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☆ The rise of STEM influencers: 3 top takeaways from a conference that serves as an annual science fair for YouTubers
▼ + stars: | 2024-06-17 | by ( Amanda Perelli | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

All of this, and more, took place last week at Open Sauce, the annual STEM conference for makers and content creators. It also featured three large exhibit halls filled with unique inventions created by students, engineers, makers, and content creators. The conference offered sessions from dozens of YouTube's top STEM creators, including Osman, Adam Savage, Mark Rober, Astro Alexandra, and Nile Red. Related storiesHere are three key takeaways from this year's Open Sauce:YouTuber and engineer Mark Rober on stage at Open Sauce. Some industry attendees said Open Sauce felt similar to the early days of VidCon, the largest annual creator industry conference, because of its smaller, community feel.

Persons: —, William Osman, Osman, Amjad Hanif, YouTube's, Paul Bakaus, Alessandra Catanese, Adam Savage, Mark Rober, Astro Alexandra, Rober, Bakaus, Amanda Perelli, Derek Muller Organizations: Service, YouTube, Business, Smosh, Creators, Investment, Partners Locations: Cow, San Francisco, VidCon

☆ AI is ushering edtech into a new era. Three investors share what they're most excited about in the space.
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-01 | by ( Samantha Stokes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

The past few years have been tough for edtech companies. In recent months, multiple edtech startups have raised fresh funding rounds while specifically touting AI as a core part of their business model. These deals could signal that AI is ushering in a new era for edtech companies, and VCs who invest in the space are excited about the renaissance. And Ednition, also one of Donnelly's portfolio companies, provides an infrastructure-as-a-service platform for other edtech companies to improve the data that goes into their AI models. That's why it's so important to invest in ed-tech AI startups that help people rethink how they interact with technology and learn new skills necessary to successfully enter the workforce, he said.

Persons: PitchBook, VCs, Brian Dixon, Dixon, we've, Numerade, Kapoor, Katelyn Donnelly, she's, I've, you'll, Donnelly, Avalance, OpenAI, we're, ChatGPT, Ryan Craig, Craig, edtech Organizations: Business, Labs, Kapor, Partners, Chingona Ventures, TechCrunch, Kapoor Capital, Lirvana Labs, Odyssey Education, University Ventures, ACT Locations: VCs, edtech

☆ ‘Dune 2’ passes ‘Oppenheimer’ opening weekend at domestic box office with $82.5 million
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Ramishah Maruf | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Oppenheimer, directed by Christopher Nolan, brought in $82.4 million in its opening weekend. The film is a much-anticipated sequel to one of the most popular science fiction adaptions in recent years, and helped revive a sleepy box office. Similarly, “Oppenheimer” was one half of the “Barbenheimer” phenomenon last summer, which took social media and the movie theater industry by storm. “This is just what the box office needed and much higher than any of us could predict,” said Jeff Goldstein, president of domestic distribution at Warner Bros. Pictures, which distributed the movie. And we grossed $178.5 million worldwide, which is quite a standup.”The sequel doubled the domestic opening of the first “Dune” installment, which opened with $41 million when it was simultaneously released in theaters and on the streaming service HBO Max in October 2021.

Persons: New York CNN —, “ Oppenheimer, ”, ‘ Oppenheimer, ’, Denis Villeneuve, Oppenheimer, Christopher Nolan, “ Denis Villeneuve, ‘ Oppenheimer ’, ” Paul Dergarabedian, “ Oppenheimer ”, Jeff Goldstein, HBO Max, CNN’s Eva Rothenberg Organizations: New, New York CNN, Warner Bros ., CNN, Universal Pictures, Warner Bros . Pictures, HBO Locations: New York

☆ ‘Dune 2’ jolts sleepy box office with $81.5 million opening
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-03 | by ( Eva Rothenberg | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

1 spot in its opening weekend with a strong $81.5 million in domestic sales, according to studio estimates. The sequel beat out the first Dune installment, which opened with $41 million when it was released in domestic theaters in October 2021. According to Comscore data, “Dune: Part Two” is the largest opening for Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson and Austin Butler. Box office revenue is down 13.5% compared to this time last year, Comscore data shows. February and March have, over the past three years, reliably housed movie releases from established franchises and properties including “The Batman,” ($134 million opening weekend) “Creed III” ($58 million) and “Uncharted” ($51 million).

