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New room-temperature superconductor offers tantalizing possibilities

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

Scientists announced this month a tantalizing advance toward the dream of a material that could effortlessly convey electricity in everyday conditions. Such a breakthrough could transform almost any technology that uses electric energy, opening new possibilities for your phone, magnetically levitating trains and future fusion power plants.Usually, the flow of electricity encounters resistance as it moves through wires, almost like a form of friction, and some energy is lost as heat. A century ago, physicists discovered materials, now called superconductors, where the electrical resistance seemingly magically disappeared. But these materials only lost their resistance at unearthly, ultracold temperatures, which limited practical applications. For decades, scientists have sought superconductors that work at room temperatures.This week’s announcement is the latest attempt in that effort, but it comes from a team that faces wide skepticism because a 2020 paper that described a promising...

A Denver collector’s Native American artifacts are up for sale. A tribal group says these cultural objects need to be returned.

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

In its marketing material for a March sale of Native American art, Bonhams auction house offers prospective buyers a chance to take a “trip around the globe.”The 10-day virtual auction, which begins Monday, features a wide range of North American artifacts: horn spoons and totems from the Northwest coast, baskets from California and pottery from across the Southwest.Many of the objects — which run hundreds of dollars apiece — come from a late Denver collector and former University of Colorado professor who amassed a significant collection of Native American works from tribes across the American plains.But a national Native American advocacy organization says dozens of these pieces represent tribes’ cultural heritage and it has called for Bonhams to remove them from the block. The auction house, though, has refused to engage, the organization said — part of a longstanding battle between tribes and those trying to cash in on their cultural works....

Those old apps can learn new tricks

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

When the iPhone landed in 2007, Apple’s preinstalled apps for weather, stocks and a calculator were pretty basic. Once the more versatile third-party apps hit the scene a year later, it was easy to forget about those default offerings. Over time, though, Apple and Google have added many fresh features to those old apps, and added new offerings.Why use an app from Big Tech? Well, you’re already using software by the company, and there’s less chance of malware. But don’t forget to check the privacy policy on any app you download to see what personal data is being collected.Here’s a quick guide to several Apple- and Google-made apps — and how to delete them if you still never use them.Updates to Apple’s StandbysIf you haven’t opened Apple’s Weather app in a few years, it has had a major overhaul after Apple bought the rival Dark Sky weather app in 2020 and integrated its technology. Apple Weather now includes precipitation alerts, hyperlocal forecasts and color radar maps. Panels...

Grading the Week: If Russell Wilson can’t make this work, at least we’ll know it’s him now

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

He’s got the coach. He’s got the receivers. And now it appears he’s got the offensive line.If Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson can’t make this work, then it might be time to close up the private office.Broncos free agency — B+This much is clear after the first week of NFL free agency:After reeling in free-agent right tackle Mike McGlinchey and guard Ben Powers with $139.5 million combined in contracts on Monday, new head coach Sean Payton is hell-bent on re-establishing a run game that was way too ineffective, way too often in Wilson’s first season in Broncos Country.If Payton and Company had only solved their never-ending right tackle conundrum this past week, the Grading the Week staff would’ve been happy enough. But to add another guard well-regarded for his run-blocking, as well as underrated third-down back Samaje Perine out of Cincinnati, is icing on the cake.As much as Russ might’ve wanted to cook, there’s little doubt h...

OpenAI plans to up the ante in tech’s AI race

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO — Four months ago, a small San Francisco company became the talk of the technology industry when it introduced a new online chatbot that could answer complex questions, write poetry and even mimic human emotions.Now the company is back with a new version of the technology that powers its chatbots. The system will up the ante in Silicon Valley’s race to embrace artificial intelligence and decide who will be the next generation of leaders in the technology industry.OpenAI, which has around 375 employees but has been backed with billions of dollars of investment from Microsoft and industry celebrities, said this month that it had released a technology that it calls GPT-4. It was designed to be the underlying engine that powers chatbots and all sorts of other systems, from search engines to personal online tutors.Most people will use this technology through a new version of the company’s ChatGPT chatbot, while businesses will incorporate it into a wide variety of sys...

