ICT news

• Crayola Trademarks the Smell of Its Crayons

  23-08-2024 23:20 via yro.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Financial Post: You may find yourself smelling crayons in the aisles of stores soon -- if Crayola's chief executive Pete Ruggiero has his way. In July, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued a trademark to the arts and crafts giant for the smell of its crayons -- that waxy scent of a childhood spent trying to color within the lines. While it's too soon for this back-to-school season, Ruggiero imagines one day pumping it through the aisles of reta
  
  Read more

• Microsoft's Copilot Falsely Accuses Court Reporter of Crimes He Covered

  23-08-2024 22:42 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: Language models generate text based on statistical probabilities. This led to serious false accusations against a veteran court reporter by Microsoft's Copilot. German journalist Martin Bernklau typed his name and location into Microsoft's Copilot to see how his culture blog articles would be picked up by the chatbot, according to German public broadcaster SWR. The answers shocked Bernklau. Copilot falsely claimed Bernklau had been charged with and convicted
  
  Read more

• World-First Lung Cancer Vaccine Trials Launched Across Seven Countries

  23-08-2024 22:01 via science.slashdot.org
  
  Doctors have begun trialling the world's first mRNA lung cancer vaccine in patients, as experts hailed its "groundbreaking" potential to save thousands of lives. From a report: Lung cancer is the world's leading cause of cancer death, accounting for about 1.8m deaths every year. Survival rates in those with advanced forms of the disease, where tumours have spread, are particularly poor. Now experts are testing a new jab that instructs the body to hunt down and kill cancer cells -- then prevents
  
  Read more

• China Hits Xi Jinping's Renewable Power Target Six Years Early

  23-08-2024 21:30 via slashdot.org
  
  China's world-leading clean energy boom has passed another benchmark, with its wind and solar capacity surpassing a target set by President Xi Jinping almost six years earlier than planned. From a report: The nation added 25 gigawatts of turbines and panels in July, expanding total capacity to 1,206 gigawatts, according to a statement from the National Energy Administration on Friday. Xi set a goal in December 2020 for at least 1,200 gigawatts from the clean energy sources by 2030. China by far
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Linux Creator Torvalds Says Rust Adoption in Kernel Lags Expectations

  23-08-2024 20:56 via linux.slashdot.org
  
  Linux creator Linus Torvalds expressed disappointment with the slow adoption of Rust in the Linux kernel at the Linux Foundation's Open Source Summit China. In a conversation with Verizon executive Dirk Hohndel, Torvalds said, "I was expecting updates to be faster, but part of the problem is that old-time kernel developers are used to C and don't know Rust. They're not exactly excited about having to learn a new language that is, in some respects, very different." This resistance has led to "som
  
  Read more

• Amazon is Bricking Primary Feature on $160 Echo Device After 1 Year

  23-08-2024 20:10 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Amazon is canceling its PhotosPlus subscription service for the Echo Show 8 Photos Edition, effectively ending the device's main selling point. The company will automatically cancel all PhotosPlus subscriptions on September 12 and cease support for the service on September 23. The Echo Show 8 Photos Edition, launched in September 2023, allowed users to display personal photos indefinitely on the home screen for a $2 monthly fee.
  Without PhotosPlus, the device will revert to showing ads and promo
  
  Read more

• AWS CEO Says Most Developers Could Stop Coding Soon as AI Takes Over

  23-08-2024 19:36 via developers.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader shares a report: Software engineers may have to develop other skills soon as AI takes over many coding tasks. That's according to Amazon Web Services' CEO, Matt Garman, who shared his thoughts on the topic during an internal fireside chat held in June, according to a recording of the meeting obtained by Business Insider. "If you go forward 24 months from now, or some amount of time -- I can't exactly predict where it is -- it's possible that most developers are not coding," s
  
