Reports of mass graves as Latin America becomes new pandemic epicenter by Beth Mole on 2020-05-13 21:35 (#53EAM) Though official figures are spotty, mortality data paints a grim picture.
Google Pixel’s camera lead quits after the failure of the Pixel 4 by Ron Amadeo on 2020-05-13 20:12 (#53E4Z) Internal strife at Google causes two major Pixel executives to quit.
Report: Apple’s over-ear headphones have no left- or right-ear assignments by Samuel Axon on 2020-05-13 19:52 (#53E50) Sources apparently shared several new details about the headphones with 9to5Mac.
Looks like Nvidia is cooking up a new DGX deep-learning system by Jim Salter on 2020-05-13 19:41 (#53E51) Judging by the heatsinks, that system could preheat Huang's oven by itself.
Facebook settles moderator suit for $52M as hate speech on site increases by Kate Cox on 2020-05-13 19:36 (#53E52) Good news: the robots are catching more. Bad news: there's more to catch.
Medieval arrows caused injuries similar to gunshot wounds, study finds by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-05-13 18:19 (#53E1T) Arrows may have been deliberately “fletched” to spin clockwise as they hit their victims.
Unreal Engine is now royalty-free until a game makes a whopping $1 million by Sam Machkovech on 2020-05-13 17:55 (#53DYX) New royalty-free period, which is retroactive, has grown by a factor of 20 in 9 years.
Verizon’s nationwide 5G will only be a “small” upgrade over 4G at first by Jon Brodkin on 2020-05-13 16:25 (#53DV3) Verizon promises “dramatic improvements” eventually, but it’s not clear when.
Alameda County starts to back down in fight over Tesla Fremont factory by Timothy B. Lee on 2020-05-13 16:08 (#53DQT) County says Tesla can begin some, but not all, operations this week.
Some Xbox Series X games won’t hit 60fps “performance target” by Kyle Orland on 2020-05-13 15:25 (#53DQV) Dropping to 30fps, as in Assassin's Creed Valhalla, is a “creative decision.”
Neil Gaiman confirms celeb cast, July launch for Sandman audio drama [Updated] by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-05-13 15:17 (#508T5) It's directed by Dirk Maggs, who also directed audio dramas for Good Omens, Anansi Boys.
Newly redesigned Dell XPS 15 inspired by popular XPS 13 by Samuel Axon on 2020-05-13 14:00 (#53DG1) The company also introduced a new 17-inch model, the XPS 17.
38% rise in bleach poisoning predates Trump’s suggestion, data shows by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-05-13 13:45 (#53DG2) The National Poison Data System saw the growth of poisonings start weeks earlier.
Uber’s attempt to buy Grubhub comes under fire by Financial Times on 2020-05-13 13:36 (#53DG3) Lawmakers and city officials do not see benefits of meal delivery consolidation.
Amazon’s new Fire HD 8 tablets: Higher prices, higher specs, out today by Jim Salter on 2020-05-13 13:00 (#53DCY) This year’s Fire HD 8 models offer USB-C charging, a faster CPU, and more RAM.
Netflix’s first interactive sitcom: Good for laughs, deserves a better app by Sam Machkovech on 2020-05-13 11:00 (#53D8T) After the darkness of Bandersnatch, we get a wackier, more ambitious take.
COVID-19 resurges in reopened countries; Wuhan sees first cluster in a month by Beth Mole on 2020-05-12 21:22 (#53CNJ) China ordered all Wuhan residents get tested for COVID-19—that’s ~11 million people.
We talk esports vs. a pro racing simulator with Jaguar’s Mitch Evans by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-05-12 20:47 (#53CK2) Which is harder, a million-dollar sim or a game like iRacing? The answer might surprise.
Democrats try to ban Internet shutoffs until pandemic is over by Jon Brodkin on 2020-05-12 20:10 (#53CGH) Democrats also pitch $50 monthly discounts with low-income broadband fund.
“More likely than not” a COVID-19 vaccine is possible, Fauci tells Senate by Kate Cox on 2020-05-12 20:04 (#53CGJ) What happens in the fall all depends on how much we prepare for it now.
Google Play Music dies this year, YT Music library imports begin today by Ron Amadeo on 2020-05-12 18:15 (#53CAP) Google Play Music users finally get a transition path to YouTube Music.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 will be remastered for a second time in Sept 2020 by Sam Machkovech on 2020-05-12 18:00 (#53CAQ) Teased by Hawk himself as a text message to fans before YouTube reveal.
Apple’s AirPods Pro are down to their lowest price yet on Amazon by Ars Staff on 2020-05-12 17:54 (#53CAR) Dealmaster also has deals on Anker batteries, Thunderbolt 3 docks, and more.
Hamilton is coming to Disney+ a year early—just in time for Fourth of July by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-05-12 17:48 (#53CAS) Disney paid $75 million for rights, originally planned fall 2021 theatrical release.
Bitcoin’s “halving” is bad for miners, good for everyone else by Timothy B. Lee on 2020-05-12 17:13 (#53C7Q) A lower rate of bitcoin creation means the network consumes less energy.
