Since landing on Mars on February 18, NASA’s Perseverance rover has sent back some amazing images from around its landing site, Jezero Crater, a 30-mile wide impact depression just north of the Red Planet’s equator. BBC shares a selection of the pictures sent from the mission, “as Perseverance hunts for signs of past microbial life, seeks to characterize the planet’s geology…
Tag: bbc
Vast Energy Use of Bitcoin Criticized
The University of Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance has calculated that Bitcoin’s total energy consumption is somewhere between 40 and 445 terawatt hours (TWh) a year, with a central estimate of about 130 terawatt hours, reports the BBC: The UK’s electricity consumption is a little over 300 TWh a year, while Argentina uses around the same amount of power as the…
America Authorizes Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 Vaccine For Emergency Use
America’s Food and Drug Administration just authorized Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, according to CBS News. “The vaccine is the third to be approved for use in the United States, and the first that requires only one shot…” Among people who got the vaccine in clinical trials, there were no COVID-related deaths. Phase 3 clinical trials also showed…
Amazon Rainforest Plots Sold via Facebook Marketplace Ads
Parts of Brazil’s Amazon rainforest are being illegally sold on Facebook, the BBC is reporting. From the report: The protected areas include national forests and land reserved for indigenous peoples. Some of the plots listed via Facebook’s classified ads service are as large as 1,000 football pitches. Facebook said it was “ready to work with local authorities”, but indicated it would…
US Says Saudi Prince Approved Journalist Khashoggi Killing
A US intelligence report has found that Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman approved the murder of exiled journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. BBC: The declassified report released by the Biden administration says the prince approved a plan to either capture or kill the US-based Saudi exile. It is the first time America has publicly named the crown prince, who denies…
Martin Scorsese Argues Streaming Algorithms Devalue Cinema into ‘Content’
In a new essay for Harper’s magazine, Martin Scorsese argues the art of cinema is being systematically devalued and demeaned by streaming services and their algorithms, “and reduced to its lowest common denominator, ‘content.'” “Content” became a business term for all moving images: a David Lean movie, a cat video, a Super Bowl commercial, a superhero sequel, a series episode. It…
How the Ozone Layer Was ‘Rescued’ From a Spike in CFC
Thelasko shared this report from the BBC: A steady decline in the levels of ozone-harming CFC chemicals in the atmosphere has resumed, scientists say. This follows a recent, dangerous pause in that downward trajectory, which could have slowed the healing of Earth’s protective ozone layer. Atmospheric measurements published in 2018 pointed to illegal CFC production that was occurring in Eastern China….
Saturday’s strong earthquake in Japan called ‘aftershock’ of deadly 2011 quake
No fatalities have been reported in the February 13, 2021 strong earthquake in Japan, which occurred off Japan’s east coast, near the epicenter of the 2011 9.0-magnitude Tohoku earthquake. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/feb-13-2021-7-magnitude-quake-japan-aftershock-2011…
AI Is Being Used to Screen Job Applicants
The BBC reports on “the computers rejecting your job application,” noting that applicants are now being screened with AI-scored tests that involve counting dots in boxes and matching emotions to facial expressions: The questions, and your answers to them, are designed to evaluate several aspects of a jobseeker’s personality and intelligence, such as your risk tolerance and how quickly you respond…
Coca-Cola Begins Testing a Paper Bottle
“Coca-Cola is to test a paper bottle as part of a longer-term bid to eliminate plastic from its packaging entirely,” reports the BBC: The prototype is made by a Danish company from an extra-strong paper shell that still contains a thin plastic liner. But the goal is to create a 100% recyclable, plastic-free bottle capable of preventing gas escaping from carbonated…