Scientists Obtain 'Lucky' Image of Jupiter

Astronomers have produced a remarkable new image of Jupiter, tracing the glowing regions of warmth that lurk beneath the gas giant's cloud tops.

 

It took hundreds of exposures to build this sharp image mosaic of Jupiter in the infrared

The picture was captured in infrared by the Gemini North Telescope in Hawaii, and is one of the sharpest observations of the planet ever made from the ground.

To achieve the resolution, scientists used a technique called "lucky imaging" which scrubs out the blurring effect of looking through Earth's turbulent atmosphere.

This method involves acquiring multiple exposures of the target and only keeping those segments of an image where that turbulence is at a minimum.

When all the "lucky shots" are put together in a mosaic, a clarity emerges that's beyond just the single exposure.

Infrared is a longer wavelength than the more familiar visible light detected by the likes of the Hubble telescope. It is used to see past the haze and thin clouds at the top of Jupiter's atmosphere, to give scientists the opportunity to probe deeper into the planet's internal workings.

Researchers want to understand better what makes and sustains the gas giant's weather systems, and in particular the great storms that can rage for decades and even centuries. 

The study that produced this infrared image was led from the University of California at Berkeley. It was part of a joint programme of observations that involved Hubble and the Juno spacecraft that's currently orbiting the fifth planet from the Sun. 

Jupiter as seen in visible wavelengths of light by Hubble

Fast facts about Jupiter

• Jupiter is 11 times wider than Earth and 300 times more massive
• It takes 12 Earth years to orbit the Sun; a 'day' is 10 hours long
• In composition it resembles a star; it's mostly hydrogen and helium
• Under pressure, the hydrogen assumes a state similar to a metal
• This 'metallic hydrogen' could be the source of the magnetic field
• Most of the visible cloudtops contain ammonia and hydrogen sulphide
• Jupiter's low-latitude 'bands' play host to very strong east-west winds
• The Great Red Spot is a giant storm vortex wider than Planet Earth

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Huawei may Launch a P30 Pro “New Edition” with Google Apps Onboard

This is probably not a secret to anyone reading this by now, but the United States government has been making Huawei’s smartphone business hurt. Because the U.S. Commerce Department placed Huawei and its subsidiaries on the country’s Entity List, U.S.-based companies can no longer export products to the Chinese technology giant. As it turns out, those export restrictions include software, so one of the immediate side effects of this trade ban is that many new Huawei and Honor smartphones cannot ship with Google Mobile Services (GMS) pre-installed, which includes the Google Play Store and Google Play Services. Both the Huawei Mate 30 series and the Huawei P40 series, Huawei’s late 2019 and early 2020 flagship devices, don’t ship with Google apps as a result. However, Huawei has found some clever ways around this trade ban, one of which involves tweaking an existing, already-certified model and then re-releasing it to the market. That’s exactly what appears to be happening now as the company seems to be preparing to launch the Huawei P30 Pro New Edition.

The evidence for this “New Edition” model comes from Huawei’s consumer page in Germany (via DigitalTrends), where we can see a mention of a Huawei P30 Pro “New Edition” in the terms of a promotion. Huawei previously launched a P30 Lite New Edition with Google Mobile Services onboard and that phone was pretty much just a rehashed Huawei P30 Lite. If we make an assumption based on that, then this P30 Pro New Edition should have few differences from the current P30 Pro. We don’t know what those differences will actually be, though, since the only piece of evidence pointing to its existence is this text.

 

Now, to understand why Huawei would re-launch the P30 Pro, you have to understand that although Huawei can’t get GMS certification for new phone models, the certifications are still valid for existing models. Thus, so long as the changes that Huawei makes to an existing model allow it to run the exact same software release that Google already certified, then Huawei can re-release and rebrand their existing phones as many times as they like. This is actually pretty flexible for them, too. So long as they don’t try to ship a new SoC, they can add a bunch of upgrades such as more RAM, more storage, and different cameras. They can even change up the color and finish of the device to make the design seem fresh.

While Huawei can release new phones with HMS and AppGallery in place of Google Play Services and the Google Play Store, it’s advantageous for them to release new phones with Google apps for as long as possible. A big part of the Android experience for international users is based on compatibility with Google apps, as a bunch of apps rely on Google Play Services to work properly and many app developers have yet to bring their apps to Huawei’s app ecosystem.

