TV Technica 2020: Our favorite shows and binges in a year of living distantly by Ars Staff on 2020-12-26 12:30 (#5C3AX) With most major movie releases sidelined until 2021, TV stepped in to fill the gap.
Wonder Woman 1984 is fun, but doesn’t quite capture magic of its predecessor by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-12-26 00:10 (#5C31V) Patty Jenkins' sequel is hampered by nonsensical plot, heavy-handed moralizing
Study: children’s belief in Santa Claus is more nuanced than you think by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-12-25 13:00 (#5C2M6) Santa falls into an ambiguous category between "real" and "nonreal" for many children
2020’s 20 most-commented stories by Eric Bangeman on 2020-12-25 12:00 (#5C2JJ) Yesterday we brought you the most popular stories of 2020. These are the most talked-about.
Nikola stock craters after cancellation of major garbage truck order by Timothy B. Lee on 2020-12-24 21:20 (#5C260) Nikola has been on the defensive since fraud allegations surfaced in September.
Poignant The Midnight Sky wrestles with whether humankind is worth saving by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-12-24 16:36 (#5C1WP) George Clooney directed and stars in adaptation of the Lily Brooks-Dalton novel
2020’s 20 most-read stories on Ars Technica by Eric Bangeman on 2020-12-24 13:05 (#5C1N0) It's our annual rundown of the most-read stories.
Google develops an AI that can learn both chess and Pac-Man by John Timmer on 2020-12-24 13:00 (#5C1PS) MuZero handles both rules-based and open-ended games.
Trump vetoes $740B defense bill, citing “failure to terminate” Section 230 by Kate Cox on 2020-12-23 21:36 (#5C148) Congress already scheduled veto override votes for after Christmas.
Microsoft Flight Simulator in VR: A turbulent start for wide-open skies by Sam Machkovech on 2020-12-23 21:28 (#5C149) Basic impressions of what to expect—and hopes for patches to come.
Trump admin. agrees to pay Pfizer $1.95B for 100M more vaccine doses by Kate Cox on 2020-12-23 19:53 (#5C11D) Agreement means Pfizer will provide a total of 200M doses, with option for 400M more.
Musk says Apple passed on Tesla acquisition three years ago by Timothy B. Lee on 2020-12-23 19:30 (#5C0YY) Tesla got near bankruptcy as it ramped up Model 3 production in 2017 and 2018.
Samsung’s Galaxy S21 Ultra hits the FCC, confirms S-Pen and Wi-Fi 6E support by Ron Amadeo on 2020-12-23 18:51 (#5C0YZ) The phone is due out earlier than ever, in mid-January.
For Biden administration, Fauci’s in, but Birx is not by John Timmer on 2020-12-23 17:19 (#5C0S2) Birx was widely seen as too accommodating to Trump but got sidelined anyway.
Rocket Report: SN9 rolls to the launch pad, SLS “wet dress” test ends early by Eric Berger on 2020-12-23 12:00 (#5C0CR) "It has surely been a year of challenges."
The omnibus bill was packed with energy and environment policy by Scott K. Johnson on 2020-12-23 11:45 (#5C0CS) DOE gets a long list of clean energy R&D projects.
Let’s Encrypt comes up with workaround for abandonware Android devices by Ron Amadeo on 2020-12-22 22:40 (#5BZSK) When you haven't been updated since 2016, expiring certificates are a problem.
Leonardo da Vinci’s drawings have unique microbiomes, study finds by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-12-22 22:10 (#5BZQR) Research could help slow down deterioration of aging artwork, unmask counterfeits.
Congress creates new copyright court that could make trolling easier by Timothy B. Lee on 2020-12-22 21:40 (#5BZQS) Congress also made streaming pirated works a felony.
Firefox continues cracking down on tracking with cache partitioning by Jim Salter on 2020-12-22 21:19 (#5BZQT) Mozilla follows Apple's and Google's leads on partitioning, then one-ups them.
Google, Facebook reportedly agreed to work together to fight antitrust probes by Kate Cox on 2020-12-22 21:02 (#5BZN7) The law doesn't love it when competitors promise to cooperate in certain ways.
The 911 Carrera S: Two pedals good, three pedals better by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-12-22 20:46 (#5BZN8) Porsche designed the 992 around the PDK gearbox; why is the manual so darn good?
The Apple Watch Series 6 is $60 off at Amazon today by Ars Staff on 2020-12-22 20:06 (#5BZJ4) Dealmaster also has deals on tons of video games, wireless headphones, and more.
SARS-CoV-2’s spread to wild mink not yet a reason to panic by John Timmer on 2020-12-22 19:38 (#5BZJ5) A monitoring program picked up a single case and no indications of wider spread.
“America’s doctor,” Anthony Fauci, gets Moderna vaccine by Beth Mole on 2020-12-22 19:14 (#5BZJ6) Fauci was vaccinated alongside NIH director and HHS secretary.
