Science and Technology

Wednesday, 08 January 2020 05:39

Scientists develop battery that can keep a smartphone running for 5 days

Scientists have created what they say is the world's most efficient lithium-sulphur battery, capable of providing power to a smartphone for five continuous days. The Australian developers say the battery, which uses low-cost sulphur in its electrodes, could also power an electric vehicle to drive more than 620 miles. The Australian researchers responsible have filed a patent for the technology, which could outperform leading battery manufacturers by more than four times if commercialised. Sulphur has great potential in battery technology due to its high energy density – lithium-sulphur batteries are capable of storing up to 10 times more energy than…

Tuesday, 07 January 2020 05:55

6 hidden Google Maps tricks that’ll help you on your next trip

Mapping out a long trip, or even your daily commute to avoid traffic, is super stressful -- but it becomes even more frustrating when you can't find a parking spot or you lose signal just when a turn is coming up. Fortunately, the Google Maps app for Android and iPhone can remove a bit of the strain from driving with some of its hidden features. You probably know that with the Google Maps app, you can save addresses -- such as work and home -- so with a tap you can get directions to the places you travel to frequently.…

Monday, 06 January 2020 05:47

Delete messages feature for WhatsApp groups to roll out soon

The Delete messages feature will be available for group chats and only accessible to administrators Apparently, the feature will work as 'cleaning tool' for group chats WhatsApp constantly keeps updating its software to include a bevy of features to provide smooth messaging and call experience to its users. Adding to the list, the Facebook-owned messaging app is gradually rolling out the iOS beta version of its much-awaited disappearing messages feature, according to WABetaInfo, a blog that tracks WhatsApp developments. The blog had earlier also spotted the same feature in Android's Beta version. It also confirmed that this feature will be…

Tuesday, 31 December 2019 05:44

This is why DNA tests can’t tell you your race

Many people turn to companies like 23andMe to learn about ancestry and ethnicity, but the genetic connection is far more complicated than the industry lets on. It’s always a mess when Latinx folks take DNA tests. Things go alright, until we get to the “ancestry” portion, which some commercial genetic tests label as “ethnicity.” People who identify as Latinx claim ancestry from all over: indigenous Americans, Spanish colonists, enslaved Africans, Middle Eastern people, miscellaneous Europeans, and even Asians. This can lead to unexpected DNA results. My grandfather is Mexican, but fair-haired and blue-eyed (we sometimes call people who look like…

Friday, 27 December 2019 04:23

If you use Twitter on Android, update your app immediately

If you’ve ever used the Twitter app on an Android device before, you might have received an email over the weekend informing you that “an issue that could have compromised your account” has been fixed. The email that showed up in my inbox suggested that there isn’t any evidence that my account specifically compromised, but recommended that I update to the latest version of Twitter for Android as soon as possible to be safe. The email directed me to a post on the Twitter Privacy Center where the company goes into slightly more detail about the exploit, though the explanation…

Monday, 23 December 2019 06:14

Scientists develop security system that can ‘never’ be hacked

Researchers have developed the world's first 'uncrackable' security system to protect communications against cyber attacks, it has emerged. A team at the University of St Andrews along with international partners are believed to have achieved 'perfect secrecy' with the new technology, which stops the threat of quantum computers being used to hack into data. The proposed new system uses silicon chips that contain complex structures that are irreversibly changed to send information in a one-time key that can never be recreated nor intercepted by an attacker. The information is stored as light, then passed through the silicon chip containing complex…

Saturday, 21 December 2019 04:58

Smartphones are spies. Here’s whom they report to - Stuart A. Thompson and Charlie Warzel

Your smartphone is probably sending your precise location to companies right now. Their job is to turn your shopping trip or doctor’s visit into “Big Data” — another term for corporate intelligence. So far, the companies and individuals profiting from your everyday movements have mostly evaded scrutiny. As Times Opinion continues reporting on a giant trove of mobile phone location data, the companies and people profiting from the privacy invasion are coming into focus. So who, exactly, is watching, and why — and where is all that information going? The Players Google Maps is possibly the most popular location-based app…