Based on what we’ve just stated, the Huawei P30 Pro New Edition will almost certainly have a HiSilicon Kirin 980 SoC since that’ll allow it to retain the original P30 Pro’s GMS certification. Huawei could include better cameras (which would be a feat considering how the P30 Pro already performs), more RAM, more storage, and maybe even an updated design. They’ll even likely be able to offer Android updates with Google Mobile Services intact as they managed to do with the existing P30 Pro. However, because they can’t upgrade the SoC, they won’t be able to offer new connectivity and camera features that the jump to the Kirin 990 would have provided. Back with the Huawei P30 Lite New Edition, we didn’t see a lot of changes, so preparing yourself for a surprise here probably isn’t wise.

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Lenovo Legion Gaming Smartphone

 

The Lenovo Legion Gaming Smartphone with a 144Hz Display, 90W Charging, and Side Pop-up Camera

Lenovo’s self-branded smartphones may not be nearly as popular as the company’s Motorola-branded devices, but the brand still has fans in Asian countries like India and China. In an effort to capitalize on the company’s existing popularity with gamers, Lenovo is preparing to launch its first-ever Android gaming smartphone under its Legion Gaming brand. The Lenovo Legion gaming phone has been on our radar for over 4 months now, but we’re now ready to share all of the details we’ve uncovered about the device. Thanks to a trusted source, we have obtained multiple unreleased teaser videos that showcase the likely design of the upcoming Legion gaming phone, and we also have a detailed set of specifications to go along with these teasers.

In late December of 2019, Lenovo created a new account called “Legion Gaming Phone” on Chinese social media platform Weibo. Over a month and a half later, Lenovo officially teased the first smartphone under its Legion gaming brand. The company uploaded a poster announcing that this upcoming smartphone will be powered by the Snapdragon 865, Qualcomm’s highest-end SoC for mobile devices. Next, on March 3rd, Chen Jin, General Manager of Lenovo China Mobile, teased that the Legion gaming smartphone will feature a “disruptive new architecture” in order to solve two pain points faced by mobile gamers: different surface temperatures on the left and right sides and reduced charging speeds when gaming. The teasers slowed down for a few weeks as much of the world went into lockdown due to COVID-19.

Early last month, Lenovo ramped up its marketing for the device by uploading a poster that teases 90W fast wired charging on the Legion gaming phone. There was a lot of skepticism initially about whether the Legion phone actually charges at 90W, but Lenovo has since clarified that they aren’t playing a numbers game here. Furthermore, Lenovo’s 90W fast charging system will be “standard for all systems,” according to the company on Weibo, hinting that there will be more than one first-generation Legion smartphone model. More recently, Lenovo shared a render suggesting the Legion gaming phone has a notch-less display, and they also uploaded a video revealing that there will be a second USB Type-C port on the side so users can charge the phone while they hold the device horizontally.

Apart from official teasers, there have been a few noteworthy leaks of the Lenovo Legion gaming phone. First, back in March, an image of what seems to be Lenovo’s Legion gaming phone bundle was published by a blogger on Weibo. This bundle includes the phone itself but also a pair of gamepads, true wireless earbuds, and a protective case. We couldn’t really see the phone all that well in this leak, though. One week later, the technology blog of the Indian shopping website Pricebaba published images of what they believed to be the Lenovo Legion gaming phone. Those images were taken from the Chinese Patent Office, though we’re now certain that those images do not reflect the phone’s actual design.

In fact, here’s what the Lenovo Legion gaming phone will likely look like, based on screenshots we captured from multiple official marketing videos.

The two screenshots above are from a promotional video teasing the phone’s ultra-fast 90W wired charging. The floating light particles are from when a race car dissipates, revealing the Lenovo Legion as the “engine.” The streams of light following the phone in the second image end up entering the two USB Type-C charging ports: one on the bottom and another on the side. The caption “90W dual Type-C fast charge, 30 minutes to 100%” can be read at this time, confirming the phone will support this staggeringly fast charging speed. In a separate video, Lenovo reveals that the Legion gaming phone has a 5000mAh dual-cell battery design, which is what makes this ultra-fast charging speed possible. However, it isn’t clear from these videos whether or not you’ll reach the fastest 90W charging speed only when charging from the bottom USB-C port.

