Latest Science and Technology

People are increasingly aware of the harm plastic waste causes to wildlife, and many would avoid buying single-use plastics if they could help it. But are the alternatives to plastic much better? Let’s look at one example – fizzy drinks. You might assume that plastic bottles are the least green option, but is that always the case? To find out, we compared five different types of pressurized drinks containers. We tested their environmental impact according to a range of criteria, including how each contributes to climate change and the pollution each produces during manufacture, use and disposal. Here they are,… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3n4zNif

When the Williamson family from Dundee lost their mother Sue to a rare cancer named phaeochromocytoma in 2003, they didn’t realize that further devastation was to follow. Of her four children, twins Jennie and James discovered that they also have the faulty gene that cut short their mother’s life. Both twins are affected with inoperable tumors wrapped around vital blood vessels and nerves in their necks. Father Jo decided to appear in a Cancer Research pledge video (below) in memory of his wife and to raise awareness of the important work that cancer researchers do for people like his children.… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2KUHYRb

While the world is eagerly waiting for COVID-19 vaccines to bring an end to the pandemic, wearing a mask to help prevent viral transmission has become more or less mandatory globally. Though many people embrace mask wearing and adhere to public health advice, some rebel and argue that wearing a mask has been imposed upon them against their will. With mask wearing and social distancing, it’s down to the individual to decide whether or not to comply, yet what influences compliance isn’t straightforward. Demographic factors such as income level, political affiliation, and gender have all been associated with whether people… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2X312Py

It’s not uncommon in the tech world for new product concepts to never make it to reality. A sizeable number of ideas never even see the light of day and remain the cosseted secrets of boardrooms around the world. In other cases though, companies are very keen to tell the world before the idea, concept, and prototypes drift off into nothingness and exist only in the annals of history. Today, I want to rearrange the annals and remind you all about a little forgotten gem from Russia: the CV-1 electric car. Supposedly made by weapons maker, Kalashnikov. With an economy… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/34V6to3

TLDR: These seven kits are all designed to spark STEM learning and get a kid engaged in science, engineering, robotics, and more. And they’re each now an extra 20 percent off. If you noticed a whole bunch of video games and action figures under the tree this year for the kid in your life, that might mean there was a bit of a hole in the gift-giving this time around.  Of course a kid wants to have fun. But are they going to be learning anything while they’re at it? In case your kid’s stash came up a little short… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/38QNYTa

The situation has made clear that the field needs to change. Here’s where to start, according to a current and a former Googler. from Ideas Latest https://ift.tt/3hwreeT

If you are a JavaScript developer, you must have heard about Typescript at one point or another. If you have been reluctant about giving Typescript a try because you are not sure how it could serve you better than JavaScript, you have come to the right place. This guide gives an introductory but comprehensive guide to Typescript any JavaScript developer would need to get started with it. What is Typescript, what is its type system, and how would it benefit you as a JavaScript developer to use Typescript in your next project? You will find answers to all these questions… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aXzvqY

It’s been a heckuva year, hasn’t it? Global pandemic, mass lockdown, political strife, civil unrest, protests, conflicts, and I’m only just listing the things I can remember. But in the middle of it all, 2020 had one saving grace: video games. Stuck at home, more people turned to gaming than ever before. We had two console launches, both of which turned out to be pretty good. We had a few disappointments this year — the launch of Cyberpunk 2077 is probably the biggest letdown of the year — but for the most part we had some great games and we had a lot to… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3n3X7N2

Alarm bells are ringing in sport about the risk of a group of chronic, neuro-degenerative diseases, commonly understood as dementia. There is an increasingly large body of evidence which has identified that small, repetitive collisions of the brain inside the skull cause this disease. More high-profile players from England’s 1966 World Cup-winning squad are getting dementia and heading the soccer ball is to blame. It is now time for a blanket ban on heading until the age of 18, and from then on it should be closely monitored and reduced. It is not just the big collisions that end with… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3o8MFWc

The Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico was the largest telescope in the world for decades. Several discoveries were made using this historic eye on the sky, and now, this remarkable instrument, damaged beyond repair, has fallen silent forever. In Carl Sagan’s Contact, a dramatic scene shows Dr. Ellie Arroway, played by Jodie Foster, looking out over the magnificent Arecibo Telescope. And it was from this location that the human race sent our only significant radio message to alien astronomers on worlds orbiting distant stars. Now, the Arecibo Observatory, wracked by a series of unfortunate events, is due to be demolished,… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3pDpp2Q

