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TECH CRUNCH
Virgin Orbit reaches orbit for the first time
Virgin Orbit launched its LauncherOne rocket to orbit for the first time today, with a successful demonstration mission that carried a handful of satellites and will attempt to deliver them to low Earth orbit on behalf of NASA. It’s a crucial milestone for th…
GitHub's head of HR resigns in light of termination of Jewish employee
A GitHub internal investigation has revealed the company made “significant errors of judgment and procedure” in the firing of the Jewish employee who cautioned his coworkers about the presence of Nazis in the DC area on the day of insurrection at the U.S. Cap…
Threat of inauguration violence casts a long shadow over social media
As the U.S. heads into one of the most perilous phases of American democracy since the Civil War, social media companies are scrambling to shore up their patchwork defenses for a moment they appear to have believed would never come. Most major platforms pulle…
Original Content podcast: Martin Scorsese and Fran Lebowitz have a good time in 'Pretend It's A City'
The concept behind the new Netflix documentary series “Pretend It’s A City” is pretty straightforward: Author Fran Lebowitz talks, while Martin Scorsese (who’s both director and an on-camera presence) listens and laughs. Lebowitz’s musings across seven episod…
After a record year for Israeli startups, 16 investors tell us what's next
Israel’s startup ecosystem raised record amounts of funding and produced 19 IPOs in 2020, despite the pandemic. Now tech companies across industries are poised for an even better year, according to more than a dozen investors we talked to in the country. Main…
No one knows what anything is worth
Welcome back to The TechCrunch Exchange, a weekly startups-and-markets newsletter. It’s broadly based on the daily column that appears on Extra Crunch, but free, and made for your weekend reading. Click here if you want it in your inbox every Saturday morning…
Human Capital: Labor issues at GitHub, Facebook's new civil rights exec and a legal battle against Prop 22
This week kicked off with a report of a GitHub worker who was fired after cautioning his coworkers in the DC area to stay safe from Nazis during the assault on the U.S. Capitol. Meanwhile, Facebook created a new executive role pertaining to civil rights and C…
Stay gold, ‘Plaid for X’ startups
A failed acquisition usually triggers the same series of questions: What does this mean for early-stage startups in the sector? Will a chilling effect occur and hurt valuations? Will VCs stop funding this category? How will the exit environment look going for…
Startups look beyond lidar for autonomous vehicle perception
Last CES was a time of reckoning for lidar companies, many of which were cratering due to a lack of demand from a (still) non-existent autonomous vehicle industry. The few that excelled did so by specializing, and this year the trend has pushed beyond lidar, …
This Week in Apps: Parler deplatformed, alt apps rise, looking back at 2020 trends
Welcome back to This Week in Apps, the weekly TechCrunch series that recaps the latest in mobile OS news, mobile applications and the overall app economy. The app industry is as hot as ever, with a record 218 billion downloads and $143 billion in global consu…
WIRED
DJI's Latest Compact Drone Is a Blast to Fly
The Mini 2 is still lightweight yet has enough flying power for some windy conditions, and it comes equipped with a better camera.
Virgin Orbit Just Launched a Rocket From a 747
Launching rockets from planes is a decades-old concept that never really took off. Billionaire Richard Branson thinks its time has come.
The US Government Needs to Invest in Digital Design
Our nation’s failure to invest in information technology has severely limited our Covid response. A federal chief experience officer could change that.
17 Best Camera Bags, Straps, Inserts, and Backpacks (2021)
A zillion packing cubes, inserts, messenger bags, and backpacks exist to keep your photo and video gear protected. We’ve reviewed our favorites.
Want to Write a Book This Year? These Tools Can Help
We spoke to two award-winning authors for their tips on how to make it from start to finish. Here's how they take notes, organize chapters, and—yes—get comfy.
The Crooked, Complex Geometry of Round Trips
Imagine if we lived on a cube-shaped Earth. How would you find the shortest path around the world?
Climate Change Needs an Operation Warp Speed
If the Covid vaccine push has proved anything, it’s that big government works.