On the bottom of the device, you’ll find the SIM card tray alongside the primary USB-C charging and data port. On the top, there’s a microphone hole. I didn’t see a 3.5mm headphone jack anywhere on this device, which is disappointing considering the Lenovo Z6 Pro had one. The LED smack dab in the middle on the rear likely lights up for that “gamer aesthetic” that this phone is oozing. The dual rear cameras are located near the center of the device; the cameras are placed considerably lower on the body of the Lenovo Legion than they are on other smartphones, but this could be to retain the symmetrical appearance of the back cover. Speaking of which, the back cover looks like a smooth metal with a 3D texture, possibly either polycarbonate or aluminum. Near the middle-left (middle-top when viewing the phone horizontally), there’s the “LEGION” logo on top of a compartment that seemingly pops-up—but more on that later. The “LEGION” logo matches Lenovo’s official Legion Gaming logo, and the “Stylish Outside” and “Savage Inside” texts are part of Legion Gaming’s slogan.

In the separate video, Lenovo teases several other key features of the Legion gaming smartphone. First, the video shows visuals that demonstrate the phone’s “uEngine,” its symmetrical dual X-axis linear vibration motor. The video then goes on to tease the phone’s cooling and audio features, but the terms they use are heavy on marketing jargon, so they were difficult for us to translate. The video seems to say that the phone has a “3D cooling tower structure” with “dual heat pipe partitions” for “long-lasting cooling.” It also shows captions detailing the phone’s “positive stereo sound” from its “full symmetrical 65mm dual speakers”, “dual 0.6mm amp speaker system”, and “1.4cc large sound cavity.” The two speakers are located on the top and bottom bezel on the front.

What’s perhaps most interesting about this device, at least in my opinion, is how it deals with the placement of its front-facing camera. There’s no notch or hole-punch cutout on the display of the Lenovo Legion phone. Instead, there’s a pop-up camera…but it seems to be located on the side of the phone. Most other smartphones with pop-up cameras have them appear on top of the phone. Lenovo is going with a very unique approach here, and I’m not really sure how to react to this front-camera mechanism. It could turn out to be a really awful placement or it could end up being genuinely useful like the ASUS ZenFone 6‘s swivel camera.

Lastly, our source also provided us with a list of some of the specifications for the device. We don’t know everything yet, but we do know enough to say the Lenovo Legion gaming phone is packing top-tier hardware. First of all, the phone’s model name is L79031 and its code-name is “moba,” which likely refers to the multiplayer online battle arena video game genre. The first-generation Legion is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 and will have UFS 3.0 internal storage and LPDDR5 RAM. We don’t know the exact storage or RAM capacities. Next, the Legion should have a 144Hz refresh rate flat display (though we don’t know if it’s LCD or OLED) at FHD+ resolution (2340×1080) and with a 270Hz touch sampling rate. The phone runs Android 10 with Lenovo’s ZUI 12 customizations on top, which Lenovo will likely market as “Legion OS” for this device. Lastly, the phone has dual rear cameras (64MP + 16MP wide-angle) and a single front-facing camera (20MP).

When I first saw these renders, I was skeptical about their accuracy. They seem a bit outlandish when it comes to smartphone design—maybe I’ve fallen victim to another one of Lenovo’s design tricks? Although I’m still not 100% convinced the actual Lenovo Legion will look like the phone in these renders, I am very sure that the videos I obtained are official marketing videos. Lenovo may be exaggerating a bit about the phone’s bezels—as some smartphone companies tend to do in their marketing renders—but the overall design shown here will likely reflect the actual phone’s design.

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Windows 10X Coming to Laptops Amid Big Jump in Windows Usage...Microsoft

Windows 10X running on the Surface Neo.

Microsoft is confirming today that it’s planning to refocus Windows 10X on single-screen devices. “The world is a very different place than it was last October when we shared our vision for a new category of dual-screen Windows devices,” explains Panos Panay, Microsoft’s Windows and devices chief. “With Windows 10X, we designed for flexibility, and that flexibility has enabled us to pivot our focus toward single-screen Windows 10X devices that leverage the power of the cloud to help our customers work, learn and play in new ways.”