Persons: ”, Jeff Goldstein, Warner, Timothee Chalamet, Rebecca Ferguson, Austin Butler, It’s, Denis Villeneuve’s, Denis Villeneuve, Goldstein, Paul Dergarabedian, “, III ” Organizations: CNN, Warner Bros . Pictures, Warner Bros, Warner Bros ., Dolby, Comscore, Studios

☆ Opinion | I Am Going to Miss Pitchfork, but That’s Only Half the Problem
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-21 | by ( Ezra Klein | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

I’m gutted to see Condé Nast folding the online music magazine Pitchfork into GQ. I won’t try to improve on the eulogies written for the site already (Casey Newton and Eric Harvey have good ones). It’s one of the few corners of the internet I still love, no matter how often I find myself in disagreement. I’ve seen some thoughtful writing already on why Pitchfork couldn’t make it. In this case, they’re specific to Pitchfork’s editorial choices and market position.

Persons: Condé Nast, Casey Newton, Eric Harvey, HuffPost, FiveThirtyEight Organizations: Pitchfork, GQ, New York Times, Sports, BuzzFeed, Popular, U.S . News, Gawker, ABC News, Grid, ”, Vox Media, McClatchy, Los Angeles Times, Baltimore Sun, Dallas Morning News Locations: U.S

☆ The 'solar wind,' which the sun is constantly blasting over the planets, suddenly disappeared and created a void around Mars
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-14 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Solar wind washes over the planets, but it briefly disappeared at Mars due to an event on the sun. Normally in our solar system, the sun is constantly spewing out a stream of charged particles and magnetic fields, called the solar wind. In December 2022, though, the solar wind suddenly disappeared around Mars, and the planet's atmosphere swelled by thousands of kilometers, as a result. An eruption on the sun swept away the solar windScientists determined that the sun had emitted a burst of high-speed solar wind, which swept away a region of the regular solar wind, leaving a void in its wake. To figure out if that's what happened, it helps to study the opposite extreme, when the solar wind vanishes.

Persons: Mars, Shannon Curry, MAVEN, Lacey Young, Curry, Owen Humphreys, NASA's MAVEN Organizations: MAVEN, Service, NASA, JPL, American Geophysical Union, Lacey Young NASA, Science, Space Station Locations: Mars, San Francisco

☆ Popular Science Shuts Online Magazine in Another Sign of Decline
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-28 | by ( Michael Levenson | More About Michael Levenson | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: 1 min

In yet another sign of its decline, Popular Science has stopped publishing its online magazine, three years after it shut its storied print edition, which began in 1872. Popular Science will continue to publish articles and videos on its website, and will still produce its podcast, “The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week.”But its digital magazine, which was published quarterly since it began in 2021, has ceased publication and will no longer charge for subscriptions, according to Recurrent Ventures, the magazine’s parent company. Its last online issue, titled “Fake,” was published in September and featured articles about taxidermy, artificial intelligence and fake crystals.

Persons: ” Organizations: Science

☆ Layoffs hit Recurrent Ventures as the company shifts resources toward video and 'new formats.' Read a leaked memo outlining its future plans.
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-13 | by ( Dan Whateley | Sydney Bradley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Recurrent Ventures, a private-equity-backed digital media company, is letting go of staff across several editorial brands, a company spokesperson confirmed to Insider. The company operates publications that cover topics like science, outdoor living, and automobiles, including Popular Science, Field & Stream, The Drive, and Dwell. Among Recurrent's brands, Popular Science, a legacy science and technology magazine, was heavily impacted by Monday's cuts. "As consumer trends shift it's important we prioritize investment in new formats," the Recurrent spokesperson told Insider. "Like most media companies, Recurrent is adapting to the evolving landscape of its audience," the spokesperson said.

