Webtagr - Technology News Summarizer

US Equity Market Structure Primer: A Quick Guide

2025-01-11

This primer provides a concise overview of the US equity trading landscape. Initially created as an onboarding document for new hires, it covers the lifecycle of an order, market participants, communication mechanisms between them, and a high-level view of overall market activity. The guide can be read sequentially or selectively, with a visual representation of the order lifecycle offering a clear picture of the process. Even with limited prior knowledge, the sections on market participants, communication, and overall market activity provide a functional understanding of US equities trading. Future updates will delve deeper into market structure history and inherent conflicts of interest.

(primer.prooftrading.com)

Tech US equities market structure trading

Wikipedia Searches Reveal Three Distinct Styles of Curiosity

2025-01-11

A new study analyzing Wikipedia search data reveals three distinct styles of human curiosity: the busybody, the hunter, and the dancer. Busybodies zigzag through numerous, often unrelated topics; hunters focus on a smaller set of closely related articles; and dancers connect disparate topics to synthesize new ideas. The research also found that people in countries with higher education levels and greater gender equality tend to browse like busybodies, while those in other countries lean towards a hunter approach. This interdisciplinary study, integrating topology, psychology, and cognitive science, offers novel insights into human behavior.

(www.scientificamerican.com)

Tech curiosity network science

Donut Motor: Reimagining In-Wheel Motors

2025-01-11

Donut Lab unveils the revolutionary Donut Motor, a direct-drive in-wheel motor that transforms electric vehicle powertrains. Offering superior torque and power density, it's lighter, more compact, and boasts lower costs and simpler maintenance, along with significantly improved efficiency. By eliminating the complexities of traditional powertrains, the Donut Motor achieves more precise control and optimized cooling, delivering unprecedented performance across various applications, from cars to drones. Its simplified architecture and ease of integration lower the barrier to entry for EV development.

(www.donutlab.com)

Tech in-wheel motor direct drive

Kirin's Electric Salt Spoon: A CES 2025 Taste of the Future?

2025-01-11

At CES 2025, Kirin Holdings unveiled an electronic spoon that uses a weak electric current to enhance the salty and umami flavors of food, particularly low-sodium options. Based on research that won a 2013 Ig Nobel Prize, the spoon has already launched in Japan and Kirin aims for global distribution. The device aims to help reduce salt intake, especially relevant in Japan's high-sodium diet culture. While TechCrunch didn't sample it, the enthusiastic crowd at CES Unveiled suggests it's a hit.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech Electric Salt Spoon Low-Sodium Diet

BepiColombo Delivers Stunning Close-Ups of Mercury's North Pole

2025-01-11

The European-Japanese BepiColombo spacecraft has completed its sixth and final Mercury flyby, sending back the most detailed images yet of the planet's north pole. Flying as close as 295 kilometers above Mercury's night side, the spacecraft captured stunning views of permanently shadowed craters, neighboring volcanic plains, and Mercury's largest impact crater. These images provide invaluable data for understanding Mercury's formation and evolution. BepiColombo is on track to enter Mercury's orbit next year for a more extensive study.

(apnews.com)

Tech

MessagePack: A Faster, Smaller Alternative to JSON

2025-01-11

MessagePack is an efficient binary serialization format enabling data exchange across multiple languages, similar to JSON but faster and smaller. It's used by projects like Redis, Fluentd, and Pinterest for performance gains. Supported by over 50 programming languages and environments, its simple specification makes it an easy-to-implement, fast replacement for JSON.

(msgpack.org)

Tech Serialization

Fantastic Planet: A 19th-Century Microphotography Album

2025-01-11

Marinus Pieter Filbri's microscopy album reveals a wondrous 19th-century glimpse into the microcosm. The collection juxtaposes seemingly unrelated images—moon phases, portraits of Sicilian bandits—with stunning micrographs: a moth's antenna, a honeybee's stinger, a fly's eye, and more. These images not only showcase the intricate structures of the microscopic world but also spark contemplation on the similarities between the macrocosm and microcosm, akin to exploring a fantastic alien planet. Filbri's work echoes the discoveries of Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, highlighting the challenges and achievements of early microphotography.

(publicdomainreview.org)

Tech microphotography history of science

Hyundai's $18k EV, the Inster, Takes on Japan

2025-01-11

Hyundai launched its cheapest EV yet in Japan, the Inster, priced at just $18,000. This small electric vehicle boasts a 42 or 49 kWh battery, offering a range of up to 195 miles (315 km) or 221 miles (355 km) WLTP, respectively. Hyundai aims to significantly boost its Japanese market share with the Inster, currently trailing behind BYD in sales. The Inster will compete directly with popular EVs like the BYD Dolphin and Nissan Sakura.

