Jay Hale Marketing: December 2016

Saturday, December 31, 2016

All the Biggest Space News to Look Forward to in 2017

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Running a space program ain’t easy. Spacefaring missions can take as long to plan and fund as they do to execute, so you’d better bet there’s some serious forethought going on. Which sounds like a headache for NASA, but for space fans, it’s actually good news. It means—surprises and mishaps aside—an attentive nerd can figure out what to expect from space science in 2017. And while healthy skepticism always leads to better science, we’re feeling optimistic about the year’s coming missions and discoveries. Here’s a breakdown of what we’re anticipating most:

Total Eclipse (Of Our Hearts)

For the first time since 1918, a total solar eclipse will be visible across the entire continental US. Norway had one last year and it was pretty dang stunning. But unless they’re being used to find new exoplanets, eclipses are more of a novelty than an avenue for new science. Still, a total eclipse is a relatively rare occurrence, and for once, nobody is going to tell you not to look. Even safety-conscious NASA says it’s okay to stare at a total eclipse, as long as you wait until the sun is totally shadowed. While the eclipse is still partial, remember: direct sunshine—like bad moonshine—can cause blindness.
When: August 17th
Excitement Level:4/10

Rockets, Man

NASA’s Space Launch System is the most powerful rocket in the world, the kind of rocket NASA needs to get to Mars, and it’s just about ready for liftoff—theoretically. The SLS is still deep in its testing stages, and those will continue right up to the rocket’s projected 2018 launch date, when it’s set to carry the Orion spacecraft on an unmanned mission.

In 2017, the rocket will enter its “Green Run” phase at NASA’s Stennis Space Center: a bunch of static booster-firing, resonance-checking test runs. Most of which SLS’s subsystems have endured in the past, but this is time there’s a 90-degree twist. The green run will be the first time the rocket engines are assembled with the core stage, and they’ll be vertical. (You can see what a horizontal booster test looks like here.) We’re still a year away from blast off, but at least this year SLS will be pointing in the right direction.
When: December 17th
Excitement Level: 5/10

OSIRIS REx Next Steps

After billions of years of space rocks impacting and taking bites out of Earth, NASA wants to get a piece of an asteroid. So last year they launched OSIRIS REx, a spacecraft equipped not only to orbit the carbon-rich asteroid Bennu, but to take some samples back to Earth. It will be a long time until the mission pays off—the spacecraft isn’t due to touch back down to Earth until 2023. But in 2017, it will take a crucial intermediary step.

Since its launch in September 2016, the spacecraft has been cruising around the solar system, biding its time. But after a year of chilling in the icy void, OSIRIS REx will fly by Earth and slingshot using its gravity, increasing the craft’s orbital speed and tweaking its trajectory to line up with Bennu. The mission’s team has the benefit of learning from Rosetta—a masterclass in flying blind near a tiny, hurtling space rock and settling into a wonky orbit—but this calls for some Skywalker-level finesse.
When: September 22
Excitement Level: 7/10

Final Frontier Countdown

Ondeep space missions, navigating pirate-style—by the light of the stars alone—just isn’t good enough. And GPS doesn’t work once you get out beyond its satellites. So what’s a spacefaring navigator to do? In the past, they’ve had to rely on the Deep Space Network, a system of Earth-bound antenna arrays and an ultra-precise atomic clock. Thing is, space has gotten crowded, and not just with near-earth objects like comets and asteroids: The sheer number of missions is overloading the switchboard.

Enter the Deep Space Atomic Clock, scheduled to launch early next year. The fully autonomous mercury-ion atomic clock will revolutionize space navigation by making it function more like terrestrial navigation. So: improved accuracy, and cutting down on those pesky communications lag times. Call us nerds, but our anticipation ofthis clock’s launch is really making time fly.
When: January 17
Excitement Level: 8/10

Taikonauts Are Go

Between GPS-like BeiDou nearing completion, some fancy and powerfulnew rockets, and a successful 30-day manned mission, China’s space program has gone from upstart to obvious rising power in the last year. And it shows no signs of slowing down in 2017. In April, the country will launch the Tianzhou 1 unmanned cargo craft to dock with their Tiangong-2 space laboratory. This is basically their first resupply mission to their prototype space station. Which, if they’re successful, could go a long way toward making a permanent Chinese orbital space station viable—especially important because the ISS is due to be retired in 2024.

And that’s not even 2017’s big Chinese spaceflight news. At some point in the second half of the year (exact date TBD), China is scheduled to launch its Chang’e 5 robotic sample return mission. If everything goes according to plan, the spacecraft will land on the near side of the moon, collect some samples, and return them to Earth. Have other spacefaring nations done this? Sure. But this is all part of the Chinese space program’s plan to show the world its moon boots are just as big as anyone else’s. And considering that nobody else can get to the moon right now, it’s a non-trivial demonstration of that power.
When: April/TBD
Excitement Level: 9/10

Beyond the Rings of Saturn

Nothing stirs a space nerd’s soul like new, unexplored horizons, or crash landings. NASA’s Cassini mission will deliver on both. The Cassini space probe has been exploring Saturn for 13 years, hanging out with Saturn’s moon Enceladus and its geysers. In November 2016, the probe went into the penultimate phase of its life: the ring-grazing orbits, designed to sample the particles that make up Saturn’s famous rings.This April, Cassini will descend even closer to the planet’s surface, and into a stratum that no craft has ever explored before: the space between Saturn and its rings. From there, the probe will descend untilit makes destructive impact with the planet’s surface. NASA has promised it will be snapping pictures until touchdown.
When: April 22/September 15
Excitement Level: 10/10

How Amazon, Google, and Facebook Will Bring Down Telcos

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Just abouteverything you see on TV is presented by one of a handful ofmedia conglomerates. A similarly small number of telecommunication companies provides your cable service. If you have Comcast and you’re watching NBC, the content and the delivery infrastructure areowned by the same people. This tiny world will concentrate further if regulators approve AT&T’s acquisition of Time Warner.

