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Met Police tests controversial facial recognition tech on festive crowds
The Metropolitan Police is currently running a two-day trial of its controversial facial recognition technology on Christmas shoppers in Soho, Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square (Ars Technica). The trial, which uses unmarked vans, has been criticised by civil liberties groups Liberty and Big Brother Watch for failing to clearly notify people of what was going on and for treating anyone who turned away from cameras or attempted to hide their face as suspicious.
Oxford University report reveals extent of Russian meddling in US politics
Two new reports into Russian propaganda activity, commissioned by the US Senate, have revealed that almost every social media platform was targeted, from Google+ and Vine to mighty Facebook (The Register). The scale of the Russian Internet Research Agency operation – focussed on deterring minority, liberal and left-wing voters from electing Democrat Hillary Clinton while promoting Republican Donald Trump to those on the right – was huge, although it's still unclear how much impact it actually had.
Fluffy, dragon-like pterosaurs were actually covered in feathers
Many dinosaurs had the kind of feathers that we know from their descendants, the birds, but now research has established that the fuzzy coat of pterosaurs – another clade of ancient reptiles – was also made of feathers (Gizmodo). Scientists working with extremely well-preserved fossils discovered in China have found that their warm pycnofibre coats included four distinct feather-like structures, making them the oldest known feathers.
The government's Good Work Plan leaves the gig economy behind
New legislation, dubbed the Good Work Plan, guarantees workers the ability to request a stable contract after six months of work, larger fines for employers who violate the law, and will give employees information about their rights from day one in their job (WIRED). But trade unions and campaigners say that the changes don't go far enough – they don't get rid of zero hours contracts, won't address low wages, and don't address larger problems around Brexit and workers' rights.
Our solar system's most distant body (so far) is Farout
A new dwarf planet has been discovered nearer the edge of our solar system than any other body, and astronomers have nicknamed it "Farout" (Science). Farout is icy – and thus slightly pinkish, 500km in diameter and orbits the Sun every 1,000 years at a distance of 120 astronomical units. (1 AU is the distance from the Earth to the Sun).
Podcast 397: Our heroes of 2018
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This article was originally published by WIRED UK