(electrek.co)

Tech Hyundai Electric Vehicle Japan Market

Greenland: A Newly Crucial Arctic Strategic Location

2025-01-11

The Trump administration's growing interest in Greenland is no coincidence. The island's strategic importance has placed it at the center of a great power competition in the Arctic between the US, Russia, and China. The US maintains Pituffik Space Base in Greenland, a crucial military presence offering missile detection and space surveillance capabilities. However, climate change is melting Arctic ice, opening new shipping routes and resources, further increasing Greenland's strategic value and intensifying competition. The article reviews the history of US military presence in Greenland, including Cold War bases and nuclear accidents, and analyzes Greenland's role in future military strategy and its importance in Arctic shipping and resource contention.

(www.twz.com)

Tech Arctic strategy Greenland Military base

Generative Search: AI Revolutionizes Internet Search

2025-01-11

Generative AI is reshaping internet search. Forget keyword searches and link sorting; conversational search powered by AI is providing direct answers, integrating real-time information from across the web. Google's AI Overviews, OpenAI's web-integrated ChatGPT, and other search engines are vying for dominance, but face challenges like copyright disputes and AI hallucinations. Trillions of dollars are at stake, alongside concerns about information reliability and the future of publishers.

(www.technologyreview.com)

Tech

Epic CEO Accuses Big Tech of Republican Pretense to Avoid Antitrust Scrutiny

2025-01-11

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney slammed tech giants for allegedly feigning Republican support to curry favor with the Trump administration, thereby avoiding antitrust laws and ultimately harming consumers and crushing competitors. He highlighted donations from Google and Apple to Trump's inauguration as evidence of this strategy to weaken antitrust enforcement. Sweeney, locked in a long-running battle with Apple and Google over mobile software distribution, aims to sell games on iPhones and Android phones without using their app stores and payment systems. While the new administration may be softer on antitrust cases, Sweeney vowed to continue fighting until victory.

(www.pcgamer.com)

Tech

Massive PowerSchool Data Breach Exposes 60 Million Students' and Teachers' Info

2025-01-10

Education software giant PowerSchool suffered a major data breach, with personal information of over 60 million K-12 students and teachers stolen. The breach, which involved 23 database tables containing sensitive data like Social Security Numbers and medical information, was reportedly carried out using a compromised credential. PowerSchool stated it wasn't ransomware or a software vulnerability, but a network penetration. While PowerSchool has implemented security measures, including password resets and access control tightening, and offered credit monitoring, cybersecurity firm Cyble suggests the breach may have started as early as 2011. The incident highlights the vulnerability of educational institutions' data and the importance of timely reporting and response.

(www.theregister.com)

Tech education

The Reddit Revolt Against Blinding Headlights

2025-01-10

A growing online movement, spearheaded by a Reddit community (r/FuckYourHeadlights), is fighting back against the increasingly bright headlights on modern cars. The article delves into the complexities of this issue, exploring the technological advancements in LED lighting, the regulatory shortcomings of NHTSA standards, and the human impact of excessive glare. While LEDs offer benefits like energy efficiency and longer lifespan, their intensity has led to widespread complaints and a debate over safety and comfort. Experts highlight headlight alignment, vehicle size, and the intentional manipulation of light distribution as contributing factors. The article concludes by examining potential solutions, including adaptive driving beam technology, while acknowledging the need for a balanced approach that prioritizes both safety and driver well-being.

(theringer.com)

Tech headlights

Venu Sports Streaming Service Scrapped Before Launch

2025-01-10

The much-anticipated Venu Sports streaming service, a joint venture between ESPN, Fox, and Warner Bros. Discovery, has been canceled before its official launch. Announced last year with a planned launch in Fall 2024, Venu aimed to provide live streaming access to a wide range of sports, including NFL, NBA, and more. However, an antitrust lawsuit and regulatory scrutiny led to significant hurdles. While a Disney-FuboTV merger temporarily resolved a lawsuit, concerns from DirecTV and EchoStar ultimately resulted in the project's termination.

(www.theverge.com)

Tech sports

OpenAI Bot Crushes Small E-commerce Site

2025-01-10

Triplegangers, a seven-person e-commerce company, had its website crippled by OpenAI's GPTBot in a DDoS-like attack. GPTBot relentlessly scraped images and descriptions of over 65,000 products, causing the site to crash and incurring significant AWS charges. Triplegangers discovered their robots.txt file was improperly configured, failing to effectively block GPTBot. While OpenAI claims to respect robots.txt, its bot didn't immediately respond to the updated file. This incident highlights the potential risks of AI data scraping for small businesses and OpenAI's delayed opt-out tool.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech AI data scraping DDoS attack

Mysterious Metal Ring Falls to Earth in Kenya: Space Junk or Something Else?

