Geeky international news on technology, business and culture.
UK’s answer to DARPA backs synthetic muscles and e-skin in new robotics project
20 February 2025 @ 3:03 pm
A British R&D unit that’s been compared to DARPA is funding synthetic muscles, electronic skin, and mechanical hands for a robotics dexterity project. The Advanced Research and Invention Agency (ARIA) today unveiled the 10 teams selected for the programme. Their mission: usher in a new era of dexterity that will transform robotics and human productivity. Members of the group span startups, university labs, public research organisations, and large companies. Collectively, they will receive £52mn to advance the physical dexterity of robots. The funds aim to bridge the software-hardware gap in robotics, which has widened during the AI boom. Robot bodies now…Surging European defence stocks signal ‘huge potential’ for military tech startups
20 February 2025 @ 8:05 am
Shares in European aerospace and defence companies soared to record highs this week, elevating expectations for the continent’s military tech startups. Britain’s BAE Systems leapt by 9% on Monday, while Germany’s Rheinmetall jumped by 14%. Stocks in Sweden’s Saab, Italy’s Leonardo, and France’s Thales also boomed. By the day’s end, the Stoxx Europe aerospace and defence index had hit an all-time peak. Military tech firms have also been surging. Kate Leaman, chief market analyst at online broker AvaTrade, said these companies have “huge potential” for growth — particularly those with AI-driven solutions. “We’re already seeing a shake-up in the defence sector, with…Glaciers in the Alps have shrunk 39% in the last two decades, satellite data reveals
19 February 2025 @ 4:00 pm
British startup Earthwave and a group of European scientists have used satellite data to map out glacial melt across the globe — and the results are alarming. The team discovered that the European Alps’ glaciers have shrunk the most of all — 39% in just over two decades, compared to a global average of 5%. Earthwave co-founder Livia Jakob said the project was invaluable to our understanding of glacier ice loss. “We developed an algorithm to combine all the different datasets into one common estimate of glacier mass balance, giving us a new and improved picture of glacier behaviour in…Can dumbphones revive Europe’s mobile industry?
18 February 2025 @ 5:38 pm
Do you remember your first phone? The thought of mine brings a tear to my eye. It was a beautiful blue Nokia 3310 — and it was borderline indestructible. Best of all, the handset had the greatest mobile feature of all time: Snake. It also offered calls and SMS, but I had little use for those extravagances. I had a pay-as-you-go contract, and money was tight back then. I also had a home phone — and Mum footed the bills. As for SMS, what was the point of that when you had the joys of MSN Messenger available for free?…This story continues at The Next WebExclusive: Tech mogul Mel Morris announces public launch of AI research engine Corpora.ai
18 February 2025 @ 11:10 am
British tech mogul Mel Morris has announced the general release of AI research engine Corpora.ai. The system provides a new approach to research. Built to generate comprehensive reports from single prompts, Corpora promises in-depth analysis and accurate outputs. Speed is another big selling point. According to Corpora, the engine can process 2 million documents per second. After receiving a prompt, the AI model scans through academic papers, news articles, legal documents, and other data on the web. The content is then compiled into summaries or reports. Corpora has shared an array of the results. They range from analyses of autism and…Netherlands a rare bright spot as EU struggles to make and keep unicorns
17 February 2025 @ 3:54 pm
The US continues to hog the global herd of unicorns, dwarfing the EU in both the number and total valuation of billion-dollar startups. However, the Netherlands provides a minor bright spot, according to a new report by PwC. More than 3,000 companies worldwide have reached unicorn status since 2013, collectively reaching a staggering valuation of $27 trillion, according to the study. The US accounts for 55% of these and a whopping 75% of their total valuation. In stark contrast, the EU has contributed just 9% of billion-dollar startups and generated 4% of global unicorn value in that timeframe. Despite the…How VCs are killing climate tech — and how they can save it
17 February 2025 @ 9:19 am
Sustainability tech has been all the buzz in the last few years. Investors are hunting promising ESG businesses, governments are pushing ambitious legislation, and companies are getting on board to adopt new solutions. Sustainability funding is projected to reach unprecedented levels, with BCG Henderson Institute estimating accumulated global investment to achieve net zero to hit $75 trillion by 2050. And yet, behind the curtain, the picture isn’t quite as rosy. According to Statista, VC investment in sustainability and climate tech has been steadily declining since 2021. While AI startups often manage to secure funding rounds within mere weeks, sustainability-focused companies…AI that isolates instruments in any song is bringing my musical dreams to life
14 February 2025 @ 4:45 pm
“For the third time, stop tapping!” my primary school teacher screams at me from across the room. I must not have heard her the first two times. I’d been drumming on the desk again, using my fingers for sticks and the floor beneath for a kick drum. While my body was in maths class, my mind was elsewhere. It was 1970. I was John Bonham, drummer of legendary rock band Led Zeppelin, on stage at the Royal Albert Hall, performing “Moby Dick” — one of the most iconic drum solos of all time. The lights are low, the atmosphere electric,…This story continues Europe has twice as many climate tech startups as the US — but there’s a catch
14 February 2025 @ 11:17 am
