Science

New year, new outbreak: China rushes to vaccinate 50 million as holiday looms

Drive to immunise 3.5% of the population in weeks comes ahead of the lunar new year festival and as three major cities are locked downCoronavirus – latest updatesSee all our coronavirus coverageAt a Shenzhen hospital, 21-year-old airport worker Wang Shuyue lines up to receive his second shot.“I feel it’s safe because so many people around the country have taken the vaccine so there shouldn’t be any major problems,” he tells the Guardian. “I think it should be effective otherwise there wouldn’t b...
Tags: Health, Science, China, Society, Asia Pacific, Infectious Diseases, Global development, Vaccines and immunisation, Shenzhen, Global Health, Coronavirus, Wang Shuyue

Consumer Groups Ask FTC to Investigate Amazon Prime's Headache-Inducing Cancellation Process

It’s too goddamn hard to cancel your Amazon Prime account, a group of consumer advocacy organizations have told the Federal Trade Commission in a .Read more...
Tags: Science, Amazon Prime, Federal Trade Commission, Ftc

Parler's Suit Trying to Force Amazon to Host It Again Does Not Appear to Be Going Well

Parler, the social network for conservatives with more guns than friends, isn’t doing so hot in its quest for a federal court injunction forcing Amazon to restore its web hosting services, Bloomberg reported on Thursday.Read more...
Tags: Amazon, Science, Bloomberg, Force Amazon

NYPD Announces How It Plans to Spy On You This Year

After being pushed to do so by new legislation, the New York City Police Department has publicized a full inventory of the myriad spying instruments it uses to surveil the public.Read more...
Tags: Science, New York City Police Department

These Are the Wearables That Stood Out at CES 2021

Usually, when people think of wearables, their mind conjures an image of a smartwatch. Fair! But at CES, wearables are a much, much broader category. They include everything from “hearables” and smart rings, to futuristic proof of concept devices that may never actually see the light of day.Read more...
Tags: Wearables, Science, Smartwatches, Smart Glasses, CES 2021, Taint Bandaid, Smart Masks, Open Ear Audio

Hundreds of New Yorkers descended on a vaccination site after a Facebook post said there were over 400 spare shots

A pharmacist fills a syringe to prepare a dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine for front-line health care workers at a vaccination site at Torrance Memorial Medical Center on December 19, 2020 in Torrance, California. Patrick T. Fallon / AFP via Getty Images A Facebook post said there were more than 400 extra vaccine doses available in New York City for walk-in appointments that needed to be used before 7pm. Swarms of New Yorkers lined up at Brooklyn Grand Army Terminal seeking the...
Tags: Facebook, Science, New York City, Trends, Brooklyn, Bill De Blasio, Vaccine, Jessica Valenti, Brannan, Brooklyn Army Terminal, Brooklyn Army, Justin Brannan, Torrance Memorial Medical Center, Hilary Brueck, Stephen Lurie, Coronavirus

Coronavirus live news: UK records 1,248 deaths; curfew in Brazil's largest state after surge in fatalities

; Greece presses case for vaccine passports but other EU states waryCovid vaccines and immunity: does past infection help?China records first Covid death since May as WHO team arrives in WuhanUp to 1m Hindus gather in India as festival goes ahead amid Covid fearsSee all our coronavirus coverage 11.28pm GMT The hospital system in the Amazon city of Manaus is collapsing from a second wave of Covid-19 and it is running out of oxygen, Brazilian health minister Eduardo Pazuello has said.Speaki...
Tags: Amazon, Europe, UK, Science, Greece, India, Africa, Eu, UK News, World news, US news, Asia Pacific, Infectious Diseases, Brazil, Manaus, Jair Bolsonaro

A NASA scientist was charged with lying to the FBI about participating in a Chinese government recruitment program

Aerial views of the Ames Research Center, NASA Research Park, and Moffett Airfield in California. Dominic Hart/NASA The US Department of Justice alleges a chief scientist at NASA was illegally a member of a Chinese government recruitment program. Meyya Meyyappan, 66, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to lying to federal investigators about his ties to foreign universities and a Chinese government recruitment initiative. Meyyappan was a member of the Thousand Talents Program, a Chinese government...
Tags: Transportation, Space, Japan, Spacex, Science, News, California, China, US, Trends, Nasa, Fbi, Jeff Bezos, Tom Cruise, Doj, Ames Research Center

US states where it's easiest, and most difficult, to get a coronavirus shot

The Javits Center in New York City began COVID-19 vaccinations on January 13, 2021. Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images Procuring a coronavirus shot may be easy or difficult, depending on where you live. A handful of states have managed speedy vaccine rollouts by attempting to deliver as many doses as possible or anticipating distribution challenges. Other states have struggled with technical glitches or lack of demand among healthcare workers. Visit Business Insider's homepage for m...
Tags: Science, News, Justice, Cdc, New York City, Nbc News, US, Alabama, Los Angeles, West Virginia, Trends, Georgia, Walmart, Features, Walgreens, United States

