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Kickstarter warns creators against calling projects 'the world's best'
Kickstarter is asking its users to tone down the hyperbolic language and to layoff the misleading imagery. In an attempt to promote transparency, the now 10-year-old platform issued new rules and guidelines aimed at "honest and clear presentation."
Microsoft discreetly wiped its massive facial recognition database
Microsoft has been vocal about its desire to properly regulate facial recognition technology. The company's president, Brad Smith, appealed directly to Congress last year to take steps to manage the tech, which he says has "broad societal ramifications and potential for abuse." Such are the company's concerns that it even blocked the sales of the tech to California police forces. Now, Microsoft is continuing its crusade by quietly deleting its MS Celeb database, which contains more than 10 million images of some 100,000 people.
Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument lenses get their first look at space
Scientists are one step closer to precisely 3D mapping the galaxy and better understanding dark energy. For years, a team of more than 70 international organizations have been building the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), which will allow us to see the sky in a way we never have before. Earlier this week, DESI reached a "first light" milestone when scientists produced the first focused images with the instrument's precision lenses. The images show the Whirlpool Galaxy -- an estimated 23 million light years from Earth.
Google Lens comes to image search in the US
Back in September, Google promised to bring Lens to image search -- now, the feature is live in the US for English language queries. The object recognition techology can help you find out more about particular items within a photo you're looking at. If you want to try it out, do a Google search on mobile and go to the Images tab. Say, you want to look for a new sofa -- simply search for "sofas," go to Images and tap on one of the results. You'll find the new Lens icon underneath the photo next to the Share option, and tapping it will make dots appear on objects you can explore further.
Huawei caught passing off DSLR pictures as phone camera samples
Huawei doesn't have the best track record when it comes to advertising. Campaigns for both its P8 and P9 phones were revealed to be at least a little dishonest, and it seems the advertising around its newest launch, the Nova 3, falls into the same category.
Porsche teases its production electric Mission E, aka the Taycan
Porsche has made no secret of its plans to take on Tesla with its Mission E sports car -- now known as the Taycan -- and after a lot of hype about its proposed specs, we're now a step closer to knowing what it's actually going to look like. Kind of.
Google will make copyright credits more apparent in image searches
Google has reached a deal to end Getty Images' European complaint over photo copyrights, and it's quite likely that you'll notice the effects. A new agreement between the two will see Google obtain a "multi-year" license for Getty's photos in its products in exchange for reforming its approach to copyright in image search. Google will do more to highlight copyright attribution for the photos you find, so you'll know whether or not you'd need to pay for a picture. It will also pull "view image" links for pictures to reduce the number of direct downloads.
Google offers real-time search data for news, images and video
Finding out what people are searching for in real time is a trivial matter these days, thanks to Google Trends. Online since 2015, the service is useful for discovering what the world is paying attention to, like why Donald Trump was elected last November or which Halloween costume will be the most played out. Heck, Mac users can even get a screensaver to visualize searches as they happen. Now Google is exposing even more of its real-time data to include news, images, video and even shopping results in your topical search area.
Robots are now better at targeting individual neurons than people are
The brain is a delicate thing, and scientists keep looking for high tech ways to make it easier and safer to to learn more about it. In the area of brain surgery, there have been smart scalpels that know the difference between tumors and healthy tissue, sensor-embedded plastic wrap to help doctors know just where to operate and even VR headsets to help surgeons monitor patients while they're in the OR. Studying the brain leads to even better outcomes, too, and engineers at MIT have just published a paper about using robots to target individual neurons from inside a living brain in order to record their electrical signals.
Tumblr adds three useful ways to post from your mobile device
Tumblr keeps improving its mobile apps, adding to already useful features like photo filters, instant messaging, stickers and GIF posts to keep your interactions fresh and interesting. The microblogging service just announced three new ways to post from the mobile apps, including images in reblog posts, fun new text styles for text posts, and the ability to drag and drop paragraphs and images within blog posts.
It looks like Microsoft has a new Surface Pro after all
Microsoft VP Panos Panay recently said that "there's no such thing as a Surface Pro 5," and we now know what he meant by that. Images from uber-leaker Evan Blass (@evleaks) and his article in Venture Beat show a device simply called the Surface Pro, without a model or series number in sight. Other than rounded edges on the screen, it strongly resembles the current Surface Pro 4, including the lack of a USB-C port.
