been answered: we now know definitively what happens when you spin a fidget spinner in space. And it is predictably awesome. 
SEE ALSO: Would a fidget spinner spin forever in space?
On Friday, NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik posted a video of himself and some of his astronaut pals taking Newton's laws of motion for a test ride by messing with a fidget spinner aboard the International Space Station.A fidget spinner in space! How long does it spin? I'm not

Horror movies are nothing without a truly depraved and menacing villain. They come in many different forms; sometimes the villain can be a person, demon, monster, or something in describably nasty.
SEE ALSO: Take a peek at our top five horror flicks of all time... if you dare!
The villains are usually interested in exacting revenge or dishing out as much cruelty onto the world as possible. 
We decided to gather a list of some of the scariest villains cinema has ever created. Good luck sleep

It's October 2017 and some fights just won't die. 
Take a look at the most recent intra-resistance clashIn September, organizers of the Women's March announced that they'd decided to designate the theme of their upcoming convention as the famous Maxine Waters' quote "Reclaiming Our Time." The all-powerful Congresswoman would be featured as headliner. 
The convention only generated modest amounts of buzz until recently, when organizers revealed that they had invited Senator Bernie Sande

Months after Chance the Rapper bought out a day's worth of movie tickets so his fans could see Get Out for free, the musician's done it again, this time for Friday showings of Marshall at two Chicago theaters.
"Go see Marshall today for free," he wrote in an impromptu "press release" shared Friday morning on Twitter. His post also suggested he'd make an appearance at a 3 p.m. showing of the film and encouraged fans to join.
SEE ALSO: Chance The Rapper gets pulled over by police and livestreamed

GUEST: In late 2016, the White House published a report titled Artificial Intelligence, Automation, and the Economy. It’s a solid work of research and forecasting that proposes equally solid policy recommendations. Here’s part of the framing, from the report’s intro:
AI-driven automation will continue to create wealth and expand the American economy in the coming years, but, while many will benefit, that growth will not be costless and will be accompanied by changes in the

Microsoft's Cortana assistant can now remember what books, TV shows, movies, recipes, and restaurants you like and don't want to forget. The company just introduced its new Cortana Collections feature, which essentially works like a Pinterest board built into your Windows 10 device.Cortana pops up whenever a user is on a webpage that might have content worth saving, like on a page to buy a book. It'll ask the user to either create a list to save the content, add it to a favorites list, or dismis

I could bore you with loads of pretense about viral internet trends, but I’ve already wasted enough time in this lede sentence without telling you that astronauts aboard the International Space Station just dropped a fidget spinner trick video filmed in zero gravity.The video, which you can watch above, features astronauts Mark T. Vande Hei, Joseph Acaba, Randy Bresnik, and Paolo Nespoli spinning a NASA-branded fidget spinner while also spinning themselves in the gravity-free environs of t

There’s no denying that writer-director Angela Robinson has excellent timing. Her new film, Professor Marston and the Wonder Women, about the creation of the Wonder Woman comic book character, has been in the works for years. But it finally came to fruition the same year Warner Brothers’ Wonder Woman climbed the box office charts and made a huge splash for the character. Interest in Wonder Woman and her strange, colorful, bondage-filled history is at an all-time high, and Robinson&rs

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The pre-order period for the new Samsung Gear Sport watch and Gear IconX headphones is finally here. This may be the most important two-week window of your life.
Both are available for pre-order from October 13th through October 26th, with the actual release date falling on the 27th.
SEE ALSO: LunaR launches solar-powered smartwatch via Kickstarter
The newest edition of the Gear Sport has been

What does Google know about hardware that no one else does?
If you said software, you're almost right. Google likes to think its secret sauce is artificial intelligence, which manifests in its consumer products as the Google Assistant. The Assistant was front and center during the company's big hardware event earlier this month.
SEE ALSO: Google's 'Pixel Buds' may be the key to breaking the language barrier
From the new Pixel 2 phones to the Home Mini and Home Max smart speakers to the insanely

 Nayeem Islam has spent the last eight years with chipmaker Qualcomm, where he founded its Silicon Valley-based R&D facility, recruited its entire team and oversaw research on all aspects of security, including applying analysis techniques like machine learning on mobile devices and in the network to detect threats early. Now Islam and a group of former execs have created their own company… Read More

It’s a little early to put much credibility in rumors about the next iPhones coming in 2018. But KGI Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who has established a strong track record of Apple hardware forecasts, says that the company is likely to completely move away from Touch ID on the successors to this year’s iPhone 8, 8 Plus, and X. MacRumors reported on Kuo’s latest note. Hopefully the various components of the tech will be more readily available by then; the Face ID system is b

Just to let you know, if you buy something featured here, Mashable might earn an affiliate commission.
Every cyclist shares the same fear: no matter how tightly you chain down your bike, someone could still try to steal it and run off with it. Finally, Bisecu on Kickstarter claims to have a solution.
Bisecu is a bicycle smart lock that pairs with your phone via its bluetooth-enabled app. The lock attaches to your wheel and syncs up to your phone. When you travel a certain distance away from your

Twitter has deleted tweets that could be helpful to investigators currently examining Russia's suspected manipulation of the social network during the 2016 presidential election, U.S. government cybersecurity officials told Politico.
According to the officials, Twitter is either unable or unwilling to retrieve a "substantial amount" of tweets from bots and fake users spreading disinformation. Those users, which have been tied to Russia, have since deleted those tweets. 
SEE ALSO: Russians c

