Hasbro launched its “Haslab” crowdfunding campaign platform in early 2018 with a Star Wars project—a 3.75″ scaled replica of Jabba’s Sail Barge. But since then, despite several attempts, only one other Star Wars project beyond it successfully made it through the campaign process. At least now… there is another
A Congressional subcommittee is set to hold a hearing into UFOs, which are also referred to as unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP). The panel will hear “firsthand accounts” of UAP and “assess the federal government’s transparency and accountability” regarding possible threats to national security. You’ll be able to watch the hearing below on July 26th at 10AM ET.
The hearing — conducted by the Subcommittee on National Security, the Border and Foreign Affairs — will also focus on drives for legislation to “bring transparency to UAPs.” The subcommittee wants to force the federal government to provide US residents with “information about potential risks to public safety and national security” as well. According to Rep. Tim Burchett, “The Pentagon and Washington bureaucrats have kept this information hidden for decades and we’re finally going to shed some light on it.”
The federal government has placed more of an onus on UAPs over the last few years (publicly, at least). In 2021, the Pentagon set up a task force to look into UAP sightings while NASA has established a separate panel to investigate the phenomena. The Department of Defense also created its own UAP investigative body, the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO), in 2022.
Among the three witnesses who will testify during the hearing is David Grusch. The former intelligence official recently claimed that the US government has been recovering alien spacecraft and the bodies of UAP pilots for decades. Grusch, who until July 2022 was the co-lead for the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency’s UAP analysis, also said there was evidence of “malevolent activity” by UFOs. His claims, for which he has not provided any physical evidence, led to the hearing.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/how-to-watch-this-weeks-congressional-ufo-hearing-164546251.html?src=rss
The top 2024 GOP presidential candidates are loath to criticize Donald Trump over anything, even an attempted overthrow of democracy.
Elon Musk is taking his battle with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to the highest court in the country. Attorney Alex Spiro has confirmed that Musk will ask the Supreme Court to decide whether the SEC went too far with a consent decree determining what Musk can say about Tesla’s financials on Twitter (now X). He’s challenging a May 15th appeals court decision dismissing allegations the SEC abused the decree to harass him with investigations over Twitter usage.
The new appeal comes a day after a judicial panel denied Musk’s request that judges reexamine the case. The entrepreneur previously claimed he was pushed into the decree, and had to give up his right to contest the constitutionality of the SEC’s terms if he wanted to pursue the eventual settlement. The truce saw a total of $40 million in fines between Musk and Tesla, and required that Musk both step down as board chairman and seek legal approval when posting about company financials.
Musk drew the SEC’s attention in August 2018, when he tweeted that he was considering taking Tesla private and had “funding secured” with “investor support.” The deal never went through, and shareholders pinned ensuing losses on Musk’s posts. The Commission sued Musk over the tweets, arguing that they could be considered fraud.
During a shareholder trial, Musk contended that people didn’t necessarily believe or respond to his tweets the way you’d expect. He pointed to one example where Tesla’s stock price surged despite a tweet saying the value was too high. At the same time, he acknowledged that he has ignored requests to stop tweeting over delicate subjects, such as when he accused a Thai cave rescue diver of being a “pedo guy.”
There’s no certainty the Supreme Court will take the case or overturn the outcome. Either way, the court’s response should have a significant impact on Musk’s social media posting, either forcing him to honor the SEC’s decisions or giving him more flexibility in what he says online.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/elon-musk-is-taking-his-sec-fight-to-the-supreme-court-161255874.html?src=rss
The “twinning” comments weren’t all directed at the “Legally Blonde” star this time.
Seen here looking like the Michelin Man’s steel wife, artist Hannah Clarkson models a hydroformed puffy coat of armor that she teamed up with maker Connor Holland to build. Many of the pieces were hydroformed, constructing their basic shape, then pumping them full of water or air to expand the steel outward, not unlike how I expand my stomach with water before hitting an all-you-can-eat buffet.
Connor pops a few welds during the hydroforming process, revealing to enemies where their opponent’s armor is the weakest. That’s crucial information if you plan on dueling a knight wearing this armor. Or if you’re Connor and just want to learn where your welding can be improved.
Of course, the armor was created as an art piece and is not recommended for battle. Especially considering the arms are welded into place, and the whole thing makes its wearer almost entirely immobile. When it comes to doing battle, being immobile is one of the worst things to be, second only to already defeated.
Ryan Reynolds wants to bring back the Biker Mice From Mars. Meet Ice Cube’s Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem villain. Gamera gets ready to rumble in a new look at Netflix’s latest Kaiju anime. Plus, what’s coming on Riverdale. Spoilers now!
Sotheby’s is selling a limited edition pair of Omega Sports Apple Computer Sneakers from the ‘90s in new condition for the exorbitant price of $50,000. The shoe was distributed at an Apple event but was never made available to the public, making it a highly coveted item.
General Motors isn’t quite done with the Chevrolet Bolt. Back in April, it emerged the company will end production of the popular, wallet-friendly EV and EUV this year, largely because it relies on old battery cell tech and the factory where it’s made is being refitted. However, there’s some positive news for fans of the EV as GM has confirmed a new version of the Bolt is on the way.
The company hasn’t revealed many details about the new Bolt — you’ll need to wait until later this year for that. Unsurprisingly, though, the next-gen model will use GM’s Ultium battery system as well as its Ultifi software platform. The company says that, by harnessing these technologies, it will be able to bring the Bolt back to market “on an accelerated timeline,” but didn’t give an indication of when that might be.
GM made the Bolt announcement during its quarterly earnings call. The company said it saw its strongest Bolt EV and EUV sales to date in the first half of 2023. It posted quarterly revenue of $44.7 billion, up 25 percent year-over-year, but noted there was a $792 million charge related to a new partnership with LG. “The charge reflects the conscious decision GM made during the Chevrolet Bolt EV and Bolt EUV recall to serve customers in ways that go beyond traditional remedies,” GM said.
The company built around 50,000 EVs in North America in the first six months of 2023. It’s doubling that target for the second half of the year. It aims to reach a capacity of 1 million EVs in the continent by 2025.
In the meantime, Chevy has three other EVs on the way this year: the Silverado, the Blazer and the Equinox. The brand will reveal its first full-size electric SUV, the Escalade IQ, on August 9th.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gm-says-a-next-gen-chevy-bolt-is-on-the-way-144518735.html?src=rss
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