Soyuz with Russian, Dane, Kazakh docks at space station

Soyuz with Russian, Dane, Kazakh docks at space station

A Soyuz spacecraft carrying three crew has docked at the International Space Station after a two-day flight.

The arrival of Russia's Sergei Volkov, Denmark's Andreas Mogensen and Kazakhstan's Aidyn Aimbetov brings the number of crew on the orbiting outpost to nine for the first time since November 2013.

Mogensen and Aimbetov will return to Earth on Sept. 12 along with Russian Gennady Padalka, the current station commander.

Russian Mission Control said the Soyuz, which blasted off on Wednesday from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, docked on time at 10:42 a.m. Moscow time (0742GMT) on Friday.

For the past two years, the crews have taken a more direct, six-hour flight, but this time the Russian Federal Space Agency decided to revert to the traditional route for safety reasons.AP

Big banks consider using Bitcoin blockchain technology

Big banks consider using Bitcoin blockchain technology

The basic technology underpinning the Bitcoin virtual currency could be used by some of the world's biggest banks.

Nine banks, including Barclays and Goldman Sachs, may adopt the blockchain system that logs who spends which virtual coins in an ever-expanding computer equivalent of a ledger.

The banks want to use the blockchain method because it is hard to fool - making fraud more difficult.

It could also speed up trading systems and make deals more transparent.

The project to test blockchain-like technology is being led by financial technology firm R3 which has signed nine banks up to the initiative.

The other seven are JP Morgan, State Street, UBS, Royal Bank of Scotland, Credit Suisse, BBVA and Commonwealth Bank of Australia.

Technical meetings with the banks had prompted discussion of how it could be used within banks' trading arms, said David Rutter, head of R3 in an interview with Reuters.

For Bitcoin, the blockchain acts as a globally-distributed ledger that logs transactions. Everyone involved with the virtual currency contributes to the way the blockchain verifies each deal. The sheer number of people involved makes it very hard for one bitcoin user to get fraudulent deals verified and approved.

Despite this, Bitcoin has been hit by a series of scandals and thefts although most of these came about because hackers exploited weaknesses on exchanges where coins are traded or in digital wallets where they are held.

Mr Rutter said the banks were most interested in the technical architecture underpinning the blockchain that could be adapted for their own ends. The first place the blockchain was likely to find a role was as a log of who bought which stocks or shares, he said.

By adopting the technology banks could cut the cost of reporting transactions and working out who bought what and when, he added.

No timetable has been given for when technical trials of the blockchain-like technology might begin.BBC

Yahoo to team up with Google in Internet search, advertising

Yahoo to team up with Google in Internet search, advertising

Yahoo is leaning on Google's expertise in Internet search and advertising in its latest attempt to boost its revenue.

The proposed three-year partnership was announced Tuesday after Yahoo released its third-quarter results. The numbers represented the latest in a long succession of disappointing performances for Yahoo, with the company's net revenue slipping 8 percent from the previous year.

Yahoo Inc. tried to team up with Google in search during 2008 as part of its defense against a takeover attempt by Microsoft. The Google alliance unraveled after the U.S. Justice Department threatened to block the partnership on the grounds that it would thwart competition.

The new deal still must be approved by antitrust regulators. Yahoo will still rely on technology from Microsoft's Bing search engine as part of a 6-year-old partnership.AP

Facebook's reply to open letter on 'real name' policy

Facebook's reply to open letter on 'real name' policy

Facebook is tweaking its 'real name' policy. The policy, which has been termed 'inherently discriminatory' by some, will see some alterations to allow users to explain their name choices.
The policy has received criticism mostly from members of the LGBT communities and advocates who face problems and feel uncomfortable using their real names due to the nature of their work.

According to Facebook's 'real name' policy, users should go by their 'authentic name' when on the social network rather than a pseudonyms. These changes will help people who face this problem provide clearer context to their wishes to keep a different name. Facebook is expected to roll out the policy in December.

FB wants everything real about you so that it can market real products to you....Ka Mov

Explaining the changes and the reason behind the policy, Alex Schultz, VP, growth Facebook, said in a letter, "We want to reduce the number of people who are asked to verify their name on Facebook, when they are already using the name people know them by. We want to make it easier for people to confirm their name if necessary," added Schultz in reply to the open letter sent to Facebook by a number of groups — including the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Human Rights Watch, and ACLU of California.- Times of India

Zuckerberg to take 2 months of paternity leave

Zuckerberg to take 2 months of paternity leave

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said Friday he's planning on taking two months of paternity leave when his daughter is born.

