Beyond Infinity

With 13 Russians and 3 organisations charged with alleged interference, the spotlight returns to the role played by social media. Have vulnerabilities been effectively shut down? Or are future elections, including the 2018 US mid terms, open to foreign meddling as before?

Our weekly news round-up: Sony's new super cute Aibo robot dog on sale in Japan; How to use a 4WD to attract frenzied spiders; Space X's Starlink microsats aim to bring low-cost internet to anywhere in the world; FAA investigating collisions between drones and larger aircraft amid rising safety concerns; Australia's Civil Aviation Safety Authority moves to improve safety understanding by drone operators; UK unveils AI-based extremism blocking tool; Belgium takes Google to court over breach of privacy laws; SnapChat redesign alienates users.

When ordering a new laptop, John found some useful ways to ensure he got the exact model he wanted at a reasonable delivery cost.

We chew over the recent dramatic falls in the much hyped and super volatile cryptocurrency. What does the future hold for bitcoin and other digital currencies? Is the world headed for a single global, blockchain-based currency?

In an open letter of January 6, 2018, JANA Partners and The California State Teachers’ Retirement System, a big teachers' pension fund, pleaded with Apple to take steps to decisively protect young people from excessive use of iPhones. We discuss the issues of smart phones in the classroom, managing screen time, plus the tech giant's response to the letter.

The popular sports app's visualisation of its global network of athletes shows over a billion activities covering all of Earth's continents. But some intelligence services are concerned about what this map might reveal.

Our weekly news round-up: Intel's Shooting Stars provide spectacular Olympics Opening Ceremony drone show; Trump Administration weighs privatising International Space Station; Falcon Heavy success ushers in new era of competition in space; Social media bans pornographic face-swapping 'deep fakes'; Equifax hack compromises more consumer data than first admitted; Chinese police wearing facial recognition glasses; Embark's self-driving truck travels from LA to Florida; Australian government websites hacked and used to mine cryptocurrencies.

With a view to driving down domestic power bills, thousands of homes will become part of a new virtual power plant.

The Bulletin of the Atomic scientists, including 15 Nobel laureates, has moved the minute hand 30 seconds closer to Armageddon. There are grave concerns over North Korea, NATO Vs Russia, tensions in the South China Sea, war in the Middle East, global failure to act effectively on climate change and the use of technologies as weapons to weaken democracies.

Our weekly news round-up: Meteorites found on Earth hint at complex organic precursors in the asteroid belt; All systems go for historic Falcon Heavy; Transparent, stetchable nanostructures used to make a smart contact lens; Aussie Jackson Palmer, creator of Dogecoin, reveals his crypto currency was supposed to be a joke; Automated cashiers disrupt bricks and mortar retailers; Facebook loses a million users in North America; New Australian data breach notification laws take effect on February 22.

Social media has driven high demand for cute squash-faced dogs. But they often suffer from serious health issues, including breathing and dental problems, skin and eye conditions and birth complications.

The tech giant cops flack over auto-throttling some iPhones as part of so-called better power management capabilities. Is this merely a cynical move to encourage upgrading your device?

Our weekly news round-up: NASA legend John Young - Gemini, Apollo and Space Shuttle astronaut - has died aged 87; After delays, Space X's giant Falcon Heavy rocket is set for launch in early February; US Army develops school shooting simulator to aid survival for teachers and students; Italian clothing designers defeat Apple lawsuit, gain right to use brand name Steve Jobs for clothing and electronics products; Nigerian prince con artist arrested in New Orleans; Bitcoin has a volatile month as interest grows in alternative digital currencies like Ethereum and Ripple.

Simon Mulvaney of Save The Bees Australia details his costly legal battle with Capilano Honey. He explains how he crowd-funded his legal advice to counter a cashed-up corporate legal team. Simon has a petition on change.org to have imported honey labelled with country of origin and wants a ban on imported honey due to the dangers of disease entering Australia.

In the first of a 2 part, wide-ranging interview, Simon Mulvaney of Save The Bees Australia gives us the low down on his legal stoush with Capilano Honey, challenges facing the honey industry, the techniques of bee keeping and the dangers of neonicotinoid insecticides.

The Federal Communications Commission plans to roll back regulations intended to treat all internet traffic equally. There are censorship, surveillance and bias issues at stake, with the fall-out to be felt around the world.

Our weekly news round-up: Robots replace security guards in San Francisco; Juno peers deep inside Jupiter's Great Red Spot; Pentagon admits to running UFO program; Dwarf planet Ceres found to be an active and still evolving world; G20 will discuss bitcoin bubble at next meeting; Uber seen as faster and more reliable than ambulances; Publicly released anonymous Medicare shown to be not so anonymous.

The US Administration's budget request for NASA includes politically-motivated cuts to earth sciences, but continued support for robotic exploration of the solar system.

Five flagrant reasons why science trumps superstition and misconception every time.

These ubiquitous creatures are more interesting than you think. They mimic sounds, remember human faces, have a broad vocal range, are superbly adapted to our urban environments and can hear earth worms underground.