Science and technology

TikTok marked the end of the year with a celebration of community, creativity, and self-expression at its Year on TikTok 2022 event, which was an immersive spectacle held in Lahore. The event was an immersive real-life spectacle, where TikTok celebrated its Pakistani creator community, top videos and trends of the year with the end of year Creator Awards and exciting performances. TikTok is a place where creators share their talents, creativity, and interests with their community and help create cultural movements and raise awareness around societal issues on the platform. TikTok celebrated some of the most inspiring creators with the TikTok Creator Awards, where winners were announced across 11 categories, including entertainment, lifestyle and sports, as well as the award for the Top Creator of the year. These creators were awarded for their ability to engage with their audiences and create cultural movements that started on TikTok before moving to the physical world, creating a

Log into your LinkedIn profile and search the term “Content Writer”, or “Blogger”, or even “Copywriter”. You’ll be surprised of how many individuals have associated themselves with these terms as their profile will appear in your search feed. I have always though that being a digital content writer, or a copywriter is easy. I have seen people engaged in copywriting and content writing for websites and adverts who are not even in this field and yet they do one heck of a job. My cousin who is an electrical engineer does not need to hire a professional copywriter or a content writer for his B2B business since he himself can craft an impressive copy that feels appealing and likely to grab the scroller’s attention. I have similarly seen multiple people writing down amazing content despite the fact that they do not belong to the field of content or copywriting. And yet they do not need to hire one for their start-up. As a writer myself, it often makes me perplexed about whether content

The Japanese unit of failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX said on Friday it would return its customer assets from February. FTX Japan is developing a system with which customers can withdraw assets via the website of Liquid Japan, a crypto exchange it bought in February this year. “We deeply apologise for the big trouble caused by the prolonged suspension of services for the withdrawal of legal currency as well as crypto assets,” FTX Japan said in a statement. FTX filed for U.S. bankruptcy protection in November and its founder Sam Bankman-Fried resigned as chief executive, after the biggest blowup in the crypto industry drew calls for tighter regulation. FTX was run as ‘personal fiefdom,’ faces hacks, missing assets  FTX’s fall from grace has sent shivers through the crypto world, driving bitcoin to its lowest level in around two years and triggering fears of contagion among other firms already reeling from the collapse in the crypto market this year. from Science and Technolog

Coiffeurs across Belgium are sweeping up and bagging hair clipped from their customers, and then handing it over to an NGO that recycles it to protect the environment. The Hair Recycle project feeds locks and tresses into a machine that turns them into matted squares that can be used to absorb oil and other hydrocarbons polluting the environment, or made into bio-composite bags.   View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Hair Recycle (@hairrecycle) Project Co-founder Patrick Janssen, explaining that 1 kilogram (2.2 lbs) of hair can absorb 7-8 litres (1.8-2.1 U.S. gallons) of oil and hydrocarbons, said the mats can be placed in drains to soak up pollution in water before it reaches a river. The project said on its  website  that hair has powerful properties: one strand can support up to 10 million times its own weight, and as well as absorbing fat and hydrocarbons, it is water-soluble and highly elastic due to its keratin fibres. Isab

The past is premise to the future, and thus what oncoming year 2023 might bring to us, is largely predicate on what it is inheriting from outgoing 2022, which started off terribly for Pakistan with some 21 lives being lost to Murree calamity. From Covid flat-lining globally to inflation spiking, from Russian invasion of Ukraine to oil and energy fiasco, from sporting events to art, and from terrorism rearing its head to women in this age being kept from education, this year was marred by wounding events whose scars won’t just wash off overnight as the year bids farewell on the new year eve. ALSO WATCH: From Jinnah to Khan: chronicling assassination attempts In this brief recap, we thought to string up the watershed events that shaped 2022 and that stand out remarkably. For more stories and documentaries subscribe  ARY Stories from Science and Technology News - Latest science and technology news https://ift.tt/lJfHw2d

WhatsApp is planning to introduce a multiple-chat selection feature for its desktop version, which will help users easily manage their chats. As per a  recent report  by  WABetaInfo , WhatsApp is working on adding a new ‘Select Chats’ option to its web/desktop client. Currently, it’s a rather tedious task to perform these actions for multiple chats on WhatsApp for Desktop. A screenshot in the report shows the new ‘Select Chats’ option under the chat menu present in the top right corner. You can have a look at what this looks like. You should know that this feature is still under development and there’s no word on when it will reach users. We can expect the new multiple chat selection feature to be a part of the next year’s WhatsApp feature drop. Read more: WhatsApp Desktop app underway but you can download beta version now In addition to this, the Meta-owned messaging platform is also expected to introduce the ability to report Status updates on its desktop version in case ther

