5 Recent Tech News that Will Make You Smile
It’s Friday, you don’t really feel like working, and you want to waste some time, perhaps find some interesting news that will put a smile on your face.
I have you covered, so look no further. Here are 5 recent news from the tech and software world, news that are sure to make you smile (or laugh, perhaps even cringe).
1. Google’ Chrome Music Lab invites you to explore and learn how music works
I’m not really sure that I learned anything about how music works, but I did have fun making noise with Google’s new Chrome Music Lab.
Released in honor of 'Music in Our Schools Month', it is a collection of experiments that let you play with rhythm, arpeggios, chords, oscillators, and more.
“Chrome Music Lab is all built for the web, so you can start playing instantly, whether you’re on a tablet, phone, or laptop,” Google’s Alex Chen explained.
“Exploring music can help spark curiosity in all kinds of ways. We hope these experiments inspire you – whether they give you a new perspective on music, make you more curious about math and science, or even make you think of new ways to teach or code,” he added.
2. Hackers lose close to a billion, because of a typo
When you make a typo, it’s no big deal; the worst thing that could happen is that someone points it out and makes you feel bad. Next time you’ll pay more attention and you will use software that helps you avoid such embarrassing mistakes.
When hackers make a typo, it is a huge deal; in this case, one that lost them close to a billion dollars. According to Reuters, hackers broke into Bangladesh's central bank this February. Once they were in, they “bombarded the Federal Reserve Bank of New York with nearly three dozen requests to move money from the Bangladesh Bank's account there to entities in the Philippines and Sri Lanka.”
Their downfall is that they made a typo. They attempted to transfer $20 million to a Sri Lankan non-governmental organization called the Shalika Foundation – but they misspelled the word foundation as “fandation”. Deutsche Bank spotted the error and got in touch with Bangladesh's central bank. That’s when the Bangladeshis uncovered the hack, cancelling transactions totaling between $850 and $870 million.
But 4 transactions, totaling $81 million, managed to go through. The hackers failed to steal $850 million, but they did manage to steal $81 million. The officials are working to recover the money and uncover the hackers; but it’s unlikely they will be able to do that.
3. Sacha Baron Cohen promotes his new movie by mocking Apple product events
Sacha Baron Cohen (a.k.a. Ali G, Borat, Bruno, and The Dictator) has a new movie called “The Brothers Grimsby.” To promote said movie, Cohen decided to release a video that makes fun of Apple and its product events. You can check it out below.
I've been told that I have to keep this website family friendly. Consequently, here's a word of warning: the video below contains mature language.
Apple’s upcoming event, in case you were wondering, is going to take place on March 21, 2016 at its headquarters in Cupertino.
The invite for the event teases "Let us loop you in."
4. Play an EVE Online minigame to do some good in the real world
Project Discovery, a new EVE Online minigame, asks you to give science a helping hand and do some good in the real world.
The in-game humanitarian faction the Sisters of EVE asks you to play a minigame and identify patterns of protein distribution in human cells. For every task you solve, you will increase your Project Discovery rank and you will get a reward. The rewards range from ISK currency to loyalty points.
Access to Project Discovery is free for all EVE Online players. I point that out because a paid subscription is required for most of the content available in the game. Not the case Project Discovery though.
5. There’s a Chrome extension that insults you so you go back to work
Having problems staying productive because you work for five minutes and then waste time on Facebook or some other website for half an hour? You could hire someone to slap you in the face, like Maneesh Sethi did. Or you could get a Chrome extension that uses the F word a lot, hoping that by insulting you it will convince you to go back to work.
The Chrome extension I’m talking about is aptly named Go F@#$%^g Work. Tell it what websites are a waste of your time and it will block access to those sites.
Whenever you try to open a blocked website, you'll be redirected to the Go F@#$%^g Work website, which presents a “motivational” message in big, bold letters.
I have you covered, so look no further. Here are 5 recent news from the tech and software world, news that are sure to make you smile (or laugh, perhaps even cringe).
1. Google’ Chrome Music Lab invites you to explore and learn how music works
I’m not really sure that I learned anything about how music works, but I did have fun making noise with Google’s new Chrome Music Lab.
Released in honor of 'Music in Our Schools Month', it is a collection of experiments that let you play with rhythm, arpeggios, chords, oscillators, and more.
“Chrome Music Lab is all built for the web, so you can start playing instantly, whether you’re on a tablet, phone, or laptop,” Google’s Alex Chen explained.
“Exploring music can help spark curiosity in all kinds of ways. We hope these experiments inspire you – whether they give you a new perspective on music, make you more curious about math and science, or even make you think of new ways to teach or code,” he added.
2. Hackers lose close to a billion, because of a typo
When you make a typo, it’s no big deal; the worst thing that could happen is that someone points it out and makes you feel bad. Next time you’ll pay more attention and you will use software that helps you avoid such embarrassing mistakes.
When hackers make a typo, it is a huge deal; in this case, one that lost them close to a billion dollars. According to Reuters, hackers broke into Bangladesh's central bank this February. Once they were in, they “bombarded the Federal Reserve Bank of New York with nearly three dozen requests to move money from the Bangladesh Bank's account there to entities in the Philippines and Sri Lanka.”
Their downfall is that they made a typo. They attempted to transfer $20 million to a Sri Lankan non-governmental organization called the Shalika Foundation – but they misspelled the word foundation as “fandation”. Deutsche Bank spotted the error and got in touch with Bangladesh's central bank. That’s when the Bangladeshis uncovered the hack, cancelling transactions totaling between $850 and $870 million.
But 4 transactions, totaling $81 million, managed to go through. The hackers failed to steal $850 million, but they did manage to steal $81 million. The officials are working to recover the money and uncover the hackers; but it’s unlikely they will be able to do that.
3. Sacha Baron Cohen promotes his new movie by mocking Apple product events
Sacha Baron Cohen (a.k.a. Ali G, Borat, Bruno, and The Dictator) has a new movie called “The Brothers Grimsby.” To promote said movie, Cohen decided to release a video that makes fun of Apple and its product events. You can check it out below.
I've been told that I have to keep this website family friendly. Consequently, here's a word of warning: the video below contains mature language.
Apple’s upcoming event, in case you were wondering, is going to take place on March 21, 2016 at its headquarters in Cupertino.
The invite for the event teases "Let us loop you in."
4. Play an EVE Online minigame to do some good in the real world
Project Discovery, a new EVE Online minigame, asks you to give science a helping hand and do some good in the real world.
The in-game humanitarian faction the Sisters of EVE asks you to play a minigame and identify patterns of protein distribution in human cells. For every task you solve, you will increase your Project Discovery rank and you will get a reward. The rewards range from ISK currency to loyalty points.
Access to Project Discovery is free for all EVE Online players. I point that out because a paid subscription is required for most of the content available in the game. Not the case Project Discovery though.
5. There’s a Chrome extension that insults you so you go back to work
Having problems staying productive because you work for five minutes and then waste time on Facebook or some other website for half an hour? You could hire someone to slap you in the face, like Maneesh Sethi did. Or you could get a Chrome extension that uses the F word a lot, hoping that by insulting you it will convince you to go back to work.
The Chrome extension I’m talking about is aptly named Go F@#$%^g Work. Tell it what websites are a waste of your time and it will block access to those sites.
Whenever you try to open a blocked website, you'll be redirected to the Go F@#$%^g Work website, which presents a “motivational” message in big, bold letters.