The internet was supposed to alleviate this. Instead, it may compound it. Amazon, Facebook, Google, and a handful of others aredisplacing media companies and telcos. They alreadyhost muchof the content youconsume, and produce more and more of it. They own much of the infrastructure carrying thatdata, and they’re starting to sell Internet access.

These tech titans didn’t planto take down the telcos. But they depend upon youhaving fast, reliable internet, so they’re bringing everything in-house. This promises to make things drastically better for you as a consumer, so if you hate big telecoms, you’ll feel schadenfreude at their demise. But you might end up with more of the same as the new guard becomes the old guard.

May the Best Signal Win

You’ve probably heard about Google Fiber and its shift toward wireless Internet overfiber-optic cables.Google Fimobile service could be even more radical.Instead of building cell towers, Google resells access to Sprint and T-Mobile networks. Companies like Cricket and TracFone do this too, but Google-Fi lets your phone use the bestsignal available at any moment.

Granted, most mobile devices hop amongnetworks asyou roam—but only if your carrier’s signal is unavailable. If you’ve got one lousy bar of signal with your carrier, tough luck. Traditional roaming won’t let you switch to another carrier’s stronger signal. Google-Fi offers the best signal, period, no matter where you are.

That could change the economics of wireless service. Instead of signing up with a singlecarrier, you’d sign-up with a broker—called a mobile virtual network provider—and use the best network available. Today’s carriers would become invisible wholesalers competing to offer access at the cheapest rates. That could save you big money while providing superior service.

Falling in Line

The big carriers will resist this, of course, but it creates opportunities for smaller players like Artemis Networks. The company created awireless network using what it calls pCell technology. Traditionally, it would have to offer people service plans, just like AT&T and Verizon. Instead, founder Steve Perlman plans to sell the service to virtual network providers.

Google is also building a servicethat would let people connect to public Wi-Fi using a common login. Obviously,a blanket of public WiFi connections willmake Google-Fi more viable. But beforeGoogle can stitch this massive network together, others mustbuild pieces of that network. That’s where Facebook comes in.

Earlier this year, Facebook unveilednetworking gear designed to beam the internet into remote locations and dense urban areas. It isn’t interested in becoming an internet service provider; instead it sees others using these open source tools to deliver high-speed wireless internet to new areas.

As new technologies and expanded access to the wireless spectrum drivedown the cost of operating cell services, Google and other wireless brokerswill be able to createnationwide–even worldwide–networks. That would makewireless service a commodity and shift the balance of power from incumbents like AT&T to companies like Google.

Dark Fiber

Even if tech companiesdon’t wrest wireless service from the telco’s grasp, they can weakenthe giants in other ways. Amazon, Facebook and Google have long built their data centers and leased or bought unused fiber-optic infrastructure–so-called “dark fiber”–to connect them, bypassing traditional telcos.

This has big implications. Amazon, for example, runs what most experts consider the world’s biggest cloud hosting service. Untold numbersof apps and websites rely upon this serviceto carry their data. Traditional telcos have no part of that.Google and Facebook hope to lure more companies into hosting content on their AMP and Instant Articles services, respectively.

It’s hard to determine the scale of thisprivate infrastructure. The Wall Street Journal reported in 2013 that Google had about 100,000 miles miles of fiber-optic routes–far more than Sprint’s 40,000 miles. Meanwhile, the research firm Telegeography reports that private networks account for about 60 percent of trans-Atlantic data traffic. If Amazon, Google and Facebook don’t already control more telecommunications infrastructure than the largest national telcos, they soon will.

Oligopoly

Put it all together and you can see a day when you’re watchingcontent that Google produceddisseminated via infrastructure that Google owns on a phone that Google made using wireless service Google brokered.

Many people find this appealing. Its hard to find an industry loathed more than telcos, which have a reputation for lousy service, opaque billing, and rising rates. Tech companies, on the other hand, generally are seen as innovators. And they’re making thingsbetter. Comcast and AT&T already offerfaster connections in areas where they compete with Google Fiber.

Google-Fi, Amazon’s rumored Internet service and Facebook’s open source hardware could spur greaterinnovation from entrenched telcos. The risk, of course, is that those tech companies simply replace telcos as the new oligopoly.

In a Chaotic Year, the Best Games Took My Control Away

The Best Is Yet to Come

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Listen closely and you’ll hear the battle cry of the tech adopter: it’ll be better next year! As 2016 comes to a close, we decided to go straight to what’s coming next. Starting the first week of January with CES, 2017 will be a year of big gadget announcements. A new iPhone. A new Pixel. More VR. More Windows. More cameras for your Snapchat. More Snapchat for your parents. And, for better or worse, probably about the same amount of Twitter as this year. Before we left for the holidays, we went through it all.

Podcast

Some links: The many, many iPhone 8 rumors. Our retrospective on the last year of Twitter. Chris Kohler’s story on Microsoft’s Project Scorpio VR plans. Recommendations this week are two shows you ought to be watching, Fleabag and The 100.

Send the hosts feedback on their personal Twitter feeds (David Pierce is @pierce and Michael Calore is @snackfight) or bling the main hotline at @GadgetLab.

Steph Curry sneakers raise $43,157 for Oakland fire victims

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Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, left, shoots against Toronto Raptors guard Kyle Lowry during the second half of an NBA basketball game in Oakland, Calif., Wednesday, Dec. 28, 2016. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) (Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry has raised $43,157 for victims of the Oakland warehouse fire by auctioning off two pairs of sneakers.

The Warriors said Friday that the shoes Curry wore against the New York Knicks on Dec. 15 were auctioned off to an anonymous bidder for $30,101. The “Oakland Strong” shoes feature the words “OAKLAND” down the side of the left shoe and “STRONG” down the side of the right shoe in Golden State’s yellow and blue colors.

The pregame “Ghost Ship” shoes that feature the words “GHOST SHIP” in graffiti-style script down the side of each shoe went to an anonymous bidder for $13,356.

Both have the initials of all 36 victims printed on them.

Curry had posted on Twitter to advertise the eBay auction.

The fire broke out Dec. 2 during a party at the Ghost Ship warehouse.

