Record-breaking black hole weighs 40 billion times more than the sun
As if black holes weren’t already a big deal in our universe, a black hole that was spotted in another galaxy broke a record as the heaviest known black hole to ever be measured. The black hole, which is located in the Holm 15A galaxy, weighs a record-breaking 40 billion times the mass of our sun.
Cyber Monday 2019 broke records, with $9.4 billion in online sales
The dust has settled on the biggest shopping weekend of the year, and early data is showing that yesterday’s Cyber Monday broke records with total sales reaching an estimated $9.4 billion. In total, this year’s Cyber Monday sales were up an estimated 19% from last year, which saw $7.9 billion in sales.
Samsung trademarks ‘Hideaway Hinge’ — a clue to next-gen foldable
Samsung has already embarked on a foldable phone with the Galaxy Fold, but the next version of a Samsung foldable smartphone could get a so-called "Hideaway Hinge." Samsung Electronics filed a European trademark application for the name on Monday, December 2. Renderings show that the phone could fold downward.
Cyber Monday was the biggest shopping day in Amazon’s history
Cyber Monday racked in record-breaking sales yesterday, and Amazon probably contributed to a lot of those sales, since it was the company’s biggest shopping day in Amazon history. The e-commerce giant’s Cyber Monday numbers show what the most popular products purchased on the site were.
How to make your Giving Tuesday donations count for even more
This past weekend was all about buying the best deals and shopping for the holiday season, but on Tuesday, December 3, it’s about giving back. Giving Tuesday has evolved since it started in 2012, and there are lots of different ways to participate. This year, PayPal will match every donation made, up to $600,000.
An Apple AR headphone could be in the works according to a new patent
A new patent reveals that Apple might be trying to create augmented reality headphones that would be used for conference calls. The patent is vastly different from any other Apple headphone or AirPods design, as these headphones focus on a “virtual conference room audio experience."
LEGO pokes fun at Elon Musk with its own version of the Tesla Cybertruck
If Tesla’s $40,000 Cybertruck is a bit out of your budget, Lego has recreated the electric pickup truck in a much simpler and cheaper Lego version. Lego's version is one Lego brick with four wheels attached to it, with the caption “The evolution of the truck is here. Guaranteed shatterproof.”
Twitter is about to delete inactive accounts. Here’s how to keep yours
If you haven’t checked in on Twitter in a while, you might want to log in; otherwise, you risk your account getting deleted. Inactive Twitter users will soon be kicked off of the site as Twitter plans to remove all inactive accounts beginning next month. Here's what you need to do to keep your Twitter account.
This browser extension plants a tree for each of your Black Friday purchases
If you already shop at places like Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Macy’s, eBay, Best Buy, and more, the free TreeClicks Google Chrome and Mozilla Firefox plugin can make your purchases count. For every purchase made through one of TreeClicks' 50,000 store partnerships, the company plants a tree.
Amazon Alexa can now remind you to take your medication
If you struggle with remembering to take your pills every day, Amazon Alexa can now remind you to take them. Amazon announced that it has partnered with Giant Eagle Pharmacy locations to provide its customers the option to create medication reminders or even request prescription refills.
Forget about buying business supplies, Amazon’s happy to restock for you
Amazon wants you to be able to restock office supplies more efficiently with its new Dash Smart Shelf. The shelf is a Wi-Fi-enabled smart scale that has weight-sensing technology to track inventory. The shelf tracks the stock for a product, and once it senses that item is running low, it re-orders it for you.
Scientists want to send a $2 billion flagship-class mission to Venus
Scientists are hoping to convince NASA to send a flagship mission to Venus in order to learn more about the planet’s past and if how habitable it could have been. The flagship mission is most expensive class of a NASA project, and scientists want to go deeper into the research of habitability on Venus.
Amazon looks to expand its cashier-free Go tech to supermarkets, pop-up stores
Supermarket cashiers would be a thing of the past at Amazon Go’s new supermarkets and popup stores slated to open next year. Amazon is reportedly expanding from its Go convenience stores to enter the supermarket realm and is looking to license out its technology to expand to even more retailers.
Uber thinks you’ll trade privacy for greater safety with new recording feature
Your Uber rides will soon be audio recorded as part of a new security feature aimed at increasing riders’ safety. Uber will begin to pilot the audio-recording feature in cars in Latin America starting in December, with the feature eventually rolling out to U.S. riders pending state-by-state approval.
