Archive for the 'Technology' Category
The Panopticon Is Already Here
August 2nd, 2020Via: The Atlantic: Xi Jinping is using artificial intelligence to enhance his government’s totalitarian control—and he’s exporting this technology to regimes around the globe.
Nimbus Data ExaDrive: 100TB Capacity in 3.5 Inch Form Factor, Costs $40,000
July 31st, 2020Send a few trucksloads over. And keep’em coming. Utah Data Center: The Utah Data Center (UDC), also known as the Intelligence Community Comprehensive National Cybersecurity Initiative Data Center, is a data storage facility for the United States Intelligence Community that is designed to store data estimated to be on the order of exabytes or larger. […]
Nvidia in Advanced Talks to Buy Arm
July 31st, 2020Via: Bloomberg: Nvidia Corp. is in advanced talks to acquire Arm Ltd., the chip designer that SoftBank Group Corp. bought for $32 billion four years ago, according to people familiar with the matter. … A deal for Arm could be the largest ever in the semiconductor industry, which has been consolidating in recent years as […]
Amazon to Invest $10 Billion in Space-Based Internet System
July 31st, 2020No timetable. Via: AFP: Amazon says it will invest $10 billion for its planned space-based internet delivery system after winning US regulatory approval to deploy more than 3,000 low-orbit satellites. The US tech giant said on Thursday it is moving forward with its Project Kuiper, one of several systems planned to bring internet to customers […]
World’s Largest Nuclear Fusion Project Begins Assembly in France
July 29th, 2020Simply the latest fusion power boondoggle… Or, something else? Via: Guardian: The world’s largest nuclear fusion project began its five-year assembly phase on Tuesday in southern France, with the first ultra-hot plasma expected to be generated in late 2025. The €20bn (£18.2bn) Iter project will replicate the reactions that power the sun and is intended […]
Airbus: Self-Flying Plane Just Completed Successful Taxi, Take-Off, and Landing Tests
July 27th, 2020When Boeing’s undocumented Magic-8 Ball failed: Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System: MCAS activated by input from only one of the airplane’s two angle of attack sensors, making the system susceptible to a single point of failure. It could not be instinctively disabled by pulling on the control yoke. During aircraft certification, Boeing removed a description of […]
Spies Can Eavesdrop by Watching a Light Bulb’s Vibrations
July 27th, 2020Handy for targets who don’t use smartphones. Via: Wired: The list of sophisticated eavesdropping techniques has grown steadily over years: wiretaps, hacked phones, bugs in the wall—even bouncing lasers off of a building’s glass to pick up conversations inside. Now add another tool for audio spies: Any light bulb in a room that might be […]
Afghanistan: Heroin Industry Increasingly Runs on Solar Power
July 27th, 2020Via: BBC: There are no subsidies here. Nobody is thinking about climate change – or any other ethical consideration, for that matter. This is about small-scale entrepreneurs trying to make a profit. It is the story of how Afghan opium growers have switched to solar power, and significantly increased the world supply of heroin.
Sailor Holding A Laser Rifle Aboard The Nuclear Submarine USS Minnesota
July 27th, 2020Via: The Warzone: Submarines are at their most vulnerable when transiting on the surface in busy waterways. As such, force protection is critical in order to shield them from everything from explosive-laden boats to drones. When just a number of seconds can mean the difference between a possible threat and an imminent attack, having a […]
“Google SkinMarks Could Turn Our Bodies Into a Touchpad Using High-Tech Tattoos”
July 27th, 2020Mmm hmm. Via: TechRadar: Google has been researching the possibilities of using rub-on tattoos to transform your skin into a fully-functioning touchpad. Dubbed SkinMarks, the tattoos are packed with sensors and can be applied to curved areas of the body such as the knuckles. They aren’t as elaborate as you’d find at your local ink […]
