Places and Things

A Vast Web of Vengeance Guy Babcock vividly remembers the chilly Saturday evening when he discovered the stain on his family. It was September 2018. He, his wife and their young son had just returned to their home in Beckley, an English village outside of Oxford. Mr. Continue Reading . . . https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/30/technology/change-my-google-results.html

Sony Announces the a1, Its Best Mirrorless Camera to Date Sony has announced its latest full-frame mirrorless offering, the Alpha 1. Continue Reading . . . https://digital-photography-school.com/?p=202846

Subway is SUED after tuna salad is 'revealed to be anything but tuna' and 'isn't even FISH' If you bought a tuna sandwich from a Subway restaurant recently, chances are you may have eaten something that was ‘made from anything but tuna,’ two Bay Area customers allege. Continue Reading . . . https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9197909/Subway-SUED-tuna-salad-revealed-tuna-isnt-FISH.html

Sony Alpha 1 mirrorless camera with 50 MP sensor, support for 8K recording and more launched Sony has unveiled a new full-frame camera under its Alpha camera series called the Sony Alpha 1. Sony claims it is the fastest high-resolution camera that comes with a 50 MP sensor, capable of shooting 30 images per second. The camera can also shoot 8K videos at 30fps. Continue Reading . . . https://www.firstpost.com/tech/news-analysis/sony-alpha-1-mirrorless-camera-with-50-mp-sensor-support-for-8k-recording-and-more-launched-9247321.html

Baidu secures license for full driverless road tests in California The California Department of Motor Vehicles has granted Baidu permission to test its autonomous vehicles without a driver behind the wheel. It’s had authority to test its vehicles in California since 2016, but up until now, it could only do so with a backup driver. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/baidu-full-driverless-road-tests-california-121025542.html

WhatsApp now requires biometric authentication for PC and web access You’ll now have to confirm your identity using your biometric information to link a WhatsApp account to the PC or the web. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/whatsapp-biometric-authentication-account-linking-080030297.html

Samsung’s profits rose in 2020 despite the pandemic Samsung Electronics has reported its fourth-quarter earnings, confirming that the company made more money in 2020 than the year before despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Operating profit was up to 35.99 trillion won ($32.1 billion) off 236.81 trillion won ($211. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/28/22253844/samsung-earnings-q4-fy-2020-profits-covid-display-mobile

Apple surpasses $100 billion in quarterly revenue for first time in its history Apple today reported its fiscal Q1 2021 earnings, which cover the final calendar quarter of 2020 and the holiday sales season. That means this is the first time we’re getting a real indication of how the new iPhone 12, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12 Pro, and iPhone 12 Pro Max are faring with consumers. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/27/22252663/apple-q1-2021-earnings-iphone-12-mac-sales

Instagram made a richer story interface for desktops Instagram is making its Stories feature more complete on the desktop. In a small interface refresh today, the company is updating its Stories feature so that it opens up to show a carousel of videos, which previews what’s cued up next and the content that just played. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/27/22252611/instagram-stories-desktop-interface-update

EU group calls for Nintendo Switch Joy-Con drift investigation The European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) is calling on the European Commission to investigate Nintendo Joy-Con drift complaints. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/27/22252043/eu-nintendo-switch-joy-con-drift-investigation

'Godzilla vs. Kong' makes its HBO Max debut on March 31st When WarnerMedia announced plans to premiere its 2021 slate of movies in theaters and on HBO Max at the same time, some of the companies and big names involved in making those movies were immediately outraged. Legendary Pictures co-financed Dune and Godzilla vs. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/godzilla-kong-hbo-max-warnermedia-014032185.html

DJI is now selling a warranty to replace your drone if it flies away DJI is now offering flyaway coverage for its Mini 2 and Mavic Air 2 drones, should they develop a mind of their own and take off. The cost of replacing the escaped drone is $225 for the Mini, and $399 for the Mavic, which is on top of the price of DJI’s Care Refresh extended warranty. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/26/22251294/dji-mavic-air-mini-2-flyaway-replacement-warranty

