More states follow California's lead on vehicle emissions standards

An increasing number of states are looking to follow the precedent set by California and adopt stricter vehicle emissions standards as the Biden administration appears poised to green light those efforts.
Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/540795-more-states-follow-californias-lead-on-vehicle-emissions-standards?source=Snapzu

‘Record companies have me on a dartboard’: the man making millions buying classic hits

Hit songs can be a better investment than gold – and by snapping up the rights, Merck Mercuriadis has become the most disruptive force in music...
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/feb/27/merck-mercuriadis-the-man-who-is-shaking-up-the-music-industry?CMP=twt_a-culture_b-gdnculture?source=Snapzu

U.S. authorizes Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine

The U.S. government on Saturday authorized Johnson & Johnson's single-dose COVID-19 vaccine, enabling millions more Americans to be vaccinated in the coming weeks and setting it up for additional approvals around the world.
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-vaccines-johnson-j-idUSKCN2AR0PT?source=Snapzu

Redesigned 14-Inch MacBook Pro Expected to Feature Brighter Mini-LED Display With Slimmer Bezels and More

Apple plans to unveil new 14-inch and 16-inch MacBook Pro models with Mini-LED-backlit displays in the second half of this year, according to industry sources cited by Taiwanese supply chain publication DigiTimes. The report claims that Radiant Opto-Electronics will be the exclusive supplier of the Mini-LED backlight units, while Quanta Computer is said to be tasked with final assembly of the notebooks.
Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2021/02/25/14-16-macbook-pro-mini-led-display/amp/?__twitter_impression=true?source=Snapzu

Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak Announce New Album as Silk Sonic

Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak have announced a new joint project called Silk Sonic. The pair has made a whole album together, featuring Parliament Funkadelic bassist and funk star Bootsy Collins as a “special guest host.” The first single arrives on March 5, with the rest of the record arriving on an as yet unannounced date.
Read more: https://pitchfork.com/news/bruno-mars-and-anderson-paak-announce-new-album-as-silk-sonic/?source=Snapzu

Australian scientists warn urgent action needed to save 19 'collapsing' ecosystems

Leading scientists working across Australia and Antarctica have described 19 ecosystems that are collapsing due to the impact of humans and warned urgent action is required to prevent their complete loss.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/26/australian-scientists-warn-urgent-action-needed-to-save-19-collapsing-ecosystems?source=Snapzu

Monster Hunter Rise is Coming to PC in 2022

A few months ago, Capcom was hit by a ransomware attack that threatened to leak numerous internal documents if the Japanese game developer did not pay up. Capcom refused and these documents then flooded the internet, giving away future Capcom release strategies in a way their schedule did not intend.
Read more: https://www.fanbyte.com/news/monster-hunter-rise-is-coming-to-pc-in-2022/?source=Snapzu

Could solar panels and batteries on your home help prevent the next grid disaster?

Even small systems like those that kept the lights on for some Texas homeowners could play a role in protecting the bigger electricity system, experts say.
Read more: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/solar-panels-and-batteries-on-your-home-could-help-prevent-the-next-grid-disaster?source=Snapzu

Images from the Mars Perseverance Rover

NASA's Mars Perseverance rover acquired this image using its Right Mastcam-Z camera. Mastcam-Z is a pair of cameras located high on the rover's mast. This image was acquired on Feb. 24, 2021 (Sol 3) at the local mean solar time of 16:22:38.
Read more: https://mars.nasa.gov/mars2020/multimedia/raw-images/ZRF_0003_0667220953_000FDR_N0010052AUT_04096_034085J01?source=Snapzu

Uproar at KCRW as former producer accuses public radio giant of 'blatant racism'

Former producer Cerise Castle claims she experienced a pattern of racist behavior while working at KCRW. The station disputes some of her allegations.
Read more: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2021-02-25/kcrw-cerise-castle-racism-public-radio-npr?source=Snapzu

Facebook Is Considering Facial Recognition For Its Upcoming Smart Glasses

Facebook Vice President Andrew Bosworth told employees that the company is evaluating the legal and privacy issues around facial recognition for its upcoming wearable gadget.
Read more: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/ryanmac/facebook-considers-facial-recognition-smart-glasses?source=Snapzu

Democrats hesitant to raise taxes amid pandemic

President Biden declared during the campaign that he would repeal the Trump tax cuts on “day one,” but after more than a month in office, some key Democratic lawmakers say they are reluctant to raise taxes during an economic slowdown.
Read more: https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/540427-democrats-hesitant-to-move-on-taxes-amid-pandemic?source=Snapzu