  Read more

• Justice Department Sues RealPage, Alleging It Enabled Price-Fixing On Rents

  23-08-2024 18:49 via news.slashdot.org
  
  The Justice Department on Friday filed an antitrust lawsuit against RealPage, a property management software provider, alleging it enabled a collusion among landlords to inflate rents for millions of Americans. From a report: The complaint claims the Richardson, Texas-based company and its competitors engaged in a price-fixing scheme by sharing nonpublic, sensitive information, which RealPage's algorithmic pricing software used to generate pricing recommendations. The company replaced competitio
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Meta Cancels High-End Mixed-Reality Headset

  23-08-2024 18:02 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Meta Platforms has canceled plans for a premium mixed-reality headset intended to compete with Apple's Vision Pro, The Information reported Friday, citing sources. From the report: Meta told employees at the company's Reality Labs division to stop work on the device this week after a product review meeting attended by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Chief Technology Officer Andrew Bosworth and other Meta executives, the employees said. The axed device, which was internally code-named La Jolla, began d
  
  Read more

• Microsoft Plans Windows Security Overhaul After CrowdStrike Outage

  23-08-2024 17:20 via it.slashdot.org
  
  Microsoft is stepping up its plans to make Windows more resilient to buggy software [non-paywalled source] after a botched CrowdStrike update took down millions of PCs and servers in a global IT outage. Financial Times: The tech giant has in the past month intensified talks with partners about adapting the security procedures around its operating system to better withstand the kind of software error that crashed 8.5mn Windows devices on July 19. Critics say that any changes by Microsoft would am
  
  Read more

• Fed's Powell Declares 'Time Has Come' for Rate Cuts

  23-08-2024 16:17 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell gave his strongest signal yet that interest-rate cuts are coming soon, saying the central bank intends to act to stave off a further weakening of the U.S. labor market. From a report: "We do not seek or welcome further cooling in labor market conditions," Powell said in prepared remarks for a speech at the central bank's annual gathering in the Grand Teton National Park on Friday. "The time has come for policy to adjust." Fed officials' next policy meeting is
  
  Read more

• Australian Competition Regulator To Monitor Domestic Air Fares

  23-08-2024 15:00 via slashdot.org
  
  Australia's competition regulator has announced that it will closely monitor domestic air fares between metropolitan cities after local carrier Regional Express withdrew from the market last month as it entered voluntary administration. From a report: Rex is the second domestic airline to take that route this year. Low-cost airline Bonza was the first. It said in April it had suspended flights, and would assess the viability of its business. The collapse of Bonza and the withdrawal of Rex betwee
  
  Read more

• CISA Adds One Known Exploited Vulnerability to Catalog for Versa Networks Director

  23-08-2024 14:00 via cisa.gov
  CISA has added one new vulnerability to its Known Exploited Vulnerabilities Catalog, based on evidence of active exploitation.CVE-2024-39717 Versa Director Dangerous File Type Upload VulnerabilityThese types of vulnerabilities are frequent attack vectors for malicious cyber actors and pose significant risks to the federal enterprise.
  Binding Operational Directive (BOD) 22-01: Reducing the Significant Risk of Known Exploited Vulnerabilities established the Known Exploited Vulnerabilitie
  
  Read more

• Cruise Partners With Uber To Offer Driverless Rides

  23-08-2024 12:00 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Uber and General Motors' Cruise have partnered to offer driverless rides to Uber users as early as soon as next year. CNBC reports: Both Cruise CEO Marc Whitten and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi hailed the partnership in a press release, stressing that the companies believe autonomous vehicles can be deployed safely. "Cruise is on a mission to leverage driverless technology to create safer streets and redefine urban life," Whitten said in the release. "We are excited to partner with Uber to bring t
  
  Read more

• The Wow! Signal Deciphered. It Was Hydrogen All Along.

