This week, Devindra and Senior Writer Sam Rutherford dive into the Supreme Court’s latest EPA ruling, which severely limits the agency’s ability to curtail power plant emissions. Devindra also chats with ProPublica reporter Lisa Song about what this means for the EPA and other federal agencies. (Basically, it makes fighting climate change much harder.) Also, we discuss Apple’s new lockdown mode, which adds an extreme layer of security to your devices, and why Gen Z is so Minion crazy.
Listen above, or subscribe on your podcast app of choice. If you've got suggestions or topics you'd like covered on the show, be sure to email us or drop a note in the comments! And be sure to check out our other podcasts, the Morning After and Engadget News!
Apple is building a lockdown mode for an “extreme” level of security – 27:43
Axie Infinity hack was traced back to a fake LinkedIn job offer – 32:39.359
Toyota has run out of EV tax credits in the US – 37:51
God of War Ragnarok will be released on November 9, 2022 – 46:14
WTF is going on with all the Minions memes? – 48:02
Working on – 51:32
Picks – 1:03:49
Livestream
Credits Hosts: Devindra Hardawar and Sam Rutherford Guest: Lisa Song from ProPublica Producer: Ben Ellman Music: Dale North and Terrence O'Brien Livestream producers: Julio Barrientos Graphic artists: Luke Brooks and Brian Oh
The Tomorrow Children, the game once described as a "Marxism simulator," is coming back this September with brand new features and gameplay elements. Originally released as a PlayStation 4 exclusive in 2016, the online social action game spent a year in early access before Sony ultimately shut it down. In 2021, however, Q-Games, the developer who worked on the project alongside Sony's now defunct Japan Studio, obtained the intellectual property rights to the game with the intention of relaunching it. Now, after tweaking and reworking parts of the game, the developer is officially introducing it as The Tomorrow Children: Phoenix Edition.
In the game, an experiment to unite all human consciousness went awry and destroyed society. The survivors left behind are attempting to rebuild humanity in the decades that follow, and it's your mission to venture out into the empty spaces (called "the void") left behind by the experiment. Out in the void, you have to fight monsters and mine for minerals to build a new world.
The new version comes with the ability to play solo offline and a Comrade AI system for collaborative play. There's also a new major feature called Monoliths, which are structures found out in the void. When triggered, they alter the state of emerging islands, giving you access to hidden areas, secret treasures and other new ways to explore the same locations. Monoliths can be activated in both single and multiplayer modes, so you can explore altered islands with your friends.
The Tomorrow Children: Phoenix Edition will come out on September 6th in Europe and North America and on September 7th in Japan for the PS4 and the PS5, with enhancements. Q-Games founder Dylan Cuthbert said in a statement:
"It gives me great pleasure to confirm that The Tomorrow Children: Phoenix Edition will launch this September, exactly 6 years to the day from the game's original release. We’ve poured so much into the revival and it’s a joy to know that in two months time we’ll be able to explore the Void together as a community once again.
It was important for us to develop an optimum experience for both new and returning players, and the addition of Monoliths really takes island exploration up a notch for everyone. They allowed us to deliver fresh takes on existing islands and will create opportunities for the community to find fun, new ways to explore together. I personally can’t wait to jump online to experience them with you in September!"
You can watch a trailer for the Phoenix Edition below:
When Tesla first launched its network of Supercharger stations, they were just for Teslas. But with increasing rival EVs, demand for charging station access has steadily risen, prompting Tesla to begin opening its existing charger network to third-party EVs.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk tweeted last year that the company's open-access Supercharger pilot program — already in 13 European countries — would head to the US.
Now, InsideEVs spotted in a recent White House fact sheet that open chargers could arrive by the end of the year: “Later this year, Tesla will begin production of new Supercharger equipment that will enable non-Tesla EV drivers in North America to use Tesla Superchargers.”. To access it, American EV owners will need to use the latest Tesla app and select the Charge Your Non-Tesla option from the menu.