2025-01-10

A large, glowing metal ring fell from the sky in Kenya, sparking global intrigue. While the Kenyan Space Agency initially identified it as rocket debris, space trackers have struggled to find supporting evidence. Leading experts like Jonathan McDowell of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics and Marco Langbroek have explored various possibilities, but a definitive answer remains elusive. The half-ton ring's origin is a mystery, raising concerns about untracked space debris and the limitations of current tracking capabilities.

(arstechnica.com)

Tech space debris mystery Kenya

BepiColombo Reveals Mercury's Shadowy North Pole

2025-01-10

The ESA/JAXA BepiColombo mission's sixth and final Mercury flyby yielded stunning images of the planet's north pole, captured by the Monitoring Camera 1 (M-CAM 1). The long-exposure photo reveals permanently shadowed craters, potentially the coldest places in the Solar System and possible locations of water ice. The image also showcases Borealis Planitia, vast volcanic plains comparable in scale to Earth's mass extinction-level volcanic events. This flyby provides crucial data for BepiColombo's future orbital studies of Mercury.

(www.esa.int)

Tech Mercury North Pole

SpaceX's Insane Success: The Haywood Algorithm in Action

2025-01-10

This review of Eric Berger's new book, *Reentry: SpaceX, Elon Musk, and the Reusable Rockets that Launched a Second Space Age*, details SpaceX's extraordinary success story. The author attributes SpaceX's achievements to Elon Musk's extreme adherence to the 'Haywood Algorithm' – making a list of everything needed for success and then doing it all. SpaceX overcame countless technical and political hurdles, disrupting the aerospace industry with its bold innovations and near-insane execution, achieving reusable rockets and drastically lowering launch costs. The review uses anecdotes of SpaceX's daring feats – from rocket transport and launchpad construction to handling unexpected crises – to highlight its unique company culture and relentless pursuit of innovation despite setbacks. Ultimately, the author argues that SpaceX's triumph stems from its unwavering commitment to its goals, its tenacious execution, and Musk's unconventional leadership style.

(www.thepsmiths.com)

Tech Rocketry

Starlink Undercuts Major ISPs in Parts of Africa

2025-01-10

SpaceX's Starlink satellite internet service is winning a price war in parts of Africa. In at least five African countries, Starlink's monthly subscription is cheaper than leading fixed-line internet providers. While the upfront cost of Starlink hardware needs to be considered, its low monthly fee and high-speed, reliable connectivity, especially in remote areas, make it a more attractive option. This has forced local operators to lower prices and invest in their own satellite networks. However, Starlink's rapid expansion has also raised concerns about monopolies and job displacement.

(restofworld.org)

Tech African internet

Japan's EV Sales Plummet: First Decline in Four Years

2025-01-10

Sales of electric vehicles in Japan plunged 33% year-on-year in 2024 to 59,736 units, marking the first decline in four years. EVs accounted for less than 2% of total vehicle sales, the lowest among major advanced economies. While global EV sales continue to grow, albeit at a slower pace, Japan's slow adoption of EVs is increasingly apparent. Nissan maintained its top spot, while China's BYD saw growth thanks to a new model.

(asia.nikkei.com)

Tech Japan Auto Market

India's Digital Payments Strategy Sidelines Visa and Mastercard

2025-01-10

India is strategically reducing its reliance on Western payment networks like Visa and Mastercard, leveraging its homegrown Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and RuPay. UPI's massive transaction volume and user-friendliness have made it the dominant payment method, while RuPay, with exclusive rights to process credit card transactions through UPI, is rapidly gaining market share. This strategy lowers merchant fees, boosts India's digital economy independence, and presents a significant challenge to Visa and Mastercard.

(techcrunch.com)

Tech Digital Payments

1.2 Million-Year-Old Ice Core Retrieved from Antarctica

2025-01-10

An international team of scientists has achieved a groundbreaking feat by drilling nearly 2 miles (2.8 kilometers) into the Antarctic bedrock, retrieving one of the oldest ice cores ever discovered—at least 1.2 million years old. The Beyond EPICA project, coordinated by Italy, involved four years of drilling in average temperatures of -35°C (-25.6°F). Analysis of this ancient ice is expected to reveal crucial information about Earth's atmospheric and climate evolution, shedding light on Ice Age cycles and the impact of atmospheric carbon on climate change. This discovery provides invaluable data for understanding and addressing the current climate crisis.

(apnews.com)

Tech Antarctica ice core drilling

Google's Fingerprinting Policy U-Turn: A Decade of Privacy Progress Reverted?

