Technology

    Scientists have a found a quick way — but not a cheap one — to turn heat-trapping carbon dioxide gas into harmless rock. Experts say the results of a two-year, $10 million experiment called CarbFix , conducted about one-third of a mile (540 meters) deep in the rocks of Iceland, offer new hope for an effective weapon to help fight man-made global warming. When an international team of scientists pumped a carbon dioxide and water mix into underground basalt rocks, basic chemistry took over. The acidic mixture dissolved the rocks' calcium magnesium and formed limestone, a permanent natural jail for the heat-trapping gas, according to Juerg Matter of the University of Southampton in England. He is the lead author of a study detailing the experiment published Thursday in the jo...

    Economy class looks set to get even more cramped as Airbus reveals a new cabin layout that can shoehorn 11 people into one row – enough to start a football team. The new A380 configuration raises the grim prospect of a middle middle seat, which suddenly makes holidaying at home an attractive option. Airbus says the new 3-5-3 seating plan – which could be used instead of the current 3-4-3 arrangement – would help airlines squeeze 23 additional passengers into economy class. The changes are part of a broader shakeup inside the A380 which includes a new stair galley at the rear of the plane and tweaks to the layout in premium economy and business class. In all, says Airbus, the changes could make space for an additional 70 passengers. The A380 is currently the biggest passeng...

    A massive data cable is to be built across the Atlantic running from Virginia Beach in the United States to Bilbao in Spain. The project, announced by Microsoft and Facebook, is the latest in a series of major cable projects which have become necessary because of the growing demand for bandwidth. Known as MAREA, it will be the fastest cable ever to cross the Atlantic. Construction is due to begin in August, with the work being completed in October next year. It will be operated by Telxius, a subsidiary of the Spanish telecommunications and broadband giant, Telefónica. About the width of a garden hose, it will significantly increase the amount of data which can be carried across the Atlantic. Around a dozen high capacity cables are being laid across the oceans by high-tech ...

    Nowadays, more and more people are being sucked into the latest phenomenon where they see a modern gadget in old image or an ancient piece of footage. Could it possibly be time travel? Whatever it may be, Apple CEO Tim Cook has fallen under its spell, reports CNET. As CNBC reports, Cook was enjoying an onstage chat with former European Commissioner Neelie Kroes at the Startup Fest in Amsterdam when he was asked, "Do you happen to know Tim, where and when the iPhone was invented?" As questions go, this might rank with: "Tim, do you know your name?" or "Tim, does Apple make magical, revolutionary products?" Cook's reply perhaps showed his fascination: "You know, I thought I knew until last night. Last night Neelie took me over to look at some Rembrandts, and in one of the pa...

    People are seen as silhouettes as they check mobile devices whilst standing against an illuminated wall bearing Facebook Inc.'s logo Ever felt like Facebook is a little bit lefty? Well, now it's defended itself against claims that it does favour one side of the political spectrum over the other by manipulating what appears on the site. Staff at the social network suppressed coverage of conservative politics in the US, according to a report, choosing not to include them in its trending topics section near the top of the site, despite the algorithm showing people were interested in the subject and talking about it. We take these reports extremely seriously, and have found no evidence that the anonymous allegations are true, said Facebook's vice president of search Tom Stocky...

    Popular social networking site Facebook has provided users’ information to the Bangladesh authorities for the first time. The Facebook authorities gave the information to the Bangladesh government after it made 12 requests about 31 users’ accounts between July and December last year, according to Government Requests Report released by the site yesterday. “We respond to valid requests relating to criminal cases. Each and every request we receive is checked for legal sufficiency and we reject or require greater specificity on requests that are overly broad or vague,” the report stated. It also restricted four contents upon the Bangladesh government’s appeal. “We restricted access to pieces of content alleged to violate local law regarding blasphemy, pursuant to a request fro...

    Apple reported a 13% drop in its second quarter revenue on Tuesday as sales of iPhones slipped. The technology giant reported quarterly sales of $50.56bn (£34.39bn) down from $58bn last year - the first fall in sales for the company since 2003. Apple sold 51.2 million iPhones during the quarter, down from 61.2 million in the same quarter of 2015. China was a particular weak spot - sales there fell 26%. Results were also hit by the impact of a stronger dollar. Apple shares fell 8% in afterhours trading. Its shares have fallen close to 20% over the last twelve months. Apple's chief executive Tim Cook said the company performed well "in the face of strong macroeconomic headwinds". Apple's quarterly profit slipped to $10.5bn from $13.5bn. Nevertheless, it announced it would re...

    Even a tech giant like Facebook isn't immune to significant security breaches. Devcore's Orange Tsai recently discovered that someone had installed a backdoor on one of Facebook's corporate servers (that is, not the social network itself) in a bid to swipe workers login details. While it's not clear how successful the script-based exploit was, Tsai noted that the file transfer app hosted on the server had several vulnerabilities that effectively gave any intruder free rein. The attacker could have checked employee email, for instance, or even connected to Facebook's virtual private network to get access to the company's inner workings. Thankfully, this is all past tense. You're only hearing about this now because Tsai reported the bugs to Facebook (to get a bounty, natural...

    Google has posted a special Doodle for Bangladesh on its 46th Independence Day. The Doodle was posted on Google homepage just minute after midnight on March 26. The Doodle logo is drawn in combination of red and green colours and in the centre a visual of a bridge. The red and green are the colours of the national flag of Bangladesh. ALSO READ: Into The 46th Year of Independence Doodles are the fun, surprising, and sometimes spontaneous changes that are made to the Google logo to celebrate holidays, anniversaries, and the lives of famous artists, pioneers, and scientists. In 2013, Google, for the first time in its history, posted a special Doodle for Bangladesh on its Independence Day. ALSO READ: Google doodle celebrating Bangladesh Independence Day Named ‘Bangladesh Indep...

    The aircraft maker has presented a new concept in cabin design, branded "Airspace by Airbus." "Airspace by Airbus" is a new-generation cabin design that airlines can customise with their own services and comfort levels. The concept aims to give passengers more room, whether travelling first class or economy. The interior features wider seats with more under-seat foot space for passengers to stretch out in. Overhead storage bins have been made larger too, with more space for passenger luggage. The new design features a lighting system specially developed to promote a feeling of well-being. This uses technology such as LED lamps, for example. The plane is lit with a relaxing ambient light, echoed in the minimalist lines of the futuristic feeling cabin. This calming environme...