The new iPhone update fixes security bugs, so it’s best to install it ASAP Apple just released iOS 14.4 and iPadOS 14.4, and the update notes contain some worrying language (via TechCrunch). Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/26/22251149/iphone-update-14-4-fixes-exploited-security-vulnerabilities

HomePod mini update adds UWB-enhanced handoff features Back when it announced the HomePod mini last year, Apple said it was working on a feature that would allow you to seamlessly transfer music, calls and podcasts between your iPhone 11 or iPhone 12 and the smart speaker. With the arrival of iOS 14. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/homepod-mini-uwb-handoff-update-223743066.html

Nvidia is making buying a gaming laptop more confusing Gaming laptops that have Nvidia’s powerful RTX 30-series graphics chips inside are now shipping. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/22243065/nvidia-gaming-laptop-graphic-chips-capability-manufacturer-transparency

The HomePod mini finally adds its long-promised ultra-wideband handoff feature Apple has officially released iOS 14.4 and a matching update for its HomePod mini speaker, adding the long-promised ultra-wideband (UWB) handoff feature that will allow newer iPhones to more seamlessly transfer music, calls, and podcasts between the two devices. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/26/22250856/homepod-mini-ultra-wideband-handoff-feature-update-ios-14-apple-iphone-u1

'The Lord of the Rings: Gollum' is delayed to 2022 The Lord of the Rings: Gollum was supposed to arrive this year, but its journey to your screens will take unexpectedly longer. Developer Daedalic announced that it will release the game in 2022 on PC, Nintendo Switch and PlayStation and Xbox consoles. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/the-lord-of-the-rings-gollum-delayed-daedalic-nacon-192525668.html

Earth Day Summit Will Mark U.S. Return to Global Climate Talks President Biden plans to host a high-level Earth Day summit, delivering on a campaign pledge and challenging his climate policy team to ready ambitious and credible commitments that can stand up to global scrutiny. Continue Reading . . . https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/earth-day-summit-will-mark-u-s-return-to-global-climate-talks/

Sony's A1 is a $6,500 50MP camera that shoots 30fps bursts and 8K video Sony has just dropped a bomb on the camera world with the launch of the A1, its new flagship full-frame mirrorless camera with some breakthrough features. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/sony-a1-full-frame-full-frame-mirrorless-camera-154222241.html

Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ next big event is a carnival The next in-game event for Animal Crossing: New Horizons will bring a little more color to your island. Today, Nintendo revealed its next big update, the highlight of which is Festivale, a carnival-like event that will take place on February 15th. Here’s how Nintendo describes it: Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/26/22250249/animal-crossing-new-horizon-nintendo-switch-festivale-update

YouTube has paid more than $30 billion to creators, artists, and others over the last three years YouTube has paid out more than $30 billion to creators, artists, and media organizations over the last three years, according to a new letter published by CEO Susan Wojcicki. In Wojcicki’s first letter to creators of 2021, the CEO spent some time addressing YouTube’s growth. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/26/22249329/youtube-susan-wojcicki-letter-creators-monetization-transparency-policy-covid-misinformation

An automated Telegram bot is selling Facebook account phone numbers Access to a database reportedly containing 500 million users’ private information is being sold on a cybercrime forum. Motherboard reports that the database, which hosts data pulled from Facebook more than two years ago, contains people’s phone numbers. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/facebook-telegram-bot-phone-number-lookup-124045894.html

Continue Reading . . . https://digital-photography-school.com/sony-announcement-january-26th/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+DigitalPhotographySchool+%28Digital+Photography+School%29

The great graphics card shortage of 2020 (and 2021) Gaming's never been more popular - hardly surprising when we're all stuck at home. PC gaming, in particular, is having a renaissance. The Steam game platform saw records broken for all its peak statistics in 2020 - 21% more games purchased, and 50% more hours played. Continue Reading . . . https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55755820

New ‘Battlestar Galactica’ series to experiment with release strategy like no other show, producer reveals The new Battlestar Galactica TV series set to launch on Peacock will likely play with the usual way of releasing, the show’s producer has said. Continue Reading . . . https://www.nme.com/news/tv/new-battlestar-galactica-series-to-experiment-with-release-strategy-like-no-other-show-producer-reveals-2860234

