Why Do Printers Still Suck?

Just when we need them the most, with print shops locked down, online schooling in session, and everyone working from home, they fail to step up. From a column: Printers have been my enemy ever since I can remember. My first office job involved an evil printer that suffered daily paper jams. Tasked with fixing it, I suffered frequent burns and…

The Forklift Truck Drivers Who Never Leave Their Desks

Forklift operators are using remote-control technology that allows them to work off-site, controlling their machines from afar. The BBC reports: [A]s Covid-19 spreads easily, the warehouses dotted along the world’s supply chains have become potential hubs of disease transmission, says Elliot Katz, co-founder of Phantom Auto. Phantom Auto’s technology is now installed in around a dozen warehouses in the US and…

Split-Second ‘Phantom’ Images Can Fool Tesla’s Autopilot

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Wired: Researchers at Israel’s Ben Gurion University of the Negev have spent the last two years experimenting with “phantom” images to trick semi-autonomous driving systems. They previously revealed that they could use split-second light projections on roads to successfully trick Tesla’s driver-assistance systems into automatically stopping without warning when its camera sees spoofed images…

What’s the birthstone for October?

If you were born in October, your birth month has 2 birthstones: opal and tourmaline. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/october-birthstone-opal-tourmaline…

Last Fall a Drone Swarm Surveilled America’s Largest Nuclear Reactor — Twice

America’s Nuclear Regulatory Commission honored a document request from a UFO group — which has inadvertently revealed a very real incident last fall at America’s largest nuclear reactor in Arizona, reports Forbes: Documents gained under the Freedom of Information Act show how a number of small drones flew around a restricted area at Palo Verde Nuclear Power Plant on two successive…

Eye-Catching Advances in Some AI Fields Are Not Real

silverjacket writes: A story in this week’s issue of Science. Artificial intelligence (AI) just seems to get smarter and smarter. Each iPhone learns your face, voice, and habits better than the last, and the threats AI poses to privacy and jobs continue to grow. The surge reflects faster chips, more data, and better algorithms. But some of the improvement comes from…

Secretive Surveillance Company Is Selling Cops Cameras Hidden In Gravestones

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Motherboard: A surveillance vendor that works with U.S. government agencies, such as the FBI, DEA, and ICE, is marketing spying capabilities to local police departments, including cameras that are hidden inside a tombstone, a baby car seat, and a vacuum cleaner. The brochure highlights some of the capabilities on offer to law enforcement agencies,…

Why Is ‘Rise of Skywalker’ Dividing Critics and Fans?

“After opening 20 percent behind Star Wars: The Last Jedi last weekend, Skywalker has almost caught up with its predecessor as it heads for the $1 billion mark in a fitting end to Disney’s unprecedented domination at the 2019 box office,” writes the Hollywood Reporter. But Forbes senior contributor Paul Tassi notes that critics seem to hate it — while it’s…

10 Days Early, Star Wars Fans Started Camping Outside Its Premiere

Anticipating next week’s release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, 20 fans are already camping out in front of Hollywood’s TCL Chinese Theatre, reports Cinema Blend: The tight-knit group of fans have brought along their sleeping bags, tents and Star Wars pajamas to the location for 20 years (since 1999’s The Phantom Menace) to get ready for the release of…

10 Days Early, Star Wars Fans Started Camping Outside ‘Rise of Skywalker’ Premiere

Anticipating next week’s release of Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, 20 fans are already camping out in front of Hollywood’s TCL Chinese Theatre, reports Cinema Blend: The tight-knit group of fans have brought along their sleeping bags, tents and Star Wars pajamas to the location for 20 years (since 1999’s The Phantom Menace) to get ready for the release of…