Persons: Alex Vargas, Andrew Perlman, Perlman, MEL, Conde Nast, Alex, I'm, I've Organizations: Popular Science, Axios, GM, Service, Corporate, Commerce, GMs

“We’re trying to make robots that can operate in human spaces.”Do we even need humanoids? Seemingly farther along is Tesla's Austin, Texas-based neighbor Apptronik, which unveiled its Apollo humanoid in an August video demonstration. “That led to development of a new robot that was not really a humanoid, but had several characteristics of a humanoid,” he said via an emailed message. Walking is "not the hardest problem to solve in humanoid robotics," said Geordie Rose, co-founder and CEO of British Columbia, Canada-based startup Sanctuary AI. “Forever more, human- centric robots like that are going to be part of human life.

Persons: hasn’t, Jonathan Hurst, “ We’re, Hurst, There’s, Brett Adcock, Elon Musk, —, “, Marc Raibert, Raibert, ”, Geordie Rose, Rose, ” Rose, Tye Brady, Damion Shelton, ” Shelton, Haleluya Hadero Organizations: Agility Robotics, tote, Amazon, Agility, Boston Dynamics, carmaker Hyundai, Robotics Locations: Oregon, Sunnyvale , California, Austin , Texas, British Columbia, Canada, Seattle

☆ See how SpaceX's Starship rocket design has evolved through the years, in photos
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-22 | by ( Marianne Guenot | Morgan Mcfall-Johnsen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

AdvertisementAdvertisementElon Musk is expecting SpaceX's Starship mega-rocket to take to the skies again, months after the ship blew up on its first-ever attempt to reach orbit. SpaceX's Starship stacked atop its Super Heavy booster near Brownsville, Texas. Originally teased under the name Mars Colonial Transporter, Starship's first rocket design was called "Interplanetary Space Transporter" as SpaceX realized its ambitions went beyond transport to Mars. 2019: Starhopper reaches 492 ft in flightSpaceX's Mars Starship prototype "Starhopper" hovers over its launchpad during a test flight in Boca Chica Trevor Mahlmann/ReutersThe first Starship prototype wasn't really a Starship at all. The first full-fledged Starship prototype to really catch some air was called Starship serial no.

Persons: Elon Musk, —, Musk, Gwynne Shotwell, BFR, Boca Chica Trevor Mahlmann, Twitter Musk, SN15, Starship's, Ashlee Vance Organizations: Elon, SpaceX, Service, Mars, Reuters, Super, Boca Chica, Raptor, Twitter, Mk1, Popular Mechanics, ambitiously, Engineers Locations: Brownsville , Texas, Starhopper, Boca Chica , Texas

But he’s hoping that they will give senators some realistic direction as he tries to do what Congress hasn't done for many years — pass meaningful regulation of the tech industry. “It’s going to be a fascinating group because they have different points of view,” Schumer said in an interview with The Associated Press ahead of the forum. Many members of Congress agree that legislation will probably be needed in response to the quick escalation of artificial intelligence tools in government, business and daily life. In the United States, most major tech companies have expressed support for AI regulations, though they don’t necessarily agree on what that means. Blumenthal’s framework calls for a new “licensing regime” that would require tech companies to seek licenses for high-risk AI systems.

Persons: Chuck Schumer, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, Bill Gates, Schumer, Republican Sen, Mike Rounds, “ It’s, ” Schumer, ” Rounds, “, ”, Mark Warner, Democratic Sen, Martin Heinrich of, Todd Young, Indiana —, Sam Altman, Forrester, Sen, Young, ” Young, “ We’ve, Dana Rao, We’ve, Richard Blumenthal, Conn, Josh Hawley, ” Blumenthal, ___ O'Brien, Ali Swenson, Kelvin Chan Organizations: WASHINGTON, Capitol, Microsoft, Republican, Associated Press, AP, Democratic, European Union, Adobe Locations: South Dakota, Martin Heinrich of New Mexico, Indiana, U.S, United States, Europe, Josh Hawley of Missouri, Providence , Rhode Island, New York, London

☆ An Iowa school district asked ChatGPT if a list of books contains sex scenes, and banned them if it said yes. We put the system to the test and found a bunch of problems.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-17 | by ( Kai Xiang Teo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

An Iowa school district asked ChatGPT if a list of books "contain a description or depiction of a sex act." In an effort to decide what books to ban from school libraries, an Iowa school district asked ChatGPT whether a list of books contained a description or depiction of an explicit act. When ChatGPT replied that 19 books did indeed contain such scenes, the school district banned 19 books, various news outlets reported this week. We asked ChatGPT the same question three times, and it gave us three very different answers. Of the 19 books removed by the Mason City school district, 17 have been reviewed by age-rating nonprofit Common Sense Media.