‘Special Report’s’ annual blooper reel

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Amazon’s Flying Warehouse Plan Has A Big Catch

Trump Praises Putin: ‘I Always Knew He Was Very Smart!’

Michigan Bans Banning Plastic Bags Because Plastic Bag Bans Are Bad For Business

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As communities across the country explore new ways to curb single-use plastics, including all-out bans on plastic shopping bags, Michigan has taken a step that ensures it continues to add to plastic pollution.

This week, with Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder out of town, Lt. Gov. Brian Calley signed into law a prohibition on local governments banning plastic bags and other food and retail containers. That’s right, a ban on bans.

Introduced by state Sen. Jim Stamas, a Republican, the measure preempts local ordinances from “regulating the use, disposition, or sale of, prohibiting or restricting, or imposing any fee, charge, or tax on certain containers,” including those made of plastics. It effectively kills a measure passed in Washtenaw County, in southeastern Michigan, that would have imposed a 10-cent tax on both plastic and paper grocery bags beginning in April 2017.

Unsurprisingly, the newly signed law was celebrated by the Michigan Restaurant Association, which represents approximately 4,500 food service establishments. In a statement Wednesday, the association took credit for what it called a “key victory” and said the law would “better protect the business community from a patchwork approach of additional regulation and burdensome mandates.”

“As the second-largest private employer in Michigan, the restaurant industry plays a major role in Michigan’s economic future,” Justin Winslow, the association’s president and CEO, said. “Frivolous regulation at the local level threatens to jeopardize that future, which is why the MRA led the charge for sensible reform embodied in [Senate Bill] 853.”

The move comes amid growing awareness about the threats our addiction to plastic pose to the natural world.

This month, researchers at Rochester Institute of Technology found that 21.8 million pounds of plastic flow into the Great Lakes annually. The amount entering Lake Michigan each year is equivalent to 100 Olympic-size pools full of plastic bottles, according to the study.

If things continue down their current path, the world’s oceans will be home to more plastic than fish by 2050, according to a January report from the World Economic Forum and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation.

But Michigan lawmakers forged ahead with the business-friendly bill. It joins Idaho, Arizona and Missouri in passing such a preemptive rule.

In an interview with Michigan Radio, Washtenaw County Commissioner Jennifer Eyer slammed the law, saying it puts “the priorities of business over the concerns about the environment and doing what’s good for the environment.”

What’s next? A ban on banning plastic bag bans?

Friday, December 30, 2016

The Best 2016 Movies You (Probably) Never Saw

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We saw some pretty great movies this year, nearly half of which starred Allison Janney. But with so many releases vying for our attention, it was a given that several must-see titles slipped through unnoticed. Here are a few lesser-known notables we caught in 2016, from affecting teen dramas to sweetly moving comedies to sing-along-worthy musicals.

Other People

After breaking up with his boyfriend, a successful-enough New York City comedy writer (played by Fargo star Jesse Plemons) returns to Sacramento to help take care of his cancer-stricken mother (Molly Shannon). That might sound like a set-up straight out of winsome-indie hell, or maybe a Fox Searchlight pitch meeting. But writer-director Chris Kelly’s cagily funny gem never loses itself in mucky mawkishness or too-easy uplift, dwelling instead on the smaller, stranger, more sneakily beautiful moments that tend to accompany grief. And Plemons and Shannon small-screen scene-stealers turned ace character-actorshave never been better. Brian Raftery

Sing Street

A breakout hit at Sundance, Sing Street sputtered when it was released in the US this springa shame, as it’s the kind of good-cheer generator that most of us could have used at one point during the past year. Set in Dublin in 1985,the newly Golden Globe-nominated musical-drama follows a group of working-class teenagers who attempt to irk their schoolmasterand maybe win over a girl or twoby forming a Duran Duran-duplicating new-wave band and writing one of this year’s best songs. It’s a little bit John Hughes, a wee bit John Taylor, and a whole lot of smile-stoking fun. Brian Raftery

The Edge of Seventeen

Look, if you’re the kind of person who keeps an eye out for dark, coming-of-age dramedies, this one probably isn’t on your Missed list. But if you weren’t looking for it, Edge of Seventeen definitely flew under the radar. And that’s too bad; it’s fantastic. Anchored by some note-perfect performances from Hailee Steinfeld and Woody Harrelson, writer/director Kelly Fremon Craig’s film is serious without being bleak and funny without being goofyboth qualities that are rare in teen movies. It reminds you of what it’s like to be in high schoolin all the best and worst ways. Angela Watercutter

Krisha

Honestly, it’s kind of hard to explainKrisha, let alone explain why it’s amazing. The movie is essentially set up like an emotional/psychological time-bomb. Krisha (Krisha Fairchild), a woman with some troubling substance abuse issues, goes home for Thanksgiving after being away from her famity for 10 years and from the second she walks up to the house, you just know this isn’t going to go well. That may sound rote, but writer-director Trey Edward Shults(who cast his own aunt in the title role) builds the family tension in a way that makesthe movie hard to turn away fromand you won’t be able to do so until the credits roll. Angela Watercutter

The Fits

The Fitsstarts out as a movie about an 11-year-old girl named Toni who becomes fascinated with a local dance troupe. She’s a tomboy and doesn’t quite fit in with them, but she’s determined. Then everything goes sideways when the other young women in the troupe start suffering from fainting spells and violent spasms. The mystery then becomes trying to decipher what’s happening to all the girlsToni encounters. If you liked the strange vibe ofIt Follows, thenThe Fits is up your alley. And watching newcomerRoyalty Hightower (Toni) carry the movie all the way through is magic. Angela Watercutter

Don’t Think Twice

ForThe Commune, an improv troupe in New York City whose members have worked and lived together for years, success is always just around the cornerat least until one of them (Keegan-Michael Key)nabs a spot on anetwork TV sketch show. That’s when the joking stops andthe tension finally boils over.Mike Birbiglia (Sleepwalk With Me), a standup comic with improv chops of his own, wrote and directed this love letter to failure, friendship, and the most reviled performance formsince a cappella. Thanks to acast of vets(Key, Chris Gethard,Tami Sagher) and regular funny-ass people (Kate Micucci, Gillian Jacobs), the improv rings as true as the scripted bits, and theambition as palpable as the desperation. The best small-scale comedy of the year. Peter Rubin

