Technology News for Thursday 18th July 2024

1. AI Startup Tied to Fake Biden Robocall Aims to Combat Misuse

(Bloomberg) -- ElevenLabs, a startup that uses artificial intelligence to clone people's voices, is working with an AI detection service to combat the rising threat of deepfakes during a crucial election year. The startup has partnered with Reality ...

2. Daily briefing: The poetry hidden in PhD thesis acknowledgements

Science writer Tabitha Carvan explores the found poetry in the acknowledgement sections of PhD theses. Plus, researchers should explore the alternatives to animal research and can H5N1 spread through cow sneezes? By; Flora Graham. Flora Graham.

3. NASA cancels half-billion dollar water-ice-seeking VIPER Moon rover

NASA's VIPER – short for the Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover – sits assembled inside the cleanroom at the agency's Johnson Space Center. Image: NASA/Helen Arase Vargas. NASA announced Wednesday it was pulling the plug on the VIPER ...

4. Ignore Game Pass's New Option To Play On GeForce Now

Microsoft is supposedly making it easier for Game Pass subscribers to stream games via Nvidia's GeForce Now. In reality, it's just making the process more complicated. If you visit the Xbox.com website as a Game Pass Ultimate subscriber, ...

5. Total WSH: Improving Your Ergo Health

Setting up an ergonomic workspace with a proper desk, chair, and monitor can prevent work-related musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) like back, neck, wrist, and shoulder pains. As part of this year's Total Workplace Safety and Health (Total WSH), ...

6. Fiio's DM13 brings welcome upgrades to Sony's classic Discman

Fiio, a Chinese audio gear maker, is releasing a $179 portable CD player in September that brings with it modern upgrades the Sony Discman never had — including support for the wireless headphones that didn't exist in the Discman's heyday.

7. This Prime Day Deal Brings Apple's AirPods Max Headphones to Just $395

These headphones have some of the best sound quality and construction that almost make you want to ignore the hefty price tag. Thankfully, Prime Day has you covered. The sale technically ended yesterday, but deals like this are still going strong.

8. AI and the power of intelligent voice

So, what do the two technologies, 30 years apart, have in common? Voice communications and AI have come together to create a new category in artificial intelligence called “conversational AI.” It is a ...

9. Google reveals Pixel 9 Pro ahead of its launch

Google has revealed its upcoming Pixel 9 Pro smartphone ahead of its launch next month. In a teaser on X, Google showed the phone. It also revealed that phone will have deeper integration with its AI software, Gemini. "A phone built for the Gemini era.

10. Study shows new efficiency standards for heavy trucks could boost energy use

Date: July 18, 2024; Source: University of Colorado at Boulder; Summary: A new study suggests that the U.S. government's push to increase heavy-duty trucks' energy efficiency could encourage more shipping by truck instead of rail, reducing the ...

11. The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 screen protectors: Top picks for preserving your foldable's display

The best Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 screen protectors are durable and easy to apply to the foldable's exterior screen, which is unprotected by default. Below, we've assembled a list of our favorite options from trusted brands, including Samsung, Zagg, ...

12. Apple, Anthropic, and other companies used YouTube videos to train AI

Apple, Anthropic, Nvidia, and Salesforce are among the tech firms that used the “YouTube Subtitles” data that was ripped from the video platform without permission. The training dataset is a collection of subtitles taken ...

13. Targeted materials discovery using Bayesian algorithm execution

Rapid discovery and synthesis of future materials requires intelligent data acquisition strategies to navigate large design spaces. A popular strategy is Bayesian optimization, which aims to find candidates that maximize material properties; however, ...

14. Dinosaur skeleton fetches record $44.6m at auction

A large dinosaur's skeleton has fetched $44.6m (£34m) at a Sotheby's auction in New York City - the most ever paid for a fossil. The plant-eating stegosaurus - nicknamed Apex - is 11ft (3.4m) tall and 27ft long from nose to tail, and "ranks high among ...