Google sued by female ex-employees over pay discrimination

Google’s salary practices are back in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Three women who worked for the company are suing over gender-based wage discrimination. The plaintiffs claim Google knew about the pay inequalities (or, at least, should have been aware of them). The suit — filed on Thursday in San Francisco Superior Court — aims to represent the thousands of Google employees in California, and seeks lost wages and a slice of the company’s profits.

Kelly Ellis, Holly Pease, and Kelli Wisuri all left Google after they were put on career trajectories that they suggest would have resulted in lower salaries than their male counterparts. The suit alleges that Google segregates women into lower paying jobs that curb progression, while men with equivalent qualifications face no such hurdles. For its part, Google says it is currently reviewing the suit, but disagrees with its “central allegations.”

“Job levels and promotions are determined through rigorous hiring and promotion committees, and must pass multiple levels of review, including checks to make sure there is no gender bias in these decisions,” said Google spokeswoman Gina Scigliano.

The case comes on the heels of a full-blown PR debacle for the company. Last month, Google fired a male employee for circulating an internal memo that enforced “harmful” gender stereotypes. The controversial document, attacking Google’s purported “ideological echo chamber,” suggested that women had low representation in software engineering due to biological differences.

The firm is also in the midst of a legal battle with the Department of Labor (DoL) over its pay practices. The two sides have been going back and forth over how much data Google must hand over. But, the DoL didn’t mince words during its testimony in court earlier this year: “We found systemic compensation disparities against women pretty much across the entire workforce,” said Janette Wipper, a DoL regional director. The agency based those claims on a 2015 snapshot of Google salaries. The tech giant denied the allegations, even going so far as to release its own study illustrating that it pays men and women equally. The latest suit cites the DoL’s review of wage data for employees at the Mountain View company’s headquarters.

Like the rest of Silicon Valley, Google is evidently grappling with diversity issues. Despite pouring millions into initiatives to broaden its workforce, its latest report on inclusion showed that women make up just 20 percent of its tech roles. The picture is bleaker still for blacks (just 1 percent in technical jobs) and Latinos (3 percent in tech roles).

Apple Watch Series 3 and Apple TV 4K Now Available for Pre-Order

Alongside the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus, the Apple Watch Series 3 and the Apple TV 4K are now available for pre-order from Apple’s online storefront and through the Apple Store app.

First wave launch countries for the Apple Watch Series 3 include Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, the UK, the US and US Virgin Islands.

The LTE Apple Watch Series 3 models are only available for purchase in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, Puerto Rico, Switzerland, the UK and the US, as those are the only countries where Apple Watch cellular service is supported at this time.

The new Apple Watch Hermès models are available for pre-order in Australia, Canada, China, France, Germany, Japan, Switzerland, the UK and the US, while Apple Watch Nike+ pre-orders are being accepted in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guam, Hong Kong, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Luxembourg, Macau, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, UAE, the UK and the US.

Supplies of the Apple Watch Series 3 could potentially be limited, so customers interested in launch-day delivery should order as soon as possible. In addition to a new LTE option, the Apple Watch Series 3 features a faster processor, a new W2 wireless chip, and better battery life.

The earliest pre-orders placed today for the Apple Watch Series 3 LTE and non-LTE models and the Apple Watch Series 3 Hermès models will deliver on Friday, September 22, while Nike+ models will be available starting on October 5.

As for the new Apple TV 4K, which offers 4K HDR connectivity for the first time, Apple has not provided a specific list of countries where it will be available for pre-order so presumably it will be available in all countries where the fourth-generation Apple TV is sold. Apple TV 4K orders placed today will ship out on Friday, September 22.

Apple Watch Series 3 pricing starts at $329 for the non-LTE model and $399 for the LTE model, with prices going up based on case material, size, and band. Apple TV 4K pricing starts at $179 for the 32GB model.

Related Roundups: Apple TV, tvOS 10, Apple Watch, watchOS 3, watchOS 4
Buyer’s Guide: Apple TV (Don’t Buy), Apple Watch (Don’t Buy)
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iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus Now Available for Pre-Order

Apple is now accepting pre-orders for the new iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus through its online storefront and the Apple Store app.

