Technology

By Virginia Heffernan Backchannel Mar 27, 2024 6:00 AM ‘$5,000 to Save a Life Is a Bargain’ As Sam Bankman-Fried’s downfall sends effective altruism into a spiral of self-doubt, the idealist quant Elie Hassenfeld is still helping Silicon Valley richies give away hundreds of millions each year. Facebook X Email …

Alan Dyer was a Winnipeg kid in the space-race days of the 1960s when he decided he needed to experience a total solar eclipse. This week, he's on the road with a carload of gear to see his 17th. I was in a snowy Manitoba field for my first eclipse. …

Dairy and beef farmers are implementing biosecurity measures to keep H5N1 out of their herds, while Canadians are understandably concerned about what U.S. dairy cattle outbreaks could mean for food safety. So what is the scope of these dairy cattle outbreaks, and how is Canada impacted? And is it safe …

In this week's issue of our environment newsletter, we look at how climate change is impacting the lives and habits of chimpanzees, share an award-winning image from last summer's record-breaking wildfires,and find out why Atlantic farmers are being paid to avoid farming all their property. Also: Farmers get paid to …

Vittoria Elliott Business Mar 25, 2024 3:18 PM Meta Kills a Crucial Transparency Tool At the Worst Possible Time CrowdTangle helps researchers track disinformation, but Meta will close it down before the US election. The tool's cofounder, Brandon Silverman, says it's time to force companies to share data. Photograph: Ian …

Morgan Meaker Business Mar 25, 2024 9:33 AM The EU Targets Apple, Meta, and Alphabet for Investigations Under New Tech Law The probes are the first to take place under Europe’s landmark Digital Markets Act—and add to Apple’s mounting antitrust woes. Apple is among three tech giants being investigated for …

The invasive Eurasian watermilfoil is now well established in several places along the St. John River and its tributaries, but that didn't stop one group from fighting back. Eurasian watermilfoil forms thick mats of vegetation that can choke out native species As with many invasive species, now that Eurasian watermilfoil …

Progress made when it comes to the protection of the world's forests was thwarted by last year's historic wildfire season in Canada, according to a new report. Brazil, Columbia see gains but Canada's wildfires were 'off the scale' Progress made when it comes to the protection of the world's forests …

Bird flu outbreaks among U.S. cattle are a new twist in a growing global crisis. And it could be a harbinger of more species-jumps to come, including the rising possibility of H5N1 appearing in livestock like pigs — which scientists warn could help this virus better adapt to humans, too. …

Wildfires in the normally humid, tropical Amazon rainforest have been supercharged by a disastrous combination of elevated temperatures, historic drought and deforestation. In Roraima State, in northern Brazil, the number of fires in February were more than five times the average. Elevated temperatures, historic drought and deforestation contributing to wildfires …