Tech Boys

The Treasury Department is reconsidering the Internal Revenue Service’s use of ID.me for access to its website, according to Bloomberg . A department official said the agencies are exploring alternatives to the controversial facial recognition software, though that official didn’t specifically cite the privacy concerns around ID.me for the decision. “The IRS is consistently looking for ways to make the filing process more secure,” Treasury Department spokesperson Alexandra LaManna told Bloomberg . “We believe in the importance of protecting the privacy of taxpayers, while also ensuring criminals are not able to gain access to taxpayer accounts.” Citing a “lack of funding for IRS modernization,” LaManna also said it’s been “impossible” for the agency to develop its own in-house identification solution, and noted US taxpayers aren’t required to file their taxes online. Toward the end of last year, the IRS began requiring individuals to use ID.me to access certain parts of its website...

I'm not really a huge chocolate person, but even I can admit it's difficult for chocolate to be bad. To that end, MrBeast — the incredibly popular YouTuber — is channeling his inner Willy Wonka to launch a line of tasty, if not world-changing, treats: chocolate bars. Real name Jimmy Donaldson, MrBeast has 89 million subscribers on YouTube, where he often launches stunts and massive giveaways. He's the guy who created a real-life Squid Game . SEE ALSO: IRL 'Squid Game' gets 100 million YouTube views in 4 days Anyway, Donaldson's latest venture is a food company called Feastables, touted in a press release as "a better-for-you snacking brand rooted in gamified experiences." Basically, the company plans to hold sweepstakes for $1 million in giveaways, from Teslas to Beats headphones to electric bikes. But that's not all: A few winners will get to experience a very surreal trip to MrBeast's chocolate factory. "Ten lucky Grand Priz...

The Democratic strategist James Carville. AP Photo/Lynne Sladky Carville said Sinema won't defeat Rep. Gallego if he runs against her in a 2024 Democratic primary. When asked about Sinema, Carville told Vox that he has "no idea what the hell she's thinking." The senator has come under fire for her refusal to change filibuster rules to pass voting-rights legislation. The longtime Democratic strategist James Carville threw cold water on Sen. Kyrsten Sinema's chances for reelection if Rep. Ruben Gallego challenges her for the party's 2024 Senate nomination in Arizona. In a recent Vox interview that was published on Thursday , Carville expressed confidence in Gallego's chances if he were to launch a primary run against the freshman senator, who was first elected in a 2018 race against then-Republican Rep. Martha McSally to great fanfare among state Democrats. Sinema has come under withering criticism by many Democratic voters and activists, with man...

Many exoplanets are completely uninhabitable , but they can still be useful in the search for more hospitable worlds . Scientists at Lund University have created a 3D map of ultra-hot gas giant WASP-189b's atmosphere that could provide insights into other distant planets' skies. The team used a high-resolution spectrograph to study the host star's light as it passed through the planet's atmosphere, looking for line positions in elements that not only indicated what materials were present, but that they swirled around in three-dimensional layers. The elements themselves included a breakthrough. This is the first time observers had solid evidence of titanium oxide in the atmosphere of a gas giant like this. It also has familiar jovian world chemicals like iron, chromium and magnesium. You won't be visiting WASP-189b any time soon. Its daytime temperature climbs to nearly 5,800F, and its 2.7-day orbit won't help matters. However, the spectrograph techniques inv...

One of the largest online marketplaces for non-fungible tokens is once again the center of controversy. Mere months after one of its employees resigned for using insider information to profit on NFT drops, OpenSea caused a stir among its users this week when it abruptly announced it was putting a restriction on its free minting tool. The feature allows individuals to create and list an NFT without first paying a “ gas price ,” the fee that crypto miners charge to write new data to a blockchain. To all the creators in our community impacted by the 50 item limit we added to our free minting tool, we hear you and we're sorry. We have reversed the decision. But we also want to offer an explanation ↯ pic.twitter.com/Y3igaE1RM2 — OpenSea (@opensea) January 27, 2022 On Thursday , OpenSea said it would add a 50 item limit to the tool. Predictably, the announcement wasn’t popular among OpenSea users, and the company quickly reversed course. But in doing so, it provided some conte...

