Technology

Tech leaders optimistic about digital economy

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Top technology leaders, including Microsoft’s Satya Nadella, Google’s Eric Schmidt and Vodafone’s Vittorio Colao, today said they are hugely optimistic about the prospects of digital economy, while Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg cited an Indian story here at the WEF to support her optimism.

In a panel discussion on the potential for digital economy at WEF Annual Meeting, Facebook’s COO said there were two brothers in a village in India where they could not go to hospitals, but they joined the technology bandwagon and their lives changed.

Three-million-yr-old ancestor had human-like hands: study

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The hand structure of early human ancestors who lived 3.2 million years ago suggests they had the ability to grasp and use tools, even if they hadn’t invented them yet, anthropologists said Thursday.

Until now, Australopithecus africanus, which lived two to three million years ago in what is now South Africa, were not believed to have made tools the first evidence of which dates back to 2.6 million years ago but their hands suggest otherwise, according to a study in the journal Science.

Milky Way wormholes could be ‘galactic transport system’

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Researchers have recently revealed that Milky Way galaxy could be huge wormhole and galactic transport system in theory.

The hypothesis has been put forward that if the research was true then it would be “stable and navigable.”

The paper, the result of collaboration between Indian, Italian and North American researchers, prompts scientists to re-think dark matter more accurately.

Hidden magnetic messages found in meteorites

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Geologists from University of Cambridge have uncovered hidden magnetic messages from the early solar system in meteorites.

The team led by Richard Harrison captured information stored inside tiny magnetic regions in meteorite samples using the dedicated photo-electron emission microscope (PEEM)-Beamline at BESSY II, a research establishment in the Adlershof district of Berlin, Germany.

This information provides a sneak preview of the fate of the Earth’s own magnetic field as its core continues to freeze.

Whatsapp releases web client for Chrome, Android

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Whatsapp will now make its way to users’ desktop with the launch of a web client for Chrome and Android.

According to the Verge, WhatsApp confirmed earlier rumors, which pointed to a newly live page at web.whatsapp.com.

A company spokesman said that the primary use is still on one’ phone, but there are people who spend time in front of a computer at home or at work and this will help bridge the two.

In order for the client to work, the phone will need to stay connected to the web.

Also, all user messages will still reside on the phone, the report added. (ANI)

Smart gloves to help you control hand temperature

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A graduate student from Loughborough University in Britain has launched innovative running gloves with built-in climate control.

His patented invention is a unique mesh that enables instant temperature regulation and moisture wicking.

The gloves called FLUX are also touch-screen compatible and pack down as small as a tangerine, weighing less than six grams each, the university said in a statement.

A sports technologist and keen runner, Ross Weir experimented with several glove prototypes, including electrically heated gloves, before establishing his simple yet innovative solution.

Microsoft announces Windows 10 with Cortana, HoloLens headset

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Microsoft has announced that Windows 10 will bring Cortana to PCs.

According to the BBC, along with the voice-controlled assistant Cortana, Windows 10 will also get a newly unveiled “holographic” headset that Microsoft said would one day project the operating system over views of the real world.

Moreover, the OS upgrade would be available free of cost for devices running Windows 8, Windows 7 and Windows Phone.

The report added that the offer, which is limited to the Windows 10’s first year of release, may aid its adoption.

—(ANI)

Twitter releases new feature ‘Recap’ that allows users to catch up on missed tweets

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Twitter has released a new feature dubbed ” Recap” that allows users to catch up on Tweets missed while they were offline.

According to News.com.au, the latest feature will highlight a selection of tweets users missed when offline.

Twitter said in a statement that the feature was a way to “keep up or catch up” with fast-moving updates, “without compromising the real-time nature of Twitter”.

The feature is available in Twitter’s Apple app as of now.

(ANI)

Scientists discover hidden magnetic messages in meteorites

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Scientists have discovered hidden magnetic messages in meteorites from the early solar system in meteorites.

Geologists from the University of Cambridge led by Dr. Richard Harrison, has captured information stored inside tiny magnetic regions in meteorite samples using the PEEM-Beamline at BESSY II.

This information captures the dying moments of the magnetic field during core solidification on a meteorite parent body, providing a sneak preview of the fate of Earth’s own magnetic field as its core continues to freeze.

Evolutionary goal of Ebola virus is to become ‘more lethal’

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A new study has revealed that the evolutionary goal of Ebola virus is to become “more lethal.”

Scientists at the University of Liverpool looked at the Zaire Ebola strain, which is responsible for the current outbreak in West Africa, in an animal system to understand how it gains strength when it spreads from animals to humans and then from human-to-human contact.

They found that initially the animal systems were not affected by the virus, but subsequent transmission into other animals caused the virus to ‘hot up’ and become more severe.

Advantages of bundling products may not be as straightforward as previously believed

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A new study has revealed that the advantages of bundling products may not be as straightforward as previously thought as consumers prefer products that are packaged individually and so retailers need to draw attention to the value of a package deal.

Authors Tobias Kruger, Andre Mata, and Max Ihmels from University of Heidelberg said that consumers may not always be aware of a bundle’s added value over a single item and this could undermine the entire purpose of the bundling strategy.

Microsoft shows off Windows 10 and ‘HoloLens’

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Microsoft has taken the wraps off a new version of Windows and a new wearable 3D gadget it calls the HoloLens.

The company showed the new headset, which lets users view and interact with three-dimensional images, at an event where it also revealed new features coming to the company’s flagship operating software.

Executives said Windows 10 is designed to embrace the way people use computers today, offering a familiar experience as they switch back and forth from personal computers to tablets, smartphones and other gadgets such as gaming consoles or even holographic projectors.

WhatsApp adds messaging from Web

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The popular mobile messaging application WhatsApp, acquired by Facebook last year for nearly USD 22 billion, has unveiled a new service for sending messages from a Web browser.

