10 things in tech you need to know today | ||
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Good morning! Here's the tech news you need to know this Wednesday. 1. Amazon might start paying ordinary people to deliver its packages. The "On My Way" service would recruit retailers in urban areas to store packages. Then regular people wanting to make deliveries could use an app to see where to pick up and drop off goods as they were going about their day. 2. An influential Google Maps exec just got poached to build products at Uber. Brian McClendon will be going to work at Uber's Advanced Technologies Centre in Pittsburgh. He had been at Google since 2004. 3. A vulnerability in keyboard software allegedly left 600 million Samsung smartphones vulnerable to hacking. Forbes reports that the pre-installed SwiftKey keyboard installs updates in unencrypted plain text, making it easy to hijack and feed malicious code. 4. One of tech's biggest and most influential venture capital firms says we're not in a bubble. In a presentation to big investors, Andreessen Horowitz argues that this time it's different, and we're not headed for another Dotcom bust-style meltdown. 5. The European Court of Human Rights says websites are liable for the comments of its users. The ruling has been slammed by critics, who fear it could have a chilling effect on free speech and say it's unreasonable to place this burden on websites. 6. Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's hottest startup factory, has filed to raise a venture capital fund. It's called the Y Combinator Continuity Fund I, an SEC filing revealed, although the company has declined to disclose the amount raised. 7. Apple almost struck a deal with Uber to deliver iPhones to your doorstep. The ride-share company was considered to power Apple's same day delivery service, but was ultimately passed over in favour of Postmates. 8. Tesla just borrowed $750 million. The electric car and battery company is getting a cash injection in the form of a loan worth up to $750 million from a series banks including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Deutsche Bank. 9. Apple is about to make a big play for indie music publishers. Ahead of the launch its music streaming service, the Cupertino company has yet to reach out to indie publishers about rights — but it's expected to offer higher-than-industry-standard rates when it does. 10. Microsoft just made a huge privacy move to make Bing more competitive with Google and Yahoo. The search engine will now encrypt search traffic by default, making it more secure for users. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Should we kill off one of the most dangerous creatures in the world?  | ||
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A teenager was killed after using an app to find his lost cell phone | ||
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Canadian law enforcement are stumped by a case involving a teenager killed for trying to reclaim his lost cell phone. 18-year-old Jeremy Cook apparently left the smartphone in a cab over the weekend, police tell CBC News. London Police Constable Ken Steeves told the publication Cook used a mobile tracking app to trace the device to an address where he and a relative who accompanied him were "confronted by three men in a car." The exchange escalated and the car began to drive off, but police say Cook grabbed on to the driver's door. He was shot multiple times, and later died from his wounds. The car and the phone were recovered, and investigators are now examining surveillance footage to try to piece together what happened. Cook's death has prompted law enforcement to urge the public to think twice about using mobile apps to track lost devices — more specifically, using them to retrieve the lost items on their own. "The app itself is a great tool to have ... but if you suspect there's any potential for violence at all, we certainly encourage people to contact police," Steeves told CBC News. Investigators on the case are left to ponder why someone would go to such lengths to retrieve a phone. IDC Canada's mobile phones analyst Sanjay Khanna had a suggestion. "Our attachment to our data is so strong that it might prompt people to not be as cautious as authorities might wish us to be," Khanna told CBC News. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 70 people were injured while filming this movie with 100 untamed lions  | ||
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13 brilliant ideas that turned these people into self-made billionaires | ||
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In general, nine out of 10 startups fail. But the ones who make it all have one thing in common: a brilliant idea. Like these self-made billionaires did with their companies. Larry Page and Sergey Brin were PhD students at Stanford when they first came up with the idea of a search engine. But their idea was a little different than the other search engines in the market: it would examine the number and relevance of links between pages, not just the keywords on them. Google's search engine now dominates the market, and the company has more than $66 billion in sales. It's now involved in other businesses too — it makes the most popular mobile phone platform in the world (Android) and runs the most popular video web site in the world (YouTube). It's also experimenting with all kinds of futuristic projects like Google Glass (seen here). Page and Brin are now each worth almost $30 billion. Mark Zuckerberg was a Harvard undergrad when he came up with the idea of a "hot or not" type of website called Facemash. From that site, Zuckerberg learned how technology could be used to connect people and launched a site called thefacebook.com. See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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Biological anthropologist: Tinder works because it mimics millennia-old human behavior | ||
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When famous astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson had two relationship experts appear on his StarTalk Radio show to discuss the evolution of love and relationships, it's not surprising that the conversation almost immediately turned to Tinder — a popular dating app where the user swipes the pictures of their potential matches to the right if they like what they see, or to the left if they don't. Tinder gets a bad rap sometimes. It's been called a hook-up app and an app for only shallow people since users judge potential matches on their appearance. But one of Tyson's guests, biological anthropologist Helen Fisher, made an interesting point: Tinder is nothing new. It's just a new interface for doing things the way we did them millions of years ago. Tinder works well because it mimics the first thing you have to do in a real-life encounter — you have to look at the person, Fisher said. And you can tell a lot about a person from just looking. Calling apps like Tinder and websites like OkCupid "dating sites" is somewhat of a misnomer, Fisher said. "The bottom line is these are not dating sites," Fisher said. "They’re introducing sites." You can swipe all you want, but eventually you'll have to meet someone in person. "And when you get into the bar or into the coffeehouse or whatever [to meet a Tinder date], and you sit down, the ancient human brain works the way it always has and you court the way you did a million years ago," Fisher said. When you think of dating websites as introduction websites, it seems natural that we'd incorporate them into modern love and dating. "We no longer have parents that can fix us up," Fisher said. "By middle age you've gone through the people who your girlfriends could introduce you to, you've met everyone that you might have wanted to meet at work, and [online dating] is cheap, it's easy, and it's safe, so why wouldn't we want to do it?" Of course it can be more complicated than that. Some reports suggest that nearly 30% of Tinder users are already married and are just using the app to get something on the side. Fisher is more optimistic. "Romantic love is like a sleeping cat — it can be wakened at any moment," Fisher said. That means even people who are on Tinder just for sex might meet the "person who triggers that brain circuitry for romantic love, and they're off to the races on something even more powerful than sex," Fisher said. You can listen to the whole StarTalk episode below. The Tinder discussion happens in the first three minutes and last five minutes of the show: SEE ALSO: Transgender people are reportedly being banned from Tinder Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: This video of a slab of meat swiping right on Tinder is weirdly perfect  | ||
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The tech industry is so insane, the comedy writers on 'Silicon Valley' can't keep up | ||
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Today at the Bloomberg Technology Conference, Bloomberg's Emily Chang asked Thomas Middleditch, the star of HBO's "Silicon Valley," if we were in a bubble. "What is the tech bubble? What does that even mean?" said Middleditch. As a more proper response to the question, Middleditch told a story from the production of the show. In the first episode, Hooli CEO Gavin Bellsom tries to buy out the Pied Piper technology from Richard, Middleditch's character, for $10 million. But apparently, in the first draft of the script, it was $100 million. The writers ultimately decided that $100 million was too unrealistic for anybody to turn down. Between filming that pilot and the show actually airing on HBO, the news came out that Snapchat had turned down $4 billion in an acquisition offer. "We were like 'oh wow, silly us,'" Middleditch says. "To us, $4 billion seems like the end result." Middleditch went on to poke fun at Snapchat's hubris: "These selfies will be revolutionary. They're going to change the world." Incidentally, Middleditch says that fellow Silicon Valley star TJ Miller was approached by Waze to be an investor, before Google snapped it up for millions. "He should have gone in," Middleditch says. "This feels like a very tense moment right now," quipped Mike Schur, executive producer of shows like Parks & Recreation (which featured a fictional startup called Gryzzl that mined users' personal data) and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. With all of these "absurd" deals and valuation flying around, Schur says that "of course" there's a bubble — and that the hubris makes for great joke fodder. "I think Hollywood really likes to satirize any subculture that's more absurd and self-obsessed than we are," the Hollywood-based Schur said.
