Rocket Lab has unveiled plans for a larger rocket that can carry bigger payloads than its current reusable trooper, the Electron. It’s called the Neutron and will be capable of carrying 8 metric tons to low-Earth orbit compared to the Electron’s 660 lbs capacity. Engadget reports: The Neutron will also have a fully reusable first stage that can land on an…
Tag: Rural Areas
FAA Approves Fully Automated Commercial Drone Flights
A Massachusetts company has been granted approval to operate commercial drone flights without a person directing the machine and keeping it in sight. It’s the first time that the Federal Aviation Administration has allowed fully automated commercial drone flights. ABC News reports: American Robotics Inc. touted the advantage of its machines as being able to operate continuously without “expensive human labor.”…
Verily’s COVID Testing Program Halted in San Francisco and Oakland
Amid fanfare in March, California officials celebrated the launch of a multimillion-dollar contract with Verily — Google’s health-focused sister company — that they said would vastly expand COVID testing among the state’s impoverished and underserved communities. But seven months later, San Francisco and Alameda counties — two of the state’s most populous — have severed ties with the company’s testing sites…
Faith in Government Declines When Mobile Internet Arrives
An anonymous reader shares a report: The early days of the internet were full of predictions about access to information unleashing a wave of democratisation. More recently, views on the internet’s impact have soured, as states use it to spy on dissidents and influence foreign elections. Opinions on this topic are abundant, but hard data are scarce. No one knows whether…
AT&T Finally Stops Selling DSL
“One of America’s largest internet providers is uploading its oldest broadband technology into the sunset,” reports USA Today, complaining that AT&T will be leaving some future customers without any choices for wired broadband. “We’re beginning to phase out outdated services like DSL and new orders for the service will no longer be supported after October 1,” a corporate statement sent beforehand…
In India, Engineers and MBAs Are Turning To Manual Labor To Survive the Economic Crash
As India’s economy reels in the aftermath of one of the world’s strictest lockdowns, a rural employment program has emerged as a lifeline for some of the tens of millions left jobless. From a report: The government program — which aims to guarantee 100 days of unskilled work in rural areas — was intended to combat poverty and reduce the volatility…
Children Raised In Greener Areas Have Higher IQ, Study Finds
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Guardian: Growing up in a greener urban environment boosts children’s intelligence and lowers levels of difficult behavior, a study has found. The analysis of more than 600 children aged 10-15 showed a 3% increase in the greenness of their neighborhood raised their IQ score by an average of 2.6 points. The effect was…
Bridgefy, the Messenger Promoted For Mass Protests, Is a Privacy Disaster
Bridgefy, a popular messaging app for conversing with one another when internet connections are heavily congested or completely shut down, is a privacy disaster that can allow moderately-skilled hackers to take a host of nefarious actions against users, according to a paper published on Monday. The findings come after the company has for months touted the app as a safe and…
Leaked SpaceX Starlink Speedtests Reveal Download Speeds of 11 to 60Mbps
Some leaked speedtests from beta users of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite-broadband service “aren’t showing the gigabit speeds SpaceX teased,” writes Ars Technica, “but it’s early.” Long-time Slashdot reader AmiMoJo shared their report:
Beta users of SpaceX’s Starlink satellite-broadband service are getting download speeds ranging from 11Mbps to 60Mbps, according to tests conducted using Ookla’s speedtest.net tool. Speed tests showed upload speeds ranging from…
Stanford Economist Predicts Working-From-Home Continues, City Centers Decline
The new “working-from-home economy” will likely continue after the pandemic, predicts Stanford economist Nicholas Bloom, in an article shared by Slashdot reader schwit1. Bloom cites results from several nationwide surveys he’s conducted: We see an incredible 42 percent of the U.S. labor force now working from home full-time. About another 33 percent are not working — a testament to the savage…