Is the gene-editing technology CRISPR a good idea?
The scientific discovery of a genetic code called CRISPR could help eradicate diseases in humans forever, but could altering genes become a slippery slope? There are over 6,000 known human genetic disorders, with more being discovered and named every day. At the time of writing this, only 10 percent of...
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Hacktivists up the ante in ‘cyberwar’ against Russia
Hacktivist groups are continuing to punish Russia with a multi-pronged digital assault. Last week, decentralised groups released some 820GB of sensitive files, crashed the Moscow Stock Exchange website, and hijacked live Russian TV broadcasts. Whether you cheered or rolled your eyes at its declaration of ‘cyberwar,’ the rogue hacker outfit...
Bitcoin miners are reviving dying coal plants in the US
As the US strives to decarbonise the energy industry, Bitcoin miners are becoming a thorn in its side. The enormous electricity consumption needed to sustain crypto is now fuelling a partial resurrection of coal. Coal is no longer fashionable, but Bitcoin definitely is. The two, unfortunately, are now becoming intrinsically...
Why are people outraged at this music NFT startup?
A new music-based NFT company called ‘HitPiece’ has emerged online, but it has been accused of widespread theft from both mainstream and indie artists. The situation highlights the unregulated, problematic rise of NFTs. Anyone who follows creatives on Twitter – musicians, graphic designers, and producers – has likely seen...
How AI can lead to verbal abuse and unhealthy attachments
Smartphone app Replika is enabling users to find companionship in artificially intelligent chatbots. But what happens when the human emotion of users gets in the way of keeping things casual? It’s getting a little too real in the world of tech right now. The recent and rapid expansion of the metaverse,...
Julian Lennon to sell NFTs of Beatles memorabilia
John Lennon’s son, Julian, will be auctioning off various Beatles memorabilia items as non-fungible tokens, including lyric notes, guitars, and outfits. Consider yourself a Beatles super fan? Are you a crypto connoisseur with a hunger for John Lennon’s old possessions? His son Julian may just have the deal of a...
Concerns about user privacy in the metaverse continue to grow
Tech giant Meta is working on body pose tracking technology, clothing that detects movement, and in-home sensor devices to enhance the metaverse experience - but has yet to outline any details of data privacy and user safety. As the digital and physical world have become increasingly interwoven, we’ve become accustomed to having our everyday habits tracked, collected, and stored as data by the world’s biggest tech companies. We wear watches that...
Samsung is repurposing fishing nets for its future devices
As part of its broader ‘Galaxy for the Planet’ initiative, the mobile giant is eliminating all plastic waste in its packaging and is using discarded fishing nets in the builds of future devices. With mobile companies relentlessly rolling out new iterations of their phones, e-waste is becoming an increasingly sizable problem as the years roll by. It’s estimated that by 2030, we’ll produce 74 million tons of gadget waste every...
The once-cult mobile brand ‘BlackBerry’ finally shuts down
It was once the most sought-after phone of the moment. But now, BlackBerry is just another sign of the times; a window into our relentless wanting for something new. In the 2010s, high flying businessmen, celebrities, and status-hungry teenagers were all bound by one thing: the BlackBerry’s QWERTY keyboard. For better or worse, it offered BBM messaging (pause for nostalgic flashback) and the full breadth of the internet in one...
Hydrogen: the key to decarbonising the planet?
Hydrogen is a clean, versatile fuel that doesn’t produce any greenhouse gas emissions and all it requires to release energy is oxygen. To date, our utilisation of it has been marginal at best, but here’s why it could transform the energy sector in the years to come. With the aim of preventing an impending climate crisis, could it be that the first element on the periodic table is a vital...
