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May 2021

Xiaomi has unveiled its latest HyperCharge fast charging solutions for users of its smartphones. The company has introduced a 200 W HyperCharge fast-charging technology that can fully charge a phone with a 4,000 mAh battery in just eight minutes. This big update comes after the company had introduced 120 W fast charging with the Mi 10 Ultra and the 80 W wireless fast charging technology in 2020. Along with this, Xiaomi also introduced a 120 W wireless fast charging technology that can charge a smartphone completely with the same battery capacity within 15 minutes.

With its fast-charging ability, the tech giant has become the first Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) to offer 200 W fast charging for a smartphone.

Taking to its social media account, the Chinese tech company shared a video showing how fast a smartphone with a 4,000 mAh battery charges with its new technologies.

In the video, the gadget takes just 44 seconds to take the phone up to 10 percent charge, 50 percent in three minutes, and finally, the phone is fully charged within eight minutes.

Xiaomi also demonstrated its 120 W wireless fast charging technology in the video where a Mi 11 Pro smartphone was used to test both its wired and wireless fast charging technologies. In the video, the Mi 11 Pro with a 4,000 mAh battery charged to 10 percent in less than a minute, 50 percent in seven minutes, and reached full charge in 15 minutes.

Xiaomi is the first OEM to offer 200 W fast charging for a smartphone. Image: Xiaomi

Xiaomi is the first OEM to offer 200 W fast charging for a smartphone. Image: Xiaomi

So far, Xiaomi has not provided any details on when these two promising wired and wireless technologies will be ready for the market.

Earlier in 2019, Xiaomi announced a 100 W system that could charge a 4,000 mAh battery in 17 minutes. Then in 2020, Mi 10 Ultra filled up in 23 minutes at 120 W, but it did not have a bigger 4,500 mAh battery.

Taking a look at other brands in the wired charging space, Oppo recently introduced its 125 W Flash Charge that can completely charge a 4,000 mAh battery in 20 minutes, while Realme also offers the same feature for its smartphones.

French hypercar manufacturer Bugatti will be launching new wearables for its customers in October 2021. Created by VIITA and Bugatti, the smartwatch is capable of tracking heart rate variability, GPS tracking, blood oxygen measurements and acceleration. The starting price of the watch that can be purchased from Kickstarter is EUR 899 (approximately Rs 79,484). The watch will be available in three versions named after Bugatti cars. They are the Bugatti Ceramique Edition One Pur Sport, Bugatti Ceramique Edition One Le Noire and Bugatti Ceramique Edition One Divo.

Lap times and acceleration can also be tracked with the help of the GPS sensor present in the smartwatch. Along with tracking all activities, the smartwatch also tracks sleep patterns of the user.

The smartwatch's box is made of sustainable wood and vegan leather, and sports a Bugatti horseshoe grille. Image: Bugatti

The smartwatch’s box is made of sustainable wood and vegan leather, and sports a Bugatti horseshoe grille. Image: Bugatti

In addition to tracking health, the new Bugatti wearable also provides suggestions to users for supporting cardiovascular recovery and fitness training. The watch calculates the wearer’s biological age. It can also track VO2 Max and stress levels.

A unique bezel – that takes 20 days to be made – can also be attached with the Bugatti Ceramique edition wearables.

The watch will be available in a special box made of sustainable wood and vegan leather, sporting a Bugatti horseshoe grille. These watches will have a warranty of five years.

The software for the Bugatti smartwatches has been developed by VIITA. There is an option to choose up to 10 watch faces. The wearable has a ‘minimalistic interface’, with the option of also having an always-on display. However, neither Apple Health nor Google Health connections will be available with these watches.

The mid-cycle facelift for the second-gen Hyundai Creta has been spotted testing under camouflage abroad. The all-new Hyundai Creta was launched in India in March 2020, after its global debut in China as the new iX25 in 2019, and has since been the highest-selling SUV in its segment, going on to also become the best-selling SUV in the country. Along with the Venue compact SUV, the second-gen Creta has helped Hyundai becoming the largest SUV maker in the country.

LED DRLs are expected to be integrated into the grille of the 2022 Hyundai Creta facelift.

LED DRLs are expected to be integrated into the grille of the 2022 Hyundai Creta facelift.

These images suggest that the updated Hyundai Creta will get a heavily revised front end. This should be heavily influenced by the new Hyundai Tucson and feature some of the eye-catching styling elements from the new ‘parametric dynamics’ theme of that SUV. So expect the grille to be of a smoother shape but extending right to the edges of the SUV’s face. The DRLs are also expected to be integrated into the grille, while the LED headlights are seen to be more richly detailed with a dark finish. The bodywork is expected to remain largely unchanged although some sharper-looking alloy wheels and deeper-cut bumpers can be expected. At the rear, the split treatment could be dropped to accommodate a full-width light bar and a clawed look to the tail-lamp clusters.

The interiors of the facelifted 2022 Hyundai Creta haven’t been seen but expect to see new materials and textures, a ‘floating effect’ centre console and a free-standing digital instrument cluster. There should be more features as well, such as a 360-degree camera and a head-up display.

Expect the Hyundai Creta facelift to debut sometime in 2022.

Expect the Hyundai Creta facelift to debut sometime in 2022.

While electrified powertrains can be expected internationally, the India-spec version of the facelifted Creta should continue with its current range of engines. These are a 1.5-litre petrol with 115 hp and 144 Nm, a 1.5-litre diesel motor with 115 hp and 250 Nm, and a 1.4-litre turbo-petrol with 140 hp and 242 Nm. There are three automatic transmission options, aside from a six-speed manual. There will be a CVT, a six-speed auto and a seven-speed DCT. The CVT is paired to the N/A petrol; the diesel is available with the torque converter while the turbo-petrol can be had with the dual-clutch auto.

The facelifted Hyundai Creta can be expected to launch in India by late 2022 or even early 2023, given the strong line-up of products Hyundai has in place for the coming year and the delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Hyundai Creta competes against the Kia Seltos, MG Hector, Tata Harrier and is priced between Rs 9.99 lakh and Rs 17.63 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai).

Twitter is reportedly working on adding new emoticons to its current heart-shaped Like button. This was revealed in a tweet by  app researcher Jane Manchun Wong. The assets Wong found show ‘cheer,’ ‘hmm,’ ‘sad,’ and ‘haha’ emoji reactions. In the GIF shared by Wong, some reactions currently only have a placeholder emoji.

Wong had first spotted the reactions on Twitter earlier this month.

Facebook rolled out reactions in 2016. While the Twitter reaction surely take inspiration from Facebook’s, Wong’s leak shows that Twitter will likely take a slightly different approach on the moods or emotions that users will be able to use to react on a post.

It has the same laughing and sad reaction but does not include the ‘angry’ emoticon. As per a report by The Verge, Twitter may also include a makes-you-think and cheer option.

In response to a request for comment, Twitter told the The Verge the same thing it did last time that it is “always exploring additional ways for people to express themselves in conversations.”

Sony PlayStation has revealed almost 14-minute-long footage of the new game Horizon Forbidden West on their YouTube channel. The video starts with an introduction by Mathijs de Jonge, Horizon Forbidden West’s Game Director. Mathijs informed the viewers that almost 14-minutes of gameplay has been captured on Playstation 5. The footage also has a disclaimer stating that it is a mix of gameplay and in-game cinematics and the final game could change.

