Mike Wehner
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Articles by Mike Wehner
How to Make Amazon’s AI Shopping Assistant Work for You This Black Friday
My personal Black Friday prep always looks the same and, if I’m being honest, it’s not pretty. It consists of a few dozen browser tabs, a price tracker, and a list of things I’ve kept in digital shopping carts, hoping a sale hits. This year, more shoppers than ever will be handing that job to an AI bot. A YouGov poll showed that roughly one-third (34%) …
I Went Back to Wired Earbuds for a Week - And I Might Not Switch Back
I always have at least one pair of half-dead AirPods floating around my desk. I actually own two pairs (one set of regular AirPods and one set of AirPods Pro), plus the over-ear AirPods Max, and on a normal workday I swap between the trio multiple times. I call it the “AirPods Shuffle.” You see, owning a pair of wireless earbuds means managing three separate batteries at the same time. You have the left and right earbuds, and then you have the case, which typically holds a bit of backup juice.
AI Is Coming to Your Kid's First Phone - The Real Question Is What Kind?
There’s more than one “dumbphone” sitting in a drawer in my house. Last year, I spent weeks trying to leave my iPhone behind and test a trio of minimalist phones that offered varying levels of controlled access to the apps I’ve admittedly become addicted to. My conclusion wasn’t what I expected. Using a stripped-down phone feels liberating, sure, but whe…
Footage Fatigue Is Real. Wyze Thinks AI Can Cure It.
My six security cameras catch everything from delivery drivers to wandering wildlife. Wyze Stories promises to sort through the endless alerts and show me what actually matters. There are six security cameras installed around my house. I don’t need six, and you could argue that I barely need one, but as a tech nerd and homeowner, I feel it’s my duty to overspend on all kinds of goofy devices, just for the sake of having them. But if you ask me when I last checked them, I'd draw a blank.
From self-erasure to self-mastery: Ethan Suplee’s second act
From self-erasure to self-mastery: Ethan Suplee’s second act • After building a successful career as an actor, Ethan Suplee turned his focus to his health, which led to a second career as a fitness …
Dark AI is fueling cybercrime - and accelerating the cybersecurity arms race
The most surprising and impactful new stories delivered to your inbox every week, for free. In June 2023, just seven months after OpenAI first invited curious tech fans to try a “research preview” of its now-ubiquitous ChatGPT tool, a lesser-known chatbot called WormGPT officially launched with a much different target audience: hackers.
Second opinions in the age of ChatGPT
ChatGPT saved a woman’s life. That’s the gist of a viral post shared on Reddit. The author said his wife developed a fever and felt ill after a seemingly routine cyst removal. Her doctor had said the cyst wasn’t infected, so she wanted to wait it out, but ChatGPT urged them to go to the emergency room immediately. The AI’s advice was sound: The woman was septic, and had the couple waited to seek medical attention, she could have gotten much sicker.
Here are the Prime Day SCAMS You Need To Know About!
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Here are the Prime Day SCAMS You Need To Know About!
We’re just a few hours away from the biggest summer spending spree of the year. Amazon Prime Day 2025 starts July 8th, and while you're busy filling your cart with goodies you may or may not actually need, scammers are busy filling their virtual carts with your credit card info. The stats on Prime Day scams will leave you slack-jawed: Data from NordVPN’s cybersecurity team shows that cybercriminals have already created more than 120,000 fake Amazon websites in the hopes of tricking shoppers.
NASA's Cassini Snaps Unbelievable Picture of Saturn - No Really! It's Not Believable!! | Space | Before It's News
% of readers think this story is Fact. Add your two cents. ” That’s what makes NASA’s awe-inspiring snapshot of Saturn (hi-res version here) such a stunning piece of eye candy.” — LOL PALEASE! Science fiction movies have spoiled us on high definition views of our planetary neighbors, but real-life photographs with equal jaw-dropping potential are exceedingly rare. That’s what makes NASA’s awe-inspiring snapshot of Saturn (hi-res version here) such a stunning piece of eye candy.
5 Things Everyone Using the Internet Needs To Do Right This Second
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5 Things Everyone Using the Internet Needs To Do Right This Second
Another cybersecurity article telling you to change your passwords and use two-factor authentication? Yawn. You’ve heard that song before, and if you haven’t done those bare-bones basics by now there’s an entirely different conversation we need to have.
I Gave Up My iPhone for the 3 Best Dumbphones - And I Kind of Regret It
Let me just say it: I wanted to quit my iPhone. Not just cut back — full breakup. Like so many of us, I’d reached my limit. The endless pings, the mindless doomscrolling, the feeling that my brain was slowly being chewed up and spit out by a group chat. I wanted off the ride. 10,000 subscribers can’t be wrong So I went all-in on the minimalist movement and test-drove three of the most-hyped dumbphones on the market: the Minimal Phone, theMudita Kompakt, and theLight Phone III.
