Is climate change dimming the Earth’s shine over time?
The planet has dimmed by 0.5 percent in 20 years. Researchers believe climate change could be responsible. Half a percent of dimming in 20 years may not sound like a huge deal, but considering the Earth is 4.5 billion years old it isn’t exactly great. When talking about the Earth losing...
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New Instagram and Twitter updates target harmful online behaviours
The latest Twitter update will prompt users to reconsider the ‘vibe’ of a heated discussion, while an Instagram ‘nudge’ feature aims to steer teenagers away from harmful content. Despite a newfound urgency in recent years to finally address online hate and content tied to adverse mental health, the big social...
EU pushing Apple to change its phone ports to USB-C
Despite slowly removing accessories and ports from its devices straight out of the box, Apple could soon be forced to change all its iPhone ports to USB-C to reduce their overall environmental impact. Anyone who’s purchased an iPhone in the last few years (which is, statistically, probably most of...
Domo reveals how the internet is used every minute in 2021
Domo has just released its annual infographic showing how we divide our time online every 60 seconds. With a pandemic-induced shift in digital trends, as well as a 10% rise in those with access to the internet, there are some notable changes from last year. Still reeling from the Facebook,...
How Twitter is helping to monitor and save forests
To monitor how trees are being affected by changes in their immediate environment, researchers are hooking them up to Twitter using a suite of sensors on and around their trunks. If you’d told me a few years ago that, in 2021, trees would be tweeting, I’d have likely laughed...
Colorado scientists grow first plants from Martian soil
In what’s being described as an extraordinary breakthrough in the aim of eventually colonising Mars, Colorado scientists have grown the first ever plants in Martian soil. We have definitive proof that the clover really is a lucky plant. Inside a research greenhouse at Colorado State University, agricultural biology student Franklin Harris...
Leaked report shows Instagram knows it damages mental health
An internal presentation outlining two years of research on the psychological effects of Instagram has been leaked. The reports conflict with company representative’s public narratives of the platform. By now, we’re all aware of the potentially negative consequences of social media use, whether that knowledge was obtained through our own personal afflictions, or endless news stories and academic reports on the subject. The only people who are totally unwilling to admit...
Phykos creates AI seaweed planting vessels to naturally store carbon
With the aim of creating more natural carbon banks, Phykos has pioneered an autonomous device capable of growing seaweed in shallow water and dragging it out to the open ocean. As you’ve probably heard by now, seaweed is good for a whole lot more than livening up your weekly stir fry. One of nature’s most remarkable allies when it comes to sustainability, seaweed is thought to sequester nearly 200 million...
Apple is collecting iPhone data to help detect underlying mental health issues
Apple believes health data gathered from our iPhones, such as sleep patterns and typing behaviour, may help to identify underlying mental health conditions or cognitive decline. We’ve all experienced that dystopian moment when a targeted phone ad pops up for an item you were just talking about. But this is a whole other level of eerie. Apple is reportedly intrigued by the possibility of using live iPhone data to bring...
Most Gen Zers worry about being addicted to their phones
A new survey of over 2,000 adults by OnePoll indicates that almost 75% of young people worry about smartphone addiction. Should we be surprised at the numbers? Every wondered if you rely on your phone too much? Taking gadgets to the bathroom, sleeping next to a charger, or catching up on the latest episode of Love Is Blind via your bathtub are all fairly common behaviours, and are indicative of...
