Dec 29
Alexa Attempts To Set Off Robot Revolt By Telling Kid To Touch Live Plug With Penny
Posted in: Today's ChiliAn Amazon Echo “challenged” a 10-year-old girl to touch a coin to the prongs of a half-inserted plug, her mother tweeted.
Dec 29
Rand Paul Inadvertently Tells The Truth About Republican Voter Fraud Claims
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe Kentucky senator’s claim that Democrats “steal” elections via “legally valid” votes lays bare the GOP’s belief that no election is legitimate if a Democrat wins.
Dec 29
<img width=”1280″ height=”720″ src=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/xbox-series-x-1280×720.jpg” class=”webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image” alt=”Xbox Series X with controller” style=”margin: auto;margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%” data-attachment-id=”704429″ data-permalink=”https://www.slashgear.com/things-you-never-knew-your-xbox-series-x-could-do-28704367/xbox-series-x-3/” data-orig-file=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/xbox-series-x.jpg” data-orig-size=”1440,810″ data-comments-opened=”0″ data-image-meta=”{“aperture”:”0″,”credit”:””,”camera”:””,”caption”:””,”created_timestamp”:”0″,”copyright”:””,”focal_length”:”0″,”iso”:”0″,”shutter_speed”:”0″,”title”:””,”orientation”:”0″}” data-image-title=”xbox-series-x” data-image-description=”” data-image-caption=”
Dec 29
Astronomers aren’t the only ones taking issue with SpaceX’s Starlink satellites. As CNETreports, China has filed a complaint with the United Nations over two reported near-collisions between the in-progress Tiangong space station and Starlink vehicles. According to Chinese officials, the station had to perform evasive maneuvers on July 1st and October 21st this year to minimize the chance of a collision.
The accusations line up with astronomer Jonathan McDowell’s conjunction observations for both days. China further argued that SpaceX’s satellites weren’t always predictable. During the October incident, the Starlink craft was “continuously” manuvering in a way that made it difficult to predict the orbital path.
We’ve asked SpaceX for comment. China has already demanded action, however. In its complaint, the country asked the UN Secretary-General to remind countries (read: the US) that parties in the Outer Space Treaty are responsible for incidents beyond Earth, even if they involve private companies.
China has created its own share of incidents in the past. A 2007 anti-satellite missile test created debris that poses threats to the International Space Station and other spacecraft to this day. All the same, the complaint suggests the privatization of space is making these near-accidents more commonplace — particularly when SpaceX, Amazon and others are launching internet services that depend on huge satellite constellations.
I confirmed the Starlink/Chinese Space Station conjunctions on Jul 1 at 1315 UTC (S-1095) and Oct 21 at 2200 UTC (S-2305), with CSS orbit adjustmets at about 0950 UTC Jul 1 and 0316 UTC Oct 21. The Oct passes shown here: pic.twitter.com/DmbIucpRPF
— Jonathan McDowell (@planet4589) December 28, 2021
Dec 29
In 1881, archaeologists discovered the mummy of Amenhotep I in Deir el-Bahari, a village outside of Egypt’s famous Valley of the Kings. For 140 years, scientists have been unwilling to unwrap the king’s body out of fear they’ll damage his ornate face mask and bandages. But thanks to computer tomography (CT) technology, they don’t have to take that risk anymore. Researchers at Cairo University recently digitally “unwrapped” Amenhotep to learn about his life and dynasty.
The scans revealed he was about 35 years old when he died. “Amenhotep I seems to have physically resembled his father: he had a narrow chin, a small narrow nose, curly hair, and mildly protruding upper teeth,” Dr. Sahar Saleem, the lead author of the study, told PA Media. It’s not clear why he passed away at such a young age. Researchers found no evidence of external wounds or disfigurements that may have contributed to his death.
Sahar Saleem et al.
What they did discover were various post-mortem injuries that were likely inflicted on the body by grave robbers. That damage was “lovingly repaired” by mortuary priests of the 21st Dynasty some 400 years after Amenhotep’s death. They used a resin-treated linen band to reattach the head and neck together. Researchers also found some 30 amulets hidden among Amenhotep’s bandages. The fact they were still there even after his reburial likely disproves the long-held theory that priests of later dynasties would reuse the ornaments in the funeral rites of their pharaohs.
The study provides an insight into one of the most fascinating periods of Egyptian history. Amenhotep I ruled between 1525 and 1504 BCE, during Egypt’s New Kingdom period. He was among the first pharaohs of the 18th dynasty, a lineage that would later include Akhenaten, the controversial “heretic” pharaoh who introduced the kingdom to a monotheistic-like religion centered around the sun. He was also the father of Tutankhamun or King Tut.
The first time archaeologists used a CT scan to examine a mummy was in 1977. As the technology has matured and become more accessible, it has allowed researchers to study mummies in ways they couldn’t before. In 2017, for instance, Chicago’s Field Museum was able to dive into its collection, one of the most extensive in the US, with the help of portable CT scanners.
Dec 29
Electric transport startup Rivian is delaying deliveries of its 400-mile R1T pickup truck to 2023. In an email to customers obtained by Electrek, CEO RJ Scaringe said the company is prioritizing the production of R1T vehicles equipped with its 314-mile “Large pack” battery. Once those orders are fulfilled, it will then turn its attention to the more affordable “Explorer Package” trim and “Max pack” battery.
“In setting our delivery timing, we optimized our build sequence around the build combination that would support us ramping as quickly as possible and therefore have the largest possible positive climate impact,” RJ Scaringe writes in the email. We’ve reached out to Rivian for more information.
In the same message, Scaringe notes Max battery variants account for approximately 20 percent of the 71,000 R1T and R1S preorders the automaker has secured as of December 15th of this year. That suggests the delay involves about 14,200 vehicles. Rivian is allowing people to change their orders if they want to get their R1T earlier. It also promised to share more information on delivery timings in early 2022.
Rivian has delayed deliveries of the R1T several times over the last few years. The truck was originally scheduled to debut in 2020, but the company eventually pushed that date back to September 2021. The pandemic and chip shortages have played a part in that, but Rivian also doesn’t have a lot of manufacturing capacity at the moment. It plans to break ground on a new factory in Georgia next summer. However, that won’t be complete until sometime in 2024. In the meantime, the company also has a 100,000 vehicle order it needs to fulfill for minority owner Amazon.
Dec 29
Somewhere, someone in a U.S. major city is likely receiving a targeted ad on Instagram or Facebook, the type featuring the minimalist, semi-sarcastic lazy but not-too-lazy aesthetics associated with millennial culture, all plastered around several lines of eye-grabbing text. But this time, the text isn’t an ad for…
Dec 29
If you were wowed by the most recent trailer for The Batman, you may not have noticed the strange symbols at the bottom of the title/cast card that appears at the very end. It turns they were a message left by the Riddler (via the Warner Bros. PR department) for you.
Dec 29
Relatives of a 14-year-old Valentina Orellana-Peralta say she loved skateboarding and dreamed of being an engineer.
Dec 29
Marjorie Taylor Greene Deems Kwanzaa A ‘Fake Religion’ In Bizarre Twitter Attack
Posted in: Today's ChiliThe Georgia Republican suggested her party was “pandering” by acknowledging the weeklong celebration of African culture on social media.
Who's in charge here?
This is site is run by Sascha Endlicher, M.A., during ungodly late night hours. Wanna know more about him? Connect via Social Media by jumping to about.me/sascha.endlicher.