Geek News

Honda is offering a simple augmented reality demo at the Detroit Auto Show using Microsoft’s HoloLens. It involves strapping on one of the headsets, walking around, and getting into the car, which takes between five to 10 minutes total. And it’s probably the most useful augmented reality demo I’ve had yet. The demo is really just a fancy new way to show off the specs and features of one of Honda’s new cars. HoloLens isn’t exactly comfortable. I also didn’t have my contacts in, which meant I had to squint through the entire experience. But I was taken aback by how accurately the headset placed the floating AR elements in and around the car. Even when I got into the car, the headset made it look like there were colorful lines and arrows... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "http://ift.tt/2DnUFz5"

Until now, Comcast's Xfinity Mobile service has meant buying one of its locked devices. But what if you already have a phone and want to switch? You now have that choice... if you're firmly in Apple's camp. Xfinity Mobile has enabled an in-store Bring Your Own Device option, but only for "select" unlocked iPhone models. Other manufacturers' phones will have to wait until later in 2018. You can receive a gift card if you trade in a phone that doesn't qualify, although that means settling for a locked handset (and likely getting less than your handset is worth). There probably won't be a surge of people signing up -- historically, Americans have tended to buy locked phones on contract. However, this could certainly help if Xfinity Mobile's bundled discounts and by-the-gig rates make sense for you. It could also help fuel the service's reported success by making it easier for people to switch from rival networks. Xfinity is unlikely to toppl...

Researchers have created an algorithm that they claim can find the best location to resettle a refugee in any given country, improving an individual’s chances of getting a job by as much as 70 percent. The algorithm, which has yet to be tested in the real world, is trained on historical data of resettlements. It was created by analyzing biographical information about refugees, including their age, gender, language skills, and country of origin, as well as where they were resettled and whether or not they got a job. For each country, it looks for connections in the data, like what circumstances led to a refugee quickly getting a job? What circumstances led to the opposite? Based on these patterns, it makes its own predictions about where... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "http://ift.tt/2mUvJF1"

Intel's science fairs are pressure cookers: imagine pitting some of the world's brightest students against each other while they're already grappling with teenage anxiety. And now, there's a documentary that illustrates just how rough it can be. Muck Media has released the first trailer for Science Fair , a doc that follows nine high schoolers as they strive for glory at Intel's International Science and Engineering Fair. The students aren't just worrying about their technical accomplishments, although those are notable by themselves (such as calculator that generates Shakespearean insults) -- they also have to deal with their confidence, socio-economic hardships, rivalries and raging hormones. The feature comes from Cristina Costantini and Darren Foster, veteran documentary producers who've worked together on projects like The Naked Truth: Death by Fentanyl . The documentary premieres at the Sundance Film Festival, which starts today (January 18th). T...

Energy Better storage batteries and the framework to support them is key. We're adding more renewable energy to the grid, but we don't yet have the infrastructure in place to capture and transport that clean energy to where it needs to go. via Popular Science "http://ift.tt/2rmUnmi"

In mid-2016, A federal panel had greenlit the University of Pennsylvania to pursue the first trials using CRISPR gene-editing in the US. It seems the institution has quietly gotten the ball rolling and could theoretically start the study at any time: A posting was found on a directory of trials describing a yet-to-be-scheduled UPenn survey using CRISPR techniques to treat cancer patients. The study will collect up to 18 patients with multiple myeloma, melanoma and/or two types of sarcoma. Penn scientists will use CRISPR to delete two particular genes in patients' T cells: The first, PD-1, can be manipulated by cancer cells to impede the immune system, while the second is an alarm-sounding receptor that will be removed and replaced with one engineered to alert the body to specific tumors. The Penn scientists won't be injecting CRISPR directly into patients' bloodstreams; Instead, they'll use a method called ex vivo gene therapy, extracting blood and editing it with...

Facebook has appointed Kenneth Chenault to its board of directors. Chenault has been the CEO of American Express since 2001 and will cap off that 16-year run when he retires as chairman and chief executive at the credit card company on February 1st. He’ll officially join the board a few days later on February 5th. Chenault will become the first non-white member of the social network’s board of directors. The Wall Street Journal has described him as “one of the country’s most prominent African-American corporate leaders.” As Gizmodo notes , COO Sheryl Sandberg told the Congressional Black Caucus in October that Facebook would hire a black board member “in the foreseeable future” in its continued attempts to address Silicon Valley’s need... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "http://ift.tt/2BeyDsK"

Last week, the US House of Representatives voted to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, a law that lets the National Security Agency monitor communications of non-US citizens living outside of the US. Today, the Senate has also voted in favor of renewing the law for another six years. Section 702 is contentious, largely because it's so wide-reaching and doesn't require government agencies to get a warrant before conducting surveillance or searching through already collected communications. Groups like the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the ACLU have spoken out about the law and many have called for more oversight as well as protections for US citizens whose communications might fall under the law's scope. Last year, groups of senators , both Republican and Democrat, attempted to introduce reforms to Section 702 and Senator Rand Paul said at the time, "The American people deserve better from their own government than to have their ...