Persons: ChatGPT, That's, Exman, Mason, Mr Griffin, Kai Xiang Teo, Kai Xiang Teo ChatGPT, John, OpenAI Organizations: Mason City Community Schools District, Popular Science, Engadget, Mason, Mason City School District Locations: Iowa, Mason, Alaska, America, Mason City

☆ Why there's a white plastic ball in Guinness beer cans
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Julia Calderone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Guinness widget is a tiny, plastic ball inside beer cans. Once opened, the widget's nitrogenated beer squirts into the rest of the beer giving it a velvety texture. How the Guinness widget worksA widget is a hollow, spherical piece of food-grade plastic with a tiny hole in it, Guinness representatives told Insider over email. Nitrogen bubbles are smaller than CO2 bubbles, so the resulting head and taste is smoother and more delicate. That's where Guinness' widget comes into play, because of how it's able to slowly release nitrogen into the beer upon opening.

Persons: —, Guinness, Fergal Murray, Brewer, Forbes, Murphy's Stout Organizations: Service, Guinness, Popular Science, Breweries, Dublin City Brewing Co

☆ Netflix announces a 'Stranger Things' stage play is coming to London's West End
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Noah Sheidlower | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A new "Stranger Things" stage spinoff is coming to London's West End later this year, Netflix announced Wednesday. "Stranger Things: The First Shadow," an adaptation of the popular science fiction series, will premiere at the Phoenix Theatre as the streaming giant's first live stage production. Thorne also wrote the stage play for "Harry Potter and the Cursed Child." The "Stranger Things" series debuted in 2016 and has been one of the streaming platform's most popular shows. Tickets for "Stranger Things: The First Shadow" are expected to go on sale in the spring.

☆ The Pentagon once hid 10 giant red balloons across the US — and offered $40,000 to the first people to find them all
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Chris Panella | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The Pentagon's DARPA group once challenged people to find 10 giant red balloons across the US. Those locations included Union Square in San Francisco, Collins Avenue in Miami, Lee Park in Memphis, Tennessee, and Katy Park in Katy, Texas, Popular Science reported. MIT Media Lab Postdoctoral Human Dynamics researcher Riley Crane, who led MIT's successful group, told Popular Science. Twitter also proved to be useful for the challenge, allowing quick and widespread conversation about the possible locations of the balloons, Popular Science reported. But Crane told Popular Science that MIT's strategy focused more on creating a trusted team with goals of helping themselves, science, and charity.

☆ Idealab founder Bill Gross started selling solar energy kits in 1973 at 15 years old. Now he's leading solar tech company Heliogen
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-28 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +11 min

Idealab and Heliogen Founder Bill Gross speaks onstage during Vox Media's 2022 Code Conference on September 08, 2022 in Beverly Hills, California. "Because I was reading Popular Science magazine, I saw people used to take out little ads in the back," Gross told CNBC. One limiting factor for solar energy is its intermittency, which means it only delivers power when the sun is shining. But we're delivering the energy continuously because the energy is coming out of the rock bed," Gross told CNBC. The price of fossil fuels after Russia invaded Ukraine is a game changer," Gross told CNBC.

☆ Private equity is ready to make moves as the economy sours, but its approach to dealmaking might be different than in years past
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

When the going gets tough, PE gets going. Insider's Casey Sullivan and Rebecca Ungarino examined one segment of Wall Street that is primed to take off despite an economy that has left almost everyone hurting. The big question is where will PE firms look to deploy capital. How long PE firms resist those types of deals still remains to be seen, though. People who left Wall Street for crypto aren't second guessing themselves.

