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Jodrell Bank Observatory gains Unesco World Heritage status
Britain's Jodrell Bank Observatory, located in Cheshire and part of the University of Manchester, has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site of Outstanding Universal Value (BBC News). Founded in 1945 under physicist and astronomer Sir Bernard Lovell, and home to the Lovell Telescope – once the world's largest and still the third largest on the planet, the observatory tracked Russia's earliest Sputnik spacecraft and Nasa's 1966 Moon landing. The observatory and its radio telescope arrays still play a vital role in astronomy, research and education.
The UK's next generation mobile networks include Huawei gear
Huawei is involved in the development of 5G networks of all four of the UK's major mobile operators, The Observer reports. This is not particularly surprising given the UK's intensive independent testing and scrutiny of the Chinese telecoms firm's hardware and firmware. However, the use of Huawei 5G kit – primarily found in "non-core" systems such as radio hardware on masts – could result in problems if the government later bows to US pressure and places restrictions on the Chinese firm, potentially delaying the rollout of 5G in Britain.
Volkswagen's electric racing car has shattered Goodwood's 20-year-old speed record
Volkswagen’s ID R electric car, driven by Romain Dumas, is the new holder of the hill climb record at the Goodwood Festival of Speed (TechCrunch). Dumas completed the 1.86 kilometre course first in 41.18 seconds and then, the next day, in 39.90 seconds, breaking a 20-year-old record set in 1999 by Nick Heidfeld and a 780-horsepower McLaren-Mercedes MP4/13.
The incredible tech behind this year's Tour de France bikes
Design innovation and material science in bike design is on a par with sports such as F1, and Grand Tour bikes are built with pure performance in mind (WIRED). But a bike that excels at ‘climbing’ on steep mountain stages will lose valuable time in a time-trial where aerodynamics are everything and even bike handling is compromised for pure speed. Take that same time-trial bike on a mountain or a flat stage with a big group of riders jostling for position and its twitchy handling would make it at best unwieldy, and at worst dangerous.
The world's worst website challenges you to endure its UI
Our ability to quickly and easily use the web relies heavily on a standardised set of user interface conventions (Ars Technica). Created by Belgian design firm Bagaar, User Inyerface gleefully disregards every single one of those conventions, swapping buttons and breaking workflows to create a game where filling in a simple web form becomes a Herculean challenge.
The return of Netflix's Stranger Things
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This article was originally published by WIRED UK