Pre-orders are available in all first wave launch countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, China, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, UAE, the UK, the US and US Virgin Islands.

All of the major U.S. carriers, Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile, are accepting pre-orders for the new devices. Major online retailers including Best Buy and Target are also accepting pre-orders starting today.

It’s not clear if supplies of the two new devices will be constrained, so it’s best to place orders as early as possible for launch day delivery. There were some rumors suggesting there could be supply issues, and those issues almost always impact Plus models.

Apple’s iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus feature the same general design as the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, but use a True Tone display and new glass bodies to enable a Qi-compatible inductive wireless charging feature. Inside, there are upgraded internals with a new A11 Bionic chip, and improved rear cameras with a new Portrait Lighting feature in the 8 Plus.

Pricing on the iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus begins at $699 and $799, respectively. Pricing for iPhone Upgrade Program customers starts at $34.50 for iPhone 8 and $39.50, and Apple today began offering pre-approvals for iPhone Upgrade Program users who want a streamlined ordering experience.

Apple is only offering the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus in 64 and 256GB with three colors available: Silver, Gold, and Space Gray.

The earliest pre-orders will be delivered to customers starting on September 22, the official launch date of the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus.

Related Roundup: iPhone 8
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iPhone 8 and Apple Watch Series 3 Pre-Order Shipping Estimates Begin Slipping

Pre-order supplies of the new iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus are beginning to dwindle, with several new iPhone models now displaying shipping estimates beyond the September 22 launch date.

Space Gray T-Mobile and SIM free models in some capacities, for example, will not ship out for one to two weeks, and those shipping estimates could fall as people continue placing orders. T-Mobile stock in general seems to be selling out faster.

Apple Watch Series 3 supplies appear to have been limited, with some models, like the 38 and 42mm stainless steel watches listing shipping estimates of two to three weeks. Several Sport models have sold out, with the 42mm Space Gray Aluminum with Dark Olive Sport Sport Loop, 42mm Gold Aluminum with Pink Sand Sport, and 38mm Silver Aluminum with Seashell Sport Loop all listing shipping dates a few weeks out.

Apple started accepting pre-orders at 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time on Friday, September 15, and shipping estimates for the above mentioned products began slipping within about 20 minutes. Additional products could begin selling out soon, so it’s best to place orders right away.

While pre-order supplies of some iPhone 8/8 Plus and Apple Watch Series 3 models are beginning to sell out, it may still be possible to get one of the new iPhones on launch day by visiting an Apple retail location on Friday, September 22. In fact, for some products with higher shipping estimates, in-store pickup is still available for launch day, but that could change quickly.

The iPhone 8 and the iPhone 8 Plus come in 64 and 256GB configurations with three color options: Gold, Silver, and Space Gray. In the United States, iPhone 8 pricing starts at $699, while iPhone 8 Plus pricing starts at $799. Apple Watch Series 3 pricing starts at $329 for non-LTE models and $399 for LTE models.

Related Roundups: Apple Watch, watchOS 3, watchOS 4, iPhone 8
Buyer’s Guide: Apple Watch (Don’t Buy)
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‘Assassin’s Creed’ trailer reveals mysterious Egyptian enemies

We got our first look at Assassin’s Creed: Origins at E3 this past summer. The latest installment of the big-budget title from Ubisoft is set to release on all major platforms October 27th, and will feature ancient Roman and Egyptian settings brought to life in 4K (provided you have a console or PC and TV to handle that many pixels). The developer has just released a brand new trailer for the game that reveals a bit more about a shadowy yet powerful enemy, the Order of the Ancients.

