6. Interesting Reads
“The Google Pixel and its predecessor, the Nexus 6P, are two of the best mobile cameras we have today, owing to Google’s algorithmic wizardry behind the scenes. I’ve been endlessly impressed with the low-light performance of the Pixel since its release, but it turns out there’s still a vast amount of untapped potential just waiting to be unlocked. Florian Kainz, a software engineer at Google Daydream who previously worked at Industrial Light & Magic for many years, has posted some experimentation he has done with the 6P and Pixel cameras, focusing on nighttime photography.”
“Malaria-carrying mosquitoes are attracted to pregnant women twice as much as they are to non-pregnant women. Mosquitoes may be less attracted to people with different types of bacteria on their skin. People who like to drink are more attractive to mosquitoes than those who are sober. Getting sweaty will increase the likelihood you are bit by a mosquito due to the lactic acid buildup. Mosquitoes are attracted to people with type O blood.”
“A newfound alien world is quite Earth-like in some ways, but you wouldn’t want to live there. The exoplanet, known as OGLE-2016-BLG-1195Lb, is about as massive as Earth and orbits its star at about the same distance Earth circles the sun. But OGLE-2016-BLG-1195Lb’s parent star is tiny and dim, meaning the alien planet is likely far too cold to host life, its discoverers said. OGLE-2016-BLG-1195Lb is not in Earth’s neck of the cosmic woods; the alien world lies nearly 13,000 light-years away. The astronomers spotted it using a technique called gravitational microlensing, which involves watching what happens when a massive body passes in front of a star.”
“If you really want a nice challenge, you should take a look at these hardest words to spell for 6th graders. I won my school’s spelling bee in seventh grade, so I know a thing or two about how to spell some words. My winning word was “caffeine,” which is something I am highly familiar with, so it’s funny that they didn’t even throw a challenge at me. I honestly didn’t even know the spelling bee was happening or to prepare for it, so I just kind of got up there and somehow did better than everyone else. I ended up having to go to the district spelling bee, where I didn’t win, but it was fine because the whole process was annoying and lame anyway.”
“Years ago, if someone told you that they were buying a camera for their bedroom, you’d imagine they were planning something naughty. But times have changed, and Amazon believes that you’ll spend $200 on a camera that’s both an extension of your smart home and the ultimate fashion accessory. The Echo Look is designed to help you look your best every morning, guiding and improving your style every time it’s used. But what it represents, and what Amazon gets out of it, could be a much bigger deal for the future of fashion.”
“Facebook Lite is beginning to look more and more like its big brother. The social networking giant today introduced new features from the original Facebook app to Facebook Lite, according to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. These include India-specific camera effects and the Reactions feature. The plans were originally announced at A Place to Connect, an event Facebook held yesterday. India is one of Facebook’s biggest markets, but much of the country still has to make do with slower network connections. In order to bring a faster and more reliable experience to users in India and other countries with slower mobile networks, Facebook launched a Lite version of its original app in 2015.”
(CNET.com)
“Are you tired of working for someone else and ready to start a business? Then read our list of 7 easy low cost franchise opportunities under $10,000. Are you fed up with working for a company that doesn’t put a value on your abilities and doesn’t appreciate you for who you are? Many of us are. That’s why the majority of people dream of having their own businesses that will allow them to take control and improve their lives significantly. The main question is how and where to find the right opportunity for you and your idea. What business should I start? Where to find the money to sponsor the investment? What franchises should I consider? How can I be certain that the business will be a success? -You can’t. But what you can do is prepare for every possible obstacle that you will come across while establishing your position in the business world.”
“Mobile applications saw a record number of downloads and revenue in the first quarter of the year, according to a new report from app store analytics firm App Annie out this morning. Across both iOS and Android, downloads grew by 15 percent year-over-year to reach nearly 25 billion worldwide – a figure that includes only new downloads, and not re-installs or downloads from prior quarters.”
“Nintendo’s back in the game. The Nintendo Switch posted impressive out-of-the-gate sales, and could potentially outsell the life-to-date numbers of its predecessor within its first year. The Kyoto-based game giant, in announcing its Fiscal 2016 earnings, said the Switch has sold 2.74 million hardware units worldwide since its launch. That’s 20 percent of the lifetime sales of the Wii U. Put another way: Nintendo Switch, in one month, sold more hardware than the Wii U did in its first year.”
(CNBC)
“If Apple is forced to delay the launch of the next-generation of the iPhone, what is it going to do in September? While it could skip the traditional annual get-together, or announce the presumptively titled iPhone 8 and hope that ‘coming soon’ will be enough to keep eager buyers engaged, I think that it has a second option. One that is being developed in full view of the geekerati while we focus on the high-end game-changing tenth-anniversary smartphone. The iPhone 7S is going to be Apple’s safety net.”
(Forbes)