Thunderspy: What it is, why it’s not scary, and what to do about it by Dan Goodin on 2020-05-12 16:34 (#53C7R) Evil maids can use the Thunderbolt port to access your computer; many restrictions apply.
Large chunks of a Chinese rocket missed New York City by about 15 minutes by Eric Berger on 2020-05-12 15:52 (#53C4D) China's Long March 5B rocket launched without a second stage.
Apple battles Ableton Live with new Logic Pro X 10.5 features by Samuel Axon on 2020-05-12 15:21 (#53C4E) Live Loops, Step Sequencer, and new Sampler tools headline the update.
Apache 101: 0-WordPress in 15 minutes by Jim Salter on 2020-05-12 15:12 (#53C12) Apache gets an undeserved bad rep from outdated guides—learn to set it up right.
Mustang Mach-E OTA updates will start six months after launch, Ford says by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-05-12 14:23 (#53C13) Most will run in the background and can enable new features as well as bug fixes.
2020 13-inch MacBook Pro review: The standard macOS workhorse by Samuel Axon on 2020-05-12 13:10 (#53BTC) A new keyboard and faster performance make this slightly thicker laptop a winner.
Good timing: Jordan Peele’s Twilight Zone S2 trailer drops on Twilight Zone Day by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-05-12 00:18 (#53B73) Good news for bingers: CBS All Access will drop all S2 episodes at once on June 25, 2020.
Republican Congress members upset banks dropping support for fossil fuels by John Timmer on 2020-05-11 20:12 (#53AYT) A letter to the president ignores the fact that wind and solar employ people, too.
When AI takes on Eurovision: Can a computer write a hit song? by Financial Times on 2020-05-11 19:00 (#53AW0) One Reddit-trained AI's lyrics? "Kill the government, kill the system." Whoops.
Shuttered restaurants, bars, hotels speed up TV cord-cutting even more by Kate Cox on 2020-05-11 18:49 (#53AW1) No customers to come in, and no sports to put on for them, so why pay for cable?
May 11 Coronavirus roundup: Symptoms, therapies, and policy confusion by John Timmer on 2020-05-11 17:27 (#53ARY) A quick roundup of some of the developments of the past week.
Gecko’s soft hairy toes reorient to help it stick to different types of surfaces by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-05-11 16:51 (#53AP7) “The research helped answer a fundamental question: Why have many toes?”
Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 768G is 15-percent faster, supports Bluetooth LE Audio by Ron Amadeo on 2020-05-11 16:39 (#53AP8) Qualcomm promises a 15-percent faster GPU and CPU.
Another competent Korean car—the Kia Niro EV, reviewed by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-05-11 16:32 (#53AP9) We loved the hybrid and PHEV Niros—is it still good without internal combustion?
COVID-19 spread in White House sends top US health officials into quarantine by Beth Mole on 2020-05-11 15:57 (#53AJT) Top officials tasked with controlling spread of disease are themselves exposed.
To compete with Gmail, Microsoft reveals plans for new Web-based Outlook features by Samuel Axon on 2020-05-11 15:12 (#53AFN) Predictive text is not all Microsoft has planned.
A 2024 Moon landing may sound crazy, but NASA is giving its best shot by Eric Berger on 2020-05-11 14:45 (#53AFP) Analysis: Space agency chief is making smart decisions about the lunar program.
Can gender-bending Israeli superprawns help feed the world? by Ars Staff on 2020-05-10 14:00 (#539BF) They aren’t kosher, but they may be part of a greener, more sustainable food chain.
Beyond Netflix and Spotify, what subscriptions are worth keeping in quarantine? by Ars Staff on 2020-05-10 13:00 (#5399G) Outside of Netflix, Amazon, and Disney+, we cling to gaming, music, and meal-kit perks.
How World of Warcraft has evolved with the Internet by Eric Bangeman on 2020-05-10 10:05 (#5395W) WoW game director Ion Hazzikostas reflects on the shifting culture of the landmark MMORPG.
Review: Airplane passengers must outrace a killer sun in Into the Night by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-05-09 20:58 (#538VY) Belgian series is based on 2015 novel by Polish science fiction writer Jacek Dukaj.
Musk reacts to continued shutdown order, announces intent to move HQ by Sam Machkovech on 2020-05-09 19:52 (#538TN) Saturday morning tweet follows Friday response from Alameda County.
Sniff Petrol’s wonderfully interesting book of boring car facts: A review by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-05-09 14:40 (#538K7) A Medium-Sized Book of Boring Car Trivia is inaccurately named.
Alphabet’s Sidewalk Labs scraps its ambitious Toronto project by WIRED on 2020-05-09 09:50 (#538CP) Residents rebelled over plans to collect and use their data, among other things.
Trump admin illegally retaliated against pandemic whistleblower, reports say by Jon Brodkin on 2020-05-09 00:12 (#53833) US violated Whistleblower Protection Act, according to preliminary finding.