The first big 'Cyberpunk 2077' patch has arrived As promised, the first of two early-2021 patches for CD Projekt Red’s troubled Cyberpunk 2077 has arrived. This updates the game to version 1.1 on PC, consoles and Stadia, and according to the notes it lays the groundwork for future updates, while also addressing memory usage and crash problems. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/cyberpunk-2077-1-1-223635842.html

December’s Total Solar Eclipse as Seen from Space Time-lapse video of a total solar eclipse, made with photographs captured on the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite–16 (GOES-16). The agency launched the machinery to improve weather forecasting. Continue Reading . . . https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/decembers-total-solar-eclipse-as-seen-from-space/

The business of influence with MKBHD Marques Brownlee is one of the best reviewers I know, and also one of the most savvy and successful YouTubers. And he’s been in the game for a long time: he started the channel MKBHD in 2009 when he was just a teenager making videos about his new HP laptop. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/22231657/mkbhd-marques-brownlee-interview-youtube-creator-influencer-decoder

Alphabet is shutting down Loon, its internet balloon company Alphabet is shutting down Loon, its division that provides internet from floating balloons, according to a post on the blog of Alphabet’s X moonshot division. Alphabet, the parent company of Google, launched Loon in June 2013. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/21/22243484/alphabet-google-shutting-down-loon-internet-balloon-company-x

House leader calls for FBI investigation into Parler On Thursday, the House Oversight Committee called for an FBI investigation into Parler’s involvement in the deadly attack on the Capitol this month. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/21/22242595/house-oversight-parler-fbi-investigation-carolyn-maloney-chris-wray

See the 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' painting in 10-gigapixel detail Microscope manufacturer Hirox has created a panorama of Vermeer’s famous Girl with a Pearl Earring at a mind-goggling 10-gigapixel resolution, as spotted by Petapixel. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/girl-with-a-pearl-earring-10-gigapixel-133003372.html

New White House website includes a hidden recruitment message for coders With Joe Biden now the 46th president of the United States, the official White House website has gone live with an eye-catching new design. It’s fully responsive and even comes with a snazzy dark mode to match. And like all good websites, it also comes with a fun Easter egg.  Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/biden-administration-white-house-easter-egg-205032994.html

Amazon offers to help Biden administration with vaccinations Amazon has offered to help the Biden administration meet its goal of completing 100 million coronavirus vaccinations within the next 100 days. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/20/22241031/amazon-vaccination-biden-administration

Biden’s First Climate Actions Include Rejoining Paris Agreement Joe Biden will spend his first hours as president trying to obliterate much of the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda, restore public land protections and reestablish the United States as a global leader on climate change policy. Continue Reading . . . https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/bidens-first-climate-actions-include-rejoining-paris-agreement/

The Second-Generation COVID Vaccines Are Coming Six months ago, as the northern hemisphere was still battling the coronavirus pandemic’s first wave, all eyes turned to the COVID-19 vaccines in late-stage clinical trials. Now, a year after the pandemic first erupted, three COVID vaccines have been given emergency authorization by either the U.S. Continue Reading . . . https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-second-generation-covid-vaccines-are-coming/

Google is investigating another top AI ethicist Google is investigating artificial intelligence researcher Margaret Mitchell, who co-leads the company’s Ethical AI team, and has locked her corporate account, Axios reports. The news comes a little over a month after another prominent AI ethicist, Timnit Gebru, said she was fired by the company. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/20/22240277/google-artificial-intelligence-researcher-margaret-mitchell-investigation-timnit-gebru

Dodging and Burning in Lightroom: A Comprehensive Guide Digital photographers who have never worked with film or never even set foot in a darkroom still encounter terms from the early days of photography. The phrase “dodging and burning” is a throwback to those times. Continue Reading . . . https://digital-photography-school.com/?p=198222

AirPods Max battery drain reports surface, some saying they empty overnight There are growing reports of an AirPods Max battery drain problem on the Apple Support Forums, Reddit, and elsewhere. Continue Reading . . . https://9to5mac.com/2021/01/19/airpods-max-battery-drain-reports/