Tesla Inc Chief Executive Elon Musk told employees that they should not be “bothered by stock market craziness” after the company’s shares fell nearly 70% this year on jitters over softening demand for electric vehicles and Musk’s distraction with running Twitter. In an email sent to staff on Wednesday and reviewed by Reuters, Musk said he believes that long term, Tesla will be the most valuable company on earth. He also urged employees to ramp up deliveries at the end of this quarter, after the automaker offered discounts on its vehicles in the United States and China. “Please go all out for the next few days and volunteer to help deliver if at all possible. It will make a real difference!” he said in the email. Analysts expect Tesla to deliver 442,452 vehicles in the fourth quarter, according to Refinitiv data. Tesla’s plummeting share price has hurt the value of shares owned by the EV maker’s employees. Tesla has offered stock compensation for most employees including factory

From “intelligent” vacuum cleaners and driverless cars to advanced techniques for diagnosing diseases, artificial intelligence (AI) has burrowed its way into every arena of modern life. Its promoters reckon it is revolutionising human experience, but critics stress that the technology risks putting machines in charge of life-changing decisions. Regulators in Europe and North America are worried. The European Union is likely to pass legislation next year — the AI Act — aimed at reining in the age of the algorithm. The United States recently published a blueprint for an AI Bill of Rights and Canada is also mulling legislation. Looming large in the debates has been China’s use of biometric data, facial recognition and other technology to build a powerful system of control.   Gry Hasselbalch, a Danish academic who advises the EU on the controversial technology, argued that the West was also in danger of creating “totalitarian infrastructures”. “I see that as a huge threat, no ma

WhatsApp, the world’s most using messenger app around the globe owned by Meta will stop working over 47 Smartphone models after December 31. The messenger app is usually release end of support list and add newer devices to the support list as the software got updated by this year end. The Meta-owned app is eliminating over 40 old mobile models including most popular brands Apple and Samsung. WhatsApp intends its user smooth experience to the app, but due to the old software version it won’t be able to keep the app running smoothly due to which the company suspended further updates to the following Smartphone devices. Let’s take a look at the complete list of devices that are set to lose WhatsApp support after December 31. Apple iPhone 5 Apple iPhone 5c Archos 53 Platinum LG Optimus L5 II LG Optimus L7 LG Optimus L7 II LG Optimus L7 II Dual LG Optimus Nitro HD Memo ZTE V956 Samsung Galaxy Ace 2 Samsung Galaxy Core Samsung Galaxy S2 Samsung Galaxy S3 mini Samsung Galax

India is planning a $2 billion incentive programme for the green hydrogen industry, three sources told Reuters, in a bid to cut emissions and become a major export player in the field. The 180-billion-rupee ($2.2 billion) incentive aims to reduce the production cost of green hydrogen by a fifth over the next five years, said a senior government official and an industry manager working in renewable energy. It would do this in part by increasing the scale of the industry, they said. The current cost in India is 300 rupees to 400 rupees per kg, said the manager. The United States and the European Union have already approved incentives worth billions of dollars for green hydrogen projects. Hydrogen can be used as a fuel. It is made by splitting water with an electrical process, electrolysis. If the devices that do that, electrolysers, are powered by renewable energy, the product is called green hydrogen, a fuel free of greenhouse emissions. The Indian aid could be announced in the Fe

SpaceX Chief Executive Elon Musk said on Monday that the company is now close to having 100 active Starlinks, the firm’s satellite internet service, in Iran, three months after he tweeted he would activate the service there amid protests around the Islamic country. Musk said, “approaching 100 starlinks active in Iran”, in a tweet on Monday. The billionaire had said in September that he would activate Starlink in Iran as part of a U.S.-backed effort “to advance internet freedom and the free flow of information” to Iranians. The satellite-based broadband service could help Iranians circumvent the government’s restrictions on accessing the internet and certain social media platforms amid protests around the country. The Islamic Republic has been engulfed in protests that erupted after the death in September of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody after being arrested by the morality police for wearing “unsuitable attire”. from Science and Technology News - Latest science and