It’s been a hell of a year and not in a good way. We’ve spent way too much time in front of our screens trying to make sense of things, but more often than not those efforts were futile. However, there were some ways we got our dose of distraction from what’s going in the world. So here’s a list of apps that kept us sane during this crazy 2020: Netflix Party/Tele Party (Ivan) The coronavirus pandemic meant that I had to be stuck home most of the time. So I dearly missed the movie and TV show binge sessions… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/38RQl84

Boston Dynamics robots have attracted a mix of amazement and terror for their diverse range of feats. The bots have already sniffed out bombs, patrolled oil rigs, monitored COVID-19 patients, done parkour, and occasionally fallen over. But the company’s latest video shows they can also cut up a rug. The Massachusetts-based firm has released a video of its creations throwing shapes (although curiously not the robot) to the Motown classic “Do You Love Me.” The whole gang has hit the dance floor: there’s the humanoid Atlas shaking its stuff like a past-his-prime John Travolta in an ill-advised Pulp Fiction reboot; box-stacker Handle rolling along to the rhythm;… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3rIZ1GK

This past year was slated by some to be the “year of the EV.” Having seen a number of new electric vehicles reach the market, it’s certainly been a very positive year for electrified cars — even despite the global pandemic. Here at SHIFT, we think that in 10 years time — when gasoline vehicles are banned — we’ll look back on an entire decade of EVs that will be worth remembering. There will be highlights for sure, but we doubt that one year alone will stand out among the rest. Why? Because 2021 will be another year that we see many… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3n09sSr

TLDR: From productivity to organization to just creating quality work, these 10 Mac apps, now available at an extra 20 percent off, can take you into the new year with some new abilities. If you want to go into 2021 with a smart, well-intentioned new mantra, consider this: save time, save money. If that sounds like a life ethos you can get behind (and you’re a Mac owner), here are 10 app deals that should streamline how your rig is running and ultimately save you time with their speedy, brilliant performance. As for the money part, all 10 are not… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/38HRe34

This year saw plenty of destructive hacking and disinformation campaigns—but amid a pandemic and a historic election, the consequences have never been graver. from Security Latest https://ift.tt/3aQMk6A

This article was written by Tiffany Hale and originally published on Built In. Failure is more than a rite of passage when working in technology — it’s a guarantee. The failure designers and developers are comfortable with, however, usually falls into the cozy iteration cycle where it’s “OK” to fail. Do users hate your proposed process flow? (No big deal, it was just a wireframe!) But the stakes are a little different when products ship, code is live, and things don’t go as expected. When the straightforward application of design thinking techniques lead to unexpected or undesirable outcomes, it may be time to ask yourself:… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2WU9zVh

This article was originally published by Sarah Wray on Cities Today, the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders. For the latest updates follow Cities Today on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, or sign up for Cities Today News. Global investment in LED and smart streetlighting, as well as additional sensors attached to streetlight infrastructure, is forecast to reach a total of US$28.1 billion over the next decade, according to Northeast Group’s latest market forecast. The smart infrastructure market intelligence firm expects coronavirus to cause only “limited disruption” to the smart streetlighting sector but… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/38Gh7jM

The year 2020 was long and treacherous, but the biggest bright spot for me was the official launch of Neural. That’s our AI sub-brand here at TNW and the section you’re reading this article in. More specifically, Neural is me (Tristan Greene), Thomas Macaulay, Ivan Mehta, and the contributors and colleagues who help us put out fresh, original, exciting content in the world of machine learning every day. It was a tough year to be a reporter but Thomas and Ivan managed to exceed our expectations at every turn with incredible insight and consistent excellence. With that in mind, I’m… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3rwVpr0

In the previous decade, when all the talk for 2020 was about the 5G revolution, IoT, distributed ledger technologies, and quantum computing, no one could have imagined the turbulence that lay ahead, or the important role cloud would play in making the transition to digital work a little less bumpy. And it’s importance will only increase in the years ahead. Gartner is forecasting global public cloud revenue to grow by 19% from $258 million in 2020 to $307 million by 2021. Despite cloud’s flexibility, scalability, accessibility, and security, there have been challenges with the adoption of a more cloud-based way… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2Mi0y6g

