NASA tests battle trucks as astronaut escape vehicles
If something goes catastrophically wrong during one of NASA’s upcoming commercial spacecraft launches, the crew will need to get clear of the launchpad — and fast. But they won’t be doing so in the lumbering old M113 Armored Personnel Carriers that they used during the Shuttle era. Heck no; if these Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles are good enough for the LAUSD, they’re damn well suitable for our astronauts.
The MRAP is a 45,000 pound beast of a truck that was originally designed to ferry troops through war zones without fear of IEDs (roadside bombs) or ambushes. Now, NASA wants to use them as mobile fallout shelters should things go sideways during a launch sequence. The heavily armored vehicles may not look it, but they’re surprisingly nimble with a 50 MPH top speed. In fact, during recent testing ahead of the planned start of the Commercial Crew Program in 2017, NASA engineers found that a fully-laden MRAP was actually a bit quicker than they had calculated.
“Knowing how long it takes to get a person from the pad to where it will be safe is critical in our risk reduction for the crew,” Steve Payne of Commercial Crew, said in a statement. “You can draw lines on a map all you want, but until you get out and run the course in real-life conditions, you don’t know. You think you know, but you don’t know.” What’s more, because the MRAP can be driven like a regular truck rather than a tank — as is the case with the M113 — anybody from the crew or support team can operate it in a pinch.
Filed under: Science
Source: NASA
Lyft pays $300k to get New York off its back
One downside of reinventing an industry is that you can sometimes forget that the red tape you’re bravely circumventing was put in place for a reason. It’s a lesson that Lyft has learned the hard way after being fined $300,000 by New York for operating a taxi service without the proper insurance. As far as Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is concerned, ride-sharing outfits are welcome in his state, but only if they’re making sure they obey the rules and ensure that their customers are safe.
That means that, from now on, all Lyft drivers will have to have the proper insurance — supplied by a business operating and regulated within New York State. As part of that, the company can’t offer, sell or provide insurance for drivers if said policies aren’t governed by New York insurance law.
The list of obligations doesn’t end there, since Lyft will now be obliged to give authorities three weeks’ notice whenever it plans to expand into a new city. Officials in Buffalo and Rochester felt aggrieved when the company set up shop there in April 2014 without even so much as a courtesy call and a basket of fruit.
If you hadn’t noticed, as these ride-sharing companies have grown in stature, so has the target that’s planted on their backs. There’s plenty of accusations involved, including not paying drivers fairly, not observing the nuances of employment law, not taking safety seriously enough and not respecting the established players in the market. Still, these growing pains are worth it given the pile of cash that’s waiting for the winner at the end of this battle.
[Image Credit: AP]
Filed under: Transportation, Software
Via: Washington Post
Source: NY Attorney General’s Office
E3’s ‘Into the Pixel’ celebrates video games as art
I’ve been checking out Into the Pixel since my first E3. Seeing video game concept art in a gallery setting is a beautiful way to unwind and get a minute or two of respite from the madness of the show floor. It’s also a chance to appreciate the downright beautiful art in a format that isn’t just a rote, diminutive art book that comes with the “special edition” of a video game. In the video below, Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences president Martin Rae explains what Into the Pixel is and we take a bit of a tour through the space. The standout piece this year? It’s from Far Cry 4 and right above this text.
Filed under: Gaming, Home Entertainment, HD
Amazon scores a deal with Marvel to offer comics directly to Kindle devices
A little while ago, one of the only ways to read digital copies of Marvel comics was through comiXology, but Amazon purchased it last year. Now Amazon is offering all the comics (up to 12,000 of them) without needing the comiXology app. The best part is the titles in the Kindle store or on comiXology will be available the same day they come out in brick and mortar stores. Some comics offered are Ultimate Spider-Man, Avengers, and Daredevil.
Peter Phillips, EVP of Interactive and Digital Distribution at Marvel Entertainment, said:
“After Amazon’s acquisition of comiXology in April of 2014, we collectively saw a great opportunity to expand our relationship and create more ways for fans to access Marvel’s vast library of characters as well as leverage comiXology’s technology, together with Amazon’s incredible consumer focus and reach.
Source: Marvel
Come comment on this article: Amazon scores a deal with Marvel to offer comics directly to Kindle devices
Spotify beta updated to v3.1, includes new start page and more
Spotify updated their iOS app to offer many new and improved features, but left their Android app out of luck. Today, they are bringing these new features to Android with its beta app.
Version 3.1 brings new UI changes, and general app fixes. The new “Now” start page which determines music based on the time of day, mood, and personal taste. Another new feature, “Running,” lets you listen to more upbeat music when you go for a run to keep you motivated.
The biggest change is video shows/podcasts from ABC, BBC, Comedy Central, Condé Nast Entertainment, ESPN, Fusion, Maker Studios, NBC, TED, Vice News, TWiT and more. These new features are however limited to Germany, Sweden, the UK, and the US at this time.
Join Spotify’s beta program to test the new features.,
Come comment on this article: Spotify beta updated to v3.1, includes new start page and more
Asus’ ZenFone 2 now has an unlockable bootloader on the latest firmware version
The Asus ZenFone 2’s bootloader can now be unlocked, which means developers can begin developing custom ROMs for Asus’ most impressive flagship yet. It’ll certainly make the device more appealing to the development community.
