Innholdsfortegnelse for #285 i Techlife News

Google will expand the use of “fact check” tags in its search results - the tech industry’s latest effort to combat false and misleading news stories. People who search for a topic in Google’s main search engine or the Google News section will see a conclusion such as “mostly true” or “false” next to stories that have been fact checked. Google has been working with more than 100 news organizations and fact-checking groups, including The Associated Press, the BBC and NPR. Their conclusions will appear in search results as long as they meet certain formatting criteria for automation. Google said only a few of those organizations, including PolitiFact and Snopes.com, have already met those requirements; The Washington Post also says it complies. Google said it expects the ranks of compliant organizations to…

Rick Maynard found the manila envelope containing letters from the battlefields of World War I while he and his sister were cleaning out the basement after their father’s death. The more than three dozen letters were written, some in pencil, by Paul Maynard, Rick’s great-uncle. “He was on the front lines,” said Rick Maynard, the parks and recreation director for the town of Guilford. “In one of the letters to his mother, he said he had not slept in 10 days. I can’t imagine it. I can’t fathom that.” Soon, letters such as those from 21-year-old Paul Maynard, who died in 1918 during the last day of battle, will be available for anyone to read, thanks to a project spearheaded by the Connecticut State Library to help mark the 100th…

The CIA’s cyberespionage toolkit made public by WikiLeaks has been linked to 40 spying operations in 16 countries, an early public assessment of the intelligence agency’s global hacking operations, computer security company Symantec said Monday. In a blog post published, the California-based Symantec Corp. said the tools in WikiLeaks’ recent releases have been linked to the electronic infiltration of international, financial, energy and aerospace organizations across the world. Like many security firms, Symantec draws on data supplied by its clients. Researcher Dick O’Brien declined to provide further details, saying might prompt speculation as to the identity of the people or organizations involved. “I will say, in terms of the regions, the largest region represented in terms of those targets was the Middle East,” O’Brien said in a telephone interview. The…

Typically, Apple won’t publicly launch into extensive detail about any upcoming products until those products are on the verge of shipping. However, the company recently broke from this playbook for a meeting with a small number of reporters - in Apple’s Product Realization Lab for the Mac, too - with whom the subject of the Mac’s future was brought up. The message that the press walked away with was clear: Apple is committed to giving the Mac a bright future for professional users. THE MAC IS CLEARLY FLOURISHING TechCrunch paints a vivid picture of  Apple’s Mac PRL, as the facility is dubbed in abbreviation. Reporter Matthew Panzarino details the “display of Macs from many eras of Apple”, including the “solid chunk of aluminum mocking up the slim 12-inch MacBook” and…

Uber is scoffing at claims that its expansion into self-driving cars hinges on trade secrets stolen from a Google spinoff, arguing that its ride-hailing service has been working on potentially superior technology. The legal defense, presented in documents filed last week in San Francisco federal court, marks Uber’s first detailed response to explosive allegations that its self-driving cars rely on crucial technology designed by Waymo. That company was created from an autonomous-vehicle project started at Google eight years ago. Once a Google ally, Uber emerged as a rival in the self-driving car market in early 2015 when it began developing its own fleet of autonomous vehicles. Now, Waymo is trying to thwart that effort by persuading U.S. District Judge William Alsup to block Uber’s self-car driving expansion on the grounds…

BlackBerry Ltd. says it has been awarded $814.9 million in a binding interim arbitration decision in a dispute with Qualcomm Inc. over royalty overpayments. The two companies agreed last year to arbitrate a disagreement regarding whether Qualcomm’s agreement to cap certain royalties applied to payments made by BlackBerry under a license agreement. BlackBerry chief executive John Chen said Wednesday in a statement the two companies have a longstanding relationship and continue to be valued partners. BlackBerry says a final award including interest and reasonable legal fees will be issued after a hearing on May 30. Qualcomm says while it does not agree with the decision, it is binding and not appealable. The San Diego-based chip maker says the decision is limited to provisions unique to BlackBerry’s license agreement with Qualcomm.…

“The Boss Baby” continued to dominate the box office in its second weekend in theaters, adding $26.4 million to take the top spot. The animated flick featuring the voice of Alec Baldwin has earned $89.4 million from North American theaters to date. It effectively took the family business away from new opener “Smurfs: The Lost Village,” which debuted to a dismal $13.2 million in third place, behind Disney’s juggernaut “Beauty and the Beast,” which has now grossed $430.9 million domestically. Not too far behind the third “Smurfs” movie was the Warner Bros. heist comedy “Going in Style” starring Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Alan Arkin. “Going in Style” earned $11.9 million in its first weekend in theaters. Paramount’s beleaguered “Ghost in the Shell” rounded out the top five with $7.3…

