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Recent observations have revealed flaws in our understanding of the universe, and a new study suggests that may be because the universe is more “sticky” than we assumed.In a paper published on the arXiv preprint server but not peer-reviewed, Indian Institute of Technology researcher Muhammad Ghulam Khwaja Khan suggests that space may have a property called bulk viscosity.Viscosity is a measure of how much a fluid resists flowing or changing shape, like the difference between pouring water and pouring honey. In this case, we are talking about the bulk viscosity of the vacuum itself, the ghostly resistance that occurs as…
Endangered flightless parrots are breeding in New Zealand for the first time in four years, authorities announced on January 6.The kakapo (Strigops habroptilus) is a large, flightless, nocturnal parrot with mottled green and yellow plumage that breeds only every two to four years. Their breeding season is triggered by the mass fruiting of the Rimu tree (Dacrydium cupressinum), a native conifer that lives for more than 600 years.”It’s always exciting when the breeding season officially begins, but this year it’s especially exciting after such a long gap since last season in 2022,” Deirdre Varcoe, operations manager for kakapo recovery at…
NASA recently released the first photos of the newly constructed Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. The telescope could soon help researchers search for exoplanets, map the Milky Way, and unravel some of the universe’s biggest mysteries, such as the identity of dark matter.Experts also revealed the most likely launch date for the next-generation spacecraft, confirming that it is likely to launch ahead of schedule and could begin collecting data by the end of 2026.The Roman Space Telescope is NASA’s next flagship space telescope, following the Hubble Space Telescope, launched in 1990, and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), launched in…
Tariffs on some chips were announced after months of rumors that the Trump administration intended to impose tariffs on semiconductors. The tariffs only apply to certain semiconductors, such as the Nvidia H200 advanced AI chip scheduled to be shipped to China. President Donald Trump signed a proclamation Wednesday imposing a 25% tariff on advanced AI semiconductors produced outside the United States and exported through the United States to customers in other countries. This news formally confirms a key element of the U.S. Department of Commerce’s decision to authorize NVIDIA to begin shipping its H200 advanced AI chips to select customers…
Just when you thought circular trading couldn’t get any more circular, OpenAI invested in CEO Sam Altman’s brain computer interface (BCI) startup Merge Labs. Merge Labs, which defines itself as a “research institute” dedicated to “bridging biological and artificial intelligence to maximize human potential,” came out of stealth on Thursday with an undisclosed seed round. A person familiar with the matter confirmed earlier reports that OpenAI wrote the largest check in Merge Labs’ $250 million seed round at a valuation of $850 million. “Our personal experience of the world originates from billions of active neurons,” reads a statement from Merge…
January 15, 2026Ravi LakshmananWeb security/vulnerabilities According to Patchstack, a maximum severity security flaw in a WordPress plugin called Modular DS is being exploited in the wild. This vulnerability is tracked as CVE-2026-23550 (CVSS score: 10.0) and is described as a case of unauthenticated privilege escalation affecting all versions of the plugin prior to 2.5.1. Version 2.5.2 is patched. This plugin has over 40,000 active installations. “Below version 2.5.1, the plugin is vulnerable to privilege escalation due to a combination of factors, including direct route selection, bypassing authentication mechanisms, and automatically logging in as an administrator,” Patchstack said. The cause of…
January 15, 2026Ravi LakshmananPrompt injection / enterprise security Cybersecurity researchers have revealed details of a new attack method called “Reprompt.” This attack technique could allow malicious attackers to steal sensitive data from artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots such as Microsoft Copilot with a single click, completely bypassing corporate security controls. “It only takes one click on a legitimate Microsoft link to compromise a victim,” Varonis security researcher Dolev Taler said in a report released Wednesday. “Neither the plugin nor the user needs to interact with Copilot.” “The attacker maintains control even when the Copilot chat is closed, allowing the victim’s session…
The tech industry’s non-consensual sexual deepfakes problem is now bigger than just an X. In a letter to the leaders of X, Meta, Alphabet, Snap, Reddit and TikTok, several US senators are asking the companies to provide evidence that they have “robust protections and policies” in place and explain how they intend to curb the rise of sexual deepfakes on their platforms. The senators also required companies to preserve all documentation and information related to the creation, detection, management, and monetization of AI-generated sexual images, as well as related policies. The letter comes hours after X announced updates to Grok…
Five years from now, the world may start running out of copper, a critical mineral used in everything from data centers to electric cars. If nothing changes, the world could face severe shortages as early as 2040, with demand exceeding supply by as much as 25%. If copper seems expensive now, wait a few years. As demand grows, companies and investors are pouring money into the sector. For example, AI minerals startup KoBold raised $537 million last year to develop a copper deposit it discovered in Zambia. But with the help of some microbes, today’s copper producers may be able…
Spotify has increased the price of its subscription plans in the U.S. for the third time in three years, increasing monthly plans from $11.99 per month to $12.99 per month. The company sent an email to paying users informing them of the new price. This price will apply starting with your next monthly billing cycle. Image credit: Spotify “Updating market-wide pricing from time to time allows us to reflect the value Spotify provides, continue to deliver the best experience possible, and benefit our artists,” the company said in a blog post. In November 2025, the Financial Times reported that the…