John Gordon Ross

Anyone who works as a freelancer these days has to be at least a bit familiar with techie things. But it isn’t just that. When I was a kid and those vaguely SF puppet shows were on the television and all the other kids wanted to be Greg Gogetem or Steve Savetheuniverse, I wanted to be the guy in a white coat and glasses called Doc or Brains. Here are some technology-related feeds I find useful and/or entertaining.

Slashdot » Google Spin-Off's Newest Self-Driving Minivans Start Road Tests This Month

Sunday 8 January 23:34:00 UTC 2017

"We're at an inflection point where we can begin to realize the potential of this technology," the CEO of Waymo said today. An anonymous reader quotes The Verge: Waymo, the self-driving car startup spun-off from Google late last year, will be deploying its fleet of self-driving Chrysler Pacifica minivans onto public roads for the first time later this month, the … [Link]

Mashable » iPhone commercial or foreign indie film? Apple gets artsy with new ad.

Sunday 8 January 23:27:58 UTC 2017

Apple’s latest commercial looks like something straight out of a foreign indie film. "Take Mine" is Apple's latest one-minute ad meant to show off the iPhone 7 Plus' portrait mode and new depth-of-field feature. The short film, featuring indie film-style yellow subtitles, starts in an old cafe and proceeds to take us around what appears to be a Greek village … [Link]

Mashable » College team surprisingly good at 'swimming' through snow in Speedos

Sunday 8 January 22:51:11 UTC 2017

You got to hand it to these swimmers from Georgia Tech: they're dedicated to swimming no matter what the conditions.  SEE ALSO: Watch an adorable panda delightfully destroy a snowman When the school's planned tri-meet in Virginia against Virginia Tech and the University of Kentucky was canceled by heavy snowfall, some Georgia Tech swimmers took matters into their own hands. When … [Link]

Slashdot » Uber Gives Cities Free Travel-Time Data

Sunday 8 January 22:38:00 UTC 2017

Uber is now "leveraging anonymous GPS information from hundreds of thousands of online Uber vehicles" using a new tool called Uber Movement. An anonymous reader quotes USA Today: Uber is going to make urban traffic and mobility data gleaned from its millions of drivers and riders using the Uber app freely available to all. The data, which shows anonymized travel … [Link]

Mashable » Resolved to write more in 2017? We have advice for you.

Sunday 8 January 22:23:45 UTC 2017

2017 has just begun, which means it's time to make (and stick to) your resolutions. SEE ALSO: MashReads Podcast: How to set a New Year's reading resolution you'll actually accomplish If one of your resolutions is to write more, maybe finish that novel you've always meant to write, you're not alone. And Mashreads has your back. We went to not one, … [Link]

Slashdot » Choked By Smog, Beijing Creates A New Environmental Police Force

Sunday 8 January 21:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes the Christian Science Monitor: A new police force will crack down on environmental offenders in Beijing, city officials announced Saturday, marking the Chinese government's latest attempt to reduce smog… Other measures included cutting coal use by 30 percent in 2017, shutting down 500 higher-polluting factories and upgrading 2,500 others, phasing out 300,000 higher-polluting older vehicles, and … [Link]

Mashable » Mariah Carey says producers 'foiled' her New Year's Eve performance

Sunday 8 January 21:33:02 UTC 2017

Mariah Carey didn't want a lot for Christmas. She didn't even wish for snow. But in hindsight, she probably regrets not adding "better producers" to her humble gift list. The American singer-songwriter-diva on Sunday blamed Dick Clark Productions for her disastrous New Year's Eve performance in Times Square. SEE ALSO: Mariah Carey's lip synching was 2016's last victim Carey's comments — … [Link]

Mashable » The iPhone at 10: It changed everything

Sunday 8 January 21:01:09 UTC 2017

When something is as ubiquitous as the iPhone, it can be hard to remember what life was like without it. Apple’s iPhone, which was introduced 10 years ago today at MacWorld by Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs, is more than a device or expert integration of components, software and design. It’s a cultural object with influence that’s still being felt … [Link]

Slashdot » Ask Slashdot: What's The Most Useful 'Nerd Watch' Today?

