NewsBBCStreet traders losing 'right to shade' under trees
Traders in India are being denied the "right to shade" under trees, threatening food security.
TechnologyDigital TrendsThe best gaming laptops for 2020
Gaming desktops are powerful, but they tie you down to your desk. For those who prefer a more mobile experience, here are the best gaming laptops on the market, no matter your budget.
NewsBBCHong Kong: Facebook, Google and Twitter among firms 'pausing' police help
Twitter and Telegram also put a halt to processing data requests, but Apple has not commented.
ScienceThe Canadian PressFossils reveal dinosaur forerunner smaller than a cellphone
Meet Kongonaphon kely, a pocket sized dinosaur forerunner that was smaller than your cellphone.The creature, which predated dinosaurs and flying pterosaurs, was just shy of 4 inches (10 centimetres) tall, according to a study published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.“Some of these things would have been quite cute animals," said study lead author Christian Kammerer, a paleontology researcher at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences. Looking like a small dinosaur that could fit in your hand, Kammerer mused that it “would probably make a great pet.”Of course, no humans were around when Kongonaphon was roaming the wild, jumping around with its strong hind legs and feeding on bugs with its peg-like teeth, Kammerer said. The name means tiny bug slayer.The fossils, dug up in Madagascar, date from 237 million years ago. Scientists figure the little guy was an adult because of growth rings in its bones, Kammerer said.___The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Department of Science Education. The AP is solely responsible for all content.By Seth Borenstein, The Associated Press
NewsThe Weather NetworkSpider baby boom observed in the Arctic as temperatures warm
This study provides the first evidence of an Arctic spider species being able to produce two clutches, a behaviour that was typically only seen in warmer latitudes.
NewsThe Weather NetworkRocket issues delay Mars Perseverance rover launch until July 30, possibly later
It's another busy year in space exploration!
LifestyleThe GuardianThe 1066 diet: Normans passed on their love of pork, study suggests
The 1066 diet: Normans passed on their love of pork, study suggests. Pork and possibly chicken became more popular in England after arrival of William the Conqueror
HealthThe TelegraphWHO reviewing evidence on airborne transmission of Covid-19
The World Health Organization (WHO) is reviewing a report that suggested its advice on the novel coronavirus needs updating, after scientists wrote an open letter saying there was evidence the virus could be spread by tiny particles in the air. The WHO says Covid-19 spreads primarily through small droplets, which are expelled from the nose and mouth when an infected person breaths them out in coughs, sneezes, speech or laughter and quickly sink to the ground. In an open letter published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, 239 scientists in 32 countries outlined the evidence they say shows that smaller exhaled particles can infect people who inhale them, the newspaper said on Saturday. Because those smaller particles can linger in the air longer, the scientists are urging WHO to update its guidance. They wrote: "Studies by the signatories and other scientists have demonstrated beyond any reasonable doubt that viruses are released during exhalation, talking, and coughing in microdroplets small enough to remain aloft in air and pose a risk of exposure at distances beyond one to two metres from an infected individual." The WHO said in a statement: "We are aware of the article and are reviewing its contents with our technical experts."
HealthThe TelegraphScientists race to answer six key questions about the coronavirus
Since a novel pneumonia was discovered in Wuhan in central China scientists around the world have been working at breakneck speed to understand this new disease. They have sequenced the genome, started developing a vaccine and begun trialling treatments. But despite these advances, there is still a lot we don't know. Click a question below to reveal how experts are tackling these unknowns - and how close we are to solving them.
TechnologyThe IndependentCoronavirus: Still no date for NHS contact tracing app
There is still no date for when the government’s coronavirus contact tracing app will be rolled out to help stop the spread of the disease.Giving evidence to the House of Lords science committee on Monday Baroness Dido Harding, who is leading the government’s test and trace service, said she could not give a date for when the app might be ready.