This article was originally published by Christopher Carey on Cities Today, the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders. For the latest updates follow Cities Today on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, or sign up for Cities Today News. Swedish micromobility firm Voi is adding computer vision technology to its e-scooters to automatically reduce speeds when they enter heavily pedestrianized areas. The firm has partnered with Irish tech startup Luna to implement the technology, which comprises high-end camera sensors. Algorithms interpret input from these sensors, and the data is processed using edge computing – an approach… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/37UMdF1

TLDR: These 10 course bundles can get you started on writing, coding, or selling your way to a lucrative 2021 side hustle. Chances are high that you’ve got a reservoir of talents that are mostly going untapped. We all have skills and abilities that we develop, then often set aside to gather dust as we pursue a new profession or new life path. But those talents are still there — and they could even start getting you paid. Once you shake off the rust, you’ve got the ability to pursue side hustles in job areas like freelance writing, programming, marketing,… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aQpxaR

2020 was a great year for ransomware gangs. For hospitals, schools, municipal governments, and everyone else, it’s going to get worse before it gets better. from Security Latest https://ift.tt/3hoVJDu

Michael Almereyda’s future-minded Shakespeare adaptation (with a WIRED cameo) is 20 years old. Now it feels like an eerie premonition. from Ideas Latest https://ift.tt/3mSwlal

It’s often said that a trader’s worst enemy is himself. Behavioral biases tend to throw otherwise rational trading strategies out of whack as anxieties over loss aversion, the fear of missing out, or even overconfidence take control—ultimately putting portfolios in jeopardy. Fortunately, technology has progressed to a point where impulsive decision-making humans can be replaced by unerring and emotionally-neutral trading bots. And some believe they’re the future of finance. Conquering cognitive bias: A quantitative approach When evaluating an investment, traders use several strategies to better identify entry and exit opportunities. Among them is qualitative and quantitative analysis. The latter involves… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aNsc5i

2020 was a tumultuous year for gaming — well, it was a tumultuous year for everything, but in gaming’s case at least it wasn’t all bad. We got four new consoles from two of the major companies, and we got a number of wonderful games. However, several of the games we thought we were going to get were delayed to 2021. And while that sucked for us this year, it does mean we’re going into 2021 with several more games to look forward to. Here’s a list of the games which we’re most looking forward to in the coming year.… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3hs65CU

It’s been a tough year of pivoting, remote work, and conceptualizing the ‘new normal.’ But as we enter a new year, it’s time to take stock of how we’ve operated professionally and what we’ll take with us into 2021. So when exactly was the last time life was good? Was it when you were huddled up with your coworkers by the watercooler or spending time with your loved ones? No, it was when you were watching The Office — and therein lies our solution for next year. With new vaccines on the horizon, things are looking brighter and we’ll probably… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3nS0VCm

This article was originally published by Steve Schaefer on Clean Fleet Report, a publication that gives its readers the information they need to move to cars and trucks with best fuel economy, including electric cars, fuel cells, plug-in hybrids, hybrids and advanced diesel and gasoline engines. VW’s Electric rebirth in America begins After years of anticipation, I finally got to see and touch a Volkswagen ID.4 crossover back in mid-September. I examined it from every angle, sat in the seats, and handled the controls. But it wasn’t until yesterday that I actually got behind the wheel of this gamechanger from Volkswagen for the U.S.… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/34QNbAm

Congratulations on making it through a remarkably difficult year for the entire planet. We’ve all tried different ways to cope with the isolation, boredom, and despair that 2020 brought us — and now that we’re at the end of it, it’s worth reflecting on the things that helped us through this tough time. To that end, we at TNW want to share some of our favorite podcasts that we listened to this year, for you to enjoy as 2020 winds down. There’s a broad range of shows for you to choose from here, from conversations about the world, to sex… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3pwa2cl

Hopefully, this festive period, you’ll have time to relax, unwind, and maybe even listen to a podcast or two. If you’re into all things mobility tech, let us lend a helping hand and offer some suggestions for you to check out. 1. The Autonocast If EVs, self-driving vehicles, and autonomy get your motor running, then you should check out the Autonocast It’s a weekly show that discusses some of the industry‘s most important topics, and is hosted by TechCrunch senior reporter Kirsten Korosec, TheDrive’s Alex Roy, and Ed Niedermeyer who is the comms director at non-profit PAVE (Partners for Automated… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3mTDJT3

