2 Belarus Coaches Removed From Tokyo Olympics Over Krystsina Tsimanouskaya Scandal

The officials were allegedly involved in trying to send the sprinter back to their country against her will.

IMDb TV streaming content debuts on Apple and Android devices

Early in the streaming game, there were very few streaming applications, but there are vast options today. One of those options is owned by Amazon and is known as IMDb TV. Many people not only stream content in the home on the computer, smart TV, or streaming set-top box; they also stream content on the go using their smartphone or … Continue reading

Pressure Mounts To Launch ‘McMafia Law’ Probe Into Trump’s Scottish Golf Courses

Manhattan D.A.’s charges against the Trump Org add fuel to fight to reveal cash sources for foreign golf courses.

Researchers create a quantum crystal that could sense dark matter

Physicists at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have created a new quantum crystal they believe could be used to sense dark matter. Physicists created the crystal by entangling the mechanical motion and electronic properties of a small blue crystal. The entanglement gave the crystal a quantum edge for measuring electric fields with record sensitivity they believe could … Continue reading

Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport 25 commemorates the 25th anniversary of Manthey-Racing GmbH

Porsche and Manthey-Racing GmbH are celebrating their 25 years of partnership with this limited-edition 911 GT2 RS Clubsport 25. Inspired by Manthey-Racing’s 911 GT3 R which saw action at the Nürburgring Endurance Series and 24-hour race, the 911 GT2 RS Clubsport is limited to 30 examples for worldwide production, of which only six are arriving to the USA. “The 911 … Continue reading

Study investigates how whales and dolphins developed blowholes

When it comes to creatures that live in an aquatic world, most of them can extract the oxygen they need to survive directly from the water using gills. However, some notable exceptions exist with mammals such as whales and dolphins that have to breathe air just as humans do. Researchers at the University of Washington have investigated modern cetaceans, a … Continue reading

The Morning After: Disney’s immersive Star Wars experience is really expensive

Disney’s Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser is going to cost you. For two guests in a standard cabin for a two-night adventure, you’ll have to set aside just shy of $5,000.

Disney is promising it as “part live immersive theater, part themed environment, part culinary extravaganza, part real-life role-playing game.” The company offers more details on how your story might unfold, with the ability to choose to side with the First Order (boo), or ally with the resistance.

Disney
Disney

There will also be lightsaber lessons, optional missions and the chance to interact with iconic SW characters who will, well, behave like video game NPCs. According to reports, each Starcruiser adventure is several months of salary one-of-a-kind, so if you can afford one journey on the cruiser, you can probably book a second, different, adventure.

The posit sounds very Westworld, and like that fictional theme park, it seems unashamedly aimed at only the wealthiest Star Wars fans. It also sounds like there will be no Star Wars experience like it. Temptation, however, might be outweighed by economic reality. Then again, it seems positively cheap compared to a ticket to actual space.

— Mat Smith

Google’s upgraded Nest Cam and Doorbell are here

Floodlight options and battery-powered devices.

Battery-powered Google Nest Cam and Doorbell
Google

Google’s first battery-powered Nest Cam and Doorbell can be installed just about anywhere around your home, and you can even connect them to a wired power source, if you prefer. The battery life depends on how many recorded events the devices detect and factors like the temperature and settings. Google says the Doorbell’s battery will run for up to six months on a single charge, while the Nest Cam can run for up to seven months before you need to recharge it over USB. Continue reading.

Apple announces new iPhone features to detect child sex abuse

The Messages, Photos and Siri features will also come to watchOS and macOS.

Apple has detailed new features focused on child safety. With the release of iOS 15, watchOS 8 and macOS Monterey later this year, the company says it will introduce a variety of child safety features across Messages, Photos and Siri.

To start, the Messages app will include new notifications to warn children, as well as their parents, when they either send or receive sexually explicit photos. When someone sends a child an inappropriate image, the app will blur it and display several warnings. Apple will also introduce new software tools in iOS and iPadOS that will allow the company to detect when someone uploads content to iCloud that shows children involved in sexually explicit acts. Rather than scanning photos when they’re uploaded to the cloud, the system will use an on-device database of “known” images. These features and more will come to devices later this year. Continue reading.

President Biden wants half of new vehicles to be zero-emissions by 2030

Some carmakers and states want an even faster transition.

U.S. President Joe Biden delivers remarks after touring Ford Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan, U.S., May 18, 2021.  REUTERS/Leah Millis
Leah Millis / reuters

President Biden’s latest executive order sets a target for half of all new vehicles sold in 2030 to have some form of zero-emissions driving, whether it’s a pure EV, plug-in hybrid or hydrogen fuel cell vehicle. The move is meant to not only promote clean transportation and limit climate change but help the US “outcompete” a Chinese car industry that’s quickly shifting toward electrified vehicles. It could be an ambitious target: EVs have represented about 2 percent of US car sales for the past three years, according to the International Energy Agency and Pew Research. Continue reading.

Nintendo’s sales can’t keep up with last year’s lockdown boom

The success of ‘Animal Crossing’ makes business as usual look worse by comparison.

In Nintendo’s latest financial report, it posted an operating profit of 119 billion yen, roughly $1.1 billion. That is, however, a 17.3 percent drop compared to the 144 billion yen ($1.3 billion) posted this time last year, when Switch consoles were consistently sold out and most of us were trapped indoors, isolating. Nintendo didn’t release a game that could match the success of Animal Crossing the year before. Amusingly, the company made a graph to show that, if you remove the Animal Crossing spike, its software sales have constantly increased since at least 2018. Continue reading.

But wait, there’s more…

Senior Apple employee alleges sexism at work, is put on indefinite leave

Inside the sexual harassment lawsuit at Activision Blizzard

Paramount+ is getting 14 South Park movies starting with two this year

Elon Musk confirms Walter Isaacson is writing his biography

What you’ll get in the ‘Back 4 Blood’ open beta

Amazon launches new resale programs following backlash over stock destruction

Virgin Galactic starts selling tickets to space again for $450,000 per seat

Peloton treadmill owners will be able to run again without a subscription

REVEALED: The Gym Where Simone Biles Secretly Plotted Her Olympic Comeback

The venue allowed Biles to discreetly train for hours on end, away from scrutiny.

Roy Wood Jr. Congratulates All Olympic Athletes, With A Notable Exception

“The Daily Show” comedian also had some mock “props” for the International Olympic Committee.

Detroit lets automakers test smart parking technology in a real garage

The city of Detroit in partnership with both Ford and Bosch is about to open a new Smart Parking Lab, hosted in Detroit’s Bedrock Assembly Garage. It’s a real-world environment to test future autonomous technologies that could be used to refine autonomous valet parking into a product. Opening in September, the facility will also enable these companies to test if it’s possible to introduce automatic smart charging into the system.

The Detroit Smart Parking Lab is designed to continue work showcased last summer, when Ford and Bosch showed off a self-parking Ford Escape in that same building. The vehicle was able to drive through the car park without human assistance, find a space, and reverse park into it without any stress. It’s hoped that, in some far-flung future when climate change doesn’t kill us all, that this sort of automatic valet parking could free people up to spend more time doing anything other than fighting for a space in a multi-storey car park.

As well as Ford and Bosch, rental company Enterprise is going to test how this technology could streamline its own processes. It hopes that cars that drive themselves to a valet station, then recharge themselves before parking back on the lot ready for pickup will reduce dead time between rentals. At this stage, at least, the hope is to just get the cars to park themselves in a manner that’s cost-effective for the company.