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Google and Amazon may face US antitrust investigations
New York Times sources say that the US Justice Department and Federal Trade Commission are looking into potentially monopolistic behaviour by Google and Amazon respectively. While these are not yet full-scale antitrust investigations, they may presage formal action and indicate that government attention has finally turned towards the US tech giants in their homeland.
iTunes is strongly rumoured to be on its way out
Apple is gradually removing all content about iTunes from its social media accounts, leading many to speculate that the company is about to replace it with dedicated macOS Music, Podcast and TV apps (The Verge). The loss of the Windows version of the software could leave a void for those who use it to listen to music and download podcasts, as it's not clear whether Apple is working on a replacement for that platform. We'll find out one way or another at Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference this week.
Genetically modified fungus can wipe out mosquitoes
A genetically modified fungus can quickly kill 75 per cent of mosquitoes introduced to an enclosed area coated in it, causing their population to collapse (EuroNews). The fungal pathogen, modified to produce a spider venom toxin in infected mosquitoes, was tested at a research facility in Burkina Faso and is thought to have potential for mosquito control after further research.
Machine learning is totally changing what we think of as literature
The definition of sci-fi is notoriously slippery (WIRED). But what if crunching the data on thousands of books could give us a more definite answer? A growing field of literary studies is taking exactly that approach to try and apply a little data to the world of English literature.
Mini cameras provide insight into the hidden habits of cats
A new approach to tracking the activities of cats by putting tiny cameras on them has provided insight into their private lives and lays a foundation for a range of further research into small animal behaviour (Science). The cameras revealed that, when their humans were around, cats liked to follow them and hang out in the same room, while their outdoor behaviour was typically cautious, highly alert and socially complex.
How big beef destroyed the planet
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This article was originally published by WIRED UK