SEE ALSO: A subtle jab at a flopped Microsoft product is hidden in a recent episode of 'Silicon Valley' Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: JAMES ALTUCHER: What HBO's show 'Silicon Valley' gets wrong about Silicon Valley  | ||
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An influential Google Maps exec just got poached to build products at Uber | ||
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Google's former head of Maps, once seen as one of Google's most influential execs, just got poached by Uber, according to Re/code. Business Insider has independently confirmed the report. As a ten-year Google Maps veteran, Brian McClendon will be bringing his expertise to Uber's new Advanced Technologies Center in Pittsburgh, where he'll be guiding the company's development of mapping and vehicle safety and autonomy technology. That McClendon decided to leave isn't exactly surprising. Jen Fitzpatrick replaced McClendon as Google Maps VP last fall, and in May, and a source told Business Insider that he was likely on his way out. McClendon, described as a "towering figure" within the the company, joined Google way back in 2004 after it acquired the digital mapping software startup Keyhole where he was an engineering VP. And the fact that McClendon left Google for Uber isn't exactly a shock either, given the talent flow between the two companies lately. Tom Fallows, former founder of Google Express and current Uber exec, said on stage at a recent StrictlyVC event that one out of three people he works with is a former Google colleague. Google's PR boss, Rachel Whetstone, recently ditched the search giant for Uber too. Uber currently uses Google Maps data to power its apps for drivers and riders, but McClendon's hire in conjunction with the company's recent acquisition of a mapping startup and reports that it could be interested in buying Nokia's mapping unit, hint that that relationship might not last. Google and Uber's ambitions are starting to overlap more in other areas too: Both companies are experimenting in the speedy-delivery space. Google has Express, a same-day delivery service that's available in seven areas. Meanwhile, Uber continues to experiment with ways it can turn its vast fleet of drivers into a logistical network to be reckoned with. SEE ALSO: East Hampton officials are pushing for jail time for Uber drivers, says their lawyer Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Gen. Stanley McChrystal on how Uber operates just like a special forces unit  | ||
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THE CONNECTED-HOME REPORT: Forecasts and growth trends for one of the top 'Internet of Things' markets | ||
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Homes around the world are going to become smarter and more connected over the next five years. Overall, a fair number of mainstream consumers still don't fully understand what connected-home devices are and how they work, and so demand hasn't reached its full potential. However, adoption and awareness is still high for such a new category. We expect the devices to become more prevalent in the next two years, when growth will peak. In a recent report on the connected home, BI Intelligence takes a closer look at this market, and forecasts shipments and revenue growth for connected-home devices over the next five years. We also examine current consumer sentiment about these new devices, the potential opportunities and barriers the Internet of Things will face on its way to mainstream adoption, and the leading companies currently in the market. Access The Full Report And Data By Signing Up For A Trial Today >> Here are some key points from the report:
The report is full of charts and data that can be downloaded and put to use. In full, the report:
To access the full report from BI Intelligence, sign up for a 14-day trial here. Members also gain access to new in-depth reports, hundreds of charts and datasets, as well as daily newsletters on the digital industry.
Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Forget Kim Kardashian — the 'butt selfie' queen of Instagram is a 21-year-old from Long Island  | ||
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Here are 13 tech jobs that pay at least $130,000 across the country | ||
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There's no question that technology related jobs, whether building software or managing a network, are in demand and pay well. But most salary lists of the best-paying tech jobs use average salaries. Fact is, wages are higher in places like San Francisco, New York, and Boston than they are most of the rest of the country, which skews the data a bit. Tech recruiting specialist Mondo recently published a report on the highest paid tech jobs with a salary ranges, reflecting regional differences in pay, with areas like NYC/San Francisco on the high end and areas like Florida/Dallas on the low end. IS Security Manager: Up to $169,000 IS Security Manager: $130,000-$169,000 An information systems security manager is responsible for making sure that networks, servers and apps are safe from hackers. This may be the top security position in a smaller company or, in a larger one, this person may report to a Chief Security Officer. BI Developer: Up to $171,000 BI Developer: $130,000-$171,000 A "business intelligence" developer is a computer programmer that specializes in writing database apps that help business analyze data. This field has exploded with the big data craze. There are now a lot of methods to cheaply collect and store vast amounts of data. But that does no good unless there are "business intelligence" apps that use all that data. UI/UX Designer: Up to $172,000 UI/UX Designer: $110,000-$172,000 A "user interface" or "user experience" designer is the person that designs how people use a product. Is it easy to figure out? Can people find all the features? This designer is also often responsible for the aesthetic look of an app or product. See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's hottest startup factory, has filed to raise a venture capital fund | ||
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Y Combinator is raising money to create a new VC fund according to forms filed with the SEC. It's called the Y Combinator Continuity Fund I. The company declined to disclose the amount raised, and the filing indicated that the first sale has yet to occur. Business Insider's Jon Marino first reported that Y Combinator was looking to raise several billion dollars for a fund in March. According to sources, that fund would allegedly be used to support some of the incubator's largest investments, although it has told potential investors it would still be looking to continue its investments on the seed level. This appears to be the company's first filing of this particular type, known as an SEC Form D. Y Combinator listed the Continuity Fund both as a 3(c)(1), which means the fund may not be owned by more than 100 shareholders, and a 3(c)(7), which narrows the investor pool down to 499 or fewer "qualified purchasers". Business Insider tried calling the phone number on the form for comment, but it was disconnected. Y Combinator did not initially respond to a request for comment. The Continuity Fund could be Y Combinator's way of doubling down on some of the startup its backed in its early years, like Dropbox, Airbnb and Stripe. With tech IPOs drying up, more companies are staying private longer so Y Combinator may be looking to do some late-stage deals at higher valuations. SEE ALSO: Y Combinator is raising billions, and it could be making a big change to its funding strategy Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Here are all the best moments from Donald Trump's presidential announcement  | ||
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How to turn a great idea into an iPhone app | ||
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It happens in a moment of inspiration. You get an idea for the next great app. Move over, Snapchat. Move over, Twitter. Move over, Instagram. This is going to be a big deal. But there's one thing you don't know. How to get it from your head into the App Store, onto the 700 million iPhones Apple has sold, and onwards towards glory, fame, and venture capital funding. Read on to find out how iPhone apps are made. The first step is the most costly: A $99 annual enrollment into the Apple Developer Program, which entitles you to make apps for the Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch, plus Safari browser extensions. Apple's developer program also lets you try the early preview versions of the next versions of iOS and the Mac OS, so you can make sure your app works with them. Next, you need Xcode 7, Apple's development software, which is included in that $99 annual fee. The bad news is that it's for Mac OS X only, making life difficult for Windows developers. See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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Watch Jimmy Fallon and Aziz Ansari read through the world's most awkward first texts | ||
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Everyone's received an awkward first text message from someone who wants to know them better. "The Tonight Show" recently compiled some of the worst first texts ever, sent in by viewers, and had Jimmy Fallon and Aziz Ansari read them out loud. The results are hilarious. One texter is sending a message to a woman named Rachel whom he met at his old college roommate's wedding. He makes sure to tell her where he first saw her, which friends they have in common, and how he got her number. Then, after already having blown it by awkwardly oversharing, he adds the clincher that seals his fate as the world's most embarrassing texter: "I wanted to say hi and sort of 'texty' introduce myself. Haha. :-)"
Then, Fallon reads a two-parter that ends with the disclaimer, "This is Ron btw is was trying to be clever."
