Lifeboat Foundation

Imagine a more sustainable future, where cellphones, smartwatches, and other wearable devices don’t have to be shelved or discarded for a newer model. Instead, they could be upgraded with the latest sensors and processors that would snap onto a device’s internal chip—like LEGO bricks incorporated into an existing build. Such reconfigurable chipware could keep devices up to date while reducing our electronic waste.

Now MIT engineers have taken a step toward that modular vision with a LEGO-like design for a stackable, reconfigurable artificial intelligence chip.

The design comprises alternating layers of sensing and processing elements, along with light-emitting diodes (LED) that allow for the chip’s layers to communicate optically. Other modular chip designs employ conventional wiring to relay signals between layers. Such intricate connections are difficult if not impossible to sever and rewire, making such stackable designs not reconfigurable.

Cybersecurity researchers have discovered adware and information-stealing malware on the Google Play Store last month, with at least five still available and having amassed over two million downloads.

Adware infections displaying unwanted advertisements that can be particularly intrusive, degrade the user experience, deplete the battery, generate heat, and even cause unauthorized charges.

This software generally tries to hide by masquerading as something else on the host device and makes money for remote operators by forcing the victim to perform views or clicks on affiliated advertisements.

There’s a lot going on when it comes to Apple’s rumored mixed reality headset, which is expected to combine both AR and VR technologies into a single device. However, at the same time, the company has also been working on new AR glasses. According to Haitong Intl Tech Research analyst Jeff Pu, Apple’s AR glasses will be announced in late 2024.

In a note seen by 9to5Mac, Pu mentions that Luxshare will remain as one of Apple’s main suppliers for devices to come between late 2022 and 2024. Among all devices, the analyst highlights products such as Apple Watch Series 8, iPhone 14, and Apple’s AR/VR headset. But more than that, Pu believes that Apple plans to introduce new AR glasses in the second half of 2024.

At this point, details about Apple’s AR glasses are unknown. What we do know so far is that, unlike Apple’s AR/VR headset, the new AR glasses will be highly dependent on the iPhone due to design limitations. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in 2019 that the rumored “Apple Glasses” will act more like a display for the iPhone, similar to the first generation Apple Watch.

“I think it is possible,” Musk, 50, recently told Insider. “Yes, we could download the things that we believe make ourselves so unique. Now, of course, if you’re not in that body anymore, that is definitely going to be a difference, but as far as preserving our memories, our personality, I think we could do that.”

By Musk’s account, such technology will be a gradual evolution from today’s forms of computer memory. “Our memories are stored in our phones and computers with pictures and video,” he said. “Computers and phones amplify our ability to communicate, enabling us to do things that would have been considered magical … We’ve already amplified our human brains massively with computers.”

Continue reading “Elon Musk says humans could eventually download their brains into robots — and Grimes thinks Jeff Bezos would do it” »

Wood-derived materials can be used to harvest electrical energy from everyday movements such as walking, according to University of Toronto and University of Waterloo researchers.

In a new study recently published in Nano Energy, the team demonstrated the use of lignocellulosic nanofibrils—derived from tree bark —in a prototype self-powered device capable of sending a wireless signal to a smartphone via bluetooth.

Such devices can be used to track biometric data such as heart rate, oxygen levels or skin conductivity. The innovation could improve the performance of these devices while lowering their environmental impact.

A new study has shown for the first time that the Bluetooth signals constantly emitted by our smartphones have a unique fingerprint.

Cybersecurity researchers have taken the wraps off what they call a “nearly-impossible-to-detect” Linux malware that could be weaponized to backdoor infected systems.

Dubbed Symbiote by threat intelligence firms BlackBerry and Intezer, the stealthy malware is so named for its ability to conceal itself within running processes and network traffic and drain a victim’s resources like a parasite.

The operators behind Symbiote are believed to have commenced development on the malware in November 2021, with the threat actor predominantly using it to target the financial sector in Latin America, including banks like Banco do Brasil and Caixa, based on the domain names used.

How Apple’s M2 chip builds on the M1 to take on Intel and AMD.

The M1 is a great chip. Essentially an “X” variant of the A14 chip, it takes the iPhone and iPad processor and doubles the high-performance CPU cores, GPU cores, and memory bandwidth. The M1 chip is so good it’s equally amazing for tablets and thin-and-light laptops as it is for desktops, easily outperforming any competing chip with similar power draw and offering similar performance to processors that use at least twice as much energy.

Now a year and a half later, and after delivering three more powerful variants of the M1 (M1 Pro, M1 Max, and M1 Ultra), it’s time for the next generation. Announced at WWDC and appearing first in the new MacBook Air and 13-inch MacBook Pro, the M2 is essentially the system-on-chip we predicted it would be: what the M1 is to the A14, the M2 is to the A15. It’s made of 20 billion transistors, 25 percent more than M1, and while it’s still built using a 5nm manufacturing process, it’s a new enhanced “second-generation” 5nm process.

Continue reading “How Apple’s M2 chip builds on the M1 with small but meaningful upgrades” »

European Union policymakers have brought in new laws to introduce a universal phone charger.

Now it’s almost a reality, but while there’s widespread support from consumers and politicians, one company in particular isn’t happy.