LG's Software Update Forces Microsoft Copilot Onto Smart TVs
December 15, 2025 at 10:40PM
December 15, 2025 at 10:40PM
entertainment.slashdot.org
LG's Software Update Forces Microsoft Copilot Onto Smart TVs
LG smart TV owners discovered over the weekend that a recent webOS software update had quietly installed Microsoft Copilot on their devices, and the app cannot be uninstalled. Affected users report the feature appears automatically after installing the latest…
Electricity Is Now Holding Back Growth Across the Global Economy
December 15, 2025 at 11:21PM
December 15, 2025 at 11:21PM
hardware.slashdot.org
Electricity Is Now Holding Back Growth Across the Global Economy
Grid constraints that were once a hallmark of developing economies are now plaguing the world's richest nations, and new research from Bloomberg Economics finds that rising electricity system stress is directly hurting investment. The analysis examined all…
How Did the CIA Lose a Nuclear Device?
December 16, 2025
December 16, 2025
news.slashdot.org
How Did the CIA Lose a Nuclear Device?
Sixty years after a team of American and Indian climbers abandoned a plutonium-powered generator on the slopes of Nanda Devi, one of the world's most forbidding Himalayan peaks, the U.S. government still refuses to acknowledge that the mission ever happened.…
Scientists Thought Parkinson's Was in Our Genes. It Might Be in the Water
December 16, 2025 at 12:40AM
December 16, 2025 at 12:40AM
science.slashdot.org
Scientists Thought Parkinson's Was in Our Genes. It Might Be in the Water
For decades, Parkinson's disease research has overwhelmingly focused on genetics -- more than half of all research dollars in the past two decades flowed toward genomic studies -- but a growing body of evidence now points to something far more mundane as…
US Tech Force Aims To Recruit 1,000 Technologists
December 16, 2025 at 01:21AM
December 16, 2025 at 01:21AM
news.slashdot.org
US Tech Force Aims To Recruit 1,000 Technologists
The Trump administration announced Monday the United States Tech Force, a new program to recruit around 1,000 technologists for two-year government stints starting as soon as March -- less than a year after dismantling several federal technology teams and…
Google To Retire 'Dark Web Report' Tool That Scanned for Leaked User Data
December 16, 2025 at 02:06AM
December 16, 2025 at 02:06AM
tech.slashdot.org
Google To Retire 'Dark Web Report' Tool That Scanned for Leaked User Data
Google has decided to retire its free dark web monitoring tool, saying it wasn't as helpful as the company hoped. From a report: In a support page, Google announced the discontinuation of the "dark web report" tool, two years after offering it as a free perk…
Cloudflare Reveals How Bots and Governments Reshaped the Internet in 2025
December 16, 2025 at 02:45AM
December 16, 2025 at 02:45AM
tech.slashdot.org
Cloudflare Reveals How Bots and Governments Reshaped the Internet in 2025