Watch these texts and a few more below: SEE ALSO: People have been posting texts from their moms on Twitter and it's hilarious Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Here are all the best moments from Donald Trump's presidential announcement  | ||
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Tesla just borrowed $750 million, but that's nothing to worry about (TSLA) | ||
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Tesla Motors is getting a cash injection in the form of a loan worth up to $750 million from a series banks including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Deutsche Bank. According to Tesla's SEC 8-K filing, the loan has an initial value of $500 million with another $250 million available should certain unrevealed conditions be met. Tesla's cash injection may raise some red flags for those following Tesla, especially after company CEO Elon Musk announced during the company's 2014 fourth-quarter earnings call that the company would not be raising any additional funds and the bulk of Tesla's capital demands would come out of its operating cash flow. However, Musk also stated, during the same call, that the company would need "staggering" amounts of capital expenditures. So, nothing to worry about. Tesla is basically doing what it said it would do, with some help from Wall Street's finest. Tesla is a tech firm and very much of Silicon Valley. Other automakers admire and respect Tesla's ability to make technology a bigger part of owning a car. But it's always worth it to remember that Tesla is also building cars. As a result, the company has to spend a lot of money. There's R&D, there are factory hires. There's paving the company parking lot. Millions of dollars worth of robots to build the cars. It goes on and on. Even so, Tesla is spending less than most well-established automakers. Volkswagen Group, for example, will spend $17.4 billion in 2015 just for R&D, the Wall Street Journal reported. And Tesla has some favorable terms on its loan: it isn't due to paid up until June 10, 2020. SEE ALSO: Watch a young Elon Musk take delivery of his McLaren F1 hypercar — before he wrecked it Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 5 clever iPhone tricks only power users know about  | ||
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There's an ugly truth behind Sony's surprising new pay-per-channel plan | ||
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Sony wowed the audience at E3, the annual video game conference happening this week in LA, when the company announced that it would start to sell some of the TV channels on its new PlayStation Vue internet TV service individually. That means that people who subscribe to PlayStation Vue, which is only available to those with PlayStation 3 and 4 game consoles — and who live in one of the five cities where it’s currently offered — will be able to buy some TV channels a la carte, instead of having to buy a huge bundle of channels that likely includes many they don’t watch. This model of television — where consumers only pay for the channels they want — has been the dream of TV watchers for years. The average TV home in the US watches only 17 channels, but subscribes to nearly 200 of them, according to a report last year by the measurement company Nielsen. But paying for TV a la carte, as observers have noted in the past, looks like it’s going to add up very quickly, at least when it comes to Sony's service. Take the pricing for the three channels that Sony announced, for instance: Showtime, at $10.99 per month, Fox Soccer Plus, at $14.99 per month, and Machinima, a gaming-centric network, for $3.99 per month. If you were only to subscribe to those three channels, you’d be paying $30 per month, just for those three. That's unlikely, of course, but it's certainly a lot to pay for three channels when you can get 50 from Sony for $49.99. (People who subscribe to PlayStation Plus, the company’s premium network, will get discounts of $2 per channel when they buy a la carte.) To be sure, the channels that Sony's offering a la carte should be thought of as premium add-on channels, not core channels that would usually come as part of a basic bundle. But Andrew House, PlayStation president and group CEO, still made a point of saying that it was "the first paid TV service to allow users to subscribe to individual channels without the purchase of a multi-channel bundle." Sony's three bundles — which are priced at $49.99, $59.99, and $69.99 — don't include any of the three channels the company is offering a la carte.
A Sony spokesperson declined to provide any detail as far as what those channels would be, how much they'd cost, and when they'd become available. But as Phillip Swann, a TV industry consultant who runs the site TVPredictions.com, wrote Tuesday, the cost of paying by the channel has the potential to balloon quickly if Sony is charging $15 per month for a soccer channel: "For example, the local channels could go for $5 or $6 a month; CBS now charges $5.99 for a separate online edition. CNN? Maybe $4 a month? Basic cable channels such as TBS and TNT? Maybe $5 each?" Swann goes on to write that once you start including local sports channels, you "could wind up paying nearly $100 a month, or more," just for about 20 channels. Sony's announcement comes as the entertainment industry tries to grapple with the changing way that people watch TV. Americans are watching less traditional TV and ratings are down. Subscriptions to traditional pay TV operators are also down as people turn to standalone services like Netflix, Hulu, and HBO Now to get their video entertainment. Sony's announcement also comes as an increasing number of networks, like Showtime, Nickelodeon, and CBS, begin to offer standalone streaming services to reach people who subscribe to internet but don't pay for TV. So for most people, the dream of paying only for the channels you want to watch, for now, remains just a dream. Unless, of course, you have a PlayStation 3 or 4 and live in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Los Angeles, or San Francisco, and you only want to subscribe to Showtime, Fox Soccer Plus, or Machinima. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Nintendo just showed off the new Star Fox and it looks incredible  | ||
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Sony says that it will offer more a la carte channels in the future, but it remains to be seen whether the company will include any of the channels that are part of the company's bundles now, thereby "unbundling" its own packages. Here’s what other companies building their own Hyperloops think about Elon Musk’s big contest | ||
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Elon Musk’s big Hyperloop pod competition news on Monday was like music to the ears for companies trying to actually build the futuristic railway in real life. Musk is hosting a contest sponsored by his rocket company SpaceX to see who can design the perfect pod for human travel in the Hyperloop tubes. The challenge is aimed at students and independent engineering teams and will be hosted at the SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, Calif. next June. Companies will also be able to attend the contest to see what teams they might be interested in sponsoring. While Musk says that he has no intention of building a real Hyperloop, there are some other young companies that are in the early stages of making this tubular travel a reality. Two California-based companies — Hyperloop Transportation Technologies and Hyperloop Technologies — are some of the most notable companies working on the technology and both seem pretty excited about Musk’s pod contest. “We are happy that Elon and SpaceX share our vision of using the power of the crowd and communities to help bring the Hyperloop to reality,” Dirk Ahlborn, the CEO of Hyperloop Transportation Technologies, told Business Insider. “We believe this recent announcement will excite even more people about the project and amazing solutions will result for commercial integration. We will help support the competition in any way we can,” Ahlborn said. We also reached out to Hyperloop Technologies, which is a separate company that is backed by the managing director of Sherpa Ventures, to get their reaction. We haven’t heard back from them yet, but they seem to be just as enthusiastic. The company tweeted on Monday that the challenge will be a “Great step forward for the advancement of the Hyperloop.” SEE ALSO: Elon Musk wants your help designing the transportation system of the future Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: The Best Features Of Elon Musk's Hyperloop  | ||
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Some big groups have pulled out of meetings about facial recognition technology | ||
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Questions have been percolating about what sort of safeguards will be in place for commercial use of facial recognition technology. This has led to a series of meetings — spearheaded by the National Telecommunications Information Administration — among government officials, technology groups, and privacy advocates in the hopes of crafting "privacy safeguards." These proceedings, however, have suffered a setback after nine privacy organizations announced they are backing out because their minimum requirements were not met. A joint statement from the companies exiting the meetings, which include the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), the Center for Democracy and Technology, and Consumer Watchdog, reads: At a base minimum, people should be able to walk down a public street without fear that companies they’ve never heard of are tracking their every movement and identifying them by name using facial recognition technology. Unfortunately, we have been unable to obtain agreement even with that basic, specific premise. The position that companies never need to ask permission to use biometric identification is at odds with consumer expectations, current industry practices, as well as existing state law. The EFF, in another blog post published earlier today, goes even further and decries federal use of face recognition technology. "Despite the sensitivity of face recognition data," it writes, "the federal government and state and local law enforcement agencies continue to build ever-larger face recognition databases." Despite months of meetings, a tipping point has now been reached and these nine organizations are leaving the conversation. According to the EFF, the privacy advocates’ most important goal was to establish an "opt-in regime," where people had to knowingly accept to being facially recognized. It seems it didn’t work out. Even with this mass exodus, an NTIA spokeswoman told the New York Times that the agency will continue with meetings "for those stakeholders who want to participate." SEE ALSO: Inside the company that can predict the future by analyzing every piece of information on the web Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: The 12 best new features coming to the iPhone  | ||
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We finally got to find out if Facebook’s virtual reality headset is worth the crazy hype | ||
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Facebook's $2 billion purchase is almost coming to fruition: the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset is coming in early 2016, and we've just used it. Good news: it's really, really good. As seen above, we spent Tuesday morning putting the consumer version of the Oculus Rift through its paces at the E3 conference in Los Angeles. We tended goal as a hockey player; we explored 1930s Antarctica in "Edge of Nowhere;" we explored the futuristic environment known as "Oculus Home." If you're still skeptical about virtual reality, or worried that what you've seen so far isn't up to the quality level you expected, the first consumer version of Oculus Rift should more than convince you. The "screen door effect" that's often spoken of in reference to VR headsets is nigh imperceptible in the consumer version of the Rift, and worries over "jutter" and blur are unfounded: the consumer version of the Rift is crisp, comfortable, and relentlessly immersive. Seeing is believing, of course, and the best we can do in that respect is the video above.
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Hackers are seeing a whopping 1,425% return on investment for these two kinds of attacks | ||
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Hackers are targeting two types of malware in 2014 to maximize how much they make: "Exploit kits" and "ransomware schemes." Exploit kits typically deliver malware through the victim’s web browser, while ransomware schemes encrypt files on a victim’s computer, and only decrypt them when they pay up. The average return seen by attackers using these kinds of malware was $84,100 on an investment of only $5,900. Ransomware is evolving fast, and most cyber criminals are getting really good at making the downloads that house the malware appear benign to the average user. One particularly virulent strain of ransomware is called CDT-Locker, which can hide files so well even security software can’t find it. And even if you pay up, that doesn’t always mean you’ll get your files back. “We have seen many scenarios where even if the user pays, they don’t get the recovery keys,” Steve Grobman, CTO of Intel’s Security Group, told Business Insider. “So it’s one of the reasons we tell our customers that paying the ransom is not the best course of action.” The Trustwave study pulled from 574 breach investigations the SpiderLabs team conducted to put together a comprehensive picture of 2014 trends. The report also found a 14% increase in hackers targeting payment card data over 2013, which was sought almost half the time. Victims were usually unaware they had even been compromised, and 81% of them did not detect the security breach themselves. SEE ALSO: Here's what to do if your computer gets taken over by ransomware Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Here's The Trailer For 'The Interview' — The Movie The Hackers Don't Want You To See  | ||
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A new This YouTube beauty star put her reputation on the line to send a message to the world | ||
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NikkiTutorials has been on YouTube for seven years vlogging and giving makeup tutorials. But recently, she's noticed nasty social media comments about women who use makeup. So she decided to paint half her face with makeup and leave the other half bare in order to prove that makeup is fun, and that using it has nothing to do with hating your natural face or having low self esteem. “I’ve been noticing a lot lately that girls have been almost ashamed to say that they love makeup,” she said in her video The Power of MAKEUP. “Nowadays when you say you love makeup, you either do it because you want to look good for boys, you do it because you’re insecure, or you do it because you don’t love yourself.”