While lizards change colour based on their surroundings, some frog species have a unique ability to turn their appearance on and off.  In South and Central America, some species of frogs go a step further in their camouflaging talent – They can turn on and off their nearly transparent appearance. While this ability has been a mystery for a long time, some researchers have now revealed the secrets of frog transparency. The transparent frogs are nocturnal in nature. They are creatures that sleep during the day and stay active at night. During the day, they hang underneath tree leaves. As their bodies are greenish and delicate, they hardly cast any shadow, rendering them almost invisible to birds and predators. But things are a different for northern glass frogs. They take on an opaque reddish-brown colour when they wake up and hop around in search of food and mate, according to an Associated Press report. According to Junjie Yao, a Duke University biomedical engineer and study co

ISLAMABAD: The officials of the Information Technology (IT) ministry on Monday said the payment issue with Google has been resolved.  The statement came in during the meeting of the Senate standing committee on Information Technology held here in Islamabad. The officials said on the directions of Prime Minister Shehabz Sharif, payment has been made to the Google companies and the issue now stands resolved. The meeting was also briefed that two new infrastructure companies have been issued licences, adding that chip manufacturing will also begin in Pakistan soon. Earlier, Federal Information Technology and Telecommunication Minister Aminul Haque said a letter had been sent to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar regarding the telecom operators’ concerns over the blocking of payment to Google. Read more: SBP issues clarification on holding payments to Google In a statement, Haque added that a few days ago, all telecom operators had penned a letter to his ministry, expressing their concerns

Twitter restored a feature that promoted suicide prevention hotlines and other safety resources to users looking up certain content, after coming under pressure from some users and consumer safety groups over its removal. Reuters reported on Friday that the feature was taken down a few days ago, citing two people familiar with the matter, who said the removal was ordered by the social media platform’s owner Elon Musk. After publication of the story, Twitter head of trust and safety Ella Irwin confirmed the removal and called it temporary. “We have been fixing and revamping our prompts. They were just temporarily removed while we do that,” Irwin said in an email to Reuters. “We expect to have them back up next week,” she said. About 15 hours after the initial report, Musk, who did not initially respond to requests for comment, tweeted “False, it is still there.” In response to criticism by Twitter users, he also tweeted “Twitter doesn’t prevent suicide.” The feature, known as #The

The telecom industry has introduced Multi Finger Biometric Verification System (MBVS), an enhanced version of biometric verification system, to thwart the sale of fake SIM cards. A ceremony was held at Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Headquarters for the signing of the contract between NADRA and cellular mobile operators (CMOs) after a smooth transition to the new BVS. The Multi-Finger Biometric Verification System (MBVS) will be used by telecom companies to verify users’ identities before issuing a new SIM. According to details provided by Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), the BVS devices available at sale channels have been upgraded to meet the requirements of the new system through NADRA and CMOs. Press Release: Telecom industry has started issuing SIMs through an enhanced version of Biometric Verification System (BVS) called Multi Finger Biometric Verification System ( #MBVS ). pic.twitter.com/HFqDFkPEvk — PTA (@PTAofficialpk) December 23, 2022 The

Twitter has removed a feature in the past few days that promoted suicide prevention hotlines and other safety resources to users looking up certain content, according to two people familiar with the matter who said it was ordered by new owner Elon Musk. After publication of this story, Twitter head of trust and safety Ella Irwin told Reuters in an email that “we have been fixing and revamping our prompts. They were just temporarily removed while we do that.” “We expect to have them back up next week,” she said. The removal of the feature, known as #ThereIsHelp, had not been previously reported. It had shown at the top of specific searches contacts for support organizations in many countries related to mental health, HIV, vaccines, child sexual exploitation, COVID-19, gender-based violence, natural disasters and freedom of expression. Its elimination had led to increased concerns about the well-being of vulnerable users on Twitter. Musk has said that impressions, or views, of harmf

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has started issuing SIMs through an enhanced version of the Biometric Verification System (BVS) called Multi Finger Biometric Verification System (MBVS), ARY News reported. According to details, a ceremony was held at the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) Headquarters to sign the contract between NADRA and cellular mobile operators (CMOs) after a seamless conversion to the updated version of the biometric system. The BVS devices that are currently available in the market have been modified to comply with the new system’s standards through NADRA and CMOs. While issuing new or duplicate SIM cards, the new system demands impressions of multiple fingers for authentication and applicant antecedents. Additionally , the control for the choice of fingers for verification purposes has been shifted from the seller representative to the system which asks for two different fingers’ impressions randomly. The implementation of the ne