Google released a new USB-C to 3.5mm dongle following the reveal earlier this month of the headphone jack-less Pixel 2. Although every new Pixel 2 ships with the dongle in the box, a replacement costs $20. That's appalling. Now, it seems Google has realized its dongle error and is dropping the price down to $9, or the same as Apple's Lighting to headphone jack replacement dongle. All is well again in dongle world, phew.
Just a note: Google's dongle isn't for charging and listening to music. If y

In an interview with W Magazine, Suicide Squad actress Margot Robbie said she doesn't understand the popularity of "slutty" costumes on Halloween. However, she portrayed Harley Quinn, one of the most famous risqué characters revelers dress as.
Robbie recalled she always dressed as male characters because they are the "most fun." Read more...More about Halloween, Mashable Video, Costume, Sexy, and Costumes

Qualcomm has launched a new lawsuit against Apple, asking a Chinese court to block the sale and manufacturing of iPhones within the country, according to Bloomberg. This is the latest strike in a legal war between the two companies, which started out in the US and has since expanded worldwide.
In its lawsuit, Qualcomm reportedly claims that Apple is in violation of three patents, none of which are essential to any industry standards — meaning Qualcomm isn’t obligated to license them.

Though the California wildfires have caused considerable damage to the Napa Valley area, they have also created an opportunity for people to step up and help their community. 
Compline Wine Bar, Napa Cigars, and Blackbird Inn are three local mainstays that still have power, and have been doing their part to help those who do not. They've risen to the occasion to offer those affected by the fires a safe haven and even a hot meal. 
Compline Wine Bar sent out a message to locals via Insta

Accident-prone desk workers can soon breathe a small sigh of relief, because Silicon Power has announced its first portable SSD: a new puck-shaped hard drive that’s IP68 dust and water resistant. The Bolt B80 drive comes in three storage variants (120GB, 240GB, and 480GB), is made of machined aluminum, and is about the size of a makeup compact.The B80 uses USB 3.1 via a Type-C connector, and comes with a USB-C to USB-A cable, according to AnandTech, and should be compatible with everything

Bitcoin yesterday reached a new all-time high as cryptocurrency insiders try to figure out why. According to several industry analysts the mere rumor of Amazon acceptance is partially responsible, with tales of China reversing its exchange ban providing further market optimism. Rumors that Amazon will accept Bitcoin are nothing new and we weren’t able to substantiate the latest one. But that hasn’t stopped the value of Bitcoin from reaching it’s new all time high of $5,856. At

IGN, the major gaming and entertainment site, has bought Humble Bundle, as Gamasutra reports today.
Humble Bundle sells groups of games, books, and other media in a pay-what-you-want setup, with a portion of sales going to charities. Bundles typically have some sort of theme, like indie games, specific genres, or publishers. The site has had over 10 million customers and has raised over 106 million dollars for charities like the American Red Cross and Make-A-Wish. Humble Bundle has als

Just about a month after Hurricane Irma blew through Florida, everyone will know Key West is "Paradise USA" once again.
The iconic "Welcome to Key West" sign was found 300 miles away from its home on Thursday in Fort Meyers Beach, according to the Miami Herald. 
SEE ALSO: Hemingway's six-toed cats may have eight lives after Hurricane Irma
The friendly greeting to the popular vacation destination off U.S. Route 1 went missing in the midst of the storm, which made landfall in the Florida Keys

The fiendishly difficult run-‘n’-gun Cuphead launched two weeks ago on September 29, and developer StudioMDHR announced today that it’s now sold more than one million copies.From the bottom of our hearts, thank you very much!!! Cuphead has sold over one million copies!https://t.co/nHSCe3oKMo
— Studio MDHR (@StudioMDHR) October 13, 2017StudioMDHR started working on Cuphead in 2010, and the studio is only two people, brothers Chad & Jared Moldenhauer. Its stunning 1930s

One of the unexpected delights of Stranger Things’ first season was its soundtrack, provided by Texas-based synth duo S U R V I V E. The band is returning to score the show’s second season, and the soundtrack will be digitally available on October 20th, a week before season 2 starts streaming.Spin debuted the opening song of the soundtrack yesterday, a synth track called “Walkin’ in Hawkins,” and the rest of the 34-song tracklist teases out some intriguing hints abo

Thyng wants to create the first augmented reality platform. Last week, the studio launched its free app Thyng 4.0 on iOS, which it built using Apple’s ARKit software development kit. It enables users to create AR scenes by dragging and dropping pre-designed 3D objects or personal photos and videos.
Ed LaHood is the founder and CEO of Thyng, and he has a lot of experience working with cutting-edge tech. In 1991, he founded Vream, one of the earliest startups to experiment with virtual reali

Lenovo teased a bunch of new Moto Mods at Mobile World Congress this year, including one with Amazon's Alexa assistant built in, and another that can instantly print smartphone photos. Yesterday, VentureBeat reporter Evan Blass gave us another look at the Mods, the first since Lenovo's announcements. Notice the slight Polaroid branding on the photo printer.
Two MotoMods first announced way back at MWC: Amazon Alexa speaker and Polaroid Insta-Share printer pic.twitter.com/qw0fVYy9y8— Evan B

Earlier this week, Oculus doubled its VR hardware lineup, adding two new headsets alongside the Oculus Rift and Samsung Gear VR. The first is a development kit codenamed Santa Cruz, which features full motion tracking in a wireless headset. The second is Oculus Go, a mobile headset with built-in electronics instead of a phone slot. Facebook’s VR chief Hugo Barra says Go and Santa Cruz are supposed to complement the Rift and Gear VR, not replace them. At a time when virtual reality is a nic