Author: NCIJ NETWNCIJ NETWORK

In brief Bitcoin trades at $64,938, up 1.06% on the day, but stuck below iboth the short-term and long-term moving averages. The U.S. economy shed 23,000 jobs in July, missing the 95,000 gain economists expected; CME FedWatch cut September hike odds to 40% from 55%. The short-term outlook remains bearish, but dwindling rate-hike odds may give investors hope. The U.S. labor market cracked harder than anyone expected. Employers cut 23,000 jobs in July—the first net loss since the pandemic-era recovery, and a sharp miss against the 95,000 gain economists had penciled in.The unemployment rate ticked down to 4.1% only because…

Scientists have captured previously unseen plasma vortices swirling across the surface of the Sun, revealing tiny structures that could help explain how our star stores, moves, and releases magnetic energy. The discovery comes from researchers at the U.S. National Science Foundation National Solar Observatory (NSF NSO), the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research (MPS) in Germany, and the High Altitude Observatory (HAO) in the USA. The team combined observations from the NSF Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope, the world’s largest solar telescope, with advanced computer simulations. Built and operated by the NSO in Hawaii, the telescope provided images detailed…

Claim: An image circulating in July 2026 authentically showed surveillance footage of a gorilla named Julius screaming for help after his human caretaker collapsed. Rating: In the summer of 2026, social media users circulated an image supposedly showing surveillance footage of a gorilla screaming for help after his “favorite caretaker” collapsed while giving the animal belly rubs.  The image — which appeared to be a collage of two surveillance footage stills, one before and one after the caretaker, supposedly named Julius, collapsed — and associated story spread on Facebook  and Instagram. Snopes readers contacted us to ask whether it was an…

President Volodymyr Zelensky warned Saturday, during a visit to Belgrade, that Ukraine was facing a winter with basically no working thermal power plants as overnight Russian strikes left four dead, including a child, in the Kyiv region. Speaking alongside his Serbian counterpart, Aleksandar Vucic, the Ukrainian leader said Moscow’s latest overnight attacks and shelling of frontline communities combined had killed 13 people in the last 24 hours. “Russian missiles are aimed precisely at making the lives of Ukrainians unbearable,” Zelensky told reporters during his first official visit to Belgrade, highlighting that the attacks often target Ukraine’s energy infrastructure. Ukraine was…

Beth, a trusty tan Hoover vacuum cleaner with a burgundy cloth dust bag that for years tended to the floors of the Iowa farmhouse of Senator Chuck Grassley, earning admirers in both parties, has died. She was believed to be 49.The cause was apparently an electrical problem, said Mr. Grassley, a Republican who often admiringly posted images of his cleaning companion on social media around Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter and family reunions.“U willl see Beth no more,” Mr. Grassley, 92 and the oldest senator, wrote on social media on Saturday, attaching an image that showed Beth’s electrical cord connector scarred by…

Lance Whitney / ZDNETFollow ZDNET: Add us as a preferred source on Google. ZDNET’s key takeaways Apple has released unexpected security patches for the Mac.The patches fix a flaw in the Screen Sharing app.The updates affect MacOS Tahoe, Sonoma, and Sequoia.Apple has pushed out new updates for MacOS Tahoe, Sonoma, and Sequoia in light of a serious security vulnerability. Also: Why Apple’s iOS 26.6 is worth installing (it’s not just for the 91 security fixes)Released on Thursday, the updates for all three systems patch a flaw that could allow an attacker to exploit the Screen Sharing feature to access and control your…

Quantum materials could reshape fields as varied as high-performance computing, secure communication, sensitive detection, and energy production. Yet one persistent limitation has kept most of them from becoming practical technologies. Almost every quantum material discovered so far works only when cooled to temperatures near absolute zero. At ordinary temperatures, heat causes atoms to vibrate constantly. Those vibrations disrupt the fragile quantum effects researchers want to control. Suppressing this motion typically requires large cryogenic refrigeration systems. As a result, quantum materials can perform remarkable tasks in carefully controlled laboratories, but they are difficult and expensive to use in real-world devices. A…

In brief Hackers are using BNB Smart Chain contracts to store malware instructions. Fake CAPTCHA prompts tell victims to paste malicious commands into Windows tools. Successful attacks can steal credentials and give hackers lasting access to corporate networks. Hackers are using BNB Chain contracts to spread malware through compromised websites and fake CAPTCHA prompts, according to a report by Microsoft Threat Intelligence.In a post on X on Thursday, Microsoft Threat Intelligence said the campaign uses EtherHiding, a technique that stores malicious instructions in a blockchain smart contract. JavaScript injected into compromised websites contacts a BNB Chain gateway and retrieves commands…

An elder gave a blessing, more than 100 people in a large hall recited Quranic verses and a musician played a melody on a reed flute, soon joined by about 15 bandmates on folk instruments and drums.A woman in white took to the floor and began to spin, her skirt billowing as she accelerated and lifted her arms toward the sky.Then came a man with a blond ponytail, a guy with a backward baseball cap, women in flowing dresses — all whirling.This was the start of a recent gathering in southwestern Turkey focused on the ancient tradition of sema, the…

Let’s cut to the chase: Starting today, you can take an additional $100 off of our current $300 discount for your founder, investor, or attendee TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 pass, which is a nice bonus on top of our current discounted pricing.  This flash sale will run only until tonight at 11:59 p.m. PT. This discount will mark your last chance at a bonus deal before our next pricing tier kicks in on August 21.  Register with this link to lock in your extra $100 off. If you need to learn more before locking in your plans, Disrupt takes over Moscone West from October 13–15, bringing more than 10,000 founders, VCs, tech industry innovators, and builders…