From testing the real-world ranges of electric cars to the terrible toll of windows on birdlife, these are the articles, videos, podcasts and more that caught the TechCentral editorial team’s eye over the past 24 hours.
- I drove these new electric cars until they died: In this video we get to see, in great depth, the top six car brands in the EV market going up against each other. Catch it on carwow on YouTube. TS
- In world first, Russian chess player poisons rival’s board with mercury: A Russian chess player allegedly tried to checkmate her rival with mercury-laced chess pieces. Forget mind games – this was toxic on a whole new level. The incident in Dagestan has left the chess world stunned, proving that in Russia, even pawns might need a hazmat suit! Read the bizarre story on Ars Technica. DM
- Bird deaths from window strikes are way higher than we ever imagined: Turns out, birds are losing a game of “dodge the window” at an alarming rate, with way more fatalities than we thought. It’s a tragic avian blind spot – literally. Read more on Gizmodo. DM
- AI wants to count your calories: Researchers are developing tech that watches your spoon-to-mouth action to analyse your food intake. It’s like having a nutritionist in your pocket, but without the judgmental side-eye when you reach for that extra helping of Spur onion rings. Read more from the Wall Street Journal (paywall). DM
- Before we put half a million broadband satellites in orbit, anyone want to consider environmental effects?: Low-Earth-orbit satellites are proving to be a useful complementary technology to terrestrial internet infrastructure, able to connect far-flung regions of the planet for considerably less cost. But perhaps the excitement over the technology has left its environmental impact unchecked a little too long – space junk, anyone? Read more about this on The Register. NN
- These scientists want to safeguard Earth’s species by cryogenically preserving them on the moon: Whether it comes in form of an alien invasion, a zombie uprising, tsunamis, nuclear war, an asteroid shower or the inevitable dying of our sun, the world will end one day. Thankfully, a group of scientists have taken it upon themselves to preserve humanity’s future progenitors in cryo-pods on the moon. Sure, that won’t save the species when the sun eventually goes supernova, but at least the zombies won’t get up there (we hope). Read more on Tuscon. NN
- Breaking barriers: cloud gaming’s revolutionary impact on gamers with disabilities: Setting up gaming rigs and consoles can be difficult for those with disabilities, but with cloud gaming it makes it a whole lot easier. Games can be played on relatively simple hardware, from a smartphone to a Chromebook. It allows individuals with disabilities to log in and they are ready to go. Read more on Cloud Dosage. TS
Must-read stories on TechCentral in the past 24 hours
- South African-founded Syspro sold, Phil Duff to retire
- More can be done to support MVNOs in South Africa
- China drives African lithium surge
- China to build vast solar farm in Botswana
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