I Gave Up My iPhone for the 3 Best Dumbphones — And I Kind of Regret It
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The faster, cheaper, no-brainer way to replace dirty construction
Buildings are dirty. Even today, where construction sites are often home to efficient electric tools and best practices that have been honed over centuries, the modern building and construction sector is still responsible for a huge share of global energy and process-related CO2 emissions. For an industry that is trying to reach carbon neutrality by 2050, things aren’t looking good. But there is hope.
shoes Archives
New research shows that shoes with toe spring supports may be beneficial for just about everyone. The research suggests that while technology in the sole …
AI is going to revolutionize the weather forecast
In a high-tech laboratory, somewhere in San Francisco, sits a comma-shaped piece of metal that aims to change how the world sees the weather. The structure dominates the room. The horizontal part softly curves upwards until it’s taller than a person, with ridges that stretch from top to bottom. You’d be forgiven for thinking it’s a piece of modern art. In fact, it is art, but it’s also much more than that.
There’s a giant patch of toxic seaweed, and this company wants to bury it
This week, Seaweed Generation is embarking on an experiment that could help shape the role of seaweed in slowing or even reversing climate change through carbon dioxide removal (CDR). Armed with a robotic seaweed collection and carbon sequestration device, the startup is headed for a massive patch of invasive seaweed in the Caribbean.
Newest research shows repurposable drugs and spinal fluid trials could potentially lead to Alzheimer's cure Original
Developing new treatments for ailments can be a tedious and frustrating process for scientists. Oftentimes, newly developed drugs just don’t work the way they were intended, falling short of expectations and leading to a dead end. But other times, a drug developed for one purpose turns out to be even more effective at treating something completely different.
Massive Power, Massive Price
It's big, heavy, and ultra-powerful, but is the Asus ROG Phone 5S Pro worth the asking price? The answer might be a more complicated than you expect. After first debuting in Asia and then rolling over to Europe, the uber-powerful Asus ROG Phone 5S and 5S Pro are finally available in the United States. Designed for mobile gaming, the phones are overkill in the best sense of the word, but are they worth their flagship-level pricetags?
Sceptre C505 Super Ultrawide Monitor Review: I May Never Go Back
Sceptre's C505 Super Ultrawide 49-Inch monitor is a beast for gaming, but it's also shockingly well-suited to productivity, making it a dual-threat. Share Tweet Email The Sceptre C505 Curved LED Monitor might not have a flashy name, but it makes up for it with an absurd amount of screen real estate, 1440 vertical resolution, and a speedy 120Hz refresh rate.
It's Not Just You: Facebook, Instagram, And WhatsApp Are Currently Down
Both Facebook and Instagram went down for an unknown reason on Monday morning, with countless users bemoaning the crash as they wait for an update. Both Facebook and Instagram, two of the most popular social apps on the planet, are currently down. The two services spontaneously went down at around 11:45 a.m. EST and the company hasn't revealed the cause.
Crazy Ooho edible water spheres didn't pan out, so the company pivoted Original
Startups come in all shapes and sizes. But when your business model seeks to replace one of the most simple, ubiquitous products on the planet — plastic bottles. It has to be unbelievably brilliant to have any chance at success. Enter Ooho edible water, an “edible bottle” created by startup Skipping Rocks Lab, which rebranded into a company called Notpla. It’s a product that was perfectly suited for internet hype.
Working Models Of Jeff Bezos' Penis Rocket Cost $69 (Not A Joke)
Hobby rocket maker Estes has partnered with Blue Origin to produce a scale model of the company's phallic rocket, and it has a very appropriate price. Jeff Bezos, founder of Blue Origin and noted hair-not-haver, flew to space recently, and now you can buy the phallic rocket he rode for a cool $69. Blue Origin was steadily working toward the goal of the first space tourism flight for many years. It finally realized that dream when it sent Jeff Bezos and three others to the edge of space.
Watch Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin Launch Live Right Here
Jeff Bezos is about to take off on the first-ever crewed Blue Origin flight, complete with a crew of five, and you can watch the live stream here. Email Jeff Bezos is about to take off on the first crewed Blue Origin flight ever, and you can watch it live right here. The flight, which is tentatively scheduled to take place at 9 a.m. EST, will see the Amazon founder and a crew of notable names include Mark Bezos (Jeff's brother), Wally Funk, and Oliver Daemen.
NASA Just Saved The Hubble Telescope's Life
NASA performed a risky switch to a backup computer to bring the Hubble Space Telescope back from the dead, and somehow it actually worked. Email Photo via NASA/Smithsonian Institution/Lockheed Corporation NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has been rescued from certain doom after a risky switch to a backup computer proved successful. The aging scientific instrument has been offline for over a month when its payload computer suffered a serious glitch.