More rain headed for Southern California

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

After a break from the last storm system, more rainfall is on the way for Southern California next week.The heaviest rain is expected to arrive early next Tuesday morning and will last through Wednesday.“This will be a soggy first half of the week, with many hours of light to moderate steady rain,” said the National Weather Service. “Expect plenty of water, rocks, mud on roads, and minor urban and creek flooding.”Chances for scattered showers and light drizzle could begin as early as Monday in some areas.In Los Angeles and Ventura counties, rainfall is expected to begin Tuesday morning and continue through early Wednesday, NWS said.Total rainfall is expected to total 1-2 inches from Monday through Wednesday and up to 3 inches in the mountains.Forecasted rainfall totals for Southern California. (National Weather Service)Forecasted snow totals for Southern California. (National Weather Service)“The next storm is forecasted to be colder than the last one, so snow levels will lower to a...

1 injured in Orange County mall shooting

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

One person was injured after shots rang out amid a busy Friday night at The Outlets at Orange mall.Orange Police received reports of shots fired at the mall just before 9 p.m.When police arrived they found one person with a non-life-threatening injury.Police investigating a shooting that left one injured at The Outlets at Orange on March 17, 2023. (KTLA) 1 hospitalized after shooting at a Redondo Beach mall Patrol cars were seen surrounding a Dave & Buster’s restaurant at one of the mall’s entrances. A news photographer witnessed one person being taken into custody.The victim was transported to a local hospital for treatment. It’s unclear at this time whether their injury was a gunshot wound.The shooting remains under investigation.

Bay Area school enrollment has plummeted. So why has student population spiked in this East Bay city?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

For 18-year-old Grace Holmes, there’s one thing that speaks to the population explosion in her hometown more than anything else: the stairwells at her high school in Dublin.“I’m stepping, then I’m pausing, then I’m waiting five seconds, then I’m stepping again,” said Holmes, a senior at Dublin High. “It’s just crazy to see that many kids.”Over the past five years, 85% of school districts in the Bay Area registered a drop in enrollment, with some losing nearly a third of their students. It’s a trend largely driven by falling birth rates, a rise in homeschooling, and a steady stream of people leaving the state.But in Dublin, both the schools and the city have seen the exact opposite: Its student population has tripled since 2019. Dublin Unified is one of less than 15% of all Bay Area school districts that have grown its enrollment over the last five years — and only one of six districts to have grown with over 5,000 students.In the decade between 2010 and 2020, Dublin’s populati...

Former Idaho Fish & Game worker Seth Brown, new A’s teammates explain why they love outdoor sports

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

MESA, Ariz. – Seth Brown has been hunting and fishing for as long as he can remember, first starting out in Oregon with his older brothers and father.The serenity of the quiet woods, lakes and streams helps Brown find a sense of calmness with a busy baseball schedule. In the outdoors, he feels primal, as though he can get back to human basics.“When you get out a few miles away from any road or trail, it’s just human nature,” Brown said this week from the A’s desert spring training facility.Brown led the A’s with 25 home runs and 73 RBIs last season, splitting time almost evenly between first base and the outfield. This season will feature a bit more solitude for him in right field after the A’s signed veteran first baseman Jesús Aguilar over the winter.Brown’s interest in the outdoors led him during his time at Lewis-Clark State College (Lewiston, Idaho) to work his senior year for the state’s fish and game department as part of a class project focused on salmon migration. His job f...

49ers’ offseason checklist: Where things stand after first wave of free agency

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 20:11:25 GMT

With the first major wave of free agency in the books, the 49ers will look for complementary pieces to improve their depth for the remainder of the offseason.Here’s how the 49ers are looking with the remainder of free agency and the NFL Draft to come on April 27-29:FREE AGENTS FROM OTHER TEAMSDT Javon Hargrave (Eagles): Expected to become “Mr. Inside” to Nick Bosa’s  “Mr. Outside”. Should be the best 1-2 pass-rush punch in the NFL.QB Sam Darnold (Panthers): Viability as a potential starter, either through emergency or performance, will be assessed after Kyle Shanahan rebuilds his game.DL Clelin Ferrell (Raiders): Will be saddled with “overdrafted” reputation unless he can break out and do something special with help from Kris Kocurek.CB Isaiah Oliver (Falcons): Slot corner candidate took most of the season to feel normal again after 2021 ACL surgery.FREE AGENT DEPARTURESQB Jimmy Garoppolo (Raiders): Can Jimmy G’s reputation as a winner actua...