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President Obama will guest host on Science Channel this week
Just because President Obama is months away from leaving office doesn't mean he's done promoting science education. The American leader is guest hosting Science Channel's Science Presents DNews every day this week (April 11th through 15th) -- yes, the head of the country will be delivering the latest happenings in biology, space and technology while you're settling down for the night. If you want to check it out, you can tune in at 9PM.
Tinder matches you with a presidential candidate
Tinder is about to get as pushy about politics as your Facebook friends. In a partnership with Rock the Vote, Tinder will match users in the United States with the presidential candidate who most closely represents their views, whether that be Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders, Donald Trump, Ted Cruz or John Kasich.
Watch President Obama's interview at SXSW Interactive
A US president is about to speak at SXSW Interactive for the first time. President Barack Obama -- who's known to be relatively tech savvy, at least as far as presidents go -- will participate in an interview during a keynote address today at the annual tech fest in Austin, Texas. He'll be discussing civic engagement with Evan Smith, the editor-in-chief of the Texas Tribune, though we're guessing the conversation will cover a whole array of topics (perhaps the current electoral race). If you can't be there in person, you can tune in for our coverage here or just watch the whole thing unfold in the livestream embedded below.
Google grants presidential hopefuls a digital podium
Google is giving this year's crop of US presidential candidates a pretty big stump to stand on: Search results. Mountain View is opening up a new platform, dubbed "Google Posts," that hopefuls for the highest office in the land can use to publish everything from text to photos and videos. These brief bits will appear in search results whenever you look for one of them by name, just above official tweets. From there, the posts can be shared via your social media platform of choice.
Cram for Super Tuesday with Engadget's election guide
On March 1st Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Georgia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont and Virginia will cast their votes in the primaries and caucuses. Plus Alaska and Wyoming are having Republican caucuses and American Samoa is getting in on the action with its own Democratic caucus -- there's a reason they call it "Super Tuesday." And from here on out things start moving pretty fast. In the next seven days nearly two dozen states and territories will have their say in who should be the nominee for the two major parties. Yes Primary season is really hitting it's stride. But don't think you're done with the debate drama. Thursday, March 3rd, the Republican candidates still hanging on after Super Tuesday will face off in Detroit. You can watch that showdown at 9PM ET either on Fox News or at foxnews.com. Then on the 6th, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton will face off in Flint, Michigan, site of the disastrous water contamination scandal that has put the local government under sharp criticism. The two remaining Democrats will take the stage at 8PM ET on CNN and at CNN.com. And, of course, before those showdowns kick off, make sure to get caught up on the candidates positions on the most pressing tech and science issues of 2016 in our election guide. And make sure to join in the conversation on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Ello, Google+, BBS or semaphore using the hashtag #engadgetelectionguide.
Prep for the debates and primaries with Engadget's election guide
Last week Iowa voted and there were surprises all around. Ted Cruz became the front runner in the Republican race and Marco Rubio made an excellent showing by coming in a close third. Plus Hillary Clinton only narrowly avoided an upset from Larry David impersonator Bernie Sanders. Add to that the rather contentious (and meme-inspiring) debate between the Republicans on Saturday and this week is looking to be a decisive one for the Candidates.
Obama proposes oil tax to fund clean transportation
President Obama has proposed a $10 per-barrel tax on oil to fund cleaner mass transit and cleaner vehicle research. The plan, laid out in a fact sheet, is a "smart, strategic integrated investments to help reduce carbon pollution, strengthen economy" according to the White House.
How to watch this week's presidential primary debates
Primary season is officially underway, but don't think that the deluge of debates is over. There will be many, many, many, more chances for the candidates to face off on stage. Tonight at 9pm ET Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders will follow up their razor thin race in Iowa by bringing their sales pitches to New Hampshire. With Martin O'Malley officially out of the race, it will be down to just the two front runners. You can watch the debate live on MSNBC and at MSNBC.com. Saturday night, at 9pm ET, its the Republicans turn to put on a debate for the citizens of New Hampshire. You'll be able to watch that on your local ABC affiliate or online at abcnew.go.com/live. And, of course, before those showdowns kick off, make sure to get caught up on the candidates positions on the most pressing tech and science issues of 2016 in our election guide. And make sure to join in the conversation on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Ello, Google+, BBS or semaphore using the hashtag #engadgetelectionguide.
VR video brings you closer to presidential candidates
Sure, you can watch political debates and rally replays to get a feel for a presidential campaign, but what's it really like to be swept up in the fervor of a meet-and-greet or stump speech? The New York Times might help you find out. It just released a video for its VR news app that takes you inside campaign events for Hillary Clinton, Ted Cruz, Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump. In each case, you get a better sense of what it's like for the audience, not just people on stage -- you can see who's attending and how they react to key moments. Even if you don't care for the speeches themselves, this could help you understand the vibe around a given candidate just as well as if you were really at the venue.
President pledges $4 billion toward computer science in schools
The White House isn't just relying on legislation to make computer science education a priority in the US. President Obama has launched a Computer Science for All initiative that gives states $4 billion in funding to expand computer science in K-12 schools through a mix of better course materials, partnerships and teacher training. The move also sends another $100 million directly to school districts, unlocks $135 million in funding from government organizations and gets further cooperation from both local governments as well as tech leaders.