Wednesday, 18 December 2019 06:03

Update WhatsApp before someone crashes your app and wipes all your group chats

It’s important to keep all of your software updated on all of your devices, but sometimes updates are so crucial that they deserve a PSA all their own. That’s the case for WhatsApp this week, as security researchers from Check Point (via 9to5Mac) claim that a significant security flaw has been discovered in both the iOSand Android versions of the popular chat app. If exploited, the flaw can permanently crash your app until you reinstall it. Here’s the full explanation of the WhatsApp security flaw from Check Point Research: The defect would have enabled a bad actor to deliver a…

Thursday, 12 December 2019 05:34

WhatsApp now gets call waiting

Facebook-owned WhatsApp has become the latest Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) service provider to support call waiting features even as the company has skipped adding call holding for now. When you’re already talking on the mobile phone and another person tries to call you, most phones and operators let you know that you’ve got a call waiting. Very few VOIP services support that, though, and WhatsApp wasn’t among them until now, Android Police reported on Friday. Earlier, when somebody would try to call you on WhatsApp while you were already on the phone, they would hear it ring, but, no…

Wednesday, 11 December 2019 05:45

New airplane seat design will make it easier to sleep in economy

Who hasn't struggled to sleep on an airplane economy seat, forced to improvise a makeshift pillow out of a rolled up sweater or scarf? A new seat design comes with an innovative solution to this inflight issue, using "padded wings" that fold out from behind both sides of the seat back -- allowing both for additional privacy and a cushioned spot to rest heads for some shut-eye. This new idea from Universal Movement, a spin-off from London-based design company New Territory, is called "Interspace." It premiered in London this week as part of the Aircraft Cabin Innovation summit 2019. CNN…

More...

Tuesday, 10 December 2019 05:26

China moves to ban foreign software and hardware from state offices

China has reportedly ordered all foreign PC hardware and operating systems to be replaced in the next three years, intensifying an ongoing tech war. The country has attempted this sort of thing before halfheartedly, but this is the most serious effort yet to isolate itself from the influence of the western technology sector. The order came from high up in the Chinese government earlier this year, according to a Financial Times report citing Chinese tech analysts. The goal is not simply to replace American and European software and operating systems with Chinese equivalents, but the hardware they run on as…

Monday, 09 December 2019 05:49

Police are testing a Batman-like device that binds a suspect without using force. Here's how it works

Los Angeles police officers will test a new gun-like device designed to restrain people beginning January, police department leaders informed the city's board of police commissioners last week, according to the LA Times. The Bola Wrap, which fires a cord to wrap around a person and restrict their movement, has been marketed by Las Vegas-based Wrap Technologies as a way to allow officers to act without using force, Critics have pushed back at this notion, concerned that it will be deployed mostly in minority communities. Here's how the device works. Police around the country have begun using a new tool…

Tuesday, 03 December 2019 06:31

WhatsApp secrets: The one hidden feature every Android and iPhone user should know

Did you know WhatsApp has a menu that lets you see exactly how many text messages, GIFs, stickers and more you’ve sent each and every one of your contacts? Well, you do now. Here’s how to load up this hidden feature. Eager to see who you spend the most time chatting to? Open up WhatsApp and head to the settings menu – the iPhone app has a tab at the bottom dedicated to settings while Android users will need to press the three small buttons at the top right-hand corner of the chat menu to load it up. From there,…

Monday, 02 December 2019 04:34

Why it's time to redesign the old air conditioner

The air conditioner is nearly 100 years old, and yet it hasn't evolved much -- the technology is essentially the same as it was the day it was invented. It has, however, changed our lives, making it possible for humans to thrive in places where heat would otherwise make life unbearable. Air conditioning is also essential to businesses and technologies that rely on controlled temperatures and humidity, such as the very internet servers that are sending this story to your device. But this all comes at a cost: The cooling of our air is responsible for 10% of the planet's…

Page 33 of 38

Science and Technology

More...

Search

Most Read

News

Business

Politics

Opinion

Features

Strangely

Crime

Wars

SCIENCE & TECH

SPECIAL REPORTS

Sports

VIDEOS