Microsoft isn’t saying exactly when single-screen devices like laptops will support Windows 10X, nor when dual-screen devices will launch with the OS. However, Windows 10X will launch on single-screen devices first. “We will continue to look for the right moment, in conjunction with our OEM partners, to bring dual-screen devices to market,” says Panay.

The new Windows 10X Start menu.

Microsoft is reprioritizing Windows 10X for laptops and single-screen devices because of the coronavirus pandemic. The software maker has seen a 75 percent year-over-year increase in the time spent in Windows 10. More people are turning to using their laptops or PCs instead of a smartphone or tablet during the lockdowns we’ve seen worldwide to work or study.

Originally planned for dual-screen hardware like the Surface Neo, Windows 10X includes a more stripped-back, simplified, and modern Windows interface. Microsoft has been working to modernize Windows 10X with some UI and UX changes that improve basics like multitasking, using the Start menu, and quick access to settings.

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How a Simple Breathing Trick Can Change Your Life

5 Ways Breathing Properly Can Change Your Life

From calming nerves and anxiety to making you feel more powerful, it's time to harness the power of your breath.

You know how when you go to a yoga class and the teacher tells you to focus on the breath?

And they keep going on (and on, and on) about the breathing?

That's because breathing properly can have a hugely transformative effect on the body, and it's time to wake up to its power.

Here are 5 ways your breath can change your life, along with a few simple exercises you can do right now.

1. It Reduces Anxiety

Your breath is a direct reflection of your mood: if you're calm and relaxed, your breath will be slow, long and even, whereas if you're stressed, your breath will be quicker and more shallow.

But breathing in such a rapid, panicky way simply exacerbates the situation and triggers the body's 'fight or flight' response.

The next time you're feeling stressed, simply close your eyes (if you're at work, try escaping to the loo for a few minutes), try inhaling deeply through the nose for a count of five, then exhale slowly out through the nose for a count of five, and repeat 10 times (more if necessary).

This slow, rhythmic breath stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, which in turn reduces the heart rate and relaxes the muscles and mind.

2. It Minimises Stress

Stress is inescapable, especially in our hyper-connected world, where every text message, email and app alert heightens that aforementioned 'fight or flight' response.

But what we can change is our reaction to these triggers. One of the ways we can do this is through the Relaxation Response, a technique first pioneered in the Seventies at Harvard Medical School by Dr. Herbert Benson.

This can be elicited in many ways, including meditation and yoga, but the common factor in all these techniques is deep belly breathing.

When we're stressed, we tend to take shallow breaths that limit the diaphragm's full range of motion.

The next time you feel your stress levels beginning to rise, place one hand on your belly, and take a deep breath in through the nose for a count of four, feeling the belly rise in your hand, then exhale for a count of four, feeling the belly fully empty. Repeat for one to two minutes.

3. It Helps You Sleep Better

The 4-7-8 breathing technique, pioneered by Dr Andrew Weil, is described as a 'natural tranquliser for the nervous system', and works by flooding the lungs with oxygen, calms the mind and reduces any stresses that may be keeping you awake.

While in bed, exhale completely out through the mouth making a 'whoosh' sound, then close your mouth and inhale through your nose for a count of four.

Hold your breath for a count of seven, then exhale completely out through your mouth for a count of eight, again while making the 'whoosh' sound.

Watch the full video on how to do it here.

4. It Aids Digestion

Your body uses oxygen to create energy, so a lack of oxygen can lead to discomfort throughout the body.

One of the main places this is witnessed in is the gut, with symptoms such as bloating and cramps.

By slowing down and breathing properly, we increase blood flow throughout the body, helping the digestive organs work more efficiently and speeding up the metabolism.

It can also help stabilise and balance blood sugar levels, meaning you're less likely to overeat.

Moreover, deep breathing is believed to lower acidity levels in the body (which increase when we're stressed), therefore reduces inflammation.

5. It Makes You More 'Present'

We're all guilty of dwelling on past events and allowing our mind to race ahead to things that haven't even taken place yet, both of which increase stress, anxiety and depression.

