ReHacked #4: Kazakhstan's Great Firewall, Danish Hydrocarbon Production, Boston Dynamics Become Hyundai and Some More...
Republishing from discussion thread into post.
Hello everyone! It’s another nice Thursday for a weekly dose of technology news. In this issue, You will find out how Kazakhstan building another “great firewall” and starts to control citizen’s internet traffic mandatory; Denmark plans to cease hydrocarbons extraction in the North Sea until 2050; in Australia, bees-guards securing the hive to prevent “drunk honey” production; learn whether you should have dark personality traits to succeed (spoiler alert for this long read: it depends, but in general - NOT); Hyundai acquires Boston Dynamics.
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Under the guise of a "cybersecurity exercise," the Kazakhstan government is forcing citizens in its capital of Nur-Sultan (formerly Astana) to install a digital certificate on their devices if they want to access foreign internet services.
Once installed, the certificate would allow the government to intercept all HTTPS traffic made from users' devices via a technique called MitM (Man-in-the-Middle).
Starting December 6, 2020, Kazakh internet service providers (ISPs) such as Beeline, Tele2, and Kcell are redirecting Nur-Sultan-based users to web pages showing instructions on how to install the government's certificate.
#privacy
The Danish climate minister closing down the oil industry for good
“This obviously wasn’t an easy decision. We are the biggest oil producer in the EU. We have, since the 1970s, to a large extent financed our welfare state with oil money. So to say, ‘stop’, and to pay the cost for that, is a big deal for us.”
#nature
Bees in Australia are Getting Drunk on Fermented Nectar and Being Refused Re-Entry to the Hive
In Australia when it gets very hot, the nectar in some flowers ferments and turns into alcohol. Bees that get drunk from the nectar are not allowed back in their hive—guard bees keep them out to prevent them from making the nectar into alcohol honey.
#nature
Do you need to have dark personality traits to succeed?
Experimental studies support the idea of a ‘successful’ dark personality, but only up to a point. One study found that people with psychopathic personality traits win more points on a negotiation task where they are required to compete with a partner, but fewer points on a task that involves cooperation. Those with dark traits are more likely to ‘defect’ in the classic Prisoner’s Dilemma task – an approach that means maximising your own outcome while duping the other participant.
#psychology
Hyundai to acquire Boston Dynamics for nearly $1B
Hyundai Motor will acquire Boston Dynamics. The acquisition will be finalized at Hyundai’s December 10 board meeting. News about the deal was first reported by The Korea Economic Daily, which said the deal is for $921 million (1 trillion won). The Robot Report has also confirmed the news with a source familiar with the deal. The source said the acquisition is for about $1 billion.
#technology #economy