Sunday 8 January 20:34:00 UTC 2017

He's worn the same watch for two decades, but now Slashdot reader students wants a new one. For about 20 years I've used Casio Databank 150 watches. They were handy because they kept track of my schedule and the current time. They were very cheap. They required very little maintenance, since the battery lasts more than a year and the … [Link]

Slashdot » Nokia Finally Returns To The Smartphone Market (In China)

Sunday 8 January 19:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes Mashable: To little fanfare, the Finnish technology company HMD Global Sunday unveiled the Nokia 6, a mid-range Android smartphone for the Chinese market. HMD owns the rights to use Nokia's brand on mobile phones. The Nokia 6, which runs the newest version of Google's mobile operating system, Android Nougat, sports a 5.5-inch full HD (1920×1080 pixels) … [Link]

Mashable » Smart people everywhere celebrate Stephen Hawking's 75th birthday

Sunday 8 January 19:28:56 UTC 2017

Back in 1963, when Stephen Hawking was 21 years old, doctors gave him two to five years to live after he was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). On Sunday, the world's most famous theoretical physicist turned 75 years old.  SEE ALSO: The 'Star Trek' cast and Stephen Hawking team up for the stuff of sci-fi dreams The man has accomplished … [Link]

Mashable » Martin Shkreli's Twitter account suspended after he posts creepy photo collage

Sunday 8 January 19:20:57 UTC 2017

Martin Shkreli is kicking off 2017 with unsurprising flair. The former pharmaceutical executive's Twitter account was suspended Sunday, not long after he updated his profile with a creepy photo collage of Teen Vogue editor Lauren Duca. SEE ALSO: 'Of course' Martin Shkreli would raise drug prices again How is this allowed @jack pic.twitter.com/Wof8MlYHTL — Lauren Duca (@laurenduca) January 8, 2017 When … [Link]

Mashable » The vinyl jukebox is coming back into production after 25 years

Sunday 8 January 18:37:27 UTC 2017

There’s just something about the warm sound of a vinyl record.  For the first time in 25 years, record player manufacturer Crosley has decided to go retro and bring back the classic vinyl jukebox player, but with a modern twist. Its CR1209A full-sized Rocket Vinyl Jukebox will be the only jukebox in production.  SEE ALSO: Vinyl sales are back to '90s … [Link]

Slashdot » Richard Stallman Acknowledges Libreboot Is No Longer A Part of GNU

Sunday 8 January 18:34:00 UTC 2017

Libreboot became an official GNU project in May. Now an anonymous Slashdot reader writes: Richard Stallman has officially announced that Libreboot is no longer a GNU package. The maintainer of Libreboot had tried to leave the GNU project in September 2016, but the departure was not acknowledged until January 2017. Libreboot is a replacement for proprietary BIOS systems, effectively a … [Link]

Mashable » 'Constantine' is coming back to TV as an animated CW show

Sunday 8 January 18:23:26 UTC 2017

Constantine lives! The DC Comics hero is being resurrected by The CW for a new digital animated series that will debut on CW Seed during the 2017-2018 season, the network announced Sunday at its Television Critics Association press day. The hero has walked a tumultuous path on the small screen — NBC premiered a short-lived live action series in 2014 which … [Link]

Slashdot » A Federal Judge's Decision Could End Patent Trolling

Sunday 8 January 17:34:00 UTC 2017

"Forcing law firms to pay defendants' legal bills could undermine the business model of patent trolls," reports Computerworld. whoever57 writes: Patent trolls rely on the fact that they have no assets and, if they lose a case, they can fold the company that owned the patent and sued, thus avoiding paying any of the defendant's legal bills. However in a … [Link]

Mashable » In 1913, suffragists crashed Woodrow Wilson's inauguration to demand the vote

Sunday 8 January 17:30:00 UTC 2017

Inez Milholland, one of the leaders of the parade.Image: Library of CongressIn late 1912, the American movement for women’s suffrage was facing a frustrating lack of progress at the national levelAt the annual convention of the National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA), Alice Paul (who had survived imprisonment and force-feeding while fighting for British women’s suffrage) and Lucy Burns proposed an … [Link]

Mashable » The 5 places that stole my heart in 2016

Sunday 8 January 17:25:48 UTC 2017

For a lot of people, 2016 was the kind of year that warranted a lot of getting away. So it’s no surprise that for me, a professional jet-setter, most of the year’s highlights were far away from home. Here are the five places that stole my travel-editing heart over the last 12 months —some classic, some new, but all ones you … [Link]

Mashable » The CW has renewed 'The Flash,' 'Supernatural' and 5 more favorites

Sunday 8 January 17:01:05 UTC 2017

The CW has given early renewals to seven of its most popular shows. Arrow (entering Season 6), Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (Season 3), DC's Legends of Tomorrow (Season 3), The Flash (Season 4), Jane the Virgin (Season 4), Supergirl (Season 3) and Supernatural (Season 13) will be back for the 2017-2018 season.  SEE ALSO: The CW's heroes survived their crossover. Here's what's next. … [Link]

Mashable » Study says zombies would wipe out humans in less than 100 days

Sunday 8 January 16:49:19 UTC 2017

The zombie apocalypse won't take long. A new article in a peer-reviewed student journal finds that the zombie hordes would take Earth's population down to a mere 273 survivors in 100 days. The paper, published in the University of Leicester's Journal of Physics Special Topics, was a fanciful use of the so-called SIR model, which is used in epidemiology to simulate … [Link]

Slashdot » Huawei Snubs Google, Ships An Android Phone With Alexa

Sunday 8 January 16:34:00 UTC 2017

Huawei announced its flagship handset will gives users access to Amazon's Alexa assistant in the U.S., suggesting a new worry for Google, according to Reuters. An anonymous reader writes: "The adoption of Alexa by a prominent Android manufacturer indicates that Amazon may have opened up an early lead over Google as the companies race to present their digital assistants to … [Link]

Mashable » Nokia finally returns to the smartphone market

Sunday 8 January 16:06:00 UTC 2017

After years of anticipation, Nokia is finally back in the smartphone game.  To little fanfare, the Finnish technology company HMD Global (HMD) Sunday unveiled the Nokia 6, a mid-range Android smartphone for the Chinese market. HMD owns the rights to use Nokia’s brand on mobile phones.  SEE ALSO: Microsoft subtly admits the Nokia deal was a failure and 7,800 employees will … [Link]

New Scientist – News » Stephen Hawking says he has a way to escape from a black hole

Sunday 8 January 15:45:10 UTC 2017

Researchers have long struggled to resolve what happens to information when it falls inside a black hole, but the famous physicist says he has a solution [Link]

Slashdot » US Government Offers $25,000 Prize For Inventing A Way To Secure IoT Devices

Sunday 8 January 15:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: America's Federal Trade Commission has announced a $25,000 prize for whoever creates the best tool for securing consumers' IoT devices. The so-called "IoT Home Inspector Challenge" asks participants to create something that will work on current, already-on-the-market IoT devices, with extra points also awarded for scalability ad easy of use. "Contestants have the option of adding … [Link]

Slashdot » New Study Finds 'Mediterranean' Diet Significantly Reduces Brain Shrinkage

Sunday 8 January 14:34:00 UTC 2017

schwit1 writes that 562 elderly research subjects cut their brain shrinkage in half just by changing their diet. (Paywalled article here). The BBC reports: A study of pensioners in Scotland found that those with a diet rich in fresh fruit, vegetables and olive oil had healthier brains than those with different eating habits. They suffered less brain shrinkage than those … [Link]

Mashable » Found photos capture generations of people posing for portraits on flimsy paper moons

Sunday 8 January 14:30:00 UTC 2017

IMAGE: COLLECTION OF ROBERT E. JACKSONThese studio portraits, gathered from various sources by collector Robert E. Jackson, feature one of the most popular props in early 20th-century informal portraiture: the paper moon.Jackson, who has assembled more than 12,000 pieces of vernacular photo ephemera over two decades, often discovers recurring pattens and motifs among the images, from comical photo-manipulated decapitations to proud … [Link]

Slashdot » Is The C Programming Language Declining In Popularity?

Sunday 8 January 11:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: Java overtook C as the most popular language in mid-2015 on the TIOBE Programming Community index. But now over the last 13 months, they show C's popularity consistently dropping more and more. C's score had hovered between 15% and 20% for over 15 years but as 2016 ended, the language's popularity is now down to 8.7%. … [Link]

Slashdot » Apple Could Finally Sell More Devices Than Microsoft In 2017

Sunday 8 January 8:34:00 UTC 2017

Gartner predicts Apple will ship more iOS and macOS devices in 2017 than Windows-powered devices "for the first time this century," and then increase their lead over the next two years. An anonymous reader quotes Computerworld: Gartner predicted that iOS + macOS, unlike Windows, will recover in 2017. Apple's OSes will climb 8% to 268 million this year, add 3% … [Link]