Stretch & Bobbito: Radio That Changed Lives

If you livedin NYC in the 90s, unsigned hype didn’t get discovered in the pages ofThe Source,but in the cramped studio from whichDJ Stretch Armstrong and Bobbito Garcia broadcast their late-night hip-hop show on Columbia University’s radio station. Nas, Jay Z, Biggie, and dozens of otherrap legends all came ontheshow before they had dealsand they all left with buzz. Garcia himself wrote and directedthis loving look back, full ofjawdropping archival materialthat in some cases has goneunheard for more than 20 years. Ithit a few festivals late last year, butcame to Showtime in April, and is now on Netflix. Run, don’t walk. Peter Rubin

Christine

Christine is based on the true (and tragic) story of Christine Chubbuck, a Florida TV reporter who killed herself on-air in the 1970s. If that makes Antonio Campos’ movie sound heart-wrenching, it is. But it’s also riveting, thanks largely to a wonderful performance by Rebecca Hall in the title role. At times darkly funny, and always gripping, Christine is hard to ignore. Angela Watercutter

Your 5 Totally Achievable Security Resolutions for the New Year

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Whether you’ve never thought about your personal security at all before, or you’ve been meaning to clean some things up for awhile now, 2017 is the year to make changes. Threats like spamming, phishing, man-in-the-middle attacks, and ransomware pose real daily threats to every internet user, passwords continue to leak in massive corporate breaches, political instability roils many parts of the world, and people own more and more devices that can be compromised. Fun, right?

The challenge of protecting yourself can feel so overwhelming that it’s tempting to give up on security altogether. There’s no disputing that adding more protection to your life does require some work and inconvenience. But emphasis is on some. Just like locking your bike instead of simply leaning it against a tree, taking digital security precautions is slightly annoying but very doable. So do it! The first step is to check off the really simple stuff that only takes a few minutes (do it for your relatives or a friend, too). Once you’ve got that baseline read on for the slightly more time-consuming stuff.

Set Up a Password Manager

At this point, you’ve either meant to set up a password manager and failed, or you’ve heard that you should do it and willfully not made it happen. It’s understandable. We all have a ton of online accounts, and the idea of cataloging them all and changing the password for each of them is daunting. But that’s precisely why you need a password manager. You can’t remember strong, unique passwords for each account you have, and the accounts you’ve forgotten about are especially likely to have a weak or repeated password. The nice thing about setting up a password manager, though, is that once you put in the time to get it up and running it will genuinely make your life easier beyond just improving your security. You won’t have to go through password resets all the time, risk being locked out of accounts after too many failed entry attempts, or need to stretch your brain with complicated password mnemonics. Everything will just be there behind one long and strong master password. Password managers also make it easier to change passwords down the line, so they really do have a long-term benefit.

There are a number of good password managers to choose from (some are free!) and the easiest way to set them up is just to choose one and then add and change passwords gradually over time as you visit sites and services that involve a login. Within a few weeks of adding accounts through natural browsing you’ll have significantly improved your personal security posture. As months go by, you’ll add niche sites and new accounts to your roster. It’s a slow burn, but once you get going it becomes part of your natural flow, and you’ll suddenly realize that you’ve had your password manager for years.

Password managers are certainly not perfect. They centralize all your data, and it’s always possible that the companies that provide them could be breached. It’s happened. But unless you’re willing to devote just as much or more time to an elaborate password management strategy of your own creation, managers are a reasonable way to bring your password situation under control. It’s not your fault that passwords are such a lousy security system, but as long as they’re around we should all deal with them in a safe way. Make the decision now: 2017 will be the year I set up a password manager.

Enable Two-Factor Authentication

While you’re already going around to sites changing passwords and adding them to your manager you can be taking another step to improve your personal security, too, by adding two-factor authentication to every account that offers it. This measure, which usually requires you to enter temporary codes sent to or generated on your phone along with your regular password, helps protect you from attack if your passwords fail. Not all services have two-factor authentication, and many that do call it by similar but confusing names (login verification on Twitter, for example). Setting it up for important accounts, though, especially ones where you store financial information, like your bank and Amazon, provides another defense layer and isn’t too much of an inconvenience day to day. You can usually mark your personal devices as trusted once you go through the two-factor verification process once, so the feature generally only becomes an annoyance in the specific case where you’re really in a rush to log into an account on a device you’ve never used before, or are locked out and don’t have cell service to receive your code.

Make Backups

Things change so quickly in digital security that most mainstream recommendations have only been around for a few years, but backing up data is the classic chestnut of cybersecurity advice that only becomes more relevant as threats grow. If malware or ransomware infects your computer and you have a backup, you can easily wipe the disk and start over with all of your information intact. If you have to, you can ditch the device altogether, get a new one, and your data comes with you. No problem. The other useful thing about having a backup is that it helps you assess what data has been stolen and what steps you need to take if your local files are breached. There are often sales and discounts on external hard drives, so you can pick up a 2 terabyte drive pretty easily at this point. Or if you don’t want to worry about hardware failure and like to have on-the-go options, cloud services like CrashPlan and Backblaze are good bets.

Whether you’re storing backups locally on a hard drive or in the cloud, you can add an additional layer of protection by encrypting your data and password protecting it before doing the backup. With this in place your data has increased defense even if your cloud provider is hacked or your external hard drive is lost/stolen.