The challenge will be ensuring interoperability. While open superchargers are operating in more than a dozen countries in Europe, only some stations are actually available to non-owners. Only in the Netherlands is every Supercharger open access.
For compatibility in North America, Tesla will need to install adapters at its stations to get around the company's own proprietary charging plug, as well as consider the software interactions between the charger and non-Tesla EVs.
ASUS’ ROG Zephyrus Duo 16 is the latest push from the laptop maker to make dual-screen laptops happen. And it’s getting there. According to Engadget’s Sam Rutherford, this is an innovative option if you want to maximize screen space in a laptop, with a 16-inch main panel and a 14-inch secondary display. The main downsides include weak battery life, a somewhat bulky chassis and a high price. The costs of an extra screen.
When it debuted back in 2019, Hydrow’s creators said they were building the Peloton of smart rowing machines. Now, the company is unveiling its second-generation ergometer, Hydrow Wave, with a lower price and a smaller footprint.
‘A Quality of Mercy’ takes us to tomorrow’s Enterprise.
We’re living in the age of the prequel, says Engadget’s Dan Cooper. Ever since Star Trek: Strange New Worlds was announced, it was blighted by this same hard stop, one dictated back in November 1966: Captain Pike’s fate in the original Star Trek series. How does the latest show deal with that?
It's committing $20 million and building its own factory in Germany.
Volkswagen Group held a groundbreaking at the site of its forthcoming EV battery cell plant in Salzgitter, Germany, and announced the formation of a new company, PowerCo, responsible for the VW Group's burgeoning battery business. PowerCo will handle the group's global battery activities, from producing the batteries themselves to conducting R&D on new battery technologies to "products such as major storage systems for the energy grid," according to the announcement.
A leak from 91Mobiles shows two new Samsung wearables, apparently confirming a higher-end Pro model that will top the range. That unit, codenamed Project X, will come in black or gray titanium. The vanilla Watch5, meanwhile, will supplant the Watch4 as the more fitness-focused device in the lineup. Much like its predecessor, it’ll apparently have two case sizes and the option of an LTE modem, as well as a far broader variety of colors to choose from.
A UFO-obsessed Republican Congressman has introduced an amendment to the Defense Authorization Act to offer new protection for UFO whistleblowers. Rep. Mike Gallagher has pushed for a new rule to establish a process for receiving reports concerning Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (UAP). It’s hoped that, with these in place, soldiers and contractors will feel more comfortable sharing details of unexplained phenomena they see on the battlefield.
The Drive suggests that this could be a way of resolving the ever-present rumors that the government has evidence of extra-terrestrial life. Those who come forward should feel comfortable that they will not be breaking secrets laws, and will be protected from reprisals. There are some on the UFO speaker circuit, for instance, who say they have proof of alien life but can’t reveal it for fear of imprisonment.
The notion that the US has had secret dealings with alien life is something of a hobby-horse for Gallagher. Back in May, Politico reported that Gallagher used a House Intelligence Committee meeting to needle Pentagon officials about a glowing orb floating over Montana that briefly shut down a nuclear weapons facility in 1967. That story apparently comes from the book Unidentified: The UFO Phenomenon, from former USAF airman Robert Salas. At the time, Pentagon officials denied that there was any secret trove of evidence concerning alien life.
In 2020, the Pentagon released a series of videos that it had received concerning UAPs, showing pilots capturing something moving across their view. But officials added that there was nothing more to share, and that it has not been able to prove to anyone's satisfaction that the events featured are the result of alien incursion.
Rockstar Games confirmed that GTA VI, if that's what's the next entry in the series is going to be called, has been in the works earlier this year when it announced the release date of GTA V and GTA Online for the PS5 and the Xbox Series X|S. Now, in a post detailing a major update coming to the GTA Online experience, the developer said that it's been "steadily moving more development resources" towards the next Grand Theft Auto title over the past few years. The company has done so, because it understands the "need to exceed players' expectations," but it has had to make changes to how it supports Red Dead Online as a result.