BusinessThe TelegraphVirgin's internet service under spotlight with two outages in a fortnight
Customers of Virgin Media have been left frustrated for a second time in a little under a fortnight after hundreds reported failures with their internet connections. The downtime, which mostly affected customers in the Nottingham area on Monday, was caused after a cable terminal used by Virgin went down. The outage follows a larger problem with its network in June which affected customers around London. During the last network problem, more than 10,000 complaints were registered on Downdector, a website that tracks network and website problems. The most recent problem was smaller and localised. A Virgin Media spokesman said the network problems lasted around an hour for customers in Nottingham just after half past 12 on Monday. Virgin claims the problems were not caused by high demand putting strain on the network.
EntertainmentBBCNintendo condemns alleged abuse in Smash Bros community
The Super Smash Bros maker condemns 'absolutely impermissible' behaviour in its competitive scene.
NewsThe TelegraphGoogle, Facebook and Twitter stop processing police requests for user data in Hong Kong
Google, Facebook and Twitter have stopped processing police requests for user data in Hong Kong while they assess a new security law and its impact on citizens' human rights. The suspension applies to all Facebook services, including its core social network, Instagram and WhatsApp, following the introduction of the National Security Law. Twitter said it had “grave concerns regarding both the developing process and the full intention of this law.” Google said it had already paused applications for information when the law came into effect last week and would continue to review the details. Facebook said it believed "freedom of expression is a fundamental human right" and that it supported "the right of people to express themselves without fear for their safety or other repercussions.” China’s new National Security Law for Hong Kong bans subversion, secession, terrorism and colluding with foreign forces in the city. Critics fear that it will eradicate the city’s political freedom and rid Hong Kong of its autonomy. Amid the sweeping clampdown, Hong announced a new law on Monday evening named Article 43, which impacts Hong Kong’s free access to the internet, which has for years been largely unaffected by China’s so-called “Great Firewall” of internet censorship. Article 43 gives police greater power to request information about people and censoring offensive posts without a warrant or court order and will see social media companies, cloud providers and telecommunication services fined or imprisoned for failing to comply with requests from officials. Ahead of the new law, Hong Kong residents had already begun deleting social media posts relating to protests in the city because of concerns that they may be penalised. The companies' decisions follows a similar announcement by messaging app Telegram, which said it will not process any requests for data on its users by officials. This includes “any data requests related to its Hong Kong users until an international consensus is reached in relation to the ongoing political changes in the city,” a spokesman said. Facebook and Twitter have offices in Hong Kong but not China. Google has three offices in China, according to its website. Facebook and Google normally work with law enforcement in the countries it operates, publishing regular figures on the amount of requests it receives.
NewsThe Weather NetworkIncredible night sky events coming up this summer
Warm summer nights are excellent for stargazing and skywatching.
NewsBBCHuawei: UK government weighs up ban of Chinese firm's telecoms kit
The National Cyber Security Centre has presented its report into the Chinese firm to government.
ScienceThe IndependentTequila bat boosted by DNA study which could help protect future of threatened animal and Mexican spirit
A new DNA study of the tequila bat could help conservationists protect both the flying mammal and the alcoholic drink.The lesser long-nosed bat, Leptonycteris yerbabuenae, plays a crucial role in pollinating the blue agave plant used to produce the Mexican spirit
NewsThe TelegraphStripping out Huawei 5G kit will cost telecoms industry £2bn
Stripping out Huawei equipment from the UK's 5G infrastructure could create mobile phone signals blackouts and cost the telecoms industry up to £2bn, according to industry experts. “This is hugely frustrating for the operators,” said James Barford, the director of telecoms at Enders Analysis, who came up with the estimate. Telecoms operators have already begun discussions with Huawei rivals such as Ericsson and Nokia, according to industry sources. However, it is believed any replacement kit from rivals will come at a premium. An added complication is that most UK networks are building their 5G networks on top of their existing 4G infrastructure, which would mean that they may be forced to remove 4G as well as 5G Huawei equipment from their networks, further piling on