Google helps you hear directly from presidential candidates
Trying to understand presidential candidates' positions through debates can be an exercise in frustration. You might get a sense of where they stand on the issues... or might watch helplessly as their voices are drowned out by boisterous rivals. Google thinks it has a better way to keep tabs on politicians. It's testing a feature that lets candidates share their views, photos and videos in real-time while you're searching for a debate. If a would-be leader has smart ideas, you'll know even when they don't get a chance to speak up on TV. The feature will first be available during Fox News' debate on January 28th (at 7PM Eastern), but it's easy to see this becoming a mainstay for future events.
Electric car sales fell short of the President's goals
In 2008, President Obama set the lofty goal of putting 1 million plug-in cars on US streets by 2015. So, how did the country do? Not well at all, if you ask Reuters. It understands that only 400,000 electric cars are on American roads despite numerous incentives, including that well-known $7,500 tax credit. In fact, EV sales fell 6 percent in 2015 -- not exactly the sign of a burgeoning industry. There were 384,000 hybrids sold last year, but their sales dropped by 15 percent.
Amazon will stream the President's State of the Union speech
The President's State of the Union address has been viewable online for years, but you've had to visit either the White House's website or YouTube. That's not very convenient in an era when streaming services reach just about every device you know. And the government knows it, apparently: the Office of Digital Strategy has announced that President Obama's final State of the Union speech will stream on Amazon Instant Video (both live and on-demand) in addition to the usual sources. The goal is to bring video to where people watch, rather than make you hunt it down. If you want to tune on your Fire TV, you can.
Sanders campaign regains access to DNC voter info (updated)
Bernie Sanders' National Data Director has been fired amid accusations from the Democratic National Committee that he viewed confidential voter information collected by the Hillary Clinton campaign. The DNC maintains a master list of likely Democratic voters and rents this out to campaigns, which then add their own, confidential data. Firewalls are in place to protect campaigns from viewing rival information, though the Sanders staff says a glitch on Wednesday allowed it to access Clinton's data. Sanders Campaign Manager Jeff Weaver blamed the DNC's software vendor, NGP VAN, for allowing the breach, The Washington Post reports.
Engadget's guide to the 2016 presidential election
In 2016 America will elect a new president. After eight years in office Barack Obama will move out of the White House and take a long overdue break from the stresses of running the country (or at least attempt to). But, before someone new sets up shop in the Oval Office, he or she will have to convince America that they deserve to be president. At Engadget we're firm believers in the power of an informed electorate, so to help you find the candidate right for you, here is a look at the contenders and where they stand on a swath of issues related to science and technology. We'll be updating this guide throughout the election season to reflect current polling numbers and new comments from the candidates regarding the issues. Click here to see all the candidates' report cards.
Facebook's 2015 review video puts the year in perspective
One of the internet's greatest achievements is its ability to connect disparate global communities in discussion and, at times, compassion -- and a lot of that conversation takes place on Facebook. The company's Year in Review, a video and list released today, outlines the top 10 stories of 2015, including the US presidential election, Paris terrorist attacks, Syrian civil war and refugee crisis, Nepal earthquakes, Baltimore protests, and marriage equality. It's a snapshot of a year with extreme peaks and valleys, ultimate joy and devastation.
Donald Trump commandeers Jebbush.com
The domain Jebbush.com redirects to the official campaign page for Donald Trump's presidential bid. The URL has been up for grabs since April, at least -- at the time, CNN Money reported it was on sale for $250,000 via hosting service Fabulous.com. Apparently Bush, who's running for the Republican nomination alongside Trump and a (large) handful of other candidates, didn't think it was worthwhile to invest in his own-name dot-com domain. His official website is Jeb2016.com.
President signs pro-asteroid mining bill into law
And just like that, American asteroid mining efforts are legal. President Obama has signed the US Commercial Space Launch Competitiveness Act (CSLCA) into law following Congress' approval, letting companies keep whatever resources they collect beyond Earth. As you might imagine, hopeful mining outfits like Planetary Resources are relieved. While the odds weren't that high that the government would confiscate their minerals as soon as they landed, the Act removes any ambiguity.
The President finally has a Facebook page
For all of the White House's efforts to join the internet era, it's been awfully slow at giving the President a Facebook presence. It's not dragging its heels any longer, though: President Obama (and presumably, any future President) now has an official Facebook page. Besides giving the political leader a chance to explain agendas, it'll help you share your thoughts and chat with other concerned residents. The move was virtually necessary when over a billion people use Facebook every day, but it's hard to knock something that puts you in closer contact with your government. Let's just hope that the President has someone keeping a close eye on the comments -- if you think the politically-charged discussions in your own Facebook feed can get bad, you can imagine what it'd be like for a head of state.
Bernie Sanders joins Verizon union workers' picket in NYC
Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders put his campaign where his mouth is on Monday when he spoke at a picket line with Verizon union workers in New York City. Communication Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers organized the picket, which aims to bolster support for 40,000 Verizon employees nationwide as they continue a months-long contract battle with the communication giant. In June, Verizon proposed a new union contract, but CWA takes issue with some of its key points, including suggested pay increases, the structure of pension benefits, health care contributions, whether Verizon can contract out or offshore union jobs, and employees' vacation time. The union also criticizes Verizon for failing to implement its FiOS service in promised regions.
