Kalakshar US

In an interview this fall following his return to Earth from the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Frank Rubio shared a little mission anecdote that had us gripped: after he’d harvested one of the first tomatoes grown in space and bagged it up for a presentation, the bag and its contents went missing. With no trace of the fruit, the other astronauts jokingly accused Rubio of eating it. Then, eight months later at the beginning of December, the lost tomato reappeared. A photo shared by NASA now shows there were actually two tomatoes in the rogue sample — and, all things considered, they don’t look half bad.

While a tomato left to rot on Earth isn’t a pleasant thing to come across, Rubio’s tomatoes just look a bit dried out. “Other than some discoloration, it had no visible microbial or fungal growth,” NASA wrote in a blog post.

NASA has for years been experimenting with ways to grow food on the ISS and studying how the space environment affects plant growth. The red dwarf tomatoes were grown as part of a program called the eXposed Root On-Orbit Test System, or XROOTS, which uses a combination of hydroponic and aeroponic techniques instead of soil. Rubio, who was on the ISS for a record-breaking 371 days before his return in September 2023, harvested a batch of the tomatoes in March to be sent back to Earth and examined for the VEG-05 study.

As for the sample Rubio hung onto, which he intended to show to schoolkids in an event a crewmember had planned, the astronaut said the tomatoes simply disappeared. “I was pretty confident that I Velcroed it where I was supposed to Velcro it, and then I came back and it was gone,” he said. Rubio said he spent “eight to 20 hours” looking for it, to no avail. Now that they’ve turned up (and since been thrown away), we’re just dying to know where they were hiding all that time. We’ve reached out to NASA and will update this story if we find out any more information.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/these-tomatoes-were-lost-on-the-international-space-station-for-almost-a-year-182601610.html?src=rss 

It’s Saturday morning and I’m still thinking about the end of E3, once the biggest gaming show on earth, and the teenage dream destination for many Gen Z / Millennial gamers, by which I mean: me. Will there be a gaming (or tech) show in 2024 that will match my enthusiasm (in the past) for E3? Probably not.

Apple is also testing out improved anti-theft software for iPhone users — just don’t get your phone stolen before the feature gets out of beta.

This week:

 🎮😵 E3 is officially dead

📲🥷 iOS 17.3’s Stolen Device Protection will make life harder for iPhone thieves

🥚🤖 Tesla’s latest Optimus robot can handle an egg without breaking it

And read this:

Social media account takeovers continue to happen, and with many reliant on platforms like Facebook, Instagram and YouTube for their income, an attack can derail everything. High-level hackers still tend to seek entities with deep pockets, targeting them with highly complicated attacks. But much of the cyber criminality today is social engineering jobs, aimed at mid-level creators with less experience (and resources). Katie Malone reports on how some victims have lost much to social engineering hacks.

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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/the-morning-after-the-sad-end-of-e3-140035020.html?src=rss 

Meta Quest users will now be able to write reports, edit spreadsheets and create presentations — if they event want to do any of those tasks on a VR headset, that is. Android Central reports that support for the basic Microsoft Office suite has arrived on the original Oculus Quest, the Meta Quest 2, the Meta Quest Pro, and the latest model, the Meta Quest 3. Users can now download Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint from the Meta Quest store for free.

The company first revealed that it was going to launch Microsoft 365 app experiences for its headsets during its Connect 2022 event. It also promised users access to Outlook, Teams and a Windows experience as part of its partnership with Microsoft. To be able to use the basic Office suite apps on their device, users will need to have and log into their Microsoft account. The app files are pretty small because they run on the cloud, so they’re quick to download and can run side by side for the multitaskers out there. 

According to The Verge, though, the apps aren’t exactly optimized for virtual reality, so users may have to contend with tiny icons and other elements that don’t work as well in the environment. In addition, it’s not easy typing on the Quest’s onscreen keyboard, so users may have to link Bluetooth accessories if they need to get some serious work done. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/microsoft-office-apps-arrive-on-meta-quest-vr-headsets-123030297.html?src=rss 

California’s Civil Rights Department (CRD) has announced that it has reached a settlement agreement with Activision Blizzard for a case it filed in 2021, accusing the company of systemic gender discrimination and fostering a culture that encouraged rampant misogyny and sexual harassment. The agency, which sued the developer when it was still called the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing, said Activision Blizzard will have to pay $54 million to settle its allegations. Out of the total, $45.75 million will go towards a fund meant to compensate female employees and contract workers who worked for the company in California from October 12, 2015 until December 31, 2020. 

In addition, the developer is expected to retain an independent consultant to evaluate its promotion policies and training materials, as well as to make recommendations based on what they see. If you’ll recall, the agency’s lawsuit alleged that female employees were overlooked for promotions and were paid less than their male colleagues. According to Marketwatch, though, the settlement will also see the agency withdraw its claims that there was widespread sexual harassment at the company. The department will reportedly have to file an amended complaint that only focuses on gender-based pay gap and discrimination. 

California’s original lawsuit detailed how Activision Blizzard condoned a “frat boy” culture that encouraged certain unsavory behaviors. Male employees allegedly did “cube crawls,” wherein they routinely groped and sexually harassed their female colleagues at their desks. A spokesperson for the company told Marketwatch that it is “gratified that the CRD has agreed to file an amended complaint that entirely withdraws its 2021 claims alleging widespread and systemic workplace harassment at Activision Blizzard.” They added: “We appreciate the importance of the issues addressed in this agreement and we are dedicated to fully implementing all the new obligations we have assumed as part of it. We are committed to ensuring fair compensation and promotion policies and practices for all our employees, and we will continue our efforts regarding inclusion of qualified candidates from underrepresented communities in outreach, recruitment, and retention.”

Meanwhile, the department told the website that its announcement, which contains no reference to its earlier sexual harassment allegations, “largely speaks for itself with respect to the historic nature of this more than $50 million settlement agreement, which will bring direct relief and compensation to women who were harmed by the company’s discriminatory practices.”

As The Wall Street Journal noted when it reported the settlement, this lawsuit set the stage for Microsoft to acquire the developer. After reports came out that Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick kept sexual harassment allegations within the company from reaching its board of directors, the developer’s shares fell, giving Microsoft the opening to offer a deal. The $68.7 billion acquisition was finalized in October after almost two years of contending with regulators trying to block the purchase. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/activision-blizzard-will-pay-54-million-to-settle-californias-gender-discrimination-lawsuit-101149166.html?src=rss