“By no means do I want to say that if you have insecurities that you should just slap makeup on, feel better, and just never be content with your own self,” Nikki added. “I just want people to know that makeup is fun and there are no rules.” The Dutch makeup artist took inspiration from RuPaul’s TV show “Drag Race” where the contestants have their full glam makeup side-by-side with their natural, make up-free face. Instead of her average amount of daily makeup, Nikki went full glam on one side and bare-faced on the other, first spotted on Brit + Co: She started with a base of foundation, concealer, and brow pencil to fill in her brows.
Next she focused on her eyes by adding eyeshadow above her natural crease, making her eye appear larger with eye-liner tricks, and finishing with some false eyelashes on the tops and bottom.
She also contoured her cheeks and chin to make her features even more defined and complemented it with a blush and highlighter.
Here’s the finished look:
The video has since gone viral with over 15 million views at the time of this post. It also pushed Nikki’s subscribers to 1 million and she started getting lots of positive comments on her Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter accounts. Her video is a part of growing trend among beauty vloggers who are responding to critics for taking their before and after photos and making comments like “this is why men have trust issues” or “this girl must be insecure to plaster her face with so much makeup.” Another YouTube beauty vlogger Stephanie Lange recorded a similar video where she spoke out against her hateful commenters who were saying she looked ugly without makeup or that she looked like a different person.
“No, I will not edit my before photo like I know a lot of other people do, because I don’t care about making an illusion of what I do or don’t look like without makeup,” Lange explained in her video. “That’s just my face.” A YouTube makeup artist named Shannon was also targeted by the Twitter account Manstagram. The account tweeted a side-by-side of her before and after photos with the caption, “This is why our first date is running a mile around the track to see if you sweat the makeup off.” But actress and singer Zendaya responded, first spotted by Buzzfeed, and shut down the Manstagram writer. “That awkward moment when this tweet is irrelevant cause she’s slaying both ways,” Zendaya tweeted. SEE ALSO: Porn Stars' Incredible Before And After Make-Up Transformations Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: This 9-year-old makes $1 million a year opening toys  | ||
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A college came up with a clever way to control students guilty of 'texting and walking' | ||
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Utah Valley University is implementing a creative solution to the campus' digital traffic problem — the staircase in the school's new Student and Wellness Center has lanes designated just for texters. Matt Bambrough, UVU's creative director, designed the staircase lanes, Fusion reports.
The stairs are divided into three lanes labeled with bright green words: "walk," "run," and "text." "You have 18-24 year olds walking down the hall with smartphones, you’re almost bound to run into someone somewhere; it’s something we’re dealing with in this day and age," Bambrough explained to Fusion. Students texting and walking simultaneously is a common occurrence on the UVU campus. “They walk into barriers—chairs on the side of the hallway, or railings,” UVU student Robbie Poffenberger told Fusion of his multitasking classmates. “I’m sure they’re fairly embarrassed.” The delineated staircase is supposed to be a fun way to draw students' eyes away from their phones. "We did it to engage the students. It’s meant to be there for people to look at and enjoy," Bambrough told Fusion. UVU's texting lane is not the first attempt to get walkers to look up from their cellphones. In 2014, the television show "Mind Over Masses," created similar lanes on the streets of Washington, DC. SEE ALSO: 11 things you didn't know about texting on your iPhone Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: This viral Facebook quiz will reveal your soulmate  | ||
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Former Reddit CEO: You are free to be an a**hole, but keep it on Reddit | ||
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Former Reddit CEO Yishan Wong has weighed in on the controversy spurred by the website’s recent decision to shut down certain discussion groups, known as subreddits. Banning the subreddits, some of which were dedicated to demeaning overweight people, is not an attempt to curb free speech, Wong wrote in a post on Quora. Rather he said, it’s simply a move to prevent people from being harassed in real life. "/r/fatpeoplehate was not banned for hating on fat people. You can do that on reddit," Wong wrote. "/r/fatpeoplehate was banned because its users were targeting people off of reddit and harassing them. Upon investigation, it was found that not only were the mods participating in it, they were at times even encouraging it." Under a new harassment policy, Reddit banned five communities devoted to hating or criticizing fat people, transgender people, and other groups. The backlash was swift in the community as many interpreted the ban of the subreddits as an attack on users free speech and a sign that the company was going to start banning content it found morally objectionable. That's entirely false, Wong said. "The key problem with a community site that allows any type of legal content is this: At some point, discussion and ideas can result in real-life actions," Wong wrote. "I don't think reddit is putting a stop to the mockery of fat people or fat acceptance in general," Wong wrote. "It's not becoming a 'safe space' for fat people or anyone else: if you mention on reddit that you are fat, and a bunch of users then reply with a bunch of mocking comments on reddit, the company will likely take no action." "You are free to be an asshole on reddit (within communities whose mods allow it), but keep it on reddit," Wong concluded. SEE ALSO: Reddit users are furious after the site banned a community dedicated to hating fat people Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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10 things in tech you need to know today | ||
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Good morning! Here's the tech news you need to know this Wednesday. 1. Amazon might start paying ordinary people to deliver its packages. The "On My Way" service would recruit retailers in urban areas to store packages. Then regular people wanting to make deliveries could use an app to see where to pick up and drop off goods as they were going about their day. 2. An influential Google Maps exec just got poached to build products at Uber. Brian McClendon will be going to work at Uber's Advanced Technologies Centre in Pittsburgh. He had been at Google since 2004. 3. A vulnerability in keyboard software allegedly left 600 million Samsung smartphones vulnerable to hacking. Forbes reports that the pre-installed SwiftKey keyboard installs updates in unencrypted plain text, making it easy to hijack and feed malicious code. 4. One of tech's biggest and most influential venture capital firms says we're not in a bubble. In a presentation to big investors, Andreessen Horowitz argues that this time it's different, and we're not headed for another Dotcom bust-style meltdown. 5. The European Court of Human Rights says websites are liable for the comments of its users. The ruling has been slammed by critics, who fear it could have a chilling effect on free speech and say it's unreasonable to place this burden on websites. 6. Y Combinator, Silicon Valley's hottest startup factory, has filed to raise a venture capital fund. It's called the Y Combinator Continuity Fund I, an SEC filing revealed, although the company has declined to disclose the amount raised. 7. Apple almost struck a deal with Uber to deliver iPhones to your doorstep. The ride-share company was considered to power Apple's same day delivery service, but was ultimately passed over in favour of Postmates. 8. Tesla just borrowed $750 million. The electric car and battery company is getting a cash injection in the form of a loan worth up to $750 million from a series banks including Bank of America, JP Morgan Chase, and Deutsche Bank. 9. Apple is about to make a big play for indie music publishers. Ahead of the launch its music streaming service, the Cupertino company has yet to reach out to indie publishers about rights — but it's expected to offer higher-than-industry-standard rates when it does. 10. Microsoft just made a huge privacy move to make Bing more competitive with Google and Yahoo. The search engine will now encrypt search traffic by default, making it more secure for users. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Should we kill off one of the most dangerous creatures in the world?  | ||
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Starbucks is going to close all of its La Boulange bakery retail locations | ||
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Starbucks Corp said late Tuesday it would close all 23 La Boulange retail locations as well as the two manufacturing facilities that serve those locations, by the end of September. The company reiterated its goal to grow its food business and deliver by an incremental $2 billion in the next five years in the United States. Starbucks paid $100 million to buy La Boulange's owner, Bay Bread Group, in 2012. Starbucks had reportedly planned to make it a national chain. The acquisition was meant to grow the food portion of Starbucks' business. The coffee chain has been selling La Boulange pastries in some of its stores. (Reuters reporting by Subrat Patnaik in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier) Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 70 people were injured while filming this movie with 100 untamed lions  | ||
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10 things you need to know before European markets open | ||