Share Streaming Accounts? Set Up Separate User Profiles
Here's how to keep your recommendations and history at least semi-private. No one needs to know how much Bridgerton you watched.
Former DOD Head: The US Needs a New Plan to Beat China on AI
In an interview with WIRED, former secretary of defense Ash Carter discussed how to build morality into AI—and make sure other countries do too.
The Unsettling Truth About the ‘Mostly Harmless’ Hiker
His emaciated body was discovered in a tent, just a few miles from a major Florida highway. His identity—and troubled past—were discovered by the internet.
HACKER NEWS
Amazon Echo Flex Teardown: The Big Silicon
Teardown and analysis of electronics. Integrated circuit design analysis.
bladeRF-wiphy - Nuand
bladeRF-wiphy is an open-source IEEE 802.11 compatible software defined radio VHDL modem If you like the bladeRF-wiphy project, please consider...
Creating Comfy FreeBSD Jails Using Standard Tools
Docker has stormed into software development in recent years. While the concepts behind it are powerful and useful, similar tools have been used in systems for decades. FreeBSD’s jails in one of those tools which build upon even older chroot(2) To put it shor…
BitLocker Lockscreen bypass
BitLocker is a modern data protection feature that is deeply integrated in the Windows kernel. It is used by many corporations as a means of protecting company secrets in case of theft. Microsoft recommends that you have a Trusted Platform Module which can do…
Safari 14 added WebExtensions support. So where are the extensions?
Library Extension helps you find library books, but it doesn’t work on Safari–yet. At WWDC 2020, Apple announced it was going to support Chrome-style browser extensions (the WebExtensio…
About
Buy Nothing. Give Freely. Share Creatively. The Buy Nothing Project began when two friends, Rebecca Rockefeller and Liesl Clark, created an experimental hyper-local gift economy on Bainbridge …
OPL2 - Unkown - Drunken Sailor
This is an OPL2 (Yamaha YM3812), Piano, and BAM rendering of the famous sea shanty "What would you do with a drunken sailor...". However, there really is no "official" title for this song because no one really knows who wrote it other than it is from the 1800…
I wrote a Raytracer for DOS, 16 VGA colors
In this tool-assisted education video I create a raytracer from scratch.The raytracer renders in 16-color VGA palette at 640x480 resolution.Twitter: https://...
WALL STREET JOURNAL
Yellen Prepared to Affirm Commitment to Market-Determined Dollar Value
Treasury secretary nominee, at Senate confirmation hearing, will make clear U.S. does not seek weaker dollar
Troops, Blockades and Eerie Quiet Pervade a Locked-Down Washington
The nation’s capital has been turned into a secured encampment ahead of the inauguration
Russian Opposition Leader Alexei Navalny Detained Upon Return to Moscow
Prominent Putin critic had been in Germany after a near-fatal poisoning attack in August
Oil-and-Gas Industry Faces a Slow Recovery From Pandemic Lows
Spending on oil production world-wide isn’t expected to climb back up to pre-pandemic levels through at least 2025
Will Covid-19 Shake Up Capitalism?
The pandemic sped up demands for changes in the economic system. Shareholders might want to brace for change.
Covid-19 Vaccines Are Getting Stuck at the Last Step
Local governments, hospitals and clinics have the doses, but not the resources to organize getting them to the right people
Companies Race to Develop Drugs That Stay Ahead of Coronavirus Mutations
Covid-19 medicines currently on the market are cumbersome to use, and doctors worry that virus variants could make them less effective
After Stock Surge, Investors Ask Companies What’s Ahead
Rise of major indexes despite the worsening toll of the pandemic underscores the pressure on big companies
Covid-19’s Blow to Business Travel Is Expected to Last for Years
Local jobs and economies take the brunt from the decline in corporate trips and conferences
Post-Covid Recovery Divides Rich Nations
From Poor
The economic repercussions of the pandemic, on top of existing vulnerabilities, will make it hard for developing countries to bounce back quickly
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reaches space on 2nd try
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reached space on Sunday, eight months after the first demonstration flight of its air-launched rocket system failed, the company said.A...
