War-torn Syria is reportedly experiencing massive Internet outages. Both Google’s transparency monitor and security firm Cloudflare are reporting near zero levels of traffic out of the area. This isn’t the first time the beleaguered nation has experienced Internet issues. Back in 2012, the Syrian government, in attempt to paralyze opposition rebels, cut the entire country off from the… → Read More
As millions of 20-somethings defy the age-old tradition of young marriage for another decade of baby-less romance, one study suggests that the Internet is responsible for boosting holy matrimony 14% among 21-30-year-olds. In a deliciously dry economic assessment of romantic partnering, University of Montreal Professor Andriana Bellou finds a surprisingly strong relationship between broadband… → Read More
The United States Senate overwhelmingly supported a tax on Internet sales today, voting 70-24 in favor of the Marketplace Fairness Act. The outcome was expected after a similar non-biding show of approval passed the Senate with roughly the same number of votes, despite extraordinary opposition from eBay and other major Internet organizations. → Read More
In order to discreetly reach abused children, one aid organization designed a clever billboard that only displays a hotline number for people shorter than 4’5″. The secret is a precisely serrated surface, a Lenticular lens, that reflects light differently to those looking from above and below a specified height. Shorter people (children) see the following message on a street sign: “If somebody… → Read More
The Syrian Electronic Army has apparently hacked The Onion’s twitter account, exposing the groups seriously morbid sense of “humor”. “UN retracts report of Syrian chemical weapon use: “Lab tests confirm it is Jihadi body odor”, went one tweet. We’ve seen fake hacks before, and given that The Onion is a satirical news site, it was hard to know whether this… → Read More
The Israeli Foreign Minister has sent a strongly worded letter to Google CEO, Larry Page, warning him that their new Palestine search page could undermine Middle-East peace negotiations. “Such a decision is in my opinion not only mistaken but could also negatively impinge on the efforts of my government to bring about direct negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority,”… → Read More
For America to maintain its fragile role as the most innovative nation on earth, it must perpetually attract the world’s best and brightest. There will always be trailblazing engineers who stay in their home country, leaving the United States one notch below its potential. Yet, on the heels of comprehensive immigration reform, a new viral economic study claiming that there is no tech talent… → Read More
In the near future, the only difference between a smartphone, tablet, and a laptop will be the size of the screen. Hardcore gamers could play 3D intensive games in a smartphone, and Michael Bay could render “Transformers 4″ from his iPad. Otoy, an LA-based software company, has discovered a way to stream any application to any device, completely through a web browser. It’s… → Read More
Transit trade groups pulled out the race card and managed to block smartphone taxi “e-hailing” a day after they were cleared to pilot in New York City. Associate Justice Helen E. Freedman issued an emergency injunction against smartphone taxi app companies Hailo and Uber, after hearing arguments from the several car service groups alleging that smartphones permit drivers to… → Read More
The White House will reportedly confirm that former telecommunications lobbyist Tom Wheeler will be nominated to chair the Federal Communications Commission. Current FCC Commissioner Mignon Clyburn will act as interim chairman while outgoing Chair Julius Genachowski enjoys his luxurious new life as a fellow at the Aspen Institute policy think tank. A decade ago, before he was a venture capitalist… → Read More
Online backlash is growing against Mark Zuckerberg’s lobby’s secretive ads supporting conservative senators who encourage the creation of the Keystone XL pipeline and drilling in the Arctic Wildlife Refuge. “Immigration reform – fine. Oil expansion and pipelines? NOT fine. Where’s the transparency here, rich dudes? Or does FWD actually stand for Fine With… → Read More
Want the fun of losing your wallet without the free drinks and oxygen high? Now Nevada residents can legally gamble online at ultimatepoker.com, which could roll out nationwide as more states legalize the practice. Since the infamous 2011 “Black Friday” that took down PokerStars and the online gambling cottage industry, a court of appeals overturned the Federal Wire Act law that banned… → Read More
At least one congressman thinks he is better equipped to judge the merit of research than the world’s premier scientists. Representative Lamar Smith (CrunchGov Grade: F), co-author of the infamous Stop Online Piracy Act, wants the director of the National Science Foundation to certify that all research is meeting national priorities, based on the accusation that current scientific research… → Read More
The head of Mark Zuckerberg’s enigmatic political lobby took the stage of TechCrunch’s Disrupt New York conference. “It’s incumbent on us to make the knowledge economy as inclusive as possible,” said FWD.us head Joe Green. FWD.us joins a crowded landscape of politically aggressive trade associations pressing Silicon Valley’s agenda on Capitol Hill. Since the… → Read More
Netflix’s “House of Cards” took center stage at the annual White House Correspondents Dinner, with an official spoof about the back room jockeying over seat assignments at the coveted press dinner. The clip even gave a big nod to BuzzFeed’s alternative BBQ held during the actual dinner. Despite their admirable popularity, BuzzFeed is not a member of the White House… → Read More