Europe is home to twice as many climate tech startups as the US (30,000 vs. 14,300). However, limited access to VC funding is forcing these early-stage companies to seek capital from outside the continent, according to a new report released at the Munich Security Conference today. Venture financing in Europe averaged just 0.2% of GDP between 2013 and 2023, a fraction of the US average of 0.7%. While the continent is great at creating clean tech companies, it’s not so good at funding them. The authors of The Importance of Climate Tech for European Resilience report — the World Fund,…Mistral CEO: Europe must ‘own and operate’ its AI infrastructure
13 February 2025 @ 5:06 pm
Mistral CEO and co-founder Arthur Mensch has urged Europe to invest more in AI infrastructure amid fears that the continent is falling behind the US and China in tech development. “It’s important to have European players coming to the game,” Mensch said at the Visionaries Unplugged conference in Paris yesterday. “Europe needs to invest in owning and operating the infrastructure so that the money that is being made will not just go back to the hyperscalers in the US.” Mensch was joined at the conference by a cohort of tech luminaries, including DeepMind founder Demis Hassabis, LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman,…
Hardkorr Campers has developed one of Australia's more innovative camper trailer series with its Xplorer lineup, introducing small but smart evolutions such as a tongue-integrated staircase and shortened garageable dimensions. Now it's expanding the series from two-person escapes to full-fledged family adventure retreats. The all-new Xplorer 2.3 Family doubles up on rooftop tent space, inflating to house a pair of queen beds and sleep a full family ... or just four adventuresome adults.Continue ReadingCategory: 
Only weeks after Figure.ai announced ending its collaboration deal with OpenAI, the Silicon Valley startup has announced Helix – a commercial-ready, AI "hive-mind" humanoid robot that can do almost anything you tell it to.Continue ReadingCategory: Robotics, TechnologyTags: Figure, Artificial Intelligence, Robots, 
When someone has been rendered tetraplegic by a spinal cord injury, they may still retain partial use of their wrists. An experimental device has been designed to help such folks lift cumbersome objects, by adding a robotic hand to the back of their dominant hand.Continue ReadingCategory: Good Thinking, LifestyleTags: 
Not many people fancy the idea of spending the night in a sleep clinic with multiple electrodes stuck to their skin. That's why scientists have developed a smart pajama top that assesses sleep disorders while its wearer comfortably slumbers at home.Continue ReadingCategory: Medical Devices, Medical Innovations, Body & MindTags: Sleep monitors, 
If you fancy the idea of a book-style folding phone but don't relish the bulk in your pocket, Oppo might have the answer. Its new flagship foldable is "no thicker than a traditional phone" yet offers the largest display in its class.Continue ReadingCategory: Mobile Technology, Consumer Tech, TechnologyTags: Oppo, Foldable, smartph
Using machine learning, a team of researchers in Canada has created ultrahigh-strength carbon nanolattices, resulting in a material that's as strong as carbon steel, but only as dense as Styrofoam.Continue ReadingCategory: Materials, ScienceTags: 
Following the launch of a lights-on 4K laser projector at ISE 2025 earlier this month, Optoma has unveiled the first member of its "groundbreaking Photon series." The Photon Go ultra-short-throw projector brings triple-laser tech to budget home cinema.Continue ReadingCategory: Home Entertainment, Consumer Tech, TechnologyTags: Optoma, Projectors, 
A decade after it was first revealed, London's "super sewer" is now finally complete. The £5 billion (US$6.3 billion) project is expected to revolutionize the handling of human waste in the British capital.Continue ReadingCategory: Architecture, LifestyleTags: Building and Construction, 
Stellantis, which counts Dodge, Jeep, and Chrysler among its portfolio of automobile brands, says its Level 3 automated driving tech is ready to take over the wheel and let you take your eyes off the road safely.Continue ReadingCategory: Automotive, TransportTags: 
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a debilitating genetic condition that’s usually fatal by a few years of age. But an intriguing case study might demonstrate a simple new treatment, with a child showing no signs at all two and a half years after birth.Continue ReadingCategory: Illnesses and conditions, Body & MindTags: Muscle, 
Returned Image:
What 
The disk Utility doesn't show the 84GB anywhere either, is any of the partitions, but the full disk still shows the 512GB.
How do I add this (free space) back to my main SSD?
Teaching the aliens how to exit Vim(Arrival is a fantastic movie. Watch it, but don’t stop there – read the Story of
With early computers, you didn’t boot up to a fancy schmancy desktop, or a screen full of apps you could easily poke and prod with your finger. No, those computers booted up to the command
Websites have gotten
In more fandom travel and lifestyle news, pop culture stars headline LA fire relief benefit MultiCon, Cinderella celebrates 75 years, and Meow Wolf holds pet adoptions.
Daredevil: Born Again is nearly ready to resurrect on Disney+, and its creators are just as excited as all the Marvel fans.
As Avatar prepares for its first new animated TV series—and a new hero—in over a decade, let's take a look back at just how the eponymous mantle works.
Sure, why not?
The Topps app Star Wars Card Trader is currently celebrating its 10-year anniversary—here's an update.
The more than 8,000 charging ports available to federal workers are going away.
It's unclear who vandalized the site, or why.
Goku and Vegeta stans are eating good in the fanservice department as Daima nears its finale.
A recent photography competition captures the relentless fight for survival on land, in sea, and air.
Prime Video's Robert Jordan fantasy adaptation starts streaming new episodes March 13.
ProWritingAid VS Grammarly:
Are you searching for an