At the turn of the 20th century, the modern bathroom began to develop alongside outbreaks of tuberculosis, cholera, and influenza, implementing standard features in order to promote health and hygiene in the home during widespread public health concerns.  During and immediately after the Great Depression, the design of everything from vehicles to appliances became minimalist and industrial, tending towards the modern “streamlined” look, which was characterized by rounded edges and sleek shapes. For example, in 1934, industrial designer Raymond Loewy redesigned the Coldspot refrigerator, turning it into “a single smooth, gleaming unit of functional simplicity.” Now the world has suffered… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2M8gVSF

TLDR: The Essential 2021 eCommerce Mastery Bundle charts a course to digital retail profits, explaining how to make money using the powerful Alibaba, Amazon, and eBay platforms. If you’re up to speed on ecommerce there’s no doubt you know two of the biggest players in digital retailing: Amazon and eBay. Amazon just reported a nearly 40 percent increase in sales last quarter to rake in over $96 billion in revenue for the world’s largest online retailer. Meanwhile, eBay sales grew an equally gaudy 33 percent over the same three month period, bringing in almost $10 billion for the digital auction… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3puPD7G

Phone calls. Web searches. Location tracks. Smart speaker requests. They’ve become crucial tools for law enforcement, while users often are unaware. from Security Latest https://ift.tt/3ryAP9J

The fruits of web scraping — using code to harvest data and information from websites — are all around us. People build scrapers that can find every Applebee’s on the planet or collect congressional legislation and votes or track fancy watches for sale on fan websites. Businesses use scrapers to manage their online retail inventory and monitor competitors’ prices. Lots of well-known sites use scrapers to do things like track airline ticket prices and job listings. Google is essentially a giant, crawling web scraper. Scrapers are also the tools of watchdogs and journalists, which is why The Markup filed an… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2KZS2bk

As the 2020 StackOverflow survey pointed out, technology companies – and many open source communities – have a diversity problem. While the majority of developers currently come from a white, male background, the momentum is shifting to create more inclusive, diverse communities. Research shows that diverse open source projects are more productive and make better decisions. This starts with creating teams that have a greater representation of gender, race, socioeconomic standings, ethnic backgrounds, and the like. Many open source communities are recognizing the need for new initiatives and a cohesive focus to tackle the lack of diversity in their projects.… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aNa6jK

It’s that time of year again! We’re continuing our long–running tradition of publishing a list of predictions from AI experts who know what’s happening on the ground, in the research labs, and at the boardroom tables. Without further ado, let’s dive in and see what the pros think will happen in the wake of 2020. Dr. Arash Rahnama, Head of Applied AI Research at Modzy: Just as advances in AI systems are racing forward, so too are opportunities and abilities for adversaries to trick AI models into making wrong predictions. Deep neural networks are vulnerable to subtle adversarial perturbations applied to… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2KvL1zj

This article was originally published by John Faulkner on Clean Fleet Report, a publication that gives its readers the information they need to move to cars and trucks with best fuel economy, including electric cars, fuel cells, plug-in hybrids, hybrids, and advanced diesel and gasoline engines. Three-wheel electric vehicle for one Perception is everything. Solo is the vehicle’s name, and for good reason. It seats one person. Sound restrictive or limited? It all depends. Coming to grips with a single-seat vehicle This is the elevator pitch from ElectraMeccanica about owning a Solo EV. “Every day, 119 million North Americans commute using personal… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aNE6vY

How do we save whales and other marine animals from plastic in the ocean? Our new review shows reducing plastic pollution can prevent the deaths of beloved marine species. Over 700 marine species, including half of the world’s cetaceans (such as whales and dolphins), all of its sea turtles, and a third of its seabirds, are known to ingest plastic. When animals eat plastic, it can block their digestive system, causing a long, slow death from starvation. Sharp pieces of plastic can also pierce the gut wall, causing infection and sometimes death. As little as one piece of ingested plastic… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aLfdkp

TLDR: With 27 courses and over 270 hours of coursework, The Premium Learn to Code 2021 Certification Bundle is the one-stop shop for becoming a well-trained web developer. If you’re going to learn to play basketball, who should you assemble as your teachers? Michael Jordan, LeBron James and an all-star squad of talent who have scaled the heights of their sport? Or a bunch of guys just hangin’ out around your local rec court? Anybody can teach you a skill, but not just anybody can teach you how to perform that skill well. For those who want to finally understand… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2KYXueI

From ransomware schemes to supply chain attacks, this year melded classic hacks with extraordinary circumstances. from Security Latest https://ift.tt/3pqnpe3

