Technology

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Boeing’s shiny new Starliner crew capsule makes its debut this week with a launch to the International Space Station, the company’s last hurdle before flying astronauts for NASA next year. Testing the cosmic waters will be Rosie the mannequin, decked out in Boeing’s custom blue spacesuit and a red polka dot […]

Several years ago, some colleagues and I were chatting about what was missing from tech journalism. Plenty of news media outlets had written breathlessly about hot new gadgets and apps. But what were people really doing with that tech? That question spawned Tech We’re Using, a weekly feature that documented how New York Times journalists

Scientists say they’ve finally calculated the age of the youngest known remains of a human ancestor called Homo erectus By MALCOLM RITTER AP Science Writer December 18, 2019, 6:47 PM 2 min read NEW YORK — Scientists say they have finally calculated the age of the youngest known remains of Homo erectus, which is generally

The National Weather Service says at least two dozen tornadoes hit the Southeast this week in a deadly outbreak of severe weather December 18, 2019, 2:06 PM 1 min read BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — At least two dozen tornadoes hit the Southeast this week in a deadly outbreak of severe weather, assessments by the National Weather

Verizon customers were reporting widespread service disruptions around the country on Wednesday morning, experiencing problems making outgoing calls, texting and browsing the internet. On social media, customers using the hashtag #verizon and #verizonoutage reported that when they tried to make outgoing calls, they received the message: “All circuits are busy. Please try your call again

SAN FRANCISCO — Not so long ago, the technology behind Bitcoin was seen in Silicon Valley as the best hope for challenging the enormous, centralized power of companies like Twitter and Facebook. Now, in an unexpected twist, the internet giants think that technology could help them solve their many problems. The chief executive of Twitter,

Riiid claims students can increase their scores by 20 percent or more with just 20 hours of study. It has already incorporated machine-learning algorithms into its program to prepare students for English-language proficiency tests and has introduced test prep programs for the SAT. It expects to enter the United States in 2020. Still more transformational

A year ago, Cuba’s socialist government allowed 3G internet access on the island for the first time. Although it’s still relatively expensive and slow, a growing number of Cubans are going online and signing up for social media accounts. Among them are activists who hope to use digital tools to drive rapid change. We’ve been

Nevada says the U.S. Energy Department is engaged in a “secret plutonium smuggling operation” that threatens Nevada’s health, safety and environment By SCOTT SONNER Associated Press December 18, 2019, 6:34 AM 3 min read RENO, Nev. — Nevada wants a federal judge to declare illegal what it calls the U.S. government’s “secret plutonium smuggling operation”

The European Space Agency is continuing the search for new Earths this week with the launch of Cheops, a new telescope whose name stands for CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite. When will Cheops launch, and how can I watch it? Cheops is scheduled to launch on a Soyuz-Fregat rocket from the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana,