As reported on The Verge. By Ellis Hamburger Can Gliese 832c support life, or is it just a super-Venus? Sci News is reporting that astronomers at the University of New South Wales have discovered an Earthlike planet just 16 light-years away. The planet, dubbed Gliese 832c, is orbiting a red dwarf star half the mass and radius of our own sun. Gliese 832c has an orbital period of about 35 days, and a mass more than five times…
As reported on The Verge. By Chris Welch OEMs can’t change the design of Android Auto and Android TV either Companies that make Android Wear, Android Auto, and Android TV products won’t be allowed to dramatically alter the design and user experience of Google’s latest software. Somecustomization will be permitted; they’ll be able to add custom apps, services, and other small touches, but changing up the overall look and feel is expressly forbidden. “The UI is more…
As reported on TechCrunch. by Matthew Panzarino In my line of work I’m often called on to think critically about the usability of both hardware and software, especially smartphones. One of my big touchstones, and one that’s ignored by a surprising amount of designers — is that stuff doesn’t exist in a vacuum. If your goal is to have thousands, or millions, of people use your thing then you’ve got to consider how it works when…
As reported on Engadget. BY MAT SMITH An iPad for every student was the plan. Then, some students were too smart for their own good, quickly enabling their for-learnin’ iPads to access to anything on the web, including Twitter, Facebook and all that other fun stuff. LA’s school district now plans to differentiate what it offers its students, authorizing purchases for one of six different devices, including laptops and hybrids such as Chromebooks, Microsoft’s Surface Pro 2 and…
As reported on Engadget. BY SHARIF SAKR If you missed our coverage during Mobile World Congress, then here’s what you need to know about Blackphone: it’s a mid-spec Android smartphone that comes pre-subscribed to (and pre-installed with) a bunch of privacy and anti-surveillance services, for a price of $629 off-contract. It’s the offspring of a joint venture between Silent Circle andGeeksphone, who together have just announced that the first batch of devices is now shipping to customers who pre-ordered during…
As reported on The Verge. By Arielle Duhaime-Ross Study finds genetic overlap between cannabis use and schizophrenia The association between marijuana and schizophrenia is historically fraught. In the 1960s and 1970s, scientists thought that smoking weed could trigger psychosis in just about anyone. Today, these findings are more nuanced, but researchers still think that cannabis can trigger schizophrenia in people who are predisposed to the disease — meaning those with family histories of the disorder. Yet, in the last decade,…
As reported on TechCrunch. by Greg Kumparak Well, the timing is nothing if not interesting: one day before its I/O keynote, Google has just given the Glass hardware a small hardware upgrade. Without much fanfare, Google has quietly bumped the memory in newly shipped Glass units up from 682MB to a full 2GB. That gives Google (and Glass developers, for that matter) roughly 3x as much memory to play with. With I/O starting tomorrow, it’s more than reasonable to…
As reported on TechCrunch. by Alex Wilhelm No one protests like San Francisco. The scene: Tomorrow, outside of Google’s I/O conference, an assemblage of protestors will dress up like Star Wars characters to decry Google and the economic impact of the technology industry. The goal, the group told TechCrunch in an email, is to highlight rising income inequality in San Francisco, a city now infamous for its spiraling rents. Google has become a symbol for the rapid…
As reported on Engadget. BY STEVE DENT Curiosity feted its first Martian year on the red planet (687 earth days) with a stiched-up selfie while NASA reflected on the Mars rover’s triumphs and setbacks. So far, it has achieved most of its mission goals, particularly its quest for evidence that Mars could have supported life. Drilling samples revealed traces of all the elements needed for life, and itspotted a streambed that once had “vigorous” water flow. The rover also found that…
As reported on Engadget. BY SHARIF SAKR Sure, Elon Musk is giving away Tesla patents, but don’t be surprised if more established manufacturers politely decline his offer. Instead of batteries and electric charging stations, players like General Motors, Mercedes, Honda and Toyota are focusing their efforts on a very different sort of fuel system: hydrogen. Toyota has just revealed that its first commercial hydrogen fuel cell car, a sedan modelled on the earlier FCV concept, will be ready…