Eight years after an asteroid exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia, scientists are taking advantage of a flyby of the infamous asteroid Apophis to practice protecting Earth from space rocks. Source: https://www.livescience.com/apophis-2021-flyby-for-planetary-defense-practice.html
Tag: experts
Gwyneth Paltrow’s wacky COVID-19 treatments have no medical justification
Experts said there was no evidence that any of Paltrow’s remedies could help with prolonged symptoms of COVID-19. Source: https://www.livescience.com/gwyneth-paltrow-goop-covid-advice-no-evidence.html
Jamaica’s JamCOVID Pulled Offline After Third Security Lapse Exposed Travelers’ Data
Jamaica’s JamCOVID app and website were taken offline late on Thursday following a third security lapse, which exposed quarantine orders on more than half a million travelers to the island. From a report: JamCOVID was set up last year to help the government process travelers arriving on the island. Quarantine orders are issued by the Jamaican Ministry of Health and instruct…
Astrophysicists design ‘radically different’ world map
You know the old problem of how to portray the round globe of Earth on a flat map? Now a trio of map experts has worked together to solve this problem. Their new map is 2-sided and round. Source: https://earthsky.org/earth/astrophysicists-new-design-world-map…
A Digital Firewall in Myanmar, Built With Guns and Wire Cutters
The Myanmar soldiers descended before dawn on Feb. 1, bearing rifles and wire cutters. At gunpoint, they ordered technicians at telecom operators to switch off the internet. For good measure, the soldiers snipped wires without knowing what they were severing, according to an eyewitness and a person briefed on the events. The New York Times: The data center raids in Yangon…
Hidden ‘madman’ message on ‘The Scream’ traced back to Munch himself
Experts have long debated the identity of the inscriber, with some suggesting a dissatisfied vandalizer is the author, while others pointed fingers at the Norwegian painter himself. Source: https://www.livescience.com/scream-inscription-written-munch-himself.html
Did Facebook Change Its Rules to Placate the Right?
Former lobbyist/political advisor Joel Kaplan joined Facebook in 2011 to lead its Washington D.C. outreach, reports BuzzFeed news. But some employees said they were very unhappy with decisions made by both Kaplan and Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg: In April 2019, Facebook was preparing to ban one of the internet’s most notorious spreaders of misinformation and hate, Infowars founder Alex Jones. Then…
Could Earth’s Reversing Magnetic Poles Accelerate Climate Change?
A team of researchers from Sydney’s University of New South Wales and the South Australian Museum have investigated how the reversal of Earth’s magnetic pole about 42,000 years could have changed earth’s atmosphere. CNN reports: “Using the ancient trees we could measure, and date, the spike in atmospheric radiocarbon levels caused by the collapse of Earth’s magnetic field,” Chris Turney, a…
Who’s Actually To Blame For the Texas Power Disaster?
With millions of Texans still without power in the wake of a winter storm and frigid temperatures, everyone is looking for someone to blame. From a report, shared by a reader: Many Democrats are blaming Gov. Greg Abbott (R) for failing to adequately prepare for the storm. Many conservatives are blaming the environmental movement — insisting that frozen wind turbines show…
SolarWinds Hack Was ‘Largest and Most Sophisticated Attack’ Ever, Microsoft President Says
A hacking campaign that used a U.S. tech company as a springboard to compromise a raft of U.S. government agencies is “the largest and most sophisticated attack the world has ever seen,” Microsoft Corp President Brad Smith said. From a report: The operation, which was identified in December and that the U.S. government has said was likely orchestrated by Russia, breached…