Category: region|US

Hitting the Books: America might not exist if not for a pre-Revolution smallpox outbreak

The Covid pandemic wasn’t the first time that America has found itself split along ideological seams over infectious disease, nor was the Spanish Flu in 1919. Even when America was still a collection of colonies, we held bitter disagreements on public health policy.  During the run-up to the Revolutionary War,…

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Vivaldi integrates Mastodon into its desktop browser

Mastodon has been gaining popularity ever since Elon Musk's takeover of Twitter. Shortly after the deal became official, Vivaldi became the first browser to create its own Mastodon "instance" called Vivaldi Social. Now, the browser has announced that it's integrating the platform into the sidebar of its desktop browser, giving…

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Self-driving electric tractor promises eco-friendly, hands-off farming

The autonomous tractor world is heating up, apparently. CNH Industrial has unveiled what it says is the "first" electric light tractor prototype with self-driving features, the New Holland T4 Electric Power. The machine promises zero emissions, quieter operation than diesel models and (according to CNH) lower running costs while reducing…

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Sam Bankman-Fried says he’ll testify next week about FTX Collapse

Embattled FTX co-founder and former CEO Sam Bankman-Fried said today that he will testify before Congress next week. After a Twitter back-and-forth with committee chair Rep. Maxine Waters, he agreed to testify about the crypto exchange’s sudden collapse. “I still do not have access to much of my data —…

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Apple’s iPad Air drops to $500, plus the rest of the week’s best tech deals

We’re in the thick of the holiday season, so we’re still seeing good deals on a number of gadgets and tech gear we recommend. Apple’s iPad Air, for instance, is down to its second-lowest price to date at $500, while Amazon’s Fire HD 8 is down to an all-time low…

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What we bought: Why I still use a $15 pair of wired Panasonic earbuds every day

My best headphones aren’t always the best headphones for every situation. When I’m settling in to work for a few hours, then yeah, I’ll grab my old Oppo PM-3s or trusty Koss KSC75s to make streaming music more of a pleasure. When I’ve got a long plane or train ride…

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