{"id":601411,"date":"2023-01-26T06:49:24","date_gmt":"2023-01-26T12:49:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sellorbuyhomefast.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/26\/the-download-a-brain-implant-breakthrough-and-china-tech-reflections\/"},"modified":"2023-01-26T06:49:24","modified_gmt":"2023-01-26T12:49:24","slug":"the-download-a-brain-implant-breakthrough-and-china-tech-reflections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/26\/the-download-a-brain-implant-breakthrough-and-china-tech-reflections\/","title":{"rendered":"The Download: a brain implant breakthrough, and China tech reflections"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Plus: the US and Germany are sending battle tanks to Ukraine<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/header>\n<\/div>\n

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This is today’s edition of\u00a0The Download<\/a><\/em>,\u00a0our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.<\/em><\/p>\n

An ALS patient set a record for communicating via a brain implant<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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The news: <\/strong>Eight years ago, a patient lost her power of speech because of ALS, or Lou Gehrig\u2019s disease, which causes progressive paralysis. Now, after volunteering to receive a brain implant, the woman has been able to rapidly communicate phrases at a rate approaching normal speech.<\/p>\n

Why it matters:<\/strong> Even in an era of keyboards, thumb-typing, emojis, and internet abbreviations, speech remains the fastest form of human-to-human communication. The scientists from Stanford University say their volunteer smashed previous records by using the brain-reading implant to communicate at a rate of 62 words a minute, three times the previous best.\u00a0<\/p>\n

What\u2019s next:<\/strong> Although the study has not been formally reviewed, experts have hailed the results as a significant breakthrough. The findings could pave the way for experimental brain-reading technology to leave the lab and become a useful product soon. Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Antonio Regalado<\/em><\/p>\n

Resolving to live the Year of the Rabbit to the fullest<\/strong><\/p>\n

By Zeyi Yang, China reporter<\/em><\/p>\n

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This past Sunday was the Lunar New Year, the most important holiday for Chinese and several other Asian cultures. It\u2019s supposed to be an opportunity for us to reset and seize new opportunities.<\/p>\n

In that spirit, I\u2019ve recently revisited some of my favorite China-focused MIT Technology Review stories from the last year and gone back to the people I interviewed. I asked them whether they\u2019d resolved any troubling challenges, and what they’re hoping for in the Year of the Rabbit.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

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I\u2019m very grateful to everyone who has let me tell their stories\u2014which I hope have helped all of us understand more about tech and China and, more broadly, the people around us. Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Zeyi\u2019s story is from China Report, his weekly newsletter covering all the major happenings in China. Sign up<\/a> to receive it in your inbox every Tuesday.<\/strong><\/p>\n

The must-reads<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve combed the internet to find you today\u2019s most fun\/important\/scary\/fascinating stories about technology.<\/em><\/p>\n

1 Germany and the US are sending tanks to Ukraine<\/strong>
They could help to usher in a turning point in the war with Russia. (BBC<\/a>)
+ Ukraine\u2019s anti-corruption agency is stepping up its efforts. <\/em>(The Guardian<\/a>)<\/p>\n

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2 The US Justice Department is suing Google (again)<\/strong>
It\u2019s accusing the company of abusing its dominance in the digital advertising market. (Vox<\/a>)
+ It\u2019s unlikely it would ever actually break Google up, though. <\/em>(Ars Technica<\/a>)
+ Google is axing its spam exemption measures for political emails. <\/em>(WP<\/a> $)<\/p>\n

3 Ticketmaster blamed a cyberattack for its Taylor Swift fiasco<\/strong>
But senators think its stranglehold on the ticket market is the real cause. (Bloomberg<\/a> $)
+ Ticketmaster is the definition of a ticketing superpower. <\/em>(Vox<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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4 Crypto bank Silvergate is tanking\u00a0<\/strong>
To the point that its future is now in serious doubt. (NY Mag<\/a> $)
+ What\u2019s next for crypto. <\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

5 China is the world leader in facial recognition tech exports\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>
Experts are worried the intrusive software can fuel human rights violations. (Wired<\/a> $)<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n

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6 Amazon has warned staff not to share secrets with ChatGPT<\/strong>
It\u2019s not clear how the system uses confidential company data. (Insider<\/a> $)<\/p>\n

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7 How Nextdoor became a breeding ground for housing hostility<\/strong>
Neighbors quickly become enemies in a \u201cpermanent online cage match.\u201d (Motherboard<\/a>)<\/p>\n

8 Artificial skin senses objects better than humans<\/strong>
It can even discern the kind of material it\u2019s made of. (New Scientist<\/a> $)<\/p>\n

9 Meet the daters using questionnaires to screen potential matches<\/strong>
Champions say it helps them weed out romantic time-wasters. (The Guardian<\/a>)
+ Here\u2019s how the net\u2019s newest matchmakers help you find love. <\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

10 Online marketplace Zazzle is locked in a font war<\/strong>
The popular font \u201cBlooming Elegant\u201d is at the heart of it. (Slate<\/a> $)<\/p>\n

Quote of the day<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThe way that artists are embracing crazy capitalist, hyper-technology culture is just really disheartening.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014Art student Marla Chinbat explains why she finds the generative AI boom so depressing to Motherboard<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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The big story<\/strong><\/p>\n

The next act for messenger RNA could be bigger than covid vaccines<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

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February 2021<\/strong><\/p>\n

Many covid vaccines used a previously unproven technology based on messenger RNA. They were built and tested in under a year, thanks to discoveries made 20 years earlier.<\/p>\n

In the near future, researchers believe, shots that deliver temporary instructions into cells could lead to vaccines against herpes and malaria, better flu vaccines, and, if the covid-19 germ keeps mutating, updated coronavirus vaccinations, too.<\/p>\n

But researchers also see a future well beyond vaccines. They think the technology will permit cheap gene fixes for cancer, sickle-cell disease, and maybe even HIV. Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Antonio Regalado<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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We can still have nice things<\/strong><\/p>\n

A place for comfort, fun and distraction in these weird times. (Got any ideas?\u00a0Drop me a line<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0tweet ’em at me<\/a>.)<\/em><\/p>\n

+ But what about their future crimes<\/a>?
+ Who sells a life-sized dinosaur on Facebook? This guy<\/a>, that\u2019s who.
+ Now this is some AI art<\/a> I can get onboard with (thanks Will!)
+ If you\u2019re been trying to carve out more time to be creative<\/a>, here\u2019s some tips on how to solidify it into a habit.
+ Sardines<\/a> may have a bad rep, but there\u2019s so much you can do with them.<\/svg> <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Rhiannon Williams<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Plus: the US and Germany are sending battle tanks to Ukraine This is today’s edition of\u00a0The Download,\u00a0our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology. An ALS patient set a record for communicating via a brain implant The news: Eight years ago, a patient lost her power<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":601412,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2452,24097,46],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-601411","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-brain","8":"category-download","9":"category-technology"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=601411"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/601411\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/601412"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=601411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=601411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=601411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}