They might as well call this feature the "Jerk Alert." To be more specific, DoorDash

Space is full of mysteries which we will never likely solve but, generally, we at least know a thing or two about craft we send out into the cosmos. Not so, when it comes to one probe which has just touched back down on Earth after 276 days in orbit. The experimental spacecraft was launched by China’s space agency, ostensibly to test the nation’s reusable space technologies. According to state media agency Xinhua News, the mission’s aim was to help with the development of “more convenient and affordable round-trip methods for the peaceful use of space in the future”. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter That all sounds pretty similar to what SpaceX and NASA are up to, except that the Chinese spacecraft and its journey have been shrouded in secrecy. No information has been released on the altitude it reached or the systems it tested. We don’t even know where it went or, indeed, what kind of spacecraft it was – not a single image has been released to the public. Commentators on Chinese social media have speculated that Beijing has been developing a spacecraft like the UAir Force's X-37B, an autonomous spaceplane that can remain in orbit for years. However, no one knows how well this is going nor, indeed, if it’s going at all. All we do know about China’s latest unidentified flying object is that it was launched from the Jiquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert on August 5, 2022 and returned to the same site on 8 May, 2023. It follows an earlier mission, carried out in July last year, which saw a Chinese spacecraft fly to the edge of the Earth’s atmosphere and back on the same day. The country’s main space contractor, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC), hailed the success of the craft’s brief celestial jaunt at the time. It gushed: "The development of reusable space transportation technology is an important symbol of China's transition from a 'big' space-faring nation to a 'powerful' space-faring one.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Five TikTok creators have filed a lawsuit to overturn a planned ban on the video sharing app in Montana

Kai Cenat is known for the highest number of followers on the platform, but he was also banned five times

Elon Musk has unveiled a new black and white “X” logo to replace Twitter’s famous blue bird as he follows through with a major rebranding of the the social media platform he bought for $44 billion last year

Electron Capital Partners founder Jos Shaver told investors he’s stepping down as chief investment officer and managing partner

The European Union is officially requiring all smartphones to have replaceable batteries by 2027. This

Not long after being embroiled in controversy himself over a video in which he helped 1,000 people “hear for the first time”, MrBeast - real name Jimmy Donaldson – has waded into the outcry over the latest divisive policy decision from the streaming platform Twitch. On Tuesday, the company updated its policy around branded and sponsored content, in which it set the incredibly specific limit of no more than three per cent of a screen size featuring a brand’s logo or overlay. A ban on ‘burned-in’ adverts embedded into streams is another rule which will come into effect on 1 July. Twitch was already facing a significant backlash over how it splits payments for channel subscriptions, which is currently 50/50, as well as its decision to charge a $25 maintenance fee to terminate an affiliate contract. Given just how limiting three per cent is as a percentage, and in terms of screen size, many Twitch streamers voiced their frustration with the planned change, mocking how the site would even enforce such a policy and how they would avoid going over the threshold: Eventually, Twitch issued a statement on Twitter, in which the organisation admitted the updated policy was “overly broad” and “created confusion and frustration”. Sign up to our free Indy100 weekly newsletter It reads: “We do not intend to limit streamers’ ability to enter into direct relationships with sponsors, and we understand that this is an important part of how streamers earn revenue. “We wanted to clarify our existing ads policy that was intended to prohibit third party ad networks from selling burned in video and display ads on Twitch, which is consistent with other services. “We missed the mark with the policy language and will rewrite the guidelines to be clearer. Thank you for sharing your concerns, and we appreciate the feedback. We’ll notify the community once we have updated the language.” YouTuber and streamer Sean “Jacksepticeye” McLoughlin and rival streaming service Kick were among those who criticised the climbdown: And speaking of Kick – the platform on which Drake streamed himself getting a card declined – this is where MrBeast comes in, as a Twitter account promoting streams on Kick noticed the 158m subscriber strong YouTuber had followed them. Donaldson replied: “Might do a stream for fun just to protest Twitch lol.” Even Elon Musk, of all people, was on board with the idea, simply tweeting Donaldson to say “great!” In a separate tweet – since deleted – MrBeast wrote: “This is the funniest thing I’ve seen all year. I’m not even a Twitch streamer and now I want to stream on a competitor now [sic] just to spite them for you guys lol. “If YouTube pulled this s*** I’d lose my mind.” Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

MADRID--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 25, 2023--

LONDON & NEW YORK & HONG KONG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 9, 2023--

A group of UK lawmakers are calling on the government to enforce clearer and tougher rules on artificial

Engineers have invented a way to passively remove snow from solar panels to allow them to keep generating electricity during adverse weather conditions. A team from the University of Toledo in the United States developed a strip coating that causes accumulated snow to slide off solar panels without interfering with their efficiency. Solar panels can generate electricity on cloudy days, however snow cover can completely block their ability to harvest any of the Sun’s energy. This can result in up to 12 per cent loss of electricity generation per year in areas with heavy snowfall. The self-cleaning strips can also be applied to both new and existing solar installations relatively easily. “The strip coatings apply to the lower edge of the panel, resulting in passive snow removal without requiring any energy to operate,” said Hossein Sojoudi, an associate professor in the Department of Mechanical Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering at the University of Toledo. “Our strip coating does not interfere with absorption of sunlight or panel efficiency at any time, does not cause any partial shading or hotspots on the panel, and does not invalidate module warranty and in fact improves the lifetime of the module.” Tests in the US and Japan found that solar panels fitted with the strip achieved more than 5 per cent improved power generation annually. Solar accounted for around 3.4 per cent of electricity generation in the US last year, according to figures from the Energy Information Administration, while more than half of new US electricity-generating capacity in 2023 is forecast to be from solar. Working with industry partners, Dr Sojoudi said he expects thousands of strip coatings to be installed across the US by the end of 2023. “We estimate to reach a production rate of 1 million strip coatings by the end of 2024,” he said. “Our solution is a game-changing technology that can lead to an additional $150 million in additional annual revenue, across states with heavy snowfall... Through the help of our strategic partners, we are delivering on the promise of solar energy all year long.” Read More Battery breakthroughs are about to trigger a transport revolution Hundreds of years after it was discovered, one material is about to change the world World’s first solar-powered hybrid truck tested on public roads Apple explains how the iPhone turned into a camera like none before it UK competition regulator proposes guiding principles to make AI market safe