Innholdsfortegnelse for #436 i Techlife News

U.S. productivity rebounded in the final three months of last year but by a smaller amount than initially reported, while labor costs increased at a slower pace than first thought. The Labor Department said Thursday that productivity grew at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.2% in the fourth quarter. That was down slightly from an initial estimate of a 1.4% gain but still an improvement over a productivity decline of 0.3% in the third quarter. Labor costs were up at a rate of 0.9% in the fourth quarter, lower than the 1.4% gain reported a month ago, but an acceleration from a tiny 0.2% increase in the third quarter. For all of 2019, productivity was up 1.9%, the best annual showing in nearly a decade, since a 3.4% gain…

Japan suspended its yearly funding for a giant telescope project in Hawaii, citing an ongoing stalemate over its construction. Japan is not completely pulling out of participation in the Thirty Meter Telescope project on the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii Public Radio reported. An international consortium wants to build the telescope atop the state’s highest mountain on the Big Island. Japan supplies components for the telescope. Tomonori Usuda, telescope project manager for Japan, confirmed the Japanese government reduced funding for the project due to the situation on Mauna Kea. But Japan is still committed to Hawaii as the preferred site for the telescope, Usuda said. Hawaii County Mayor Harry Kim announced a two-month moratorium on construction in late December. Kim said he had not received a reply from telescope representatives…

A rising number of high-profile companies and speakers have withdrawn from the upcoming South by Southwest music and arts festival amid mounting concerns about the spread of the new coronavirus. Social media behemoth Facebook, tech news outlet Mashable, video-based social media platform TikTok and U.S. chip maker Intel have said they will not participate in the festival in Austin, Texas, that’s scheduled to run March 13-22. Twitter announced a companywide nonessential travel ban on Sunday, including canceling plans to attend the festival. Jack Dorsey, Twitter’s founder and CEO, had been slated to speak at the event. Tim Ferriss, investor and podcast host, tweeted on Tuesday that he’s also canceling his scheduled appearance as keynote speaker. “I love SXSW, but I don’t believe the novel coronavirus can be contained, and I…

In a surprise move, the Federal Reserve cut its benchmark interest rate by a sizable half-percentage point Tuesday in an effort to support the economy in the face of the spreading coronavirus. Chairman Jerome Powell said at a news conference that the virus “will surely weigh on economic activity both here and abroad for some time.” It was the Fed’s first move since last year, when it reduced its key short-term rate three times. It’s also the first time it’s cut rates between policy meetings since the 2008 financial crisis, and it is the largest rate cut since then. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which had been down as much as 356 points shortly before the Fed’s announcement, initially jumped on the news. The surge was short-lived. By late afternoon,…

With 79% of music industry revenue coming from streaming and digital sales at an all-time low, it’s clear the future of entertainment is via subscriptions. But in a world where everything is rented, questions must be asked over budgets, and the evolution of content consumption. THE NEXT BIG THING When Apple announced the launch of its dedicated music subscription service in June 2015, many pondered whether the end of iTunes was in sight. Though consumers were favoring services like Spotify over buying songs individually, it appeared that Apple would always hold a flag for its ailing music and video store, which generated hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue. Fast-forward five years and the landscape couldn’t be more different, with iTunes all-but-removed from macOS and the iTunes Store no longer…

There is nothing particularly extraordinary about director Gavin O’Connor’s “The Way Back,” except perhaps for Ben Affleck’s performance. This is a quiet drama about a lonely alcoholic who gets a lifeline when he’s asked to coach a high school basketball team. It’s the kind of movie people like to say “Hollywood doesn’t make anymore,” which is only partly true. It’s also the kind of movie you might feel like you’ve seen before (also partly true). Affleck plays Jack Cunningham, a lumbering, middle-aged man who drinks all day, every day. He cracks open a can in the shower. He pours a little something into his coffee tumbler at his construction job. He drinks on the drive to the bar. He drinks in the bar. The next day he repeats the cycle…

A software engineer on trial in the largest leak of classified information in CIA history was “prepared to do anything” to betray the agency, federal prosecutors said as a defense attorney argued the man had been scapegoated for a breach that exposed secret cyberweapons and spying techniques. A Manhattan jury heard conflicting portrayals of Joshua Schulte, a former CIA coder accused of sending the anti-secrecy group WikiLeaks a large portion of the agency’s computer hacking arsenal — tools the agency had used to conduct espionage operations overseas. Schulte left a trail of evidence despite learned attempts to erase his digital fingerprints, Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Laroche said in closing arguments. Schulte became disgruntled at the CIA, he said, and took meticulous steps to plan — and cover up — the…

