Columbus judge sues researcher for disclosing true impact of ransomware attack

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A hot potato: Security researchers play a vital role in protecting the internet from cyber threats. They locate and disclose vulnerabilities in critical systems to protect users and state institutions. So, it’s no small affair when a government entity takes legal action against these watchdogs. In a strange turn of events following a significant ransomware … Read more

Scientists propose method to extend lithium-ion battery life while lowering costs

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Why it matters: Lithium-ion batteries have become essential in modern electronics and in efforts to migrate infrastructure to renewable energy sources. Through rigorous testing, researchers recently discovered a relatively simple technique that can significantly boost a battery’s longevity and speed up manufacturing, thus decreasing costs. Producing lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and many other devices … Read more

Researchers unlock cheap way to vaporize plastic and use it to make more plastic

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Why it matters: All that packaging we’ve treated as disposable may finally be reborn. Researchers have cracked the code for turning plastic back into the building blocks to make new plastics. It could revolutionize recycling, which studies have shown is broken. Researchers at UC Berkeley have developed a new catalytic process that can vaporize the … Read more

Meet Neo Beta: Your new, slightly creepy humanoid robot home assistant

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The big picture: A robotics firm just unveiled its latest bipedal humanoid robot. It designed the faceless, jumpsuit-clad humanoid robot as a consumer-grade model explicitly built for home use. Despite it’s unccanny valley creepiness, it could soon land in some homes for pilot trials later this year. Robotics company 1X Technologies (1XT) made headlines earlier … Read more

Tesla Cybertruck catches fire after crashing into a fire hydrant

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Bottom line: Statistical data shows that electric vehicle fires occur at a similar frequency to those in vehicles with internal combustion engines, but this offers little comfort to firefighters. These fires are notoriously difficult to extinguish and pose increased dangers to first responders. At least two fires have resulted from Cybertruck crashes, raising concerns about … Read more

Injectable pacemaker lets your phone correct heart arrhythmia for up to 5 days

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The bleeding edge? Swedish scientists may have found a radical nanotech solution to keep the heart beating when it runs into minor problems when healthcare isn’t accessible. A newly developed injectable “heart stimulator” can temporarily correct arrhythmia by using your smartphone as a power source. The concept is wild but also ingeniously simple. It’s a … Read more

Researchers disclose Windows “downgrade” attack as Microsoft provides a mitigation method

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In a nutshell: Researchers have developed a cyberattack that reverses Windows security updates to exploit previously patched vulnerabilities. Although they cannot deploy the malware remotely, users should observe standard security practices, even on fully updated operating systems. Microsoft has released a detailed guide for minimizing the risk of a downgrade attack as the company develops … Read more