Earth is losing some of its glow, a study published in Geophysical Research Letters last week shows. It appears climate change and a natural climate shift have essentially scuffed up our planet. From a report: The study takes a look at earthshine, or t…
US Presses Crypto Exchanges To Block Ransomware Profits
The Justice Department is creating a new team to investigate and prevent hackers from using cryptocurrency exchanges to remain anonymous while extorting money from victims of their attacks, Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said Wednesday. From a rep…
Cold Case Team Says It Has Identified the Zodiac Killer
A team of more than 40 specialists believes that they have identified the Zodiac Killer, an unnamed serial murderer who operated in the San Fransisco Bay area in the 1960s. From a report: The Case Breakers, a team consisting of former law enforcement i…
How Downdetector Has Become Go-To Site for Online Disruptions
An anonymous reader shares a report: When Facebook’s platforms went down early on Oct. 4, the online tracker Downdetector was among the first places users looked to find out what was happening. Downdetector, which uses crowdsourcing to track outages, r…
Twitch Source Code and Business Data Leaked
An unknown individual has leaked the source code and business data of video streaming platform Twitch via a torrent file posted on the 4chan discussion board earlier today. From a report: The leaker said they shared the data as a response to the recent…
Apple To Face EU Antitrust Charge Over NFC Chip
Apple will be hit with an EU antitrust charge over its NFC chip technology — Reuters reported Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter — a move that puts it at risk of a possible hefty fine and could force it to open its mobile payment syste…
Nobel Prize in Chemistry Awarded To Scientists for Creating a Tool To Build Molecules
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded on Wednesday to Benjamin List and David W.C. MacMillan for their development of a new tool to build molecules, work that has spurred advances in pharmaceutical research and lessened the impact of chemistry on th…
NASA’s ‘Armageddon’-style Asteroid Deflection Mission Takes Off Next Month
NASA has a launch date for that most Hollywood of missions, the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, which is basically a dry run of the movie “Armageddon.” From a report: Unlike the film, this will not involve nukes, oil rigs or Aerosmith, but instead is…
Microsoft Explains How It Keeps PC Makers Happy While Also Competing With Them
The partners that license Windows haven’t always supported Microsoft’s moves to step on their turf with its own tablets and laptops. So how is Microsoft navigating those relationships now? From a report: The CEO of Acer told the Financial Times Microso…
Investors Spent Millions on ‘Evolved Apes’ NFTs. Then They Got Scammed
Evolved Apes is described on NFT marketplace OpenSea as “a collection of 10,000 unique NFTs trapped inside a lawless land.” They are “fighting for survival, only the strongest ape will prevail,” it says, referring to the project’s much-hyped fighting g…