Jude Law will play young Albus Dumbledore in the next “Fantastic Beasts” installment. Warner Bros. announced the casting Tuesday. The iconic wizard was played by two actors in the “Harry Potter” films, beginning with Richard Harris. After his death in 2002, Michael Gambon inherited the role. J.K. Rowling, who has said Dumbledore is gay, has previously teased that the five-part prequel franchise of “Fantastic Beasts” will explore a more “troubled” time in Dumbledore’s life. The author said, “We’ll see him at that formative period of his life. As far as his sexuality is concerned, watch this space.” Production on the next “Fantastic Beasts” film is to begin this summer, with a release scheduled for November next year. Last year’s “Fantastic Beasts” grossed $813M worldwide.…

California met its goal to produce about half the state’s electricity from renewable sources for three hours on March 11, a new estimate from the U.S. government shows. The U.S. Department of Energy’s statistics division used data from the California Independent System Operator, which manages the electricity grid across 80 percent of California and part of Nevada, The San Francisco Chronicle reported (http://bit.ly/2nAQZST). The record was set when almost 40 percent of the electricity flowing across the grid came from large-scale solar power plants. Factor in electricity produced by area homes and businesses, and solar met about half the overall electricity demand in the middle of the day. Although the surge in renewable power is a key part of California’s fight against climate change, it creates its own set of…

A judge denied bail this week to a Canadian man accused in a massive hack of Yahoo emails, arguing he had the means and incentive to flee. Karim Baratov, 22, has alleged ties to Russian agents and access to significant amounts of cash, making him a serious flight risk if freed on bail, a prosecutor said. Baratov was arrested last month and faces extradition to the U.S. He was indicted in the United States for computer hacking along with three other people, including two alleged Russian intelligence agents. Justice Alan Whitten denied bail in a written decision, saying Baratov appeared to be highly skilled at hacking and calling the U.S. case extremely strong. “Baratov is a flight risk. He could instantaneously access the funds,” the judge wrote. “He can ply…

A surge in the global use of lithium, a key component in electric batteries, is leading to the revival of a centuries-long mining tradition in the Czech Republic’s Ore Mountains. Demand for the light metal, which is already used in smartphone batteries, is expected to triple in the next decade as it is used in far greater quantities in electric cars and electric storage systems. With major car manufacturers increasingly focused on electric cars, Goldman Sachs calls lithium “the new gasoline.” Others say it’s the oil of the future. Tesla Motors for one thinks it’s worth betting on. Its CEO, Elon Musk, has plans to build a “gigafactory” to produce lithium-ion batteries somewhere in Europe, on top of the $5 billion plant it’s setting up in Nevada. The potential of…

U.S. authorities announced this week they are working to dismantle a global computer network that sent hundreds of millions of spam emails worldwide each year. The Russian man alleged to be at the head of the scheme was arrested Friday in Spain. The U.S. Justice Department said it was working to take down the sprawling Kelihos botnet, which at times was made up of more than 100,000 compromised computers that sent phony emails advertising counterfeit drugs and work-at-home scams, harvested users’ logins and installed malware that intercepted their bank account passwords. Controlling the vast network since 2010 was Pyotr Levashov, a 36-year-old described in U.S. court documents made public as “one of the world’s most notorious criminal spammers.” Levashov’s arrest in Barcelona on Friday, following a joint U.S.-Spanish operation, set…

The long-suffering personal computer market may be finally recovering from the damage inflicted by the shift to smartphones and tablets, according to a report released this week. PC shipments in the first quarter rose by about 1 percent from last year, based on calculations from the research firm International Data Corp. The modest gain marks the first quarterly increase in five years, a stretch that has seen people increasingly turn to mobile devices for their computing needs. Another breakdown released by Gartner Inc. painted a gloomier picture. That research firm estimated PC shipments fell by 2 percent in the first quarter. The rival reports measure the market in different ways, accounting for their contrasting conclusions. Both IDC and Gartner concurred on this point: About the only signs of life are…

A secretive group that published a trove of hacking tools allegedly used by U.S. spies has released a password that it says can unlock related files. In a Medium post , the “Shadow Brokers” group revealed a password to files associated with the leaked toolkit, purportedly from the U.S. National Security Agency . Some security experts tweeted that the password works, but that couldn’t be independently verified. An October leak by the group included information that experts said might identify computers used to obscure U.S. electronic eavesdropping. The group’s post also included a discursive rant against President Donald Trump, including criticism of the recent U.S. airstrike on a Syrian air base, Trump’s attacks on some congressional Republicans and his decision to remove adviser Stephen Bannon from the National Security Council.…