'Reverse Prisma' AI turns Monet paintings into photos
Impressionist art is more about feelings than realism, but have you ever wondered what Monet actually saw when he created pieces like Low Tide at Varengeville (above)? Thanks to researchers from UC Berkeley, you don't need to go to Normandy and wait for the perfect light. Using "image style transfer" they converted his impressionist paintings into a more realistic photo style, the exact opposite of what apps like Prisma do. The team also used the same AI to transform a drab landscape photo into a pastel-inflected painting that Monet himself may have executed.
Use 375,000 images from the Met however you want, for free
If you want to use images of paintings from the Metropolitan Museum of Art, like Woman with a Parrot by Gustave Courbet (above), you no longer have to worry about rights. All of the Met's approximately 375,000 public-domain artwork images are now available for free, unrestricted use. The new "Open Access" policy, based on Creative Commons Zero (CC0), means bloggers, schools and businesses alike can use them without even the need for attribution.
Facebook's AI image search can 'see' what's in photos
If you forget to tag or add a description when uploading a photo or gallery to Facebook, it can be tough to find an image when you need it. Or at least it used to be. The social network revealed today that it built an AI image search system that can "see" things in your photos even when you forget to add the aforementioned identifiers. Facebook says the system uses its Lumos platform to understand the content of photos and videos and quickly sort through the items you've uploaded.
Yelp's redesigned homepage puts photos front and center
Yelpers everywhere will soon be greeted with a new homepage. Earlier today, Yelp announced it's rolling out a redesign that focuses on showcasing imagery from users, as well as content from different local services (think: not only restaurants). Yelp says this overhaul is also about making it easier for account holders to find what they're looking for, including businesses, popular categories and recent activity from others. The search bar is now placed front and center too, next to visuals from the community, something that Yelp hopes can make the experience more interactive for people on the site. The freshly minted homepage doesn't appear to be live for everyone yet, but you should see it show up in the coming days.
Instagram photos now look better on iPhone 7 and 7 Plus
When Apple announced that its latest iPhone would snap brighter, more vivid pictures with its "wide color capture" feature, Instagram was quick to promise an updated app to support that expanded color gamut. Turns out they were half right: today Instagram co-founder and CTO Mike Krieger announced that Instagram users on iPhone 7 and 7 Plus can now take full advantage of their phone's new camera -- and they don't even need to update the app.
YouTube becomes more social with the Community tab
As rumored, YouTube has launched the Community tab in a public beta, making the site more like a social network by letting creators post text, GIFs, live video and more. Mobile users will see the new content in their "Subscriptions" feed and can also get push notifications. It will launch in beta with the Vlogbrothers, The Kloons, AsapScience and just a few other select channels, for now.
Huawei confirms that smartphone cameras still aren't DSLRs
It's not the camera, it's the photographer, right? Actually, sometimes it's both, as Huawei just proved. It recently posted a lovely image, complete with a lens flare, implying that it was taken with its photo-centric P9 smartphone. "The #HuaweiP9's dual Leica cameras makes taking photos in low light conditions like this a pleasure," says the Google+ post caption. The only problem? It was actually taken with a Canon EOS 5D Mark III equipped with a very pricey 70-200mm F/2.8 lens worth $4,500 total, as the EXIF data clearly proves.
Google lets you download Nexus upgrades without waiting
Google has long made Nexus and Pixel C factory images available for people who just can't wait to install new Android versions (or want an alternative restore option). However, they've always come with a big gotcha: since it's a complete system image, you have to wipe your phone clean. You won't have to start from scratch after today, though. Google has posted over-the-air update images for all its currently supported Nexus and Pixel C devices, giving you the satisfaction of an immediate upgrade (no weeks-long waits here) without nuking all your data.
Simple exploits use images to attack websites
Would-be hackers don't always have to jump through hoops to bring down a website. Researchers have discovered relatively simple exploits in ImageMagick, a common package for processing pictures on the web, that let attackers run any code they like on a targeted server. If someone uploads a maliciously coded image and ImageMagick handles it, they could theoretically compromise both the site and anyone who visits it. That's particularly dangerous for forums and social networks, where user uploads are par for the course -- a vengeful member could wreck the site for everyone.
