Oct 26
“I loved diving into Miss Patty, Kirk, Brian and Babette for sure,” Jenn Ficarra told HuffPost of her hilarious videos.
Oct 26
Rep. Mo Brooks Denies Planning Jan. 6 Rally, But Says He Would Be ‘Proud’ If Staff Did
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe Alabama Republican told AL.com that he’d support his aides if they did help organize a “First Amendment rally.”
Oct 26
U.S. health advisers have endorsed kid-size doses of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for younger children.
Oct 26
During the Samsung Developer Conference 2021 (SDC 21) event today, Samsung revealed plans to launch its own cloud gaming product for smart TVs running the company’s Tizen OS. Samsung simply calls the product “Cloud Game Platform,” noting that the core of the product will be offering high-end gameplay experiences without requiring consumers to purchase high-end gaming hardware. The move may … Continue reading
Oct 26
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Blizzard moved its annual event, BlizzCon, online. The resulting show was dubbed BlizzConline, and it was one that Blizzard planned to host again early next year. Unfortunately, it looks like that’s not happening as planned, as Blizzard has canceled BlizzConline 2022. In a statement published on its website today, Blizzard announced BlizzConline will no longer happen … Continue reading
Oct 26
GM is close to launching a new wave of electric vehicles, and it’s making sure the charging infrastructure is in place to keep those EVs on the road. The automaker has launched a community charging initiative that will install as many as 40,000 Level 2 charging stations across North America. The program will give dealers up to 10 chargers they can place at “key locations” in their neighborhoods, such as apartments, colleges and businesses. The units won’t be limited to GM EV drivers.
These chargers will also be available to buy directly both through dealerships and online. GM ultimately plans three chargers, including a basic 11.5kW/48-amp model, a “premium” version of that charger (with touchscreen and camera) and a more powerful 19.2kW/80-amp model. The community effort starts in 2022 and is part of a larger $750 million investment through Ultium Charge 360.
Level 2 charging isn’t very fast. This is more like a wall charger you’d buy for your home (where overnight charging is fine) than a speedy option like a Tesla Supercharger or Electrify America’s fast stations. The distribution also isn’t quite as good as it sounds. Dealers may want to install multiple stations in one location to minimize queuing.
This could still be welcome news. Many charging network expansions focus on high-powered chargers intended for long-distance trips. GM’s community program caters more to daily driving, where you might just need top-ups. It could be particularly useful for some apartments, though. Residents in those buildings rarely have options to recharge at home, and this might make EVs practical without foisting expenses on building owners and tenants.
Oct 26
Snap, TikTok and YouTube need to do more to protect children, lawmakers say
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe Senate Commerce Committee just wrapped up another three-hour hearing about social media’s effect on children and teens. But the latest hearing was different from previous ones in an important way: it featured representatives from TikTok, Youtube and Snap.
Though the three apps are some of the most popular apps among teens and younger users, all three have gotten less attention from lawmakers than Facebook and even Twitter. It was the first time TikTok and Snap had appeared at such a hearing. All three companies tried to head off criticism by drawing distinctions between their platforms and Facebook, which has recently drawn comparisons to tobacco companies. And each company promised new features to ramp up parental controls and other child protections on their service.
YouTube VP Leslie Miller said the company was working on a new feature that would allow parents to “choose a locked default autoplay setting” in the YouTube Kids app, in addition to other new parental controls. She didn’t provide further detail, but said it would launch “in the coming months.”
Snap also said it was working on new features for parents, with Jennifer Stout, the company’s VP of Global Public Policy, saying the features would be “rolling out very soon.” She said the update would allow parents to view information about how their children are using Snapchat, such as who they spend the most time chatting with and what their privacy and location settings are.
TikTok said it would add additional controls to allow parents and children to better customize their feeds, but was light on specifics. “We’re investing in new ways for our community to enjoy content based on age appropriateness or family comfort,” said Michael Beckerman, the company’s VP of Public Policy, “We’re developing more features that empower people to shape and customize their experience in the app.”
But the senators of the Commerce Committee seemed unimpressed by these promises. Throughout the hearing, they pushed the companies on issues like algorithmically-boosted content about eating disorders and self harm on YouTube and TikTok. Snap’s Stout was pushed on what the company is doing to stop drug dealers on its platform.
Several Republican senators also pushed Beckerman on TikTok’s ties to Chinese parent company ByteDance, and how it handles US user data. In one particularly memorable exchange, Senator Ted Cruz said Beckerman was dodging questions about TikTok’s affiliation with a company called Beijing ByteDance Technology, which reportedly has links to the Chinese government. Beckerman also deflected questions about what data TikTok collects by saying Facebook and Instagram collect more data about users than TikTok does.
Though Facebook wasn’t officially part of the hearing, disclosures from whistleblower Frances Haugen were referenced several times. Senator Richard Blumenthal, who at a previous hearing said Facebook and other companies were facing a “big tobacco moment,” said that “tech is not irredeemably bad like big tobacco.”
But he said that the companies need to do much more than prove they are “different” from Facebook. “I understand from your testimony that your defense is ‘we’re not Facebook,’” he said. “Being different from Facebook is not a defense. That bar is in the gutter. It’s not a defense to say that you are different.”
Oct 26
Feds Join Mass Arrest of 150 People in Connection With Dark Net Drug Dealing
Posted in: Today's ChiliAuthorities in the U.S. and Europe have arrested droves of people in connection to dark web drug peddling, the U.S. Justice Department announced on Tuesday.
Oct 26
Though Denis Villeneuve’s Dune focuses on Paul Atreides as he and most everyone around him dance around the obvious fact that he is the long-prophesied chosen one destined to bring an end to the war between House Atreides and House Harkonnen, when we first meet him, he’s a far cry from the legendary messiah king he’ll…
Oct 26
After leaks surfaced yesterday, Sony has officially announced its Xperia Pro-I, a smartphone with a wild camera—or a wild camera that’s also a smartphone, depending on how you look at it.
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