Know How to Use a VPN

You’ve probably heard people talk about Virtual Private Networks, but they’re not just for hackers on Mr. Robot. Once you are connected to the regular internet, VPNs create an encrypted connection between your device and a secure server, which then allows you to browse and use the internet normally through an encrypted channel that protects you from eavesdropping. VPNs are also fairly simple to use on both your computer and your phone. You sign up and pay a monthly or annual fee (some offer free versions), and then all you need to do to use the VPN day to day is log in through a “VPN client,” an application or web portal. Yu probably don’t need to use your VPN all the time when you’re using a trusted, password protected internet connection, like at your home or office. But if you’re doing something sensitive or browsing on unprotected public Wi-Fi, like at a coffee shop, turning on your VPN helps ensure that the data you send and receive is encrypted and can’t be spied on. “Use them whenever you are using a Wi-Fi that you dont trust or dont control,” says Eva Galperin, a global policy analyst at the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Its like a condom for your phone.

Use End-to-End Encrypted Chat Apps

Communication tools like Slack, Google Hangouts, and Facebook Messenger are mainstream and accessible, and they offer some security protections for data. But only apps with full end-to-end encryption are safe from prying eyes, be they government surveillance forces or cybercriminals. By convincing your friends and family to switch to chat apps like WhatsApp and Signal, you reduce the chance that your communications will be intercepted. As with password managers or anything else in life, there is never a guarantee of perfect security, but taking the step to use services that place a high priority on security is better than not doing it. And if there’s one thing we all learned from the Sony hack, it’s that the dumb things people say to each other online can be problematic if they get out.

If you’re doing sensitive or controversial work, or believe you are a particular target of cybercriminal activity or government investigation, adopting these measures alone will probably not be enough to protect your security and privacy. But for the average person who’s just looking to make some positive changes in 2017, adding these five precautions to your digital life will make a significant difference in the quality of your defense, and your ability to recover from common attacks.

Trump exchanges barbs with Obama, but maintains they have a good relationship

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President-elect Donald Trump’s relationship with President Obama has taken another twist as Trump told reporters he is “getting along very well” with the outgoing president — but only after spending days blasting the outgoing president on Twitter.

Appearing late Wednesday outside of his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, Trump told reporters the transition was going very, very smoothly and that he had a “general conversation” that was “very, very nice.

“Our staffs have been getting along very well and I’m getting along very well with [Obama], other than a couple of statements that I responded to, and we talked about it and smiled about it and nobody is ever going to know because we are never going to be going against each other,” said Trump later in the evening.

The conciliatory tone was a contrast from the combativeness shown on Twitter after Obama claimed in a podcast interview published Monday that he could have defeated Trump in November.

If I had run again and articulated it, I think I could’ve mobilized a majority of the American people to rally behind it, Obama told former adviser David Axelrod.

Trump promptly responded to Obamas parting shot with one of his own.

President Obama said that he thinks he would have won against me. He should say that but I say NO WAY! – jobs leaving, ISIS, OCare, etc.,

A day later, Trump blasted his predecessor again for campaigning hard and personally and maintained he was doing his best to disregard the many inflammatory President O statements and roadblocks. Thought it was going to be a smooth transition – NOT!

The post-election detente seemed a distant memory as bashed the Obama administration’s treatment of Israel, asserting that they had abandoned a long-standing ally by refusing to veto a UN resolution condemning the expansion of settlements into the West Bank.

“We cannot continue to let Israel be treated with such total disdain and disrespect. They used to have a great friend in the U.S., but not anymore,” he tweeted.

The beginning of the end was the horrible Iran deal, and now this (U.N.)! Stay strong Israel, January 20th is fast approaching, added Trump in another tweet.

While a more deferential Trump appeared before the press, he saved some fire to criticize a lengthy speech on Middle East relations delivered by Secretary of State John Kerry earlier in the day.

It speaks for itself, he said of Kerrys remarks. Its pretty obvious. We have different views. I think it set us back. Well see what happens after Jan. 20, right? Youre going to be very impressed.

With the Obama administration’s reponse to Russias alleged interference in the November election, it is likely Trump will find another opportunity to hit back at his on-again-off-gain friend.

Trump responds to sanctions against Russia, says it’s time to ‘move on’

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President-elect Donald Trump said Thursday its time for our country to move on to bigger and better things after the Obama administration issued sanctions against Russia for its alleged 2016 election hacking.

It’s time for our country to move on to bigger and better things, Trump said in a written response released four hours after the announcement. Nevertheless, in the interest of our country and its great people, I will meet with leaders of the intelligence community next week in order to be updated on the facts of this situation.”

The Obama administration announced sanctions against Russias intelligence services, while ejecting dozens of intelligence operatives from the U.S. as part of a response to what it says are efforts by Moscow to influence the election.

Using an executive order, President Obama sanctioned the GRU and the FSB — two of Russia’s intelligence services as well as other entities and individuals associated with the GRU. The cybersecurity firm hired by the Democratic National Committee to investigate the hack of its emails earlier this year concluded the hacking came from the Fancy Bear group, believed to be affiliated with the GRU, Russia’s military intelligence agency.

In addition to the sanctions, the State Department has declared 35 Russian intelligence operatives “persona non grata” in the U.S., giving them 72 hours to leave, and is shutting down two Russian compounds in Maryland and New York.

The Maryland property is a 45-acre property at Pioneer Point, and was purchased by the Soviet government in 1972.

President Obama expels 35 diplomats in Cold War deja vu. As everybody, incl people, will be glad to see the last of this hapless Adm. http://pic.twitter.com/mleqA16H8D

— Russian Embassy, UK (@RussianEmbassy) December 29, 2016

The New York property is on Long Island and is 14 acres and was purchased by the Soviet government in 1954.

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman said in response to the announcement that Moscow will consider retaliatory measures.

“We think that such steps by a U.S. administration that has three weeks left to work are aimed at two things: to further harm Russian-American ties, which are at a low point as it is, as well as, obviously, to deal a blow to the foreign policy plans of the incoming administration of the president-elect,” Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow.

The Russian Embassy in the UK took a different approach, tweeting out a picture of a lame duck and blasting what it called “Cold War deja vu.”

The Treasury Secretary meanwhile has named two individuals — Evgeniy Mikhailovich Bogachev and Aleksey Alekseyevich Belan — it says were involved in “malicious cyber-enabled activities.”