Horizon-forbidden west

The character can also ride machines and use them in combat against the raiders. Image: Guerrilla/twitter

In the video, Aloy, the protagonist of Horizon Forbidden West can be seen engaging in some intense fights. As per the official PlayStation blog, the game continues six months after the events that happened in the previous game, Horizon Zero Dawn.

The footage starts with Aloy tending to an injured Delver who informs her that Erend has been ambushed by raiders. When Aloy starts searching for Erend, she finds raiders riding machines. The official blog describes these raiders as fighters from the Tenakth tribe.

Several new tools have been added to help Aloy. The tool Shieldwing will allow Aloy to descend from heights. With the help of Pullcaster, Aloy can speedily climb. To survive underwater, Aloy now has a diving mask that lets her stay submerged as long as she wants. With the help of a Focus Scanner, Aloy can scan places that allow free climbing.

The character can also ride machines and use them in combat against the raiders. Valor Surges feature can be added to the spear in order to defeat nearby enemies.

To attack enemy machines, an adhesive-grenade slingshot has been added to Aloy’s weapon wheel. This grenade temporarily disables the machines. With smoke bombs, Aloy can temporarily blind enemies.
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Poco India has teased the launch of its next F-series smartphone – Poco F3 GT – in a Twitter post today. The post includes a video teaser that confirms that the smartphone will be powered by MediaTek Dimensity 1200 5G chipset. Poco hasn’t yet revealed when the smartphone will be released in India, but as per the teaser, it will be sometime in Q3 2021 – which is between July to September. Poco has also sent out teasers to the Indian media.

While the teaser does not make it very clear, but we believe that along with the Poco F3 GT, the smartphone maker may also launch Poco F3 along with it.

Poco India head Anuj Sharma has also shared the teaser.

Poco F3 GT expected specifications

Reports suggest that Poco F3 GT will be the rebranded version of the Redmi K40 Game Enhanced edition.

If that is true, we can expect the Poco F3 GT to feature a 6.67-inch OLED FHD+ display with HDR10+ support and 120 Hz refresh rate. We already know that the smartphone will be powered by MediaTek Dimensity 1200 chipset. Looking at the Redmi K40 Game Enhanced edition, it could be equipped with up to 12 GB RAM and 256 GB internal storage.

For photography, Poco F3 GT will likely come with a triple camera setup with a 64 MP primary camera, an 8 MP ultrawide camera, and a 2 MP macro sensor. For selfies, it may come with a 16 MP camera.

One Plus is set to launch the next mid-range smartphones that will be called the Nord CE 5G and Nord N200 5G. CE stands for “Core Edition”. While Nord CE 5G is set to arrive on 10 June and will be released in Europe and India, the OnePlus Nord N200 5G, which is exclusively made for the US and Canada, won’t be launched during the event. It will arrive in the market at an unknown later date. Details about the devices have not been revealed as of now.

OnePlus Nord.

OnePlus Nord.

As per TechRadar, OnePlus CEO, Pete Lau confirmed the launch of the new handsets and few other details about the upcoming, relatively economical alternatives to the company’s flagship phones. Lau says, “we have distilled the original Nord down to its core elements, and added a few extra features to create a great everyday phone at an even more affordable price”.

The company hasn’t revealed too many details about the specifications of the devices, except that they’re expected to be 5G compatible and promise to offer a smooth user experience. “Making the signature OnePlus experience more accessible is a balancing act. But there are certain classic flagship features which we have brought onto the OnePlus Nord series this year to ensure we are delivering that fast and smooth experience with the Nord series”, Lau said.

OnePlus Nord offered premium quality specs and features on a lower budget than other phones from the brand. As mentioned, the OnePlus Nord CE 5G is set to take the Nord legacy forward, it may be expected that this device may be a cheaper handset than Nord 2020.

According to Lau, consumer satisfaction with the original OnePlus Nord handsets has influenced the extending legacy of Nord. “We’ve learned more about what our users have enjoyed about the Nord, and also gained a deeper understanding into what they are looking for in a more affordable phone”, he said.

Recently, OnePlus accidentally revealed that Nord 2 is expected to debut in India next month. In its FAQ section, the company accidentally mentioned Nord 2 in the list of its supported phones which somewhat confirmed its launch. However, the page was later edited.

Pricebaba in collaboration with tispter Ishan Agrawal revealed that the OnePlus TV U1S series, expected to launch on 10 June, might come with 4K resolution and offer 50-inch, 55-inch and 65-inch screens sizes. The smart TV series is also expected to come with support for HDR10+, HLG, and MEMC and 60Hz refresh rate.

As per the GLOBOCAN 2020 report, every year, over one lakh people are being diagnosed in India with a form of blood cancer such as lymphoma, leukemia and multiple myeloma. Blood cancer occurs when abnormal blood cells in the blood-forming system multiply uncontrollably, crowding out the healthy cells.

Three most common types of blood cancer affecting the Indian population are:

  • Lymphoma: A group of blood cancers that develop in the lymphatic system. The two main types are Hodgkin lymphoma (generally starts in the blood and bone marrow) and non-Hodgkin lymphoma (generally starts in the lymph node and lymphatic tissue).
  • Leukemia: A blood cancer that develops when normal blood cells change and grow uncontrollably.
  • Multiple myeloma starts in the bone marrow, when plasma cells begin to grow uncontrollably.

Blood stem cell transplants in blood cancer treatment

Misconceptions and a lack of awareness about blood cancer are the biggest challenges observed today amongst the Indian population.

In the past, a blood cancer diagnosis was often regarded to be fatal. Today, a blood stem cell transplant can be a potentially life-saving treatment for blood cancer and other blood disorders. A blood stem cell transplant replaces a patient’s defective stem cells with healthy ones.

A blood stem cell transplant is typically a procedure that replaces unhealthy bone marrow cells with healthy ones. The body’s immune system has proteins known as Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA), to distinguish cells that belong to the body from those that do not. A stem cell transplant is likely to be successful only if the donor’s HLA type is a close match with that of the patient.

Sadly, many patients who could benefit from this lifesaving procedure do not get the treatment they so desperately need – because finding a donor with a similar tissue type is no easy task. Only about 30 percent of the patients can find a sibling match, and the remaining 70 percent depend on finding an unrelated matching donor, and there is a possibility of finding the perfect match from a donor of the same ethnicity. However, patients of Indian ethnicity have a hard time finding a matching donor due to the lack of potential donors in Indian registries.

How does a blood stem cell transplant work?

Any healthy Indian citizen between the age of 18-50 years can register as a potential blood stem cell donor with a stem cell registry such as the DKMS BMST Foundation India. Registration is a simple process, where all you need to do is to register through the online portal of a stem cell registry and you will receive a DIY home swab kit. Once you get the kit, you have to take a cheek-swab sample, fill a consent form and return it to the registry. A specialised laboratory will then analyse your HLA (tissue type) and your details will be available in the global search for blood stem cell donors. It may take weeks, months or years before you’re found to be a match for a patient in need to potentially give them a second chance at life.

If and when you’re found to be a match, you will be contacted by the registry. If you are medically cleared to donate and willing to proceed with the donation, you will be asked to donate blood stem cells via the peripheral blood stem cell collection process (PBSC). This process is similar to a blood platelet donation. The donated blood stem cells will be transported to and infused into the patient. These new blood stem cells will then begin to increase in numbers and produce red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets, resulting in the replacement of the patient’s diseased cells.