The biggest change for Red Dead players is that the developer will no longer roll out major themed updates like in previous years. As GameRant explains, that means no more new Specialist Roles, missions and game modes, as well. The company will still build upon existing modes and add new Telegram Missions, which are solo activities players can do to get rewards, this year. But going forward, Rockstar will focus on showcasing previously added Roles and missions during Red Dead Online's monthly events.
Red Dead Online players had complained about the lack of substantial updates in the past and about Rockstar's tendency to prioritize the Grand Theft Auto franchise over its other games. GTA is a massive moneymaker for the developer, though, so it doesn't really come as a surprise that Rockstar has chosen to put all its efforts towards making sure that fans will love GTA VI.
The folks in charge of some of the biggest gaming events in the US will now be running the biggest one of them all. ReedPop, organizers of the various PAX events, as well as New York Comic Con and Star Wars Celebration, has been tapped to produce next year’s E3. In a statement, the Electronic Software Association said that it was looking for its long-awaited return to the LA Convention Center in the second week of June 2023.
The ESA had already pledged that E3 would return as a hybrid event next year, after COVID-19 disrupted plans for the last two years. ReedPop may also have to address questions of how best to revitalize an event, so famous as the gaming industry’s major showcase, whose influence may now be on the wane. After all, Sony and Nintendo have both watered-down their involvement over the years, preferring to launch product through their own channels.
Starlink has launched a ruggedized version of its dish for boats, ships and yachts, merely a few days after the FCC gave it permission to provide internet service to vehicles. The satellite internet provider says Starlink Maritime can deliver up to 350 Mbps download speeds while at sea, which isn't bad at all for boats that didn't have an internet connection to begin with. However, it doesn't come cheap: The hardware alone will set customers back $10,000, which they have to pay for up front.
The service itself costs $5,000 a month, though like Starlink for RVs, customers can pause it when it's not in use. They can choose which billing cycle to begin their pause, but they'll still have to pay for the full month whenever they switch the service on. In comparison, the residential Starlink setup's hardware costs only $599, while the service costs $110 a month.
SpaceX chief Elon Musk explained on Twitter that Starlink Maritime's antennae differ from their residential counterpart. They're "dual, high performance terminals," he said, and have the power to maintain connection in choppy seas and heavy storms. The terminals were also designed to be able to withstand "relentless salt spray [and] extreme winds [and] storms." Musk said SpaceX has been paying $150,000 a month for "a much worse connection" on its ships.
No, it’s dual, high performance terminals, which are important for maintaining the connection in choppy seas & heavy storms.
Still obv premium pricing, but way cheaper & faster than alternatives.
SpaceX was paying $150k/month for a much worse connection to our ships!
The Starlink Maritime page also mentions that the service allows you to connect from the most remote waters across the world, but it's worth noting that its coverage area is still limited. At the moment, it will only work in the coastal waters of the USA (not including Alaska), Europe (except most of Norway, Sweden and Finland), Australia, Brazil, Chile, most of the southern part of Australia and New Zealand. Starlink is expected to roll out connectivity to more locations in the fourth quarter of 2022 and next year.
SpaceX has long had plans to connect moving vehicles to the Starlink network and even previewed a ruggedized dish for boats and planes way back in 2021. It's only just a few days ago, though, when the Federal Communications Commission authorized a new class of terminals for the satellite internet service "to meet the growing user demands that now require connectivity while on the move."
Twitter has laid off dozens of employees amid growing uncertainty around Elon Musk’s acquisition. The company cut 30 percent of its talent acquisition team, which includes recruiters and others charged with bringing on new hires, The Wall Street Journalreports. Twitter told The Journal that “fewer than 100 people” had been let go and that it was only the talent acquisition team that was affected.
