Yesterday, President Obama nominated Merrick Garland to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court. How he might rule on issues of interest to the tech community is unknown, but by all accounts, a Justice Garland would bring intelligence and thoughtful jurisprudence to the bench. The Court is too critical to our nation’s work to let a seat stand vacant for more than a year. Judge Garland deserves an up or down vote from the Senate. Judge Garland’s credentials are impeccable and moderate. He has been on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since 1997, and…
Author: Deep
When the mobile game “Despicable Me: Minion Rush” launched in China, Eric Tan and his team at Gameloft were facing a challenge: Chinese gamers weren’t spending their digital bananas. To be precise, the players kept declining to “buy” more game time with the bananas, which they collect throughout the game and can also be used to upgrade characters. So Gameloft decided to let them purchase the time for one yuan. Spending real money instead of fake money may seem strange, but Tan said the move significantly improved the title’s in-app sales in the country. That experience and others showed Tan…
Sony’s announcement of the pricing and release date of the PlayStation VR, a virtual reality (VR) gaming system, has set the scene for tough competition among tech giants offering VR products. A report by market researchers SuperData estimates VR gaming software and devices generating $5.1 billion in revenue in 2016. This week, Sony Computer Entertainment CEO Andrew House revealed the PlayStation VR will be released in October with a price tag of $399. In comparison, the Facebook-owned VR system, the Oculus Rift, will cost $599, while the HTC Vive will cost $799. However, the Vive and Oculus Rift will require…
Dating apps aren’t just changing our love lives, they’re also changing the way we find jobs, view advertisements and arrange dates, according to industry experts. Businesses are beginning to see the potential of dating services. Several are being used to advertize fashion and luxury brands, such as JW Anderson, which launched a collection using Grindr in January. “Grindr has something like 7 million active users at any one time, so you’re looking at quite a significant consumer platform in terms of engagement,” explains Jonathan Openshaw, editor at The Future Laboratory, in an email to CNBC. “Diesel has also been experimenting…
Twitter users went into meltdown over weekend, using the hashtag #RIPTwitter to vent their fury at reports of changes to the way tweets will appear in users’ timelines. BuzzFeed reported on Friday that Twitter is planning to introduce an algorithmic timeline and show tweets it thinks users want to see. Currently Twitter presents the newest tweets first as they happen in real-time. But this story was enough to send tweeters into a frenzy with many accusing it of turning into rival Facebook. Some questioned chief executive Jack Dorsey’s strategy. But Dorsey came out to (sort of) help silence the #RIPTwitter…
A new, large cohort analysis from the prospective Prostate, Lung, Colorectal and Ovarian (PLCO) Cancer Screening Trial, indicates that men who had moderate baldness affecting both the front and the crown of their head at age 45 were at a 40% increased risk of developing aggressive prostate cancer (usually indicates a faster growing tumor resulting in poorer prognosis relative to non-aggressive prostate cancer) later in life, compared to men with no baldness. There was no significant link between other patterns of baldness and prostate cancer risk. The study, published September 15 in the Journal of Clinical Oncology, supports earlier research…
Published: 23 March 2016 The new Toyota Prius Prime at New York More info on Toyota Prius ► Plug-in version of the new Prius ► With an apparent styling rethink ► Claimed 202mpg(!), on sale October Say hello to the new Toyota Prius Plug-in, officially revealed at the 2016 New York motor show. Eh? Isn’t there already a brand-new Toyota Prius? Well, yes. We first drove the fourth-gen Toyota game-changer at the tail end of last year in cable-less form and, once aboard, we were mildly impressed: vastly superior cockpit, better seats, improved refinement and a much more satisfying drive…
Published: Yesterday 16:26 The Mk4 Mazda MX-5 has been voted World Car of the Year 2016 More info on Mazda MX-5 ► Mazda MX-5 beats Audi A4 and Merc GLC ► Voted for by a panel of 73 journalists ► Announced at 2016 New York motor show Turns out the Mazda MX-5 really is the answer to everything, as the lightweight roadster has been named 2016 World Car of the Year at the 2016 New York motor show. Judged by a panel of 73 journalists from 23 countries, the Mk4 MX-5 also won the World Car Design of the Year…
Hair loss can be devastating for the millions of men and women who experience it. Now scientists are reporting that a substance from honeybee hives might contain clues for developing a potential new therapy. They found that the material, called propolis, encouraged hair growth in mice. The study appears in ACS’ Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. Ken Kobayashi and colleagues note that propolis is a resin-like material that honeybees use to seal small gaps in their hives. Not only does it work as a physical barrier, but it also contains active compounds that fight fungal and bacterial invasions. People…
a bid to improve glaucoma treatments and open prospects for personalized medicine, researchers have succeeded in making retinal ganglion cells from stem cells derived from human skin cells. They report their work in the journal Stem Cells. The researchers say the stem cell method they have developed will help to study the underlying mechanism of glaucoma – a leading cause of blindness that is more common in older people. Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) are nerve cells that carry visual signals from the eye to the brain. Glaucoma – where pressure builds up inside the eye – is the most common…