Rank #1: Biohacking Yourself
Josiah Zayner live streamed injecting himself with gene editing compound CRISR at a biotech conference. He sells DIY CRISPR and other biohacking paraphernalia on his website The Odin. Now he's being investigated by Consumer Affairs in California for practicing medicine without a license.
May 21 2019
8mins
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Rank #2: A Clean And Green Alternative To Styrofoam
Researchers at Washington State University have invented an environmentally-friendly foam made from nanocrystals of cellulose that is a better insulator than polystyrene.
May 27 2019
4mins
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Rank #3: Alexa's Been Listening
Despite assurances it's secure and your privacy is protected, sources claim that in addition to software and AI responding to your Alexa voice commands, there are humans listening back at Amazon.
Apr 24 2019
5mins
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Rank #4: Disrupting The Disruptors - Big Changes To The Gig Economy
If it passes a final vote in the Senate, California's AB5 bill will force companies like Uber, Lyft, Instacart and Postmates to classify workers as employees, not independent contractors. This fundamental challenge to a beloved business model of Silicon Valley could seriously effect bottom line profitability.
Sep 03 2019
11mins
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Rank #5: Noise Concerns Dampen Support For Delivery Drones
After concluding a national drone noise review, the Australian Federal Government has come under fire from Google-linked Wing, a delivery drone operator. The Feds want to hand responsibility for drone noise to the states, which may result in an uncertain and inconsistent regulatory environment.
Dec 02 2019
7mins
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Rank #6: Safer Internet Day 2019
Coinciding with Safer Internet Day which aims to create a better internet for young people, Google releases a new Chrome feature that warns about compromised logins.
Feb 13 2019
5mins
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Rank #7: The Automatic Listening Exploitation Act
Smart home devices like the Amazon Echo and Google Nest are super handy but do come with some security risks. There are now 50 million in use in America, with 21% of adults owning them and sales are booming. Representative Seth Moulton (D-MA) is calling for a new generation of digital privacy laws to protect people's private conversations at home from being recorded without permission.
Sep 12 2019
10mins
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Rank #8: Big Brother Likes To Watch
Billions of CCTV cameras now monitor cities across the world but don't necessarily result in big reductions in crime or improvements in public safety. What they do provide is a data bonanza for governments, anxious to keep ever closer tabs on 'their' people.
Aug 27 2019
10mins
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Rank #9: Is The Clock TikTok'ing For Spotify?
A new music streaming service from TikTok's parent company Bytedance could challenge Spotify's market dominance. It aims to capitalise on the massive and growing popularity of TikTok to encourage sharing and virality among music lovers, with emphasis on video and interactivity.
Nov 29 2019
6mins
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Rank #10: Google Moves To Elevate Original Reporting In Search Results
At long last, the world's search giant is taking steps to favour the originators of true journalism in its search result rankings over aggregators, plagiarists and retweeting parrots. This is a potential win for dedicated investigative reporters, smaller publishers and all those resisting the tide of fake news and misinformation poisoning real debate and open, constructive discussion.
Sep 18 2019
9mins
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Rank #11: Lab-grown Meat Coming Of Age
Production costs are falling dramatically and the day may come when a fast food burger is made by a machine, instead of a cow. There will also be massive environmental benefits of such ethical eating.
Sep 19 2019
8mins
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Rank #12: The Iron-ion Battery From India
Newly developed at the Institute of Technology in Madras, iron-ion batteries are safe, clean and stable. They can't be recharged as many times as lithium-ion batteries, but for specific uses they offer advantages.
Sep 05 2019
8mins
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Rank #13: From The Vault - Dawn mission to Vesta and Ceres; Planet 9; Juno to Jupiter
From The Vault: The Best Of Beyond Infinity.
The first time one spacecraft orbited two separate objects in our solar system was NASA's pioneering DAWN mission to Vesta and Ceres.
PLUS: Planet X - the hunt for the elusive 9th planet; and the JUNO spacecraft's hairy encounter with the gas giant Jupiter.
The first time one spacecraft orbited two separate objects in our solar system was NASA's pioneering DAWN mission to Vesta and Ceres.
PLUS: Planet X - the hunt for the elusive 9th planet; and the JUNO spacecraft's hairy encounter with the gas giant Jupiter.
Sep 08 2019
31mins
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Rank #14: After 50 years, US Strategic Air Command Retires Its Floppy Disks
The Air Force has completed an upgrade to its Strategic Automated Command and Control System whereby its 1960s era 8-inch floppy disk system was replaced with a solid state digital storage solution. Yet America's ICBMs may wind up being less secure from hackers.
Nov 23 2019
7mins
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Rank #15: New Hope For Those With Peanut Allergies
An expensive new treatment promises gradually to protect allergic children from accidental exposure to small amounts of peanuts.
Feb 09 2020
5mins
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Rank #16: 3D-Printed Fake Fish To Hit Supermarket Shelves
San Diego start-up BlueNalu has found a way to make a plant-based fillet of yellowfish. Crucially, the lab-made seafood can be cooked by direct heat without disintegrating. Scaling up to commercial quantities will be a big challenge.
Jan 23 2020
8mins
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Rank #17: Microsoft Cuts Support For Windows 7 Leaving Millions Vulnerable
Software experts, including our own John Young, are urging Windows users to upgrade to Windows 10 as a decade of support for 7 winds up. It's estimated well over 20% of all PC users are still running the aging operating system, leaving them exposed to risks of hacking, ransomware and data loss.
Jan 25 2020
7mins
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Rank #18: Suspicionless Device Searches Ruled Illegal
In an important opinion on privacy at borders, US District Court Judge Denise Casper ruled that device searches without probable cause are in violation of the 4th Amendment. She held that people have significant privacy interests in their digital data and that device searches require reasonable suspicion from border officials.
Nov 23 2019
9mins
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Rank #19: Software Helping Opiod Makers Push Their Wares
The US Department of Justice accused San Francisco startup Practice Fusion of creating software to increase pain med prescriptions by medical practitioners. The company, which provided software to thousands of doctors' offices, settled for US$145 million.
Feb 09 2020
7mins
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Rank #20: Post Fires, Will Australia Reconsider Climate Change? (Part 2)
The bushfire emergency has killed over a billion animals and decimated national parks and old growth forests. Now seems a good time to listen again to our in-depth interview on anthropogenic climate change with Professor David Karoly, recorded in 2016. We discuss global warming, its impacts and implications for the planet.
The podcast includes an update on the enormous and tragic losses of native flora and fauna in Australia, plus how to donate and support recovery efforts.
The podcast includes an update on the enormous and tragic losses of native flora and fauna in Australia, plus how to donate and support recovery efforts.
Jan 18 2020
59mins
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