Reminder: Donate to win swag in our annual Charity Drive sweepstakes by Kyle Orland on 2020-12-22 17:16 (#5BZCK) Help us set a new giving record by adding to our $35,000+ charity haul so far.
Ars Technica’s best games of 2020 by Ars Staff on 2020-12-22 17:10 (#5BZ9B) These 20 titles helped a quarantined 2020 pass by that much more quickly.
$50-per-month emergency broadband subsidies approved in pandemic stimulus by Jon Brodkin on 2020-12-22 16:31 (#5BZ9C) Congress creates $3.2 billion fund for people with low incomes or who have lost jobs.
Russia’s space chief is hopping mad over most recent US restrictions by Eric Berger on 2020-12-22 13:54 (#5BZ0A) "The first thing they did is spit into the Samara well."
Yukon gold miner unearths a mummified Ice Age wolf pup by Kiona N. Smith on 2020-12-22 12:15 (#5BYXD) Look upon the face of an Ice Age predator, and say "Aww."
Apple is allegedly working on a passenger car, breakthrough battery tech by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-12-21 22:17 (#5BY97) Reuters cites several anonymous sources in this update to Project Titan
Pornhub squarely targeted in bipartisan bill to regulate sex work online by Kate Cox on 2020-12-21 21:56 (#5BY98) The bill would cause more harms to sex workers than it would fix, critics argue.
Zero-click iMessage zero-day used to hack the iPhones of 36 journalists by Dan Goodin on 2020-12-21 21:39 (#5BY99) Malicious messages installed spyware that recorded audio and pics and stole passwords.
What we know about the new SARS strain that’s shutting down the UK by John Timmer on 2020-12-21 20:50 (#5BY6V) Policy is to treat it like a potential threat, but the emphasis is on "potential."
After riots, iPhone manufacturer says it “deeply regrets” exploiting workers by Ron Amadeo on 2020-12-21 18:58 (#5BY25) Apple flags Wistron for "violations of our Supplier Code of Conduct."
AT&T reportedly struggling to sell DirecTV at anything but a huge loss by Jon Brodkin on 2020-12-21 17:26 (#5BXXS) AT&T told bidders it may cancel auction if offers don't improve, NY Post reports.
These tires work better in snow thanks to 3D printing by Jonathan M. Gitlin on 2020-12-21 16:45 (#5BXXT) Additive manufacturing helps create 3D "sipes" that open and close as you drive.
Lost Sega arcade classics born anew in cute, $130 Astro City Mini [Updated] by Sam Machkovech on 2020-12-21 15:06 (#5BXQW) Fun, clicky buttons, Sega rarities, and solid emulation—albeit with some issues.
Russia’s space chief cannot seem to get “gentle” SpaceX out of his mind by Eric Berger on 2020-12-21 13:57 (#5BXMT) "I wonder if gentle SpaceX is able to work in such conditions?"
Review: Alice in Borderland takes us down a deliciously bonkers rabbit hole by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-12-20 19:51 (#5BWV4) Alice in Wonderland and Ready Player One meet Lord of the Flies and Cube.
Humanity is in danger of becoming obsolete technology in LX 2048 by Jennifer Ouellette on 2020-12-20 15:00 (#5BWKY) Director Guy Moshe chats with Ars about his ambitious sci-fi film.
How an obscure British PC maker invented ARM and changed the world by Ars Contributors on 2020-12-20 14:00 (#5BWJB) 1987's Acorn Archimedes was the first production RISC-based personal computer.
Russia’s hacking frenzy is a reckoning by WIRED on 2020-12-20 11:50 (#5BWG8) US still has no good answer for "supply chain" attacks that let Russia run wild.
Car crashes killed 36,096 people in the US in 2019 by Timothy B. Lee on 2020-12-19 16:26 (#5BVVQ) Urban pedestrian and cyclist deaths have risen over the last decade.
Kazakhstan spies on citizens’ HTTPS traffic; browser-makers fight back by Dan Goodin on 2020-12-19 15:45 (#5BVVR) Kazakhstan gov required citizens to install self-signed root certificate.
The 15 best films of a bizarre (and probably historic) year for film by Ars Staff on 2020-12-19 15:30 (#5BVT3) Some good 2020 news: Most of our favorite films this year can now be enjoyed from home.
Second COVID vaccine approved for use in the US by John Timmer on 2020-12-19 13:07 (#5BVQ0) More vaccines will help ease shortages, work through priority list.
Wildfire smoke is loaded with microbes. Is that dangerous? by WIRED on 2020-12-19 12:17 (#5BVNX) Researchers want to study potential effects of microbe-filled haze on human health.
A clever strategy to deliver COVID aid—with satellite data by WIRED on 2020-12-19 11:10 (#5BVMV) Togo used image analysis algorithms to target economic support for most vulnerable.
Miyamoto leads fans through Super Nintendo World—and it looks incredible by Sam Machkovech on 2020-12-19 00:11 (#5BV94) Nintendo, Universal Studios went all out to deliver a Nintendo-fan destination.