Deepfake creator wants viewers to ‘think twice’

Chris Ume, creator of viral Tom Cruise deepfake, said that he wanted viewers to “start thinking twice” about the content they are watching and that they may be fabricated, despite how realistic it may appear. Deepfakes typically involve a picture or video where a person or object is manipulated to say or do something else. […]
Dutch designer invents biodegradable masks made of rice paper that can be planted after use

A report by Oceans Asia estimated that 1.56 billion face masks will have entered the oceans in 2020, which will result in an additional 5000 to 6000 odd metric tonnes of marine plastic pollution. These disposable masks will take as long as 450 years to break down and turn into microplastics as it disrupts marine […]
Fungi turns rotting wood into electricity

A team of scientists led by Ingo Burgert at ETH Zurich, Switzerland, found a way to transform wood into clean electricity by treating it with fungi. When the pressure is applied to wood, an electric charge is produced. This process has been discussed since the 1940s, but the small amount of energy the process produced […]
Twitter to hire Toronto engineers

Attention all engineers! Twitter announced that it will be recruiting Canadian talent for its first engineering hub in the country, located on Toronto’s King West. Job openings will be posted on the company’s Career page in the next few weeks, with the hiring committee headed by the University of Waterloo’s alum. New hires will be […]
Virtual reconstruction of Neanderthals’ ears by the University of Alcalá, Spain, suggests they could hear speech — just like modern humans

The University of Alcalá in Spain virtually reconstructed Neanderthals’ ears using medical imaging software and CT scans of their skulls. According to the researchers, the models indicate that the extinct species had the same physical capacity to hear as modern humans. Mercedes Conde-Valverde, one of the scientists, said that their hearing was optimized towards producing […]
Ontario to invest in wearable contact-tracing technology to protect workers from COVID-19

The project is supposed to help more jobs in Ontario
Scientists clone endangered American animal for the first time

Meet Elizabeth Ann, the ferret
Israeli startup unveils world’s first 3D-printed vegan ribeye steak

Aleph Farms, an Israeli startup, has successfully printed a 3D vegan ribeye steak — the very first in the world. The steak is made of lab-cultivated animal cells, a cruelty-free process.
Tesla will accept Bitcoin payments

Electric vehicle giant Tesla plans to offer a new payment method for its cars: Bitcoin. The company also announced that it invested $1.5 billion into cryptocurrency, according to its 2020 SEC filings.
[WATCH] Amazon installs surveillance cameras inside delivery vehicles for “drivers safety”

Drivers have raised concerns that this may infringe their privacy, and call it a “punishment system”