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Good morning! Here are 10 things you need to know in markets today. The Fed's latest rates decision comes just after European markets close today. After watching the US economy contract in the first quarter, central bank officials have signaled they won't raise rates this week. But they will have to judge whether healthier recent jobs, wage and consumer spending data have put that earlier swoon safely in the past, clearing the way for a rate hike - or hikes - later this year. UK employment data is coming. Employment figures for April are coming at 9:30 a.m. UK time (4:30 a.m. New York), and analysts are expecting the unemployment rate to stay steady at 5.5%. The IMF is becoming openly frustrated with Greece and Europe. The crisis lender over the past few days has publicly laid out its demands for Greece in the long-running fight over bailout funding, but also did the same with the Europeans, showing a new frustration with their hard line. Australia and China signed a major trade deal. Australia and China signed a landmark trade deal Wednesday after a decade of talks, providing a boon for growth and jobs by abolishing tariffs across a raft of sectors. Nestle is cutting operations in Africa. Swiss food and drinks company Nestle is cutting 15% of its workforce in 21 African countries because it says it overestimated the rise of the middle class, the Financial Times reported. France's government pushed through economic reforms. France's socialist government on Tuesday forced a package of key economic reforms through parliament without a vote, sparking a walk-out from the opposition and a vote of no-confidence. With a left-wing flank of rebel MPs threatening to torpedo the passage into law of the economic reforms, Prime Minister Manuel Valls resorted to a little-used constitutional device to push them through without MPs voting. Japan's incoming and outgoing trade data were both weaker than expected. In May, Exports grew by 2.4% from a year earlier, below April’s 8.0% increase and forecasts for growth of 3.0%. On the other side of the ledger imports slid by 8.7%, far below April’s 4.2% contraction and expectations for a decline of 7.5%. Venezuela is about to get a $5 billion (£3.20 billion) loan from China for oil. Venezuela will receive a loan of $5 billion (£3.20 billion) from China in the coming months for crude oil projects, a director at state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela said on Tuesday. China has become Venezuela's principal financier over the last decade, lending more than $46 billion (£29.40 billion) to be repaid in oil. Adobe revenue jumped. Photoshop maker Adobe Systems Inc reported an 8.8% rise in quarterly revenue as more customers subscribed to its Creative Cloud and Document Cloud software suites. The company's net income rose to $147.5 million (£94.29 million) in the second quarter ended May 29, from $88.5 million (£56.57 million) a year earlier. Asian markets are mixed. Japan's Nikkei is down, 0.16% lower than Tuesday's close, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng is up 0.77% and the Shanghai Composite Index is up 0.22%. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: Forget the Apple Watch — here's the new watch everyone on Wall Street wants  | ||
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Hello! Here's what you need to know for Wednesday.
Indonesian police say Australia paid people-smugglers: reports | ||
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Sydney (AFP) - Indonesian police insist Australian authorities paid the crew of a people-smuggling boat US$31,000 to turn back, displaying thousands of US dollars as proof, reports said Wednesday. West Timor police also claim that the 65 asylum-seekers and six Indonesian crew were placed onto two wooden boats for the return trip, with one running out of fuel and the other crashing on a reef before making land. "We have given you the evidence," General Endang Sunjaya told the Sydney Morning Herald, which ran a front page image of him displaying a photograph of US$100 notes. "It's now up to you and other organisations to demand an answer from the Australian government." Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott is facing intense pressure over the alleged payments, which he has refused to confirm or deny, saying he does not comment on operational matters. Senior government minister Scott Morrison said he did not feel the need to respond to the allegations. "We've always done things lawfully and we will continue to do that," the former immigration minister said. But Indonesia has pushed for answers, with Vice President Jusuf Kalla warning Monday that paying people-smugglers would amount to "bribery". Reports on Wednesday said that the people-smuggling boat at the centre of the allegations left West Java for New Zealand in early May carrying 65 mostly Sri Lankan asylum-seekers. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation said according to the Indonesian police's initial findings, the boat was intercepted twice by Australian authorities. The first time they were warned not to cross into Australian waters but were allowed to continue on their way. The second time they were detained, with the Indonesian captain Yohanis Humiang allegedly taken onboard an Australian Customs ship and told his boat was not in good enough condition to reach New Zealand. According to the police findings, a deal was then struck under which the asylum-seeker boat would return to Indonesia, with the captain paid US$6,000 and the five crew US$5,000 each, the ABC said. After being anchored at Australia's Ashmore Reef for two days, the 65 asylum-seekers were allegedly placed in two other wooden boats, along with three Indonesian crew in each, life-jackets, food, a map and directions to Indonesia's Rote Island, the ABC said. But approaching the island, about eight hours away, one boat ran out of fuel -- so all 71 people ended up on the other vessel, which later ran aground near the island off West Timor. Villagers helped rescue the asylum-seekers and notified the Indonesian police, leading to the arrest of the six crew who remain in custody after questioning, reports said. "We believe the payments happened," Endang told the Herald. "They all said the same thing: they were paid by Australian officials to return to Indonesia." Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Hong Kong braces for political showdown in key reform vote | ||
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Hong Kong (AFP) - Hong Kong prepared for a political showdown Wednesday with lawmakers set to vote on a divisive reform package and tensions high over an alleged explosives plot that police said was linked to a "radical" group. The vote pits democracy campaigners against the government in the culmination of a fraught chapter which saw tens of thousands of protesters take to the streets last year over the controversial electoral roadmap. Although the government's reform proposal would for the first time give all residents the right to vote for the chief executive in 2017, it adheres to a Beijing ruling that candidates must be vetted by a loyalist committee. The plan is derided as "fake democracy" by opposition lawmakers, who have vowed to vote against it and deny the two-thirds majority it needs to pass. Authorities in Hong Kong have said repeatedly that they cannot diverge from Beijing's August ruling, which sparked weeks of mass rallies that brought parts of the city to a standstill. The bill goes before lawmakers for debate Wednesday afternoon, with the vote expected to take place by Friday. Hundreds of protesters from both sides gathered outside the legislature on Wednesday morning. They were kept apart by metal barriers while police guarded the entrance to the building. "I'm here to oppose the so-called democracy," said protester Fion Wong, in her forties. "Passing it (the bill) would be a betrayal to those who have taken part in the Occupy movement," she added, referring last year's mass protests. Civic Party lawmaker Alan Leong urged cheering pro-democracy supporters to "continue to fight". Meanwhile pro-government supporters waved Chinese national flags and shouted "2017, make it happen!" through loudspeakers.
- City at crossroads -
Political analyst Sonny Lo called the vote "a critical juncture" and said the bill was unlikely to pass due to the pan-democrats' pledge. That paves the way for a further schism between Hong Kong and Beijing, he said. "Beijing will lay the blame on those democrats who torpedo the political reform bill, which (it) believes represents a sincere concession from the central government." It comes after police arrested 10 people "on suspicion of conspiracy to manufacture explosives", and seized materials they said could be used to make the highly-volatile explosive TATP. Police said one suspect had claimed to be a member of a "radical local group" named by local media as the National Independent Party. The group was reportedly linked to the pro-democracy "localist" movement that is seeking a more independent Hong Kong. Five men and one woman were jointly charged with conspiracy to cause an explosion and were due to appear in court Wednesday, while one man and three women were freed on bail pending further investigations. But activists accused the authorities of a smear campaign, with many saying they had never heard of the group. The Hong Kong government has said political reform would be off the table if the current package is rejected. China has not made clear what its response will be should the plan be vetoed. Some fear more radicalism could emerge if the impasse continues. "With the current political deadlock... Hong Kong is moving to a situation where it could be unstable and could be more violent," said Surya Deva, an associate professor at Hong Kong's City University school of law. Hong Kong is semi-autonomous after being handed back to China by Britain in 1997 and sees much greater freedoms than on the mainland, but there are fears that those are being eroded. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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How Stephen Curry became the best shooter in the NBA | ||
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Stephen Curry, the NBA's MVP, broke his own record for most three-pointers in a season this year. As a 44% career three-point shooter who's made an average of nearly 200 three-pointers per season, he's on pace to crush the record for most all-time three-pointers. Between a smooth stroke and deft ball-handling ability, Curry is practically unguardable, a threat 30 feet from the basket that can single-handedly change defensive schemes. Curry's rise to becoming the best shooter in the NBA, and perhaps all-time, comes from a pattern of hard work and intense preparation that has paid off immensely. Here's some of how he did it. 1. His father, Dell, played 16 seasons in the NBA and shot 40% from three for his career. So maybe some of of Steph's skill comes from genetics. His father, Dell, was widely considered one of the best shooters in the NBA when he played. Curry was apparently a great shooter from the beginning. ESPN's Tom Friend wrote a great profile detailing Steph and Dell's relationship (along with Klay Thompson and his father, Mychal, who played in the NBA). Dell told Friend that when he played for the Bucks, he and 11-year-old Steph would regularly compete against other NBA players in H-O-R-S-E competitions during practice and the two would consistently win. 2. He's hard-working and fiercely competitive. These are, of course, common traits in professional athletes, but it takes an exceptionally competitive and determined person to become, perhaps literally, the best at any one skill. This is also comes with a sort of killer instinct. According to Sports Illustrated's Lee Jenkins, Curry was torching people on the court before he was even in high school. Dell told Jenkins that he once left one of Curry's eighth grade games early because he was beating the other team so badly. "I had to get out of there," Dell said. "I felt bad for the other team. I couldn’t watch what he was doing to those kids." Curry's college coach, Bob McKillop, said Curry was consistently the hardest-working player at Davidson and told Cory Collins of Sporting News that Curry had a "fire that raged within him."
