U.S. Consumer Inflation Rises to Highest Annual Rate Since 1981
July 13th, 2022Via: Reuters:
U.S. consumer prices surged 9.1% in June, the largest annual increase in more than four decades amid stubbornly high costs for gasoline, food and rent, cementing the case for another 75-basis-point interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve this month.
The larger-than-expected increase in the year-on-year consumer price index reported by the Labor Department on Wednesday also reflected higher prices for healthcare, motor vehicles, apparel as well as household furniture. The CPI increased by the most in nearly 17 years on a monthly basis.
First Images from the James Webb Space Telescope
July 13th, 2022I added the image of the Carina Nebula to my desktop wallpapers folder. Woh.
Via: NASA:
The dawn of a new era in astronomy has begun as the world gets its first look at the full capabilities of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, a partnership with ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency). The telescope’s first full-color images and spectroscopic data were released during a televised broadcast at 10:30 a.m. EDT (14:30 UTC) on Tuesday, July 12, 2022, from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. These listed targets below represent the first wave of full-color scientific images and spectra the observatory has gathered, and the official beginning of Webb’s general science operations. They were selected by an international committee of representatives from NASA, ESA, CSA, and the Space Telescope Science Institute.
“Genetically Engineered Pig Hearts Transplanted Into Dead People”
July 12th, 2022Actual headline.
Via: The Verge:
Researchers successfully transplanted genetically modified pig hearts into two recently deceased people connected to ventilators, the New York University team announced today. The surgeries are the latest step forward in the field of animal-to-human transplants, or xenotransplantation, which has seen a flurry of successes so far this year — raising hopes for a new, steady supply of organs to ease shortages.
The End of the SLR Photography Era Is Near
July 12th, 2022Update: Nikkei Says Nikon to Stop Making DSLRs, Nikon Says It’s Still Making, Selling & Servicing Them
Via: DPReview:
Nikon Inc’s statement is fairly straightforward, but Nikon isn’t explicitly denying the information in the Nikkei’s report. Nikon doesn’t say the report is incorrect, only that ‘Nikon has made no announcement in this regards [sic].’ Nikon does say it will continue ‘the production, sales and service of digital SLR,’ but that’s a rather vague statement that only holds weight in the immediate present. Should Nikon cease all production, sales and service of its DSLR lineup tomorrow, Nikon’s statement will still have been true when made.
It’s also worth noting that Nikon doesn’t mention development at all in its statement, only production. While it isn’t exactly a surprise Nikon wouldn’t be pouring resources into developing new DSLR cameras, the wording in Nikon’s statement seems clear that it’s only continuing to produce its existing lineup of DSLRs.
—
So it goes…
Well, since mobile phones are apparently taking over, maybe Canon EF 400mm f/2.8L telephoto lenses will start going for a hundred bucks on eBay.
*chortle*
Via: Nikkei:
Japanese camera maker Nikon will withdraw from the single-lens reflex camera business and shift toward digital offerings amid intensifying competition from smartphone cameras, Nikkei has learned.
Nikon’s SLR cameras have been widely used by professional photographers for more than 60 years and have come to be seen as synonymous with the Japanese company.
It now plans to focus resources on mirrorless cameras, which have become mainstream products on the back of more advanced digital technologies.
Sigh, Cringe: Canon and Nikon Announcements Show That, In Time, iPhones Will Replace DSLRs
Amazon Prime Day
July 12th, 2022If you plan on doing any Amazon Prime Day shopping, please consider using a Cryptogon affiliate link to get your session started: amazon.com
I’ll earn a small commission from any items that you purchase.
Thank you.
Woman Suffers “Accidental Overdose” After Picking Up $1 Bill in McDonald’s Parkinglot
July 12th, 2022Via: WKRN:
A pit stop in Bellevue took a terrifying turn for a Kentucky family Sunday night.
Renee Parsons said she picked up a dollar bill off the ground at the McDonald’s on Highway 70 and soon passed out.
“She looked like she was dying. She certainly was unconscious and very pale,” her husband Justin told News 2.
…
Soon after her husband felt side effects as well. “My lips started going numb and my arm broke out in a rash,” Justin Parsons said.
His symptoms lasted for about an hour while Renee’s lasted for about four before she was released on an accidental overdose.
Germany Plans ‘Warm Up Spaces’ in Response to Gas Shortages
July 12th, 2022Via: Summit News:
Cities across Germany are planning to use sports arenas and exhibition halls as ‘warm up spaces’ this winter to help freezing citizens who are unable to afford skyrocketing energy costs.
Bild newspaper reveals how the the nation’s Cities and Municipalities Association has urged local authorities to set aside public spaces to help vulnerable citizens in the colder months.
Germany has already seen its gas supply from Russia significantly restricted as a result of its support for sanctions and the war in Ukraine.
“We are currently preparing for all emergency scenarios for autumn and winter,” Jutta Steinruck, the city mayor of Ludwigshafen told Bild, where the Friedrich-Ebert-Halle arena is about to be converted into a warm up hall.
Hunter Biden Films Himself Weighing His Crack Cocaine
July 11th, 2022Via: Sky:
Artificial Intelligence to Measure Loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party
July 11th, 2022
The good news is that this is probably bullshit.
Via: Business Insider:
Researchers at China’s Comprehensive National Science Center in Hefei claimed to have developed “mind-reading” artificial intelligence capable of measuring citizens’ loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), The Sunday Times UK first reported.
In a now-deleted video and article, the institute said the software could measure party members’ reactions to “thought and political education” by analyzing facial expressions and brain waves, according to The Times.
The results can then be used to “further solidify their confidence and determination to be grateful to the party, listen to the party, and follow the party,” the researchers said, per the report. The post was taken down following public outcry from Chinese citizens, according to a VOA article published Saturday.
Dr. Lance B. Eliot, an AI and machine learning expert, wrote in Forbes last week that without knowing the specifics of the research study, it’s impossible to prove the validity of the institute’s claims.
New York City Emergency Management Nuclear Preparedness PSA: “So, There’s Been a Nuclear Attack… You’ve Got This.”
July 11th, 2022Via: NYC Emergency Management:
