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Parasites keep impersonating black hole researcher Dr. Katie Bouman on Twitter

Apr11
by on April 11, 2019 at 2:44 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Social Media


Yesterday, the world got to see the first photograph of a black hole. It was a truly historic moment, and it couldn’t have happened without MIT CSAIL researcher Dr. Katie Bouman, who was catapulted overnight into the halls of global celebrity. And, of course, the Internet has found some way to ruin it. Because, y’know… the Internet. In a desperate attempt to capitalize on Dr. Bouman’s rising profile, hoaxers created several fake Twitter accounts under her name. One sinister example of this, which Twitter has since suspended, used the legitimate-looking handle “@DrKatieBouman.” In a tweet, MIT CSAIL communications lead Adam…

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This Twitter account answers video games’ biggest question: Can you pet the dog?

Apr11
by on April 11, 2019 at 2:39 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, distract


You cannot pet the dogs in Minecraft or Fortnite, but you can pet the dogs in Butterfly Soup. You couldn’t pet the dog in Enter the Gungeon, but now you can following an update. This is the feed of @CanYouPetTheDog, a Twitter account that, well, answers whether you can pet dogs in popular video games, with accompanying video as proof. After launching in early March, the account now has over 162,000 followers. You cannot pet the dog in Bloodborne pic.twitter.com/ReTjfGtOAB — Can You Pet the Dog? (@CanYouPetTheDog) April 5, 2019 We spoke with the founder, who wishes to remain anonymous,…

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Scientists: Earth might be ripped apart by gravity when the Sun dies

Apr11
by on April 11, 2019 at 2:35 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, syndication, world


If it weren’t for the sun constantly showering us with energy, there would be no life on Earth. But eventually stars like it run out of fuel, expand into red giants and finally collapse into small, faint objects called white dwarfs. So what will happen to us and the other planets in our solar system when the sun dies? It’s not been entirely clear. Now my colleagues and I have spotted the possible core remnant of a planet orbiting the white dwarf SDSSJ122859.93+104032.9, residing some 410 light years away. Our results, published in Science, offer important clues about the fate…

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US claims Assange helped Manning obtain classified files – here’s the full indictment

Apr11
by on April 11, 2019 at 2:03 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, Insider


It’s been a wild day, not least for Julian Assange, who woke up a political asylum seeker under Ecuador’s protection, and is now sat in a Central London police cell, presumably being grilled by the Met’s finest. At first, we thought his arrest was merely because Assange broke the terms of his bail in 2012, back when he was facing removal to Sweden over alleged sex crimes. Indeed, that’s what the London Metropolitan Police claimed. But now, a few hours after the fact, we’ve learned that the controversial WikiLeaks founder is subject to a US extradition request. Assange is being…

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You don’t really own the digital books and movies you bought online

Apr11
by on April 11, 2019 at 1:56 pm
Posted In: Around the Web, syndication


Microsoft has announced that it will close the books category of its digital store. While other software and apps will still be available via the virtual shop front, and on purchasers’ consoles and devices, the closure of the eBook store takes with it customers’ eBook libraries. Any digital books bought through the service – even those bought many years ago – will no longer be readable after July 2019. While the company has promised to provide a full refund for all eBook purchases, this decision raises important questions of ownership. Digital products such as eBooks and digital music are often…

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