ReHacked vol. 198: Amazon is no longer allowing downloading Kindle Unlimited titles via USB, The MTA's Special Armored Money Train, Why You Should Always Look *Down* In London and more
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Amazon is no longer allowing downloading Kindle Unlimited titles via USB - Good e-Reader #copyrights
Amazon announced it has made some changes with regard to the e-books purchased via the Kindle Unlimited program. As per the new scheme of things, downloading Kindle Unlimited e-books from the Manage Your Content section via USB has been disabled. Rather, such titles will henceforth have to be transferred wirelessly to Wi-Fi enabled Kindle device or via the Kindle app but cannot be downloaded or transferred via USB. This, as the site TheEbookReader stated comes on the back of an earlier move that had done away with the option to download samples.
The MTA's Special Armored Money Train that Ran from 1951 to 2006 in NYC - Untapped New York #history
From 1951 to 2006, the New York City transit system ran an armored train that moved all the subway and bus fares collected to a secret room at 370 Jay Street in Brooklyn. This special car was the subject of an exhibit at the New York Transit Museum “The Secret Life of 370 Jay Street” back in 2015. A description in the exhibit stated that “most Money Trains were staffed by 12 collecting agents and one supervisor, all armed and wearing body armor.”
Why You Should Always Look *Down* In London: Pavement Oddities | Londonist #interesting #history #urbanism
They say you should "always look up in London", or you'll miss half its charms. But we should also remember to look down when exploring the city — not at our phones, but at the innumerable features at our feet. Here are 15 pavement oddities we've spotted on our walks around the capital.
NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test Is a Smashing Success - Eos #space #engineering
Rocks from space have walloped Earth for eons, and it’s only a matter of time until our planet lands yet again in the crosshairs of a very large asteroid. But unlike other forms of life—here’s looking at you, dinosaurs—humans have a fighting chance of altering our cosmic destiny. At AGU’s Fall Meeting 2022 held in December, researchers presented a slate of new results from NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission, the first demonstration of asteroid deflection.
Endemic Pathogens are Making You Crazy and Then Killing You | RETURN #health #nature
For many people, infections like HSV-1 remain asymptomatic and do not produce symptoms like the cold sores they are usually associated with. But our cultural mistake is thinking that the occasional cold sore is the main fear factor of carrying latent (dormant) infections like HSV-1. In reality, the dangers of us living with endemic diseases like HSV seem to be tied to several later-onset neurodegenerative diseases and even chronic illnesses such as cancer.
I deleted all my social media about 3 years ago and I hardcore regret it everyday. It literally pains me. #socialnetworks #internet
ESA - Webb confirms its first exoplanet #nature #science #space
“These first observational results from an Earth-sized, rocky planet open the door to many future possibilities for studying rocky planet atmospheres with Webb,” agreed Mark Clampin, Astrophysics Division director at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Webb is bringing us closer and closer to a new understanding of Earth-like worlds outside the Solar System, and the mission is only just getting started.”
Europe's largest deposit of rare earth metals is located in the Kiruna area - LKAB #nature #economy
A long road to a mine
At the same time, the road to possible mining of the deposit is long, where the first step is an application for an exploitation concession for the Per Geijer deposit in order to be able to investigate it further at depth and investigate the conditions for mining. The plan is to be able to submit an application for an exploitation concession in 2023.
LKAB has already started to prepare a drift, several kilometres long, at a depth of approximately 700 metres in the existing Kiruna mine towards the new deposit in order to be able to investigate it at depth and in detail.
The James Webb Space Telescope Is Finding Too Many Early Galaxies - Sky & Telescope - Sky & Telescope #science #nature
Images and spectra from the James Webb Space Telescope suggest that the first galaxies in the universe are too many or too bright compared to what astronomers expected.
Evidence is building that the first galaxies formed earlier than expected, astronomers announced at the 241st meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Seattle, Washington.
As the James Webb Space Telescope views swaths of sky spotted with distant galaxies, multiple teams have found that the earliest stellar metropolises are more mature and more numerous than expected. The results may end up changing what we know about how the first galaxies formed.