But doing any one of the above breathing exercises, even just for a short period of time, encourages you to be present by focusing on the simple act of breathing.

Slowing down and being mindful allows to you reconnect with the 'now' and is proven to help manage feelings of depression and anxiety. Give it a go today.

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Kim Jong-un Appears in Public

Media caption

State media reported that Kim Jong-un opened a fertilizer plant on Friday

Kim Jong-un has appeared in public for the first time in 20 days, North Korean state media says.

KCNA news agency reports that the North Korean leader cut the ribbon at the opening of a fertilizer factory.

It adds that people at the factory "broke into thunderous cheers of hurrah" when he appeared on Friday.

The reported appearance - his first since an event on state media on 12 April - comes amid global speculation over his health.

The latest reports from North Korean media could not be independently confirmed.

State media later released images that it said showed Mr Kim cutting a ribbon outside a factory.

Asked about Mr Kim's reported reappearance, US President Donald Trump told reporters that he didn't want to comment yet.

What does the state media report say?

According to Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Mr Kim was accompanied by several senior North Korean officials, including his sister Kim Yo-jong.

The North Korean leader cut a ribbon at a ceremony at the plant, in a region north of Pyongyang, and people who were attending the event "burst into thunderous cheers of 'hurrah!' for the Supreme Leader who is commanding the all-people general march for accomplishing the great cause of prosperity", KCNA says.

Image copyrightAFP

Image caption"Thunderous cheers of 'hurrah'" were heard as the factory was opened, according to KCNA

Mr Kim said he was satisfied with the factory's production system, and praised it for contributing to the progress of the country's chemical industry and food production, the state news agency adds.

What started speculation about his health?

Speculation about Mr Kim's health began after he missed the birth anniversary celebrations of his grandfather, state founder Kim Il-sung on 15 April.

The anniversary is one of the biggest events in the North Korean calendar, and Mr Kim usually marks it by visiting the mausoleum where his grandfather lies. Mr Kim had never missed this event.

Claims about Mr Kim's ill-health then surfaced in a report for a website run by North Korean defectors.

An anonymous source told the Daily NK that they understood he had been struggling with cardiovascular problems since last August "but it worsened after repeated visits to Mount Paektu".

This led to a chain of reporting by international media on a single-sourced story.

News agencies then began to run with that claim, and it was all they had until some reports emerged that intelligence agencies in South Korea and the US were monitoring the claim.

But then came a more sensational headline in US media that the North Korean leader was in a critical condition after heart surgery.

Media caption

Who is North Korea's leader Kim Jong-un?

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo appeared to stoke the rumours on 29 April, by saying US officials "hadn't seen" Mr Kim recently.

However, a statement from the South Korean government, and sources at Chinese intelligence - speaking to the Reuters news agency - said this was not true.

Has Kim Jong-un disappeared before?

Yes. Mr Kim went missing for 40 days in September 2014, after attending a concert. He reappeared in mid-October, using a cane.

State media never explained where he had been. But South Korea's intelligence agency said he probably had an operation on his left ankle stemming from problems with a cyst.

Caution is often tossed aside when reporting on North Korea. Thinly sourced, wildly speculative rumours can feed an industry aware that sensationalist headlines about Kim Jong-un are great clickbait.

Reporting on the secretive state is difficult. Facts and sources are very difficult to obtain, especially since the country is even more closed off to the world due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The South Korean government was clear that it noted no unusual activity in the North. Seoul often has the best intelligence from Pyongyang. But even they have been wrong in the past.

Let's be clear. Kim Jong-un could have been ill, or he could have had some sort of surgical procedure in the last two weeks. Or he could have been lounging on a yacht near his villa in Wonsan laughing at the world's wild speculation. His 20 day absence is not without precedent.

There are still valid questions to be asked about a potential successor and what plans are in place should something happen to him.

But there is one thing that has been lost in all of this. North Korea is more than one man. It is a country of 25 million people who are often overlooked. Today, Mr Kim's reappearance was at a fertiliser plant. The headlines will of course focus on his return, and on where he has been rather than on whether this factory will help the country tackle chronic food shortages.

I assure you, that for the people of North Korea right now, that is just as important as the unexplained absence of their leader.

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