Today, more than 38 million potential unrelated donors are listed worldwide with stem cell donor centres and registries, of which only 0.04 percent are Indians. This situation can only be changed by recruiting many more potential stem cell donors from India.

The author is the CEO of the DKMS BMST Foundation in India.

Samsung launched two new tablets namely Galaxy Tab S7 FE and Galaxy Tab A7 Lite on Thursday, 27 May. SVP and Head of Experience Planning Team, Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics Woncheol Chai said that the newly launched tablets are equipped with stunning features and have been designed to meet the daily needs of Samsung consumers. Both Galaxy Tab S7 FE and Galaxy A7 Lite will be available from June in the select countries.

Galaxy_Tab_S7_FE

Galaxy Tab S7 FE

Powered with Octa-core 2×2.2GHz + 6×1.8 GHz processor, Galaxy Tab S7 FE has a 12.4-inch display with an S Pen included in the box. The tablet has an 8 MP primary camera and a 5 MP front camera. It works on Android 11 OS and has 5G connectivity with Bluetooth v5.0.

It comes in two variants, a 4 GB RAM with 64 GB internal storage and a 6 GB RAM with 128 GB internal storage. The memory is expandable up to 1 TB.

Equipped with Dolby Atmos, the tab has Dual Stereo Speakers sound by AKG.

Galaxy Tab S7 FE is available in four colours namely, Mystic Black, Mystic Silver, Mystic Green, and Mystic Pink.

On the other hand, Galaxy Tab A7 Lite runs on Octa-core 4×2.3GHz + 4×1.8GHz processor. It has an 8.7-inch display and like Galaxy Tab S7 FE, it also has Android 11 OS.

Galaxy Tab A7 Lite has a 7 MP rear camera along with a 2 MP front camera. It comes in two configurations, 3 GB RAM with 32 GB internal storage or 4 GB RAM with 64 GB internal storage.

Available in grey and silver colours, Galaxy Tab A7 Lite also has dual stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos.

Twitter said it was committed to India as a vital market, but criticised the new IT rules and regulations that it said ‘inhibit free, open public conversation’

New Delhi: Large social media companies like Google, Facebook and WhatsApp have shared details with the IT Ministry as per requirement of the new digital rules, but Twitter is still not following the norms, government sources said.

Twitter has not sent details of chief compliance officer to the IT Ministry, and shared details of a lawyer working in a law firm as nodal contact person and grievance officer, the sources said.

This, when the IT rules clearly require these designated officers of the significant social media platforms to be employees of the company and resident in India, they pointed out.

Meanwhile, most of the large social media platforms have shared details of chief compliance officer, nodal contact person and grievance officer with the ministry, as laid down under the new rules, sources said.

Significant social media intermediaries, including Google, Facebook, WhatsApp, Koo, Sharechat, Telegram and LinkedIn, have shared details with the ministry as per the requirement of the IT norms that came into effect earlier this week. However, Twitter has not yet complied with the IT rules, they said.

After a strong response from the government on Thursday, Twitter sent a communication sharing details of a lawyer working in a law firm in India as their nodal contact person and grievance officer.

On Thursday, the row over Twitter’s handling of certain messages had escalated into an all-out war of words, with the government saying the messaging platform was levelling baseless and false allegations to defame India and dictating terms to the world’s largest democracy.

It started with Twitter calling the visit by Delhi Police to its offices a form of “intimidation” — a statement which met with vociferous protests from both the government and the Delhi Police.

While the government called it “totally baseless, false and an attempt to defame India”, Delhi Police said the statement was “mendacious” and designed to impede a lawful inquiry.

Twitter had marked several tweets by ruling BJP leaders on an alleged strategy document of Opposition to target the government over COVID as containing ‘manipulated media’, which prompted the police to visit its offices late on Monday.

Twitter said it was committed to India as a vital market, but criticised the new IT rules and regulations that it said “inhibit free, open public conversation.”

The government slammed Twitter’s remarks on alleged intimidation and threat to free speech and in a strongly-worded counter said the micro-blogging platform had sought to undermine India’s legal system through its actions and deliberate defiance.

Under the new rules, social media companies like Facebook, WhatsApp and Twitter have been asked to identify within 36 hours the originator of a flagged message as well as conduct additional due diligence, including the appointment of a chief compliance officer, nodal contact person and resident grievance officer.

The Centre has said the new rules are designed to prevent abuse and misuse of platforms, and offer users a robust forum for grievance redressal.

Non-compliance with rules would result in these platforms losing their intermediary status that provides them immunity from liabilities over any third-party data hosted by them. In other words, they could be liable for criminal action in case of complaints.

After the new norms came into effect on 26 May, the IT Ministry had turned up the heat on significant social media companies, asking them to immediately report compliance and provide details of the three key officials appointed.

Two key groups that offer automobile safety ratings are yanking their top endorsements from some Tesla vehicles because the company has stopped using radar on its safety systems. Consumer Reports pulled its “Top Pick” status for Tesla’s Model 3 and Y vehicles built after 27 April, while the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety plans to remove the vehicles’ “Top Safety Pick Plus” designation. The US government’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is no longer giving the Models 3 and Y check marks on its website for having forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning and emergency brake support.

That prompted the ratings groups’ actions. Both require electronic safety systems for the top safety designations. Consumer Reports says that removing radar and relying on cameras means the safety features may not be there when needed.

A message was left Thursday seeking comment from Tesla, which has disbanded its media relations department.

The NHTSA is no longer giving the Models 3 and Y check marks for forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning and emergency brake support. Image: Blomst from Pixabay

The NHTSA is no longer giving the Models 3 and Y check marks for forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking, lane departure warning and emergency brake support. Image: Blomst from Pixabay

“If a driver thinks their vehicle has a safety feature and it doesn’t, that fundamentally changes the safety profile of the vehicle,” David Friedman, Consumer Reports’ vice president of advocacy, said in a statement. “It might not be there when they think it would save their lives.”

IIHS on Thursday confirmed that it pulled the Top Safety Pick Plus designation, but said it remains for vehicles built with radar. The institute said it plans to test Tesla’s new system.

Tesla says on its website that it’s making a transition to a new system called “Tesla Vision” that uses cameras, on Model 3s and Ys to be delivered starting in May. The new system will use cameras and Tesla’s neural network computer processing for safety systems, as well as Tesla’s “Autopilot” and “Full Self-Driving” partially automated driver-assist systems. Tesla also has short-range sonar sensors.

CEO Elon Musk has said that the eight-camera vision system works better than the best human drivers, and is a step toward the company’s self-driving ambitions.

Since March, the NHTSA has stepped up inquiries into Teslas, dispatching teams to three crashes. Image: Blomst via Pixabay

Since March, the NHTSA has stepped up inquiries into Teslas, dispatching teams to three crashes. Image: Blomst via Pixabay

But critics have said that even with radar, Tesla doesn’t have the right sensors for self-driving vehicles. It doesn’t have laser sensors called lidar, which can see through darkness and bad weather, they say. Most other companies testing autonomous vehicles use lidar.

