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Not Everyone is Welcoming Amazon to Queens

Charlotte Henry ·

On Tuesday, Amazon announced that Crystal City in Virginia and New York City will house its second headquarters. You might imagine that the people in those areas would be excited by the prospect of new jobs and investment, not least the political leaders. Some, such as New York Governor Andrew Cuomo are. However, some serious concerns have been raised, not least Queens, where the New York City set up will be. The Financial Times took a look at what is causing this rather cold welcome for Amazon.

Yet while Andrew Cuomo, New York governor, and Mayor Bill de Blasio were toasting their success on Tuesday at luring the online retailer to the Long Island City section of Queens, Mr Gianaris could hardly have been less pleased. Along with a local member of the City Council, he issued a blistering statement accusing Amazon of “running a cynical game” in which it “duped” New York into offering $3bn in tax incentives and subsidies to woo one of the wealthiest companies on earth.

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DeepMind Health Team Moving to Google (Update)

Andrew Orr ·

Google’s subsidiary DeepMind Health is restructuring and becoming part of the company. Now that its new app Streams is a Google product, people are concerned that Google will start linking patient health data to their respective Google accounts. My thought: You could just delete your Google account, but the health data will likely be added to an advertising profile of you instead. Update: A spokesperson from DeepMind reached out to me to make some clarifications. I’ve also changed the headline to make it more accurate.

Patient data is, and will continue to be, kept strictly separate from other Google projects/products, and subject to strict audit and access controls. Our contractual agreements with existing partners, and their restrictive rules on patient data, are still in force and unchanged. Patient data remains under our partners’ strict control, and all decisions about its use will continue to lie with them. The move to Google does not affect this.

TMO Deals

The Award-Winning Black Friday Mac Bundle Featuring Acorn 6 Is $20

Bryan Chaffin ·

We have a nice Mac bundle for you called the Award-Winning Black Friday Mac Bundle Featuring Acorn 6. It includes Acorn 6, CrossOver 18, Gemini 2, Scapple, Clip Studio Paint Debut, PDF Converter OCR 6: Lifetime License, NetShade VPN, Spotless, mSecure Pro, and Next FlipBook Maker Pro. The bundle is $25 through our deal, but coupon code BFMAC5 at checkout will get you another $5 off.

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Don't Pick Holiday Presents That Can be Hacked

Andrew Orr ·

Mozilla’s Privacy Not Included gift list helps you shop safe for the holidays. It shows all of the holiday presents and tech gear that can be easily hacked. Ashley Boyd, vice president of advocacy at Mozilla, told Wired:

We want to provide people information about how to make informed decisions when shopping for gifts that are connected to the internet. These products are becoming really popular. And in some cases, it’s easy to forget that they’re even connected to the internet.

I think this is a fantastic idea and it brings more awareness to the insecurity of many popular gadgets and gear.

Unravel is a Foldable Wireless Charging Station
Cool Stuff Found

Unravel is a Foldable Wireless Charging Station

Andrew Orr ·

Perfect for travelers, Unravel is a foldable wireless charging station with three 10W Qi charging pads, as well as one USB Type-C port. Powered by a cable many already have, a patent-pending hinge design that folds into accommodating orientations, and a non-slip grip surface, Unravel is the solution to long Facetime calls, cluttered laptop bags, and limited power outlets. When you’re done using it, you just fold it up and put it in the 2″ travel case. Unravel met its Kickstarter goal in 40 minutes, and sitting at nearly $300k raised with a 12 hours left on the campaign. Rewards start at US$59 to get a charging station, and the estimated delivery is December 2018.

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This Website Lets You Listen to Orcas Using Hydrophones

Andrew Orr ·

A website called Orcasound lets you listen to orcas using hydrophones, which are underwater microphones. Scientists use these recordings to find and study whales, especially at night or in bad weather.

The team behind Orcasound hope that non-expert listeners will help quickly alert researchers to the presence of orcas, so they can send out boats to test fecal matter and leftover bits of prey, thereby getting a better sense of what the whales are eating.

If you like whales and you’re interested in citizen science, check out Orcasound.