NASA Is Sending A Message For Future Humans Into Space
NASA's Lucy mission will study ancient asteroids that orbit the Sun near Jupiter, but it'll also be carrying a plaque with messages to future humans. Email Image via NASA Goddard Space Flight Center NASA's Lucy mission, which is launching in October, will study the large, enigmatic "Trojan" asteroids that orbit the Sun near Jupiter, and it's going to be taking a time capsule with it.
Aquatic Aliens May Be Fighting For Survival Inside Jupiter's Europa
A new study sought to better understand how impact and radiation affect the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa as NASA prepares to launch missions. Email Photo via NASA/JPL-Caltech/SETI Institute If there are extraterrestrial life forms hiding away beneath the icy crust of Jupiter's moon Europa, they're being protected from some of the most intense conditions space can throw at them, according to a new NASA-funded study that aims to better characterize Europa's surface ahead of future missions.
NASA's Mars Helicopter Is Doing Things It Was Never Meant To Do
NASA is pulling out all the stops with its Mars Ingenuity helicopter, sending it on long journies over terrain it was never designed to tackle. Email Image via NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA's Mars Ingenuity helicopter just completed a flight that its handlers never expected it to take. The pint-sized aircraft is little more than a proof of concept, designed to demonstrate that powered flight is possible on the Red Planet while also revealing how aerial machines might be useful during future missions.
This Falcon 9 Looks Like A Burnt Marshmallow After 7 Launches
After 7 successful trips to space, this SpaceX Falcon 9 booster looks like it's been through a war, but it's back and ready for another go. Email New photos reveal how absolutely filthy the exterior of SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket booster gets after taking multiple trips to space. The first-stage rocket booster is a trustworthy member of SpaceX's fleet, but repeated journeys to the edge of space have left it looking a little worse for wear.
Windows 11 Is Going To Save Your Laptop Battery - Here's How
Windows 11 includes a new feature that will manage the refresh rate of a user's laptop or tablet display to ensure it isn't wasting energy. Email Windows 11 is equipped with a new (for Microsoft, anyway) dynamic refresh rate feature that should help preserve precious battery life for laptops featuring more advanced displays. It's targeted at modern notebooks that come with displays capable of refresh rates higher than the standard 60hz.
Netflix On Android Just Got A New Feature The iPhone Doesn't Have
Netflix just added a new feature to make watching and downloading shows at the same time easier for Android users than for iPhone owners. Email Netflix just updated its Android app with a new feature that will surely make iPhone users jealous, especially if they're scrambling to download a movie before a flight or other long trip.
Apple's All-New MacBook Pros Are Coming Sooner Than You Think
Apple is still expected to launch all-new models of its MacBook Pro notebooks before the end of the year, with its own M-series processors included. Email Trusted Apple insider and Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman just revealed that Apple's much-hyped MacBook Pro revamp should arrive before the calendar flips to 2022. An all-new MacBook Pro was originally rumored to be in the works as far back as May of this year, with a release as early as this summer.
BGR Science • BGR
Scientists found a massive ‘dragon man’ head that may belong to a new species Scientists studying human evolution have delivered two breakthrough discoveries in a matter of days. First, it was a team in Israel that analyzed fossilized bone fragments from a skull belonging to what turned out to be a new species of human.
BGR Lifestyle • BGR
This hand sanitizer was recalled because people might want to drink it Over the past year, we saw well over 100 separate hand sanitizer products recalled due to the presence of methanol, a substance that is toxic to humans when absorbed through the skin. For those unfamiliar, methanol exposure can cause any number of health issues, including blindness, seizures, vomiting, and in some rare cases, even death.
China may have snapped the greatest Mars selfie ever Original
NASA’s Mars 2020 mission is well underway, with the Perseverance rover beginning its science phase and the Ingenuity helicopter having accomplished a lot in a very short period of time. But NASA wasn’t the only space agency sending new hardware to Mars, and China recently landed its own rover on the surface of the Red Planet as well. We’ve all been staring at images from Mars sent back by Perseverance, but China just dropped one of the coolest Mars photos you’ll ever see.
NASA’s Perseverance rover shoots lasers that can vaporize rocks Original
By now you already know that NASA’s Perseverance rover is an impressive machine. It survived the long journey from Earth to Mars, landed in one piece, and has already explored a small area of the surface while its partner, the Ingenuity helicopter, conducted its flight tests.
Something mysterious is blinking near the center of our galaxy
When astronomers peer into the depths of the Milky Way galaxy, which is our home, they can see a lot of stuff going on. There are endless stars swirling masses of gas and other features, but one light source, in particular, has caught the attention of researchers that are trying to understand exactly what it is.
