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  1. Iran hacked hundreds of French supermarket refrigerators, France says

Technology

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Technology

Ukraine’s fiber-optic drones get squeezed by AI data center demand

Impervious to battlefield jamming, drones physically connected to human operators by miles of fiber-optic cables have become such a common weapon of war in Ukraine that trees and fields are strewn with tangled cables thinner than fishing lines. But importing such fiber-optic material from China has become more costly as drone warfare’s needs compete with global demand from AI data centers for the same limited supply—and so Ukrainian drone makers have been adapting. Since the full-scale Russian invasion of Ukraine began in February 2022, the Ukrainians have been forced out of necessity to continually develop battlefield innovations involving first-person view (FPV) quadcopter drones and other heavier types of drones. But it was the Russian military that first deployed unjammable fiber-optic drones to repel Ukrainian forces’ cross-border incursion into the Kursk Oblast in 2024. The Ukrainians quickly followed suit in developing their own fiber-optic drones, given the drones’ capability to shrug off electronic warfare jamming that could neutralize radio-controlled drones. Russia and Ukraine have relied on Chinese suppliers for some off-the-shelf drones and a wide array of drone components, including bulk orders of fiber wound around very large spools or sometimes small finished spools ready for installation on drones. The finished spools can hold enough fiber-optic cable for drones to regularly operate at ranges of dozens of miles, and sometimes up to 62 miles (100 kilometers) in extreme cases, as reported by the independent Russian publication The Insider.Read full article Comments

Technology

Review: Apple’s M6 MacBook Pro is good, but it’s missing all the exciting stuff

I've written more than once about the weird positioning of Apple's entry-level 14-inch MacBook Pro, which has always occupied an uncomfortable perch between the MacBook Air and the higher-end MacBook Pros. The best versions of this laptop, like last year's M5 refresh, come with the same basic design and external features of the higher-end MacBook Pros, just with a more modest processor and a lower ceiling for specs like RAM and storage. The lesser versions stick with older designs or other compromises, reserving Apple's most updated designs and screen technologies for the more expensive high-end models. Recall the 13-inch M1 and M2 MacBook Pros, which stuck with Apple's 2016-era MacBook Pro designs for everything, up to and including the now-abandoned Touch Bar. (If you're someone at Apple maintaining Touch Bar support into the 2030s for the sake of these two laptop models, I'd like to hear from you. Not for a story! I'd just like to know how you are.) This year's entry-level MacBook Pro mostly falls into that latter category. It does get an Apple M6 chip, and the M6 is great—rumors suggest the M6 won't get Pro, Max, or Ultra configurations, so there are some fringe benefits here that you can't get in the top-tier MacBook Pros. But it uses the same MacBook Pro design Apple has been using since 2021. There's no touchscreen, no OLED panel, no Dynamic Island, no half-pound weight reduction, no glowing Apple logo on the lid.Read full article Comments

Technology

California’s proposed ‘billionaire tax’ fails to pass

California voters rejected Proposition 40, the one-time 5% tax on billionaires, the AP reported Monday. Tech leaders outspent backers roughly 10 to 1 to defeat it, and the founders and economists TechCrunch interviewed before the vote were split on whether it would have driven out wealthy residents or just trimmed their fortunes.

Transportation

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Transportation

BYD and Geely approached FIA about a 12th F1 team, says Ben Sulayem

BYD and Geely have both approached the FIA about entering Formula 1, the sport’s governing body confirmed. FIA president Mohammed Ben Sulayem named the two Chinese automakers while speaking at the New Economy Forum in Madrid, as first reported by Grande Prêmio. But there’s no open process for a 12th team, and neither company has a deal. The FIA is also pushing F1 toward the kind of engine an EV maker has the least reason to build. more…

Transportation

Anker SOLIX early Black Friday Sale cuts 54% off power stations from $530, Velotric Fold 1 Plus e-bike new $1,199 low, more

Anker is leading our Tuesday Green Deals edition this week, with the brand finally launching its Early SOLIX Black Friday Sale that has up to 54% discounts, our exclusive bonus savings code, and FREE gifts. Alongside the included S5000 station deals, you can find offers like the S2000 2,010Wh Power Station with a 400W solar panel exclusively at $1,140, while other deals start from $530. We also have some spotlight coverage for Velotric’s Fold 1 Plus Folding e-bike at a new $1,199 low, as well as Segway’s Xafari All-Terrain e-bike at a new $1,300 low, the ongoing low for Greenworks’ 40V 12-inch Cordless Snow Shovel, a new Birdfy 4K solar camera, and more. At the bottom of the page is all of yesterday’s hangover deals, like the Yozma IN 10 Pro electric dirt bike at a new $1,614 low, Anker’s eufy early Black Friday security deals, and others. Head below for other New Green Deals we’ve found today and, of course, Electrek’s best EV buying and leasing deals. Also, check out the new Electrek Tesla Shop for the best deals on Tesla accessories. more…

Science

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Science

Repeat thieves without kleptomania struggle to adapt to rewards in decision-making test

Theft is almost universally considered an exploitative behavior. The conventional view underlying judicial systems is that the act of taking resources from others without offering compensation stems from moral and personal failings. As a result, these systems rely on the assumption that the threat or imposition of punishment will motivate criminal offenders to adjust their future behavior. Yet the outcome is not always success.

Science

Team designs molecules that efficiently generate orange-to-red light for OLED displays

Most of us spend much of our day staring at organic light-emitting diodes, or OLEDs, which convert electricity into light to produce the colorful displays on smartphones, computer monitors and televisions. Although metal-free light-emitting materials that produce all colors are in demand, it has been difficult to make ones that efficiently emit orange-to-red light. Now, researchers led by the University of Osaka have shown that such materials do not need to be held in a rigid shape to work well: flexible molecules that can change shape can also emit orange-to-red light.

Science

A catalyst that protects itself while producing hydrogen

Cobalt phosphide (CoP) is a promising alternative to platinum for producing hydrogen from water. However, scientists have struggled to explain why it performs so well. Computer models have suggested that CoP should become unstable under the conditions used to produce hydrogen, yet experiments show that it remains active and durable in acidic, neutral and alkaline environments.

Science

Simulations cast doubt on unusual asteroid’s ‘dark comet’ status

In 2031, Japan's Hayabusa2 spacecraft will arrive at the near-Earth asteroid 1998 KY26: a tiny body that is accelerating in a way that astronomers have struggled to explain. Some studies have suggested that the asteroid is pushed along by water escaping from it as gas, making it an as-yet theoretical "dark comet."

Cricket

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Cricket

Whole Australia team knew of sandpaper use – Khawaja

Whole Australia team knew of sandpaper use - Khawaja BBCUsman Khawaja Reveals Australia's Master Plan To HIDE Sandpaper From Camera News18‘It was all of us’: Khawaja says entire Australia team knew about sandpaper ball tampering plot The Guardian

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