One of the most interesting discoveries in astronomy happened in 2019 when an interstellar comet was discovered in our solar system. The comet was called Borisov, and astronomers believe interstellar comets like it may not be rare after all. Recently, scientists calculated that there may be more objects from outside of our solar system in the Oort Cloud than objects … Continue reading
Astronomers have discovered what they say is the fastest orbiting asteroid in the solar system. The asteroid orbits the sun in 113 days, giving it the shortest known orbital period for an asteroid and the second shortest orbital period for any object in the solar system. The only object in the solar system with a faster orbital period than the … Continue reading
It’s the weirdest cryptocurrency heist so far. On Monday, Poly Network, a cryptocurrency finance platform, was hacked by “Mr. White Hat” who exploited a vulnerability in its code to steal $610 million in Ethereum, Shiba Inu and other cryptocurrencies. The company now says it has recovered all the money it lost in the theft.
Less than a day after stealing the digital currencies, the hacker started returning millions saying they were “ready to surrender.” They subsequently locked more than $200 million in assets in an account that required passwords from both them and Poly Network. They said they would only provide their password once everyone was “ready.” At that point, Poly Network offered the hacker a $500,000 reward — a fraction of what they had stolen.
It’s not entirely clear why the hacker surrendered, but it may have been difficult to cash out the millions. The hacker says they were trying to contribute to the security of Poly Network. Maybe they just didn’t want to get caught. Poly will breathe a sigh of relief as will those that were doing their crypto trading through the platform.
— Mat Smith
Security researcher Jon Hat posted on Twitter that after plugging in a Razer mouse or dongle, Windows Update will download the Razer installer executable and run it with SYSTEM privileges. It also lets you access the Windows file explorer and Powershell with “elevated” privileges, which means nefarious types could install harmful software — if they can get to your USB ports.
Since this vulnerability requires someone plugging in a mouse, it’s not nearly as dangerous as a remote attack, but it’s still not great for Razer. The company’s security team said it’s working on a fix.
Esports is most commonly associated with high-octane competitive games, usually with guns. That’s not the vibe in Stardew Valley, where you literally tend to crops. It’s more agrarian, less aggro.
But soon, some of the world’s finest Stardew Valley players will face off for thousands of dollars. Creator Eric Barone said the first official Stardew Valley Cup event will take place on September 4th. “It’s a competition of skill, knowledge and teamwork, with a prize pool of over $40k.”
More than 100 challenges have been created for competitors to tackle, with four teams of four players each having three hours to complete as many of the tasks as they can. Best start sharpening that hoe.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory released a breathtaking panorama of the inside of the Gale Crater, as snapped by the Curiosity Rover. It shows off where the rover has been and where it’s going. Apparently, on a clear day when there’s no dust in the air, you can see up to 20 miles away.
PayPal is bringing the ability to buy, hold and sell cryptocurrencies across to the other side of the pond, the better part of a year after it launched in the US. In a statement, the company said that UK-based users would be able to buy, hold and sell Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin and Bitcoin Cash via their PayPal account. The company adds that users can buy as little as £1 of cryptocurrency, and while there are no fees to hold the currency, users will have to pay transaction and currency conversion fees. And hey, it’s not Poly.
Twelve Minutes managed to hook several Engadget editors when it was revealed back in 2015. Even before it gained an all-star cast including Daisy Ridley, James McAvoy and Willem Dafoe, the pitch was easy to understand: a time loop point-and-click adventure. I made a note to keep an eye on the title, and Devindra Hardawar, who reviewed the game, did the same.
Unfortunately, the need to push the story in any — most! — directions leads to some grim choices by the player, and what Devindra calls “mind-numbingly dumb” twists. Tell us how you really feel.
A group of current and former Apple employees are calling on colleagues to publicly share stories of discrimination, harassment and retaliation at the company. The collective has started a Twitter account called Apple Workers.
“For too long, Apple has evaded public scrutiny,” the group says on its website. “When we press for accountability and redress to the persistent injustices we witness or experience in our workplace, we are faced with a pattern of isolation, degradation and gaslighting.” In August, the company put Ashley Gjøvik, a senior engineering program manager, on paid administrative leave. Apple hasn’t yet commented.
Being a student is hard, but just because you’re holed up in a dorm room doesn’t mean you should settle for mediocre entertainment. Our updated Student Buyer’s Guide has everything you could possibly need to upgrade from mindlessly watching Netflix on your laptop. That includes deals for TVs, audio gear and the best streaming devices.
Netflix’s live-action adaptation of classic anime Cowboy Bebop has been a long time coming, and the show finally has a release date. The 10-episode first season will start streaming on November 19th. There’s still no trailer, but we get some stills of the iconic crew, played by John Cho (Spike Spiegel), Mustafa Shakir (Jet Black) and Daniella Pineda (Faye Valentine). There’s a corgi, too.
