Planet

Big Oil and Gas had a no good, very bad day

Fossil fuel companies are having a big reckoning with climate change this week. Shareholders for Exxon and Chevron voted for measures that could force them to take more responsibility for their emissions, while a Dutch court is forcing Shell to slash its pollution. Taken altogether, the actions reflect a growing push for the energy sector… Read more

More Americans believe in climate change but still can’t quit fossil fuels

Nearly two-thirds of Americans now believe that climate change is an urgent problem to address, but they aren’t nearly as enthusiastic about giving up oil and gas, according to a new survey by the Pew Research Center. Only one-third of people surveyed supported completely phasing out fossil fuels. Less than half of respondents are okay… Read more

Amazon workers demand company quit polluting near communities of color

Hundreds of Amazon tech workers are pressuring Amazon to quit polluting — especially in communities near its warehouses. More than 600 workers signed a petition asking Amazon to bring its pollution down to zero by 2030. They also called on the company to prioritize deploying zero-emissions technologies near the communities hit hardest by Amazon’s pollution…. Read more

China drives its rover on the surface of Mars

China became the second country to successfully deploy a vehicle on Mars on Saturday, and the first to do so on its inaugural visit to the Red Planet. Reuters reported that the solar-powered Zhurong rover drove down the ramp of its landing capsule on to the surface of Mars at about 10:40 AM Beijing time…. Read more

Mass Effect’s legendary Normandy starship is coming to No Man’s Sky, if you snag it soon

No Man’s Sky players who are fans of the beloved sci-fi series Mass Effect will soon be in for a treat: Mass Effect’s legendary SSV Normandy SR-1 starship will be appearing in No Man’s Sky. The Normandy’s arrival is the culmination of an alternate reality game that’s taken place inside No Man’s Sky over the… Read more

China releases first images from its Zhurong rover on Mars

China’s Zhurong rover has beamed back its first images from the surface of Mars after landing on a vast plain called Utopia Planitia. The rover plunged through the Martian atmosphere last Friday, bundled together with a lander after separating from China’s Tianwen-1 probe. The new images released by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) show… Read more

Google showed off its next-generation AI by talking to Pluto and a paper airplane

Artificial intelligence is a huge part of Google’s business, and at this year’s I/O conference, the company highlighted its work with AI language understanding. The star of the show was an experimental model called LaMDA, which Google says could one day supercharge the ability of its conversational AI assistants and allow for more natural conversations…. Read more

Lamborghini will debut its first all-electric supercar after 2025

The first all-electric Lamborghini is on the horizon. The Italian automaker finally unveiled its electrification plans, which will proceed in two distinct phases over the next decade. By the end of 2024, the company plans to roll out gas-electric hybrid versions of its entire lineup. Following that, Lamborghini will debut its first all-electric model sometime… Read more

China is set to land on Mars for the first time

Sometime between tonight and next Wednesday, China will attempt to land a pair of robots on the surface of Mars, making a daring bid to become the second country to land and operate a rover on the Red Planet. The Tianwen-1 spacecraft, which has been orbiting Mars since February, will eject a rover and lander… Read more

Renewable energy won’t make Elon Musk love bitcoin again

Elon Musk shouldn’t hold his breath waiting for bitcoin to become environmentally friendly enough for Tesla to take it as payment. Musk announced yesterday that Tesla was walking away from the cryptocurrency because of the fossil fuels used for bitcoin mining and transactions. In the announcement, he left the door open for Tesla to accept… Read more

The Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel is the dream computer I’ll never own

If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement. The Acer ConceptD 7 Ezel is a computer I will never own. But I really, really wish I could. Artists, creators, and engineers who are looking for a powerful high-end convertible have all kinds of options on… Read more

An out-of-control Chinese rocket has re-entered Earth’s atmosphere

The 100-foot-tall, 22-metric-ton Chinese Long March 5B rocket that launched the first chunk of Beijing’s new space station has reentered Earth’s atmosphere near the Maldives, China’s Manned Space Engineering Office reported. US Space Command, which helps locate man-made satellites in orbit around the planet, was tracking the rocket’s location. The agency said the rocket “re-entered… Read more

Scrap new gas infrastructure, says UN report

A major new United Nations report makes it extremely clear that relying on natural gas won’t help the world avoid climate catastrophe. Once seen as a “bridge fuel” that could provide a less-polluting alternative to coal and other fossil fuels, growing evidence shows that gas is a bigger culprit in the climate crisis than previously… Read more

This world-ending asteroid is the perfect vehicle for Pink Floyd

Goodbye, life. If you’d like a visual of one way that doom could overtake Earth almost immediately, then YouTube user Anselo La Manna has just the video for you: a large asteroid impact simulation scored to nothing other than Pink Floyd. Specifically, that’s “Great Gig in the Sky,” off what might be the band’s most… Read more

BBC iPlayer

Our Verdict With quality programmes, vast platform support and a great interface, iPlayer is the best video-on-demand catch-up TV service out there For Superb content Intuitive and slick interface Extensive platform support Against Still no permanent 4K offering It’s free (although you need a TV licence). It’s the home of superb TV shows. There are… Read more