Twitter had previously announced a partial hiring freeze as part of a broader attempt to cut costs as it attempts to finalize its acquisition by Elon Musk. The status of the deal is uncertain as Musk has threatened to pull out of the agreement, citing concerns about the number of bots on the platform. On Thursday, The Washington Postreported that the deal was in “serious jeopardy,” and that “it was likely a change in direction from Musk’s team would come soon.”
The subject of layoffs reportedly came up at recent Twitter all-hands with Musk. The Tesla CEO said he was concerned about costs at Twitter but didn't directly answer a question about whether job cuts were on the table. "It depends," he said, according to CNBC.
In a post on LinkedIn, Ingrid Johnson, a senior technical recruiter at Twitter, wrote that it was “a really tough day.” “There are people losing their jobs that have been there over a decade,” she wrote. “If Twitter has chosen to spend potential billions suing Elon and maintaining a falsely inflated stock price at the expense of the people who gave their lives building the company— that is an even more tragic story.”
Twitter isn’t the only tech company to recently pull back on hiring or lay off employees. Meta recently said it would slow its hiring as it faces “serious times.” Netflix, Unity, Coinbase and Paypal have all recently cut jobs as well.
At today’s Nacon Connect event, the French company unveiled a teaser for an upcoming open-world game set in the Terminator universe. In the 30 seconds of footage for what been given the working title "Terminator Survival Project," we see a T-800 unit enter a warehouse or bunker of some kind. There’s very little else revealed — not even a release date.
“The game takes place in a post-apocalyptic open world and features an original story that builds on the events of the official films. You play as a group of nuclear apocalypse survivors fighting to stay alive in a time period between Judgment Day and the creation of John Connor’s resistance,” said Nacon in a release.
Nacon confirmed to Polygon that the game will be coming to PC and unspecified consoles in “the distant future.” The game was one of 17 that Nacon showcased during today’s event, including previews of Steelrising, The Lord of the Rings: Gollum and Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown. Those three are all slated to be released in September.
In January, doctors at the University of Maryland School of Medicine made history by successfully transplanting a pig's heart into a human. The 57-year-old patient may have died two months later due to complications from the experimental procedure, but the case has inspired scientists throughout the medical field to call on the FDA to expand the scope and scale of human-porcine transplantation research. During a two-day conference in late June, policy advisors to the FDA and medical professionals discussed the future of xenotransplantation and "most attendees agreed that human trials are needed to help answer the most pressing research questions," according to Nature.
“Our goal is not to have a one-off, but to advance the field to help our patients,” Dr. Jayme Locke, lead surgeon of the kidney study and director of UAB’s Incompatible Kidney Transplant Program, told the NYT. “What a wonderful day it will be when I can walk into clinic and know I have a kidney for everyone waiting to see me.”
Humans have also conducted numerous experimental pig-organ transplants into primates like baboons. But in order to safely and consistently do it with humans, researchers will have to test the techniques on humans, Caroline Zeiss, a veterinary specialist at Yale School of Medicine, told Nature. For example, doctors found traces of porcine cytomegalovirus (PCMV) in the heart transplant patient who died earlier this year and believe that it may have played a role in his demise, but they won't know for sure without further tests that a primate model — ones that can't be replicated in primates.
Researchers are only looking at “small, focused” clinical trials with “appropriately selected patients,” Allan Kirk, a transplant surgeon at the Duke University School of Medicine, told Nature. Researchers will have to answer a number of fundamental questions before the technology can be widely utilized, as well as determine the right mix of breeding and genetic tinkering needed to ensure that recipients' bodies won't reject them.
And while the decisions made during last week's meeting may not have an immediate impact on the agency's current stance on xenotransplantation, changes are reportedly afoot. The WSJ spoke to a "person familiar with the matter" at the end of June who asserts the FDA is planning to launch pig-organ transplantation trials in an effort ease the shortage of transplantable human organs (*angrily shakes fist at seatbelts*). There's no word on when such trials would launch as they are being handled on a case-by-case basis, the source said.