☆ Introducing Insider's 100 people transforming business
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( Matt Weinberger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

It's my pleasure to introduce to you Insider's list of 100 People Transforming Business in 2022 — our annual celebration of the people who are bucking trends and upending convention across industries. Insider's annual list of the 100 People Transforming Business. 100 People Transforming Business. Twitter insiders worry that a crash is incoming. TCI, a major investor in Google's parent company Alphabet, sent a letter on Tuesday urging Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai to cut costs.

☆ How Recurrent Ventures went from media darling to another publisher hit by layoffs and struggles
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Steven Perlberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Recurrent Ventures made a digital-media splash with acquisitions like The Drive and Popular Science. In May of last year, Recurrent Ventures announced its flashiest deal yet: a $300 million fundraising round led by the private-equity giant Blackstone. To make a more appealing parent brand to house a growing fleet of media properties, they eventually created a new entity called Recurrent Ventures. Recurrent Ventures expanded as it acquired well-known publishers like the 150-year-old Popular Science. Recurrent Ventures shut down MEL Magazine, the men's lifestyle publication it once planned to make the centerpiece of a new lifestyle vertical of sites.

☆ Layoffs hit Recurrent Ventures, the private-equity-backed owner of Popular Science, Saveur, and The Drive
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-28 | by ( Steven Perlberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Layoffs have hit Recurrent Ventures, the private-equity-backed owner of digital media properties including Popular Science and The Drive. The cuts come months after Recurrent Ventures shuttered MEL Magazine, the digital media darling it rescued from closure last year. One current Recurrent staffer told Insider that the staff was "totally surprised" at the fresh round of cuts. "The growth in our expenses has outpaced our revenue growth and we need to recalibrate," Johnson wrote in the memo. Since our inception, we have experienced tremendous audience and revenue growth.

Hainele și obiectele la mâna a doua, sau second hand (SH), devin tot mai populare în întreaga lume. Din fericire, există câteva metode prin care poți cumpăra haine SH fără a te pierde în întrebări legate de etică. De fapt, asta ne face și mai dependenți de haine”, spune Fitzpatrick. „Odată ce economiile subdezvoltate s-au deschis către importul de haine SH, întregi industrii locale s-au prăbușit”, scrie Brooks. Și pentru că pe rafturile magazinelor SH ajung aceleași haine, cantitatea din care pot alege oamenii care au nevoie de mărimi mari este infimă.

Persons: Anna Fitzpatrick, Andrew Brooks, Brooks, Castro ., Castro, Tim Gunn, XXL Organizations: Arte, Castro . Orsola, Business Locations: Londra, SUA, California, Polonia, Pakistan, Kenya, King’s, Vest

Hainele și obiectele la mâna a doua, sau second hand (SH), devin tot mai populare în întreaga lume. Din fericire, există câteva metode prin care poți cumpăra haine SH fără a te pierde în întrebări legate de etică. De fapt, asta ne face și mai dependenți de haine”, spune Fitzpatrick. În unele cazuri, doar existența magazinelor cu haine SH ne poate da o senzație falsă că facem ceva bun. „Odată ce economiile subdezvoltate s-au deschis către importul de haine SH, întregi industrii locale s-au prăbușit”, scrie Brooks.

☆ LaCroix is facing a lawsuit over the mysterious ingredient that has made it a huge hit — here's what we know about it
▼ + stars: | 2018-10-05 | by ( Kate Taylor | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Read previewFor years, LaCroix lovers have been faced with a mystery: What are natural essences? But with the brand claiming the drink contains no calories or artificial flavors, understanding what the phrase actually means can be confusing. A new class-action lawsuit filed against the brand's parent company, Natural Beverages, claims that LaCroix's all-natural claims are false and that these natural ingredients are actually synthetic. "It's all about safety as assessed by experts in nutrition, food science, food toxicology, and medicine." There are no sugars or artificial ingredients contained in, nor added to, these extracted flavors."

Persons: —, LaCroix, LaCroix's, Beaumont Costales, LaCroix Beaumont Costales, Roger Clemens Organizations: Service, Business, Natural Beverages, Beverages, Food and Drug Administration, University of Southern, Popular Science Locations: University of Southern California

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