Technology news

Very late in Avengers: Infinity War, deep into this big apocalyptic battle with Thanos, one hero turns to another and says, "We're in the end game now."
It's a heavy moment, weighed down by the trauma of everything that's happened so far and everything we know is still to come. It underlines just how apocalyptically massive the stakes are here – how grave the danger is, and how great the cost of fighting it off to live another day. 
It's also a lie.
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Amazon has confirmed the existence of a new “Fire TV Cube” device through a new teaser page, as found by AFTVNews. There’s basically no other information on the new device aside from the name and an email list that users can sign up for that promises more details “coming soon,” but there’s a good chance that the upcoming Fire TV OS device already leaked months ago.Last fall, AFTVNews published pictures of two leaked Fire TV devices: one, the square-shaped Fir

Pollution Pods is an installation by British artist Michael Pinsky that aims to raise awareness about the harmful impact of the toxic air in some of the world's most densely populated cities. The installation consists of five geodesic domes that emulate the atmospheric conditions of five cities. Read more...More about London, Mashable Video, Pod, Air, and Climate Change

SoftBank’s Pepper the humanoid robot has held a variety of odd jobs over the past few years, but a gig at the Smithsonian may be its most prestigious yet. Starting today, visitors can interact with Pepper at six Smithsonian locations to inquire more museum information, play games, or ask it to pose for a selfie. It even has its own security badge.
Come say hi to Pepper at our Castle building, @NMAfA, @NMAAHC, @SmithsonianEnv and @hirshhorn. Pepper was created by Softbank Robotics, who pro

Natalie Dormer, the actress who portrayed Margaery Tyrell in 'Game of Thrones,' is starring in a new Amazon miniseries. 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' is a mystery drama that centers around the disappearance of three female students at Appleyard Ladies College where Dormer plays the relentless headmistress. The series is inspired by the 1967 novel by the same name.  Read more...More about Watercooler, Amazon, Mashable Video, Streaming, and Show

Sleeping is a lot harder than it used to be.
There are countless distractions in this world. So many television shows to watch. So much content to meme. So many Chrissy Teigen tweets to read. So many Westworld theories to hypothesize. So many minutes to spend watching Drake strut down a dance line in curls. 
SEE ALSO: Essential tips, tricks, and apps to help you learn a language
There's a lot going on in the world right now, too, enough that sleeping can feel pretty much impossible sometime

In regulating air and water pollution in the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) leans on scientific studies to guide the writing of regulations. The agency is still relying on landmark studies, such as one conducted by Harvard University in 1993, that established the link between air pollution and premature deaths, in order to justify air pollution rules. 
However, in a move claimed to make the agency more "transparent," embattled EPA administrator Scott Pruitt announced on Tue

Microsoft is rolling out a new Xbox One update today that centers on better audio and visual support. The biggest addition is 1440p support for the Xbox One S and X, allowing gamers to use a monitor and make the most out of QHD (2560 x 1440) displays. It’s a resolution that’s usually popular with PC gamers, and Microsoft is also adding AMD’s FreeSync support to allow compatible displays to sync refresh rates with Microsoft’s consoles.
FreeSync, like Nvidia’s G-Sync

Facebook has finally made its moderation guidelines officially available to the public in full and boy is this a fascinating glimpse into a convoluted set of rules that once censored the entire ACLU Facebook page over a post about ... wait for it ... censorship. (The case in question concerned a partially nude statue in Kansas which would likely now fall under an allowed category called “paintings, sculptures, and other art”).It’s not the first time the public has gotten to se

If you’re looking forward to playing the new God of War, a word of advice: be extra carefularound Google or YouTube, which are accidentally spoiling major plot points of the game through rogue algorithms.
Without going into specific details (since I’d like to avoid leaving you to the mercy of those same spoilers), even typing in phrases as seemingly innocuous as a character’s name brings up massive spoilers for the end of God of War as the first suggestion on Google search res