Tesla’s Autopilot system has had trouble spotting fixed objects and tractor-trailers turning in front of its vehicles. At least three people have been killed while driving on Autopilot when their cars crashed beneath trailers or into a highway barrier. In addition, Teslas on Autopilot have struck police cars and firetrucks parked on freeways with their flashing lights on.

NHTSA, the government safety agency, has investigated 29 incidents involving Teslas, but so far, the agency has not taken action on Autopilot. The National Transportation Safety Board has recommended that NHTSA and Tesla limit Autopilot to roads where it can operate safely, and that Tesla install a better system to make sure drivers are paying attention.

Tesla, which is based in Palo Alto, California, says on its website that some vehicles may be delivered with some safety features temporarily “limited or inactive.” Those include “Autosteer,” which keeps cars in their lanes. It will be limited to 75 mph (120 kph) and a longer distance from traffic in front of the vehicle.

Musk also has been criticised by Consumer Reports and others for calling his systems “Autopilot,” which implies that a car can drive itself, and “Full Self-Driving,” which the company says cannot drive on its own.

Netflix recently introduced the Play Something button to help indecisive people get something to watch on TV. The helpful feature is now available for the platform’s mobile version, starting with Android users. The video-streaming platform is testing the Play Something feature for Android users globally. This option will be available in both the Adult and Kids profiles. The button was spotted by Engadget on the android app.

Netflix-logo

The options could include something new or something that you have already watched.

If you are on Netflix and unable to decide the movie or show you want to watch, tapping on the option will put the OTT platform’s algorithms into play and you will find yourself with a number of choices.

The options could include something new or something that you have already watched. There might be a suggestion for something similar to have watched before. You can choose whichever you like and start watching. If you don’t like the options, you can select the Play Something Else button for more.

There’s no word on when the feature will reach a wider audience. Plus, its availability for iOS users remains unknown too.

In related news, Netflix is expected to soon venture into gaming and allow people to download games and then play. The games could be from third parties or inspired by Netflix Originals. This will be to cash in on the growing gaming segment and compete with the likes of Apple Arcade, Google Stadia, and more.

Microsoft recently announced the retirement of its longstanding web browser, Internet Explorer, in favour of its newer product, Microsoft Edge. With support for Internet Explorer only set to last until June 15, 2022, its remaining users have just over a year to find an alternative. But of course, most web users already have. While the eventual downfall of Internet Explorer was seen as a foregone conclusion by those who monitor web trends, the news might come as an unwelcome surprise for those who are somewhat less up-to-date.

For the most part, though, this news is a whimper rather than a bang — a footnote at the end of an iconic story spanning more than 25 years.

As a current professional in the IT industry, I’ll break down some possible reasons for this decision, and what we can learn from it.

Searching for the answer

Almost everyone is familiar with the idea of “googling” something, but there’s no such thing as “microsofting” something. How did Google manage to become synonymous with web searching, while Microsoft, despite its long and pioneering history, failed to become synonymous with anything?

The answer is market share. Google handles 92.24 percent of web searches — more than 3.5 billion requests a day. Microsoft’s own search engine, Bing, has a paltry 2.29 percent.

It’s easy to see why users prefer Google’s own web browser, Chrome, over Microsoft’s Internet Explorer, which uses Bing as its default search engine. Users who prefer searching via Google (which is almost everyone) can make Google the default search engine in Internet Explorer. But it’s probably easier just to install Chrome and use Google from there.

Internet Explorer

Internet Explorer

Success breeds complacency; complacency breeds failure

Microsoft wasn’t always a bit player. Back when the web was in its infancy, it was a market-leading pioneer. Before there were app stores, or 5G, or even widespread personal computers, there were large mainframe computers with “unfriendly” Unix-based operating systems developed in the 1970s.

These systems were about as bare-bones as you can get, with little consideration given to graphics or usability. Unix’s original web browser, Netscape, was similarly no-frills.

This is where Microsoft came in, by focusing on making “personal computers” more personal. With much nicer designs and more intuitive user interfaces, by the time Internet Explorer launched in 1995, Microsoft had cemented itself at the forefront of the digital world.

But as US Baptist minister and civil rights leader Benjamin E. Mays famously warned, “The tragedy of life is often not in our failure, but rather in our complacency.”

Having established its reputation, Microsoft stopped pushing Internet Explorer’s development, and started venturing elsewhere, continually improving Windows but not its web browser. From that point on, Internet Explorer was always late to the party in introducing innovations such as tabbed browsing and search bars. It fell further into irrelevance and obsolescence.

Compatibility issues

Having spent much of my life as a web developer, one of my biggest gripes is the incompatibility of some web browsers. It’s exhausting and demoralising spending hours polishing web pages, only for them not to run properly on some browsers.

This concern even spread to Microsoft’s own in-house developers. In a 2019 blog post titled “The perils of using Internet Explorer as your default browser”, Microsoft’s Chris Jackson warned:

[…] developers by and large just aren’t testing for Internet Explorer these days. They’re testing on modern browsers.

The message was clear: web developers don’t get on well with Internet Explorer, so sites that work well on other browsers might not work here — and that problem is only going to get worse.

With Microsoft having lost interest in making sure Internet Explorer keeps up, it has transferred its attention to its new browser, Microsoft Edge. But the horse may already have bolted. The marketplace is crowded with Google’s Chrome, Apple’s Safari, Mozilla’s Firefox, and numerous open source browsers.

Phoning it in

Here’s another key stat that illustrates Internet Explorer’s decline: in 2020, more than two-thirds of all website visits were via a mobile device.

Now, a browser that can sync across multiple platforms is a necessity. In a world of Apple and Android devices, the term “Windows phone” sounds prehistoric — because it pretty much is. Operating system support for Windows phones ended in 2017, just seven years after Microsoft first launched the range.

So, having existed since the dawn of the internet age (or least since the internet went truly mainstream), Internet Explorer has failed in many ways to keep up.

Despite the success of its Surface tablets, Microsoft failed to maintain a foothold in the smartphone market, which may explain its unwillingness to keep developing Internet Explorer. Or maybe it’s the other way around, and Internet Explorer’s clunkiness is the reason no one uses a Windows phone.

But the bottom line is Internet Explorer just lacks the versatility needed by web-savvy users. And as of next year, even the non-savvy users will stop relying on it too.

The ConversationVinh Bui, Lecturer, Southern Cross University

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

LogMeIn is well-known software that allows you to access your computer from remote locations using either mobile devices or another computer. The company’s Hamachi offering is slightly less well-known, because it is tailored toward business users, but if you have the need to network multiple computers together securely as a personal user, it might be worth a look. 

LogMeIn Hamachi allows you to create a VPN – virtual private network. While you might be familiar with VPNs as a way to tunnel into the internet from a remote location to guard your privacy, in this case, the VPN is used to create a network accessible by a particular group of users.

Upon launching the very bare-bones software, you simply navigate to Network/Create A New Network, enter a password, and click Create. Once the network is formed, clicking on Manage/Manage Networks will take you to a web-based portal where you can control the network. 

One of the key elements that can be set here is the type of network you’d like to create. A mesh network allows every computer to see the information on every other computer that’s part of the network. The hub-and-spoke option provides a central hub to which all users can connect. This is a slightly more restrictive network because each user does not have access to the other users. Finally, a gateway network can be established, which allows all users to log in through a single computer that acts as a portal to the entire physical network. 

In all cases, users receive the benefit of a LAN (local area network) that typically is connected via cables, wirelessly and offsite through the internet.