AI will be used as legal assistant in court for first time ever in February #ai #futurism
Would Walter White have received better counsel from an AI than from Saul Goodman? We might get closer to the answer next month, when a robot will advise a defendant in US court for the first time in history, New Scientist reports.
The “robot” is actually an artificial intelligence algorithm created by the company DoNotPay. It’ll run on a smartphone located in the defendant’s pocket and, through an earpiece, will advise them on what to say after listening to the arguments presented during the hearing.
Retinal cells grown from stem cells can reach out and connect with neighbors, according to a new study, completing a “handshake” that may show the cells are ready for trials in humans with degenerative eye disorders.
Over a decade ago, researchers from the University of Wisconsin–Madison developed a way to grow organized clusters of cells, called organoids, that resemble the retina, the light-sensitive tissue at the back of the eye. They coaxed human skin cells reprogrammed to act as stem cells to develop into layers of several types of retinal cells that sense light and ultimately transmit what we see to the brain.
The forgotten mistake that killed Japan's software industry - Disrupting Japan #economy #software #history #longread
So let’s start at the beginning. The beginning is further back than you might expect.
To really understand how we got here, we need to go back, not just to the end of WWII, but to the years after the Meiji restoration, the late 1800s, back when the Japanese economy was dominated by the zaibatsu.
Now, “zaibatsu” is usually translated as “large corporate group” or “family controlled corporate group.” While that is accurate, it grossly understates the massive economic and political power these groups welded around the turn of the 20th century.
Japan’s zaibatsu were not corporate conglomerates as we think of them today.
Stop filming strangers in 2023 - The Verge #privacy #internet
After being the subject of one of these viral TikToks, a woman from Melbourne told news outlets in July that she felt “dehumanized” after being commodified for cheap content — the implication being that any older woman should be thrilled to get even a crumb of attention. If you approach me while I am sitting alone, thinking my thoughts, hoping to use me to manufacture sympathy and followers, I, too, would go to the media and complain!
Other people who have been featured in videos unbeknownst to them have pointed out that even if there’s no ill will, it’s just unnerving and weird to be filmed by others as if you’re bit characters in the story of their life. One TikTok user, @hilmaafklint, landed in a stranger’s vlog when they filmed her to show her outfit. She didn’t realize it had happened until another stranger recognized her and tagged her in the video.
LEGO IDEAS - Iljinai Family House #architecture #fun
Lithuanians are not afraid of grey, as it associates not only with cloudy autumn days but also with the architectural wonders of the XX century that can be found across the country. 100 years ago, a great calamity fell upon Lithuanians when historic capital Vilnius was lost to Polish forces. This become an opportunity for another city – KAUNAS, which was chosen as temporary of Lithuania from 1918 till 1939. In a span of one generation city area expanded 7 times, talented Lithuanians came to Kaunas for studying, doing business, or looking for high culture life. The city was formed by two waves of construction: before and after the Great Depression. During the first wave of Lithuanian architects’ experiment with folk motifs, baroque forms, and art deco, meanwhile the second wave of construction was dominated by more functional architecture.
Meet the most powerful driver on Uber app in India: Gig workers’ union leader Shaik Salauddin - Rest of World #economy #world
Shaik Salauddin: the Indian driver-turned-union leader who is brushing shoulders with top politicians and giving ride-hailing firms a run for their money.
The Galmon GNSS Monitoring Project - Bert Hubert's writings #software #hardware #opensource
Galmon is an open source & open data project with a community of over 30 station operators running more than 50 receivers. Some history of the project may be found in the second part of this blog post, and on this page on the big Galileo 2019 outage.
Galmon strives to be helpful for every GNSS user (aren’t we all?) but also for research institutes, GNSS vendors and GNSS operators themselves. We are not affiliated with any GNSS supplier. The project is headed by Bert Hubert, who can be contacted on bert@hubertnet.nl.
The Fomu family. | I’m Tomu - A tiny ARM microprocessor which fits in your USB port. #hardware #hacking
A family of devices which fit inside your USB port!
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