WhatsApp is banning anyone under 16 years old from using its app in Europe. It’s raising the age limit by three years just as the European data privacy rules start kicking in on May 25th, as spotted by Reuters.
When users in Europe log onto the app in the next few weeks, they’ll be asked to confirm their age when accepting the new terms of service and an updated privacy policy. WhatsApp, which is owned by Facebook, has a separate data policy of its own. It’s made new changes b

Computer science concepts are often named after real-world equivalents. 
A queue, for instance, is a data structure where the first object in is the first object out, much like the functions of a real-word queueA stack, meanwhile, is last-in first-out, similar to how one would retrieve items from a stack without toppling it over.
SEE ALSO: Google and OK Go are teaching kids about the magic of music and math
And then there's the tree. 
Instead of growing upwards like the trees you see o

Graduation is a time to celebrate your accomplishments, but remember the photos will probably stick around for a while. 
You don't want people scrolling through social media the next day and seeing your pic among the same boring photos. And you don't want to see the photo on your mom's mantlepiece for decades to come and wish you'd planned for it a bit better.
SEE ALSO: Jazz up your graduation cap with these 14 clever designs
You want your pictures to look good, but it can be hectic with al

2017 was a whirlwind year for Uber: the company dealt with engineer Susan Fowler’s account of sexism during her time at Uber, it lost one CEO and gained a new one, and it faced a lawsuit from Waymo, just to mention a few events. Along the way, Uber published its first diversity report, and the results were surprisingly better than expected. Although Uber was still a predominantly white and male company, like many Silicon Valley tech companies, it posted a better representation of women, b

2017 was a whirlwind year for Uber: the company dealt with engineer Susan Fowler’s account of sexism during her time at Uber, it lost one CEO and gained a new one, and it faced a lawsuit from Waymo, just to mention a few events. Along the way, Uber published its first diversity report, and the results were surprisingly better than expected. Although Uber was still a predominantly white and male company, like many Silicon Valley tech companies, it posted a better representation of women, b

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has skyrocketed many white guys named Chris talented actors to international fame, but where were they before acquiring super powers and joining this superior squad?
Most of the cast of Avengers: Infinity War were plenty visible before their intergalactic heroism, but we couldn't resist diving into their old filmographies for our favorite deep cuts from the past. Below, find our favorite offbeat pre-Marvel roles from the cast of Infinity War.
SEE ALSO: Who's who in

Scott Pruitt, the head of the Environmental Protection Agency, is no friend of the agency he leads. Since he entered office, Pruitt has tried to roll back multiple regulations that curb greenhouse gas emissions and limit pollution from cars and trucks, all the while cozying up with the polluters he’s supposed to keep in check. Pruitt also is neck-deep in all sorts of scandals, and his departure is a real possibility. But the first in line to replace him — the newly named deputy Andr

I have sad news for you on this Tuesday, aka Circuit Breaker Live day. Today’s the last Circuit Breaker Live on YouTube, and no, we’re not going back to Twitter or anything like that. We’re really done. But with that said, we have one more episode left, and it’s happening at 4PM ET here or in the video embed above.We’ve had a good run, and Circuit Breaker the gadget blog will still exist. We’ll also still be producing gadget videos, so don’t cry over th

In 2007, Apple changed the act of socializing, maybe forever, with the release of the iPhone. There it was, a perfectly packed 4.5-inch-long computer designed to pulverize boredom like a drill through your skull. You bought one, and now, whenever you have a few minutes of downtime, even if that downtime is shared with your friends or spouse or mom at Christmas, you tap or scroll or swipe something on that little glass screen. 
To own a smartphone is to cede some part of yourself to it. The

Instagram has a new tool that lets users download their data from the social media photo site, reports TechCrunch. Submit your email address, and Instagram will send you a copy of your “photos, comments, profile information, and more,” although the site notes that it could take up to 48 hours to actually collect and send you that data.The tool is only available on the web for now, but it should be accessible to iOS and Android users in the future, too. It is similar to one Facebook

