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What inspired the iconic ding sound that welcomes you when booting up a Mac computer? Was it a … A.) Tibetan singing bowl, B.) Beatles’ song, C.) Cash register opening or D.) Classical piano key note?
The answer: B.) Beatles’ song. Specifically, it’s the final chord of “A Day in the Life.” Apple sound designer Jim Reekes wanted a sound that instilled happiness.
AI’s guess at whether you’re a man or woman based on brain scans. Research has always been iffy on whether men and women have truly different brains. This is an interesting wrinkle.
📧 Emoji etiquette: A study says an emoji or GIF can lighten the mood and boost team vibes when communicating via email. Just make sure you send a 🍦 and not a 💩. It could mean the difference between a laugh and an HR meeting. Context is everything.
Use an Apple Watch? The brand-new ones lost the oxygen-sensor tech while Apple battles a lawsuit. Yup, a small company says Apple stole its tech. Older models still have the O2 sensors, so they’re fetching more money than ever. Good time to sell yours if it’s just sitting around.
Let’s keep wildlife wild: Research shows even educational snaps of wildlife fuel illegal animal trafficking and dangerous human-wildlife encounters. So, uh, it’s best to avoid the lion selfie unless you’re aiming for a Darwin Award.
🤦♂️ No one’s laughing: A 23-year-old cop in Montgomery, Alabama, thought it’d be amusing to “swat” another department. Christopher Eugene Sanspree Jr. used an app to report phony shootings and break-ins on duty because he “thought it was funny.” He’s facing six misdemeanor charges with a $6,000 bond. They should bill this idiot for the lost time and resources.
Court of the future: The NBA rolled out a flashy, new toy recently at the All-Star Weekend in Indianapolis — an LED glass basketball court that switched up its looks on the fly. Think live stats, replays and animations right under the players’ feet. It didn’t steal the spotlight from the slam dunks, but I’m sure ads will follow soon.
Look, Elon! No hands: Neuralink’s first human experiment is a success. A brave soul who had the brain chip implanted can now use just thoughts to scroll and click a computer mouse. Crazy stuff — and just the beginning for this tech.
That’s how often alarms can sound in hospitals. “Alarm fatigue,” aka ignoring and forgetting to turn off or restart alarms, led to 566 deaths in the U.S. over a five-and-a-half-year period. The fix isn’t louder alarms but to make them more musical. Fascinating read!
Chinese and U.S. researchers can recreate more than one-fourth of fingerprint biometric scans by sound alone. No kidding, your fingerprints make sounds when you swipe your touchscreens.