Imagine being so close to Martin Luther King Jr. as he gives one of the world’s most famous speeches that you notice the creases in his face and then realize the late civil rights leader is looking you square in the eye. That’s the intense personal moment organizers are striving for with a one-of-a-kind virtual reality exhibit opening last Friday at Chicago’s DuSable Museum of African American History. Called “The March,” it captures the 1963 March on Washington during which King delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” address. “The speech is so well known and the ways people are used to seeing it is kind of archival, grainy two-dimensional film,” said Mia Tramz, an editorial director of immersive experiences at TIME, which helped create the project. “By being able…

AT&T is launching a new internet-delivered TV service this week as it struggles with a shrinking DirecTV satellite business. The new service, AT&T TV, will have most of the same channels offered on DirecTV, but it’ll come over the internet rather than a satellite dish. AT&T has been testing the service in 13 markets and is now making it available to anyone. AT&T will send subscribers an Android streaming-TV box to use the service. The free device will also come with Netflix and other streaming apps, the way Comcast’s X1 cable box does. Additional boxes cost $120. The channel lineups and prices are comparable with what’s available from DirecTV, but AT&T TV doesn’t have NFL Sunday Ticket, a package of out-of-market football games. The company is trying to adapt to…

Senate leaders and the Trump administration have reached an election-year deal to double spending on a popular conservation program and devote more than a $1 billion a year to clear a growing maintenance backlog at national parks. The deal, announced by senators from both parties, would spend about $2.2 billion per year on conservation and outdoor recreation projects and park maintenance across the country. If approved by Congress and signed by President Donald Trump, the bill “will be the most significant conservation legislation enacted by Congress in nearly half a century,” said veteran Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn. Alexander was one of 12 senators from both parties who hailed the bill at a news conference Wednesday. The breakthrough, which is supported by the leaders of both parties, came as Trump tweeted…

United Airlines will reduce flights, freeze hiring and ask employees to volunteer for unpaid leave as the airline struggles with weak demand for travel because of the new virus outbreak. United said that starting in April it will reduce passenger-carrying capacity 20% on international routes and 10% in the U.S. — the first airline to cut domestic flying. United officials said they will temporarily ground an unspecified number of planes. The moves by United are the clearest sign yet of the financial harm to U.S. airlines from the virus, which has already led them to suspend flights to China and reduce service to other countries. United announced the cuts shortly after several airline CEOs met at the White House with President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence. The administration…

To keep his 40 employees indoors and away from China’s virus outbreak, the manager of an electronics factory in Dongguan, near Hong Kong, says he hired a cook and arranged dormitories for them. Cjtouch Electronic Co., which makes smartphone touch screens, is one of thousands of manufacturers trying to protect employees while they gradually reopen after anti-virus controls shut down much of the world’s second-largest economy. “We have adopted strict prevention measures,” said its general manager, Zhang Feng. Trying to curb the soaring cost of anti-virus controls, the ruling Communist Party has told local officials in areas deemed at low disease risk to help reopen factories that make the world’s smartphones, toys and other consumer goods. They were idled when Beijing extended the Lunar New Year holiday to keep workplaces…

Covering the coronavirus story requires careful navigation and constant attention. News organizations trying to responsibly report on the growing health crisis are confronted with the task of conveying its seriousness without provoking panic, keeping up with a torrent of information while much remains a mystery and continually advising readers and viewers how to stay safe. “It’s a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a-week, around-the-world story,” said Michael Slackman, assistant managing editor, international at The New York Times. The Times maintains a live news blog about the coronavirus that is refreshed 24 hours a day, with editors in New York, London and Hong Kong dividing responsibility. The Slack channel set up by Associated Press journalists to discuss coverage among themselves and contribute to the story has more than 400 members. Starting this week, NBC News…

iPhone owners could get $25 from Apple after the company agreed to pay up to $500 million to settle claims over intentionally slowing down older phones to preserve older batteries. Apple and lawyers representing iPhone consumers agreed to a deal stemming from Apple’s 2017 admission that it was slowing down phone performance in older models to avoid unexpected shutdowns related to battery fatigue. That admission led to Apple offering discounted battery replacements at $29, but many people claimed they had already spent hundreds of dollars to buy new phones because Apple didn’t reveal the cause of the problem. If they had known they could just buy new batteries, they might not have bought new phones, some consumers in the case said. Apple did not admit wrongdoing. As part of the…

