3 metric tons is the weight of the world’s largest camera

Why so massive? It’s built for photographing space. The 3,200-megapixel camera will be attached to a telescope and has a lens five feet in diameter. Displaying the images at full size will take hundreds of ultra-high-definition TVs.

Tags: camera, space


Weekend update: Eclipse info, email warning, hot new job

Spring has sprung, and I don’t know about you, but I’m gearing up for a big weekend of hiking and biking! Before you clock out for the week, I’ve got three things to put on your weekend radar.

The solar eclipse is on Monday, and NASA has a great interactive map to help make sure you’re in the right place at the right time. Don’t worry if you’re not dead center in the path of totality; you’ll still get a pretty good view of the action.

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Want better streaming suggestions? Try these hacks

I watched one episode of “Is it Cake?” on Netflix. Spoiler: Everything is cake, and it’s totally not for me. And wouldn’t you know it, it’s completely wrecked my streaming recommendations — and I’m guessing yours aren’t much better.

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You asked, so I’m sharing more tomorrow! Friday’s podcast and livestream is all about my trip to Japan. I absolutely loved it! Set a reminder for 11:30 a.m. Pacific (2:30 p.m. Eastern), and come say hi on YouTube, Rumble or Facebook.

Trivia

Google’s email launched 20 years ago. Back then, you had to have an invite to join. It wasn’t till later they introduced perhaps my favorite feature: “Undo send.” Was that in … A.) 2007, B.) 2009, C.) 2012 or D.) 2015?

Find the answer here

Tax Day’s coming up

If you did your taxes, a gold star for you. And if you have not done your taxes, April 15 is a week and a half away. Sorry for the jump scare.

That’s still plenty of time to file if you haven’t yet … and plenty of time to get ripped off if you have. I’ve got your back with a last-minute checklist to avoid getting screwed by the IRS — or post-file scammers.

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🌿 Say aloe to my friends: When your plants are stressed, they pop and click in ultrasonic frequencies way beyond our hearing range. They even scream — just not in a way we can hear. If you really screwed up with them, they throw a full-blown tantrum, complete with changing their color and shape and emitting a special scent. Remember that next time you ignore your Ficus.

Buyer beware: A California woman bought hemorrhoid ointment from Facebook — and died after it poisoned her. Tests found “Cao Boi Tri Cay Thau Dau,” mailed from Vietnam, contained a lethal 4% lead. Don’t buy anything related to your health on social media, period.

🌒 Don’t believe everything you see: The Washington Post (paywall link) says cell service might go down totally for who knows how long with the massive crowds around Monday’s solar eclipse. They even have a “survival kit” plan. By all means, grab a $20 from the ATM — but I highly doubt anything this dramatic could happen with today’s infrastructure.

If we have to: Google is finally deleting billions of records it collected from folks who thought they were browsing in private using Chrome’s Incognito mode. Google claimed it was “impossible” to find and delete this data but changed its tune when a judge ruled on a class-action settlement. Don’t be fooled — Incognito mode still isn’t totally private. For that, you need a VPN.

🍔 Fast-food shakedown: Shake Shack’s CEO says in-store digital kiosks make your order cost 10% more on average. The machines are designed to make you spend more by letting you take your time and nudging you towards supersizing everything.