In 2014, scientists clad in thick neon orange suits stepped off a research vessel and visited five different patches of pristine-looking Arctic sea ice. As these researchers discovered, the blinding white ice in the remote north looks awfully pure, but its appearance is deceiving. 
After removing cores of ice from the frozen ground, the research team found it contained up to 12,000 tiny to microscopic bits of plastic, some from cigarette filters, some from paint, and others that were degrad

Bungie held a live Twitch stream today to tease some new features, storyline additions, and other changes coming to Destiny 2 with the upcoming Warmind expansion, due out on May 8th. The expansion is taking players back to Mars with a new character, Ana Bray, and a new narrative focused on the artificial intelligence system known as Rasputin, a character with a substantial mythos in the Destiny backstory, and a new Hive enemy known as Nokris.
As part of the live stream reveal, Bungie also inclu

Warning: spoilers ahead for Netflix’s Lost in Space.
In the first episode of Netflix’s new Lost in Space, Will Robinson (Maxwell Jenkins) discovers a robot (Brian Steele) and saves it from a spreading forest fire. As a result, it seems to imprint upon him, following him around and obeying him like a loyal pet. As Will is suddenly made responsible for another being’s safety, he starts to mature. The robot starts to develop, too, becoming an integral part of the Robinson family

This post is part of Mashable's Spring Cleaning Week. Just a little something to distract you from the eternal dread of constantly wiping all those fingerprints off your screen. 
If you've recently upgraded to a new phone, you might have noticed an annoying, not to mention costly, problem. 
SEE ALSO: How a vacation and a digital detox app helped cure my iPhone addiction
Yes, if you've got a new iPhone X or iPhone 8 Plus, that sucker probably uses a LOT of data, thanks to the jump in sc

Instagram has announced a couple updates to Stories on Android, including the ability to upload multiple photos and videos all at once.
Previously, if you wanted to post several photos or videos to your Instagram story, you would have to go through the process for every individual piece of media. Now, when Android users go to upload media, there will be a new icon in the top right corner of the screen. Once you tap it, your phone’s gallery will display and you can select up to 10 photos a

Nintendo’s Switch was hacked to run Linux in February, and now it’s clear that hackers could go further and run homebrew apps and games on the device. Eurogamer reports that two exploits have been detailed this week that allow hackers to exploit a hardware flaw in Nvidia’s Tegra X1 (that powers the Switch) and gain access to the Switch’s operating system. Nintendo cannot patch the hardware flaw without releasing a new version of the Switch, which means that at least 14 m

Printing photos is making a comeback, with companies like Artifact Uprising and TurnGram encouraging users to bring their iPhone pics into — gasp — the physical realm.
One particularly pleasant service is NanaGram, which will mail 10 4x4 or 4x6 photos of your choice to your grandparents — or any relative, really, but it's cutest to say grandparents — for a fixed rate of $7.99 every month. (This is the most basic package, but you can also pay more to send more photos.)
Nan

Urbanears is back with a new pair of neckbud form factor Bluetooth headphones with the Jakan, the company’s second attempt at this style of wireless headphone.For reference, last year Urbanears released its first pair of neckbuds in the form of the Stadion, which seemed like a functional, if extremely ugly looking pair of Bluetooth headphones. The Jakan seems to improve on this dramatically, cutting the thick band and springy, multicolored cords for a more minimal design that packs all th

Losing your phone charger is one of those annoying experiences that happens to everyone. You could just grab a cheap one from the drugstore checkout counter, but it’s a better idea to stock up on good chargers while they’re on sale and keep a few spares at your desk.
Anker is offering Verge readers discounts on their PowerLine brand of Lightning and USB-C cables. PowerLine cables are reinforced (Anker claims they last five or six times longer than other cables), and the PowerLine+ b