Unraveling the dusted bandages of H.G. Wells’ classic 1897 science-fiction novel, writer-director Leigh Whannell has refashioned “The Invisible Man” as a bracingly modern #MeToo allegory that, despite its brutal craft, rings hollow. Our image of Wells’ villain — the white wrappings, the dark sunglasses — comes largely from James Whale’s also-classic 1933 film. This “Invisible Man” might have stayed closer to that vision had a box-office bust not interfered. After “The Mummy,” with Tom Cruise, fizzled, Universal Pictures canceled its Marvel-esque monster franchise dubbed the Dark Universe. Out went plans for Johnny Depp as the Invisible Man. In came a violent, low-budget Blumhouseproduced re-imagining from the co-creator of the “Saw” franchise. The bandages and shades, needless to say, didn’t make the cut. Instead, this “Invisible Man” has shifted its focus…

General Motors, trying to refashion itself as a futuristic company with technology to compete against Tesla, rolled out plans for 13 new electric vehicles during the next five years. The company touted an exclusive new battery technology that could propel some of the vehicles as far as 400 miles (644 kilometers) on a single charge as it tries to capture electric vehicle enthusiasm that has brought wild growth to rival Tesla’s share price. At an event for investors, dealers and analysts at its sprawling technical center in the Detroit suburb of Warren, Michigan, GM executives said the new vehicles would be built using modular chassis and drive systems for manufacturing simplicity. GM will be able to build trucks, cars, SUVs and even an autonomous shuttle based on the new systems,…

Boeing acknowledged it failed to conduct full and adequate software tests before the botched space debut of its astronaut capsule late last year. A software error left the Starliner capsule in the wrong orbit in December and precluded a docking with the International Space Station. Another software flaw could have ended up destroying the capsule, if not fixed right before reentry. A Boeing vice president, John Mulholland, said both mistakes would have been caught if complete, end-to-end testing had been conducted in advance and actual flight equipment used instead of substitutes. “We know that we need to improve,” he said. The company is still uncertain when its next test flight might occur and whether astronauts might be aboard. NASA — which will have the final say — will announce the…

Twitter is starting to test tweets that disappear after 24 hours, although initially only in Brazil. The company says the ephemeral tweets, which it calls “fleets” because of their fleeting nature, are designed to allay the concerns of new users who might be turned off by the public and permanent nature of normal tweets. Fleets can’t be retweeted and they won’t have “likes.” People can respond to them, but the replies show up as direct messages to the original tweeter, not as a public response, turning any back-and-forth into a private conversation instead of a public discussion. Despite having high-profile users such as President Donald Trump, Twitter has lagged behind other tech powerhouses like Facebook and Google in terms of user growth and advertising revenue. Twitter is hoping that by…

Scientists say they have used the gene editing tool CRISPR inside someone’s body for the first time, a new frontier for efforts to operate on DNA, the chemical code of life, to treat diseases. A patient recently had it done at the Casey Eye Institute at Oregon Health & Science University in Portland for an inherited form of blindness, the companies that make the treatment announced. They would not give details on the patient or when the surgery occurred. It may take up to a month to see if it worked to restore vision. If the first few attempts seem safe, doctors plan to test it on 18 children and adults. “We literally have the potential to take people who are essentially blind and make them see,” said Charles Albright,…

The International Air Transport Association says the virus outbreak that began in China could cost airlines as much as $113 billion in lost revenue due to the collapse of air travel. Representatives of the airline industry group said Thursday after a working meeting in Singapore that the industry urgently needs help from governments in waiving some requirements, taxes and fees to alleviate the burden on struggling carriers. “The industry remains very fragile,” Brian Pearce, the IATA’s chief economist, told reporters. “There are lots of airlines that have got relatively narrow profit margins and lots of debt and this could send some into a very difficult situation.” The British regional airline Flybe stopped flying as of Thursday, done in by longstanding financial troubles and the impact of the worldwide blow to…