Uber’s head of communications is leaving, the latest in a string of executive departures as the ride-hailing company tries to dig out from a pile of troubles. In a memo to employees, CEO Travis Kalanick called Rachel Whetstone a “force of nature” who was “was way ahead of the game when it came to many of the changes we needed to make as a company.” Uber is facing accusations of routinely tolerated sexism and sexual harassment in the workplace, as well as troubles for Kalanick after a video surfaced showing him berating a driver. The company is hiring a chief operating officer to help him manage the company. Uber has also hired former Attorney General Eric Holder to lead an investigation into the sexism allegations. Whetstone, who joined Uber in…

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story The Galactic Empire opts to detain Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) for her renegade ways against them before the Rebel Alliance rescues her. She goes on to assist the Alliance in their endeavours to foil the Empire by stealing the plans of its ultimate destructive weapon, the Death Star. She is helped by characters including father Galen Erso (Mads Mikkelsen) and Saw Gerrera (Forest Whitaker). FIVE FACTS: 1. The idea for the movie was pitched by Star Wars prequel trilogy visual effects supervisor John Kroll a decade before development began. 2. The events of Rogue One take place immediately before those of A New Hope, as the original Star Wars film was renamed after its 1977 debut. 3. In 2014, Rogue One lead actress Felicity…

“The Fast and the Furious” hasn’t become a billion-dollar global franchise because of its scintillating dialogue and high-minded drama. It’s all about the cars, the action, the international settings and the good-looking cast. So don’t give too much thought to the story holes and convoluted plot in “The Fate of the Furious ,” the eighth installment in the saga. If things don’t add up or characters killed off in previous films suddenly re-emerge, just go with it, knowing that it’s leading up to an epic final chase across a remote Russian ice field between sports cars, Humvees and a nuclear submarine. Suspension of disbelief is required for these films. Remember in “Furious 7” when parachute-equipped cars fell from a cargo plane and the drivers were shown “steering” the airborne vehicles?…

Christian Bale said Wednesday he will play Dick Cheney in Adam McKay’s upcoming biopic of the former vice president. Bale was last week reported as being in talks to join the film that will reteam him with McKay following 2015’s Oscar-nominated “The Big Short.”The Oscar winner confirmed he has signed up to star in the untitled film in an interview with The Associated Press. “In the same way as it was a journey of discovery with ‘The Big Short,’ Adam was able to take a story that most people would go comatose listening to,” said Bale of the script penned by McKay. “His ability to make it startling and entertaining and intelligent without compromising anything - he’s masterful at doing that.” The film is also to star Steve Carell (who…

Toyota is introducing a wearable robotic leg brace designed to help partially paralyzed people walk. The Welwalk WW-1000 system is made up of a motorized mechanical frame that fits on a person’s leg from the knee down. The patients can practice walking wearing the robotic device on a special treadmill that can support their weight. Toyota Motor Corp. demonstrated the equipment for reporters at its Tokyo headquarters on Wednesday. One hundred such systems will be rented to medical facilities in Japan later this year, Toyota said. The service entails a one-time initial charge of 1 million yen ($9,000) and a 350,000 yen ($3,200) monthly fee. The gadget is designed to be worn on one leg at a time for patients severely paralyzed on one side of the body due to…

Shares in British-headquartered Dialog Semiconductor plunged on Tuesday after an analyst downgrade that cited uncertainty over the future of its relationship with Apple. Shares in the firm were down 14.6 percent to 40.80 euros ($43.19) in late trading in Frankfurt, where Dialog Semiconductor is listed. They regained some ground after earlier dropping as low as 30.60 euros. The selling followed an analyst note from Bankhaus Lampe that downgraded Dialog to “sell.” It said there appeared to be “strong evidence” that Apple is developing its own power management chip for the iPhone and “intends to replace the chip made by Dialog at least in part.” Dialog later issued a statement in which it said it “knows of no business reason” for the movement in its share price and that its “business…

Google said it’s “taken aback “ by the government’s claim that it doesn’t compensate women fairly. The company said it conducts “rigorous analyses” that its pay practices are gender-blind and found “no gender pay gap” in 52 major job categories it analyzed last year. Google added that analysts who calculate suggested pay don’t have access to employees’ gender data. Google also said that beyond gender pay equity, the company recently expanded the analysis to cover race in the U.S. as well. The U.S. Department of Labor had accused Google of shortchanging women doing similar work to men, saying it found “systemic compensation disparities” across the company’s workforce. Google responded in a blog post Tuesday that the department’s assertion “came without any supporting data or methodology.”The company said it had already…

Hydrogen fuel cell cars could one day challenge electric cars in the race for pollution-free roads - but only if more stations are built to fuel them. Honda, Toyota and Hyundai have leased a few hundred fuel cell vehicles over the past three years, and expect to lease well over 1,000 this year. But for now, those leases are limited to California, which is home to most of the 34 public hydrogen fueling stations in the U.S. Undaunted, automakers are investing heavily in the technology. General Motors recently supplied the U.S. Army with a fuel cell pickup, and GM and Honda are collaborating on a fuel cell system due out by 2020. Hyundai will introduce a longer-range fuel cell SUV next year. “We’ve clearly left the science project stage and…