Netflix is learning that careless dialogue in its fictional shows can have serious implications. Its bid to get a recent defamation suit dismissed has been rejected , meaning it will have to face the plaintiff — Georgian chess legend Nona Gaprindashvili — in court.  In September, Gaprindashvili filed a suit against the streaming giant, accusing the company of defamation and "false light invasion of privacy." As the world's first female grandmaster , Gaprindashvili was mentioned in Netflix's series The Queen's Gambit   — a period drama about a chess prodigy.  In one scene during a chess match , a radio commentator says in passing "The only unusual thing about her, really, is her sex. And even that's not unique in Russia. There's Nona Gaprindashvili, but she's the female world champion and has never faced men." According to the suit, not only is the allegation that Gaprindashvili hadn't faced men at that time "manifestly false,...

Cancel those weekend plans and open up your Hulu queue. The streamer is still extremely useful for TV fans looking to catch up on the latest network shows — but at some point in the past decade, Hulu became so much more than we imagined. Its original shows have earned awards, critical acclaim, and a special place in our TV-loving hearts, up there with the best of them. Whether you're a loyal Hulu subscriber or just joining the party, you need to check out these 13 exceptional Hulu originals. This list doesn't include limited series like Normal People and Looking for Alaska , or anything not produced or distributed by Hulu itself — all that adds up to a longer list, which we already made! 1. Love, Victor Michael Cimino and George Sear in Season 2 of "Love, Victor." Credit: greg gayne / HULU This TV spinoff from 2018's queer romantic comedy Love, Simon stars Michael Cimino as Victor, a new student at Simon's high school. He's a star athlete, a mod...

Boris Johnson Steve Reigate/Getty Images The Met Police stated that they will be contacting those suspected of attending 10 Downing Street parties during COVID-19 lockdown.  Prime Minister Boris Johnson publicly admitted to attending one of these parties.  The Sue Gray report, the government inquiry into the events, is reportedly set to be published "imminently." The Met Police released a statement saying those believed to have attended parties at 10 Downing Street during COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 and 2021 — some weekly — will be contacted by the force.  In a statement on their website , Commander Catherine Roper, who leads the Met's Central Specialist Crime Command confirmed they have received material from the Cabinet Office as part of their investigation into the parties.  Roper said that "individuals who are identified as having potentially breached these regulations will normally be contacted in writing, and invited to explain their actions includin...

Neil Young's frustrations with Spotify go far beyond COVID-19 vaccine misinformation. A day after his music was removed from the platform, he said he "felt better" after leaving and slammed Spotify for its sound quality compared with other streaming services. "Amazon, Apple Music and Qobuz deliver up to 100 percent of the music [quality] today and it sounds a lot better than the shitty degraded and neutered sound of Spotify,” Young wrote in the latest letter published to his website. "If you support Spotify, you are destroying an art form." He urged fans to switch to "a platform that truly cares about music quality." Young, who claims "Spotify streams the artist's music at five percent of its quality," has long been vexed by the audio quality on some streaming platforms. He temporarily removed his music from them in 2015. Young launched his own audio player and music download platform that year, but Pono shut down in 2017. I...

Exercise bikes provide a great home cardio workout that puts less strain on your joints than running on a treadmill . Out of the different types of stationary exercise bikes, recumbent bikes are best for beginners, seniors, or people who don't want to put as much pressure or weight on their joints. What is a recumbent bike? A recumbent bike is an exercise bike that positions you in a reclined form while pedaling. Think of it sort of like a rowing machine , but your feet pedal instead of your arms pulling back a cord. And unlike a typical stationary bike, the pedals are in front of your body rather than underneath it. Because you are leaning back, a recumbent bike can feel a bit awkward before you master it. (Obviously, recumbent bikes are big on the streets as well, but we're talking about the stationary, at-home workout type here.) The difference between a recumbent bike and upright bike An upright bike is what you’d typically think of when you picture a stationary bike. ...