Technology

Alexei Leonov, the legendary Soviet cosmonaut who became the first human to walk in space 54 years ago — and nearly didn’t make it back into his capsule — has died in Moscow. He was 85. Interested in Space? Add Space as an interest to stay up to date on the latest Space news, video, […]

Each week, we review the week’s news, offering analysis about the most important developments in the tech industry. Hello, Bits readers, I’m Erin Griffith, a tech reporter filling in from New York. Here’s what happened this past week in tech: The Chinese government has increased pressure on foreign companies that don’t toe the party line

The golden angel once glimmered majestically from Notre Dame’s vault. Now, with a broken nose, chipped gold-leaf and a smashed bust, it stares up blankly at a warehouse roof in the outskirts of Paris where blackened fragments of the famed cathedral’s stained glass mingle with organ pipes and jagged vault stones. Scientists at the French

SAN FRANCISCO — Uber has acquired a majority stake in the grocery delivery start-up Cornershop for an undisclosed sum, the company announced on Friday, as it seeks to build its food delivery business. The company has looked to expand beyond ride-hailing, particularly since its troubled debut on the public markets in May. Although the growth

Time is running out for Thailand’s dwindling population of helmeted hornbills thanks to poaching of the exotic birds for the ivory-like casques atop their big red and yellow beaks. The species, known by the scientific name Rhinoplax vigil, is listed as “critically endangered” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. “Currently, there are fewer

NASA launched a satellite on Thursday night to explore the mysterious, dynamic region where air meets space. The satellite — called Icon, short for Ionospheric Connection Explorer — rocketed into orbit following a two-year delay. It was dropped from a plane flying over the Atlantic off the Florida coast. Five seconds after the satellite’s release,

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said Thursday that a recent Twitter statement critical of SpaceX was a signal to all the space agency’s contractors about realistic development timelines. Bridenstine addressed the issue during a press conference with SpaceX founder Elon Musk after touring the company’s headquarters in Hawthorne, California. Bridenstine said NASA has numerous programs that

Companies must notify California residents of their data privacy rights in plain language and must verify people’s identities before releasing data, state officials proposed Thursday. California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced draft regulations that also spell out ways people can ask for their personal information to be deleted from company databases. The rules are being

The Brazilian government has failed to auction four oil fields located near one of the nation’s biggest coral reef systems. Seventeen companies participated in the 36-block auction held Thursday by the Brazilian Petroleum Agency, which auctioned off a third of the areas for more than $2 billion. But after possible exploration caused worry among some

The attacker who killed two people in a shooting at a German synagogue livestreamed the assault on Twitch, a video service owned by Amazon. It was one of the first violent attacks streamed on the service, which is best known for letting people watch others play competitive video games. Here’s what you need to know