
The unexpected history of those oh-so annoying internet popup ads
Ethan Zuckerman says his intentions were good when he invented the ads.
THURSDAY, 11 DECEMBER 2025, 23:04

Ethan Zuckerman says his intentions were good when he invented the ads.
Jolla is “trying again with a new crowd-funded smartphone,” reports Phoronix:Finnish company Jolla started out 14 years ago where Nokia left off with MeeGo and developed Sailfish OS as a new Linux smartphone platform. Jolla released their first smartphone in 2013 after crowdfunding but ultimately the Sailfish OS focus the past number of years now has been offering their software stack for use...

Road Traffic Infringement Agency spokesperson Monde Mkalipi has warned motorists about a trend of fraudulent traffic fine notifications being sent after working hours.
Washington Post columnist Dana Milbank calls himself “a highly creative hypochondriac” — who just paid for an expensive MRI scan to locate abnormal spots as tiny as 2 millimeters. He discusses the pros and cons of its “diffusion-weighted imaging” technology combined with the pattern recognition of AI, which theoretically “has the potential to save our lives by revealing budding cancers,...
“First the penny. Next, paper checks?” asks CNN:When the U.S. Mint stopped making pennies last month for the first time in 238 years, it drew a lot of attention. But there have been quiet moves to stop using paper checks as well. The government stopped sending out most paper checks to recipients as of the end of September, part of an effort to fully modernize federal benefits payments. And on...

The V-JEPA system uses ordinary videos to understand the physics of the real world.
Bloomberg reports that Google “must renegotiate any contract to make its search engine or artificial intelligence app the default for smartphones and other devices every year, a federal judge ruled.”Judge Amit Mehta in Washington sided with the US Justice Department on the one year limitation in his final ruling on what changes the search giant must make in the wake of a landmark ruling that...
“Woman Hailed as Hero for Smashing Man’s Meta Smart Glasses on Subway,” reads the headline at Futurism:As Daily Dot reports, a New York subway rider has accused a woman of breaking his Meta smart glasses. “She just broke my Meta glasses,” said the TikTok user, who goes by eth8n, in a video that has since garnered millions of views. “You’re going to be famous on the internet!” he shouted at her...
“Researchers engineered a strained germanium layer on silicon that allows charge to move faster than in any silicon-compatible material to date,” reports Science Daily. “This record mobility could lead to chips that run cooler, faster, and with dramatically lower energy consumption. “The discovery also enhances the prospects for silicon-based quantum devices…”Scientists from the University of...
“A structure designed to prevent radioactive leakage at the defunct Chernobyl nuclear plant in Ukraine is no longer operational,” reports Politico, “after Russian drones targeted it earlier this year, the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog has found.”[T]he large steel structure “lost its primary safety functions, including the confinement capability” when its outer cladding was set ablaze after being...
To build three-wheeled, solar electric vehicles, Aptera has now launched its “validation” vehicle assembly line, reports the San Diego Business Journal. “The validation line will set a technical foundation for the company’s eventual low-volume assembly line, ensuring that manufacturing processes are optimized and refined, particularly for the company’s composite body structure.”To date, Aptera...
What happened when a school in Los Angeles gave a sixth grader an iPad for use throughout the school day? “He used the iPad during school to watch YouTube and participate in Fortnite video game battles,” reports NBC News. His mother has now launched a coalition of parents called Schools Beyond Screens “organizing in WhatsApp groups, petition drives and actions at school board meetings and...
What happened when a school in Los Angeles gave a sixth grader an iPad for use throughout the school day? “He used the iPad during school to watch YouTube and participate in Fortnite video game battles,” reports NBC News. His mother has now launched a coalition of parents called Schools Beyond Screens “organizing in WhatsApp groups, petition drives and actions at school board meetings and...

Stranger Things, The Beast in Me, and Last Samurai Standing are just a few of the shows you need to watch on Netflix this month.

Frankenstein, Troll 2, and A House of Dynamite are just a few of the movies you should watch on Netflix this month.

One of Makate’s former backers says he originated the idea that became Please Call Me, but did not invent it.

This premium gaming handheld loads up with features, but Windows still holds it back from being the easy option.

Because of shifting storms and sweltering summers, Iran’s capital faces a future “Day Zero” when the taps run dry.

Plus: The Trump administration declines to issue sanctions over Salt Typhoon’s hacking spree, officials warn of a disturbingly stealthy Chinese malware specimen, and more.

Canyon’s latest off-road helmet is the first bike helmet in the United States to feature RLS’s game-changing safety tech.

This no-frills device is good, but chintzy accessories and a borderline dangerous frother keep it from being great.