Under a new Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) policy unveiled on Monday, burning forest products, known as biomass, will now be considered a "carbon neutral" fuel source. 
The EPA's action, which EPA administrator Scott Pruitt announced before an audience of Georgia timber industry leaders, for now settles the question of whether chopping down trees, turning them into wood pellets, and then shipping them to power plants where they're burned for fuel will be counted as a renewable source

At midnight ET last night, MyEtherWallet users started noticing something odd. Connecting to the service, users were faced with an unsigned SSL certificate, a broken link in the site’s verification. It was unusual, but it’s the kind of thing web users routinely click through without thinking.
But anyone who clicked through this certificate warning was redirected to a server in Russia, which proceeded to empty the user’s wallet. Judging by wallet activity, the attackers appear

Mother's Day is fast approaching and with it the opportunity to say 'thank you' to the incredible moms who nurtured us, raised us, and shaped us. 
(Really, you should say thank you to your mother every day, but especially on Mother's Day.)
SEE ALSO: 21 Mother's Day gifts for the tech-savvy mom
But the beautiful (and scary) part of parenting is that there is no guide book — everyone does it a little bit differently.
Fortunately, though, anyone seeking a bit of motherhood advice need lo

Yahoo — or rather, the shell company holding on to its remnants — will have to pay a $35 million fine for failing to disclose a 2014 data breach in which hackers stole info on over 500 million accounts.
The US Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that Altaba, which contains Yahoo’s remains, agreed to pay the fine to settle charges that it misled investors by not informing them of the hack until September 2016, despite knowing of it as early as December 2014.
The

Spotify rolled out an explicit content filter a few weeks ago, but it still has limitations compared to other streaming services. In its current form, the new explicit filter is only available for individual users, but Spotify tells The Verge that it is actively testing the explicit filter for family plans.
Spotify’s explicit filter option appeared earlier this month and is only available for Premium users on the mobile app. Per the company’s website, it is also currently restricted

There’s a curious divide on social media about when, where, and what kind of female nipples are allowed to exist in photos. Pictures of post-mastectomy scarring and breastfeeding are generally okay, as is nudity in art, but Instagram strictly forbids nipples on breasts outside of those guidelines. Twitter is far more forgiving if you mark content as sensitive. Now that Facebook has finally made its community guidelines public, there’s new insight into how the social media giant defi

Cats are known for laying on laptops, but not trying out somersaults on them.
SEE ALSO: Dog being taken away by police shows absolutely no remorse
Brandon Salinas had his phone filming when his cat suddenly walked onto his laptop, leaned on the screen, and toppled the whole thing over in just a few seconds.Just accidentally recorded My cat dropping my damn laptop and it looks hilarious 😂😂😂😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/KAjL1NGH4F
— Brandon Salinas⚡

Swearing is impossible on NBC's The Good Place, but it's also impossible in this regular place we call Earth if you are a person with autocorrect on your phone.
If you haven't watched the show, here's the deal: The Good Place (or whatever part of the afterlife Eleanor, Chidi, and the gang are in these days) is known for censoring swears to sound like confusing and cutesy words, rather than the ferocious things they're intended as. For example, "Oh shit" would be changed to the much classier, "Oh

Upgrade your entertainment game with a 65-inch Samsung smart TV for $450 off at Walmart.
SEE ALSO: Best phone cases for the Samsung Galaxy S9+
According to the product page, this 4K TV uses HDR picture to deliver Ultra HD quality. It also features a Smart TV Hub that lets you surf any of your favorite entertainment apps in a flash. Nothing like a brand spanking new TV to make binge-watching even better.
These Samsung TVs are typically upwards of $1100, but you can get it now for only $650 while

Groupon founder Andrew Mason’s audio tour startup Detour has been sold to Bose. The acquisition, which involves only the software and tour content — not the team — was quietly announced on Detour’s blog a few days ago, followed by an email to customers. Bose, initially, seems like an unlikely acquirer for an app designed to help people discover a city through narrated walking tours. But its interest in the product has to do with its upcoming AR platform, which involves au