Science & Technology
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California backs out of clean truck and train regulations ahead of Trump administration
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California withdrew plans for pioneering clean-air regulations targeting diesel trucks and trains Tuesday, citing challenges posed by the incoming Trump administration. The state rules faced an uncertain future with federal approval in jeopardy.
The state’s Advanced Clean Fleet rule sought to end sales of new fossil-...Read more
SpaceX pushes 1st Starship test launch attempt to Thursday
SpaceX is ready to send up its first test flight of the year for its Starship and Super Heavy rocket from Texas, but delayed it one day to Thursday, when the company will once again go for a booster catch back at the launch site.
The seventh test flight overall for the 396-foot-tall combined rocket is aiming for liftoff from SpaceX’s Starbase...Read more
Stanford AI expert's credibility shattered by fake, AI-created sources: judge
A federal court judge has thrown out expert testimony from a Stanford University artificial intelligence and misinformation professor, saying his submission of fake information made up by an AI chatbot “shatters” his credibility.
In her written decision Friday, Minnesota district court Judge Laura Provinzino cited “the irony” of ...Read more
No speed limits: Feds drop rule meant to slow boats around right whales
A stricter speed limit isn’t coming to the waters of the North Atlantic right whale calving grounds off the Georgia coast after all.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, or NOAA, on Wednesday withdrew a proposed vessel speed rule meant to protect the endangered whales, which swim near the ocean’s surface and are susceptible ...Read more
Anglers glimpse rare moment of orcas 'coordinating' attack on whale, study says
While fishing off the coast of Honduras in 2023, a group of anglers stumbled upon a rare sight: a pod of orcas hunting down a sperm whale.
The underwater attack — which was organized and bloody — unfolded over many minutes alongside the anglers’ vessel.
Now, over a year later, biologists have tracked down eyewitness accounts of the ...Read more
LA fires: Long-term exposure to wildfire smoke is poorly understood − and a growing risk
Millions of people across the Los Angeles area are being exposed to wildfire smoke as fires burn through homes and vehicles. The fires in January 2025 have burned thousands of structures, along with the building materials, furniture, paints, plastics and electronics inside them.
When materials like these burn, they can release toxic ...Read more
Blue Origin's New Glenn debut could face poor weather for planned overnight launch attempt
Blue Origin could try again to send up its New Glenn rocket for the first time with an overnight launch early Thursday, but the weather forecast could pose problems.
The heavy-lift rocket for Jeff Bezos’ company is trying to become a competitor for SpaceX and United Launch Alliance. Dubbed NG-1, the mission has a launch window from 1-4 a.m. ...Read more
'Serrated blade' stuck in rock on UK beach is ancient sea creature tooth, experts say
A “serrated blade” found sticking from a rock in the United Kingdom has been identified as a “nearly perfect” prehistoric shark tooth, experts say.
It belonged to a Squalicorax falcatus shark, which prowled the ocean 90 to 100 million years ago, according to Wight Coast Fossils on the Isle of Wight.
That’s tens of millions of years ...Read more
SpaceX set for 1st Starship test launch of the year today
ORLANDO — SpaceX is ready to send up its first test flight of the year for its Starship and Super Heavy rocket from Texas on Wednesday, and will once again go for a booster catch back at the launch site.
The seventh test flight overall for the 396-foot-tall combined rocket is aiming for liftoff from SpaceX’s Starbase facility in Boca Chica,...Read more
A national, nonpartisan study of the Los Angeles fires could improve planning for future disasters
The Los Angeles fires are a national disaster of epic proportions. City officials, California Gov. Gavin Newsom and President-elect Donald Trump have traded accusations about what caused this crisis. But as an engineering professor who lives in Los Angeles and has studied extreme events and natural and human-caused disasters for over 40 years...Read more
Intel to turn venture arm into separate firm with new name
Intel Corp., the once-dominant chipmaker struggling to revive its business and finances, plans to turn its venture capital arm into a separate fund with a new name.
The chipmaker will continue to be an “anchor investor in the new company,” according to a statement Tuesday. The division, currently known as Intel Capital, has more than $5 ...Read more
Gunnar Optiks reveals new lenses and gaming-themed frames
Gunnar has been making gaming glasses for years based on studies that reportedly show that blue light glasses help with eye fatigue. With that selling point, the company has carved a niche for itself in the space though further studies challenged those conclusions.
Since then, Gunnar has been pivoting, focusing on other lens innovations while...Read more
Jim Rossman: Metal roof doesn’t mean you can’t receive OTA channels
This week I had an email exchange with a reader who wants to cut the cord and was wondering how they could watch their local channels.
I was all ready to mention putting up an antenna, but he added, “Over-the-air will not work in our case because of a metal roof.”
So I pivoted to talking about which streaming services offer local ...Read more
Gadgets: Retro look, modern sound
The multiple media format Century 6-in-1 Music Center from Victrola has a retro look to play music from many generations. Along with the functionality, it's an attractive addition to any family room.
Front and center is a three-speed turntable. Then add a cassette player (remember those?), CD player, a pair of built-in Bluetooth speakers and ...Read more
Colorado's historic wolf reintroduction faces barrage of challenges 1 year after first paws hit the ground
DENVER — Depending on who’s talking, Colorado’s wolves are an existential threat to ranching, an imperiled native species crucial to a healthy ecosystem, a ruthless predator that kills for sport or a beautiful species that enriches lives.
Despite a full year passing since the first reintroduced canines put paws on the ground, tensions ...Read more
Biden creates 2 vast national monuments during final week in office
President Joe Biden on Tuesday created two new vast national monuments in California’s desert and far north that protect lands considered sacred by tribes, bolstering his conservation legacy days before leaving office.
Biden signed proclamations establishing the 624,000-acre Chuckwalla National Monument south of Joshua Tree National Park in ...Read more
$20 billion Delta tunnel plan wins endorsement from Silicon Valley's largest water agency
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Gov. Gavin Newsom’s $20 billion plan to build a massive, 45-mile long tunnel under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to make it easier to move water from Northern California to Southern California won the endorsement of Silicon Valley’s largest water agency on Tuesday.
By a vote of 6-1, with director Rebecca Eisenberg ...Read more
Firefly looks to punch NASA moon ticket with overnight SpaceX launch
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A SpaceX mission set to lift off overnight marks a first for Firefly Aerospace under NASA’s plans to build up American companies to support its lunar goals.
A Falcon 9 targeting a 1:11 a.m.Eastern time, liftoff Wednesday from KSC’s Launch Pad 39-A is carrying the Cedar Park, Texas-based company’s Blue Ghost lunar ...Read more
EPA warns of toxic forever chemicals in sewage sludge used on farmland, including thousands of acres near the Chicago area
CHICAGO — Farmers who use sewage sludge as fertilizer and their neighbors face higher risks of cancer and other diseases, according to a new federal analysis that pins the blame on toxic forever chemicals.
The findings are particularly relevant for northeast Illinois, where more than 777,000 tons of sludge from Chicago and Cook County have ...Read more
Mega data centers are coming. Their power needs are staggering
Facebook’s parent company is building Minnesota’s first mega data center in Rosemount to house its fast-growing need for computing muscle.
Amazon and Microsoft bought land for large data centers near Xcel Energy’s soon-retiring coal plant in Becker. A Colorado company called Tract has advanced a project in Farmington and is eyeing ...Read more
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