CATEGORIES

WHAT IS A COVID-19 VACCINE PASSPORT, AND DO I NEED ONE?

What is a COVID-19 vaccine passport, and do I need one?

WHY IT TAKES MONTHS TO SUBDUE SOME WILDFIRES

At nearly every community meeting on firefighting efforts in the U.S. West, residents want to know why crews don’t simply put out the flames to save their homes and the valuable forests surrounding them.

WAYMO EXPANDING AUTONOMOUS RIDE SERVICE TO SAN FRANCISCO

Waymo, the Google self-driving vehicle spinoff, is expanding its autonomous ride-hailing service to San Francisco.

WITH SALES STILL SURGING, BEST BUY RAISES PROSPECTS FOR 2021

Best Buy raised its sales outlook for the year after breezing past Wall Street expectations in the second quarter.

HOW TO CALCULATE AN ELECTRIC VEHICLE'S CHARGE COSTS

One of the challenges people have with electric vehicles is figuring out how much they cost to operate. The price of fully charging an electric vehicle’s battery can vary wildly depending on when and where you charge it.

TEENAGER SEEKS TO BREAK WOMEN'S SOLO FLIGHT RECORD

A Belgian-British teenager took to the skies Wednesday in her quest to become the youngest woman to fly around the world solo.

INDIANA NOTIFYING 750K AFTER COVID-19 TRACING DATA ACCESSED

Indiana health officials said they are notifying nearly 750,000 state residents that a cybersecurity company “improperly accessed” their personal data from the state’s online COVID-19 contact tracing survey — a description the company disputed as a “falsehood.”

JAPAN AIMS TO BRING BACK SOIL SAMPLES FROM MARS MOON BY 2029

Japanese space agency scientists said they plan to bring soil samples back from the Mars region ahead of the United States and China, which started Mars missions last year, in hopes of finding clues to the planet’s origin and traces of possible life.

UNDER DELTA, SUPPLY CHAIN STRAINS, TOYOTA SLASHES PRODUCTION

Toyota is scaling back production in North America and Japan as the surging coronavirus pandemic in Southeast Asia and elsewhere crimps supplies.

ROBINHOOD'S CRYPTO TRADING SURGES, AS OVERALL GROWTH SLOWS

After helping a new generation of investors get into stocks, Robinhood is increasingly doing the same for cryptocurrencies.

CLIMATE IMPACT OF COAL SALES FROM US LANDS SCRUTINIZED

U.S. officials launched a review Thursday of climate damage caused by coal mining on public lands as the Biden administration expands its scrutiny of government fossil fuel sales that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.

ARMY: FULL ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW OF $9.4B PLASTICS COMPLEX

A civilian Pentagon official ordered the Army Corps of Engineers to conduct a full environmental assessment of a $9.4 billion Formosa Plastics complex planned in Louisiana, drawing praise from environmentalists.

E-MONEY: 3 THINGS TO DO BEFORE YOU BUY CRYPTO

Investing in cryptocurrency can be as easy as a few taps on your phone, and with crypto all over the news and coming up in conversations with friends, it’s tempting to dive right in. However, depending on your financial situation and appetite for investment risk, crypto might not be an appropriate investment for you right now — or ever.

GADGET SHOW JOINS RAIDERS IN VEGAS VACCINE VERIFICATION PLAN

Vaccine verification at major venues emerged Tuesday as a coronavirus fighting front in Nevada, with Las Vegas’ biggest trade conference following the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders in announcing they’ll require attendees to prove they’re inoculated.

TIKTOK EXECUTIVE TALKS SHOPPING AND THE FAMOUS FETA PASTA

Feta cheese was scarce in some stores earlier this year. The culprit? TikTok, where videos that showed an easy-to-make baked feta pasta recipe went viral.

PEDRO ALMODÓVAR WARNS AGAINST ALGORITHMS IN INSTAGRAM ROW

Declaring “victory” over Instagram after a controversial poster for his upcoming film was censored and then reinstated, Spanish director Pedro Almodóvar said Thursday that society must be alert to the power of algorithms in deciding what humans are permitted to see.

WILL GYMS GO THE WAY OF ARCADES AND MOVIE RENTAL STORES?

Going to the gym was always part of Kari Hamra’s routine until last year’s government-ordered shutdowns forced her to replace the workouts with daily rides on her Peloton stationary bike.

FACEBOOK'S OWNERSHIP OF GIPHY HURTS COMPETITION

Facebook’s ownership of Giphy will hurt competition for animated images, U.K. regulators said Thursday, meaning the social network could ultimately be forced to unwind the deal if the provisional findings are confirmed.

WANT TO PRETEND TO LIVE ON MARS? FOR A WHOLE YEAR? APPLY NOW

Want to find your inner Matt Damon and spend a year pretending you are isolated on Mars? NASA has a job for you.

UN EXPERTS CALL FOR MORE RULES ON COUNTRIES' USE OF SPYWARE

GENEVA (AP) — Human rights experts working with the United Nations on Thursday called on countries to pause the sale and transfer of spyware and other surveillance technology until they set rules governing its use, to ensure it won’t impinge upon human rights.

FIVE AFFORDABLE SPORTY MIDSIZE SEDANS

Although SUVs dominate automotive sales, midsize sedans are still a practical choice given their roomy seating, respectable fuel economy and value. They’re also better able to provide sporty performance than a comparably priced SUV.

ACCENTURE CLAIMS ‘NO IMPACT' IN APPARENT RANSOMWARE ATTACK

Cybercriminals have breached Accenture in an apparent ransomware attack but the global consulting giant says the incident was immediately contained with no impact on it or its systems.

5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW UN REPORT ON CLIMATE CHANGE

The U.N.-appointed Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a new report Monday summarizing the latest authoritative scientific information about global warming. Here are five important takeaways.

ROBOTIC POLICE DOGS: USEFUL HOUNDS OR DEHUMANIZING MACHINES?

If you’re homeless and looking for temporary shelter in Hawaii’s capital, expect a visit from a robotic police dog that will scan your eye to make sure you don’t have a fever.

QATAR AIRWAYS GROUNDS 13 AIRBUS A350S AS FUSELAGE DEGRADING

Qatar Airways said Thursday it grounded 13 Airbus A350s over what it described as fuselages “degrading at an accelerated rate” in the long-range aircraft, further escalating a monthslong dispute with the European airplane maker over the issue.

GM POSTS $2.8B PROFIT, BUT CAUTIOUS TONE SINKS SHARE PRICE

General Motors posted a healthy $2.8 billion second-quarter profit this week, but its cautious outlook for the rest of the year spooked investors.

TYSON FOODS, MICROSOFT TO REQUIRE VACCINATION FOR US WORKERS

Tyson Foods will require all of its U.S. employees to get vaccinated against COVID-19, becoming one of the first major employers of front-line workers to do so amid a resurgence of the virus.

NINTENDO SEES DWINDLING IMPACT FROM PANDEMIC MEGAHIT GAME

Nintendo’s April-June profit declined 13% from the same period the previous year when the hit game “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” dramatically boosted sales.

KIDS AND CARS: TODAY'S TEENS IN NO RUSH TO START DRIVING

Michael Andretti has a 21-year-old son with zero interest in obtaining a driver’s license. Rideshare apps get him where he wants to go.

REBOUNDING GLOBAL ECONOMY HELPS FILL ORDER BOOK AT SIEMENS

Germany’s Siemens AG raised its outlook for the year Thursday, joining other major European industrial companies in signaling that the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic is gathering pace despite parts shortages and concerns over the spread of the delta variant.