NASA is planning to land a crew on the Moon by 2024, and then onward to Mars, possibly in the 2030s. One day, we will have permanently crewed bases on both worlds. Unlike the initial short-stay visits, long-term bases will have to be self sufficient in as many essentials as possible. A lot of research has gone into preparing for In Situ Resource Utilization (ISRU) that could help to build and sustain a lunar base. Now, similar ideas for Mars are catching up, with a new study, published in PNAS, suggesting a way to use the brine (salty water) found… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/37PfdOr

I’ve used plenty of power banks in my life but none of them were too costly. In India, if you spend anywhere from ₹1,000-3,000 ($13-$40), you can get a power bank that offers a good mix of ports, charging speed, and battery capacity. So when I was pitched a $299 power bank, I was intrigued. For that price, I could get a good budget phone or more than few power banks. Plus, the company’s claim that it uses the same battery material as is found in Tesla’s cars made me want to try it more. I might not be the target… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/34M7peJ

This article was originally published by Anna Lisa Boni on Cities Today, the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders. For the latest updates follow Cities Today on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, or sign up for Cities Today News. The set-piece battle of the next ten years is taking shape. On one side, European cities, and on the other, emissions, CO2, and pollution. The goal? To achieve carbon neutrality and take one step closer to the end of the climate crisis. Cities across Europe have an arsenal of tools in this… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/38zMtsp

Our deficiencies have always driven us, even among our distant ancestors, back in the last Ice Age. Having neither the speed and strength to hunt large prey, nor sharp teeth and claws to tear flesh, we improvised spears, flint knives, scrapers. Lacking a thick pelt, we took the fur of other animals. As the ice receded, we devised more means of survival and comfort – stone dwellings, plows, wheeled vehicles. All these inventions allowed small oases of civilization to be wrested from a natural wilderness that seemed endless. The idea of a natural world that dwarfed humanity and its creations… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/34KUVUl

Plus: Dozens of reporters get hit by an iMessage exploit, continued fallout from the SolarWinds hack, and more of the week’s top security news. from Security Latest https://ift.tt/34MOPmF

TLDR: The 2020 Adobe Graphic Design Certification School explores how Adobe Photoshop, InDesign and Illustrator can be used for creating brilliant creative work. For young artists, the blank canvas can often be pretty terrifying. All that emptiness and possibility can create anxiety, but with some experience and tradecraft, those young artists become seasoned creators who can see the opportunity in that untouched void. That kind of experience comes with a firm command of the tools at their disposal, and no set of digital artistic tools offer more possibility than those in the industry-leading Adobe Creative Cloud. With The Adobe Graphic… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2KtXIux

Social media algorithms, artificial intelligence, and our own genetics are among the factors influencing us beyond our awareness. This raises an ancient question: do we have control over our own lives? This article is part of The Conversation’s series on the science of free will. Many of us believe we are masters of own destiny, but new research is revealing the extent to which our behavior is influenced by our genes. It’s now possible to decipher our individual genetic code, the sequence of 3.2 billion DNA “letters” unique to each of us, that forms a blueprint for our brains and… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2WO00qB

India is a country of many languages and cultures, but you’ll find a few things in all states and religions. Potholes on roads are one of them. No matter where you go in India, you’ll find one or more roads with potholes. While Indians have learned to hone their driving skillsto compensate for rough roads, there are many accidents around the country. According to government data, in 2018, more than 2,000 people died and more than 4,000 succumbed to injuries from accidents caused by potholes in India. Plus, there might be many unreported incidents that might not have come to the fore.… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3nKYMIF

The Beginner’s Guide is a narrative video game with no goals or objectives. Instead, it tells the story of a person whose psyche is slowly unraveling. Along the way, it touches on issues of depression, loneliness, and self-doubt. I remember the very moment where it all fell into place and I no longer saw the person as a character, but someone going through the same emotional struggles as me. It felt as if the game held up a mirror and fundamentally shifted how I perceived myself. I had been harboring this constant need for social validation and the desire to… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/350RJo3

TLDR: Take an extra 15 percent off the already lower prices on 10 of the best earbuds and headphones available this holiday season. The gift shopping is done…or at least, it should be by now. Now, you can just sit back and pleasure shop instead. Before the stores all spin up there after Christmas sales, we thought this would be a good time to add some final holiday price savings on to some of the best earbuds and over-ear headphone models from TNW Deals. In addition to their already discounted prices, you can also save an extra 15 percent off… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3higfph

