Tech and Science Daily | The Standard

Britain is a step closer to opening its first ‘spaceport’, and while there won’t be humans aboard a converted Virgin 747 just yet, it will take off with a satellite-carrying rocket strapped to it for release into low-earth orbit. International Space Station made wonky by botched Russian module docking. Pandemic shopping: You really have been paying more online. Israel tells France it’s looking into claims NSO spyware was used against President Macron. Research finds dramatic difference in body fat between rich and poor children. Doctors are reporting 99% of pregnant women admitted to hospital with Covid-19 are unvaccinated. Internet users not yet ready to give up Rickrolling as craze hits a billion views. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Astronomers from Stanford University say they have detected light behind a black hole deep in space for the first time after telescopes picked up “luminous echoes” 800 million light years away. Tsunami warning after earthquake hits Alaskan peninsula. Top meteorologists are warning the United Kingdom could swelter with summers over 40C on a ‘regular basis’ despite efforts to fight global warming. Sony reveals it has sold more than 10 million PlayStation 5 consoles. White House calls on America’s critical companies to boost cyber defences. Former eBay security boss over jailed for cyber-stalking company critics. Could the 890 million-year-old sponge fossil be the earliest animal life? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

President Joe Biden’s warning a future cyberattack on the United States could spark what he describes as a “real shooting war” with a “major power” after a series of attacks on major US targets affecting national infrastructure. Child sex abuse imagery fuelled by predators coercing children, warn Internet Watch Foundation. MPs to probe Government approach to tackling internet harm in Online Safety Bill. Experts fear Covid-19 restriction relaxation improves vaccine resistance. Could trendy Japanese natto beans help boost body’s fight against Covid infection? Amphibious Swedish airlift helps doomed frogs flourish in England again. This app tells you if your pet is not feline like the cat’s whiskers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Research suggests older people relying on purely online contact during the pandemic actually made them feel lonelier as a result. Bitcoin leaps 12% to test recent peaks as ether hits three-week high. Hunt’s on for meteor after five-second light show leaves Norwegians awestruck. There’s more plastic in your seafood than you realise. Broadband issues hit 15 million customers last year amid pandemic WFH reliance. Smart speaker tool alerts users to home appliance product recalls. Back to the Noughties as Nokia announces revamped 6310 keypad phone for £50. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg says he wants to turn the social network into an all-enveloping virtual world so users spend even more time inside its walled garden. Boeing's Starliner space capsule to attempt second uncrewed test flight to space station. How satellites are monitoring Earth’s ‘breathing’ from hundreds of miles up. South Korea vows crackdown on crypto tax dodgers to help fund rising welfare bill. Author Jeanette Winterson says AI will soon be clever enough able to write fiction stories. Cholesterol in middle aged ‘linked to Alzheimer’s more than 10 years later’. Now Britain is blasted by lightning and flash floods to break heatwaveJoy as trapped seagull hunting easy food is freed from behind car’s engine grille. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We speak to the European Space Agency about the Eutelsat Quantum, with on-board software that can be reconfigured depending on data demand. Nasa scientists have calculated how thick the crust of Mars is - and the result might surprise you. Could daily Covid-19 testing of pupils be ‘just as effective' at controlling transmission as isolation? Ofcom says telecoms firms must do more to support people struggling to pay mobile and internet bills. Reddit, is that you? Twitter trials suspiciously familiar ‘upvote’ and ‘downvote’ buttons. Millions of English households are suffering from overheating as summers get hotter - what can be done? Newly-hatched pterosaurs may have been able to fly fresh out of the egg - with better flight acrobatics than adults. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Following an FBI and Secret Service probe, police in Spain say the suspect was arrested over the hacking of 130 celebrity Twitter accounts, including Kanye West, Barack Obama and Elon Musk. Bitcoin u-turn for Musk as tycoon says Tesla may take crypto-for-cars after all. Nasa’s Perseverance Mars rover is revving up its drills for first rock sample mission. Progress stalls on getting people moving as millions die from inactivity. Social media audio app Clubhouse is now open to all without an invite. Extreme weather: listen to hail stones ‘the size of golf balls’ smashing through a British family’s conservatory roof. Stinky Bay and Crazy Mary’s Hole among gloriously ribald names helping plot a new Ordnance Survey map of Britain. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Large parts of Henan province in China have been submerged, with at least a dozen people dead in Zhengzhou and thousands evacuated. EU chiefs want to make Bitcoin transfers easier to trace with new ID checks. Top lawyers want tough new rules making Airdrop ‘cyberflashing’ a sexual offence. China pushes back against Microsoft hacking claims over plundering of company email inboxes...but is coy with evidence. Eating red and processed meat ‘increases risk of heart disease’. Secret dig in English countryside finds rare Jurassic starfish 60 miles from seaside. Lockdown pet problems: RSCPA dealing with influx of guinea pigs. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The history-making aviator’s biographer on Funk’s boundless enthusiasm and why her rocket mission is many decades overdue. Jeff Bezos says he’s ‘ready not nervous’ for Blue Origin space trip. Hubble’s technical trouble is fixed to bring space mega-telescope back online. Please don’t delete vital NHS Covid app to dodge ‘pings’, urges pandemics expert. Long-distance drone deliveries to your home are being plotted. And, pay-by-fingerprint with this biometric credit card. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As Covid restrictions are lifted in England and revellers queue at midnight to get into nightclubs, Macmillan says one-in-five cancer patients fear being unable to return to normal life amid rising infection rates. NHS App that displays vaccine status hits milestone of 10 million users. Last-minute training for Blue Origin’s civilian crew ahead of suborbital blastoff. Israeli tech firm’s spyware ‘used to target journalists’ smartphones’. Crypto crackdown: Binance ditches ‘stock tokens’ amid global tightening of laws. Drone swarms operated by UK commandos go underwater and through the air in combat training. Vaccine drive: Cornish choristers raise cash for 10,000 jabs. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.