Tag: sounds

EU Laws Requiring Audible Warning Sounds For Electric Cars Take Effect July 1

Starting July 1st, electric vehicles with four or more wheels must be fitted with an “Acoustic Vehicle Alert System” (AVAS) if they want to be able to legally drive in the European Union. With AVAS, vehicles would make a continuous noise of at least 56 decibels if the car’s going 20 km/h (12 mph) or slower. New Atlas reports: Designed to…

Word of the week: Ecliptic

The ecliptic is the path the sun takes across our sky. It’s the Earth-sun plane, and, more or less, the plane of our solar system. Stargazing tip: Learn the whereabouts of the ecliptic in your sky. You’ll always find the sun, moon and planets on or near it. Source: https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/definition-ecliptic-what-is-the-ecliptic…

Singapore’s ban on fake news sets a dangerous precedent

As tempting as it sounds, Singapore’s initiative to curb online misinformation could stop public-interest journalism and stifle academic discourse, says Donna Lu Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/mg24232321-300-singapores-ban-on-fake-news-sets-a-dangerous-precedent/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…

New evidence for Pluto’s subsurface ocean

Does Pluto have an ocean? That idea seems preposterous at first, but a new study adds to the growing evidence for a subsurface ocean on this distant dwarf planet … and explains how it stays liquid. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/pluto-subsurface-ocean-methane-gas-hydrate-layer…

Why Play a Music CD? ‘No Ads, No Privacy Terrors, No Algorithms’

Ben Sisario, American author, academic, and journalist who covers the music industry for The New York Times, shares why he still likes to list to compact discs: I try to keep an eye on all the major platforms out there, which means regularly poking around on about a dozen apps. My go-to sources are Spotify, SoundCloud, Bandcamp and Mixcloud, which has…

Scientists have finally worked out what screaming sounds like

Can you tell the difference between a scream and a whistle? Most people consider rough, high-pitched noises a scream – and 70 per cent were tricked by a whistle Source: https://www.newscientist.com/article/2203197-scientists-have-finally-worked-out-what-screaming-sounds-like/?utm_campaign=RSS%7CNSNS&utm_source=NSNS&utm_medium=RSS&utm_content=home…

Amazon Updates Alexa To Guard Your House and Listen For Broken Glass, Smoke Alarm

Amazon is rolling out an update to Alexa that will turn the company’s line of smart home products into home security devices while the user is out. Called “Alexa Guard,” the feature will have your smart speakers listen for key sounds, including breaking glass and smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. If the Echo hears the noise, it will send you an…

Simulating stars’ sounds to reveal their secrets

“A cello sounds like a cello because of its size and shape,” said astronomer Jacqueline Goldstein. “The vibrations of stars also depend on their size and structure.” Source: https://earthsky.org/space/simulating-stars-sounds-to-reveal-their-secrets…

‘I Bought Some Noise-Canceling Headphones. They Don’t Cancel Noise’

“Many are seduced by the idea that they can listen in silence,” complains ZDNet columnist Chris Matyszczyk. “This doesn’t seem to be true,” he writes, describing a typical experience with some $279.95 Beats Studio3 wireless over-ear headphones: I could still hear so much of what was going on beyond the soccer match or movie upon which my headphones were supposed to…