A microprocessor powered by algae has now been running continuously for a year. Researchers at the University of Cambridge say the approach could help power Internet of Things devices. The system uses Synechocystis, a common blue-green algae, in a device around the size of a AA battery. It harvests solar energy through photosynthesis, creating an […]
Researchers say they have proof-of-concept of an approach that could dramatically speed up computer processing. As seems to be the case with 90 percent of technological advances these days, it involves graphene. The University of Rochester researchers were trying to find a faster way to use logic gates, the physical component in a processor that […]
Apple, Google and Microsoft have agreed a joint program to boost passwordless sign-ins. They’ll give greater support to the FIDO Alliance standard. The idea is to almost completely remove the need to use any passwords, sidestepping the trade-off between security and convenience. At the moment FIDO often requires users to type in a password the […]
Researchers at Cambridge University say the broadband bandwidth of copper phone lines could be significantly higher than is currently achieved. It could be a workaround for one of the big challenges in expanding high-speed internet provision. Ergin Dinc’s team were looking for solutions to the “last-mile problem” under which it’s financially efficient to build fiber […]
Fitbit devices will soon be able to tell users if they have an irregular heart rhythm. It’s designed more as an early warning than an emergency alert. The feature will initially only be available in the United States, where it has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Unlike previous attempts that relied on […]
Today marks the 40th anniversary of a truly important date in computing history: the release of the ZX Spectrum. The Spectrum was by no means the first home computer. It wasn’t the first home computer that came pre-assembled in an affordable package. It wasn’t the first home computer that allowed children to develop programming skills. […]
Netflix may introduce a low-price tier that includes ads following a surprise drop in subscribers. It’s also talking again about restricting password sharing. In the first three months of 2022, Netflix had a net loss of 200,000 subscribers on the previous quarter, the first such drop of any significance in its history. That’s misleading to […]
Police in San Francisco pulled over a car to speak to the driver only to find it had nobody inside. It turned out to be a test vehicle for a driverless ride service. The officers stopped the car because it was driving without headlights. As it appeared to comply with their request to pull over, […]
The DuckDuckGo browser is now available in beta form on MacOS. It’s the first time the privacy-focused browser has come in desktop app form. The beta is available on an invite basis, with users on a waitlist being added over time, while a Windows version is in the works. Rather unintuitively, the signup point for […]
Two archive videos show that what is today a mundane reality was once a fantastical future… though not everything worked out as planned. The clips come from BBC show Tomorrow’s World, which featured a combination of the latest technology available at the time and the ideas in the works. The first, from 1989, imagined what […]