  23-08-2024 09:00 via science.slashdot.org
  
  The Wow! signal, detected on August 15, 1977, was an intense radio transmission that appeared artificial and raised the possibility of extraterrestrial contact. However, recent research suggests it may have been caused by a natural astrophysical event involving a magnetar flare striking a hydrogen cloud. Universe Today reports: New research shows that the Wow! Signal has an entirely natural explanation. The research is "Arecibo Wow! I: An Astrophysical Explanation for the Wow! Signal." The lead
  
  Read more

• Fluoride At Twice the Recommended Limit Is Linked To Lower IQ In Kids

  23-08-2024 05:30 via science.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Associated Press: A U.S. government report expected to stir debate concluded that fluoride in drinking water at twice the recommended limit is linked with lower IQ in children. The report, based on an analysis of previously published research, marks the first time a federal agency has determined -- "with moderate confidence" -- that there is a link between higher levels of fluoride exposure and lower IQ in kids. While the report was not designed to ev
  
  Read more

• Microsoft Says It's Getting Rid of Control Panel in Windows

  23-08-2024 05:01 via it.slashdot.org
  
  Microsoft plans to phase out Windows Control Panel, a feature dating back to the 1980s, in favor of the modern Settings app, according to a recent support page. The tech giant has been gradually shifting functions to Settings since 2015, aiming for a more streamlined user experience. However, no specific timeline for Control Panel's complete removal has been announced. Microsoft writes in the support page: The Control Panel is a feature that's been part of Windows for a long time. It provides a
  
  Read more

• Telecom Behind AI Biden Robocall Settles With FCC For $1 Million

  23-08-2024 03:10 via news.slashdot.org
  
  New submitter ElimGarak000 shares a report from CyberScoop: The Texas-based voice service provider that sent AI-generated robocalls of President Joe Biden to New Hampshire voters ahead of its Democratic presidential primary has agreed to pay a $1 million fine and implement enhanced verification protocols designed to prevent robocalls and phone number spoofing in a settlement with the Federal Communications Commission. The fine represents half the amount the FCC was originally seeking in an enfor
  
  Read more

• Trump Promotes Family's New Crypto Platform, 'The DeFiant Ones'

  23-08-2024 02:30 via slashdot.org
  
  Former President Donald Trump is about to launch a crypto platform called "The DeFiant Ones," according to a post of his on Truth Social. "For too long, the average American has been squeezed by the big banks and financial elites," Trump wrote. "It's time we take a stand -- together." From a report: The post marks the first time the Republican nominee for president has used his personal platform to promote the as yet unactivated digital bank. Within minutes, his son Donald Trump Jr., shared the
  
  Read more

• Google is Shoving Its Apps Onto New Windows Laptops

  23-08-2024 01:51 via tech.slashdot.org
  
  Google is making a new desktop app called Essentials that packages a few Google services, like Messages and Photos, and includes links to download many others. The app will be included with many new Windows laptops, with the first ones coming from HP. From a report: The Essentials app lets you "discover and install many of our best Google services," according to Google's announcement, and lets you browse Google Photos as well as send and receive Google Messages in the app. A full list of apps ha
  
  Read more

• Brazil's Grid Caps Power From Wind and Solar, Threatening Renewable Projects

  23-08-2024 01:10 via news.slashdot.org
  
  Wind and solar energy producers in Brazil have warned they are reconsidering future investments there after the national grid operator repeatedly capped how much energy they could deliver in the past year, which squeezed their profits. From a report: Brazil has made big strides encouraging companies to invest in wind, solar and other renewable power generation sources, offering generous financing and subsidies. But all the electricity they generate has taxed the grid.
  More than a dozen executive
  
  Read more

• Hydrogels Can Learn To Play Pong

  23-08-2024 00:30 via games.slashdot.org
  
  An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Pong will always hold a special place in the history of gaming as one of the earliest arcade video games. Introduced in 1972, it was a table tennis game featuring very simple graphics and gameplay. In fact, it's simple enough that even non-living materials known as hydrogels can "learn" to play the game by "remembering" previous patterns of electrical stimulation, according to a new paper published in the journal Cell Reports Physical Scienc
  
  Read more

Follow @newslocke_ict on Twitter!