Korg has been producing a ton of little synths in its Volca series over the last several years. Announced back in 2013 , the initial Volca Beat, Bass and Keys started a run that eventually included an OK Go sample box, an '80s-style FM synth and an oscillator-driven drum sequencer, the Volca Kick . Now the company wants you to be able to chain a few of these tiny devices together for live performance with a new four channel mixer, the Volca Mix , announced at NAMM this year. According to FactMag , the Mix will run $170 and will release later this month. The Volca Mix has two mono inputs and one stereo input, each a handy 1/8-inch size so you'll need fewer adaptors. That gives you three spots to connect Volca units via their individual headphone jacks. Each channel gets its own vertical fader, lo/hi cut filter and mute button to help you create the perfect analog mix on the fly. The Mix has RCA stereo outputs to connect to your sound system as well as a master LED meter to...

Energy And computer scientists are trying to stop them. If hackers can bring down the century-old U.S. electric grid, they would disrupt every sector of the economy. Here's how computer scientists are fighting back… via Popular Science "http://ift.tt/2mNCmbz"

Facebook Messenger users on iOS appear to be encountering a new bug that prevents them from typing more than a few words at a time, according to a report from TechCrunch . Various people have complained on Twitter about the issue. User @brians_books offered the best view of the problem with a screen recording. As seen in the tweet, Brian is only able to type a few words into the message field before the keyboard completely freezes up, preventing him from typing anything else. @messenger your app is totally broken on iOS 11 right now. I can only type 1-2 words. pic.twitter.com/Dx82BJVwEm — Brian's Book Blog (@brians_books) January 18, 2018 The results are almost poetic, with words being scattered across several lines of text, but i... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "http://ift.tt/2mLLFZo"

Weird Nintendo is often the best Nintendo, or so it is said. After all, two of its biggest successes (the Wii and the Switch) are far from ordinary consoles. Now, with a year of huge Switch sales behind it, Nintendo is getting even weirder with Labo -- cardboard accessories that kids can built themselves and use to immerse themselves in a game's world. So far, Nintendo has shown off a mini piano, fishing rod, robot fighting suit, remote-controlled robot walkers ... and what amounts to a cardboard house with your Switch screen built right into the middle. All of these are controlled in some way by the Switch Joy-Cons. It's incredibly unusual and rather inexpensive (the initial sets start at $70), but it's also the kind of thing that only Nintendo would dream up. Of course, the company's imagination sometimes takes it to places that don't work as well (Wii U, Virtual Boy, the list goes on). Many of Engadget's editors had immediate reactions to Nintendo's La...

Korg has announced the prologue, its new flagship analog synthesizer that comes with a full-sized keyboard and will be available in two models: the 16-voice 61-key prologue-16, and the eight-voice 49-key prologue-8. There have been whispers about Korg’s forthcoming synth ever since the company’s VP said on a podcast last October that a new product was coming that “starts with P and contains eight letters.” The prologue is sort of a follow-up to Korg’s Minilogue and Monologue synths that were released in 2015 and 2016, respectively. And although it carries over the clean and accessible interface from this line, it’s entirely more powerful in what it can produce. The prologue is powered by three different sound engines, which Korg says... Continue reading… via The Verge - Tech Posts "http://ift.tt/2Dendqz"

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Pro League has got a new home. Starting February 13th, the beginning of its seventh season, it'll be streamed exclusively on Facebook, along with the ESL One Dota 2 and CS:GO tournament series. ESL , the company behind the tournaments, says that full English and Portuguese coverage will include a "much more advanced" viewing experience than fans are used to, moving beyond stories, clips and select streams, thanks largely to the success of Facebook Watch . ESL has previously had streaming deals with Own3d, Twitch and YouTube, and says its past broadcast successes have given it confidence to explore new platforms for streaming, even if that means losing out in the short term. Speaking to Polygon , ESL's senior vice president of media rights and distribution, Nik Adams said, "We may lose 10 or 15 percent of our audience, but then we grow because we reach a new audience." However, ESL isn't putting all of its eggs in on...

Save 25% on Hob as part of this week's Weekend Deal*! *Offer ends Monday at 10AM Pacific Time via Steam RSS News Feed "http://ift.tt/2mLwmQt"

Save up to 75% off your favorite Dovetail Games franchises and DLC as part of the Dovetail Games Publisher Weekend! via Steam RSS News Feed "http://ift.tt/2mSCG9F"