Mashable » The coolest health-tech products we saw at CES 2017

Sunday 8 January 5:56:49 UTC 2017

LAS VEGAS — At CES 2017, we previewed some of the coolest health tech set to hit the market. SEE ALSO: The best tech of CES 2017 From a brand new take on the electric breast pump to a discreet way to check sobriety during a night on the town, trust us, there's a lot of neat stuff on the horizon. … [Link]

Slashdot » Google Boosts Python By Turning It Into Go

Sunday 8 January 5:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader quotes InfoWorld: Grumpy, an experimental project from Google, transpiles Python code into Go, allowing Python programs to be compiled and run as static binaries using the Go toolchain… In a blog post announcing the open source release, Google stated the project stemmed from its efforts to speed up the Python-powered front end for YouTube. But Google hit … [Link]

Mashable » Mark Hamill reads Trump tweet in his creepiest Joker voice and nails it

Sunday 8 January 5:20:41 UTC 2017

Is President-elect Donald Trump trying to tell us something with his supervillain-style tweets? Mark Hamill, who knows a thing or two about dark forces in the universe, is here to help us find out. Most know Hamill as a Jedi master, but he's also the voice of the Joker in the Batman animated series. As a special treat, Hamill recorded himself … [Link]

Mashable » Everyone thinks this Belle doll looks like Justin Bieber (and they're not wrong)

Sunday 8 January 4:32:52 UTC 2017

To the internet's extreme delight, there appears to be a Belle doll out there that's basically Justin Bieber in a yellow dress. The upcoming live-action version of Beauty and the Beast is due out in March, so as it does, Disney is doubling down on associated merchandise. The film stars Emma Watson as Belle, but she seems to have bitterly offended … [Link]

Mashable » Revealing quotes from HBO's Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds documentary

Sunday 8 January 3:05:00 UTC 2017

There’s no doubt that Bright Lights — HBO's heartfelt and hilarious documentary on the singular relationship between Debbie Reynolds and her daughter Carrie Fisher — takes on special significance in the wake of the actresses' tragic deaths.  The film, directed by Alexis Bloom and Fisher Stevens, premiered last year at Cannes. Many critics noted the bittersweetness of Reynolds' determination to perform … [Link]

Mashable » 4 things we learned about Hulu's upcoming 'Handmaid’s Tale'

Sunday 8 January 2:41:46 UTC 2017

Margaret Atwood's novel The Handmaid's Tale may have been published more than 30 years ago, but the cast of the upcoming series says the story could not be more relevant in 2017.  The 10-episode series, which debuts on Hulu on April 26, follows people in a dystopia called Gilead — a totalitarian society, once part of the U.S., rooted in twisted … [Link]

Slashdot » TV News Broadcast Accidentally Activates Alexa, Initiates Orders

Sunday 8 January 2:37:00 UTC 2017

ShaunC writes: In San Diego, TV news anchor Jim Patton was covering a separate story about a child who accidentally ordered a doll house using her family's Echo. Commenting on the story, Patton said "I love the little girl, saying 'Alexa ordered me a dollhouse.'" Viewers across San Diego reported that in response to the news anchor's spoken words, their … [Link]

Mashable » This restaurant will pay you to eat soup if temperatures fall below zero

Sunday 8 January 1:37:15 UTC 2017

Here’s some help for getting through the winter. A Chicago-area cafe, Mather's — More Than a Cafe, is offering a cold-weather deal at its three locations that will have anyone hungry for a bargain checking the weather forecast.  If temperatures dips below zero in Chicago over the next two months, thrifty if not freezing residents can get paid to eat a … [Link]

Mashable » Subscription box was designed for those who can't leave the house due to chronic illness

Sunday 8 January 1:17:51 UTC 2017

Living with a chronic illness often means being stuck inside for long periods of time. Whether a person is healing from medical procedures, living with a suppressed immune system or needs substantial amounts of rest, having a long-lasting illness or condition often requires dedicated self-care — or, simply, cures for boredom. SEE ALSO: 9 ways to support people living with rare … [Link]

Slashdot » Ask Slashdot: How Would You Deal With A 'Gaslighting' Colleague?

Sunday 8 January 0:34:00 UTC 2017

An anonymous reader writes: What's the best unofficial way to deal with a gaslighting colleague? For those not familiar, I mean "bullies unscheduling things you've scheduled, misplacing files and other items that you are working on and co-workers micro-managing you and being particularly critical of what you do and keeping it under their surveillance. They are watching you too much, … [Link]

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