If you like to look smart in front of your friends but don't feel like reading the news every single day — well, you're in luck. These are some of the most interesting news stories this week, and a few of our predictions for the week ahead.
Living Planet: Sea slugs are weird, we all knew that. We just didn't know to what extent, and now we kind of have a clue. Chromodoris reticulatae are hermaphroditic; they both receive and give sperm, and when mating, two of them do it by growing a penis, using it, then discarding it. Dumbstruck scientists had the creativity shocked out of them and called the phenomenon "extremely peculiar." It takes about a day to grow a new one.
Society & Culture: Our tech-savvy president sat down with a handful of Americans on Valentine's Day, two nights after his State of the Union Address. He talked climate change, Chuck Hagel, drone strikes and gun control ("Anybody who talked to those parents or the siblings of those who were killed would say we have to crack down and do something to reduce this violence"). John Green, best-selling author of "The Fault in Our Stars," and his (pregnant) wife Sarah, asked the president to help name their child, if it happens to be a girl. The president declined to comment, but went viral anyway.
Health & Medicine: Patients with retinitis pigmentosa finally have treatment options. The Argus II Retinal Prosthesis System is the first treatment for a disorder that deteriorates the retina membrane, and it allows those affected to see light and dark, which can assist in some everyday tasks, but will not restore full sight. The project was funded by nearly $100 million in grants.
Smart Homes: Samsung joined forces with SodaStream to build the RF31FMESBSR (it needs a better name), which it showed off at CES 2013. The first fridge with the capacity to dispense soda by forcing carbonated gas into water should be available in April.
Green Energy: Global energy generated by wind power grew 20 percent to 282 gigawatts in 2012, while solar power reached 100GW for the first time ever — a 50 percent increase in only two years. The United States lags behind on green initiatives, but the president has said that if Congress doesn't act, he will.
AutoTech: The Tesla and New York Times feud rages on. After Broder's review, Elon Musk fired back, which prompted another response from Broder, after which Musk released data logs, which Broder also responded to. Stay tuned for more if you're not already sick of this story.
Gadgets & Robots: Does anyone else remember Tamagotchi with as much bittersweet nostalgia as we do? If you're old enough to have experienced them (and the irritation and heartache they caused) in the mid-1990s, there's an app for that. Bandai announced on Valentine's Day that the Tamagotchi L.i.f.e. (Love Is Fun Everywhere) app will be hitting Android and iOS devices soon. One version will be free, and an ad-free one will cost 99 cents. The PS4's controller also leaked.
Software & OS: Microsoft's Office 2013 will only be able to register one computer. Ever. There is no option to deactivate it on one and use it on another, as was possible with 2010, and Microsoft's solution is subscription-based Office 365. We think 365 will be more cost-efficient for larger groups, but there are workarounds for 2013.
Mobile & PC:
This week: Hype has been with HTC this week; the Taiwanese company saw several leaks of pictures of its new One phone, which was codenamed M7 in development. News about Apple also dominated headlines-- about its bugs, its sales, its newfound dominance in Japan. Nokia's new Lumia 920 Slim also managed to sneak its way into an ad.
Next week: The Mobile World Congress begins next Saturday in Barcelona, Spain — we expect a bevy of announcements as mobile companies flaunt their wares. HTC is also holding a press conference on Feb. 19, which it has been hinting at for a few days now.
Internet & Social
This week: The FCC's name-and-shame reports show that internet service providers are delivering at their promised speeds, pretty much. Fiber optics and satellite performed best, though satellite suffers from high latency. Cable delivers pretty much exactly as promised at 99 percent promised speed, and DSL limps along at 85.
Next Week: Google is planning to open retail stores across the country, a move that could mean it's planning to (ahem) take a bite out of Apple. We expect to hear more about this as the week goes on.
Space & Science
This week: The asteroid fly-by seems lackluster in comparison to a meteor (no relation) that exploded over Russia, injuring more than 1,000 people — though killing none. It reportedly weighed 11 tons and shattered in the atmosphere, causing a shockwave that damaged buildings and structures over a hundred miles away. Neil DeGrasse Tyson, alarmingly enough, said that no one saw the meteor coming.
Next Week: February 20 is 51 years to the day after NASA launched John Glenn into orbit, then landed him 800 miles southeast of Bermuda.
