Category: News and Views

Your TSA Airport Horror Show Has Been Fixed—for Now | Bloomberg

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The 2016 U.S. Airport Summer From Hell tour has been postponed, though the band may reschedule for later this summer.

After weeks in which airlines and airports issued dire warnings that the Transportation Security Administration was likely to suffer nightmarish security-screening delays, the queues have returned to their traditional, non-newsworthy duration. The TSA even boasted on Tuesday about average wait times of less than 10 minutes over the July 4 holiday weekend, as well as PreCheck lanes half that duration.

“TSA’s success this weekend is a testament to the hard work of the men and women of the agency–both its leadership and, more importantly, those on the front lines at the airports,” Jeh Johnson, Secretary of Homeland Security, said in a statement. He added that the agency is “not declaring victory” and plans to do more.

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Half a million hoverboards recalled in US | BBC News

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A major recall of hoverboards is under way in the US.

The callback affects China-made models sold under a variety of brands and affects about 501,000 units.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission said it followed at least 99 incidents where battery packs had overheated.

In some cases they caught fire leading to burn injuries and property damage. Owners are being told to contact the companies responsible, which should fix the problem or issue a full refund.

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NASA’s Juno Spacecraft Enters Jupiter’s Orbit After 5-Year Journey | NBC News

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NASA’s robotic Juno probe began circling the solar system’s largest planet late Monday, ending a nearly five-year journey through deep space and becoming the first spacecraft to enter Jupiter orbit since NASA’s Galileo mission did so in 1995.

The milestone came late Monday, as Juno fired its main engine in a crucial 35-minute burn that slowed the probe down enough to be captured by Jupiter’s powerful gravity. That burn started at 11:18 p.m. EDT and ended on schedule at 11:53 p.m.

Source: NASA’s Juno Spacecraft Enters Jupiter’s Orbit After 5-Year Journey – NBC News

What the First Driverless Car Fatality Means for Self-Driving Tech | Live Science

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A crash that killed a driver in a Tesla Model S electric car in self-driving mode has called into question the safety of driverless vehicle technology. This week, federal officials announced the launch of a formal investigation into the accident.

The crash occurred on May 7 in Williston, Florida, when a tractor-trailer made a left turn in front of the Tesla, and the car failed to apply the brakes, the New York Times reported. It is the first known fatal accident involving a self-driving vehicle.

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Impossible Foods previews meatless burger that cooks, smells, and bleeds like beef | Inhabitat

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Impossible Foods has perfected a juicy, bleeding, meatless hamburger that mimics beef down to its distinct aroma – and they just debuted the revolutionary vegan patty in San Francisco. Engineered to evoke the taste, smell, and cooking reactions of beef, this food innovation could change family cookouts forever. Impossible Foods founder Patrick Brown told The Wall Street Journal, “The whole mission of this company is to make eating animals unnecessary. So, we don’t want our product to just be delicious, we want it to be as delicious as meat.”

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Windows 10 Anniversary Update set to launch August 2 | Mashable

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Windows 10 Anniversary Update, the no-brainer update for most Windows 10 adoptees, now has a ship date: Aug. 2.

Microsoft announced the delivery schedule on Wednesday in a blog post by Microsoft Corp. VP for the Windows and Devices Group Yusuf Mehdi.

Windows 10 Anniversary Update is, compared to the original Windows 10 launch, a relatively minor set of feature enhancements. That said, there is some significant interface house cleaning, like a reorganizing of the Start Menu and Apps list and Action and Notifications Center shift to a more logical position on the right side of the screen.

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So How Will Drone Deliveries Work Exactly? | Co.Exist

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Ukraine has joined a number of postal services that are testing drones. But these tests are doing more than hooking up a parcel to a quadcopter, flying it, and then discussing the implications. The Ukrainian postal service, UkrPoshta, is working with the Israeli drone company Flytrex to bring regular drone deliveries to the country.

The chief advantage of drone deliveries is that they are cheap. Each drone delivery costs just $0.15, even though it runs point-to-point, heading out from the depot to the delivery destination and back again for each package. Three drones are expected to be able to ferry the same amount of cargo as one van—without the expense of a driver. “It never needs to take a lunch break,” says Flytrap CEO Yariv Bash.

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EU referendum fallout: Markets and political analysis, Brexit legality | Business Insider

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Britain is getting exactly what it voted for when it pipped for an exit from the European Union.

It is hurtling toward a recession and a fractured political landscape that now seems irreparable.

This is not fearmongering. The warnings were laid out repeatedly across a seemingly endless raft of reports from the Treasury, bank analysts, and independent research firms and think tanks.

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VW Said to Pay Diesel Owners Up to $7,000, Fund Clean-Air Grants | Bloomberg

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Volkswagen AG will pay owners of its polluting diesel cars up to $7,000, and agree to fund a grant program to offset air pollution, under a $10 billion settlement being negotiated for submission to a federal judge next week, people familiar with the talks said.

VW will provide cash payments worth between $1,000 and $7,000, depending on the vehicle’s age and other factors, to compensate consumers, the people said. All spoke on the condition they not be identified because U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer, who is supervising the settlement discussions, has imposed a gag order.

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