He said in a Facebook post that "outcomes are better for children and families" when working parents take time off to be with their newborns. He called the decision "very personal."

He announced in July that he and wife Priscilla Chan were expecting a baby girl following three miscarriages.

In his post Friday, Zuckerberg said the couple is "starting to get ready" for their daughter's arrival but didn't indicate when she is due.

Facebook Inc., which is based in Menlo Park, California, offers its U.S. employees up to four months of paid parental leave. It's among several high-tech companies that offer generous benefits around childbirth.

Netflix Inc. said in August it was giving U.S. workers up to a year of paid leave following the birth or adoption of a child. Adobe Systems Inc. and Microsoft Corp. bolstered their parental benefits following the move.AP

SpaceX conducts rocket-firing test; aims for Sunday launch

SpaceX conducts rocket-firing test; aims for Sunday launch

SpaceX is aiming for a Sunday launch, its first since a summer accident grounded its Falcon line of rockets.

The company conducted a test-firing of its rocket at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Friday. It took three days for SpaceX to complete the test. But in the end, chief executive Elon Musk said the engine firing appeared to go well and that, pending a review, a launch attempt would occur Sunday night.

SpaceX's rockets have been grounded since one failed during liftoff in June. The accident occurred on a space station supply run for NASA. The upcoming flight will involve a satellite delivery for OrbComm. If it goes well, flights for NASA could resume in February.

The company will attempt, again, to land the spent first-stage booster.AP

Google reveals preview of up-next android

Google reveals preview of up-next android

Tech giant Google has released a very early preview of the next version of its mobile operating system - Android N - with split-screen multitasking, increased battery life and better notifications, reported the UK based newspaper the Guardian. 
Usually Google releases a developer preview of the new version of Android at the company's developer conference, Google I/O, at the end of May. It's designed to allow developers time to test their apps and build new parts to take advantage of new features in Android before its release to smartphone manufacturers in October.
This year, however, Google has started two months early, with a developer and beta build that lets users test new features.
Multi-window
The biggest change is the introduction of a split-screen multitasking view called Multi-Window, which allows two apps to be run on one screen. It's something Android smartphone manufacturers such as Samsung have had for several years, but will now come baked into Android N.
Faster app switching
Users will be able to double-tap the recently used apps button to switch to the previously used app without opening the recently used apps list, speeding up bouncing between apps.
Sleep and zoom
Android N will implement a night mode that blocks blue wavelengths of light to help prevent the phones from keeping people awake. Third party Android apps have been able to do something similar for a while using a red filter overlay on the screen and it's something that Apple has slated for its next version of iOS.
Notifications
The new notification shade will have a top row of quick settings, which the user can change, and group notifications. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs for the Guardian
Android N will come with the ability to group notifications from a single app together. Several apps already do this, including Google's Gmail app, which collects messages together as they come in and allows users to expand them to read the notifications or dismiss them as one.
Longer battery life
The new version of Doze will help prolong battery life when the screen is off. Photograph: Samuel Gibbs for the Guardian
Android 6.0 Marshmallow made big leaps in battery efficiency using a feature called Doze, which put a smartphone or tablet into a lower-power state and took tight control over what could wake the device up when the screen was off and it wasn't moving.
This meant that when a phone was placed on a desk and not touched for a while it greatly extended the battery life, limiting things such as internet access to set intervals.
Android N is extending that feature to work when the screen is off but the phone is in motion - in a pocket or bag for instance - which should have a significant positive impact on battery life.
Thinner, faster Android
Android N also has a new version of its Java Android RunTime (Art), which runs the apps installed on the phone. It is faster and more efficient, meaning apps will install and update faster without needing a period of optimisation. This should greatly reduce the time required to install Android updates and other upgrades.
Google's Project Svelte also been working on reducing the size and weight of Android so that it takes up less storage space and can run on lower-power devices, which should mean more space for apps and media.
Developers looking to try out the beta version of Android N can enrol a Nexus device with Google to update over the air, and can return to the latest version of Android 6 Marshmallow in the same way.
Those not running Google's Nexus devices will have to wait until the manufacturer of their smartphone to receive Android N in the summer and then push it out to devices, which will likely be in 2017.