Interaction of centripetal and centrifugal forces

Disney Plus ' subscriber base grew to 54.5 million members as of Monday, Disney said Tuesday, just shy of the six-month mark since the streaming video service launched. But even with cinemas shut down around the globe because of the coronavirus pandemic, Disney reiterated its plans to theatrically release its new movies rather than bringing more straight to streaming on Disney Plus . CEO Bob Chepak reiterated Mulan 's July 24 date to debut in theaters, the first on the slate, as well as the the planned theatrical release dates for other big-budget movies like Marvel 's Black Widow on Nov. 6 and Pixar 's Soul on Nov. 20. But Chepak hinted Disney could change its tune. "We very much believe in the value of the theatrical experience overall to launch blockbuster movies," he said. "But we also realize that, either because of changing and evolving consumer dynamics, or because of certain situations like COVID, we may have to make some changes to that overall strategy, … [Read more...] about Disney Plus hits 54.5M members but new movies will wait for theaters (for now)

Roughly 700 million years ago, a tiny subatomic particle was born in a galaxy far, far away and began its journey across the vast expanses of our universe. That neutrino finally reached the Earth's South Pole last October, setting off detectors buried deep beneath the Antarctic ice. A few months earlier, a telescope in California had recorded a bright glow emanating from the friction of that same distant galaxy—evidence of a so-called " tidal disruption event " (TDE), most likely the result of a star being shredded by a supermassive black hole. According to two new papers ( here and here ) published in the journal Nature Astronomy, that lone neutrino was likely born from the TDE, which serves as a cosmic-scale particle accelerator near the center of the distant galaxy, spewing out high-energy subatomic particles as the star's matter is consumed by the black hole. This finding also sheds light on the origin of ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays, a question that has puzzled astronomers … [Read more...] about Lone high-energy neutrino likely came from shredded star in distant galaxy

In context: Apple seems to have no shortage of antitrust accusations flung at it lately. Earlier this week, the UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal dropped a case against the Cupertino tech titan brought on by the continuing "Apple Tax" spat with Epic Games. Now, the company faces scrutiny in the US from the Department of Justice over its alternative sign-in method. The Information reports that developers began complaining last summer about being forced to use the "Sign in with Apple" (SIWA) feature in their apps if they employed other third-party authentication measures like signing in with Facebook, LinkedIn, or Google. The DoJ is interested in finding out if the button gives Apple an unfair advantage by making it more difficult for consumers to switch to rival devices. According to sources close to the DoJ, some developers using sign-in buttons for Facebook or Google have done away with them because they did not want to be forced to add the Apple authentication method. The … [Read more...] about US DOJ opens antitrust probe over ‘Sign in with Apple’ button complaints

From its new home on the Red Planet, NASA's Perseverance rover may soon have a front-row view of an otherworldly light show. When the next seasonal dust storm passes through Jezero crater (where the rover landed on Feb. 18), the air around the rover could crackle and glow with purple light from the collision of statically charged dust particles, a new study suggests. These colorful sparks would almost certainly be too small and weak to pose a threat to Perseverance, or to any hypothetical humans who alight on Mars in the future, said lead study author Joshua Méndez Harper, a geologist from the University of Oregon. However, the presence of electrostatic forces on Mars could have wide-ranging implications for how scientists understand the Red Planet's atmosphere and its potential to foster life, Méndez Harper said. Related: Here's the last thing NASA's Opportunity rover saw before 'lights out' "Small sparks may catalyze the production of chemicals that may … [Read more...] about Martian dust storms may spark electric purple glow