WhatsApp, which claims some 500 million users, said its Web service will be a “mirror” and would require an Internet- connected phone to work.

“Our Web client is simply an extension of your phone: the Web browser mirrors conversations and messages from your mobile device – this means all of your messages still live on your phone,” WhatsApp said in a blog post.

Don’t blame Facebook for your kids’ bad grades

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A new study has revealed that the negative relationship between Facebook use and kids’ bad grades has little to do with Facebook.

Researcher Reynol Junco of Iowa State University found that while freshman struggle to balance their use, social media is less of a problem for upper classmen and the difference relates to self-regulation.

The study found that for freshmen, all Facebook use had a negative impact on their grades, for sophomores and juniors, only time spent using Facebook while doing schoolwork hurt their GPA and for seniors, there was no relationship between the two.

An instrument that can reveal age of planetary materials

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Researchers have developed an instrument that is not only capable of dating rocks but can be miniaturised for spaceflight to reveal the age of planetary materials.

The key to understanding the geologic history of the solar system is knowing the ages of planetary rocks.

The team validated the instrument – a laser ablation resonance ionisation mass spectrometer – by dating a rock from Mars, the meteorite Zagami which formed about 180 million years ago and fell to Earth in 1962.

25mn-year-old dust on ocean floor at odds with Supernovae hypotheses

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Researchers have recently analysed galactic dust from the last 25 million years that has settled on the ocean floor, which has provided new insight into supernovae theories.

They have analysed extraterrestrial dust thought to be from supernovae, which has settled on ocean floors to determine the amount of heavy elements created by the massive explosions.

Anton Wallner, from the Research School of Physics and Engineering at The Australian National University (ANU), said that small amounts of debris from these distant explosions fall on the earth as it travels through the galaxy.

US Air Force files on UFO investigations finally available online

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Declassified US Air Force files on UFO investigations and sighting are now available on the web wherein nearly 130,000 pages are already present online.

According to CNN, declassified UFO records by government have always existed on microfilm in the National Archives in Washington.

UFO enthusiast John Greenewald said that database from his Project Blue Book Collection is the first that compiles all declassified documents from the Blue Book project online which can also be downloaded for free.

Here’s how people post life events on Facebook

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With social networking sites becoming a part of our daily lives, people are sharing positive life events indirectly and negative life events directly on Facebook, says a study.

The positive life events like photos, change of job title are shared indirectly and negative life events are shared directly via detailed status updates or wall posts.

The researchers analysed how Facebook users share information on important life events related to romantic relationships, health, work and school.

Thinking robots may replace traffic wardens, estate agents in next 50 years

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A new study has recently revealed that sophisticated thinking robots may soon take up jobs as traffic wardens, estate agents and careers within the next 50 years.

Nearly 48 per cent of Brits fear for their job due to technological innovation, a study found, and the most likely employment for androids were as traffic wardens, estate agents and car salesmen, the Daily Star reported.

List Of 2014’s ‘worst passwords’ revealed

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The list of 2014’s worst passwords is out and occupying the top slot among the most commonly used passwords in the category is “123456”.

According to Tech Crunch, SplashData’s yearly list of the worst passwords on the internet (as compiled by more than 3 million leaked passwords from 2014) shows that people have a laid back attitude when it comes to securing their accounts on the internet with a strong password.

Last year’s worst list of passwords revealed that more number of people were simply using “password” to log into their accounts.

25m-year-old dust on ocean floor at odds with Supernovae hypotheses

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Researchers have recently analysed galactic dust from the last 25 million years that has settled on the ocean floor, which has provided new insight into supernovae theories.

They have analysed extraterrestrial dust thought to be from supernovae, which has settled on ocean floors to determine the amount of heavy elements created by the massive explosions.

Anton Wallner, from the Research School of Physics and Engineering at The Australian National University (ANU), said that small amounts of debris from these distant explosions fall on the earth as it travels through the galaxy.

Facebook set to cut down on fraudulent stories, hoaxes appearing on users’ News Feed

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Facebook is planning to curb the number of fraudulent stories, hoaxes and scams appearing on the users’ News Feed.

According to the Verge, users have had the ability to flag inaccurate News Feed posts for some time, and now Facebook says it’ll be looking at that data to spot links, photos, videos, and status updates with a high number of reports claiming that the featured content is bogus.

Facebook will also consider the number of users deleting a post, as it would indicate the annoyance factor.

Regular exercise may help increase brain health in adults

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A new study has suggested that exercising regularly could boost the brain health in adults.

In the brain, blood flow and cognitive function peak during young adulthood, but a new study of 52 young women found that oxygen availability, which is known to positively relate to brain health and function, is higher in adults who exercise regularly. Women who exercised on a regular basis had higher oxygen availability in the anterior frontal region of the brain and performed best on difficult cognitive tasks.

Development of type 1 diabetes halted in lab

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A team of scientists has found a way to prevent type I diabetes in an animal model.

Type I diabetes is a chronic autoimmune disease that occurs when the body’s immune system destroys insulin producing pancreatic beta cells, resulting in insulin deficiency and hyperglycemia and current treatments for type I diabetes focus on controlling blood sugar with insulin therapy and must continue throughout a person’s life.

People tend to share positive and negative news differently on Facebook

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A new study has recently provided a deeper insight into how do people post important life events on Facebook.

In the article ‘How Are Important Life Events Disclosed on Facebook? Relationships with Likelihood of Sharing and Privacy,’ Jennifer Bevan , Chapman University, Orange, CA, focused on when Facebook users share information on important life events, do they prefer to do so directly (detailed status updated or wall posts) or indirectly (photos, change of job title).

The results concluded that person chooses to share such news depends on whether the event was positive or negative.