Cloudflare's sixth annual Year in Review report describes an internet increasingly shaped by two forces: automated traffic and government intervention, as global connectivity grew 19% year over year in 2025. Google's web crawler now dominates automated traffic…
Why Floods Threaten One of the Driest Places in the World
December 16, 2025 at 03:24AM
December 16, 2025 at 03:24AM
news.slashdot.org
Why Floods Threaten One of the Driest Places in the World
One of the most water-scarce regions on Earth is now experiencing a dramatic atmospheric shift that's pushing moisture onto Oman's northern coast at rates more than 1.5 times the global average, according to a Washington Post investigation of global atmospheric…
Verizon Refused To Unlock Man's iPhone, So He Sued the Carrier and Won
December 16, 2025 at 04:05AM
December 16, 2025 at 04:05AM
tech.slashdot.org
Verizon Refused To Unlock Man's iPhone, So He Sued the Carrier and Won
A Kansas man who sued Verizon in small claims court after the carrier refused to unlock his iPhone has won his case, scoring a small but meaningful victory against a company that retroactively applied a policy change to deny his unlock request. Patrick Roach…
Russian Ban On Roblox Gaming Platform Sparks Rare Protest
December 16, 2025 at 05:23AM
December 16, 2025 at 05:23AM
yro.slashdot.org
Russian Ban On Roblox Gaming Platform Sparks Rare Protest
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Reuters: Several dozen people protested on Sunday in the Siberian city of Tomsk against Russia's ban on U.S. children's gaming platform Roblox, a rare show of public dissent as popular irritation over the ban gains…
Ford Ends F-150 Lightning Production, Starts Battery Storage Business
December 16, 2025 at 06:00AM
December 16, 2025 at 06:00AM
hardware.slashdot.org
Ford Ends F-150 Lightning Production, Starts Battery Storage Business
Ford has effectively pulled the plug on the all-electric F-150 Lightning, pivoting away from full-size BEV pickups toward hybrids, range-extended EVs (EREVs), and even data-center battery storage. Ars Technica reports: Ford's announcements today can't be…
Merriam-Webster's 2025 Word of the Year Is 'Slop'
December 16, 2025 at 06:40AM
December 16, 2025 at 06:40AM
tech.slashdot.org
Merriam-Webster's 2025 Word of the Year Is 'Slop'
Merriam-Webster crowned "slop" its 2025 Word of the Year, reflecting growing public awareness and and fatigue around low-quality, AI-generated content flooding the internet. "It's such an illustrative word," said Greg Barlow, Merriam-Webster's president.…
JPMorgan Steps Further Into Crypto With Tokenized Money Fund
December 16, 2025 at 07:20AM
December 16, 2025 at 07:20AM
news.slashdot.org
JPMorgan Steps Further Into Crypto With Tokenized Money Fund
An anonymous reader quotes a report from the Wall Street Journal: JPMorgan Chase is joining the list of traditional financial firms seeking to bring blockchain technology to an investing staple: the money-market fund. The banking giant's $4 trillion asset…
China, Iran Are Having a Field Day With React2Shell, Google Warns
December 16, 2025 at 08:02AM
December 16, 2025 at 08:02AM
it.slashdot.org