The web portal also allows you to add other users to the network either by sending invites allowing other users to download the software to their computers, or sending downloadable configuration files to mobile users. The mobile configurations are a bit complicated, so unless you have a knack for this sort of thing, you’ll do best with the computer-to-computer networks.

Hamachi works on up to five computers absolutely free, so getting this type of big office functionality at no cost is clearly a major benefit. Beyond that, the software also protects communications using industry standard AES 256-bit encryption, so every user on a network gets the automatic privacy protection that this conveys. 

Beyond the free version of the software, Hamachi also comes in a Standard package ($49/year) that allows up to 32 computers to access a network; a Premium package ($199/year) that grants access for up to 256 computers; and a Multi-Network plan ($299/year) that allows unlimited access.

You can download the free version of LogMeIn Hamachi here.

Following years of speculation about its impending arrival, McLaren is finally set to make its India entry in the coming days. Interest levels spiked once again when McLaren recently added India under the markets listed on its online model configurator, and now, sources say McLaren is expected to make its India journey official in June. The British manufacturer has teamed up with dealer partner Infinity Cars – which also handles other premium vehicle brands including BMW, Mini, Porsche, Lamborghini, Rolls-Royce and Ducati – to kick-start its India operations.

McLaren's outlet in Mumbai will share space with the Lamborghini showroom, in Prabhadevi. Image: McLaren

McLaren’s outlet in Mumbai will share space with the Lamborghini showroom, in Prabhadevi. Image: McLaren

Infinity Cars will be the exclusive importer of McLaren supercars and hypercars in India. The first McLaren outlet in the country will be opened in Mumbai, and it will share space with the existing Lamborghini showroom located in Prabhadevi.

An official statement from McLaren announcing its India plans is still awaited. The company is yet responded to a query from Tech2.

The 720S is set to be one of three core models McLaren will sell in India initially. Image: McLaren

The 720S is set to be one of three core models McLaren will sell in India initially. Image: McLaren

At this time, it’s unclear which models from McLaren’s global portfolio will be available in India initially, sources suggest the company will launch its grand-touring offering and a couple of models from its supercar range. Therefore, you can expect to see the touring-focused 620 hp McLaren GT, the 720 hp McLaren 720S coupe and spider, along with the 680 hp McLaren Artura, which is the company’s first hybrid supercar and has a pure-electric range of 30 kilometres.

Being full imports, McLaren prices in India are likely to exceed the Rs 2 crore (ex-showroom) mark, starting with the McLaren GT, which will likely be the entry point to McLaren ownership in the country.

A new study from NASA shows that in the past, on Jupiter’s moon Europa, there might have been volcanoes erupting on the seafloor. Researchers believe that this volcanic activity might still be taking place. Contradictory to this steaming, bubbling underground, Europa has an icy, cool crust covering its global ocean. Europa is thought to have three layers – its icy shell, the ocean and the rocky interior. It is thought to have twice as much water as Earth and it might be the most promising place, in our solar system, to find life.

This illustration, updated as of December 2020, depicts NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft. The mission, targeting a 2024 launch, will investigate whether Jupiter’s moon Europa and its internal ocean have conditions suitable for life. Image credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech

This illustration, updated as of December 2020, depicts NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft. The mission, targeting a 2024 launch, will investigate whether Jupiter’s moon Europa and its internal ocean have conditions suitable for life. Image credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The study has been conducted by researchers at the Czech Republic’s Charles University and the results have been published in the Geophysical Research Letters. Jupiter has an enormous gravitational pull on its moons. According to a NASA press release, as Europa revolves around the planet, its interiors are flexing which in turn causes the moon’s interior to heat. The heat generated increases with an increase in the flexing of the moon.

With the help of computer modelling, this new research shows that the moon could have enough heat to partially melt its rocky interior layer. This process could be feeding its volcanoes.

According to Space.com, Europa’s volcanoes could power chemical energy-rich environments which will further help potential lifeforms in Europa.

Marie Běhounková, lead author of the study said that their research provides additional evidence that the subsurface ocean of Europa has an environment suitable for life.

Europa is one of the rare planetary bodies that might have maintained volcanic activity over billions of years, and possibly the only one beyond Earth that has large water reservoirs and a long-lived source of energy,” she added.

About Europa Clipper

All the information we have comes from the five spacecrafts that have visited this moon and Hubble does periodic checkups. Most of it comes from the observations conducted by the Galileo spacecraft.

However, as soon as 2024 NASA has plans to send a spacecraft —Europa Clipper — to this moon. It will launch in 2024 and will make about 45 close passes over Europa. It will keep shifting its flight path to fly over a different location and it will be able to scan nearly the entire moon.

This will be the first spacecraft that will conduct a dedicated study of the ocean world present in Europa. The Clipper is expected to reach in 2030 where it will orbit Jupiter and it two other moon — Ganymede and Callisto.

When it reaches its target, the Clipper will measure the moon’s gravity and magnetic field, anomalies in those areas, especially toward the poles, could help confirm the volcanic activity predicted by the new research.

The prospect for a hot, rocky interior and volcanoes on Europa’s seafloor increases the chance that Europa’s ocean could be a habitable environment,” said Robert Pappalardo, Europa Clipper Project Scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. “We may be able to test this with Europa Clipper’s planned gravity and compositional measurements, which is an exciting prospect.”

On 26 May, WhatsApp sued the Indian government over traceability requirements prescribed in the new Intermediary Guidelines (notified by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology in February 2021). While the government’s goal to regulate social media intermediaries and prevent crime is important, the Facebook-owned private messaging service has valid concerns regarding traceability requirements and its impact on users’ privacy and security. Cybersecurity experts have made it clear that traceability is incompatible with end-to-end encryption, and that any threats to strong encryption will put citizens — especially women, children and other vulnerable groups — in greater danger.

The pandemic has made more and more people rely on the Internet for a range of activities, which makes questions over digital security and privacy more important than ever. Messaging services such as WhatsApp and Signal have over half a billion users in India and rely on end-to-end encryption – the gold standard for keeping Internet users and systems secure. This ensures no one apart from the sender and receiver of the information will be able to decrypt and read it, thus keeping communication private and inaccessible to outside parties.

While the government has re-asserted that it does not seek to target or undermine encryption by requiring intermediaries to trace the first originator of a message linked to serious offences, cybersecurity experts and digital rights organisations in India and abroad have pointed out it is simply not possible for messaging services to identify the first originator without undermining end-to-end encryption.

Undermining end-to-end encrypted services establishes a dangerous precedent that would invite and encourage potential criminal activity. Image: Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Undermining end-to-end encrypted services establishes a dangerous precedent that would invite and encourage potential criminal activity. Image: Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Trying to weed out child sexual abuse material and illegal activity that threatens the sovereignty and integrity of India is important. However, the government is ignoring the fact that any method that allows a third-party to associate users with specific content in an end-to-end encrypted system weakens the security of law-abiding citizens and the Internet at large.

In some ways, the ability to link any user to any content is worse than providing no encryption at all, as it gives citizens a false sense of security, and they might actually face risks they have no knowledge of. Criminals could gain access to this information and track down specific users. ‘Trusted parties’ could also abuse the system and use it to target their opposition. Portions of private communication linking users to embarrassing (but not illegal) content could also be exposed. Similarly, criminals will move to services outside of the Indian jurisdiction, which are not required to implement traceability. In all these situations, law enforcement loses the advantage it set out to create for itself and ends up leaving everyone at risk.