Biden's long political evolution leads to his biggest test
WILMINGTON, Del. (AP) — Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. has navigated a half-century in American politics by relentlessly positioning himself at the core of the Democratic Party.Wherever that...
National Guard sleeping in the Capitol an echo of Civil War
To most Americans, the sight of armed National Guard troops sleeping in the Capitol Rotunda this past week was shocking and disturbing. To me, it was an echo of the far-distant past.“Don’t...
Records: Trump allies behind rally that ignited Capitol riot
WASHINGTON (AP) — Members of President Donald Trump’s failed presidential campaign played key roles in orchestrating the Washington rally that spawned a deadly assault on the U.S. Capitol,...
Democrats build impeachment case, alleging 'dangerous crime'
WASHINGTON (AP) — The lead prosecutor for President Donald Trump's historic second impeachment began building his case for conviction at trial, asserting on Sunday that Trump's incitement of the...
Phil Spector, famed music producer and murderer, dies at 81
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Phil Spector, the eccentric and revolutionary music producer who transformed rock music with his “Wall of Sound” method and who later was convicted of murder, has died. He was...
'Little old West Virginia' sets pace on vaccine rollout
KENOVA, W.Va. (AP) — Griffith & Feil Drug has been in business since 1892, a family-owned, small-town pharmacy. This isn't their first pandemic.More than a century after helping West...
Deceptions in the time of the 'alternative facts' president
WASHINGTON (AP) — Truth caught up with Donald Trump after years of giving chase.The twice-impeached president painted a fantasy world in office, starring himself. In this world, he did...
Kremlin critic Navalny detained after landing in Moscow
MOSCOW (AP) — Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was arrested Sunday at a Moscow airport as he tried to enter the country from Germany, where he had spent five months recovering from nerve...
Heavy fortified statehouses around the US see small protests
Small groups of right-wing protesters — some of them carrying rifles — gathered outside heavily fortified statehouses around the country Sunday, outnumbered by National Guard troops and police...
BUSINESS INSIDER
Unprecedented security ahead of Biden inauguration: photos - Business Insider
Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser announced unprecedented security measures, saying the city has found itself in "uncharted waters."
Raskin recalled US Capitol riots attack attempt against Pelosi, Pence - Business Insider
Lead impeachment manager Rep. Jamie Raskin on Sunday recalled insurrectionists chanting to 'hang' Mike Pence during the siege on the US Capitol.
GitHub cites 'errors of judgement' in firing of Jewish employee - Business Insider
The company sparked an uproar when it fired a Jewish employee who suggested that there were "Nazis" among the US capitol rioters.
Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny detained upon returning home following poisoning - Business Insider
The longtime critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin's regime nearly died after being poisoned in late August and spent the last five months recovering from the assassination attempt in Germany.
Tim Cook: Parler could return to App Store if it steps up moderation - Business Insider
"We don't consider that free speech and incitement to violence has an intersection," Cook told Fox News on Sunday.
Other populists should be banned from Twitter after Trump, say critics - Business Insider
Critics see tech platforms' Trump ban as an opportunity to deplatform other populist politicians who spread misinformation.
Retail experts discuss impact of industry's latest diversity efforts - Business Insider
A big hurdle for early-stage companies remains startup production costs, which can prevent owners from regularly getting items on retailers' shelves.
Biden's inauguration refuses to say how its spending money - Business Insider
Biden is raising tens of millions of dollars for the inaugural celebrations, including from corporate giants with big business before the federal government.
TikTok helps agents sell luxury real estate faster and for more - Business Insider
TikTok sells luxury homes. That's what glamourous realtors say as their videos of celebrity pads and enormous apartments get millions of views.
US small-cap stocks have raced ahead of their bigger peers in 2021. Experts say a number of factors could send them higher.
US small-cap stocks turned it around last year and are powering ahead, with the Russell 2000 index up around 10% in 2020. Can it continue?