China, Iran Are Having a Field Day With React2Shell, Google Warns
A critical React vulnerability (CVE-2025-55182) is being actively exploited at scale by Chinese, Iranian, North Korean, and criminal groups to gain remote code execution, deploy backdoors, and mine crypto. The Register reports: React maintainers disclosed…
Google Search Homepage Adds a 'Plus' Menu
December 16, 2025 at 08:45AM
December 16, 2025 at 08:45AM
search.slashdot.org
Google Search Homepage Adds a 'Plus' Menu
After introducing an AI Mode shortcut earlier this year, Google has now added a new "plus" menu to its Search homepage, highlighting options for image and file uploads. 9to5Google reports: On google.com, the Search bar now has a plus icon at the far left…
中印等国 IT 业入门级工作大幅减少
随着 AI 取代入门级工作，中印等国 IT 业入门级工作大幅减少。印度一所顶尖工程学院的一名学生中，400 名同学中不到四分之一获得了工作机会，校园弥漫着恐慌气氛。中国、迪拜和肯尼亚的工程学院学生面临类似的现象。曾由应届生承担的任务如调试、测试和日常软件维护，如今正日益自动化。SignalFire 的一份报告显示，过去三年大型科技公司招聘的应届生人数减少半数以上。尽管 2024 年招聘人数有回升但新员工只有 7% 是应届生。安永上月发布的报告显示，由于自动化和 AI 印度 IT 服务公司将入门级职位减少了 20%-25%。LinkedIn、Indeed 和 Eures 等求职平台显示 2024 年欧盟主要国家初级技术职位减少 35%。 via Solidot
随着 AI 取代入门级工作，中印等国 IT 业入门级工作大幅减少。印度一所顶尖工程学院的一名学生中，400 名同学中不到四分之一获得了工作机会，校园弥漫着恐慌气氛。中国、迪拜和肯尼亚的工程学院学生面临类似的现象。曾由应届生承担的任务如调试、测试和日常软件维护，如今正日益自动化。SignalFire 的一份报告显示，过去三年大型科技公司招聘的应届生人数减少半数以上。尽管 2024 年招聘人数有回升但新员工只有 7% 是应届生。安永上月发布的报告显示，由于自动化和 AI 印度 IT 服务公司将入门级职位减少了 20%-25%。LinkedIn、Indeed 和 Eures 等求职平台显示 2024 年欧盟主要国家初级技术职位减少 35%。 via Solidot
科学家发现决定黄瓜雌性的关键基因
与动物不同，植物的性别并非与生俱来，而是受基因、激素水平、环境信号的调控，复杂性远超动物。性别决定在农业生产中有广泛应用价值。对于以种子和果实为收获对象的作物，增加雌花可以提高产量；对于观赏园艺作物，如银杏树，可通过控制雌雄比例来满足不同需求；在杂交育种中，利用纯雌系可以避免去雄工序，节约成本。中国农业大学的科学家发现关键基因 CsARF3 在生长素和乙烯激素之间搭建桥梁，精准调控黄瓜的性别决定。实验发现当 CsARF3 被编辑突变后，黄瓜植株不再产生雌花，全部变为雄花；当该基因过表达时，雌花数量显著增加。更重要的是，即使外施生长素也无法挽回突变体的表型。这证明 CsARF3 是生长素信号通路中不可或缺的关键环节。 via Solidot
与动物不同，植物的性别并非与生俱来，而是受基因、激素水平、环境信号的调控，复杂性远超动物。性别决定在农业生产中有广泛应用价值。对于以种子和果实为收获对象的作物，增加雌花可以提高产量；对于观赏园艺作物，如银杏树，可通过控制雌雄比例来满足不同需求；在杂交育种中，利用纯雌系可以避免去雄工序，节约成本。中国农业大学的科学家发现关键基因 CsARF3 在生长素和乙烯激素之间搭建桥梁，精准调控黄瓜的性别决定。实验发现当 CsARF3 被编辑突变后，黄瓜植株不再产生雌花，全部变为雄花；当该基因过表达时，雌花数量显著增加。更重要的是，即使外施生长素也无法挽回突变体的表型。这证明 CsARF3 是生长素信号通路中不可或缺的关键环节。 via Solidot
火星对地球气候有显著影响
地球气候在数百万年间于冰河期与温暖期之间反覆摆荡，主要原因来自于地球轨道参数与自转轴倾角的微小变化。这类长期变动在地球科学上统称为米兰科维奇循环（Milankovitch cycles），反映了地球持续受到其他行星的引力扰动。行星间的引力交互作用，会缓慢改变地球的轨道离心率、自转轴倾角以及岁差方向，进而调节地表接收的太阳辐射量，塑造大尺度的气候模式。过往研究已确认木星与金星在此过程中扮演关键角色。最新的精细数值分析显示，质量相对较小的火星，对地球气候模式同样具有显著且先前被低估的影响。研究团队透过计算机模拟，系统性地将火星质量由零变化至现值的十倍，并追踪其对地球轨道参数在数百万年尺度上的气候影响，结果显示火星是决定地球季节性与气候变化的重要成员。模拟显示，主导冰河期与温暖期转换约 10 万年循环直接受到火星影响。地球自转轴倾角亦受火星重力扰动的直接影响。地质纪录中常见的 4.1 万年倾角循环，随火星质量增加而显著延长；若火星质量为现值的十倍，倾角循环的周期将延长至约 4.5～5.5 万年，足以大幅改变南、北半球冰盖的生成与消融时序。 via Solidot
地球气候在数百万年间于冰河期与温暖期之间反覆摆荡，主要原因来自于地球轨道参数与自转轴倾角的微小变化。这类长期变动在地球科学上统称为米兰科维奇循环（Milankovitch cycles），反映了地球持续受到其他行星的引力扰动。行星间的引力交互作用，会缓慢改变地球的轨道离心率、自转轴倾角以及岁差方向，进而调节地表接收的太阳辐射量，塑造大尺度的气候模式。过往研究已确认木星与金星在此过程中扮演关键角色。最新的精细数值分析显示，质量相对较小的火星，对地球气候模式同样具有显著且先前被低估的影响。研究团队透过计算机模拟，系统性地将火星质量由零变化至现值的十倍，并追踪其对地球轨道参数在数百万年尺度上的气候影响，结果显示火星是决定地球季节性与气候变化的重要成员。模拟显示，主导冰河期与温暖期转换约 10 万年循环直接受到火星影响。地球自转轴倾角亦受火星重力扰动的直接影响。地质纪录中常见的 4.1 万年倾角循环，随火星质量增加而显著延长；若火星质量为现值的十倍，倾角循环的周期将延长至约 4.5～5.5 万年，足以大幅改变南、北半球冰盖的生成与消融时序。 via Solidot