Clean-energy startup backed by Bill Gates hopes to replace fossil fuels
A startup backed by Bill Gates has found a way to combine artificial intelligence and solar energy to create extreme heat, essentially replacing the need for fossil fuels. Heliogen used A.I.-powered mirrors that can generate extreme heat -- more than 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit -- for the first time commercially.
NASA discovers water vapor — and maybe more — on Jupiter’s moon Europa
NASA has confirmed that one of Jupiter’s 79 moons, Europa, has water vapor above its surface, and possibly even a liquid water ocean, providing more evidence that the moon has the ingredients necessary for life. Scientists say that above the surface of Europa, there are plume-like configurations of water vapor.
New York sues Juul for allegedly ‘glamorizing vaping’ and targeting teens
Adding on to the extensive list of lawsuits, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced a new lawsuit against Juul. The lawsuit alleges that Juul illegally sold its vaping products to underage smokers, and that the company’s advertising campaign does not mention that its products contain nicotine.
Tesla gets permit to start production in Chinese factory
Tesla received a permit to begin production of Model 3 sedans at its “Gigafactory” in Shanghai. The factory will be the first plant in China that’s owned by a foreign carmaker, and it will be Tesla’s first factory outside of the U.S. The Shanghai Gigafactory is one of four facilities that Tesla has running/in the works.
Google will offer checking accounts as latest tech company to enter finance
Google is the latest tech company to enter the financial world by offering checking accounts starting next year. Google’s financial project, dubbed as Cache, would have accounts run by Citigroup. The financial institutions would be the main focus on Cache, rather than Google creating a separate financial brand.
Libra Lite? Facebook Pay is the social network’s latest foray into finance
Facebook introduced a new payment system called Facebook Pay that would be accessible with Facebook, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, and WhatsApp. Facebook Pay is meant to make in-app purchases and transfer payments from person to person, make purchases on select pages or businesses, as well as on Facebook Marketplace.
Apple removes Like Patrol’s Instagram ‘stalking app’ from the App Store
The Like Patrol app that alerts you when your Instagram followers like or comment on a photo has been removed from Apple’s App Store for violating its guidelines. Like Patrol has received criticism as a stalking app since it lets its subscribers see every move that the people they follow make.
Juul discontinues sales of its mint-flavored pods
Juul is discontinuing its sales of mint Juul pods, citing studies released from different surveys. The announcement comes a week after a lawsuit claims Juul shipped out one million batches of contaminated mint e-liquid. The company said that all sales of mint-flavored Juul pods would cease both online and in stores.
Boeing wants to get to the moon in as few steps as possible
Boeing submitted a proposal to NASA for a human lander concept that would deliver astronauts to the moon in the fewest steps possible. The proposal is part of NASA’s Artemis program and is meant to reduce the number of segments that need to be sent into orbit—from 11 mission-critical events to five.
Ring doorbell security flaw opened the door to hackers
Amazon Ring has fixed a security vulnerability in its Ring doorbell that could have potentially allowed hackers to get Wi-Fi passwords and access homeowners’ networks to organize a larger attack on the network. Bitdefender found the vulnerability when the Ring doorbell is first configured to a Wi-Fi network.
Documents show Facebook used user data as bargaining chip against competitors
Leaked documents show that Facebook used user data as a bargaining tool for its advertising partners and leveraged the data against its competitors. Facebook would whitelist or blacklist companies from using valuable user data based on advertising spending or if the company was a direct competitor of Facebook.
Airbnb to verify every single listing by end of 2020 to bolster guests’ safety
Airbnb announced a new safety initiative for its customers that will verify every single Airbnb listing around the globe. The safety updates include 100% verification of listings, a guest money-back guarantee, a 24/7 Neighbor Hotline, and risk scoring. The company said it hopes to bring back trust to its community.
At $2 million per launch, SpaceX’s Starship brings cost of space down to earth
SpaceX’s much-anticipated Starship rocket could only cost $2 million per mission. Elon Musk said that the reusable passenger spaceship would cost $900,000 worth of fuel per launch, which added in with other costs, comes out to about a $2 million price tag -- a drop in the bucket in terms of space dollars.
Tesla reaches settlement with Walmart to bring solar panel suit to an end
Walmart announced it dropped its lawsuit against Tesla over malfunctioning solar panels manufactured by the company that resulted in fires. A Walmart spokesperson said that a settlement has been reached between the two companies and the stipulation of dismissal has been filed with the court.
Facebook wants you to take a selfie in order to verify your identity
Facebook is reportedly working on facial-recognition software that would verify the identities of users trying to access the app. Jane Manchun Wong tweeted out a prototype of Facebook’s facial-recognition identity login, which asks users to take a selfie by looking in different directions.