costs. “A big concern is that it would mean periods of downtime and people not having access to 4G,” said Assembly analyst Matthew Howett. “If this goes ahead, then it will mean that there will be a significant disruption to the 4G network.” That’s on top of an anticipated slowing in the speed of 5G being launched across the country. Vodafone has previously warned that the UK’s leadership in 5G will be lost if companies are forced to spend time and money replacing equipment. “It's a massive problem to have to start replacing that and undoubtedly across the operators, it is going to cause 5G coverage to be lower than it would be otherwise,” added Barford. The concerns come after the Telegraph revealed on Sunday that the UK could end the use of Huawei technology in its 5G network as soon as this year amid security concerns. GCHQ is understood to have revised its previous assurance that the risks posed by the Chinese technology giant can be safely managed. The Government is now preparing to publish a new review into the impacts of US sanctions on Huawei which is likely to lead to networks being forced to begin phasing out Huawei kit by Christmas. The move represents a dramatic about-turn by the Prime Minister after his decision in January to allow Huawei to build parts of the network. It also aligns the UK with the US which has classified Huawei as a national security threat amid claims the company has “close ties to the Chinese government and military apparatus”. Huawei has said the decision was based on “innuendo and mistaken assumptions”. Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said US sanctions on Huawei will likely have a "significant impact" on the firm's reliability, "This is an open market economy but I don't want to see our critical national infrastructure at risk of being in any way controlled by potentially hostile state vendors," Boris Johnson said last week. "So, we have to think very carefully about how to proceed now." BT and Vodafone are believed to have since asked to be given until 2030 to remove Huawei's equipment from their existing 5G networks. However, the government is facing pressure from Conservative rebel MPs who have pushed for stricter limits on Huawei kit. A source close to the group of 60 Tory rebels said they believed a proposed 2029 end date for removing kit was “unconscionable.”
TechnologyBBCReddit and LinkedIn to stop copying iPhone clipboards
Both apps were found to be regularly looking at the clipboards.
BusinessThe TelegraphElon Musk mocks Tesla short-sellers with sale of $69.420 satin shorts
Billionaire Elon Musk has started selling Tesla-branded “short shorts” in a stab at sceptical short-sellers who bet against the electric car company. The sale of the satin shorts comes after the Tesla boss joked online that the car company was planning to “make fabulous short shorts in radiant red satin with gold trim”. The joke by the 49-year-old is aimed at short sellers, investors who borrow shares, to sell and then rebuy them at a lower price to pocket the difference. "Limited edition short shorts now available," CEO Elon Musk tweeted. The shorts, which are emblazoned with Tesla’s logo and the phrase “S3XY”, are on sale for $69.420 on Tesla’s website. The deliberate typo is a nod to Elon Musk’s previous claims he would take the car company private at a valuation of $420, itself a further nod to cannabis smoking.
ScienceThe IndependentClimate crisis: Mysterious pink snow in Alps sparks fears over accelerated melting
The mysterious appearance of pink snow in the Italian Alps has sparked concerns over accelerated melting in the European mountain range.Scientists are investigating the phenomenon, which might be caused by algae usually observed in Greenland, after the discoloured snow appeared on the Presena Glacia, around 30 miles from the city of Trento.
BusinessThe TelegraphFujitsu to let employees work from home permanently
Tech giant Fujitsu has committed to halving its office space in Japan within the next three years to facilitate a “new normal” for employees. The company said its 80,000 workers in the country would benefit from flexible hours, and that working from home would become standard practice wherever possible. The changes are part of the company’s “Work Life Shift” initiative, which it hopes will boost innovation and work life balance. “For employees in Japan, this latest initiative will mark the end of the conventional notion of commuting to and from fixed offices, while simultaneously granting them a higher degree of autonomy based on the principle of mutual trust,” Fujitsu said in a statement. The company has also committed to launching satellite offices in areas where employees live, and will sign up with more workspace providers. Fujitsu also said it will introduce a hot desk system where employees are not assigned to a fixed desk. Flexible working hours will be extended to all of Fujitsu’s employees based in Japan. Domestic employees that have been transferred away from home will return and be allowed to handle their work through “telecommuting and business trips”.