Toshiba Corp., whose U.S. nuclear unit Westinghouse Electric Co. has filed for bankruptcy protection, raised doubts Tuesday about its ability to survive as a company. In an unaudited financial report, Toshiba projected a 1.01 trillion yen ($9.2 billion) loss for the fiscal year that ended in March, a figure that ballooned from the 390 billion yen loss forecast in February because of the troubles at Westinghouse . Four nuclear reactors Westinghouse is helping to build in South Carolina and Georgia are behind schedule and billions of dollars over budget. Toshiba said its recent financial losses have reduced its assets, resulting in downgrades by credit rating agencies and a breach in the terms of some loans. In addition, the Tokyo company said it counts on a special construction business license from…

Look out, Corporate America. Customers armed with smartphones and video cameras are watching when you screw up. The viral video of a ticketed passenger dragged forcefully off a United flight is only the latest example of bad behavior exposed in the age of social media. In February, Uber came under fire after a driver posted video of CEO Travis Kalanick berating him. Earlier, a Comcast technician was shown in a video sleeping on a customer’s couch, and an audio recording chronicled one man’s herculean efforts to drop Comcast service; they are among the embarrassing customer complaints that ultimately forced improvements . FedEx had to respond after video showed a driver carelessly throwing a package with a computer monitor over the front gate. Beyond the corporate sphere, smartphone videos of police…

Burger King’s latest ad stunt is resulting in some less-than-flattering descriptions of its Whopper sandwich. The hamburger chain unveiled a 15-second ad Wednesday designed to trigger Google Home devices into reciting the definition of a Whopper, pulled from the website Wikipedia. But the website can be edited by users, and the definition had been changed to insert “cyanide” as an ingredient in one version. Another user later changed the definition to say the Whopper is “the worst hamburger product” sold by the chain. Burger King, owned by Restaurant Brands International, says it is not behind the negative edits and that it has been trying to change the definition back to one that it was hoping to promote. As of late Wednesday afternoon, the Wikipedia entry included a lengthy description that…

Hopeless Romantic Michelle Branch 14 years after her Grammy-nominated second studio album as a solo artist, Hotel Paper, pop-rock songbird Michelle Branch has finally followed up with Hopeless Romantic. Patrick Carney, who is dating Branch but best known as the drummer for blues rock band The Black Keys, has had a hand in the writing and production of this album. FIVE FACTS: 1. “Best You Ever”, “Fault Line” and the eponymous “Hopeless Romantic” have all been released as singles from the album. 2. Recalling the making of the album, Branch remarked: “Patrick was like, ‘This is your record, it has to sound like you’ ... It was the first time that someone pushed me to figure it all out on my own.” 3. According to Entertainment Weekly, the album has…

Josh Brolin is expanding his comic book movie repertoire. Representatives for the actor said Wednesday that Brolin has been set to play the part of Cable in 20th Century Fox’s “Deadpool 2” opposite lead Ryan Reynolds. Brolin also plays the supervillain Thanos in various “Avengers” movies for competing studio Disney. Michael Shannon had been widely rumored to be the top pick for the Deadpool co-star. “Deadpool” became a breakout hit in 2016, grossing over $783 million worldwide. The irreverent and very R-rated comic book film even became an unlikely awards contender late in the game with two Golden Globe nominations and a Directors Guild of America Award nomination for Tim Miller. David Leitch is directing the sequel, which is expected to hit theaters sometime in 2018.…

Three astronauts from the International Space Station have successfully landed in the steppes of Kazakhstan - two from Russia and one from the United States. NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough and Russia’s Sergei Ryzhikov and Andrei Borisenko touched down at 5:20 p.m. local time Monday after spending 173 days in space. NASA’s Peggy Whitson, Russia’s Oleg Novitsky and the European Space Agency’s Thomas Pesquet will operate the orbiting space lab until another crew arrives this weekend. The 57-year old Whitson was supposed to return to Earth in June but NASA announced last week that she would stay on the space station until September. Whitson has already spent more time in space than any other woman and just last week set a record for the most spacewalks by a woman, with eight.…

SPORTS NHL coaches will have more technology on the bench than ever before as the Stanley Cup playoffs begin. Three iPad Pros will be available for coaches on every bench and officials will also have them to review coach’s challenges. All 16 playoff arenas have been outfitted with the iPads and also Macs for video coaches as part of a collaboration with Apple. This season, coaches have been able to use video monitors on the bench to help them decide when to challenge offside and goaltender interference situations. With the iPads, which were tested late in the regular season, they’ll have real-time video capabilities to show players their own shifts minutes after they happen as they discuss adjustments. The monitors had already become a game-changer for coaches, giving them more…