Law enforcement agencies have plenty of other ways to investigate crime without tracing the source of encrypted content – such as open-source intelligence including publicly-available information on social media sites, evidence from witnesses or accomplices, and communications metadata.

Further, the spread of disinformation through social media is not a problem unique to India. It is not an issue that arose due to encryption – it is a social issue motivated by human behaviour. The way to tackle this is by ensuring timely and accessible availability of trusted, verified information in local languages, along with education to help users identify misinformation. This would discourage people from consuming and further disseminating disinformation, and limit ‘spam’. In fact, this trusted information is best delivered via end-to-end encrypted services where the integrity of the information can be preserved. Thus, encryption does not need to be undermined to root out fake news; doing so would threaten various other activities that people carry out over encrypted platforms.

While preventing crime and keeping people safe is a universal priority, this debate is not about privacy versus security. People across the world are more secure because of end-to-end encryption. Weakening encrypted systems to prevent crime is like solving one problem by creating a thousand more – the same as banning cars from the road because criminals use cars. Undermining end-to-end encrypted services establishes a dangerous precedent that would invite and encourage potential criminal activity, with devastating consequences for the safety and security of millions of citizens.

The government, by demanding traceability, is compelling end-to-end encrypted services to undermine encryption without explicitly telling them to do so. This may lead services and platforms to stop offering end-to-end encrypted services or pull out of Indian markets altogether.

Encryption is our strongest digital tool to keep people, their data and the country overall safe online. The Intermediary Guidelines have the potential to trigger grave, unintended consequences to the security of the Internet, and the Indian government should revisit its requirement of tracking content originators.

The author is Policy and Advocacy Manager at the Internet Society and is based in New Delhi. Internet Society is a global non-profit organization empowering people to keep the Internet a force for good: open, globally connected, secure and trustworthy.

When I first played King’s new mobile release Crash Bandicoot: On the Run, I was reminded ad nauseam of Subway Surfer and Temple Run. I was, of course, thrilled about Crash in an endless runner format, because with his jumping, spinning, and sliding, he fits right into the model. You can tap to spin, swipe up to jump, swipe down to slide, and swipe sideways to switch lanes.

Crash Bandicoot: On the Run is available for free on both Android and iOS.

Crash Bandicoot: On the Run is available for free on both Android and iOS.

On the Run has new levels that you have to clear, and each level comes with its own set of challenges. Each level has boss battles that you must clear to move on to the next one.

But to enter each boss battle, on your base island, at the ‘Nitro Lab’, you will have to create bombs and serums to be able to fight the next super enemy.

In the Nitro Lab, you need to create bombs and serums to be able to play the boss battles. Image: tech2

In the Nitro Lab, you need to create bombs and serums to be able to play the boss battles.

You won’t always have the ingredients needed for making the bombs and serums. One option is to purchase those ingredients, and the other is to explore different islands using the Map. You can collect gems, fruits and other ingredients on the islands. There are also some additional challenges on each island, but I haven’t unlocked all of those so far.

Pro tip: If you want a true endless runner experience, then you can pick new locations on the Map, which lets you run as long as you can, while picking up different ingredients on the way. The challenge runs are not as endless as you’d like and quickly come to an end with a final battle.

When you begin a run, after a few levels, you also have the option to pick from different costumes for Crash.

On the Run also has a mode named Survival Runs, which lets you team up with two other people and for a group run. Similar to Candy Crush, there is a leaderboard here as well. The more trophies you collect during the run, the higher you are on the leaderboard. However, you can only attempt a limited number of Survival Runs in a day.

Things I would change about Crash Bandicoot: On the Run

Time to time, the game requires data downloads of 300-350 MB at the time of launching the app. So, if a user does not have a Wi-Fi connection or has a limited data plan, the downloads may keep users from coming back to the game.

The game runs up to 342 MB of downloads each time you launch the app.

The game runs up to 342 MB of downloads each time you launch the app.

I would also make the game a little more challenging.

Crash Bandicoot: On the Run is fun no doubt, but it’s too easy. The boss battles and challenges around them should keep you on the edge of your seat, but instead, they are an easy combination of run, swipe, spin, dodge, and just tap to kill the monster. Not once was I defeated in these challenges; not because I am that good, but because the game kind of completes the challenge for you.

The game may not challenge you, but it will keep you entertained

At the end of the day, though, I still like to unwind with this game. More than a ‘run’, the game lets you leisurely potter and spin around different islands. It may not challenge you like Crash Bandicoot on a console, but the game will definitely keep you hooked.

In February, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) issued new guidelines for social media intermediaries and OTT platforms, which come into effect from Wednesday, 26 May. Among other things, the guidelines require all OTT and social media platforms to have a grievance redressal mechanism and name a grievance officer, who must register a grievance within 24 hours and redress it in 15 days.

(Also Read: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram yet to comply with India’s new digital ethics code as it comes into effect today: What we know so far)

While Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are yet to comply with the new guidelines, WhatsApp had appointed a grievance officer in India in 2018. Here’s how you can reach out to the WhatsApp grievance officer and register a complaint:

new 2

As per new guidelines, social media platforms need to have a grievance redressal mechanism and a grievance officer, who must register a grievance within 24 hours and redress it in 15 days. Image: Tech2/Priya Singh

How to get in touch with the WhatsApp grievance officer

1. Open WhatsApp and head to Settings > Help > Contact Us.

2. You can write an email on o register complaints via email, you can send a mail to [email protected] and do attach an electronic signature. If you’re contacting us about a specific account, please include your phone number in full international format, including the country code.

3. You can opt to post on:

Ashish Chandra

WhatsApp

Attention: Grievance Officer

Post Box No. 56

Road No. 1, Banjara Hills

Hyderabad – 500 034

Telangana, India

Although Facebook, Twitter and Instagram are yet to appoint their grievance officer in India as per the new guidelines, you can still reach out to them in case you need to file a complaint. Here’s how you can do it:

How to reach out to the Twitter grievance officer

1. You can visit the Twitter grievance officer website and click on the support form to file the complaint according to your issues like login issues, impersonation, deactivated account, hacked account, suspended or locked account and so on.

2. You can email your issue on [email protected]

3. You can write to the officer at the following address:

Twitter, Inc.

c/o Jeremy Kessel

1355 Market St #900

San Francisco, California 94103

United States

How to reach out to the Facebook grievance officer

1. You can fill up this form on Facebook’s website and attach your electronic signature

2. You can post by including “ATTENTION: Grievance Officer” on the following address:

Julie Duvall

Facebook Inc

ATTENTION — GRIEVANCE OFFICER

1 Hacker Way

Menlo Park, CA 94025

USA

[email protected]

3. You can also get in touch with Facebook in India via post at:

216, Okhla Industrial Estate, Phase III

New Delhi – 110020

How to get in touch with the Instagram grievance officer

1. You can fill up the contact form to report your issue

2. You can write to the officer at:

Julie Duvall

Facebook Inc

ATTENTION — GRIEVANCE OFFICER

1 Hacker Way

Menlo Park, CA 94025

USA

Apple is expected to officially introduce the new Beats Studio wireless earphones soon. Last week, images of new, wire-free, in-ear Beats-branded earbuds named ‘Beats Studio Buds’ were leaked via tvOS 14.6 and iOS 14.6 beta updates. Now, images of two Beats Studio earbuds have been leaked. MySmartPrice has received real-world images of the two earbuds, which appeared to have the same design as revealed in the FCC listing and iOS 14.6 beta update. The upcoming Studio Buds have an in-ear design and look like the Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro launched earlier this year.

