Well here’s something you don’t see everyday: A discarded Falcon 9 second stage booster that’s going to slam into the Moon. This inevitable impact, predicted for March 4, won’t be visible from Earth, but tomorrow will be our last chance to see this 4-ton chunk of space junk before it permanently drifts away from view.
<img width="1200" height="800" src="https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/windows11_laptop-1200×800.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Laptop with Windows 11" loading="lazy" style="margin: auto;margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%" data-attachment-id="710887" data-permalink="https://www.slashgear.com/these-unannounced-windows-11-features-look-surprisingly-promising-07710881/windows11_laptop/" data-orig-file="https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/windows11_laptop.jpg" data-orig-size="1440,960" 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="windows11_laptop" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="
A9 STUDIO/Shutterstock
” data-medium-file=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/windows11_laptop-1080×720.jpg” data-large-file=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/windows11_laptop-1200×800.jpg” />A set of not-yet-public Windows 11 features have just been discovered in the latest version of the operating system. Although Microsoft hasn’t made this latest set of pre-release features official in announcement form just yet, they’re too exciting not to share — and who knows, they may make it into Windows 11 soon enough. The rumored features include desktop stickers, … Continue reading
It didn’t take long for the Internal Revenue Service to respond to pressure to drop facial recognition. The agency has told Senator Ron Wyden it plans to back away from using facial recognition for verification purposes. Wyden cautioned the transition would “take time,” but he saw this as evidence the Biden administration knew privacy and security weren’t “mutually exclusive” concepts. The New York Timesunderstood the shift would take place over weeks to minimize disruptions to tax filing season.
We’ve asked ID.me, the company slated to provide facial recognition to the IRS, for comment. Under the plan, the IRS would have used the technology to authenticate users hoping to file taxes online or otherwise use the IRS’ internet services. The approach was intended as a fraud prevention tool, and would have been available by the summer.
The about-face comes after a wave of recent political pressure. While the Treasury Department was already reconsidering the use of facial recognition tech at the IRS, the service encountered opposition from Republican senators, House Democrats and civil liberties groups concerned about a range of issues. They’ve been worried about the privacy of uploading sensitive data, historical biases in facial recognition, susceptibility to cyberattacks, inaccessibility to people without broadband and a lack of audits and other forms of accountability. Wyden sent a letter to the IRS mere hours before the organization signalled its change of heart.
Commissioner Rettig said the IRS was exploring “short-term options” to replace facial recognition. It’s already developing another verification process. Whatever the replacement may be, this should represent a significant victory for those hoping to ban federal uses of facial recognition. Although this might not lead to a total ban, it could prompt other government institutions to limit or resist uses of the technology.
This is big: The IRS has notified my office it plans to transition away from using facial recognition verification, as I requested earlier today. While this transition may take time, the administration recognizes that privacy and security are not mutually exclusive. https://t.co/jw7OR7dNo0
— Ron Wyden (@RonWyden) February 7, 2022
Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy cited declining cases and rising vaccination rates in his decision.
The release of The Matrix Resurrections was predictably divisive among fans, but apparently the rifts go even deeper than that. Village Roadshow, a co-producer on the film, is suing Warner Bros over a breach of contract regarding the release, citing it as the latest example in a larger plot to distance the companies…
<img width="1280" height="800" src="https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2022_audi_s3_2-1280×800.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="2022 Audi S3" loading="lazy" style="margin: auto;margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%" data-attachment-id="710647" data-permalink="https://www.slashgear.com/2022-audi-s3-review-glowing-up-07710646/2022_audi_s3_2/" data-orig-file="https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2022_audi_s3_2.jpg" data-orig-size="1440,900" 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="2022_audi_s3_2" data-image-description="" data-image-caption="
Chris Davies / SlashGear
” data-medium-file=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2022_audi_s3_2-1152×720.jpg” data-large-file=”https://cdn.slashgear.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2022_audi_s3_2-1280×800.jpg” />SUVs and crossovers may have eaten a decent chunk of the sedan market, but there’s still a place for more sporting fare like the 2022 Audi S3. Positively diminutive – in American terms, at least – but, with north of 300 horses on tap, not short on power, the new S3 Sedan is the descendent of a four-door that arguably … Continue reading
Hulu has dropped the first trailer for The Dropout, a miniseries about the failed blood-testing startup Theranos. Amanda Seyfried stars as its embattled former CEO, Elizabeth Holmes. The two-and-a-half-minute preview shows Holmes dropping out of Stanford to found Theranos. It includes snippets of the company’s high points (it raised more than $700 million in investments) and hints at its very public demise, as well as Holmes developing her infamously deep voice.
The trailer is full of familiar faces, including Naveen Andrews (Lost) as Sunny Balwani, the former president and chief operating officer of Theranos and Holmes’ ex-boyfriend. Stephen Fry, William H. Macy, Laurie Metcalf and Sam Waterston also appear.
Theranos claimed to offer rapid blood tests that required only a finger prick. However, multiple reports claimed the tests weren’t effective. The SEC charged Holmes and Theranos with fraud in March 2018 and the company collapsed later that year.
The Dropout will premiere two months after Holmes was convicted of defrauding investors. She faces up to 20 years in prison and will be sentenced in September. With Holmes’ trial fresh in the memory, some folks might be curious to learn more about the story behind her and Theranos. The trailer, which is edited in the style of a thriller, might draw some more attention to the show too.
The first three episodes of The Dropout will hit Hulu on March 3rd. Other installments will arrive on a weekly basis. Meanwhile, Adam McKay and Jennifer Lawrence are working on a movie about Holmes and Theranos for Apple.
The Big Air freestyle skiing competitor at the Beijing Winter Olympics might want to leave this in a safer place next time.
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) has compelled Donald Trump to finally hand over a bunch of official government documents he decided were his personal property when he left office.
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