AID AVAILABLE The World Bank announced that it is making $12 billion available to provide immediate support to low-income countries dealing with the health and economic impacts of the coronavirus. World Bank President David Malpass said the money will go to help developing nations strengthen their health systems that are fighting an epidemic that has already spread to more than 60 countries. “The point is to move fast,” Malpass told reporters. “Speed is needed to save lives.” Of the $12 billion in support, $8 billion represents new funds and $4 billion is being reallocated from existing programs, Malpass said. The World Bank funds are designed to help countries detect when the virus crosses their borders and purchase medical equipment to treat any outbreaks. PUBLIC FORUMS The 189-nation International Monetary Fund…

Fine wines and hipster gin. Hunting rifles and knives. Contemporary paintings and million-dollar sports cars. They’re all marketed at trade events that are quickly going dark across the globe due to the new coronavirus - and taking with them sales opportunities that may be difficult to make up. Some companies are taking their shows online with virtual events they stream from their headquarters to reach customers anyway. But marketing experts and executives warn that there is no substitute for face-to-face contact with potential clients, as exhibition companies try to total up the losses being suffered by an industry that also pumps billions into hotels, restaurants and cabdriver’s wallets. The Geneva International Motor Show resorted to putting automakers’ product unveilings and news conferences online after this year’s show was canceled. BMW…

Sustainable is one of gardening’s trendiest buzzwords, yet it carries a range of definitions. Just what does it mean in practical terms, and how important is it to the average gardener? Very important, according to a recent plant trends study by horticulturalists with the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). It found strong interest in native plants, “re-wilding” gardens, growing edibles, and going easy on wildlife, among other concerns. “More and more people are supporting sustainability, where the social, environmental and economic factors balance,” said Mark Tancig, a horticulture agent with University of Florida Food and Agricultural Sciences Extension. “That means planting things that don’t require as much water or fertilizer. Using plants that resist disease and insects. Choosing native plants in mixtures that attract wildlife.…

From the perspective of teens, TikTok is a major new outlet for self-expression, one proudly home to the silly, the loud and the weird. To others, the Chinese-owned online video service is an unnerving black box that could be sharing information with the Chinese government, facilitating espionage, or just promoting videos and songs some parents consider lewd. (TikTok denies the first two concerns and says it’s working on the third.) Welcome to the bifurcated world of TikTok, an emerging social-media powerhouse that lets users create and share short videos, many no longer than 15 seconds. “That’s where the Gen Z party is,” says Kory Marchisotto, chief marketer for e.l.f. Cosmetics. “That’s where they’re all hanging out.” There’s little doubt that TikTok users find it irresistible. But TikTok is also the…

Google’s former autonomous vehicle project is becoming a more autonomous business by bringing it in its first investors besides its corporate parent. Waymo has secured $2.25 billion from a group of investors led by Silver Lake and the Canadian Pension Plan Investment Board to help the company continue to develop its self-driving technology for its ride-hailing service and a recently launched trucking division. Other investors in the deal announced this week include Mubadala Investment Company, auto part makers Magna International, venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and AutoNation, the largest auto dealership chain in the U.S. Until now, Waymo had been exclusively relying on the deep pockets of its parent company, Alphabet, which also contributing to the $2.25 billion investment. The infusion of money from new investors marks Waymo’s biggest step…

U.S. regulators have proposed fining the four major U.S. phone companies more than $200 million combined for improperly disclosing customers’ real-time location to other companies. The proposed fines by the Federal Communications Commission amounted to $91 million for T-Mobile, $57 million for AT&T, $48 million for Verizon and $12 million for Sprint. The amounts vary based on how long each company sold the user data and how many companies and organizations it sold the data to. The phone companies can object, and the amounts could change. Critics said the FCC took too long, and the proposed fines were too low. “Instead of meetings its obligation to come down hard on the wireless carriers that are guilty in this case, the FCC dragged its feet and issued penalties that let these…

Exxon Mobil outlined how it is reducing the methane its operations release into the atmosphere, detailing its efforts as governments around the globe write new rules to regulate the harmful greenhouse gas. The oil and gas giant is seeking to influence the way those rules are written, hoping companies and regulators adopt the procedures Exxon says helped reduce methane emissions by 20% in some of its U.S. drilling operations over the past two years. “Our industry has developed high-tech advances to curb emissions, and we also hope this framework will be helpful for governments as they develop new regulations,” said Darren Woods, chairman and CEO of Exxon, in a statement accompanying a document outlining Exxon’s procedures for reducing methane emissions. Some environmental advocates see Exxon’s move as a rebuke of…