3. He re-taught himself how to shoot in high school to adapt to bigger, better players. Though Curry is now 6'3", he was a late-bloomer and before he grew he reportedly used to shoot a sort of flick shot that he released from his chest. As his competition got bigger and better, Dell helped Curry change his shooting form so that his release point was above his head. He had to re-learn how to shoot the ball. Curry told SI's Chris Ballard it was "the most frustrating summer," saying: "I really couldn't shoot outside the paint for like the first three weeks. All summer when I was at camps people were like, 'Who are you, why are you playing basketball?' I was really that bad for a month and a half [before] I finally figured it out." 4. He uses an insane "flashing lights" test to work on his ball-handling while improving his reflexes and focus. Curry told Ron Kroichick of the San Francisco Chronicle: "The lights mimic what’s happening on the court. If there’s a defender in front of me, then I’ve got to know where he is and still be ready to initiate whatever move I’m going to make." The test looks dizzying:
Curry works diligently on his ball-handling, not just because he has the ball most as the Warriors point guard, but he also can use his dribbling to create shots for himself. When he gets open, he can quickly seize the opportunity:
Warriors coach Steve Kerr told Kroichick, "[Curry] has the best skill set I’ve ever seen in terms of the combination of shooting and ballhandling, along with speed and quickness.” 5. He practices a combination of fundamental and extremely detailed footwork that allows him to move, get into rhythm, and be ready to shoot easily and quickly. The idea is that if Curry can master the actual physical movements he needs, the rest can come naturally. SI's Rob Mahoney profiled some of Curry's behind-the-scenes work, with Curry telling him: "We do a warm-up drill every day that we practice where we literally work on just pivoting, stepping through, and pick-and-roll footwork. Just break it down, step by step. Those things happen so many times in a game that you might take it for granted—just the coordination it takes to be explosive in certain situations on the floor. So we work on that in practice. Outside of that, I just kind of work on footwork in moves that I normally will make in a game, whether it's dribble moves into shots or the footwork coming off a screen, things like that. You drill that while you're getting shots up so that you'll obviously be efficient and make your workouts tough. But staying on top of that simple fundamental makes you a little bit faster, a little bit more creative, a little bit more efficient on the floor." Warriors assistant Bruce Fraser added, "He's always constantly pushing himself to make shots challenging so that when he gets in the game he's done that a lot.” Curry puts so much work into his craft that he's able to get away with some of the most ridiculous shots in the NBA. Few players can even pull off this move, let alone make the shot and make it look good:
6. Finally, Curry gets up plenty of shots. Lee Jenkins describes a shooting drill that Curry does in which he takes 10 shots from five different locations on the three-point line, going back and forth until he takes 100. According to Jenkins, former Warriors assistant coach Brian Scalabrine told Curry that Kyle Korver does the drill, calling Korver the best spot-up shooter in the NBA. Curry took offense to the title and now does the drill regularly. Jenkins describes the scene as Curry does it: Curry sets up in the right corner and splashes nine of 10. "Good," says special assistant Nick U’Ren, rebounding for him. Curry moves to the right wing and cans 10 of 10. "Better," U’Ren nods. Curry skips to the top of the circle and drains 10 of 10 again. U’Ren turns to a couple of spectators under the basket. "Wow," he mouths. Here it is, the Curry Zone. He starts 48 of 50...He sweeps back across the perimeter, hitting 10 of 10 from the left corner, 10 of 10 from the left wing. Teammates are watching. Cameras are filming. "Don’t get giddy," Curry tells himself. He’s made 77 in a row, and when he finally misfires from the top of the circle, he grabs Green’s jersey and screams. He finishes 94 of 100. Fraser also told Jenkins that Curry will occasionally get "bored" with the drill and become less accurate. That's when coaches and staff challenge him other drills and shooting competitions, which Fraser says, "He needs the action. And when he gets it, he just snaps on." Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 12 awesome facts about WWE superstar Brock Lesnar  | ||
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Golden State Warriors capture NBA championship | ||
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Cleveland (AFP) - Steph Curry and Andre Iguodala each scored 25 points as the Golden State Warriors captured their first NBA title in 40 years by defeating Cleveland 105-97 to win the NBA Finals. The Warriors on Tuesday took the best-of-seven series four games to two over the Cavaliers to claim their first title since 1975 and fourth overall. Iguodala, who played a reserve role this season before becoming a starter in the finals, produced a season high in points while Draymond Green added 16 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists for Golden State. Curry joined Magic Johnson and Bob Cousy as the only point guards to win the regular-season NBA Most Valuable Player award and capture the league title in the same season. LeBron James scored 32 points, grabbed 18 rebounds and passed out nine assists to lead the Cavaliers, who could not bring Cleveland its first sports title since 1964. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Ex-Turkey president, PM Suleyman Demirel dies aged 90: state media | ||
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Istanbul (AFP) - Turkey's former president and prime minister Suleyman Demirel, a giant figure in the country's politics for over half a century, died Wednesday, the state Anatolia news agency said. He was 90. Demirel served as prime minister several times in the 1960s and 1970s before serving as head of state from 1993-2000. He died of heart failure resulting from a severe respiratory tract infection, Anatolia said, quoting the private Ankara hospital where he was treated. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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The Golden State Warriors beat LeBron and the Cavs, win a classic NBA Finals | ||
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In a classic series between the league's best team and the league's best player, the Golden State Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers in six games to win the NBA title. With Kevin Love out for the year, Kyrie Irving injured in Game 1, and J.R. Smith and Iman Shumpert mired in shooting slumps, LeBron James turned in one of the most extraordinary one-man performances in Finals history. He took on the role of creator, distributor, and scorer. He played, at times, point guard, center, and forward. He led his team in points, rebounds, and assists. Game 6, a 105-97 loss, was his weakest game of the series, and he still had 32 points, 18 rebounds, and nine assists. He did everything an individual player can conceivably do in a series, but it was ultimately an impossible task. The Warriors were simply too good. They were the deeper, fresher, more skilled team in the Finals, and Stephen Curry and Co. lifting the trophy was the proper ending to a dominant season.