Monarch butterflies down 26% in Mexico wintering grounds

The number of monarch butterflies that showed up at their winter resting grounds in central Mexico decreased by about 26% this year, and four times as many trees were lost to illegal logging, drought and other causes, making 2020 a bad year for the butterflies.
Read more: https://www.startribune.com/monarch-butterflies-down-26-in-mexico-wintering-grounds/600027465/?refresh=true?source=Snapzu

Twitter planning a feature to let you auto-block and mute abusive accounts

It’s a toggle you’ll be able to turn on.
Read more: https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/25/22301388/twitter-auto-block-mute-abusive-accounts-safety-mode?source=Snapzu

SolarWinds hack was work of 'at least 1,000 engineers', tech executives tell Senate

Tech executives revealed that a historic cybersecurity breach that affected about 100 US companies and nine federal agencies was larger and more sophisticated than previously known.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/feb/23/solarwinds-hack-senate-hearing-microsoft?source=Snapzu

US Army Is Building The World's 'Most Powerful' Laser Weapon

It appears the U.S. Army is developing and building a laser weapon capable of vaporizing its targets and disrupting enemy tech signals thanks to pulses and signals. This may well be the world's most powerful laser to date.
Read more: https://interestingengineering.com/us-army-is-building-the-worlds-most-powerful-laser-weapon?source=Snapzu

Why Is Facebook Launching An All-Out War On Apple's Upcoming iPhone Update?

Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Apple's Tim Cook are fighting over iPhone privacy rules. At stake is the future of how iPhone user data is used by data brokers and advertisers.
Read more: https://www.npr.org/2021/02/26/971367875/why-is-facebook-launching-an-all-out-war-on-apples-upcoming-iphone-update?source=Snapzu

U.S. SEC suspends trading in 15 securities due to 'questionable' social media activity

The U.S. securities regulator on Friday suspended trading in the securities of 15 companies because of "questionable trading and social media activity," the latest in a string of temporary trading halts amid volatile trading in so-called "meme stocks."
Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-retail-trading-sec/u-s-sec-suspends-trading-in-15-securities-due-to-questionable-social-media-activity-idUSKBN2AQ2VZ?source=Snapzu

Quantum communication device could create limitless data capacity

California researchers discovered a way to leverage an unused property of light to apply the unrestricted nature of the quantum domain to wireless communication, creating a new type of channel with infinite capacity that could make looming data limitations irrelevant.
Read more: https://academictimes.com/quantum-communication-device-could-create-limitless-data-capacity/?source=Snapzu

Biden orders strikes in Syria, retaliating against Iran-backed groups

Pentagon press secretary John Kirby said Friday the bombing caused “casualties” but said it was too early to say how many fighters were killed or wounded.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/biden-airstrikes-syria-retaliating-against-iran-backed-militias-n1258912?source=Snapzu

Twitter is now adding a controversial 'hacked materials' warning label to tweets

“These materials may have been obtained through hacking."
Read more: https://mashable.com/article/twitter-hacked-materials-warning-label/?source=Snapzu

NASA's Perseverance rover on Mars is carrying an adorable 'family portrait' of Martian rovers

NASA's Perseverance rover has brought the "family portrait" bumper sticker fad to a whole new world.
Read more: https://www.space.com/perseverance-rover-mars-robots-family-portrait?source=Snapzu

Mom speaks out after school finds her OnlyFans account and expels her sons: 'It's body shaming and bullying'

Crystal Jackson claims that her three boys were expelled from their Catholic school all because of her account on the adult website OnlyFans.
Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/mom-speaks-school-finds-her-141236022.html?source=Snapzu

Nikola admits ousted chairman misled investors as legal costs mount

Embattled electric truck start-up Nikola has admitted its ousted founder and chairman, Trevor Milton, made several inaccurate statements from 2016 through the company’s IPO last year that misled investors. The company highlighted nine comments by Milton from July 2016 through July 2020 that were “inaccurate in whole or in part, when made,” according to its annual filing Thursday to the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Read more: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/25/nikola-is-paying-8point1-million-in-legal-fees-for-ousted-chairman-milton.html?source=Snapzu

A ‘digital twin’ of Earth will help scientists to predict the future

Scientists are building a highly accurate digital simulation of planet Earth to provide reliable information about extreme weather and climate change. This “digital twin” will be a virtual representation of as many processes on the planet’s surface as possible including human impact on water, food and energy systems.
Read more: https://www.euronews.com/living/2021/02/26/scientists-are-building-a-digital-twin-of-earth-to-predict-the-future-of-climate-change?source=Snapzu

A third of all food in the U.S. gets wasted. Fixing that could help fight climate change.

