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The UK will not exclude Huawei from its 5G networks on technical grounds
The government's Science and Technology Select Committee says that there are no technical grounds for excluding Huawei equipment from the UK's 5G or other telecoms networks (The Register).
This is probably for the best, as Huawei gear is already in use by all major 5G network operators. However, although committee chair Norman Lamb says that the removal of Huawei could cause "significant delays" to the UK's vital 5G rollout, he notes that the government should also take into account ethical and geopolitical considerations – a clear allusion to the US government's campaign against the Chinese tech firm.
US politicians oppose Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency
US treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin has said that he is "not comfortable" with the Libra cryptocurrency currently being developed by Facebook with the intention of using it for transactions on its platform (BBC News).
Mnuchin warned that it could be put to criminal use; his discomfort is shared by the US president and central bank. Meanwhile, Democrats on the House Financial Services Committee are drafting a bill that would effectively ban major tech firms from performing banking functions.
SpaceX: Crew Dragon explosion was due to leaking valve
An investigation by SpaceX and Nasa has finally revealed the cause of the test pad explosion of the Crew Dragon capsule in April (The Verge). Vice president of build and flight reliability Hans Koenigsman told press that a leaking valve in Crew Dragon's emergency abort system thrusters caused propellant to enter an adjacent high-pressure system, ultimately resulting in an explosion.
Twitter has entirely revamped its desktop interface
Twitter has introduced a new desktop browser interface, closely mirroring its mobile versions and equipped with features including account switching (Ars Technica). It's an oddly disconcerting experience seeing what's effectively a mobile interface spread across a large monitor, but it also feels faster and more responsive over slow internet connections.
Alan Turing will be on the new £50 note
The face of the new £50 note will be codebreaker and computer scientist Alan Turing (The Register). Turing's work laid the foundations for much of modern computing and his contribution to British decryption of coded German messages played a significant role in the Allied victory in the second world war. He was persecuted by the British state for his homosexuality and committed suicide in 1954 after he was chemically castrated as punishment.
The return of Netflix's Stranger Things
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This article was originally published by WIRED UK