The upcoming Apple Beats Studio Buds have an in-ear design. Image: MySmartPrice

The upcoming Apple Beats Studio Buds have an in-ear design. Image: MySmartPrice

Claiming to have received the images of the earbuds from unidentified sources, the portal reveals the circular shape of the earbuds, with a tiny cut-out in each of them, made to fit multiple sensors. The charging case is said to be like the AirPods Pro’s, with the Beats logo and a charging indicator at the front.

As per a 9to5mac report, the new earbuds are expected to have an Apple chip and the “Hey, Siri” feature, available on the AirPods 2, AirPods Pro, and AirPods Max. Beats’ new earbuds will receive a Noise Cancellation feature and will be more compact.

The tech giant may rebrand the earbuds as the second-generation AirPods Pro. Last year, various reports suggested the successor of the AirPods Pro will get a new design in 2021. It was also anticipated that Apple could ditch the stem on the Pro AirPods. Customers still await Apple’s official confirmation on the same.

The Republic of Gamers (ROG) brand by ASUS has launched new gaming laptops in India, including the convertible ROG Flow X13, and laptops from the Zephyrus series, including the ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE, ROG Zephyrus G15 and ROG Zephyrus G14. As per the press release, all four laptops are available for purchase from today, 26 May. The Flow X13 can be bought for Rs 1,19,990 and the Duo 15 SE can be purchased for Rs 2,99,990, while the price of the G15 and G14 is Rs 1,37,990 and Rs 94,990, respectively.

Speaking about the new laptops, Arnold Su, Business Head of Consumer and Gaming PC, System Business Group, ASUS India, said the latest laptops have been built with the philosophy that the company wants to create an impact by delivering versatility in a compact design.

The ROG Flow X13 gaming laptop can change forms thanks to its 360-degree ‘ErgoLift’ hinge. Image: ASUS

The ROG Flow X13 gaming laptop can change forms thanks to its 360-degree ‘ErgoLift’ hinge. Image: ASUS

Vinay Sinha, ASUS’ MD of sales in India, said the new line-up of laptops is a result of the company’s effort to deliver performance, power, and portability with style.

According to the press release, the ROG Flow X13 has a detachable eGPU (XG Mobile) support. The gaming laptop can change forms thanks to its 360-degree ‘ErgoLift’ hinge.

As a performance booster, the Flow X13 comes with the PCIe 3.0×8 interface, a is equipped with AMD Ryzen 9 5900HS processor. The new processor enhances the performance by 19 percent as compared to the last-gen processor, states the press release. In addition to the above features, it also packs the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 GPU. The Flow X13 can be purchased on Flipkart, and the XG Mobile version will be available in the next few months.

While the Duo 15 SE has an AMD Ryzen 9 5900HX processor, the G15 and G14 use the AMD Ryzen 9 5900HS mobile processor.

The entire new range of the ROG laptops is equipped with intelligent cooling technology, which includes both software and hardware cooling.

The world is celebrating the birth anniversary of Lord Buddha today, 26 May. In India and the neighbouring countries, it is celebrated as Buddha Purnima as Buddha was born on a full moon day. It is also known as Buddha Jayanti, Vesak Day or Vaishakha. According to Hinduism, Gautama Buddha was the ninth incarnation of Lord Vishnu. He was born as Siddhartha in the Lumpini province of Nepal and later renounced everything to walk the path of non-violence and meditation.

Image: Pixabay

According to Hinduism, Gautama Buddha was the ninth incarnation of Lord Vishnu. Image: Pixabay

On this occasion, people visit the Mahabodhi Temple situated in Bodh Gaya, Bihar to pray. The temple is adorned with colourful decorations and special prayers are organised near the Bodhi tree. But this year, the celebrations have been cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic. Nevertheless, you can still share wishes and messages with your friends and family.

Buddha Purnima 2021: Wishes and messages

1. Wishing you a very Happy Buddha Jayanti. May Lord Buddha enlighten you on the path of peace and harmony

2. May the year be full of good health and peace

3. Happy Buddha Purnima!

4. Three things cannot be long hidden, the sun, the moon, and the truth. Happy Buddha Purnima!

5. The mind is everything. What you think you become. Therefore, think of peace and blissfulness.  A very happy Buddha Purnima 2021  to all

6. May Lord Buddha guide us on the path of love, peace, and truth. Happy Buddha Purnima to you and your family

Buddha Purnima 2021: Famous quotes by Gautam Buddha

1.  Every morning we are born again. What matters is what we do on every new day

2. Light a lamp for somebody and it will also brighten your path

3. Nobody is going to punish you for your anger, it itself will punish you

4. No matter what your past is, you can always begin

BBIL hopes to get COVAXIN on WHO’s emergency use listing by the third or fourth quarter of this year.

Bharat Biotech awaits emergency use approval from WHO for COVID-19 vaccine

A health worker tries to adjust the oxygen mask of a COVID-19 patient at the BKC field hospital in Mumbai, India, AP

Bharat Biotech International Limited (BBIL) has applied to the World Health Organisation (WHO) to get an emergency use listing (EUL) for its COVID-19 vaccine. It hopes to get the nod by the third or fourth quarter of this year. BBIL has submitted 90 percent of required documents to WHO to get approval, and the remaining documents will be submitted by June, the Hyderabad-based pharma company told the Central government during a discussion. The meeting was attended by the company’s managing director V Krishna Mohan and his colleagues, along with senior officers of the Ministry of Health, Department of Biotechnology and Ministry of External Affairs and Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla. Speaking to PTI, a source said, “BBIL is confident about obtaining WHO’s emergency use listing.”

“We’ve started this process with WHO. It’s not an immediate approval that you get. It takes a couple of months. We are quite hopeful that by Q3 or Q4 we will receive our WHO approval,” said Raches Ella, head of business development and advocacy at BBIL to TOI.

“Bharat Biotech, in the past, has been approved by WHO for several other vaccines, so we’re not new to this process. we are aware of it”, he added.

According to a report by TOI, WHO documents show BBIL had submitted its expression of interest on 19 April, 2021, and WHO has asked for more information from the company. A pre-submission meeting is supposed to be held some time between May-June 2021.

The WHO has given approvals to the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for emergency use on 31 December, 2020. The AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine got its approvals on 15 February, and the COVID-19 vaccine Ad26.COV2.S developed by Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) was approved on 12 March. Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine and China’s Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine have also both been approved in its EUL.

According to a report by Hindustan Times, people who have been vaccinated with Bharat Biotech’s COVAXIN might not be allowed to travel overseas, as it not officially recognised by the WHO or by many countries. The vaccine is indigenously co-produced by BBIL, India’s apex health agency ICMR and the NIV-Pune.

With countries slowly opening back to allow foreign travellers, they are most likely to introduce new rules that allow only fully vaccinated people into their countries, in order to stop the spread of the disease. And while not many countries have instituted a ‘vaccine passport’, they will create these rules based on the recommendations of their respective health agencies or basis the vaccines approved by the WHO. This might be one reason why BBIL is rushing to get this process started. The European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK) and Canada have not included COVAXIN in their approved list of vaccines.

