Cool Stuff Found

Apple Uploads ‘Ted Lasso’ Trailer Starring Jason Sudeikis

Andrew Orr ·

Apple has posted a trailer for “Ted Lasso”, a comedy series starring Jason Sudeikis. Ted Lasso is a small-time college football coach from Kansas hired to coach a professional soccer team in England, despite having no experience coaching soccer.

In addition to starring, Sudeikis serves as executive producer, alongside Bill Lawrence (“Scrubs”) via his Doozer Productions, in association with Warner Bros. Television and Universal Television, a division of NBCUniversal Content. Doozer’s Jeff Ingold also serves as an executive producer with Liza Katzer as co-executive producer. The series was developed by Sudeikis, Lawrence, Joe Kelly and Brendan Hunt, and is based on the pre-existing format and characters from NBC Sports.

Podcast

Physics Professor and Jazz Musician Dr. Stephon Alexander - BGM Interview

John Martellaro · · Add Comment

Dr. Stephon Alexander is a theoretical physicist specializing in cosmology, particle physics and quantum gravity (String Theory and Loop Quantum Gravity). He received his BSc from Haverford College and Ph.D. from Brown University. He also explores interconnections between music, physics, mathematics and technology though recordings, performance, teaching and public lectures.

Stephon tells his story about growing up in the Bronx amidst a very diverse group of students. Encouraged by his parents and teachers, he showed great curiosity and intelligence. Still, as person of color, he faced many challenges as he worked towards his Ph.D. We chatted about the mind of the physicist, physics intuition, music, the role of mathematics, String Theory and Loop Quantum Gravity as well as events before the Big Bang. If you are a young student, dreaming of becoming a physicist, this show is a must – full of inspiration and insights.

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Electronic Frontier Foundation Unveils ‘Atlas of Surveillance’

Andrew Orr ·

The EFF unveiled the Atlas of Surveillance today. It’s a database of surveillance tech used by law enforcement across the country. Anyone can use it to see what spying technology their state’s LE uses. You can download datasets, too.

We specifically focused on the most pervasive technologies, including drones, body-worn cameras, face recognition, cell-site simulators, automated license plate readers, predictive policing, camera registries, and gunshot detection. Although we have amassed more than 5,000 datapoints in 3,000 jurisdictions, our research only reveals the tip of the iceberg and underlines the need for journalists and members of the public to continue demanding transparency from criminal justice agencies.

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SiriusXM Buying Stitcher in $325 Million

Charlotte Henry ·

Satellite radio platform SiriusXM is continuing its push into podcasts buying Stitcher. The deal is worth $325 million, according to The Verge.

Stitcher is not only a popular podcasting app with a premium, ad-free subscription service, but it’s also a network that, combined with its other entity Earwolf, produces shows like Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend. Scripps also combined Stitcher with Midroll Media, a podcast ad company that sells ads for other shows like The Dream and Getting Curious with Jonathan Van Ness that it acquired in 2015 for $50 million. The Sirius deal will give it ownership of all these companies, which, in some cases, could be redundant with what it already owns and operates. For one, Sirius owns Pandora, which it acquired in 2018 for $3 billion. Pandora, of course, is a popular place to listen to music and podcasts and also has its own exclusive content deals, like one with Marvel that was signed last year. It also owns AdsWizz, a podcast ad technology company that places ads in shows.

Podcast

ICE, ICE, Maybe? — Mac Geek Gab 824

John F. Braun & Dave Hamilton · · Add Comment

Is your mail forwarder secure? Are you sure? How about your Internet? These are just two of your dozen-or-so questions that John and Dave tackle this week. It’s not just questions, of course. There are Quick Tips, regular tips, Cool Stuff Found, and even some router fun. Press play and enjoy listening to your favorite geeks while learning at least five new things!

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Ming-Chi Kuo Predicts First Apple Silicon Macs

Charlotte Henry ·

The first wave of Apple Silicon Macs are set to include a 13-inch MacBook Pro and MacBook Air. Those will be released this year, With 14.1-inch and 16-inch, MacBook Pro Models coming in 2021. That’s according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, in a note reported on by MacRumors.

In a research note with TF International Securities today, seen by MacRumors, Kuo said he expects the ‌Apple Silicon‌ 13.3-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ to go into mass production in the fourth quarter of this year, but he also now predicts we will see an Arm-based MacBook Air either in the same quarter or in the first quarter of next year. Kuo still believes that Apple intends to launch a mini-LED 16-inch ‌‌MacBook Pro‌‌ and a 14.1-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌, also with a mini-LED display, but these will likely arrive in the second or third quarter of 2021, and intriguingly, both will have an “all-new form factor design.” Previous rumors suggested an updated 16-inch ‌MacBook Pro‌ could arrive this year in October or November.

TMO Deals

Kinkoo Mini Portable Air Conditioner: $59.99

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a deal on the Kinkoo Mini Portable Air Conditioner that cools, humidifies, and cleans the dust particles from the air. Fill the viewable water tank, and the device uses evaporation to cool you down—the company says it works best in a hot and dry climate. It’s $59.99 through our deal.