Food waste creates more greenhouse gases than the airline industry. But there are several ways to fix that, starting with your shopping habits.
Read more: https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-solutions/2021/02/25/climate-curious-food-waste/?source=Snapzu

Pokémon at 25 is stronger than ever

Before I came to work at Engadget, I worked as an Associate Editor for The Pokémon Company for five years. It was always a bit weird trying to explain what I did back then, because I’d always get “oh, is that still around, I thought that was just a fad” comments, and I’d have to explain that no, it was still very much a thing.
Read more: https://www.engadget.com/pokemon-25th-anniversary-143049469.html?source=Snapzu

People who find love through dating apps have stronger long-term intentions, study finds

According to new research published in PLOS One, dating apps may not deserve the bad rap they receive. A large Swiss study found that relationships that were initiated through dating apps were just as satisfying as those initiated offline, and featured couples who were actually more inclined toward moving in together.
Read more: https://www.psypost.org/2021/02/people-who-find-love-through-dating-apps-have-stronger-long-term-intentions-study-finds-59787?source=Snapzu

Rare bee missing for a century rediscovered in Australia

Species which targets specific rainforest flowers was last seen in 1923
Read more: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/bee-australia-extinct-found-rare-b1807608.html?source=Snapzu

Italian Graveyard Crumbles Off Cliff, Sending 200 Coffins Into Sea

Erosion along the coastline caused a landslide that utterly destroyed this seaside cemetery in northern Italy.
Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/italian-graveyard-crumbles-off-cliff-200-coffins_n_6036c062c5b68379f9853c1e?source=Snapzu

Atlantic Ocean circulation at weakest in a millennium, say scientists

The Atlantic Ocean circulation that underpins the Gulf Stream, the weather system that brings warm and mild weather to Europe, is at its weakest in more than a millennium, and climate breakdown is the probable cause, according to new data.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/feb/25/atlantic-ocean-circulation-at-weakest-in-a-millennium-say-scientists?source=Snapzu

Kelsey Grammer to return as Frasier in reboot of hit comedy

Actor is ‘gleefully anticipating’ the return of the comedy, which is being rebooted after 17 years
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2021/feb/25/kelsey-grammer-frasier-reboot-hit-comedy?source=Snapzu

Twitch, owned by Amazon, pulls Amazon’s anti-union ads

Twitch is removing the anti-union ads that its parent company, Amazon, was running on the platform. The ads showed Amazon employees talking about why they want to vote no on unionization and directed viewers to Amazon’s “DoItWithoutDues” website. A Twitch spokesperson said the ads “should never have been allowed to run on [the] service,” as they violate its political advertising policies.
Read more: https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/25/22301352/twitch-removes-amazon-anti-union-ads?source=Snapzu

Lawyers have found parents of 105 separated migrant kids in past month

The parents of 506 separated migrant children still haven't been found, however. Lawyers say the parents of 322 of them were likely to have been deported.
Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/lawyers-have-found-parents-105-separated-migrant-children-past-month-n1258791?source=Snapzu

Twitter Previews ‘Super Follows,’ Which Will Let Users Charge for Exclusive Content

Ahead of its analyst day presentation, Twitter outlined an ambitious plan to double annual revenue by 2023. Most of that will continue to come from advertising — but the social network also i…
Read more: https://variety.com/2021/digital/news/twitter-super-follows-1234915452/?source=Snapzu

A New Generation of Wi-Fi to Improve Your Home Network

The technology, Wi-Fi 6, is designed to reduce congestion from devices. We put it to the test.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/24/technology/personaltech/new-generation-wi-fi-home-network.html?source=Snapzu

Belief in God Not Needed to Tell Right From Wrong, Surveys Say

One doesn’t have to believe in God to believe in goodness, according to an analysis published in PLOS ONE on Wednesday analyzing various values driving the morals of atheists and religious believers. This finding challenges many people’s belief in belief itself.
Read more: https://www.courthousenews.com/belief-in-god-not-needed-to-tell-right-from-wrong-surveys-say/?source=Snapzu

Equality Act: US House passes legislation protecting LGBT rights

The Equality Act would prevent discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56202805?source=Snapzu

