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Tech NewsTrump Suddenly Wants Us to Believe He Cares About Computer Science
On Monday, Trump signed a memorandum to ramp up education initiatives in STEM education and computer science, and on Tuesday, Ivanka joined a panel discussing the over $300 million that tech companies have just pledged to K-12 computer science programs in the US. “Computer science and coding are a priority for the administration as we … Continued
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Tech News
Anthony Weiner Is Going to Prison
Former New York congressman Anthony Weiner has been sentenced to 21 months in federal prison for sexting with a 15-year-old girl. Weiner was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and will have to register as a sex offender. In May, Weiner pleaded guilty to sending obscene material to a minor. More details of … Continued
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Tech NewsGadgets
I Don’t Care How Cool VR Is, Please Just Propose IRL
You know what’s cool about finding someone you’re actually into? Holding hands. Making out. Gazing into each other’s (actual) eyes. You know where you can’t do these things? In the void. So why the hell are people proposing in virtual reality? For some inexplicable reason, people keep taking a tender moment and strapping some hardware on … Continued
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ReviewsAccessories & WearablesOh Shit, People Actually Complimented Me On My Smart Ring
This past Sunday, the future touched my life in the form of a humble ring that logged my 5pm hangover nap. It’s not exactly a flying car or a meal that fits inside a pill, but dammit, I’ve been charmed by this little finger Fitbit. The Motiv Ring is an activity tracker that you wear … Continued
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Tech News
Juicero Founder Hops on Silicon Valley’s Hot Starvation Fad With ‘Raw Water’ Fast
Juicero, the startup that brought us $399 cold press juice machines that work as good as your bare hands, shut down earlier this month. While his company was being squeezed dry, founder Doug Evans reportedly posted a video of himself vanishing into a sandstorm at Burning Man. And now, a few weeks later, Evans has … Continued
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Tech News
Uber Investigates Itself for Bribery, Finds Some Shit: Report
In August, the Department of Justice reportedly launched a preliminary investigation into Uber to look into whether the ride-sharing service violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. An Uber spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal that the company was cooperating with the investigation, and a new report indicates that Uber has already dug up some shady … Continued
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Tech News
The ‘Godfather’ of Autonomous Driving: We Gotta Wreck the Sky
Have you ever gazed up at the sweeping blue sky and thought, God, it’s boring up there? It seems like Sebastian Thrun—who launched Google’s self-driving car program and is the CEO of the flying car startup Kitty Hawk—sure has. On Tuesday, he shared his vision of a sky clogged with tons and tons of glorious … Continued
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Tech News
You Can Now Download iOS 11
Apple teased us with the next version of iOS in June, revealing a bunch of new features at WWDC that wouldn’t be ready until today—unless of course you love the thrill of a potentially buggy public beta, which has been available since the end of June. But if you like to play it safe, or … Continued
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Tech News
A Running List of Uber’s (Predictably Lukewarm) Apologies [Updated]
Update: This story has been updated to include a more recent lukewarm apology. Earlier this month, Uber apologized after Uber Bangalore sent out a “totally inappropriate” promotional message for “Wife Appreciation Day,” offering users a discount on UberEATS in order to “let your wife take a day off from the kitchen.” “We’ve removed it and … Continued
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Tech News
Portland Says Uber Targeted More Than a Dozen Officials With ‘Greyball’ Software
In March, the New York Times revealed that Uber was evading and deceiving law enforcement officials in a number of cities through an internal software program called Greyball. The program goes to alarming lengths of surveillance to sidestep regulators, and an investigation by the city of Portland reveals how it was used to circumvent government … Continued
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Tech News
Former Employees Are Suing Google Over Alleged Gender Discrimination
Three former Google employees have filed a class-action lawsuit against the company for allegedly discriminating against women. The complaint claims that Google systematically pays women less than men performing similar jobs, promotes men more often than similarly qualified women, and keeps women in lower-paying and lower-level positions. The lawsuit was filed on Thursday by Kelly … Continued
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Tech News
Trump Administration to Driverless Car Makers: Go Nuts!
On Tuesday, US Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao revealed the updated version of the guidelines for the testing and deployment of autonomous vehicles. The DOT secretary defended the guidelines, which opt for voluntary guidance rather than enforceable rules. Chao said that a third version is in progress and slated to be introduced in 2018. “We’re going … Continued
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Tech News
Silicon Valley’s ‘Bodega’ of the Future Is a Bougie Vending Machine With No Cats
Two former Google employees see your beloved local bodega and raise you a glorified vending machine. In typical Silicon Valley fashion, tech bros are capitalizing on the charm of your community mom-and-pop convenience store, aiming to put them out of business while co-opting their name. Bodega is a startup that wants to take on the … Continued
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Tech News
Did Apple Just Kill Rose Gold?
It’s hard to stand out when you are one of millions of people with the same phone, but choosing the color of your iPhone can still afford you a semblance of originality. You’re not just like the other 700 million iPhone owners out there—maybe you’re just like 200 million of them? But Apple has eliminated … Continued
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Tech News
Wait, Did Apple Just Stage a Life-Threatening Car Wreck for Its Emotional Apple Watch Ad?
Today Apple took to the stage to seduce us with shiny new gadgets that we should definitely spend an absurd amount of money on because they are supposed to change the world. They might even save our lives—and Apple wants to make sure you know that with its super emotional opening videos. Fit with a … Continued
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Tech News
It Turns Out iOS 11 Is Even More Cop-Resistant Than We Thought
Apple’s iOS 11 is going to make it more difficult for law enforcement officials to seize information from your iPhone. In addition to a new SOS mode that lets you disable TouchID, the next iOS update will require an additional step to unlock your data when your device is connected to a computer, according to … Continued
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Tech News
Google Employees Organize Their Own Study of Gender Pay Gap
In April, the US Department of Labor accused Google of gender pay discrimination. The tech behemoth denied the allegations, and when the DoL requested historical salary records from the company, Google argued that the endeavor was too expensive. Lucky for Google, good samaritans at the company have led efforts to compile the wage data. The … Continued
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Tech News
The FBI Is Investigating the Uber Program That Allegedly Spied on Lyft Drivers
Less than a week into the new job and Uber’s new CEO faces yet another federal investigation into the company. Sounds like hell. It is. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has launched a probe into secret software Uber used between 2014 and 2016 that was internally referred to as “Hell,” the Wall Street Journal reported. … Continued
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Tech News
The Silicon Valley Startup With an Alleged ‘Kink Room’ Settles Its Sexual Harassment Suit
The founders of Silicon Valley startup UploadVR were sued for a number of damning sexual harassment allegations in May, and according to TechCrunch, have settled the case with former employee Elizabeth Scott. While the lawsuit has been settled, a former employee expressed concern to TechCrunch over the fact that the co-founders accused remain in leadership. … Continued
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ReviewsOther GadgetsI’m Still Trying to Understand Why I Let This Camera Dangle Between My Boobs
Wearable camera companies bank on us living interesting lives. If I were to live in their vision of what my life is supposed to be like, I would be at an endless music festival. At sunset. There would be dogs on skateboards. Probably a waterfall. A child would be looking up at me with marvel … Continued
Melanie Ehrenkranz
Melanie Ehrenkranz's posts