Facebook owner Meta Platforms Inc (META.O) has agreed to pay $725 million to resolve a class-action lawsuit accusing the social media giant of allowing third parties, including Cambridge Analytica, to access users’ personal information. The proposed settlement, which was disclosed in a court filing late on Thursday, would resolve a long-running lawsuit prompted by revelations in 2018 that Facebook had allowed the British political consulting firm Cambridge Analytica to access data of as many as 87 million users. Lawyers for the plaintiffs called the proposed settlement the largest to ever be achieved in a U.S. data privacy class action and the most that Meta has ever paid to resolve a class action lawsuit. “This historic settlement will provide meaningful relief to the class in this complex and novel privacy case,” the lead lawyers for the plaintiffs, Derek Loeser and Lesley Weaver, said in a joint statement. Meta did not admit wrongdoing as part of the settlement, which is subjec

Tesla is offering $7,500 discounts on Model 3 and Model Y electric vehicles delivered in the United States this month, its website showed on Wednesday, amid concerns the automaker is facing softening demand as economies slow. That is up from the $3,750 discount it has offered on Model 3 and Model Y vehicles delivered before the end of the year. It has also recently started offering free supercharging for 10,000 miles (16,093 kms) for vehicles delivered in December. The latest discount came just days after the U.S. Treasury Department delayed restrictions on EV incentives until March, meaning Tesla and other U.S.-made electric vehicles will be likely to qualify for the full $7,500 in incentives starting January. Customers had canceled their orders and held off their purchases until the new credits take effect in January, weighing on Tesla demand. Analysts also worry that rising interest rates and Chief Executive Elon Musk’s Twitter distraction could hurt the Tesla brand and sales.

Ever since Gerald Muwonge tested positive for HIV eight years ago, keeping his viral load in check has meant carrying around vials of pills for his daily treatment regimen while dodging the stigma this could mean for him in Uganda. But he hopes that could soon change thanks to an injectable treatment that only needs to be taken once every two months. In October of last year, about 200 patients in the east African country began a trial of a World Health Organization-approved injection containing the drugs cabotegravir, or CAB-LA, and rilpivirine. Results are due in 2024. The treatment, developed by British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline, is the first non-pill option against HIV, and studies have shown it even outperforms the efficacy of oral pills. The GSK treatment secured U.S. approval late last year and was endorsed this year by the World Health Organization. GSK struck a deal in July to allow low-cost generic versions to be used in the developing world but said the first generics w

WhatsApp has bought in a new feature that allows users to undo the “Delete for Me” action to save an individual from being potentially embarrassed over accidentally deleting a message only for you that they wanted to pull for everyone on the app. The new feature, called “accidental delete,” offers a five-second window that allows users to undo the action of deleting messages for everyone or individual chat instead of just themselves. Many WhatsApp users sometimes land in a situation when they accidentally tap an unwanted action like “Delete for Me” instead of “Delete for Everyone” to delete a wrongly sent message. This new WhatsApp feature will help users to overcome this type of situation if anyone deletes a message from the chat a small window will appear having to undo the option to reverse their action. According to WABetaInfo (WhatsApp features tracker) report, this new offering would be available to all users on Android and iPhone devices soon as it is already tested on both

Elon Musk said Tuesday he would resign as chief executive of Twitter once he finds a replacement, in apparent response to a poll he launched that suggested users wanted him to step down. Elon Musk has fully owned Twitter since October 27 and has repeatedly courted controversy as CEO, sacking half of its staff, readmitting far-right figures to the platform, suspending journalists and trying to charge for previously free services. “I will resign as CEO as soon as I find someone foolish enough to take the job!” Musk tweeted, saying he will then only run software and server teams at Twitter. In the poll results which were posted on Monday, 57 percent of voters, or 10 million votes, favored Musk stepping down just weeks after he took ownership of the company for $44 billion. Musk has used the Twitter polls to take other decisions on the platform, including the reinstatement of the account of former US president Donald Trump and other suspended users. Earlier this week he used a laughi

To borrow from Britain’s Queen Elizabeth, 2022 is not a year on which the cryptocurrency world shall look back with undiluted pleasure. Crashes, contagion, collapses came in such quick succession that investors were, towards the end of the year, asking serious existential questions. After all, the largest cryptocurrency, bitcoin , has not kept its head above water for more than a week at a time, and is down about three-quarters from last November’s $69,000 peak. The market value of the 22,000-odd tokens and coins is now at less than a third of the peak $3 trillion in November 2021, and many of them are comatose, if not outright dead. That’s been a brutal reality check for an industry that kicked 2022 off with dreams of widespread mainstream institutional adoption, of bitcoin supplanting even gold as the world’s inflation hedge, as well as endorsements from the likes of Tesla Inc chief Elon Musk and the wild celebration of billion-dollar non-fungible tokens. Not only did cryptocu