Three's a party: US, China, and now Russia are on the prowl in GEO

Three's a party: US, China, and now Russia are on the prowl in GEO

fivenewscrypto    mai 17, 2026   

The world's leading space powers desperately want to know what the others are up to high above the equator. For more than a decade, the US military has operated a fleet of "inspector" satellites designed to sidle up to other spacecraft in geosynchronous orbit and take pictures. China started launching its satellites for a similar mission in 2018.

Ars has written about these activities in geosynchronous orbit (GEO) before, but the last few months have seen a couple of interesting developments. First, Russia has now joined the fray with the recent arrival of its own suspected inspector (or attack) satellite in GEO. Second, the US Space Force is poised to order more—perhaps many more—reconnaissance satellites of its own to send into the geosynchronous belt.

GEO is special. The laws of orbital mechanics mean a satellite in this type of orbit, some 22,000 miles (36,000 kilometers) over the equator, moves around the Earth at the same rate as the planet's rotation, causing it to hover over the same location. Commercial and military-owned geosynchronous satellites typically spend years in the same location, or slot, to provide communications services to users.

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Ebola outbreak with uncommon strain erupts in Congo and Uganda; 65 deaths

Ebola outbreak with uncommon strain erupts in Congo and Uganda; 65 deaths

fivenewscrypto    mai 17, 2026   

The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention on Friday confirmed an Ebola outbreak in the Northeastern Ituri province of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Officials in Uganda subsequently reported that the deadly hemorrhagic disease had spilled over the border, with one "imported" confirmed case identified in Kampala, the capital.

So far, the DRC has reported 246 suspected cases and 65 deaths, mainly in the Mongwalu and Rwampara health zones. Although it is now just being reported, the outbreak already ranks around the 10th largest Ebola outbreak to date.

This marks the 17th Ebola outbreak in the DRC since the virus was discovered in 1976. But unlike almost all of the country's past Ebola outbreaks, preliminary laboratory results suggest that the current outbreak is not caused by the Zaire Ebola virus strain. Further genetic sequencing is ongoing today to determine the strain causing the illnesses.

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Send the arXiv AI-generated slop, get a yearlong vacation from submissions

Send the arXiv AI-generated slop, get a yearlong vacation from submissions

fivenewscrypto    mai 17, 2026   

AI-generated slop has shown up everywhere, including in the peer-reviewed literature. Fake citations, unedited prompt responses, and nonsensical diagrams have all slipped past editors and peer reviewers, and it's not always clear if there are any consequences for the people responsible.

Now, it appears that a number of scientific fields will be enforcing rules against AI-generated problems even before peer review or journals get involved. One of the people involved in the physics and astronomy preprint server arXiv used a social media thread to announce that any inappropriate AI-produced content submitted to the server will result in a one-year ban and a permanent requirement that future publications undergo peer review before the arXiv will host them.

Thomas Dietterich, in addition to being an emeritus professor at Oregon State University, is heavily involved with arXiv, serving on its editorial advisory council and on its moderation team. So he's in a good position to understand the organization's policies, although we have also reached out to arXiv leadership for confirmation, but have not yet received a response.

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OpenAI feels “burned” by Apple’s crappy ChatGPT integration, insiders say

OpenAI feels “burned” by Apple’s crappy ChatGPT integration, insiders say

fivenewscrypto    mai 17, 2026   

OpenAI is reportedly exploring legal options after Apple's ChatGPT integration into its products didn't live up to the AI firm's expectations.

When the deal was announced, Apple likened features linking Siri to ChatGPT to its now-infamous deal embedding Google search in the Safari browser, insiders granted anonymity to discuss the "strained" partnership told Bloomberg. And the promise of that excited OpenAI, which expected the deal "could generate billions of dollars per year in subscriptions," an OpenAI executive granted anonymity to discuss the partnership told Bloomberg.

Instead, OpenAI suspects Apple intentionally failed to promote the integration and fears that the deal may have damaged the ChatGPT brand, sources said.

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Volkswagen shows its first electric GTI; there's no chance of US sales

Volkswagen shows its first electric GTI; there's no chance of US sales

fivenewscrypto    mai 16, 2026   

When Volkswagen introduced the first Golf GTI in Europe in 1976, it might not have been the first hot hatchback, but it quickly became the gold standard version. Unlike in America, where big cars were cheap and fuel even cheaper, small European streets and even smaller car-buying budgets necessitated vehicles a little more economical in both size and fuel consumption. Small, front-wheel-drive hatchbacks were the answer, but they weren't particularly exciting. The GTI changed that perception with a more powerful engine, sharper handling, and subtle styling tweaks, creating a recipe for the next 50 years. And today, VW showed off its first electric GTI.

While the new EV might be inspired by the original Golf GTI, it's one segment smaller than the current Golf—meet the VW ID. Polo GTI. VW has given some of its ID EVs GTX branding until now, but this is the first to get the GTI badge.

Like the 1976 original, the new car has front-wheel drive, but the ID. Polo GTI's electric motor generates 222 hp (166 kW)—just over twice the output of the 1.6 L engine in the old car. There's a 52 kWh battery pack that provides a WLTP range estimate of 236 miles (424 km), with DC fast charging up to 105 kW with a 10–80 percent charge time of 24 minutes.

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Making cement from a different type of rock could clean up emissions

Making cement from a different type of rock could clean up emissions

fivenewscrypto    mai 16, 2026   

Cement production alone currently accounts for about 8 percent of global CO₂ emissions, so considerable effort is going into lowering that number. Efficiency can be increased, and energy sources can be swapped for cleaner ones, but a stubborn reality remains: The byproduct of turning limestone into lime during cement production releases CO₂ gas. These “direct process emissions” are actually slightly larger than the emissions from burning fuel to heat the kilns and drive this process.

A new paper in Communications Sustainability suggests a route to eliminating direct process emissions by removing a bedrock assumption. What if we don’t have to use limestone cement?

Get out of Portland

The material we call “Portland cement” was developed in the 1800s. It simply requires heating limestone (calcium carbonate) and adding something like clay or coal ash. This gives you the calcium oxide (lime) you’re after but also releases the CO₂ that results when you pull an oxygen atom from carbonate.

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Bill to block publishers from killing online games advances in California

Bill to block publishers from killing online games advances in California

fivenewscrypto    mai 16, 2026   

A bill focused on maintaining long-term playable access to online games has passed out of the California Assembly's appropriations committee, setting up a floor vote by the full legislative body. The advancement is a major win for Stop Killing Games' grassroots game preservation movement and comes over the objections of industry lobbyists at the Entertainment Software Association.

California's Protect Our Games Act, as currently written, would require digital game publishers who cut off support for an online game to either provide a full refund to players or offer an updated version of the game "that enables its continued use independent of services controlled by the operator." The act would also require publishers to notify players 60 days before the cessation of "services necessary for the ordinary use of the digital game."

As currently amended, the act would not apply to completely free games and games offered "solely for the duration of [a] subscription. Any other game offered for sale in California on or after January 1, 2027, would be subject to the law if it passes.

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