Geekly Update - 20 May 2021

The AskBobRankin Geekly Update

Google Photos will soon have a new feature called cinematic moments that will be able to create an animated picture by combining two similar images. Machine learning is used to synthesize movement between the two shots. Reality is just an illusion, again.

The government has a program called the Emergency Broadband Benefit, to help low-income Americans with a $50/month discount on Internet service. But Verizon and other ISPs are abusing the program to "upsell" these customers to higher-priced plans.

An elderly couple briefly escaped from an assisted living facility in Tennessee. The husband claims he used his military experience with Morse code to memorize the electronic keypad code that locked the door to the facility. So why is he in a "secure memory care" unit?

At the 2021 Google I/O conference, the company announced a new feature for the Chrome browser's password manager. If the security check finds a potentially compromised password while you're logging into a website, a “Change Password” button will help you update that password with a few taps. The feature is rolling out on Android mobile devices.

Researchers at the University of Central Florida are working on technology that could allow for hypersonic flight at speeds up to Mach 17 -- about 13,000 miles per hour. This feat is acheived by "harnessing the power of an oblique detonation wave." Dang, why didn't I think of that?

"Select all photos that show a monkey riding a bicycle under a full moon." Those CAPTCHA puzzles you have to solve in order to access some websites are designed to keep out automated software robots, but they can be tricky and frustrating for humans as well. The folks at Wired have some tips to help you navigate these digital roadblocks.

During courtroom testimony, Apple's head of software engineering says malware on Mac computers has reached "unacceptable" levels. In the past year there have been 130 types of Mac malware, infecting hundreds of thousands of systems.

Porsche and ExxonMobil are working on eFuel, a new kind of fuel that makes gas-powered cars almost as environmentally clean as electric cars, even taking into account the pollution associated with the generation of electricity for EVs.

A bipartisan group of U.S. senators have reintroduced the Social Media Privacy Protection and Consumer Rights Act. The legislation is aimed at platforms like Facebook, Google and other websites that collect user data. It would give users greater control over their data, and allow them to opt out of data collection and tracking.

Can't get out of the city? The BBC reports that looking at paintings of nature can soothe the soul and relieve stress. Here's a batch of 600,000 high-def nature photos to get you started.

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