TechnologyThe IndependentNew iPhone feature reveals concerning way apps like TikTok are accessing your phone's clipboard data
A new feature in Apple’s upcoming iPhone operating system has revealed privacy concerns with numerous popular applications.iOS 14, which is currently only available in beta, alerts the user when an application has access to the clipboard.
BusinessThe IndependentDuckDuckGo comes back after being blocked by Indian ISPs
DuckDuckGo is once again available in India, after the privacy-focused search engine was discovered to be mysteriously offline since 1 July.“We’re seeing our services being broadly restored in India”, the company tweeted on 4 July, “Thank you for all of your reports, bringing attention to this issue. If you're still having trouble accessing DuckDuckGo Search, please report it to [the Internet Freedom Foundation]”.
- NewsCBC
Saskatoon company to partner with gov't to develop mental health app for farmers
The government of Saskatchewan is partnering with a Saskatoon-based company to create an application for farmers to help with their mental health and wellbeing. The app, called "Avail," is set to compliment the government's Farm Stress Line, which was created to help farmers with mental health-related queries.The app will help farmers track their mental health and potentially connect them with resources.From 2018 to 2019, the Farm Stress Line doubled the number of calls it took from the previous year, a news release for the new app said. Those numbers have continued to climb into 2020."The Farm Stress line recorded 1,036 calls from April 1, 2019 to March 31, 2020. That's an increase from the 757 calls received in the 2018-2019 fiscal year," a statement from the ministry of agriculture said.The app is being developed by Bridges Health, which was selected from a pool of applicants to the province-wide Innovation Challenge this spring, earning $10,000 and a 16-week partnership with the government.App to be piloted fall 2020In an emailed statement, the ministry of innovation said the app will be piloted in the fall of 2020 before it's available for wider downloading."The app is currently in development. It is our understanding Bridges may make a public call for testers in the next phase of development," the statement said.Bridges Health vice president Leon Ferguson said he was honoured to work with the government and its partners to develop the app.The minister responsible for Innovation Saskatchewan, Tina Beaudry-Mellor, said there are still stigmas associated with asking for help."Having access to an app in the privacy of one's own home will enhance the likelihood of people asking for help when they need it the most," she said in a government statement.Minister of agriculture David Marit said he was looking forward to working with Bridges Health to customize an app for the agriculture industry.
BusinessThe TelegraphUber snaps up Postmates in £2.65bn deal
Ride-hailing giant Uber has agreed a $2.65 billion (£2.09 billion) deal to buy Postmates in an all-stock takeover as it looks to expand its reach in the food-delivery business. Uber, which is under pressure as its core ride-hailing business reels from global lockdowns, offered a premium of about 10pc on Postmates' last valuation of $2.4 billion. Postmates in September raised $225 million in a private fundraising round. In a statement, Uber said that restaurants and merchants will be able to connect with a larger consumer base more "easily and cost-effectively". The company said it will keep the customer-facing Postmates app running separately. Uber chief executive Dara Khosrowshahi said the platforms had shared a belief that they can play a "hugely important part" in local commerce. "As more people and more restaurants have come to use our services, Q2 bookings on Uber Eats are up more than 100 percent year on year," Mr Khosrowshahi said of the new acquisition. Postmates operates in 4,200 US cities delivering food and other products from restaurants and stores to customers' doorstep. Founded in 2011, San Francisco-based Postmates accounted for 8pc of the US meal delivery market in May, with its biggest rival DoorDash leading with a 44pc market share, according to analytics firm Second Measure. Postmates co-founder and CEO Bastian Lehmann said that the companies had been "strong allies" and worked together to great best practices across the industry. Uber is set to issue around 84 million shares of common stock for the fully diluted equity of Postmates. The company hopes the deal will help in its bid to overhaul DoorDash, the US-market leader when it comes to food delivery. Postmates’ strongholds in the American southwest and Los Angeles are believed to be of value to Uber Eats. Bloomberg reported talks between the two parties had been “on and off” for around four years but moved forward within the last week after a new approach from Uber. Uber’s move for Postmates comes shortly after it missed out on a deal for GrubHub, which was snapped up by Britain’s Just Eat in a £5.75 billion deal.