DavidCarroll
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Whistleblower explains how Cambridge Analytica 'exploited' Facebook
Last night Facebook announced bans against Cambridge Analytica, its parent company and several individuals for allegedly sharing and keeping data that they had promised to delete. This data reportedly included information siphoned from hundreds of thousands of Amazon Mechanical Turkers who were paid to use a "personality prediction app" that collected data from them and also anyone they were friends with -- about 50 million accounts. That data reportedly turned into information used by the likes of Robert Mercer, Steve Bannon and the Donald Trump campaign for social media messaging and "micro-targeting" individuals based on shared characteristics. Now, reports by The New York Times and The Guardian reveal what was behind the timing of that Friday night news dump. According to reporters from both outlets, which were collaborating, the social network had downplayed their reporting and even threatened to sue The Guardian, over what they learned from documents and a whistleblower (who Facebook included in its ban list): Christopher Wylie.
Scientists build 'super-bulb' out of plastic, it's (apparently) fantastic
What do Michael Stipe and Dr. David Carroll have in common? Neither of them like the "fluorescent, flat, caffeine lights" that fill our offices and public spaces. Unlike R.E.M.'s lead singer, however, Carroll is actually trying to do something about them. His team has developed a plastic bulb made out of field-induced polymer electroluminescent technology (Fipel) which emulates sunlight rather than the headache-inducing blue glow we all know and despise. The team from Wake Forest University, NC, believes the tech is a perfect solution because it doesn't get hot, doesn't contain mercury and won't shatter like glass. At least one company is already interested in producing an initial batch, and there's a chance we'll see them before we get desperate and spend $200 on a lightbulb that interacts with our smartphone. [Image Credit: Wake Forest University]
Researchers develop battery boosting Power Felt, encourages you to sit on your phone
For whatever reason, researchers have long been stuck on the idea of harnessing the wasted energy potential of the human body. We've seen our nation's brightest try to siphon power off of our spare body heat, our breath and even our blood -- we haven't been able to cast off our wall chargers just yet, but progress is being made. Today's no-socket wonder comes from Wake Forest University's Center of Nanotechnology and Molecular Materials, and it falls into the body-heat category. Power Felt, a new fabric-like thermoelectric device comprised of layers of carbon nanotubes and flexible plastic fibers, can create an electrical charge from temperature differences. The Power Felt's layered nanotubes allow it to generate more electricity than standalone carbon nanotube / polymer composite films and, according to researchers, could add only $1 to the cost of a charging cell phone cover. "Imagine it in an emergency kit, wrapped around a flashlight, powering a weather radio, charging a prepaid cell phone," said project head David Carroll, "Literally, just by sitting on your phone, Power Felt could provide relief during power outages or accidents." The thermoelectric technology still has a long way to go before it's ready for the market, however, leaving the US military's technology savvy tailors hanging off the edge of their seats.