COVAXIN has already received regulatory approval from 11 countries, and sources say there is also interest from 11 companies in seven nations for technology transfer and production of the vaccine. While countries such as Mexico, the Philippines, Iran, Paraguay, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Guyana, Venezuela, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Nepal have approved the vaccine, sources told PTI the company is trying to get regulatory approvals in Brazil and Hungary and is in the final stages of submitting the required documents.

The company is also negotiating with the US Food and Drug Administration to conduct a small-scale phase-III clinical trial of COVAXIN in the US.

In many sectors of modern life, technology has made things easier (we’re looking at you robot lawn mower). But when it comes to travel, it can be a little more complicated these days to get where you’re going without having to open multiple emails, scan multiple bar codes, and use your phone’s navigation feature to figure out how to get where you need to be. The TripIt app attempts to make all of this easier for you by aggregating your travel information in one place. And the free version of the app certainly does that. But to make TripIt really sing, you will likely want to upgrade. 

When you sign up for a free TripIt account, you’ll be asked whether or not you want to populate the app automatically as your travel confirmations hit your inbox, which you can do if you have a GMail, Yahoo or Outlook mail account. Say yes, and the app will scan your email box every 24 hours and add any flight, hotel or car reservations it detects. If you don’t want the auto-fill feature to work, all you need to do is forward any confirmations you receive to [email protected] and they will automatically be added to your itinerary. If that still feels too nosey, you can also enter trip details manually. 

You can access your itineraries from the main screen, and when you click into an upcoming trip, all your data will be displayed in a list organized by the time of the events involved in your travel. TripIt makes it easy to share your plans with a click or a tap and offers some fun additional features like integration with your maps app and a summary of how much your trip will cost.

While those are all handy features, upgrading to TripIt Pro juices things up a bit.

One of the biggest challenges to modern travel is the fact that schedules are often changed due to delays. In the basic TripIt app, you won’t be automatically alerted to these changes, so you’ll still have to monitor things through the individual providers’ apps or websites, which kind of defeats the purpose of having TripIt in the first place. 

Upgrading to Pro, which costs $49 per year integrates automatic schedule changes. 

The Pro level will also let you know if the price of your flight has changed after you book or even if a better seat becomes available, and it will send automatic schedule changes to your “Inner Circle,” a group of people you choose to share your plans with. It also sends check-in reminders, shows the wait times at security gates, tells you where to get your bags, helps you navigate the airport itself, and even gives you a bit of country-specific travel information.

If you only travel occasionally, the free version of TripIt can certainly make things easier for you. Having an at-a-glance itinerary is certainly nice, and being easily able to share your plans is handy. If, however, you take more than a few trips a year, the Pro version seems worth the extra $50 per year – if for nothing else than having the peace-of-mind of knowing that you’ll get instant alerts to any changes in gates, flight times, or other glitches in your schedule. Both apps are available in desktop and mobile versions for Macs and PCs.

 Download TripIt Here

Truecaller had incorporated a ‘COVID Healthcare Directory’ feature into its smartphone app a month ago. The latest development on this front is that the caller identification and spam-blocking app has decided to collaborate with MapMyIndia and FactChecker in order to improve the existing directory. According to the press release, with the help of MapMyIndia, details of as many as 60,000 COVID-19-related facilities have been added in the app, including dedicated COVID-19 hospitals, vaccination centres, test centres and other such facilities.

Truecaller India MD Rishit Jhunjhunwala said the company is committed to extending help to those who are on the frontlines and to communities. Truecaller hopes with this partnership, it will be able to provide some relief to those who are trying to find COVID-19 help-related contacts.

with the help of MapMyIndia, details of as many as 60,000 COVID-19-related facilities have been added in the app. Image: Truecaller

With the help of MapMyIndia, details of as many as 60,000 COVID-19-related facilities have been added in the Truecaller app. Image: Truecaller

Speaking about the collaboration, MapMyIndia CEO and executive director Rohan Verma said the company is fortunate to partner with Truecaller in its fight against COVID-19. He further shared that users of the app will be able to identify COVID-19 related facilities with the help of the MapMyIndia widget present in the app.

According to the press release, there will be a MapMyIndia banner inside the Truecaller app, which will contain information about COVID-19-related healthcare facilities.

Meanwhile, the collaboration of Truecaller with FactChecker will ensure COVID-19 relief numbers are constantly verified by a fact-checking team. This has been done in order to help people avail help quickly during the crisis using the relief numbers.

Television and print journalist Govindraj Ethiraj also appreciated the collaboration and said FactChecker is happy to join hands with Truecaller in order to expand the reach of SOS India4U www.sosindia4u.com, which provides first-hand verification of sources.

Comets are made up of gases, rock, and dust that revolve around the Sun. Unlike the mostly circular orbits of the planets, comets have a lop-sided orbit. They are the biggest attractions for astronomers in the world. They can have orbital spans as small as two to three years to 70,000 years.  Researchers conducted a meteor shower survey and have found that can detect meteor showers from the debris in the path of comets that pass close to Earth orbit and are known to return as infrequent as once every 4,000 years.

This new study was conducted by Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute was published in the journal Icarus.

An unprocessed image from the WISPR instrument on NASA’s Parker Solar Probe shows the comet NEOWISE as of 5 July 2020, soon after its closest approach to the Sun. Image: NASA Goddard

An unprocessed image from the WISPR instrument on NASA’s Parker Solar Probe shows the comet NEOWISE as of 5 July 2020, soon after its closest approach to the Sun. representational Image. Image: NASA Goddard

A space rock that penetrates the Earth’s atmosphere is a meteor. The resistance of the air causes it to become heated as it falls toward Earth and we call it a “shooting star.” When multiple meteors zip through the atmosphere at the same time, we call it a meteor shower, NASA explains.

Jenniskens, who currently heads the Cameras for Allsky Meteor Surveillance (CAMS) project, detects the visible meteors in the night sky using low-light video security cameras. He finds out the direction from which comet debris is entering Earth’s atmosphere, and the camera is a big help to measure their route and orbit line.

The number of triangulated meteors increased significantly in recent years due to the new research networks created in Australia, Namibia, and Chile. The entry of these countries helped in finding better images of the meteor showers in the night sky.

The researchers found at least nine new matches between meteor showers and long-period comets and six potential matches. According to a report by Space.com, the study looks for comets that are responsible for unusual meteor showers like the sigma Virginids in December and the Pegasids in July, which are caused by debris from comets C/1846 J1 Brorsen and C/1979 Y1 Bradfield, respectively.

“Until recently, we only knew five long-period comets to be parent bodies to one of our meteor showers but now we identified nine more, and perhaps as many as 15,” confirms Jenniskens.

“In the future, with more observations, we may be able to detect fainter showers and trace the orbit of parent comets on even longer orbits,” he added.

Long-period comets have orbital periods longer than 200 years and their orbits are highly elliptical.

While comets make up a small fraction of things that impact Earth, history has shown that it can cause some of the biggest damage.

Recently, the Eta Aquarids meteor shower took place from 5-6 May 2-21. The Perseids meteor shower will occur from 12 – 13 August 2021 and will be visible from India.

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