NASA’s Perseverance rover is finally getting down to business
NASA’s Perseverance rover landed on Mars way back in February. Just moments after its safe touchdown, the massive machine sent back images of the Martian surface and began relaying all kinds of data so that its handlers back on Earth knew it was doing okay. With that quick start, you’d think that the rover would be well into its science campaign by now, but in truth, it’s only just beginning. Perseverance is a big, complex machine with a lot of high-tech hardware built-in.
This solar generator gave me a tiny, sweet taste of living off the grid
Maybe it’s the fact that I spend so much time reading and writing about technology, but every few months I let myself fantasize about what it might be like to leave all of it behind and live off-grid for a while. There are endless ways to disconnect, and you can go all-out or land somewhere in the middle. One of the easiest ways to feel a bit more freedom is to provide yourself with your own sustainable source of power.
XGIMI Horizon Pro review: The best 4K projector you’ve never heard of
Projectors have always been a polarizing topic among home theater enthusiasts. Some have long sworn by them, touting the benefits of being able to conjure a 100-inch display out of thin air, while critics claim they’re virtually useless in anything other than a pitch-black room. It’s a debate that has raged for a long time, but even the biggest projection critics have to admit that projector technology has come a long, long way in recent years.
This solar generator gave me a tiny, sweet taste of living off the grid
Maybe it’s the fact that I spend so much time reading and writing about technology, but every few months I let myself fantasize about what it might be like to leave all of it behind and live off-grid for a while. There are endless ways to disconnect, and you can go all-out or land somewhere in the middle. One of the easiest ways to feel a bit more freedom is to provide yourself with your own sustainable source of power.
Two NASA satellites team up to capture a galactic merger
The Milky Way is our home, and for the entirety of human existence, it has treated us pretty well. Earth and our solar system just kinda chill out here in one of the galaxy’s curvy arms, living our day-to-day lives in relative peace, at least in cosmic terms. Fast forward 4.5 billion years, however, and we might begin to see the galaxy change. It’s at that point that The Milky Way is predicted to begin colliding with the nearby galaxy Andromeda.
Astronomers discovered a new planet with an important similarity to Earth
Exoplanet discoveries used to be nothing but a dream for scientists, but new telescope technology and more advanced observation techniques have made the task of finding planets outside of our solar system easier than ever. In fact, so many new exoplanets are being found these days that scientists have to pick and choose which ones are most in need of study since there simply aren’t enough eyes to go around.
A unique solar explosion has scientists stunned and excited
The Sun is one of the big reasons why we’re all here today. Without it, life likely wouldn’t have taken root on Earth — or, at the very least, the type of life that covers our planet today simply wouldn’t have been possible. That said, there’s still a lot we don’t know about our star and, more importantly, the threats that it may pose when it starts to throw its tantrums.
Plants wake up with the Sun just like we do, scientists say Original
We don’t really think of plants as life forms that require sleep, and while it’s true that plants don’t “sleep” in the way that animals do, they operate on a circadian rhythm all the same.
Here’s our first look at Jupiter’s icy moon from the latest flyby
NASA’s Juno spacecraft has spent much of the past four years gazing at the massive gas giant Jupiter. The orbiter’s primary goal is to teach scientists as much about Jupiter as possible, but it’s also spent some time observing Jupiter’s many moons. Ganymede is the largest moon of Jupiter and also the largest moon in the solar system, so when NASA announced it would be directing Juno to observe Ganymede for the first time, it was a pretty big deal.
Scientists revived a creature that was frozen in ice for 24,000 years
It sounds like the plot from a cheese science fiction movie: Scientists unearth something that’s been buried in the frozen ground of the Arctic for tens of thousands of years and decide to warm it up a bit. The creature stirs as its cells slowly wake up from their long stasis. As time passes, the animal wakes up, having time-traveled 24,000 years thanks to its body’s ability to shut itself down once temperatures reached a certain low. It sounds too incredible to be true, but it is.
Scientists revived a creature that was frozen in ice for 24,000 years
It sounds like the plot from a cheese science fiction movie: Scientists unearth something that’s been buried in the frozen ground of the Arctic for tens of thousands of years and decide to warm it up a bit. The creature stirs as its cells slowly wake up from their long stasis. As time passes, the animal wakes up, having time-traveled 24,000 years thanks to its body’s ability to shut itself down once temperatures reached a certain low. It sounds too incredible to be true, but it is.
NASA’s Juno orbiter is about to fly by a world that may harbor life
NASA’s trusty Juno orbiter has been hanging around Jupiter for many years now. Its observations have taught us a lot about the gas giant and its intense storms. It revealed that the storms stretch farther into the planet than previously thought, and Juno is our primary eye in the sky when it comes to observing the swirling vortices that make Jupiter so iconic.
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