In light of the AP’s high-profile Twitter hacking and a vicious domestic bombing, Americans have not let fear derail privacy legislation. Just this week, the Senate advanced an anti-email snooping law and the controversial Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA) is reportedly on its way to the grave. It appears that the burden of proof has shifted to proponents of government… → Read More
Governments, even democracies, are not always fans of transparency. According to Google’s brand new transparency report, “government attempts to censor content on Google services has grown”, doubling since the second half of 2012 (1,054 requests vs. 2,285). Brazil took the gold medal of the censorship olympics, with 697 requests, while the United States took 2nd place, with 321… → Read More
As partygoers decend into DC for the annual White House Correspondents Dinner, TechCrunch wanted to remind the nation’s policy wonks of the startups that are keeping America on the cutting edge of innovation. So, we’re inviting proud geeks to party with us at the swanky new headquarters of startup incubator, 1776. On Friday, April 26th from 8pm-11pm, Aol founder Steve Case co-hosts the… → Read More
The 42nd President of the United States and the man with the most endearing lip bite in the world, William Jefferson Clinton, has officially jumped into the 21st century by joining Twitter. The Prez has already racked up over 200,000 followers in roughly 30 minutes and brought his lovable charm in under 140 characters. “@StephenAtHome Just got a call from Chelsea. Ready to start Twitter lessons… → Read More
Eighty-seven percent of the nation’s top economists think that the digital currency, Bitcoin, has “limited usefulness.” Given the growing popularity of the enigmatic currency, the University of Chicago conducted its famous Initiative on Global Markets (IGM) poll of 38 of the world’s top economists, to see how experts felt about its longterm future. By far the best… → Read More
Some of the nation’s young brainiacs were honored today at the annual White House Science Fair. Every spring, the White House invites children to show off life-changing innovations that have mostly been constructed in MacGyver-like fashion from commercially available materials. Even though I cover this story every year, it’s hard not to be inspired by brilliant young kids motivated to tackle the… → Read More
For those with Autism, the social isolation of staring at a computer screen all day may be a welcoming environment. NPR has an uplifting story about how engineers with the socially challenging Aspergers syndrome are thriving in technology jobs. “We’ve got this one guy, for example; his productivity is three times as productive as the person doing his job who did not have cognitive… → Read More
Google 1, Germany 0. German regulators were furious when it was found that Google’s street car was unintentionally collecting email, photos, and passwords from its citizens’ unprotected Wi-Fi networks — something Hamburg-based regulator, Johannes Caspar, called “one of the biggest data-protection rules violations known.” Yet, regulators could only muster a financial… → Read More
At least 3 CBS-affiliated news accounts have been hacked, apparently by a rabid conspiracy theorist who wants the world to believe that President Obama is aiding Al-Qaeda. Accounts for @60minutes @48hours, and @CBSDenver have all been hacked, some tweeting suspicious links (don’t click on them). Screenshots below. CBS is apparently working with Twitter to get the situation under control. → Read More
University of Tennessee coach Butch Jones wanted to get an eagle-eye view of his players but apparently didn’t have the resources to spend it on the kinds of expensive, cable-suspended Skycam equipment used by broadcasters. Instead, he sent up a drone, in what appears to be the first – or one of the first — uses of unmanned aerial vehicles in college football. A Vine (above)… → Read More
Reporters have a nasty addiction to a particularly potent drug: the attention that comes from getting a scoop. Last night, during the live manhunt of the Boston marathon bombing suspects, we saw a lot of respected writers completely tweaking out on it. For lack of evidence, speculation began to swirl from the least reliable of sources: Internet conspiracy theorists. In the morning, when it became… → Read More
So much for President Obama’s election mandate and the notion that Democrats are concerned about privacy. Today, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the controversial Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA), which has been caught in the centuries old debate over privacy vs. security. The House passage isn’t particularly interesting, since, like last year, CISPA may… → Read More
Days are numbered for colleges that award degrees based on the amount of time students sit in a classroom. The U.S. Department Of Education approved financial aid for a new self-paced, online learning college, where students demonstrate competence, rather than earn credit hours in a semester-long class. From the Chronicle Of Higher Education Wired Campus Blog: “Unlike the typical experience… → Read More
The US Senate dropped an 844-page immigration bill on America’s shoulders’ today [PDF]. For decades, the tech industry has been begging for more immigrant engineers, researchers, and investors. Here’s 5 essential changes proposed in the United State Senate’s draft of comprehensive immigration reform. → Read More
Modern day eating habits are making us fat, stupid, and sick. Even for those high-octane health-nuts with the discipline to have a salad, rapid eating between meetings can cause weight gain, brain fog, illness, and fatigue. Now, a high-tech fork has bottled the “don’t eat so fast” wisdom of our mothers in an everyday object that buzzes whenever it detects users eating too… → Read More
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