The week of June 17, 2024: An EV saga, tax, space, spending, and much, much more.

Publisher 2K Games and developer Visual Concepts are once again gearing up to release another jam-packed DLC pack for WWE 2K24.

Politics Over Progress: Roc Nation Criticism Highlights Lessons About Progressives From Our Past

Image: The Verge EU regulators have charged Microsoft with illegally bundling its Teams chat app with its Office 365 and Microsoft 365 subscriptions. It’s the first time Microsoft has been charged with antitrust violations in the EU for 15 years, following two big cases related to Windows Media Player and Internet Explorer bundling. “The European Commission has informed Microsoft of its preliminary view that Microsoft has breached EU antitrust rules by tying its communication and collaboration product Teams to its popular productivity applications included in its suites for businesses Office 365 and Microsoft 365,” says the European Commission in a statement today. Microsoft has now been handed a statement of objections, a list of the EU’s concerns over... Continue reading…

Photo: Aurora Uber’s freight hauling business will use Aurora’s driverless trucks on routes between Dallas and Houston as part of a new “long-term” deal that builds on a three-year-old commercial pilot. Uber Freight will be one of Aurora’s first customers on the Texas route launching later this year. Launched in 2017, Uber Freight connects truck drivers with shippers, much in the same way the company’s ridehailing app pairs drivers with those looking for a ride. Aurora, which was founded by former executives from Google, Uber, and Tesla, has said it plans to deploy 20 fully autonomous trucks this year. When it does, those trucks will be hauling goods for Uber Freight customers. Uber Freight will be one of Aurora’s first customers The two companies... Continue reading…

The Cybertruck is suffering from real-world issues. | The Verge / Photo by Bloomberg, Getty Images Tesla is again issuing a physical recall of its Cybertruck. This time it’s recalling 11,688 of its electric pickups due to a faulty windshield wiper that could reduce visibility for the driver, and 11,383 Cybertrucks due to trim in the truck bed that could come loose and create a road hazard for others. These new recalls follow a recall in April affecting 3,878 Cybertrucks over the risk of a jammed accelerator pedal. Issues with the gigantic wiper had surfaced in owner forums in recent weeks and reportedly delayed Cybertruck deliveries on short notice. The NHTSA recall notice for the wiper says that “excessive electrical current can cause the front windshield wiper motor controller to fail.” Tesla service will replace the wiper motor,... Continue reading…

It's happening; iOS 18 will bring RCS support to the iPhone, the one feature that some Android users have been dying to get. Well, they wouldn't get anything other than the ability to enjoy somewhat richer texting experiences with family and friends who own iPhones. However, this isn't Google's version of RCS. It's the carrier standard, so don't expect the same feature compatibility. One big difference will be the lack of end-to-end encryption for RCS messages between iPhone and Android. That said, you might be able to test RCS on iPhone right now, several months before Apple rolls out the first stable version of iOS 18, assuming the stars are aligned in a particular order. Continue reading... The post RCS texting is now available on iPhone in iOS 18 beta 2… sort of appeared first on BGR. Today's Top Deals Today’s deals: $714 Apple Watch Ultra 2, $30 Thermacell mosquito repeller, $130 Instant Pot Duo Plus, more Today’s deals: $30 Thermacell mosquito repeller, $189 AirPods Pro, free LED smart bulb, $349 Dyson, more Today’s deals: $79 AirPods, $99 Ninja blender, 25% off Google Pixel 8 Pro, Waterdrop RO filters, more Father’s Day deals: $20 Amazon credit, ASUS gaming laptops, Braun shavers, $160 off DJI Mini 3 drone, more

  One-of-a-Kind Roman Lorica Squamata Armor Restored In an unprecedented conservation triumph, the only known example of Roman legionary Lorica Squamata armor, dated to be around 1500 years old, has been meticulously restored in Turkey. This exceptional piece of military history was unearthed from the ancient site of Satala, located in Gümüşhane, during the 2020 excavation season. The restoration project, spearheaded by Turkey's Ministry of Culture and Tourism, showcases an extraordinary effort to preserve and understand Roman military heritage. The Journey of Restoration Initially discovered with the aid of the Ankara Regional Laboratory, the armor was carefully extracted from the site and transferred to the Erzurum Regional Restoration and Conservation Laboratory in 2021. The Praetorian Guards: To Serve and Protect the Roman Emperors… Most of the Time The Original Swiss Army Knife, Must Have Gadget for Legionnaires on the Go     Read moreSection: ArtifactsAncient TechnologyNewsHistory & ArchaeologyRead Later 

What Led to the Fall of Rome, History’s Mightiest Empire? (Video) The decline and fall of Rome was not a swift cataclysm but rather a gradual unraveling marked by numerous challenges. The symbolic end in 476 AD, when Odoacer deposed the last Western Roman Emperor, merely punctuated a process long in motion. The Empire's fragmentation into East and West, exacerbated by internal strife and external pressures, set the stage for its eventual demise. Economic troubles, including inflation and excessive taxation, strained the Empire's resources and sowed discontent among its populace. The Devaluation of Rome: Roman Inflation and the Demise of the Empire King Alaric: His Famous Sacking of Rome, Secretive Burial, and Lost Treasure The influx of "barbarian" tribes further weakened Rome's grasp on its territories. These tribes, driven by factors like climate change and seeking refuge from marauding Huns, settled within Roman borders, straining the Empire's ability to govern effectively. The once-mighty Roman legions found themselves stretched thin, unable to repel incursions or maintain control over increasingly autonomous regions. Read moreSection: NewsHistory & ArchaeologyVideosHistoryImportant EventsRead Later 

New Study Finds Dinosaur Fossils Did Not Inspire the Mythological Griffin For centuries, scientists thought they knew where the griffin legend came from. A new study takes a closer look at the data and folklore’s influence on science. A popular and widely-promoted claim that dinosaur fossils inspired the legend of the griffin, the mythological creature with a raptorial bird head and wings on a lion body, has been challenged in a new study. The Griffin Origin Story The specific link between dinosaur fossils and griffin mythology was proposed over 30 years ago in a series of papers and books written by folklorist Adrienne Mayor. These started with the 1989 Cryptozoology paper entitled ‘Paleocryptozoology: a call for collaboration between classicists and cryptozoologists’, and was cemented in the seminal 2000 book ‘The First Fossil Hunters.’ The idea became a staple of books, documentaries and museum exhibits. It suggests that an early horned dinosaur of Mongolia and China, Protoceratops, was discovered by ancient nomads prospecting for gold in Central Asia. Tales of Protoceratops bones then travelled southwest on trade routes to inspire, or at least influence, stories and art of the griffin. Read moreSection: NewsGeneralMyths & LegendsRead Later