2025-01-10

Google's upcoming February 2025 policy change allowing device fingerprinting for advertising purposes has drawn sharp criticism from the UK's Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). This is seen as potentially the biggest erosion of online privacy in a decade. Previously, Google pledged to prohibit fingerprinting to protect user privacy and align with its Privacy Sandbox initiatives. The new policy, however, only mandates disclosure of data collection, not a ban on fingerprinting. This contradicts Google's past statements and could pave the way for highly targeted, AI-powered advertising, intensifying data collection and privacy risks. Analysts fear this signals a regression in online privacy and foreshadows similar approaches in future Google products.

(blog.lukaszolejnik.com)

Tech online privacy

Securely Disposing of Smart Devices: Factory Reset is Key

2025-01-10

A Rapid7 blog post highlights the importance of securely disposing of old smart devices. The author's experiment of buying used Amazon Echo devices revealed many were not factory reset, retaining user data like WiFi passwords and home addresses. This underscores the need to factory reset devices before disposal or resale, even if seemingly broken. The article emphasizes this applies to businesses as well as consumers, recommending businesses establish comprehensive IoT lifecycle management processes to mitigate security risks.

(www.rapid7.com)

Tech device disposal

Bird Buddy Unveils 'Wonder' Insect-Watching Camera

2025-01-10

The creators of Bird Buddy, a camera-equipped bird feeder, have launched a new line of products under the 'Wonder' brand, designed for observing insects, birds, and other wildlife. The Petal camera captures photos and videos, using AI-powered 'Nature Intelligence' to identify various natural events. Paired with Wonder Blocks, which create habitats for wildlife, the system aims to bring nature closer. Both will be available via Kickstarter in Spring 2025.

(www.macrumors.com)

Tech smart camera nature observation

DOJ Greenlit to Sell $6.5B in Seized Silk Road Bitcoin

2025-01-10

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) has received court approval to sell approximately 69,000 Bitcoin seized from the Silk Road darknet marketplace, currently valued at around $6.5 billion. This decision concludes a long-standing legal battle. Despite objections and attempts to block the sale by Battle Born Investments, the DOJ prevailed. Citing Bitcoin's price volatility, the DOJ argued for a swift sale to mitigate potential losses. The sale, managed by the US Marshals Service, will be one of the largest sales of seized cryptocurrency in history.

(cryptobriefing.com)

Tech Silk Road DOJ

Experience Time Dilation: An Online Calculator

2025-01-10

timedilationforumula.com offers a time dilation calculator. Input distance (light-years) and acceleration (m/s²) to calculate relativistic effects: traveler vs. observer time, maximum velocity, energy requirements, and Doppler shift. Interactive charts visualize these effects. The site explains time dilation, its formula, and FAQs like the twin paradox and gravitational time dilation.

(timedilationformula.com)

Tech time dilation relativity online calculator

Cascading Spy Sheets: Exploiting Modern CSS for Fingerprinting

2025-01-10

Researchers discovered that modern CSS's dynamic features, even with JavaScript disabled, enable fingerprinting in both browsers and emails. Three techniques leveraging container queries, arithmetic functions, and complex selectors achieve high accuracy in inferring application, OS, and hardware configurations. This fingerprinting works even in the restrictive environment of HTML emails. The researchers propose two defenses: browser resource preloading and an email proxy service.

(cispa.de)

Tech

$750M Bitcoin Lost in Landfill: Judge Rejects Recovery Attempt

2025-01-10

A decade-long legal battle ended in defeat for James Howells, a UK IT engineer who lost a hard drive containing 8,000 Bitcoins (worth $700-750 million) in a landfill. A Cardiff High Court rejected his lawsuit against Newport City Council, citing environmental concerns and the council's ownership of the landfill's contents. Howells' attempts to excavate the site or receive compensation were unsuccessful, highlighting the importance of secure digital asset storage.

(crypto.news)

Tech Landfill

BYD Yangwang U9 Electric Supercar Jumps Potholes and Spikes

2025-01-10

BYD's luxury brand, Yangwang, has showcased the impressive off-road capabilities of its U9 electric supercar in a recent video. The video shows the U9 accelerating to 120km/h and leaping over a 2.5-meter pothole and a 4-meter stretch of tire spikes. This feat is enabled by its advanced DiSus-X hydraulic suspension system, which actively controls each wheel's position. The U9 boasts four electric motors, producing a combined 960kW and 1680Nm of torque, achieving a top speed of 309km/h and a 0-100km/h time of 2.36 seconds. While not currently planned for release in Australia, its performance is undeniably striking.

(www.drive.com.au)

Tech Yangwang U9 Electric Supercar

Category: Tech