The iconic Empire State Building that has crowned Midtown Manhattan since the early 1930s is now a game changer in American architecture in a different way: by becoming completely powered with renewable energy. The Hill reports: Announced on Wednesday, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) confirmed that it struck a three-year contract with Green Mountain Energy to power its entire commercial real…
Tag: New York State
New evidence for multiple ice ages on Mars
Earth has had at least 5 major ice ages. Now it appears Mars – the next planet outward from the sun – has undergone anywhere from half a dozen to 20 ice ages in the past several hundred million years. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/new-evidence-for-multiple-ice-ages-on-mars…
Millions of Americans Plan to Relocate Thanks to Telework, Survey Finds
NPR reports:
An astonishing 14 million to 23 million Americans intend to relocate to a different city or region as a result of telework, according to a new study released by Upwork, a freelancing platform. The survey was conducted Oct. 1 to 15 among 20,490 Americans 18 and over. The large migration is motivated by people no longer confined to the city…
All Regal and Cineworld Movie Theaters To Close Until Further Notice
Regal Cinemas, a subsidiary of Cineworld Group, said it will shut down all 536 locations on Thursday until further notice. The closure reflects “an increasingly challenging theatrical landscape” due to the COVID-19 pandemic and is temporary, the chain said. NPR reports: Regal is shutting down theaters again less than two months after it started to reopen U.S. locations in late August….
Mars closest to Earth October 6
On October 6, 2020, Earth sweeps closer to the red planet Mars than it will again for another 15 years. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/mars-closest-to-earth-october-6…
Photos of fiery Mars, nearly at its best in 2 years
Photos from the EarthSky community of the bright planet Mars, now nearly at its best. Earth will pass between Mars and the sun – bringing the planet to a once-in-two-years opposition – on October 13, 2020. Source: https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/photos-mars-at-its-best-sep-oct-2020…
‘Landlord Tech Watch’ Site Lets You Report Landlords Using Tech To Screw Over Tenants
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard: A group of activists have released Landlord Tech Watch, a site that allows anyone to report where this “landlord tech” is being used and plot it on a map — like a version of Nextdoor that turns the tables to hold property owners and real estate companies accountable. The project is the effort…
Google Beats Song Lyric Scraping Lawsuit
Genius Media Group was pretty clever when it used digital watermarks to show that Google had been copying its huge collection of song lyrics. One of those watermarks spelled “redhanded” in Morse code. That Google was caught lifting another site’s song lyrics made international news — and even merited a mention during Congress’ Big Tech hearing late last month. But was…
New York Unveils Landmark Antitrust Bill That Makes It Easier To Sue Tech Giants
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: New York state is introducing a bill that would make it easier to sue big tech companies for alleged abuses of their monopoly powers. Bill S8700A, [The Twenty-First Century Anti-Trust Act] now being discussed by New York’s senate consumer protection committee, would update New York’s antiquated antitrust laws for the 21st century,…
Two Cats Are First US Pets To Test Positive For Coronavirus
The first pets in the United States, two cats from New York State, have tested positive for the virus that is causing the worldwide pandemic, the Agriculture Department and the Centers for Disease Control announced Wednesday. The New York Times reports: The cats, from different parts of the state, are showing only mild symptoms and are expected to be fine. Testing…