CATEGORIES

CAN YOUR PET GET COVID-19?

Yes, pets and other animals can get the coronavirus that causes COVID-19, but health officials say the risk of them spreading it to people is low.

2021 NOTEBOOK: BILLIONAIRES AND THE SPACE RACE

Captain Kirk — aka William Shatner — finally made it into space, part of the new wave of civilian travelers sponsored by names like Bezos, Musk and Branson who are slipping the surly bonds of Earth 10 years after NASA’s shuttle program ended. But there are big differences.

Group: Pandemic Tech Tools Raise Risk Of Everyday Tracking

Tech tools like digital contact tracing apps and artificial intelligence that European governments rolled out to combat COVID-19 failed to play a key role in solving the pandemic and now threaten to make such monitoring widely accepted, a new report shows.

European Activists Fight for Right to Repair Electronics

At a table scattered with tools and wires, volunteer repairers sit across from the owners of an assortment of inoperable electronics. The volunteers at a free “repair cafe” in Copenhagen disassemble and diagnose gadgets while the customers watch, each doing their part for the environment - one broken blender, radio or laptop at a time.

BIDEN ORDER WOULD MAKE US GOVERNMENT CARBON NEUTRAL BY 2050

President Joe Biden signed an executive order to make the federal government carbon-neutral by 2050, aiming for a 65% reduction in planetwarming greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and an all-electric fleet of car and trucks five years later.

CHINA CLEARS BOEING 737 MAX TO FLY AGAIN

China’s aviation regulator cleared the Boeing 737 Max on Thursday to return to flying with technical upgrades more than two years after the plane was grounded worldwide following two fatal crashes.

SHOULD YOU BANK WITH YOUR BROKERAGE?

If you’ve invested with a brokerage firm in recent years, you may have noticed that your brokerage offers a product called a cash management account.

SHOPPERS ARE BACK IN STORE, ONLINE, BUT VIRUS IMPACT LINGERS

Americans are spending freely and going back to store shopping, knocking out some of the momentum in online sales from last year when Americans were making many of their purchases exclusively via the internet.

TESLA OFFICIALLY MOVES HEADQUARTERS FROM CALIFORNIA TO TEXAS

Tesla says it has officially moved its corporate headquarters from Silicon Valley to a large factory under construction outside of Austin, Texas.

UK COMPETITION WATCHDOG ORDERS FACEBOOK TO SELL OFF GIPHY

The United Kingdom’s antitrust watchdog has blocked Facebook’s acquisition of Giphy and ordered the social network to sell off the GIF-sharing platform, saying the deal hurts social media users and advertisers by stifling competition for animated images.

SCIENCE REPORT: US SHOULD MAKE LESS PLASTIC TO SAVE OCEANS

America needs to rethink and reduce the way it generates plastics because so much of the material is littering the oceans and other waters, the National Academy of Sciences says in a new report.

MERCEDES, STELLANTIS TO WORK WITH US FIRM ON NEW BATTERIES

Automakers Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis announced agreements with U.S. company Factorial Energy this week to help develop solid-state battery technology that they hope could make electric cars more attractive to a mass market.

FROM SQUARE TO BLOCK: ANOTHER TECH COMPANY CHANGES ITS NAME

There’s a new Silicon Valley corporate name change on the block.

GM CITES IMPROVED CHIP SUPPLY IN RAISING FINANCIAL GUIDANCE

Citing an improved supply of automotive computer chips, General Motors raised its financial guidance on Wednesday and said it expects to return to a normal production rate by the end of next year.

DATA HACKED FOR 400,000 PLANNED PARENTHOOD LA PATIENTS

The Los Angeles branch of Planned Parenthood was hit by a data breach involving about 400,000 patients, but there is no indication that the information was used “for fraudulent purposes,” the group said.

Under Pressure, Apple Allows Self-repairs to Iphones, Macs

Apple is letting some iPhone users fix their own phones, a sharp turnaround for a company that has long prohibited anyone but company-approved technicians from fiddling with its proprietary parts and software.

African Internet Riches Threatened by Lawsuit and Corruption

Outsiders have long profited from Africa’s riches of gold, diamonds, and even people. Digital resources have proven no different.

LAUNCH OF NEW NASA SPACE TELESCOPE DELAYED AFTER INCIDENT

The European Space Agency says the launch of a new NASA telescope to replace the famed Hubble observatory is being postponed to allow experts to check the device for possible damage following an incident at its spaceport in French Guiana.

IS TRAVEL SAFE DURING THE PANDEMIC THIS HOLIDAY SEASON?

Is travel safe during the pandemic this holiday season?

NASA LAUNCHES SPACECRAFT TO TEST ASTEROID DEFENSE CONCEPT

NASA launched a spacecraft Tuesday night on a mission to smash into an asteroid and test whether it would be possible to knock a speeding space rock off course if one were to threaten Earth.

ITALIAN COMPETITION WATCHDOG FINES APPLE, AMAZON $225M

Italy’s antitrust watchdog has fined Apple and Amazon a total of more than 200 million euros ($225 million) for cooperating to restrict competition in the sale of Apple and Beats branded products in violation of European Union rules.

US FUND KKR INTERESTED IN ITALIAN TELECOMS GIANT TIM

The Italian telecommunications company TIM is assessing a non-binding “indication of interest” by the U.S. investment fund KKR to acquire the entire capital share, a potential 11 billion-euro deal.

JAPAN, VIETNAM LOOK TO CYBER DEFENSE AGAINST CHINA

Japan and Vietnam signed a cybersecurity agreement as the two Asian nations rapidly step up their military ties amid concerns over China’s growing assertiveness.

NASA SEEKS IDEAS FOR A NUCLEAR REACTOR ON THE MOON

If anyone has a good idea on how to put a nuclear fission power plant on the moon, the U.S. government wants to hear about it.

NEW MEXICO EES TV TECH AS ONE FIX TO K-12 INTERNET DIVIDE

Internet problems continue to slow down many students in the U.S. state of New Mexico, but a pilot project using TV signals to transmit computer files may help.

WHATSAPP PUSHES PRIVACY UPDATE TO COMPLY WITH IRISH RULING

WhatsApp is adding more details to its privacy policy and flagging that information for European users, after Irish regulators slapped the chat service with a record fine for breaching strict EU data privacy rules.

Bill Gates Venture Picks Wyoming City for Sodium Nuke Plant

A small city in the top U.S. coal-mining state of Wyoming will be home to a Bill Gates-backed experimental nuclear power project near a coalfired power plant that will soon close, officials announced Tuesday.

Biden Administration Launches Series on Arctic Energy

Members of the Biden administration launched a series of events aimed at exploring the Arctic’s potential to act as a “living laboratory of clean energy innovation.”

STAPLES CENTER IS CHANGING ITS NAME TO CRYPTO.COM ARENA

Staples Center is getting a new name. Starting Christmas Day, it will be Crypto.com Arena.

CHARITIES SEE MORE CRYPTO DONATIONS. WHO IS BENEFITING?

As the biggest cryptocurrencies flirt with record high values, they’re increasingly becoming bigger sources of revenue for charities.