There’s just one small hurdle about unlocking the bootloader–you need to be running the latest firmware version for the device. If you’ve got the latest firmware–2.19.40–you should be ready to go. It’s extremely easy to bust through the bootloader. According to XDA Developers, you’ll need root on the ZenFone 2, and then need to run the following ADB commands:
adb shell
su
getprop ro.isn > /factory/asuskey
reboot bootloader
After that, the ZenFone 2 should restart in recovery mode, and the ASUS splash screen will be white, indicating that the bootloader is unlocked. Originally, the splash screen was black, which indicated that the bootloader was still locked up tight.
Hopefully it’s not long before we see CyanogenMod on the device. CyanogenMod paired with the device’s 4GB of RAM will make the ZenFone 2 one hell of a smartphone.
source: XDA
via: Android Police
Come comment on this article: Asus’ ZenFone 2 now has an unlockable bootloader on the latest firmware version
Samsung Galaxy J5 and J7 are now official, front-facing flashes in tow
Samsung has just quietly launched two new mid-range smartphones, the Galaxy J5 and Galaxy J7, in China. Both handsets are now available for purchase from Samsung’s website and will be aimed at the younger crowd. Other than sporting the familiar Samsung design language, these two devices have another trick up their sleeves – both feature a front-facing 5MP camera along with an LED flash, also on the front of the device. Now that the selfie craze is in full force, this feature will likely bring a lot of younger users on board.
Aside from that, both devices have a 13MP rear-facing camera with an f/1.9 aperture lens, 1.5GB of RAM, 16GB of on-board storage, a MicroSD card slot, LTE and dual SIM capabilities. Both also run Android 5.1 Lollipop and are available in Black, White and Gold color options. As the name suggests, the J7 is a tad more powerful than the J5, offering up an octa-core Snapdragon 615 processor, a 5.5-inch display with a resolution of 1280 x 720, and a big 3000mAh battery.
The J5 on the other hand comes with a 5.0-inch 720p display, a 1.2 GHz quad-core Snapdragon 410 processor, and a smaller 2600mAh battery.
The J7 is now available in China for 1,798 CNY (~$289) and the J5 costs 1,398 CNY (~$225). We’re not sure if either phone will be available in markets outside of China, though we’ll let you know if we hear anything.
Sony Xperia Z3+ now available for purchase from Carphone Warehouse for £550
Sony’s recently-announced Xperia Z3+ handset is now available for purchase from Carphone Warehouse. Available unlocked for £549.99, the device is being offered in Black, White and a Carphone Warehouse-exclusive Ice Green color option. For those who’d like to pay monthly on their new device, prices start at £31.99 with an upfront fee of £59.99. Additionally, Carphone Warehouse is also throwing in a pretty nice audio bundle should you buy the phone through them, which includes a pair of Sony headphones, a free three-month subscription to the Tidal music streaming service, and six free high-res albums.
While the Xperia Z3+ is expected to be available through other UK retailers sometime next week, this may be your best bet if you’re looking to pick up the new handset.
If you need a refresher, the Xperia Z3+ features a 5.2-inch 1080p display, a Snapdragon 810 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of on-board storage and MicroSD expansion up to 128GB. With its 20.7MP rear camera, big 2930mAh battery and IP68 certification, this is actually a pretty respectable device. If you’d like some more information on the Z3+, head on over to the Carphone Warehouse website.
Cricket slashes phone prices in summer promo
Cricket Wireless has dropped the price for a number of its smartphones as we get ready to head into the summer season.
“Cricket wants to give customers something to smile about this summer by keeping more cash in their pockets, so we’ve dropped our prices on an array of smartphones“
Starting today you can pick up an Android device from the no-contract carrier for as low as $1. Yes, you can also grab some other stuff, too, like the iPhone 5c or a Nokia Lumia 635.
- Nokia Lumia 635 (LTE) – $0.99*
- ZTE Prelude II (4G) – $0.99*
- HTC Desire 510 (LTE) – $29.99
- ZTE Overture 2 (LTE) – FREE after $50 mail-in rebate Cricket Visa Promotion Card
- Moto E (LTE) – $79.99
- ZTE Grand X (4G) – $99.99
- Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime (LTE) – $129.99
- ZTE Grand X Max + (LTE) – $169.99
- Apple iPhone 5c 32GB (LTE) – $299.99
Note that the $.99 promo price for the Lumia 635 and ZTE Prelude II is limited to retail stores only and will be offered for a short time.
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OnePlus releases OxygenOS 1.01 for One owners with touch screen issues
If you like using OxygenOS on your OnePlus One, but have had to settle with those pesky touchscreen bugs, you’ll be glad to hear that OnePlus isn’t sitting on the issue. They have released v1.01 of OxygenOS, with a patch to straighten out that spazzy touchscreen.
There is a breakdown of the steps to flashing the latest build. If you want to achieve this without messing with your data, they’ve also suggested a migration tool developed with help of folks from Fastboot Mobile and XDA. It allows you to flash from Cyanogen OS 11 or 12 without losing your data. But as these things go, be aware that this tool is in beta.
It’s great to see that OnePlus is on top of these things, and now is a good time to try OxygenOS if it’s been on your mind. Hit up the source link for more detail and the download links.
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