Twitter’s Misinformation-Fighting Tool ‘Birdwatch’ Makes Mistakes

The Poynter Institute for Media Studies, a non-profit journalism school and research organization, analyzed Twitter’s 1,000-user pilot test of its Birdwatch fact-checking platform. Their conclusion? It makes mistakes. On February 5, Twitter flagged a post from controversial YouTuber Tim Pool that said the 2020 U.S. presidential election was rigged. The platform noted that the claim was disputed and turned off engagement…

Science explains why we kiss

Why does kissing feel good? Watch this video to learn why humans are drawn to puckering up. Source: https://earthsky.org/human-world/video-the-science-of-kissing…

Customized Apple-Themed Game Boy Color Doubles As An Apple TV Remote

Italian YouTuber Otto Climan modded an original Game Boy Color handheld to act as an Apple TV remote. Gizmodo reports: Otto Climan started with an original Game Boy Color handheld that they upgraded with a backlit LCD display because the GBC arrived well before Nintendo stopped using dim screens that strained your eyes. For the custom white case adorned with Apple’s…

Amateur astronomer Alberto Caballero finds possible source of Wow! signal

Amateur astronomer and YouTuber Alberto Caballero, one of the founders of The Exoplanets Channel, has found a small amount of evidence for a source of the notorious Wow! signal. In his paper uploaded to the arXiv preprint server, Caballero describes searching the Gaia database for possible sun-like stars that might host an exoplanet capable of supporting intelligent life. Source: https://phys.org/news/2020-11-amateur-astronomer-alberto-caballero-source.html…

‘I’m Not Drunk, It’s My Car.’ Tesla’s ‘Full Self-Driving’ Gets Mixed Reviews

CNN describes the reactions posted online by six beta testers of Tesla’s “full self-driving” software, saying they “appear to be both delighted and alarmed by what they’ve experienced so far.” “Turn left. Come on. What are you doing?” said one frustrated Tesla owner as his car appeared slow to change lanes during a trip he posted on YouTube last week. “I…

‘youtube-dl’ Downloading Software Removed From GitHub By RIAA Takedown Notice

Jahta writes: The GitHub repository for the popular youtube-dl utility is offline after GitHub received a DMCA takedown notice from the RIAA. The notice claims that “The clear purpose of this source code is to (i) circumvent the technological protection measures used by authorized streaming services such as YouTube, and (ii) reproduce and distribute music videos and sound recordings owned by…

Is QAnon an 8Chan Game Gone Wrong?

This week London’s prestigious Financial Times published a 15-minute video investigating the question: “Is QAnon a game gone wrong?” In 2017, the Q team, whoever they may be, made use of the modern equivalent of the Playboy’s letters page. It’s a message board called 4Chan… A YouTuber called defango has since claimed the work was his. He says he created Q…

YouTube Criticized For Ending Its Community Captions Feature

Long-time Slashdot reader xonen quotes the Verge:
YouTube plans to discontinue its community captions feature, which allowed viewers to add subtitles to videos, because it was “rarely used and had problems with spam/abuse,” the company announced. It says it’s removing the captions and will “focus on other creator tools.” The feature will be removed as of September 28th. “You can still use…

Unsubscribe: The $0-Budget Movie That ‘Topped the US Box Office’

An anonymous reader shares a report: In normal times, blockbuster movies usually dominate the box office charts. The big-budget productions, directed by the likes of James Cameron, Steven Spielberg and Ridley Scott, regularly draw the biggest crowds at cinemas across the US and beyond. But on 10 June, one box office-topping movie was watched by just two people, in one cinema….

Court Fines YouTuber For Posting IPTV Piracy Tutorials

An anonymous reader quotes a report from TorrentFreak: Operated by Bruno Gustavo Januario, the ‘Jorge Dejorge’ channel is packed with technology-focused videos offering reviews, unboxing videos, tips and tutorials, most of which are entirely non-problematic. However, a decision to publish advice on how to obtain TV channels via pirate IPTV services attracted the attention of ABTA, the powerful Brazilian Pay TV…