Gig Workers Gather Their Own Data to Check the Algorithm’s Math

Drivers for Uber, Lyft, and other firms are building apps to compare their mileage with pay slips. One group is selling the data to government agencies.
Read more: https://www.wired.com/story/gig-workers-gather-data-check-algorithm-math/?source=Snapzu

‘Millions of people’s data is at risk’ — Amazon insiders sound alarm over security

Whistleblowers say they were forced out after flagging problems with e-commerce giant’s data security and compliance. Amazon is amassing an empire of data as the online retailer ventures into ever more areas of our lives. But the company's efforts to protect the information it collects are inadequate, according to insiders who warn the company's security shortfalls expose users' information to potential breaches, theft and exploitation.
Read more: https://www.politico.eu/article/data-at-risk-amazon-security-threat/?source=Snapzu

California can enforce net neutrality law, judge rules in loss for ISPs

Judge denies injunction, letting Calif. enforce law while ISPs' suit continues.
Read more: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2021/02/california-can-enforce-net-neutrality-law-judge-rules-in-loss-for-isps/?source=Snapzu

Valve Ordered to Give Apple Information on 436 Steam Games As Part of Epic Games Legal Case

Valve, the makers behind popular game distribution platform Steam, will be forced to hand over aggregate historical sales, price, and other information on 436 games hosted on the store to Apple, as part of the Apple vs. Epic Games antitrust case.
Read more: https://www.macrumors.com/2021/02/25/valve-apple-data-request-for-epic-games-case/?source=Snapzu

Canadian Atheist Group: Churches Breaking COVID Rules Must Lose Tax-Exempt Status

This shouldn't even be controversial.
Read more: https://friendlyatheist.patheos.com/2021/02/24/canadian-atheist-group-churches-breaking-covid-rules-must-lose-tax-exempt-status/?source=Snapzu

Hundreds of workers at cybersecurity agency vote to strike

Hundreds of cybersecurity workers at Canada's foreign signals intelligence agency have voted to strike, a move that comes amid growing conerns about cyber attacks during the COVID-19 pandemic. 
Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/cse-cybersecurity-strike-1.5926825?source=Snapzu

Experts Ponder Nuclear Rockets To Send Humans To Mars

When NASA's Perseverance rover touched down on the Martian surface last week, humans cheered from the confines of planet Earth. But if the space agency or others hope to leave and send astronauts to Mars, experts say they need to consider a technology that was studied decades ago but never fully developed: nuclear-powered rockets.
Read more: https://www.npr.org/2021/02/24/970979229/experts-ponder-nuclear-rockets-to-send-humans-to-mars?source=Snapzu

Despite Nvidia's Anti-Mining Lock, RTX 3060 Can Still Earn Up To $7 a Day Mining

Yesterday, Nvidia announced that the RTX 3060 would limit hashing power when it detected Ethereum mining, but Nvidia was oddly specific about Ethereum. That made us wonder: What about other coins? After all, Ethereum isn't the only crypto coin out there, and new coins and algorithms come out on a regular basis.
Read more: https://www.tomshardware.com/news/rtx-3060-still-profitable-mining?source=Snapzu

NASA Sent a Secret Message to Mars. Meet the People Who Decoded It.

Engineers hinted they had hidden a code in the parachute that landed the Perseverance rover. Within hours, puzzle enthusiasts cracked it.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/24/science/nasa-mars-parachute-code.html?source=Snapzu

Facebook says it will pay news industry $1 billion over 3 years

The pledge comes as Australia passes a new media law designed to make tech giants pay for news.
Read more: https://www.axios.com/facebook-pay-news-industry-1-billion-3-years-1155c23c-d4c6-4539-825c-25e1d6fe3536.html?source=Snapzu

‘Don’t be assholes’: Ted Cruz criticizes press reports over his Cancún trip

The main lesson from the scandal over his flight to Cancún while Texas froze, Senator Ted Cruz said on Tuesday, is that people should not be “assholes”, and should treat each other with respect.
Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/feb/23/ted-cruz-press-cancun-trip-texas-freeze?source=Snapzu

Social Media Sites Must Remove Content in 36 Hours of Order, Says Govt in Draft Digital, OTT Platform Rules

The central government has finalized the rules to regulate internet-based businesses and organizations - social media companies, OTT streaming services, and digital news outlets, among others - as it plans to introduce a sea change in legislation to assert more control over powerful Big Tech firms.
Read more: https://www.news18.com/news/india/social-media-platforms-must-remove-content-in-36-hours-of-order-says-govt-in-new-norms-for-digital-straming-content-3472673.html?source=Snapzu