Earlier this year, BP announced its objective to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, while boosting employee safety and operational efficiency. One way to achieve that goal is to deploy robots, which can navigate hazardous situations in ways humans can’t (or shouldn’t).
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Boston Dynamics' Spot Robodog Finds Work on a BP Oil Rig
Boston Dynamics’ four-legged canine-inspired Spot is by no means an old dog, but that doesn’t mean it can’t learn new tricks. The 55-pound robot, unveiled in 2016, has boarded BP’s Mad Dog oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico, where it will master tasks including reading gauges, finding corrosion, mapping the facility, and sniffing out methane, according to Reuters.
CAN THIS AI HELP SMOKERS QUIT?
While COVID-19 remains an occupying force in our world, and a viable vaccine is still out of reach, dealing with the pandemic comes down to mitigating health risks while coping with stress. If you’re a smoker, that’s going to be tough on both accounts. This isn’t the Mad Men era; everyone knows the risks of tobacco use, but cessation of addictive substances isn’t easy.
Assassin's Creed Valhalla (for PC): Another Winner
The Assassin’s Creed series has taken us to numerous historical settings since its 2007 debut, including Ancient Greece, Renaissance Italy, and Revolutionary War-era America. The newest installment, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, details the Viking invasion of 9th Century England from the perspective of history’s most notorious raiders. Though Valhalla doesn’t introduce anything wholly new to the series, it’s an excellent PC game that follows in the footsteps of its equally exceptional predecessors, Origins and Odyssey.
Microsoft Xbox Series X: An Impressive Console
The newest Xboxes are here, packing plenty of power into boxier frames than ever. Microsoft’s entries into the latest console generation are the Xbox Series X, reviewed here, and the Xbox Series S ($299).
2020's Most Common Passwords Are Laughably Insecure
Chances are that if a password is easy for you to remember, a hacker can easily crack it. And despite years (and years) of tech companies warning consumers to use hard-to-crack passwords, plus two-factor authentication, people are still using laughably insecure codes.
THE BEST PRODUCTS OF 2020
It’s been a weird year.
Virtual Movie Night: How to Watch Netflix With Friends Using Teleparty
Many of us are facing a long winter indoors, thanks to the ongoing pandemic. And though we have video streaming to distract us, watching shows and movies is more fun with friends. You could get everyone on Zoom and press play at the same time, but there’s an easier way: Teleparty (formerly known as Netflix Party).
Apple Mac mini (M1, Late 2020): Most Polished, Potent Tiny Desktop
The Mac mini doesn’t get upgraded often, but when it does, it makes an impact well out of proportion to its trim dimensions. The 2018 Mac mini was a PCMag Editors’ Choice pick for its pep, connectivity, build quality, and limited upgradability. A slight variation on the same sheet music, played with little fanfare earlier this year, pumped up the two base models’ SSD capacity. The real update of this iconic little desktop is this one, and it’s a big-band extravaganza. Apple’s own highly integrated system-on-a-chip (SoC), the M1 brings the Mac mini to new performance highs, and while a few fundamentals have changed, the peppy performance, the reasonable mix of connectivity, and a new lower $699 starting price combine to make it one of the best values in compact computers, period. It easily earns our Editors’ Choice nod.
Optoma HD39HDR: Bright, Low-Lag Projector
Designed for gaming and for watching movies and TV, the Optoma HD39HDR is one of a growing number of 1080p home projectors that can accept a 4K UHD (3,840-by-2,160-pixel) HDR signal and downconvert the resolution to 1080p. Some projectors in this category accept the input without really offering any of the benefits that high dynamic range promises for a wider color gamut or range of brightness levels. Others, including the Optoma, make good use of HDR. In my tests, the HD39HDR delivered more-vibrant color and far better shadow detail when I played the 4K HDR versions of movies on my Blu-ray player than when playing the 1080p SDR versions of the same titles.
Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G Review: Perfect Balance of Power and Price
The Samsung Galaxy S20 FE is everything you need and nothing else. Samsung pared down its flagship S20 series to a more palatable price, and the result is a value-minded standard-bearer to properly face up against the forthcoming iPhone 12 line. With fast performance, solid cameras, and often substantial discounts at major wireless providers, the S20 FE 5G becomes our default Android phone recommendation for 2020 as well as our Editors’ Choice.
The Electric Truck That Couldn't
In the past six months, Nikola has faced an SEC probe, lost partners, and seen its shares tank
ADI OZ-ARI DISPERSAL
PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL AND METAPHORICAL
The Healthy Prostate
A man’s risk of BPH increases with age. These science-backed supplements help prevent and treat the most common symptoms.
The moment when three bass legends first shared a stage...
A historic moment in bass world—recalled by those who were there to see it
I SPY… SOMETHING CHROMATIC
Chromatic movement means that we'll be moving in half-steps or fret by-fret on our instrument
Chevron Keeps It Old-School
As rivals go green, it’s sticking with fossil fuels
An Exclusive Interview With Antony Micallef – 'Distorted Self Portrait'
Antony Micallef is a British artist. He was taught by the great landscape painter John Virtue, a student of the last of the post-war painters, the renowned Frank Auerbach himself. Micallef is Widely recognised as one of the finest painters in contemporary art today. His art is exhibited in numerous collections all over the world, and was part of group shows held in institutions such as the National Portrait Gallery, The Royal Academy, Tate Britain and the ICA London.
Prostate Protection
Seven super foods that support this tiny but important gland
BTC ELECTION: THE NEW POLITICAL TRANSFORMATION
The Bodoland Territorial Council has developed many controversial subjects concerning land alienation and property rights that undoubtedly have already become the core electoral issues. This election will elect members to the Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC), the autonomous district council for the Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR), a council constituted under the provision of the Sixth Schedule of the Indian Constitution. The election for 40 seats for the BTC council was due to be held on 4 April 2020 but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the term of the council was expired there were two possibilities. The first one was none other than the extension of the then-existing council for another six months and the second one was to place it under the President's rule by the Governor of Assam. On 27 April 2020, it was announced that Bodoland would come under Governor's rule until a new council is elected.
'WE ARE BUILDING A STRATEGIC DISINVESTMENT PIPELINE'
The pandemic had put the brakes on the government’s ambitious disinvestment plans for the fiscal. However, things have started picking up as businesses go back to normal and markets regain their appetite for buying assets. The Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM), entrusted with disinvestment of central public sector enterprises (CPSEs), has an uphill task ahead given that it is racing against time to meet the annual disinvestment target. DIPAM Secretary Tuhin Kanta Pandey, in a conversation with Dipak Mondal, lays down the road ahead for the department.