The trailer reveals “the mysterious figures who seek the power of the ancient gods” with a dramatic voiceover. Apparently, this Order controls the Pharoah, which could mean that you’ll have to assassinate the Egyptian leader before long. Or get rid of the Ancients; it’s hard to tell from this quick look. The visuals are a treat; Ubisoft says it was made from “actual in game footage captured in 4K.” The video references biblical plagues, shows off some Roman architecture, battling warships, war elephants and a crucifixion scene. And it’s got plenty of dramatic shots of Bayek, this installment’s protagonist assassin, jumping, climbing, spinning about and — of course — killing people. The title should release on Xbox One, PC and PlayStation 4 simultaneously.

Via: Polygon

Source: Ubisoft/YouTube

Facebook allowed advertisers to target anti-Semites

As yet another proof that the Facebook ad network algorithm needs a lot of work, ProPublica has discovered that it allowed advertisers to target anti-Semites. When you buy ads on Facebook, the system prompts you to add targeted categories, which the algorithm takes from real keywords or phrases people use on their profiles. Well, ProPublica has proven that the ad network recognizes anti-Semitic sentiments from users’ profiles as valid ad categories, including “Jew hater,” “How to burn jews,” “Nazi Party,” “Hitler did nothing wrong” and “German Schutzstaffel.” Since the algorithm handles ad purchases from start to finish with no human input, ProPublica was able to get the anti-Semitic ads it purchased for its investigation approved within 15 minutes.

Earlier this month, Facebook admitted that its algorithm approved $100,000 worth of ads that point to fake news pages between June 2015 and May 2017. After some internal investigation, the company found that both the accounts that purchased the ads and the pages they advertised were from Russia, suggesting that there’s a fake news circle operating out of the country. As a result, Facebook trained its algorithm to be better at blocking ads pointing to fake news, but whatever improvements it implemented clearly weren’t enough.

The social network removed the anti-Semitic categories ProPublica found after the publication told the company about it. Rob Leathern, the company’s product management director, said in a statement:

“We don’t allow hate speech on Facebook. Our community standards strictly prohibit attacking people based on their protected characteristics, including religion, and we prohibit advertisers from discriminating against people based on religion and other attributes. However, there are times where content is surfaced on our platform that violates our standards. In this case, we’ve removed the associated targeting fields in question. We know we have more work to do, so we’re also building new guardrails in our product and review processes to prevent other issues like this from happening in the future.”

Facebook has a lot “more work to do” indeed, because a follow-up investigation by Slate shows that its algorithm also recognizes “Kill Muslimic Radicals” and “Ku-Klux-Klan” as valid ad categories.

Source: ProPublica

4K HDR Content Rolling Out on iTunes Ahead of Apple TV 4K Launch

Ahead of next week’s launch of the new Apple TV 4K with HDR support, Apple has begun releasing 4K HDR content on iTunes in the United States and other countries.

4K movies are denoted by a new “4K” and “Dolby Vision” tags visible in the iTunes Store and in the TV app on iOS devices, Macs, and the Apple TV. 4K content is not universally displaying across all devices just yet, but it should be rolling out fully soon.

A limited number of 4K movies are available at the current time, but availability should expand before the new Apple TV launches next week.

Apple’s 4K movies are available at the same price as HD movies, and for iTunes customers who have already purchased HD quality content, Apple is upgrading the HD content to 4K at no additional cost.

The Apple TV 4K will be available for pre-order starting tonight at 12:01 a.m. Pacific Time or 3:01 a.m. Eastern Time. Orders placed tonight will be delivered next week, on Friday, September 22, the official launch date of the device. Pricing on the 4K Apple TV starts at $179 for 32GB of storage.
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Retro ThinkPad pic in the wild shows notebook with some old-school style

Why it matters to you

Here’s your first glimpse of the upcoming Retro ThinkPad design, and if you’re a fan of the line then you should find it brings back some memories.

Lenovo’s ThinkPad line has been a notebook icon for quite some time, going all the way back to the IBM days when the name represented one of the best and more recognizable lines of business notebooks around. The black chassis, trademark red TrackPoint, and superior keyboard will forever be associated with the ThinkPad no matter who manufacturers it. Lenovo is going back to the future with its upcoming Retro ThinkPad machine, and its first image has apparently been leaked.