On Night Before Inauguration, Biden Leads Mourning for Virus Victims “To heal we must remember,” Mr. Biden said, standing in front of the Reflecting Pool, which was surrounded by 400 lights meant to mark the 400,000 people who have died from Covid-19. WASHINGTON — President-elect Joseph R. Biden Jr. Continue Reading . . . https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/19/us/politics/biden-inauguration-coronavirus.html

Trump's Last Day! Pie gives Trump the send-off he deserves with one last EPIC rant. For tickets to see Jonathan Pie : FAKE NEWS 2021 go to https://www.jonathanpie.com/ Continue Reading . . . https://youtube.com/watch?v=tvcwMcGWf-w&feature=share

DC is relaunching its mobile app to focus on comics DC is shaking up its comics app on January 21st and relaunching it as DC Universe Infinite. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/19/22238924/dc-universe-infinite-comics-app-subscription-relaunch

Electrical Brain Stimulation May Alleviate Obsessive-Compulsive Behaviors Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is marked by repetitive, anxiety-inducing thoughts, urges and compulsions, such as excessive cleaning, counting and checking. These behaviors are also prevalent in the general population: one study in a large sample of U.S. Continue Reading . . . https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/electrical-brain-stimulation-may-alleviate-obsessive-compulsive-behaviors/

AirPods Max teardown makes Sony and Bose headphones look ‘like toys’ iFixit’s long in the making AirPods Max teardown is finally complete, giving an exhaustive look at the internals of Apple’s debut over-ear headphones and an idea of how easy they are to repair. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/circuitbreaker/2021/1/19/22238632/ifixit-airpod-max-teardown-repair-screws-adhesive-sony-bose-headphones

'The Muppet Show' finally hits Disney+ on February 19th Disney+ is about to play the music and light the lights. All five seasons of The Muppet Show will be available to stream on the service starting on February 19th. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/the-muppet-show-disney-plus-152957232.html

Outer space is a mess that Moriba Jah wants to clean up With each new satellite that reaches orbit, the space above our heads gets a little more congested. There are about 3,000 active satellites in use today, but that number is changing quickly, especially as companies like Starlink send up 60 small satellites in a single launch. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/science/22229792/space-orbital-collisions-risk-satellites-real-time

Capitol Police intelligence report warned three days before attack that ‘Congress itself’ could be targeted Three days before thousands of rioters converged on the U.S. Capitol, an internal Capitol Police intelligence report warned of a violent scenario in which “Congress itself” could be the target of angry supporters of President Trump on Jan. Continue Reading . . . https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/capitol-police-intelligence-warning/2021/01/15/c8b50744-5742-11eb-a08b-f1381ef3d207_story.html

Telegram says it ‘shut down hundreds of public calls for violence’ in US last week Amid rising political tensions in the United States, Telegram founder Pavel Durov says his chat service has taken down hundreds of public calls for violence, in accordance with the platform’s terms of service. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/18/22237574/telegram-shuts-down-public-calls-for-violence

Capitol rioter planned to sell Nancy Pelosi’s laptop to Russian spies, witness told FBI A capitol rioter may have stolen Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s laptop with plans to sell it to the Russian government, according to an FBI affidavit filed on Sunday. Continue Reading . . . https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/18/22237174/capitol-rioter-nancy-pelosi-laptop-russia-riley-june-williams

Samsung heir Jay Y. Lee is going back to jail for bribery Samsung heir Jay Y. Lee has been sentenced to 2.5 years of prison over bribery charges, wrapping up a court battle that started four years ago, Bloomberg has reported. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/samsung-heir-jay-y-lee-back-to-jail-for-bribery-071444401.html

Virgin Orbit carries satellites to space for the first time Virgin Orbit’s second launch demonstration flight has been smoother than its first. The company has carried customer satellites into space for the first time after the Cosmic Girl host aircraft successfully deployed the LauncherOne rocket over the Pacific Ocean for its latest test. Continue Reading . . . https://www.engadget.com/virgin-orbit-sends-satellites-to-space-195604019.html