“These actions follow repeated private and public warnings that we have issued to the Russian government, and are a necessary and appropriate response to efforts to harm U.S. interests in violation of established international norms of behavior,” Obama said in a statement.

Obama also announced that the Department of Homeland Security and the FBI will release declassified information on Russian cyberactivity to help “identify, detect and Russia’s global campaign of malicious cyber activities.”

Obama also said that the administration will be providing a report to Congress “in the coming days” about Russian attempts to interfere in the election, as well as previous election cycles.

The president also hinted that his administration intends to do more to hold Russia accountable.

“These actions are not the sum total of our response to Russia’s aggressive activities,” Obama said. “We will continue to take a variety of actions at a time and place of our choosing, some of which will not be publicized.”

U.S. intelligence services have concluded that the Russians interfered in the election to try and help President-elect Donald Trump win. Trump has dismissed the conclusions.

However, House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis. welcomed the move in a statement.

Strongly support the Obama Admin’s work to fight back against Russias interference in our election. We need to punch back & punch back hard

— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) December 29, 2016

“Russia does not share America’s interests. In fact, it has consistently sought to undermine them, sowing dangerous instability around the world. While today’s action by the administration is overdue, it is an appropriate way to end eight years of failed policy with Russia,” Ryan said.

Incoming Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY., also praised the move in a statement late Thursday.

House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-TX., called Obama’s actions “long overdue,” while House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Devin Nunes said he’s been “urging” Obama for years to take action and that this “indecision and delay” explains why “American’s influence has collapsed.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

BMW M1 found in Italian garage after 34 years

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(Mint Classics)
(Mint Classics)

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What’s the best thing to do with a BMW M1 supercar? If your answer is to drive it just under 4,600 miles then let it sit in a garage for 34 years to be used only as a makeshift shelf for miscellaneous junk, then you are just as crazy as the former owner of this now-rescued M1.

Between 1978 and 1981, BMW produced only 453 of its mid-engine M1, and 54 of those were race cars. The road-going car featured a 273-horsepower twin-cam 3.5-liter V-6 and a 5-speed manual transmission.

The Italian owner of this particular car drove it just 7,392 kilometers (that’s 4,593 miles), then apparently parked it for the next 34 years.

A German classic car dealer called Mint Classics, which specializes in BMWs, recently discovered the car and took possession of it. Mint Classics plans to restore the car to its original luster, and will then likely put it on the market.

CHECK OUT: Alleged BMW M1 Prototype Found In A Barn

Judging by the shape of the body and the interior, that shouldn’t be too tough of a task. The biggest issue appears to be a major layer of dust, though there are likely several dings and scratches from the detritus that has been set on or near the car for the past three-plus decades. Getting all of the moving parts back in shape, however, as well as anything that could degrade over the years–belts, hoses, etc.–will be far more of a challenge.

We hope to see the car again when it is finished, and we’d be interested to hear what it sells for. A couple years ago, one M1 owner wanted roughly a half million dollars for a very clean M1 with about 8,000 miles on the odometer.

Bidding ‘Good Riddance’ to 2016

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Parents Peeved Their Kids’ Hatchimals Are Cursing Up A Storm

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The Christmas season’s hottest toy may also have the foulest mouth.

As you may have heard, Hatchimals, a Furby-like toy featuring bird-like creatures that hatch from eggs, were the rage with kids.

Now parents are the ones flying into a rage.

Nick Galego, a father in Vancouver, British Columbia, is certain the Hatchimal he bought for his 6-year-old son has a potty mouth.

“I’m pretty sure it says ‘fuck me,’” Galego told CTV Vancouver Island.

Others aren’t so sure. Galego posted a video of his cursing Hatchimal on YouTube, and to our ears it sounds like it is either saying, “Hug me,” or simply sighing.

However, Galego isn’t the only one.

Patricia Crispell of National Park, New Jersey, also is convinced the Hatchimal she bought for her 9-year-old daughter says “fuck me,” according to NBC Philadelphia.

“I just turned it off and told her just turn it off and lay there with it and we’ll take care of it from there,” Crispell told the girl, according to the station.

On Tuesday, Crispell called Toronto-based Spin Master, the company that makes Hatchimals, but was disconnected after two hours on the phone.

She said no one has contacted her yet.

Spin Master spokeswoman Anne Yourt told CTV Vancouver that Hatchimals speak their own language made up of random sounds.

The station sent Yourt a link to Galego’s video. She insisted she heard nothing untoward from the Hatcnhimal.

“We can assure you that the Hatchimal is not saying anything inappropriate. The one in the video appears to be sleeping.”

But other people apparently are also hearing their Hatchimals say inappropriate things.

Hatchimals have been disappointing consumers in other ways besides their pronunciations. Some reported their dolls didn’t hatch or died shortly after hatching, according to Mashable.

The outcry was so large on Christmas that Spin Master had to post a trouble-shooting guide on Facebook to try to address complaints.

The guide, seen below, did not offer advice on dealing with Hatchimals who curse like sailors.

Of course, one person’s smut is another person’s poetry. BuzzFeed reports some folks are purposely teaching their Hatchimals to talk dirty.

The video below is definitely NSFW.

Someone Literally Turned 2016 Into A Horror Movie

Todd Fisher’s Tweet Imagines What Carrie Fisher And Debbie Reynolds AreUp To Now

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While fans across the world cope with the loss of two Hollywood stars, one person is reeling with an unimaginable grief after his sister, Carrie Fisher, suffered a fatal heart attack and his mother, Debbie Reynolds, died of a stroke the next day.

One day after Todd Fisher shared a tribute for his late sister, he turned to Twitter once more Thursday to share a hopeful drawing that imagined what she and her mom are up to now.

The image, created by artist Ricky LaChance, shows the mother and daughter embracing while dressed as their famous movie roles: Fisher as Princess Leia in “Star Wars” and Reynolds as Kathy Selden in “Singin’ in the Rain.”

They are both gazing toward a light as Reynolds casts her umbrella to the side.

“This is a beautiful love story to witness in my 58 years,” Fisher wrote. “I miss them both so much. Love is everlasting.”