Virgin Orbit, the less glamorous half of Virgin’s space adventures, has announced plans to go public on the Nasdaq stock exchange through a special purpose acquisitions company (SPAC) merger. The deal with NextGen Acquisition Corp. II values Virgin Orbit at $3.2 billion.
The combined company is expected to pull in up to $483 million in cash when the deal closes, and it plans to scale up its rocket manufacturing. The first spaceflight company to go public through a SPAC, and the company that really kicked off the SPAC trend was Virgin Galactic back in 2019, which sought to fund its tourist trips to space. Yeah, the more exciting facet of space companies.
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Last year, Peloton introduced its new lower-cost Peloton Tread to the market, which is around $1,800 cheaper than the original Tread+ ($4,295). It was then sold for a short period of time in the UK, Canada and the US (where it had only a limited invitation-only release). Then, however, the company had to halt sales of the Tread and recall both its connected treadmills after reports of several injuries and one fatality. The Tread in particular had to be recalled because its touchscreen console could detach and fall. The issues have since been fixed, but the incident obviously delayed the broader sale of the Tread.
Now, the company is ready for a redo of sorts with a much wider release. Peloton announced today that the newer, safer Tread will be available in the US, Canada and the UK on August 30th, while those in Germany will have to wait until later this fall. The Peloton Tread is priced at $2,495 USD ($3,295 CAD / £2,295 GBP / €2495 EUR).
As a reminder, the Tread has many of the same features of the Tread+, albeit in a more affordable package. It has a 23.8-inch HD touchscreen instead of the 32-inch on the Tread+, and it has a traditional running belt instead of a shock-absorbing slat belt. The Tread also has a slightly smaller footprint; it’s 68 by 33-inch rather than 72.5 by 36.5-inch.
Peloton also emphasized software and hardware safety features in the new Tread, which helps address the recall concerns. One of them is Tread Lock, which is a four-digit digital passcode that is required of each authorized user. Tread Lock will be available for both All-Access members as well as those without. There’s also a physical safety key that can help a runner quickly stop during a class when pulled.
On top of that, Peloton said that all Treads from here on out will have installed the fix that resulted in the recall. That means that the touchscreen console is now securely attached to the Tread at all times according to the company. As was announced previously, existing Tread users can have this repair done for free.
Film censors in Hong Kong have proposed new rules that would include steep fines and up to three years in prison for screening movies that are banned, according to a new report from the Hong Kong Standard. The proposal comes as political leaders in China seek to curtail freedoms in Hong Kong and Beijing makes a region…
The Florida governor ripped the article as a “partisan hit piece” in an interview with Hannity.
NASA has given the green light to a new Martian mission led by the University of California Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory called ESCAPADE. The mission has a goal of studying the magnetosphere of Mars. NASA has also confirmed that Rocket Lab spacecraft will be used for the mission. Rocket Lab will provide a pair of Photon spacecraft. The company has … Continue reading
The 2022 Genesis GV60 is the brand’s first-ever battery electric vehicle. Genesis unveiled a few production images of its newest GV60 EV a few days ago, and it’s entering the market with a couple of neat innovations. Most recently, Genesis said the GV60 is available with optional wireless charging that charges the floor-mounted batteries without finicky charging cables. But wait, … Continue reading
Not long ago, we mentioned that Chevrolet is offering its big 6.2-liter V-8 engine as an option in more of its full-size Tahoe and Suburban models. GMC has now confirmed that its 2022 Yukon AT4 will also gain an available 6.2-liter V-8 engine. During the 2021 model year, GMC only offered the AT4 SUV with the smaller 5.3-liter V-8 engine. … Continue reading
Facebook has started testing a feature that gives users a way to place voice and video calls from within the main app itself, according to Bloomberg. Like with any of the social network’s experiments, it will only be available to a limited number of accounts. But those who do get access to the test will be able to call friends on the platform without having to fire up the Messenger app.
As the publication notes, this looks like a move Facebook is exploring to further streamline its services that include Messenger, which became a separate app in 2014, and WhatsApp. Connor Hayes, director of product management at Messenger, told Bloomberg that it’s meant to reduce the need to jump back and forth between the company’s main app and its Messenger service.
Facebook already has plans to unify its messaging apps. In September 2020, it enabled the ability to chat and send messages between Instagram and Messenger, and the social network previously said that WhatsApp would also get inter-app messaging capabilities. The company tested putting a simpler version of Messenger within the main app last year, as well. That’s something the social network been considering since at least 2019 when Jane Manchun Wong found an experimental feature that takes users straight to a “Chats” section when they tap on the messaging icon. Currently, doing so automatically opens the Messenger app.
Hayes told the publication that Facebook now considers Messenger as a service instead of a standalone app. We may see more of its technologies across the company’s other apps in the future — in fact, Instagram, Oculus and Portal devices already use Messenger’s technology for voice and video calls. “You’re going to start to see quite a bit more of this over time,” he said.
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