The turning point of the series came in Game 4. Down 2-1 on the road, the Warriors decided to go all-in on a small-ball lineup they'd used as a sort of secret weapon all year. They brought Andre Iguodala into the starting lineup in place of Andrew Bogut, and played the six-foot-seven Draymond Green at center. It worked. Golden State finally got rolling offensively in a comfortable win in Game 4, despite a dominant performance from Cavs big man Timofey Mozgov. That game spooked Cavs coach David Blatt so much that he benched Mozgov for almost all of Game 5, which the Warriors won anyway with a strong fourth-quarter push. Blatt brought back Mozgov for Game 6, but it wasn't enough, and the Warriors beat the fatigued Cavaliers to win the series. Iguodala, who didn't start a game this year until Game 4, won Finals MVP. Curry was overshadowed by LeBron for much of the series, but he came up big in the final three games. As the Cavs tried to mount one final comeback in Game 6, Curry hit two huge threes and created another one with an assist to put Cleveland away for good: Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: This is why LeBron James is in such good shape  | ||
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Asian cities half of top 10 costliest expat destinations: survey | ||
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Hong Kong (AFP) - Asia has become one of the most expensive regions for people working abroad, according to a new survey, with its major cities accounting for half of the top 10 costliest expat destinations. Hong Kong climbed one place from last year to become the world's second most expensive place for expats, Mercer said in its annual Cost of Living Survey on Tuesday, with Singapore, Shanghai, Beijing and Seoul also making the shortlist. Much of the change in rankings is down to currency fluctuations, with the appreciation of the yuan against the dollar pushing up the cost of living in China, which now accounts for nine of the top 30 most expensive expat cities in the world. "Chinese cities jumped in the ranking due to the strengthening of the Chinese yuan along with the high costs of expatriate consumer goods," said Mercer executive Nathalie Constantin-Metral in a statement. By contrast Tokyo, ranked the most expensive city for expats in 2012, fell four places from last year to number 11 due to a slump in the Japanese currency after a massive easing programme by its central bank. "Japanese cities have continued to drop in the ranking this year as a result of the Japanese yen weakening against the US dollar," added Constantin-Metral. Overall, the cost of living in Western European cities dropped due to a slide in the euro. The three cities that made the top 10 -- Zurich, Geneva and Bern -- use the Swiss Franc, which jumped in January after the central bank removed a ceiling on its strength. Leading the rankings was the Angolan capital Luanda, which retained its top spot due to the high price of imported goods and security services used by many foreigners. The survey by the Mercer consulting group compares the cost of over 200 items in 207 cities, including housing, food, transport and entertainment. It takes New York as its base city for comparison, and measures currency movements against the dollar, which has appreciated significantly from a year ago as the health of the US economy has improved. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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A teenager was killed after using an app to find his lost cell phone | ||
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Canadian law enforcement are stumped by a case involving a teenager killed for trying to reclaim his lost cell phone. 18-year-old Jeremy Cook apparently left the smartphone in a cab over the weekend, police tell CBC News. London Police Constable Ken Steeves told the publication Cook used a mobile tracking app to trace the device to an address where he and a relative who accompanied him were "confronted by three men in a car." The exchange escalated and the car began to drive off, but police say Cook grabbed on to the driver's door. He was shot multiple times, and later died from his wounds. The car and the phone were recovered, and investigators are now examining surveillance footage to try to piece together what happened. Cook's death has prompted law enforcement to urge the public to think twice about using mobile apps to track lost devices — more specifically, using them to retrieve the lost items on their own. "The app itself is a great tool to have ... but if you suspect there's any potential for violence at all, we certainly encourage people to contact police," Steeves told CBC News. Investigators on the case are left to ponder why someone would go to such lengths to retrieve a phone. IDC Canada's mobile phones analyst Sanjay Khanna had a suggestion. "Our attachment to our data is so strong that it might prompt people to not be as cautious as authorities might wish us to be," Khanna told CBC News. Join the conversation about this story » NOW WATCH: 70 people were injured while filming this movie with 100 untamed lions  | ||
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Australia and China sign bumper free trade deal | ||
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Sydney (AFP) - Australia and China signed a landmark trade deal Wednesday after a decade of talks, providing a boon for growth and jobs by abolishing tariffs across a raft of sectors. "This is a momentous and historic day for our two countries. It will change our countries for the better, it will change our region for the better, it will change our world for the better," Prime Minister Tony Abbott after the deal was inked in Canberra. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Out of patience, IMF flexes muscles in Greek debt crisis | ||
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Washington (AFP) - The International Monetary Fund has lost patience over Greece and is making it known. The crisis lender over the past few days has publicly laid out its demands for Greece in the long-running fight over bailout funding, but also did the same with the Europeans, showing a new frustration with their hard line. Until now, the IMF had left it to its European partners to lead "constructive talks" with Athens over what the country should be required to do to get another 7.2 billion euros ($8.1 billion) in bailout funding. Greece needs the money to avoid falling in default on its loans, but it has refused to agree to more tough reforms and austerity measures required by the IMF, European Central Bank and European Commission. But the series of fruitless meetings in Brussels has pushed the Fund to change its tone under the impetus of its managing director, Christine Lagarde, fed up with the hesitation of the Europeans and Athens' intransigence. The first sign of this came from IMF spokesman Gerry Rice, who last week was uncharacteristically frank when others were suggesting progress in the negotiations. "There are still major differences between us in most key areas," Rice told reporters. "There has been no progress in narrowing these differences recently. Thus we are well away from an agreement." When that failed to elicit a change, three days later on Sunday IMF chief economist Olivier Blanchard stepped up the pressure, calling on the Europeans to take "difficult decisions" and agree to lighten Greece's debt service burden, something eurozone leaders would have trouble selling to their voters. The Fund's going public with views it has reserved for private discussions in the past has not endeared it to anyone, especially the Greeks. On Tuesday Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras denounced the IMF's "criminal responsibility" for the country's desperate situation. It also revived nagging tensions dating back to the initial Greek rescue when Germany insisted the IMF join in the rescue of Greece. "It was an error to invite the IMF to the negotiating table," European deputy Alain Lamassoure told the newspaper Les Echos. German Chancellor Angela Merkel "had hopes for it at the time, but she was wrong because the problem should have stayed in the European family."
- Credibility -
In taking its frustrations public, The IMF knows that it will become the target. But the institution is convinced that it now has little choice, with Athens out of money and scheduled to pay the Fund back 1.5 billion euros ($1.7 billion) by the end of this month. "The IMF wants to intensify its pressure on the Europeans. We're at the end of the game, everybody is trying to use its last bullet," said Andrea Montanino, who formerly represented Italy on the IMF executive board. "The IMF would be the first to loose money, and it tries to do whatever it can to preserve its resources." For several years now the Greece bailout has poisoned relations between its creditors. But the IMF is running out of time and credibility. The Fund in theory can only lend to countries which are at or can be brought to the point where their debt burden is sustainable. But Greece's problems were so deep the IMF had to amend its rules before it approved loans worth 48 billion euros to the country. The caused a lot of grumbling internally. Desmond Lachman, formerly with the IMF's European department, said the special treatment Greece received "has fueled frustration among emerging countries that are seeing this as unfair." Added to this is another challenge, more political in nature. Christine Lagarde's term as IMF managing director comes to an end in July 2016, and what happens in Greece will weigh heavy if she seeks to renew the job. "If Greece blows up and default on the IMF, this would be a huge failure for her," said Lachman. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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South Korea court rules in favor of gay pride parade | ||
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Seoul (AFP) - South Korea's gay pride organisers have won a court battle against conservatives and police seeking to block their parade celebrating sexual minorities late this month, they said Wednesday. The Seoul Administrative Court on Tuesday ruled in favor of parade organisers, invalidating a police ban on the parade imposed last month. Police had cited public safety concerns and traffic disruptions as the reasons behind the ban. "Assemblies can be prohibited only when they directly threaten public order," the court said in a statement. It also noted that the organisers of the annual parade had long been preparing for the event and therefore would suffer great damage should the event be scrapped. "We welcome the decision," Kang Myeong-Jin, chief of the Korea Queer Culture Festival told journalists. "The court has sent a message to the public that sexual minorities should also be guaranteed rights to speech as a member of a democratic society," he said. Following the decision, the gay pride parade will take place on June 28 in the centre of Seoul as scheduled, wrapping up the annual festival that kicked off on June 9. More than 20,000 people including lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders are expected to take part in the gala parade, the organisers said. But they face fervent and vocal opposition from conservative Christian groups who plan to stage a street march in protest. Gay and transgender Koreans live largely under the radar in a country that remains deeply conservative about matters of sexual identity and where many still regard homosexuality as a foreign phenomenon. Gay rights activists say some progress has been made in recent years, but the police ban on the parade was the first since the annual Queer Culture Festival began 15 years ago. The parade has in recent years attracted a growing number of participants -- but also an equally swelling crowd of critics. Last year, Christian activists disrupted the parade by lying down in the street. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Spieth, McIlroy head strong US Open field | ||
