A science explainer argues that the warmth felt from sunlight is not a useful gauge of sunburn risk, since heat and UV damage come from different wavelengths acting through different mechanisms. Visible and infrared light warm the skin by exciting molecular vibrations, while UV-B (and some UV-A) causes sunburn by directly damaging DNA, a process that is painless as it happens. The piece notes UV-B is far less intense at ground level than near-infrared light, meaning far less energy is needed to damage DNA than to produce the sensation of heat.
Nvidia-backed startup Starcloud says it will fly dedicated Bitcoin mining hardware on its second satellite, Starcloud-2, targeting an early 2027 launch. CEO Philip Johnston argues that ASIC chips are far cheaper per kilowatt than GPUs, and that abundant orbital solar power could make space mining economically appealing, following the company's earlier Starcloud-1 test that put an Nvidia H100 GPU into orbit.
In a new essay, writer Cory Doctorow argues that people project intention and meaning onto AI systems like Anthropic's Claude much as religious believers see purpose in a sunset. He suggests this instinct to read agency into statistical text generators is a kind of collective delusion rather than evidence of genuine understanding inside the machine.
In a blog post tied to Oxide's OxCon meetup and a nostalgic Sun-themed t-shirt, Oxide CTO Bryan Cantrill argued Sun Microsystems ultimately lost interest in the basic mechanics of running a business. He recounts a 2005 episode where a fast-growing startup running OpenSolaris tried to buy Sun hardware but couldn't get Sun's sales team to respond properly, unlike its smooth experience buying from Dell.
Bungie announced plans to bring back content it removed from Destiny 2 six years ago through the Destiny Content Vault, including old campaigns, destinations, and raids. The studio said all players will eventually get access, but warned the work requires rebuilding lighting, encounters, and combat systems to match current game standards, so restoration will take time.
Google is launching Googlebook OS, a new operating system built on Android that will run on five debut laptops, including a Dell-made XPS Googlebook with high-end specs like 16GB of RAM and a Qualcomm chip. Hardware chief Rick Osterloh describes the move as a consolidation effort, ending years of Google maintaining separate ChromeOS and Android platforms for laptops versus phones and other devices.
Solar panel prices have plunged from roughly $5-6 per watt 26 years ago to about 12 cents per watt today, according to Ember co-founder Dave Jones cited in a Financial Times report. The report attributes this steep decline almost entirely to a massive expansion in Chinese solar manufacturing, which has made panels affordable for both wealthy and developing nations.
A new Nature study led by Max Planck Institute astrophysicist Sunmyon Chon simulated conditions in the early universe and found that rapidly forming black holes can generate light signatures matching the mysterious 'little red dots' seen by the James Webb Space Telescope. The team argues these objects quickly develop dense, thick gas disks that produce a strong hydrogen-alpha glow resembling what's observed in these ancient regions of space.
Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group have amended their copyright lawsuit against AI music generator Suno, arguing its newly released v6 models still rely on infringing material. The labels claim Suno's own admission that v6 was trained partly on 'user interactions' with earlier models means it indirectly used previously scraped copyrighted recordings, potentially implicating over 60,000 songs.
In a New York Times podcast appearance, Sundar Pichai said the current speed of technological change exceeds anything humans are biologically equipped to handle. The remarks have sparked broader discussion about how executives should manage teams facing constant cognitive strain from rapid tech shifts.
A 404 Media investigation found scammers can upload AI-generated tracks and pass them off as new releases from existing artists on Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal and other platforms. By exploiting a loophole in digital distribution services like DistroKid, bad actors simply falsely claim to be the artist, letting the fake songs land directly on real catalogs and pull in streaming royalties meant for the original musician.
Lionsgate has released a fresh action-heavy trailer for The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, which chronicles a young Haymitch Abernathy competing in the 50th Hunger Games. The film stars Joseph Zada as Haymitch alongside Mckenna Grace, Ralph Fiennes, Jesse Plemons, Glenn Close, Kieran Culkin, Elle Fanning, Billy Porter and Maya Hawke. Separately, Laika Studios unveiled a trailer for its upcoming stop-motion feature Wildwood.
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