As the battle against COVID-19 continues to rage, the plight of Britain’s theaters, which have suffered catastrophic financial strain thanks to lockdown, continues to rumble through the arts world. Theaters were forced to close at the end of March and, with few exceptions, have remained closed since. These venues must decide whether reopening when the latest lockdown eases will be viable, thanks to the very real prospect of continuing social distancing measures which make live performance almost impossible. Even after the UK came all too briefly out of lockdown in the summer, ticket sales were limited and profits down. Now,… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3mRFlwq

Only 12 light years from Earth, Tau Ceti is the closest single star similar to the Sun and an all-time favorite in sci-fi stories. Habitable worlds orbiting Tau Ceti were destinations of fictional starships like “The Expanse”‘s Nauvoo and “Barbarella”’s vessel. “Star Trek”’s Captain Picard also frequented an exotic bar in the system. Now, thanks to a new approach to analyzing nearby planetary systems, we have a deeper understanding of the actual worlds that orbit Tau Ceti and many other nearby stars. Exoplanets – worlds around other stars – have long been staples of science fiction but remained mostly inaccessible… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3aHaFf1

As part of a recent weekly update on education during the pandemic, Los Angeles Unified superintendent Austin Beutner announced a “sobering” fact: students are still struggling with the switch to online learning months after in-person classrooms shuttered. “We can see it in attendance figures which are below those typically seen when students are at schools,” Beutner said in the address. “And we can see it in the assessments of progress students are making in their studies. Ten weeks into this semester the portion of students in both middle school and high school receiving D’s and F’s have grown compared to… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3hg6g3X

TLDR: The collection of 10 apps for elevating your efficiency, productivity and professional and personal growth are now all an extra 15 percent off their already discounted price. The Christmas shot clock is almost at zero. At this point, you’re going to be really lucky if even an Amazon gift will get to your appointed destination by Christmas Day. If you’ve still got names on your list that are unchecked — or if you’re always looking for deals to benefit you — here’s an assortment of 10 killer apps that you might not even know you needed. Thankfully, they’re not… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/38EWwfU

This article was originally published by Christopher Carey on Cities Today, the leading news platform on urban mobility and innovation, reaching an international audience of city leaders. For the latest updates follow Cities Today on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, and YouTube, or sign up for Cities Today News. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti has announced the creation of the city’s first Transportation Technology Innovation Zone – an area where private sector firms can test their transportation technology solutions. Designed by Mayor Garcetti and City Councilmember Bob Blumenfield, the zone is one of the flagship programs of Urban Movement Labs (UML) – the transportation solutions… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3hh6BmV

The social media giant would have you believe that Apple’s privacy update will hurt the little guys. But Facebook’s motives aren’t so altruistic. from Ideas Latest https://ift.tt/2KU1UDm

Prioritize people who are immunocompromised for early vaccination. from Ideas Latest https://ift.tt/37LbUI2

This article was originally published on .cult by Hélène Le Gascoin, Hayley Kuhl, and Emma Tracey. .cult is a Berlin-based community platform for developers. We write about all things career-related, make original documentaries and share heaps of other untold developer stories from around the world. The average developer rates their happiness at 61 out of a potential 100 points, compared to the average OECD citizen who rates their happiness at 65. Hard to say if the comparison is fair, given the different data sets, but it suggests developers are not yet prioritizing their happiness. Of course, there are huge variations in how developers evaluate… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2KTJ4ME

Jingle bells, snow, and all that jazz. It’s the holiday season, which only means one thing: binge-watching. As we snuggle up on our trusty ol’ couch and fire up Netflix to drown out the voices of our beloved family, we’re yet again faced with a question that’s plagued us since the dawn of human existence: what the hell should I watch? Searching for the right content, the perfect piece of wondrous cinema for this exact occasion is a tricky endeavor, no matter how good Netflix’s recommendations have become. Also, the thing about recommendations is that we know they only scratch… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/2WIYI0c

This article was originally published by John Faulkner on Clean Fleet Report, a publication that gives its readers the information they need to move to cars and trucks with best fuel economy, including electric cars, fuel cells, plug-in hybrids, hybrids and advanced diesel and gasoline engines. The VIP EV sales experience One thing Lucid Motors knows is its customer. They know this person has means, is accustomed to the finer things, and is not opposed to being recognized for their accomplishments. In other words, treated like a VIP. Lucid takes this to the Nth degree with the buying process for one of… This story continues at The Next Web from The Next Web https://ift.tt/3pozsbZ