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Tacoma (United States) (AFP) - Jordan Spieth will be chasing the second leg of golf's Grand Slam, but he will have to contend with world No. 1 Rory McIlroy and some legends of the game at the US Open which begins Thursday. Reigning Masters champion Spieth and McIlroy head up a strong field of 156 that includes the top 60 players in the world squaring off on a course unlike any other that has ever hosted a US Open. Sprinkle in a few legends of the game like six-time runner up Phil Mickelson and former world number one Tiger Woods on the quirky links-style Chambers Bay course, and you have a US Open that promises to deliver plenty of surprises. "You are going to see some different things this week than you have probably seen in any other major championship we play," said Woods on Tuesday after his practice round. "To win any major you have to be patient. This one in particular because there are so many different variables. Unlike any golf links we play, we don't have elevation changes like this. "You are going to get some funky bounces out there. The ball is going to catch slopes. You are going to see some guys hit terrible shots and end up in kicking range from the hole." Spieth aims to become the first to sweep the Masters and US Open since Woods achieved it in 2002. The Texan has an ace up his sleeve in caddie Michael Greller, who worked at Chambers Bay before carrying Spieth's bag on the PGA Tour. "I feel like if there's any advantage, it would be towards us with his knowledge of the place," Spieth said of Greller. Phil Mickelson, six times an US Open runner-up, will take another crack at adding the final piece to complete a career Grand Slam and Woods is trying to salvage some respect after shooting a career-high 85 in his most recent outing at The Memorial. Don't count out the Europeans this week, especially McIlroy. There is also defending champion Martin Kaymer, Henrik Stenson and 2013 champion Justin Rose to watch. Europeans now have captured four of the past five US Opens, a switch from the 40-year drought between Tony Jacklin’s win in 1970 and Graeme McDowell triumph in 2010. Spieth, 21, has played 16 PGA Tour events this season and along with his two victories he has three runner-ups and nine top ten finishes. "It is going to be a lot of speed control," he said of Chambers Bay. "It is going to be different short game shots, almost like you are playing an Open Championship." That might be music to the ears of McIlroy as he is the reigning British Open champion and is coming off a victory at the Wells Fargo event in his last US outing in May. McIlroy has played seven US PGA Tour events this season, winning two of his last three, but he missed the cut at his last event in the European PGA Championship at Wentworth. Sandwiched between his wins at the Wells Fargo and the WGC-Cadillac Match Play is a tie for eighth at The Players Championship. He has had five top 10 finishes and missed one cut at The Honda Classic. Like most of the field, he looking forward to seeing what Chambers Bay, located 50 kilometres (31 miles) southwest of Seattle, will deliver. "It's hugely important, a chance to win a second US Open and the fifth major," McIlroy said. Woods will need all the extra practice time he can get in this week after shooting a 13-over par 85 at The Memorial just 10 days ago. But he is optimistic about his chances because he played well at the 2015 Masters despite not having much success in his previous two tournaments heading into Augusta. "I'm sure most people thought I was crazy to think I could win The Masters. But I really felt like I had a chance," Woods said. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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Argentina back on track as Aguero sinks Uruguay | ||
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La Serena (Chile) (AFP) - Sergio Aguero reignited Argentina's Copa America challenge here Tuesday, scoring the only goal as the favourites defeated historic rivals Uruguay 1-0 in a hard-fought first round clash. English Premier League star Aguero headed home a cross from Manchester City team-mate Pablo Zabaleta in the 56th minute to settle a gritty encounter that leaves the Argentines on pole to win Group B. Uruguay's defeat means the 2011 champions must now beat Paraguay in their final group game to be certain of clinching a place in the last eight, although they could still reach the knockout rounds as one of the best third placed teams. Tuesday's match between the 1930 World Cup finalists was the 199th encounter between the two South American rivals. A tense first half had seen Argentina, surprisingly held to a 2-2 draw by Paraguay in their opening game, dominate possession and territory but fail to break down a resolute Uruguayan defence. The two best chances of the opening period both fell to Argentina, with Manchester United winger Angel Di Maria testing Fernando Muslera in the ninth minute with an angled shot that the Uruguayan goalkeeper needed two attempts to gather. Muslera was pressed into action again midway through the half, producing a superb one-handed save to deny Aguero after the striker met Lionel Messi's sublime cross with a downward header. Tensions began to rise thereafter, with Argentina coach Gerardo Martino shown a red card by Brazilian referee Sandro Ricci in the 38th minute. On the stroke of half-time tempers flared once more with Argentina enforcer Javier Mascherano booked for sliding through Uruguay playmaker Nicolas Lodeiro, who had earlier seen yellow for a wild challenge on Zabaleta. Uruguay carved out their best effort in the opening minutes of the second half, Maxi Pereira uncorking a fierce shot that Argentina goalkeeper Sergio Romero did well to clear. With Messi being shadowed at every turn, it fell to others to break the deadlock and the game-changing moment came courtesy of Javier Pastore on 56 minutes. The Paris Saint-Germain midfielder showed sublime skill to release Zabaleta down the right, and the full-back took one touch before whipping in a cross to the near-post, met by Aguero to head home. Uruguay, who entered the tournament without Luis Suarez who is still suspended for biting Italy's Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup last year, were largely devoid of inspiration in attack with striker Edinson Cavani anonymous. But the holders were left ruing a glorious chance to equalise against the run of play in the 75th minute. Alvaro Perreira bludgeoned a shot goalwards that Romero was unable to control. The rebound fell invitingly for Diego Rolan but with the goal at his mercy from six yards out, the Bordeaux striker blazed over the bar. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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America's only water sommelier explains why the water from your tap is sometimes cloudy | ||
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Martin Riese knows a lot about water. Aside from being a certified water sommelier for Los Angeles’ Ray’s & Stark Bar, Riese also wrote an entire book about water in 2008 called "Die Welt des Wasser" (World of Water"). When I recently sat down with Riese for an exclusive “water tasting,” I figured he'd be the right person to ask a question about water that has plagued me for years. Why does the water from my tap start out cloudy before eventually becoming clear? Now, of course, I could have consulted Google. But why bother when you have the water expert right in front of you? “If your water looks milky, you should call your water department. The water isn’t unsafe, but there is a hole in the pipe that is sucking in air. The cloudiness is tiny bubbles of oxygen," Riese told me. "Somewhere, the water is exposed to oxygen or air. The pipes are under such pressure that they suck the air in and then pressure it into the water. Then when you let the water out from the faucet, the oxygen looks like carbonation in the water. When there is no more pressure from the pipes, the cloudiness will disappear.”
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Beatles' Abbey Road recording sessions to hit the stage | ||
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London (AFP) - The Beatles' recording sessions in London's Abbey Road Studios are being turned into a stage show at the city's Royal Albert Hall, the producers announced on Tuesday. "The Sessions at Abbey Road" will see the legendary British band's studio work recreated live at the Victorian concert hall on April 1, 2016. The performance will span their recording career from 1962 to 1969, and use 39 musicians and eight singers to cover all the overdubs, plus period equipment. The show will be a "musical documentary", said executive producer Stig Edgren, "giving audiences an honest, respectful and accurate recreation of how musical history was made". Abbey Road's Studio Two will be recreated in its exact dimensions (18 by 11.5 metres, 60 by 40 feet) on the floor of the circular Royal Albert Hall, complete with a mixing booth. The show's creative consultant is The Beatles' studio engineer Geoff Emerick and is inspired by his recollections of how lead guitarist George Harrison, rhythm guitarist John Lennon, bassist Paul McCartney and drummer Ringo Starr made their famous records. Producer Jef Hanlon said an "incredible amount" of research had gone into the show in a bid to make it as realistic as possible. "All instrumentation, arrangements and vocals will be performed identically to the original recordings. There will even be eight singers to recreate the multi-tracked vocals pioneered by The Beatles. "This show does not seek to be a look-a-like show, but rather a sound-a-like, with the singers being the best Beatles imitators in the world." Kim Gavin, the show's director, said: "The performance will be a technical ballet, a constant flow of movement of cast and musicians. "We are trying to create the look, feel and atmosphere of those famous sessions in Abbey Road." Ticket prices start at £55 ($85, 75 euros). More dates will be announced in future, the show's website said. Join the conversation about this story »  | ||
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13 brilliant ideas that turned these people into self-made billionaires | ||
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In general, nine out of 10 startups fail. But the ones who make it all have one thing in common: a brilliant idea. Like these self-made billionaires did with their companies. Larry Page and Sergey Brin were PhD students at Stanford when they first came up with the idea of a search engine. But their idea was a little different than the other search engines in the market: it would examine the number and relevance of links between pages, not just the keywords on them. Google's search engine now dominates the market, and the company has more than $66 billion in sales. It's now involved in other businesses too — it makes the most popular mobile phone platform in the world (Android) and runs the most popular video web site in the world (YouTube). It's also experimenting with all kinds of futuristic projects like Google Glass (seen here). Page and Brin are now each worth almost $30 billion. Mark Zuckerberg was a Harvard undergrad when he came up with the idea of a "hot or not" type of website called Facemash. From that site, Zuckerberg learned how technology could be used to connect people and launched a site called thefacebook.com. See the rest of the story at Business Insider  | ||
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