LaChance posted his sketch to his personal Facebook account Wednesday night after news of Reynolds’ death made headlines.

His original drawing included the phrase, “Mom and daughter, together forever,” which he later revealed after he “learned that Todd Fisher told that his mother broke her heart over Carrie,” the artist wrote in the Facebook post below.

When LaChance saw that Fisher shared his illustration on his own Twitter account, he told his Facebook fans that he sent Fisher his condolences.

LaChance’s drawing recalls what Todd Fisher had said about Reynolds’ last hours of life.

Before she suffered a stroke, Reynolds was planning Carrie Fisher’s funeral with Todd Fisher when Reynolds began grieving for her daughter. She turned to her son and said, “I miss her so much, I want to be with Carrie.”

Todd Fisher later concluded that his mother died of “heartache,” according to ABC News.

“She loved taking care of my sister more than anything,” Fisher told ABC. “So, she gets to do that and that’s what she wanted to do.”

Indeed, the love between a mother and daughter is truly a beautiful story.

Thursday, December 29, 2016

House GOP Response To Gun Sit-In Is Putin-Like, Democrat Says

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WASHINGTON Newly proposed rule changes by Republicans to fine lawmakers for future breaches of decorum on the chamber floor sound an awful lot like something Russian President Vladimir Putin would do, according to one House Democrat.

On a call with his colleagues Thursday, Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) called the move a “Putin-like” response to a sit-in Democrats staged earlier this year as they attempted to pressure Republicans for a vote on gun control measures.

During the 24-hour protest, Democrats took photos and live-streamed their speeches, calling for votes on legislation to bar those on a no-fly list from purchasing firearms and require background checks for gun purchases at gun shows and online. Democrats decided to hold the demonstration after a gunman killed 49 people in a Florida nightclub, making it the deadliest mass shooting in U.S. history.

Republicans adjourned the House in response, shutting off microphones first, then the cameras.

Larson confirmed in an interview with The Huffington Post after the call that he compared Republican leaders to Putin.

“It was Putin-like. Lately with Republicans’ love of the Russians, we have to remind them that this isn’t the old Politburo,” Larson said, referring to the policy-making body under the former Soviet Union’s Communist Party. “This is still a democracy.”

The newly proposed rule, which members will vote on as part of a larger package when they return in January, would grant the sergeant-at-arms the authority to fine lawmakers up to $2,500 for recording video or taking photos on the House floor.

Larson called the changes “unprecedented and unconstitutional,” and a “zealous overreach” by Republicans.

“It’s a strong-armed way of saying, ‘We’re showing you who’s in charge here,’” he said, adding that House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) and Republican leadership did it to “throw red meat” to conservatives.

In the months following the sit-in, the conservative House Freedom Caucus and other members called for leaders to exert some form of punishment on Democrats who had organized and led the protest.

“Any analogies made to other foreign governments would best be used to describe the actions that happened on the House floor during the sit-in,” said one House Freedom Caucus member, requesting anonymity to speak more freely.

Larson and Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) met with Ryan at the speaker’s request days after the the sit-in.

“To be charitable, this is uncharacteristic of Paul; he’s acting in response to the Freedom Caucus, who, when we met with him, he indicated they wanted to punish the members,” Larson said.

Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.), newly elected chairman of the House Freedom Caucus, pushed back against the notion that his caucus members were behind the new fines.

Its a strong-armed way of saying, Were showing you whos in charge here.’ Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.)

“There are several rules changes that are important to the House Freedom Caucus, most of which focus on making sure every member has a voice,” Meadows told HuffPost. “Any suggestion that HFC proposed a rule to fine members is pure fiction.

While prior rules prohibited live-streams and photos to be taken on the floor, no fines could be implemented. Members, however, could be censured as punishment. The new fine would, according to Larson, immediately be deducted from lawmaker’s paychecks.

Meadows, too, expressed some doubt over the constitutionality of the change.

“While HFC has not had any formal discussions on the proposed rule, private conversations among some members would suggest that support of the rule is still an open question,” he said.

Ryan’s spokeswoman, AshLee Strong, said the changes “will help ensure that order and decorum are preserved” in the House “so lawmakers can do the people’s work.”

Larson and Lewis are waiting to hear back from the House parliamentarian on whether there is any precedent to establishing such a penalty on members over floor decorum. So far they haven’t come up with anything, Larson said.

“I think they will be hard-pressed to find a precedent,” he said. “Yes, it was an act of civil disobedience, but this [new rule] is not dissimilar to a poll tax or some form of suppression to people’s ability to vote and speak. They are saying, ‘You better be careful what you say on that floor.’ And who determines that you were out of order? And who determines that a violation actually occurred and what is the precedent for this?”

In a letter sent to Ryan on Thursday, Larson and Lewis urged the speaker to “reconsider the consequences of such a rules change.”

“The proposed changes are tantamount to silencing the minority party and the voices of thousands of gun violence victims for the benefit of special interests who hold the House floor hostage,” the two lawmakers wrote, according to a copy provided to HuffPost.

Matt Fuller contributed reporting.

The Most Innovative Objects of 2016 (That Youll Actually Want to use)

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Innovation in product design is all about balance. Push too hard and youll alienate people. Play it safe, and you risk being outmaneuvered by your competitors. The items in this list, all of which debuted this year, reside in that perfect little Goldilocks Zone of product design; not too cautious, but not too crazy, either, these designs get forward-thinking just right.

01

Nike HyperAdapt 1.0

Nike spent 28 years developing the HyperAdapt 1.0, its self-lacing,Back to The Future-inspired shoe, and its a serious feat of engineering. The shoe is stuffed with advanced technology, but you wouldn’t know that from looking at it. A lace engine in the sole attaches to proprietary Flyknit filaments, which surround the foot. When the wearer steps into the shoe, a sensor alertsthe engine, which cinchesthefilaments around the foot in search of the perfect fit. The result is perfectly tightened set of laces that you neverhave to touch.