NASA has given up on its 'Mars mole,' a revolutionary experiment designed to burrow 16 feet and take the planet's temperature

The InSight lander's heat probe, or "mole," poking out of the hole where it got stuck on October 26, 2019. NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA is giving up on its Mars mole — a pile driver designed to hammer its way up to 16 feet below the Martian surface — after two years of trying to dig past cement-like soil. Now the InSight lander won't be able to take Mars' internal temperature.  The probe's data would have helped piece together the planet's history and its potential for microbial life. Visit B...
Tags: Science, News, Trends, Nasa, Earth, Insight, Mars, Hudson, NASA JPL Caltech, Tech Insider, Mole, Troy Hudson, Tilman Spohn, Morgan McFall Johnsen, NASA JPL Caltech NASA

Disney Is Doing the Weird Hybrid Movie Release Thing Now, Too

Well, well, well. Look who else is jumping on the “hybrid” release bandwagon.Read more...
Tags: Science, Disney

Florida is becoming a vaccine tourism destination as foreigners and out-of-staters head there to get a COVID-19 shot

Elderly Florida residents have dealt with long lines and wait times during the vaccine rollout. Octavio Jones/Getty Images Florida is offering COVID-19 vaccines to adults aged 65 and up, and it's not requiring proof of residency. Some part-time residents and well-connected people from out of state are flying south to get their shots. The governor discouraged vaccine tourism, but he said it's OK for out-of-staters who winter in Florida to get vaccinated. Visit Business Insider's homepage fo...
Tags: Florida, New York, Science, News, Washington Post, New York City, Trends, David, Canada, Tourism, New Jersey, Healthcare, Argentina, Miami, Vaccine, Firestone

Donald Trump Confronts the Scourge of Efficient Hot Water Heaters and Furnaces

President Donald Trump’s tenure in the White House is ending the way it began, with a slapdash effort to make everything a little (or lot) worse than he found it while trying to burn down the planet in the name of conservative grievances.Read more...
Tags: Science, White House, Donald Trump, Furnace

The Sondors Metacycle Is The Inexpensive Electric Commuter Motorcycle I’ve Been Waiting For

The average American commute is a paltry 12 miles. The average American drives no more than 25 miles per day. A small electric motorcycle isn’t for everyone, but more than half of Americans could benefit from zipping around town on something like this. Imagine how much better your commute could be if you could hop on…Read more...
Tags: Science, Inexpensive Electric Commuter Motorcycle

Ring's Neighbors App Had Flaw That Revealed Users' Home Addresses

Ring, the Amazon-owned friend to nosy police departments everywhere, has suffered another embarrassing security stumble. The surveillance company’s Neighbors app—which was launched in 2018 as a kind of “neighborhood watch” feature—apparently left users exact geographical data and home address information exposed to…Read more...
Tags: Amazon, Science, Data Breach, Ring

This Complicated Nintendo Hack Makes You Ride an Exercise Bike to Win at Mario Kart

From games like Wii Tennis to accessories like the Wii Balance Board, Nintendo has mad it possible to turn its consoles into fitness devices to help gamers get active. But hardware hacker Mike Choi may have just come up with the ultimate way to stay fit with the Switch by turning Mario Kart 8 Deluxe into a full-body workoutRead more...
Tags: Science, Nintendo, Mario, Mario Kart, Wii, Joy Con, Wii Balance Board Nintendo, Mike Choi

The Age Of The Digital Car Key Is Finally Upon Us

The idea of using your phone or smartwatch as a car key has been kicking around for a while, and some vehicles — usually more expensive ones — are already outfitted to let you do it. However, the implementation has been wildly inconsistent across car brands, and sometimes even require certain phone models to work. Up…Read more...
Tags: Science, Car Tech, Digital Keys

After Two Years of Frustration, NASA Finally Nixes Its Martian Mole

NASA has given up on the mole—a device that was supposed to dig deep into the Martian surface—after repeated failed efforts to make the system work. It was meant to be a major part of the InSight lander mission, but unfortunately Mars had other ideas. Read more...
Tags: Science, Nasa, Lander, Insight, Mars

New Jersey is prioritizing cigarette smokers for COVID-19 vaccines because of their risk of severe disease

A woman wearing a protective face mask smokes a cigarette on June 7, 2020. Ely Pineiro/Getty Images New Jersey announced Thursday it would start vaccinating people age 65 and older and people with underlying health conditions against the coronavirus. One of those health conditions that now bumps New Jerseyans to the front of the line is smoking. Only people age 75 and older and essential workers were recommended to be next in line, but US officials recently urged states to expand eligibili...
Tags: Health, Florida, New York, Texas, Science, News, Smoking, Cdc, US, America, Trends, New Jersey, States, Reuters, Health And Human Services, Murphy