The photo made its appearance on Reddit, posted by a user who found it somewhere on the Lenovo website. There’s no proof that the image indeed depicts the upcoming machine, but according to the source Lenovo quickly pulled the image suggesting that it’s not something the company was quite yet ready to make public.

Reddit

If valid, then the image confirms some of what’s already suspected about the Retro ThinkPad. First, it will definitely sport some old-school elements, such as:

• 7-row keyboard.
• Anachronistic blue Enter key.
• 16:10 display aspect ratio.
• Traditional ThinkPad key design.
• Display latch.
• ThinkLights to illuminate the keyboard.

At the same time, the machine will incorporate some newer elements. The display bezels will be thinner as is the tendency with today’s premium notebooks, and the machine will apparently be only 15mm thick. And of course, it will enjoy today’s much faster processors, RAM, and solid-state drives that will make it perform in ways that ThinkPad users of yesteryear could hardly have imagined.

Lenovo is releasing the Retro ThinkPad in a nod to enthusiasts and “superfans” of the brand, and it has been developed with their input. Lenovo’s David Hill spoke in excited terms about the new machine, saying, “I’ve held early development hardware in my hand, powered it on, looked at the screen and even typed on it. Those who have seen it can’t help but smile. Please be patient, there’s more to come. It’s alive.”

There’s still no word on when the machine will be released, but it’s intended to correspond with the brand’s 25th anniversary which occurs later this year. One rumor has definitely been squashed, however — the Retro ThinkPad will not cost $5,000 as initial reports indicated.

IBM’s simulated molecule could lead to drug and energy advances

IBM’s quantum computer has made a small advance that could ultimately lead to a major chemistry breakthrough. A team of IBM researchers has successfully used IBM Q to accurately simulate the molecular structure of beryllium hydride (BeH2), the largest molecule ever to be simulated by a quantum computer to date. This is pretty important, because simulating any molecule on a quantum level is no easy task, never mind a big one.

The point of simulating molecules is to determine how they will interact with other compounds, so researchers can create safe and effective chemical models for things like medicine and batteries. To do this, scientists need to find the molecule’s most stable configuration, known as its ground state. In theory, this should be straightforward enough, but to truly understand the molecule’s behavior, you have to figure out how each electron in each atom will interact with all the other atom’s nuclei, including the unusual quantum effects that take place on such small scales.

So there’s a lot going on, and today’s computers can quickly become overwhelmed with the magnitude of options and outcomes, leaving chemical modellers to make approximations about how a molecule might behave and then test their theories — which can be time-consuming — in the real world. So the IBM team demonstrating that its seven-qubit chip is up to the job by calculating the ground state of BeH2 has significant connotations for the future of chemistry as we know it. As the team outline on the IBM blog, simulating chemical reactions accurately is an important step in discovering new drugs, fertilizers and even new sustainable energy sources. It’s big news on a small scale.

Via: Technology Review

Source: IBM

Amazon waves goodbye to its one-click purchase patent

Way back in 1999, Amazon patented a feature that soon became iconic: One-click purchasing. Who knows how impulse buys were committed thanks to this innovation bypassing the normal online checkout procedure when our better angels typically step in? Regardless, Amazon’s iron reign over this particular feature is over: On Tuesday, the company’s patent for one-click buying expired.

Amazon was very protective of its signature purchase-streamlining feature, famously suing Barnes and Noble when the latter put a similar one-click shopping option on its website back in 1999 — a month after Amazon was granted the patent, CNET points out. Thereafter, companies took the option to license the tech from the online shopping titan. One-click has become an increasingly important part of Amazon’s streamlined purchasing experience, powering its Dash buttons and voice ordering on Echo devices (and even a gimmicky promotion with Italian automaker Fiat).

But now that the patent’s expired, there’s nothing stopping competitors from integrating “one-click” purchasing on their own sites. It will be interesting to see if feature gets people buying wildly popular items like sneakers or the SNES Classic on vendor sites alone instead of wandering over to price-match on Amazon.

Via: Digiday

Source: US Patent and Trademark Office (Amazon patent)