Credit: Nike

02

Xiaomi Mi Mix

The most stunning phone of the year didnt come from Apple or Google. It came from Chinese company Xiaomi, whose Mi Mix is an impressive piece of industrial design. The phones 6.4 inch screen extends to the edge of the phone, which gives it the appearance of a glassy infinity pool. The screen is so big, the phone is essentially bezel-less, which meant the selfie camera had to be pushed to the bottom of the phone and the fingerprint sensor to the backside. Xiaomi made similar concessions with the speakers, of which theres only one. Sound from the phone comes from a piezoelectric actuator, which converts vibrations into sound. For now, the Mi Mix is only available in China, but don’t be surprised ifsimilar full-screen phones start showing up in theUS.

Credit: XIAOMI

03

Autodesk’s Elbo Chair

Autodesks Elbo Chair is the result of an uncommon partnership. Designers in the company’s generative design lab harnessed the power of algorithms to make the organic wooden seat. To start, the designers fed a 3-D model of a chair inspired by Hans Wegners iconic Round Chair and Berkeley Mills Lambda Chair into Dreamweaver, Autodesks generative design software. Next, theystipulated that the seat be 18 inches off the ground and capable of supporting 300 pounds. Thenthey let the algorithm do its thing.Every so often, the humanswould pick one of the algorithm’s designs,and the software would propagatea new lineage based on their selection.The result was the chair you see here—a skeletalcreation that points toward a future in whichdesigners collaborate with algorithms onnew ideas.

Credit: Autodesk

04

Apple iPhone 7

At first glance, the iPhone 7 isnt all that different from the 6 and 6s. Its blacker, sure, but it still has those softly rounded corners and that big, glassy screen. What distinguishes theiPhone 7 is what its missing. The phone is the first without a headphone jack, which means youre either buying dongles for your existing cans or upgrading to a wireless pair. Whether you love it or hate it doesnt matter—if other companies follow Apple’s lead (and they probably will), the company will have setyet another precedent for how you’ll interact with gadgets in the future.

Credit: Apple

05

Impossible Project I-1

The Impossible Projects first camera, the I-1, is both an homage to the past and nod to the future. The Berlin-based company, which has been making instant film since 2008, worked with Swedish studio Teenage Engineering to blend the best design elementsof old Polaroid cameras with modern trappings. The cameras form is still boxy, likethe original, but its also more compact. Clevertechnological touches, like the LED-ring flash and a Bluetooth-connected app, help you dial in on that vintage look.

Credit: Impossible Project

06

The FADE Task Lamp

The designers atSan Francisco studio Box Clever wanted to create something with the versatility of aspring-balanced lamp in a dramatically simpler package. Two years, one spinoff studio, and untoldhours of prototyping later, they releasedthe stunning FADE Task Light. Hidden magnets let thearm articulate smoothly when you want it to, and keep it in placewhen you dont. That versatility extends even to the lamp’s base, where an X-Y controller lets you controlthe temperature and intensity of the light emanating from the lamp’s LED array. It’s a whole lot of light in a deceptively simple package.

Credit: Josh Valcarcel/WIRED

07

Withings Thermo

Most thermometers are invasive. They require being stuck into an orifice, whether thats your mouth, ear, or…something else. Withings new Thermo, which looks like a chunky marker, utilizes an entirely different gesture. Touch the Thermo to your temple and 16 infrared sensors in its tip collect around 4,000 temperature readings in two seconds. Because the temperature readings work best when the sensors are two centimeters from the heat source, Withings added a raised edge to the end of the thermometer. This means users will always position the Thermo just right— even when theyre delirious from a fever.

Credit: Withings

08

PlayStation VR Headset

Compared to the understated aesthetics of the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, the PlayStation VR looks decidedly futuristic. But its killer feature (besides plugging into a game console that 40 million people already own)isn’t its looks; it’s comfort.That’s in spite of its heft. At 624 grams, it’s significantly heavierthan the Rift (495 grams) and Vive (555 grams), but PSVR’s designers shifted the headset’s pressure points from the nose, cheeks, and eyes to a padded band that rests against the forehead. They also uncoupled the headset’seyebox from the headband, allowing users to dial in the perfect fit. The result is the most comfortable high-end VR headset on the market.

Credit: Sony

09

Pax 3

Aesthetically speaking, the Pax 3 bears a close resemblance to thetwo generations of vaporizers that precededit—but its guts were redesigned to make the toking experience easier and more enjoyable. With the press of a button, it heats up in 10-15 seconds. Shake it, and the LEDs display how much battery is left. It accepts both concentrates and dry herb, and evenpairs wirelessly to an appto give you precisecontrol over settings like temperature. Low-key tokers will appreciate the new haptic feedback; the Pax now pulses in your hand when it’s ready,so you can keep it out of sighttill you’re ready to smoke.

Credit: PAX

10

Dyson’s Cu-Beam Duo

Your offices lighting probably sucks. Often its a too-bright, one-size-fits-all overhead solution. Jake Dyson (son of James Dyson) has a better way. Hes calling it the Cu-Beam Duo, an LED fixture that suspends from the ceiling and directs customizable parcels of light where and how you needit. The crux of the system is its driver, which lets youadjust the ratio of light beaming upwards and downwards. Dyson is betting, like his father did before him with vacuums, hand dryers, and hair dryers, that a hyper-sophisticated version of an everyday object will be worth the premium you pay for it.

Credit: Dyson

11

Microsoft Surface Studio

Microsofts Surface Studio isnt for everyone; the $3,000 desktop computer is aimed squarely at the creative set. With its massive 28-inch monitor and a hinge system that allows the display to become a tabletop touch-screen, its easy to see why: The Surface Studio is more interactive drafting table than it is computer, and proof that Microsoft is thinking seriously about what the future of desktop computing shouldlook like.

Credit: Microsoft

12

Oculus Touch

The new Oculus Touch controllers make VRmore immersive than ever. Capacitive sensors trackwhich fingers are on the Touch and translate their positions into in-game hand gestures. It’s the closest anyone’s come to reproducing a player’s hands in VR, and a sign of the steps designers are taking to make virtual reality feelever-more real.

Credit: Oculus