This Black Hole Is Really Taking Its Time Eating a Poor Star

On November 14, 2014, a telescope spotted a burst of light in a galaxy 570 million light-years away. It was thought to be a supernova, an arrestingly bright explosion that marks a star’s death. This week, astronomers revealed that the burst was not a supernova after all, but rather a black hole having dinner—one of…Read more...
Tags: Science, Black Hole, Supernova, All Sky Automated Survey For Supernovae

All the Sci-Fi, Fantasy, and Horror Films to Look Forward to in 2021...Hopefully

You are not experiencing déjà vu. A huge percentage of films from our 2020 movie preview are once again here on our 2021 preview. But the good news is, there’s still a lot of great stuff to look forward to.Read more...
Tags: Science, Netflix, Io9, The Last Airbender, Sci Fi Fantasy, Imax Films

Nendo Has Made a Soccer Ball You Never Need to Inflate

Soccer is the world’s most popular sport partly because the only piece of equipment you need is a ball. But to maximize the sport’s accessibility, particularly in impoverished communities where a deflated ball can mean game over, Japanese design studio nendo created a non-inflatable soccer ball alternative that…Read more...
Tags: Science, Ball

Oh My God, I Think I Finally Hate He-Man

Having done Worst Episode Ever for the better part of a decade, I have come to realize one unassailable truth: If a cartoon has an episode about a circus, it sucks on toast. Read more...
Tags: Science, Orko

Intel Just Quietly Launched Its New Phantom Canyon NUC 11 Lineup

Intel focused much of its time at this year’s virtual CES on its new desktop and mobile processors, as well as spotlighting the laptops that will feature its new hardware debuting in the next few months. But what didn’t get much attention was Intel’s line of mini PCs, or NUCs, and NUC kits. Intel’s giving those a …Read more...
Tags: Science, Intel, NUC, Tiger Lake, Phantom Canyon, CES 2021, Mini Pcs

A Racing Pigeon Traveled From the U.S. to Australia—So Now It Must Die [Updated: Joe Gets to Live]

Update 1/15/2021 8:50 a.m. ET: Good news for “Joe” the pigeon. According to the AP, the bird is in fact Australian, and thus does not need to be killed. Deone Roberts, spokesperson for the American Racing Pigeon Union, told the AP that the leg band that identified Joe as American is “counterfeit.” Australia’s…Read more...
Tags: Science, Australia, Ap, Joe, Biosecurity, American Racing Pigeon Union, Deone Roberts, Columbiformes, Pigeon Racing, Columbidae, Australian Quarantine And Inspection Service

A Racing Pigeon Traveled From the U.S. to Australia—So Now It Must Die

Officials in Australia are worried that a racing pigeon, which recently completed an 8,000-mile trek from the United States, carries potentially dangerous diseases. This unintentional breach of Australia’s quarantine laws could now cost the bird its life.Read more...
Tags: Science, Australia, United States, Infectious Diseases, Conservation, Animal Welfare, Pigeons

Stanford team behind BS gaydar AI says facial recognition can expose political orientation

Stanford researcher Michael Kosinski, the PhD behind the infamous “Gaydar” AI, is back with another phrenology-adjacent (his team swears it’s not phrenology) bit of pseudo-scientific ridiculousness. This time, they’ve published a paper indicating that a simple facial recognition algorithm can tell a person’s political affiliation. First things first: The paper is called “Facial recognition technology can expose political orientation from naturalistic facial images.” You can read it here. Here’s ...
Tags: Startups, Science, Opinion, Stanford, Tech, Artificial Intelligence, Neural, Michael Kosinski

The Best Computer Speakers, According To Our Readers

Top Pick: Mica MB42X | $90 | AmazonRead more...
Tags: Ipad, Science, Bluetooth, Mica, Subwoofer, Computer Speakers, Edifier

Mayoral Hopeful Andrew Yang: New York Needs Hype Houses

Former Presidential candidate Andrew Yang commenced his run for New York City mayor yesterday with an ad indicating that he’s familiar with the subway system, pizza, and—ayyy—the Knicks. Yang, who’s never held public office in New York City, or anywhere, is staring down a maelstrom of once-in-a-generation crises:…Read more...
Tags: New York, Science, New York City, Innovation, Andrew Yang, Knicks Yang

Photos show how a tree snake makes its body into a lasso to climb and hunt prey

A brown tree snake in a tree in Guam. Bjorn Lardner A new study shows a species of tree snake uses an unprecedented form of locomotion in order to climb objects like trees. The brown tree snake loops its body into a lasso around wide, cylindrical objects in order to ascend them. This lasso technique likely helps the snake scale wider trees and hunt birds nesting in the canopy. Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. The brown tree snake loves to snack on birds.One of the world'...
Tags: Photos, Videos, Science, News, Animals, Trends, Snakes, Climbing, Micronesia, University Of Cincinnati, Brown, CSU, Jayne, Guam, Seibert, Savidge